Things you learn being a journalist (and some more indian food) November 7, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes, Weight Watchers Core-Friendly.Tags: dinners, Indian
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When I signed up for this “internship,” I probably didn’t know how hellish the next few months were going to be because of it. Either that, or I’m still suicidal subconsciously.
I always had this ideal of journalism. I’m going to be a journalist and save the trees, I would say to myself.
If this semester is any indication, I probably won’t be spending the rest of my life saving very many trees. I might, however, get first word on some of the most controversial political scandals. And, if I don’t, there’s always med school.
After only two months, I’ve probably learned more about what it means to be a reporter than 15 years of school has taught me. Granted, I wasn’t learning to be a reporter for ALL of those fifteen years…but still.
Things I’ve learned about being a journalist
1. There is no such thing as stalking. When people run for a political position, they are essentially asking for reporters to stalk them. Continuously. The only exception to this rule is if you are calling because you want a breaking story filled with deception.
Then you’re a stalker
2. Thou shalt not use serial commas. What is a serial comma, you ask? It’s the comma that goes before the last item in a list. For example, “Reps. blah, blah and blah refused to call me back despite the fact that I started calling them a week in advance.” Usually, there would be a comma before that “and”…unless you’re a journalist.
3. Get a good cell phone plan. Because you will be using it. Even if you have no friends and the whole world hates you.
4. No one will answer the phone or call you back. Especially if they are part of governmental department. Because I’m sure those media officials have better things to do THAN WHAT THEY GET PAID FOR. *cough* not *cough*
5. Don’t waste your time coming up with a brilliant and creative lead that you are intensely proud of. There is a 103.6% chance that, by the time the story is in an actual paper, that lead will not be there.
6. Do not expect people to be able to spell your name. However, you must be able to spell everyone else’s name because you, as a reporter, are supposed to be able to do everything.
7. Do not use “insert quote here” as a placeholder in your story because, if that goes to print, you probably won’t have a job anymore.
8. You are allowed to fabricate controversy. If there is nothing controversial going on CURRENTLY, write about gay people or abortion or, if you’re really committed, call every single mildly important person you know until someone disagrees with what everyone else said.
9. Going along with that is a general principle that will help you greatly: where there is money, there is controversy. Say ANYTHING about money, and it will automatically be controversial. For example, “such and such costs so much money”. That’s it. That’s all you need.
It’s like controversy in a bottle. For all your last minute controversy needs.
10. Whatever happens, make sure–MAKE VERY VERY SURE–you hang up the phone before you begin to swear at whomever you were talking to. Even if it is in another language.
Saag (spinach) with or without the paneer (cheese)
It's Popeye the sailor man!
- frozen chopped spinach (I like the Kroger variety)
- crushed/pureed/otherwise saucy tomatoes (I use about half of a 15oz can)
- garlic (this really depends on how garlicky you like it, I can never have enough)
- ginger (once again, depends on how gingery you like it)
- garam masala (a.k.a. curry powder)
- coriander powder
- salt and pepper
- lemon juice (optional, I just put it in everything)
- cubed tofu, paneer, etc (optional)
→It helps to defrost the spinach a little first. Just makes the whole process go so much faster.
Saute the ginger/garlic.
When they’re sauteed, add the spinach and tomatoes. Cover and let sit till spinach is mushy. (You might need to adjust the heat a little depending on how much you’re watching it).
Add the garam masala, coriander, salt/pepper, and lemon juice to taste and stir well.
Cover and let sit, stirring occasionally, till it looks somewhat like the picture.
Add the optional tofu/paneer/whatever at the very end.
East Peasy Mac and Cheesy (Healthy Too!) October 18, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes.Tags: dinners, quick
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Today we’re going to discuss a basic principle of life:
Evil bureaucracy = No time for writing.
Actually, that’s it. See, if there was no evil bureaucracy in, let’s say, college, I might be able to spend some time on this post.
I might be able to say something, I don’t know, INTERESTING. But, alas, the point of this thing we call an educational institution is not to nurture the facets of the mind but, rather, to destroy them.
Soon we will all be robots named it and then only will the leaders of this horrible bureaucracy rest.
The Cheesiest!
Edible Easy Mac
- macaroni (yes, you can take a container of easy mac and boil the macaroni)
- cubed or block cheddar cheese (I found a 1% milk block at wal-mart)
- veggies (the horrors of education have produced a situation where I have been unable to go to the grocery store in 3 weeks, so I went with some frozen peppers and onions but broccoli would have been much better)
- soy crumbles or beef crumbles or something like that
→Boil pasta.
Steam or saute the veggies/crumbles.
