Monday, February 8, 2010

sea soup



makes two very large bowls with a bit left over, could work for three.
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 medium onion, sliced thin
  • 2 cups chopped dino kale (or other winter greens)
  • 5 radishes, sliced thick
  • 1 tsp dashi no moto or fish bullion (can be found in the ethnic aisle of many grocers)
  • 2 cups any broth (I had beef on hand so used it, but mushroom would be great)
  • 4 cups chopped bok choy
  • extra water
  • 1 egg per person
  • miso paste
  • small block tofu, chopped
  • 1 cup brown rice
  • furikake






  1. heat oil in a large pot and saute onion 'til translucent
  2. add kale, then radishes and saute until slightly wilted
  3. sprinkle in dashi no moto and and broth
  4. stir well, then close lid and simmer until kale is very tender
  5. meanwhile, add 1.5 tbsp of miso paste to each person's bowl, take a bit of liquid from the soup and thin the miso, so it will easily incorporate with the soup later
  6. add a scant 1/4 cup rice and equal share of the tofu (no more than 1/4 cup) to each bowl with thinned miso
  7. add bok choy to simmering soup, if needed add water to just cover greens, and return to simmer
  8. make a slight nest for each each egg, crack in eggs and cover soup until eggs are poached to desired hardness, just a minute or two
  9. ladle egg, veggies and broth into bowls and season top generously with furikake, eat

Friday, February 5, 2010

Something I Love



I'm adverse to serials.

I usually won't watch a new television show until it's off the air--I hate having characters live in my head only to have them vanish with no conclusion; I get enough of that in life.*

I do read web-comics like people watch TV.

For just a year or so I've been reading Anders Loves Maria, it's a beautiful heart-wrenching comic that catches the frustrations and joy of love with fabulous muted art that evolves with the story--and last night the author concluded it.

It's also _really_ popular.

If you haven't already read it I highly recommend you do.

Here's a link to the archives: http://anderslovesmaria.reneengstrom.com/archives/

*with many qualifications and exceptions to any absolute

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

a moment of calm

Sorry for the radio silence lately, things have been hectic between work and home, and most of the meals have been simple--no fancy dinners attended or appetizers shared, and there are only so many variations on potato-leek soup anyone is interested in seeing.*
path
We had a great few days last weekend visiting relatives in Denver; I'm simultaneously travel exhausted and rejuvenated from temporarily escaping the grind.

*edit: so apparently I haven't actually posted a recipe for potato leek soup yet; I'll get on that.