Popovers and Out

There comes a time in every former dieter’s life when she takes a good, long look in her boyfriend’s full-size IKEA mirror and comes to the realization that her thighs are slightly thicker than they were a year ago, her arms a tad flabbier, and her butt, while not quite epically proportioned, is definitely nearing a novella.

It is not a fun realization.

Ask any Weight Watcher, South Beach devotee, or heaven forbid, Slim Fast quaffer, and they’ll tell you straight up: the problem with dropping pounds isn’t necessarily doing it in the first place. Rather, it’s keeping them off. Maintaining that level of discipline over the long run is, for lack of a better term, really, really hard. Some ridiculous percentage of dieters pack the bulk back on within a couple of years, and I hoped that between the blog, the cooking, and my ever-burgeoning awareness of food, I could avoid that pitfall. Alas, a few too many beers and nachos later, and I’m at a delicate crossroads. Namely, do I address this minor gain now (before it gets worse), or do I hope a future of healthy eating and raised consciousness will right my nutritional wrongs?

This isn’t the first time this has happened, either. My body’s oscillated in heft since the mid-‘90s, a 40-pound swing I’ve strived mightily to halt. In 11 years, I’ve donned everything from an itty-bitty cocktail dress to a what I’m pretty sure was a burlap sack once worn by the Incredible Hulk. And I know it’s not good. The dietary see-saw is bad for my heart, my self-esteem, and womankind in general. I don’t want to care as much as I do. But I do. For all kinds of reasons.

Which brings us to popovers? (How’s that for a segue?) I remember Ma making these for my siblings and I when we were little, and being totally stoked at how huge and puffy they grew in the oven. Soft and chewy and warm, I didn’t know until yesterday that they’re also pretty healthy for a baked good. (Thanks, Betty Crocker!) You can eat ‘em anytime, and what’s more, at $0.14 a pop(over), they’re one of the cheapest foods ever to be featured on this here blog. Sweet.

I expect I’ll be eating a lot of popovers the next few months, but I’m not sure. I’ll keep y’all updated on my gluteal magnitude, though (lucky you), and hopefully we can make some sense of it together. Whee!

Popovers
Makes 6 popovers.
Adapted from Betty Crocker's New Cookbook.

1 teaspoon shortening
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 cup skim milk
1 cup all-purpose flour (Do not use self-rising flour)
½ teaspoon salt

1) Preheat oven to 450ºF. Grease 6-cup popover pan or 6-cup muffin pan with shortening.

3) In a medium bowl, beat eggs a little. Then, add rest of ingredients and beat until smooth. (Don't go crazy - overbeating is not so good.) Split batter among pan cups. Each should be about 1/2 to 3/4 full.

3) Bake 20 minutes.

4) Drop oven to 350ºF and bake 15-20 more minutes. Popovers should be brown and puffy when finished. Remove from oven and get popovers out of pan a.s.a.p. Serve immediately.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price Per Serving
115 calories, 2 g fat, $0.14

Calculations
1 teaspoon shortening: 37 calories, 4 g fat, $0.02
1 egg: 74 calories, 5 g fat, $0.17
2 egg whites: 34 calories, 0.1. g fat, $0.33
1 cup skim milk: 91 calories, 0.6 g fat, $0.25
1 cup all-purpose flour: 455 calories, 1.2 g fat, $0.05
½ teaspoon salt: negligible calories and fat, $0.01
TOTAL: 691 calories, 10.9 g fat, $0.83
PER SERVING: 115 calories, 2 g fat, $0.14

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Asparagus, Mushroom and Parmesan Frittata: Basements and Breakfast

Up until recently, our 109-year-old basement (a.k.a. the Ninth Circle of Hell) was the scariest place in all of Brooklyn. It was the kind of dusty, brick-lined dungeon where stairs threatened to splinter at every step and light bulbs blew for no reason at all. Only dirt, mold, and ghosts would have dared to call it Home, and in retrospect, I’m pretty sure it inspired The Blair Witch Project.

