Belly Lore - Hot, hot, hot

Many of the ingredients in the Hot and Sour Soup recipe to follow possess health benefits.  Garlic helps immune function and may lower blood pressure.  Ginger is an anti-inflammatory and a strong antioxidant.  Hot chili oil can help reduce pain and may give rise to a yen for some yang.  All three improve circulation.

Hot, Hot, Hot

The holiday season has hardly begun and already I feel...leaden.  Four or five starchy, fat laden dishes in one meal will do that to you.  I'm thinking the antidote to this "leaden" feeling is spice.  I need hot.  I need zesty.   I need scathing.  Have I ever  mentioned I live in the Midwest?  Rural.  It's going to take some creativity to satisfy these spicy cravings of mine.  But doesn't it always?

I would start my day of heat with a cup of Cuban style coffee.  I choose Cuban, rather than espresso, because Cuba evokes heat.  And spice.  And moist air and oh man I need a...vacation.  Yeah that's it, a vacation.  I am also choosing Cuban coffee because Steven Raichlen, in his "Miami Heat" cookbook, describes it as, "Black as night, sweet as sin, frothy as a sea squall..." and I like that.

Coffee Cubano

4 T finely ground dark roast coffee (La Estrella del Norte if you can get it)
1 C water
2 t sugar (or more according to how much you like sin)

Follow the directions on the espresso maker.  Make sure the sugar is in the carafe before it fills with coffee.  As coffee starts to drip into carafe, stir it vigorously with a spoon for a few seconds until it gets frothy.  Slurp deeply.



For lunch I'm thinking Hot and Sour Soup.  What can't some fresh ginger, garlic and hot chili oil do for your mind and body?  I mentioned I live in the rural Midwest so my recipe is going to be Szechuan-ish.  Never fear, while that may mean no wood  ear fungus or daylily buds, it does not mean no heat.  Hot chili oil I can get.  Add more at will.

Szechuan-ish Hot and Sour Soup (serves 4)

6 C chicken stock (or turkey if you got your lazy carcass up and made  use of that damn Thanksgiving turkey carcass)
1/2 C rice wine vinegar
1/3 C soy sauce
4 green onions (plus some for garnish) cut into thirds crosswise and in half lengthwise
1 oz. dried mushrooms (boiled in enough water to cover for 3 min.)
1 carrot, peeled and cut into strips
8 oz can bamboo shoots
5 cloves garlic, sliced
1 T fresh ginger, peeled and minced
6 oz. chopped pork tenderloin
1/3 C water
1/4 C cornstarch
2 t hot chili oil
4 oz. white mushrooms, slivered
3 oz. sugar snap peas, sliced lengthwise
6 oz. peeled shrimp, chopped
6 oz. firm tofu, cubed
Cilantro for garnish

Bring chicken stock (I know you), vinegar and soy sauce to a boil in a soup pot.  Give that broth a taste.  Isn't it bright and acidic?  Don't you feel lighter already?  Add the 4 green onions and next 6 ingredients (through pork) and bring back to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 2 min.  Meanwhile, mix water, cornstarch and hot chili oil in a small bowl.  Slowly add this to simmering soup, while stirring.  Add white mushrooms, peas, shrimp and tofu and simmer for 3 min.  Garnish with green onion and cilantro.  Again, slurp deeply.



For supper I would definitely go for some Pasta Arrabiata.  Use really spicy sausage.  Go heavy on the crushed red pepper.  I would give you the recipe but I'm tired of typing.  I want to get cookin'.

And don't be afraid of ending your day with another cup of that Cuban coffee.  It might keep you up all night.  Make you want to cha-cha-cha.

Belly Lore

This "Belly Lore" section of my blog is supposed to be an area for facts, beliefs, musings, quotes, traditions and more concerning food and all things good for your belly.  I would like you, readers, to add your own wisdom to this section of the blog by double clicking on the word "comment" and writing your own musings, etc. 
To get this started, how about we have a bumper sticker contest?  There are plenty of quotable quotes we can read from the widely known, but I am confident my readers can rival many of those.  "Embrace competence!"  says my sister.  "Don't convert strength into weakness, convert adversity into motivation."  says a friend, "Beware the metamorphosis of the middle aged woman!" say I!  What say you, my friends?
If you have an original phrase you think would make a great bumper sticker, let me hear it.  If and when I get some responses to this, I'll share them on my blog.  Anonymously, or otherwise if you want me to.  Let's hear your ideas!

Belly Lore - Hominy

Hominy:  Dried corn kernels soaked in lye to remove the hull and germ.

Doesn't exactly sound sexy does it?  Soaking something supposedly edible in lye?  Sounds...scary.  But never fear, we're talking food grade lye here.  Think big soft pretzels and glossy bagels (often lye dipped), rather than oven cleaners and drain openers.  Think hominy.  Puffy white, nourishing hominy.

Hominy with Onions, Peppers and Smoked Sausage

This recipe is so quick, easy and tasty.  You can serve it in a bowl or a tortilla.  Or in a bowl with a tortilla on the side, or in a tortilla with no bowl in sight, or topped with a fried egg with or without tortilla or bowl, or topped with hot sauce or...  O.K. you get my drift.  It's versatile.  And quick, and easy, and tasty.  Make it already.

Hominy with Onions, Peppers and Smoked Sausage

1 T olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 large sweet green or red pepper, chopped
1 large sweet yellow pepper, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
8 oz. smoked sausage (like kielbasa), chopped
2 cans hominy, rinsed and drained
1 large can diced tomatoes

In large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat.  Add onion and saute 10 min.  Add peppers and garlic and saute 5 more minutes.  Add sausage and cook 5 more minutes.  Add hominy and tomatoes and cook until hot.  Serve in bowl, or tortilla, or in bowl with tortilla on the side, or...

Belly Lore-Alliteration

Alliteration is the repetition of the initial consonant sound in a series of words or phrases.  Examples include, "Whereat with blade, with bloody blameful blade he bravely broached his bloody boiling breast", written by guess who, (Will, of course) and another, written by guess who, "Sarah seductively sauced the  spinach, sprinkling it with sesame seeds and sincerely wishing she had some sausage to accompany said dish."  (Not to mention, "Dude looks like a lady").  And now for some  awesomely awful alliteration comin' at you (never fear, I'll tire of this alliteration shit soon, surely).
Belly Bliss
 Joyously joining the
Perfect Pecan
So fresh, so flavorful
To the succulent sweet
(Maybe Seckel, Starkrimson)
Pear Perfection,
Prosciutto presents
Making it rich, making me ravenous
Teeth yielding to tender yearning
I bite
I beam
Bliss

Awesome Alliterative Salad

Pear, Pecan, Prosciutto Salad with Cider Vinaigrette

2 pears (any in season)
1/2 C pecans
4 slices prosciutto- torn into bite-sized pieces
10 oz. fresh spinach
1/3 C blue cheese crumbles
3 T extra virgin olive oil
2 T cider vinegar
2 T apple cider

Rinse and dry spinach thoroughly.  Toss with pears and prosciutto.  In small bowl, mix olive oil, cider vinegar and apple cider.  Toss vinaigrette with salad.  Top with blue cheese and pecans.

Belly Lore - Sense of Smell

The sense of smell , which is extremely intimate with taste, is vital to our well being.  Not, perhaps, as vital as it once was when we were less evolved, but still vital.  Vital to our enjoyment of food, certainly.  Ever take a second or third deep breath after walking into a house filled with the smell of warm pie?  We even use it, sometimes subconsciously, to initiate sexual contact.  And smell is tremendously evocative.  Evocative enough not just to bring up fond memories (not that I'm knockin' fond memories), but also to elicit more physical responses.  Responses like tears, sighs, mouth watering and sometimes, if you're lucky, actual belly twinges.  So let's get in the kitchen and prepare to inspire some belly twinges.  Because if you don't mind your belly...

Air Fresheners

I am so tired of those ubiquitous air freshener commercials encouraging us to infuse our homes with pseudo scents carrying exotic names.  Dragon Fruit- sounds risky, Brazilian Carnivale- sounds sweaty (and not in a good way), Yummyberry Sangria- sounds like a hangover waiting to happen,  Wandering Seasons- sounds...confused.

My advice is to infuse your home with the natural scent of real food.  Say, fresh rosemary riding atop a pork roast.   With that classic combination of onion and garlic bathing in hot butter.  Infuse your home with the scent of warm cinnamon pumpkin pie under a satiny blanket of vanilla bean studded whipped cream. Oh, and apples.  Simmering, bubbling, aromatic apples.

That ain't no commercial, that's love.

Not many need me to give a recipe for pumpkin pie.  Homemade crust and some pumpkin label reading will get you there.  Whipped cream not so much either.  Just put forth a bit of effort and whip it yourself, avoiding the fake stuff.  A pork roast-simple; start high and and then go low.  Sauteed garlic and onion- add whatever vegetable you like (I like fresh spinach) and you are good to go.

I don't hear much about apple sauce makers these days, though so I will give you my simple recipe for that.

