My Mom’s Chicken Soup Recipe

Flu season is here, and I’ve avoided the flu through such clever methods as teaching lots of public classes with people who sneeze on me, going to the grocery store and not wiping the handle off with one of those bacteria sheets and not owning a bottle of hand sanitizer.

Chicken Soup: cure for colds, loneliness, or whatever ails you.

Instead, I wash my hands frequently and eat blueberries to build up my immune system. I happen to believe that we have too many antibacterials in our life, and those antibacterials kill off a lot of what helps us stay healthy over time. Just my opinion, of course.

The other excellent activity is eating chicken soup. You don’t have to be ill to eat chicken soup, but if you are ill, it is comforting and delicious. It’s my mom’s recipe, which she got from her mom. It’s been comforting Jews and gentiles alike for more than 100 years.

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My Mom’s Chicken Soup (make it when you are home all day)

Mom always used a kosher chicken for her soup. So do I.

• 1 small, plump chicken, about 4 pounds
• OR, 4 pounds of raw chicken parts, including necks and backs
• 2 leeks washed spotlessly clean of sand
• 4 carrots
• 4 celery stalks (plus leaves)
• curly parsley (not Italian or cilantro)
• two bay leaves
• salt to taste

For after the stock making:

• 3 carrots
• 1 leek
• generous handful of green beans
• rough chopped mushrooms–white buttons OK, but shitake are better
• noodles or rice–1/2 cup cooked per person
• curly parsley

Wash chicken in cold, running water.  Cut into manageable parts–they have to fit in the pot. Wash and scrub carrots and celery, don’t peel the carrots.

Cut carrots into fat coins, celery stalks into 3-inch pieces.

Cut off tops of leeks, so that you have about 2 inches of green and the rest white. Trim off the roots, too. Cut them in half lengthwise, then into fat slices.

Use all of the parsley, stems and all.

Curly parsley, from en.fotolia.com

Put the chicken in a big stock pot and cover with cold, clean water, up to 2 gallons. Less is fine, more depends on the size of the pot. Add all vegetables and two bay leaves.

Put on medium heat till the soup boils. Do not boil so hard that it foams over. The soup will form a scum in about 10-15  minutes,  it’s supposed to. Skim the scum several times, using a big spoon. Discard the scum. Once the stock stops forming scum, reduce the heat to a very slow boil, even a simmer is fine, and let it boil for about 4 hours. If you already have a cold, or live in a dry climate, don’t cover. If you don’t want the house to fill with comforting steam, cover the pot. Check on the chicken to make sure it remains covered with water.

After four hours, turn off the heat and pour through a fine sieve or colander. Make sure you use a big enough pot to strain the liquid into. I do not strain through cheesecloth because I don’t want a clear broth, I want soup.

Fill the sink with ice cubes and put the broth into the sink. When it is about body temperature (shouldn’t feel warm to the touch) put it in the fridge until the fat solidifies on top. Take off the fat and discard. (Sorry, Mom, all that lovely schmaltz!)

While the soup is cooling, pull the meat off the bones of the chicken. Discard the bones and  all vegetable matter.

What you have now is the base for your chicken soup. You can freeze some and use as stock, or use all of it to make a giant pot of chicken soup, depending on the size of your family or number of friends.

Let’s say you are making the entire pot of soup. Put the cut-up chicken back in the pot, along with the cut-up vegetables, including parsley, which you cut fine. This time, discard the stems. Cook gently till vegetables are tender–about half an hour.

Prepare noodles, rice, bulger wheat, or potatoes–about 1/2 cup per person, after preparation. My mom didn’t like the starch from these products in her soup, so she cooked them separately and then added them to the soup.

Serve with a side salad, corn bread, or popovers. Or all by itself.

–Quinn McDonald is a life- and creativity coach who trains businesses how to communicate effectively with their clients and helps people who don’t draw or write to keep art journals.

What Is It?

You see something great. You take a photo. You look at the photo and without context, you have no idea what it is.

Here is my “What is it?” shot. Description below the photo.

