Tasty Bytes - commentary on food and nutrition - Part 8

27Jun

The Way We Ate

well not me but the early Americans. Someone on a yahoo group I belong to posted a link to the Historic American Cookbook Project. This project is a collaboration of Michigan State University and it’s Library to preserve into a searchable database cookbooks from the late 18th to early 20th century. I haven’t used any of the recipes in these cookbooks but was intrigued with the whole project. It’s an interesting collection that reflects the melting pot of America thus includes not only cookbooks from European cultures but a Chinese-Japanese cookbook, a Native American cookbook as well as a Middle Eastern cookbook. If old cookbooks don’t intrigue you then maybe their photos of kitchen gadgets might grab you.

Have fun!

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15Jun

An East/West collision

of ideas…

cooking is fun – whether we follow a recipe exactly or just throw something together. When throwing things together – you sometimes end up with a winner or you end up tossing it to the dogs. Mochi is grinning 😉

Last night was a throwing things together kind of dinner. I have a nice patch of garlic chives in the yard. When we moved here back in ’97 my mom gave me a few bulbs and they have multiplied into a very healthy corner in one of the raised beds. (A few months back I was able to return the favor as her patch had been dug up by some kind of night creature.)

I kept thinking I have to use some of the chives up – one of my favorites ways is in Korean pancakes – Pa Jeon. Which is really scallion pancakes but garlic chives work just as well. Scallion pancakes are either made with wheat flour or ground mung beans. I like the mung bean version just fine but it is a bit more involved than the wheat flour version – soaking and grinding takes a little pre-planning. I can post about those another time.

I’ve been trying to heath-i-fy the wheat flour recipe by using whole grain flours, be gluten free, egg free and a bit higher in protein for P who is vegetarian. One day I used all buckwheat flour…it was a bit too…well, buckwheaty.

With my socca craze I decided to try replacing the wheat flour with a 50/50 garbanzo flour and buckwheat flour mix. We ate them all up so I guess we ended up with a winner.

Here is the Recipe:

Korean Vegetable & Garbanzo/Buckwheat ‘Socca’

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
*Pancakes*
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup garbanzo flour
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 cup water
1/3 cup garlic chives — cut into 1/4-1/2″
vegetable oil for pan frying

*Dipping Sauce*
1 tablespoon tamari soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar — unseasoned
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 pinch chili flakes — Korean style with no seeds, optional

Whisk together all pancake ingredients so there are no lumps.

Heat a 10 inch cast iron pan over medium heat until hot. Add about a tablespoon of olive oil. Pour about 1/3-1/2 cup of batter into pan. Cook until bottom is turning brown – this should take at least 3-4 minutes so turn up or down the heat as needed. Flip and cook until cooked through and brown. Transfer to plate and keep warm in a low oven. Cook remaining pancakes – you should have enough batter for 4-6 depending on how thick or thin you made them. Serve them cut into quarters with the dipping sauce.

Variations: Add any and all kinds of thin sliced vegetables in any combination like: scallion, leeks, green garlic, spring onions, asparagus, green beans, zucchini, carrot, peppers, shiitake mushrooms, button mushrooms, etc. This batter can probably take up to a 1/2c to 3/4c of cut up vegetables. This recipe is a great way to use up any odds and ends of veggies in the frig.

Enjoy!

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09Jun

Lastest Food Obsession – Socca

socca…socca…socca! No, I not watching the World Cup games though I did enjoy a game or two of soccer back in the good old days when I actually had lungs. But I digress…

socca, socca, socca…That’s what the socca vendors in Nice, Provence would call out when wheeling their carts about selling their wares. And that’s what I’ve been yelling about the house these days…P thinks I have finally lost my marbles 🙂

Thanks to a good friend, N, I had my first taste of Socca -alas, not in Nice- but in Berkeley at Socca Oven located in the new Epicurious Garden on Shattuck Avenue. Socca’s are pancakes made of chickpea (aka garbanzo bean or gram) flour, water and extra virgin olive oil. At SO they finish the soccas in an open flame clay oven with various toppings – sort of like pizza but not. N & I had tapenade and salt cod – a bit salty but I am a salt fiend. P had the zucchini and loved it. I was hooked and am now a socca addict – we’ve had them for dinner twice now.

