That time I stole tofu scramble

I worked at an unnamed vegan/vegetarian cafe in NYC for a grand total of 2 weeks and in that time I managed to wreck havoc on the West Village coffee drinkers. 

I'm not the best barista. 

I just really don't care about how you take your coffee, because I'm trying my hardest to not burn the shit out of my hand on the steam wand. 

Did I accidentally brush your scone with my un-gloved hand? Oops. 

And my latte art looked like someone took a very circular poo. 

Long story short, baristing wasn't my calling. 

But said vegan/vegetarian cafe had a awesome tofu scramble recipe. 

A recipe that I might have stolen. 

Tofu Scramble (from an unnamed source)

You'll need:

2 14 oz blocks of extra-firm tofu

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 small onion- chopped

1 small green pepper- chopped

1 small red pepper- chopped

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp ground tumeric

15 oz can black beans

1/4 c cilantro- chopped

Salt and pepper

4-6 tortillas (or how many scrambles you want to eat...)

Things to put on top: salsa, avocado, cheese, green peppers, hot sauce, sour cream... the options are limitless. 

You'll need to:

- Press the tofu. 

- Smash the tofu with a fork. 

- Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onions and peppers; cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in coriander and cumin; cook with fragrant, about a minute. Throw in the tofu, tumeric and beans. Cook until heated through, about 2 minutes, stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper. 

-Serve with tortillas and garnishes. 

I can never show my face in that cafe again. 

Guys, I have to talk about the new David Bowie album. 

I seriously love me some Bowie, so much so that I dressed up as him for Halloween. It was awesome. 

This album though? I get it, he's on a very slow roll. He's David Bowie and can do no wrong, but The Next Day really just makes me miss his cutting edge days, when he was trying his hardest to push boundaries. This album feels like his silent surrender into aging rocker-dom, a genre I refuse to place Bowie in. I like that his music is aging with him and he's not trying to squeeze his 66 year old body into skin tight leather suits anymore, but this album sent me into a 70s Bowie phase and that's a land I'd like to stay in. 

In the video for "The Stars Are Out Tonight" he wears a yellow Mr. Rogers cardigan. 

Bowie in a cardigan!?! I just... I can't...


On a completely unrelated note, KDP is now two years old and has 100 posts!
Thanks for reading.
(seriously, thanks). 

Spinach with Chickpeas and Fried eggs

You'll need:
3 Tbsp Olive oil
4 garlic cloves- sliced
8 c spinach- chopped
salt and pepper
1 c onion- chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
2 15 oz cans chickpeas- rinsed
5 canned whole tomatoes- crushed
3 c vegetable broth
4 large eggs

-Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat, add 1 garlic clove and stir until golden brown (1-2 mins), throw in spinach and salt and pepper and cook until sort of wilted, but still green (2-3 mins). Remove from heat, wipe down pan.
-Heat 2 Tbsp oil in the same pot. Add in onion and garlic, cook until onion is softened (3-4 mins).
- Add cumin and paprika, stir until it's toasty and fragrant. Add in chickpeas and tomatoes, cook until the tomatoes begin to caramelize and the chickpeas begin to brown (8-10 mins). Add 3 cups broth, bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium and simmer. Crush some of the chickpeas and let simmer until the sauce is thickened (15-20 mins). Fold in spinach, simmer for awesome flavor-melding, add more broth if it gets too thick (8-10 mins).

-Egg frying: Pour oil into a heavy skillet until it's 1/8" thick, heat until the oil begins to shimmer. Crack 2 eggs into the hot oil, spaced apart. Use a large spoon and baste the egg whites until they are set and lacy, about 2-3 mins (you will be burned, accept it). Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a plate. Do the same with the other two eggs.
-Put the chickpeas in a bowl, put the egg on top. Eat with crusty bread while nursing second degree burns. It was worth it.

