India

This week's Indian inspired epicurean adventure went a little ... um... off track and being that it's only week three of what is supposed to be an approximate 264 week venture, it's not a very positive sign. To put it simply we were all a little lazy this week and had we actually been travelling to India we likely would not have made it out of the airport ... our airport ... seriously, we were THAT bad. We were all really, really, reeeeeally excited about India. We had all eaten Indian food before, we all loved the idea of Indian food but apparently,  none of us loved the idea of actually making the Indian food.  That's right, somewhere between Costa Rica and India our minds went a little hazy and the principles of the brown bagged travels got a little tiny bit fuzzy ...

For starters, Berni made .... or rather brought .... STOREmade nan bread. It was delicious but something all of us (including Berni) had purchased and enjoyed a million times before. It is the difference between actually going to Indian versus thumbing through a really great Indian themed coffee table book. We did, however, manage to put our own spin on the pre-packaged nan by popping it into the toaster oven (instead of sprinkling it with water and heating it slightly in the microwave as the directions directed us to do). It was good ... a little crispy maybe (think saltine consistency) but still okay.

Christine brought a really yummy vindaloos and that being said, I believe that she was the only one who actually would have made it to India and got off the plane. Her spin was using a butcher cut veal roast as the protein instead of the chicken that the recipe called for. The only drawback was that she did use a bottled pre-made vindaloos sauce from the grocery store.The sauce was tasty and she did have to partially cook the veal at home and then finish cooking it at work in the toaster oven (along side the nan) so she definitely gets bonus points for that..

What did I bring? I brought samosas. I brought samosas and I would really prefer to just leave it at that.

*sigh*

Okay, I brought samosas .... I brought samosas that I purchased fully cooked from the local Indian restaurant .... and  I feel terrible about it ... sort of anyway.  I feel bad because I am constantly keeping the other brown bagged travellers on course by upholding the "rules" and the spirit of our weekly meals-- there is no switching countries, there is no deviation from our course, there is no switching days and there is certainly no cheating!  I have been adamant about this since day one when "someone" tried to switch Costa Rica out for Mexico because they felt like tacos. Alas, dear reader, I am a hypocrite but a hypocrite with a good reason ... I was soooooo tiiirrrred *insert whiny voice here*. It was a Wednesday night and the thought of actually having to prepare samosas from scratch seemed like an incredibly daunting task ... so I cheated.  I ordered twenty samosas from my local Indian restaurant using my cell phone while hiding out in the company loo. The events that followed next could be likened to something from an old black and white double agent movie. I slunk into the Indian restaurant under the cover of an inky black night and being careful to stay hidden in the shadows slowly made my way up to the front cash register. The restaurant air was thick and fragrant, heavy with the scent of curry, cardamon and cumin. "I'm here for the stuff" I whispered to the woman standing behind the counter. She smiled knowingly and motioned with her hand toward the kitchen; a tall spindly man appeared holding a large brown paper bag stained with grease. "Are you the one who ordered the twenty samosas?" he bellowed, his deep baritone shattering the quiet. "Yes, yes I am" I hissed my eyes darting around the empty room. "Don't you normally do these transactions somewhere more um private?" I asked. The man looked at me quizzically. "Why twenty samosas?" he questioned raising one of his bushy black eyebrows. So, I offered up a vague explanation in hushed tones about an office party and a tyrant boss demanding twenty of the most sumptuous samosas in the land..The man, who continued to stare at me in puzzlement, shook his head and offered to deliver the samosas directly to my office the following days so that they "would be fresh". "NO!!!!!!" I screeched, my voice coming out sounding like some crazy mix of a falcon and a train whistle. The man physically jumped back at the sound, bumping into the woman who was still standing next to the til.  "O-o-okay" he stammered. They offered me a complimentary dish of sticky tamarind sauce to accompany the samosas (which I readily accepted) obviously hoping that a friendly token would help get the nutcase (i.e. Me) out of their restaurant and out of their lives for good. I paid for the samosas and carefully backed out of the restaurant and sank back into the night, leaving a "this never even happened ..." lingering in the air and the man and the woman staring after me.

And that, dear reader, is not even the worst part.

