Category: Food

I can’t eat lentil soup anymore. The reason is I made so much of it last winter, sort of overdid a good thing. Now I’ve got to let it rest. There are plenty of different kinds of soups, but I don’t easily shift gears in the soup department. Actually, there’s tasty, hearty, and easy to prepare pea soup. It’s hard to get it wrong. If you’re inclined to add too much water it’s simply not as thick – less water makes scooping it up with delicious slices of crusty bread, or great tasting crackers, easy. And it’s pure delight to open the refrigerator and see lots of it.

So I scooted over to a nearby organic market and bought a package of dried split peas, and  two bags of vegetables, and added a few pieces of delicious-looking sushi to the cart. It was a sleeting, cold, dismal kind of evening. The kind of evening that found customers hovering over the dessert counter for comfort. Yes, it seemed a perfect evening for preparing pea soup and having its fragrance greet every room.

It was cold – definitely not a night to linger outside. I scurried back, and soon began chopping a big onion, diced 1 clove of garlic, and 6 carrots, and into the pot they went. Then I sifted through and rinsed 3 cups of dried split peas and added two cups of water for every one cup of dried split peas, 5 whole cloves, and Celtic salt and pepper to taste.

Adding a sliced steamed yam. and a few pieces of dulce is a nice touch. Look at the beauty of the colors before taking your first taste, and enjoy.

The best meal of the day is always breakfast usually at home. It doesn’t matter that tonight’s dinner is at a restaurant with a 3-month wait for a reservation and is written-up in magazines whose chef has a show on the Food Network. It’s breakfast that makes getting up easy-even when it consists only of orange juice, 2 slices of Eziekel bread with St. Dalfour Wild Blueberry spread and a great cup of coffee. www.foodnetwork.com www.stdalfour.com

If you’re a person who savors breakfast and happen to be a guest at the home of someone who skips breakfast and exercises while sipping a protein drink, well, action is called for. Pack up and leave. There are those people who never think of eating breakfast. Oh, it’s hard to believe, I know. But it’s true. Ruthless I am when it comes to breakfast.

My sister Anna seems never to stop baking blueberry muffins. If she did there would be a lot of disappointed people. In the summer she gets up very early, has breakfast, and off she goes blueberry picking. There’s always at least one family member trailing behind her with their pail. She doesn’t have to hold her pail-more blueberries to pick-she found a sturdy container contraption a few years ago that ties around her waist. At the end of blueberry season she’s got containers of frozen blueberries lined up well able to take her and family straight through until the next blueberry season. Her muffins and a cup of coffee and fresh fruit are expected by everyone who visits her home.

Have you ever stayed at the home of someone who simply doesn’t cook-never, ever? Often they’re workaholics, but they can be people in charge of cooking and are challenged in the kitchen. They try very hard to please and wear themselves out because they’re constantly running out for takeout. Breakfast can consist of coffee and 4 or 5 little brown bags of pastry picked up at the local coffee shop or cafe, or getting up and eating out at their favorite place. They like great places, just not their own kitchen. It’s not worth trying to teach someone how to make breakfast when the incentive is not there, and it’s not there when the toast they prepare is usually burned. But that’s okay. They try.

Of course, you feel the same way about breakfast. Don’t you?

I can’t eat lentil soup-can’t even think about it anymore. Have you ever overdone a food item and thinking about it brings on that no thank you feeling, followed by a little queasiness? Once upon a time I savored that soup. It remains popular. Every so often I see a picture of a big steaming bowl of it in a magazine-even in a magazine where you’d least expect it to be. But lentil soup and I have had it. We’re finished, for now.

The good part is that I’ve found something to take its place. It’s split pea soup. Is any soup easier to prepare than this one? My French Canadian mother prepared it early in the morning using salt pork or a ham bone. The smell wafted through the house. She was an early bird, and before anyone was up in the morning she was immersed in setting the ingredients out for upside down pineapple cheesecake, apple pie, and a favorite soup. And when those wonderful smells brought the household to attention she began preparing delicious delicate crepes.

Dried peas have a big taste all their own. It seems to me that no matter what ingredients are added, that distinct pea taste is at the forefront. The pea soup I prepare has these ingredients:

dried split peas-2 cups, pickd over for tiny stones, then rinsed6
onions-1 1/2 cups, chopped
garlic-6, chopped, if you like garlic, go for it!
ginger-2 tablespoons, grated
cloves-6 whole or ground to taste
carrots-1 1/2 cups, sliced
potatoes-2 or 3, chopped (optional)
salt-Celtic, to taste (optional)
pepper-to taste (optional)
water-2 quarts, or more

Place all ingredients in a heavy pot, bring to a boil, cover and simmer. Perhaps for 2 hours, longer if you like a thick saucy consistency. Can be cooked in a crock pot, too.

