Sound Bites on Crepe Street

Veggie Taco Pie

soundcrepes — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 00:39:33 +0000

Growing up as a kid, my favorite meal was taco pie. I can remember my Mom taking crescent rolls and rolling them out on the bottom of a pie pan to cook. I would often ask during the process if we were having taco pie. She would reply yes, and I would secretly become ecstatic. I really can’t tell you why I love taco pie so much, but I do. Maybe it’s the comfort, the nostalgia that surrounds it or even the smell. I knew that every time our family would have tacos, taco pie was sure to follow within a day or two. Now that I’m older, I haven’t had it for years. Actually, probably since I was in high school. Even though I’m in my mid-twenties, I really don’t want to date myself and tell you how long ago that was.

Recently, I begun to crave this simple meal. But know that I’m eating vegetarian, I had no clue where to start, what ingredients to add to what would be a meat mixture. I just knew I had a can of black beans and a zucchini. I called my mom, and told her my plans. Together, we brainstormed to add tofu, olives, mushrooms, onions and avocado as topping. After beginning to cook this evening, I realized I needed a pan larger than a pie pan, I used a casserole dish instead. If I would have been thinking, I would have made two 9×9 pans and froze one. Really, I cook for like 8 people, and in actuality, I’m only cooking for one. I have no clue how to cook for less. I never learned how to cook for one.

Vegetarian Taco Pie
1 can black beans
1 can olives
1 tomato
1 packet Mexican spice mix
1 bag cheese of your choice, I got fancy and used the Mexican cheese bag from the store
1 zucchini
1 package firm tofu
1 package mushrooms
Half an onion
Garlic to taste
Olive Oil
1 container Crescent Rolls
Taco chips of choice

In olive oil, cook cut zucchini, tofu, onion and garlic. Once zucchini softens, add undrained black beans, olives, tomatoes, mushrooms and Mexican spice packet. Let simmer. While the mixture is simmering, preheat oven at 350 degrees. In a casserole dish, 9×13, spray with cooking spray, and spread the crescent rolls on the bottom of the pan. Cook until golden brown. Keep oven on. Add mixture and top with chips and cheese. Cook until cheese is melted.

Listening to the movie, “Collapse”

Food on the Radio

soundcrepes — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 01:17:42 +0000

I don’t understand why there isn’t more food on the radio. Cooking has so many sounds! Bacon sizzling, water boiling, eggs cracking, chopping vegetables on a cutting board. This piece about an apple tart is a really great example of that and the chef talks about how food sounds is an important detail to pay attention to when you’re cooking.

This one is a little homage to Jess since she’s living in the Twin Cities. Hear what eating a Jucy Lucy sounds like on State of the Re:Union.

And this one is arguably about food but is mainly just for fun: Spicy Pony Head from Kasper Hauser.

Autumn

soundcrepes — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 18:16:07 +0000

I’ve spent the past month just missing fall. I had to leave New York City at the beginning of October for New Orleans – which was a treat – but also meant an extended summer for me.

I left la belle ciudad for Oklahoma City last week and officially reunited with the cold weather which means dancing in my socks at the stove cooking squash and kale and brussel sprouts and sweet potato. I threw together a quick playlist of my favorite cooking jams for the fall over here, but this one is the one I can’t stop listening to:

Music

soundcrepes — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 21:12:32 +0000

Check out the music for section for a cooking playlist, and if you like to dance.

Cooking can be a Bitch

soundcrepes — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:32:29 +0000

I think there are times when we all call our mo’s for cooking advice. I know I do it all the time. But when my mom doesn’t answer her phone, there is a substitute – Food52. Thanks to these great people, I can tweet or email my food problems and get an instant response. Maybe they will tell me how to make delicious fried tofu.

Also, the website has a recipe section. I started drooling just looking at photographs. Look at how great auburgine vindaloo looks. I think I found myself a new favorite recipe site.