Drain pasta.
Put pasta back in pot and add cheese/sauteed veggies + crumbles.
Stir until sauce forms. Add milk if necessary.
Eat pasta.
Do dishes (this is actually a very important, often forgotten step)
Ahhh, memories of my 6th grade English class exercises where we tried to give our teacher directions to make a pb+j sandwich. The trick? We had to assume he had never heard of the concept before. My sandwich had a knife in it.
Writer’s Block October 14, 2009
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This post really has nothing to do with food. It should have something to do with food, seeing how this is a food blog and I’m eating food right now and I have a great recipe for spaghetti squash goat cheese lasagna (say it five times fast).
No, I don’t really feel like writing about food today. I don’t really feel like writing at all today but I’m hoping writing here might help me feel like writing so I can write my article that’s due in about 2 hours. Yes, this is the extent of my procrastination. Two hours before, and I still have about a tenth of the article, not to mention zero quotes.
Oh, and as if that weren’t amusing enough, I skipped the staff meeting today.
Do you want to know WHY I skipped the staff meeting? Well, it was because I have the world’s worst “bedside table” that seems to be incapable of actually allowing objects to sit on top of it. Although I’ve managed to chain my clock to the table, my glasses, which must be removed every morning, like to fall off and end up in strange places (i.e. under the covers). How they get from the table to under the covers is completely beyond me but, seeing as how I’m half blind, I can barely find them if they actually manage to stay ON the table.
I think the bedside table gods are out to get me. If I told a doctor that, they would diagnose me with paranoia and give me some pill or something but I swear to god that the tables are out to get me. As are the computers.
The good news, though, is that I’ve lulled my cell phone into quiet submission by throwing it against the wall several times. Take that, evil cell phone that sounded like a dying pig/cow/something whenever it rang! You shall not best me!!!! Of course, now the screen’s broken so I can’t see anything anymore, but at least the annoying ring is gone.
I think there was a point to this but, seeing as how I’ve clearly forgotten it, I’m just going to leave you with this picture of a bunny and a pancake, just to bring the focus back to food and all.
Taste Test: Nature’s Pride Bread October 4, 2009
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Nature's Pride
When Foodbuzz sent all their featured published an invitation to try “Nature’s Pride Bread”, I was probably the first to sign up. Nature’s Pride? I thought, It’s got to be healthy.
Upon receiving the bread, I have to admit I was a little disappointed. Not because I had actually tried it and it tasted horrible but because I had seen this bread every day in the dining hall since I started going there. It seems to be the bread no one wants and the only one that’s ever there. I never actually tried it though because, at 110 calories per slice, I felt it wasn’t worth it.
Now, I had two loaves of the stuff (pictured above) that I had volunteered to receive. I had to try it.
I started with the 12 Grain: I took a slice out and sniffed it, Hmmmm….nutty; it looked a little moldy until I realized those were just flakes of the grain; some more sniffing and I decided had better just eat the stuff.
I thought of putting some sugar-free jelly on it since it already had a nutty tinge but went ahead and tried my first slice straight up. I have to say, it was yummy, even without anything on it. I can’t compare it to “normal bread” because the closest I’ve ever gotten to “normal bread” is the stuff my mom used to by that had far fewer calories than this.
The thing about this bread is that it tastes good on its own. Because it’s own flavor is so strong, I’m not sure it would make a good sandwich with all different sorts of toppings. It needs a complement. For the 110 calories a slice (and low-fiber/protein content), I’d say it’s not the best choice for those worried about anything beyond taste, texture, and natural ingredients. It does trump Texas Toast by several points though, so if that’s your bread of choice, you ought to give this a try.
It wouldn’t be filling enough in a sandwich anyway but more so in something like a bread pudding or french toast. Especially one with chocolate soymilk like my Aphrodisiac French Toast (just use the no peanut powder version).
So there you have it-not the best, but definitely on my list of specialty breads.
Zen #7: Garlic and Grown-Up Comfort Food October 3, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Finding the Zen, Recipes.Tags: dinners, pizza
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I just spent the entire morning peeling garlic cloves. I would like to say it’s because I wanted to cook something with garlic but that’s really not the reason. Don’t get me wrong, I love garlic–in everything. But, usually, when I’m cooking, I end up just using the powdered stuff. (I know, I know).
No, the reason I spent the entire morning peeling garlic cloves is because there’s something meditative about it. It’s tedious and time consuming but mindless as well. Mindless in a way that allows you to sit there for hours on end…
The only goal is to get the skin of the garlic clove and the only thing you know at that moment is that you can’t lose THIS clove, you have to get the peel off. And then in starts again with the next clove. And again. And, after awhile, you find that it makes you feel successful, a little less worthless, a little less miserable.
