I have NOTHING to COOK IN!!!

I tend to take pots and pans for granted. They are not very glamorous or very pretty. They just sit in the bottom,dark cupboard until you get hungry.

GREEN OATMEAL
I have been cooking a lot of steel cut oats for breakfast, lately. A few days ago, I got out a pot, boiled some water, added the salt and oats, brought it to a boil and couldn't believe my eyes! My oats were turning a sort of 'minty' green...and it wasn't even St Patrick's Day! It was kind of early in the morning, so after a bit more stirring, the colour faded, and I thought I must have imagined the whole thing. A couple of days later...It happened again. I realized that the pot I had been cooking my oatmeal in was OLD...I mean really OLD! This pot had a copper bottom, and if I had to guess, I would say, It belonged to my mother, and I had probably taken it with me when I moved out, nearly 30 years ago! My mom and dad were married in 1948. I started to imagine what had been cooked in that pot in the last 60 years...and wondered if I was in for an excruciating death from 'old pot/copper-bottom poisoning!'
MY GREEN PAN
My favorite pan today is a 'green pan' a huge, heavy 18 inch high sided skillet that I bought out of frustration with flaky flimsy teflon coated pans that I was constantly replacing in fear of an excruciating death from 'teflon flake poisoning'! I make nearly all my meals in it...but even if I take really good care of it...I don't think it will be around for 60 years. I didn't have the heart to throw out my copper bottom pot...made by REVERE WARE in Rome NY USA, so I wrapped it up and put it into a bag for the Salvation Army. Maybe someone will cook something in it again. Green Potatoes, anyone?

The World's Best Restaurant! NOMA

I know...I know...this is NOT Denmark! It's Hawaii! I didn't have a photo of Denmark, as I have never been there!

I subscribe to an e-newsletter by a UK publishing house by the name of Phaidon. They publish the most incredibly delicious books on subjects like food, Art, Design, Architecture, etc. I came across this great video of a chef, named Rene Redzepi. He has a restaurant called NOMA, in Denmark, that has just been named Number 1 in the world, at the recent San Pellegrino Worlds 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony. I thought the video really captured his passion for local ingredients, and the care and attention to detail he puts into the dishes he creates.

to view the video, click on the link below, or visit www.phaidon.com/video and view it on youtube.

http://www.phaidon.ca/agenda/food/articles/2011/april/14/noma-wins-best-restaurant-in-the-world-for-the-second-year-running/

Edible Selby!

I love someone, besides the P-Man. I love The Selby! The Selby is a very talented photographer with a love for food, and creative people. I want you to look him up, and love him too!
Edible Selby at:
http://www.edibleselby.com
For The Selby's photos and films ( check out Rockaway Taco! It's my favorite!) of creative food and drink artisans. Every shoot comes with an exclusive recipe and is guaranteed to make you hungry. Many of these shoots were done in collaboration with the NY Times as part of their edible selby column that appears in every issue of T magazine.

These photos are beautiful! I follow The Selby on twitter, and hope to meet him one day in an exotic location, in a superb restaurant! Our eyes will meet...of course the P-Man will be long dead...and the Selby and I will make sweet, creative ,culinary music together....

If you would like to follow ME, following The Selby on twitter...please do
@CathyCavern

Some muffins that WORKED!!

I am not a good baker...I am a good cook. Combined with the fact that I am a lifetime member of Weight Watchers...I really can't even bake a full fat muffin without feeling guilty. What I do like, is something slightly sweet for a snack, or after supper with a cup of coffee or tea. I came across this recipe, and with the addition with a big fat frozen blackberry shoved into the middle of each...they turned out moist, and fruity, and slightly tart, and slightly sweet...not at all soggy...Here's the recipe:

Buttermilk Oat Bran Muffins

1 cup bran
2/3 cup white flour
2/3 cup w/w flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sugar...I used 1/4 brown,1/4 white
1/4 cup applesauce...I used a bit of applesauce and a bit of mashed up banana
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
I added a frozen blackberry to each muffin before baking.

Preheat oven to 350. Mix flours, baking soda,salt and bran together. Mix buttermilk, sugar,applesauce,egg,vanilla,and canola oil. Mix wet into dry and don't over mix. Grease muffin tin and bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

Yum, Yum...and they freeze, really well!
Maybe I'm just a late bloomer, baker!!

another day...another pot of chicken soup!

I made a pot of chicken broth the other day...and for some reason it was EXTRA good! I turned that broth into a kind of vegetable soup that was ALSO extra good...and one I will make again. I fried up some onions in a pot, and added 2 small green zucchini, and a whole head of fennel, both chopped CHUNKY. I then added enough chicken broth to cover, threw in a couple of Parmesan rinds that were past their prime, and a good 3 tablespoons of dried basil. I simmered everything for about 45 minutes, then blended it smooth in a blender. Here's where it gets creative! I took a cup of frozen peas and some chopped parsley and mixed them together. When the peas were un-thawed, I heated up a bowl of soup, and added the uncooked pea and parsley mixture, and ate it up! Mmmmmm...it was fresh from the peas, and savoury from the chicken and the cheese rinds! I ate this soup for a week for lunch...and was sad when it was gone!
Ladies and gentlemen...We HAVE a WINNER!!