Homesick Comfort Food @ Home

My mom visited us a couple of weeks ago, and I couldn't be more excited. Of course I was very very very *very* excited to meet her off the plane in Spokane, but I was also salivating the entire time she was en route since she brought me a Cream Sausage from Jim's Meat Market.


It's not that I hate food in the Pac NW, but their idea of meat is usually not fatty (where the flavor is) and is generally pretty dry and tasteless. Alright, I hate it. With a passion. But when you grow up in the metro area made famous by Upton Sinclair's famous novel about meat production, what can you do? You can't fight city hall, people.


When I was just a wee little brat, my mom used to make cream sausage (otherwise known as breakfast sausage, but we're quite the breakfast-for-dinner family) and fruit dumplings for dinner, complete with melted butter for drizzling and cottage cheese. Whenever I get a cold or the flu, the first thing I think of is that meal, and I have to say, living in the land of tasteless meat, I really suffer through my sickness. I was so psyched that my mom bought a cream sausage to transport for this purpose, and even more psyched that she agreed to show me how to make her awesome fruit dumplings. They're quite simple it turns out, but really, I still think my mom is the greatest cook in the world. Isn't that how moms are supposed to be???



Early on in her trip planning, my mom assumed she would have some difficulties transporting a sausage in her carrying bag (it probably looks suspicious inside a bag) so when she told me the folks at O'Hare International (or was it Midway? I forget) put her sausage through a screening and it came out thawed from frozen, I wasn't surprised. Luckily, the sausage survived her harrowing journey and we were able to consume it after the 70 mile trek back to Pullman from Spokane. I might have melted down if it had spoiled. And then snuck inside her luggage so I could fly back and get another.


So here, ladies and gents, is my mother's famous fruit dumpling recipe for your enjoyment. May the tastiness be with you.

Snooty Snark's Fruit Dumplings
Recipe source: Judy Lynn Clark

Ingredients:
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. water
1 tsp. salt
1 tbl. butter
2 c. flour, sifted
2 eggs
About 1 can peaches (mine was 13 oz), drained

Directions:
1. Bring milk, water, salt and butter to a boil. Remove from heat and quickly add flour. Let cool.

2. Add eggs and mix until dough is soft and smooth. Roll thinly with rolling pin on a floured surface.

3. Cut into 2 in. squares and place fruit in the middle. Enclose in dough.

4. Heat a quart of water and slowly place three dumplings at a time in water, removing once they rise to the top. Serve with melted butter for drizzling (and preferably with sausage and cottage cheese for an awesome unhealthy but satisfying meal).












My beautiful mother. She's blushing right now reading this, but she truly is a striking woman. Too bad she wouldn't let me get her face!




















Dumpling dough before it was worked through. Looks like spaetzle.























Ready for folding and boiling.























Soooo ready for consumption with melted butter drizzled on top.















Dear Jim's Meat Market, I love you. Will you deliver? Kthxbai.

Garden Update

While my mom was here, we spent a day planting in my garden. I know I got this from my mother, but I love digging around in the dirt. There's something satisfying about plunging your hands into a pile of dirt and not caring what your nails look like, not caring about the dirt all over your pants and face, and finally, the finished product. The lovely part about spring in my little valley is that everything grows in and over the entire house (that is, while it's still all effortlessly green). It looks like a secret garden, making it feel as if we have no neighbors.


I'll blog the names and specifics of the plants once they pan out, as one never knows what will make it through the dry weather. For now, enjoy the domesticated wild!

The Breakfast Club in Moscow, Idaho

My mom was in town this past week, and since I'm usually chained to my kitchen without her, it was wonderful to be able to eat out a couple of times. Since the popular breakfast place in Pullman is The Old European, I had to suggest The Breakfast Club in Moscow. The Old European tries the fancy breakfast thing, but it's never good and always expensive. Not only that, but on more than one occasion I've witnessed various objects being found in people's food. Like those twisty ties that keep bread sleeves closed. And Band-Aids.


The Breakfast Club in Moscow has always been pretty good quality breakfast, and I'm a sucker for their huckleberry zucchini bread. While their coffee is mediocre at best, the bread never disappoints.






























My mom ordered the huckleberry stuffed french toast. She was a big fan of the honey cream inside the french toast, and the huckleberries were very fresh.






















Ian ordered the breakfast platter, which included a little baby loaf of the huckleberry zucchini bread. Ian wasn't a fan of their hash browns, complaining they weren't crispy enough (I don't share this opinion).






























I ordered the Veggie Benedict, which I've decided is my favorite. I used to order the chicken fried steak because the sausage gravy and the perfectly cooked steak were heavenly, but I can't deny how wonderful the hollandaise sauce is at the Breakfast Club. I usually order the sauce on the side because it's hit or miss, but I was a little too lost in conversation to request this time. I was pleasantly surprised to discover how creamy the hollandaise sauce was, and my eggs were PERFECT, a rarity on the Palouse.























We left the Breakfast Club happy and ready to end up...at the hobby shop, where my mom bought me a plastic chicken with a squeezable egg that comes out of its, ahem, end. We're weird.


The Breakfast Club
501 S. Main St.
Moscow, Idaho 83843
(208) 882-6481

At Long Last: Ma Po Tofu

I've been in love with Ma Po Tofu for years, ever since I first tasted it at a friend's house. Her mother was a fantastic cook, and as much as I loved my own mom's cooking, I happily spoiled my dinner many times anyway. Unfortunately I never once tasted a comparable version of this dish. Nothing could replicate the slightly sweet taste of the pork and its fat juices mingled with the texture of the tofu and the delightfully potent chili garlic sauce. For years I only ever thought of tofu in relation to Ma Po Tofu.

Until now.


A serious tip of the hat goes to Foodmayhem for posting this recipe, as I had almost completely given up on ever tasting Ma Po Tofu again without almost instantaneous disappointment. Ian was over the moon for it as well, and I've already made it three times in a month.


The only alteration I made was to increase the water from 1/2 cup to a full cup considering I actually used more pork than was called for. I also happened to look up the history of the dish. Food history is one of my hobbies, and some of the tastiest dishes have interesting origins. According to legend, Ma Po Tofu (from what I gathered, originally "mapo doufu" but there seems to be a dispute over the transliteration) originated in the Chinese city of Chengdu, concocted by an old woman disfigured by pockmarks. Unfortunately for her she had years before been banished to the outer skirts of Chengdu yet her cooking was discovered by a man and his son. The old woman lived in relative obscurity for much of her life, but luckily her dish lives on in a multitude of variations, although the first dish of legend only specifies tofu, pork and Sichuan peppercorns.


Of course, I have no idea if this story is true. I enlisted a friend fluent in Chinese to help me with a Chinese online encyclopedia entry that claims Ma Po Tofu was created by a woman whose husband was a restaurant chef sometime during the Qing Dynasty. The word "Ma" seems also to be in contention, and since I'm not an expert, I defer to my ignorance. Frankly, I'm not sure I mind not knowing the truth of a food history. It seems to me that often the popular legend came to be through a sequence of composition that is way sexier than the accidental/mundane food stories (see Chicken Tikka Masala or "stone soup").

If you'd like to see a picture of Mapo Doufu from a restaurant in Chengdu (reportedly straight from the legendary source), see here.

Dr. Food Leaves Pullman!!

I've waited for this moment.forever.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am leaving Pullman for a few days. That's right. I WON'T BE IN PULLMAN FOR THE WEEKEND. You wanted to invite me over to watch grass grow? Sorry, I won't be in town.

Can you tell I'm getting a little enjoyment out of belaboring the point?

Friday morning Ian and I will be leaving for our friend Ben's wedding in Olympia, Washington. This is exciting for a number of reasons, the most important being that I WON'T BE IN PULLMAN. [Okay okay, I'll stop now] Neither Ian nor I has ever been to Olympia, I will get to eat out (a rarity), and it isn't Seattle. Yeah. I know. You love Seattle. I do not share a fondness.


I've been on Yelp for quite awhile looking for dining options, but if anyone in the blogosphere has any suggestions, I'm open to anything.

Cheap Meets (Already Cheap) Pasta: Lemon Tuna Pasta with Capers

When I was in college, I rarely ever had time to make dinner from home. I worked three jobs at once, which meant I was often in commute between work places or at home feverishly cramming for exams/writing papers.


I'd like to say this has changed. In retrospect, I had much more time to myself in college, but then again I didn't have the foresight of what grad school would entail. I've gotten better at managing time since my undergraduate days, and of course it helps that I work mostly from home (grade a paper, turn chicken over) but every now and then I find myself craving dishes I made when I had only a few minutes to spare. Nearing the end of the semester, that craving also becomes a practical possibility.


Canned tuna is one of my favorite food items ever. It's versatile--the meat from one can will make a sandwich or two, it can be used in cold pasta salads, and it can even be used in hot pasta dishes.


I didn't exactly measure everything out for this recipe, but here are the steps.

Lemon Tuna Pasta with Capers

1. Drain the tuna from a 5 oz. can of solid white albacore tuna (you can use chunk light if you're going for the cheap aspect but it will pack quite a bit of moisture and runs the risk of shredding when combined with the pasta).
2. Boil a pot of water and add enough pasta on medium heat for two servings (I use whole wheat pasta). While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil (about 2 tbl.) in a pan and add three minced cloves of garlic. Add 1 tbl. of rinsed capers, drained tuna and about 2 tsp. of lemon zest, along with the juice of 1 lemon. This is optional but you could also add a few shakes of red pepper flakes.
3. Add salt and pepper to taste. Turn off heat and add 2 tbl. chopped flat leaf parsley.
4. Add cooked pasta to pan and toss to coat.
5. Serve with grated parmesan (or if you're like me, Romano).