Easy Curry

soundcrepes — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 20:31:07 +0000

I’m starting grad school this week. This means I become poorer than I was in the first place, thus, I will be more in debt than before. The situation also means I have to eat more cheaply. Best news, I don’t have to sacrifice my love of Indian food, especially curry.

A couple months ago, while living with my mom, I discovered Pataks curry paste. And it is delicious! More importantly, there are many health benefits to curry. Turmeric and cumin, both found in curry powder, help ward of Alzheimer’s disease and aid in digestion. Plus, there are numerous other benefits from the other spices. Aside form the health benefits, I just really, really love curries.

When I make curry, I like to fry up tofu on the side, but it’s something I need to practice. Last night the frying process got a little out of control and the tofu started to smell like burned popcorn. In honesty, I really don’t know the best way to fry up tofu other than to add oil to a pan and let it turn golden brown. Those you who love rice, I suggest pairing the curry with basmati rice. I’m awful at making rice, either it’s too watery or too hard; therefore, I make my roommate make the rice instead.

Veggie Curry

Veggie oil

1 bag veggie mix

1 can diced tomatoes

Pataks Curry Mix

1 container firm tofu

Puree can of diced tomatoes and heat up in a pan. Add curry paste to tomato puree. I normally guess, but usually add about 2 teaspoons, but it’s really based on taste. Make sure you smash up the curry paste on the side of the pan. Heat until it begins to simmer and add veggies. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes. In a separate pan heat up veggie oil. Again, this is where I guess measurements. Add cut tofu into pan, cover, and let simmer until golden brown. When I cook tofu, I like to add either either some curry paste with it, or season with turmeric, black pepper and curry powder. Also, I like to top mine with cheese because I love cheese. One reason I could never go vegan. I just can’t part with the tasty Jarlsburg cheese!

Listening to: S. Carey, All We Grow

My Other Triple B

soundcrepes — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 01:16:09 +0000

While I was a vegetarian, I learned to cook. I was vegetarian from the end of my freshmen year of college until the beginning of my junior year of college. At first, I ate a lot of cheese pizza or pasta or eggs, eggs, and more eggs. (Don’t get me wrong, I love eggs, but that’s a pretty dull diet right there.)

At the risk of being bored to death and possibly suffering malnutrition, I started cooking for myself . One of the foods I fell in love with were veggie burgers. I make veggie burgers way more often than I make hamburgers, probably because I am still getting over my fear of undercooking meat and making myself sick and probably because a good veggie burger tastes amazing.

My Other Triple B: Black Bean Burgers:
(Original recipe from Macheesmo. )
1 jalapeño
1/2 onion (any kind!)
1/4 cup bread crumbs (Note: Other things you can use instead of breadcrumbs: uncooked quick-cooking oats, cooked brown rice. Whatever you want to use to bind the ingredients.)
1 can black beans
salt, pepper, cumin

Chop the jalapeño and onion and saute in oil until onions begin to look translucent. Remove the pan from heat and add in breadcrumbs and mix together. Drain your beans and add to the mix and mash it up!

You could use a a potato masher or a big spoon. I use my hands. This is what it sounds like. It is super satisfying.

Usually I make a big batch, shape them into patties, put them on wax paper and pop them in the freezer. After a couple hours they’re frozen and I can stack them up in a container and have dinner for a few nights. Also, if you’re a fan of spicy, the flavor definitely improves after a day or so. You can also switch out the kind of peppers and spices you use – this is a pretty flexible recipe.

When I’m ready to eat, I take a couple out of the freezer (I tend to make my patties small), heat up some vegetable oil over medium and fry them up a few minutes on each side so they get a nice crust on the outside. I keep meaning to try baking these but never get around to it because the pan is so quick.

The original Triple B (look under the letter “B”) was one of my fondest memories of Maine. Maybe a black bean burger, beer and bourbon is in order tonight?

Food for ears

soundcrepes — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 22:49:31 +0000

After posting about Re: Sound’s Food episode, my mind turned to other radio/food projects. I started listening to The Sporkful thanks to the Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me Blog and their traditional Sandwich Mondays. By the way, my life has becoming infinitely better since I started reading the Wait, Wait… Blog.

