A Love Letter to Pop Culture
I’m still working on some longer posts, but here’s a much-needed check-in. Hope you’re having a great weekend!
I was fascinated by this excerpt of Jon Ronson’s The Psychopath Test
V. inspired by Miss Moss‘ & Wolf Eyebrows‘ breakfast-centric Tumblr BKFST. Image & recipe for frothy Indian coffee by Seven Spoons.
My New Roots – How to Cook Quinoa from My New Roots on Vimeo.
If I ever did a cooking show, I’d want it to be as beautiful and efficient as this video by My New Roots.
I love bean salads. They’re easy to make, healthy, and they keep you regular. I also think they’re beautiful, like edible confetti.
Keep in mind that poblanos vary significantly in heat, from mild heat to almost none at all (the one used in the above shot wasn’t hot, sadly). Heat lovers should consider substituting a large jalapeño for the poblano; just be sure to use gloves or wash your hands immediately, so you don’t get burns.
Black Bean, Corn, & Poblano Salad
Ingredients
15.5 oz can black bean, drained and rinsed
15.25 oz can corn, drained
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 poblano pepper, seeded and diced fine
1/4 cup diced red onion, soaked in water for 4 minutes
1 vine tomato, diced
2 tbsps olive oil
juice of 1 lime
salt
pepper
Preparation
Mix black beans, corn, cilantro, poblano, red onion, and tomato in a large serving bowl. Whisk olive oil, lime juice, salt & pepper together, and pour over salad. Stir to coat evenly, serve.
Ages ago, Mark Bittman posted a version of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s leek fried rice (NYTimes link). It looked simple & savory, and I made a mental note to cook it one day. Then the recipe popped up again, this time on the great food & fashion blog Milk & Mode, and I got cracking. My tweaks/notes:
So good & easy! See Milk & Mode for the original recipe.
Given the recipes’ simplicity, good ingredients are key. Use the best bread, olive oil, etc. you can get your hands on. We also used farmer’s market tomatoes here, which made a huge difference.
Shrimp with Bruschetta & Asparagus
Serves 4
Ingredients
1/2 lb shrimp
Half a bunch thick asparagus
1 baguette
3 large tomatoes, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil
salt
freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400F. Bring a large pot of water to boil on the stove.
Slice the baguette, spacing slices evenly on a baking sheet. Brush each slice liberally with olive oil and top with minced garlic.
Wash asparagus & snap off asparagus ends. Place spears on a roasting pan. Brush with olive oil. Once oven reaches 400F, place the bread pan in the center rack and the asparagus pan on the top rack. Set timer for 10 minutes.
Once the water on the stove has reached a rolling boil, add shrimp. Boil shrimp until they float to the surface. Place cooked shrimp in colander or strainer to drain.
After 10 minutes, check oven. You want the bread toasted through, golden but not brown. The asparagus should be turned and cooked a few minutes more; ultimately, the spears should be cooked through (a knife should glide through the thickest part) and the tips a little crisp. Salt & pepper the asparagus.
Arrange plates of shrimp, asparagus, & garlic toasts. Right before serving, add chopped tomatoes & salt to garlic toasts to finish the bruschetta.
Dinner Friday night turned out better than expected, so I’m sharing the recipe. I had planned to make black beans and rice, with lime, avocado, and chives–standard it’s-Friday-I’m-tired fare.
When it came time to cook, however, the avocado wasn’t ripe enough, so I went pantry hunting. A salsa seemed like the best bet, but we didn’t have peppers, tomatoes or cilantro. We did have two rapidly aging yellow mangos no one seemed to want, however, and a red onion. The result was an amazing mix of textures and spicy-sweet-salty flavor.
Black Beans with Chive Rice & Mango Salsa
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 cup long-grained white rice or brown rice, uncooked
1 15.5 oz can Goya black beans
1 to 2 tbsps sliced chives
For mango salsa:
2 ripe small yellow mangos, peeled & diced
1/4 cup red onion, diced fine & soaked 5 minutes in cold water
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp red chili flakes
salt, to taste
Preparation
Cook 1 cup rice (4 cups cooked). Follow package instructions, or use my method for perfect rice:
Add rice to saucepan. Add water; determine the correct amount of water by using the knuckle method. Cover pan, put over high heat, and wait until the lid shudders from the foaming water & steam. Turn heat to low, and let cook 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat, and let sit 15 minutes more, without removing the lid.
When rice has finished cooking, add 1 to 2 tbsps chives to the rice, and mix well.
When rice has 15 minutes left, heat the black beans according to can instructions. I love Goya black beans, and they’re available almost everywhere. They also have a lot of salt, which means you shouldn’t add much to the rice or salsa.
Combine mango and red onion, watching the proportions (you want about a 5:1 ratio of mango to onion). Add lime juice and red pepper flakes, mix well, and salt to taste. Combine all three parts in individual bowls, garnish with chives, and serve.