I'll just have a bowl of oatmeal.

Weekends are great for so many reasons.  And probably like you, I spend all week looking forward to them, counting down the days till they get here.  So much so in fact, that it often seems I forget all of the good things that can happen during the work week.  For me, having breakfast "out" defines many-a-happy-weekend.  And I often wonder why?  I mean, what's so hard about frying up a couple of eggs, making scratch pancakes, a little sizzling pork fat....it isn't rocket science we are talking about, right?  Why is going out for breakfast so alluring?  I'm pretty sure the home version of a weekend breakfast will often trump what I can order out in most local establishments.  Yet still, I want to go out for breakfast.  My major complaint often revolves around the menu.  Not much innovative or interesting happening 'round these parts.  Seems that a lot of people have pretty simple breakfast tastes, and I think it's time for that to change.

For me, I think my love of breakfast out is because I have been to some REALLY good breakfast spots, and I clearly recall each of those finds.  They always seem to be when I am on vacation somewhere.....a diner in Taos, NM with awesome Huevos Rancheros, a crunchy organic bistro in Bar Harbor, Maine with weird but amazing omelets, out-of-this-world red bean and rice, biscuits and jam at Lucille's in Ft. Collins, CO, european style breakfast buffets in Germany with quark and great cheeses, a southern breakfast platter with grits at Mothers in New Orleans. Well, I guess even Pamela's hotcakes wrapped around fresh strawberries here in Pittsburgh can qualify.  You know, I'm reliving each yummy thing by just typing this.  Hold on, I gotta jump on a travel website and check some airfares!!

I'm back.....You know what I always want to order when I get to those funky far-flung breakfast spots that I so love?  Oatmeal.  Yep, Oatmeal.  That even sounds weird to me, seeing as I don't love oatmeal.  But, funky breakfast spots have a way of making it sound good, and, well, tempting.  So, to fulfill my need for funky breakfast spots, and tempt myself to stay home on Saturday morning, I've been working on my oatmeal.  I figure, what can it hurt?  It's kinda good for you, its comfort food, and not one place in a 15 mile radius of my house has a bowl of interesting oatmeal on it's menu.  I'm starting an oatmeal revolution!

Here are the secrets I have uncovered.  Number one.  Use good oatmeal.  No, not instant oats.  Steel cut are best, if you like lots of texture.  I'm a fan of a mixed grain that I've found at a local bulk food store, which has six different grains including oats and barley.  Number two.  Cook with milk, not water.  I never considered this step before, but what a difference it makes.  Immediately when it starts cooking on the stovetop, I smell cookies, which certainly is not all bad.  Third.  Throw in dried cherries when it is cooking.  Cherries, not raisins.  I'm in love with a 3 cherry mix that I found.  When they plump up in the milk, you'd almost think they were fresh picked.  Fourth.  Add in vanilla and a bit of brown sugar while cooking. (getting hungry now).  Fifth.  Top it off with fresh toasted pecans and a drizzle of maple syrup. Oh, sliced bananas go great here to at this point too.  Whew.  What a bowl of oatmeal.

If you saw this on the menu at your favorite local diner when you sat down for Saturday morning breakfast, would it attract you?  Would you eschew bacon and eggs and order it?  I'm telling you, an oatmeal revolution is in my grasp.


Saturday Morning Oatmeal 
(serves 2-3)


1 cup quality oatmeal
2 cups low fat milk 
pinch salt
sprinkle of cinnamon
3 T brown sugar
nice size handful of dried cherries
1 tsp vanilla
nice size handful of raw pecans, toasted and lightly salted
sliced banana (if desired)
drizzle of maple syrup


1.  Add milk to saucepan.  Stir in oats, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and cherries.  Heat on medium high till mixture comes to boil, stirring often.  Turn down to med/low to keep at simmer.  Cook for approx. 5 minutes, until oats are tender and milk is mostly thickened.  Don't try to rush it, milk will scorch.  Its better to take it off the heat a bit early, than leave it on too long.  If oatmeal seems to dry, you can add more milk.
2.  Stir in vanilla.
3.  While oats are cooking, heat non-stick skillet sprayed lightly with oil.  Place in raw pecans.  Heat over medium high, just until fragrant and slightly toasted.  Sprinkle lightly with salt and remove from pan.
4.  Spoon oats into bowl.  Top with pecans, sliced banana's if desired, and a drizzle of maple syrup.

Sardines are Good Food

If my father reads this post, he may not step foot in my house again.  He is THAT put off by fish in a can.  I can honestly say that I never had canned sardines before (or fresh, for that matter).  There were times that cans of tuna fish were successfully smuggled into the house growing up.  Mom and I would secretly eat it when he was away on business.  We had to sneak the empty tin back out of the house, lest he find it in the garbage.   My sister inherited his same disdain for all things canned and fishy.  But my grandma.... well, lets just say she was a different story.  Smoked oysters in a can were one of her fave's.  I never screwed up the courage to actually try it, but I liked to watch her place them gently on a saltine, lovingly eat them, and then wash them down with a cold Iron City.  Pure pleasure, indeed.

But I wanted to try sardines.  I'm a big fan of tuna fish, and use canned anchovies for the basis of pasta sauces and salad dressings.  Never sardines.  After reading yet another article on Omega-3 fatty acids in oily fish, I bought a can.  My first foray was to make a cracker spread, by deviling (think spicy and zesty).  Not half-bad.  A few minor adjustments to get it just right.  Then, I spread that deviled sardine on a cracker, thought of grandma, popped it in and smiled.

Deviled Sardines


1 can sardines in olive oil (these vary in quality, mine were from Morocco)--Mash with fork
1/2 - 1 TBSP good dijon mustard
1/2 - 1 TBSP worcestershire sauce
sprinkle of cayenne pepper


Stir together, then adjust seasoning to taste.  Spread on cracker.

Eating Peru

Our Christmas Eve dinner "theme" this year was Peru.  An odd choice, maybe, seeing as we are not Peruvian by any stretch of the imagination.  Our loose connection to Peru is really through travel.  A couple of years ago, my mother went on a trip to Peru with my Uncle Gordon.  This was no ordinary vacation though.  My uncle is a pilot, and uses his accumulated FedEx vacation time to volunteer for Orbis, a flying eye hospital.  Their mission involves bringing cutting edge surgeries/surgeons to poverty stricken countries so that sight can be restored for those afflicted with treatable disease.  This particular trip, he took my mother.  She had the chance to see a few cities in Peru, most notably from a real-world perspective, not just the tourist face.  She brought home great memories, beautiful pictures, and a few trinkets.  Among these items was a leather-enrobed bottle of Pisco, Peru's claim to fame in the liquor department.  Since her return, that bottle has sat untouched, waiting for an appropriate use.  I can happily say, we found one!

As for our Christmas Eve multi-cultural tradition, it goes back quite a few years now.  In an effort to establish a unique tradition for my family, the nationality meal was born.  Early in the evolution we had fun, loosely constructed themes, such as American Italian (wedding soup and spaghetti with red sauce), Pittsburgh theme (homemade Primanti sandwiches with fresh cut fries and slaw right on the corned beef sandwich), and a pretty generic Mexican theme.  But as time went by, and younger family members became more adventuresome eaters, the themes have became more involved, and more exotic.  We spent one year celebrating Scandinavia, with an authentic Smorgasbord and a phoned in Norwegian blessing.  That year we even made themed Christmas ornaments.  Our themes for the past two years have been based on the travels each of my nieces did.  Turkish cuisine was celebrated after my oldest niece, Kara, traveled around the world on Semester at Sea.   And last year we had an authentic Chinese meal, after my niece Jill returned from a school trip to Beijing.  Duck was the centerpiece, and formed the base of the soup, the sides, and the main dish.  But this year, it was time to celebrate Peru.