Ingredients can be increased, decreased, eliminated, other ingredients added, different spices. Dried peas, onions, garlic, water are the basics. Have fun, prepare it with love and savor.

When I’m at a loss as to what to have for dinner, or when it’s a lazy evening, or if I’m a guest somewhere, and happen to be the designated cook, and if no one’s craving a hearty meal, then it’s frittata night. Yeah! If the right ingredients are in the fridge, then it’s an absolutely delicious frittata night. The right ingredients could be:

good quality olive oil
8 great tasting organic or fresh from the Farmers’ Market eggs, mixed thoroughly in a suitable bowl
onion, whole or half, sliced or chopped-depending on taste
1 garlic clove, diced
1 tomato, chopped
1 potato, chopped and cooked
vegetables on hand, bite-size, cooked asparagus, broccoli, fresh peas, whatever you think is a good combination, don’t overdo quantity
meat, if you fancy it, cooked, don’t overdo quantity
fresh herbs, basil, rosemary, or tarragon, to taste
a wonderful cheese, perhaps freshly grated parmesan-do we agree, nothing processed?

Now this is all easy and fun: A BROILER PROOF heavy 10″ skillet is needed. Let’s put it all together-

This is quite fast as most ingredients are already cooked.

Add enough olive oil for the following, perhaps a few tablespoons, then:
saute a whole or half onion. When onion is translucent, or when your eyes tell you it’s done, add garlic and saute a few seconds, then add the chopped tomato to heat, the chopped potato, the vegetables you’ve chosen, and meat. Stir together to heat. Sprinkle on the herbs and stir. Pour the eggs evenly over the contents of the pan. Sprinkle the cheese over contents. Watch the flame, not too high. Let eggs set, Pay attention to how things look. Lift the edge to determine doneness of eggs. Place in broiler. It cooks VERY QUICKLY UNDER THE BROILER, so keep an eye on your frittata. It’s going to be HOT when you take it out. Don’t BURN yourself.

Tasty! Right? And fun? You could add a loaf of great bread, or a salad, maybe a glass of wine. And there you are.

Experiment, make it your own using different ingredients.

Whatever you do, enjoy.

So, Emi, I’m surprised and delighted that you’re writing about food-the good and bad of it. It’s not what I thought you’d write about, but, then again, I sense lately that you’re more and more in tune with what food does to your body, mind and spirit. I thought music, movies, travel, clubs and school for your writings. I was wrong. Great going, Emi.

David Wolfe, www.sunfood.com who is BIG in the raw food movement, was allergic to a lot of the foods he ate before deciding on a raw food way of life. And, there are a good amount of people healed from cancer by understanding their food needs. Carol Alt has a cookbook, or shall we say an uncookbook, telling us about the benefits of raw foods. And years ago when Louise Hay was diagnosed with cancer, she changed her lifestyle big time. And when we begin changes in one area of our life, other changes naturally follow.

Many of us are allergic to certain foods, but haven’t yet realized it. I think many of us have trouble with sugar and those other artificial sweeteners. Some dairy and soy products, along with flours such as white and wheat make us feel listless. And that’s the least of it. Some brands of pastas actually put people in a very drowsy mood-just as if they had taken a mild sleeping pill. It’s important for all of us to be aware, totally aware, of what’s going into our bodies. Otherwise, we’ll go through the day feeling off-balanced. And that’s the least of it.

It was only a few months ago that I tasted Baba Ganoush for the first time. Now I’m addicted to it. I like thinking about its beautiful color, and preparing it and blending it. But, of course, most of all I like eating it. I use more garlic and parsley than the recipes I’ve seen suggest. After preparing it a few times, you’ll probably want to experiment, using more or less of this and that ingredient. It’s fun to personalize a recipe.

The ingredients for Baba Ganoush are 1 large eggplant, 3 tablespoons or more tahini, 3 tablespoons water, 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon fresh chopped garlic, 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, 1/2-1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Pierce eggplant all over, put on baking pan and roast in oven for 1 hour, or broil eggplant in oven, turning until skin is dark. When soft, remove from oven and cool for a few minutes. Drain in strainer, then peel and chop. Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor.

Don’t hesitate to buy organic. I think the creamy & raw, no salt added sesame tahini is a good choice. Find the taste that’s perfect for you. The taste of Baba Ganoush differs among restaurants, too. Perhaps one day we’ll go to the Middle East and explore the taste there. Oh, yes. Serve it with toasted pita bread. It’s also good with crackers, like Wasa Multi Grain Crispbread, Ryvita Light Rye, Nairn’s Rough Oat Cake Crackers.

So creamy, so satisfying, so delectable. Right?