things i love this summer #4

CORN!
corn is one of my favorite foodstuffs and i'll eat it prepared just about every way i can think of. lately, i've just been typewritering it off the cob, raw. when it's sweet corn, it's a super-delicious treat on a hot day.

today was my first day back at work after a long, lovely summer off and i thought it'd be a good idea to make up a batch of soup to take for lunches. so i resorted to my favorite standby: isa's corn chowder from vegan with a vengeance. unfortunately, i only had purple carrots to use, so i wound up with this kind of maroonish dark mess. fortunately, this chowder is THE BOMB, so it doesn't matter what it looks like.



choosing to make corn chowder ranks as one of my better decisions today, right up there with taking a load of dirty underwear to the laundromat. and, you know, actually laundering it. now i can greet my kiddos for their first day of 10th grade nourished and not-too-skanky. i have work to do before bed still, so i might be a little cranky when i initially greet the kids, but i'm sure they're going to appreciate the fact that their teacher isn't rustling up dust clouds like pigpen.

things i love this summer #3

TESTING FOR ISA'S WEIGHT LOSSY COOKBOOK.

i ate and ate all kinds of junk this summer, so now that i'm back in NYC, it's time to start practicing some moderation. and what better way than by testing some of isa's delicious low-fat, low-calorie meals? hopefully the book will keep its testing title, appetite for reduction, because that kickass name, coupled with the awesome stuff to be found between the covers, is sure to make it a classic.

most recently: cauliflower pesto soup
comes together in two shakes of a sanctuary lamb's tail and tastes like OMG.


before that: vietnamese rice noodle salad with grilled tofu
the #26 lan bowl comes home, on the skinny.


this book is going to be so great. thanks, eesie!

things i love this summer #2

mostly-cold meals!
i'm feeling a general move toward less cooked food, even if this meal is not really evidence of that. and i know i'm not the only person averse to cooking in the hot summer months, so i'm not suggesting that this is some great revelation in eating. but i am SO into having meals that include cold foods. salads are the easiest way to achieve that goal, of course, and they have the added bonus of being super-convenient!

this was my go-to meal for a few days. there was a box of ditalini that was nagging me to cook it and i finally gave in, turning it into some brooklyn deli macaroni salad. i'm not complaining that making the whole recipe meant that i ate the salad for lunch and dinner more than once in a week, but i realize it's probably not the best idea to be eating so much pasta. i feel like i get a pass, though, because i usually had it with one of joanna's beer brats, cooked in my recently-pilfered-from-my-mother convection steamer! oh, cuisinart, it is SO ON.



this is the perfect appliance for summer, for sure, because it saves me having to sweat over the stove. i hope it's a bit of a workhorse because i fully intend to crack the culinary whip year-round, using it to steam sausages, rice and grains, dried beans, and veggies! i found it two days ago and have used it twice already. it just might be single-handedly responsible for getting me back in the kitchen!

things i love this summer #1

i am all about cold drinks, even when it's not a million degrees in the shade.
during the summertime in south florida, however, it IS a million degrees in the shade, so i am even more emphatically about them.

the only place i'd found near my mom's place in delray beach that even stocks soymilk is starbucks. and they've always used vanilla soymilk, which i have NEVER understood, but at least they used to use silk. now they've switched over to some new, i think proprietary brand, which is reason number 3847532 why starbucks is not the move.

one day, i wandered into the coffee district on NE 2nd avenue and found what i'd been missing. the folks that work there are super nice and when i ordered my soy iced mocha, the barista asked if i wanted vanilla or plain soymilk. i'm not going to lie, i might have shed a tear of gratitude into my coffee.

my one complaint is that they give you a cup wrapper for cold drinks. wtf?

THANKS BE TO THE NYCDOE!

(image borrowed without consent)

snow? so, soup!

i was wandering around the whole foods on houston last weekend with paula when i ran across some chickpea miso. i've heard of but never had it and i picked up a jar, mainly due to the promise of a soup recipe printed on the label. i got around to making it today, hoping to stave off dreadful sunday feelings and eager to keep things moving in the right direction around here. snowy weather is trying to trap me in a wintry mood, but i'm fighting it tooth and nail. it's march 1st and spring is around the corner, i tell you!

mother nature can stick her snow where the sun don't shine.

it cannot be overstated how simple this soup is to prepare. it takes all of 15 minutes, prep time included, and the end product so lovely it would easily be worth twice the effort. i just had a small bowl, eaten with a hunk of fresh baguette. warmmm.



i used south river chickpea miso and here's the recipe from their website, altered just a little. (the jar recipe doesn't suggest wakame, but i bet it would be a great addition! also, i used two leeks and three carrots because vegetable overload is how i roll...)

Chickpea Leek Soup

Serves 4

1 medium leek sliced
2 carrots sliced
1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 three-inch piece wakame (optional)
4 cups water
1-2 tablespoons Chick Pea Miso
Chopped parsley for garnish

Wash and cut vegetables. (Leeks need special attention when washing; slice lengthwise and rinse under cold running water.) With kitchen shears cut wakame and add to 4 cups water in 2-quart saucepan. Add carrots and bring to boil. After 10 minutes add leeks and chickpeas continue to boil for 3-4 minutes. In small bowl blend miso with small amount of liquid from pot. Reduce flame to low and add diluted miso; simmer 3-4 minutes. Garnish and serve.