Food: Not Just for Eating

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Apparently, some people don't enjoy eating as much as I do.  The mother of my suitemate from freshman year wishes that we had some sort of daily nutrient pill rather than having to find, buy, prepare, pack, and laboriously transport each bite via fork or spoon from plate to face. 

For people like her (and my own personal enjoyment), I have found six common foods that can be used for things other than eating!

1. Bananas—Trip mortal enemies, filter water, polish shoes, fertilize gardens, whiten teeth.

2. Apples—Poison enviously beautiful step-daughters, add light and fall festivity to Halloween parties, can be used in potpourri. 

Photo By: Eric Frierson

3. Whipped cream—Removes makeup, conditions hair, acts as stand-in for shaving cream.

4. Rice—Repairs water-damaged phones, fills heating pads, provides sound for "instant maracas."

YouTube

5. Lemons—Deodorize, degrease, bleach, sooth throats, and smooth feet.

6. Cinnamon—Serves as aphrodisiac, medicine, insect repellant (learn more here!)

Have you ever repurposed food?

Fish Milkshakes and Fires

If ever you consider cooking to be a safe or unadventurous activity, think again. 

This week, I set the smoke detector off on not one, two, or three, but four separate occasions.  And started my very first kitchen fire.  (Does that qualify me for some sort of Kitchen Klutz award?)

Now, I am generally pretty conservative and like to play things safe.  I pay bills weeks before they are due and do work for classes before they even begin.  For this class, I finished Wizenberg's book the day before winter classes began.  

With my risk averse nature, going to a movie on a school night is slightly scandalous.  Tonight, I went to see Safe Haven.  At 9:45 P.M.  This was ludicrous, totally unheard of in the realm of all things Molly Grater.  I felt as rebellious as Spartacus—only, instead of inciting a rebellion against a slave-owning oligarchy, I was breaking a non-existent, self-inflicted curfew. 

As with this midweek movie, I have been more adventurous with my cooking as of late.  Hence, the tuna burger.  It required that I blend a can of tuna fish with peppers, spices, bread crumbs, and such.

For many of you, the stench of tuna is probably cause enough to deem it unappetizing.  Watching it transform into a fish milkshake of sorts is even more so.  

I scrubbed my blender something fierce after dinner.

After coming up with this tuna juice instead of a thicker, patty-formable paste, I realized that I should have drained the can prior to blending it.  Oops.  Somewhere between spending time in the refrigerator and emptying a container of breadcrumbs, the mixture did what can only be described as "congealed."  

It just gets more appetizing by the minute!

Despite being slightly dry, the tuna burger wasn't too bad...especially considering how terribly I botched the recipe.  It probably helped that I slathered the top with a cilantro mayonnaise spread.  Mayonnaise is the miracle worker that makes any dish seem forgiving.

And truth be told, I am just as happy to make something new that turns out only good as I am to make something tried and true delicious that I have made dozens of times.

Do you consider yourself to be adventurous or one to stick to what you know?

For a better (veggie) burger, check out my fellow blogger's here!

On Conquering Fears: The Beast that is Yeast

I'm willing to bet that you have heard and can finish Mark Twain's famous quote, "why not go out on a limb?"

Because "that's where the fruit is," of course.  But did you also know that's where the pizza is?

You heard (er...read) me right!  That's where the pizza is.  For years I have been avoiding recipes with yeast like the plague.  These years were wasted, forgoing such yeast-demanding delicacies as breads, doughnuts, and cinnamon rolls.

I'm not sure what makes yeast an object to be feared—perhaps because it is a fungi, and technically alive.  How something so small (a microorganism, if fact) can be so intimidating is a mystery to me.  

After some research on Google, however, I do know that even some popular food bloggers share this fear and post about how they overcome it.  I found this post on "Eva Bakes" after finished writing and was flabbergasted by the similarities (and couldn't help but share them).  We both used pizza to trounce yeast!  Released from this bondage, foodies are invited to a whole new world—one with croissants, danishes...and incredible pizza crusts!

This pizza is worth conquering fears for.

 

An unknown author said: "[n]ever be afraid to try something new.  Remember, amateurs built the ark, professionals built the Titanic."  Chefs can whip up some mighty fine grub, but it was by accident, by amateurs, that popsicles, chocolate chip cookies, potato chips, beer, and sourdough bread were invented.

Can you imagine a world without chocolate chip cookies?! 

I thought not. 

And the sandwich?  "Rumor has it that John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich found leaving the gambling table to be a royal pain, so he ordered meat to be delivered to him between slices of bread.  An alternate tale suggests that work matters kept him pinned to his desk, thus necessitating the fork-free meal."  Without royal pains, experimentation, boldness, mistakes, and failures, our world would be void of some of the most drool-worthy dishes we have today.

This is your cue.  Get up, undertake and overcome your fear...because that's where the fruit is.

What are you afraid of? 

I used this for the crust and this for the topping.

Renee Locks

Savory for My Savior: The Last Indulgence

Hi, I'm Molly...and I'm a sugar addict.

There, I said it.  Step one of Alcoholics Anonymous: check.  Except, my addiction is to sweets—to breakfasts where one might ask, "would you like a side of pancakes with your syrup?", to the corner piece of cake with the biggest frosting rose,  and to brownies and blondies at any time of day, in lieu of any meal.

You see, Buddy and I adhere to the same dietary guidelines, sans candy corn.  In my own food pyramid, syrup would probably take candy corn's and the right half of candy's place, making for a sailboat-shaped section (an entire half of the triangle) devoted entirely to the consumption (and utter enjoyment) of syrup. 

Only, syrup isn't what I want to give my devotion to.  In fact, I don't want to devote myself to a what at all.  I want, above all, to devote myself to a who—not a thing, not a cause, but a man.

As a Christian, I have been anticipating the upcoming Lenten season beginning next Wednesday, praying and pondering about what The Lord might have me let go of.  Though I  believe that it is grace that saves and sanctifies, not fasting or self-denial (pardon my Christianese), I feel that both exercise our spiritual discipline and give us a better picture of and focus on Jesus (Here is a brief article that explains a bit more.)  In the past, I have given up habits and small addictions (visiting certain websites  and other time-suckers), using my newfound time to pray and read scripture.  

Now, I've always had a sweet tooth, but only recently did I realize that I am a sugar-addict.  It happened whilst lying in bed, between consciousness and sleep (the location and time wherein my most brilliant ideas are had).  For the purposes of this blog, I had been attributing and excusing the copious amount baking occurring in my kitchen as "homework"— entirely necessary for the fulfillment and success of my college education! 

But I could only lie to myself for so long.  It had gotten out of hand!

So, with Ash Wednesday just a week away, I carefully chose this decadent pie as my last indulgence before beginning slowly to wean myself from sugar.  Although I only have seven days to cut back, I decided I'd rather ease into it than encourage "Fat Tuesday" where I would gorge myself on all-things sweet until 11:59pm and then kick my addiction cold turkey when the clock twelve.

I tell you this not because I want to impress you with my forty day fast from sweets, but to strengthen my resolve by having a place and people to be accountable to.  

So, for the duration of the Lenten season (and consequently, this class), I will be cooking and eating only what is savory.  Any desserts I post about in the future were made, photographed, and consumed in the past—I wouldn't tempt myself when things look as good as this does!

My final dessert, this pie, is one of my family's favorites.

Like a textbook used to prop a window, eating utensils, scissors, and remote controls also serve multiple purposes!

Raspberry Butterfly Pie

Bake pie shell (I made a chocolate crust found here, but highly recommend Marie Callender's deep dish frozen pie shell. An Oreo, graham cracker, pretzel, or other cookie crust would probably be Rachael Ray "yum-o!" status, as well.)

For cream filling:

     8 oz. cream cheese (softened to room temperature)

     1 C. powdered sugar

     1 C. cool whip (I made whipped cream instead using this recipe.)

Mix the ingredients above and spread into the cooled pie crust.

For topping:

     4 C. raspberries (I've also tried peaches, mangoes, strawberries, marionberries,       blackberries, and huckleberries, and would recommend any combination of them. I usually use less than five cups—half is plenty—since berries are expensive and using the amount called for creates a beehive of a mound requiring precarious arrangement and much patience.)

For glaze:

     1 C. raspberries, mashed 

     1 C. sugar

     3 Tb. cornstarch

Cook in saucepan until thickened (about 10 minutes) and let cool slightly. Pour over raspberries. Chill before serving (if you can).

This was my first time making pie decor, and I used this tutorial.