A Mighty Appetite

Tasting Life

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 07:00:00 -0500

I have a very special friend named Ethan, and in just a few days, the grownups in his life will be celebrating his first birthday. Plenty of my friends have children, but this is the first time in my adult life that I’ve been so intimate with the day-to-day, inch-by-inch development of a human tadpole. In the few months that my friend’s diet has expanded beyond the bottled facsimile of breast milk, I’ve had the privilege of observing his experiences with this thing called food, a front-row seat at the high-chair theater, complete with bowl tossing, high-pitched screams and other primal expressions of gustatory joy. One night, I cooked a small pot of red lentils, suggesting to his mother that it’s baby food as Mother Nature had intended, self-pureeing in about 25 minutes. She agrees to the experiment, eager for variety beyond sweet potatoes and applesauce, but me, I’ve got

Ask Kim: For Old Times' Sake

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:00:58 -0500

As some of you may already know, this is my final week in the AMA ‘hood. But before this blog was born, I had another baby called What’s Cooking, the longest-running cooking chat on the Web until she was put to rest in March. KOD on a very important call. Since I’ve met so many of you the Q&A way, it seems appropriate to have one last dance together in the kitchen, a chance to reminisce, talk to me or to one another. I will entertain both the practical and philosophical, the elementary and the advanced -- and of course, there’s no such thing as a stupid question. Consider the kitchen door open at 11 a.m. ET (8 a.m. PT), and we’ll have coffee and crumpets in the comments area. I’ll check in every 30 minutes or so until just before suppertime here on the West Coast (say, around

At the Movies: (Fish) Food for Thought

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 07:00:56 -0500

Back in May, I featured three newly released food documentaries, just a taste of the cinematic smorgasbord on offer this summer. Now there’s another film on the menu, and this one, in my opinion, is worth chewing on. 2048. That’s when scientists predict there’ll be no more fish dinners, because of the going rate of overfishing. As in: No. More. Fish. For. Real. This is the take-away message of “End of the Line,” an urgent 82-minute plea for the sea, no sugar coating included. Based on the book by British journalist Charles Clover, the doc, narrated by actor Ted Danson, is a collage of interviews with scientists and first-hand reports from fishermen around the world on the impact of overfishing on their livelihoods, their families and their fishing-based cultures. The camera trails Clover on his impassioned mission to “out” high-end restaurants that continue to serve the highly prized (and

Old-School Cooking Whizdom

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 07:00:00 -0500

"A recipe is like a road map," writes chef Lauren Braun Costello. "A road map shows you where to go and how to get there, but does not teach you how to drive." (Photo courtesy of RCR Creative Press) This is how Costello and her writing partner Russell Reich kick off their new book, "Notes on Cooking: A Short Guide to an Essential Craft." And this is why I'm devoting today's space to an itty-bitty book that can fit inside a purse. A graduate of the French Culinary Institute and a veteran of several high-profile kitchens, Costello abstains from the same ol' recipe show-and-tell. Instead, she and Reich dish up a stick-to-your-ribs collection of kitchen aphorisms -- 217, to be exact -- that reveal the hows, whys, whens, whats and heart and soul of cooking. A mix of the pithy ("Preside happily over accidents") and the practical ("Use wet measures

Meatless Monday: Trini Spini

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 09:30:08 -0500

I was the proud owner of an oversized bag of just-picked spinach, one of the many locally harvested treats I picked up on Thursday at a Seattle farm market. While driving home, though, I experienced a bit of buyer's remorse, wondering if my schedule over the next few days would allow for spinach time. After all, Fourth of July was already spoken for, and I worried if my beautiful bag of leafy greens would hold out until Sunday. (Thankfully, she did.) (Kim O'Donnel) I was in the mood for a new take (or at least new to me) on America's beloved green veg, but as I thought about you and our weekly meatless meeting, I knew it needed to be simple -- in both preparation and personality. It needed to be quick, too, even if cooked, and it needed to be flexible enough to pair up with a variety

