French Onion Soup

It is a most unfortunate thing to have the veil lifted, to discover the truth about French Onion Soup. Dear friends, traditionally it is made with BEEF stock??!! %$#@gasp!!%^#& Beef? Really? But that's not what makes it so good. What makes it soooooo good is the caramelized onions, which is really where the flavor comes from, so get this.....you can, yes that's right, make a delicious French Onion Soup that is not lacking in flavor or complexity. And now get this...you only need onions!!

Well and soup stock. When I'm feeling ambitious I'll make it myself. (Really not so hard...you just put some veggies in a pot and stew for a while, then you throw in herbs, spices and salt. No biggie. My favorite stock is celery, carrot, and onion as its base. It goes with everything.) Well, it's really not so hard when you come home earlier than 8PM, discover that there is not very much in the way of veggies in the fridge, and are hungry. There were plenty of onions BUT onions take about 45 minutes to an hour to caramelize, then you have to steep them with the broth...there's no way I'm tagging on another hour for making broth. Nope.

So I'm going to use the trusty Rapunzel brand "Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt". They have an herbed variety that I like a lot too, but this is the one I have on hand. The ingredients are: sea salt, organic non-hydrogenated palm oil, yeast extract, organic onions, organic carrots, organic celery, organic mace, organic parsley, and organic turmeric. Hmmm, sounds a lot like my recipe...must be why it tastes so good. Their story on the back also tells me the sea salt is from the French Mediterranean and that all their products are from Europe. Normally that type of importing is a no-no because of the oil wasted in transport (again another reason to make my own) but I think it will enhance the Frenchy flavor of my soup...maybe.

Good caramelization requires constant vigilance. If you burn the onions, they still change color but they won't taste the same. There is the misconception that caramelized onions are sugared, and maybe in some kitchens where there is really a time crunch, they are, but not mine! The caramelization process is just a beautiful reward of slow cookin'. You simmer the onions in olive oil and butter on a low heat for almost an hour, then the sugars that naturally occur in onions change from their spicy abrupt flavor to these melty pieces of sweet sweet heaven. We all know that anything fried is probably not as healthy as it is boiled or raw, but who am I kidding? We have to live a little sometimes.

And onions ARE good for you! In fact, very good for you. You remember when that study came out about Aspirin preventing heart disease because it thins the blood, or is an anticoagulant, well so are onions! And they aren't bad for your stomach, no just the opposite, they assist in preventing stomach cancer. They are also good for your blood pressure and cholesterol and have commonly been known to assist the body in preventing and fighting colds, flus, and other viruses. Apparently even the World Health Organization has gotten behind onions promoting them as a way to increase appetite and atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

Though I missed the boat on planting this year I will certainly be on it for next. You're supposed to plant onions early, as soon as the soil can be worked. It appears that buying "sets" are easier than planting seeds, and there is not much information about transplants or winter onions. However, if I can get my hands on some winter onion sets then I won't have missed the boat...any Albuquerquean's know of a gardener who may have winter onion sets? Can't hurt to ask.

For the recipe you'll need:

4 large onions

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

3 3/4 cups veggie stock

4 slices french bread

grated Gruyere or Cheddar

black pepper and salt

plus whatever herbs you have around (I used sage and oregano)

Slow cook dem' onions in the butter and oil. I do a med-low heat for at least an hour, in fact it's been over an hour now. Pour in your stock, simmer for another 30 minutes!!! Toast/broil your bread, put it on top of extra hot soup, sprinkle on your cheese, top with salt and pepper and, as they say in France, Viola!!

If you are lucky enough to have been blessed with bowls that are oven safe you can toast the bread, top with the cheese, salt and pepper and then throw it under the broiler for a melty crusty top that is a more common serving practice.

It's like having your soup and a grilled cheese sandwich all in one! Brilliant!

Seed Saving

Today was the day I chose to uproot the arugula and save the seeds for next years crop, and the next year, and the next year, and the next fifteen years...if saved properly..which involves freezing? I'm still researching so I will confirm this when I post the pictures of the process.

Seed saving is an intuitive process. Most plants will reseed themselves without much assistance. Arugula, for instance grows like a weed, and will reseed itself much like a weed. The small black seeds grow in pods along the reedy stalk of the plant. I picked them before they were dried on the plant so that I would have control over where I plant them next year, otherwise they will decide for themselves. I placed the pods into a brown paper grocery bag to dry in the sun. Once completely dried I will crack the pods and place the seeds in breathable packaging, either to be frozen (?) or given to my friends, their friends, and people I don't even know to plant next year.

