Tourist Time!

Friday morning Alex and I went for a much shorter run, about 2.5 miles, just to get ourselves up and moving.  Instead of going back to the Marina, we just ran through Pacific Heights and looked at the beautiful architecture. And actively avoided steep hills.  We did pretty well!

We got ready for the day, ate our Whole Foods-bought oatmeal (budget conscious AND healthy vacationing!), then headed out to Pier 33 to go to Alcatraz.  I took some pics of houses and buildings on our 2 mile walk over there.

Looking out toward the bay.

Palm trees!

The view from the ferry.

It was such a cool tour!  I often can't pay attention to audio guides (or any tour guide), but this was so well done.  It held my interest the whole time.  I liked how demanding it was!  It told you exactly which way to walk and when and where... haha.

Cells at Alcatraz!  Eeek!

It was such a foggy day.

Look what's on the menu at Alcatraz!

We decided to go slightly more gourmet and stopped in at a sandwich/salad place for a light lunch.  I was starting to turn into hungry grumpy Freya so it was a good thing we ate.  I didn't take a pic, but I had a cup of veggie soup and half of a turkey and provolone foccacia sandwich.

Then we began our hike up to Telegraph Hill!  It was such an exhausting climb, and I only got a little bit nervous about being so high up.  It was really just a path of stairs that ran through this funky little neighborhood all up on a huge hill.  I couldn't figure out how people accessed their homes!  There was definitely no street access, so I guess they do a lot of stairs?  Wild!

Almost there...

We made it to the top!!!  And saw a pretty, foggy view of the city and the Bay Bridge.

Then it was time for a caffeine break.  This was a seriously active day, and jet lag was creeping up on me.  We climbed more hills (were there any left to climb?) and eventually found ourselves on Polk St. near Sarah's apt and found a great coffee shop with big cozy chairs and a skim mocha.  Aaaahhh :)

For dinner, Sarah and I went to Catch, and I can't believe I didn't take a picture.  IT WAS SO GOOD.  We thought it was going to be a restaurant week special, but it wasn't, which was fine because ordered really well.  I had a Manhattan to start (special weekends calls for special cocktails!), and then we split a HUGE tuna tartare appetizer with lots of warm bread/toast.  I ordered sea bass with asparagus, shaved brussels sprouts, and a cherry olive salsa.  I wish I had a picture.  Or the ability to link to a taste.  So unusual, and SO YUMMY.  I ate every last bite!  I was so full that I couldn't even READ the dessert menu.  It was a great meal, followed by a couple of Anchor Steam beers at a bar in Pac Heights.

So much SF love!  Next up is my day in Napa... so excited to blog it :)

Playing Ketchup Part 1

(Post title in honor of my roommate Allison, who will put ketchup on anything and everything.)

HAPPY NEW YEAR, BLOGGIES!!!  I have a good feeling about 2010.  I have yet to come up with resolutions, but I'm pretty sure I need to establish at least a few.  I think I'm on the verge of a major life change or two, and I could use some sort of blueprint to work with, aka new year's resolutions.  Will post them when I come up with them.

As you may have guessed, I am back from the family cruise vacation, and while I have lots of stuff to share from the trip, I also seem to still have leftovers from December.  Since I have been very diligent about photographing but much less diligent about blogging, I have found myself with a backlog of photos that I want to post.  So I'm going to go back in time with a few food highlights from the past few weeks.  I've been mostly working from home and/or not working at all (yay bench time!), so I've had time to get back in the kitchen, and I totally overlooked the holiday season.  How grinchy of me!  Once I catch up from 2009, I will start fresh with a cruise post and then try to keep up with myself. As a matter of fact, Freya's Official Resolution #1: Blog at least 2-3 times a week, depending on availability of material.  I want to say I will blog every day (that's the real goal), but I'll stick with a more attainable goal for now and reassess later.  Midyear Resolutions?

And so, I give you: LIGHTNING ROUND 1: The Holidays!