Help Fill My Vintage Picnic Basket

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:00:06 -0500

(Kim O'Donnel) A bluesy/gospel concert on the grounds of Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo last week was the inspiration to dust off my vintage picnic basket and actually put it to good use (please don't tell my mother it's been hiding in the basement). Unfortunately, last week’s last-minute event left little time to plan a menu, which means said basket did little but look pretty on the lawn. I love the idea of a picnic but never can seem to get my al fresco act together. That’s where you -- -- the savvy bunch that you are -- can lend a hand as we gear up for the long holiday weekend. Should I keep things simple and make cheese sandwiches on artisan bread, pack a few pieces of summer fruit and call it lunch-for-dinner or should I get more elaborate, with a three-course feast of cold fried chicken, a couscous

Wanted: Your Best Potato Salad

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:00:14 -0500

It’s rare of me to make generalizations, but doesn’t everyone in America make potato (pronounced ‘puh-tate-uh” if you’re from Philly) salad for the Fourth of July? Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve got a hunch that no matter where you live or how you celebrate Independence Day, there’ll be a bowl of boiled spuds on this weekend’s picnic table. It’s kind of like Thanksgiving stuffing that way; Fourth of July wouldn’t be the same otherwise. From a cook’s point of view, boiled potatoes are like a blank canvas, an open invitation to play with color, texture and creativity. The possibilities are endless-- curry, anchovies, scallions, bacon, capers, yogurt, rosemary, roasted garlic, cider vinegar, hard-boiled eggs -- and yes, even mayonnaise. And as long as you season the spuds with plenty of salt, potato salad is difficult to screw up. As many of you already know, I live a mayo-free

For the Fourth, Color-Coordinated Sweets

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:15:20 -0500

I’m hardly a matchy-match kind of cook or party hostess; in fact, I prefer a motley assortment of colors and styles on my table than a uniform set of dishes and cutlery (after all, I did grow up with a pink piano in the dining room). (Kim O'Donnel) That said, when it comes to Fourth of July, I’m all about a red, white and blue menu. Not only is it a kick in the pants to put together a color-coordinated Fourth feast, there’s a ton of seasonal options in all the right shades. Today, we’ll start planning backwards, with dessert. Is there anyone else who thinks there’s something wrong about eating chocolate on the Fourth of July? I dug up a bunch of red, white and blue sweet endings from the recipe vault that kick chocolate to the curb -- at least until the fifth. Taste the possibilities: In the

A Plea for Red, White, Blue -- and Local

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Last September, I wrote about Roger Doiron’s grassroots campaign for a White House garden. Now Doiron, who’s based in Scarborough, Maine, is taking his home-grown ideas to another level -- one of stars, stripes and all things patriotic. (Photo courtesy of Foodindependenceday.org) Founder of Kitchen Gardeners International, Doiron has launched (in partnership with IATP Food and Society Fellows and the Mother Nature Network) Food Independence Day, a campaign to make your Fourth of July cookout local and sustainable. Remember last summer’s Eat Local Challenge? The same idea applies: Try sourcing as many of your feast fixins within 100 or 200 miles of where you work or live. In doing so, you’re doing your part to stimulate the local economy, a highly patriotic act, says Doiron. It’s not just the voting public Doiron’s after; he’s circulating an online petition asking for participation from America’s 50 governors, “to lead and eat by

Featured Advertiser

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Meatless Monday: Moo Shu, Hold the Oink

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:03:31 -0500

Moo shu veg fixins. (Kim O'Donnel) I’ve become a regular at Real Food Has Curves, the latest Web venture for cookbook duo Mark Scarbrough and Bruce Weinstein. Last week, the guys threw something together that I knew would be perfect for this meatless space, something they’re calling Moo Shu Vegetables, a slimmed down version of the Mandarin pork, egg & pancakes classic, but with no less flavor or zing. What makes this dish a league beyond the same-ole stir fry are a few key components: the sauce, the aromatics and the crunch. Hoisin sauce, often referred to as Chinese barbecue sauce, gets an extra boost with sesame oil and black pepper, plus an aromatics trio of scallions, garlic and fresh ginger. Nothing fancy here, but the combination is truly tongue popping. The vegetables in question are all crispers -- stuff that doesn’t wilt easily and needs just a short

