When I'm down, I like to eat mac n' cheese, Klondike bars, and chocolate chip cookies, but the coziest comfort food I can think of is warm, creamy soup. I love soup. So when I started feeling kind of down last week, I decided to make the soup that takes me way back to early childhood in my mom's house: zuccini soup. I think the reason I loved this soup so much as a kid is that it had a really simple, savory flavor. And it went well with cheese. And I love cheese.

Anyway, I called my mom to get the recipe, and she wasn't near her phone. Seeing as I needed comfort food ASAP, I decided to go for it on my own, and ended up with a successful reinvention of one of my favorite soups.

Zucchini Soup:

• 3 medium zucchinis
• 1 cup yogurt or sour cream
• 1/2 cup whole milk (skim or lowfat milk may be substituted)
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded white sharp cheddar, divided (or more adventurous cheeses, if you like)
• salt to taste
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 medium onion
• cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil or butter

Chop your garlic coarsely and dice the onion. Throw it into a wok/large iron skillet with a splash of olive oil (or a hunk of butter) and sauté over medium heat until the onions start becoming translucent (3-5 minutes).

Wash your zucchinis and slice them into quarters longways, like so.

Chop them into cubes (rectangular prisms?...) and throw them in with the onion and garlic, stirring occasionally.

Add about 1tspn salt and cook until the zucchini darkens a little and is tender, but not floppy (I know there's a better word...but you know what I mean. Who likes flaccid vegetables?).

Put vegetables into a blender along with yogurt or sour cream, milk, 3/4 cup cheddar, and a dash of cayenne, if you want some heat to your soup. Blend on a high setting until the soup is smooth and creamy. If it seems to need more liquid, add more milk. From here, adjust salt and cayenne to taste, and even add more cheese, if you wish.

And voila!

But don't forget to put more cheese on top! That's the best part!

Note: Feel free to substitute milk, buttermilk, or anything else creamy and awesome instead of the yogurt or sour cream

What are your favorite comfort foods? Food Network has a whole section devoted to helping expand your comfort food repertoire!

Source: Rachael Ray

Ingredients:
1 pound corkscrew shaped pasta with lines or elbows with lines
2 pounds ground sirloin
2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan in a slow stream) extra-virgin olive oil
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seed and chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 palm fuls) dark chili powder
2 tablespoons (1 palm ful) cumin
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper sauce
Coarse salt
1 cup beer or beef broth
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
Chopped scallions, for garnish

~

In a large pot, boil pasta until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a big, deep pot, brown beef in oil over medium high heat. Add onions, peppers, and garlic. Season meat mixture with chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Cook together 5 minutes, stir in beer or broth, and reduce liquid by half, 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes.

Drain pasta. Add hot pasta to chili pot and stir to coat pasta evenly. Remove from heat and garnish big bowlfuls of chili mac with chopped scallions.

Marjorie's recipe produces 24 rolls, but in an attempt to not get fat, I halved the following recipe:

Cinnamon Roll Dough
 1 cup water 105-115 �F
 2 packages active dry yeast plus 1 teaspoon sugar
 1/3 cup dry milk
 1 cup butter, softened
 1/4 cup honey
 1/4 cup sugar
 1 teaspoon salt
 3 eggs
 4 to 4  cups all-purpose flour

After proofing the yeast for 5 minutes with a teaspoon of sugar, I added dry milk, butter, honey, sugar, salt, eggs, and half of the flour.  I let my mixer run with all of that and adequately blend it for about three minutes, before adding the rest of the flour.  At this point I switched from using the paddle attachment to using the hook, so that it would exercise and knead the dough.  After that workout, I lovingly placed this ball of soft, sweet dough in a greased (olive oil) bowl, covered it with a towel and put it in a warm place (on top of my oven, over the pilot light). 

When it had nearly doubled in size (that's what dough does after all), I rolled it out into a rectangle (Marjorie says 9X12 and 1/4 inch thick), and slathered room temperature butter on only half of the dough before sprinkling that half with the cinnamon-sugar mixture I created while my sweet dough was doubling in size. 

Because I floured the counter top (duh), It was easy to roll the dough up.  Easy, yet ugly looking as my rolls had more of an old, rotting, melting flesh look to it.

But once I cut the rolls, and placed them face side up in a 9 inch round pan, they were still ugly, but more convincing as cinnamon rolls.  I again let them rest from all of that sugar sprinkling and rolling, placed a towel over them, sang a sweet lullaby and cooed to them while they rose and expanded a little more on top of the oven. 

When I lifted the towel and noted how much the rolls rose, I knew it was time for them to play in the oven.  Mere minutes later (12-15) they were a golden brown on top, and sweet and savory inside.  They went from completely ugly and grotesque to fantastically awesome and comforting.

(P.S. Did you hear that I won an award?  I only ask because I think it's Fucking Awesome and I think everyone else should think so, too.)