-Courtesy of Bon Appetit

Currently jamming to:
Josh Ritter is sad.
It's hard to tell with such upbeat tunes, but the guy is feeling ALL the emotions in this album (his response to his divorce).
Josh Ritter is also super understanding and forgiving.
And I hate him a little bit for that.
I agree that "Joy To You Baby" might be the best song of his career.

The album drops on March 5th. Check it out... maybe while sitting in a hammock, drinking PBR and crying... just maybe.

WAR ON CHRISTMAS

Happy Holiday's KDP fans (Mom, did I send you a card?)
I'm having a war on Christmas this year.
I'm working a lot and taking latkes (and drinking driedel) to an Orphan Christmas Party and avoiding all work parties like the plague. I believe that this is an acceptable response to not going home or being with family this year.
I'll see a movie (let's be honest, I'm seeing Les Miz ("The Mopes" in English), eat some Chinese food and sleep until January 2nd.

Only someone who either loved or eternally hated Christmas could do what Sufjan Steven's has done with his SECOND epic 5 volume Christmas box set.

And it is a fine line between love and hate. A very very fine line.

My latest cooking devotion has been to this book, An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler, who believes that the ends of meals inspire and feed the next one and that we don't make mistakes in the kitchen, we create an experiment. The book is about cooking with grace, trust and economically. Below are some of the pictures I've taken while following this principal.

The basic premise is that you should be using everything when cooking- the ends of bread, the rinds of cheese, the stems of kale and in a mixture of life advice and recipes, Tamar Adler seeks a world where people pay attention to what they eat, why they are eating and how their food is prepared.

I did this for like a week.

It was a good week though, a very full fridge week. 

The idea is that you buy all of your greens and fruit at the farmers market and cook it the day of, so that you have things to play with throughout the week that are already prepared. You spend a few hours slaving over a hot stove and in return, can take beet sandwiches to work! It's a fantastic idea and I wish I had more time to do this.

I came away from that week with stem/core pesto, roasted beets, the best omelet I've ever made, bean soup stock, roasted pine nuts, an appreciation for red wine vinegar and more awareness around how to love and care for the food we use to fuel ourselves. 

Plus, An Everlasting Meal has entire chapters devoted to how to treat your eggs (the ones from chickens), how to boil water, how to set a table, ideas for sauces, vinegars and the trust that you'll be okay, no matter what you do. 

Also, I made Hot Sauce!

Take 1 lb of stemmed fresh chilies and 2 Tbsp kosher salt. 

Mix in a food processor until it's a puree. 

Put in a glass jar and let ferment for about 12 hours at room temp. Make sure that the top of the jar isn't tightly screwed on. 

Add in 1 1/2 c distilled white vinegar, loosely screw on the top. 

Let sit for at least 1 day and at most 2 weeks. Try it along the way to see if it's to your liking. 

Put the mixture in the food processor and blend until smooth. 

Strain it through a sieve and store in the fridge for up to 4 months. 

Well Spotify, you've done it again. You know more about the music that I'll like than I do. I'm continually in debt to your musical algorithm that introduces me to artists like Justin Townes Earle

The son of Steve Earle, he's embraced the soul in bluegrass and putting blues back in country music. Wrapped up in the sound are heartfelt and wrenching stories. I crave to hear him live,at a dive bar, preferably with a dance partner.
Only goal for the new year is to do just that.

Maybe the holidays away from Juneau makes me just a tad homesick (if you couldn't tell...), but I've been devouring bluegrass/Americana/blues music like it's my job. There are no problems with this, it's perfect Sunday listening.

Plus he kind of sounds like Elvis (if he "kicked a gospel choir in the butt" in this one and that makes me all a-twitter.

Hannah and Tally TravelPHOTO Blog

Tally and I went on a trip.
We've been friends since 6th grade, but the only time we traveled together was for swim meets, 7th grade swim camp and 8th grade horse camp, so it was time to test our adult friendship.