The worst part came the next day in the form copious amounts of praise from my co-workers at my "wonderful", "delectable" samosas (the samosas that I had so cleverly transferred into old Tupperware containers the night before to help facilitate my ruse). Everyone was talking about them and about how "fantastic they tasted". Our receptionist in our city office (who had managed to sneak a piece of one from Berni when she was down) even called to let me know how hard it is to get the samosa pastry "just right" but that mine was very very authentic tasting and "just perfect" Ugh.  I took the praise in stride for as a long as I could before finally advising (modestly of course) that although I was glad everyone had enjoyed them, I did not want to talk about it anymore. *GASP* I know, I know my actions were truly underhanded and  seedy and unlike bothChristine and Berni I consciously made the decision to keep my dirty little secret tightly under wraps. I figured if I confessed to my little lie in this week's blog entry it would be like a sort of written apology and if they (Christine and Berni) never happen to read this entry well, there's nothing I could really do about that. I mean it's not like I didn't try right? Riiiiight?! *wink wink*

So, even though this week's brown bagged trip did not go exactly as it should have we did still end up with a fantastically tasty meal and well ... if you want the product information or directions to the (fabulous) Indian Restaurant in my town drop me a line.and I can totally hook you up.

Next week we will be packing our culinary bags and heading to the Ivory Coast for an authentic slice of their proverbial pie .... a slice that we will be one hundred percent preparing ourselves ... PROMISE!

Dear Latvia

Dear sweet Latvia, your landscape is beautiful, your culture is rich, your people are friendly .... your food... not so good.  Unfortunately, our Latvian adventure did not turn out as well as we had hoped-- whether it was the execution of the recipes or the actual recipes themselves will remain a mystery as I sincerely doubt that any one of us will be trying them again. The term most commonly used to describe Latvian cuisine is "peasant food" which to me evoked scenes of a Snow White-esque forest, a cast iron pot full of some dark, rich stew bubbling over an open hearth and fresh loaves of yeasty bread cooling on a stone windowsill. Apparently, I had no idea what I was talking about.   While looking for a truly authentic Latvian recipe via Google (which is where all the cool Latvian recipes go) I quickly discovered that "peasant food" was just another way of saying "with potatoes and sour cream". Every recipe I came across had potatoes or sour cream or both as their main ingredient(s) AND there was not one stew recipe to be found!  My romanticized peasant food vision was fading fast-- thinking that surely the recipes I was finding were not entirely authentic I decided to turn to ... wait for it ... books. Yes, dear reader I decided to search for my delectable Latvian morsel in a book and do you know what I found? More potatoes and sour cream! Seriously! There was also an abundance of Kielbasa and cabbage-- turns out that Latvia has some heavy Polish influence  (pretty obvious I guess since they're neighbours and everything). So, I spent hours upon hours scouring the pages of many books (okay, one book but still it was a thick one) until I finally made my decision: Abolu platsmaize (Latvian Apple Pie).  The name sounded easy enough, the picture of the finished dessert looked good AND it didn't contain any potatoes (only sour cream), so without another thought I bookmarked the page and completely forgot about it until Wednesday evening ... that's when I noticed that the recipe had one fatal flaw: NO QUANTITIES!! That's right, the recipe HAD an ingredient list but unfortunately had NO measurement of said ingredients.. Here is the actual recipe as it was written:

Abolu platsmaize (Latvian Apple Pie)

Ingredients:

Eggs
Keifers
Flour
Sugar
Baking Powder
Apples Raisin
Sour Cream
Eggs
Sugar
Cinammon

Method:

Combine ingredients to make a dough. Spread on flat sheet. Put remaining ingredients on top. Sprinkle sugar and Cinnamon.

That's it, that's all it said. No amounts, no directions, nothing. I'm not even sure which ingredients I put in the dough and which I put on top--at this point my inner gypsy started to panic-- so I took a deep breath, reminded myself that this was SUPPOSED to be an adventure, tied my sweater around my waist and dove head first into the recipe of confusion ... and you know what? It didn't turn out half bad.  I was able to "guess" at the dough recipe and, thanks to the book's picture, I was able to figure out what ingredients went on top (I think?) Was it perfect? Was it actually Latvian? Probably not but I definitely had Latvian spirit in my heart while I was putting it all together, so that's got to count for something right? (*Please note that I have also not included any ingredient amounts for the recipe-- where's the fun in that?!)

The other's fared pretty much the same as I did-- although their recipes did come with measurements, they had they're own hardships to overcome. Berni's Latvian potato salad with kielbasa was ... um ... interesting. How'd it taste? Lets just say that nobody was grabbing for seconds; this probably had to do with the fact that not a single one of us was a fan of kielbasa and let me tell you,that sausage had hooked up with absolutely every potato in that salad. Ugh.

Latvian Potato Salad with Kielbasa

Ingredients

4-5 large potatoes
3 eggs
1 large Kielbasa (diced)

Dressing-
 1 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp horseradish
2 tbsp mustard

Directions

Boil potatoes until fairly soft (but not until they are falling apart). Hard boil eggs. Remove skins from potatoes, and shells from eggs. Dice into fairly large chunks—about ½ inch (1 - 1.5 cm) in diameter. Dice sausage into slightly smaller pieces; it should make approximately one cup (250 ml) when diced. Put all ingredients into a large bowl.
Make salad dressing. Start with smaller amounts, and keep adding sour cream, horseradish (or mustard), salt, etc. until it tastes good to you.
Add salad dressing to diced ingredients. Stir well. Cover. Refrigerate for several hours, if possible. Serves 4 - 6.

Christine's hardship had less to do with the recipe and more to do with her driving.  She had originally made Latvian Meatballs but when getting ready to transport them to the office she left them on the hood of her car. Subsequently, when she started driving the meatballs fell off the hood onto the road where they were promptly squished under the wheels of an old Dodge Dakota rumbling along behind her. In a moment of pure genius Christine headed straight to the market and purchased a tube of hot dog rolls (the kind you roll around the outside of a wiener and then bake in the oven), a tub of chopped onions, bacon bits and a package of deli ham-- she made Piragi on the fly in our office kitchenette using the toaster oven! What a smartie pants! They were delicious ... a little charred on the outside but still by far, the best recipe of the day. (Note: Piragi are traditionally made using a yeast dough-- so for the record, not all my Latvian peasant dreams were wrong- just saying).

Christine's Latvian Piragi

1 tube of hot dog rolls

1 package of pre-cooked bacon bit
1 package of deli sliced ham (diced)

Directions

Place diced onion, bacon bits and ham in a heat safe bowl and bake in the toaster oven for approximately 10 minutes of medium heat.

Place hot dog rolls on a piece of foil, fill with onion, bacon, ham mixture and roll. Bake for approximately 20 minutes.


So Latvia, it's been a slice and although I will probably not be recreating this weeks brown bagged feast any time soon, you did provide me with quite the culinary adventure and for that I am grateful.


Next week's brown bagged travels will be taking us to a part of the world where the mountains are majestic, the tigers run free and the spices are fragrant.... see you in India!

Hello Costa Rica!

Hello. My name is Tara and I work in an office. I work in an office where we are so incredibly busy that even the thought of a vacation is not possible, let alone actually being able to take one. Honestly, I don't mind. I love my job and I love the people I work with. My job is fulfilling and gratifying and enjoyable but... sometimes... sometimes the gypsy inside me wriggles her toes, dusts of her shoes and tugs at my wanderlust; making me yearn for distant shores, archaic forests, arctic tundra and the glittering sandy beaches of the beyond. I have been successfully repressing my inner gypsy for quite some time now and sadly, I am not the only one. There are others in my office (yes, I'm talking about you Christine) who feel the same as I do and who have been working relentlessly for years to keep their raging gypsies at bay ... and they too have been successful ... that is until last Wednesday, when I came up with this amazingly terrific, wonderfully delicious idea. My idea ... if we couldn't go out and see the world, we could certainly bring the world in to see us and what better way to do it than through our stomachs! We would pick a country at random every week and then each Thursday hold a pot luck in the the boardroom with foods from that country. The rules would be simple:

1. Pick a dish that is authentically from the chosen country

2. Pick a dish that you have never made before

3. Make said dish authentically your own

My idea sparked some controversy in our little office, causing those less inspired to ask "what are you going to do when you get a bad country?" and "Why would you even want to do this?" Questions posed by people who had long ago dropped their own gypsies off on some lonely twisted highway, shoeless and sobbing in the rain. Bad country? Why do I want to do this? Whaaaaat???! I couldn't even wrap my head around what they were saying. I mean c'mon, why would I NOT want to do this????!! My idea was going to be exciting and fun and a learning experience with even the less popular countries like Bangladesh (sorry Bangladesh) offering up tons of food inspired adventure. Not to mention, helloooo, my idea was going to be super duper YUMMY!

