there is a place in the heart that
will never be filled
a space
and even during the
best moments
and
the greatest times
times
we will know it
we will know it
more than
ever
there is a place in the heart that
will never be filled
and
we will wait
and
wait
in that space.
Charles Bukowski
Tags: Quoting
Hello from a wee hiatus! I am back with food, which I daresay is no surprise. I mentioned a while ago that we’ve been buying bags of avocados at Costco and freezing guacamole. Here it is before popping into the freezer. I am still in awe of how great this is. It does get a tad watery, but I’m not running a restaurant here, peeps, so who needs perfection when you’ve got guacamole on demand?!
Unlike when we lived in Portland, Greg and I aren’t generally roaming the city in search of new and exciting foods on a regular basis. We have our favorite places for Indian, Korean, Italian, Japanese, bar food, and tacos, but, sadly, not Mexican, in general, because we’ve largely been disappointed or gotten food poisoning, no joke.
That said, every once in a while, we do want to try something new. I heard about a food hall called C.O.A.T.I., read some menus, and off we went! I got an arepa from Arepapi, which is basically a sandwich made with a very thick corn tortilla. Mine had steak and shrimp and amazing cheese and sauces (no longer on the menu???). I did not take a picture! It was also very messy, and I used a LOT of napkins. Greg got this gorgeous sandwich, fries, and a beer.
At the end, we shared a taro paleta (Mexican popsicle), which was creamy-dreamy delicious! They had options to fill the paper boat with every topping imaginable, but alas, we decided to be flavor purists and felt zero sadness.
It is jam and jelly making season, my friends. Pictured are apple jelly, peach, and strawberry jam. Absolutely fabulous!
Adorable peach hand pies, made with a jar of the homemade jam. This is one of those instances when the execution is NOT worth the final product. Don’t get me wrong, they were truly delicious, but dang, I tried a new dough that was ridiculously fussy, making everything take ages longer than necessary. That heart cutout, though. Sigh.
Weather predictions indicated optimal temperatures outdoors for firing the oven to 550 indoors! God bless rainy days. The pizza was as good as it looks. Also, if you never ate at BeauJo’s pizza in Boulder as a whippersnapping teen or young adult, you may not be familiar with dipping your crust in honey. Highly recommended.
We grew this gorgeous Blue Pearmain Apple! Sadly, neighborhood varmints got the majority of the harvest. It did save me from having to do something with it, however. Small mercies?
On our trip to the Mid-West three summers ago (???), we tried as many local specialties as we could: Juicy Lucy burgers, Trenary Toast, Dutchcorn, Dr. Sprecher soda, divinely crispy fried cheese curds (!!), and a Kringle Cake. I found a recipe for one (in Shauna Sever’s MidWest Made) and, with ample almond pulp to make paste and a jar of cherry jam (from our own cherries!), I forged ahead with the recipe. It uses, not a pie crust, but a danish pastry I’d never made before, but was really quite easy. It is a two day process, as there is much waiting for the dough, but totally worth it! I think I might try it with cream cheese next time. Oh, I also did not have the bandwidth to make it in the wreath shape of its origin, because, why?
F i r s t W a y :
2 14 oz cans tomatoes (I used diced)
2 tablespoons pureed chipotles in adobo* (Embasa is the best. I find others vinegary.) Add more if you like it SPICY!
1/2 cup almond pulp
1/2 – 1 teaspoon garlic powder (double this amount if you prefer fresh garlic)
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups cooked chicken, diced, optional
1 cup cooked pinto beans
Combine tomatoes, chipotle puree, almond pulp, garlic, and salt in a blender on high speed, until smooth. Taste and correct seasoning, if necessary. Place in a large pot over medium heat, add chicken, if using, and pinto beans. Bring to boiling, reduce to a simmer, and serve once everything is adequately heated.
*I puree a whole can (7oz) of chipotles with an immersion blender and store in a mason jar in the fridge. It lasts for ages and can be added to a myriad of dishes!
S e c o n d W a y :
1-3 yellow, red, or orange bell peppers
1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup almond pulp
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 – 1 teaspoon garlic powder (double this amount if you prefer fresh garlic)
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat broiler on high. Depending on hunger, size, and your preference for a more peppery soup, cut desired number peppers in half and remove ribs, seeds and stems(IYKYK!). Place cut side down on a baking tray and broil until fairly evenly dark brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
While the peppers are broiling, heat the tomatoes, almond pulp, paprika, garlic, and salt over med-high heat until boiling. Cover, and reduce to a simmer.
Once peppers are cooled, peel off as much of the beautifully browned skin as you can. Put the flesh, whole or in pieces, into a large* blender jar. Add the simmering tomato mixture. Cover and blend on high until velvety. Taste and correct seasoning, if necessary.
*If your blender jar is small, do in batches, and heat on the stove.
Variations:
Broil a halved jalapeno with the bell peppers and peel wearing gloves. Add chipotle puree. Add the juice of an orange. Add a tablespoon of olive oil. Add a little oregano. Add chunks of bleu or gorganzola cheese to the bowl, and go fishing with your spoon. Grate a melty cheese over the top.
Tags: almond pulp
Oscar Wilde said that if you know what you want to be, then you inevitably become it – that is your punishment, but if you never know, then you can be anything. There is a truth to that. We are not nouns, we are verbs. I am not a thing – an actor, a writer – I am a person who does things – I write, I act – and I never know what I am going to do next. I think you can be imprisoned if you think of yourself as a noun.
Stephen Fry
Tags: Quoting
9″ tart crust, make more and cut into shapes like I did, if you like
2 eggs
3 tablespoons milk
1 cup sugar (more if you prefer it on the sweeter side)
1/3 cup almond pulp
4 cups fruit: sliced if rhubarb, plum, peach, or nectarine; whole if cherry, raspberry, or blueberry
2 teaspoons vanilla or almond extract, optional
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 9″ tart pan with crust, cut out shapes with remaining dough, if you have any. Refrigerate until ready to fill.
In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Add milk, sugar, almond pulp, and optional vanilla or almond extract. Stir until well combined. Pour into lined tart pan. Add fruit, making a fun pattern with slices and topping with the optional shaped pie dough, if you like. Bake, 30-60 minutes, until nicely browned.
Enjoy!
Variations:
Combine blueberry or raspberry with peaches or nectarines. Combine blueberry with the zest of a lemon, omit vanilla or almond extract.
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Happy Birthday, Mari!
Tags: almond pulp
