Cooking for One: Fusion Egg and Cheese

DISH: Spinach-Pie Quesadilla
TYPE: Mixing and matching
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Egg, Cheese

In my New York, the egg and cheese sandwich might be the quintessential sandwich, dethroning traditional staples like pastrami on rye and lox on a bagel. Delis, from humble to gourmet, slap these two simple ingredients on anything from kaiser rolls or toast to croissants and wraps. And when bagel places get in on the action, I start thinking there might not be anything better. The cheese used runs the gamut from American to fancy cheddar. And the eggs are like omelets, scrambled, or fried. But I don't even really know why I'm bothering to list all these variations, because however you tweak them, Egg and Cheeses are always good, even bought from the least likely places. In fact, it's been reported that one of the best was actually made in our high school cafeteria: it was Liz's cherished Fatty with Cheese, if that gives you any idea.

I make and serve Egg and Cheeses in some of these variations fairly regularly. Recently, inspired by the buckwheat crepes my host mother in Paris used to cook an egg right in, I've been recreating the sandwich on a wrap: I just sprinkle a bit of Jarlsberg on a wrap I've fit into my frying pan, then crack an egg or an egg white over and seal the whole thing quesadilla-style as the cheese melts and the egg cooks.

With some farmers' market spinach wilting in my fridge (sometimes I wonder if my life will ever be conditioned by anything other than the vegetables I must save from rotting into waste), I decided to tweak the fusion up just one more notch. Not just Frenchified (the crepe), or Mexican-like (quesadilla), today's egg and cheese was also going to resemble a spinach pie (Greek).

In this rendition, the egg becomes more of an ingredient in the sandwich filling than the main event, but artistic license permits that I continue to think of this bastardized sandwich as a comforting go-to Egg and Cheese (though it's healthier than a Fatty with Cheese) for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

From my kitchen, where old New York standards give way to melting-pot hybrids, to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipe**

Spinach-Pie Quesadilla
Serves 1

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 small onion, finely diced
2 scallions, sliced (white and green parts)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper
pinch each of thyme, oregano, and cayenne
1 cup fresh spinach
1 small wrap
1 egg white
1 tablespoon strained yogurt
1-2 tablespoons feta cheese

In a small pan, heat the oil. Add the onion and scallions and cook until soft, 3-4 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cooking a minute or two more until soft. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and the spices. Mix in the spinach and cook until wilted. Remove to a bowl and cool slightly. Stir in the egg white, yogurt, and half of the feta.

Wipe out the pan, then brush it with a bit more oil or cooking spray. Over low heat, put the wrap in the pan and sprinkle the rest of the feta over one side of the wrap and see if you can't get it to melt slightly. Pour the egg-spinach mixture over the same half of the wrap, fold the other half over and cook on one side until the egg begins to firm up, 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side for 2-3 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.
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Recipe Flash: Spring Fettuccine with Herbed Ricotta

Spring Fettuccine with Herbed Ricotta

Makes 4 servings

Before this particular weeknight evening when I found a half-used container in my fridge from the prior week’s baked pastas, I had never used ricotta as the base for a simple sauce. When Spring comes along, I rarely want to eat pasta at all—or anything that requires me to stand over a hot stove. The beauty of using this ricotta mixture is that, unlike cream sauces using actual cream, you don’t have to stand around while it reduces. Simply dress your fettuccine with the herby cheese, add a little pasta water to thin, toss to coat, and you have the perfect weeknight pasta, no sweat.

Ingredients

1 lb Fettuccine
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 scallions, sliced
2 small shallots, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tbsp basil, chopped
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup bread crumbs, toasted
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup of cooking water, drain and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, herbs, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and a 1/4 cup of parmesan. Use some of the cooking water as needed to thin the mixture.

In the meantime, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the shallots until translucent and tender. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute or two. Add the drained pasta to the pan and toss with the ricotta herb mixture until fully coated.

Serve warm, topped with the remaining Parmesan and toasted bread crumbs.

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Cooking For Others: Non-Picnic Brunch

the spread

EVENT: Frisbee in the Park Brunch
VENUE: Cara's Apartment, Park Slope
PARTY SIZE: 10
MENU: Biscuit Club Sandwiches; Greens with Apricot-Cashew Relish and Basil Vinaigrette; Baby Carrots; Pound Cake with Strawberries and Creme Anglaise; Mimosas

In college, six of my friends won the housing lottery twice in a row. They managed to commandeer this amazing dorm room both junior and senior years: it had six singles connected by an enormous common room and surrounded by a wraparound balcony that not only looked out over the river and the other dorms but also the rooftop of the campus's most popular bar. If you were brave, you could even scale the shingled roof to the belltower at the top and look out over the entire city. Granted you had to climb five painful flights of ridiculously steep stairs to get there, but once you arrived, you were entitled to the same privilege as the room's inhabitants—the company, the view, and the fanciest George Forman Grill in existence—a free-standing one that looked like a Weber BBQ.

Being a dorm room, the place lacked a kitchen, but that didn't stop Tatyana, Joe, Francesca, Connor, Max, Precious, and Joanne from cooking on their George Forman. Most Sunday nights, they'd plug in the grill, de-rig the smoke alarm, and cook up everything from sausages to Korean barbecue. We'd sit around and eat and collectively dread the arrival of Monday.

Now, I'm lucky enough to live close to Prospect Park, which is a blessing but can sometimes feel like a curse when I wish I had an excuse not to exercise. While the apartment lacks a belltower and a George Forman, it does of course have a kitchen, and so I decided, last Sunday, to combine my collegiate nostalgia with a new wish to play Frisbee outdoors, by inviting the "sixpack" plus some groupies to come over for brunch.

On Sunday, the weather was beautiful, and my inner kindergartener just wanted to play. Still, like the lazy adult that I am, deciding it was too much of a hassle to bring the food to the park (and how would we then have made our way through like 5 pots of coffee?), I invited everyone over for indoor brunch, then pressured them to throw around the Frisbee with me afterwards. In any event, the meal I ended up making was the type of spread that could easily have been carried outdoors as a picnic, should we have chosen to do so.

