Dining Out: Surprise Veggie Finds at the Polish Buffet

I've been to the Red Apple on Milwaukee before, but it's been a while. From what I recall that Polish buffet provided many options and though I couldn't recall, I figured I'd have a good chance of finding some kind of good veggie combo there. And I was not wrong. It was a smörgåsbord of meat and non meat products alike with plenty for the non-meat eater.

I stocked up on fresh veggies, fruit and pickle, beat and coleslaw salads. I piled on the boiled potatoes and had a couple blintzes with some syrup and powdered sugar on them. I steered clear of the pirogies which, though cheese, were sitting in about a quarter inch of butter that turned me off. Similarly the potato pancakes, which appealed to me, seemed quite greasy,  and I just couldn't get behind that.

They had a great looking dessert tray with various cakes and cookies. All for only about $12. And this place is pretty authentic. The waitresses are wearing what I can only assume is Polish authentic dress and you hear Polish at every turn. So stop by here sometime if you and your picky or non-picky eater friends are hungry for some fresh all you can eat. I guarantee everyone will fill up their plates and leave feeling fully satisfied.

Cooking It Up: Frozen Cucumbers and Best Ever Picallili

Over the weekend I got a couple recipes from my aunt for what she referred to as "Frozen Cucumbers" and "Best Ever Piccalilli".

The frozen cucumbers were easy to make and really came out tasty, though I cut the sugar in about half. I just couldn't let myself add a whole cup of sugar, it seemed wrong. It was interesting watching the cucumbers mixed with salt "sweat" for a couple hours and there's just something about salt and cucumbers that is oh so tasty. I used to always sprinkle some seasoned salt on them and thinking of that now brings back memories of the way the Elote dealers prepare them (same for mangos) with some salt, lime and a sprinkle of chili powder. If you've never had cucumbers or mangos this way get them sometime from your friendly neighborhood Elote dealer.

Frozen Cucumbers

2 quarts sliced cucumbers.  Just clean them. Do not pare.
1 onion , sliced (I used a sweet onion)
2 tablespoons salt

Mix and let stand 2 hrs. After you sprinkle the cucumbers with salt and then let them sit, they will weep a little because of the salt.  Do not rinse but DO drain them.

Add:
1 cup sugar (I  cut this to half a cup)
1/2 cup vinegar

Mix well.  Put into  freezer containers and freeze trying to cover all the cucumbers in the container with liquid. They store well for a while in the freezer.


As for the piccalilli I didn't cut the sugar in that one and halved the recipe which seems in it's original form could really feed an army. As it was cutting the recipe in half still gave me a lot of piccalilli. It came out a bit sweeter than I would prefer so next time I'll cut the sugar, but it is still is a tasty spread for sandwiches and according to my aunt can also be used in tuna, chicken salad and Sloppy Joe's. I gathered most of the green tomatoes from the community garden next door where I was given permission to take as many as I'd like (thanks Rob, if you read this).

Best Ever Piccalilli

22 medium green tomatoes, quartered
1 pint  (2 cup ) small onions
6 green peppers, quartered lengthwise
6 sweet red peppers, quartered lengthwise
1 1/2 quarts vinegar
3 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup salt
1 1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
4 teaspoon celery seed (This took a while to track down at Whole Foods. It's not by the normal spices and instead over by the lotions and other body products.)
1/2 c mustard seed

Wash veggies. Put through the food chopper  and chop till diced very fine.
Drain
Put veggies in large kettle with 1 quart of vinegar
Boil 30 minutes , stirring often
Drain, discard liquid
Return veggies to the kettle and add remaining vinegar , sugar, spices etc.
Simmer 3 minutes

Let it all cool down and put in freezer containers to freeze.


I am just about to finish the portion of both of these I put in the fridge so it's about time to see how they both thaw out.

Cooking It Up: Sweet Potato Salad

In addition to dining out I've been trying to cook more. I certainly have a lot of resources with my pile of cookbooks and recently downloaded "Vegetarian Recipes" Android app.

I'm a fan of the food shows as well and the other day, while checking out what was on the Food Network I came across Rachael Ray's show. That woman has alwaysbugged me a bit with her perkiness and odd acronyms such as "EVOO" for Extra Virgin Olive Oil, but quite honestly I've come to really like her kitchen design. Green and orange are a couple of my favorite colors so I enjoyed just watching her kitchen on TV. Unfortunately I can't find a shot online to post here, which seems strange considering I like to pride myself on my ability to manipulate search engines to find what I'm looking for.  Look for it next time you are browsing the Food Network.

And this day she happened to be making a sweet potato salad, with bacon. All the ingredients looked tasty and basic enough and I've been meaning to find more things to do with the healthy sweet potato so I tried my hand at it, minus the bacon, which didn't seem to be a main part of the dish.

I'm a fan of mustard and in fact have been looking for more things to do with it. I've found mustard combined with vinegar into a vinaigrette of sorts is just oh so tasty. This recipe had that nice combo that with the other ingredients made for a great taste. And it and seemed fresh for quite a few days. Recipe below and on the Web site at: http://www.rachaelray.com/recipe.php?recipe_id=2144

Sweet Potato Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled, cut in half lengthwise and sliced into half moons
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• 4 slices bacon
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
•  2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 4 cups baby spinach, loosely packed

Preparation

Place a medium pot over medium-high heat with the sweet potatoes and enough cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the cooked potatoes and reserve in a medium size mixing bowl.

