chayday Food Journal

From xkcd, the most excellent "webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language" (and sometimes, apparently, food):

I don't know that I'm entirely on board with the results (oranges don't deserve that slander), but to each their own fruit sorting algorithm.

The nasty side-effect of traveling is that it broadens your horizons. Blah blah open mind blah blah cultures, sure (and true). But I'm talking here about important things. Like food.

What on earth do you do when traveling gives you a taste of the good stuff, but the good stuff is a specialty that will usually be located many thousands of miles away?

I get addicted to tastes. I'm a 'craver' (what? That's a real thing). My tastebuds get a thought in their heads, and they won't let it go. Sadly, my tastebuds are modestly well-traveled. Partly because I've actually taken them new places, and partly because my basta... *ahem* good friends bring back treats when they go abroad, or when they are visiting here from where they live.

I gripe, but not seriously, because I'm extremely glad that I'm lucky enough to experience new and excitingly different kinds of yumminess.

So I thought I'd put up a list post of some of what I've sampled and become addicted to, and for the most part can't access regularly. In part it's just an exercise for myself, but go ahead and torment me by letting me know your own hard-to-come-by addictions.

I'm breaking it out into three parts, hence its triptychiness: this one is international foods I have virtually no access to; then foods from Indonesia I still, and will forever, long for; and, to make myself feel better, some of the awesome specialty foods that are just a public transit ride away.

Much of what follows are sweets. I think that's because the average mouth (like mine) is more easily stuck on an unfamiliar kind of sweet than an unfamiliar kind of savoury. But sweet and savoury, I have a place in my heart and on my plate for them all.

Denmark

Danish Salad Pizza

I'm sure it has a real name (and that's not it). I don't know how to explain this one. One evening we had pizza. Which was mightily good. And one of the pizzas we got was quite the little timesaver. Side of salad? No need! Just put it right on top of the pizza! Then put some salad dressing on there. Side, main, why draw a line...

Guf

I'm kind of surprised I can't find an online reference for Guf. It's a soft light pink marshmallow topping. To have it the right way, you get a waffle cone, put three kinds of ice cream in it, top that with soft-serve, and then top that with the guf. You'll be surprised (we were), it sounds like a ridiculous serving, but the ice cream is so... light? Creamy and delicious. And then you put the marshmallow stuff on... I have to stop describing now, on account of the drool.

Karrysalat

Curried Macaroni and Herring Salad. Like many things I now crave, I'm pretty sure I didn't like it the first time I had it (I'm thinking of you Yerba Mate). And then I had it again. And then I had it on a sandwich. And then they ran out. And then we had it again. And now I've left the country and I have a Karrysalat need and no hook-up. I just have to wait for this to catch on in Canada. Clearly it's only a matter of time. We like curry, we like macaroni, we like soused herring... Wait. Let me try again...

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(Promoted from the diaries - K)

I find pre-made cookie commercials really bizarre.

10-minute just put in the oven cookies! Yay!

But... wait. How long do cookies usually take? Isn't this like putting "phosphate-free" on a package of flour? So that you're supposed to suddenly look around and wonder how much phosphate the other guys are sneaking past you? Even if that makes no sense at all?

Yes, people are busy. Yes, it's still nice to have homemade cookies. Who doesn't like homemade cookies? (People who are dead inside, that's who). But "just put in the oven" cookies... what in the heck else would you do with them?

"Oh, these just go in the /oven/. Well that's a relief. I guess I can put the George Foreman grill away...".

Lots of cookie recipes take zero time to make and are beyond delicious and are not full of whatever disgusting junk you have to add so you can fly dough-in-a-tube all over the world.

So, to put my recipe where my mouth is, this is the cookie mix our little household relies on. I believe it originally came from a Baker's chocolate chip package. It's ridiculously forgiving, works if halved, can be mixed start-to-finish in a blender, and takes 8 minutes to cook. Maybe 8 minutes 45 seconds if you count blending time.

Ooo. Burn Pillsbury, burn. That's 1 minute 15 seconds of my life I just got back.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
2/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips (more or less)

Preheat oven to 375F. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

1. Beat butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.
2. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt until well-blended.
3. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Drop by spoonful onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until lightly browned.