Bulgarian Mystery Tea

You know I love coffee, but I have huge boxes and bags of tea, too.  Tea is like background music.  Coffee is something to get into.  Classical, jazz, etc., is tea.  Rock and pop is coffee.

An attempt to drink up some of my tea (which I do actually like, just don't get excited about) leads me to the mysteries of "tea from Bulgaria."  I also have "herbs from Bulgaria," but that's going to be covered down the road.  Equally mysterious, I might add.

Last time Gal was here, she brought boxes of tea for me.  The printing is in Bulgibberish, so I asked her what they were.  "That's tea from the mountain."  I held up another.  "The other mountain."  Another.  "That's for bedtime."  One more.  She pointed to the fruit on the box-- a bergamot orange.  "That's got that thing in it."

Since the bergamot one tasted pretty much like Earl Grey and I have a ton of that at home, I took it to work.  It's pretty good, although I'm sure there are some mysterious other ingredients in the mix, as you'll gather from the teas below....

As you can see from these boxes, there's really no telling what's what.  I finally had Gal look them up and translate for me.  Now I know which ones to make when I want something that tastes like tea and what to make when I want something that tastes like chicken.  You think I joke?  Well, it's not that far from the truth.

 Good Night Tea

This is that "for bedtime" tea.  I'm not sure what's in it.  She says it has "mint."  Not just any mint though.  It's freakin' catnip!  mmm...

I actually have used fresh catnip in place of regular mint, but I will never admit it.  It was in a delicious yogurty sauce and I was out of actual mint leaf.  Don't tell those guests, please.

However, catnip makes cats crazy, so the idea of catnip in a "good night tea" seems odd.

It also might have valerian root, which is another crazy cat herb.  Weirdness from Bulgaria...

 the red box of tea from "the mountain"

It has elderberry leaves, mint leaves (not catnip), blackberry leaves, thyme, oregano.

Oregano and thyme?  I'll use this in my chicken stock in a pinch.  It's actually good, but don't stand there with honey at the ready.  It's not that kind of tea.  Weird, but good.  A whole new meaning to herb tea.

the "other mountain"

She says "this has herbs that don't exist for you."  Oh.  And we see colors that don't exist in Bulgaria, dear.  So there!

It contains something that's a little bush that looks like a juniper, but is sour.  Rose hips from a dog rose flower thing.  Leaf of white yarrow.  Forest strawberry leaves.  Quince leaves.  and more thyme.

This tastes less like chicken soup and more like vegetable broth.  It's good, now that I'm used to it.  Savory tea for the win! 

I kinda want to salt it, though. Is that so wrong?

Ay, ay, ay, ay -- That beauty mark, pretty darling -- it belongs to me

In Southern California, this song is ubiquitous to anyone who's spent any amount of time in an old-school California Mexican restaurant.  On Saturday and Sunday, the mariachis stroll through the place, playing all sorts of traditional songs that most of us know nothing about.  We recognize them, but that's it.

The song is called "Cielito Lindo," and I had no idea what it was about.  From my Bulgarian girlfriend's charming singing and translating, I learned that it's a love song.




Translated from Espanolish...

That beauty mark, next to your mouth, pretty darling,
don't give it to anyone, my beautiful love, for it belongs to me.

 
I don't know why there's an ear of corn in the picture above, but there's a strange connection to the next song...

Part of the fun of youtube is seeing the "related" videos, which in this case were more love songs with a Latin flair.



This is one of my longtime favorites, and while it doesn't have "secret" (e.g., Spanish) lyrics, I did find that the lyrics that I know were added later.

It's origin is a song called "El Choclo."  That means "ear of corn" in spanish.  The reason for that name is weirdly complicated, but it has nothing to do with my first song.

El Choclo is a famous tango from an Argentinian composer.  It didn't have words, just music.  A tango.  I don't know how to tango, but I'm willing to learn.

Making Homemade Yogurt

It's so easy.

...and it's inexpensive.  Milk is as low as $1.99 for 16 cups, compared to $2-$5 for four cups of store bought yogurt.  So, the worst case is that your yogurt is going to be one quarter the price of storebought.  And, storebought at that $2 price often has thickeners

...and if you like Greek yogurt, you can do that, too.  Greek yogurt is very expensive, and this isn't.

Things you need.