Yesterday, as part of the Most Productive Weekend in History, The Boyfriend, our two roommates and I decided to take a whack at it. We had already turned our backyard from Depression-era scrap heap into brick-lined paradise, and were dusty and daring (and dumb?) enough to keep the ball rolling. Four dust masks and a pack of contractor-caliber garbage bags later, we were hauling up armfuls of the former tenant’s decades-old detritus, which included, but was not limited to:

• Eight plastic boomerangs
• 300 pounds of free weights
• Two-dozen tiles of rock-hard linoleum
• Two car jacks
• Two broken fans
• Two broken chairs
• A hand-operated drill
• A rusty hatchet
• Four open bags of kitty litter
• Eight human heads

(Just kidding about that last one … maybe.)

All told, it took two or three hours to clean, organize, and attempt to sweep. Nobody died, and any spectre who sets up house down there will now be much more comfortable. Plus, everything we put outside on our stoop was snatched up by this morning, 300 pounds of free weights included. I love this neighborhood.

This was all a very roundabout way of saying this: to psyche ourselves up for Cellarfest ’08, we made a large, semi-opulent brunch of bacon, strawberries, Bloody Marys, toast, and Asparagus, Mushroom and Parmesan Frittatas. I wrote up another frittata recipe on the blog a few weeks ago, which was delicious but contained canned instead of cooked produce. This one uses fresh vegetables and a few more eggs to adequately hold the bulk. It is also delicious, and will most definitely tide you over for and terrible, terrible tasks that may lie ahead.

Oo – and I should mention: the asparagus is so inexpensive because I bought a bunch for $0.50 on the street in Chinatown. It was one of those, “La-di-da, I’m walking … I’m walking … have to get somewhere … oo, look a vegetable stand … enh, I’m late … still walking … wait, did that say asparagus for $0.50/bunch? … still walking, only backwards now … yes, they are $0.50/bunch … uh, ma’am, can I have 12 of these?” purchases. Thank you, Canal Street!

Asparagus, Mushroom, and Parmesan Frittata
Serves 4

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, divided
8 small stalks asparagus (4 or 5 medium), cut into 1” pieces
1/3 lb white button mushrooms, cut into sixths
2 tablespoons chicken stock
1 cup minced onion
6 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

1) In a large oven-proof skillet, heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add asparagus. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add stock. Add mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms have released their liquid, and then that evaporates. Put mixture in a bowl to the side.

2) Whisk eggs, parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste together in a small bowl.

3) Preheat broiler.

4) In the same skillet, heat remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook about 3 minutes, until translucent. While this is happening, pat down the asparagus and mushrooms to remove some of the moisture.

5) Turn heat down to medium and add eggs. Without stirring, let eggs set for about 3 or 4 minutes.

6) When sides of frittata start to set (they’ll begin pulling away from the pan), sprinkle asparagus and mushrooms evenly on top. Cook for about 3 minutes more, until the top just starts to set.

7) Transfer pan to broiler and cook until top becomes light golden brown. This should take about 3 minutes, but check after 2 since broilers are different the world over. (Mine only took 2.)

8) Using a potholder, remove pan from broiler and set on top of stove. Loosen frittata with plastic spatula immediately (otherwise it will continue to cook), being careful not to tear the eggs. Plate and eat.