Juicy Lucy BuffaloBurgers: You're Doing it Right

For the first outdoor grill session of the season, Ian and I decided to tackle the inside out cheeseburger we majorly screwed up last year. Our original run resulted in a stream of cheese oozing out of the meat into the coals. Cool sound effects and some excellent smoke, but perhaps not the most successful attempt.


This time around, I sought out the reinforcements by way of this Foodmayhem post and some very easy to mold ground buffalo. We didn't follow the patty recipe itself since Ian is a meat magician, but the tips and methods were greatly appreciated. After Ian worked his magic on the meat (he still is perfecting his ratio of worcestershire/garlic/onion, etc.) I carefully molded the meat patties together and then froze them for about ten minutes to ensure we didn't lost any of the cheesy goodness hidden inside.


We also made about a pound of asparagus since grilled asparagus is one of Ian's favorite vegetable side dishes (perhaps ever). This one is even easier than the burgers--just snap off the ends, spray with Pam (or olive oil), sprinkle with kosher salt and black pepper (or finish with sea salt), and grill for 4-5 minutes until tender but still delightfully crisp.



Our only Juicy Lucy problem? In a moment of weakness, we piled more cheese on top of the patties. I refuse to regret this.

I'm back! Kind of...

After weeks of writing feverishly, reading student papers and grading exams, I finally have a moment to myself. Kind of. Weeks of laundry and dishes are ensuring I won't be resting for long, and soon the end of semester crunch will necessitate more sleeplessness and bigger piles of laundry and dishes.


The funny part about graduate school is that despite the fact that you're constantly busy, the summer starts almost immediately after those final grades are turned in. Of course most people trot out the usual "at least you have the summer off while I work year round" routine, but remember, people: the silence and stagnation also mean no paycheck. Nada. Zilch. Nyet. I'm lucky enough to work full time at other endeavors closely related to my work during the summer, but here's the other slightly nauseating part of summer: research and writing. Despite the fact that you aren't getting paid for any of it, you still have to research and write.

The moral of the story? There is no such thing as a summer off for grad students who make $15,000 annually.

I'm working on a few back posts, and hopefully after I fold these 5 loads of laundry I'll be getting those online tonight. Happy cooking and eating, blogosphere!

Plz to forgive?

My silence is only internet silence. Promise. Grading for over 300 people and having that full time job outside of my teaching duties has made me a bad blogger. *Slaps hand* A post is forthcoming when I actually have a moment to do anything but....grade. And write that damned dissertation.

Tuna and beer (yes, you read that right)

After the rich food overload of the winter months, Ian and I had been craving something a little lighter. I've had quite the miracle food breakthrough with my picky eater husband as of late, and since I'd already introduced him to scallops (something he *refused* to try when we first started dating) and the wonders of mahi mahi, I decided it was time for the mecca: seared tuna steaks.



















Luckily, the Clarkston Costco is a hop, skip and a jump away from one of my other jobs (it will be wonderful if one day I just had *one* job) so I hopped on over for a seafood special they had going a few weeks back. For three tuna steaks, locally produced (er, 350-400 miles local, that is) I only paid $10.50. I believe I even skipped out the door until someone in a cowboy hat gave me the "that's unlady-like" look. Damn you, Idaho.



In addition to the light dinner we prepared for a lazy Sunday afternoon, we also happened to find a new beer offered at our local Moscow Co-Op: He'Brew Pomegranate Ale. As a Jewish person in the middle of Christian nowhere, I believe I also did a little skip to the car. Until some hippie in Moscow gave me the "oh dear that's so uncool" look. I can't win in Idaho. 0-2.

















The combination of He'brew and tuna steak salads was just the spring pick-me-up I needed, and even though he seemed a bit apprehensive biting into pieces of rare tuna, I think Ian might agree. The Origin Pomegranate Ale had a little bite to it, which was a great companion to the Cajun seasoned steaks. Even though we only dressed the greens in a little balsamic and olive oil, the fresh ground black pepper lightly sprinkled on top was like gefilte fish to this girl's soul.













































Seared Tuna Salad
(Note: Salad greens and veggies are not listed because....it's a salad. You know what you will eat!)


2-3 thick tuna steaks
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 tbl. olive oil


1. Pat steaks with the pre-mixture of spices listed above and cook in a skillet with olive oil on medium-high for 1 1/2 minutes on each side (rare), or cook until desired. Serve over greens and veggies (only you know what you like!) drizzled with good quality balsamic, olive oil and a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper.