eff the potatoes

I have decided that I must have dreamed my potato purchase. There is no other explanation.
I have never lost my keys much less a fucking TWENTY POUND bag of potatoes.
So...in light of the pathetic nature of my recent dreams, I am going on vacation.
I have never been on one before with a husband and kids. I'm excited. There will be a train and sneaky booze, and maybe even some illegal transport of produce. At the very least I wanna have train bathroom sex. ( plug your eyes mother) Wish me luck! I'll explain the photo when I return.
<3,
jamey

losses

I know I bought a bag of russet potatoes at Costco two weeks ago.
Now where the hell is it???

true love soup

For valentines day the whole lot of us ( minus bella the defector who swears she "loves cheese more than anything in the world " but couldn't be bothered to stay home with her family and sample some really great muenster, brie, havarti, and farmers cheese. oh no...she had to go to her best friends house instead. psht.) stayed in and had a feast.

I made chicken with 40 cloves of garlic, give or take 20 cloves. By give or take I mean give. It totally had so very many more. I had one of those giant Costco garlic tubs and I didn't want to waste any so I made garlic infused food as well as confit all damn day.

This post is not about the amazing roasted chicken , or even the roasted garlic, the cheese plate, or the tomatoes with sea salt, basil chiffonade, and fresh cracked pepper that we enjoyed that evening. It is about what happened the next day. After dinner I ( very slowly as i was fat with cheese and chicken) put the carcass on the stove to make a stock and went to bed. The next day I was faced with one of the most amazing soup bases I have ever had the pleasure of coming up against. Oh man... it was clear and beautiful and so wonderfully infused with the garlic flavor. MMMMMMMmmmmmm

To this I added left over chicken, cabbage, jalapeno,peas, green beans, red onion, salt and pepper and then after cooking all of this until the vegetables were tender, I added some rice noodles that I had soaked for about 20 minutes. I let the whole thing sit on the heat for another twenty minutes and served with fresh bread. So easy and so fresh.


I love soup.
<3,
jamey

summertime please.

My fascination with Eric Ripert has finally reached the point where I feel like I should apologize to my husband.

<3,
jamey

eff you fingerling potatoes

I don't know if I've ever mentioned how much my dearest Ash hates potatoes.
He does. It had been totally cramping my style for like 5 years and I had enough.
Costco had beautiful fingerling potatoes and I couldn't help myself. I had actually walked past them during two other trips and asked the tater hater, ( yeah...i said it) if he wanted them and he was so violently vehement in his no's that I passed them by.
I thought about them so much I couldn't take it.I made demands and went back and they came home with me.
Now, this is by no means a special or even interesting recipe other than the fact that it was one that everyone liked and ate despite their feelings on the starchy bastards.
I marinated the fingerlings in olive oil, sea salt, cracked pepper, red pepper flakes and fresh thyme. (Which I had put in a bottle the night before...and it was funny.)



I laid them out all single layered and cooked them alongside the meatloaf at 375 for about 45 minutes.
I put a bunch on his plate. I watched while he took his first bite...I watched while he took his second bite...by the third bite when he smiling at me sheepishly, I proclaimed, "Fuck you! I knew it!" Hence the name. Eff you fingerling potatoes will be around more often. You can count on that.
I would like to show you a roasty toasty picture of them but I can't.
We ate them.
<3,
jamey

mmmmmmeatloaf

Yummy, right?


I never had meatloaf growing up. I didn't know what it was supposed to taste like until I was 23 and sitting in a bar in Ballard drinking shots of whiskey to get me through the blind date from hell. I loved it! ( Not the date, obviously) The meatloaf was pretty extra fucking wonderful for a comfort food. So I decided to make it using ground beef and those flavor packs you buy from one of those inner aisles of the market. It always turned out OK but never what I wanted. Time passed and I allowed myself to let go of my first meatloaf experience and it led me here...to you...with love.
That delightful looking paste in the center of the above picture of heaven is about 6 cloves of garlic confit mashed with a spoon. I went on a garlic preservation jag last week and found this was the best method for me.
Just cover some peeled garlic cloves in a neutral flavored oil and cook on low for about 40 minutes. You will end up with a nice golden, easily mushed clove that you store in the oil in the refrigerator for up to a few months.