Time: A LOT. Allow yourself at least one hour for this recipe

Ingredients:

1 automobile
1 small child
1 change of clothes, size of child
2 diapers
1 iPod cord
1 purse
1 wallet
1 set of keys

Directions:

1. Wrangle child away from weiner dog.
2. Mix 1 child with 1 clean diaper and 1 change of clothes.
3. Spend at least five minutes searching house for lost keys.
4. Find keys in refrigerator.
5. Wrangle child away from weiner dog again.
6. Upon picking child up, smell something awful.
7. Mix child with another clean diaper.
8. Remove child from house and transfer to automobile.
9. Spend at least two minutes wrangling squirmy child into car seat.
10. Realize, after child has been inserted into car seat, that purse is still in house.
11. For at least two minutes, wrestle with whether you should (a) unfasten child and transfer back into house with you for the 15 seconds it will take to pick up purse, only to have to wrangle child (who does NOT like car seat) back into car seat, or (b) ignore advice of child safety experts and leave child in automobile while you run in to retrieve purse.
12. Decide to err on the side of safety. Remove child from car seat and automobile and transfer to house.
13. Retrieve purse.
14. Wrangle child away from weiner dog.
15. Transfer everything back to automobile and repeat Step 9 above.
16. Transfer self, child, purse, and automobile to nearest Chick Fil-A location.
17. Realize upon pulling into parking lot that wallet is not inside purse, where it should be.
18. Curse profusely.
19. Feel guilty for cursing profusely in front of child.
20. Hand child, who is now becoming bored and fussy, the cord to your iPod to entertain him (because for some reason it fascinates him).
21. Transfer self, child, purse, and automobile back to house.
22. For at least two minutes, wrestle with whether you should (a) unfasten child and transfer back into house with you or (b) ignore advice of child safety experts and leave child in automobile while you run in to retrieve wallet.
23. Decide that the child safety experts can bite you. Park in garage so at least the child will be as close to the house as possible while you run in to retrieve wallet.
24. Upon opening garage door, watch helplessly as weiner dog escapes from cat door and begins to roam neighborhood freely.
25. Curse profusely.
26. Feel guilty for cursing profusely in front of child.
27. Leave child in running car while you chase weiner dog down the street, waving arms and shouting "Bad dog! Bad dog! Bad dog, goddammit!" and generally looking like a maniac.
28. Retrieve weiner dog and, breathing heavily, carry into house while child remains unsupervised in running car.
29. Begin search for wallet. During search, repeat to self, "My child is out of my sight My child is out of my sight My child is out of my sight" while thoughts of someone jumping into car and taking off with child fill your head.
30. Finally locate wallet in kitchen pantry.
31. Run full-speed back to car, where child is now screaming.
32. Hand wallet to child.
33. Wish for death.
34. Realize that you are now starving.
35. Transfer self, child, purse, wallet and automobile back to nearest Chick Fil-A location.
36. Order #5 chicken nugget meal with fries and a Dr. Pepper. Forget to ask for barbeque sauce.
37. When drive-thru operator asks you if you want 8, 10 or 12 pieces, become totally confused and have no answer. Finally say "10" because it's in the middle.
38. Proceed to drive-thru window and realize that child has wallet.
39. Also realize that child has pulled everything out of wallet, including cash and debit card, and thrown it on the floor of automobile.
40. Spend at least two minutes holding up line while frantically searching floor of back seat for some form of payment.
41. Develop cramp in neck and upper shoulder from contortionist-style search from front seat.
42. Become embarrassed when stomach growls so loudly that even the waiting drive-thru operator can hear it. Try to cough to disguise it but then realize that you are making the situation worse.
43. Finally locate debit card and hand to very patient drive-thru operator.
44. Receive 10-piece nugget meal, Dr. Pepper, and no barbeque sauce.
45. Pull out of drive-thru and realize that you forgot to ask for barbeque sauce.
46. Curse profusely.
47. Feel guilty for cursing profusely in front of child.
48. Wish again for death.
49. Say under breath "Fuck the barbeque sauce" and transfer self, child, purse, wallet, #5 meal, Dr. Pepper, no barbeque sauce, and automobile back to house.
50. Place child on floor with weiner dog and let them both have at it while you sit alone at dining room table inhaling Chick Fil-A chicken nuggets with no sauce.
51. Realize that it is time to feed child and you forgot to get a kiddie meal.
52. Cry.

Contenders: Cafe Selmarie, Stanley's and Handlebar

Winner of GB Mac and Cheese Crawl: Handlebar

(Smoked Gouda Mac 'n Cheese)

Location: 2311 W. North Avenue (North and Western)

Cost: $3.50 (side dish price)

Positives:

- Simplicity: In this case, less is most definitely more. Just macaroni covered with a gouda cream sauce. No breadcrumbs, no baked cheese, just the basics. This dish tasted truly homemade, helping to reiterate the fact that mac and cheese is the epitome of comfort food.

