The secret is in the pasta water...

I love watching other people cook. Why? Because I ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS learning something new. For example, a while back, J, his boyfriend K, and I had a seafood boil (and yes, I'll get to this in another post). The seafood boil was incredible, but the leftovers - the water that was left behind from the boil was something else entirely. Not only was it flavoured from the herb and seasonings, it was also infused with the seafood we cooked in it (lobster, little neck clams and shrimp).

The flavour was so incredible it seemed a waste to throw the water out. So we froze it. And then we decided to cook pasta in it.

And let's just say that if I have a choice, I will ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, cook pasta in flavoured water. Why? Because as you are cooking the pasta, you are giving it flavour. And the water you cook it in can be anything - water from vegetables (lazy person's vegetable stock), store-bought soup stock, whatever. My point is that I realized the water you cook the pasta in can be just as important as the final sauce you put on it.

In this case, the flavours came from pickling spices (mustard seed, coriander, bay leaves, dill seed, fenugreek, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, red pepper, black pepper, cloves, soy, cottonseed oil,  and ground cayenne pepper).

After cooking the pasta to al dente (after all, what other way is there to cook it?), throw it into the sauce you've prepared.

In our case, it was minced garlic, cooked in olive oil with pancetta, cherry tomatoes, salt, pepper and topped with fresh basil. Mmmmm...

I have to admit, the first time I had this pasta, it was as a student. I observed and managed to recreate something that wasn't too shabby. Except I added shrimp.  Here's exactly what I did:

Ingredients

For cooking the pasta
- Soup stock
- Pasta (preferably something that is shaped to hold onto the water...I chose something with pockets)
- Teaspoon of oil (preferably olive oil)

For topping the pasta
- Olive oil
- Pancetta
- Minced garlic (as much or as little as you like)
- Pinch of salt and pepper (you won't need much since the pasta is already flavoured, and the pancetta is inherently salty)
- Cherry/grape tomatoes (halved)
- Uncooked shrimp (shelled and de-veined)
- Fresh basil leaves (chopped)

Instructions
For cooking the pasta
- Bring your stock to a boil
- Add the pasta and the oil (the oil keeps the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot)
- Bring back to a boil
- Let it simmer for about 8 minutes - STIR CONSTANTLY!

While the pasta is cooking...
For the sauce/topping
- In a pan, heat the olive oil until it sizzles
- Toss in the minced garlic (keep it moving so it doesn't burn)
- Turn the heat to medium and cook for 1-2 minutes
- Throw in the pancetta and cook for 2-3 minutes
- Add the shrimp and cook until it just turns pink (about 2-3 minutes)
- Add in the cherry tomatoes
- Cook for another 2 minutes
- Drain pasta and add to pan
- Toss and remove from heat
- Top with fresh basil leaves

Serve and enjoy (trust me, this is amazing).

George's Tastee Foods (mmmm....a meatlover's post...)

Note: apologies to my vegetarian friends.

I love meat. I can’t help it. I blame my Dad (sorry, Faja Man) for this, since Mom doesn’t really eat meat.  Seafood is great, but until recently (say, the last 5 years), neither me nor Dad have been able to get through a meal on seafood and veggies alone. Seafood at home? Add a fried egg. Chicken? A little bit better. Pork? Now we’re starting to talk.  But the ultimate meal for this meatlover and her Dad?  Beef. 

*drool*

Stir-fried beef with broccoli (it makes the broccoli eatable), sloppy Joes, burgers, roast beef…mmmm…there’s just something amazing about that beefy flavour.

Over the years, I’ve learned that different cuts of meat have a different concentration of flavour. Tenderloin is delicate and responds well to sauces. Blade roasts and chuck have a lot of connective tissue - which when you cook slowly, melts and produces a LOT of flavour (as the Food Network chefs say, fat = flavour). Brisket is a tougher cut of meet, but again, also flavourful. Bones are awesome for soups and stocks – especially ox tail. 

Not only do I find the taste of ox tail comforting, it reminds me of when I was a kid. Growing up, my Popo (maternal grandmother) used to make ox tail soup all the time. Sometimes it was tomato-based, but more often than not, there was a healthy handful of Chinese herbs added to the mix.  Either way, I loved it. Why? Because the taste is rich, warm and entirely delicious.

I’ve tried making ox tail at home – in soups, similar to what Popo made – or as a dish on its own. The rich beefy flavour of ox tail holds up to so many herbs and spices. It is a tougher cut of meat, so for home cooks like me, this means braising and breaking out the slow-cooker (which, btw sucks energy like there’s no tomorrow). But the taste is SO worth it.

(You can get ox tail at Chinese supermarkets like T&T – beware the weekend rush though. Actually, if you go on the weekend, it’s entirely at your own peril).

However, there are times where I’m just plain lazy (I have been known to have popcorn mashed into plain yogurt for dinner…a lazy person’s take on cereal and yogurt). And yes, though it is rare (not many places serve ox tail), there are alternatives.

Ox tail on rice (Photo credit: JL)

I recently came across George’s Tastee Foods (I visited the store in Richmond Hill, at 9021 Leslie Street). And yes, they serve ox tail over rice (and other yummy things like beef and vegetable patties, but this post is all about the beef). And yes, it is delicious. The beefy flavour is awesome and the gravy that it’s served with? Mmmmm….perfect with the rice, but also amazing with all kinds of bread. The Faja Man and I are fans.

It’s a simple dish, but oftentimes, simple things are the best.  And yes, it DOES satisfy the meet craving. 

(Note: Oddly enough, I don’t eat lamb.)

Restaurant rating: Definitely worth an extra hour or two at the gym.

Apple cinnamon cookies

I stumbled across a recipe that tried to re-create Mrs. Fields' cinnamon sugar cookies. Two words: epic fail.

Not only was the recipe dry and horrible, the cookie turned out like a rock. Not one to admit defeat (or maybe I'm just stubborn like my Dad), I gave it another shot, but dramatically changed the recipe.

I also decided to add apple juice - which worked out well. Here is my recipe - apologies for not having pictures of the final product - for some reason, my brain froze both times I made it and I completely forgot to take pictures!

Ingredients

Cookies
- 2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1 cup dark brown sugar; packed
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter; soft (just below room temperature)
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 2-3 table spoons of apple juice

Sprinkling
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions
- Preheat oven to 300~F
- In a small bowl, mix sprinkling ingredients together - set aside
- In a medium bowl sift flour, soda and salt - set aside
- In a large bowl blend sugars with an electric mixer at medium speed
- Add the butter and mix until light, but not fluffy
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and apple juice
- Mix at medium speed until light, but not fluffy
- Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined
- Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll each ball in cinnamon-sugar topping (or, if you're lazy like me, use a cookie-dough scoop, press flat with a fork and then sprinkle the topping over it )
- Place on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper, approximately 2 inches apart
- Bake in the lower-third of the rack, for approximately 15 minutes (flip halfway through for even cooking)
- Transfer cookies with a spatula to a wire rack

Marking: November 1, 2012

...in exactly 9 months, my ban on chips will be lifted. I seriously plan on throwing a potato chip / Cheetos / Ringalos / onion rings party. It shall be glorious.

The problem with people who care...

...is that sometimes they do things to torture you. It's no secret that I've given up potato chips (and by extension, Cheetos, Ringalos and other yummy treats) for a year. It'll be exactly 3 months on February 1.

So far, it's been easy. Why?

Because people - like my colleagues at work - tend to be considerate of the fact that I have given up something amazing for a year. They applaud my willpower and cheer me on. They also sometimes feel guilty about the fact that they are eating chips right in front of me.  Believe me - I appreciate this thoughtfulness.

Enter J (who has been a bit of a tornado in my life), who also loves chips and Cheetos. And who, not too long ago, was torturing me with a FRESH bag of Cheetos. Not only was there savouring, there was also a description of how yummy those sticks of cheesy orangy goodness are. And how they melt in your mouth.

Like a pesky fly buzzing in my ear.

So what did I do in retaliation? I had a hunk of cheese, a plum, spaghetti and a piece of chocolate (okay, 2 pieces of chocolate). Come to think of it, in order to curb my craving for Cheetos (which J offered to share not out of love, but out of pure enjoyment of watching me suffer), I consumed waaaaay more calories than I would've had I actually eaten the damn things.

As I write this, I can hear the crinkling of the packaging, as he consumes yet another piece of buttery goodness.

*Sigh*...T-9 months to go...maybe I should invest in a flyswatter.