Approximate Calories, Fat and Price per Serving
212 calories, 13.7 g fat, $0.85

Calculations
½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil: 60 calories, 7 g fat, $0.05
8 small stalks asparagus (4 or 5 medium), cut into 1” pieces: 16 calories, 0.2 g fat, $0.15
1/3 lb white button mushrooms, cut into sixths: 33 calories, 0.5 g fat, $1.00
2 tablespoons chicken stock: 11 calories, 0.4 g fat, $0.03
6 large eggs: 441 calories, 29.8 g fat, $0.90
2 large egg whites: 34 calories, 0.1 g fat, $0.30
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese: 144 calories, 9.5 g fat, $0.75
salt and pepper: negligible calories and fat, $0.02
½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil: 60 calories, 7 g fat, $0.05
1 cup minced onion: 48 calories, 0.1 g fat, $0.15
TOTAL: 847 calories, 54.6 g fat, $3.40
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 212 calories, 13.7 g fat, $0.85

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Roasted Asparagus with Poached Egg & Parmesan: It's Springtime for Vegetables (and Germany)

Two quick things before today’s recipe:

1) Last December, I posted a recipe for Wacky Cake, a vegan chocolate delight guaranteed to caress your taste buds like a gentle, fudgy lover. As I’m dumb, there was a typo in the calculations and I listed a single teaspoon of vinegar at $0.93. It should have been $0.03, which makes the final per-piece total a staggering $0.09 (instead of $0.17). Just another reason to go home and bake 12 of the dang thing.

2) I’m reading A Cook’s Tour by Anthony Bourdain right now. I loved Kitchen Confidential SO HARD, and I think I’m liking this even more. The guy can flat-out write, and his cultural observations are as riveting and funny as his culinary insights. I want to make out with his brain. Has anyone read his fiction stuff? Is it as good? Do tell.

Anyway, business. We’re edging slowly into Spring up here in NYC, which means between the tri-weekly monsoons, it’s possible to steal out and gaze in anticipatory wonder at the first green vegetables of the season. Salad greens are making an appearance, as are artichokes and baby garlic. But even better are the asparagus. They’re going at local supermarkets for under $2, and in Chinatown for $0.50 a bunch. ('Round here, this is the grocery equivalent of buying a Lexus for a twenty you found on the street.)

Inspired by this inexpensive onslaught of emerald stalky things and this post from The Kitchn, I decided to try Roasted Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Parmesan.

AND I LOVED IT.

Loved it loved it loved it loved it loved it loved it.

The Boyfriend did, too. I’ll be serving it to his parents when they come to visit in May, because I want them to think nothing but wonderful things about me. (I’m an excellent housekeeper, Nobel Laureate, fart rainbows, etc.) The parmesan and breadcrumbs give it a light, crunchy crust, while the egg, poached to perfection via the whirlpool method, drowns everything in a yolky, creamy pool of magic. Gah. I want more right now, but alas, am stuck at work. Thanks a lot JOB, a.k.a. You Which Allows Me to Survive but Deprives Me of Time I Could be Making Asparagussy Wonderment.

Oh, and hey - a tip, should you try it yourself: if there’s a Trader Joe’s nearby, get thee hence. Their large eggs are only $1.79/dozen, and that beats any of BK’s local competition by at least 60 cents. (“BK” is Brooklyn, not Burger King in this case.) I think it might be comparable ‘round the country.

Roasted Asparagus with Poached Egg & Parmesan
Serves 4
Adapted from The Kitchn.

1 Tbsp. olive oil
20 asparagus spears, trimmed (or tough ends snapped off)
2 Tbsp. breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon unflavored vinegar
4 large eggs
2 ounces grated parmesan
 (optional: 4 strips thinly sliced prosciutto)

1) Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

2) In a small bowl, toss asparagus with oil to coat. Salt and pepper to taste. Place on baking sheet. Roast around 10 or 11 minutes, until asparagus is tender. Sprinkle veggies with bread crumbs and then stick it back in the oven for 5 more minutes. Remove from oven, split among 4 plates, and keep warm.

3) While asparagus is roasting, "bring 2 quarts of water to a boil with vinegar and salt." Drop heat to low. When it becomes a simmer, make a brisk, gentle whirlpool in the water with your spoon. "Crack an egg into a cup." Slowly add egg to whirlpool. (It should migrate towards the middle.) Do the same thing for egg #2, stirring every so often to keep the whirlpool going.

