Strawberry Whole-Wheat Pancakes

Every once in a while, I like to make a complicated Sunday breakfast-- something different than eggs or toast or Irish oatmeal. Because I have some buttermilk in the fridge, I went for pancakes. And because I had a few lovely strawberries left, I added them to the pancakes (this is modified from a Gourmet recipe):

• 1/2 c flour (I used half whole-wheat and half all-purpose)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 egg, lightly beaten (as in, beat it first, add half of the egg)
• 1/2 c buttermilk
• pinch salt
• 4-5 strawberries, roughly sliced/chopped
• Heat a griddle or non-stick frying pan over med-high heat. Add a little vegetable oil and wipe with a paper towel. When the pan is hot, make your pancakes!

These turned out surprisingly well. I didn't have syrup, but a little butter did just fine. They were excellent and fluffy. Yum! Next time, I might add a little brown sugar, but if you don't like things too sweet (which I don't), the perfectly ripe strawberries did the trick.

Food Impasse, with kale

It's been a while since I had an update; I think that's mostly because I haven't had any amazing meals lately and I haven't been home enough to cook all that much. I also haven't gone grocery shopping. Shopping can shape a whole week; I either have lovely treats to cook up in creative ways, or I rummage through my cupboards trying to create a meal. Luckily for me, I always have a few things on hand: frozen meat of some sort (raw chicken or beef, or several servings of my mom's brisket), quinoa and noodles, soy sauce. I can almost always throw something together.

The other night I made a really yummy kale dish. It wasn't anything spectacular, but it was very good:

• Slice half an onion
• Saute in a little bit of olive oil on medium heat
• Chop up some kale (stems too) and add to the onions
• Add water and a little lemon juice to the pan
• Cover
• Stir occasionally; add in red pepper flakes
• Cook to death
• When all the liquid is absorbed, uncover and add a little lemon juice, salt and pepper. Cook until onions are nicely caramelized.

But now, I'm out of kale. Bummer. So I made chicken and cauliflower and quinoa for dinner tonight. I put mint, rosemary and cumin in the quinoa, but it wasn't all that great, so I can't recommend it.

Cauliflower. Eesh. I have been eating some of the... gassiest foods lately, including some kimchi (straight from the container, eaten with chopsticks). As much as I love the cauliflower and the cabbage and the wasabi peas... they can be evil, evil things to eat. Fun.

Ethiopian at Ethiopian

Last night I went out for Ethiopian food. I really like Ethiopian food, but I rarely get to eat it because a) it's communal and b) it's kind of an "occasion" food. I ate it a few times when I lived in DC, at the wonderful Meskerem in Adams Morgan. The last time I had it, the restaurant I went to was only so-so; it was small, the service was iffy and the food was a little too sharp for my taste. Last night's, however, was YUMMY. I confess I didn't eat too much, because I went with a group of people and I was too busy flirting with the cute-but-awkward hedge fund manager who was sitting across from me. But it was good. We ordered a combination of dishes that were an excellent balance of spicy and sour, and we sopped it all up with spongy injera. We also tried Ethiopian honey wine, which is sweet but still drier than I expected-- very, very good. I recommend.

http://www.theethiopianrestaurant.com/

Next time I go, I'll have to pay more attention. I promise.