Our grasp of hand-eye coordination in comparison to the champion pick-up soccer players on one side was embarrassingly bad and was probably closer to the level of the nerf-launching children on the other side of our game. But after a long winter, it felt swell to be out in the sun and we ended the afternoon with a walk, full of cake, vitamin D, and endorphins. It felt almost as swell as being in college, and as we capped the afternoon with a second meal out at a German schnitzel and beer place, we succeeded—as we had back as undergrads—in making Monday morning feel eons away.

really?--2 whole people in my tiny kitchen

From my small, park-side kitchen to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Biscuit Club Sandwiches
Serves 10-12

15 Whole Wheat Biscuits (recipe follows)
1 ball fresh mozzarella cheese
8 slices ham (optional)
2 avocados
3-4 tomatoes, thinly sliced
2-3 tablespoons pesto*
1/2 cup creme fraiche**

Notes: I used store-bought, but you can find Phoebe's pesto recipe here.
You can easily substitute mayo for the creme fraiche (mayo scares me and I don't keep it in the house).

Combine the pesto and creme fraiche.

Slice the cheese and tomatoes as thinly as possible and set aside on paper or kitchen towels to drain. Just before assembling the sandwiches, cut the avocado into thin slices.

Slice each biscuit in half. Spread both top and bottom thinly with pesto-creme fraiche mixture, then top with a half slice of ham if you're using, a slice of cheese, avocado to cover, and then a tomato slice or two. Press the top half of the biscuit on top.

Whole Wheat Biscuits
15-18 sandwich-sized biscuits

What liquid you use in these is flexible: use milk and half and half for richer biscuits or mix the milks up with water, as below, for biscuits that won't undermine the sandwich fillings.

Ingredients
3 cups flour
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
6 tablespoons butter, cold but not frozen
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup half and half
1 - 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat the over to 425°F.

Combine the flours, salt, baking powder, and sugar in a large bowl. Dice the 6 tablespoons of butter and add to the bowl. Using your fingers, smear the butter into the flour mixture until there are no large chunks left and the whole thing looks crumbly. Make a well in the center and add the milk, half and half, and water. With a rubber spatula, combine well but with as little mixing as possible. The dough will be fairly wet, but you should be able to handle it.

With floured hands, form balls somewhere between the size of a golf ball and a baseball. Drop onto a buttered baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes. Brush the top of each with some melted butter, rotate the pan from back to front, then bake another 8 minutes until brown and firm. Serve warm, or at least within a few hours of making.

non-picnic in action

Greens with Apricot-Cashew Relish and Basil Vinaigrette
Serves 10

Ingredients
5-6 cups mixed greens and arugula
Apricot Cashew Relish (warm or room temperature)
Basil Vinaigrette

Put the dressing and relish in the bottom of a bowl. Add the greens. Just before serving, toss to combine.

For the relish:
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup diced sweet potato
6-7 dried apricots, cut into slivers
1/4 cup cashews, chopped
1 small carrot, grated
juice from half a lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper

Heat the olive oil in a small pan. Add the sweet potato, and cook over medium heat until softened and brown, 4-5 minutes. Add the cashews and toast, then, when they're fragrant, add the apricots and stir to combine. Sprinkle with salt, and squeeze the lemon over all, letting it bubble and reduce. Off the heat, stir in the carrots and top with lots of pepper. This can be made ahead and refrigerated, but let come to room temp before adding to the salad.

For the dressing:
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1/2 tablespoon mustard
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon minced basil
salt
pepper

In a blender, mini mixer, or bowl with a whisk, combine the mustard, basil, and vinegar. Stirring constantly, add the oil until combined, then the honey. Salt and pepper to taste.

Pound Cake with Strawberries and Creme Anglaise
Serves 12

1 pound cake
2-3 pints strawberries, cleaned, sliced and sprinkled with 1-2 tablespoons sugar
creme anglaise

You can assemble these yourself by slicing the cake and topping each portion with fruit and creme anglaise, or just serve the cake whole and let guests add strawberries and cream. To simplify, use regular whipped cream instead of creme anglaise.


This pound cake is adapted from The Silver Palate Cookbook's Bishop's Cake. My mom makes it every year for Thanksgiving, and I've modified it with her tips, which focus on mixing the batter for an interminably long time.

Ingredients
2 sticks unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 eggs

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour and 10-inch bundt pan.

Cream butter and sugar gradually; beat until fluffy. Sift flour and add to butter mixture. Stir just enough to blend. Add lemon juice and vanilla; stir well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition (at least 1 minute, 2 if you can stand it). After adding the final egg, beat the whole thing for 4-5 minutes.

Pour batter into prepared bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour or slightly more, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. After the first 30 minutes, cover cake closely with aluminum foil.

When cake is done, cool in its pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely.

For the Creme Anglaise

This is not unlike the ice cream base we used for Mazto Crunch Ice Cream. I just never froze it, so it remained a custard of pourable consistency. I used some leftover (plain) creme fraiche from the sandwiches to make the custard thicker and slightly less sweet, but it's optional.

Ingredients
1 cup low-fat milk
1 cup half and half
1 egg
1 egg yolk
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons creme fraiche

Heat the milk and half and half with 3 tablespoons of the sugar until it measures 175°F on an instant-read thermometer.

Meanwhile, beat the egg yolk, egg, and the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar until light and thick, 2-3 minutes with an electric beater.

When the milk is hot, pour about a half cup of it into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Off the heat, stir the eggs back into the milk, return to the heat, and cook, stirring constantly 7-10 minutes (180°F on the thermometer). Stir in the vanilla and creme fraiche and cool in a heatproof bowl in the fridge. Can be made 1-2 days in advance.


