Oscars

Of course, it's the Oscars tomorrow night. Every year I throw a soiree, even though I long ago stopped caring who wins.

This year, the nominees are the same five over and over: Benjamin Button, Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, Frost/Nixon, and The Reader. Sure, there are some categories that also feature The Wrestler, The Dark Knight, and Doubt. But very, very little variety in this year's nominations.

So my hope rests with the crazy dress. Which actress will imagine that she's being daring and reveal too much anatomy, or an unwarranted excess of confidence? It's a sad thing that I can work up excitement for these matters. But I can't wait.

"My" President?

"This is your money. You have a right to know where it's going and how it's being spent. Learn what steps we're taking to ensure you can track our progress every step of the way."

www.recovery.gov

Hope so.

Lentil Soup

0.3 to 0.5 lb thin-sliced pepperoni
1 bag lentils
(8 c water)
1 lg carrot, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
2 tsp chicken boullion

Saute pepperoni slices in soup pot.
When ppp has produced some oil, add veggies.
Saute veg until soft, about 10 minutes.
Add 8 c water and the lentils.
Cook for half an hour, then add 2 tsp boullion.
Stir well and taste; cook a bit longer if consistency isn't right.
Done.

This made four nearly 2-cup servings. The ppp slices have no flavor in the final product; the soup carries all the flavor.

Fennel Ragout

1 fennel bulb
1 lg zucchini
12-16 oz tomatoes (or less...personally, I like roma)
2 Tb olive oil
1 Tb five-spice powder (88 cents at Ocean State)

Slice stems from fennel bulb (I kept mine for chop-salad later).
Split bulb and carve out core. Chop tomato.
Slice fennel & zucchini extremely thinly (I used a mandoline).
Add oil, all veggies, and five-spice powder to a saute pan.
Saute until soft.
Done.

I divvied this up over three nights. The ragout made a lovely bed for baked fish.

Jerk Chicken

This recipe was discovered and shared by John & Sue. (Thanks, John & Sue.) It requires at least 4 hours marinating time.

whole chicken or chicken parts, up to 5 lb (I cut the following recipe in half for 1.3 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
2 Tb olive oil
1/4 c soy sauce
1 tsp gravy browning
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 Tb ginger root, grated (buy a small piece; it'll be under 50 cents)
1.5 tsp five-spice powder (88 cents at Ocean State*)
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
4 habanero peppers (I used one x-lg jalapeno, which didn't bring enough heat, but 4 habaneros are VERY hot, like EXTREME heat...use judgment)

Put =everything= except chicken into a food processor and pulverize.
Pour into non-reactive pan and cook until it thickens a bit. Let cool.
Combine chicken (break into parts if whole) and sauce in zip-lock bag.
Marinate in fridge at least 4 hours (I keep it overnight).
Preheat oven to 450.
Pour bag out into oven-safe roasting pan of some sort. Cover with foil.
Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, then turn heat down.
At 275, cook another hour.
Done.

Note that I tried this in a slow cooker and added water. The combination of the less-hot jalapeno and the water caused it to lose significant yumminess points. But if you follow the recipe pretty much word for word, as I have in the past, it is incredible--seriously, the best chicken I've ever eaten.

*This is a Food Stamps modification. In the original recipe, it's 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp allspice & 1/2 tsp cinnamon.

Mini Turkey Meatloaves

Is the plural of meatloaf 'meatloaves' or 'meatloafs'? In any case:

16-oz pkg ground turkey (I used a 20-oz pkg)
1 whisked egg
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
~2.5 tsp - 1 Tb curry powder (88 cents at Ocean State)
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Turn on broiler.
Mix all ingredients together well with your hands.
Roll 1.5- to 2-inch footballs. Place on cookie sheet.
Put sheet under broiler. Leave for 5 minutes.
Pull out to flip loafs over.
Broil another 5 minutes.
Done. (Got three meals out of this, with salad.)

Food Stamps

I have spent the past five or six days (six if you count today) on a Food Stamps budget. It's an assignment for my class. I've been mostly silent this week because of the massive changes that SNAP (Food Stamps are now called SNAP) brought into my home.

The first recommendation people typically make, once they know you'll be 'on Food Stamps,' is: carbs, carbs, carbs. Pasta, rice and beans, bagged dry beans, etc. Unfortunately, I don't do carbs. I went to Rosebud in Malden for their wholesale-priced produce.

I then went to Market Basket for my protein. There is no Market Basket (yet) in Gloucester, my hometown. I found some great sales on chicken, pork tenderloin, and ground turkey. I bought regular-price frozen tilapia filets because they're such a deal, and less than half a pound of very thinly sliced pepperoni because I remember with love a recipe from the 1980s.

Today, my boss asked me how the Food Stamps diet was going. I said fine; I had needed to stretch my lentils and my chicken farther than I expected, but it wasn't a great hardship. She said, "And what do you have for lunch today? Is it totally boring?" It wasn't. What I had for lunch today was jerk-marinated chicken in an onion sauce over riced cauliflower, with sliced raw radishes and a tangelo.

Four recipes from the week, now ending, that I would heartily recommend:
Mini Turkey Meatloaves
Jerk Chicken
Sarah's Fennel Ragout
Sarah's Lentil Soup

I'll post each in separate instalments soon.