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What geeks eat...![]() What geeks eat... Vanessa writes a food blog about foraging, cooking, eating, and thinking in Wisconsin. Articles
The season draws to a close
2007-10-23 21:32:00 The Westside Community Farmers’ Market has been good to me this year and with only two more Saturdays left the season is drawing to a close. I really hate getting out of bed early to go to the market…sleep is just one of those things I do so very well. But I do get up, ... More About: Season , Local , Close
Eggsactly what I wanted
2007-10-20 21:43:00 After the bad mojo was banished with the ethereal brioche I just didn’t feel like cooking. Its not that I didn’t want to eat, it’s just that I didn’t want to cook. On Monday I made a big pot of veggie soup and it was really good and satisfying. We ate that for 3 nights ... More About: Local , Wanted
Petite brioche à tête?World bread day 2007
2007-10-16 02:59:00 Here in the lovely Madison area we have some delightful bakeries. Anything baked at Madison Sourdough Company is crusty and satisfying, Café Soleil turns out an Epi roll that I long to have with a double shot latté for breakfast each morning, and we have a soft spot for Clausen’s boysenberry bread and they ... More About: World , Bread , Petite , Brea
Bad mojo
2007-10-13 19:40:00 I’m suffering from some bad cooking mojo brought on by that heinous harvest feast. I think I’m still capable of baking though, so I do have plans to bake this weekend and you’ll see the results soon. Instead, I’ll share some laughs…two incredibly funny videos. Thanks to Chris, who pointed me in the direction of ... More About: Mojo
Harvest feast?not so much
2007-10-10 03:08:00 The harvest feast didn’t turn out as expected…but then what does. The outside temperature was hovering around 90, the farmer was harvesting soy beans in the field next to our house creating a dust storm in the gusting winds. You know, satan’s armpit, harvest from hell kind of weather. I cranked up the AC and ... More About: Feast , Harvest
Harvest feast - the menu
2007-10-06 21:47:00 I’m almost always thinking about food. Sure there are hours that my brain is totally occupied with other thoughts, but as soon as possible, I’m back…thinking about that vivid orange Kabocha squash on the counter, or the pile of potatoes waiting to be transformed into something of this earth and yet not. Obsessive? Probably…I admit that ... More About: Wisconsin , Menu , Feast , Harvest
Pot pie of my dreams?chicken that is
2007-10-02 23:42:00 When I was a kid growing up in rural Illinois, my mom would occasionally purchase Banquet pot pies at the IGA, they would be on sale for some incredibly low price and us kids would rejoice because we loved them so. I do remember the down side was that they took forever to bake, they ... More About: Dreams , Chicken , Local
Tart me up
2007-09-26 23:59:00 This pear and tarragon tart was the most delectable pastry I’ve had in years. Created by the incomparable Tart Lady…I’m in love. You can find her most Saturday mornings at the Farmers’ Market located in the parking lot of the DOT building. Save some for me. Don’t forget that tomorrow is Local Night Out here ...
My favorite breakfast
2007-09-24 22:06:00 Homemade yogurt with maple pecan granola and peaches. This is seriously delicious. Maple pecan granola 4 cups old fashion rolled oats 2 cups pecan pieces 1/2 cup canola oil 1/2 cup maple syrup Preheat oven to 150F. Put everything in a large bowl, stir it up well. Turn out onto a heavy baking sheet lined with a silpat. Bake for 10 minutes, ... More About: Breakfast , Favorite , Brea , Favor
Chicken enchiladas
2007-09-22 19:43:00 Sometime I crave simple casserole-type food. Macaroni and cheese, broccoli, rice, and cheese casserole, chicken enchiladas. Notice that these dishes all have a common component of cheese…melted, gooey, belly-warming cheese. Usually when I crave food like this it’s an indication that I’m stressed and I need to be comforted in every way possible. Yes I ... More About: Chicken
Making plans with Nigel
2007-09-18 03:46:00 I love Nigel Slater. As a writer I admire his voice and technique and as an eater I adore his food. I recently picked up The Kitchen Diaries and when I need inspiration I burrow about in the index, looking for entries dealing with whatever it is that I have to cook. For me, at ... More About: Plans , Makin
Salmon en papillote
2007-09-13 00:27:00 Cooking fish en papillote…oh excuse me…in parchment paper…is a classic, french method. Like so many other classic methods it has been widely written about on the internets, so I’m not going to drone on and on about it other than to say, if you haven’t tried this yet, you should. It’s easy, fun, and foolproof…even ... More About: Lote
Chocolate armagnac cake
2007-09-08 21:11:00 If food had ratings, like the MPAA ratings on movies, this cake would be rated R…not for nudity, language, drug use, or violence…but for the sheer adult pleasure that this cake provides. The complex flavors, the textures, so many, so much…it is almost overwhelming. Plus it was fun to make and included the opportunity to ... More About: Cake , Chocolate , Chocolat , Choco , Magna
BBQ spare ribs and more
2007-09-05 00:20:00 It’s that time again…time to clear the digital desktop of its clutter. These are all interesting dishes that I’ve made over the summer and for whatever reason I just never got around to giving them their own posts. Lucky you…think of it as an all you can eat buffet that’s actually worth eating…dig in! Mmmmmm…..they ... More About: Spar , Pare
Seeing red
2007-09-02 22:03:00 I purchased 140 pounds of roma tomatoes and yesterday I processed them into 80 quarts of ground tomatoes and tomato halves to be used over the next year. Alex helped by riding with me to get the tomatoes and then loading and unloading them in and out of the van. GH helped me round ...