4) Cook between 3 1/2 and 4 minutes. When finished, with a slotted spoon, lightly place one on each plate of asparagus. Sprinkle parm on top, and prosciutto if using. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

5) Starting from Step 2, repeat process for eggs #3 and #4.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price Per Serving
201.5 calories, 13 g fat, $0.94

Calculations
1 Tbsp. olive oil: 119 calories, 13.5 g fat, $0.08
20 asparagus spears: 90 calories, 0.5 g fat, $1.99
2 Tbsp. breadcrumbs: 55 calories, 0.8 g fat, $0.03
1 tablespoon salt: negligible calories and fat, $0.02
1 teaspoon unflavored vinegar: 3 calories, 0 g fat, $0.03
4 large very fresh eggs: 294 calories, 19.9 g fat, $0.60
1 2-ounce piece Parmesan cheese: 245 calories, 16.3 g fat, $1.00
TOTAL: 806 calories, 51 g fat, $3.75
PER SERVING: 201.5 calories, 13 g fat, $0.94

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Roasted Red Pepper, Artichoke, Olive and Parmesan Frittata: Hello, Gorgeous

I’m way excited about today’s frittata recipe for two reasons:

1. We made it twice this weekend. Saturday’s version was the experiment, and calling it unidentifiable would be an act of charity. But after a few spot-on adjustments (if I do say so mahself), Sunday’s frittata looked and tasted like briny, eggy victory.
2. My food pictures are halfway decent, meaning they don’t look like they were taken by a blind man at the bottom of a well.

The beauty of homemade frittatas (besides their actual beauty – seriously, scroll down and look at that thing) are their speed and price, especially compared to restaurant versions. Those babies will run you $7 to $12, not to mention the cost and time of transportation. What’s more, besides “Sheboygan,” “photosynthesis,” and “googly,” “frittata” is one of the most fun English-language words to say over and over again out loud (until someone hits you in the head with a hammer).

This particular frittata is a reduced-fat mutant hybrid of a Health.com dish, Alton Brown’s basic recipe, and my personal taste. It’s substantial without being heavy, and the combo of peppers, artichokes, and olives brings a quasi-Mediterranean flavor that The Boyfriend and I really dug. If you’re adamantly opposed to any of the vegetables, various others can be substituted in super-easily. In fact, Cooking Light has about 35 different frittatas that beg for a few games of mix-and-match.

One possible caveat: there will be plenty of leftover ingredients after the frittata is finished. I don't see this as a drawback, though. Pourquoi? Well, paired with a head of lettuce, they’ll make six killer salads. Slapped between six pieces of toast, they’re three salivation-worthy sandwiches. Grouped with six more eggs, they're another frittata. Or, maybe? If you’re feeling saucy, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with eating the unused red peppers and olives with your bare hands, taking care to slurp your fingers to the bone afterward.

Before you commence lickery, however, take a gander at these pictures. They're the closest I might ever come to Pioneer Woman and Smitten Kitchen, and they're giving me a weird welling-up sensation. I think it might be pride. (Insert "No, it's definitely gas" joke here.)

Roasted Red Pepper, Artichoke, Olive and Parmesan Frittata
Serves 4
Adapted from Health.com and Alton Brown.

4 large eggs
2 large egg whites
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
½ Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup minced onion
1 roasted red pepper, chopped
2 canned artichoke hearts, chopped into eight pieces each
1 T chopped fresh parsley
8 kalamata olives, sliced

1) Preheat your broiler.

2) Whisk eggs, parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste together in a small bowl.

3) Heat oil over medium-high heat in a medium-sized oven-proof pan. Add onion and cook about 3 minutes, until translucent. While this is happening, pat down the red peppers, artichoke hearts and olives with a paper towel to remove some of the moisture.

4) Turn heat down to medium and add eggs. Without stirring, let eggs set for about 3 minutes.

5) When sides of frittata start to set (they’ll begin pulling away from the pan), sprinkle roasted red pepper, artichoke hearts, parsley, and olives evenly on top. Cook for about 2 or 3 minutes more, until the top just starts to set.

