Edible Tulip

Chicken Tikka Masala; a Cabbage Carrot Saute; Potato Stir-Fry; Coconut Snow Pea and Bok Choy Side -- Indian Night!

 

Not sure which part of my personality begs the over-achiever to rear up (middle child syndrome STILL?!?) but anyway I set myself up for ridiculous tasks sometimes. The idea seems intriguing. Challenging even, but always easily overcome in thought. But often when I begin the task I've enunciated out loud I feel so burdened, even angry, and all at myself, mostly pissed off that I can't just sit on a couch for an evening and eat a non proper meal and do nothing. I'm just not sure how much of my rigid upbringing around food, formality, getting dressed up for dinner (I'll almost always still change for dinner, put on lipstick, tie up my hair, etc.), selecting wine, prepping, lighting candles, even when I'm alone for god's sake. It is what I do to complete my day, to celebrate the evening, oh how I love the fall of dusk, the welcome quiet, the silent and thoughtful company of lamp light, and those first absolutely indulgent sips of wine. It's quiet here. We're still getting used to living in a smallish town. The crickets are still here and yet the coyotes have also arrived. Ten years ago a glass of absinthe, a mattress somewhere in Paris or Moscow, a typewriter, the constant sensation of feeling drunk on nicotine and soothed by booze, ravaging a loaf of bread, was all pretty much in an evening. Now I like a "family" meal. Even if there's just two of us. Or one of us. (My dog is also a perfectly good dining companion.)

So at 7 pm, I decided to start cooking my Indian meal, 4 dishes, from scratch. Granted, I had all the ingredients. The meal would consiste of a Chicken Tikka Masala, a Cabbage and Carrot Saute with Cumin and Lime, a Potato Stir Fry with Ground Coriander and Mint, and an improved Snow Pea and Bok Choy Side Dish based on a Green Bean and Coconut Recipe but in fact it was nothing like it (the grocery store was out of green beans, I brought home shredded coconut but could not convince myself to add it to the bok choy.) As you can see above, it turned out nicely. Everything came out suprisingly authentic Indian tasting, if perhaps more subtle, and less overtly saucy or heavy on the ghee. My boyfriend is now wowed by my multi-tasking, prioritizing, efficiency. That is, until I turn it towards home projects.

Mexican Gazpacho and Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

The night after a week of eating cottage food and a day of eating road trip food (in my case, Budweiser beer and salt & vinegar Lay's chips), and the night before to a large Italian sit down family feast, I invited my boyfriend over for a celebratory dinner, despite food being the last thing on my mind.

I wore a cranberry coloured polyester cocktail dress that I found at a vintage store on Roncesvalles Avenue for $15. It is smashing with diamond earring studs and strappy black peekaboo sandals. We had chilled Italian Prosecco. And a bottle of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon that we got at a liquor store in Ellenburg, New York, that my father has been stopping at on his way to the cottage for more than 20 years. The guy has incredible deals. We got a California Cab Sauv, a French Rose, an Australian Sauvignon Blanc and an Australian Merlot for $26. He had three of the wines on a $4.99 special "last case in New York State" sell off. We ate the only meal I could summon myself to eat while I was trying both to detox and to cook in a sweltering kitchen - cold soup and vegetable laden bread with a bit of piquant. It's not fancy but it is sufficient in colour and aroma to make a romantic meal for two. I dressed the table with a tall yellow candle in a silver candlestick, aquamarine placements, grass green linen napkins, and the bamboo blinds pulled down enough to only let in slivers of urban light. The moon shone its silouhette through the matchsticks.

Menu

Mexican Gazpacho

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

Fresh Peas, Mango Green Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Baskin Robbins Espresso Bean Ice Cream after a walk through Christie Pitts Park with the dog

Mexican Gazpacho serves 6

2 garlic cloves

1 tsp kosher salt

1 lg. cucumber, peeled,chopped

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded, chopped

2 celery sticks, chopped

4 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 red onion, chopped

4 cups tomato juice

2 tsp ground cumin (I toasted cumin seeds instead and left them whole for a smoky flavour)

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 jalappeno pepper, chopped, sprinkle in a few seeds

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

Black pepper

Cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Salsa Topping

1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced

Juice of 2 limes

Directions: Pound garlic and salt in a mortar and pestle. *my garlic only shredded, rather than being pounded out into a paste, but it worked fine 2. Put cucumber, bell pepper, celery, tomato and onion in a bowl, and add the garlic 3. Pulse 1/2 the mixture in a food processor until just blended but still a bit chunky. Pour back into the bowl. 4. Mix in tomato juice, cumin seeds, chili, and top with red wine vinegar. Stir. Chill several hours. 5. Just before serving the soup, dice the avocado and toss with the lime juice. Top each bowl with a spoonful of salsa. Season with pepper and a sprinkling of cilantro leaves.

Taste Canada

Jennifer of the sweet-tooth inducing blog The Domestic Goddess has come up with a brilliant idea for Canadian bloggers to celebrate our culture and heritage through food in a traditional way (Alberta beef, campfire meals, Niagara produce, wild foods, fiddleheads, artic char) and in a modern melting pot way (walk down any street in a Canadian city and you're bound to see global influences all over the food lanscape).

A group of Canadian bloggers have come together in this nation-wide net event called Taste Canada and we'd love for other fellow Canadians to join us. The theme is food, specifically Canadian food, whatever that means to you, and on July 1st the various blogs participating will post their entry to the web. If anyone else if interested in participating please drop by Jennifer's blog and you will find an official invite with more details about the event for your interest.

We would love to link Canadian bloggers together to not only celebrate food but also to celebrate the traditions that make us unique as Canadians.