Smokey corn and cabbage salad
2007-08-29 23:46:00 Often when I cook I start out with a vague idea of where I want the meal to end up…no not in my belly silly…I mean how it will taste and what it will look like. On Monday I cooked six ears of corn knowing that we wouldn’t eat them all but that I could ... More About: Corn , Salad , Smokey , Cabbage
Stuffed zucchini with pasta
2007-08-21 00:42:00 For me, inspiration often comes from the book I’m currently reading. Last week when I made this dish I was reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love…specifically I was on the “eat” section and since she was in Rome and eating pasta I too wanted to eat pasta. Which was fortunate because I had just purchased ... More About: Pasta , Local , Zucchini
Almost a boomchunka?just add cherries
2007-08-16 22:10:00 Several years ago we vacationed in the small northern Michigan town of Glen Arbor. Dexter suggested this destination because it’s the home of The Cherry Republic…in other words, all things cherry. Cherry Republic’s slogan is “life liberty, beaches, and pie” and who can fight with that…actually it sounds like my idea of heaven. It was ... More About: Chun
A slight change in perspective
2007-08-15 02:44:00 The onslaught of zucchini continues and frankly it becomes a chore trying to think of new ways to use it. I’m now at the point that I put off thinking about what I’ll cook for dinner until 5:30 or so and then I stick my head in the refrigerator and those damn zucchinis are still ... More About: Change , Perspective , Chang , Chan
Tomato love and more
2007-08-12 20:55:00 I’ve been having a wonderful summer and I’ve been greatly remiss in not sharing more of it with you, my dear and faithful readers. Because it is you, dear readers, that I think of when I’m deciding what to bake, cook, photograph, and write…well you and those three big guys I live with. I’m ... More About: Love , Tomato
Ratatouille?no not the movie
2007-08-08 03:04:00 No I haven’t seen it…when it comes to animated movies I only watch The Simpson’s at the movie theater and the rest must be viewed on DVD (the small children to adult ratio is too much for me). Yes, I know it’s fabulous and Ruhlman says that it really gets the chef ethos…whatever…it’s still ... More About: Movie , Local , Ratatouille , The Movie , No No
Savory onion zucchini bread
2007-08-04 22:43:00 Since I did my very delicious and sweet chocolate zucchini bread I thought it only fair that I give equal time to its savory cousin. This bread is a bit more versatile in that it can stand in for any bread or cracker at mealtime or snack time. I like it it much more a ... More About: Local , Savory , Bread , Onion , Brea
New York strip tease
2007-08-02 03:31:00 Very little cooking has taken place around here lately. Mostly because it is really hot, but also because I’ve been working on home repair projects. But on Saturday morning I was at the Westside Market to pickup these steaks from Eric of Jordandal Farm. Yup, that’s Eric…click on him and you’ll go to the Jordandal ... More About: New York , York , Strip , Strip tease , Ease
Not your average zucchini bread
2007-07-27 20:12:00 Yes it’s there…see those delicate flecks of green and how they contrast so tastily with the deep, rich brown of the chocolate…really, it is as good as it looks. Yes I know every food blogger is writing about zucchini bread…but what else can you do when practically the whole continent of North America is disappearing ... More About: Bread , Brea , Zucchini , Average
Cultured butter?enormous flavor and no fuss
2007-07-26 19:46:00 GH always dreams of the day I make my own cheese. I’m not there yet, but I’ve taken another step towards that end. This week I made cultured butter. A few weeks back the NYT’s food section published an article about how to make butter. Wow, it sounded easy…however I’ve had a lot of “oh ... More About: Flavor , Butter , Butt , Fuss
Sunday dinner?s finest
2007-07-23 03:43:00 See those dinner rolls. They look light, rich, and fluffy…and you’re right, they are. I bet you wish you could make rolls like that…but maybe you think you can’t. Because although everyone loves freshly baked bread, somehow, somewhere, a hideous untruth was started and continues to this very day. That untruth is the notion that ... More About: Dinner , Sunday , Fine , Finest
Make these pancakes?please!
2007-07-20 04:13:00 Holler, over at Tinned Tomatoes writes a blog that is an all around fun read. She tagged me a few weeks ago for the 8 meme so here it goes: I have absolutely no understanding of why people make pancakes from a mix…it boggles my mind! The other day I saw a woman standing in front ... More About: Make , Lease , Ease , Pancakes , These
Farmers? Market Porn?burgers, tomatoes, and cherries?oh my!
2007-07-16 23:03:00 On Saturday morning Alex and I got up early and headed for the Westside Farmer s’ Market in Madison. I knew that there might be tomatoes, sweet corn, and sour cherries so I was antsy to get there early and not miss out on the good stuff. I wasn’t disappointed. WoooHooo…that is one perfect burger. Just ... More About: Burgers , Tomatoes , Urge
CSA Roundup and how tapioca kicked my butt
2007-07-12 23:21:00 My desktop is cluttered with photos from food that I haven’t written about yet, so here we go…. The pasta in the top left corner had smoked pork jowl lardons, broccoli, fava beans, green onions, and basil. It was tossed with an egg and a generous slosh of pasta water and was so utterly fresh, ... More About: Roundup , Round , Butt , Kick
The Burpinator says,
More articles from this author:2007-07-10 15:29:00 The Silver Palate Cookbook has long been one of my favorites. It was given to me by Deb, GH’s sister, at an impromptu wedding shower in 1987 and it is by far my most used cookbook. So many of my family’s favorite dishes are adaptations from this book. The Big Bread Sandwich on pages 324-325 is ... 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |




