Shredded Shiitake Stems

ideas are a-flowin'

A Breath of Fresh Air

The next time you're at the office or by the cup holder of your Scion, reconsider that jug of Dentyne Ice (usually something like Polar Bear, Ice Thunder or Global Warming flavor) or the "interestingly" flavored Altoids in your ironical lunch box. Look to the wet & dry mukhwas and paan's of India. A breath of fresh air to dub you a heir of fresh breath.

Mukhwas is most commonly sold and served dry, usually with fennel seeds being the dominant character. Paan is slightly different in that it is often made from crushed betel leaf and areca nut with an endless array of other grains, seeds, nuts, essential oils, fruits and spices. The wet varieties I prefer ten times over the dry. It's like chewing tobacco potpourri, as unappealing as that may sound. Overwhelmingly floral, I've been chasing it with various flavors to see how it pairs. Goes great with chocolate and citrus. This will make for an interesting dessert.

Beef Tendon "Sticky" Rice

This is a quick meal for the afternoon. I've been recently experimenting with the notion of beef tendon stock acting as a great gelatinous addition to rice, giving it a more glutinous or risotto-ish texture. The dish is far from pretty but flavor is intact and up for exploration

Here I paired the "sticky" rice with shiitakes, brussels sprout leaves, beef tendon, crispy cauliflower and sunchokes.

The Leftover Pan

Sometimes laziness can spark a good idea. In no way do I promote laziness, but through it I discovered the leftover pan. The same pan I cooked bacon on in the morning, I also made popcorn in the afternoon, seared beef in the evening, wilted greens, sauteed garlic and then fried eggs in the next morning. Everything adding more flavor to the next. Not entirely developed, but a simple and interesting concept. Should be interesting if ever deglazed.

Pandebonito

Though meant to translate as a miniature pandebono, "Beautiful Bread" could be a better translation. Not that my bread is all that beautiful, but pandebono in general is a beautiful thing.

pan - de - bonito

P.S.

I found this in my photo archives from a couple months ago. I was toying a lot with them, so I'm not sure which flavor this was. Could be made with Campo de Montalbán cheese & fenugreek, or maybe not.

Frying Cabbage

Lately I've been frying the leftover cabbage I used for the lamb neck dish and just adding to everything I eat. It has a very lovely and nutty aroma (especially when fried in bacon fat). I'm using savoy cabbage; i'm sure other cabbages will fry just as well. Cabbage tends to be underrated, but I've always found it delicious. One of my favorite "meals" sometimes consists of just boiled cabbage, salt, pepper & olive oil. There's an attraction I've always had to seemingly peasant dishes. Some peasant, rural & rustic dishes seem like masterpieces out of necessity. I had pigeon peas & rice with pork from my Grandmother this week and it was the best meal I had all week. It's important to take inspiration from as much as possible. Whether it's something you'd like to improve or honor, understand the difference between being inspired and copying. This concludes my very distracting and tangent ridden post.