In my research I found that these are traditionally made in copper tins – large ones, from 50-70 cm in diameter. Since my oven wasn’t that big, I opted for my 10 inch cast iron fry pan. At SO they were made a little less than a 1/4 inch thick but the thickness varies from that to as thin as a crepe. Seems that in France these are eaten plain with a glass of wine rather than topped as made at Socca Oven. I’m thinking these would be a nice appetizer in either case.

We liked ours thick but maybe slightly thinner than we had at SO. I’ve varied the toppings depending on what we had on hand. We had plenty of greens in the garden so one night we had sauteed kale and the other swiss chard. One version had roasted onions and garlic with goat cheese and anchovies. A veggie version had home grown baby zucchini.

I bet an Indian spiced version would be fun. In fact, in the western part of India there is a savory steamed chickpea ‘cake’ called Dhokla. One day I will have to try my hand at making some dhoklas.

Soccas are a great food – a nice gluten free alternative to the wheat flour crusted pizzas. And you’ve got fiber – the soluble type which is good for lowering cholesterol; protein which we all need for building bone, muscle and cartilage; folate which is good for the heart; magnesium which is needed to help relax your muscles; and many trace minerals. One trace mineral it is especially high in is molybdenum which interestingly enough helps the body detoxify sulfites which is found in some wines. Those French know how to eat and drink!

Here’s the recipe I used for the Socca pancakes.

Socca

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
2 cups chickpea flour
2 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 3/4 teaspoons sea salt
extra virgin olive oil for cooking the pancake

Toppings of your choice – some ideas: caramelized onions, roasted garlic, sauteed greens (kale, chard, spinach), olive tapenade, sundried tomatoes, any herb pesto, any roasted veggie, smoked salmon, salt cod, anchovies, any cheese, etc…

Whisk together all ingredients so there are no lumps. You can strain through a sieve or china cap if desired. Let sit for 10-15 minutes.

Preheat broiler to high or oven to 500F. Heat a 10 inch cast iron pan over medium heat until hot. Add about a tablespoon of olive oil. Pour about 3/4 cup of batter into pan. Cook until bottom is turning brown – this should take at least 3-4 minutes so turn up or down the heat as needed. Flip and cook until cooked through and brown. Transfer to baking sheet. Cook remaining pancakes – you should have enough batter for four.

Arrange your toppings on to the pancakes. Put under the broiler or in hot oven for a few minutes or until the toppings are heated through. Serve hot with a nice green salad.

Check out what other bloggers have created at:

Mahanandi’s Indian Dosa

In Praise of Sardines

The Scent of Green Bananas

The Travelers Lunchbox

And check out the Italian version here:

Beyond Salmon

Epicurious.com

ENJOY! 🙂

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30May

Cake of the sea faring variety

I love fish cakes and been into Thai flavors lately so here is the lastest to come out of my kitchen – I’d be happy with this and a candle in it for my birthday… 😉

Thai Fish and Shrimp Cakes

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
1 pound sea bass — halibut or tilapia work well too.
1 pound raw shrimp — peeled and deveined
4 each green onions — thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic — grate with a microplane or mince very fine
2 tsp fresh ginger — grate with a microplane or mince very fine
1/3 cup red bell pepper or for some bite use red fresno chiles — diced fine
1/3 cup cilantro — chopped fine
1 tablespoon thai basil leaves (in a pinch you can use regular basil) — chopped fine
1 tbsp Thai fish sauce — 3 Crabs brand
1/2 each lime — zested
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tablespoon tapioca starch
1 each egg
1 tbsp Thai red curry paste — homemade or Mae Ploy Brand
salt and pepper — to taste

Prepare green onions, garlic, ginger, red bell pepper, cilantro and basil. Put into a medium mixing bowl. Add lime zest, lime juice, fish sauce, tapioca starch, egg and red curry paste.

Hand chop the fish and shrimp -or- cut fish and shrimp into smaller pieces (1″ or less cubes) and put in a food processor (in batches) and pulse until chunky. Add to bowl of other ingredients. Mix well.

Test for seasoning by cooking a teaspoon in a saute pan or use the toaster oven. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Form into 12 fish cakes (3 to 3 1/4 oz ea). Heat a saute pan and add oil. Saute the fish cakes in hot oil until browned on both sides.

I like to serve these on a bed of cabbage slaw dressed in a spicy sweet lime vinaigrette with plenty of cilantro tossed in.

