Mindful cooking

I want to discuss mindful cooking with you in this post. It's a concept which has been rolling around in my head for awhile. What does it mean to be mindful in general? Does your attitude and state of mind even matter in the kitchen? And if so, how does one become a more mindful cook?

Most of the time, cooking is a chore. It's a necessary evil, done at the end of the day when you're exhausted and irritated. I admit that I fall into that rut as well. I much prefer to cook on my terms, when I feel like it. The problem is, when you approach any task with a bad attitude, that attitude shows in the end results. I've eaten food prepared by people who hate what they do and I could tell. I've made food for people when I've been in a bad way emotionally and they could tell. Currently, the dishes I make for family and friends are consistently praised as delicious because I love cooking for people I love and it shows. The ultimate goal in cooking should be to make the absolute best dish every time regardless of ingredient variations, different cooking environments, distractions, and lack of spices.  A good cook, a mindful cook, can improvise and think on their feet.

Some time ago, I made a pot of beef stew and my friend asked me (as she was eating her second bowl) what recipe I used.  Kind of taken aback, I said, “Well, I don’t have a recipe, I just know how to make it”, which I think astounded her.  Her husband a few days later asked me how long I cooked pasta and my knee jerk response was “until it’s done”, which I said in a much more diplomatic way—I think I said that I used the cooking time on the package as a guideline but I always checked it before draining so it was al dente.  After thinking about both interactions for a little while, I decided that the majority of people don’t know how ingredients go together or what flavors complement one another so they have to follow a recipe each and every time they make a dish. 

So, what does it mean to be a mindful cook? Miriam-Webster defines "mindful" as "bearing (or keeping) in mind" or "inclined to be aware". So, being a mindful cook means to pay attention to what's going on in front of you. Start with your attitude. If you really don't want to cook and you're just going to bang around in the kitchen, don't bother. The meat will be tough, the veggies soggy, and the potatoes gluey and bland. Order a pizza. Seriously.

Now, if you're in the right mood to cook, be in right mood. Call it zen, call it mystical, call it weird, but be in the moment. Turn off your phone; no Instagramming, no tweeting--pay attention to what you're doing. It's okay to be alone with your thoughts. It's okay to be completely focused on how a dish smells, looks, tastes, and even how it sounds. It's more than okay, it's vital. Be observant. Take notes in a notebook. Writing things down with an actual pen on actual paper helps your brain retain that information; it reinforces neural pathways. And please don't whine to me about your ADD/ADHD. Yes, it's a legitimate condition and yes, it can make things more difficult, but there are professional cooks who have ADD/ADHD with chef Jamie Oliver perhaps the most well known. If you want to cook, you will cook. No excuses.

But before you start cooking, you need to prepare. Did you read that recipe all the way through so you know you have all the ingredients and you're familiar with all the techniques? Are your ingredients prepped? Do you have all your seasonings? Is your oven preheated and is your knife sharp? Is your head in the right place? Have you put aside those distractions and are you ready to create?

Here's my point: as in painting, photography, knitting, sewing, or woodwork, once you have learned the rules, then you can break them. Great chefs have a solid foundations in cooking techniques which allows them to to create delicious new dishes. If you don't know how to properly season and cook a chicken breast, then don't try to cook any other kind of poultry. Baffled by a beef roast? Don't even touch that venison your hunter friends gave you. Just...don't.

If you're serious about learning to be a more mindful cook, don't neglect your education. And don't you dare tell me you don't like to read. You're reading this, aren't you? The more you read and the more you watch, the more information you'll internalize and then be inspired to try. Subscribe to cooking and food magazines; Bon Appetit, Saveur, Food & Wine, Cooking Light, Cooks' Illustrated. Search out cookbooks at your library, local bookstores, garage sales, and thrift stores. Watch cooking shows; there's a cooking show for everyone! If you're like me and need to know the science behind the ingredients and techniques, watch Alton Brown's "Good Eats". Don't have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen? Check out Rachael Ray's "30 Minute Meals" and Sandra Lee's "Semi Homemade". There's Italian cooking shows and Southern comfort food shows and grilling shows and on and on and on. A good beginner's resource is your local PBS station. Our station here in the Seattle area has a day-long cooking show every Saturday, called, "KCTS Cooks" and they hawk their cookbook, they also demonstrate many of the recipes. What's nice about KCTS is that the cooks featured on the program are local as are many of the ingredients and if you pledge to the station, you receive the cookbook in return. Many of the featured cooks are regular people, so they tend to stick to more common techniques; no sous vide or molecular gastronomy here!

