Roger's View of the World, Love and Seafood Gumbo!
Seize the Day! Put no trust in the morrow! — Horace
Let us be thankful today for the food on our tables, the wonders of our country and the opportunity to choose our own destinies.
All would not be possible without the American Soldier.
Roger Freberg
The armed services of the United States represents what is best in America… a meritocracy where talent and commitment can rise to the top …
It has always been a strong ‘belief’ of mine that what you really enjoy is probably really good for you… and the stuff you avoid… well… there are reasons for that too. Recently, facts are starting to support my observations and the real issue associated with good food is the high quantity we all enjoy….not the taste or quality.
Humans have existed in times of feast and famine with the obvious increasing and decreasing size of their waistline. So, it seems very natural for us to enlarge ourselves in times of plenty in order to ensure we make it trough the lean times. Modern times of plenty have produced the general obesity of our population. I was once one of those.
What people need today is ‘portion control’… and delicious food. They do not have to be mutually exclusive.
I remember spending time in a test kitchen that had two major parameters for their recipes: cost per serving and time in preparation. Although many things can be made quickly and relatively inexpensively, if you forget about these two issues, you can make something that really impresses …. and since it is portioned controlled, it probably isn’t all that bad unless you are using ridiculously expensive ingredients like Beluga.
Anyway, here is a simple recipe of Laura’s that is roughly a little over 300 calories per serving and simply wonderful! A little rich for Jenny Craig… but ‘Oh Well!’
Laura’s Stuffed Bell Pepper Recipe!
Roger Freberg
BTW, California has had very strange weather this year… from 114 to 46 within weeks… so I put on an old school ‘camo’ coat that the Army doesn’t use any more since they went to a better design… works great.
As for recipes, we are revising some of our recipes with the concept of developing natural portion controls ( for example, a bell pepper is a natural constraint as you can only stuff it with so much). One of my favorites “Bobotie” is irresistible to me… so I am looking at this one especially.
Okay, I am really tired of these ‘artisan’ breads that crumble when you try to make a sandwich out of them. Obviously, it is the choice of what ingredients they use, but more importantly, what they tend to leave out. Health nuts tend to think eggs are bad… so they carelessly omit them.
Holy Granola! Where’s Baker-man when you need him?
So put on your Berkenstocks, tie die your ammo vest and get ready to bake some real whole wheat bread…. that you guys might even like.
What I wanted in this bread was all the favorites from the ancient grain of ‘Millet’ used by the Chinese long before the advent of rice…. add to this corn meal ( y’all love this one), whole wheat flour, wheat germ and a bunch of things that make it just fine! Oh, don’t forget all those things that make it so crunchy: Sesame Seeds, Flaxseed… and don’t worry, we got Oats!
It’s sweetened with Molasses & honey… and held together with an egg.
Made this especially for my wife, Laura…. who loves her daily turkey/cheese and stuff sandwich at lunch.
Roger Freberg
In any event, I found this seasoning recipe that took me to the kitchen to put it together… it was simple and didn’t need much tinkering… but wonderful… try it on your next chicken or turkey breast you barbecue! Here are the basic proportions:
8 tablespoons sea salt
4 teaspoons ground garlic powder
4 teaspoons coriander
2 teaspoons white pepper
4 teaspoons ground coffee
Brings me back to Houston!
Roger Freberg
Here is a great cookbook that not everyone is familiar ….”Classic Russian Cooking” by Elena Molokhovet … A gift to young housewives. Originally published around 1861, this book was held as ‘decadent’ and viewed as a curiosity during much of the Soviet regime where the variety of foodstuffs were limited and seasonings nearly non existent.
Today this book stands out as one of the truly marvelous additions to modern cooking , providing wonderful glimpses into an age gone by where time, effort and quality made a difference in cuisine!
Obviously, before I dived into the cookbook, I thumbed my way to find:
Beef Stroganoff with Mustanrd (Govjadina po-strogaonovski, s gorchiseju ) which contained the central themes of every Stroganoff …although much simpler… with ‘allspice”, sour cream and “Sareptskaja” mustard! This type of mustard is also known as Indian Mustard or Brown Mustard (Brassica Juncea) and can be found growing in the United States and considered , interestingly enough , a ‘weed.’
This is certainly a cookbook that won’t break the bank as you can probably pick it up for 20 – 30 dollars on Amazon.
One common criticism of Elena’s recipes was that they ‘contained too many ingredients and required too much time in preparation.” However, I did not find this the case, unless you unfortunately prefer one of those 30 meals in 30 minute books.
This is for someone who enjoys exploring another time…
Roger Freberg