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29May

Free Cake

It’s gluten free, egg free, dairy free…

The ‘there’s no there there’ Carrot Cake

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
8 ounces crushed pineapple — drained, reserve liquid
4 tablespoons flax seed — ground
3/4 cup water
2 cups carrots — shredded
1 cup walnuts — chopped (optional)
1 cup brown rice flour
2/3 cup almond meal
1/3 cup glutinous rice flour — ‘Mochiko’
2 teaspoons cinnamon — ground
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 ounces coconut oil
2/3 cup sucanat or rapadura — (dehydrated sugar cane juice)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and rice flour a 13″ x 9″ baking pan.

Drain pineapple well (squeeze), reserving juice.

In a small bowl, make a slurry with the ground flax and reserved pineapple juice.

Grate carrots and chop walnuts. In a medium bowl, mix rice flours, almond meal, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

In large bowl, beat coconut oil and sucanat on medium until well mixed. Add flax slurry. Beat some more. Fold in dry half dry ingredients. Stir in water then fold in the remaining dry ingredients. Stir in walnuts, pineapple and carrots by hand. Try not to over mix – it will not rise as much if you do. Immediately pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake in the botton third of the oven at 350 for 40-50 minutes or until done – check by inserting a toothpick in the center. The toothpick should come out clean.

The texture is definitely different than your typical cake – a bit chewy. I like it best the next day 🙂 -the flavor seems to mellow out.

Permalink Filed under: General, Gluten Free, Recipes, Wheat Free Tags: Gluten Free, Recipes, Wheat Free Comments Off on Free Cake
27May

Foods for your bones

What are some other foods that are calcium rich?

almonds, asparagus, burdock root, brewer’s yeast, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, collards, dandeloin greens, dulse, figs, filberts (aka hazelnuts), green leafy vegetables, kale!, kelp, mustard greens, oats, parsley, peppermint, prunes, sesame seeds, turnip greens, watercress

…and while we’re at it you’ll also need…

magnesium…almonds, apples, avocados, bananas, blackstrap molasses, brewer’s yeast, brown rice, canteloupe, cod, dulse, figs, flounder, garlic, grapefruit, green leafy vegetables, kelp, lemons, lima beans, halibut, millet, nuts, peaches, black-eyed peas, salmon, sesame seeds, shrimp, watercress, whole grains

and phosphorus…asparagus, brewer’s yeast, burdock root, corn, dried fruits, fish, garlic, beans, nuts, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, meats, whole grains

and vanadium…dill, fish, green beans, olives, meats, radishes, whole grains

and vitamin D…dandeloin greens, sweet potatoes, egg yolks from chickens raised in the sunshine, fish, cod liver oil (yummy), pasture raised animals and sunshine

and vitamin K…asparagus, blackstrap molasses, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, green leafy veggies!, liver, oatmeal, oats, rye, wheat

SHORT LIST – eat lots of veggies – especially the green leafy variety, colorful fruits, some nuts and seeds, vary the proteins from land and sea – spice things up with some herbs and get out into the sunshine!

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22May

Little fishies from the

sea…where else?

I recently discovered that I am allergic to milk – more specifically, the milk protein called casein. The reaction from most people is “How will you get your calcium?”

I have to chuckle because contrary to what the Milk Council of America has pounded into people’s heads…milk is not necessarily the best and certainly not the only source of calcium. Don’t get me started on how the milk today is far from the healthy beverage folks drank before factory farming – that’s another post.

So what do folks across the globe, who don’t eat dairy products, do to keep from looking like Gumby. Green leafy vegetables come to mind as does my fav – bok choy and broccoli. Nettles – lots around these days are full of calcium. And what about broths made from chicken or beef or other animal bones – long simmered with some acid like wine and the resultant liquid is a pure nutritional gold mine…or shall I say calcium mine 😉

Hey, and canned salmon and sardines. The canning process makes the bones very soft so you can eat them.

In fact, the calcium in all these sources are better absorbed by our bodies than the calcium in milk.