One of my favorite things to do is to go to different grocery stores. Ethnic stores, definitely, but also change up the regular stores you go to. Stuck on Safeway? Try Albertson's. A die-hard fan of Fred Meyer? Take a walk through Haggen's or QFC or IGA. While the major chain stores carry the same national brands, some have better deli cases or bakeries, better stocked spice sections, or bulk food areas. My favorite bulk sausage is made at IGA, my favorite sourdough bread is baked at Haggen's, and Safeway has a nice antipasto bar. I was in Connecticut over a decade ago to be in a friend's wedding. One of my clearest memories is of the different varieties of apples and pears at her local market. I was astounded! I mean, taking the train to Manhattan was pretty awesome and visiting Ground Zero was emotional, but when I remember Connecticut, I recall the fruit. Sometimes, walking up and down unfamiliar aisles will trigger your creative juices and shake you out of your same old dinner time rut.

Is it easy to be a mindful cook? No. It's like any discipline, it takes practice and dedication to become better. And you know what? There will always be someone who is a better cook than you and you will always be a better cook than someone else. There is no ultimate pinnacle, no unbreakable record, no limit to what you can learn. Even for celebrity chefs and experienced restaurateurs, hard fought for Michelin stars are awarded one year and might disappear the next. Zagat's might tout your restaurant for a few years and then drop you for the bistro two doors down.

Look. I don't expect you to suddenly become a kitchen diva if you've never had any interest in cooking. This is simply my advice for those who have a passion to do better in the kitchen. And like advice, it's just that--advice. It's not a list of rules, it's not carved in stone, and parts of it may not even be relevant to you.  What I want you to walk away with is a better understanding of yourself as a cook. 

Ruth's Orange-Cranberry Relish

Let me start off by saying that I have no idea who the "Ruth" of this recipe is. All I know is that my grandma knew her at one point, probably back in the 1960s, and ended up with a copy of her recipe. Several years ago, I went through some of my grandma's tried'n'true recipes because I wanted my own copies. The recipe makes a generous quantity, more than enough for the family Thanksgiving dinner, which means since I make the relish, I get to take the remainder home and enjoy it on sandwiches for the next week--yum! 

Ingredients:

1 pound/4 cups fresh cranberries

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup water

2 tsps orange zest

1/2 cup blanched, slivered almonds

Combine the cranberries, sugar, orange juice, water, and orange zest in a large saucepan. Cook over medium high heat for 12 to 15 minutes or until the cranberries pop open. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully skim off the foam. Add the almonds, stir well, and allow to cool before chilling.

Yields about 2 cups.

Cook's Notes:

1. I'm kind of on the fence about the amount of sugar in this recipe. On the one hand, cranberries are rather tart in their natural state. On the other hand, the orange juice adds sweetness & flavor so I think the amount of sugar could probably be reduced. I haven't altered the amounts at all to test this hypothesis, so if you want to change it up, go for it.

2. You can either subsititute pecans or omit the nuts completely. I like the texture; a little crunch to counter the squishy berries but it's up to you.

3. If you don't have a Microplane grater, buy one or put it on your Amazon wish list for Christmas. I use mine for zesting citrus peels, whole nutmeg, chunks of ginger, garlic cloves, & even chili peppers for adding a teeny bit of heat.

Trust me, Ruth's Orange-Cranberry Relish is nothing like the canned sauce. Make up a batch & try it yourself! It also pairs well with pork chops or a pork roast if you get tired of turkey.