Lessons learned:
Boston is super cold.
Don't take the Megabus during rush hour on a three day weekend Friday.
Just don't take the Megabus.
The "T" is super confusing.
When flying with Tally, get to the airport at least 3 hours before boarding, or she will freak out.
The second half of the Freedom Trail? Not really worth it.
Tally is a sport when I drag her to experimental theatre pieces that are naked.


Things we did:

Tally's first gay club

The outside at least.

Hungover trips to the science museum.

Lots of brewery tours.

Did you know that beer is super cheap in MA? 

Being super historical.

Tall people are not made for Mega Buses. 

Things we ate:

Free Cheese!

Super fancy cocktails

Tally's first pizza in the subway

Tally's reaction when I tried to teach her the art of folding pizza. 

Tally and Carly made cupcakes!

I made a mess.

Add caption

Eating a Boston Cream doughnut in Boston at the start of the Freedom Trail. It doesn't get more American than that. 

Isn't that @awpz from twitter? 

Pho + Sriracha = true love

Last night on the East Coast Indian food. 

And then I went to Juneau and Tally went to the Bahamas.
There will be a semi-Juneau post soon.

New on the DSSJ front:
Mayer Hawthrone's "retro soul".

Yes please. 

Panzella and an apology

Dear KDP fans (Mom),
How has it been so long? Where did this year go?
Seriously, many apologies.
I think I blinked for too long in May and it turned into October.
Lots of work has been happening, meaning not much cooking or sleeping or laundry. It's been awesome, but in the month of October, the only meals I've made are: oatmeal, hummus sandwiches, rice, omelette's and polenta.
This is going to change soon. I'm taking 2 weeks off in November for a Northeast roadtrip and spending a week in Alaska. Expect meals from the road (Tally's also very good at oatmeal) and Juneau cooking (MOOSE!)
In the mean time, here is something that kind of looks like cat vomit. But it tastes good, I promise.

xo
Hannah

Panzella (or Tomato and Bread salad- from Bon Appetit)

2 lbs tomatoes
1/2 c olive oil
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
4 garlic cloves- minced
salt and pepper
1 loaf stale bread- cut into 1" slices
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 jalapenos
1/2 c black olives
1 large bunch of basil- leaves trimmed

-Peel the tomatoes- bring a pot of water to boil, use a pairing knife to cut X's in the bottom of the tomatoes. Put the tomatoes in the water and cook until the skin peels back, about 30 seconds. Pull them out, put them in a bowl of ice water. Peel, core and crush in a bowl.

-Put the olive oil, vinegar, garlic and salt and pepper in with the tomatoes. Mix.
-Add the bread and let it get all mushy and soak up the liquid. Let sit for 30 minutes.

- char the peppers and jalapenos- put under the broiler until black. Transfer to a ziplock bag and let sit for 15 mins. Peel, core and mince (don't touch your eyes).
-Add the peppers to the bread mix, massage with your hands until everything is incorporated and you are thoroughly grossed out (bread should be broken down). Add in the basil. Let sit at room temp for an hour and drizzle with olive oil before serving.

Music-
I've been really rocking out to Kings Of Convenience. 
But by rocking out, I mean swaying back and forth slowly.
They're from Norway and their listening palette is: delicate, subtle, sorrowful and calming (I've been spending too much time around beer).

Low key, nice rainy day Saturday music. Another solid Spotify find (I promised Spotify my first born for good music, and for more songs available off-line).

But once again, I look up their music videos and am derailed by this gem:

Guess who has two thumbs and some sweet new dance moves. 

Indian Style Noodle Salad

Note to Self- write down when you experiment, so that you don't have to try to remember the ingredients a month later when the blog is posted.... 

Indian Style Soba Noodle Salad with Baked Tofu

ALSO

LOOK WHAT I DID!
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(and by me, I mean the sun and science and stuff)
















Indian Baked Tofu (From Moosewood)

Marinade:
1/2 c greek yogurt
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garam masala
juice of 1 lemon
1 package of tofu

-Press the tofu for 15 minutes.
-Combine everything else in a bowl.
-cut the tofu into cubes, put in the marinade.
Marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
-preheat oven to 425. Oil a baking sheet and lay out the tofu cubes.
-Bake for 25-30 mins, turning the tofu halfway.

