La Platicona Habla: Tastes, Passions and Pursuits

1000 pardons for my gross neglect of this cooking blog this past week. I have been away on vacation and will remain incognito for at least another week. Understanding that you may need something to tie you over, I give you this fabulous post about my super-fabulous Virgin of Guadalupe apron. The Baking Master was kind enough to bestow this beautiful apron upon me recently. She slaved away behind her sewing machine, and created the most amazing apron I've ever seen: the apron features an overhead bib front that can fold down beneath the skirt if you want only a half apron; 2 large front pockets to store cooking utensils or the phone; long tie backs; and the ever-sexy red lace finish. If you are jealous, unfortunately, there is no cure other than to beg Baking Fool to conjure her domestic skills and create an equally fantastic forties arpon for you too, but don't hold your breath.

If you absolutely must have a copy-cat apron, I suggest you go to Taos or Santa Fe and purchase your very own Virgy cloth and sew your own. I got this cloth from Common Thread in Taos for ten dollars a yard (yikes!) but worth every penny. This fabric store offers a lot of colors with this print, and they also feature Dia de los Muertos cloth, and Frida Kahlo cloth. My only complaint is that the service is absolutely awful--but hopefully when you go, the service will be much improved.

Thank you Baking Master.

Labels: kitchen accessories

What can bring me more joy than food? A hot espresso from my new FrancisFrancis! X5 machine in metalic turquoise. Observing Mr. Person's fine X3 machine, I decided that this would make a fine gift to myself this year.

If you take coffee, especially espresso, very seriously, I highly recommend this machine for your home use. Designed by an Italian architect and sold through Illy (an Italian espresso company), this machine comes in several stylish designs and accommodates both Easy Serving Espresso (ESE) pods and espresso grounds. I prefer the pods, and this machine give you a consistently frothy cup of joe each time. If you are overwhelmed with envy, check out all of Illy's FrancisFrancis! espresso machines at: http://www.illyusa.com/

I hope Mr. Person will post a comment here about the do's and don'ts of espresso. BTW, my flatemate was kind enough to bestow these fun espresso cups upon me for the holidays. Thanks.

Labels: breakfast, coffee, kitchen accessories

If you are shaking right now from hunger, or you are at work eating snowballs and suzy-q's, read my mother's comment posted on "My Viejo's Lump Crab." My mom makes the best food and she shared a good lesson on how to eat "como la gente," or like civilized people. Thanks mom.

I promised several of you a post on packing a lunch for work. My mom was the best at packing lunches. She always packed 1 or 2 pieces of fruit, 2 sides of veggies like cucumbers and carrots, a sandwich or breakfast burrito, and a side of chips and salsa. MMMMMM. Then, she would pack everything in a paper sack and draw funny pictures on them with a caption for "life's lessons." My favorite life lesson was "how to spot a cad." Mom, feel free to post your life's lessons and tell everyone in bloggerland how to spot this harry libertine!

For those of you out of ideas for what to eat at work during lunch, read on. First, wherever you work, you should try to bring a lunch appropriate for the place. For example, my dad was a welder who worked in a huge shop from sun-up to sundown. Having a thermos and a large worker's lunchbox was a must. If you work somehwere without a fridge or microwave, you have to pack a lunch accordingly. And for goodness sake, stop packing your lunch in a grocery bag! You can shop on-line now for all of your lunch needs. I suggest the Zojirushi Lunch Jar (go to amazon.com). It is an insulated thermos-like container with 2 compartments if you order the Ms. Bento size or up to four if you order the Mr. Bento.

Now, what to bring for lunch largely depends on what you made for dinner last night. I usually pack 2 containers of leftovers and a piece of fruit for the morning. You should always eat a little something for breakfast to help make your way to lunch. As the HCIC says, "even a piece of toast will get your metabolism moving." Try to pack your lunch the night before so you don't run late to work. Even if you don't pack a lunch everyday, you sill save about $5 - $10 each time you eat your leftovers rather than going to out to eat. If you are a broke student or just plain broke, packing a lunch can save you a lot of money. Here are examples of what I pack: one container of soup (usually miso paste, seaweed & tofu, I just add water); salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach and dressing; 2 slices of bread; banana. On another day, I would pack leftovers from dinner like pasta, rice dishes, or veggies; fruit; bread; bag of tea. Whatever you got, try to make it into a fab-u lunch for your self - and don't let anyone step on your funk.

Labels: kitchen accessories

For anyone who has worked in a true "Office Space" environment, birthdays and potlucks are two eating events that can be either dreadful or joyful, depending on who brought what. Yesterday, my coworkers banded together over a "Mexican themed" potluck. My food snobbery initially kept me at bay, but I decided that (as my mother would say) "if it has to be, it's up to me." I planned on bringing a fantastic mini-crock of pinto beans. This simple dish, by the way, is the easiest way to feed yourself all winter long on less than 20 cents per day. My mini-crock is a cheap 10 dollar Rival brand crockpot from Target. To make these simple beans, you will need the following: pinto beans, a serrano or jalapeno pepper, garlic, white onion, vegetable oil, salt.

Please note that this is merely a simple "I'm too lazy to make really luxury beans" recipe. Beans can be cooked over the stove if soaked overnight, but take several hours to cook (Sherri should really post a comment here with details of her bean feast this evening). You can also cook beans in a pressure cooker timed for one hour after the pot begins to "cheear" (makes the ch-ch-ch noise and spits out steam). To "guisar" the beans, or make them not-so-gassy, you simply add vegetable oil and salt at the END of the cooking process and simmer for another 1/2 hour.

For simple mini-crock, or any crockpot of beans:

Step one: Clean 1 cup of pinto beans (or frijole de bolita, my favorite). To clean beans, you have to spread the beans on the table and pick through them for rotten looking beans or rocks. Then, wash them in a colander.

Step two: Add beans to your mini-crock with the single pepper, 1/2 moon slice of white onion, and garlic clove; fill the thing with water to the top (that's about 3 cups of water for a 4 cup capacity total if using the mini-crock, otherwise add 4 cups of water).

Step three: Plug your mini-crock in and cook overnight (about 6-8 hours). The best part about crockpot beans is that you don't ever have to babysit them and the Rival mini-crock is so easy, there is no high or low setting (if you are cooking in a big crockpot overnight with real settings, cook on low).

Step four: Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon of salt (or salt to taste); continue cooking for another 1/2 hour, adding more water if need be.

Step five: Smash your beans a bit before serving.

If you pack these beans for the potluck at work, I suggest you wrap your mini-crock in a plastic grocery bag, place this into a paper shopping bag, and then put this into a canvas tote or bookbag. Whatever you do, don't spill the beans.

Now, back to my potluck story. I planned on cooking these great beans and did, but alas, I didn't cook them for the requisite 6-8 hours. This is a sad cooking error on my part and so I cannot say that my mini-crock beans were the hit of the Mexican potluck (and to think, I am the one Mexican at work who should've gotten it right - I realize how pathetic this is, so spare me your "shame on you, you wannabe foodsnob" commentary please). If you are planning a potluck at work - which is a great idea - I suggest that you designate a food theme or the like, and that you provide a list of possible donations of food that everyone can bring (for instance, the cooking challenged brought cheese, lettuce, etc.). If you are cringing at the thought of a work potluck because you know everyone will bring tuna casserole, I suggest doing a breakfast potluck where everyone brings bagels, juice, muffins, etc. (in other words, things people don't have to make at home in their yucky kitchens with cats roaming around in the mist of cigar smoke). Now make nice with everyone and go have yourself a foodsnob potluck.

Labels: kitchen accessories