So here is my little fish recipe – one of my sources of calcium. My SIL’s mother made a big batch for little S as she has taked to eating this Korean anchovy condiment. I’m not sure what it’s called but I love them too. I searched around for a recipe and after a little experimenting and making the house smell a bit fishy (sorry P!) here it is…

* Exported from MasterCook *

Anchovy Condiment – Korean Style

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
1 tablespoon oil — grape seed or rice bran
1 clove garlic — minced
1/2 teaspoon ginger — minced
2 tablespoons maple syrup — or agave syrup
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 cup dried anchovy — Korean style, smallest are best
1/4 teaspoon chili flakes — Korean w/o seeds; more or less to taste
1 tablespoon sesame seeds — toasted

Heat wok over medium heat. Add oil and heat. Add garlic and ginger. Stir and fry until golden. Add maple syrup and sesame oil. Stir and let sizzle for 15 seconds. Add anchovies and stir, coating the anchovies with the sauce. Continue stirring over medium heat until anchovies are translucent and just beginning to color. Stir in the chili flakes and sesame seeds. Mix well. Remove from heat and cool.

Serve as a condiment with rice – wrap with a piece of nori seaweed and you are in mineral rich heaven!

Refrigerate in an air tight container. Will keep for 2-3 weeks

Also nice in fried rice or as a side with congee.

Enjoy!

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17May

Easy Pudding

Hello.

My, it’s been awhile since my last post. I’m still here and have been itching to tap out a post but it’s down to the wire on my final project for school. I hope to have the written part totally done by the 31st and then I have a few weeks to prepare my oral presentation along with power point. I’d be totally stressed out by now but for the zen-like opportunity to pull weeds out in the garden and …making coconut pudding. I’ll be making this for a dinner party I’m catering this week. Accompanied by a mango sauce, slices of mango and strawberries.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Coconut Pudding

Serving Size : 5

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon tapioca starch
1 pinch sea salt
1/2 teaspoon agar powder (if using flakes use 1 teaspoon)
1 14 oz can coconut milk (Thai Kitchen brand has no preservatives)
1/2 cup water or cream
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix dry ingredients together in a sauce pot. Add coconut milk and water. Whisk to dissolve and let sit 10-15 minutes.

While constantly stirring, bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add vanilla. Cook another 10-15 seconds. Remove from heat.

Immediately strain into a 2 cup measuring cup (with pour spout). Pour into 5 – 4 oz ramekins or cups. Chill for at least 1-2 hours before serving. You can make this the day before.

Serve in the cups as is or unmold by running a sharp pointed knife along edge – invert onto a plate. Garnish with fruits such as mango, pineapple, kiwi or strawberries.

Variations: Use almond or pistachio flavoring -or rose water.

Enjoy!

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28Apr

Food for body and soul

Life races by yet there doesn’t seem enough hours to the day…no wait a second – I sometimes barely have enough energy to get through the day so scratch that. My better half always says, “you just have to prioritize.”

Easier said than done! or is it?

The past two weeks since my last posts have been jam packed…(truth be told when you see a flurry of posts it means I am procrastinating…I’ve got two papers due – one on allergies & immune and another on cancer, then my final project on Type II diabetes. All this by the end of June!). Another by-product of the big P – The garden is looking better than ever – tomatoes, squash, peppers, pole beans, chard and kale are all in. The baby bok choy is starting to sprout their third leaves. The keffir lime tree got a nice hair cut and shampoo (to try and rid it of weird looking bugs that took up residence). Next up as I recover from being sliced up from weeding the patch of lemon grass, is transplanting of the garlic chives, planting the basil and readying a bed for beets, carrots and sugar snap peas.

Any way let me procrastinate some more as I’ve been bursting with thoughts and things I’ve been wanting to tap out on blog.

First, I had a chance to have a lovely lunch last Friday with Eggbeater at Cafe Gratitude. You can read EB’s review at Bay Area Bites. Food and company were great. I’ve even been making my own rendition of their “I am Giving” salad at home…I call my version “I am a Copycat”. I encourage you to read Eggbeater’s review and comments – lots of food for thought.

Made me think about food as medicine. As Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, said, “Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food” Wow, modern medicine must have veered off that road like some pharma drug crazed addict on a bad trip! But that’s another rant.

It’s very well accepted these days (so says Dr. Mehmet Oz who co-wrote You: the Owner’s Manual) that while genetics plays a part in whether we are stricken by illness – we – yes, you – can control at least 80% (some scientists say 95% but let’s be conservative here) of your health outcome. How you ask? Well, those genes may exist within us ready to throw us a curve ball but they don’t have to express – that is become diabetes or cancer or lupus or…

Your actions – whether you smoke, drink, live in a smoggy city, decide to sand that lead paint off that old dresser, exercise enough or too much, get enough sleep and a hundred other things all contribute to whether those errant genes become alive…. But let’s not forget one major contributor to your health – what you eat!

