New Favorite Recipe: Roasted Cauliflower

Roasted cauliflower. It's the one dish I've been thinking about ever since going to Girl & the Goat.

Turns out it's super easy to make. Seriously. Super easy.

The recipe I used - literally the first result from a Google search - was from Simply Recipes.

All you need to do is cut up a head of cauliflower, toss the florets with about a tablespoon (or more to taste) of lemon juice, spread the florets out on a casserole dish, sprinkle with course sea salt and fresh pepper, and then drizzle with olive oil.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the florets are fork tender and the tops start to brown a bit. Sprinkle the cauliflower with fresh Parmesan and serve.

I didn't have all the best ingredients. I'm pretty sure this would taste even better if I'd had freshly grated Parmesan cheese instead of the powdery stuff we have in bulk supply for the kids. I also had to use lemon juice because I don't keep fresh lemons on hand.

Even so, the dish turned out simply fantastic.

I wish I could say the same for the broiled hake I served with it.

An Urban Ag First: Seattle to Plant Edible Forest

There are so many reasons I love this news out of Seattle about plans to plant a 7-acre edible forest.

According to this piece by TakePart, the plot is being designed to be self-sustaining and all edibles will be available to the public.

Among the planned plantings: walnut and chestnut trees, blueberries, fruit trees, and herbs.

This is definitely a project to watch. I'll be curious whether the public will take part in a respectful way without damaging plants. I'm thinking there will need to be a fair amount of signage and education about proper picking/harvest techniques.

Besides being a possible urban ag model, reportedly the first of its kind in the U.S., it's also a remarkable example of successful community outreach.

Crosscut reports that: "Friends of the Food Forest undertook heroic outreach efforts to secure neighborhood support. The team mailed over 6,000 postcards in five different languages, tabled at events and fairs, and posted fliers."

Things aren't all rosy in Seattle though. It looks like from the Crosscut report that the city isn't exactly throwing its full support behind the project. There appear to be a host of restrictions and CYA language attached.

Still, I'm sure this will be a closely watched project as more communities consider adding edibles to their public byways.

Straw hat tip to City Farmer.

Tracking Chores & Incentives

Chore charts from Miss Savvy Chic

My kids have been surprisingly eager to contribute more to the running of our household. This new-found helpfulness isn't always about earning a consistent allowance.

But because I've been getting a "how much more would I get for that?" questions, I've been looking for a way to keep track of regular chores and responsibilities, plus keep track of those extra efforts.

I've quickly abandoned the whole chart concept as overly complicated and too easy to set aside and never update.

Then over at Pinterest, I saw what I hope will be a simple, fun solution: to-do list door hangers with clothespins. The original image was adorable, but I couldn't trace the source.

Luckily, it appears Jenny at Miss Savvy Chic saw the same image and was equally inspired. I like how she bought plain door hangers at the dollar store, plus a bag of 36 clothes pins.

I'm hoping to have time this weekend to try this out with the kids. I like the idea of loading up one side of the to-do or chore list with pins in any given day or week and see how we can work in a routine. Or see how the kids manage their time to get their to-do items done and get to shift the pin to the completed side.

If you have any tried-and-true ideas, please share.

Best Travel Mug Idea Yet: Cuppow (Plus Cozy)

Anyone who's been to our house knows how much we like a simple Mason jar.

We do have an actual set of drinking glasses. They even match. But we prefer to drink our water, juice, milk and margaritas out of regular canning jars, especially the jelly-sized ones.

They're easy to clean, can hold hot or cold drinks, make great non-leaking vinaigrette jars, and are super durable. We've yet to break a single one.

We're clearly not the only ones to appreciate a good Mason jar.

A couple of artists in Massachusetts have come up with an innovative way to turn a wide-mouthed canning jar into an eco-friendly, sip-on-the-go travel mug they call Cuppow ($7.99). It's so simple it's brilliant.

I saw some concerns about heat transfer. Canning jars can hold scalding liquids without a single crack. But most folks don't touch the glass until they cool off.

Not to worry. There seems to be a solution to this problem: knitted Mason jar cozies at Etsy.

Girl & the Goat: Worth the Wait

Photo: Kiditamae

As we were getting up to leave Girl & the Goat last night, I wondered if I should just go ahead and book my next reservation before leaving the building.

We'd endured a four-month wait for a prime Saturday night table. Just like I book my hair appointments or follow up doctor visits before walking out the door, I figured it's not a bad idea to secure our next dining experience at this Fulton Market hot spot.

And to think, we almost didn't even go. With some health issues related to diet and an uncertain schedule, we were close to canceling. So close in fact that we neglected to take the reservation seriously enough to secure a sitter. Thankfully, a good friend urged us to go, convinced me I could find enough on the menu that I wouldn't spend the rest of our date night in the emergency room, and then offered to hang with the kids so we could go out. (Have I mentioned she's a really really good friend?)

Everything we ordered was excellent, so good that I'll have a hard time not re-ordering a couple of the same dishes...if they're still on the ever-changing menu.

Because the servings are relatively small and tapas style, we ordered five dishes and bread. That was way too much for the two of us, but worth the end-of-evening belt loosening.

Here's what we ordered:

Agave Fleur (me)
3 Floyds/Hop Czar (Sim)
Challah w/ tomato compote and blue cheese butter
Roasted cauliflower
Chickpea fritters
Seared scallops (cooked to perfection)
Wood Fired Walter's chicken w/ roasted naan and fried pickles (such a delicious combo and incredibly moist)
Goat empanadas

I was delighted by all the varieties of pickled veggies that were served with each of these dishes. Chef Stephanie Izard is truly inspired, from the creative pickling to the superb use of all things goat. I'll be just as excited to try her new diner, Little Goat, opening nearby in the next couple of months.

And, of course, this blogger appreciated the numerous shout outs on the menu and on the Web to the local and regional farmers whose labors are so prominently featured.

Adopt-A-Farmbox Program Makes Urban Farming Accessible

Speaking of kids who can't ID fresh veggies or just plain don't have access to veggies even if they could...there's a great program in NYC aimed at bringing healthy food to millions of urban dwellers stuck in food deserts.

Adopt-A-Farmbox builds and delivers raised garden beds made from recycled materials. The delivery comes with organic soil, seeds, advice and teaching materials for schools or community organizations.

The project, which started in 2010, is self-funded, and continues to take donations through its Kickstarter page.

Fun with Marshmallows & Sprinkles

Had fun today with my daughter and one of her friends experimenting with a new (to us) cupcake decoration: marshmallows.

We cut the marshmallows into petals, then painted them with sprinkles or outlined them with gel. Some of our creations pushed sprinkles and marshmallows to the limit. We were content with heart-shaped marshmallow centers until my son came home from the movies with Skittles.

What Vegetable Is This?

Need evidence that there isn't enough ag education in urban environments? Or fresh food alternatives?

Last night, I was in the grocery line and my checker was stymied by the long green squash on the belt.

What is this? She asked after struggling for a bit to look it up on her cheat sheet. It's a zucchini I said in my most polite, patient tone.

I'm used to checkers not knowing the difference between a serrano and a jalapeno. And there are now so many new produce varieties that even I have to look for the signs from time to time. But a zucchini?

That's such a common backyard veggie -- at least it should be -- that every child should know it on site by at least age 8.

I wasn't mad or frustrated that the checker didn't know, even though back in my days manning the register, we were required to learn all the produce and memorize codes so we didn't have to waste time looking items up. But I digress.

No, not mad or irritated. Just a bit sad and motivated to check back in with what's going on with urban ag in my area as we head into spring and our Midwest farmers kick their operations into high gear for the upcoming growing season.

My New Favorite Low-Fat Comfort Treat

By low fat, I in no way meant healthy. No, not with these heart-shaped vanilla creme Peeps.

I've tried plenty of Peep flavors and shapes over the last few years. And I'm nowhere near a fan of them all, especially attempts at chocolate and gingerbread. Ick.

But these red-specked vanilla cremes are my hands-down favorite. At least for now.