Small container (6 or 8oz) of plain, active culture yogurt - you really only 4-8 tablespoons, so you can eat the rest
Big carton or jug of milk - skim, 1%, 2%, or whole is up to you.
Big heavy pot
Flame Tamer (optional)
Wooden spoon
Candy thermometer (or some way to tell when the milk reaches around 190 degrees and cools to 125 degrees)
Containers for storing yogurt (I make 16 cups of yogurt and use four 4 cup plastic Glad containers).  Sometimes I used eight 2 cup canning jars and lids.
Oven with an oven light

Slowly heat milk in the heavy pot until it reaches 180 degrees.  If you have a flame tamer, use it to keep from scorching milk to the bottom of the pot.  As it approaches 165 degrees, stir occasionally, but try not to touch the spoon to the floor of the pot, since there may be a milk 'skin' down there.  You really want to leave it there, untouched.  When your milk is 180 degrees, remove from heat and allow to cool until it reaches 125 degrees.

Spoon equal portions of yogurt (starter) into each of your jars or storage containers.  When milk reaches 125 degrees, ladle or pour some milk into each container and stir to combine.  Ladle or pour remaining milk, equally, into the yogurt containers.  Stir gently to mix.  Wipe container edges with a clean paper towel, and put the lids on the containers.

Place them in the oven and turn on the light.  I've used all sorts of temperatures, from 80 degree 'room temperature' to 95 degrees in my oven with the light on.  As long as you keep it under 115 degrees, it should be okay.  Cooler takes longer to firm up.

Anyhow, back to the oven...  Place them in the oven and turn on the light.  Wait eight hours, then place yogurt in the refrigerator, because it's done.

Greek Yogurt

I'll call it strained yogurt, since this isn't Greece.

Line a collander with a very clean and fresh bandana, cloth napkin, or handkerchief .  Cheesecloth is too loose without using a million layers, so don't bother.  Pour in some yogurt, place in a large bowl that leaves room underneath the collander for the draining whey.  Cover the yogurt and bowl with plastic wrap or a large plate to keep some of the moving fridge air out.  Stick it in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, you'll have strained yogurt like the Greek stuff.

For smaller batches, I use a drip coffee filter basket and filter over a mixing bowl.

For thicker stuff, like yogurt cheese, after you're already at the "Greek yogurt" stage, twist that bandana up so you have a ball, and place something heavy on the ball of yogurt for a few hours, or overnight, to press more liquid out.

The Escape Fantasy

A tune for while you're reading...



The Plan to Escape

I'm sure you remember that I was fat most of my life.  I was also a sad and possibly depressed kid.  I felt smart and dumb at the same time, bored in some classes while I struggled in others.  Girls were my friends, but not my girlfriends.  In my mind, I didn't have enough friend friends, or the right friends, and I'll bet the friends I did have felt the same way.  I felt all alone in this, only learning years later that 90% of the kids around me probably felt the same way, in one way or another.

I remember lying awake in bed (and in the hard or easy classes) and dreaming about getting the hell out of there.  Away from school and people, to be alone and left alone.  Gilligan's Island sounded pretty awesome, but unworkable in the how-to-get-to-the-island department.  Surviving in the local Southern California mountains, at least in the spring and summer, seamed like a decent option though.  That would be extreme camping, but how hard is that?

I never did it, though.  I only thought about it.  Constantly. 


Unhappy and overweight, another benefit of these extreme vacations was the self imposed make or break diet and exercise plan.  In my mind, I came back at the end of the summer and everything in my head (and body) and been worked out.  I was happy and slim and ready to get back into life.


Whether I was chicken shit or realistic (or some of each) I won't admit.  You be the judge.  And, those of you who've had those dreams yourself, notice that you also didn't actually do it.  You just thought it, and possible still think about it.



Escape from Reality via Reality TV


In my teens, I was daydreaming of running off to my own personal version of Survivor to escape from the people that I didn't have in my life and to lose weight.  In my mind, the two were tied together -- losing weight was the key to getting a girlfriend and more friends that actually wanted me around.  Rather than add drama here and come back around to this point, I'll just say that I now know that my friends did want me around, but my own insecurities didn't let me see that.  I'm sticking to my guns on the girlfriend, though!

Back to the issue...

I think that the popularity of certain reality television shows is catering to this unspoken, secret fantasy that so many of us have (Yes, have. Still).

Survivor is pure escapism.  30 plus days away from your worldly troubles.  No one really wants to leave their family behind on purpose.  We love them.  We would miss them.  Plus, they need us, either directly or for our money and support.  We can't leave work for any great length of time, either because work really needs us or we're afraid to find out how little work actually does need us...  With Survivor, we're given a 30+ day "pass" on all that.  Tossed onto an island with 20 people in the same boat, we get to make friends with people who are our "equals," and try to last until the end and win the big bucks.  Those big bucks lead to happiness and more friends, right?  Even though we know money doesn't buy happiness, we know it actually does for us.

The Biggest Loser is like fat camp with a chance to win money!  Yes, I dreamed of fat camp, too.  Some place that would have forced me to eat right and exercise.  See the previous paragraph on Survivor, because TBL is Survivor with personal trainers and treadmills.

The Apprentice is a little different, but in addition to the "fresh start," you get to show how awesome you are.  Personally, I never thought I'd do well on The Apprentice, but many people do.  What escape fantasies did they have as a kid?

There are other shows that I've seen once or twice.  The Amazing Race seems fun, but not enough to watch every week.  I don't know what that show says about the people who apply.

The Colony is scary.  The people on the show are scary.  They seem like the kind that actually dreamed about the end of civilization.  It's a very negative show, from the few I've seen.

The military fits in here, somewhere. It's not a tv show, but people join the military to escape.  I almost did.

I've often wondered about other people's escape daydreams.  Mine are still pretty similar to the ones I had as a kid, but with a positive twist.  Of course, there's no more daydreams of fat camp, but Survivor comes to mind.  30 or so days?  Cake, and a vacation with a chance at millions.  I'd miss my family, but I think they'd understand, since they love the show, too.  It's no longer to get away from them, anyway.  It's getting away from stresses of life.  Even on an actual vacation, how many of us are spending precious brain time thinking about what they could be doing for work?  Too many.

I put up the Message In A Bottle video for a reason.  When we go off to the desert island, fat camp, Survivor, or run away from home as a little kid, we want to be missed.  We want to be found.  Looked for.  Sought out.  How many times didn't we leave because we feared not being missed.  And feared that as much as we feared being hungry, alone, or scared?

I just typed up this long blog post, assuming others are on the same page as me.  How embarrassing if I'm all alone in this...  I doubt it.  At work, or lunch with friends, people's eyes light up as they mention how great they'd be at Survivor.  I've even had someone tell me that being sequestered on a jury would be a welcome thing (His job must have really sucked that day)!

With all that in mind, I don't think I'm alone.

Park Day with Tony

Cool park in Torrance, California

Tony

 

 Turtles, obviously

 A baby skunk came down to eat at the lake.

More Coffee Tastes

I'm still addicted, in a good way.  Always on the lookout for something new and good.  A while back, I wrote about my like for coffees at both ends of the gourmand spectrum -- high end & diner coffees.  Not much has changed.  I've settled into the drip method at home, and find that Ruby's Diner has good coffee and good mugs, while Mimi's Cafe coffee is about the worst around.  I don't get it.

I've got a few insignificant things to say now.  In the grand scheme of things, what is coffee?  But, here goes...





Starbucks Via Instant Coffee

If you like or dislike Starbucks medium brewed coffee, you will feel the same about this stuff.  It's just as good.  I was surprised.

I would buy it to take camping, for an office stash, or to a relative's place when I know they have crappy coffee.


Trader Joe's Joe

I buy most of my beans from Trader Joe's.  TJ's continues to add new coffees and take away ones that are less popular.  Their latest, called simply "Joe" is decent.

I love the can.  I love that it's just "Joe."  It's diner worthy.  It's remarkably inexpensive, too.  $3.49 for 14oz.  The Two Buck Chuck of coffee beans.  I like it better than the $7.99 Sulawatsis that I bought last time, so there's that.

I still haven't make the road trip for that coffee and diner trip I want to take.  Someday...

Baby Mine

I've always been partial to Dumbo. For some reason... There's a connection between our real life and animated souls.

Way back when (in the late 80s), there was a series of coincidences that brought Dumbo back to my attention (I used to hate the movie). The chain of events went something like this: There was a Christmas party where kids got a video of Dumbo. A day or so later, a radio station playing the Bonnie Raitt song in the first youtube clip below, but I couldn't tell who it was and they never said. Then a few days after that, my friend Paul gave me the tape, which he'd received as a gift and didn't like.