Healing Homemade Lotion

With the change of seasons in full swing, the cold temperatures & the wind, it's time to show your skin some love. I learned this recipe from an acquaintance & have adapted it a bit for you. It yields about 2 cups; the exact amount will vary depending on how much water you add & how longer you blend it. And very super important: PLEASE read through the entire post before making a batch.  It's a good habit to develop as a cook; you should make sure you have all the ingredients on hand & that you're familiar with all the steps.

You will need a medium heavy bowl (glass or ceramic) or saucepan, an immersion blender, & one or more small glass or plastic container(s).

Ingredients:

3 TBSPS grated beeswax (or pellets)

6 TBSPS coconut oil

12 TBSPS olive oil

1/2 cup water

35 to 45 drops of essential oils

Notes first:

1. The first time I made lotion, I used beeswax pellets.  Much easier to measure than trying to grated beeswax by hand but it can be done!  I have a cheap grater that I use for only for beeswax.

2. I use Trader Joe's coconut oil.  It's inexpensive & I like the way it smells, just the slightest hint of coconut.

3. I also use Trader Joe's olive oil.  Like the coconut oil, I use the same olive oil for making lotion as I do for cooking.  If you consume quality oils, why wouldn't you put quality oils on your skin which, after all, is the largest organ in (on?) your body?  And Trader Joe's carries quality yet inexpensive ingredients.  

4. Let's discuss essential oils for a minute.  Not only are they great for aromatherapy, there are also proven benefits to using them for various ailments.  When I have a migraine, I dab peppermint & lavender oils on my temples.  Lavender oil is probably the best all-purpose oil to use: it's soothing & it's anti-bacterial.  I burned myself pretty badly while catering a wedding, like, instant puffy blisters.  One of the groom's relatives had a little vial of lavender oil in her purse & she applied it right away.  After a few days, I didn't have scars at all.  Serious convert here!  I also like sweet orange & lemon oils for a uplifting scent; rosemary oil is also anti-bacterial, although not everyone cares for the smell; use peppermint oil if you make a batch of lotion for your feet & legs.  Basically, figure out what scents YOU like as it's YOUR lotion.

5. You can certainly order everything on-line.  Mountain Rose Herbs carries high quality supplies.  I prefer to buy in person so I can smell everything.  I get my oils at either Super Supplements or O'Malley & Potter, located in Country Village in Bothell. 

6. Calendula.  Also known as "pot marigold", calendula is a lovely orange flower with wonderful healing properties, especially for skin.  I grew calendula for the first time last year.  It's quite prolific & I harvested & dried enough heads to infuse a good two cups of coconut oil, which I then used instead of the plain coconut oil in my last three batches of lotion.  We'll discuss infusions in another post.  

So.  Here's how you make the lotion.

Place the beeswax, olive oil, & coconut oil in your bowl & microwave on low for 20 seconds at a time until the beeswax & coconut oils have melted.  You can also melt the oils in a small saucepan over low heat & then carefully transfer the oil mixture to a medium bowl.

Add your essential oils til it smells the way you want it to smell.  

Let the mixture cool.  Seriously.  It needs to congeal & cool down before we start emulsifying.  I'll put my bowl in front of the window fan, in the fridge, or even in the freezer.  Check it every few minutes because if the beeswax sets up too much, you'll have to remelt the oils or your resulting lotion will be grainy.

Once the oils are cool, fire up your immersion blender.  This is why you need a deeper/bigger bowl than you may think you do because as you whip the oils & emulsify the water, the mixture with double in volume.  SLOWLY dribble in the water as you blend.  The less water you add, the thicker the lotion will be, which is really nice in winter when you want to slather your body in moisture.  If you don't have an immersion blender, you really should get one, but in the meantime, you can use a blender.  You just may not be able to scrape out all the lotion because of the shape of the blender jar & the blades.

Once you're done blending, check the scent & add more essential oils if you'd like a stronger scent.  At this point, the lotion will be on the liquid side.  Carefully transfer to the clean containers.  I found some quarter cup Gladware containers so I could give some to friends.  For myself, I use a pint jar.  

And label the containers.  Seriously.  You don't really want to spread lotion on your sandwich when you were expecting mayo.

