Recipe Use

thanks to a large amount of pasta that I need to work through before it all expires (mmm, whole wheat gnocchi...), it may be awhile before I go food shopping. So to keep things alive, I'm doing a quasi-open thread.

What I'd like to know is if any of you have tried some of the recipes I've posted? If so, which ones in particular did you try? What was the end result?

Bringing back a classic

yesterday, I brought back my favorite standby: masoor daal.

The recipe can be found here:
masoor daal

I had the foresight to soak the lentils before I left for rocky horror live on saturday night (say what you will, but it's a fantastic show), so when I got home from work yesterday all I had to do was add in the spices and ginger.

An added bonus is that my apartment smelled like indian food for the rest of the night.

Recipe: Sweet Potato Soup

Yes, I am back in action! And just in time for fall, I've come up with this recipe. I was inspired by a recipe for spicy sweet potato soup, but because I was unable to find my stash of spices, I decided to do away with the spicy part and just make a sweet potato soup.

ingredients:
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp grated lime zest
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, sliced
4 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp grated ginger root
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 lime, juiced
salt and pepper to taste

directions:
1.In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream and lime zest. Set aside in the refrigerator to allow the flavors to blend.
2.Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add sweet potatoes, and vegetable stock. Season with ginger. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender.
3.Puree the soup using an immersion blender or regular blender. If using a counter top blender, puree in small batches, filling the blender just a bit past half way to avoid spillage. Whisk peanut butter into the soup, and heat through. Stir in lime juice, and salt/pepper.
4.Ladle into warm bowls, and top with a dollop of the reserved sour cream

this soup was incredible! I actually licked my bowl clean. For me, the best part of soup as a dish is how easy it is to store. Leftovers can be frozen, which means that I have enough soup stored in my fridge so I dont have to think about cooking when I get home from my night classes this week.

I'll try to remember to post a picture later.

Post-Milwaukee Lamentation

Two months after my move from Milwaukee, it is occurring to me just how spoiled I was as a foodie when I lived there. I was in walking distance of Whole Foods, a local deli, and a large supermarket. Trader Joe's was 15 minutes away by car. I had it made when I lived there.

The reason why I'm realizing this now is because the only food markets within walking distance of my apartment is an A&P and a krauser's. True, it is better than nothing, but A&P doesn't even carry veggie burgers. The closest whole foods is a 15 minute drive on a good day. There's no trader joe's convenient located near me-but there is one near my parents' place.

That being said, I just found out that a Target located three miles away from me will soon be a super-Target. In other words, they will be expanding their already exisiting food section and start carrying produce. Am I excited? you bet! I'm definitely planning to get there asap to do some food shopping.

I actually planned to go food shopping today, but I ended up spending all afternoon getting stuff for the apartment, after which I got home and collapsed on the couch with a large mug of coffee. I'm hoping to go tomorrow.

Open Thread and Kitchen Update

My dad recently shared with me that according to a New York Times article, it's looking as if people will no longer be able to purchase soda with foodstamps in the near future.

Part of me is ecstatic about this. I gave up soda a year ago and have zero regrets. There's no health benefits to drinking it and that stuff makes me bloat to next tuesday. On the other hand, one of the great things about foodstamps is that it gives you the freedom to eat what you want to. If people want to blow their foodstamp balance on chips and cookies, they can. If they want to spend it on fruits and vegetables, they can do that, too.

Thoughts? That is, if anyone is still out there reading this...

update: I'm fully moved in to my new apartment now, and the gas is getting set up on tuesday! get ready for some recipes, folks!