The fresh chopped ingredients in the 3.75 pounds of turkey breast above are 1 jalapeno that has been veined and seeded, 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley, 1 finely diced shallot, and a bunch of scallion greens.



The wet and dry ingredients I add last; 4 eggs, sea salt, pepper, and 1 cup bread crumbs.
If your mix seems to dry add a dash of chicken stock. you want something that is going to hold together but not taste bready or dry.



That looks awesome, doesn't it.




Shape this into a loaf shape in 9x13 pan and drizzle with grasshopper spit and sri racha. ( Or whichever hot sauce you prefer) Cook for about an hour at 375 and love.
This fed 9 people with 1 slice leftover. I'm not saying this makes 10 portions- I'm pretty sure it makes more than that...I'm saying this fed 9 people. We actually ate it so fast that I didn't get end pictures.
This meatloaf is NOT to be eaten with ketchup. I mean it. That's gross and kinda cruel.
<3,
jamey

another sunday breakfast

I am fairly certain if you ask either of my parents what goes into a really yummy sandwich they are going to say, "pickle, onion and cheese." My mom is a purist she has these ingredients with a little mayo on whole wheat. Perfection. My dad, if given awhile, will start adding things like ham, turkey, roast beef...maybe one day on whole wheat, maybe another day on a French roll. When it comes to food, I certainly tend to follow in my dads footsteps. We are eaters. We are recreators. We are reinventors. We spent years eating way too quickly and making my mother groan just watching us. So this sandwich is a gracious nod to both of my folks. To my Mom, for the basics. To my Dad, for making me want to add ham. ( To everything, really)
Ash and I made these together for brunch a few weeks ago. They were not only wonderful, but the time of day allowed us to sneak in a glass of wine just before noon. It was integral...um, to the dish. Yeah. Thats right. It was NECESSARY.
On sourdough I placed swiss, cheddar, pickle, onion, and ham. I lightly buttered just the outsides of the bread and grilled them till the cheese was melty. Ash fried up a couple of eggs, possibly in butter, though I may not admit it... and slid them on top.
Coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper.
You do this too.
Eat.
Send me flowers.
<3,
jamey

oh things we've missed

Brined pork loin adapted from a bobby flay recipe, coq au vin (made with a hen not a cock...its supposed to be cheap and easy, remember), mommy's best risotto, three bean chili with just enough serrano chili to warm you right up and make your nose sweat, holy crap meatloaf sammiches. I've been busy folks, far too busy for my liking but thankfully we have finally settled back into normal life after the never ending birthday/holiday weeks. The kids have spent a full snowless week in school and there isn't a candy cane in sight. Phew. Now maybe I can pull my head outta my ass and remember to take some photos and share with you the wonderful winter food we've been eating! Maybe.
This year we made some family resolutions and I'm really excited to see the kids adapting so easily. ( Ash too...he really does embrace some things with unparalleled enthusiasm. Its a shame those things never ever include cleaning the toilet.)
1.)We have given up paper napkins and gone cloth. Everyone was so into this idea that they even made guest napkin rings. So far so good. Ethan and I even managed to badger our excessively tidy selves (read: horribly uptight obsessive compulsive germaphobes) into using handkerchiefs throughout the duration of our current sickness. Yay, us!
2.) Compost! Compost! Compost! We bought a new bucket and gave it a permanent home. The compost waste now goes out at the same time as the garbage and recycling. This resolution took off better than I thought it would, the compost bin has existed but we have had a disconnect in what we could and couldn't put in there and we were still producing just too much garbage. The kids are expert recyclers and they really seem just as excited to make compost now that everything has its place and routine.
3.) Grow and store our own food. Seeds are on order, plots are dug, plans have been made! We looked at deep freezes this weekend and hope to have one in place by April. Ash and Isabella plan on making cheese, all different types of delightful cheese, yay!
4.) Learn to create something for family use, sale, or trade. Elliot has taken up knitting and sewing felt dolls, Ethan wants to learn how to make lavender oil, and Isabella has her cheese and innumerable arts and craft projects going on in her studio. Ash and James keep trying to convince me that beer is a valid option but I know them... What are the odds that beer will ever, EVER, make it out of the house? Slim to none, I know.
5.) Get a massage every month for the duration of the year. This one is actually just my resolution. My very favorite resolution at that. They're covered by insurance, why the hell not, right?

I'll be back here soon. Writing with love and devotion about cheap, healthy, family friendly food made in my kitchen every. single. day.
<3,
jamey

snowy sunday morning breakfast

Ash is not amused with wife this early in the morning

We had our first dusting of snow on Saturday night!!! (If you're not from the Northwest you might not understand what a big deal this is.) In the Puget Sound area that week or so a year we get snow is either heaven or hell for residents, for us it just happens to be heaven. That first day it gets cold enough...the whisper that spreads through schools and neighborhoods...watching the street lights waiting for a any sign of a flake. Its a ritual we all embrace. So joyfully, it snowed!
Sunday morning the kids were up and out the door before Ash and I were even fully awake. Normally on Sundays I just paw at my husbands arm repeating the words, "coffee. coffee. COFFFFEEEEE" until he rolls out and does my bidding. ( okay, maybe not just Sunday... maybe everyday. So what.) Anyhow, today I got up with him and surveyed the damage the kids breakfast had caused. As I grumbled he demanded I go back to bed but it was too late, I had opened the fridge and I was effing hungry.
I cannot fry an egg to save my life. (also, I cannot make french toast. I cannot, I cannot, I cannot!) I was smart enough to marry a man who can, and luckily does. I wanted something savory. He wanted me to get out of his way. I wanted green beans. He wanted me to calm down. I was too quick for him though, I had some beans steaming and a little garlic and onion sauteeing before he could pick me up and physically remove me like he had threatened. I believe it was the delightful smell that changed his mind, because before I knew it he had the sourdough in the toaster and two eggs in hand.


toasty.
I mixed my green beans and the sauteed yumminess and set it aside while Ashley fried up the eggs in the drippings. The coffee was pouring, the toast was popping, and before you knew it we had this:



The BEST Sunday morning snowy day breakfast ever. That yolk mixed in with the green beans wonderfully. The sourdough sopped up the garlic and onion bits. It was perfect.

yum!
<3,
jamey

a day in the life...

The middle school is having a fundraiser. Which is nothing new if you know us. The kids go to a public k-8 Montessori school. They are getting an amazing opportunity and education for free...well, almost. The middle school addition is only in its 3rd year. I now have two kids attending and the whole damn business needs some cash to get going. So we raise funds. Its worth it really, the 7th and 8th grade trips are going to be really inspiring and leadership camp is something that everyone should be forced to attend, but I digress. Or do I? Whatever. On Friday there will be a holiday craft fair. This gives the kids and families a chance to make, buy, or sell items from other families or local vendors. This includes for the first time ever in my 13 years as a parent: A FUCKING BAKE SALE!!! I love bake sales. I love baking... I love selling. Its really a perfect venue for me.
I spent yesterday finishing up some handmade brooches for the vendor table we rented. I could post a picture, but this is a cooking blog, not a super cool dinosaur in a nest of glass beads brooch blog, is it... Nope! So, anyway, today I baked and confected. What is confected you ask? That would be the word I made up to describe my act of making confections...truffles to be exact.
I made them from this delightful book.

They looked like this...



and this...


After I had those setting up and waiting to be rolled, I made some bread for Ash and myself to eat for lunch. My Husband comes home everyday for lunch, did you know that? Even though it cuts his one hour lunch down to 20 minutes because he's a walker...he still comes home. I made two loaves today. One for us to split for lunch and one for dinner. They looked like this...


So he came and went and I moped about like I usually do for about 20 minutes after he left and then I made these... from a recipe I read at Minimally Invasive. They looked like this...



Only less blurry of course. So now I am off to make dinner. Which I probably won't share with you because I will be too damn tired.
<3,
jamey