The Veggie Project...cont'd

Still working on incorporating more veg into the family diet. I found some great Patty Pan squashes at the LULU in Hidd. They were a bit dear, but I was too excited to worry over the price. I bought a small bit a brussel sprouts too. I minced two slices of bacon, fried it, then added the veggies to the pan.I halved the sprouts. I added 2 Tbp of water to the mix to start up a bacon saturated steam. Then covered it on low. I tossed them every few minutes, but not too much since I was trying to keep the steam going. When they were done, I drizzled a teaspoon or so of real maple syrup in the pan and swirled it all around to coat the veg. Go easy on the syrup, just a dab will do and works wonderfully with the smokey bacon flavor. Clara devoured it and asked for seconds! Carrot steamed in a tiny bit of water and butter, then a small drizzle of honey at the end was a hit on another night. Carrots are dirt cheap in Bahrain, and the honey and maple is always preferable to white refined sugar (nature knowing best and all that.) Goat cheese is very cheap and available here. I tossed three different local greens together out of the 40 fils section, added a grapeseed oil and vinegar dressed with some chunks of goat cheese. Also well received.

Waste not want not!

My mother always taught me that it was a sin to waste food. This is probably responsible my my waistline as well as my frugal tendencies. When I was single, I went for easy. I threw out tons of produce that I had bought with good intentions, and replaced it with all you can eat soup, salad, and breadsticks at Olive Garden. Nothing like having 5 kids to cure you of that little habit.

I really try not to waste food. My freezer and my soup pot are my two best defenses, oh and my griddle. Bread and cheese are easy. French toast is the only cure for bread that is getting ready to turn, and George could eat half a loaf by himself. Soup and grilled cheese sandwiches are great for cleaning out the produce and the bread and cheese. I use the freezer for fruits and veggies for the simple fact that if the Jolly Green Giant can do it, why can't I?


This has become a real issue in Bahrain. It is hot and almost everything is imported. You have a limited amount of time with bread and produce. The stinker is that the most affordable way to buy produce is right off the vendors in bulk. So, I ended up with lots of frozen bags of peaches and pears and bananas the will do nicely for smoothies or a compote. Tomatoes are ruined once they are refigerated, cooking 101. That is why the salad bar tomatoes taste like Styrofoam. So, if they haven't been refrigerated when I buy them, I don't refrigerate them either. However, they go bad fast in Bahrain. Then the go to the freezer whole and dry in a ziploc bag.They freeze up like clinking billiards balls. The only good use for them after that is added to sauce or soup, but it is a good way to extend a jar of Spaghetti sauce or to throw into your sausage and peppers. Even things like onions and potatoes that seem to last forever at home, spoil in Bahrain. So,French onion soup and potato leek soup are family favorites and they freeze and reheat well. In North Carolina I would freeze my home grown poblanos and tomatoes for Chili night in the winter. My father used to say "these will be good when the snow flies!" when he would help my mom can and freeze from their garden. He was right and I never forgot that.

Meat is another food item with a short shelf life in the frig. Once it is cooked, you can stick it in the freezer for soup or cassoulet later. Saving a duck carcass or a ham bone will add depth to these as well. When I make cassoulet or chili I can pull out leftover meat or a spare sausage and add it to the pot.

The truth is that there are a lot of hungry people in the world that would feast off our garbage. We all throw away a little wilted lettuce and shriveled carrots on occasion, but there is no good reason to waste your hard earned dollars or the gift of excess. Put your bounty to work for you and be grateful that no one in your house goes hungry.

Going green without going broke

Salad has been a challenge in Bahrain. I like my baby greens, my mesclun mix. A lot of the lettuce is tough and sandy. Either that or half dead and triple the price of reason. The NEX has bagged baby greens, but I cannot with a good conscience pay $7 for a bag of wilting greens.Out in town is not much better. Those tender greens are worse for the wear whether they flew in from Georgia or France. So I have been braving the greens kiosk at the local grocery. At .090 or 90 fils I can get a bunch of greens. I have no bloody idea what some of them are. The parsley and cilantro and mint I can figure out, but they are herbs, and a bit strong to eat instead of lettuce. So I break a leaf and sniff, shake my head put it back, move to another until I find the feel and the smell that I can wrap my head around.The lad working the produce area watches me wondering what the hell I am doing, but he doesn't interfere. The long grass blades are actually similar to a garlic chive. Roc is their version of Arugula. The waxy leaves above are quite possible a type of spinach or chard. A couple of them I don't know ( like the one to the right), but they seem to have a mild greenery taste and feel, so at approximately 24 cents a bunch, I am willing to wing it. The mint is a great little treat. Way cheaper than in the US and pulped in lemon juice and water and ice, makes a beautiful summer drink. So, with a little homemade vinaigrette and a few pinches of goat cheese I think this is going to be quite good. All I know is the 72 Cents is better than $7 and I am still getting fresh greens in my family.

Chitra's Curry

My housemaid Chitra makes a heart healthy curry that we really like.She substitutes coconut milk which is high in saturated fat for plain yogurt.

She uses the whole chicken chopped into parts with the skin removed, but you can use boneless as well. She softens onion, garlic, and green pepper in olive oil w/ salt to sweat the veg. Then add the chicken and tomato and cook it til it is brown on both sides. Add 2 cups of liquid. I add low sodium chicken broth, but you can add water too. Add two tablespoons of madras curry, some ground black pepper, and stir.
Let it simmer for 30 minutes on low. Add two containers of plain skimmed arabic yogurt (or just plain in the states) and a generous helping of diced cilantro. You taste as you go and add more curry, salt, or yogurt to your liking. This is mild enough for kids. If you want to spice it up, throw two red Thai chilies or something similar into the mix. When you serve, add some more fresh chopped cilantro.
I varied this dish with less meat and addition of carrots and butternut squash cubes and Bob loved it even more.

The Soup Pot

In Bahrain I have had an issue with getting into a meat groove. The meat at the exchange is expensive, stupidly expensive. The produce is worse. So I found myself going to the locals for my produce. Thai ingredients such as kafir lime leaves and lemongrass are readily available. So my Thom Ka Gai is pretty passable. Leeks are also plentiful, so I make cream of potato leek soup as well. I have also found the the most crucial piece of cookware thus far has been my enamel over cast iron dutch oven. Stewing cheaper cuts of meat for goulash or chicken with wine and olives, or chicken noodle soup. You can buy butternut squash or the ugly local pumpkins (local meaning Saudi or Egypt) dirt cheap for the amt of food you get out of them. I can get chicken stock but for some reason no beef stock (only boullion). So I use the squash to make a pretty healthy and hearty soup. 3 small or 2 large butternut squash-peel,dice, and scoop out the guts box of chicken stock salt and pepper 3 bell peppers red/yellow/orange half and half simmer the diced squash in the stock with salt and pepper while you work on the peppers. Put the oven on high broil. Keep the peppers whole and rinse them. Put them under the broiler.Let them scorch black and bubbling, turning them periodically. Once they are evenly blackened take them out. You can do this on a grill too. Put them in a ziploc bag, seal it, and set them aside. When the squash is tender, get a blender or your cuisinart. Remove the chunks and puree them reserving the broth. Add a little liquid if you need to for better blending. Put the puree back in the pot and keep simmering stiring it into the broth for a smooth blend. Take the peppers out of the bag.You have sweated them, so rinse them under cold water and the skin should peel right off. Take off the stem, veins and seeds and disgard. Take the fleshy peppers and puree them as well. Stir it into the soup. continue to simmer for another 15 minutes. At the end add some half and half, whole milk, or cream (or nothing if you are watching calories). This soup freezes well FYI. It is a great way to get veg in the rugrats, and goes really well with grilled cheese.

My Adventures with Camel

My husband is an adventurous lad. Camel sausages sounded like a good way to take the Bahrain bull by the horns. I was skeptical, but being the dutiful wife, I decided to try my hand at some very ethnic food. I cooked the sausages like I would Italian sausages, but as soon as I began to handle them I smelled the strong whiff of clove. So, pretending they were Italian sausages was not going to happen. What goes well with clove? the local pumpkin. As wonderful a job as I did with the presentation, they were still camel. It was gamey, and the clove was not ground enough with left offensive hard bits of wood amongst the meat. It was edible, and the veg I accompanied it with was spot on. However, they were still camel sausages. No amount of Stacey's ability to jiggy in the kitchen was going to cure them of their camelness. So, I will stick to the frozen Johnsonville in the NEX. Thank you.

Chicken and Veggie Enchiladas

Finely mince seasonal veggies- onion, red pepper, celery,mushrooms, or whatever you like!

After softening them in olive oil and salt in a skillet, add about 8 Chicken breast tenderloins or 4 boneless chicken breasts to the skillet. Sear both sides, then turn the heat down and had a half can of tomatoes w/jalepeno.

I have frozen spinach with cream on hand as well as plain spinach in the freezer. So whichever you choose is good depending on if you are counting calories.

I simmer all that together for about 10 minutes to make sure the chicken is cooked. Then I remove the meat. I continue to let the liquid cook down from the tomatoes and spinach. I take a meat cleaver and mince the chicken into small bits, then add it back to the skillet. If you want a little more creaminess, a few dollops of cream cheese into this mixture is nice, but don't scorch it. add it last and turn the heat down or off so that it slowly melts and can be stirred into the mixture.

Tortillas are available in Bahrain, or wraps. Enchilada sauce in the NEX is my preference, but you can certainly make your own. I stuff the tortillas and line them up in a 9x12 greased pan (cooking spray).

Pour one can of enchilada sauce evenly over the whole batch, make sure everything is good and wet (that's what she said).
Sprinkle as much cheese as you are comfortable with over the top. Bake in 350 degree oven til the cheese is nice and bubbly and starting to brown just a touch.
Garnish with fresh chopped tomato and cilantro and black olives if you wish. Serve with the local plain yogurt if you are missing sour cream.bon appettit!