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Big Girls, Test Kitchen: Ketchup

Picture this: it's Sunday (or Saturday). It's raining or snowing or way too hot to go outside. You've watched all the Arrested Developments and 30 Rocks and your Netflix DVDs are stuck in the mail. You're a little bored but also a little enterprising. You need a recipe project, something time-consuming or unusual, something you wouldn't ordinarily make, or at least not from scratch. Something that might involve some trial and error--might even not come out perfectly the first time, like ice cream or bread

So, for when you have too much time on your hands and want a recipe that's been through experimentation and tweaking, check back for Big Girls, Test Kitchen posts. Below, the first:

*********

It's a little embarrassing to admit, but I'm a ketchup afficionado. It hits the salty, sweet, and tangy notes I can't resist in my food in my food, and though I'm sure I could do without the high-fructose corn syrup and red dye #5, I figure in small doses, it's probably okay. However, when you stop eating ketchup with your eggs and start serving an occasional egg (or cauliflower floret) beside your pool of ketchup, it becomes more of a problem.

This really hit with the advent of spring and arrival of fresh dandolien greens, ramps, and asparagus in the market. I tend to make myself a lot of egg scrambles with vegetables when I need a quick and simple dinner, and nothing goes better with those eggs than ketchup. But--and I know this seems kind of ridiculous--I was having these really guilty feelings about pouring supermarket ketchup over the organic greens and eggs the farmers at the market had trekked all the way to Brooklyn to sell me for more than I can afford. I decided that a homemade ketchup would assuage my guilt without depriving me of my condiment.

Plus, I love a project.

In fact, making ketchup turned out to be less of an ordeal than I imagined. I wound up cooking it in my slow cooker overnight, because of timing, but you get the same effect from an hour or two of simmering. And though this doesn't have the delightful undertones of Artificial Secret Ingredient #1 and Mystery Chemical #2, its saucy, tangy, and sweet-and-sour-ness will satisfy all your Heinzian needs.

From my kitchen, where even the condiments are homemade, to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipe**

Some of the recipes I looked at called for an entire cabinet of spices, while some stuck with the basics. I took something of a middle road, adding garlic and a pinch of whichever spices looked conducive to creating the hodgepodge taste of ketchup. I figured if I stuck to 1/8 teaspoon measurements, no one taste would be able to reign supreme.

With the exception of the tomato, onion, garlic, sugar, salt, and vinegar, all the ingredients really are optional. Use what you have - it all cooks down together in the end.

Homemade Ketchup
Makes about a pint

Ingredients

1 (28 ounce) can tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1/2 cup vinegar (I used about 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar, the juice from 1 lemon, and 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar; if you're going to use all one, go for Cider or Red Wine)
pinch each of cinnamon, coriander, cayenne, clove, ground ginger
1 tablespoon raisins or currants
3 sundried tomatoes, minced (or 1 tablespoon tomato paste)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
several grinds of pepper

In a large pot or Dutch oven, saute the onion and garlic in the oil until softened and slightly browned. Add all the rest of the ingredients, bring to a simmer, and cook, partly covered, for about an hour. Cool so you can handle it and then blend on high setting until completely smooth.

Chill in the refrigerator for about an hour before using, then go ahead and smother your grilled cheese sandwiches and sweet potato fries, guilt free.

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Quarter-Life Coaching: Dave's Date Night

the date night asparagus that never was

EVENT: Date Night
TEAM: Dave
TYPE: Romantic Meal
MENU: Shrimp Risotto with Sweet Peas and Leeks, Roasted Asparagus with Lemon

Though I know a free meal could never been viewed as a form of abuse, I still get occasionally paranoid that my friends feel taken advantage of for being my culinary guinea pigs time and time again. When I am not calling them to duty at my coffee table poufs, more than anything, I hope they are home experimenting themselves. So it is always a pleasure when I feel I can take a step back, hand over the spatula, and give people the confidence and the tools to do it themselves.

A few weeks ago, my friend Dave asked me to recommend a good, easy menu to wine, dine, and impress his date, recessionista style, in the comfort of his apartment. And to prove to women everywhere by Dave’s example that men like this do exist, I went into quarter-life coaching overdrive.

The menu I chose may surprise some, as risotto has a bad rap for being intimidating. If you have been wary in the past, I promise you there are plenty of venerable cooks who will quell your fears of future risotto-related incompetency and debunk the myth all together.

That said, I wouldn't merit this meal as my foolproof answer for date night fare or for fledgling cooks in general—I chose it, however, for my friend Dave because of the romance factor, and because I know he has some experience cooking. Make-ahead meals where you are able to inactively reheat before serving are always the most stress free. But since Dave’s date didn’t eat red meat or chicken (somehow bacon was still in her diet), and fish was too intimidating (not to mention smelly), I decided to go the typical New York date route and stick with Italian. Since most pasta dishes need to be served hot from the stove, with even more hands-on activity (and a steam facial), I thought risotto was as good a choice as any—as long as all the prep work was done in advance. So I sent Dave directions for the risotto, and, despite having some definite tendencies to become a soccer mom or, worse, a backseat cook, I planned to leave everything up to him.

But though I thought I'd foreseen all the contingencies, when we reached game day, the date was suddenly canceled. For, as it turns out, Dave’s date not only didn’t eat red meat or chicken, she really didn't eat anything at all.

Reflecting on the outcome, Dave said: “I wanted to relate to her. But the thing is, in my family, people only get sick from overeating. People only go hungry on Yom Kippur, and then they overeat.”

Needless to say, the date was not rescheduled. But I’m hoping that one day in the future, when Dave finds a nice lady friend who can deal appropriately with his latent desire to order everything on the menu, and does her part to eat half of his entrée, as he likely will hers, the opportunity will arise to try out his date night risotto on a more worthy audience. Or, perhaps, just with an enthusiastic friend.

From my kitchen, still containing a romantic bone (somewhere), to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

P.S. The risotto and asparagus pictured in this post are not figments of your imagination. After giving Dave the inspiration, I was inspired to make the feast for a casual meal that same week.

**Recipes**

What follows is my attempt at fool-proofing what is already manageable recipe. Feel free to ignore some of the date-night details if you're cooking this for a more low-key occasion.

