Spicy Plantain Chips... and 8 Years Of Marriage!
There are earnest life plans behind the expressions of joy in this picture from our wedding day. Plans for lives and careers dedicated to making change and helping people. We have chosen a life living out these dreams, driven by our shared passion for service, a sense of calling, belief in the inherent goodness of people, and the possibility of changing both people and systems. I remember taking a personality inventory in our early dating years, the results, we were both idealists. At the time, this seemed like something we would grow out of. But over 8 years later, we still find the greatest fulfillment embracing our idealism together.
This week, as we marked 8 years of marriage and 11 years of cooking together, we celebrated with food. For occasions like this, we often find ourselves drawn to simple tasty meals that we can make together and snack on throughout the evening. Spicy plantain chips and guac are a regular snack in our house, that is more about eating together than elaborate preparations and complicated techniques.
Serves: 2 as a snack
Ingredients:
- 3 large green plantains
- canola oil
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- cayenne
- charred onion guacamole
Steps:
- Cut off the ends of plantains and make 2-3 shallow lengthwise cuts (just cutting through the peel) around the plantains, this will make them easier to peel. Put the prepared plantains in a large bowl.
- Pour boiling water over the plantains to fully submerge them, and allow to sit for 1-2 minutes to loosen the peels.
- Discard the hot water and carefully remove the peels once the plantains are cool enough to handle.
- Using a mandoline or sharp knife, thinly slice the plantains lengthwise into roughly 1/16 inch thick chips.
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until a deep-fat thermometer registers 375°F.
- Maintaining the oil temperature at 374, fry the chips 6-8 at a time (do not overcrowd the pot). Flip once, cooking for a total of 30-45 seconds per side (the bubbling will slow and the chips will be crisp and just beginning to show some color). Carefully remove the chips and allow to cool/drain on paper towels. Toss the cooled chips with salt, pepper and cayenne to taste. Serve immediately with hefty dollops of guacamole.
Black Pepper & Lime Caesar Salad
My mother and sister flew to Haiti last week, the final visit in an amazing month of family guests. First Madeline's uncle arrived on a spur of the moment 48-hour trip to cuddle his new niece. Next to arrive was her grandpa and grandma, traveling to Haiti from Indiana, narrowly avoiding a political protest near the airport on the day of their arrival. Madeline's omi and opi from Canada made it in time to see her first smiles, and last week she met her aunt from Pittsburgh for the first time. It has been an incredible expression of love and support from both of our families as they trekked to Haiti, schlepping our many bags along with them. Each time, as I passed our little daughter over to her newly arrived family member, it was a moving experience. Perhaps it's the postpartum hormones... but there was just something about the contrast of having moved to a new place without family, and then watching the faces of our parents and siblings as they held our daughter for the first time that put a lump in my throat. So how does this all relate to this most excellent black pepper lime caesar salad recipe you might ask? My family is nuts for caesar salad. So as I paced the house waiting for my mother and sisters' delayed flight last week, I made my new favorite variation with black pepper and lime. I perfected this version over the last few months while pregnant and unable to eat the classic caesar dressing with raw eggs. I discovered mayonnaise to be a creamy and delicious substitute and swapped out the traditional lemon in favor of local key limes. This is an addictive dressing, so I recommend just going ahead and doubling it the first time.
Food and Thoughts of 2016
We catapulted into 2016 in a new country, jobs, and language. Learning Haitian Creole together had moments of both frustration and hilarity. We practiced our new vocabulary at the maternity clinic, when two months after we arrived in Haiti, we became parents! Paul reflected about becoming a father to a daughter, pondering some of the global challenges that girls and women face. Madeline could not have a bigger ally in her proud papa. This year, our first as parents, we have felt deep gratitude and joy for our little daughter. Along the way we also started trying our hand at Haitian cooking, learning to make some of the iconic sweet, savory & spicy dishes we had learned to love. And through it all, our little baby kept growing, and so did we...
Roasted Garlic & Buttermilk Potato Leek Soup
It’s a soup day here in Indiana Northern Indiana. While Madeline and I count down the weeks until we return to warmer weather and our home Haiti, we are eating for the cold weather with the toasty flavors of roasted garlic, tangy buttermilk and mellow nutty leeks. This Roasted Garlic & Buttermilk Potato and Leek Soup is a winter winner!
Roasted Beet Chips
I always associate beets with the Borscht Soup that my Oma used to make in the fall and winter months. At the time, I don't recall being all that enamored with either the soup, or beets. But now I love them both. We have found that beets are not a vegetable that generates a mild response. Whenever we plan to serve them, we like to first test out the waters to see if our guests are beet-friend or -foe. Beets have a strong earthy flavor that needs some assistance. In their unvarnished form, they are a dusty and lumpy root vegetable, with little to commend by their exterior. But peel a beet and you will find a vibrant, sweet and minerally vegetable, happy to lend color and flavor to drab dishes. Beets and their greens are chock full of vitamins, among them A, B1, B2, B6 and C and are high in calcium, iron and magnesium. Beets respond well to many cooking applications and are delicious in everything from hummus to pickles to juice. I first made these roasted beet chips when I was hankering for some root chips (those incredibly overpriced bags of beet and sweet potato chips at the grocery). It occurred to me that I could make them on my own and instead of deep frying, I thought I’d give beet chips in the oven a go. While Paul was skeptical of my oven technique, it worked beautifully and he sneakily polished off the first batch before our guests arrived!
Sunchoke Spinach Dip
Following Rebecca's family tradition, our Christmas festivities spilled into the early morning hours. Friends and family filled the house with the hum of conversation, laughing, singing, and of course eating. These occasions are primetime snacking. Inspired by our winter CSA's bounty, we created a new favorite snack. Sunchoke Spinach Dip is bright, savory, creamy, with a sweet, almost nutty flavor from the sunchokes. Sunchokes are a funky little root vegetable. Also known as Jerusalem artichoke, they are neither from Jerusalem, nor related to the artichoke. This North American native vegetable has an artichoke-like nuttiness. If you've never cooked with sunchokes before, this dip is an excellent introduction.
