The Queer Hipster Kitchen

We spent a week and a bit on the road, visiting my parents - and now, we're back!  It's good to be home for many reasons, but perhaps the most relevant one here is that it's CSA day.  Yum, veggies. My parents mostly accommodated our semi-vegetarian eating habits, but there was still more meat and more vacation treats than necessary.  Plus I missed my kitchen!  My mom also likes cooking, which means that every time I tried to prepare something, she came to help - or intervened and offered to do it.  It's good to go do things in my kitchen when I want to... and to know where everything is. Hello, veggies! So this morning, it was off to market as usual on a Saturday.  But one unusual thing is the size of our farm share this week.  You see, our farm will allow us to set a "vacation hold" and choose a week later in the season to receive a double share.  Effectively, this means we got last week's box *and* this week's box today.  And what a good week

This recipe is modified from one I found on SparkRecipes forever ago.  These are a good use for whatever veggies you've got around - cabbage and carrots are the key ingredients, but you can add in pretty much whatever else you'd like.  (People tell me they're good with chopped mushrooms.) Ingredients: 2 T extra virgin olive oil   16 oz. shredded veggies - cabbage and carrot mix   4 green onions, chopped   1 small can water chestnuts, drained and chopped 1 1/2 cup bean sprouts 1 T ground ginger 1 T garlic powder  2 T fish sauce   2 T soy sauce   1 T cornstarch   20 egg roll wrappers The Process: Preheat oven to 400 F. In a wok or large pan, heat olive oil.  Combine all ingredients except cornstarch and egg roll wrappers and stir-fry for about 2 minutes (until cabbage is wilted). Mix cornstarch with 1 T cold water and add to wok.  Stir for about a minute, until sauce thickens. After cooking, strain ingredients in a colander.  (You might

This recipe is modified from this one at Simply Quinoa.  We like the texture, but find the final product overly sweet, so I got creative and came up with some modifications. A note: this recipe makes a TON.  It makes six cup-plus servings.  However, it freezes really well. Ingredients: 1 cup finely chopped carrots 1 cup shredded jackfruit 1/2 cup finely diced onion 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/2 cups brown or green lentils 1/2 cup quinoa (uncooked) 8 oz tomato sauce 1/2 cup ketchup 1 T maple syrup (or honey, or other sweetener) 2 T hot sauce of your choice 2 T mustard 1 T chili powder 1 tsp paprika 3-4 cups veggie broth salt and pepper to taste The Process: Put all the ingredients into a slow cooker.  Stir to combine. Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-6 hours. Eat. Yes, it's that simple. Pro Tips: I like to shred the carrots, but if you want more texture/crunch, just chop them very small. If you like mushrooms, you might use those as the origi

We’ve been out and about this past week, visiting family.  This presents some challenges: my parents eat very differently than we do at home.  The single biggest difference is the sheer quantity of meat.  Some weeks ago, my mom commented that they (two people) go through two or three pounds of ground beef a week.  Karen and I had no idea how that was even possible, but we’ve seen it first-hand the past few days: beef shepherd’s pie, meatballs, burgers.  My charming mom asked if we wanted chicken for the grill since we don't eat much meat - to quite a lot of laughter from me and Karen, who don't consider chicken a vegetable.  Luckily no one’s offended at our gentle modifications to amplify the veggies at every opportunity.  (Neither are my folks signing on to eat the delicious hummus, cheese, and veggie sandwiches I made for yesterday’s picnic.  Sigh.) They are supportive folks, even if they are deeply suspicious of hummus, so today we were off to a nearby farmers’ market in t

Confession time: I hate coleslaw.  Well, I hate most coleslaw.  I know it's the quintessential side dish for cookouts, usually paired with fish and chips (my favorite food in the world), and a summertime classic, but to me, most coleslaw is either a crunchy mayonaisse delivery system or a sad soggy cup of vinegar and cabbage. But I do not hate this coleslaw, easily made from scratch.  The big differences here are two: first, using actual veggies instead of a bag of cabbage mix makes all the difference in the world.  Second, control over my coleslaw dressing means that the slaw has flavor, but it doesn't sit and soak in a sad container of slimy mayo mix. This slaw is accompanied today by grilled halloumi cheese with avocado slices and a balsamic drizzle, an experimental lunch that I am going to put into regular meal rotation now.  (Oh my God, yum.) Ingredients: 1 Napa cabbage 2 carrots 2 garlic scapes 2-3 Hakurei salad turnips 1/2 cup mayonaisse 1 T white vinegar

