Ugh NYTIMES

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A SPACE WITHOUT POLITICS.

JUST BC YOU (WHOEVER YOU ARE) DON'T ALWAYS SEE THE POLITICS DOESN'T MEAN THEY'RE NOT THERE.

Post-election recovery

This slow cooker chana masala is an excellent self-care option, suitable for most dietary needs/preferences.

(You can def just use whatever spices you have to hand if you're missing some/don't have them in the specified forms, and lime or lemon juice for the green mango powder/amchur, and all canned tomatoes, and whatever else you might need to do to make it feasible for you. And I made the tomato sauce in advance so I could just dump everything in the pot before I left for work.)

I ate it with lavishly buttered toast, which was not wildly authentic, but extra-soothing.

Quick protein

I highly recommend these meatballs w/ more garlic and basil instead of the shallot/parsley combo.

Mantra

Everything is a process.

Back!

Long absence, some stress, some thinking, some planning, some gratitude.  And some very New Year's-appropriate cooking that also happens to be delicious!

- Stew of black beans, onion, garlic, cumin, tomatoes, and corn (a miraculous discovery cleaning out my freezer - I'd frozen a bunch over the summer!), eaten over baked sweet potatoes (man I love when the skin is a bit overcooked and all dense and chewy and sweet), dressed with pickled red onions, arugula, and diced avocado.
- Roasted brussels sprouts with this amazing dressing (I am delighted the recipe makes surplus b/c now I can put it on everything!)
- Usual suspect of veggies (in this case, bok choy and carrots) cooked w/ ginger and garlic and a last-minute bath of miso + beer.
- This new obsession (although I skipped the almonds, radishes, and potatoes & used habanero hot sauce instead of harissa; and I was enchanted to learn that kabocha squash also does not require peeling & responds well to the miso paste [side note: don't know where this new miso obsession comes from but I don't see it slowing down anytime soon!])

Ugh

It's rainy, I have a lot of work to do and very little time in which to do it (and nobody but myself to blame for it), and the commute was a nuisance partially b/c of the rain and partially b/c I was burdened w/ goodies for a work party, viz: cheddar-and-cumin gougeres and marmalade tart.

Mmm, just thinking about them lowers my stress level - partially b/c of anticipating the enjoyment of eating them, but also b/c I spent yesterday afternoon in an aromatic haze in the kitchen, with the cat twining around my ankles and cold beer and season 4 of Damages in the background and clean laundry to fold in the baking downtimes and in addition to the work stuff, a stew of carrots and onions and garlic and miscellaneous peppers and black beans and roasted acorn squash topped with cotija and avocado, and this plum tart (without the streusel), which made a stellar dessert & and incredible breakfast.

I quite like my job and all the travel - but it's hard to be torn from my kitchen again, as I will be at the end of this week!

Home

Good grief, it's nice to be home, and in my kitchen, focussing on nutrient-dense foods to make up for the month of, shall we say, less than optimally nutritious eating.

- This shrimp-and-bean dish with the addition of broccolini and kabocha squash.
- A post-farmers'-market smorgasbord of roasted cauliflower, seared green beans, shredded savoy cabbage, and tofu in a garlic-ginger-sambal oelek-miso-prosecco sauce, dressed with some rice vinegar and soy sauce.
- Oatmeal with plain yogurt, fresh figs, and a drizzle of cane syrup.

For some reason 'Luxe, Calme et Volupte' runs through my head when I contemplate these meals; thoughtful but also flavourful.