Latkes!  My friends and I had our 2nd Annual Chanukah Latke Party a few weeks ago, and it was a huge success.  We learned from our mistakes, so this year included less latke (read: less deep-fried food), more veggies, a Secret Santa, and... a snowstorm!  I guess we didn't plan that last part, but it was a nice touch.  Thanks, mother nature.

I kind of invented my own latke, inspired by a whole slew of recipes that I read for research.  I used 1 large Yukon Gold potato, 1 carrot, 1 parsnip, and 1 baby zucchini + 1 normal zucchini.  I ended up adding 3 eggs in the end and probably about 1/4 cup matzo meal, if not more.  Breadcrumbs or flour work too, but matzo meal felt more traditional to me.

It's a pretty simple process: grate, mix, fry your little heart out, blot blot blot.  Yumzo.  And I didn't even lose any knuckles this year on the grater.

Tada!  All fried up and gorrrrgeous if I do say so myself.  You need to make the oil super hot and be generous with it.  I only eat latkes (or whatever potato pancake variety this may be) once or twice a year, so what the heck.  Live a little.  And use Canola oil.  :)

I thought they were delicious if I do say so myself.  Parsnip was a lovely addition.  My other contribution to the party was homemade applesauce, which is absurdly easy but a billion times more satisfying than the jar stuff.  All you do is peel, core, slice (I like to slice each apple in eighths and then cut each slice in half crosswise), cinnamon and sugar up those puppies, and nuke, mash, nuke, mash.

I use a lot of cinnamon because I love the stuff (1 tsp?) and probably about 2 tablespoons of brown sugar for this batch of 4 apples.  Depends on how sweet your apples are to begin with.  We devoured this.  Buying more apples and getting back at it tomorrow.  I love eating this stuff warm as a snack.  I'm thinking granola would taste good on top.  Will report back on that one.

My friends are wonderful chefs too, so when we get together we eat cook a lot.  Ariel made zucchini latkes, and Amanda made traditional ones (potato).

 

Shield your eyes from the grease, por favor.

Katie made a sweet potato and apple bake from my previously mentioned bible, Nava Atlas's The Vegetarian Family Cookbook -- I can post the recipe if requested.  And then we (and by we I think I mean Alex, Katie, and I) shared this ginormous bowl of roasted brussels sprouts a la Rachel.

And then there was obviously vino.  I drank white for a change because I brought over one of my wine of the month wines!  It was a Sicilian Fiano, a new white wine varietal for me, and I really liked it.  A lot of complexity in flavor for a white, and still able to stand on its own without food.  A winner!  It won a lot of affordability and value awards.

My poorly lit plate, clockwise from bottom left: brussels sprouts, apple/sweet potato, perfect baked chicken, apple sauce, one of each latke plus a little sour cream (ok, and one more of my own ;)), and grilled onions!

Allison broke out her apron and prepared this AMAZING cake from Cooking Light.  Allison, can you give me the recipe?  PLEASE?  It was apple-y and cinnamon-y and sooo moist.  I insisted that she take home all the leftovers to her apt (aka my apt).  It was delicious the next day.  And the day after.  She also claims it's 120 calories per slice?!

After the food comas set in, we lit the candles...

... then did our first annual $10 maximum Secret Santa gift exchange!  Amanda showed off her new Snuggie.  Look how she can hold a glass AND stay warm at the same time!

And I showed off the seal Amanda gave me!!! 

We now may or may not have a collection of wind-up toys in front lined up in front of our TV. They may or may not be named Seymour, Tupac, and Xavier.

After all was said and done, we looked out the window and noticed that it was kind of, well, blizzardy.  We postponed the journey back uptown from Rachel and Ariel's place by watching Sex and the City, but eventually it was time to go.  Katie, Joanna, and I ventured to the bus stop...

...then to the subway...

"EEEEKKKK A SUBWAY RAT!"