This from Deepak Chopra’s book Quantum Healing,
98% of the atoms in your body were not there a year ago
In 3 months your entire skeleton is replaced – unless you are on fos@max(my comment)
6 weeks your liver
1 month your skin
4 days your stomach lining

So what does that tell you-
Everything you put in your body is processed – it’s used as building blocks or passed

What would you want your building blocks to be…

nutrient deficient mass produced “food” that contains enough preservatives to stay ‘fresh’ for years…

Or wholesome foods, vital and alive with nutrients that your body can use to keep you healthy

One of the comments raised from Eggbeater’s review of Cafe Gratitude was that the prices at the cafe were criminally high. EB’s reply touch on many points – one was that food should cost more that it does. Big Food with the help of govenment subsidies has so cheapen what is packaged as food we might as well be eating packing peanuts. Yes, I agree we need to pay the true costs and get food that nourishes us and supports life! And I don’t think it is a mere coincidence that many of the illnesses that ail modern society today came about as our food supply became cheapened.

I am so grateful to have grown up learning that there is a connection with food and our bodies – that food is medicine. I’ll never forget when my brother broke his leg and mom made pot after pot of frog’s leg baked rice. Or fearing that we weren’t doing as well in school as we should, we’d sit down to steaming bowls of calves brain soup – this on more than one occasion. I still can’t figure out that stretch of periwinkles though…

Which brings me to what I fear will express…what lurks in that genetic soup I have swirling around inside…

Type II Diabetes is on both sides of my family – uncles and aunts, a grandmother died after suffering many complications including a stroke and amputation of a leg, a parent was recently diagnosed and a sibling who is prediabetic…On top of that Asians are 1 1/2 to 2 times more likely to develop type II diabetes that Caucasians. There are estimates that 3 in 5 or up to 1 in 2 Asian children today will develop type II diabetes in their lifetime.

I recently purchased a blood glucose meter for a family member and while testing it on myself, I’ve discovered numerous morning fasting blood glucose levels to be a tad high…yikes! I will be at the doc’s come Monday morning!

Well, there is lots to be done and according to Dr. Anne Peters, a well respected expert on diabetes, the condition can be reversed or very well managed through diet and exercise.

So as I delve deeper into this subject for my final project, I will share what I learn. Separating the foods that are medicine and those that are not. From my experience change is not an easy thing, habits become so ingrained, and the foods -we love- that we may have to give up for some have so much memory and history attached that they will be difficult to let go. For now I must end my procrastination and get back to the books.

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17Apr

Cravings…

Mochi the dog is the poster dog for celebrating Variety in the diet. Don’t get me wrong, she can be discriminating…she won’t eat just anything – it at least has to be animate. I say animate rather than ‘considered food’ because she did at some point in her puppyhood enjoy dirt clods and what dog doesn’t like to nibble on some grass every now and then. Plus if she were allowed to label her world – the kitty’s litterbox would have “Snack Jar” written on it.

No, no…this post isn’t about that! Sorry I was just rambling about variety and…well, anyway back on track…Mochi loves vegetables of all sorts. Raw no less. Carrots, broccoli, the cores from cabbage & lettuce, apples (peeled without cores please), cauliflower, asparagus, kale stems…and one big surprise – sheets of nori! It’s a hoot to watch her eat the sheet, ripping off pieces as she stands on a corner.

Now, I’ve always had a fondness for salty crispy snacks – my biggest vice was potato chips, oh and kettle corn which is more the salty sweet krispy thing but anyway. A number of holistic practitioners out there (Bernard Jensen, Colleen Huber among many others) link food cravings to specific nutritional deficiences. So crispy/salty/oily = minerals. Rather than taking Mochi’s lead with the dirt clods I thought mineral rich seaweed might be the ticket. My SIL’s mother came to visit and gave us some packs of Korean seaweed sheets – fried and salted! Yum! These were great but I was drinking gallons of water with all the salt. I figured I could make my own less salty less oily version.

Here’s what I did to make a quick healthy crispy snack…

Take 1 piece of nori and dribble 1/8-1/4 teaspoon sesame oil on it. Spread the sesame oil with your hand to cover the whole sheet. Sprinkle a pinch of good quality fine sea salt on the nori. Now put in a toaster oven for 30 seconds to a minute to crisp it up. You can cut up or tear the sheet into bite size pieces. With this, the coolest toaster oven on earth, I found 1 minute on 250 was perfect.

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