made a very pleasant, home-y tasting bolognese last night... and ate it for lunch today.
it contained:
about 2 tablespoons of butter
a tablespoon of vegetable oil
1 half a regular sized cooking onion, chopped
1 chopped carrot
1 chopped celery rib
1/2 a package of extra lean ground beef - probably like 1/4 to 1/2 a pound
salt and pepper - to taste - i probably used about half a teaspoon of both, maybe a little more
1/2 a package of ground pork - same as above -
1 cup whole milk (I cheated - 3/4 cup 2 percent, 1/4 cup whipping cream)
tiny bit of grated or ground nutmeg
1 cup white wine
1 tin of Italian tomatoes - San Marzano are good
after heating the (large, stainless steel) pan on medium-high heat, i put the oil and the butter into it and allowed the butter to melt and foam. then i added the onion, carrots and celery, and let it cook for a couple of minutes. then i added the meats and seasoned with the salt and pepper, then i cooked the mixture until the meats... weren't raw. then i added the (fake) whole milk and let that simmer away to nothing - roughly 8-10 minutes. i sprinkled the little bit of nutmeg in - it was honestly like an eighth of a teaspoon - then i added the wine, and let it boil away - same amount of time as it took the milk to boil away. then i added the tin of tomatoes with the juices included, and i also cheated a bit and added some tomato puree (the more watery stuff, not tomato paste).
i transferred the lot to my slow cooker and, on low heat, let it simmer very very quietly for about 5 hours. you don't want it at a roiling boil or anything - just some bubbling round the edges. it will not be saucy, so don't expect that - it'll kind of be like a tomato-y, meaty stew.
you should eat this with the pasta of your choice - tagliatelle is wonderful. i had a whole wheat tagliatelle and it was superlative. if you're gluten free, i would imagine that an egg noodle type pasta might work out okay. cook the pasta in salted water to your own preference for doneness. once you've drained it, swirl some butter into it and ladle it out onto plates. add the bolognese and mix it all up together with some grated parmesan.
nom nom bolognese nom.
29 January 2009
27 January 2009
Just Say No
... to sodium laurel sulfate, that is. And parabens. And the host of nasty things that they put in soaps and shampoos because no one has really proved that they're not really very good for some people to apply topically.
Further to my last post, I've gone even further down the path of the unwilling consumer. Figured out that my eczema-ridden skin was angry because I was exposing it every single day to those chemicals listed above. Who knew a shower could be so toxic?
Now, here's my disclaimer: most people don't react badly to sodium laurel sufate, parabens and panthenol. That's why they're omnipresent in personal hygiene products. They're also cheap cheap cheap - great for mass production and keeping costs low. However, for those of us who just can't deal with the chemical onslaught waged by everyday life in North America, finding stuff that works just as well but doesn't end up with us scratching like we have fleas is a challenge. So, I've compiled my own list of Stuff That Won't Hurt.
Shampoo - Desert Essences or Prairie Naturals
Soap - ha! Fooled you. Can't use soap - it foams. Go for an oil or a homemade salt scrub. Take some organic sunflower oil (takes about 4-5 tablespoons) and combine it with plain old sea salt (4 tablespoons-ish). You can add a drop or two of grapefruit essential oil if that makes you happy. Scrub down. Rinse off. If you find you're still oily when you get out of the shower, it's cool. Just rub it into your skin as best you can - it'll absorb eventually. Herbal Choice Detergent Free Natural Body Wash is another option.
Dish Soap - always wear gloves. Seriously. I use Method dish soap as it works pretty well, but I still don't touch it.
All-Purpose Cleaning Product - Vinegar and Water. Get a sprayer thing from the dollar store and make enough of this stuff to last you through the winter. It's just one part water, one part vinegar - equality rules.
That's the short list. I don't think anyone actually reads this so I'll keep it brief. I think I'm getting healthier as I make these daily choices, and if anyone is reading this then maybe they'll think about their options, too. Maybe.
Further to my last post, I've gone even further down the path of the unwilling consumer. Figured out that my eczema-ridden skin was angry because I was exposing it every single day to those chemicals listed above. Who knew a shower could be so toxic?
Now, here's my disclaimer: most people don't react badly to sodium laurel sufate, parabens and panthenol. That's why they're omnipresent in personal hygiene products. They're also cheap cheap cheap - great for mass production and keeping costs low. However, for those of us who just can't deal with the chemical onslaught waged by everyday life in North America, finding stuff that works just as well but doesn't end up with us scratching like we have fleas is a challenge. So, I've compiled my own list of Stuff That Won't Hurt.
Shampoo - Desert Essences or Prairie Naturals
Soap - ha! Fooled you. Can't use soap - it foams. Go for an oil or a homemade salt scrub. Take some organic sunflower oil (takes about 4-5 tablespoons) and combine it with plain old sea salt (4 tablespoons-ish). You can add a drop or two of grapefruit essential oil if that makes you happy. Scrub down. Rinse off. If you find you're still oily when you get out of the shower, it's cool. Just rub it into your skin as best you can - it'll absorb eventually. Herbal Choice Detergent Free Natural Body Wash is another option.
Dish Soap - always wear gloves. Seriously. I use Method dish soap as it works pretty well, but I still don't touch it.
All-Purpose Cleaning Product - Vinegar and Water. Get a sprayer thing from the dollar store and make enough of this stuff to last you through the winter. It's just one part water, one part vinegar - equality rules.
That's the short list. I don't think anyone actually reads this so I'll keep it brief. I think I'm getting healthier as I make these daily choices, and if anyone is reading this then maybe they'll think about their options, too. Maybe.
24 November 2008
Strict Limitations
I gave up white flour about a month ago. At the same time, I limited sugar and dairy and essentially became housebound during mealtimes.
It's hard being one of those people - I used to make fun of people like me. Finding a good balance between what I want to eat and what I should eat proved to be more difficult than I had ever thought. I now regard cakes and pastries with the same mistrust as I regard Stephen Harper with.
It's funny how simple saying that you're going to cease and desist with eating a certain substance is in comparison to actually doing it. Do you know how many delicious things white flour is a part of? And sugar - sugar is literally in everything. The North American diet is a very sweet one indeed, as if sugar isn't in something then high fructose corn syrup is. Crushed tomatoes have sugar. Even sweet things like peaches have sugar added when they're made into juice. I've necessarily given up on processed foods and now spend a great deal of time blanching, peeling and de-seeding various fruits and vegetables in an effort to avoid the sweet stuff. There are often pots of bones boiling on my stove now. It's like I live in the 19th century.
The light in my food world is that I can still eat french fries. I don't think I could have given them up. I also don't think that I would have kept this up if I hadn't seen such dramatic results from these dietary changes. Honestly, rice is my friend and sushi can be a treat. Thai food is a coconutty, holy basil-rific delight. But I've also dropped about 10 lbs and my normally irritated and grumbly stomach is singing me pleasant songs of satiated delight. I've finally committed to yoga at least once a week, and don't need daily doses of painkillers for headache.
And I think I've taken to proselytizing, heaven help all my friends and anyone reading this.
It's hard being one of those people - I used to make fun of people like me. Finding a good balance between what I want to eat and what I should eat proved to be more difficult than I had ever thought. I now regard cakes and pastries with the same mistrust as I regard Stephen Harper with.
It's funny how simple saying that you're going to cease and desist with eating a certain substance is in comparison to actually doing it. Do you know how many delicious things white flour is a part of? And sugar - sugar is literally in everything. The North American diet is a very sweet one indeed, as if sugar isn't in something then high fructose corn syrup is. Crushed tomatoes have sugar. Even sweet things like peaches have sugar added when they're made into juice. I've necessarily given up on processed foods and now spend a great deal of time blanching, peeling and de-seeding various fruits and vegetables in an effort to avoid the sweet stuff. There are often pots of bones boiling on my stove now. It's like I live in the 19th century.
The light in my food world is that I can still eat french fries. I don't think I could have given them up. I also don't think that I would have kept this up if I hadn't seen such dramatic results from these dietary changes. Honestly, rice is my friend and sushi can be a treat. Thai food is a coconutty, holy basil-rific delight. But I've also dropped about 10 lbs and my normally irritated and grumbly stomach is singing me pleasant songs of satiated delight. I've finally committed to yoga at least once a week, and don't need daily doses of painkillers for headache.
And I think I've taken to proselytizing, heaven help all my friends and anyone reading this.
24 June 2008
"but you come from the town where Gandhi was born..."
i've left this alone for awhile as i'm trying to figure out what exactly makes a good blog. they're out there on all sorts of topics and mine's kind of just about me. i'm not sure i'm interesting enough to hold up a whole blog really.
so i'll have to think about it a little more.
so i'll have to think about it a little more.
12 March 2008
Make it right
Mike Holmes is my hero. He wears overalls without shame and perhaps even with pride. He fixes stuff no one else would touch with a spirit level. I've never really been a DIY show type girl until I found Mike.... I think I mostly like the idea of fixing broken things and making people feel much better. Also, while Mike is not a stylish-designer type, the home invariably looks more professional and more put-together than it did before he started. Holmes on Homes isn't even a guilty pleasure for me - I proudly admit my undying admiration for the man, the myth, and the movement.
I've been asked to contribute a chapter to an upcoming academic book. I don't really want to put what it's about out here because it might be more personally identifiable than I'm comfortable with, however, I mention it because I'm slightly pleased with the progress I've made in this area. I can't say that this Masters degree has been a boon for me, but in hindsight I realize that I've met lots of interesting and brilliant people and gained some pretty arcane knowledge. If I do manage to put something together that is book-worthy, then I will be a published academic. Still can't decide about that PhD, though, which is a bit irritating. I'd like to be able to make my mind up on it but I think I just need this extra year of working to really figure out what direction I want to go in.
To tie all this together, I currently kind of regard myself as a sort of quasi-Mike Holmes... I'm making my own life right, or as right as I can at this very moment in the circumstances I find myself in. This past year has been a little difficult as I took a job I knew wouldn't suit me and have had to live with those consequences. I've got a good lifestyle but little professional satisfaction... and I know that this isn't really working for me. I'm not saying I want to swap - no lifestyle but much professional satisfaction - but I need to find a job I can respect in an organization I can feel an affinity for that is willing to pay me enough to keep me in the style to which I've become accustomed. It'll happen - don't know when or where or how, but if I can use the experiences I've had in the past little while as a springboard, I can hopefully get to where I want to be. That's why I feel a bit like Mike Holmes - right now, I've got some serious issues with the pre-existing framework.... but I think that if I just keep knocking down walls and fixing the wiring and tiling and whatever else I get my hands on, it'll all be okay soon enough.
It's all in the details.
I've been asked to contribute a chapter to an upcoming academic book. I don't really want to put what it's about out here because it might be more personally identifiable than I'm comfortable with, however, I mention it because I'm slightly pleased with the progress I've made in this area. I can't say that this Masters degree has been a boon for me, but in hindsight I realize that I've met lots of interesting and brilliant people and gained some pretty arcane knowledge. If I do manage to put something together that is book-worthy, then I will be a published academic. Still can't decide about that PhD, though, which is a bit irritating. I'd like to be able to make my mind up on it but I think I just need this extra year of working to really figure out what direction I want to go in.
To tie all this together, I currently kind of regard myself as a sort of quasi-Mike Holmes... I'm making my own life right, or as right as I can at this very moment in the circumstances I find myself in. This past year has been a little difficult as I took a job I knew wouldn't suit me and have had to live with those consequences. I've got a good lifestyle but little professional satisfaction... and I know that this isn't really working for me. I'm not saying I want to swap - no lifestyle but much professional satisfaction - but I need to find a job I can respect in an organization I can feel an affinity for that is willing to pay me enough to keep me in the style to which I've become accustomed. It'll happen - don't know when or where or how, but if I can use the experiences I've had in the past little while as a springboard, I can hopefully get to where I want to be. That's why I feel a bit like Mike Holmes - right now, I've got some serious issues with the pre-existing framework.... but I think that if I just keep knocking down walls and fixing the wiring and tiling and whatever else I get my hands on, it'll all be okay soon enough.
It's all in the details.
28 February 2008
This is how we do
I'm an arial font kind of person. You know the type - those who are so anxious to have their words put out there that they use a font that is readable by preschoolers and the very old.
This is my blog. It's sort of my practice pad at the moment. I don't have much by way of great social/political/gastronomic insight to offer, but sometimes I like to write stuff. This is where I'll post it. Welcome.
Giving credit where credit is due is one of my hobbies, so therefore I right now credit my Significant Other with providing me with the impetus to do this. So much love.
This is my blog. It's sort of my practice pad at the moment. I don't have much by way of great social/political/gastronomic insight to offer, but sometimes I like to write stuff. This is where I'll post it. Welcome.
Giving credit where credit is due is one of my hobbies, so therefore I right now credit my Significant Other with providing me with the impetus to do this. So much love.
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