A Few Weekend Dishes

A few dishes, but not so many photos. One in fact. Here you go, you can have it now just so you, dear reader, aren't left hanging.

With that out of the way, we can get straight to the meat of this post. Or, not meat, as the case may be. Bay to Breakers was this weekend, an event I boldly decided to run (and then home). Given the distance, carbs were in order for Saturday dinner. I had gone to the farmer's market in the morning and picked up some assorted vegetables - carrots, the tiniest fennel I've ever seen, and flowering broccolini. I had no clue what I wanted to do with the carrots, but the fennel and broccolini purchase was with intent. I needed to show E that broccolini was delicious.

I pulled out my chosen weapons for this trial - a very hot oven, olive oil, and sea salt. Turns out, you can make most things delicious with those ingredients. I think the trial was a success in my favor, but my guess is E thinks it inconclusive as the salt was what she enjoyed, not the green stuff. I still think I'm right. We ate it with soba noodles, tofu, and carrots all in a peanut-butter based sauce. Fairly delicious stuff.

There was also the matter of before-breakfast and after-breakfast for the race. Awaking at 6 and running at 7 is difficult - you need food, but nothing heavy. I went with my standard "banana and some grain that is easy to digest" which, in this case, was cold oatmeal. You should try it, being very easy to make, very cheap, and very delicious. Just soak some oatmeal in water (or milk, cow or otherwise) for 5-10 minutes and eat it. Maybe add some honey.

After-breakfast was, of course, after the race (and subsequent run home). First order was finishing off some chewy electrolyte/sugar things and scarfing down a protein energy bar. After this, and a much needed shower, it was french toast time. Day-old Pain au Levain, eggs, and a bit of flavor. I think I have a new favorite for post-jog - goodbye, burrito. Don't worry, I'll still eat you at 2am. You aren't gone forever.

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Crisped Broccolini with Fennel

Variable serving size

Broccolini to feed N people

Fresh fennel

Olive oil

Sea salt

(optional) lemon juice

Preheat oven to 475. Chop the fennel bulbs into strips and reserve the leaves on the side. In a bowl, toss the broccolini and chopped fennel in a bit of olive oil, just enough to make it shiny all over. Add in a pinch of salt and a few drops of lemon juice and toss. Prepare a baking sheet with foil, and empty the bowl onto it. Spread everything out so nothing is stacked.

Add on top a little bit more salt and the fennel leaves, and bake for 10-15 minutes, until the florets have begun to char. Eat immediately, as it will cool and then get soggy very quickly.

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Standard French Toast

Makes 4 slices

4 slices of soft, chewy bread

2 eggs

1/4 c milk (I used almond, you can use cow)

~2 tsp cinnamon (didn't really measure)

~1/4 tsp vanilla extract (ditto)

~1 tsp honey (ditto)

butter for the pan

powdered sugar

In a small bowl, combine everything but the bread, sugar, and butter. Mix with a fork until it looks uniform. Heat a pan over medium. Soak each slice of bread for a minute on each side, then butter the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on one side. Sprinkle some powdered sugar on the uncooked side, flip, and cook for 2-3 more minutes. Sprinkle again with powdered sugar and devour.

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Tofu Soba Stir Fry in a Peanut Sauce

Man, I don't really remember what I did. It had peanut butter, water, vinegar, and olive oil. So, like, combine those things in random amounts and see if you get a tasty sauce. If it isn't tasty, try a different ratio if ingredients. Maybe just give up and eat some peanut butter from the jar.

I won't tell anyone.