A Quick Trip back to the U.S. (12 pictures)

I made a quick trip for work back to the U.S. from March 2nd to March 10th.  I was on kind of short notice so I didn't have a chance to set up some vacation time, and I was going to be in project meetings most of the time I was there and wouldn't have much time to socialize much.  I was also travelling with my co-worker Paweł Macko and sharing a rental car, so I couldn't run off in the evenings to visit family around the Bay Area.  Luckily, some of my family came to see me.

We stayed at the Hyatt SFO just south of the airport, and as usual on my first day back in the U.S., the jet lag had me up at the ungodly hour of 4 a.m. or so.  By the time the sun had started coming out, I was out and walking around.  I managed to grab this picture before Paweł and I headed out for our one day shopping extravaganza on the only full day we didn't have to travel or work. :)

He had a shopping list from his wife, and I was looking mostly for some snacks and goodies to take back with me.  The only other thing I was looking for was a Google Nexus 7 to use as an e-reader since my iPad is too heavy most of the time (I've found).

Winter Cooking with Coconut Milk

There hasn't been an update on this blog in a bit, because I haven't been doing much.  Unless you count writing a 47-page user manual and other similar "fun" stuff as worth hearing about.  :)

That is has been mostly cold should come as no surprise.  Temperatures have generally ranged from just above 0C down to -16C or so.  But mostly in the -4C to -9C range.  So given that, I haven't been doing much on the weekends that would be worth showing, unless you like lots of pictures of snow.  And if you do, there are bunch of those from last winter on this blog.

So I have been doing a bit of experimental cooking in order to find new hot dishes that I might like, and that would be easy to make.  And honestly, I'm getting tired of the same places for my take-out lunch, so some left-overs would be welcome.  So with that in mind, I present two of my recipe experiments below for your consideration.


Coconut Beans and Rice Recipe

2 Cups Red or Black Rice (I had red)
1 Can Black Beans
1 Can Pineapple Chunks
1/2 tsp (or less) Sambal Olek (Indonesian Chili Paste)
2 Bananas (sliced into small pieces)
Coconut Milk (I had a 1 liter box)
Curry Powder

Wash and rinse the rice and add to a small pot.  Open can of pineapple chunks, drain juice into rice pot.  Add additional water as necessary, then cook.  When rice is cooked, place in a medium pot.  Drain can of beans, rinse off separately, then add to pot with rice.  Add the small amount of chili paste and curry powder to the mixture, then add coconut milk until pot is filled to a level just below the combined rice and beans.  Stir, put over medium heat, and let simmer.

Heat until the coconut milk is about half absorbed / dissipated.  Add pineapple chunks from can and 2 sliced bananas and continue to cook, stirring occasionally.  Once the coconut milk is nearly absorbed, the meal is done.  Set aside for a bit, stirring occasionally, to let the remaining coconut milk absorb or solidify a bit.

While still hot / warm, serve in a bowl.  It's a combination of sweet and spicy that is very good.  If you don't want the spicy bit, you can leave the Sambal Olek out entirely and it should still be good.

Coconut Oatmeal 

This is just regular oatmeal (not the instant or Quaker Oats stuff) cooked in coconut milk instead of water.  I had some coconut milk left over from the recipe above and tried this.  It was fantastic.  If you have some fresh fruit like blueberries or strawberries, it would probably be even better.  I didn't have those, so I went with banana and a very small amount of brown sugar. 


So that is what I have been up to this winter so far.  Nothing exciting.  I'll add a new post when something actually happens or if I get another random idea that I feel like inflicting you with.  :)

Have fun!
 

New Foods #7 - Filo Dough

It's sad to say that after over a year in Poland, this will be only the 7th "New Foods" posting I have done.  It's not that my diet has been quite that unimaginative, it's just that I've forgotten to take pictures, or I didn't think it would be terribly interesting.  After all, you've seen candy bars, beans, and fruit juice before, even if they are in different packaging.  And when I have gone out to eat, I almost always seem to forget my camera. 

I've gone to a restaurant called Manikin that serves naleshniki (sort of like a crepe) a bunch of times.  It's probably my favorite place for a good meal that is not too expensive.  But for some reason, I always forget to take my camera.  I really need to, because they make all sorts of options besides the standard naleshniki.  They also make versions that are similar to a burrito, to lasagne, to spaghetti, in addition to the standard crepe-like creation (which can have meat and vegetables, or sweeter fillings).

But I don't eat out much so the opportunities are limited (unless you want to see pictures of the Subway, salads, or Starbuck's I usually get for lunch).  I mostly cook at home, and for simplicities sake, I don't experiment too much.  One thing I have tried a few times recently though is filo dough (like this picture).