- Cheese: Smoked gouda's taste is distinct without being overpowering. Handlebar's gouda sauce resembles an alfredo sauce. Believe it or not, going this route makes the dish feel lighter and fresher than baking the macaroni with cheese.

Negatives:

- Size: It's a side dish, not a main. I wanted more. It gave me so much love.

Second Place: Cafe Selmarie

4729 N. Lincoln (Lincoln and Lawrence)

(Macaroni and Cheese)

Cost: $9.25 (entree size)

Positives:

- Complexity of Taste: So this dish uses six cheeses (gruyere, swiss, white cheddar, queso rico, pecorino romano and bleu). You can detect each of those cheese while you're working your way through the dish. Additionally, they put leeks in. It's more subtle than an onion, but still provides added flavor.

- Texture: Selmarie bakes bread crumbs on top of each serving, which provides the right amount of crunch. The cheese does that thing where because the cheese is warm, it's stringy between your mouth and the plate (this is a good thing, think "Cheese-y, Cheese-y from those old Little Caeser ads).

Negatives:

- Bottom of the Dish: The big issue was that there was a milky oil liquid at the bottom of the dish. I understand that's a by-product of the cheese, but it was kind of gross.

Loser: Stanley's Kitchen and Tap

(Toasted Macaroni & Cheese)

1970 N. Lincoln (Lincoln and Armitage)

Cost: $8.95 (entree size includes 1 side)

Positives:

- Portion: It's big. Like really big.

- Side Dish: The entree comes with a side. As we were at Stanley's, we chose their famous tater tots and were not disappointed.

Negatives:

- Oil: There's a whole lot of oil in this dish. When you have macaroni and cheese, you expect your cholesterol to rise a bit, but Stanley's take on mac and cheese could send you to the ER. The level of oil and grease made the dish almost unappetizing to me. I bet this dish could cure a hangover in seconds.

- Bland: They use just one cheese, cheddar (granted there's a whole lot of cheddar in the dish). Compared to the cheese profile at Selmarie and Handlebar, the taste was a bit pedestrian.

1/2 cup ketchup

1 1/2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 lb. ground sirloin

3/4 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/8 tsp. black pepper

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Cooking spray

1. Preheat the oven to 400°.

2. Combine ketchup and mustard, stirring well with a whisk. Reserve 2 1/2 Tbsp. ketchup mixture. Combine remaining ketchup mixture, beef, and next 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring to combine.

3. Divide beef mixture into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 4 x 2 1/2 inch loaf; place loaves on a jelly roll pan coated with cooking spray.

4. Spread about 2 tsp. reserved ketchup mixture evenly over each loaf. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes or until done.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 loaf)

Nutritional information: Cal 255 (28% from fat), fat 7.9, sat fat 2.8, protein 27.4, carbs 15.7, fiber 0.9, chol 120, iron 2.7, sodium 944, calcium 31.

From Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2004

So today I put on a pair of jeans and noticed that they are tighter than they used to be! To be honest, I'm not too thrilled about that. Even though I've practiced it on a fairly regular basis, self-pity just does not burn enough calories! Today I got on the bicycle (don't worry -- I mean the stationary one in the cellar), put on the Red Hot Chili Peppers and pedaled for a while. Now I feel much better.

This situation does not have to mean devastation. Nor does it mean I have to go on a diet. It is the normal process that happens when food intake remains the same and one's level of activity decreases over a long period of time. It seemed worth mentioning for a few reasons. First, four weeks have passed and I am in no way fat. In the midst of bulimia, I used to eat one big meal and think I was fat. This kind of puts it into some kind of relation.

Of course, if I had upped my calories with comfort food, I would certainly have put on more, but I didn't. I don't do comfort food, because no food can give me comfort. I think that's almost an oxymoron. How can food make you feel better -- especially if you're feeling guilty while eating it? Sitting down hungry to a good hot meal can be very nice, but that is not my understanding of comfort food.

Another reason it's worth mentioning is for clarity. With my eating disorder history, there is no way I would not notice a weight gain. Even though I don't own a scale, I can feel the difference. Body awareness remains with recovery. Thus there is no danger that one will suddenly stop noticing her body and get fat. The difference is, the priorities change. Other things are simply more important.

Yet another reason is the simple fact that I, like everyone else, can certainly gain weight under opportune circumstances. So, now you all know that I am not perfect (not that anyone thought I was, but sometimes I still expect that of myself) and I do not have a unique metabolism that burns everything up regardless.

How will I deal with this weight gain? Well, I'm stuck with the jeans because it's gotten chilly, but once it gets warmer, I'll put the skirts back on. Meanwhile, I'm going to up my activity. I'll walk more. And I think I'll go to the gym and see if the trainer can't figure out something for me to do. After all, there's no point losing all of my muscles! One arm is enough! I'm gradually starting to do more around the house as well. Unfortunately, someone else got the job I wanted, because I'm out of commission. But perhaps that's just as well. Now I can recuperate fully and then look for a new one. I trust the universe that I will have another job opportunity in this lifetime, despite my age!

It is kind of a bummer. Just before the accident happened, I was finally getting to the gym fairly regularly. I'm still a rather sedentary person. There are just so many other things to do that exercise is often last on my list, even though I know it makes me feel so much better and I'm so glad when I do it.

Well, for now I'll just trust that my old self is still in there and will soon be back. Meanwhile, there is a trick to losing weight, which I discovered at some point. I think it was after my pregnancies. The trick is: I won't think about it! That is the absolute best way to lose weight: Occupy myself with other things. Yeah, yeah -- and get more exercise! :)

And I spent a lot of time with myself, just wandering around hiking trails and Disneyland ( I had a season pass) and the beach, wishing I had someone to share it with, but being too scared to actually reach out and make a friend already.

During this in-between time of wandering around, I discovered something that made me positively jump for joy. Balboa Bars. Ryan and one or two of his incredibly hot girlfriends ate them on an imaginary stretch of beach and never gained a pound, and while I'm not fortunate enough for all that, it's totally worth it. Thick ice cream on a stick, dipped in chocolate and covered in your choice of sugary sprinkle. While most grown-ups get toffee or something else more refined, I can't resist rainbow sprinkles and even though I hem and haw, that's what I fall for every time.

Last night, Mom, Dad, Adam and I went to Balboa Island to walk around and eat said confection, and it was wonderful, all walking around the harbor on a beautiful night and holding hands with our honeys and did I mention, eating the biggest ice cream bar ever on a stick with SPRINKLES?!

'Cause it was pretty much the best thing ever.

Last night, Eth came over & we made a real feast together. Using some of the Real Food Daily Chicken-Style Seitan, we made nuggets by cutting it into cubes, dipping it in a chicken-y seasoned batter, then pressing panko over the sides. As the nuggets baked on a greased cookie sheet, we whipped up some mashed potatoes & gravy (the Golden Gravy **with added seitan "giblets"** from The New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook). Everything was really good. And really brown...

To me, the taste of the seitan is a little "off." It really smells like turkey, which is good, but there's something sort of murky-tasting in there. It could be the cannelini beans, so I'll try cutting down on them next time to see if that makes a difference. The texture is cool, not stringy or chewy, which grosses me out in some seitan recipes. Also, the nuggets are much better today, dipped in some BBQ sauce.

******************************************************************************************************************

I also made some chocolate chip cookies, half of them for Ethan's brother, who went to watch Batman with us, and the other half for the legal aide at my school who worked her ass off to settle the case against my last (insane) landlord, who refused to give me my security deposit back. Happy time!

Here's the recipe, which is just the Toll House one, veganized:

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 cup margarine, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 Ener-G egg replacers
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375*F. Cream the margarine, sugars, vanilla, & "eggs" until fluffy. Add the flour, salt & baking soda, & carefully stir till combined. Fold in the chocolate chips & nuts. Place balls of dough (about 1 1/2 tablespoons worth) 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet & bake 8-11 minutes, or until golden on the edges & still soft in the center. They'll firm up as they cool.

Dinner. Comforting dinner. Something I can just throw together in a minute, slide into the oven, and walk away to make myself a cool drink to take into the hot shower. Yes. I said walk away. For an hour. Meaning go relax while the oven cooks your dinner for you.

I can think of nothing more comforting that the knowledge that I have containers of Bolognese sauce in the fridge or freezer to make dinner a snap. I have been a fan of meat sauces since I was a small child, smelling the smells of onions, celery, carrots and garlic sweating away in a big pot. Dinner was an important ritual in my family. My mother had it down to a science. Sauces were frozen, bread was baked, pies were assembled, and all were lovingly stocked into an enormous chest freezer in the basement of our house. Jars of applesauce, jam, pickled beets, tomatoes, peaches and chili sauce lined the cupboard shelves.

Whenever the mood struck, or company dropped in, my job was to retrieve a pie, a loaf of butter-topped bread or a jar of tomato sauce so we could share a meal. This, I thought at the time, was genious. I experienced my first taste of joy when I pulled a steaming hot apple pie from the oven, to the applause of our dinner companions the Maniacco's. My mother never told them she and her friend Molly had spent the week picking, peeling, slicing, rolling and crimping 50 pies, 25 for each freezer. She let me take all the credit. I think I was eight.

This habit of having something ready, having stores, having the beginnings of a meal stashed away resonated in me. Thus I take great pleasure in starting a simmering pot of soup. Some to eat right away, some to share and some to freeze for a night of "no time to make dinner".