Put the containers in the fridge!  If you keep your house cool, the lotion will remain thicker, but if your house is warmer & during the summer, keep the lotion in the fridge.  

I've made four batches of lotion in the past year & not one of them as turned out exactly the same.  It depends on how cool the oil/wax mixture is before adding water, how much water you add, and the kind & amount of essential oils you use.  

Each type of oil & the beeswax contributes great healing & soothing properties.  And you can change the types of oil if you want as long as you have a liquid oil (olive, hazelnut, macadamia, walnut) & a semi-solid fat (coconut, tallow, lard).  The person who I got the recipe from uses deer tallow which she receives from friends who hunt & she renders it out herself.  

Since we're using minimal & pretty much all natural ingredients, there's no stabilizer which means that the lotion will "weep" water if not kept cold or after a few weeks.  It's a natural separation of the emulsified fats & water, just like in a vinaigrette.

Making lotion isn't hard.  It's knowing what you're doing & how the ingredients act & interact that's important.

Pumpkin Honey Scrub

Although this blog is about food, I've decided to share the occasional skin care recipe with you. As you may or may not remember from school, your skin is the largest organ of your body & it absorbs nutrients. I love the idea of making my own lotions & scrubs; I control what goes into the finished product & it costs much less than buying a commercial product. I'm not a complete "crunchy mama", but since I have oily skin, making some products to alleviate excess oils & acne saves me money, plus, I just plain enjoy the process! I'm not militant about using organic ingredients, although I do purchase them if they're not much more expensive than regular ingredients & I figure if you're going to be slathering food on your body, you should probably use the highest quality you can afford. 

I love baking soda for facial exfoliation. It's gentle but effective & I really like how I can get right into the crease between my nose & cheek. Anyway, pumpkin is full of pro-vitamin A which is another name for beta carotene & your body converts that pro-vitamin to Retinol which is great for your skin! Ground cinnamon, besides adding a yummy scent & a little extra scrubbing action, is a source of anti-inflammatory properties. And finally, raw honey. Honey has been used in traditional medicine & food preservation from the beginning of time & it smells incredible. It's also has hygroscopic properties which is the scientific way of saying that honey, like sugar & salt, has the ability to attract moisture directly from the air. Adding honey to the mix increases the amount of moisture in the scrub which is excellent for your skin.

Ingredients:

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup baking soda

1/4 cup raw honey

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Transfer to clean storage containers, label, & store in fridge between uses.

Yields approximately 2 cups.

Cook's Notes:

1. You probably don't need to be told how to use an exfoliating scrub--get wet, gently scrub, & rinse with tepid water. This scrub is gentle enough to use on your face & you can also use it on other body parts: on your legs before shaving, under your arms (which you should exfoliate to remove dead skin & deodorant residue), on your elbows, & of course your hands.

2. Honey attracts water (as we just discussed) & diluting honey can cause fermentation which will ruin the scrub. I highly recommend storing the scrub in the fridge to retard spoilage & just scooping some into a smaller container to use in the bathroom.

3. As delicious as Pumpkin Honey scrub smells, do not eat it. Baking soda is not tasty.

I have to admit, this is another exception to my "anti-pumpkin flavored everything" issue, mainly because I'm not ingesting it. Drop me a line if you make & use the scrub; I'd love to hear what you think about it.

Tawny Pumpkin Pie

You know how I was ranting about not liking pumpkin flavored everything? Well, pumpkin pie is the exception and so were some muffins from Albertson's that had cream cheese in them--yum! I generally don't buy baked goods, except for doughnuts and Danishes, but those muffins were amazing. 

Thanksgiving is early for me this year; it's this coming Sunday, the 15th. As my siblings have plans for the actual day with their in-laws, it's become our tradition to gather together either on a weekend before or after Thanksgiving Thursday. I don't mind celebrating on a different day because all that matters is family and food. And Scrabble. And coffee. 

Anyway, I called my grandma to see if she was willing to host and the first thing she asked was if I would make the pies because she loves my pies. And that's a great thing to hear from anyone but especially from a grandma! We call my grandma, Nana (pronounced Naah-naah) and she has cooked family dinners for years. Decades actually. So, we told Nana that us grand-kids would do all the cooking and provide all the food this year. She's still making her scalloped corn because she is constitutionally incapable of not making one or more dishes for a gathering, but we're providing every thing else.