I wouldn't be surprised if you can get this stuff in the US, but I don't remember seeing it there.  From what I can tell, it's mostly used here for making torts and something that is quiche-like.  But being me, I had to experiment.

New Food #6 - Peaches (sorta.......)

OK, it's not really a new Polish food.  And it may not be a new food to any of you.  But I tried something sort of randomly tonight that turned out pretty well, and I thought I would share.

I picked up some thin (less than 1/2 inch) turkey cutlets to pan fry up for dinner tonight, and as part of dinner tomorrow night.  Besides the chili flavored olive oil, a bit of lemon juice, and a bit of soy sauce; at the last minute I decided to dice up a peach I had that a deep bruise on one side, but was a bit firmer than I usually buy them (I hadn't noticed the bruise when I bought it).

Because the turkey cutlets were thin, they cooked quickly.  And the peach had enough time to absorb some flavor from sauces and lemon juice, and get a bit softer, while not being anywhere near falling apart.  Adding a bit of peach on my fork with a bit of turkey turned out to be surprisingly good.  I'm sure it would work just as well with chicken, and probably pork and fish as well. 

So there it is, not a new food, but a new way for me to eat it.  I had never tried peaches in any state other than raw before, and it was good enough that I decided to share.  :)

Enjoy!

New Food #4 - Chleb

So it's hardly a new food, but bread (aka Chleb) seems to be a MAJOR part of the Polish diet.  It's inexpensive, it's good, and there are all sorts available that you can get, and it's fresh every day.  I find that I'm eating more bread here than I ever really did in the US.

My favorite are the little baguettes (about 6-8 inches long) of garlic bread that you can get.  They slice the baguettes diagonally a bunch of times and into each slice they put some olive oil, butter, and garlic.  If you can time it right and get them while they are hot, they are fantastic!

Another type I've found is called Bartowski or something like that.  That's a picture below.  It's sort of dense, and seems to have a bit of rye in the mix, and it makes really good french toast (although I can't seem to find any vanilla here for some reason).

There are also all sorts of rolls, wheat breads, and other types.  I've only tried about 5 or 6 different breads yet, so I figure I'll have lots of variety to try over the next couple of years.

New Food #3 - Mövenpick Ice Cream

Having stumbled across Mövenpick Yogurt (New Food #2) and having liked it so much, I was really interested when I stumbled across Mövenpick Ice Cream.  There are two types, a "regular" line that I would compare to Dryers or Bryers; and a super-premium line that is better than either of those two.

So far I've tried the coffee flavor of the regular line, and it was fantastic.  And I've tried the Strawberry and Tiramisu flavors of the super-premium line.  The Strawberry was more of a sorbet than an ice cream and was OK, but didn't blow me away.  The Tiramisu though was fantastic.  The Super-Premium line isn't cheap though.  After converting to dollars, it's about $10 for 810ml (which I would guess is a bit more than 2 pints).

New Food #2 - Mövenpick Yogurt

So I was reminded when talking to my Mom on Thanksgiving that I had not done any new foods since the first one, and that it had been a bit since I updated the blog.  I've had a cold for the last week or so, so I'll use that as an excuse.  =)

So as anyone who knows me can attest, I like my yogurt.  Chobani yogurt is fantastic, and I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to get any here in Poland.  So I tried several of the local Polish brands but the yogurt style here tends to be more liquidy (is that a word?) and much less custardy (what about that one?), which isn't really the way I like it.

I lucked out though when I tried a brand called Mövenpick of Switzerland.  It's a custard-style yogurt (slightly thicker than Yo-plait) and is really really good.  There are a few flavors that are definitely different than what you see in the US, such as Strawberry-Rhubarb, Apple Pie, Plum, Caramel, Apple-Pear, and Strawberry-Guava.  I haven't tried all of the flavors yet, but the Raspberry, Caramel, and Blueberry are all fantastic.  The limited-edition Coffee flavor was not so hot.


Interestingly enough, the Mövenpick yogurt sold in Poland is made in Finland, not Switzerland.

New Food of the Week #1

I decided I am going to try and taste at least one new food every week.  It might be something at a restaurant, something I picked up in a grocery store, or even something I made.  To kick things off I decided to go with something easy and grabbed a package of cookies.

I generally love coffee-flavored anything and these looked good on the package.  There is a coffee-flavored cookie inside with caramel on top, dipped in chocolate with nuts.  But I have to say I won't be buying any more of these.  The cookie inside is very hard, and that just threw me off what would otherwise by something I would probably enjoy.

Luckily, while wandering around today I stumbled across a small shop that specializes in foods from abroad for expats.  There was lots of stuff from Japan, India, Australia, and the UK, with a bit of stuff from other countries.  I figure between that store and what I can find in the grocery stores, there will be lots to sample.