6) Transfer pan to broiler and cook until top becomes light golden brown. This should take about 3 minutes, but check after 2 since broilers are different the world over.

7) Using a potholder, remove pan from broiler and set on top of stove. Loosen frittata with spatula immediately (otherwise it will continue to cook), being careful not to tear the eggs. Plate and eat.

Approximate Calories, Fat and Price per Serving
159.5 calories, 10.1 g fat, $0.81

Calculations
4 large eggs: 294 calories, 19.9 g fat, $0.60
2 large egg whites: 34 calories, 0.1 g fat, $0.30
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese: 86 calories, 5.7 g fat, $0.52
salt and pepper: negligible calories and fat, $0.02
½ Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil: 60 calories, 7 g fat, $0.04
1 cup minced onion: 48 calories, 0.1 g fat, $0.15
1 roasted red pepper, chopped: 31 calories, 0.4. g fat, $0.49
2 canned artichoke hearts, chopped into eight pieces each: 13 calories, 0 g fat, $0.60
1 T chopped fresh parsley: negligible calories and fat, $0.25
8 kalamata olives, sliced: 72 calories, 7.2 g fat, $0.25
TOTAL: 638 calories, 40.4 g fat, $3.22
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 159.5 calories, 10.1 g fat, $0.81

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Barefoot Contessa’s Orange Yogurt: Marry Me, Ina

One quick note before today’s recipe: reader Zac made a great point in the comment section about yesterday’s plastic container tip. If you do save these guys, it’s best not to microwave/heat them up. That kind of material isn’t intended for high temperatures, and can either A) melt, or B) leak weird chemicals into your food. With that …

My love for Ina Garten is boundless and well-documented. Someday, I imagine snatching her from graying, intellectual Jeffrey and whisking her away to Brooklyn, where her quality Hamptonian cuisine would nourish and enlighten all the borough’s hungry denizens. Alas, Ina-napping is at least illegal, and at most bad for getting into heaven, so no dice. But in lieu of her actual presence, I can keep making her food.

Today’s recipe is the very last listed in the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, and easily missed among the Outrageous Brownies and Banana Crunch Muffins. It’s a simple Orange Yogurt, made tastier by the additions of honey, vanilla, golden raisins, walnuts and freshly squeezed juice. As with all Ina’s stuff, it’s pleasant, different and uncomplicated. If you can work a spoon, you can make this dish. (If you can’t work a spoon … maybe take lessons?)

A few points if you decide to take the plunge:

1) Wash the orange since it’s being zested. Otherwise, it’s Funky Aftertaste City, population: you.

2) There are a billion permutations for this thing and ingredients can be swapped out as you like. Food.com reviewers have some suggestions.

3) If you have a choice between generic yogurt and something slightly more upscale, I’d go with option #2. I’m finding our supermarket brand, while passable, isn’t necessarily conducive to meal quality.

4) Ms. Garten suggests using low-fat instead of fat-free yogurt. I used fat-free, because I’m contrary trying to lose a few pounds.

5) I had NO IDEA draining yogurt would produce that much liquid. I halved the recipe and still pulled out nearly a cup of water. Crazy. My roommate M was hilariously repulsed.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to attend to the crazy guy in front of my apartment who’s been yelling at a tree for the last five minutes. (This is not a joke.) Ahh … Brooklyn.

(Ina, get here FAST.)

Orange Yogurt
Makes 4 servings at about 2/3rd cup each
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa.

4 cups (2 pints) plain yogurt (I used fat-free, so calcs are for that. – Kris)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup good honey
1 orange, zest grated
1/2 to 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
Orange, orange zest, raisins and walnuts, for garnish (optional)

1) Adjust a small sieve or wire colander so it's hanging over a bowl. Line it with a paper towel or two (or cheesecloth, if you have it). Dump yogurt in sieve and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. It should drain, producing a surprising amount of yogurt water. Discard the yogurt water.

2) In a medium bowl, gently stir yogurt, raisins, walnuts, vanilla, honey, and orange zest together. If it's too thick, a little orange juice will make it less so. Top with orange, zest, raisins, or walnuts. Serve.

Approximate Calories, Fat and Price per Serving
291.5 calories, 5.1 g fat, $1.07

Calculations
4 cups (2 pints) plain yogurt (I used fat-free. – Kris): 508 calories, 1.6 g fat, $2.00
1/4 cup raisins: 109 calories, 0.2 g fat, $0.45
1/4 cup chopped walnuts: 193 calories, 18.4 g fat, $0.58
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract: 18 calories, 0 g fat, $0.06
1/4 cup good honey: 258 calories, 0 g fat, $0.72
1 orange, zest grated: negligible calories and fat, free (comes with the orange)
1/2 to 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice: 80 calories, 0.4 g fat, $0.50
Garnish (optional): negligible calories and fat, (comes with the orange)
TOTAL: 1166 calories, 20.6 g fat, $4.31
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 291.5 calories, 5.1 g fat, $1.07

(Ina photo courtesy of foodieobsessed.com.)

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Oh, My Sweet Lassi

In the two years following college, I lived semi-large with three ladyfriends in a medium-sized Brooklyn apartment. We had starter jobs, very little money, and an unnatural obsession with singing Jock Jams in Ross Perot voices. (Try it! It's fun.) We were also not very interested in cooking, except for K.

Born in upstate New York, K was the only one who actually used our pots and pans. She bought things like “produce,” and “dairy products.” A few times, she whipped up this Saltine-butter-chocolate dessert that I can’t even think of without salivating all over my desk. (Seriously, Saltines? Who knew they didn’t have to taste like drywall?) One of her favorite concoctions, which I had never heard of at the time, and now order/make at every opportunity, was the lassi.

Essentially a thick Indian yogurt drink, lassis are intended to calm taste buds during a spicy meal. But, much like its fruity cousin the mango lassi, the sweet lassi is also delicious on its own.

While there were a bazillion options online, the recipe attached below is adapted from the Whole Foods website. It seemed simple enough, and turned out well. Only changes: I used low-fat yogurt and cut out the rosewater, since, uh, I don’t know what it is or where to find it. (I will rectify this situation for next time.)

Nowadays, K is married to a wonderfully awesome dude, who I am sure is benefiting from her years of experience and experiments. I wish I had appreciated it more when we were roomies. (Besides the Saltine thing. I appreciated that constantly.)

P.S. Just to clarify - this is NOT a milkshake. It is a yogurt drink. If you do not like yogurt, you will vomit profusely.

Sweet Lassi
Serves 2 (12 oz each) or 3 (8 oz each)
Adapted from Whole Foods.

2 cups plain lowfat yogurt
1/2 cup cold water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
6 ice cubes

1) Blend yogurt, water, sugar, and cardamom together until smooth. Add ice cubes and blend again, until mixture is smooth. Serve cold.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price per Serving
2 servings: 248 calories, 3.8 g fat, $0.65
3 servings: 165 calories, 2.5 g fat, $0.43

Calculations
2 cups plain lowfat yogurt: 309 calories, 7.6 g fat, $1.15
1/2 cup cold water: negligible fat and calories, $0.00
1/4 cup sugar: 186 calories, 0 g fat, $0.06
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom: negligible fat and calories, $0.08
6 ice cubes: negligible fat and calories, $0.00
TOTAL: 495 calories, 7.6 g fat, $1.29
PER SERVING (TOTAL/2): 248 calories, 3.8 g fat, $0.65
PER SERVING (TOTAL/3): 165 calories, 2.5 g fat, $0.43

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Lollappleooza Postgame: Chai-Spiced Apple Oatmeal Bread and the Quest for Cardamom