NOTE: I did not combine the asparagus and the risotto into one fluid recipe. My recommendation would be to take care of the asparagus first—rinse, trim, and get them going in the oven before you tackle the main course. The risotto is more important to serve immediately, and the veggies taste equally delish room temperature or can be kept warm at low heat in the oven while you finish the risotto.

Just make sure not to forget about them in the oven while you are doing your other prep work—I have issues with forgetting about my roasting veggies and burning them!

Shrimp Risotto with Sweet Peas and Leeks
Makes 2 servings

Ingredients

½ lb peeled and deveined shrimp
2 ½ cup stock
1/2 cup white wine
3/4 cups Arborio rice
1 large shallot, sliced
1 leeks, sliced
1-2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp chives, finely chopped
1/2 cup peas
1 tbsp lemon zest
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
Parmesan (optional)

Prep work:

The key to a stress-free dinner that is not prepared way in advance is to complete all the prep work before you actually start cooking.

On a large cutting board, slice the shallot and set aside. Trim the leeks, chopping off the dark green part so only the white shaft remains, and cutting off the root at the other end. Rinse very well in the sink—leeks can contain a lot of grit. Cut down the middle, and slice into thin strips one piece at a time. Set aside with the shallots.

On another section of the cutting board, finely chop the garlic, chives, and grate the lemon zest.

Rinse your shrimp, and pat dry with a paper towel. With your hands, remove the remaining shell by squeezing the top of the tale and putting gently. Roughly chop (1 shrimp should become 2-3 pieces).

Open your wine.

Place your stock in a large measuring cup or bowl. Heat in the microwave for 3-4 minutes until warm (you may have to do this right before you begin cooking the risotto).

On the stove:

In a large deep skillet or medium Dutch oven, sauté the shallot and leek in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Once translucent, about 3-5 minutes, add garlic and sauté for an additional minute. Add the rice and stir so it becomes coated in the oil and leek mixture. Cook for about 3 minutes to get the rice lightly toasted. Add ½ tsp of salt and the wine and cook, stirring, until nearly evaporated, about 1 minute. Return the heat to medium, and add ½ cup of stock, stirring occasionally until the rice has absorbed the liquid.

This portion of the cooking process will take some attention and instinct. You don’t need to be constantly stirring, but you also want to make sure that the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan. When the liquids are almost absorbed, add the next ½ cup of stock and repeat. Once the stock is almost gone, and the risotto has only a slight bite to it, add the peas, shrimp, lemon zest, and chives along with any of the remaining liquid. Mix to combine and allow to cook, stirring less frequently now. When the shrimp have taken on a pinkish tint, and the peas cooked through, you are done! During this time, if the liquids have absorbed, don’t be shy in adding more stock. This is not a precise science, it may end up being more or less than 2 ½ cups.

Taste for seasoning, and serve immediately.

Roasted Asparagus with Lemon
Makes 3 servings

Ingredients

1 bunch asparagus, bottoms trimmed
½ lemon, juiced
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

After the asparagus are trimmed and cleaned, combine them with salt and 1 tablespoon of olive oil on a baking sheet. With clean hands, toss to coat.

Roast in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, making sure to rotate every five to ten minutes to make sure they brown evenly. When the stalks are golden brown on all sides and crispy, remove from oven and set aside.

Drizzle with lemon juice and an additional sprinkle or two of salt and serve.
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Recipe Flash: BBQ Lentils

Barbecue Lentils
Serves 2-3

These lentils are well-seasoned—tangy and spicy—with the flavors of the summertime grill. I served them as a bed for some simple grilled fish and sauteed spinach, but I think they'd be great over toast as a homey vegetarian meal.

Ingredients

1/2 cup black or green lentils
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, 1 minced, 1 whole
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 small sweet potato, diced
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
pinch ground ginger
1/4 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
dash Worcestershire sauce

Bring the lentils to a boil with 3 cups of water and the whole clove of garlic. Simmer, uncovered, 30-35 minutes, until the lentils are soft but hold their shape. Toward the end of cooking, add 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Add the onion and minced garlic and saute until soft and slightly brown. Add the sweet potatoes and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the cayenne and ginger, stirring to coat the vegetables, then add the ketchup, mustard, sugar, vinegar, and remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, and bring to a simmer. Drain the lentils, reserving the cooking water, and add them and about 1/2 cup of cooking water to the pan. Keep simmering until the sauce coats the lentils and is no longer soupy. Taste for balance of flavors, adding more sugar or vinegar if necessary.

Enjoy alongside a simple fish filet or atop a piece of crusty, wholegrain bread.

From my kitchen, albeit small, to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK
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Cooking For One: The Perfect Fried Egg

DISH: Olive Oil Fried Egg with Portabello Mushroom Home Fries
MAIN INGREDIENT: Egg, Mushroom, Garlic

I grew up under the impression that plain, good old olive oil—the rich, golden green stuff—makes everything better. I'd watch my mom, queen of simple humpty dumpty fare, make herself a cup of frozen peas and then pour olive oil into the mug until it began to creep up the sides, enveloping the green morsels, and making more than several gentle glug glug noises from the gallon-sized bottle. Dishes like these were meant to be eaten with a spoon, the olive oil taking the place of chicken stock for a quick, healthy lunchtime soup of flash-frozen vegetables and monounsaturated fatty acids.

The concept of drinking oil might seem unhealthy to some. And while I don't recommend squandering half of an expensive bottle on your vegetables, since I'm a quarter-lifer, have inherited my mother's metabolism, and don't yet have to experiment with Lipitor cocktails for my cholesterol, there is one item I still give her olive oil bath. Yes, the fried egg.

I don't think there is anything more comforting than breakfast for dinner, especially a dinner composed of a perfect fried egg. If I could bottle warm, runny egg yolk and use it as a condiment, much like my mother does with EVOO, to douse my peas, sandwiches, and various comfort starches, I would, though my ascent to middle-life might be slightly less graceful as a result. Nonetheless, I haven't found an apt substitute in the fat department for creating that perfect yellow goodness, while leaving the egg whites crispy with perfect golden-brown edges, than frying the egg using my mother's method.