Looks like . . . .

It’s a frosty mug of ginger beer, beer partially frozen. The shot is taken with the mug placed on a white coaster. The camera was held directly above the mug, pointing down into the mug. Yep, on my desk. Drinking while working. This ginger beer is non-alcoholic though.

 

Cold Drink, Hot Day.

Summer days make the words gin-and-tonic seem perfect. But I’m not a liquor lover. The calories add up too fast, and I’d rather splurge my calories on chocolate.

Diet sodas no longer enchant me; gone are the days I’d start off with a Diet Coke at breakfast–just for the taste of it. Iced coffee and tea are great, but I can only drink so much tannin without wondering if my gut is going to be used to make a Birkin. Oh, OK, maybe a pair of Birkis. So I began to explore drinks that I can drink cold and in quantity without packing on calories and without the cardboardy, acidy taste I get from drink mixes. I tried pouring a tube of flavoring in cold water, and to me the artificial fruit flavors don’t taste like fruit, or even particularly good.  They taste like a chemistry lab.

So I tried something so simple, so easy, I can’t believe how good it is. Take a glass, put in as much ice as you love, and then add 3-5 drops Angostura Bitters. Fill with club soda or selzer. It’s a perfect drink. Cleat, crisp, refreshing, bubbly, and a great herbal taste that’s interesting but not overwhelming. Goes with sushi as well at with PBJs.

Angostura Bitters are a bar staple.  They aren’t really bitter, the word is derived from aromatic concoctions that contain gentian–a flowering herb that is used in perfumes. It’s also been used as a malaria cure and insect repellent. Versatile plant. Bright blue flowers. Gentian is bitter, but there is a lot more than gentian in bitters–a mix of aromatic herbs that is lovely in smell and dark brown in color.

bitters and mug

I originally used the bitters for tea-staining  papers, because it worked faster and was darker than tea,  and I loved the smell. I swear, if they made this substance as a fragrance, I’d wear it every day.

But until then, I’ll use a few drops over fresh strawberries and in my soda-and-bitters. It’s an inexpensive joy that pays off in big ways.

—Quinn McDonald is a life- and certified creativity coach. She teaches people how to write and give presentations. She also  manages four journals that travel the world.

Hot Day, Cold Soup

In many parts of the country, summer is coming to an end. The days are getting shorter back East, and in New England the nights are dipping into the 40s; in DC, the nights are in the 60s.

Potatoes cut for soup

Here in the Sonoran Desert, we still have at least a month of 100-degree days, although in a few weeks, it won’t reach 100 degrees every day. But it’s hot, still. Very hot.

Cold savory soups are just right for this weather. I keep buttermilk around for just such a purpose–to make a cold soup. You can toss peaches or cherries (or both) into a blender and make a dessert soup, but savory soups are the soothing coolness I crave on days when the sun bakes your eyeballs dry.

This soup is also cheap to make. Budget gourmet–my favorite kind.

Vichyssoise : Cold Potato and Leek Soup (Vichyssoise is pronounced “Vish-eee-swahze” not “vish-ee-swah.”) Just in case you were wondering.

Ingredients:
One potato (red or brown-skinned are fine)
2 slender leeks
1 Tablespoon butter. Use margarine at your own risk. Olive oil is fine.
1 Quart buttermilk (reduced fat is OK, no-fat is blechh)
1 cup sour cream (reduced fat is OK, no-fat is disgusting)
1 cup chicken stock (vegetarians can substitute veggie stock)
Cut-up herbs for garnish: thyme dust or rosemary sprig
Salt and pepper

Method (Takes about 30 minutes) Make ahead and chill for 2 or 3 hours to develop flavor.

Leeks rinsed to get sand out

Scrub potato, but don’t peel it. Cut it in chunks that would take 2 bites to eat, if you ate raw potatoes. Boil 3 cups filtered water and when boiling, add potatoes. Let boil till soft, about 10-13 minutes, or until a knife goes through the chunk easily.

Wash leeks, making sure they are not sandy. Discard limp outer leaves. Cut in half-inch disks, including some of the green.

Melt a pat of butter (about a Tablespoon) in a small frying pan, add cut-up leeks. Let them get soft. If the butter starts to burn, turn down the heat, or add a splash of chicken stock. Let the leeks soften and get some color, about 10-15 minutes.

Put the sour cream into a blender. Drain the potatoes and put them in the blender. Blend till mixed. Add about half the buttermilk, then the leeks, blending in between. Add the rest of the buttermilk and the chicken stock. Blend. If you have used non-fat milk and sour cream despite my warning, the mixture will now be a horrible color–translucent and sad. If you have used real buttermilk and sour cream, the mixture will be ivory, flecked with green and brown from the leeks and potato skins.

Potato-leek soup

At this point, adjust the texture to your liking. I like soup to be a bit on the thick side. If you want thinner soup, add either more buttermilk or more chicken stock. Taste and adjust seasoning. Chill for two or three hours, then serve and eat with celery sticks or crunchy crackers of your choice. Enjoy!

–Quinn McDonald is a writer who teaches writing to companies that are having trouble being heard or making themselves clear. She teaches PowerPoint for what it was meant to do–explain through words and images, rather than bullet points. Quinn is also a life- and creativity coach who helps people through change. She teaches people who can’t draw how to keep art journals.

Too Many Fresh Cherries? Try This.

It’s official. We are having a fresh cherry glut. The price at markets for the sweet red cherries has dropped because in the major states where they are grown, weather conditions made all the trees bloom at the same time and ripen five months later.

Besides cherry pie and the puff pastry recipe I posted on July 7, there are some delightful ways to make the cherries last for a while.

Chocolate-dipped fresh cherries

1. Wash them, and leaving their stems and seeds in place, freeze them individually. Looks lovely and the cherries don’t break down as they melt, unless you put them in the microwave. Let them defrost naturally and use them to top desserts, ice cream and parfaits. Just tell your diners that the pits are still there.

2. Wash, pit, and pull off the stems and freeze the pitted cherries individually in ice cube trays. Reserve the juice for color and flavor in fruit smoothies.

3. Dip them in chocolate. To do this, leave on the stems and do not pit. Wash the cherries, let them dry, then dip them in melted chocolate and place on parchment on a cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer. You can also carefully pit the cherries, using a tip from a pastry bag.

4. Simmer them gently in a bit of orange juice and sugar, pour them into small, sealable bags and freeze them. Use in pies, tarts, smoothies, on top of yogurt, ice cream, or angel food cake. Also yummy on cottage cheese.

5. Simmer them in water, until they are soft but not collapsed. Drain any juice. Pack the cherries into canning jars. Mix the juice in equal quantities with Cointreau, an orange liquer. You can also use good brandy. Pour the juice/liquor mixture to cover all the berries. Seal and store in the fridge. Because you are not boiling away the alcohol, this is not suitable for children or those avoiding alcohol. Do not use Triple Sec, the quality and taste are completely different from Cointreau and not suitable for this recipie.

6. Dry them. Wash, dry, pit and stem the cherries. Cut the cherries in half, top to bottom. Place them skin side down on a dehydrator tray and dry at 140 degrees F for 6 to 12 hours, or until they are still sticky and leathery. Do not over-dry. Pack them in plastic bags and keep them in a cool, dry place. (I like the fridge.) Use instead of raisins or cranberries as snacks or in breads, cakes, stuffings. Put in rice or pilaf to serve with fowl.

–Quinn McDonald is a writer, life- and creativity coach. She teaches business communications and art journaling.

Dessert: Puff Pastry with Fruit

Sometimes an elegant dessert can perk up a simple meal. I love this dessert to use up berries in season. I made it up, so quantities are approximate, but it’s a forgiving recipe.

Puff pastry with cherries

I also don’t mind if my recipes look a bit rustic, as long as they taste all right.

So here are the directions, along with what I would do differently next time.

