strawberry yogurt: sans red 40, added flavors, fake sugars, preservatives, gelatin,..

They say yogurt is good for you.. Sure, I'll fall for it. Calcium, protein, probiotics-- together sound worthy of swallowing. What I don't fall for, however, is the majority that is being marketed with a 'healthy' claim.

Did you ever see that commercial with the married woman [married 'cause, duh, all marketable women are of course married..] on the phone with her girlfriend telling her about what she's been eating on her [successful] weight-loss diet? Apple Turnover, Boston Cream Pie, Raspberry Cheesecake, Strawberry Shortcake.. Meanwhile, her [idiot] husband is frantically looking through the fridge searching for these [calorie-laden, artery-clogging] foods. Perhaps, his problem, other than having a major sweet tooth, is that he can't read, as the fridge is well-stocked with products containing these descriptors, which is what they are-- descriptors. ..of artificial agents, followed by the word flavor, yes, but details details..

Ok, ok, perhaps benefit of the doubt should be granted for more simple fruit yogurts, like blueberry or strawberry. But still, I am hard-pressed to find ones which don't have color, flavor, preservatives, or stabilizers added, or which some form of added sugar doesn't precede [by weight] the actual fruit itself [if there's any for that matter].

It's October, I know, way past summer-- the season for strawberries. But I bought a box this week because they were cheap, dark in color, and smelled and looked good. And they were-- sooper ripe, sooper sweet, sooper delish. I added it to a cup of non-fat plain yogurt. I thought I might need some sugar to neutralize the tangy yogurt but the strawberries were sweet enough to balance out the yogurt and still have enough to shine for itself. They were even ripe/dark enough to color the yogurt a lovely pink.

This is what I'm saying: yes, it takes a little more effort to make-- wash and cut fresh strawberries-- but on the flip side all the other added crap is eliminated and there's the added benefit of additional nutrients from whatever [real] fresh fruit that's added-- vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber.

damn, check out the bok choy..

I was through (manhattan's) Chinatown today-- yes, i had to make the distinction since i now teach in flushing, queens-- nyc's other-- twice a week. i actually haven't been to manhattan's in while. I wanted to check out what produce was on the market. Really, i was looking for tomatoes. I bought them on mott st. [N of canal] the last few times-- edible and cheaper than anywhere else, on the vine, $1.00-1.20/lb. Instead, the vender i typically buy veg from had this gorgeous bok choy. Bok choy, actually, seemed to be the popular crop of the day, and in all sizes-- baby, small, medium, large. I opted of the baby because i just couldn't resist.. Take a look: could you?..


About bok choy: As i mentioned, bok choy comes in all different sizes. I tend to like the baby version of most chinese veg because, despite being a little bit pricier, they're usually sweeter and more tender, like most babies are..

I don't think i've ever seen bok choy actually growing in nature but i imagine it sprouts very close to wet, muddy grounds. Bok choy can be pretty sandy. You have to make sure to wash it thoroughly if you want to avoid that unexpected grainy crunch. This bok choy i bought didn't look too sandy, which is why i was willing to get it. Otherwise i could be quite turned off, thinking about how much work i would have to put in to clean it.

Here's what i did: i pulled most of the outer leaves off. If the core [my favorite, sweetest part] is somewhat thick i cut it, lengthwise, in half. Those [halved] pieces are good for caramelization because their 'innards', containing sugars, are directly exposed. i then washed them in cold water-- fill bowl with more than plenty of water to cover, swish around with hand in efforts to release dirt and transfer to colander. i ['only'] had to do this three times, which is good for bok choy. ..Five or six times or more can sometimes be necessary, no crying joke. Then i spun it dry-- i did this all in my greens washer. You want it dry to maximize caramelization, aka. flavor.

How i cooked it: heat a little oil in a pan til hot [pretty hot, or as hot as i was patient to wait for and that my 'nonstick' pan could handle]. Oil is not an option. Bok choy has a decent amount of water in it. You won't get good [or any] caramelization otherwise because the water that releases during cooking will prevent it. Plus, bok choy is pretty light, you need to savorize it a little. I then threw the bok choy in roughly a single layer in the pan, making sure the exposed halves had priority contact with the pan's surface. I let it cook for a few minutes as i, last minute, peeled and cut some carrots to go with. This is good too because some of the leaves' moisture can dry off in the meantime. Then i just threw the carrots atop and then a lid. The lid could completely cover the veg or could expose a little crack for some steam to escape. What you basically want is to sear it and steam it at the same time-- sear for flavor, steam for softness.