While the potatoes are cooking, place a large skillet over medium-high heat with two turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the bacon and cook until crisp, 3-4 minutes per side.

Remove the bacon from the pan and add the onion, garlic, some salt and lots of black pepper to the bacon drippings. Cook until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the mustard and vinegar, whisking vigorously to incorporate the dressing. Pour the dressing over the potatoes and add the spinach, tossing to coat the potatoes and lightly wilt the spinach. Crumble the bacon over everything. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Breakfast at the Flying Saucer

The Flying Saucer right near the corner of California and Division has been in my weekend breakfast spot rotation for years and now that we live conveniently a mere block away it's been bumped up the list. 

Over the last few visits I've noticed them catering more to vegan and vegetarian fare. In the past I've always enjoyed the bean cakes, but didn't see them on the menu today and never noticed too many veggie friendly options. I also noticed last time they are also selling vegan brownies to take home for $2. I almost got one today, but was full. They also sell their own home made granola and the locally made Nice Cream (which though not pure vegan, is local so gets some credit) to go.

On the menu are vegan pancakes and what I got today, the La Bazza bowl, which had a snappy tag line for vegetarians which has slipped my mind. It came with brown rice, black beans, sauteed vegetables, pico de gallo (which I'm a big fan of), chihuahua cheese and sour cream. It also came with an egg, which I didn't get, and asked that they go easy on the cheese and sour cream. Included were warm tortillas to wrap it up in to eat. The mixed veggies were tasty with red cabbage and green peppers and I should have asked for a bit more pico in lieu of minimizing the cheese and sour cream but overall I can't complain. I did have to ask for more tortillas since three just weren't enough.

If you want a vegan or vegetarian breakfast that has options for your non veggie friends (Steve had the Trucker Bowl with biscuits, gravy, eggs, ham, cheese and scallions and liked it) and haven't been there yet, go.

Flying Saucer photo by me.

Dinner at Le Bouchon

The other night we dined out at Le Bouchon. For those not familiar you can learn more about them and see their Menu starting at Yelp and their Web site. It's French bistro dining and the menu is loaded full of meaty fare. Why I went here is due to my significant other, who happens to be a big meat eater. More on living with a meat lover later, but he was in the mood so we went.

I've been to Le Bouchon twice before. The first time was before I got bold and started announcing that I am a vegetarian and asking what they could do. Those were the days when I just hunted and picked anything that looked to have an ounce of vegetarianism to it. So I had a salad and their pomme frites, or french fries. Though wonderful, and another weakness of mine in trying to be a healthy vegetarian, I didn't feel like I had many options. The next time I went back I'd emboldened myself and found that the trio of bistro salads and the veggie plate satisfied my needs. This time I had the same and though a bit more creamy than I would like, the trio of beet salad, lentil salad, carrot salad and cabbage salad (cole slaw like) with some greens on top was quite tasty. As was the veggie plate with an interesting tasting roasted endive, haricots vert (green beans - my favorite), snap peas, a roasted tomato on couscous (another fave of mine) and some roasted carrots. It was filling and satisfying.

Prior to ordering my Steve leaned across the table and asked if I'd hate him if he got the rabbit. He felt a rabbit would be harder for me to deal with than any other meat. Not really so, it's all meat to me. So he got the rabbit, as shown in the picture here and escargot and enjoyed them both.

For dessert we got the profiteroles shown in the picture as well. Puff pastries, chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream, all quite tasty. My intention was just to share a bit of his and then perhaps stop at Black Dog Gelato on the way out to get some tasty unique flavored sorbet, but I indulged in the profiteroles more than I had intended to.

Photo from the Le Bouchon Web site home page. 

How It All Began

I'm often asked by people why I'm a vegetarian. The two options they often presented are ethics or health. While neither of those was the original reason, they've come to become a part of it.

You see, I used to love meat. I couldn't get enough steak or ribs. I have fond memories living in Africa as a child eating a platter of lamb surrounded with vegetables and couscous. And we were eating with our hands! Everyone was. At the same time I'd always been an animal lover and about sixteen years ago I realized the two didn't really match up and eating meat just didn't feel right anymore. I haven't missed it since, though still find the smell of a good steak, barbecue and ribs rather comforting. What I think I am connecting those smells to is a communal experience of dining with others. My communal dining experiences started with meat long ago so those two will always be somewhat connected.

When I gave up meat I still ate chicken, for a brief period of time, until I saw my mom preparing one in our kitchen using pliers to pull out a vein. That was it for chicken and me. After that milk and eggs left my diet. Milk, because it just seemed odd to drink a liquid that came out of another animal and eggs after seeing baby chicks hatch at the Lincoln Park zoo. I know that is odd since they aren't truly "fertilized", but they could have been and we've all heard stories of people cracking an egg open for breakfast only to find a baby chick fetus inside. Like when I first gave up meat, it just didn't feel right anymore.  Cheese on the other hand is another beast. So many tasty varieties exist. It's hard to say no entirely to cheese.

Oddly, I never ate seafood. I developed some unexplainable aversion early on and remember either slipping the pieces my mom forced me to eat to the dog or quickly washing them down with milk so I wouldn't taste them.

And as I've continued on my near vegan journey I've serendipitously discovered so many great non-processed vegetarian and vegan food options, particularly here in Chicago. It's a great sense of discovery and satisfaction looking at a menu or challenging a chef to come up with something and then really enjoying the result.