What Did You Eat?

Mixed Berries With Grand Marnier Whipped Cream

I haven't the slightest idea how much iron is in this dish of blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries, topped with Grand Marnier whipped cream.  Sometimes a person has to take a break.  Tomorrow I'll be back to my battle with anemia, yelling "Sparta" as I take my iron supplements.   Actually, berries contain vitamin C, which helps iron absorb into the body.  (Sorry, couldn't help sharing iron trivia.) 

You don't have to put Grand Marnier in your whipped cream, vanilla will do nicely.  But, the orange liquor certainly  made my day.  By the way, please notice the lovely heirloom bowl that my fabulous mother-in-law, Bunty, gave me.  I treasure it.

PPN: Linquine With Smoked Clams And Spinach

Ever since I became anemic, every meal I prepare is vetted to make sure it contains a lot of iron.  I take iron supplements twice a day, but I've always believed that vitamins and minerals are best for your body if consumed in food.   I was surprised to learn that mollusks are one of the highest sources of iron, beating out liver and beef.  This was a happy discovery because I love clams, oysters, and mussels.  Too bad I can't get my hands on cockles, they may be the highest iron source of all.  The fact is, I've never seen a cockle in my entire life, but  like most kids, I learned about them from the folk song Molly Malone.

I've long enjoyed eating smoked oysters, mussels, and clams.  So, this recipe seemed like it would taste very good, plus it contains the requisite high levels of iron from the smoked clams and spinach.  It was delicious and took barely ten minutes to prepare.

WHB: Sweet Cherry Ice Cream

I promised a friend that I would make her some sweet cherry ice cream with the fruit I harvested and froze a few months ago.  This was my opportunity to use my Donvier Ice Cream maker, which is probably 15 years old.  Once a trendy device, it's been surpassed by newer ice cream makers.  But, as I don't make ice cream very often, I find that the old Donvier works just fine for my purposes.

The recipe is very simple, just cream, eggs, sugar, chopped sweet cherries, and vanilla.  Some people like almond extract with cherry ice cream, and that is a good pairing.  But, I prefer vanilla because it tastes better to me, and doesn't overwhelm the cherry flavor.  Vanilla pods are actually the fruit of an orchid, which is a pleasant thing to consider.  However, that wonderful vanilla taste and aroma happens only after the vanilla pods are cured for several months.  This salute to vanilla is perfect for Weekend Herb Blogging, which is being hosted by (drumroll, please) our fearless leader, the noble Kalyn herself, who created WHB. Go to her site, Kalyn's Kitchen, for a recap of herby recipes from bloggers around the world, probably on Monday.

Bread Baking Babes: Dark Onion Rye

I thought I would have to pass on this month's recipe, which was created by our very own Breadchick, who is the host for this month's challenge.  But, decided that it wouldn't be too hard, because I already had starter in the fridge, and my Mixmaster would do all the hard work.  Plus, several of the Babes had baked test runs, and I could take advantage of their tips.  And, how could I skip making rye bread?  At one time, I made it several times a month, so it was too tempting to pass this up.  Mary's recipe contains a small amount of onions in the starter, which I've never used before when I made rye bread.  I would have used fresh onions, but decided it would be easier to use some Penzeys dried onions lurking in my pantry.  I liked this bread very much, it makes great sandwiches.  Next time, I'll use fresh onions, as my dried onions were a bit old, so the flavor was muted.

The title of the bread is Dark Onion RYe.  However, the molasses I used wasn't the darkest variety, and the color of the bread was a tad light--but the great taste trumped that problem.

Iron Rich Food: Chopped Chicken Liver

My posts will likely be hit or miss well into the next month.  My anemia is quite overwhelming at times, and I spend a lot of time watching Law & Order, drifting in and out of consciousness. (This I know to be true: much as I love you Chris Noth, Vincent D'onofrio is simply amazing, with his updated Columbo act.)  My GYN doctor informed me that a hysterectomy looms in the near future.  I'll have to be transfused for that, because my hemoglobin is so low.  So, my time is now spent trying to eat iron rich foods, along with my odious iron supplements.  Naturally, if you're thinking of eating food packed with iron, liver is right at the top of the list. I hated it as a kid, and my mom never forced me to eat it, after I threw up her (by all accounts) wonderful liver and onions. 

