How about you?

Just back from two weeks in Italy with espresso every day in a wide variety of locations: the airport, a hip bar in Fashion Central Milan, busy family run place in Turin (Torino), some touristy places on the Italian Riviera … The coffee was consistantly excellent, even in the train stations.

Today I had my first espresso on returning to the US. Waiting to pick Jennifer up from work I dropped into a to remain nameless but highly respected coffee bar for a get me through the jet lagged afternoon espresso. How did it compare? Very unfavorably. Compared to the Italian coffees:

• It cost twice as much. What? I had coffee in the most tourist dense part of the second largest city in Italy and paid half the price? How can this be?
• It took an incredible amount of time to get a simple coffee. The barista futzed with the dispensing and tamping of the grounds and then with the machine. A pro makes things look easy. This guy looked like he was nervously attempting to pass a final exam he hadn’t prepared for.
• It didn’t taste as good. This is probably just a result of the chosen coffee bar which prides itself on “fruity” coffees. Where fruity is a very sharp flavor profile.

To be fair about it I’m going to wander around Portland and try a few other places. Results by the weekend.

For those who wonder why I eat meat in the first place, I’ve considered the question for over 30 years. My food sourcing experience is not limited to grocery store and restaurant visits. I have participated in killing, butchering, cleaning and cooking meat. I have never been so hungry as when I assisted my grandfather in killing and cleaning a cow. Sure, I’d had a full breakfast but that didn’t matter. The process of killing, skinning and cleaning that beast left the marrow of my bones hungering. It was not my body that craved meat that day, it was my essence. I’ve also participated in making sausage. I do know what goes in and it’s fine by me. My consumption includes offal. It’s all good. The only hesitations I have about meat consumption is the cruelty of modern factory farming techniques and the ecological load of eating so high on the food chain.

Since Ash Wednesday of this year I’ve done without what is normally a staple of my diet. It was interesting.

Easing the process was my vegetarian wife’s support. There was no home front disruption. Certainly I ate better than many who give up meat for Lenten observation. We know how to do veg.

At work, where I take my lunches in the cafeteria, I was presented with a much smaller range of food options. Salads became a staple. On many days all the soups contained meat. The entrée specials had a vegetarian offering perhaps one day a week. Hot food, comfortable hot food, became mostly unavailable. My self imposed restrictions did not include fish. The tuna melt sandwich became a refuge for days when I wanted something warm.

The hardest times were at restaurants. Not that there were not ample vegetarian options. There were always good choices. However there were also great choices for meaty dishes that I desired. It never reached the level of craving, but I did feel some strong desires.

Controlling my desires by applying my wants became the central experience for Lent. The “want” in wishing to see this commitment through persevered over the desire to indulge in familiar flavors. During the forty days I got to observe myself encountering the moments of temptation and desire.

It was interesting.

My favorite cycling event of the year takes place each August on Bainbridge Island. On Sunday, August 17th, 2008 I joined with a bunch of wise and hungry folks to ride my bike on a picturesque island and eat a bunch of wonderful pie. On returning home, Christine quizzed me about the food.

“What did you have?”

“A slice of pumpkin pie. And a slice of pecan. And a slice of chocolate creme walnut. And a slice of peach pie. And a slice of dutch apple. And then another slice of pecan pie for dessert.”

“You had six slices of pie?!?”

“Well, yes. I restrained myself. I didn’t want to appear piggish.”

He has more to say on the matter. It’s delicious reading.

A highlight was Zoe Ann’s Cheesecake. Damn, they’re great. Dense flavor filled cheesecakes made with quality ingredients. By the time we arrived she was down to two flavors. I went with coconut. Make no mistake, I had reservations about this choice; coconut is for cream pie or macaroons, not cheesecake. Zoe’s cheesecake proved me wrong. This tasty revelation sparked some strong curiosity. Zoe has over a dozen kinds of cheesecake. I’m looking forward to a Very Raspberry or Oregonian (hazelnut butter topped with chocolate ganache) or Lemon Mango or …

There’s more to getting a Zoe Ann’s Cheesecake than great flavors in a rich, dense cheesecake. Zoe herself is a hoot, with a cheerful and warm personality. Rumor has it her husband Maurice is just a friendly.

Jennifer just asked me if there is any of the mini-personal cheesecake left. I’d already enjoyed it all. Sounds like “we’ll be back” means next week.

Learn up about a few of the BBQ variations (White BBQ? Yellow? Dry. Mutton.) to be found through out the south. Then visit Rhett and Link to enjoy some more of their road trip videos. They’ve a new one every Monday and Wednesday through the summer.

Thanks to Don Lief for forwarding the video.

Why the current favorite? The food quality is very high with moderate prices, that combination makes for great value.

We both had their Huevos Rancheros. The sauce may be too spicy for some, but I just crave the stuff. The menu expanded as of last week, so I almost switched to ordering something I haven’t had before. The egg and crepe centric menu now has some vegan offerings. Pancakes are there too.

Would you like atmosphere with that? The owner’s daughter and two friends were at one table doing homework and having dinner. At another eight people, most in “Tambayan” shirts, were passing around a karaoke microphone and singing, sometimes in English, sometimes in Tagalog. It felt like we weren’t in Portland anymore, we were on vacation someplace far, far away. It was the off season and the locals were no longer weary of tourists.

The menu featured unfamiliar dishes so I was filled with happy anticipation of new tastes. Although the menu was very meat oriented Jennifer had no problem finding dishes for her vegetarian tastes, especially when she spied garlic rice. She got a tofu and vegetable stir fry. I settled on a beef tamarind soup. My mom had a tomato/chili based beef stew. A side of Filipino sausages and spring rolls were ordered for appetizers. (I apologize for not taking notes and getting the names of the dishes.)

