Lucid Food

I have been interested in seasonal cooking for a few years and have enjoyed the explosion of cookbooks focused on cooking with what is in season. A recent example of this trend is Lucid Food: Cooking for an Eco-Conscious Life by Louise Shafia. This book goes beyond just cooking in season to considering the ecological impact of your food choice. Thankfully, it is not too preachy and includes a chapter, Eco-Kitchen Basics, which goes over how to make these choices, even in an urban setting. If you are new to the this idea this chapter is a very good introduction.

The book has beautiful photographs which always make recipes more appealing. Many of the recipes are vegetarian but this is not a vegetarian cookbook or even a particularly health-conscious one. Finding some ingredients may not be easy at a standard grocery store in Omaha -- fried tofu pockets, sheets of yuba and cocoa nibs for instance. But there are a variety of recipes for each season from snacks and soups to entrees, sides and desserts. This is not a cookbook for beginner cooks -- but rather for the intermediate or advanced. It is for the adventurous who want to try new ingredients, flavors and tastes.

I tried The Best Granola Ever which may not be the best ever but it is a very good granola, and I had some cocoa nibs to use up (they add a nice note to the granola). It has been a nice topping on hot oatmeal in the mornings. I didn't feel that this was a recipe that had to be confined to Spring , given that it includes mainly dried fruits, nuts and rolled oats. Perhaps Shafia thinks that most people will be eating granola in the warmer months.

We also had the Indian Spiced Scrambled Eggs (recipe follows) -- potatoes and cauliflower with scrambled eggs. It was liked even by the smaller members of the household. Mustard seeds are not always easy to find in the grocery store (but if you get some, hang on to them as there is another cookbook which I'll blog about later, where you'll need them). The recipe describes the dish as being airy and light -- which I did not achieve, 2 minutes is a long time to beat eggs by hand -- but we no one else knew and we enjoyed them nonetheless. Minor quibble -- it is hard when a cookbook just specifies an onion or potato with no indication of size or weight. I guess it gives your room to do what you want but it can make a difference and if you are new to cooking it can be easy to make a misstep here.

There are other recipes I am interested in trying. From Fall: Amaranth Porridge with Fruit and Nuts (Amaranth is a small grain that has a slight peanut flavor to it -- makes great porridge) and Grape and Ginger-Glazed Chicken; from Winter: Mediterranean Shepherd's Pie, Buckwheat and Orange Zest Gingersnaps; from Spring: Matzoh Brei with Caramelized Apples, Ash-e-reshteh (Persian New Year's Soup with Beans, Noodles and Herbs); and from Summer: Tofu Banh Mi Sandwiches and from the Accompaniments: Sweet Potato and Cranberry Cornmeal Biscuits and Green Rice.

Indian Spiced Scrambled Eggs
serves 4 to 6

1 Yukon Gold potato, peeled and diced
1 cups cauliflower florets
5 tablespoons of olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon mustard seed
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt
6 eggs

Place the potato in a saucepan with salted water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil for 4 minutes. Add the cauliflower and boil for 1 minute more. Drain the vegetables.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add 3 tablespoons of the oil. Add the onion, and cook until soft. Add the potato, cauliflower, spices and a dash of salt. Decrease the heat to medium and saute for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, transfer the vegetable mixture to a large bowl, and cover. Return the skillet to the stove.

Crack the eggs into a bowl and add 2 tablespoons water and 3 dashes of salt. Whisk for 2 minutes, tilting the bowl as you whisk to whip as much air into the eggs as possible. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, pour in the eggs. Allow them to begin to set before stirring, then gently push the eggs toward the center of the pan with a wooden spoon. Tilt the pan to evenly distribute the uncooked eggs. When the eggs are just firm, flip them over and cook for 25 seconds more.

Transfer the eggs to the bowl of vegetables and stir to mix. Taste and season with salt. Serve immediately.

My Tips:
1. Instead of mincing fresh ginger, peel and grate it. I store my ginger in the freezer and peel and grate as needed.
2. I never use as much oil as called for when sauteeing I used about 2 tablespoons total.
3. When cooking for small kids, they can be wary of spices. I began by using about half the amount of spices called for in dishes like this, and omitting hot spices like cayenne pepper entirely. Now, about 3 years later, I use the full amount of spices except the cayenne. That I still omit or perhaps use a small dash. My 8-year-old commented on this still being a little spicy but she ate it.