I was going to eat this with some tofu [as i'm in a little tofu phase at the moment.. and this is quite the appropriate match]. Usually i heat the tofu in it's own pan, but the pan i was using was the pan i typically cook my tofu in. So instead of using another, and having to wash another, i pushed the bok choy/carrot mix to the edges of the pan when nearly done and laid the tofu slabs in the middle to heat. Drizzled some soy sauce atop for some flava. And voila. A one-pot[/pan] meal. Easy peasy lemon squeezy-- no lemon, really though involved.

when poor ain't so bad..

mmm.. cabbage...
There's been plenty of times when i desired cabbage but i never ended up making/preparing it because of the silly notion i had in my head that i would never be able to finish a full head-- I always ended up getting brussel sprouts instead, the delicacy ver$ion of cabbage, if you will. I was flipping through some cookbooks recently-- recipe searching for my latest project-- and i stumbled upon a gorgeous, saliva-inducing photo of roasted cabbage. I'm a big roaster when it comes to veg but [regular] cabbage never entered my mind. And especially with the weather having taken a turn or, rather, downfall, roasted cabbage seemed fittingly appropriate.

Cabbage is considered poor man's vegetable-- it's darn cheap. I bought my head for 59 cents a pound, which amounts to about less than $1.75 for a head around the size of average icebergs. But that price is when it wasn't on sale. I've seen it go as low as 29 cents on a regular weekly sale and probably lower during St. Patricks [Holi]Day.


So here's what you do:
Cabbage doesn't really need washing-- price aside, another nice feature. Peel off the outer, wilting layers and rinse. Cleaning, done. Cut head in half-- the cabbage's, that is, in case you got a lil confused-- cut through the core. Then take one half an just slice it vertically, core facing you, about 1/2 inch thick. The thickness doesn't have to be 1/2 inch, just remember: thicker slices will take longer to cook and you won't get as many slices, vice versa for thinner. A word about the core: I think everyone assumes the core is inedible but.. it's not. And as a poor [wo]man, it's nice not to waste. Plus, the core helps keep the slices together. Just trim the bottom of the core from where it was cut [as a means of cleaning-- exposed tends to absorb dirt etc.].

To cook: Drizzle/spray roasting pan with oil [I used canola]. Lay slices down. Drizzle/spray cabbage. Roasting the cabbage needs at least some oil: a) so it won't dry out, and b) so it's have a good savory taste. So fat-free-ers: get over it..

A note about the roasting pan: roasting pans are typically dark. A [light] cookie sheet doesn't really suffice. See, the idea of roasting is to get these puppies caramelized. To get good caramelization [burning of sugars and hence gaining incredible taste] you need high heat. Oven temps will can only get you so far-- it's the contact of the food to pan that does it. In a [few] word[s]: Use a dark roasting pan. It's ok if you use foil even though foil's light, the dark pan will get the foil hot enough.

O, I forgot to mention: oven temps. We're roasting.. For the most part, roasting begins at 400 degF, lowest. I set my oven to 411degF. That's my way of saying: why do oven temps always have to be in increments of 25deg or multiples of 5? Point: it doesn't. So, 411degF it was. Put pan with cabbage slices on lower third rack.

Once the cabbage seems sufficiently caramelized, I finish the cooking process by dripping some water over the cabbage so they'll get soft. Caramelization for taste [~15-20min or so], water for texture [~10min or so].

I ate this with carrots and tofu. I was in the mood for soft, cooked carrots to go with so instead of boiling/steaming [which would take more effort and cleaning] I roasted the carrots [sort of] as well. I cut and peeled them but covered them with a cabbage leaf, so they simultaneously steamed. As for the tofu, i sliced them and heated them in a pan and drizzled soy sauce to flavor them-- very simple.

What it looks like when done:


The underside/flipped over: