Sarah E. Welch

Wow, tonight did not start out well for the challenge.  I was incredibly excited for a new cooking adventure, cooking Indian bitter melon, or karela.  I had decided to make a curry, something we eat around here fairly frequently.  As typical, I even started with whole spices, toasted them, and ground them to make my own curry powder.  I blended the spices with oil and ghee, sauteed the onions in the lovely mix, and starting prepping the karela.  I had done some research into the vegetable, as well as reading several recipes and thought I had a handle on how to cook this stuff.  Nope.  Even after cutting into the karela and discovering its fresh cut grass scent, I was as confident as ever.  I added it to the mix and waited for it to soften.  Once it did, I eagerly dipped my spoon in for my first bite.  What do I even say about this dish?  It was horrific.  I spat and spat and spat.  I washed my tongue.  I even considered washing my mouth out with dish soap.  Ugh.  Not only did it taste bad, but it made my tongue tingle, a sensation that lasted far too long.  I was crestfallen.  And wanted to order pizza.  But I didn’t. Did I mention that my yogurt had also gone bad, and I couldn’t make the mango lassis I had planned?  Yeah, that happened, too.  Boo.  Hoo.

My spice scented basmati rice was already done.  I had my mango nectar and naan at the ready.  I had no thawed meats or fresh vegetables available to make a new curry, and I badly needed a hug.  My well-stocked pantry ended up saving the day, more specifically my beautiful, bead-like split red lentils.  I started over on curry, this time using a vindaloo blend from the Savory Spice Shop in Boulder, those gorgeous little lentils, and some canned diced tomatoes.  Poured over the rice and served alongside some warm naan, it made for a warm and filling winter’s dish.  I was so very glad that I hadn’t ordered pizza.

Now, I do have to fess up to breaking my rules just a little bit, but I promise it was for a good cause.  I have been to the grocery store, and I bought a few things outside of my very limited list.  You see, some friends of ours are going through a very rough time, and I needed to make them some comfort food.  They adore my gumbo, and I didn’t have all of the necessary ingredients, including chicken.  In order to stay in the spirit of this challenge, I did use coupons, which meant buying more meat to qualify for the coupon.  My friends will also be getting a lovely herb and garlic stuffed pork loin.  I may have to cut a chunk off before I deliver it, though.

As it turns out, I ended up cooking five entrees tonight: the horrible karela curry, lovely lentil curry, gumbo, stuffed pork loin, and some spiced baked chicken (couldn’t use all of it in the gumbo).  If I were a baseball player, I believe that would mean that I had batted .800, not bad at all.

Boulder, food, life Boulder, food, life

So last night I admitted that this whole ‘waste less food’ challenge is about much, much more than feeling guilty about some groceries going into the garbage.  I’m a complicated critter that requires convoluted tricks.  And I’m stubborn.  Quick anecdote?  Surely.  If not, feel free to jump down to the update.

Sarah vs. The Gym Teacher. In elementary school, our gym teacher was a drill sergeant and recent veteran–recent like we had a mini-parade in his honor after returning from Iraq.  I still know the Marine’s Hymn word for word.  Most of the kids jumped when he said jump.  I asked why.  Regardless, he was a truly great guy, but he was a bad judge of what mind games would work on my 5th grade self.  Since I was a good student, he decided to give me two options: 1) work hard and earn an A in P. E. 2) sit in the bleachers and get a guaranteed B.  I marched myself to the bleachers.  The next week, I sat in the bleachers.  And the next.  And the next.  I called his bluff.  I actually liked quite a bit of P. E., especially some of the sports, because I was competitive.  I did not like pull ups and a lot of the other jazz from the Presidential Fitness Challenge.  He was a Marine.  This was right up his alley.  Regardless, I wasn’t going to play along with him if he was going to play mind games with me.  Eventually, he decided he had to make me participate.  The Marine lost to the 10 year old.  By the way, while this was going on, I had started a soccer ‘league’ at recess.  It wasn’t that I didn’t want to move.  It was that I didn’t want to say “how high?”