I have always had a driving interest in food culture around the world, and love the challenge and learning that goes along with the Christmas Eve theme choices.  Starting in November, the final decisions are made, and the research begins in earnest.  The internet certainly makes the job easier, but I often find the need to consult resources in book form as well.  This year, a trip to the Carnegie Library with my students turned up a Peruvian Cuisine cookbook, which proved invaluable.  Next, the ingredient procurement takes center stage.  This often involves new food items I have never used before, spices I've never seen, and techniques that are completely novel to me.  Every once in a while, it even involves purchasing a new piece of cookware!!  (Paella pan for spain, turkish coffee "pot").   The challenge item that I needed to find for Peru was a yellow hot pepper paste, called Aji Mirasol.  Many of the dishes I selected called for this paste, and I was stuck unless I found it.  Luckily, the Latin American store in the Strip district carried it, so I was in luck.

Creating the menu is a big challenge.  Knowing that you can find the ingredients is a first important step, but then taking a realistic look at prep time, staging time, and number of eaters is critical.  The other factor is a bit more enigmatic....will they eat it?  All bets are off with this, although I must say that the odds have increasingly risen every year since it's inception.   So this was the year I really put them to the test.  Can you say, CEVICHE??!!!  Of course, the meal would have to start with this culinary conquest from Peru, the appetizer made by marinating raw fish in lime juice and spices to "cook" it with mere protein changes.  The menu:

Ceviche de pescado

(Marinated Fish Salad)

  

Bread with Inka Aji Sauce

Chancho al Horno

(Peruvian Pork)

Pollo con Aji Verde

(Roast Chicken with Green Sauce)

Papas a la Huancaina

(Potatoes in Cheese Sauce)

Peske de Quinoa

(Puree of Quinoa)

Tres Leche Cake

(Three Milk Cake)

Fair Trade Peruvian Coffee

In answer to your question, yes they did. ........ I know!!.........right??  Even I did!!  And I made it!!  But after getting through the icky thought process, the taste was actually quite good, very astringent, refreshing, spicy on the tongue, and fresh.  I can see where you might actually come to like this stuff.  No one asked for seconds though, so that might offer some clue.

The rest of the meal went swimmingly, although I regret to say that no pictures were taken (blame it on the fantastic food!).  We even had a lively peruvian trivia match, complete with prizes from Peru.  In the end, the cuisine of Peru was a hit.  Below are the two most popular dishes of the evening:


Inka Aji Sauce
This brilliant green dipping sauce was served with french baguette slices to dip slide into it.  Before I could put the next course on the table, the whole bottle of sauce was all used up, and the bread right with it.  From what I could gather, it was quite popular.  


1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp lime juice
1/4 head romaine lettuce, chopped
1 cup cilantro leaves
2 serrano peppers, seeds and membranes removed
1 tsp minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp scoopable chicken bouillon
7 saltine crackers


Combine in blender or food processor.  Will keep up to a week in refrigerator.


Papas a la Huancaina
This peruvian potato salad has many different versions.  I tried out 2 different recipes and settled on this one.  In all, I served this dish to 3 different groups, and all to rave revues.  It would make a great twist on the classic picnic salad, if you lay your hands on the spice paste!


You will be building a layered salad onto individual serving plates, or onto one serving platter.

• Wash and chop romaine lettuce leaves to form a bed on each serving plate
• Boiled whole potatoes, peeled and sliced into half moons (red or new are best)
• Peeled and quarter hard-boiled eggs to lay on top of potatoes
• Dressing, as described below, to pour overtop of potatoes
• Kalamata olives to scatter on top of dressing

4 TBSP vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 tsp aji mirasol paste, or to taste
2 cloves garlic, smashed
2 cups queso fresco ( can substitute feta cheese)
4 saltine crackers
3/4 cup evaporated milk (or more to thin to desired consistency)
Salt and Pepper to taste


Saute onion, garlic and pepper paste in oil until softened.  Transfer to food processor.  Add evaporated milk and blend.  Add cheese and crackers and blend until smooth.  Sauce should be fairly thick, but pourable.  Thicken with more saltines, or thin with more milk, if necessary.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dressing will keep for several days in refrigerator.