In my continuing exploration of the produce department I have forced my family to try chayote squash and charentais melon. First the squash - yum! It looks like a green pear and tastes like a firmer, tastier zucchini. Very easily prepared - I cut it in half, removed the very small pit and then sliced it. We ate it a few times: once it was grilled in our stirfry basket on the bbq - seasoned with salt and pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The second time I stirfried it with a peanut sauce. Both ways were delicious. Very little wastage with this veggie and the peel is also delicious. Apparently you can also eat it raw but I found the peel to be very astringent.  Our squash made its journey here from Costa Rica.
The Charentais melon (said “French Kiss” melon on the label) looks like a smaller cantaloupe but has a greener rind and green lines on it. It tastes like an excellent cantaloupe. I would highly recommend it - ours came from T&T via Arizona.

Geek is one of those childhood insults which is now nouveau cool.

I’ve long enjoyed referring to my husband as a science geek and we have countless friends and family members who are computer geeks. A special thank you should go to my brother here as he is responsible for getting me into the blogging world and slowly away from the tiny scattered scraps of paper on which I write notes and recipes and ideas.

I am still suffering from the pen and paper addiction as I find it challenging to get computer time most days. Many of my posts are the culmination of hastily written notes which then sit around and gather dust until I can make my way to the computer. Some sense of urgency often forces the issue - recipe requests from friends are a good example.

But back to the geek thing. Lately, I have wondering if I may be nearing food geekdom. Some of my symptoms:

1. I’ll take Wusthof over BMW any day.

2. Karen Barnaby is my hero (I know, I know, I’m sounding a little obsessive over this one).

3. Smoked Alaska black cod makes me swoon.

4. Curtis Stone makes my knees weak (Aussie chef on Take Home Chef).

5. Who needs DeBoers when you can have KitchenAid.

6. I know what time it is by what’s on the Food Network.

7. The thing I miss most when I’m away from home is my gas cooktop.

Not exactly a top ten but definitely getting close. What brings out your inner geek?

I made this carrot cake for a school function and have had many requests for the recipe. It was adapted from a recipe in Simply Delicious by Bev Atkinson. My version is “naked” as it is without the nuts, raisins and pineapple found in many other carrot cake recipes. This cake is light and scrumptious. Feel free to make more icing if you like yours with lots.

Ingredients:

2 cups cake and pastry flour (makes the cake much lighter than using all-purpose)

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

3 cups grated carrots (about 4 medium carrots)

Cream cheese icing:

one 8 oz (250 g) pkg cream cheese, softened

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 3/4 cups sifted icing sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

In a large bowl add the sugar gradually to the oil, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl beat the eggs until very light. Gradually beat them into the oil and sugar mixture. Continue beating until the mixture is smooth and fluffy.

Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until thoroughly blended.

Stir the carrots into the batter, mixing well.

Pour the batter into a 9″ x 13″ pan and bake for 70 minutes.

When ready, the cake will be golden brown and the top will spring back when touched. Cool in pan on rack.

Cream Cheese Icing:

Cream together the cream cheese and vegetable oil. Gradually add the icing sugar and mix until smooth.

Ice the cake when it is completely cool.

Eat it up yum!

On June 30, 2006 I e-mailed Karen Barnaby at the Fish House to regale her with stories of how much I adored her cookbook “the Low Carb Gourmet.” Alas, she never replied. Do I sound like a stalker? Following is a verbatim copy of my e-mail. I’ll let you be the judge …

Dear Karen:

I’m convinced we shared a palate in a former life, or at the very least are identical twins separated at birth.

The reason I say this is because I believe every recipe from your cookbook, “the Low Carb Gourmet” was created specifically for me.

I’ve tried dozens of recipes from your book and have savoured every one! My family is getting used to the “triple threat” - three recipes from your cookbook all in the same meal, and have also begun to refer to you as “mommy’s hero.”

I have hundreds of cookbooks, most of which I use a recipe or two out of, and often have to modify to my own liking. With your book I know I will love the way the recipe tastes before I even make it.

Last night I made the prawns and tomato coconut cream, the cinnamon spiced lemon chicken and the cucumber lime peanut salad. Absolutely delicious. I threw some fresh sugar snap peas from the garden in with the prawn dish - ooh la la, it was incredible.

The night before I made the lamb feta meatballs - but converted them to burgers to cook on the bbq. They were so moist and flavourful - a great summer time meal.

