Best Laid Plans Thwarted and A Challenge Update

You'll pardon me please if I ramble a bit today...

Rewind to the beginning of Fall term, when I started researching what student discounts I am eligible for on various cultural events. Much to my great delight, I found that The Portland Opera offers student rush tickets. For $10. It works like this: a student shows up an hour before curtain, flashes their indispensable student ID, and is able to purchase whatever seat is still available for, basically, a song.

When I discovered this, I started planning my very first trip to the opera. I have always wanted to go, but the cost for the general public (even for seats in the nosebleed section) was far out of my budget. Initially, I was to see Salome, however for one reason or another, I was unable to attend any performances. The next production, Lucia di Lammermoor, looked quite interesting, and I made arrangements to see it with a friend (also a student) tonight.

The weather in Portland this week has been cold. Well, Portland Cold. Too-cold-to-bike-in-the-last-two-days-cold. So after a freezing walk to the Max yesterday, I bundled up this morning, being prepared for a chilly post-opera jaunt home. Stockings under fleece-lined tights (wonderful things. I would love to find the fabric these are made from, make 7 unitards from it, have everything delivered to Clementine, and petition to work from home three months of the year), plus socks, boots, arm warmers, dress, sweater, gloves, scarf, and a heavy, ankle-length wool coat.  Since I couldn't ride in, I waddled off to a Max stop two miles away in this getup, considerably warmer than the day before. By 10 am, Portland Public Schools had announced that schools would close at 1 pm (it had not begun snowing at this point). And since my office has a large amount of not only parents, but people who live outside of Portland proper, we were granted a snow day. Hurray, but this means no opera.

As of the photo below, it had been snowing solidly for nearly 4 hours. Obviously, Portland is ill-equipped to deal with such weather.

I pouted for a good bit on the way home, but then realized that I could make use of this free time. For to do projects that have been pushed to the back burner. Like frozen yogurt. And cheese!

It is entirely possible that on my trek home that I picked up 5 gallons of milk, a culture, some cheesecloth, and wax. Since I started making cheeses that are aged, I have accumulated two (I haven't been doing this for long) that need to sit for 2-6 months. I want something a little faster, and something a little slower. The solution? A Colby and  a Parmesan.

The Colby will be ready in 4-6 weeks, and the Parmesan in about a year. Win!

And now onto The Challenge...

Initially, The Challenge was a little vague ("I will attempt to eat a lot of what is in the house before more grocery trips"). Since this first entry, I got more specific. Namely, I will continue with The Challenge until I get my tax returns. In the time that I have been doing this, I have cheated a couple times. I had Pizza Hut (one of the few places that delivers to my 'hood), and I purchased celery (for egg salad and tuna salad), frozen apple juice, and a package of linguine. So, I think I have done pretty well. I have made smoothies, arborio rice burgers, and tuna casserole, among other things. I still have a lot of smoothies in  my future, as well as fish dishes and greens. But, it has been smooth sailing. I found instructions on how to can beans, which I will be doing shortly, and still have a lot of pickles.

Well, that's about all for now. The snow is falling more heavily, and I am hoping for a full day off tomorrow.

Bon Appetit, and stay warm!

I Might Need Help

It is January 11. The high today is 49 degrees. It is alternating between blustery wind and beautiful sunshine. Normal Portland winter. Which has, naturally, gotten me thinking about...The Garden!

While I was wandering about Fred Meyer the other day, I veered into the garden section. To my great delight, they have started stocking 2014 seeds. Now, I will be ordering some super-special items from Territorial, but I just couldn't help myself. They were 40% off!

If the growing season is good, this could be all the produce I need for 2014

So, along with the seed-purchasing extravaganza, comes some contemplation of last year's garden...

• No zucchini plants this year. The darn things over-produce, and honestly, I don't like zucchini enough to have another 40 pounds to deal with. Plus, they are nearly free during their season. I can spend a couple bucks on zucchini at the farmer's market this year.

• More tomatoes! I am now down to just a few jars of diced/crushed tomatoes, plus no sauce. More this year. 20 plants is the goal: 15 sauce and 5 slicing and cherry.

• Limited brassicas. Broccoli and cauliflower are pretty cheap at the markets, plus the plants SPRAWL. I will, however, grow cabbages and Brussels sprouts. And pretty orange and purple cauliflower.

• Dry/freeze more basil. I ended up using most of my basil in pesto this year. Much though I lurve pesto, I have SO MUCH currently. And almost no pasta (thank you pantry challenge). I suppose I could make pasta (as I have semolina, and am allowing myself to purchase flour), but it is a big undertaking. 

• I am extending my garden beds. The less grass in my yard, the better. More food! So,I am adding one foot to the sides (no mowing next to the lavender, and two feet in the back, so the pergolas can serve as a vining station). 120 square feet this year, yeah, baby!

Next up? An update on The Great Pantry and Larder Challenge .

Bon apetit, and enjoy your weekend!

Wishing You a Gouda 2014!

Far be it from me to air my own personal dirty laundry, but I must admit I am quite pleased to see the end of 2013. Aside from a few really awesome occasions, (Clemmy, garden, Danielle, and Ashia, I am peering your way) 2013 was a pretty tough year on a few levels. Some big disappointments, and some sadness (especially toward the end of the year)  But! Bring on 2014!

During my brewing hiatus, while Clementine and I were finding our way toward one another, I took up cheesemaking. Far cheaper than extract brewing, plus almost instant gratification (no waiting at least 3 weeks to try the end result), this hobby was a perfect time-and-belly-filler for me. Sadly, I have failed miserably at the simplest recipes, like mozzarella (I just cannot getting the right kneading down) and feta (granted, my culture for this one is expired. The curds never set up quite right). However, I do make brilliant creme fraiche, ricotta, sour cream, and mascarpone. So, I decided (aided by the fact that I used a chunk of my HBX credit on a cheese press) to try my first hard aged cheese: Gouda (using the two gallon version of this recipe). Here are some Action Shots:

The ingredients

The first press

All curds in! The second press.

Post pressing

In the brine

A warning for the cave

 

The (almost) finished product

The whole thing is now in the cheese/mead/beer cave, aging away for up to 6 months. Next up? A Cotswold!

Bon apetit, and Happy New Year!

The Great Pantry & Larder Challenge

The end is nigh. Well, rather, the end of 2013 is nigh. Which has encouraged me to take a good, hard look at my food stores, and begin to use them. So, I have created a challenge (of sorts) for myself. I will attempt to eat a lot of what is in the house before more grocery trips. As part of this little goal, I will allow myself to purchase the following for the duration:

Organics to You deliveries. Right now, there is no fresh produce coming from the Clementine garden, and one can only eat so many pickles. I will, however, go the "all veggie" route, since I have all sorts of fruit put up.

Eggs. Though my (recently former) housemate Ashia tried to convince me to keep chickens, I have decided that now is not the time. So, I will buy eggs.

Ashia, trying to talk me into cute chickens.

Coffee. I will not deny myself coffee.

Half & half, milk. I drink my coffee creamy, and will allow myself to buy milk to make yogurt and cheese with.

Flour. I found a wicked good no-knead bread recipe, and will make that instead of buying bread.

Condiments. Worcestershire sauce takes something like 26 ingredients. Homemade mayo concerns me. I will buy condiments.

Other than that, I am going to make an effort to reduce the larder. Maybe put together the cheese press. Maybe save some moolah.
If nothing else, I am hoping to learn what to plant next year (though I already know less pickling cucumbers) in order to eat more efficiently. And start planning menus once again. I'll report once I actually start (estimated date 1/1/14, though I plan to practice starting this week).

Bon apetit, and enjoy your week!

Food Preservation As Art

Warning: The post that follows contains explicit photographs of food in jars.

In my never-ending quest to pull myself from old habits, I find that I have been attempting to read more and watch less. The frosty Portland weather of late has been quite the boon to this goal, as my cute little road bike (Skipper) has been awarded an unexpected vacation. While I am perfectly comfortable riding in rain, the thought of skidding sideways on frosty pavement at 7 AM is, quite frankly, unappealing. So, I will be bussing it until my beloved cloudy (and frost-free) mornings return.

All this extra time on public transit allows a great deal of reading time. Pleasure reading time. Which is simply lovely. I have always enjoyed NPR, especially The Salt. Food stuff plus an NPR bent? Yes please.

Recently, I came across an interesting piece about an artist in New York who is making art from preserved (dehydrated) food. This particular gent was impacted by Hurricane Sandy when he ran out of provisions during the storm. Though my reasons for preserving are quite different from those of Tattfoo Tan, I quite enjoy the idea behind the installation. Sad though that he will not (likely) be eating those delightful concoctions.

Though I don't proclaim that my pantry is art, I do take a great deal of pride when I sweep aside the curtain to gaze at my larder. Pickles (so many pickles), diced tomatoes, peach barbeque sauce, jams, tuna canned in oil, and canned fruit are amongst my favorite items. Plus, homemade canned soup (split pea and potato leek ham soups are finishing up in the canner as I type).

Fruits of my labor

Brussels sprout pickles, roasted corn salsa, and lemon pickled cauliflower

So yeah, I think I enjoy this canning thing. Might just keep on doing it. But, for now, it's a chilly, gray Portland day. Think I need some sunshine, and fortunately have some in jars. Off to eat delicious (albeit not totally pretty) peaches.

Peachy happiness in a jar

Bon apetit, and happy preserving (and art creation)!

Friendsgiving

As is wont to happen on the fourth Thursday in November, I did not trek home to spend the holiday with Iowa kin. For the 12 years I have lived in Oregon, I have been fortunate enough to have spent only a handful of this holiday on my own.

This year, I was lucky. I had several pals who were orphaned on the day for one reason or another. So, we all gathered at a palatial estate in Tualatin to create a true feast. For weeks prior, we all pingponged around a list of what we would bring, and by the few days before the menu was immense (to put it lightly).

Due to working schedules, we supped late, so the hens gathered earlier in the day to cook, cluck, drink wine, and snack.

 

Around 6, we  assembled at the table. Food, food, so much glorious food! The inevitable Calorie Coma quickly followed. We then forced ourselves to have pie and coffee, and dispersed to our respective domiciles. A lovely day spent with a fantastic group of foodies.

Mau flips the bird

The Shrine of Wine

Bon appetit, and enjoy the holidays!

Food Hoarding, Part 2

Thursday night was my grand premiere at the Homebrewed By Design event. And being the prepared little squirrel that I am, I worked long days all this week in order to have Friday off. Combine that with the fact that us bank people have Monday (Columbus Day/Canadian Thanksgiving) off. Which equals...Four Day Weekend! I am especially thrilled about this because I used up the majority of my vacation time by early summer buying a house and doing house stuff. So every little bank holiday is very welcome.

So, what will I be doing on my four (blissful) days off? Adding more goodies to the pantry, of course! On Friday, I went to the first day of the Portland Nursery Apple Tasting. Got close to 15 pounds of Seckel pears and Asian pears. For to make Seckels preserved in rose wine and Seckels preserved in ginger syrup, also to make Asian pear fridge pickles (so so good in salads). Other pantry items being made? Pickled Brussels sprouts, tomatillo salsa, chicken stock, roasted red pepper and tomato soup, and maybe start some sauerkraut. And make some non preserved items, such as mozzarella (fourth try is the charm), an eggplant zucchini stir-fry, and a margherita pizza (using up the end of my green tomatoes and some basil, plus the homemade mozza). Essentially, my aim is to use up all of my produce.

Right now, I have just finished an hour of ballet, followed by two hours of park cleanup. I am sore and sweaty and ready to start switchin' in the kitchen.

Bon apetit, and enjoy the weekend.

The pantry: before shot. New and improved pantry to come.