This night I came home, having spent the previous weekend trying out yet another recipe for our family fave, Bolognese sauce. You see Italian food is close to my heart, and being married to a man who is half Sicilian makes for a life forged over a pot of simmering meat sauce. This particular recipe came from Anne Burrell, whose show is on Food Network. I did not see this episode, but my husband says I would really like her. I guess she gestures a LOT and talks really fast. Sounds like my kind of girl. Anyway, the recipe isn't on their site anymore, but I remember what I did, and I remember what I changed. She really likes salt, and following her method resulted in a very salty sauce, so I had to fix it.

This version is super yum, freezes well, and tastes soul satisfying even when it's the dead heat of summer outside.

Lasagna Bolognese

3 pounds ground chuck

2 large onions, peeled

3 carrots, peeled

2 ribs celery

3 cloves garlic

3 cups red wine

1 can tomato paste

3 fresh bay leaves

6 fresh thyme stems

Kosher salt

Fresh pepper

Water

6 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat a dutch oven over medium heat and add the butter and olive oil. Place the celery, onions, carrots and garlic in a food processor, and pulse until chopped fine. Add to the pot. Season with salt and peppr, about 1 teaspoon each. Cook down until soft and starting to really get brown. Remove to a bowl. Add the meat to the pot, season with 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper, and brown it all very well. Add the veggies and tomato paste. Brown well. Add the red wine, bay leaves and thyme and simmer till evaporated, stirring as it cooks. Add enough water to cover and simmer till it is absorbed. Keep adding water like this for about three hours. You will need to add water about every half hour to forty five minutes. When the sauce is thick and brown, taste it and add more salt and pepper if you need to. Cool in several small containers. Put some in the fridge, some in the freezer.

Next day (or when you will cook)...

Basic White Sauce (this will take 15 minutes)

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add a stick of butter and 1/2 a cup of flour. Stir until the butter melts and the flour forms a thick paste. Cook a few minutes until a nutty smell hits the air. Remove from heat. Microwave a quart of whole milk in a glass measuring cup for three minutes or until scalding. Return the pot to medium heat and slowly add the milk, whisking fast to erase the lumps. Keep whisking and adding the milk until all the milk is in the pot. Season with 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens to the contistency of heavy cream. Remove from heat.

The lasagna part....

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grab a big bowl and fill it with really, really hot water. Grab a package of no boil lasagna noodles. These will be smaller and thinner than cooked noodles. Grab a glass casserole or roasting pan for the lasagna. Doesn't matter what size. You can use the whole box or half the box. A whole box serves about 10 people. You do what you need to do. Maybe make two, one for the freezer....

Cover the bottom of the pan with some meat sauce, about half a cup. Slip four noodles into the water and let them sit in there about a minute. Cover the bottom of the pan with the noodles. Break them if you have to. Then cover with a layer of meat sauce. Leave the noodles showing through. Repeat with more noodles. Cover with white sauce. Keep alternating, finishing with meat sauce on top. If you have some cheese you can cover the top with some slices. I used fresh mozzerella here. Cover with plastic wrap, then foil, and bake for an hour. Remove the wraps and bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is brown and bubbly. Let sit 15 minutes before slicing. This is the best the next day too!

White Bean Tuscan Soup

A new favorite of my family, it is so quick to make and it is really really good!

Ingredients:

1 package Kielbasa or Turkey Kielbasa (the kind that is shaped like a U), cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 can cannelloni or great white northern beans, rinsed and drained

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 package steam-ready frozen mixed vegetables, or 1 small package your favorite frozen vegetable blend

2 cans or more low sodium chicken broth

minced garlic for taste

pinch dried oregano

salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook vegetable packet in microwave according to package directions.  (Usually the steam packets take about 5-7 minutes, or you can use leftover vegetables and save time!)  They should be heated through, but you can cook them the rest of the way in the soup.

In a large pot add kielbasa sausage, onions, and garlic and cook on medium heat until sausage is lightly browned.  Add beans, chicken broth, and oregano and bring to boil.  Add vegetables, return to boil.  Turn heat down to low and simmer until vegetables reach desired consistency.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Remove from heat and serve!

J.T. Farnham’s
88 Eastern Ave
Essex, MA 01929
978-768-6643

No recipe. Just a little of all the good stuff - roasted eggplant, beans, carrots, onions, tomatoes, TVP, loads of garlic, soy sauce, a little lemon juice, vege stock and salt and pepper. Despite the mish-mash of ingredients it tastes really good!