Her fried egg, doused (of course) in olive oil on the stove, has become my Cooking For One staple over the years, paired with whatever fresh, healthy vegetable I can feel least guilty about saturating in yolk and, if I'm feeling daring, a little bit of additional olive oil for good measure.

From my kitchen, where sometimes one ingredient can create perfection, to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Olive Oil Fried Egg with Portabello Mushroom Home Fries
Makes 1 serving

my farmers' market find

Ingredients

1 egg (or two)
1 portabello mushroom cap, sliced
1 clove garlic, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp dried or fresh thyme, minced (optional)

In a small non-stick saute pan, heat 1/2 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Lay the portabello slices flat in the pan and cook until dark brown and crispy on both sides, adding any additional olive oil as needed to prevent them from burning. This will take about 5 minutes.

When the mushrooms have shrunk, and are browned, cooked through, and tender, add the thyme and red pepper flakes.


Push the mushrooms to one side, and add an additional teaspoon olive oil to the other side of the pan and fry the garlic until golden brown, less than a minute. Stir to combine and set the whole mixture aside on a serving plate.


Coat the pan in the remaining olive oil and allow it to get hot. Crack the egg in the pan and immediately rotate so the whites are evenly distributed. Allow egg to fry in the oil (beware, this may splatter). When the edges have begun to crisp up, but the top is still slightly under cooked, tilt the pan, and with a spoon, douse the top of the egg with the hot olive oil collecting in the corner. Once the whole egg is cooked and crispy, remove from the pan and serve along side the mushroom home fries.


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Baking for Others: 1, 2, 3

EVENT: Various, from Writing Group to Halloween Party to Office Birthdays

TYPE: Simplicity Itself
GOODS BAKED: Carrot Cake Cupcakes; Pumpkin Pecan Chocolate Chip Bread; Double Apple Walnut Cake

I was sitting one night at my friend Sami's, drinking and eating banana bread to celebrate our friend Jessy's birthday, when I stopped for a second and realized that the banana bread was so, so good. Like, so much better than the one I've always made from a simple Joy of Cooking recipe. It was really gooey, not just with an excess of chocolate chips, but with a dense, butter-y, banana-y crumb. It reminded me of the best banana bread I'd ever had before this night—the one made by Phoebe's mother, Sarah.

Jessy's roommate Allie turned out to be the baking culprit, and, as she explained when I showered her in compliments, she doesn't follow a recipe at all. "I just remember it by 1, 2, 3," she said: "1 part butter, 2 parts sugar, 3 parts flour." Allie adds an egg for good measure, some vanilla extract for flavor, an extra banana, and something to make it rise—that'd be baking powder or baking soda. Add a pinch of salt and any fancy mix-ins, and suddenly there's a loaf pan full of batter cooking in your oven.

Thinking about it later, I realized that Allie's simple equation not only covered the basics of banana bread, but of all its sister breads as well: zucchini walnut, pumpkin pecan, apple raisin, carrot cake—and on and on.

Of course I got to experimenting, mixing various fats for the 1 part, sugars for the 2 part, and flours for the 3, to the point where you almost couldn't make out the proportions anymore. But beneath my creative liberties--the canola oil instead of butter, or maple syrup substituted for some of the sugar--you can just discern Allie's pattern. And of course underneath all that versatility is also tastiness itself. Below are the recipes for three renditions of this recipes, but playing around, the variations are endless.

From my small kitchen—where who needs recipes when you can count on your fingers?—to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Makes about 20 cupcakes

You can also make this in a loaf pan or a 9x13" sheet pan, but then you've got to bake it for anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour.

Ingredients

2.5 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1.5 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoons baking soda

4 eggs, beaten

2 cup sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup vegetable oil

3 cups shredded carrots

1 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and line a 12-cup cupcake pan.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and soda. In another bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar, vanilla, and vegetable oil until thick. Fold the dry ingredients into the beaten mixture until well blended. Stir in the carrots and the nuts and raisins. Pour into buttered and lined cupcake pans and bake for about 15 minutes, until risen and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting. Garnish with a few extra walnuts as desired.

For the icing:

8 oz cream cheese
8 oz butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 tablespoons milk as needed

Beat all the ingredients until fluffy, adding milk as needed to achieve desired consistency.

Pumpkin Pecan Chocolate Chip Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 baking soda

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 can pureed pumpkin

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and soda. In another bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar, vanilla, and vegetable oil until thick. Fold the dry ingredients into the beaten mixture until well blended. Stir in the pumpkin and the nuts. Pour into the prepared loaf pan or pans and bake 1 hour, until it tests done. Remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

Double Apple Walnut Cake

Makes 1 loaf

The double apple is both applesauce and diced apple. Together with the syrup and nuts, they make this version of the cake deliciously rich.

Ingredients

1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 apple, peeled, cored, and diced
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, salt, baking powder, and raisins. In another bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar, vanilla, applesauce, and vegetable oil until thick. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet just until well blended. Stir in the apples and the nuts. Pour into the prepared loaf pan or pans and bake 1 hour, until it tests done. Remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

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Working With What You Have: Mom and Pop Shopping

EVENT: Patrick’s Post-Election City Visit
VENUE: Phoebe’s Apartment, Flatiron
PARTY SIZE: 3
TYPE: Casual Weekend Dinner
MENU: Baked Gnocchi with Pesto, Peas, and Pancetta; Spinach Salad with Avocado, Red Onion, and Toasted Pecans; Gummy Delights
SHOPPING: Rafetto's-144 West Houston Street; Economy Candy-108 Rivington Street
BUDGET: $20

As our recent blurb on The Feed Bag reminded us, we aren’t the only ones retreating to our small kitchens to drink and eat away the bleak New York Times headlines. Now that the initial high of Election Day has worn off, our conversations have once again turned from Michelle Obama's J. Crew couture to the economy, and I find myself adding extra cups of cream to my sauces, and doubling the sugar intake at the end of the meal to compensate for the scarcity elsewhere.

I hate the topic of my 401k almost as much as politics in general and try all sorts of tactics to avoid these conversations in the comfort of my home. Mainly by making sure I'm shoving enough rich food in everyone's mouths to induce a false state of security and recessionary bliss. If that fails, I usually resort to screening David After the Dentist or playing Jenga.

My political and economic commentary is a little more subtle when it comes to my food, by way of how I budget, but also where I buy. In New York it’s hard to find a happy medium between powerhouse health markets and overpriced gourmet foods shops like Dean and Deluca. So while the idea of stopping by the Union Square Whole Foods at 6pm on a weeknight is enough to make me break out into hives, I usually go there anyway to avoid spending 7 dollars on a sausage link at Garden of Eden around the corner. Recently, after making an effort to explore the food offerings outside my ten block radius, I've discovered that some small specialty shops—particularly those in Chinatown—debunk this myth, offering cheap, authentic regional delicacies without prices that reflect their importation.

So when my friend Patrick, who spent the greater part of his time post-college working on the Obama campaign in New Mexico (yay, him!), came to visit, I decided to make a recession-friendly menu, not just by staying within a meager budget, but also purchasing items from the folks still plugging away on "Main Street" (or Rivington), who have experienced the obscene escalation of rent in their up-and-coming neighborhoods, but still manage to honor the prices of what people pay for their condiments at corner groceries across the country.

Filling our bellies with creamy, fresh gnocchi may not have changed the climate forty blocks south on Wall Street. But it did create a temporary diversion from the realities we’d all like to avoid. And, with bulk candy for dessert, I gave my city-fearing friend a little taste of the mom ‘n pop shopping that the rest of pre-recession America has always known and loved.

From my small, recession-friendly kitchen, to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

Keith and Patrick talking about the economy. Ew.

**Recipes**

Baked Gnocchi with Pesto, Peas, and Pancetta
Makes 5 servings

This dish was inspired by a truffle gnocchi mac n’ cheese I had a month or so back and am still dreaming about. Since the truffles didn’t quite fit in with the theme of the meal, I opted for pancetta, because when in doubt, add bacon.


Ingredients

2 lb fresh gnocchi
4 oz pancetta, finely diced
4 tbsp butter
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
1/4 tbsp nutmeg
1/3 cup pesto
1 cup frozen peas
3/4 cup grated fontina
1/3 cup bread crumbs (optional)

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the gnocci for 1-2 minutes, just to defrost them. They cook extremely quickly and will finish off in the oven, so don't over do them.

In the meantime, fry the pancetta in 1/2 tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat. Set aside.

NOTE: if you fry extra bacon, it is an excellent addition to the salad recipe below.

In the same pan, melt the butter over a medium flame. When fully liquified, whisk in the flour to create a roue. Add the milk and nutmeg, and simmer until reduced by half. Add the pesto, peas, pancetta, and gnocchi, and stir to combine.

Place mixture in a large caserole dish and cover with the grated fontina. Bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese has become brown and crispy. It is delicious at this point. But for an extra crunch, remove from oven, cover with breadcrumbs, and return for another 5 minutes. The top should have a nice brown crust.



Serve immediately with a side salad.

Spinach Salad with Avocado, Red Onion, and Toasted Pecans
Makes 3-4 servings

Ingredients

5oz baby spinach
1 avocado, diced
1/4 cup pecan halves, toasted
1/2 a small red onion, thinly sliced

For the dressing:

2 tbsp balsamic
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp honey
1/4 cup olive oil

In a large bowl, combine salad ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients and add to the spinach mixture. Toss well and serve.

Gummy Delights

No recipe necessary

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Cooking for One: New Favorite Tofu

DISH: Monday Night Sweet and Sour Tofu
MAIN INGREDIENT: Firm Tofu
TYPE: Stovetop

I know this is going to make me sound like a naive 86 year-old, but I think the Internet is really amazing. Especially since putting on the Chef Cara hat and embracing the personality of The Quarter-Life Cook, I've been surprised and delighted almost daily by the conversations you can have over email, Blogger, and Twitter that make you think about your own cooking in new and creative ways.

Case in point: My friend Marc has an Aunt Sara who has her own blog, on which she wanted to put an urtak question and answer section like ours. Aunt Sara, more importantly for our story, is a vegetarian with vegetarian (and vegan) children. She came to BGSK looking for an example of how to incorporate urtak, and she left with recipes for rice noodle salad and chickpea burgers. Sara claimed these recipes helped get her out of a meal-planning rut she'd been in. It goes without saying I was happy we could be of help.

But then when Sara and I got in touch and she emailed me her go-to Monday night tofu recipe, this whole Internet connective thing really took hold. Because though I'd been creative in other realms, I had been in a bit of a tofu rut—a rut I can trace back to about 1998, when Peter Berley and his Modern Vegetarian Cooking came into my life. The baked tofu recipes in this book are really, really good, and so though I don't make tofu allll that much for a vegetarian, most of the time when I make it, I bake it. I vary the marinades, but when it comes to equipment, I like what the oven does to tofu's texture, and so I've sort of been enjoying the rut. Sara's recipe, to shake things up, is stovetop, which means it's quicker to get on the table. It also has a built-in sauce, so as long as you have rice or barley or bulgur to go along with, you've got a meal.

I tested the tofu on myself first, as a throwback to when the Internet used to seem more like a sketchy imposter than a warm and cuddly connector. Now that I've vouched for the dish, I can assure you I'll be serving it to others. Even carnivores.

From my kitchen, where someone else's old standby is my new favorite, to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipe**

Monday Night Sweet and Sour Tofu
Serves 4

This recipe is pretty straightforward, but of course that doesn't mean it isn't open to adapting to what's in your fridge. The lemon juice gives the tofu a fruity side, but substitute a mild vinegar in a pinch. I used 1 tablespoon grated garlic instead of ginger and it was delicious.

Ingredients
1 block firm tofu
about 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup honey/maple syrup/brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon grated ginger (or garlic)

Cut the tofu into slices about 1 inch thick. Press the water out of the slices, then cut them into 1-inch square cubes. In a baggie or on a wide plate, toss the tofu with the whole wheat flour til all the pieces have a thin coating.

Mix the lemon juice, sweetener, soy sauce, and ginger in a small bowl.

In a frying pan, warm the oil. In one layer, brown the tofu (in two batches if your pan is small). When it's browned, add the sauce and let it cook down so the tofu is nicely and thickly coated, 5-10 minutes.

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Recipe Flash: Cremini Mushroom, White Bean, and Barley Soup

Cremini Mushroom, White Bean, and Barley Soup
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients
2 large shallots, diced
2 slices bacon, chopped (optional)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried (or 1 tsp fresh) thyme
1/4 tsp paprika
1 quart mushroom stock
1 quart chicken stock (or double up the mushroom)
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup pearl barley, rinsed well
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 lb cremini mushrooms, quartered

1 can white beans
1/2 tsp salt (to taste)

In a large Dutch oven or stock pot, heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Saute the shallot until translucent, then add the bacon and cook until browned. Add the garlic, red pepper, cumin, thyme, and paprika and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

Cover the onion bacon mixture with the stock and bring to a boil. Add the barley and bay leaf, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer covered for 25 minutes. Add the mushroom and carrots, and continue to simmer covered for another 20-35 minutes. Add the white beans and simmer for 5-10 minutes more.

When the barley is tender, remove the bay leaf and taste for seasoning.


Serve hot, or freeze extra portions for a lazy weekday evening in front of the sofa.

From my kitchen, albeit small, to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

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Working With What You Have: A Homey Little Cake

DISH: Whole Grain Hot-Water Cake
MAIN INGREDIENT: Eggs, Cornmeal, Agave

This cake is a funny mix of inspiration. In part, it comes from the variety of angel food cake-like recipes in James Beard's sort of miraculous cooking tome, American Cookery. I wouldn't have known much about cooling a sponge cake upside down if it weren't for James Beard. On the other hand, I think it's an inspiring project that the 101 Cookbooks author has undertaken, to revamp some classically delicious dessert recipes with natural sweeteners and whole-grain flours.

Before telling you about this strange but homey little cake I made, I should make three things clear about me, desserts, and natural sweeteners. One, I consider such a revamped recipe a success only if it tastes perfect and delicious in its own right—not almost delicious, but not quite as good as the original. Be that as it may, I do think whole-wheat flour tastes good and it doesn't bother me that you often notice its presence. Second, such desserts are still not healthy like salad is healthy, they just don't contain so many super-refined ingredients and have a more nutritious vibe than regular-old confections. And third, sometimes I don't use refined sugar because I don't have any in my pantry. In fact, this cake's particular ingredient combination is in part a result of the lack of sugar and flour in my cabinets. But (see point number one), it tastes delicious, so I figure we'll let it slide.

Anyway, the cake is the kind of thing I imagine might have made for spontaneous company in, like, the 1950s (Beard seems to trace it to the 1890s, even). It's great warm out of the oven and is mellow enough you could eat it for breakfast without suffering from a morning sugar rush. Or, as I did, you can up the ante (and lower the nutrition value) by filling and frosting it. Which I guess brings us to an unanticipated fourth point: this is much more flexible than James Beard might ever have imagined.

From my kitchen, albeit small, to yours,

Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Whole Grain Hot-Water Cake
Makes one 9-inch cake

My decision to make this cake wasn't unbiased by the fact that I love playing with my new hand-held electric egg beater. If you don't have one (or, of course, an standing electric mixture), you'll get a good arm workout whisking away.

Ingredients
2 eggs, separated
1 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup finely ground white cornmeal
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder

Blueberry Filling (see below)
Vanilla Icing (see below)

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

In a large bowl, whip the egg yolks with 1/2 cup agave nectar until lightened, thickened, and slightly syrupy, 2-3 minutes with an electric beater. Slowly, while whisking, add the hot water and the vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, stir together the flours, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Fold gently into the egg yolks. Set aside.

In a third bowl, whip the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add in the remaining 1/2 cup agave and the 1/2 cup maple syrup, beating all the while until the white are large and the beater leaves soft peaks when you pull it out.

Fold the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, trying not to deflate them.

Pour into a 9-inch round cake pan and put into a middle rack in the oven. Cook for about 25 minutes, until the top is browned. When the cake is done, it should bounce quickly up if you press it with your finger.

Balance the cake pan upside down on several ramekins. Cool for 20-30 minutes, then loosen the cake from the pan and remove.

If filling, split the cake using a sharp, unserrated knife. Because the cake is spongy, you might have to use your hands or a fork to help tear, but it shouldn't fall apart when you split it. Scatter the filling across the bottom, and don't worry too much about it being perfectly even. Replace the top layer.

When cake is completely cooled, spread a thin layer of vanilla icing across the top. Serve with extra blueberry sauce or some fresh blueberries if you come by them.



For the filling (optional):

1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Put the blueberries in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave until defrosted, then add the remaining ingredients and microwave, pausing to stir often, 3-4 minutes, until the blueberries are melted and syrupy.

For the frosting (optional):

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix the butter with the sugar until very creamy. Drizzle in the milk as needed, then stir in the vanilla.

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Potluck Parties: Unleavened Treats

EVENT: Family Seder
VENUE: Hyatt Hotel, Stamford CT
PARTY SIZE: 27 (including Elijah)
TYPE: Traditional-ish Seder
DESSERT: Inedible Unleavened Cakes, Cousin Holly’s Macaroons

My mother was the first goy to marry into my father's Jewish family. But since Dad broke the seal, my cousins have gone on to walk down the aisle with Eve, Holly, and Patrick. Given the intensity of Afikomen searches and the precision of my Aunt Jennifer’s matzoh name cards, my cousins-in-law have assimilated amazingly well into the greater traditions of the clan and the religion. They sing Dayenu just as loud as the rest of us and, now that their kids are in Jewish preschool and Sunday schools, they make sure that the little ones study their history well and keep their timeline straight over who was oppressed when and where.

