I hate picky eaters. When I offer someone my chocolate strawberry bavarian only to hear, "I appreciate the effort, but I can't eat chocolate and I don't like strawberries," or when a friend comes
to lunch for which I've made my very best feta cheese tart, only to have him tell me he doesn't like mushrooms and isn't a big fan of feta, either—well, look, it's not like I'm giving them tofu and dulse. It's no wonder I'm contemptuous of picky eaters.
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| Feat cheese tart |
Children are the worst. I didn't expect my friend's adolescent son to eat my corn and cheddar cheese soup, but I figured I couldn't lose with a carrot cake, especially my sister's fabulous version. I was wrong. Kyle turned up his nose at it—that much a picky eater. I was not a picky eater as a kid. I ate heartily and was easy to please, and, later, when I traveled, I ate all the local dishes—blood sausage in France, kefir in Russia, boiled pudding in England. One of the best feasts of my life was a vast array of burritos, tamales, enchiladas, chili rellenos, salsas, and two dozen other dishes I couldn't name spread down a long outdoor table at a private hacienda in Mexico. No picky eater I!
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| Corn and cheddar cheese soup |
Until now. To my rue and my shame, I could now be called a picky eater
Actually, I've always disliked coconut, but one dislike of an infrequently used ingredient can be forgiven When I became vegetarian, I never expected any cook to cater to my diet. At any meal, I simply ate everything except the meat. Well, unless it had wild mushrooms in it. After becoming nearly deathly ill from the "safe" shaggy mane mushroom, I swore off all wild mushrooms.
So—no meat, no coconut, no wild mushrooms. And then one night a few years ago I got horribly ill on cabañereo peppers, so I thought, okay, no cabañeros, either. Not too long after that I was driving home after a fabulous dinner at the Jacksonville Inn when severe stomach cramps had me biting my knuckles and screaming in pain, and I would have been doubled over, too, except the steering wheel kept me upright. By the time I was driving through the dark and empty forest, I was suffering from such severe and sudden diarrhea I was glad the forest was both dark and empty.
The common ingredient was red pepper flakes, so now I thought I had an allergy to hot peppers, but soon after that incident I met a woman who mentioned she had an allergy to all peppers (the capsicum family). When I asked her what happened when she ate them and she said, "Swords in the stomach" (followed, in my case, by bombs in the bowels), I knew I, too, was allergic to capsicum.
Now I scrutinize all food labels and inquire about ingredients of restaurant fare. Eating out has become difficult. I might as well not even step foot inside a Mexican or Thai restaurant, and because the biggest fad in contemporary cuisine is hot peppers, a typical conversation with a waiter goes like this:
"I think I'll have the eggplant burger—if there are no peppers in it."
"Oh, the peppers are blended into the sauce; you'll never notice."
"No, no. this is an allergy—and you don't want me getting sick here."
"What about the pasta salad, then?"
"No, it has chicken in it, and I don't eat meat. What's in your Chinese stir-fry?"
"Cashews, tofu, coconut …"
"No, thank you. Does the garden burger have any peppers in it?"
"I'll check….The cook says it comes in a package and we can't say for sure."
"Can't do it. Isn't there anything here I can eat?"
"I'll tell you what. I'll fix you an avocado sandwich special." And then—this really happened—he came back and said, "I'm so sorry. We're out of avocados."
Contempt returns to haunt me. I would like to apologize now to Kyle and Lee and Tom and Sylvia and anyone else who is a picky eater. I apologize to all of you who won't eat onions or can't eat wheat or hate strawberries. I understand, now. I am one of you.
Next week: "The End of the Story about Peppers"
Recipes from this post
Feta cheese tart
Chocolate strawberry bavarian
Corn and cheddar cheese soup
Celebration carrot cake
FETA CHEESE TART
serves 6
The crust
Ingredients
1/3 cup butter
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
(1/4 teaspoon salt if you're using unsalted butter)
3 tablespoons (or more) cold buttermilk
To make
Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives (or whatever electrical implement is suitable). When the mixture resembles cornmeal, add enough buttermilk that the dough comes together into a ball. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let it chill on the back porch or in a refrigerator.
The tart
Ingredients
Pastry for 10-inch tart pan
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Preparation
Remove the dough from its chilling spot and let it sit for 10 minutes. Lightly flour a working surface and a rolling pin. Preheat the oven to 300º.
To make
Roll the crust out to a 12-inch disk. Put the pie crust into a tart pan and prick the bottom and sides of the crust. Brush it with the egg wash. Bake the crust at 300º for 20 minutes, until it is golden brown. Cool.
The filling
Ingredients
1 pound fresh mushrooms
4 tablespoons butter, divided
3 medium tomatoes
1/2 pound fresh spinach
2 ounces feta cheese
1 tablespoon dried whole oregano
2-3 eggs, to make 1/2 cup
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Preparation
Halve the mushrooms (or quarter them if they're big). Cut the tomatoes into 8 wedges each. Wash the spinach. Crumble the feta cheese. Whisk the eggs and cream together. Preheat the oven to 325º.
To make
Sauté the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons butter until they are brown, about 8-10 minutes. Drain them. Set them aside. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter to the skillet and sauté the tomatoes until they render juice and no longer look raw. Drain them well and set aside. Wilt the spinach in a small saucepan over medium heat. (Do not add any liquid.) Into the pastry shell put half the crumbled feta cheese. Top that with the mushrooms, then the tomatoes, then the spinach, then the oregano, then the remaining feta cheese. Add salt and pepper to the whisked-together eggs and cream, whisking afresh, and pour this mixture over the filling, whisking while pouring. Bake at 325º for 1 1/2 hours, rotating the pan after 45 minutes to allow the tart to brown more evenly. Cool 30 minutes before serving.
CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY BAVARIAN
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/3 cup water
1 2/3 cups milk
2 eggs
3 cups ricotta cheese
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Preparation
Sprinkle gelatin over water in medium saucepan. Let stand 5 minutes. Separate egg. Divide sugar into two portions: 1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons. Butter a 9-inch springform pan.
To make
Combine milk and egg yolks till well blended. Add to gelatin mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, till gelatin dissolves. Mix cheese, 2 cups sugar, cocoa, vanilla, and one-third gelatin mixture. Blend well. Combine remaining gelatin mixture and cheese mixture in a large bowl. Chill to consistency of unbeaten egg white.
Beat egg whites 1-2 minutes. Gradually add 2 tablespoons sugar, beating till stiff peaks form.
Gently fold egg whites into chilled chocolate mixture. Pour into prepared pan. Chill 3 hours.
To finish
Ingredients
Chilled bavarian
1 (1-ounce) square unsweetened chocolate
2 teaspoons butter
1 1/2 cups small strawberries
Fresh mint (optional)
Preparation
Remove cake from pan and place om serving platter. Cut strawberries in half if necessary. Combine chocolate and butter in small saucepan. Cook over low heat until melted.
To serve
Place strawberries decoratively on cake. Drizzle chocolate mixture over in diamond patterns. Decorate with a sprig of mint if desired.
CORN AND CHEDDAR CHEESE SOUP
serves 4-6
Ingredients
1 large potato
2 cups boiling salted water
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
3 tablespoons butter
1 onion
3 tablespoons flour
1 1/4 cup heavy cream (or 3/4 cup non-instant milk powder plus 1 1/4 cups water)
kernels of 2 ears of corn
chives and parsley
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (4 ounces)
4-5 tablespoons dry white wine
Preparation
Peel and dice the potato. Chop the onion and the parsley and chives. Cut the corn kernels off the cob. If you use powdered milk, mix it with water to yield 1 1/4 cups double thick milk. Grate the cheese.
To make
Boil the diced potato in the salted water with bay leaf, sage, and cumin seeds until potato pieces are just barely tender (15-20 minutes). Melt the butter in a saucepan and sauté the chopped onion until translucent. Add the flour to the butter and onions to make a roux and cook for 1 minute to get rid of the raw taste. Remove from heat and gradually add the cream (or double milk, for less fat without sacrificing too much of the richness), stirring all the while with a whisk. When it is smooth, pour this sauce into the potatoes and their water, adding the corn kernels, then the parsley, chives, and other seasonings. Simmer the soup gently for about 10 minutes. Then stir in the grated cheese and the wine and stir until cheese is completely melted. Correct the seasonings and serve.
CELEBRATION CARROT CAKE
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| Topped with sunflower seeds |
services 15-20
The cake
Ingredients
4 eggs
3/4 cup honey
1 1/2 cups oil
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
4 cups grated carrots
Preparation
Grate the carrots. Grese a 9x13x2-inch pan. Preheat the oven to 325º.
To make
Beat the eggs. Add honey and oil and beat again. Add the dry ingredients and beat till blended. Do not overbeat. Fold in the carrots. Spoon the batter into the greased pan and bake at 325º for 40 minutes. Turn off the oven, but leave the cake in it until it is nearly cool.
The icing
Ingredients
7 tablespoons butter
8 ounces cream cheese
Honey
Chopped nuts
Preparation
Be sure the butter and cream cheese are soft. Chop the nuts.
To make
Beat the butter and cream cheese till fluffy. Slowly beat the honey into the butter and cream cheese till the mixture is sweetened to your liking. Add as many nuts as you like.
To assemble
Frost the cooled cake with the cream cheese icing.
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