You almost feel like you did when you were thin, when you had friends and went out and wore nice clothes, when you didn’t care what other people thought of you because YOU knew you were thin and that was all that mattered to you. You wonder, was that happiness?
Minutes pass, hours even and the memories start to flood your mind, the ones you avoid because they make you sad and nostalgic for those simple pleasures of having your friends teach you how one “frolics” properly. Surely, that was happiness. Surely, that’s the way life is supposed to be lived, at least for a few days out of the year.
The radio asking when you forgot it was your life and the cat scratching at your feet stop bothering you so much. If the phone rang, you wouldn’t even answer it, not even if it were your parents who you always wish would call you (even though you pretend it doesn’t matter) because you need to know that they care about you as much as you still need them too.
You think of what he said to you yesterday, the one who sits by you in your self-esteem-draining journalism class whose name is unknown yet who has become somewhat like “John by my locker John”. What did he say?
“Self-pity’s no good.”
“Oh, I live on it.”
“Well, that’s sad, you’re going to spend your entire life being miserable. What if you actually succeed?”
But you know that’ll never happen. Because success for you lies only in one thing and your greatest nightmare has come true: you know you’ll never have it again.
And then there is no more garlic. You look down and realize you’ve peeled it all. And you start to worry about the mess, your misery returns as you realize you’re not in that world anymore, the world with the perfect Steve Madden shoes (no leather AND a size 11!), the perfect Old Navy dress pants (grey, size 8 long), the blue, collard, button-down tops (Gap? Size M) and the perfect body to wear them all.
No, you’re in this world. And you’re sure you must have died that night and gone to hell.
Mac and Goat Cheese
Mac and Cheese with Zucchini
- 9.5 oz macaroni
- 1 lb zucchini (about 2-3 of them), sliced
- garlic, minced (I used about 2-3 cloves)
- 4 oz goat cheese (or more if you like)
- lemon zest, and or lemon juice
- salt and pepper
→Cook the pasta.
Saute the zucchini with the minced garlic and add to the cooked and drained pasta.
Mix in the goat cheese, adding enough water to make it into a sauce. I suppose you could also just use more cheese, but that might throw off the taste.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Top with some lemon zest and a squirt of juice.
Roasted Butternut Squash Salad September 27, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes, Weight Watchers Core-Friendly.Tags: dinners
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This is one of my favorite salads. It’s for those few days in-between sunburns and snot icicles (which seem to come all too quickly in Michigan). Warm, cold, sweet, salty…it’s every flavor and texture that you could want in a salad (and one you’ll NEVER find in the dining hall).
The roasted butternut is really good enough on it’s own. But that’s not what makes this salad great. No, this salad is great because of the goat cheese. Although a rather expensive feat to make, the lavender-lemon crumbles of creaminess lend an earthy feel to the entire thing that makes the salad perfect for days when you’re tired, miserable, and just had your weekly news story ripped to shreds by your editor.
Yes, this is a salad for those days. The days when you wish you could rip yourself open and scoop out all the blubber. You know, as a substitute for killing your cat/dog/significant other/friend/self.
Go ahead, have a salad. It’s diet friendly!
A Wintry Sort of Salad
Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Lavender-Lemon Goat Cheese
- butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- goat cheese
- lavender (you can find this in the spice aisle)
- lemon zest (just grate it yourself…it’s so much cheaper)
- lettuce mix of choice (I like the spring mix)
- nuts (pistachios are good, almonds, I guess?)
→Step 1: Roast the squash
Preheat oven to 375*F. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Put the peeled/cubed squash on the tray and roast it for about 45-55 minutes. Make sure to check frequently to avoid burned squash!
Step 2: Make the goat cheese
Take about an ounce of goat cheese and mix it with the lemon zest and lavender. Make sure the goat cheese is cold so that it won’t turn into a paste when you’re trying to mix it.
Step 3: Put it together
Top the lettuce with the goat cheese and squash. And anything else you want. Usually, I’ll put some fake chicken strips, nuts, and/or Walden Farms raspberry vinaigrette. Honestly, though, this tastes good all by itself.
Roasty Toasty Broccoli September 26, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes, Weight Watchers Core-Friendly.Tags: dinners
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You know those days that make you want to curl up in a little ball with a Snuggie wrapped tightly around you while watching 8 hours of House reruns?
Today was one of those days.
Not only because it feels like Halloween outside and the dark, dense clouds have been threatening to rain all day. Not only because I woke up at noon, still groggy from what is a suspected virus. No, not even because my friend’s mouse peed on my shoulder yesterday.
The reason today was such a day was because I ate too much yesterday. To be quite honest, I’ve been eating too much (junk) these past few weeks in general. Haven’t you noticed the lack of posts, i.e. cooking?
With eating comes weight gain and with weight gain comes a certainty of suicidal ideation and general lack of motivation. So, basically, for me, peanut butter = suicide–in more ways than one.
By the time I got up today, went to the bathroom (without any success with is probably due to the bingeing) and generally mulled about, I didn’t seem to even WANT any food. I did have plans to go to the store today to replenish my depleted stock of fruits and veggies, but the nippy weather nipped that idea in an instant.
So, instead, I dug out the limp broccoli from last week’s groceries, boiled up some pasta and made “a meal”.
Voila.
Yummy Trees of Wholesomeness
Oven-Roasted Broccoli
- fresh broccoli florets
- cooking spray (or olive oil)
- garlic (minced fresh cloves or powder)
- salt and pepper
- onion powder, opt
- lemon juice
→Spray the broccoli with cooking spray. Sprinkle with garlic, salt/pepper and onion powder. Roast at 450*F for about 20-25 minutes (make sure you keep checking and shaking the pan). Drizzle with lemon juice and serve.
Alternatively, toss broccoli, fresh garlic (minced), onions (opt), and salt/pepper. Roast, drizzle lemon and serve.
Veggie…Stuff September 22, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes, Weight Watchers Core-Friendly.Tags: beans, dinners
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Did you know the police can ticket you for being one inch out of a metered parking space? I had to go downtown today for an interview and this meant that I also had to park along the street.
Now, since I don’t really DO parallel parking (I’m barely coordinated enough to do regular parking!), I drove around looking for a spot where I wouldn’t have to parallel park (i.e. the last/first spot in a row). I found one and, apparently, made the grave mistake of going up a WHOLE inch over the lines that mark a space. A WHOLE INCH.
Yes, that’s really worth a $15.00 fine.
How sad is it that we pay taxes so police officers can spend all day driving around giving us tickets for being a little out of a parking space. They have people whose SOLE job it is to do that.
I feel so bad for them.
Anyway, in other news, I did actually decide to get off of my butt this past weekend and cook something. I don’t really know what to call it but, after that hummus fiasco last week, something with no name that tastes good is probably a lot better than something with a name that I had to throw away.
I went out and bought all these vegetables (basically every vegetable Kroger had) and was standing at the checkout thinking, Am I crazy? I haven’t even cooked anything in weeks–what am I going to do with all of these! I came home, cut everything up into chunks, picked out my favorite spices (lemon, garlic and, ummm, some other stuff I randomly threw in), and put it all in a pan. Just for good measure, I threw in some chickpeas as well. Gotta have protein, right?
I don’t really know what I was hoping to make. I do know it wasn’t a stew. Stews bother me a little because if you eat them with a spoon, you have trouble getting the veggie chunks and, if you eat them with a fork, the juice with all the yumminess ends up in the dish. It wasn’t a stir-fry either because, when I think “stir-fry,” I think of something that has crisp veggies and I really wasn’t in the mood for that.
Basically, after half an hour, I ended up with something that can only be termed “glop”. But, seeing as how “glop” isn’t really something I can imagine anyone wanting to eat, I’m going to have to think of a different name. Mush? Thick Stewy Veggies? Veggie Palooza?
I don’t really know what a “palooza” is or if it’s even a word but, hey, why not?
Veggie Stuff (w/falafel)
Veggie Palooza
- garlic (fresh, minced, frozen, whatever)
- lemon juice
- frozen 3 pepper and onion blend
- sliced mushrooms
- eggplant
- chickpeas, canned
- chopped tomatoes (or diced in a can)
- cumin, cinnamon and salt
→Lightly saute the garlic and onion/pepper blend (I used Pam for this). Chop the eggplant into chunks and add it to the pan. Stir until eggplant is starting to get mushy. Add the tomatoes and chickpeas (make sure to drain them first). Add lemon juice and other spices to taste. Feel good that you’re eating so many veggies.
Simple Sooji Idlis September 17, 2009
Posted by eeyoreblues27 in Recipes.Tags: bread/muffins, dinners, Indian, quick
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I wonder, is it wrong to go to the dining hall at lunch and stay there through dinner? In all fairness, I did eat “lunch” around 1:30 pm and dinner starts at 4:00 pm. Besides, I’m probably going to have extra meals left over out of my 70 anyway.