Non vegan alert: TVP stands for 'textured vegetable protein'. It pretty much does the same job as mince, without all the slaughtered animal stuff. And it's cheaper! I buy it dry and rehydrate it in some liquid (hot water or stock) before using it, although I hear you can get it in frozen pieces in supermarkets in the US ('Boca crumbles'?). Anyway, this stuff is seriously good and if you haven't tried it yet, you should. The persimmon says so.

www.kumas-corner.com

In one word - Accoutrement

Food - I had only heard fanatical raves about KC, so I needed to check it out myself. It's a burger joint, you receive a menu with a page full of different burger options. Unlike Epic Burger, vegetarians are welcome here. You can get any burger option with a beef patty, chicken breast, portabella mushroom patty or chicken tenders. Also, they use pretzel bread buns (which I LOVE!). I was a bit overwhelmed by the options, so I went with my server's recommendation (all the menu options have a rock theme), the Lair of the Minotaur - Beef patty with caramelized onions, pancetta, brie and bourbon soaked pears. This is apparently a shout-out to the May Street Market burger. One of my eating partners went big and chose the Bongzilla burger - Beef patty with a sausage on top of it (I'm not kidding). My other eating partner took the Motorhead Burger - Portabella burger with goat cheese, Kalamata olives, oregano, tzatziki, onion and tomato. Overall, don't get me wrong, the dishes were all good. However, it was all about the accoutrement and less about the actual burger. Please don't read this as a criticism, it's meant to be an observation. Here's a little advice, you have the options of choosing chips or fries with your meal. Choose the fries, the chips are super dry.

Drink - They have a healthy selection of beers to choose from. I saw SKA beer, my new favorite Durango, CO brewery, on the list and stuck with that. One of my eating partners chose a beer only to find out that it was raspberry flavored (which was not noted on the menu).

Service - So I was expecting to wait at least 30 minutes for a table for three. However, perhaps by going to KC on a Tuesday night, we found the golden ticket to "no line, no wait." Plus, we lucked out and got a table in the back outdoor patio (it's much quieter back there compared to the actual restaurant). When we got to our table, our server sat down with us. She definitely had spunk, one of those girls who starts talking to you as if you've been sarcastic friends for years. She had that balance of jadedness without being unpleasant. It's a winning combination. Every table in her section seemed like they had created a friendship with her when they finished the meal. KC won me over when the manager (at least I think he's the manager) came around to make sure that the food was satisfactory.

Scene - KC has this heavy metal biker theme. Don't let that intimidate you. While the ladies room is wallpapered with illustrations of scantily clad ladies, the clientele is diverse and respectable.

Dress - I would wear something that feels comfortable to you. Everyone at the restaurant is so distinct, there isn't a real dress code.

Cost - For a burger and two beers, I paid $24. For the caliber of the food, I felt like this was affordable.

If you like, try...Epic Burger, Twisted Spoke

OK, that mild rise on Girard isn't really even a hill, but the hamburgers really are amazing.  I'm talking about the newly opened Sketch Burger and Shake Joint, at 413 E. Girard in Fishtown [where: 19125].  Dear readers, we have a serious contender for Best Burger in Philly.

The menu is simple: burgers and shakes, and one token salad.  Pick your protein, sauce and toppings, and choose from four shake flavors (vegan or milk).  Options are beef, turkey, 'smashed onion,' vegan burger, chicken, and American Kobe beef, as well as the day's special, a seitan burger highly recommended by the server.  Joe and I, being hedonists, went straight for the American Kobe burger ($9.75).  He got harissa aioli, I chose Thai peanut sauce on the side.  I went for grilled onions and avocado.  The burger arrived, and it was massive.  Really, I cannot believe they crammed that much meat into one burger.  Most kobe burgers tend to be on the small side-- $9.75 may be expensive for a burger, but for kobe it's really an excellent deal.  It arrived medium rare, thank God-- overcooking meat of that quality is a sin.  We got our burgers to go, so the bun was slightly soggy, but it really held up well given the juiciness of the burger.  The grilled onions sat below the patty, and above it were slippery sliced avocado, a slice of juicy ripe tomato and some high-quality salad greens.  This is a difficult burger to eat.  It's crammed full of fresh ingredients that want to come bursting right out of the bun.  The effort, however, is worth it, as is the 20-minute wait while your burger is cooked to order.  The end result is incredibly rich, flavorful, juicy, and did I mention rich?  It was a bit of a shock to my system since I've been eating lightly recently, but very much worth it.

We also shared a vanilla milkshake, which was flavorful and thick but not too thick.  (As Joe put it: "Thick, but I won't have a brain embolism trying to suck it through a straw.")  Everything is made fresh here, so no chalky chemical taste either.  I try to take it easy on the lactose, so I'm really looking forward to trying a vegan shake.

The shop itself is cute; there are blackboards everywhere and rolls of butcher paper on the tables, and customers are encouraged to doodle with chalk (hence the "Sketch" name).  It's also open until 11 pm, which is wonderful for those of us who live in the neighborhood.  And vegans, vegetarians and the lactose-intolerant can all find joy in this menu.

I found only two downsides to our delicious, gut-busting meal.  One was the cheese selection: American (ew, plastic), horseradish cheddar, pepper jack, vegan and bleu.  One straightforward cheese option, an aged cheddar or maybe a sharp provolone, would be welcome.  The other was the standard side order of Cheesy Poofs-- ours were stale.  Sketch would be better off dropping the little orange orbs and developing the ultimate French fry.  They've mastered the ultimate hamburger, so why not?

Well, maybe I love mangoes a tad less than Ryan loves coconut.

I haven’t done anything really fancy with mangoes other than my Hawaiian Chicken, which I haven’t made since last summer. Before this season is through, I’ll make it happen.

We came upon some beautiful Atalufo mangoes over the weekend that were hard to ignore. So we didn’t.

You’ve heard of the expression “food pornography.” If not, here’s Wikipedia to the rescue:

Food porn is a sarcastic term variously applied to a spectacular visual presentation of cooking or eating, in advertisements, infomercials, cooking shows or other visual media, foods boasting a high fat and calorie content^[1], exotic dishes that arouse a desire to eat^[2] or the glorification of food as a substitute for sex.

Now you know. And now, here’s some mango porn for you. Parental discretion is advised. Hehe.

So choo-choo! Get ready for some yummylicious fun! (Photo and drawing by Ryan)

Oh-la -la. Mmm, mmm, mangoes.

Getting up-close and personal.

Here’s one sun-bathing, undressed, and showing off its flesh topped with coconut and brown sugar! Oh sweet mango!

Cover those innocent eyes!

Ooh, more!

And that’s all, folks!

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What? You want another? Fine. Here’s one more look.

Seriously, that's the end of the show.

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Oh, okay, why not another for the road.

Fin.

I should have made this recipe last winter when I found it, because it’s really well suited for that season—a stick-to-your-ribs cold weather dish that warms you up and satisfies your appetite. The dish is perhaps a bit too heavy to serve on a hot summer day, but I’m sure nobody would complain about it being “out of season” once they taste it. Personally, I usually don’t like to do a lot of cooking on the stovetop in the summertime: I much prefer to grill outdoors; however, I must say this recipe is so good that I don’t think I could go all summer without making it at least once. It’s absolutely delicious! I know that when fall arrives (and it always seems as though it’s upon us all too soon), I’ll be making “Mom’s Chicken and Dumplings” quite often.

I woke up late, around 7:15, and since Sunday's are special breakfast days at our house, I delved into making some cranberry orange muffins. I found some recipes online and kinda tweaked them because I wanted them to be low sugar/low fat and I wanted to use oat flour instead of white flour. They turned out pretty good though alot of them stuck to the pan. Maybe I should have let them cool longer?

[caption id="attachment_34" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="lunch!"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_36" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="a summertime treat"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_37" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="comfort food"][/caption]

This is a recipe Dad requested, well actually he wanted traditional red beans and rice..but then I found this soup recipe - but not to fear, I'll still try to find a regular red beans and rice dish. This recipe is adapted from Not Afraid of Flavor: Recipes from the Magnolia Grill. And for those, like Dad, who want to make this recipe even easier to prepare, use canned beans and begin at step 2. You'll also reduce the cooking time to about 20 minutes. What I did was start the brown rice (which takes 45-50 min), then begin chopping and making the soup. When the time beeped for the rice, the soup was done too - so that's approx 1 hour from first chop of the onion to serving the soup if using canned (or precooked) beans. This recipe should serve 6 normal, or 4 hungry people.

Ingredients:

*For the soup:
1 pound small red beans, picked over (or 1 can red beans)
3 TBSP olive oil
1 C onion, cut into small dice
1/2 C yellow or orange bell pepper, small dice (*you could also use green if that's what you're in to)
1/2 C red bell pepper, cut into small dice
2 ribs celery, cut into small dice
1 poblano chile, cut into small dice *optional
1 jalapeno, chopped, with seeds
1/2 C chopped garlic (a half cup, that's not a typo)
1 bay leaf
1/4 C Creole Spice blend
1 can diced, seeded, tomatoes; juice and all
4-4.25 C vegetable broth *or a combo of broth and water
salt, black pepper, tabasco, and cider vinegar to taste

*For the rice and garnish:
1 C cooked long-grain white (or brown) rice
2 TBSP each chopped cilantro, oregano, and basil (if using fresh herbs, go for 2-3 tsp of each)
1 C scallions, trimmed and sliced on the bias, or chopped fresh cilantro *optional

Preparation:

1. The night before making the soup, pick through the beans to remove any debris and split beans. Rinse the beans, transfer to a container, cover with double their volume of cold water and refrigerate overnight.
2. Make the spice blend. Heat the oil over medium heat, and saute the onion, bell peppers, and celery until the veg are softened and being to caramelize on the edges. Add the poblano, jalapeno, garlic, bay leaf and creole spices. Cook 2 minutes, stirring. Add the tomatoes, 1/2 C of their juice, and the red beans. Bring to a simmer.
3. Add broth; bring to a boil and cook at a simmer until the beans are done (20 min if using canned, about 45 min to 1 hour +15 minutes if using dried). Remove the bay leaf.
4. Add salt to taste, then remove 1 C of beans and veg and puree in a food processor. Stir the puree into the soup.
5. Warm the soup over low heat and adjust the consistency with more broth or water if necessary. Season with salt and pepper, along with any Tabasco and/or cider vinegar you wish to add. Keep hot!
6. Into each of 6 large bowls, spoon 2 TBSP of cooked rice tossed with the fresh herbs (salted, but I wouldn't add any other spices, especially pepper - there will be plenty in the soup itself). Fill with soup. Sprinkle with scallions, if using, and serve immediately.

This soup should keep a few days, so you can take it for lunch several days if you're making it for just yourself.

Happy Cooking!

Of course, in times like these, my friends looked to me for salvation. Let's be honest; fat kids are fat for a reason. A disgustingly delicious idea could not pass my mind without me acting on it. I was the perfect candidate to serve as the Nancy Drew for this modern day mystery. If anyone could figure this out, it was me.

Many trips were made to the student center, "J Street", as I tried to figure out how to best mask the truly awful taste of that alcohol. I am sure all of our parents would be so pleased to know we spent such an obscene amount of our meal plan points on these instruments of drunkening. Then, one day, I found the answer.

Pineapple juice and grape soda. I am sure you are thinking "Wow, that sounds gross and incredibly sweet". Your thoughts would be spot on, but we were much more concerned with the courage that the alcohol afforded us than the lining of our stomaches. We could worry about ulcers and acid reflux when we were old. This discovery, this beautiful little combo, was seriously the best thing I did all freshman year. I certainly didn't learn anything in my chemistry class, but I received an "A" in mixology that year.

So, it is no surprise that when faced with making a desert for the 4th of July, I took it to trashy new levels, pillaging the deep recesses of my brain for the most unhealthy and low class thing I could think of: peanut butter-chocolate rice krispie treats. Who doesn't love rice krispie treats? The communists, that is who... I cannot be left to leave well enough alone, so while wandering the aisles of my supermarket, the cocoa krispies caught my eye. And where there is chocolate, I really think there ought to be peanut butter...so that is how these were born. Adding peanut butter to the marshmallows added a great little nutty undertone to everything and the chips were great... There were rice krispie treats with an added layer of sin; not much more to say here except they were really tasty.

It's always good to have me on the case, all I am sayin'.

Rice Krispie Treats 2.0

Adapted from...a cereal box

3 tablespoons margarine or butter
1 package (10 oz. about 40) regular marshmallows 4 cups miniature marshmallows
2 heaping tablespoons peanut butter
6 cups Cocoa Krispies
1/2 sack peanut butter chips

Directions

1. Melt margarine in large saucepan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Add peanut butter and stir until combined. Remove from heat.

2. Add cocoa krispies and peanut butter chips. Stir until well coated.

3. Using buttered spatula or waxed paper, press mixture evenly into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Cut into 2-inch squares when cool. Best if served the same day.

...

My Favorite Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup butter flavored Crisco
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup creamy peanut butter or crunchy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

Cream butter, shortening, and sugars. Add the eggs and blend well. Add the peanut butter and vanilla. Add all dry ingredients until well blended.

Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls (I use a tbsp cookie scoop) and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Using a fork, make a crisscross pattern in each cookie.

Bake at 375º for 8 to 10 minutes. Do not overbake. Leave the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes before removing to rack to cool completely.

Makes 3-4 dozen

Happy Cooking!

Speaking of Bath, King Bladud's Pigs have been deployed! How fun it is to go out pig spotting, especially for ones as gorgeous as these. It looks like an adventurous pig has even wandered as far as Bristol - Snap Studio, to be exact... I didn't find out its name, but there is a pic in my photo diary a few posts down.

But back to Mr B's, briefly. The lovely staff there were kind enough to order a copy of Veganomicon for me and my first kitchen experiment from it was Chickpea Noodle Soup. It didn't turn out much like the classic chicken noodle soup, which I kind of hoped for, but the brown rice miso wasn't going to let that happen any day. Also, I went miles overboard with the pasta, making it more of a stew or casserole than soup. Next time, with a few tweaks (white miso, a smattering of orecchiette and bits of baked tofu), I should be able to bring it closer to what I was hoping I'd end up with. (I'm sure there are many, many recipes out there for vegan chicken noodle soup, but I like the challenge and experimentation that comes with creating my own...)

Is it possible to go wrong with simple comfort food? I think not. Even the sunniest day benefits from a generous dollop of comfort.