As an intuitive process, it is something that has been done for centuries and helps to preserve those heirloom varieties that we appreciate so much when we taste the difference. It is mostly obvious how to harvest your seeds, when the seeds appear: pick them, dry them, save them, replant them next year. There are some plants that are not quite so obvious--tomatoes for instance. Apparently if you want to save your tomato seeds you have to squeeze them out of the tomato (clearly), then soak them in water to remove the gelatinous encasement, and then you can dry them and save them.

So save your seeds, save your money, save the diversity of garden varietals, in short, save the world.

Eating Animals

Eating Animals a new book (as in 09', as in he cites current events like the outbreak of H1N1) by Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close offers readers new insight on ethical eating. For Foer ethical eating means simply not supporting, by eating, factory farms. His quest begins when his first son is born. As he puts it, "Feeding my child is not like feeding myself: it matters more. It matters because food matters (his physical health matters, the pleasure of eating matters) and because the stories that are served with the food matter."

Foer opens and closes the book with chapters of storytelling, focusing on his life and culture of food: being Jewish with a Grandmother who survived the Holocaust and who now obsesses over the body weight of every family member. These were my favorite sections of the book. In between those sections were other chapters ranging from: Words/Meaning, Influence/Speechlessness, to Slices of Paradise/Pieces of Shit. Foer's cheeky style holds the reader captive as he wittily draws grand analogies attempting to make unfathomable statistics easily digestible (no pun).

For example, "Smithfield [hog factory farm] alone annually kills more individual hogs than the combined human populations of New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Antonio, San Diego, Dallas, San Jose, Detroit, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, San Francisco, Columbus, Austin, Fort Worth, and Memphis--some 31 million animals. According to conservative EPA figures, each hog produces two to four times as much shit as a person...That means that Smithfield--a single legal entity--produces at least as much fecal waste as the entire human population of the states of California and Texas combined."

As you may have guessed from the above excerpt this book is not for the weak at heart, nor for those of you uninterested in changing any aspect of your culture of eating animals. He does not call for EVERYONE to convert to vegetarianism, but he does insist that we must all become more vocal about stopping the animal cruelty and abuse of the environment inherent in the mass production and consumption of factory farmed animals.

For me at times it was hard to take. I skipped a couple graphic paragraphs, I cried. It isn't hard for me, having been raised vegetarian, to support what Foer asks us as citizens of the nation consuming the most meat per capita in the world to do: Stop eating factory farmed animals. But if you're considering a change toward ethical eating I highly recommend you read it.

"From one angle of vision, meat is just another thing we consume, and matters in the same way as the consumption of paper napkins or SUVs--if to a greater degree...Food matters and animals matter and eating animals matters even more. The question of eating animals is ultimately driven by our intuitions about what it means to reach an ideal we have named, perhaps incorrectly, "being human"."

Early Summer Salad

Today's feature is Arugula. Spicy, slightly bitter arugula. Some say it makes better salad greens when picked early (at about two inches) but I like the peppery flavor that intensifies as it grows. Arugula is not very hard to grow, it seems to grow much like the tenacious wild mustard I keep pulling out of my yard--in other words, like a weed. Apparently if you harvest the older, outer leaves Arugula (like many greens) will continue producing from April to October (Hooray!!). I planted a mesclun mix about a month ago and have been harvesting a huge bunch of arugula every Sunday for the past two weeks. And you know what that means...SALAD SEASON!!!!!

Salads. Is there anything in the world that can live up to the claim of being the healthiest food? Only you. Yummy, fresh, raw, unadulterated ingredients. Just throw what you have in a bowl, impossible to mess up.

As far as health benefits go, surprisingly Arugula is classified in the cruciferous family. I thought it would be with the lettuces, but no. Cruciferous. Which, as we have certainly learned by now, contain powerful phytochemicals that fight (if not prevent altogether) cancer. And cruciferous veggies are so enjoyable to eat if prepared, or not, properly. I guess you can cook arugula, but I wouldn't as many of the vitamins and minerals are delicate and will not survive. Arugula is lower in oxalate than some of its other leafy green neighbors. Oxalate can inhibit Calcium absorption so some recommend cooking your greens to make them more absorbable...none such case with arugula. Arugula is high in calcium, vitamin C and A, manganese, folate, iron, copper (?), riboflavin, potassium, and zinc.

Arugula has experienced a bit of a renaissance as of late. Also known as rocket and roquette it was popular in Europe (esp. Italy). And most Europeans (excluding the English) have a refined palette we admire and often emulate, for good reason.

The following salad is the perfect combination of spicy (arugula, radishes, wasabi peas) and sweet (strawberries, honey, poppyseeds, orange). This taste combination takes the edge off of both ends of the spectrum allowing the flavors to open, like fine wine.

Spicy Arugula and Strawberry Salad

1 bunch arugula (from your garden of course)

1 bunch radishes (again from your garden, or at least they were from mine...bragging..)