It's a sad movie, but it ends happily. Like Dumbo, I've grown into my ears. Not physically, but you know what I mean.



I haven't said much about my girlfriend on my blog. In the past, I've posted so much, directly or indirectly, about not having one that perhaps the blog silence is deafening.  Make no mistake.  She is it.  IT.  Yes, the it that people talk about when finally find it.

I've posted this clip (below) before.  It was when I left her back in Little Rock.  She had no clue, but I knew she could be IT for me someday.  I didn't want to leave.





Oh, just in case it's not clear by now, I didn't really miss that plane out of Little Rock. The flight was overbooked, but I had a seat and gave it up to stay behind for one more day.

Applesauce with Pear & Cardamom

Browning the apples in a little butter makes this better than anyone else's sauce.  The cardamom is just to rub it in...

Applesauce with Pear & Cardamom

1lb tart apples, such as Granny Smith
4 tbsp butter
1lb pear
cardamom -- ground seeds from 6 pods or 1 tsp ground cardamom
1 cup water

Peel, core, and cube the apples.  Over medium heat, melt the butter in a saucepan with a lid.  Add the apples to the butter and caramelize them, stirring occasionally.  By the way, don't caramelize the pears.  It doesn't go well.  Just the apples.

While the apples are cooking, peel, core, and cube the pears.  When the apples are browned, add the pears, cardamom, and water.  Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, until the apples and pears are easily broken with the spoon.

Remove from heat and mash the sauce.  I used a potato ricer, but you can use a blender, food processor, or even a potato masher, depending on what you have or how smooth you like your sauce.

Serve warm or chilled.

Makes about 2 cups

Nutrition (per half cup serving) -- 220 Calories, 12g Fat, 31g Carbs, 6g Fiber, 1g Protein

Beef Stuffed Pumpkins

It's meals like this that make me wish I had the gift of the camera, or a beautiful girl who takes excellent pictures of food. ...and is easily wooed by my cooking. ...and is hungry. ...or is willing to join me for a drink or something until hunger strikes.

This dish came out GREAT, but I have no evidence, just an empty shell of a mini-pumpkin in the trash and a satisfied belly. You'll have to trust me on this one, it was pretty good stuff. When that girl with the camera comes by, I'll remake it and post some pictures. No doubt.

Beef Stuffed Pumpkins

2-4 pumpkins *
1 lb grass fed ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tsp dry sage or 1 tbsp fresh chopped sage
1 tsp salt
lots of fresh ground pepper (I cranked it about 10 times, but it's your mill)

* On the subject of the pumpkin... You're going to have to just do your best with this one. Pumpkins come in all sizes, from so small that each person would need two or three, to big enough for a whole family. Just pick what you can find and let's do it. If possible, find a pumpkin for each person, so it will be fairly small and be the bowl for the filling. The one I used was a single serving size, multicolored, and very hard shelled. The perfect bowl. In the past, I've also used a large one and carved it up for the family, too. Each was good in its own way.


The Cooking Of the Pumpkins

Carefully cut off the top of each pumpkin. Using a spoon, scoop out the seeds and fibers, like you wood for a jack-o-lantern.

If you want to eat the seeds with the dish, set the seeds and pumpkin stuff aside in a large bowl filled with water. Rinse the seeds and clean them of the pumpkin fibers. In a dry skillet over low heat, dry the seeds, sprinkling them with salt, if desired. Keep stirring until they dry and puff up. Set aside to cool. If this sounds like a lot of work, throw them away and skip this whole step. They are only a garnish, anyway. A delicious garnish that's work, but a garnish none-the-less.

Put the pumpkins in a large pot suitable for steaming. Add some water to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover and turn the heat down so that the pot simmers. Steam the pumpkins for about 30 minutes or more (until the interior flesh is tender and easily scooped with a spoon. Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.


The Stuffing

While the pumpkin(s) are steaming, brown the beef in a large skillet, then drain the fat off, reserving a small amount of fat to cook the onion and garlic. Set the meat aside for now.

Add to fat to the skillet and cook the onions until they are soft and translucent. It's okay to brown them a bit. When the onions are done, make a clearing in the center and add a bit more fat. Add the garlic and allow it to cook for about 30 seconds. Careful not to burn the garlic! When the garlic is fragrant, add the chopped tomatoes and quickly stir to stop the frying of the garlic. Stir the onions, garlic, and tomatoes together for minute or so, and then stir in the beef.

Sprinkle the paprika, sage, salt and pepper over the beef mixture and stir thoroughly. Add half a cup of water and stir well. Allow the water to reduce over low heat, and then remove the pan from the burner.


Bringing It All Together

When the pumpkins are cool enough to handle, take a spoon and scoop some of the pumpkin from the inside of the shell, adding it to the beef mixture. Be careful not to break through the shell of the pumpkin or scoop so much that it collapses. Stir the pumpkin into the beef mixture. Salt and pepper to taste, then spoon the beef mixture into the pumpkins.

If everything is hot, just serve now. If it's not so hot, put the stuffed pumpkins into a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until hot and steaming again.

If using individual pumpkins, just serve them in a bowl or plate. If using larger pumpkins, cut them in pieces and spoon the filling over each portion.

If you loved your guests enough to go the extra mile and cook the seeds, sprinkle them over the pumpkin filling, if not, don't.


The Eating

Eat and enjoy.

Movies with honor

On Friday night, 15 guys gathered in front of a big screen tv for pizza, soda, candy (Red Vines for me), popcorn and Gladiator.  what a great movie.  It's got it all -- action, blood, intrigue, drama, a truly creepy and weird villian, who's both weak and powerful at the same time.  It's got the beautiful woman, of course.  ...and then a whole arena full of honor.


Do I need to say this has spoilers?  At this point, if you haven't seen it, don't watch this clip. The music couldn't be better! About 2 minutes in...

I absolutely love this movie. It's beautiful, dramatic, sad, and horrible, but the honor, bravery, and morality are more than enough for two or three movies.

I know every guy is supposed to have Braveheart as their number one, but this is mine. 

Marcus Aurelius: Won't you accept this great honor that I have offered you?
Maximus: With all my heart, no.
Marcus Aurelius: Maximus, that is why it must be you.


Silverado -- Westerns can be filled with honor.  They often have the conflicted, dark hero, which guys secretly want to be. 

Silverado is an underrated movie, in my opinion.  But I can watch it every time it's on.




I won't go into detail on all of them, but here are some of my top choices.

Lord of the Rings -- In fact, one of the things that bugs me about the movie is changing why Merry and Pippin are in the fellowship to begin with. In the movie, they get chased out of town for stealing veggies, but run into Frodo and Sam on their own escape.  In the book, they follow Sam and Frodo because they suspect that their good friends need help in something terribly important.  There's a huge difference, and it bothers me that they changed it, presumably to save screen time.


Ice Age -- A road movie in CGA.  Three guys just out for themselves turn into great friends and end up willing to sacrifice great things for an innocent stranger.





Raiders of the Lost Ark --  Most guys with humdrum jobs totally get this.  Teacher by day, adventurer by night.  It's like the superhero dream, but without the need for tights and a cape.

Star Wars, The Seven Samurai, The Magnificent Seven, and A Bug's Life  -- I think The Lord of the Rings fits into this group, too.  The Seven Samurai's gathering of heroes is a recurring theme in many movies now.  From pure to conflicted, great to small, young to old, and foolish to wise, we meet our heroes, who'll make up the team that metes out justice while teaching and learning from each other.


The list can go on and on, but I stuck to movies that I want to watch again and again.  For instance, Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, and Braveheart are great movies, and I really liked them.  But they aren't enjoyable movies to me.  I don't want to see them again and again.

...and THIS is what I have to say?

I have so many unwritten blog posts, but no time to write them.  Instead, they linger and fester as drafts, either taking the time they need to be good, or losing their relevance and timeliness.   The worst case, I forget what my brilliant idea was and end up deleting it.  The flip side of that is that maybe it wasn't brilliant at all, like Jerry Seinfeld's brilliant joke idea that he wrote down in the middle of the night, only to find it unfunny when he finally finds the scrap of paper.  So good riddance!

...and THIS is what I have to say?

It seems like every LA radio station is playing Duran Duran a lot.  There must be something going on with the band or something.  I don't have it in me to investigate, so...

The bottom line for me?  I loved them in the 80s, and the songs are still great.  If only they would get remastered without the little 80s synthesizer noises.  The songs would not only be awesome, but they also wouldn't make me turn the volume down when I come up to a stop light with my window down.  Stupid 80s synth sounds!

Rio.  Music only, below.  Video, here.



Girls on Film



It's hard to find versions of the songs that haven't had embedding disabled. Here's a "Hungry Like the Wolf," though. If you want to see the actual video, click over to here.



They are obviously wedded to those sounds, based on this more recent performance.



Those 80s clothes are amazing.

Didn't Postsecret used to be better?

I think the title is bad grammar, but even that discussion is more interesting than postsecret these days.

Big, Small, or Somewhere In Between - #6, "The Little Prince" or "Малкият принц"

I confess that I owe the narrator an apology, because at some point—early on—I stopped listening to the story and started listening to her.  At the other end of the world, she was reading to me.  It had begun when we had laughed at a joke or sighed at something that one of us had said (Who can remember all of that?  It was yesterday.), and suddenly she asked about "The Little Prince."  Had I read it?  I thought so, when I was young.

"I have it in Bulgarian," she said.  "Can I read some of it to you?"

"Please."  So, she started reading, at Chapter 21 I later found.  It's got a fox. And it immediately became obvious to me that I'd never read it.  She read the chapter and stopped, telling me "another night."

That was back in November.  November 3rd, 2008, to be exact.  Since then, it's been on my reading list.  I tried to read it over coffee at Borders, once.  It was not the same.

Eventually, Gal bought the book for me and it's been on my nightstand since.  I've started it many times.  It was not the same.

What was the problem?  Was Chapter 21 the only good part?  Was the Bulgarian version so much better?

Galya is an amazing translator, by the way.  She told me she had the book in Bulgarian, but as she was reading, I thought she obviously had an English version, too.  She read seamlessly; There were no pauses and no corrections.

At the end, I asked her about the Bulgarian version and she told me that's what she'd been reading. Amazing.  Did she translate it in such as way to intrigue me?  She was translating on the fly, so I doubt she could read, translate and choose special words, just for me.

I finally read the book yesterday; how many months later?  It's a small book, so only a tremendous excuse will do justice; my sheep ate it.

Over the past few months, I had started and stopped the book many times.  It was never the same.  I could tell there was something in the book for everyone, but I just wanted to get to Chapter 21 again.  Yesterday, I did, and it was like November again.  Turns out there's more to love (and to Love) than Chapter 21.  There's responsibility, parenting, logic, There's the crystal clear child's viewpoint of an adult's illogic.  There's life and death.  There is something for everyone, if they just start, and then finish, the book.  There's someone we know in every chapter of the book, for good or bad (or happy or sad (mostly sad, if afraid)).

But sad aside, there's a man who needs a boy and a boy who needs the man.  There's a fox who craves to be tamed, despite the potential for tragedy that can only result from that.  There's a simple, single, lonely flower, who we later learn is a rose.

...and, as we "learn," unlike a mountain, a flower is ephemeral, and therefore not important.  I suppose to some a flower is nothing more than something to look upon, before it's gone, but to another it is everything.  "It is the time you spent on your rose that makes your rose so important," said the fox.

A few days after Gal read Chapter 21 to me over Skype, I told my friend Shannon "I defy anyone, man or woman, not to fall in love with her if she reads to them from The Little Prince."  I stand by that, so I'd better not find out about any more readings.  A combination of her voice, her accent, and a charmingly simple chapter about love, trust, and the responsibility you have to each other is too much to take for some people.

It's an old and famous book, "The Little Prince," so all the deep thoughts have been written and posted on the internet.  I have nothing to add to them.  If you think it's a kid's book, you're wrong.  It's a book for adults that will only take you 30 minutes, if not nine months, to read

The Rose of The Little Prince, by Eva Luspay

Paddington Bear, Marmalade, Kumquats, Yogurt & Cheesecake

Winnie The Pooh is my favorite bear, but Paddingon Bear is a close second. He doesn't have all the friends that Pooh has, but he does have marmalade, which I prefer, vastly, to honey. Not that they compare directly, but on a slice of buttered toast, marmalade is the clear winner.

I love marmalade's bitter sweet taste. Growing up, I might have been the only kid to prefer it to other types of jams and jellies. I'm sure it was the bear that encouraged me to keep trying it until I was hooked, but hooked I was. ...and am, to this day. In fact, I just polished off a big bowl of homemade yogurt with a heaping spoonful of marmalade stirred in. Oh my God good!

Marmalade Yogurt

1 cup 2% yogurt
1-2 tbsp marmalade, fruit sweetened

Nutrition (w/2 tbsp marmalade) -- 210 Calories, 5g Fat, 33g Carbs, .5g Fiber, 10g Protein


I've weened myself off of sweetened yogurt. I like it plain. Mine's homemade, but you can use any good plain yogurt from the store. Try it with a spoonful or two of marmalade on top.

If you like plain yogurt (me) and you like marmalade (my hand's up again), you'll like this.


By the way, here's the marmalade that's my current favorite.

A blurry shot of my St. Dalfour Kumquat Marmalade

 

I got it at Whole Foods, and it's amazing. It's about the same cost as the other, lesser marmalades, too. I don't really care about the 100% fruit part. In this case, that just means grape juice instead of sugar. I like that it's not HFCS, just out of principal, but other than that sugar (juice) is sugar (cane). 

 

If you like orange marmalade, I suggest you step outside the marmalade comfort zone and see what's out there. Try a Seville Orange Marmalade, a Grapefruit Marmalade, or something like this kumquat version. You might think "I don't like kumquats, so I'll pass..." That would be a mistake. You don't like kumquats because you don't like to eat that skin or the bitter insides? Well, that's the basis of marmalade, buddy, just sweetened up a tad. You probably don't eat the skin of your oranges, either, right? ...and it's $3. You may not love it, but if you like marmalade, the odds are on your side.

 

Back to my ramble... 

 

...and onto the cheesecake.

 

About a month ago, I thought, over a bowl of marmalade yogurt, how good cheesecake could be with marmalade over the top. It took me a while, especially in diet mode, to get up the guts to try it. A cheesecake in the house is not safe with me, so rather than make one that I have to count as a splurge or cheat, I made one that almost counts as plain ol' food.

 

 

Mmm... food...

Kumquat Marmalade Cheesecake

Makes 8 servings

15 oz ricotta cheese (this was the whole container, in my case)
16 oz light cream cheese (neufchatel)
4 eggs
8 servings of sweetener (your choice, but I used 4 stevia and 4 Splenda)
4 oz golden raisins (black is fine if it's what you've got)
4 oz almonds (raw, blanched, slivered, whatever)
8 tbsp good marmalade

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Bring the cheeses to room temperature on the counter. In a large mixing bowl, cream the neufchatel cheese with a fork, so that it's pretty creamy. Stir in the ricotta and continue to mix and cream until they are well combined.

Beat the eggs and sweeteners together. This is important, because stevia, especially, mixes best with a liquid before combining with a solid. Combine the egg and sweetener mixture with the cheeses, thoroughly combining.

In a food processor or blender, blend the almonds and raisins. They will never fully combine and become smooth, so just get them ground to a sandy texture by pulsing the processor as you go.

Spray a spring form pan (or four tiny spring form pans) with cooking spray. Spread the raisin and almond mixture around the bottom of the pan. It will not fully cover the bottom, so just spread it as evenly as possible.

Carefully drop spoonfulls of the filling over the crust. If you just pour it, the crust will flood out and mix in with the filling. That's bad. Once you've actually covered the crust, you can slowly pour it in without fear.

Put the cheesecake in the oven for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees, cooking for 30 minutes longer. At this point, check for done by inserting a knife into the middle. If it comes out clean, it's done. If not, give it another 15 and recheck. Repeat until it's done. If your cheesecake is getting too dark, you can cover it with a sheet of loose foil.

Let it cool for 30 minutes, then cover it with foil and refrigerate until overnight or until chilled.

When serving, top each slice with a tablespoon of marmalade, garnish with a few kumquats, halved or whole.

Nutrition (1/8th of cheesecake) -- 350 Calories, 22g Fat, 22g Carbs, 1.5g Fiber, 17g Protein


Notes

1. 350 calories of cheese, eggs, nuts and raisins is a healthy part of a balanced meal.  I'm not worried about 40 calories of marmalade, and I'll have a salad for dinner and take care of the veggies!

2. This cheesecake is not particularly sweet. I like it that way. If you really don't like artificial sweetener, go ahead and use sugar. Each packet of sweetener should be replaced with about 2 teaspoons of sugar.

3. Here are the mini spring form pans I use.

They came in a pack of four at Williams Sonoma.  They make great pans for fritattas, too.

4.  Enough Pooh and Paddington posts.  Something with manliness up next.  I think.

5.  F***ing Blogger!  Change one picture around and it messes up the line spacing for half the blog.  Frustrating...