This saag is faster than delivery.  I swear.  Eat it with rice or naan.  Though the recipe calls this "saag paneer," the bulk of the recipe is for the sauce: we sometimes make the sauce ahead, freeze it without paneer or other protein, and save it for an "instant dinner" in the future. Ingredients: 1 medium tomato 2 T ghee butter (or a mild-flavored oil) 1/2 medium onion 1 pound greens 5 cloves garlic, chopped 2 tsp minced ginger 2 tsp cumin 1 tsp tumeric 2 tsp garam masala 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste) 1/2 cup water 1 block paneer, chopped into cubes (or a can of chickpeas, or some tofu, or cooked meat) The Process: Put ghee or oil into the base of the Instant Pot and set to saute.  Once ghee is melted (or oil is hot), add garlic, ginger, onion, and tomato and saute for 1-2 minutes. Put greens, spices, and 1/2 cup water into the pot, and combine with garlic and tomato mix. Put the lid on the Instant Pot and be sure it's

I adore pesto, but I complain about the cost of pine nuts all the time.  This one uses toasted walnuts and some lemon to kick the flavor up.  No complaints here - I could eat it with a spoon.  Adapted from a cooking class taken at Sur la Table. Ingredients: 1/2 cup basil leaves 1 bunch kale, stems removed (about 3 cups) 1 garlic clove 2/3 cup toasted walnuts 1/2 cup olive oil 2/3 cup grated aged cheese (pecorino) 2 lemons, zested and juiced salt & pepper to taste The Process: In a food processor, pulse kale until pureed.  Add garlic, walnuts, and basil; pulse until roughly chopped. Add olive oil slowly and pulse to combine. Move pesto to a large bowl.  Stir in cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice.  Stir by hand to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pro Tips: I am all about kitchen shortcuts, but you've gotta toast the nuts for this recipe.  It really does enhance the flavor.  I like to toast them a bag at a time and then freeze the toasted walnuts

The CSA is in full swing, producing our seven wonderful veggie items a week.  We've added a new element to our market trips: a very dear friend tipped us off to a way that we can compost!  A local small business, which has a booth at our Farmers' Market, will take away your compostables every other week for the incredibly low cost of $5.  When the market isn't in season, we can bring our pail to the co-op.  Finally, I can repurpose the post-stock vegetables!! Behold! Veggies! This week's CSA harvest: garlic scapes, kale, bok choy, summer squash, peas, Hakurei salad turnips, and lettuce.  We also picked up a pint of blueberries, because we have no self-control. Due to a festival in town, the main street through town was closed.  We dropped off our CSA goodies in the car, picked up our coffee and a scone, and walked down the street to the co-op.  There was very, very little on the list this week: just a couple things to finish off a recipe or two, milk for Karen&#

On cold brew coffee I like coffee.  Not as much as Kara likes coffee, but I like it a lot.  I especially like iced coffee, year-round.  But I hate brewing hot coffee then diluting it with enough ice to get it cold (I prefer to use milk or a milk substitute to dilute my coffee).  So I bought a cold brew concentrate.  And that was fine, but I knew there had to be a better way. At some grocery stores and at one particular well-known coffee shop, you can find "kits" to make cold brew coffee.  Some places, especially that coffee shop, even offer cold brew coffee "machines."  Not being made of money and having a brain in my head, I decided I could do it much, much cheaper.  I remembered making "sun tea" with my mom, and figured I could do coffee almost the same way. The first time I DIYed my cold brew, I tried to make satchels using coffee filters and twine.  It didn't work great.  The grounds escaped and were a pain to try to get out of the containe

Today was the day: we went back to our local farmers market to get our first CSA box. Hooray!  Market Day!! We get an e-mail on Thursdays that gives us a sense for what to expect, so we knew to anticipate an abundance of fresh, delicious, organic seasonal veggies grown nearby.  I made a tentative meal plan, leaving some flexible spaces on purpose so we could account for volume once we knew what we had.  Karen made sure the massive reusable bag was in the car, and away we went! The market was a bit busier today, but we took our time perusing.  We returned our egg carton to the farmer who we bought eggs from last week, stopped for cold brew coffee (again - not sorry!) and wandered our way to the back corner of the market, where CSA pickup happens.  We picked up a loaf of bread on the way, and I admired the golden beets. We checked in to pick up our CSA, and the farmer showed us where to tick off our names on the list and pick up our medium-sized share.  If you've never do

This one is an old family favorite that came to us most recently from Karen's mom, but Karen thinks it's older than that.  It also just so happens to be vegan - convenient! Recipe: 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour 1 1/2 cups sugar (less if using applesauce) 2/3 cup cocoa 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp vanilla 1/2 cup oil or applesauce 1 1/2 tsp vinegar 1 1/2 cups water Procedure: Sift all dry ingredients together. Make three holes in the dry ingredients. Put vanilla into one hole, oil into one hole and vinegar into one hole. Pour cold water over all and mix well. Pour the batter into a nine inch pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Pro Tips: The original recipe calls for oil.  Karen hit on the idea of using applesauce several years ago now, and it tastes precisely the same... but with less oil.

