Inexact Science

This weekend I ate Kevin’s artichoke toast at Room 39, and...

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:10:00 -0600

This weekend I ate Kevin’s artichoke toast at Room 39, and I thought about it all weekend long. I thought about it so much that I had to recreate it or risk driving myself crazy.

Kevin’s artichoke toast is normally served with two poached eggs, because Kevin does not adhere to a vegan diet. But I do, at least for the time being. I asked for mine sans egg, but with tomato slices.

Shanna’s artichoke toast, via Kevin
Ingredients:
4 slices of crusty, hearty bread (I used multi-grain ciabatta)
1 can artichoke hearts in water, drained (squeeze excess water out of each heart)
1 clove garlic
Olive oil
Sea salt
Cracked pepper
Fresh tomato, thinly sliced
Arugula
Fresh Lemon juice

Toast thin slices of ciabatta bread underneath the broiler, on both sides, until fairly crispy (not quite as hard as a crostini). Meanwhile, in a food processor blend artichoke hearts and garlic together with a tsp of olive oil and sea salt to taste. This should come together in a nice paste, about the consistency of hummus.

Take the bread out of the oven and spread each slice with a generous amount of artichoke mixture. Top each with a slice of tomato, some arugula, and a squeeze of lemon juice, drizzle of olive oil, and salt and pepper. Serve with fresh fruit and hot coffee.

Kevin, we salute you.

Our meal last night was quiona and veggie paella. I’ve...

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:33:44 -0500

Our meal last night was quiona and veggie paella. I’ve never had a seafood paella… maybe someday, in Spain! I followed this recipe almost exactly.

Ever since I was a child I’ve preferred complex foods; I...

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 13:00:42 -0500

Ever since I was a child I’ve preferred complex foods; I refused to eat simple meals like PB&J. I was nervous that this soup wouldn’t hit my complex-foods-sweet-spot, because it’s essentially just zucchini and basil. But I followed the recipe almost exactly (I substituted veggie stock for water), and it was delicious. I served it over a little bit of brown rice pasta with a sprinkling of sea salt.

For the month of November, we’ll be eating as vegans at...

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:54:52 -0500

For the month of November, we’ll be eating as vegans at yellow house.
We came by this decision for a number of reasons. We:
1) found this documentary to be fascinating
2) want to eat the best diet for our health
3) hope to minimize our carbon footprint
4) love experimenting with food and trying new recipes

At the end of this month I hope to have a clearer vision about the type of food we bring into our home, and how we should proceed through life with a diet that is good for our health, good for our world, and good for our souls.

looking forward to a weekend of camping with friends.hopefully a...

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 09:50:12 -0500

looking forward to a weekend of camping with friends.
hopefully a little cooking and creating thrown in for good measure.
after this weekend the AK and I are embarking on a little culinary adventure!
can’t wait.

photo via chantal86

Chchch-Chia!Yes, like a chia pet.No, I won’t have grass...

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:03:00 -0500

Chchch-Chia!
Yes, like a chia pet.
No, I won’t have grass growing in my stomach.
What is it?
A seed, similar to flax seed, that grows gelatinous as it sits in liquid.
After soaking for 15-20 minutes, the texture is like Jello that hasn’t quite set.
Why?
Because it’s a fantastic source of Omega 3s & 6s, a good helping of fiber, and a filling, healthy snack.
Plus its fun
You can use it to texture water, almond milk, coffee, juices…anything…
And it’s kind of fancy
I love fancy things.

Some instagram snaps from the weekend:Oliver is our new fur...

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 09:28:46 -0500

Some instagram snaps from the weekend:
Oliver is our new fur rug
Experiements with Chia
The weekly hummus batch
A not-so-nutritious meal

This was my favorite read today…Pretty Kansas City...

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 13:25:13 -0500

This was my favorite read today…
Pretty Kansas City through the eyes of From Me To You
Kansas City has my heart, that’s for sure.

(via Oh Joy!)

I’ve been getting to know the ins-and-outs of vintage...

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 08:49:51 -0500

I’ve been getting to know the ins-and-outs of vintage Pyrex.
I’ve always loved it but now I’m learning about eras,
colorways, molds, models…
Why?
Info soon!

via kitschyliving

some instagram snaps from the weekend…sunday night...

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:42:49 -0500

some instagram snaps from the weekend…

sunday night dinner
pumpkin carving competition
dinner prep destroyed my kitchen
our favorite&best house guests

These stuffed artichokes are easy to make, but they look...

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 10:20:59 -0500

These stuffed artichokes are easy to make, but they look impressive. Perfect for those times that you want to trick your fancy friends into thinking you’re fancy too. I’ve made them three times in as many weeks. My secret trick is to make too much stuffing so that I have leftovers to eat for the rest of the week, because it’s great all on its own. But I guess it’s not such a secret any more.

Ingredients:
2 fresh, whole artichokes
1 lemon
Olive Oil
Sea salt
½ white onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
4-5 white mushrooms, chopped
1 Cup cooked Quinoa
¼ Cup feta cheese crumbles, or to taste
Garlic salt
Onion salt
Butter

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Wash the artichoke and prepare it for roasting by chopping off the stem as close to the bottom as possible (this will give the artichoke a nice, flat bottom to sit on). Chop off the pokey tops (as seen in the photo top left) and trim the small bottom leaves off with a pair of kitchen shears. Rub a halved lemon all over the cut artichokes, drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Put them in a glass baking dish with about 1/3 cup water in the bottom and put the dish on the center rack in the oven. These will roast for about 55-60 minutes.