As for this recipe, I'm not entirely sure why it's called "tawny" other than the fact that most pumpkin pies bake up a nice tawny brown. Which is silly because it's like calling broccoli, "emerald broccoli" or white rice, "ivory rice". At any rate, I received a copy of the recipe from a former co-worker who had found it in a community cookbook from 1977. 

Ingredients:

One unbaked pie crust (at least 9 inch) in a glass dish

1 1/4 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup evaporated milk

2 eggs

3/4 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Place the pie plate on a baking sheet for stability and carefully pour the mixture into the unbaked crust.

Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until the middle just barely jiggles and is no longer wet.

Cook's Notes:

1. It is perfectly acceptable to use frozen pie crust. Lightening will not strike you down. I like the Marie Callender pie crusts when I don't have the time (or the energy) to make my own from scratch.

2. Some of the ingredients might seem odd, like flour and water. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure why it calls for water unless the creator of the recipe needed more liquid and didn't have any more evaporated milk. The flour, even the small amount called for, contributes some starch to the filling which helps it set. I haven't messed with any of the proportions because baking requires more precision than cooking does as far as swapping ingredients. If you or a loved one needs the filling to be gluten-free, you could use arrowroot powder instead or omit it all together and it'll probably be just fine.

3. The absolute best topping ever for a pumpkin pie is whipped cream, ideally, freshly made whipped cream. Although, you really can't go wrong with classic Cool Whip or even the canned stuff.

A Brief Overview of Arizona and Washington State Culinary Traditions

Quite a few months ago, I took an informal poll on my Facebook page asking my loyal followers what foods, cuisines or techniques they were interested in learning more about. My cousin suggested a comparison of Sonoran and Pacific Northwest foods as she lives in Arizona and enjoys visiting family in Washington State. It's taken me longer than expected to complete this essay but I hope you enjoy it.

The indigenous peoples of Northern Mexico have traditionally been hunter-gathers due to the arid climate and limited water and any agriculture was likewise limited. Wheat, which thrives in warm days and cool nights, was introduced by the Spanish in the mid-1500s and flourished in the state of Sonora, located just south of the Arizona border. Sonora is still a wheat-producing region and flour tortillas are a staple of mealtime. The huge thin flour tortillas used for burritos originated in Sonora and are instantly recognizable as the wraps used by Taco Del Mar.

Other European settlers discovered that cattle, sheep and goats flourished in the region and over time, the ranch culture began to produce fresh cheeses as a way to preserve milk. Because of the desert region, there is a more limited variety of foods than in the southern states and preservation techniques are primarily cheese making (as mentioned above), dehydration and drying (which are not the same thing) and canning. Since preserving foods alters the flavor of the foods,dried chilies are less spicy than fresh and they add depth of flavor and heat to braised dishes and sauces.

As you can see, this very brief overview indicates the range of cultural influences on the cuisine of Arizona and I didn't even discuss the full extent of the Spanish influence on Mexico. Trying to distill all the culinary history of any region into a short essay is difficult so you’re just getting some of the highlights. In short,Arizona is known for Mexican-American food but it comes closer to actual Mexican cuisine than say, Texas does.

Arizona has mild winters which produce beautiful crops of “cold” weather crops such as broccoli, bok choy, carrots, parsnips, onions, and cabbage. Like Washington has apple trees, Arizona has citrus trees; on every street corner and backyard and taken for granted. Lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruit, harvested in the winter months, get their sweetness from the long hot summers which also produce spicy chilies of all varieties, sweet dates, and stone fruits such as apricots, peaches and pluots. I would venture to say that Arizona has a greater variety of produce available year-round because of the mild to hot climate while Western Washington with its shorter growing season has a high yield in a shorter time span. Eastern Washington is notable for apple and cherry orchards, vineyards, potatoes, onions, wheat and lentils. There is a remarkable diversity of produce to be found in a relatively small radius from Seattle and on that note, let’s move up the coast and look at the Pacific Northwest.

