Moop, with a splash of peanut butter

I love this bag. Love. If I hadn't just gotten my own moop (courtesy of the proceeds of my End of 2010 sale), the new Paperback (in brown or grey) would definitely be at the top of my Next Purchases list. Not only is it made of that fabulous waxed cotton, but it's a double agent, acting as a cute strapped bag when folded or a taller (but still adorable) tote bag when unfolded. Triple agent actually, seeing as the strap is removable in case you need a clutch. Genius. 0007, even.

Perhaps it's good that I can't get it (yet), as I have a feeling I'd have a strong inclination to fill it with my leftovers from supper, just to see if 'highly water resistant' also means 'highly peanut butter resistant'. And also to make sure those leftovers are with me when I get hungry next. Without further ado, here's what I had for supper:

On my way home, I bought some tofu. I wanted to get some pad thai sauce to try making my own pad thai, but I didn't make it to the farmer's market on Saturday to get some local eggs. And then I had peanuts in my head (figuratively speaking). So, as soon as I got home, I Googled 'peanut tofu', for lack of a better phrase. As I had also bought some spinach and had a bit of a red pepper in my fridge, this recipe jumped out at me. However, I had to make a few adjustments to mirror what I had, so I actually used:

- a couple generous squirts of lime juice. I probably used about 1 tsp., but I really have no idea how much came out of that lime-shaped bottle.
- 1/3 cup Kraft Smooth Peanut Butter. That's right. Definitely not the most healthy peanut butter, but I've loved it since I was a kid and wasn't allowed to have it at home. Having said that, I'd probably go with an all/more/at least slightly natural peanut butter next time.
- 1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- about 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- a couple cloves of garlic, chopped as finely as my one sharp knife can do
- most of one pkg of extra-firm tofu (as much as can fit flat in my large frying pan)
- 1/3 red pepper (I'd use at least 1/2 of one next time)
- a bunch of fresh baby spinach leaves

So, first I mixed the lime juice, peanut butter, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, and red pepper flakes in a bowl until it looked like a delicious (spicy) cookie dough. Then I cut up the garlic, tofu, and red pepper. At medium-high heat in a lightly oiled pan, I fried the tofu so it was a pretty golden brown on each side (about 3ish minutes each side). After turning the heat down slightly, I threw in the garlic and stirred, then the red pepper. I cooked and stirred this for about a minute, and then added the sauce. It turned a darker colour pretty much immediately and clumped up a bit, which worried me at first (I'm sure there's plenty of oil in Kraft PB to keep it from drying out or something). I stirred it some more so the tofu was all coated, and then threw in a bunch of spinach, enough to cover everything. I stirred to mix it all as evenly as peanut butter allows, then put a lid on the pan for a couple minutes to make sure the spinach had wilted. I recommend serving this with basmati and a huge glass of water. I only had jasmine rice, but fortunately the stir fry is so tasty that it makes up for the bland rice. I'd probably also garnish this with some chopped green onions next time. And I'd probably not eat a peanut butter and jam sandwich for lunch if I knew this would be my supper. I would've taken a few more photos for better selection, but I had already eaten a few forkfuls of it by this time and couldn't take a nice aerial view. Yum.

What would you put in your moop?

(P.S. The Paperback is also available at moop's Etsy shop here.)

More, please

I just returned from seeing Black Swan with my man, and I, quite frankly, am confused. I'm not quite sure what happened in the movie and expected more from Darren Aronofsky, especially as The Fountain is in my Top 5 movies of all time, if not the Top 2. Ah well. I am definitely looking forward to seeing Swan Lake at the NYC Ballet in February. I will also continue to enjoy all the food I am entitled to both cook and eat, as I'm not required to have rather disturbing back muscles and zero body fat. Here is a photo of my latest culinary endeavor. I was going off of a Vegan Dad recipe (found while searching for something to do with my concord grapes), with a few twists. First of all, I had only one apple instead of four (I was planning on using pre-made apple berry chutney, and made my own at the last minute). Second, I don't have a round cookie cutter to make it look like the original, so I cut the tofu into squares (meaning I only got four little 'burgers' instead of five), and used my fingers to (kinda sorta) shape the stuffing inbetween. Third, I used pre-made sage stuffing that had rice and carrots in it, and just added the apple cider and a few spinach leaves into the pot after it was done cooking. Oh, and I used butter instead of margarine, meaning it wasn't vegan after all. I really didn't like the fresh sage leaves that the chutney called for (perhaps because I'm not quite sure how I was supposed to chop it, as you can see from the photos), so I think I'll use dried sage leaves next time. This 'next time' may indeed be very very soon, as this smelled amazing while cooking, and tasted quite lovely. I've also been wanting to cook more cranberries just to watch them split ever since. Did you know a cranberry basically looks like a heart with four chambers when you cut it in half? Beautiful.

And no, this is not becoming a food blog. I just happen to have found a new hobby that is very therapeutic. And I think that great food is indeed quite fashionable.

