Deb's Lunch … and dinner and breakfast too

Last night for supper I made a classic meal – hot dogs and mac & cheese – with the slightly unusual additional sidedish of Italian-style broccoli – blanched and then sauteed in olive oil with lots of garlic and red pepper flakes. Well, and the dogs were “special” too – bacon dogs from 4505 meats.

I think in Wisconsin we are in the food season that’s the equivalent of the brown matty grass and trash that’s in most people’s yards. Even my neighbors who have raked, while their lawns look a little neater, still suffer from the brown-ness. I remember this season from when I was a women’s dorm and sorority house cook. Heavy winter comfort food has lost its appeal; the girls  are all slimming, and the light fresh spring produce is not yet available. We all need a spring tonic.

All my food photos, taken indoors without enough light, seem to be suffering this malaise as well. I didn’t even try to capture last night’s dinner. Here’s the broccoli the day after though – looking pretty fresh & green. I think I’ll make it into broccoli fried rice for dinner tomorrow with the rice that’s been leftover from the free sample spinach strudels, made for the wedding party site scouting trip last Saturday. It’s short grain rice – not the right type for fried rice – but it was cooked in some really tasty home made veggie broth (lots of thyme & garlic), and I think it’ll work just fine.

"Jumped" broccoli - with red pepper flakes & garlic

I have a peach-blackberry-cranberry-blueberry crisp in the oven – maybe it will be more photogenic – you be the judge.

While we were sitting eating this lasagna – prepared from the recipe on the Barilla no-cook lasagna noodles box – we were trying to remember what film fest movies we’d seen when. I’d written what we’d gone to in 2010 and 2009 and 2008 and even 2006, although that year, I just mentioned seeing I like killing flies in the midst of a whole bunch of other stuff.

What happened to 2007? In my calendar – but not my blog – I listed Family Law – of which I have no memory whatsoever; Fay Grim – with Parker Posey, that I think I slept in;  Wristcutters, with John Hawkes and Tom Waits and the kid from Almost Famous, that I liked a LOT; and Zidane – high concept, but kind of unsatisfying.

Anyways, it made me think that I better write down what happened this year, quick before I forget. We only went to two movies. Thursday I had online student presentations in one of my classes, till 8:00, and Mark & Ethan had hockey banquet. Friday we went to Milwaukee to see Cosi Fan Tutte, another production in ’60s attire (like Merchant of Venice). Sunday we went to the REAP Spring Gala.

So, Saturday we went to My Dog Tulip, which was really fun – and a set of shorts, “Slightly unsettling shorts” in the program. And they were. “Blueberry” was the best. we also tried to rush Meek’s Cutoff – covered in this Sunday’s NYT and this week’s New Yorker, and unfathomably, shown in one of the smallest rooms at the fest. We stood in line for 40 minutes, and didn’t get in – the only consolation was that there must’ve only been about 2 rush seats – not even the people who budged line got in.

I’m really good about doing the laundry, but less so at folding & putting away. This morning I folded three baskets worth, and not only that, finally hand washed the sweater & skirt that have been waiting for me to do that since last spring. Good thing it’s still too cold for bare legs, so I don’t have to shave mine today, too.

Yesterday I paid bills, so I think I’ve done enough for one weekend. I’m for sure waiting till next weekend to do Al’s taxes, and even longer than that for paying mine.

Empty laundry baskets, 4/3/2011

Last night I did another installment of the dinners on Wisconsin, where U of WI alums cook dinner for students. I had a nice crowd this time, not ALL girls – lively kids. I made them a combo of leftovers and fancy desserts; the main course was chilaqiles made from the last of the butternut squash black bean chili, frozen since the fall. I topped it with the goat cheese melted into cream sauce from the spinach-black-bean-corn-tortilla Mexican lasagna from Epicurious. The desserts were a cheesecake tart, topped with the last of my raspberries from last summer, and a salted caramel tart.

I told the kids I’d give them recipes with easy equivalents, so here goes:

Chilaquiles

6 – 7 cups chili – home made OR out of a can or jar
1 package corn tortillas, or half a bag of corn chips, unsalted if you’ve got them
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I used cheddar, but pepper jack would be good)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Topping:
4 oz. goat cheese
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
OR 2 cups sour cream and a little milk for thinning

If you are using corm tortillas, cut them into wedges and fry them in a little oil until crispy. Arrange them in the bottom of a big shallow baking pan (I used a 14-inch pizza pan). OR just dump in the corn chips. Top with chili. Top the chili with 2/3  of the cheese, and cilantro if using. Crumble the goat cheese into a sauce pan, add the cream and sour cream, and stir over medium heat until smooth. Pour this sauce over the top of the casserole. OR mix milk into the sour cream until it’s a pouring consistency, and use that. Top with the last of the cheddar and bake at 375°s until bubbling, about 30 minutes.

Besides seeing Robyn Hitchcock & Joe Boyd, and going to the spring flower show, we did some other stuff.

We ate. Friday night we had a pre-theater supper at Trattoria No. 10 – a reliable old fave. I had the squash ravioli – 4 large ones, and the nice touch was shreds of zucchini and carrot over the top – softened by the heat of the pasta.

Then on to see Merchant of Venice, staged as Mad Men. I liked it – thought it was pretty incredible how Shakespeare’s words were uttered so easily by actors in modern dress, with cell phones and laptops. The couple next to left at intermission, though. Mark bought us CTA cards and we used the sh*t out of public transportation. When we hit Belmont Ave. at 11:30 on a Friday night, walking back to the hotel from the EL, the sidewalks were packed – we knew we were in the big city.

We ate some more. On Saturday morning we went to Bittersweet, a neighborhood bakery recommended by Lottie + Doof. Good bakery, but they don’t have the retail thing down at all – must be making all their $$ on wholesale out the back. As it should be, but still didn’t make it nicer for us front of the store customers. And, come to think of it, I had to look on Yelp to get their open hours – couldn’t find them on their website to save my life – so it all figures.

Sticky bun at Bittersweet

O'Keefe & Steiglitz in 1944

Then we walked to the Lincoln Park Conservatory, and the flower show. Took the EL to the Art Institute. We saw John Marin – most of the large collection of Marin’s paintings the Art Institute has came by way of Alfred Stieglitz. This picture of Steiglitz with O’Keefe was in a display about how they framed Marin’s work; made me miss Mark’s mustache.

I think my favorite thing at the Art Institute was the show by Peter Fischli & David Weiss – photographs of stuff they took out of the refrigerator mostly, and arranged into cities and fantastical machines. Reminded me of Robyn’s vid for Ordinary Millionaire, that stars a vegetable steamer and a tequila bottle.

Then we ate again, at 11 City Diner. Had a little lie down, and then to Hitchcock & Boyd. It was the early show, we were done at 9:00, so we took the EL back to Clark St. and saw the new Jane Eyre, with Alice as Jane.