Ingredients:

1 box puff pastry, frozen.
2 pounds cherries, or any berry in season.
1 orange, juiced and zested (zest optional)
1 cup sugar
2-3 tsp. corn- or rice starch

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

You can use any berry in season–blueberries, blackberries, even strawberries, but you’ll have to adjust the amount. Buy more, you can always eat fruit on cereral or with Greek Yogurt. (You can approximate Greek Yogurt by straining regular yogurt for 2 hours or so through several layers of cheesecloth placed in a strainer.)

Method:

Take one piece puff pastry from freezer and place flat on parchment.

Pastry tips--use a fine-tipped one.

Clean fruit. Pit cherries. An easy way to pit cherries it to place a pastry tip ont he counter and push the cherry, bottom first (stem up) over the pastry tip. Easy-peasy.

Take about half of the fruit, put it in a stainless steel pan, add enough filtered water to keep it from burning and put it over medium heat. Cover with lid. Keep an eye on it. Do not let that fruit burn! Cook for about 15 minutes.

Zest the orange, reserve the zest and then juice it. Save the juice.

Take one sheet of puff pastry. Roll it out on a piece of parchment or Silpat so it’s about a 9″ square. Trim off one-half inch on each side and place it back on top of the edge, not standing it up, just placing it on top so you have a raised edge.Transfer to a baking sheet or hotel pan.

Your fruit should now be simmering in its own juices. Remove the lid. Stir in the orange juice, zest and sugar. Reduce it for about 10 minutes. Taste. Add more sugar if you like it sweeter. Add the rest of the cherries and thicken the fruit with about 2 teaspoons of corn starch stirred into cold water. You need it thick enough to coat a spoon.

When the mix is ready, it will have whole cherries, cooked cherries, and a sauce that is thick enough to coat a spoon, but not so thick that a spoon will leave a mark that stays.

Using a slotted spoon, scoop the cherries out of the pan and onto the puff pastry. It should be evenly placed up to the edges, just covering all the pastry. Reserve the thickened sauce.

Bake the fruit-covered pastry for 20 minutes at 400 degrees F, or until it is golden brown. Do not let it get too dark.

When done, remove from oven, let cool (10 minutes), cut into pieces and top each piece with a generous spoonful of the sauce. Ice cream is optional. I recommend a honey-vanilla.

What I’d do differently: Rolling out the dough keeps the bottom from puffing. I like puff dough to puff. Next time I wouldn’t roll it out. Let it puff with cherries on it.

–Quinn McDonald is a writer and life- and creativity coach. See her work at QuinnCreative.com and raw-art-journals.com

Bring Back the Real Butter

Turns out that you should have been eating butter all along. Yep, margarine is bad for you, and no matter how much they juggle the formula, all those fake butters aren’t helping reduce your cholesterol at all. And while our mouths are open in astonishment, eat some healthy fat, because it turns out that some trans fats are fine, too.

In other words, mom was right all along. And the corporations were not. All those trans-fats, the hydrogenated ones, were created for cost reasons. Solid corn oil (margarine) was cheaper to make and store than naturally solid fats, like butter.

All this comes from a well-researched article in the February, 2008 edition of Bon Appetit magazine.  The article, written by Nina Planck, author of Real Food: What to Eat and Why explains that the problem “was not science, it was politics.” Quoting Dr. Walter Willet, chairman of the department of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, the article says, “Trans fats are the biggest food-processing disaster in U.S. history. In Europe [food companies] hired chemists and took trans fats out. . . .In the United State, they hired lawyers and public relations people.”

It’s not over. While you are busy buying “trans-fat free” food, the label just means that one serving has less than half a gram of trans fat. And serving sizes vary. So if you eat three servings of a trans-fat-free labeled food, you may have just eaten 1.5 grams of trans fats, Planck explains.

The best advice in the article is, “Don’t buy fake foods (margarine) or industrial versions of real food (hydrogenated lard.)

Bring back the butter. Use the fat of previous generations: butter, lard, beef tallow. You know, all the things people ate when there was less heart disease.

Butter image: www.justhungry.com

–Quinn McDonald is a writer who loves to cook. She’s married to a personal chef. Now if only she could get over that thing she has for creme brulee.

How to Save Real Money With Coupons

“I buy three copies of the Sunday paper,” the contestant says, adding, “I share the coupons with my sister and mother. We pay about $10 a week for groceries.” My eyebrows shot up. The speaker was a finalist in the contest a local newspaper is sponsoring on how to be a champion frugalista.

“Maybe I’m missing something,” I thought and today, when the newspaper came, I looked at the giant insert folder, stuffed with ads. And all this time I thought newspaper readership was down. And here we have people buying multiple papers, just for this treasure trove. I spread the hefty ad pile on the table, grabbed a scissors, and started flipping through fliers. It took about an hour and a half to clip the coupons.

The first flier was from a grocery store about five miles away. On sale was Easter candy (not interested, except for Peeps Jousting), Cinnamon buns, frozen dinners (too much sodium, too many preservatives), and a cleaner I never use because it is too harsh. I did find a coupon for $0.40 off a roll of paper towels. A quick calculation of the 10 mile round trip to get one roll of paper towels would cost me about $0.60 in gas. Total saving: a $0.20 loss.

On to the second store, one where we shop frequently, and closer to home. Another coupon for a popular brand of paper towels–again, $0.40.  (The house brand was cheaper without the coupon.) Two coupons for frozen foods–a popular brand, totaling $1.60. Another set of coupons for frozen meals, short-cut products that help you create meals from leftovers, canned spaghetti, and frozen juice product (less than 10% juice.)

Off to the store for some comparison shopping. Checked the frozen foods for sodium–way too much, plus preservatives I don’t think are good for me. Compared the price for dry noodles and jarred sauce, which turned out to be a better buy (and less sodium) per serving than opening a can.  The shortcut product was starch-heavy, so I compared buying some fresh spinach to extend the meal, and preferred that.

The frozen juice product was actually a bargain, but it had a lot of sugar in it, so I chose three oranges (cheaper, but wouldn’t make as much juice) and decided to make iced-tea instead.

Almost every coupon is for prepared food, easy-to-bake products, and other food that you can make cheaper yourself. I have a lemon cake that is delicious and easy to make. On evenings when I’m cleaning the kitchen, I combine the dry ingredients in a ziplock bag, and check to make sure I have eggs, milk and canola oil. In other words, I make my own mixes.

We eat fresh vegetables. I save leftovers of the veggies (freeze them) and use them in soups, stews, or casseroles. Using broccoli slaw (or make your own in a food processor) provides a great base for teriyaki chicken, salmon salad, or other meat salads. And it’s less processed than a constant diet of canned pasta.

I love whole grains (bulgar wheat is a favorite) because they are filling. If you eat whole grains with high fiber, they fill you up, and provide the kind of carbohydrates you need without making you fat. I use them under sauces, in salads, and as a side dish. They are incredibly cheap.

What about the coupons? For the way I eat, they don’t save me money. I do use them for detergent, soap, and products I’m brand loyal to.

To save money, I shop for meat and vegetables at a local ethnic store that has inexpensive fish, meat, and spotless vegetables. I pick up whole grains and dairy products at a locally-owned store that is a combination of farmer’s market and health-food store, with great prices. (Yes, some of their items are more expensive–and I don’t buy those items there.)

I splurge on organic fruits and vegetables because I don’t want to eat pesticides that soak through soft–skinned fruit, because I eat the skin.

For some items–cereal, paper towels, soap, detergent, I go to a membership store. I buy house brands or brand-loyal items there.

All of these stores are within 3 miles of my house. I do have to go to multiple stores, but so do coupon users. And I save time by not going through fliers. Some of the mega-savers spend 46-53 hours a week shopping and clipping coupons.

Sure, I pay more than $10 a week for groceries. And we don’t have a large family with lots of kids. But for the way I like to eat, because I need to watch my weight, my way works. And it’s inexpensive, overall. And before you think I have a boring diet, I do have splurges: cheap, warm, fresh churros from a local store, and premium Starbucks ice cream. Not eaten together.

If you absolutely love coupons, but don’t want to spend your life clipping them, look for sites that do the work for you.

–Quinn McDonald is a writer and creativity coach. She runs workshops for people who want to learn how to write well and clearly. She also has a site for journalers who want to keep an art journal, but can’t draw. Visit raw-art-journals to learn about raw-art.

Restaurant Review: Tarbell’s in Phoenix

Each year on our anniversary, we choose a nice restaurant, a spendy one we wouldn’t drop into on a Tuesday night, and pay no attention to the prices. We’ve eaten at City Zen in Washington, D.C., at Eve’s in Alexandria, Virginia, and other interesting and not-so-wonderful places.

We got married on the coldest day of the year, all those years ago, in Connecticut. This year, we walked into Tarbell’s (in Phoenix, Arizona) without winter jackets, on January 24, and remembered the 80-degree temperature difference with a grin.

The reception was friendly, but they seemed to have lost our reservation. The two young women at the desk smiled, but spent a long time scrolling and whispering at the screen. During the 15 minute wait, we were offered two tables, one tall one in the noisy bar, and a smaller table right in the middle of the raceway between kitchen and dining room, which we also declined. The wait was worth it.

“The wait was worth it” was the watchword of the evening. The waitstaff was uniformly cheerful and informal, which I enjoyed. Once we were seated at the banquette, our server arrived with a “Hi-Ya, Guys!” I glanced at my husband and raised my eyebrows. I absolutely hate being addressed as “guys,” when “you,” or “folks,” would be far more accurate. The server was so observant that she never used the term with us again that night, although we heard her use it at other tables. Good move.

Word of warning: this is a loud restaurant. The tables are close together, and no conversation is private. The kitchen is open, and the noise level rises as the evening progresses.

We ordered drinks, which appeared quickly and were cold and nicely served.

The menu is short and satisfying. It includes a vegetarian, fish, and meat choices. Our appetizers, yellowfin tartare with taro chips and duck confit, were excellently spiced and beautifully served. The tartare was evenly cubed fish, which had been shaped in a timbale (a straight-sided cylinder) and placed on the plate. It had an impeccably fresh, briny, but not salty, flavor. The taro chips were crisp and substantial, and made a perfect counterpoint to the fish. On the opposite corner was a small cyclinder of cucumber relish. It provided a good finish for the course.

My husband’s duck confit was finished with white beans. The duck skin was crisp and flavorful, the duck rich and satisfying. It was a generous portion, served on the bone, and presented in an asymmetrical bowl that made chasing the white casoulet beans with a fork a bit of a game. The beans were a perfect foil for the duck, supporting the flavor and texture of the meat without overwhelming it.

The plates were removed together, and promptly after my husband had just finished. (I had finished my tartare a few minutes earlier). It reminded me how good service can really add to the enjoyment of the meal. Most restaurants today will ask, “Are you still working on that?” as if a meal is a project to complete. Removing both plates is far more polite, and watching when the diner places fork and knife on the plate makes this excellent service possible.

And then the wait began. My husband had ordered butternut squash ravioli with spinach and pine nuts. I had ordered pepper steak with creamed spinach and potato gratin. The first 15 minutes weren’t too bad, but when the server (this time, a man, probably the expediter) appeared and asked if we’d like more drinks, he told us the meal was a bit delayed, but would be here soon. We then waited another long time, and became aware we were hungry. The expediter came back, apologized some more, and gave us a time update.

The last time I experienced this, my meal was stone cold and shriveled, so I said the wait wasn’t a problem if both meals arrive hot, but not from being under the heat lamp. The server assured us they would both be perfect, and sped off.

He returned with our plates, both hot. He then waited to make sure we were both satisfied with the quality of the meal. My husband cut into a moist ravioli, which was steaming, and declared it hot. I tried my steak and it was perfectly cooked and hot. The server apologized for the wait and left. What a great touch–making sure the food is right before speeding off.

The wait had been worth it. My steak was exactly as I had ordered it–medium rare. It was crusted with pepper, but not overwhelmed by it. The spinach was whole leaf and flavored by a touch of lemon and a light waft of butter sauce. It wasn’t creamed,  it was better. The potato gratin was magnificently layered with cream and gruyere cheese. The potatoes were not mush and the cheese was the perfect counterpoint to the rich and flavorful beef. When I couldn’t finish it, the staff immediately boxed it for me.

My husband’s ravioli were tender and redolent with butter, pine nuts and the spiced butternut squash that created a perfect textural difference between the pasta. Butternut squash can be damp, but this ravioli was moist, but the filling not squishy or mushy. It was firm and vaguely sweet, the true flavor of good, ripe squash. Tarbell’s serves locally  grown, organic vegetables, and it shows.

We shared a dessert, as perfect as the rest of the meal. All desserts are made at Tarbell’s. A tower of mascarpone cheesecake was the lightest, best-tasting cheesecake I have tasted. Not gummy or slick, but airy without being mousse-like, fresh and clean tasting, it was topped with a light caramel sauce that had been infused with rosemary. The herb’s flavor was a delicate touch and sparked the caramel, which was neither cloying nor heavy. Around the plate, piped in dark chocolate, were the words, “Happy Anniversary.” Spelled right. Great calligraphy.

The meal left nothing to be desired, except for the timing of the main course. And when the bill arrived, they apologized for the weight and did not charge us for our drinks or dessert. “Because we want your anniversary to be perfect.” And it was.

Tarbell’s is located on the Southeast corner of  32nd Street and Camelback Ave.  in Phoenix. Parking is in the shopping center, and free. On weekends, there is valet service.

–Quinn McDonald is a writer, life and creativity coach who loves eating and experimenting with recipes. Her husband is a personal chef. They are obviously a good match, and have been for more than 20 years.

Bulgur Wheat: Side dish, Main dish, Salad

When I was younger, my mom would pull out an exotic-looking box of “Near East Wheat Pilaf” and cook it up. It smelled great and while it was salty, it was a satisfying and filling side dish.

bulgur wheat, ready for cooking

Once I was on my own, I discovered bulgur wheat–the basis of that pilaf, was available in most health food stores.

Most bulgur sold in bulk at health food stores is from durham wheat, but it is not cracked wheat–it’s parboiled, dried and de-branned. Cracked wheat is not par-boiled.

I found some that was whole grain (not de-branned). I prefer the bulgur for its light, nutty flavor. No worries, though. Even the de-branned kind has about 8 grams of fiber per 100 grams of raw bulgur and 12 grams of protein. It also has a low glycemic index number of 46. In other words, it’s yummy and better for you than rice and couscous.

The advantage of de-branning is in preparation time. It doesn’t take long to cook at all. A two serving portion can be done in 15 minutes. I bring mine to a boil in chicken stock (beef stock also works) and then turn off the heat and let it soak up the water. When done, I add cracked pepper, chopped parsley and a pat of butter and it’s a great side dish.

As a main dish, I cook it the same way, then add tiny meatballs (made from turkey) in their own brown sauce, or chicken/basil sausage. If you are a vegetarian, you can cook it in vegetable stock, add a variety of cooked beans or lentils and top with grated cheese. Vegans can skip the cheese.

You can add an astonishing variety of vegetables to bulgur and get different tastes. Chopped tomatoes and caramalized onions gives a rich, hearty taste. Chopped peppers (in a mix of colors and heats) keeps it light and crunchy. Add minced parsley, fresh tomatoes, peppers, and a handful of crushed nuts, and top it with a spicy vinaigrette and you have a delicious salad that makes a great main meal.

In India, bulgur is served as a cereal, with milk and sugar. I’m sure it’s good, but I’m still smiling over the variety and versatility of this simple and delicious grain.

–Quinn McDonald is a writer and certified creativity coach, who teaches business communication and personal journal-writing workshops.