So happy I could die

Today, I rediscovered the simple joy of looking forward to my vacation for the fact that it will be fabulous, rather than for the fact that it means I don't have to work for a couple of weeks. Of drinking freshly ground and brewed coffee because it's delicious, rather than because I'm too exhausted to stay awake past 2 o'clock. Of relaxing because I can, rather than because I need to. Of spending four entire hours baking something because I wanted more of what I had spent four entire hours baking the night before in an attempt to take my mind off of things. Blog (and life/sanity/happiness), I've missed you.

(Photo of my second attempt of Lottie + Doof's Grape Focaccia with Rosemary recipe, which I followed except for the electric mixer thing. Hand kneading dough is pretty much the greatest method of therapy ever, especially when coupled with de-seeding concord grapes. Oh, and I also halved the sea salt the second time around.)

Nokomis, I hardly knew you

This week I've been obsessed with stopping by a grocery store or two to get some supplies, then coming home and looking up recipes to try my hand at. Then, basically two hours later, I've managed to make an outrageous mess in the kitchen and a meal that isn't exactly what I was hoping for. Next, I proceed to scarf it down while watching one or two or three episodes of Season 1 of The Wire, and wonder how I can like Dominic West so much after his less than honorable character in 300 (it's most likely the Irishness). 

Today, however, I managed to make something rather delicious, being Caramelized Tofu with Brussel Sprouts, and I managed to cook my own tofu pretty much perfectly (see photo above of my finished product). I'm not sure how well I did with the brussel sprouts, as it's the first time I've ever cooked or knowingly eaten them, but I do know that kids are too harsh on them. I got the recipe from here, and pretty much followed it except that I used a nutted pilaf instead of cooking walnuts with the tofu and garlic. I have no idea how to mince garlic with the one little paring knife I have, but I thought the resulting little candied garlic bits were rather awesome. I also have no idea how to chop cilantro with said paring knife, but I love love love the smell of cilantro too much to feel bad about that green massacre. It's a shame though that I read immediately after my meal that Nokomis, i.e. the brick and mortar store in my town, is closing in the New Year. Just when I was ready to make the resolution to buy more Canadian, and to buy local. Raise a glass with me and sigh.

Pasta creation...and Fnubbu

Mmm...isn't this S/S 10 'outfit' by Danish loungewear and accessories label Fnubbu just delicious looking? If the model was wearing some red flip flops, this would look just like the lovely meal I just ate tasted. I had planned to make it yesterday for our anniversary dinner, but we ended up going out to our secret date cafe. So for tonight, I tossed together:

- one package of organic whole wheat rotini, cooked during the last minute with 2 cups of thinly sliced red pepper
- 1 tub of light herb and garlic cream cheese, stirred with 1 cup of organic skim milk and some salt and ground mixed peppercorns until smooth and bubbly
- 2 cups of lightly packed organic baby arugula leaves ('arugula'...so fun/difficult to say)
- 2 teaspoons of lemon juice
- grated parmesan cheese

Paired with some fresh organic calabrese bread and butter, and followed by a triple chocolate cupcake afterwards, the end result was simply: 'yum'.

Anyhow, the photos above are from Fnubbu's A/W 09 collection. Though I just told my mother that I have a hard time 'doing colours', after such a light springy meal, I think I could definitely do these.

Crepes...and Katharina Hermes

If you know me personally and/or have ever been to my house, you would know that I do not cook. I can cook, I just don't do it (with the exception of amazing sandwiches and french toast, of course). However, since my first visit to Montreal, I instantly salivate at the mention of crepes, apples, or maple syrup, and even more so at any combination thereof. And so, for about the last year or so, I've had this recipe file sitting on my desktop to try whenever I got enough motivation to gather a few ingredients and get out a couple of pans and measuring utensils. Today was the day, and the result was absolutely glorious. Let's just say, it tasted like this:

mixed with this:

I'm curious to see what I could make that would taste like this:

Oh, if you're wondering what the recipe was, just do the following:

- Make 8 crepes and put aside (I used some crepe mix that I just had to add water and eggs to).

- Lock your door because the smell that will soon be coming from your kitchen will likely attract any and all passersby.

- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter on medium high heat.

- Stir in 4-6 peeled, cored, and sliced apples (I used Golden Delicious apples). Cook for about 5-7 minutes.

- Pour in 1/2 cup of maple syrup and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat a bit, and cook for another 5ish minutes until the apples are soft and caramelized.

- Divide this mixture up between the crepes, and put a couple of thin slices of brie on top of the apple mixture before you roll up each crepe.

- Then put the rolled up crepes on a baking sheet or in a glass cake pan, and warm them up at 350 degrees for about 5ish minutes, or to melt the brie. Eat and take all the credit for such a delicious creation.

Me and my man ate this for supper and could only eat three crepes each. I'm sure it's supposed to be dessert anyway, but two crepes per person would be the perfect snack/dessert. Yum.

(Photos from Katharina Hermes' breathtaking 'Body Architecture' collection.)