Oh Mama, Umami!

Sad news, the Williams-Sonoma by my house is closing. Good news, I got a sweet new saucepan at 60% off! Time to make a sauce!

A demi-glace is a French brown sauce, made from stock and espagnole sauce then cooked waaaaay down. I had never made one before, so yay new things! Chef Steps has a recipe for a vegetarian-friendly demi-glace that takes less time than making a beef demi-glace. I also have a very small fridge, so storing enough bones for stock was going to be a problem. At least vegetables can be kept at room temperature for a little while.

Get a mandoline, even a $20 one from Target. It's such a time saver for this recipe! AND USE THE HAND GUARD!!!!! Especially if you want it to be a vegan sauce!!! 

I used MSG, because it's an umami-enhancer, but you don't have to. There's forever a debate over it, whether it causes migraines or whatever, but it just doesn't affect me. Plus I'm not bathing in it, or having it with every meal. The pectin and xanthan gum provide the silky texture that meat would provide. Some xanthan gum is made with lactose, therefore if you're vegan, check your xanthan gum source carefully, or don't use it. 

We drizzled this over pan fried pork chops, asparagus, and potatoes. I think my biggest issue is the vegetable waste that occurs for a small amount of sauce. I might do this again, with frozen vegetable scraps, or the bruised produce you can buy at a discount. 

Falafel Rofl

I am by no means a falafel expert, but I think my falafel come out pretty damn good. 

Falafel fall under that regional category where everyone has their own idea of the correct recipe. I've seen this happen with other regional dishes, where it can vary wildly from town to town, or country to country. 

The answer is, they're all "correct" and "authentic". Woe to anyone who accuses a grandmother of making a dish "wrong" just because it's not the exact same recipe as their own.

I make a chickpea falafel, but I have seen variants that include broad beans. I'm comfortable enough with the food that I believe I'll try other legumes in the future. I used Saveur's recipe for a base, and added a jalapeno and cilantro to the mix. I've never used canned beans, so I don't know how different the texture would be compared to soaked beans.

If you can't get the dough to hold together, try smaller balls, or add a little bit of flour, a couple tablespoons at a time, until they do. Coconut flour is a good binder if you're gluten free. 

I like them in a pita, or as a fancy salad topping with the tahini sauce as a dressing.

12 Carrot Soup

We're in the middle of a cold spell. The Polar Vortex is wooshing in and making it quite hard to illustrate or type. I'm wearing a fleece tunic and a knit hat and I'm terribly cold still. 

So it's time to make soup!

Carrot Soup is probably one of the simplest soups, but it's warm and delicious, and sometimes you're just too cold for elaborate recipes. 

Carrot Soup

• 1-1.5 lb carrots
• a medium to large white potato
• 4-6 cups of your prefered broth
• an onion
• thyme
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

1. Peel your potato and carrots, and cut into even pieces, about an inch or so.
2. Dice your onion, then saute it in a big pot with olive oil on medium heat.
3. When the onion starts to soften, add the thyme.
4. When the thyme becomes aromatic, add the carrots and potato, and a little more olive oil.
5. Let everything sweat out for 5 minutes, or don't if you're in a hurry.
6. Cover with the broth and turn the heat up to Medium High. Cook until fork tender.
7. An immersion blender is clutch for this, but you can blend everything in a regular blender as long as you do small batches, holding the lid on with a towel. Or just stick your immersion blender in the pot and blitz til smooth. Add more broth if you want it thinner.
8. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with grilled sandwiches or a good crusty bread.

You can take this super basic recipe and build on it. Instead of Thyme, use a tablespoon of curry, with a spot of coconut milk. Or a thumb's worth of lemongrass and an inch of fresh ginger. Or keep it basic and feed it to someone who has had their wisdom teeth extracted. 

I am, of course, speaking from experience with that last idea...

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