New (and semi-depressing) blog Fed Up: School Lunch Project is written by a teacher who plans to eat her school’s hot lunch every day in 2010. I know we all know school lunch is crappy, but to see each lunch (like the one pictured above), one after the other, is downright grim.
And the polar opposite of that Salisbury steak? Pljeskavicas—or “Balkan burgers”—as seen in this week’s New York Times food section. I think a trip out to Astoria is in the near future for me.
Two years ago, Mark Bittman came up with 101 easy-to-make summer meals, and being an aficionado of all things in list form, I decided to make my way through the lot. I got through about two dozen, almost all of which were great (and, I discovered, I really quite like anchovies).
Well, now there’s a new list — 101 Simple Salads for the Season — and I’m giving it a go.
Here’s our first entry: 15. Cut cherry or grape tomatoes in half; toss with soy sauce, a bit of dark sesame oil and basil or cilantro. I love this — the tomato juice-soy thing is incredible.
I honestly think I may never eat tomatoes any other way ever again. It doesn’t seem like it would be that great, but the salty/savory/pungent combination of the soy sauce, sesame oil, and cilantro is a perfect match for tomatoes at their peak of sweetness.
Oh, Mr. Bittman. Between this list and your recent semi-retraction on your canned beans stance that got me so riled up, I think I might really like you again.
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Fascinating story in today’s NYTimes about the guy (and his family) behind Huy Fong Foods, maker of Tuong Ot Sriracha (Sriracha Chili Sauce) — including the correct pronunciation: SIR-rotch-ah.
I think one of my favorite ways to eat this sriracha is with some peanut butter on crackers — what about you?
If you’ve been reading this blog long enough, you’ll know I like New York Times writer Mark Bittman enough to try and cook as many foods as possible from his “101 Simple Meals” article. However, this new article on what he deems IN or OUT for this year is, well, really pissing me off.
Here’s the list of what he deems OUT:
Packaged bread crumbs or croutons.
Bouillon cubes or powder, or canned stock.
Aerosol oil.
Bottled salad dressing and marinades.
Bottled lemon juice.
Spices older than a year.
Dried parsley and basil.
Canned beans.
Imitation vanilla.
Grated imitation “Parmesan” (any other pre-grated cheese).
Canned peas (and most other canned vegetables).
Tomato paste in a can.
Premade pie crusts.
Cheap balsamic or flavored vinegars.
Minute Rice or boil-in-a-bag grains.
“Pancake” syrup.
Here’s why people actually buy these these supposed horrors:
Time. The canned beans one chaps my ass especially. I’m no stranger to cooking dry beans. It’s time-consuming and always a gamble as to how they’ll come out. Have you ever cooked chickpeas from scratch? It takes at least two hours — after an overnight soak. I don’t generally start planning dinner 24 hours beforehand; do you? The same goes for the sneer at boil-in-a-bag grains. Parboiled brown rice (you know, one of those whole grains we’re all supposed to be getting more of?) is done in 10 minutes, compared to 45-55 minutes for brown rice cooked from raw. And no, parboiled rice does not lose any of its nutrition along the way.
Money. In lieu of buying bottled lemon juice, he advocates buying lemons “six at a time.” Look, I love lemons as much as the next cook, but here in my neighborhood Key Food, lemons are 99¢ a throw. At that price, it’s no longer an ingredient; it’s a condiment, to be used sparingly. I can’t say I’d buy it, but I can certainly understand the appeal of 32 ounces of bottled lemon for the price of two fresh lemons. The same stands for vanilla. Vanilla beans: around $10. Imitation vanilla extract: $2.79.
I think what really bothers me the most is that I just… expected more from Mark Bittman. The entire piece has a sanctimonious and intimidating tone. I feel uncomfortable reading it and I already buy most of these things already — I can’t imagine how someone less comfortable in a kitchen would feel reading this, knowing their kitchen is tainted with “cheap balsamic” or a stray can of corn.
Actually, I take it back. I can imagine how they’d feel. They’d feel like Mark Bittman: kind of an ass.
My not-so-secret eco-shame: I am a magazine addict.
I give the excuse that, oh, as writers, my husband and I need them to see who’s writing about what, but mostly? I just really love magazines. Eff you, trees! I need to read about ‘Stars Without Makeup!’ and ‘Brady Bunch Bombshell!’ (I also read The Economist but their headlines are rubbish.)
Anyway, a new site called The Read Green Initiative is offering access to an environmentally-friendly way of enjoying favorite magazines by offering a free one-year subscription to a bunch of magazines, like Vegetarian Times and Saveur.
And unlike paper magazines, the digital versions are completely searchable (something I have wished for so often when flipping through old copies of Everyday Food for that one Brussels sprouts with bacon recipe I thought I saw one time). I also like that clicking on an article title in the index takes you directly to the article (instead of thumbing through the magazine, muttering ‘one-thirty-six, one-thirty-six, one-thirrrrrrrty-siiiiiiiix’).
The downside: none of the magazines offered are covering ‘Jamie Lynn’s Web of Lies!’ so I guess I’ll keep supporting tree-killers until then.
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