EDF: From Anxiety to Creativity

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:00:03 -0500

Jill Nussinow is a northern California-based cookbook author, cooking teacher and recipe developer who teaches people about the joys of buying and eating fresh farmer’s market and homegrown produce. She is the author of "The Veggie Queen: Vegetables Get the Royal Treatment" cookbook and the DVD, "Pressure Cooking: A Fresh Look, Delicious Dishes in Minutes." Her companion Web sites are Pressure Cooking Online and The Veggie Queen, which includes a lively blog. (Jill Nussinow) I head into this week with unusual trepidation and anxiety. My stock-in-trade is food, and making sure there's plenty of it. How will I manage without shopping? It’s one of my major activities: I run into “real” people versus my "virtual" buddies. My twice weekly jaunts to the farmer’s market and occasional stops to the natural food store fulfill my “face time”. Will I survive? I discover that there’s more to this challenge than I

EDF Realization: Size Doesn’t Matter

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 07:00:42 -0500

Allen Williams recently traded in his Silicon Valley dot-com career to pursue freelance food writing from Vancouver, B.C. Allen enjoys food exploration and combines childhood farm-style cooking with urban flavors at his blog, Eating Out Loud. When taking a break from cooking you’ll also find Allen sharing his vintage recipe card collection on his hobby site, Recovered Recipes. A peek inside Allen Williams' pantry in Vancouver, B.C. (Allen Williams) In all honesty, I’ve feared Kim’s Eating Down the Fridge challenge ever since signing up. I found myself lured in by the prospect of making creative MacGyver-like meals but grew concerned about our 520 square-foot condo which we had just moved to a few months ago. The pantry is petite and the refrigerator narrow and not very deep. It’s the smallest space I’ve ever lived in, and I wasn’t sure if it contained enough food to sustain two adults for

EDF: A Report from Poland

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 07:00:16 -0500

Busy mom-of-four Jessica Sirotin, a native of New Jersey, has spent the past 15 years living in Eastern Europe. Currently based in Warsaw, Poland, Sirotin has also lived in Russia and Hungary, and has enjoyed, mostly, every minute of it. (Jessica Sorotin) It would be wonderful to think that changing how and what my family consumes is being carried out in the measured and careful way I had planned. In execution, however, I find myself pressured by both circumstances and my four kids. Nevertheless, I think I have a fighting chance at success. My husband’s family is of Russian/Polish extraction, and in the 15 years we have lived in Eastern Europe (Russia, Hungary and Poland) I have taken to heart many of their ideas about managing the pantry. Even though Communism ended here almost 20 years ago, many people still remember the food shortages and remain very pro-active about

EDF: The Challenges – and Joys – of Cooking for One

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 07:00:07 -0500

A native of Falls Church, Va., Bren Herrerra is a freelance food and travel writer and personal chef based in Atlanta, Ga. She shares her love for Cuban and Latin fusion cuisine in her blog, Flanboyant Eats. Bren tells me she throws back five shots of Cuban espresso daily to wear her many hats. Her latest gig is a biweekly cooking segment on "Daytime" TV. Bren's green tea ice cream cups. (Bren Herrera) A friend once told me I should treat myself like a queen when it comes to cooking. Her bright suggestion came after my ongoing complaint that cooking for one is simply not fun. I’m single, with no real responsibility for others’ nutrition; therefore, I find myself extremely lethargic, come dinnertime. I find little interest or appeal in cooking for just me. In Latin households, eating is as much about fellowship with friends and family and political

When EDF Is Not a Game, But Real Life

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:00:03 -0500

In May, when I made a save-the-date announcement on the EDF Facebook Group page, I received an e-mail from west coast reader Jill Blevins, who knows a thing or two about eating down the fridge -- and not by choice. “I was homeless with four kids,” she writes, “twice, and know what it's like to be poor, to think food stamps are a gift from God and to eat down the fridge for weeks straight, hoping the kids would sleep late so I'd only have to feed them two starchy meals.” I asked Blevins, who’s currently based in Oregon (and no longer homeless), to share her candid perspective on making do with what you’ve got on hand. Jill Blevins. (Family photo) Asking me to abstain from food shopping is like asking an anorexic to please cut back on the eating for a while. It’s not the shopping that keeps