Earlier in the week I made the bbq ribs and the edamame with chili, garlic and soy. Another night I made the Korean style tofu, and pork shiitake meatballs. I could go on and on but it makes me too hungry.

My 5 year old daughter made me some bookmarks just for your cookbook so I can refer to several recipes at once.

What’s also great about your book is all the excellent information on ingredients, low carb-ing, cooking tips and techniques, etc. I only wish there was a photograph for every recipe.

I have NEVER written a letter like this to anyone else before. But I felt compelled to write to you to thank you for your amazing taste, passion and willingness to share your love and knowledge of food through your writing.

I’d love to cook you dinner one day!

Sincerely,

Ellen Kurz

The most important thing she’d learned over the years was that there was no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.

Jill Churchill, writer

Good news on the Korean melon - very crisp flesh, tastes like a cantaloupe but a bit sweeter, very thin rind so there’s little waste. The flesh colour is white like the inside of a pear. It would be a unique and delicious addition to a fruit platter.

I asked my daughter one day, “what do you do with your friends at recess and lunchtime?”

She replied, “we play princesses. My friends like to pretend to be princesses, but I like to be the servant because it’s kinda like being a mom.”

Only kinda?

The jicama turned into quite a refreshing summer salad.  After looking at quite a few recipes I ended up just doing my own thing.  Very simple, tart and crisp.  The jicama has a unique peel - I found it easiest to start peeling with a veggie peeler and then pulling the strips of peel off by hand.  The jicama flesh is a bit starchy and leaves a slippery film on your hands.  I’ve heard it described as tasting like green apple but I found it didn’t have as much flavour as a green apple.  It’s more of a crisp texture that needs some zestiness.  The flesh needs to be grated or sliced quite thinly as the texture can be quite woody otherwise.  Anyway, here’s my salad recipe:

Jicama Salad

1/2 large jicama, peeled and cut into matchsticks

(probably about 1 lb)

lime juice - 2 to 3 tbsp

dried red chili flakes to taste

sea salt to taste

2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Put the jicama in a bowl.  Toss with the lime juice, chili flakes and salt.  Garnish with the cilantro.  Chill until serving. 

This salad would go well with barbequed meats, spicy stirfries or Mexican food.  Enjoy!

Even though I eat a huge variety of fruits and veggies already, I’m constantly amazed by the vast amount of different types of produce I have yet to try.

As a lower carb eater, fruits and veggies make up the majority of my food intake. So, one of my goals for the summer is to try a new fruit or veg every week.

Yesterday my husband and I went to T&T in Vancouver and as usual were overwhelmed by the astounding selection of produce. We bought a few items we have never tasted before:

1) Korean melon - yellow and white striped and about the size of a Nerf football.

2) Jicama - kinda looks like a turnip. Supposed to taste like a green apple and is good grated or in matchstix for a refreshing salad. I was able to find several recipes in my collection, most calling for a citrusy vinaigrette.

I’m eager to start experimenting and will let you know how it all turns out!

You know how sometimes the stars align and you order a restaurant meal that somehow works out just right? My hubby and I had that experience today when we had lunch at the Red Door at Granville and 14th.

We ordered off the tasting menu which gives each diner two selections plus rice for $14 a person. This is a great idea as often in Chinese restaurants two people can only order a few dishes as each portion is so large.
We had a Vietnamese green papaya salad with prawns and grape tomatoes - not as fiery as the Thai version thank goodness, so we could still taste the rest of our meal. A delightful combination of fresh, crisp, salty, spicy and crunchy. Check back for a recipe.
We also had a prawn, water chestnut and sugar snap pea stirfry with tangy slivers of orange peel. I’ve been combing through my cookbooks for a recipe for this one but I may have to makeup my own version from memory. A hint of sweetness, a lot of tangy orange rind and crunchy sugar snap peas. Yummy.

Another delicious, yet more familiar dish was the Thai curry with tofu and veggies. Not too hot with the richness of coconut milk and a nice assortment of seasonal veggies.

The last dish was a deep-fried boneless chicken breast dish that was spicy and sweet. This is one of my favourite combinations of flavours - I’ll have to work on a lower carb version of it. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

I passed on the Jasmine rice and my blood sugars were just fine before dinner (not always the case when ordering Asian restaurant food with lots of hidden sugar and starch).

I’m motivated to do some cooking now so I’ll do my best to post some recipes soon …