I'm still not crazy about it, but decided to make some chopped chicken liver. It was easy and fast to make, and was a major part of my diet for the last two days. For a liver hater, I found it.....sort of good. Liver lovers might enjoy it a great deal more than me.  As I ate this, on matzo of course, I thought of my sister. She loved chicken livers, and would have made little noises of pleasure as she gobbled it down.

Iron Rich Food: Beef And Broccoli, With Oyster Sauce

Well, this explains a lot of things.  My visit to the doctor on Friday revealed that I have anemia.  And not  mild anemia.  Oh no, my hemoglobin is half of what it should be, as are the other levels they measured in my blood test. My doctor expressed amazement that I'm not flat on the floor, which alarmed me, as well as making me realize that I'm very stubborn...and stupid.  So, this is why I'm so absent minded, dizzy, and just plain exhausted most of the time. It's also likely the cause of my restless leg syndrome. And the cause of this anemia...well, it's a female thing.  All women hear me now, make sure you're getting enough iron, or you could wind up like me. 

I'm now taking awful tasting iron supplements, and researching iron rich foods on Google.  It so happens that beef and broccoli are both a good source for iron, and this recipe is a favorite of mine.  It tastes like beef and broccoli from Chinese restaurants, but I was able to make it with almost no oil.  And I did that because absent minded, anemic, me forgot to buy oil.

You might be on to the fact that I'm milking the anemia a bit. My cousin was chastising me for something today and I replied, "Hey, I'm anemic, cut me some slack!"  It's no fun being anemic, but it's rather freeing too. I do what I feel like doing, and no one can make me feel lazy or incompetent. 

I'm anemic, so cut me some slack.

PPN: Couscous Salad With Spinach And Lemon Chive Dressing

This will be a short post, because I'm exhausted from dancing all of last night.   My legs were doing the mambo, the samba, and the tango, but the rest of my body was trying to sleep. Yes, I'm so trendy, I have that hot new ailment called Restless Leg Syndrome. I always try to keep up with the popular syndromes, and I'm very good at this one.  I'm seeing my doctor tomorrow, because lack of sleep is going to drive me to do something unpleasant. I don't know what it would be, but most likely it would involve some kind of bodily harm to someone, just for looking at me the wrong way.

So, being really grumpy and tired, I fixed this quick meal that tasted very good. It didn't make me any less grumpy though.  It uses my favorite fast pasta, couscous, with parsley, spinach chiffonade, and lemon chive dressing.  I added some tuna to it, to give myself some protein.  But, while I love tuna, it didn't make me feel any better. I also used some sun gold tomatoes from my garden, which was nice, I admit.  But, basically, I need sleep.  If I don't get some, expect to see me on news as "Northern California woman runs amuck in small town, smashing windows and shooting people with a paintball gun."  Actually, I've never used a paintball gun, but it sounds like a handy thing right now.

WHB: The Return Of The Chickpea Patty

Yes, it's obvious that I have a fixation on certain types of food.  I can't resist most meatballs, or get enough chickpea patties.  The last one was not so long ago, and it was rather simple, but delicious. The chickpeas were ground fine, and combined with tomato sauce and a little cream, to make a patty crisp on the outside, but creamy on the inside. This time, I wanted to make them more rustic, rough textured and filled with vegetables.  And I would season them with the dynamic duo--cilantro and cumin.  I also made a "jam" made of chopped tomatoes, lemon juice, dried cherries, and honey.  It turned out just the way I wanted, delicious and filling.

WHB: Meatballs With Ginger Root And Radish Greens, For The Sensitive Stomach

After a week of eating little to no food, and what I did eat was very bland, I decided to test my stomach.    I wanted something with ginger root, as it's  a time honored remedy for an upset stomach. In truth, I wanted it more for the taste.   And I wanted it in meatballs.  Once the thought came into my head there was no going back.  So, I ground two skinless, boneless chicken thighs in the food processor, with radish greens from my garden, a little soy sauce, and ginger root.  I made five meatballs, cooked them in a skillet, ate them with profound pleasure, then waited for my stomach to protest.  It didn't. There was nary a peep out of it.

I've loved radishes all my life, but only recently began using the tops in cooking. They have a marvelous tangy bite, like horseradish, and paired nicely here with the ginger root.  And since radishes can be shockingly expensive at times, it's nice to use both the root and tops.  They are amazingly easy and quick to grow yourself, which is what I do now. 

WCB: The Recap Begins

You'd stick you head all the way into a shoe too, if your mom had been walking through catnip with them.

That's righteous stuff Bro.