Western Washington is home to several distinct ethnic groups such as the Native Peoples and the descendants of Swedish and Norwegian fishermen and loggers. Various Asian populations have also contributed greatly to Pacific Northwest cuisine beginning with the Chinese who worked on the railroads as well as Japanese and Korean immigrants.

One could argue that PNW is too “young” to have established a regional cuisine although Washington has been a state longer than Arizona. I think that because of the wide range of ethnicities of Washington State, it has taken longer to establish a regional cuisine than it has in Arizona where the immigrants until recently have primarily come from Mexico and Central and South America.

But take a look at the profusion of local cheese makers, brewers,wineries, produce co-ops and fisheries. We may not have a specific dish like Chicago deep dish, Southern barbecue or Boston brown bread but we have an abundance of fresh ingredients. Salmon, geoducks,oysters from Willapa Bay, Dungeness crab and rockfish of all kinds from the deep cold Pacific, apples, cherries, potatoes, asparagus, lentils and wheat from east of the Cascades, cranberries from the bogs along the coast, mushrooms, nettles and fiddlehead ferns foraged in early spring…are you hungry yet? What about the eponymous Tillamook cheddar cheese? Smoked trout from Idaho? Walla Walla sweet onions? Blackberries that grow in every ditch and backyard? You could even argue that we have rediscovered and reinvented charcuterie with Salumi in the Pike Place Market which is owned and operated by the Batali family (yes, that Batali family). There is a welcome influx of neighborhood butchers being opened by Bill the Butcher who offers fresh local organic meats in addition to cheeses, eggs and their own charcuterie made on-site.

With the emphasis on fresh ingredients, Sonoran dishes and the cuisine of the Pacific Northwest both rely on simple techniques which showcase the foods. In Arizona, grilling over mesquite adds flavor to thin cuts of beef and salmon fillets pair beautifully with both alder and cedar which are found in every Pacific Northwest backyard. Sauces in both regions are exclamations points highlighting the flavors of the dishes rather than disguising them. Ready for dessert? Fresh fruits and cheeses are a perfectly acceptable alternative to more  traditional desserts but if you do crave a sweet ending to your meal,flaky pumpkin empanadas or fresh churros and a cup of Mexican hot chocolate round out a meal in Arizona. In the PNW, try a slice of blackberry or apple pie, a silky pannacotta made with local organic milk and a cup of coffee from a local roaster.

As I was researching Sonoran cuisine, I realized that I’ve cooked Mexican food this way all along, thanks to my dad. Dad moved to Arizona in the early 1970s to work construction with his dad (my grandpa) and that’s where my parents met. Dad was influenced,unconsciously I suspect, by the “roach coaches” (his term for taco trucks and yes, I know it’s not a particularly nice phrase!). I remember helping him make fresh salsa (pico de gallo is probably more accurate) with ripe Roma tomatoes, sweet onions and fat jalapeños with lots of cilantro and lime juice. Dad was primarily self-taught as a cook. His mom, my grandma (who we call Nana), made sure her three boys knew how to cook at least the basics and my dad and my uncles took it to the next level. John is married to a Norwegian woman and he’s learned to make an assortment of Scandinavian foods while Dave is married to a part Native American woman who is a dietitian so he cooks more vegetarian dishes.

I'm very fortunate that I have family who are just as food-obsessed as I am. My nieces and nephews all love fresh fruit and raw veggies, my brother-in-law makes a killer salsa and my younger brother and his wife are vegetarians; they continually inspire me to try new recipes. My other brother is a meat-cutter and an excellent resource for when I need to know how to prepare a certain cut of meat. We patronize farmers' markets and join co-ops and CSAs. We share recipes, cooking techniques and swap produce and dry goods if one of us has an abundance.

Food, for me, is more than a source of energy. It's a way of life. It's what I dream and think and read about. It's established traditions such as Christmas Eve dinner and it's a new tradition of Mexican food at every sibling get-together. I'm blessed to be able to draw on the foods of the Pacific Northwest and Arizona's Sonoran cuisine as I create my own traditions.