Raita Sauce (someone else invented this)
1 1/2 c greek yogurt
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cucumber- grated
fresh mint
fresh cilantro
salt

-mix everything in a bowl. Easy peasy.

Noodle Salad (a Hannah creation)

1 packet of soba noodles- cooked

Red Bell pepper- sliced

Snap Peas

Cilantro

Carrots- sliced

Green onions

Cucumber- sliced

Baked Tofu

Raita

-Cook, drain and rinse the soba noodles.
-Take the raita, pour over the noodles and use your hands to massage the yogurt into the noodles, make sure everything is covered.
-add in the vegetables and keep mixing with your hands. Season with salt and pepper.
-Once everything is well mixed, lay the tofu on top and sprinkle the cilantro over.

Currently jamming to:
Dan Deacon's "America" on NPR First Listen

It's a multi listen, everyone has their own personal opinion about it kind of track.
So do it.
Listen to the entire thing in one sitting, devote some time to it and get back to me.
But think about split personalities and American culture clash when you do.

The album is officially out on August 27th. I'm putting it on my buy list.

Gettin' creative with salad.

I eat a lot of salad, especially now that it's too hot to turn on the stove, I'm too busy and poor to make something new every night. 

So I mixed a couple of recipes from The Moosewood New Classics, threw in some left overs, got some beets and tomatoes to add color and voila! 

A curried tofu and corn salad that's worthy of any high class vegetarian/vegan restaurant. 

In other news, I'm in major lack of grill depression. I don't have the balls to put one on my fire escape, so if you have one in NY,  I will trade many, slightly charred, tasty things in exchange for a grill take over. 

Curried Tofu (from Moosewood New Classics)
1 packet firm tofu
1 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves- pressed
1 c onion- minced
1 jalapeno- seeded and minced
2 tbsp curry paste
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp braggs liquid aminos

-Press the tofu for 15 mins. Cut into bite sized pieces.
-Heat the oil in a skillet, saute the garlic, onions and jalapeno until the onions are golden, about 15 mins. Mix in the curry paste, turmeric, cumin and soy sauce.
-Add the tofu to the skillet and cook on low heat for 10 mins, stirring often, until heated through.

Curried Corn (adapted from Moosewood New Classics)
1 c shallots- chopped
1 jalapeno- seeded and chopped
3 garlic cloves- minced
2 tbsp olive oil
4 c frozen corn
1 tbsp curry powder

The actual recipe calls for coconut milk. I omitted it because I didn't want to the corn to be over saturated with liquid going into the salad (read- I didn't have any). 

-warm the oil in a sauce pan, add the shallots and jalapeno and saute for 3 mins. Stir in the curry powder and saute until the spices darken, about another 3 mins.
-stir in the corn. Saute until heated, add salt and pepper to taste.

To assemble curried tofu and corn salad (a Hannah original (patent pending))
1 c quinoa

3 bell peppers- chopped

grape tomatoes- sliced in half

4 beets- chopped

-Put everything in a big bowl. Mix around. 

-season with salt, pepper, sriracha and curry powder to taste. 

I've been on a major RadioLab kick. 

I spend most of my commute listening to podcasts, but I've run into the unfortunate problem that sometimes Ira Flatow's soothing voice and dense topics on Science Friday puts me to sleep and I get too distracted by the various MTA characters/subway drama to really commit to an episode of This American Life. And the TAL stories often make me cry, which can be mildly embarrassing and unwanted attention getting at 10am on a Wednesday. 

RadioLab is the perfect medium, a mix of science and story, weird soundscapes that jolt one awake and make you stride that fine line between being intrigued and thinking too much. 

Plus, I'm in awe of the online community they are making through social media. 

And let's be honest, the only reason I listen to Science Friday is for the rare and priceless times when Ira F gets pissed off.