Now, the matter of whether or not they towed my car, which I think is parked in a reserved space (if there’s not a sign directly in front of the space or arrows on the signs next to it, is the space still reserved?), is another question. I hope they didn’t tow it because that would be really sad.
While we’re on the whole “asking questions” thing, why is it that, whenever you ask people who work in the dining hall what vegan/vegetarian foods there are, they look at you like they don’t know what you’re talking about? What? There’s food other than steak and beef in the world? Are you sure?
I remember the hours upon hours spent last year arguing with one of the dining hall managers that “raw salad vegetables (including shredded carrots, which he pointed out they DID have) and one type of veggie burger” did not count as “an adequate selection for individuals with dietary restrictions”. He kindly explained to me that, if I didn’t like it, I could move off campus (although, for a freshman this is not allowed) and cook for myself.
When I informed him that for a lot of people moving off campus is against university policy he was kind enough to tell me that it wasn’t his problem some students had chosen to eat abnormally.
Tell me again why I got a meal plan this semester?
I guess it’s easier and I want the fruit of my labor. The story of the evil dining hall manager has a happy ending because, after protesting and protesting and talking to the director of student affairs, I finally got them to make a mandatory rule that several different kinds of fake meat products will be served at every meal along with hummus and pita in the salad bar.
I deserve to at least eat all that food I fought for!
Anyway, that wasn’t the point. The point was to talk about the idlis I made. Although I’m still in a “cooking slump,” these little steamed wheat cakes are so simple to make, they’re not even worth calling a recipe. Typically, they’re made with a mixture of rice and lentils or wheat and lentils along with several other add-ons, so feel free to modify this basic canvas any way you want.
Plain Sooji Idlis (and the brown lentils/broccoli I decided to have with them)
Idlis (Steamed Wheat Cakes)
- 2 cups sooji (cream of wheat)
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2 T baking SODA (not powder)
- salt, to taste
- Microwave idli cooker (I got mine for 10 bucks at the Indian store that’s right before the Trowbridge entrance to I-96, Swagath Foods)
- Nuts, seeds, flavorings…. (opt)
→Roast the cream of wheat in a pan like you would roast nuts. Or don’t, it’ll just taste a little different. Mix the salt, yogurt and sooji together adding water until it forms a thick, cake-like batter (thinner than a paste, thicker than a cake batter). Mix in optionals. Add in the baking soda and immediately cook according to the microwave idli makers directions.
Simple and much healthier than typical American style bread. Plus, with the microwave maker, there’s no excuse to eat white bread!
Venturing into the Buffet (a.k.a. the “Dining Hall”) September 16, 2009
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I was planning to take lots of pictures. I swear. I had my camera and everything. I would like to say that my battery died after the first one or the manager came and threatened to beat me with a stick (wouldn’t that be dramatic?), but, honestly, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.
I know I’m a journalist and I’m supposed to be providing the public with easy access to the truth in its most comprehensible form and all, but standing in the middle of a PACKED college dining hall and taking pictures? Next time, I swear.
Cherry Pecan Salad, no dressing (with a veggie dog) and a side of Hummus with Pita
I did get one of MY tray, which I felt was fairly balanced (I’ll post it when I’m NOT in class). The big thing to remember with dining halls and any buffet is to decide what you want and get it. In America, the typical style of eating is “clean your plate”. If you do subconsciously feel that your plate must be sparkling white (or whatever color) when you’re done, don’t focus on changing this idea. I find that changing ingrained ideas is much harder than learning to work around them so, if you can change it, that’s wonderful, but if you can’t, find a way to get around it.
For example, I’m going to eat everything I get at a buffet. I could spend hours and hours that I don’t have obsessing about how to change this idea but all that obsession would probably lead to a binge anyway.
Instead, GET LESS. If you’re in a buffet situation, skip the old standbys and try stuff that looks really good. If you don’t like it after ONE bite, put the plate on the side of the table and mess it up (pour water in it, clean up something nasty with a napkin and put it on top, combine the parts that shouldn’t go together, etc) so you won’t go back to it later. Then, go back (with a new plate) and get something else.
If you prefer the sampling numerous items method, get smaller portions. In the dining hall, ask for half a cup of something or half a scoop of rice with sauce. It’s probably going to be easier to do this if you go when they’re not too busy so try to arrange your dinner time (if not lunch) a little bit later than “the rush”. If you’re at a self-serve buffet/stations, just take smaller portions. How to know how much to take? Everything should fit on a plate, preferably a smaller one.
Just my two cents.
Coming soon:
A visit to the nutritionist
Microwave idlis in 5 minutes (3 ingredients)
