Ignore the Ideologies

I visited the library again last Friday so I thought it time to update.

First of all, in the French Women Don't Get Fat cookbook, there was only one recipe that wasn't a dessert that I really wanted to try- Farfalle with Yogurt-Basil sauce.  I thought "Savory, creamy sauce... delicious!"  ...  Not so much.

The recipe started innocently enough with shallots and garlic.  Then you add lemon juice and zest... and then the yogurt.  Before adding in the pasta, I decided to taste the sauce.  ...  Yuck.  Maybe I'm just not a fan of lemon in my sauces... but it was really unpalatable.  I tossed it and instead added peas to the pasta and some alfredo sauce and called it a night.

My ultimate decision on the French Women Don't Get Fat cookbook is that it has a lot of lifestyle ideas and is a really good read and the recipes had a lot of good ideas... but it just wasn't good for me, particularly since I don't cook meat/fish at home.  But I definitely recommend it.  Does that make sense?  I hope so...

When I returned that book, I picked up two new books!  Today I will be discussing the Wicca Cookbook: Recipes, Ritual and Lore by Jamie Wood and Tara Seefeldt (second edition).

Background:  I was looking for something seasonal to give me inspiration at the moment.  What better way to inspire than to cook and read, right?  I am a creature of the earth and lean towards Wiccan sentiments at times so at the very least I thought it would be a good read.

For those who don't know what Wicca is, here is a really brief summary:  Earth-based, medievally based religion that was started sometime around the 60s as a harkening back to the "old ways."  Based on Mother Earth, the Consort, solstices, etc.  

And it is.  Well, if you're really interested in looking at Wicca, the introduction is great for you.  But I already knew that information so I skipped it a lot.  There is a section about the medieval kitchen which was pretty interesting but, being a student of medieval history, I already knew that too.

The book also has a section on growing herbs which is great... except I kill everything... as my boyfriend so kindly pointed out to me today.  But it definitely had some good info and gave the whole ideological treatise on why it's good to get close to the earth and to always have fresh herbs on hand, yadda yadda yadda.

But the RECIPES, that's the important thing.  The book is specifically Wiccan because there are intros to each recipe and some come with spells and blessings.  Again, pretty neat, but nothing I'm planning on following through on.

The recipes are split into the different holidays and solstices and each section gives background to the holiday, flowers, colors and herbs of significance, etc.  It's really a seasonal cookbook through a Wiccan/Pagan lens.

It just having turned summer, I looked at the Summer Solstice section and found the recipe that I wanted to try, Lillith's Lily Fair Soup- a chilled melon soup.  My friend Hilary recently discovered Gazpacho but I am not a fan of cold tomatoey soups... my savory things should be warm most of the time... but I thought this melon soup would be a nice compromise so this one goes out to you, Miss Wayward!  I don't want to post the recipe here (I really don't want to get into copyright issues...), but it does exist on the web if you just copy and paste that into your search engine.  I promise you will find it.

The basics of the recipe are two components- the melon part and the raspberry part.  Puree the honeydew melon, mango and orange juice, chill.  Puree raspberries, sugar and Grand Marnier, chill.  Serve separately.

What really happened:

I didn't have any Grand Marnier for the raspberry component, sad to say.  So I improvised!  I had Chambord (raspberry liqueur) on hand and Amaretto (almond liqueur) as well.  So I splashed them both in to substitute.  It turned out fine.

When I served it, I put the melon in a bowl and then floated a spoonful of the raspberry on top and my sister and I mixed it as we ate.  I would advise not mixing it in together, though, as we learned at the end.  The raspberry component is a nice and vibrant red, but the melon is a green/yellow mixture and once they mix it looks kinda brown and not appetizing no matter how delicious it really is. 

On the whole I really like the recipes in this book and will probably take it out again when I'm specifically looking for something to hit the soul just right.  :)

The other book I took out is a Green Kitchen kind of cookbook so I'm interested in devouring that one too.

OH!  And make sure to like my new Facebook Page so I know who's reading!  :D

Getting Back into the Swing of Things

I am ashamed to say that I have not properly cooked in about a week.  I have good reason.  Bed bugs.  My apartment's contents are in the center of each room and though I did not have to dismantle my kitchen, it has left me not wanting to touch it since I can't touch the rest of my apartment.  Dishes have been piling up and I have not been wanting to even look at the kitchen.

I've been quietly on the up swing lately, though.

I decided to try making bread from scratch.  I will not post a recipe because it didn't work right.  Bread is a funny thing.  There's yeast and proteins and... yeah.  Something didn't work right.  It didn't rise properly and was super dense.  I could have killed someone with it.  Until I get it right, I won't post bread here.  I will satisfy myself with buying nice bread at the store and I'm really okay with that.

However, my AWESOME find came to me yesterday.  I had a chunk of spare time, not enough to go anywhere or even to go home and relax (I was out running errands) so I decided to check out the library.  I had registered for a card ages ago and never picked it up and I had the perfect amount of time to go.

My library is awesome.  Not only does it have super high tech stuff (a mat I put the books on and it knows EXACTLY what books I'm taking out) but it has a COOKBOOK section.

It never occurred to me to go to the library for cookbooks, probably because the libraries I grew up going to had everything but cookbooks.  My library has Giada deLaurentiis, Ina Garten, green cookbooks, vegan cookbooks, Mario Batali and pretty much any cookbook I could want.  I almost got every single one that looked interesting.  I did manage to hold some restraint and just walk out with one book, picked out by my sister, who was with me.

I love that my library has these because what I find I do with cookbooks is I buy them, read them and look them over once, and then they sit there until I remember they are there.  Considering minimum they are going to be $15 and more likely closer to $30, that's not an effective use of my monies.

In light of my newfound access, I shall now start reviewing cookbooks!  Here's my first find:

The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook by Mireille Guiliano.

The title intrigued me enough (I've been losing weight [on purpose]).  In fact, when I told my boyfriend he said  "Is this a work of fiction...?"

I'm not typically into French food simply because I don't know much about it.  I know pastries, bread, cheese and butter.  That's about it as far as my personal knowledge goes.  Don't get me wrong.  As I mentioned in one of my earliest posts I talked about a simple lunch of bread, cheese and fruit.

It's a quick read if you glance over the recipes (I read it yesterday afternoon) and has a lot of really good tips about life in general.  Two light meals, one larger meal a day, fruit-centered desserts, some wine, champagne and enjoying life and food.  I really feel like I took a lot away from it.  She stressed fresh and flavorful ingredients (definitely good) and moderate exercise.  A lot of culture was brought up (she grew up in France) and I'm liking the idea of a big meal at lunch.  That might be something nice to do this summer while I'm out of work.

Something she recommended was a bit of a surprise- a leek broth detox.  Stay with me now.  The idea is that you make a whole big bucket of leek broth (water and leeks, that's it) and eat that for a day or two, culminating in a light meal.  She doesn't recommend doing it any longer than a week (I love leeks but I think I would get sick of it by then...) and you'll lose a few pounds.  Sounds interesting, but nothing I'd really be interested in trying anytime soon.

I liked the last chapter the most- it was basically a FAQ.  Things like "My husband eats like a pig!" and how to get junk eating kids to realise what they're putting in their bodies.  She also includes what she keeps in her kitchen.  Lots of helpful stuff to think over.  I liked it quite a bit.

The only thing I didn't like is that she stressed eating fish.  There's no doubt that eating fish is really good for you.  Omega 3s are awesome and do lovely things for you.  Here are my two problems with fish.

1) I don't like it much.  I had fish when I was little with a definite species and I threw up that night.  From that point on I ate fish sticks if I ate fish at all (because fish sticks don't have a species...).  When I lived in Scotland I did develop a taste for fish... to a point.  I'd pick up my chippy (fish and chips) and eat it with glee... and then I guess my brain would catch up with me and I couldn't eat any more.  It happens to this day with fish.

2) It's really expensive.  I went to pick up some fish steaks at the grocery store and it was expensive as heck. I decided I would let it go by.

So what do I do, especially when my doctor suggested I eat more fish to keep inflammation down?  I bought fish oil pills.  Odorless ones.  They're huge, but they do the job.  I get the oils and don't have to eat fish.  Win win!

So all in all I LOVED the book and will probably peruse it once again before I bring it back on Monday, copy down the recipes I want to try, and then send it on its merry way and pick out a new one!

Tomorrow I shall be trying a new one (farfalle in a yogurt sauce) and I will most definitely let you know how it goes!

Here's to getting back on track!