Christine our Office Administrator and fellow gypsy repressor wanted in --- advising me her "bag was already packed"  and my boss was definitely up for the ride. So, like the brazen  world travellers we were longing to be we decided (or rather fate decided for us) to start our culinary journey in ... COSTA RICA.

We were all super excited and couldn't wait to get cooking. Google became our best friend as we spent hours upon hours (of non-company time obviously!) scouring website after website, desperately searching for the perfect recipe; a recipe from Costa Rica's heart to ours.

Finally decisions were made.

This week's menu: Arroz con Pollo, Zapallitos Rellenos and for dessert Arroz con Leche.

Mmmmm we were definitely NOT disappointed-- all the fare turned out wonderful and our very first Brown Bagged Travels pot luck was a complete success. My dish was Arroz con Pollo (chicken with rice) and while it was easy enough to make, I have to admit that it was not the most exciting thing I have ever eaten. While researching my dish I discovered that Costa Rican cuisine is often described in culinary circles as being "bland", which totally explains my recipe's tag line of "best served with ketchup". Christine's Zapallitos (zucchini) were fantastic and the chopped egg stuffing in them was interesting and very "costa rican". Berni made the most delicious rice pudding that I have ever tasted ... EVER (i.e. I actually licked my bowl clean. Licked. It. Clean.) I have included the recipes below in their original form with our personal touches written in bold.

Arroz Con Pollo

Ingredients

For the Chicken: 1lb chick parts (drumsticks, thighs, wings and breast halves), 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 rib of celery, salt, pepper, oregano and cumin to taste.
(*I cheated and bought a whole, already roasted chicken at the grocery store and tossed all the listed chicken spices in with the rice).

For the Rice: 1lb uncooked long grain rice, rinsed and dried, 2 tablespoons lard or vegetable oil, 2 carrots cut in fine slices, 1 teaspoon annatto. Salt to taste. 2 cups frozen peas
(*I used whole grain brown rice instead of the long grain white and shredded my carrots)

For the Sauce: 1/2 cup onions finely chopped, 1/2 cup red bell pepper finely chopped, 1 large tomato, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoon cilantro finely chopped, 2 teaspoons Salsa Lizano, 1 5.5oz can of tomato paste, 1 cup of water.
(*I spent hours looking for Lizano sauce at the grocery store and couldn't find any. luckily, I discovered that Worcestershire sauce has a comparable flavour and I was able to substitute with that).

The Chicken: heat vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium high heat. Add chicken, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, cumin and celery. Turning occasionally until chicken is golden brown evenly. De bone chicken. Skin chicken.

The Rice: Heat vegetable oil in a medium heavy sauce pan over medium heat. Add rice stirring often until rice is slightly brown. Add carrots, annatto and salt. Add 1 1/4 quarts of water. Bring mix to a boil over medium high heat. Cover saucepan and simmer until rice is tender. Turn off heat and leave rice in saucepan covered for 10 minutes.

The Sauce: Saute onion, red bell peppers, tomato, cilantro, Lizano


Zapallitos Rellenos

Ingredients

4 zucchini, 1 hard boiled egg finely chopped, 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup of milk, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated, salt and pepper, 1/4 cup whole wheat fresh bread crumbs.
(*Christine used soy cheese instead of the mozzarella and parmesan, soy milk instead of cows milk and shredded her hard boiled eggs).

Directions:

Boil zucchinis until tender, approximately 8-10 minutes. Let cool, cut in half length wise. Scoop out the insides and place in a strainer. Force as much liquid out as possible. Combine the squash paste, egg, grated cheese, milk and mix well. Fill the zucchini shells. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs and parmesan cheese (get them ready up to this point and then just pop them in the oven 15 minutes before serving).

Heat in 350F oven for approximately 15 minutes or until the parmesan is brown and they are heated through.

Arroz con Leche

Ingredients

2 cups rice, 4 cups milk, 4 cups sugar, 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoons grated fresh nutmeg, 4oz butter.

Directions

Cook rice uncovered in 8 cups of water for 45 minutes until rice is quite soft. Stir in other ingredients and simmer for 1/2 hour.  Serve warm or refrigerate at least four hours to serve cold.

So,

Although we didn't exactly have the lush green jungles of Costa Rica or the hum from their local marketplaces we were offered a small glimpse in to the true Costa Rican experience through their cuisine, guided by our taste buds and our hunger for something new.

Costa Rica = a definite success

Next week's Brown Bagged Travels are taking us to Latvia ... hope to see you there!