1/2 pint strawberries, chopped (OK, I bought em' but I'm trying to grow them...I'll follow up in a month)

5 large green olives, sliced (definitely did not grow)

Feta crumbled (certainly not my creation but I do use a local feta from Tucumcari, NM. Try it.)

Wasabi Peas (no comment)

Chop, slice, combine and top with the following dressing..

Honey Poppy seed Dressing

1/2 orange, juiced

Dash olive brine

1 tsp. poppy seeds

1 tbsp. honey

2 tbsp. olive oil*

2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

Optional: fennel seeds

Mix all ingredients well.

*Note: Two tablespoons equals 1/8 of a cup.

Enjoy and eat as much salad as you can this season.

Me Chinese, Me Play Joke...

OK so that title is terrible, but it is not meant in poor taste, but merely a hearkening back to the past when jokes were...well, stupid. The real purpose behind the title is a reference to the fact that with no recipe at all I whipped up my very first batch of egg rolls, and they turned out quite well without any genetic heritage. My best friend in high school was Chinese and her mom owned a fantastic restaurant and she would make me Lo Mien just how I liked it--no vegetables at all ( I really have come a long way, haven't I? Mothers, no need to worry about your children..) I'm not sure what Cindy's mom would think of my recipe. Would she think it was some modern American fusion trying too hard? Or would she think about exchanging those stupid water chestnuts in exchange for broccoli, sugar snap peas, and tofu? (I just can't get into those darned water chestnuts, really what's the point?)

But back to the process of the egg roll composition. I saw this enticing

napa cabbage at our local coop and knew I had to have it. But a four pound cabbage at $1.29 per pound is hard to justify. I didn't buy. Over at a friends house later that night I was investigating a book entitled, "Good Morning Kim Chi" showing innumerable versions of the tasty fermented Korean condiment (not meaning to belittle it by implying it has any relationship to ketchup but to imply that the spicy concoction can, and does, go on anything). In "Good Morning Kim Chi" there are numerous recipes detailing the use of whole napa cabbages. It was destiny. Even more so when I had such an intense, practically pregnant, craving for egg rolls. Further confirmed by the fact that Mr. Sprout had inadvertently purchased egg roll wrappers at our international grocers when I had asked for spring roll wraps. That was that. I drove straight over to the coop and got that cabbage.

Cabbage, as we know, is a cruciferous vegetable. Cruciferous vegetables are like the cross they are named after, a miracle. Saving lives. A natural cure for cancer, Nappa Cabbage, sometimes known as Chinese Cabbage, is a little different than other cabbages. Slightly resembling a bok choy and romaine lettuce baby on steroids the nappa variety is pumped full of vitamins: 200 times more vitamin A than common cabbage, high in vitamin C, calcium and phosphorous, and contains notable amounts of iron, magnesium, phosphorous and vitamin B.* But more important than this is the flavor. The Chinese poet Fan Chengda of the Song Dynasty wrote that the flavor was more delectable than a lotus.

And even more important than that is the recipe..

Egg rolls!!!

1/2 a giant nappa cabbage, shredded

5 green onions, sliced

1 head of broccoli, chopped

1 portabella mushroom, sliced into thin strips

2 carrots, julienned

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1/2 can of baby corns (couldn't resist)

2 handfuls sugar snap peas

4 NM green chilies, roasted

1 tub tofu, cut to fit egg rolls

Egg roll wraps

Braggs

Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce

Garlic Chili Oil

Sesame Oil

Canola Oil (For frying)

DO NOTE: You do not need to have all of these vegetables on hand. They are what I had around (minus the baby corns and cabbage) and therefore made the cut. Use your own discretion.

Begin roasting the chilies on your stove top (assuming you have a gas range...if you do not you can roast them in the oven on broil) turning frequently. Place tofu in a frying pan on medium with some sesame oil, garlic chili oil and braggs. Cook until all sides are brown and crisp. While cooking the tofu and roasting chilies chop your veggies. Throw them all into a large frying pan with mostly braggs and a little bit of sesame oil. There will be plenty of oil in frying so don't overdo it when cooking your veggies. Cook for about ten minutes until the veggies are almost done but still crisp. Begin heating the oil (I put about a 1/2" into a 10" frying pan). Place 1/4 cup of the vegetable mix with one strip of tofu in the egg roll wrap. Roll it up on the diagonal. Place in oil and fry to a golden hue. Enjoy with a sauce made of the Thai Kitchen Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce mixed with the garlic chili oil.