Ladies and gentlemen, please unbuckle your safety harnesses and exit to the right: we have officially, finally come to the end of our apple-y journey. Thank god, too, because I am appled OUT. It took about two weeks, but The Boyfriend and I chomped, spread, and spooned our way through (almost) each and every one of those 69 delicious suckers. Here’s how:

• 24 apples eaten individually
• 10 apples for All Night Apple Butter
• 10 apples for Cooking Light’s Maple-Walnut Apple Crisp
• 9 apples for Ma’s Chunky Applesauce
• 8 apples for Weight Watchers Apple Strudel (unlisted)
• 4 (very small) apples for Chai-Spiced Apple Oatmeal Bread (listed below)
• 2 apples gone bad prematurely (punks)
• 2 apples left TBE (to be eaten)

I made the final recipe, Chai-Spiced Apple Oatmeal Bread, this weekend after being tempted by a sweet little blog called Everybody Likes Sandwiches. The loaf came out pretty well. Crumbly and delectably-scented, it’ll make a spiffy breakfast bread for the office. ELS has a bit more, and the CHG nutritional/price breakdown is attached below, but I wanted to take the rest of this entry to discuss something far more pressing: cardamom.

I live in Brooklyn, in an area where grocery stores and bodegas (small, largely Hispanic-owned delis) dot the landscape like dandelions. 20 of them are within walking distance of my apartment. Two stock cardamom. One of them, for $10.49 per bottle. The other, for $0.50.

And this, friends and neighbors, is why everyone should shop in ethnic markets.

Ideally, obtaining the warm-flavored spice shouldn’t have been that much of a pain in the tuchus. It’s pretty prominent in Indian, Mid-Eastern, and Asian cooking, and my neighborhood is one of the most diverse on Earth. One would think the streets would be lined with it. Nope. It took a special trip to the Turkish grocers to procure a baggie of the damned stuff.

On the upside, besides the 2000% savings, that store has a new #1 fan – and not the stalky, weird kind, either. The good kind. The kind that will use the Turkish folks' spices exclusively from now on. On the downside, it's kind of a haul. And I get lost very, very easily. (Very easily.) But, no matter. A $10 savings is totally worth it.

Anyway - yeah, eat the bread. But more than that, support your local ethnic market. Everybody wins. (But mostly you.)

Chai-Spiced Apple Oatmeal Bread
12 slices
Adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches.

1 cup oats (Quaker Old-fashioned good, but not instant)
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup skim milk
1/3 cup honey
1 egg
4 small Cortland or 2 Jonamac apples, diced (or any tart apple)

1) Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a standard-sized loaf pan. Cooking spray works, too.

2) In a medium mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.

3) In a large bowl, mix milk, honey, oil, and egg. Pour dry ingredients into the wet ones, and stir until everything is just combined. Gently stir in the diced apples.

4) Pour batter into prepped loaf pan. Bake for about 45 or 50 minutes. Top should be pleasantly brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread should come out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price Per Serving
189 calories, 7.6 g fat, $0.28

Calculations
1 cup oats (not instant): 607 calories, 10.8 g fat, $0.27
1 cup flour: 455 calories, 1.2 g fat, $0.06
1 teaspoon baking soda: negligible fat and calories, $0.02
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom: negligible fat and calories, $0.08
1 teaspoon cinnamon: negligible fat and calories, $0.08
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves: negligible fat and calories, $0.02
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg: negligible fat and calories, $0.02
1/3 cup canola oil: 636 calories, 74.2 g fat, $0.20
1/3 cup skim milk: 30 calories, 0.2 g fat, $0.10
1/3 cup honey: 343 calories, 0 g fat, $1.11
1 egg: 74 calories, 5 g fat, $0.26
4 small Cortland or 2 Jonamac apples: 123 calories, 0.3 g fat, $1.16
TOTAL: 2268 calories, 91.7 g fat, $3.38
PER SERVING: (TOTAL/12): 189 calories, 7.6 g fat, $0.28

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