Gazpacho and

Yeeeeaaaaah summer food. This is worth it. Worth buying the fresh herbs. Worth getting good feta.

And you can even make it with a handicapped right arm, if you have a food processor. Although to be honest I made this about a month ago.

And hey, you will probably have leftover V-8 so there may be a Bloody Mary in your future.

Here’s the update on my arm. I had a follow-up appointment and was told that apparently they took all the metal out. That complicated matrix of plates and pins I thought was holding me together is no more. The bionic arm is no more.

On one hand I feel bereft. The last three years it has been like a shield. A guardian. Don’t fuck with my arm, it’s full of metal.

On the other hand, I feel reborn. With the guidance of that metal, my bones knit themselves back together. I no longer need that metal. The baggage is gone. My bones are stronger than their technology.

My arm is all MINE again.

On the imaginary third hand. The “it was surgery, not a suicide attempt” scar that had faded so nicely over the years will be back, and probably a bit bigger.

I’ll just look at that as a badge of honor.

Food!

Daphne Oz’s book, “Relish” is both adorable and obnoxious. If you have time to curate your closet, good for you. Goooood for you.

I lie. I totally curate.

I curated the shit out of that metal in my arm.

Watermelon and Jalapeño Gazpacho with feta adapted from Daphne Oz’s Relish
1 big chopped tomato (1 1/2-ish cups)
1 heaping cup chopped watermelon
1 peeled, chopped cucumber
2 Tbsp. jarred pickled jalapeño slices
1/4 c. chopped shallot
Juice of one lime
2 Tbsp. parsley
2 Tbsp. mint
1/2 tsp. chopped garlic
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 c. V-8
Pinch kosher salt
Garnishes
Feta
Hot sauce (Chipotle Tabasco!)
Vegan Worcestershire
Combine all but the garnishes in the food processor. Make as thick and chunky or thin and blended as you like. Garnish with the fixings. I didn’t think it needed almost any of the hot sauce or Worcestershire but they play well with the feta.

Teen Witch

I was such a good goth in my teens. I guess I still can be. And I’ve got headshots to prove it. I wear mostly black, am pale as can be, and still listen to Skinny Puppy.

But I also occasionally sport some pink(crazy!) and will admit my ipod has a song or two by Justin Timberlake. Although Nine Inch Nails still occupies more bytes than any other group. Even Siouxie and the Banshees. Even The Cure. No really, I swear I’m over it. Let me just go blow out those black candles.

I did the requisite dabbling in Wicca that was befitting of my teenaged goth splendor. But now, I’m no witch. I appreciate the exultation of nature that is part of Wicca, but could never quite get behind the whole god/goddess thing. Although my friend Meow and I had some splendid nighttime rituals using the bench in the park as our altar. I’m surprised the cops never came to break up our candlelit honoring of the four elements. Hmm.

All this is to say I own The Wicca Cookbook. An old therapist of mine gave it to me. Don’t ask. She also gave me really cool dragon stockings.

The Wicca Cookbook is divided into chapters by the sabbats, or Wiccan holidays. Each recipe has some sort of explanation of a part of the holiday and how the food relates to it, often with a little chant or, um, spell to go with it.
I was flipping through the fall equinox chapter since that just happened last Saturday. I wanted to celebrate that from now on until December the night is getting longer. I prefer night. No really, I swear I’m not goth. Let me just finish this glass of blood and we can chat about it.

Oh, the recipe.

I realized I had everything I needed for the Enchanted Grape Salad. The Wicca Cookbook never quite explained the enchanted part but talked about fall and harvest of grapes and gave this last bit of advice before the recipe:

“Offer the grapes in this salad to the Great Goddess and, if possible, party in a vineyard with passion and abandon”.

I’ll take some passion and abandon. And some grapes.

Enchanting Grape Salad from The Wicca Cookbook by Jamie Wood and Tara Seefeldt
1 cup of greens(I used spinach)
1 cup chopped green apple
1 1/2 cups grapes
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar(good balsamic)
Toss it up. Exult. Enchant. Ellen-ify. I have no idea what that means. Blow out your candles before you leave the house.

It’s Greek to me

The quiche. Unlike my confusion surrounding my Danish Potato Salad(not that Danish according to a Dane!)I get this quiche. I don’t think quiche is Greek, per se. But Greek cuisine does have things like tomatoes and feta so I get why they call this Greek. I get it. Unlike life. Which I don’t get. And I don’t think I should.
I also don’t get olives.
I hate them. Actually, it seems to run in my family on both sides-maternally and paternally.
My mom claims that one time she actually enjoyed an olive in France. One time. Clearly she was intoxicated on the vin they serve there.
All this is to say, I left the olives out of this quiche, but if you are not a Clifford, or making this for one, feel free to add some and kick up the Greek-i-ness.

Any foods you can’t stand? Is it familial?

Greek Quiche(adapted from The Big Book of Breakfast by Maryana Vollstedt)
3 eggs
1/2 c. Almond milk
1 c. Half and half
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
A few handfuls if baby spinach
1 c. Grated reduced fat mozzarella
1/4 c. Sundried tomatoes(soaked for five minutes in boiling water, drained, dried, chopped)
1/4 c. Sliced green onions
1/2 c. Crumbled low fat feta
Preheat oven to 350.whisk eggs, salt, pepper, oregano, almond milk and half and half. Stir in spinach, mozzarella, tomatoes and onions. Pour into a pie plate sprayed with nonstick spray. Sprinkle with feta. Bake until knife inserted in center comes out clean, around 40 minutes.

Patching together

Sometimes I feel like I’m trying to patch together my life. All sorts of random people and jobs and places that I need to connect somehow to turn into something awesome.
This parallels my kitchen adventures of late.
Wow Clifford, parallels? Way to write a blog post that reads like a college essay. Onward.
First week of the new year, acting not up and running yet. I’m feeling off-kilter. I make one of my once-in-a-blue-moon pilgrimages to Whole Paycheck to get chia seeds for the recipe I wanted to make and they were out.
Whilst shopping, I think I had my second Seth Rogen run-in in the last two months. The first time I accidentally chatted up his table at a restaurant, before I realized it was him. They probably thought I was just trying to get to him-but actually I heard them wondering if the Cards had won the series and I was regaling them with game highlights. After they left my friend informed me who I was talking to. He had a hat and glasses, how was I supposed to know?
This time I nearly ran my shopping cart into the flowers in the produce section. In front of Seth. At least I think it was him-I never recognize people. If he recognized me he probably thinks I have issues. Or suspects a stalker. With issues. He’d only be half-wrong.
Let’s not debate that right now.
So I get home and get on Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body‘s recipe(blog title is meant to be funny, people, please don’t get offended)for Sundried Tomato and Mozzerella Tart and realize I don’t have mozzerella or cream. Or enough cream cheese. Or fresh basil. So I decide to halve the recipe, substitute 1/2 and 1/2 for cream, feta for mozzerella and parmesan and dried basil for fresh. And decided to bake it in large muffin cups. And omit the crust.
Dang! This is one ugly cheesecake-let. I made the mistake of WAY overcooking this. The reduced sizing + smaller pans require less heat. But I blithely ignored my instincts and let them cook away. They smelled like heaven though, and while dry, the flavor was good. Don’t be like me! Keep an eye on these and take out before they get too brown.
While consuming these I kept up the stargazing I started at Whole foods and caught the episode of Grimm guest-starring my acting teacher, Brad Henke. There he be!:
>

Go Brad!
Grimm also stars fellow St. Louisan David Giuntoli. Our moms are friends. I am so very close.
To my career. To making good food. To being a working actor. But sometimes it all seems like a battle that I may or may not be winning. I am gonna choose to believe I am, if not winning, at least ahead in the race. I plan to stay that way.
Enough of that. Food time!
Savory Sundried Tomato/Feta Cheesecake-lets(adapted from this recipe on the Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body Blog-it’s just an offensive enough title I like it)
16 oz. lowfat cream cheese
2 Tbsp. 1/2 and 1/2
2 eggs
3/4 c. feta, crumbled
1/4 c. sundried tomatoes, soaked in boiling water, drained, dried and chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. chopped garlic
Heat oven to 400. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add 1/2 and 1/2 and eggs and beat until creamy. Stir in everything else. Divide amongst Pam-sprayed large muffin tins. Bake 15 minutes then reduce heat to 300 and bake until center is set. It took these about a half hour. Turn off oven, crack open and leave for 30 minutes, then cool to room temp.