food, glorious food

[magid]

In this last week or so, the joy of planning and cooking food has slowly started to come back, paralleling my greater ability to actually do what I choose to do, rather than being limited to only what I can manage right then. Yesterday, for instance, I realized I had some bananas to use up, and made banana bread. A small thing at times, a larger thing right now.

I was pleased with how the marinated chicken came out Friday night (though it was a bit dry for some), and started thinking of permutations of marinating liquids (apple cider vinegar, olive oil, garlic, onion, apple, maybe some sage, came to mind first). There's definitely room for experimentation... maybe I'm now out of the chicken-with-gloopy-rice phase (really, it tastes better than that sounds)?

Maybe I'm just saying there's time to be inspired by what to cook, since I can do it, and have time to do it. (just in time for new spring ingredients, too :-)

Right now, I'm making the horribly orange mac-from-a-box. Yeah, it's probably almost junk food (all that coloring!), but it's the first pasta I'm attempting (a smaller box helps. Yes, I could make less than a whole pound at a time, but that always seemed silly, since I'd just eat the leftovers for lunch), so it's exciting for me. Growing up, I don't think we had it (um, Wolf?), but I just realized my mom never made a cheese sauce either, just throwing in cheese and letting it melt. Maybe that's why it's my occasional guilty pleasure.

Thoughts spin more quickly: make more chutney? Can other fruity things? Make the fruit in booze Cthulhia's described? Infuse oils or vinegars? Start more bread experimentation? Get more chocolate and dip things in it? Make truffles? So many choices...
(How did I go so long without this?)

Comments

[teddywolf.livejournal.com]

Nope, I don't think Mom got mac and cheez in a box. And I *know* she never made a cheese sauce. Only time she got even close to making one would have been as the base for a cheese souffle - and I think that was maybe a yearly event or so. Next time I make one I'm putting in scallions and fresh dill, makes it far yummier.

I'm quite fond of all the stuff we have in the kitchen at my place but there's capacity for more by far. Oils... olive, hazelnut, grapeseed, walnut, corn, infused garlic in olive oil, toasted sesame, infused chili in toasted sesame... I think I have a couple more but I couldn't swear to it. And at that I need more varieties. Don't even get me started on vinegars :-)

[magid.livejournal.com]

Yum!

I think you have a couple more oils, probably a lot more vinegars than me, too. Are there any other condiments you always seem to find more uses for, or just have to have for the kitchen to be complete?
(I love Sezchuan spicy sauce, for one. And there's some curry paste a friend brought from England that's amazing (I'm sorta hording the end of the jar until I know I can get some more....). And I now am slightly uncomfortable not having any chutney in the house (NOT the store stuff, which looks odd to me; something I've made that I know I like.)(Argh! It's the attack of the embedded parens! Must stop now before things get worse!))

(I think I saw someone post about how there's never enough food porn... ditto for me. :)

[teddywolf.livejournal.com]

Well, I have lots of condiments and spices I always need. Recently I've been experimenting a lot more with various different jarred mustards. The best mustard I have found for a hamburger, for example, is a maple horseradish mustard of a particular small company which does not have a retailer down here. Honey and maple mustards seem to be best for cooking sweet foods, horseradish and dijon types for zingier.

One item I'm very fond of is the garlic juice. Useful yummy stuff, especially good when you want garlic flavor but need a more liquid texture like a salad dressing.