"We're distressed and cold!"

...and then finally a snowy walk home from the subway station.

Mmmm, New York in the winter time.  Beautiful.

Awards, part deux

Best Brussels Sprouts (and yes, I've made them a lot): Brussels Sprouts with Pecans and Cranberries

As promised, Allison makes her online debut with... BRUSSELS SPROUTS.

I even got her to taste some when it was done!  I promised her that I had used enough butter that she wouldn't even notice there were veggies involved.  I was inspired by this recipe, care of Alton Brown:

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh Brussels sprouts, rinsed and trimmed
• 3 ounces coarsely chopped pecans
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 4 ounces coarsely chopped dried cranberries

Directions

Slice the Brussels sprouts using the thinnest slicing disk of a food processor. If you do not have a food processor, you may slice thinly with a knife or a mandoline.

Set a 10-inch straight-sided saute pan over medium-high heat and add the pecans. Cook, stirring continually, until the pecans darken in color and begin to give off a toasted aroma, approximately 2 minutes. Add the butter to the pan and stir to combine. Once the butter has melted, add the Brussels sprouts, salt and pepper and cook, stirring continually, until the color brightens and the sprouts are just tender, approximately 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add the cranberries, toss and serve.

I was oh-so pleased that I was able to employ my new brussels sprout slicing technique that I learned from cooking guru Rebecca when Alex and I went to a cooking class (highly recommended!).  I used fresh cranberries instead of dried because I wanted to use them up, and it made the whole thing a little fruit-juicier than it otherwise might have been.  I was also too lazy to chop the pecans, which resulted in a little burning, but they didn't taste charred once mixed in with all that buttah and co.  This was so seasonal and lovely!  Shaved brussels sprouts resemble a bowl of, well, grass, but I thought that the butter really helped make it rich and not grassy.  Note: I almost never use butter in cooking, but I'm always happy when I do.

Best Repeat Recipe: Chickpea and Arugula Salad
This, of course, is another Mark Bittman specialty from How to Cook Everything.  I made it a couple months ago when I had a big dinner party at my apartment, and it was just as delicious this time.

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. minced, peeled fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
salt & freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 c. cooked or drained, canned chickpeas
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. honey
4 c. arugula leaves, chopped
1 red onion, thinly sliced


Put the olive oil in a deep skillet over med. heat. When hot, add the ginger, garlic, and cumin seeds and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant and the ginger and garlic are soft, 1-2 min. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then stir in the chickpeas until hot and coated in the oil and seasonings, about 3 min. Remove from heat. With a fork, stir in the vinegar, honey, and 1 Tbsp. water. Mash a few of the chickpeas as you stir to add texture to the dressing. Put the arugula and onion in a large bowl and toss with the warm chickpea dressing. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve immediately, warm.

I had never used cumin seeds before, but they are sooo fragrant and have a really unique flavor.  This recipe is such a winner.  Do it.

Best Comfort Food: Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

This one is now a classic for me.  I make a huge pot of it and freeze most of it to have throughout the winter. The recipe is from Nava Atlas's The Vegetarian Family Cookbook, which was kind of my bible in college. 

2 medium-large sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons light or extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 to 3 garlic cloves
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1 can (32 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 or 2 small fresh hot chilies, minced
OR
1 can (4 ounces) chopped mild green chilies
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
salt to taste

1. Bake or microwave the sweet potatoes on high until just firm, about 3 to 4 minutes per potato. When cool enough to handle, peel and cut into 3/4-inch dice. Set aside.


2. Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion and garlic and sauté over medium heat until golden. Add the bell pepper, beans, tomatoes, chilies, cumin, and oregano. Bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and continue tosimmer until the vegetables are tender -- about 10 to 15 minutes.


3. Season lightly with salt. If time allows, let stand off the heat for 1 or 2 hours, then heat through as needed.


Embellish it: Pass a bowl of chopped fresh cilantro for sprinkling over the top of individual portions.

Make it a Meal: For an easy meal, serve this with purchased cornbread or other hearty whole-grain bread and a bountiful tossed salad.

A couple of notes on this: I accidentally bought only half of the beans that it called for, but I actually thought the proportion was right on.  So, if you wanted to go light in the beans (let's say you have a social situation to attend later?), you would be just fine.  Also, I tried it a couple days later topped with pecan chunks, and it brought it to a whole new level.  WHY have pecans not been on my radar until now???  Nuts, nuts, nuts!

Best Dessert Derived from Laziness: Frozen Banana with Melted Chocolate and Almond Butter

I've been totally into banana soft serve lately, but food processors are maybe the least fun thing to wash EVER.  Not mention my incredible clumsiness.  So I dug into my stash of frozen bananas and went the lazy route.

I kind of wished I had a popsicle stick or something for the bananas because my hands got cold holding them to dip, but OMG this was way too delicious.  I know it's totally weird to just eat plain old frozen bananas, but don't judge.   Try it for the sake of warm AB and dark chocolate, at the very least!
And now, your lightning round is complete!  Will try really hard to get back on a post-a-day schedule (with fewer than 5 recipes...) soon!  
Happy Friday!  I'm spending the weekend in Dallas, so social life should be minimal and posting will be maximal.

The Lazy Blogger Blogs

[This post was written last Thursday, but I never got around to finishing it, so put on your time travel caps.  Speaking of which, did anyone see The Time Traveler's Wife?  I loved that book but didn't see the movie.]

I AM HUNGRY.  I am waiting for my co-worker Tim to finally be ready for lunch, and I am not good at this whole "patience while hungry" thing.  At first he was legitimately working, and now he's just watching ridiculous (albeit funny) videos of people throwing their laptops against walls, as he laughs maniacally.  Worthy purpose, no doubt, but I am really super hungry.

In other news, last night I got to see my DAD!  In Dallas!  It was GREAT.  He too was in Dallas for work this week, coincidentally, so we had dinner.  I picked him up at his hotel, since he didn't rent a car, and we went out to a Tex-Mex restaurant that one of the local crew members recommended to him.  It was just fair, in my humble Tex-Mex opinion, but maybe in part due to the fact that it was a totally odd dining experience.  The waiter just approached us, said, "Hello," and then stared at us until I awkwardly said, "Um, we're not ready yet?"  Then he carded my dad.  Like, seriously wanted to see his ID.  Now, my dad has aged well, but really?  We think he was new.  Or crazy.  Not sure.  Umberto redeemed himself by making us a pretty nice guacamole and dutifully refilling the delicious hot chips.  For dinner my dad and I shared the chicken mole and tequila shrimp, which was all good, but nothing too special.  And salty like whoa!  I prefer Mi Cocina.  Next time, Dad!  After dinner we went to the dollar store and to Target in search of silly glasses for my dad's video crew for some goofy prank or something.  It apparently went over very well!  So, restaurant critique aside, it was really nice to see my daddy-o out in Dallas and show him just how confusing it is to drive out here!  Thanks for the company :)

Ok, other tidbits from the week: Tuesday Whole Foods run.

BRUSSELS SPROUTS!!! I LOVE that these things are trendy.  It is SO strange and wonderful.  I asked for half of a container, but she pretty much filled it up, so I sighed, shrugged my shoulders, and decided I was just going to have to eat half a pound of brussels sprouts and deal with the, er, repercussions.  Le sigh.  I left two in the container so as not to feel like I actually ate all of them.

Honey pepper salmon, halfway through:

Some of my little treats for the week included a baby packet of almond butter and expensive chocolate (holla expense account!):

Really liked the chocolate, but, as a connoisseur, will admit that I didn't LOVE it.  I think it was too sweet for me for dark chocolate.  I prefer upwards of the 70% range.  But I love trying new foods on someone else's tab.  Sweet :)