Prep the stuffing while the artichokes are roasting. Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and sauté until cooked through. Season with garlic and onion salt to taste. Add cooked quinoa to the skillet and allow the mixture to cook until the quinoa starts to brown. Squeeze juice from the leftover lemon halves over the mixture, mix in feta and remove from heat.

When the artichokes are done roasting remove them from the oven and gently push their leaves apart, filling those spaces with the stuffing. Continue to stuff them until you’ve used all of the quinoa mixture, and then place a pat of butter on top of each one. Broil them until the top of the stuffing mixture starts to crisp and turn brown, about 3-5 minutes—keep an eye on them!

Serve with lemon and melted for dipping and give everyone an extra bowl to toss their discarded artichoke leaves into

loving a late 60s vibe latelyMick+Bianca for Halloween? via...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:05:36 -0500

loving a late 60s vibe lately
Mick+Bianca for Halloween?

via rollingstoned

instagram photos from the weekenda favorite ingredientgreat...

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 10:18:00 -0500

instagram photos from the weekend
a favorite ingredient
great thrift finds
a nook at yellow house
&
a puppy who sleeps 19 hours a day

I’ve been doing a lot of crochet lately…and...

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 14:11:05 -0500

I’ve been doing a lot of crochet lately…
and thrifting,patterning,cutting, ironing, pinning, sewing…
what am I up to?

Details soon!

My mom’s best friend is Lebanese. She taught us to make...

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 12:00:49 -0500

My mom’s best friend is Lebanese. She taught us to make dolma—we called them grape leaves growing up. There are lots of varieties on this recipe out there; I’ve had fantastic vegetarian dolma at a Mediterranean restaurant here in Kansas City. Some people serve them as an appetizer covered with a thin tomato sauce, but I’ve always eaten them as a main course served with hummus, tabouleh and pita bread.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (80/20)
½ cup quiona
½ cup brown rice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 jar grape leaves, drained and rinsed in cold water
1 lemon, juiced

Directions:
Mix ground beef, quinoa, brown rice, salt and pepper together in a bowl. Lay a grape leaf stem & vein side up on a cutting board, and wrap it around a small amount of the ground beef mixture, following the photos above as your guide (or reference the video posted below). In a medium sized pot, lay dolma side by side in a row until you’ve covered the bottom of the pot. Start a new layer, laying the dolma side by side in the opposite direction (first layer-horizontal, second layer-vertical, etc.). Once you’ve finished pour lemon juice over the dolma, cover the pot and let them sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour but up to 12 hours. After they’ve marinated in the lemon juice, fill the pot with water until it just covers the top layer of dolma. Bring the pot to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat and cover, allowing the dolma to simmer for an about an hour. The dolma will be done cooking when the rice has absorbed enough water and the beef is cooked through. There will be a little liquid left in the bottom of the pot, store this liquid along with any left over dolma. They taste great the next day, cold or reheated.

Video

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 11:52:59 -0500

A few instagram snaps from the weekend:Spaghetti Squash with...

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 15:20:00 -0500

A few instagram snaps from the weekend:
Spaghetti Squash with Marinara
Top-secret project, in process (details to come)
A delicious fritatta for Saturday lunch
Someone’s fashion statement

a few things i’ve found pinteresting…all in...

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 09:04:56 -0500

a few things i’ve found pinteresting…
all in gold

clockwise: 1 2 3 4

Stuffed baby bell peppers

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 09:51:00 -0500

Autumn is a good time for stuffing things: turkey, squashes, ourselves with lots and lots of carbs. Last week I stuffed and roasted fresh artichokes, and this week I’m stuffing teeny-tiny bell peppers that were grown by a coworker. These baby bells were so cute I considered adopting them and raising them as my own.

But I got too hungry.

Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients:
4 green bell peppers (tops cut off, sliced in half lengthwise, seeds and ribs removed and blanched)*
2 cups brown rice (cooked)
1 T olive oil
½ large white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz mushrooms, chopped (i used portabella)
1 t onion salt
1 t garlic salt
1 jar marinara sauce
2 T Parmesan cheese
½ cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian/vegan)
salt and pepper to taste
feta cheese to garnish

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees
In a large sautee pan over medium heat, sautee onion and garlic in olive oil until transuscent. Add mushrooms and continue to sautee until cooked through (3-5 minutes). Add rice and sautee for about a minute more. Season with onion and garlic salt, and salt and pepper to taste. Add half of the marinara sauce to the pan, allow to heat through, and sprinkle with parmesean. Remove sautee pan from heat.

Combine the remaining marinara sauce with the chicken broth.

Spoon a generous amount of stuffing into each pepper. Arrange stuffed peppers in a glass baking dish and pour the marinara/broth mixture into the bottom of the dish. Roast on the center rack of the oven for about 50 minutes. When done, the top of the stuffing on each of the peppers will be slightly browned. If desired, add feta cheese crumbles to the peppers with 15 minutes of cook time left.

*this is how I prefer to prep my peppers. You could also leave them whole. Blanching, while not necessary, helps preserve the peppers as they cook and keeps the skin from wrinkling or getting tough.

best friend bears. via gretchenjonesnyc

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:40:49 -0500

best friend bears.

via gretchenjonesnyc