But back to The Sporkful. It’s produced and hosted by two guys – Dan Pashman and Mark Garrison – who previously worked together on the sadly now off-the-air Bryant Park Project. On the plus side, they often have guests from the public radio cohort like Radio Lab, Planet Money, and Too Beautiful To Live. Dan and Mark are really hilarious guys who are really obsessed with “food minutiae” – and my guess is if you’re reading this, then you are too! I’m a big fan of their sandwich-centric shows and I’ve gotten a lot of ideas for my own sandwich engineering techniques – especially the Egg Sandwich episodes.

Baguettes: go get ‘em!

soundcrepes — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 13:52:57 +0000

I learned to make bread one summer in northern Florida while staying with my boyfriend’s aunt and uncle for a few weeks. Since then I’ve become pretty obsessed with it. I started trying whole wheat bread, naan, pizza doughs, and my dear friend the sourdough who I personally consider a genius because it comes from the air!

Learning to make bread has also ruined me. I love the crustiness and the yeasty flavor that comes with homemade bread, and I’ve really come to dislike the squishy texture of the store stuff.

Baguettes are one of my favorite kinds of bread. The recipe I used is from Macheesmo. You start with an overnight starter and then add the basics – flour, water, yeast, and salt. 15 minutes of kneading (and 15 minutes of kneading is always way longer than I think. Check out my bread muscles), 3 hours of rest later and you get these! From left to right: Lumpy, Stretch, and Pretty Good Lookin’.

These probably could have stood a few more minutes in the oven but they still taste pretty good.

My standby cooking album: Vampire Weekend.

I just got caught up on some podcasts yesterday and Re:Sound, produced by the Third Coast International Audio Festival, had an episode about food that is quite lovely. I really like the way they transition between pieces by returning to the same piece of tape about two people making a cake (there’s a surprise about it at the end!). My favorite pieces are “Sonja’s Dumplings” – because I love stories about families sharing recipes and there all sorts of wonderful detail like the fact that the woman uses floss to cut her dough – and “Concerning Breakfast – because “What did you have for breakfast?” is such a common soundcheck question and I love how it becomes a central theme to the story.

Going Veg

soundcrepes — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 07:22:17 +0000

I’ve decided to go fully vegetarian. More like lacto-ovo vegetarian, but I currently have a fear of getting salmonella poising and dying. But mainly, my roommate is vegetarian and it makes shopping way easier. Plus, I don’t have to worry about accidental cross-contamination. In honesty, I really don’t miss meat. It always had a weird iron taste that creeped me out. Thus my diet has completely changed. Mostly, I’ve been eating mac and cheese out of love and laziness.

When I’m not eating mac and cheese, I eat SANDWICHES! They are seriously the easiest and most delicious dinner you can make. As a child, I loved the stereotypical lunch box sandwich and lets face it, when you’re stressed there is nothing better than a pbj. While at Salt in Maine, I went to Hot Suppa! and they converted to me to putting apples and pears on sandwiches. At first, it sounds ridiculous and gross. But I can tell you there is nothing better than an apple with Havarti cheese on a sandwich. It’s downright MAGICAL. I guess the best way to describe the category of magical-ness is the Unicorn category. You’re probably sitting, reading and wondering what the hell I’m talking about. But really try it. Try thinly slicing an apple and putting it on your sandwich. You’re grown up taste buds are waiting for it.

Here’s a simple recipe that I stole and tailored from my friend Amanda.

1 everything bagel

1 egg* Note there is a recall. Please see link to make sure you won’t be poisoned

2 or more slices Havarti cheese

Thinly sliced apple or pear wedges

Preparation:

Turn on broiler

Fry egg to desirable taste

Set egg, Havarti cheese, and apple onto bagel and broil until golden brown

*Other awesome toppings you can add, spinach, lettuce, sprouts, real or fake meat, cream cheese etc.

Experiment with the recipe and find the right variation that best fits you.

Listening to: the humming of my computer.