I’m still trying to figure out what makes sense for the direction of this newsletter, but one thing I’ve been thinking about doing is sharing a few “Friday favorites” each week. Recipes we’ve liked, cooking successes, new techniques or ingredients, books or articles I’ve read about food culture/science… basically anything that fits into the realm of food.
I’m not sure whether it should be a stand-alone newsletter as a quick read, or part of a longer post, or maybe it can vary by week. For anyone that’s reading this, I’m open to feedback! In the meantime, my favorites for this week are below.
This tostones-inspired recipe for baked plantains from Golubka Kitchen was a winner! We made both yellow and green plantains; I liked them equally, but David liked the yellow best and it’s true the yellow were a bit more flavorful. We threw together a pseudo-guac with avocado, red onion, salt, lime juice, and the Trader Joe’s Chile Lime Seasoning (let’s not talk about how many TJ spice mixes I bring back with me when I go visit the US) to go with it, and it was a good combo. I think something along the lines of a chipotle mayo could also be nice!
Speaking of good combos and throwing things together, I love a veggie bowl and landed on a mix worth repeating this week. One of my pet peeves in recent years has been food waste, and since I’m usually the one planning out meals I try to make sure we use up any leftovers that we have hanging around. Earlier in the week we made a black bean steak stir fry from one of David’s older cookbooks and we had some extra steak. Veggie bowls are my go-to for using up leftovers, and the following is what I came up with based on other things we had in our fridge. I thought the combo might be weird, but it’s actually one of my favorites that I’ve made recently!
Kale massaged with a little olive oil and salt
Sliced red onion
Finely diced beet
Grilled red pepper (made on our grill earlier in the week)
Tostones-inspired baked plantains from the recipe above (the yellow kind, prepared as suggested in the video above)
Roasted sweet potato cubes (seasoned with a bite of olive oil, salt, and pepper before baking)
Leftover stir-fried steak (seasoned with peanut oil, salt, and pepper before being cooked the first time around)
A dollop of hummus
I love reading about food science and how what we eat is impacted by things like the processed food industry and food lobbyists, and I just started The Dorito Effect by Mark Schatzker. I’ve only read the first chapter, but I’m liking it a lot so far. One thing I found interesting that Schatzker mentions is the fact that food execs were initially skeptical of the idea of making a taco flavor because tacos are a “thing” and not a “flavor.” This skepticism seems so foreign to me having grown up in a world of pizza-flavored Goldfish crackers. I’m intrigued to learn more about the role flavor plays in our food choices, processed foods in particular.
I’m leaving you guys with a picture of another one of my favorite veggie bowls I make regularly, featuring my #1 fruit, figs:
We’re finally supposed to have some sunny weather in Madrid after a couple of weeks of off-and-on rain, so I’m hoping to get out and enjoy some #terrazalife. Hope everyone has a great weekend!
-Ki