*This is a huge side note and will make me sound like a hippy-dippy freak but...I sort of have this notion that the body craves what it needs. I have never, ever, had a craving for nappa cabbage and have never in my life bought it, it just looked so good staring at me, practically glowing under the grocery store fluorescence. In retrospect as I review the nutrients it contains these are the some of the same nutrients one loses during menstruation. Hmmm...no wonder this hippy-dippy girl NEEDED that cabbage!

Sun Tea

One of my favorite things about the warming spring into summer days is making sun tea. I try to have it on hand at all times, chilled and ready in the fridge for the chance guest. I love friends who knock on my door unannounced; to show them my love I share my tea. Typically my sun teas have hibiscus. It makes the tea a bright pink that is reminiscent of kool-aid and is ornamentally attractive in the mid-day sun, especially after a long day in the garden. The usual blend for me is a loose green tea or yerba mate and hibiscus sweetened with stevia leaf extract.

I am not the only one to find the color of hibiscus enchanting. The history and origin of hibiscus is surprisingly hard to ascertain probably because the beautiful, enchanting flower enjoys notoriety and cultivation in almost all corners of the globe. As far as I can deduce the plant is of Asiatic descent, though not China nor Egypt or Hawaii as one might assume. Regardless of where it hails, it has been widely researched that hibiscus tea ingested on a regular basis is as effective as medications in lowering cholesterol and high blood pressure. It is also said to aid in weight loss and increase immunity (mostly due to the high proportions of vitamin C).

Stevia leaf too is of interest here: although used as a sweetener, it does not contain sugar compounds. This means that we can all enjoy it without guilt, without calories, and without spiking our blood sugar! Hallelujah! Watch out and don't use too much though, it has the tendency to taste like NutraSweet or the many array

of low to no-calorie sweeteners. Clearly it is beneficial for weight loss and diabetics but are there negative side effects? Apparently there is some controversy in the research. Some studies that just happened to have positive results were funded by Cargill, a corporation interested in creating a sugar substitute from Stevia. For instance the sweeteners "Truvia" and "PureVia" are both Stevia based no-calorie sweeteners that are being used in mainstream products. The FDA has apparently not approved Stevia for sale unless labeled as a supplement, but in the case of these Stevia based mass produced sweeteners it has issued a "no objection" declaration. Go figure.

As far as health benefits of Stevia go we can either trust the natives of Brazil and Paraguay who have been drinking it medicinally for centuries or we can look at the varied research being done here in the states. One study showed that Stevia stimulated carcinogens and could potentially cause cancer while subsequent studies have taken this one to war claiming that Stevia is an antioxidant and thereby prevents cancer. Apparently there is controversy and it is unclear as to whom the players in this are and what they stand to gain. Personally, I trust nature.

Sun Tea

1/4 cup green tea or yerba mate

1/8 cup hibiscus

2 Quart clear glass jar full of water

1 dropper full of stevia leaf extract (I use "Sweet Leaf" brand)

Combine first three ingredients and set outside at night in what will be a sunny spot. Let sit overnight and bring inside the next evening. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the Stevia. Chill in fridge and enjoy over ice with friends.

Garlic Lovers Only

Everyone knows that eating garlic wards off vampires but maybe you weren't privy to the fact that it can also repel mosquitoes? Garlic is surrounded by legends and lore purporting its miraculous healing properties: cure for acne, the common cold, the plague, high cholesterol...the list goes on. Modern science has backed some of this up in various clinical trials and studies supporting most of the alleged claims that garlic, particularly the medicinal compound "allacin", acts as a natural antibiotic and is loaded with antioxidants (which if you need a reminder, ward off cancer). As common sense would beg, you shouldn't eat too much garlic, it can mess up your digestion, potentially interact with some medications, and maybe in severe cases of over consumption, cause a state known as "friendlessness". A not-so-secret culinary ingredient that can make most mouths water and most meals a step closer to epicurean, garlic deserves our adoration. Here is a recipe I invented today with a healthy serving of raw garlic (not for the dabbler).

Red Chile Mango Salsa

1 mango, chopped

1 avocado, chopped

1 handful cilantro, chopped fine

2 teaspoons red chile powder (the stuff from NM, not cayenne)

1 tablespoon honey

1 orange, juiced

sea salt to taste

3 cloves garlic, pressed

Mix it all together and let it sit overnight or as long as you can stand. Enjoy with tortilla chips, on burritos, quesadillas or anything else you can top with mango salsa.

*On a side note I saw a movie about garlic that I highly recommend to everyone: Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers by Les Blank. I happened to see this movie at a showing at Chispas Farm here in the Albuquerque South Valley. As it turns out Chispas Farms is like a living museum for garlic, growing almost all the varietals of garlic in order to keep the heirloom seed strains vital. Lucky us in ABQ!!

**Pictures to follow when I make another batch. That one is long gone..