So, how’s the challenge going? The challenge is rocking!  We’ve stayed true to our original specs.  And…

• We’re both feeling great!
• I’ve made one meal that I thought was my best ever and one that Rich thought was my best ever…in 4 days!
• Yesterday, I made minty green tea, which I haven’t done in months even though we both love it.
• I ate one of my “go to” snacks on Day 3.  My fingers puffed up, and now I’m repulsed by it.  This is a major win.
• I’m feeling a creative surge in the kitchen, and our taste buds are enjoying the journey.
• Because I feel better, I’m taking better care of myself–hot baths, hot tea, more sleep.
• I’ve also noticed that I’ve been less wasteful in other areas–using things up, not buying things I don’t really need, using less water even.
• Since the plan is to use everything up, I’ve been using some of my ‘someday’ ingredients, like some fantastic French grey salt that’s just been sitting in my spice cabinet.  It was a revelation.  I’ve also been using those bath bombs that just sit in my toiletry closet.  ”Some day” is now.

So, what have I made recently? Last night, I made my version of dirty rice, which isn’t really dirty, because that’s just gross.  It’s rice I’ve cooked with a bunch of spices, diced tomatoes, green chiles, and sausage.  We had some green beans & potatoes on the side.  That’s a lot of starch, but both the sausage and the green beans had to be cooked.  I just couldn’t let those green beans cook by themselves.

Tonight was the meal that Rich went ga-ga for–whole wheat sweet potato gnocchi with roasted eggplant and spicy tomato sauce, broiled with a little mozzarella.  There’s a chance we had a grilled cheese appetizer a couple hours before, too.  Whoops!  Even that wasn’t so bad–real cheese on honey wheat bread.

food, life food, life

Conventional wisdom says that you should play to your strengths.  That’s probably a good plan, but sometimes it pays to play to your faults.  In my case that fault is stubbornness.  I don’t particularly like doing things–anything–unless it’s a challenge.  I don’t even like doing a series of small things that result in something challenging.  Hearing ‘good job’ on something easy almost annoys me.  If I’m going to bother doing something, I want it to require me to think, react, plan, and use a wide variety of skills.

There are many things that I would like to improve about myself.  Most of them just require showing up and getting the job done.  Granted, you have to keep showing up again and again.  This isn’t enough of a challenge to engage me.  I’m self-defeating like that.  So, I have to trick myself a bit.  This challenge of wasting less food is about a lot more than feeling guilty about putting food in the trash.  I wasn’t really planning on explaining myself, but since there’s some  interest and some friends are playing along (!), I guess I’ll share.  I might as well, I’ve already opened my soul, uhmmm…pantry up to you.

Food is everything.  Food is fuel.  Food is comfort.  Food is attitude.  Food is tradition.  Food is culture.  Food is social lubricant.  I could go on, but you get my drift.  Food is central to the human existence, and little ol’ me isn’t immune to this.  In fact, if you read my first post on this challenge, you know that it’s something more for me.  It’s my zen.  Planning meals, buying ingredients, preparing dishes, and feeding friends and family are both calming and a source of energy for me.  Like other things that are good for me, I don’t do it often enough, and when I do, I often cut too many corners.

Forcing myself into a creative place in the kitchen is at the heart of this challenge.  By limiting my access to new ingredients (and junk replacements) and pushing what is reasonable in the kitchen, I will feel challenged.  By meeting the specs that I’ve set forth (very limited grocery shopping without eating out), I intend to reach some goals that are more difficult to nail myself down to do:

• Cooking with more basic ingredients – I’m fairly good about this, but if I have to use everything up, it will force my hand.
• Increased energy – If I’m eating healthier food, I’ll have this, which means I can do a lot more.  Cooking when I get home from work rather than sitting on the couch and ordering take-out will also mean that the momentum will be with activity, not laziness.
• Better immune system – Again, healthier food and activity makes this happen.
• Weight loss – ditto.
• More responsible spending – Wasting less food means wasting less money, especially since we won’t be eating at restaurants.  Cooking with basic ingredients is also cheaper than prepared foods.
• Cleaner kitchen – If I’m going to be cooking all of the time, we have to keep the dishes done, because just going out to eat will not be an option.
• More organized kitchen – We’re nearing the end of a minor kitchen remodel, but my pots and pans are not back in their homes.  In fact, the cabinets have been changed, so I have to come up with a new scheme.  This will force me to do this.

There you have it.  I’ve made one moderately sized intention that will support many of my personal goals, and these goals support larger goals.  I didn’t really plan it this way.  I came up with one of my crazy ideas (cook everything-don’t buy groceries) and followed the thought through to what it could mean for me.  And, since I’m stubborn and this is moderately crazy, it just might work.

food, life food, life