These are a house favorite.  They're delicious, quick and easy for a weeknight, and the colors are very aesthetically pleasing if you're serving to friends.  We often double (or triple) the recipe, serve the filling as a salad for parties, or sometimes just eat the filling straight out of the pan. A single batch should serve four, if you have incredible self control. (If you work with me, please don't start bringing this to potlucks...) Ingredients: 2 medium or one very large sweet potato 2 cups frozen corn 1 can black beans (or 2 cups black beans cooked) 1 avocado, chopped into small pieces 1/2 a lime 4 medium (or 8 small) tortillas Process: Peel sweet potatoes and chop into small cubes (1/2 inch to 1 inch).  Place on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt, pepper, and chipotle spice. Bake sweet potatoes for about 20 minutes at 425 degrees. While sweet potatoes are baking, steam frozen corn.  If using canned black beans, drain beans. Combine roasted sweet

One of our goals as part of our attempt to eat more ethically is to reduce the amount of stuff we throw away.  This includes packaging - a goal that matches up nicely with the scratch and home cooking approach! - as well as, of course, food itself. But it also involves management of our pantry staples. Pantry. Note: I love boxes. Meal prepping helps with this in theory, because you know what you will need to have on hand to make the meals you intend to make. That means that we can - theoretically - check for items in the pantry before we head out to get groceries.  I keep talking about all of this "in theory" because, well, let's be honest - there are some staples that I need to have on hand regardless of whether I intend to use them in the next week.  And sometimes I am making a meal plan in the car on our way somewhere, or over text message while one of us is at work, which means I'm not right on hand to check out the pantry's contents.  (What the phot

June begins and school years wind down, freeing up more time for cooking.  Today we checked out a nearby farmers' market.  This was a fantastic and terrible idea, and we got home with all kinds of goodies - freshly made lemon curd, local honey, lots of greens, asparagus, strawberries, happy meat.  I was reluctantly pried away from the bakery stands to check out the local seafood vendor, where we snagged some scallops that are going into my face *tonight.*  We also treated ourselves to a cold brew coffee and a lemon ricotta doughnut each. Good life choices all around. We also discovered that a local farm still has CSA shares.  Well, what are some queer hipsters to do?  We came straight home, packaged up the happy hippy turkey breasts we bought, and hopped online to sign up.  We've sent in our request for a medium share (7 items a week), with an egg share and a fruit share added on.  Twenty-three weeks of veggies for $20 a week?  Yes please. Since it's Saturday and we&#

This is a house favorite for lunch time.  I had a recipe for it once, but now it's one of those recipes that you just make.  (And make.  And make.  Seriously, we could eat it every day of the week and not be sorry about it.) It would be very simple to make this vegan, but you'd be missing out because the feta makes it extra delicious.  It's also a recipe you can change up with whatever else you have around for veggies! Ingredients: 1 cup farro 2 heads broccoli 1 pint grape tomatoes 1 can chickpeas (or 2 cups cooked chickpeas for you fancy dry bean types) 6 oz (or so) feta cheese 1/4 cup red wine vinegar The procedure: Combine farro with 2 cups water in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 35 minutes or until farro is done.  (Pro Tip: just follow your package directions on this one.) While the farro cooks, chop your broccoli and slice grape tomatoes.  Drain and rinse chickpeas if you're using canned. Let cooked farro co

Homemade pasta is easy - and you will never go back.  Our recipe comes from a cooking class taken at Sur la Table. Ingredients: 12 and 1/2 ounces of flour  (Pro Tip: use half "type 00" flour and half regular old all-purpose.) 4 eggs 1 tsp salt 1 T extra virgin olive oil Procedure: Combine flours and salt in a large kitchen bowl.   Create a well in the flour mixture; place 4 eggs and olive oil in the well. Using two fingers, swirl the eggs into the flour slowly until dough begins to form.  Stir from the center and work outward toward the sides.  When the dough is mixed, turn it out onto a floured surface.  Knead until flexible and smooth, but not sticky.  This should take about 5 minutes and you will need to add some small amounts of flour.   Shape the dough into a ball and flatten into a disk. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 20 minutes (up to an hour) at room temperature. To shape: Use a bench scraper to cut the dough into 4 piec

Hello, all!  This blog is an experiment - partly to see if I will stick with blogging, and partly to track our family's progress toward more ethical and from-scratch cooking.  My partner-in-crime Karen and I have been doing a lot to try to reduce our carbon footprint and to take better care of ourselves, and much of that revolves around food.  We're lucky to be in a fairly large metro area, where CSAs and farmers' markets and co-ops exist in abundance.  We are hoping the blog will encourage us (well, me) to stay serious about our new eating practices.  Our schedule tends to be more open in the summer, so now is the moment to give this a try! How do I cook?  I like to have a weekly plan.  I am a meal prepper, with snacks and lunch for the week made in advance.  Because we're committed to ethical meat (and moving toward ethical dairy as much as possible), we tend to be "semi-vegetarian."  We are low-to-no soy household due to allergies.  I strive for heart-hea