Was it more fun to eat or watch and listen to the karaoke? Eat. The food was wonderful. Spices nicely balanced, the garlic rice full of fried garlic flavor, the vegetables fresh. Before we left another couple of tables arrived and I saw many dishes delivered to the tables that I wish to return and sample.

Of course, I grabbed the check. You can’t let a retired widow pay for the dinner of her working son and his employed wife.

• 6 cups puffed brown rice – any puffed rice will do, really
• 1 cup peanut butter – creamy? chunky? I offer no suggestions.
• 1 cup brown sugar corn syrup – or brown rice syrup, organic light corn syrup, or molasses/honey mix … if you want maple syrup, I’d recommend going the half/half way by mixing it up with granulated sugar or rather fine other sugar
• 1/2 t pure vanilla extract – or peppermint or spearmint!
• 2 t instant coffee crystals crushed into a fine powder with the back of a spoon – this may be the max to keep the coffee flavor from overwhelming the others
• 1/3+ cup cocoa powder – the original called for carob powder, so feel free if you’re so inclined.

This can be made in a stand mixer if you have one. Otherwise you’ll get a workout stirring it all together. Mix everything except the rice puffs. When those ingredients are well blended fold in the rice puffs and stir until fully mixed. Have a parchment lined 9×9 pan ready. Press the mix down into the pan – press hard! – perhaps with a second 9×9 pan. When fully compressed refrigerate for an hour, then cut up into your favorite sized chunks.

There is not a significant amount of caffeine here. For extra zip consider mixing in a tin of Penguin Caffeinated Mints. Three of those equal a cup of coffee so you’ll want to have plenty. I’m also thinking of raisins or other mixable goodies might be real fun. Maybe some oatmeal? Don’t be timid!

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(not a red eye rice treat)

As I carefully kept the jelly and peanut butter off of the library’s copy of Against the Day (recommended by Kent P) my mind wandered a bit and I wondered about soup with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

For every sandwich the ought to be a soup, at least one, to pair with it. Jennifer’s response was “tomato”. I countered they just didn’t fit. She stood by her words. Unconvinced by her assurance I’m still pondering the question. Maybe mulligatawny? A fast check on recipes indicates maybe not. I remembered apples, raisins, potatoes and coconut with ginger, cumin and curry. The chicken, leeks and other ingredients had faded from my memory.

Side note, what’s with all the “recipes” for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?

What soup would you serve with a pb&j?

Kent Peterson’s Diet Haiku

Eat what you enjoy
Ride twelve thousand miles per year
You will not get fat

There you go. If the plan doesn’t work for you, gee that’s too bad but you can’t say you didn’t get your money’s worth. And in the haiku where it says “ride” it means “ride your bike” but you folks know that.

Advice from the master. I’m a few thousand miles short this year and have the fat to show for it.

Omakase links? They are custom presented ads based on site content, browsing history, and other factors. Amazon explains (and Greg Linden, Dave Taylor and Shmula comment and expand) the idea.

Like Kent I found it spooky. For me the spookiness came from the sure knowledge I’d never shopped at Amazon for clarinets, clarinet accessories or clarinet books. Their database is tied into some other online vendor where I have shopped. Is the other vendor’s site supported or services by Amazon? Dunno, can’t tell.

What I do know (I’m looking as I write this) is that Amazon’s personalized recommendations for me include nothing about clarinets. They do include two books I’ve been meaning to buy, three I own, one on my library wait list, and five by authors whose books I’ve recently purchased. I add the two I’ve been meaning to buy to my shopping cart and refresh the list. Still no clarinet products, but now a whole bunch of Benchmark Atlases. (I’d added the Idaho one to my cart.) Click for no interest on the California, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado … atlases, refresh and no clarinet stuff. Revisit Kent’s site and, yep, a clarinet ad. It seems Amazon looks at your Amazon history when making Amazon recommendations. The Amazon omakase services, however, seem to have another, or additional, data sources. That’s curious.

What really got my curiosity going in the first place was what I took to be Kent’s choice of words, omakase. What the heck is that? A quick visit to wikipedia reveals omakase “is the Japanese word meaning “entrust” or “protect”. It is most commonly encountered at sushi bars, where the customer may request [omakase] to give the chef authority to prepare what the chef wants to make for you.” How cool is that?

Last night Jennifer had a longing to visit our favored local Japanese restaurant, Tani’s. I asked for omakase. In return I received the best meal I’ve ever had there and a big smile from the sushi chef.

Too bad Amazon couldn’t recommend that.

While the dough rests and rises for twenty minutes or so you can make the potato and egg filling. Or the egg/tomato/chili/onion filling. Or that whatever you feel like stuffing your homemade tortillas with filling.

And then you cook the tortillas. Robert gives great directions on how hot to have your griddle so watch the video this part is about 4m10s into the stream.

My first homemade tortillas. Damn they were good.

Robert also says “you gotta eat the rest of your life, you might as well know how” (to cook) and “you gotta eat the rest of your life, you might as well eat well.” He’s right about that too.

From Slashdot.org:

As you well know vegetable oil is not cocoa butter. Or as my comments on the FDA form said:

Really, this trend goes down the path of “if it’s brown and sweet it must be chocolate.” That’s wrong. We do need truth in labeling.

If you agree make your voice heard by commenting on the FDA comment page. I encourage you to make your voice heard to keep stuff labeled chocolate actual chocolate!

I never ate at the Peruvian, Bosnian or Polish carts. Wish I still worked downtown! If I did I’d be heading over to Tabor (at Stark and Fifth) for lunch today.