We’re ba-a-ck!
It has been a few weeks so this is a particularly lengthy newsletter. I will get started on updating the blog with what has happened during my absence ASAP and will post the recipes that have worked over the past few weeks of silence little by little to bring On The Menu up to date.
There have been some changes to this blog since I last managed to reach out to you properly. I decided towards the end of last year that I needed to pay more attention to my health and started off this year with a proper full-on physical. Pretty much all the results were great except for the fact that I am apparently just a few cholesterol points away from a heart attack, admittedly not a huge surprise since this seems to be a family trait on both sides and – let’s be honest – we all know that I like my good food.
The doctor reached for her prescription pad to fix the issue with medication, something to which I am more than rather averse...Instead, after some back and forth, we negotiated a two-month trial period to see if I could make some lifestyle changes and attempt to start remedying this issue internally so to speak. This means lots of exercise (essentially my idea of the lowest circle of hell) and some rather stringent dietary changes. I have only been implementing these for about 10 days now but am quite pleased to be able to say that I am still coming up with dishes that (mostly) taste quite delicious. The dinners below for example should be good and, if eaten in the medical community’s recommended portion sizes - surprisingly smaller than what you would actually like to eat - usually come in at around 300-400 calories for the entire meal.
There has been no real difficulty in adapting as of yet, though there may be moments of distress ahead. I found myself snarling “I’d rather not eat any” in the doctor’s general direction when she brought up the fact that low fat cheeses existed, and I could eat those instead of regular cheese should I so wish. This led me to believe that I may not always maintain my equanimity with so many of my favorites on the chopping block.
I tend to do better with a mindset of evangelical zeal rather than of compromise, so it has been easier for me to simply eliminate “no-no” categories of food and replace them with something else entirely, rather than trying to find a way of keeping them in my diet. Stay tuned for a lot of nutrient dense/high fiber recipes, more vegetables, fish and whole grains, less saturated fats (one of my favorite things – sigh...) and perhaps a few rants about the boredom of non-crispy skinned this or that from time to time. In two months we will reassess and review.
Giving up alcohol has really not been a hardship since I had already given up 99% of my drinking in 2020. Mine tends to be of the social variety and goodness knows there is not much of that going on these days. Strangely, so far, the only thing that I am actually struggling with is the absence left by the disappearance of my morning cup of coffee. I miss the ritual of making it to start my day, unloading the dishwasher while it brews, heating the full-fat milk to just the right temperature, and drinking one huge perfect mug of it while I read the morning papers. Unfortunately, my palate is a food snob and knows when it is being fobbed off with nut milks (yuck, by the way) or low-fat milk so, since full-fat milk is a no-no, coffee is presently off the menu completely as well. If anybody has any suggestions for a viable replacement, please email me!
I had also planned on working on my sunny (hah!) personality in 2021 but, since I imagine that I may be particularly cranky over the next two months (or more if this experiment works), that may have to wait until later... Feel free to add L., who has to live with me, to your prayers. That being said, I am a good mother and cooked him the bacon that he desired the other day. I can tell you that bacon smells particularly delicious when you can’t have any and are having (milk and sugarless) oatmeal with flaxseed in its stead. You may want to add me to your prayers as well, come to think of it!
This Week's CSA box contained:
Herbs: thyme, sage, rosemary
Greens: a tiny container of microgreens, a handful of pea shoots, a bunch of kale, and a punnet of mixed baby shoots (arugula, mizuna, baby lettuce)
Alliums: garlic, shallots and leeks in abundance
Vegetables: a rutabaga, yet another green cabbage (thank you mommy for giving it a good home since I already have 2 in the fridge), 3 carrots, 2 parsnips, 5 turnips, 3 huge potatoes, 2 red beets, 3 Jerusalem artichokes, a winter squash, a small celery root, 3 huge potatoes and a punnet of greenhouse cherry tomatoes
Fruit: 4 red apples
Remainders: a green cabbage, a red cabbage, 5 watermelon radishes, a few sprigs each of mint and Italian parsley
So, with the addition of the above remainders and a package of mixed vegetable ”Zoodles” (minus whatever I use for lunches) these items will be transformed into:
Sunday “Pantry Roulette”; fridge, freezer, and pantry item dinner]
Roasted Beet Salad with Sushi Ginger Vinaigrette and Chopped Mint
Wheat Berries
Monday [Wildcard; a more complex or fiddly dish than usual to test my culinary skills]
Green Salad with Pumpkin Seeds and Pumpkin Seed Oil Dressing
Whole Baked Branzino with Blistered Lemons
Steamed Pea Shoots
Barley Grits with Cider Braised Root Vegetables and Shallots
Tuesday [Pasta]
Leeks Vinaigrette
Whole Wheat Penne with Turkey Meatballs and Multi-Veggie Tomato Sauce
Wednesday [L.'s choice]
Cod Tacos with Red Cabbage, Grated Carrot, Pickled Red Onion, Avocado, and Cilantro on Ezekiel Tortillas
Thursday [Fish]
Pickled Jerusalem Artichoke and Baby Leaf Salad with Watermelon Radishes, Dried Cranberries and Walnuts, Mustard Vinaigrette
Grilled Rainbow Trout Brushed with Kabayaki Eel Sauce
Takikomi Gohan for L. / Turmeric and Bay Leaf Lentils with Freekeh for me
Friday [Veggie-centric]
Braised Red Cabbage and Bulgur Wheat Pilaf
Saturday ["Picnic"; something that is easy to assemble and easy to eat in front of a movie]
Winter Squash Salad
Healthy Chicken and Avocado Wraps (with Cheese in L.’s)
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