Homemade Applesauce

2 pounds apples (Gala, McIntosh, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious and Fuji are all good choices, readily available)
1 C apple cider
1 T brown sugar
juice of one lemon
zest of one lemon
1 cinnamon stick

ground cinnamon

Zest the lemon,  then squeeze the juice into a bowl.  Core, peel and cut apples into chunks, tossing with the lemon juice as you go.  Put apples and lemon juice into a saucepan with the cinnamon stick, most of the lemon zest (save a bit for garnish), apple cider and brown sugar.  Bring to a boil, uncovered. Lower heat, cover, and simmer just until apples begin to soften.  Take off lid and simmer until liquid is reduced and apples are tender.  Taste and add more brown sugar if needed.  Remove cinnamon stick.  To serve, sprinkle with cinnamon and remaining lemon zest.  I can smell it now...

Belly Lore - Venus's Navel

The legend of the birth of tortellini pasta says that a battle weary Venus; Roman goddess of love, beauty and fertility, and Jupiter; god of sky and thunder, took refuge at a tavern near Bologna, Italy. While they slept, an intrigued innkeeper peeked through the keyhole of their bedroom and saw Venus' navel bathed in candlelight. The peeping Tomaso then raced to his kitchen and created a pasta shape, tortellini, inspired by the goddess' glorious navel.

Check back at the Mind Your Belly Blog for facts, beliefs, musings, quotes, traditions, and more concerning food and all things good for your belly!

Venus' Navel

"What are you writing about, Sarah?"  A fair question.  One obviously laboriously, patiently, eagerly,easily and carefully pondered by said blogger.  Except that exactly what I will write about isn't  terribly obvious to be.  Nevertheless, I am hoping ideas will unfold over the course of...many courses.  What is certain is that this blog will be food inspired.  Food inspired by cooking, by art, by music, by eating, by recipes, by seasons, by me and by you.

Speaking of art, I love most Venus inspired paintings.  Botticelli's, Giorgione's, Titian's - they are all exquisite.  I think this is partly because Venus is usually portrayed as beautifully rounded, looking so...sated.

Venus inspired an innkeeper to create tortellini (see "Belly Lore") and me to create this recipe.  In making it I hope you'll find, or attract, or create, your Venus. 

Venus's Navel times about 4 dozen
Squash and Spinach Filling:
small butternut squash
2 t olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic
4 oz. fresh spinach
1 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Cut squash in half lengthwise and bake, flesh down, on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for about 30 min. or until tender.  Saute onion and garlic in oil.  Add spinach and  stir until wilted.  Give that a spin in the food processor.  Scoop out 2 cups of cooked squash flesh and mix into spinach mixture with Parmesan.  Add salt and pepper if needed.  Set aside.

Sauce:
3 T butter
2 T olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2-15oz cans diced tomatoes
1 C cream
salt and pepper to taste
Heat oil and butter in saucepan.  Add onion carrot and celery and saute until onion is tender.  Add tomatoes and simmer 15 min.  Set aside for now and when tortellinis are ready to serve, add cream and stir until warm and the color of rosy flesh.

Tortellini dough:
3 C flour
4 eggs
1/2 t salt
3 T cold water
2 t olive oil
Put flour and salt in food processor and pulse twice.  Mix eggs, water and olive oil in liquid measuring cup.  Pulse processor while pouring in liquid.  Continue to pulse until dough begins to form a ball (this can also be done by hand).  Dump dough onto lightly floured surface and knead for 10 min.  Full 10.  No faking.  Lose yourself in some Luciano while you knead.  Divide dough in half and using a rolling pin (we've already used one electric appliance so let's do this step old school - O.K. so the truth is I don't have a pasta rolling machine), roll into two very thin sheets.  Very thin.  Pretend you'll have to look through that sheet of dough to see Venus.  Better yet, Jupiter.  Using a biscuit cutter or glass, cut into 3 inch circles.  Cover the dough you aren't handling, with a damp towel.  To form tortellini put 1/2 teaspoon filling in middle of dough circle. fold in half and pinch edge tightly.  fold straight, unpinched edge of dough about 2/3 of the way up.  Place pinkie finger in middle of soon to be navel, fold sides together around your finger and press ends to seal.  Remove finger and admire.  Finish the rest.  Bring a large pot of water to boil and working in batches, add tortellini and boil for 8 minutes, stirring so they don't stick. Toss with warmed sauce.

All of this kneading and pinching, this talk of navels, rosy flesh, and gods has made me extremely...well...affamato!  Remember; A tavola non s'invecchia!