My family Seder is usually a potluck affair hosted by my Aunt and Uncle. But since we are now a small tribe (34 last Thanksgiving), they decided to shake things up this year and hold it banquet style at a nearby hotel. Regardless of this year's spread, which unfortunately did not include Aunt Jenn’s brisket, when it came time for dessert there was still the same shining star in the great Red Sea of unleavened desserts: Cousin Holly’s Macaroons.

Though I don’t really bake anymore, Holly assured me that her ancient Jewish secret was easy enough for even me to make. I decided to take a stab at it for a Cara-style tin of treats for my friend’s Jewish family whom I’m visiting in Boston. And, sure enough, the batter was mixed and in the oven faster than I could name the ten plagues.

From my small, half-Jewish kitchen, to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Chocolate Chip Macaroons
Makes 50 or so small cookies

Despite Holly's joke about giving away her ancient Chinese (Jewish) secret, this recipe is literally as simple as opening a can, cutting open two bags, and mixing the ingredients together. So my style of baking.

Ingredients

1 14 oz. bag flaked coconut (Bakers Brand)
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk (Carnation Brand)
2 tsp. vanilla (not imitation)
1 12 oz. bag Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients. Mix well. Drop from teaspoon one inch apart on non-stick baking sheet (I use regular Pam on my baking sheets...they are sticky, and I use a small melon-baller instead of a teaspoon). Bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned. Let cool a minute or two, then remove and place on waxed paper to cool. Voila!


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Cooking For Others: Birthday Week Begins, and We're Already Full

On 3, say: Salimaaaa. And try not to look so terrified.

EVENT: Salima's Birthday Week Kick-Off
VENUE: Phoebe's Apartment, Flatiron
PARTY SIZE: 7
TYPE: Festive (But Weeknight) Dinner
MENU: Thai Green Curry Chicken, Manchurian Cauliflower, Crispy Chinese Long Beans
SHOPPING: Hung Lee, 79 Bayard St. (btw. Mulberry & Mott.) for fresh produce; Asia Market, 71 Mulberry St. (btw. Canal & Bayard) for Asian condiments and spices
BUDGET: $30

All through college, my friend Salima used to celebrate her birthday for an entire week. To our amazement (and horror), somehow this tradition did not die with graduation. On April 3rd, or the 1-3 days flanking it, right when the sun is starting to shine and it becomes appropriate to wear short pink party dresses, the celebration still begins, and the wallets and livers of her 100 closest friends start to shrink in terror.

Besides the fact that our bodies are beginning to hate us, and we have to deal with scary words like health insurance, a large part of the reason we don't go out every night of the week when not being forced to is because we can't afford it. That, and some of our jobs involve not waking up smelling like the floor of Brother Jimmy's (though I only know of one person who's accidentally spent the night there, and it wasn't Salima).

This year, instead of dropping $60 a head at Stanton Social (which is SO 2007), I offered to kick off Birthday Week my way—with cocktails, home-made Thai cuisine, and reminiscences including but not limited to the time Salima got a giant S tattooed on her side during her first epic night in Bangkok.

The inspiration for the meal came in part from the birthday girl's travel adventures the summer after college, which we heard about in emails featuring weekly top ten lists of backpacker favorites like seven cent Tuk Tuk's (i.e. taxis), Thai massages, and tiger beer. Basically, all the comforts of home but, uh, cheaper. It also came from Salima’s general love of Asian cuisine which, outside of her home town of Vancouver, seldom attains the level of spiciness she enjoys in her food and, subsequently, life in general.

Despite the change in venue, I know I still should not condone the continuation of Birthday Week behavior. But, ridiculousness aside, I secretly look forward to the seven days of Sal, and I’m pretty sure that all those who saddle up year after year do as well. Thanks to my Chinatown shopping spree—I bought all contents of the meal for UNDER $30 DOLLARS—I embraced the Salima tradition to the fullest this year because, well, I could actually afford to.

We innocent bystanders may not come away with as many crazy stories as the birthday girl herself. But I enjoy all the spice that’s added to my life (and food), and can only imagine what kind of face-numbing, eye-watering fun is in store for number 25, when birthday week rolls around next year.

Buckle up kids. It's only 11 months and 21 days away.

From my kitchen, celebrating Salima’s birthday week circa 2004, to yours,

Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK

**Recipes**

Thai Green Curry Chicken
Makes 8 servings

Ingredients

1 large yellow onion, sliced
2 red peppers, sliced into strips
3 tbsp ginger, minced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3-5 tbsp green curry paste (depends how spicy you like it)
4 tbsp fish sauce
2 15oz cans unsweetened coconut milk
½ 12oz can chicken stock
½ stalk lemongrass (or 1 lime, juiced)
2 ½ lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 3 large breasts), cut into strips
2 medium Thai or Japanese eggplants, sliced (or 1 medium regular eggplant, halved and sliced)
1/2 lb Chinese long beans, stems removed and halved
1 cup Thai basil leaves, whole
salt to taste

In a large dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, red pepper, ginger, and garlic and sauté until the onions are just beginning to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the green curry paste, fish sauce, coconut milk, and chicken stock and bring to a boil.

TIP: If using lemongrass, remove the lower bulb and cut off the top where the leaves are beginning to come apart. Take off any tarnished leaves and rinse well. Cut stalk in half and reserve one piece for another use. Slice the stalk down the middle. With the back of your knife, “bruise” the lemon grass by pressing down with the palm of your hand.

Add the lemongrass to the pot and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken, eggplant, and long beans, and continue to simmer for ten more minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Taste for seasoning, adding salt as necessary. Stir in basil and serve over basmati rice.

Crispy Chinese Long Beans


Using extra long beans (or regular-old string beans), follow the directions for the Manchurian Cauliflower, stopping before you make the sauce—that is, just dip them in the batter and fry. Serve as appetizers or alongside the meal for some crunch.

as Thai tradition would have it, the last bite goes to the person at the table without a boyfriend...

... but instead of splitting the cookie 6 ways, we just gave it to the birthday girl.

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