Food Whims

It’s been a few weeks since the first Always Learning, but there’s no better time than now to key you in on a few things I’ve been learning. (Don’t you love that view of the Austin skyline?)

I’ve been working a lot lately – between the bakery, caterings, and my own personal side jobs, I always seem to be doing something – and in each of my jobs, I try to soak up as much as I can. So, today’s lessons and learning are from experiences… not pretty food pictures.

#1 Sometimes all you can do is apologize and laugh it off. Did you give someone the wrong drink? Or spill a drink on a coworker? Don’t worry… take note and move on! When things are moving as fast as they do at a restaurant or in a kitchen, there’s no time for wallowing or harboring any anger. So, take a deep breath, take note, and move on. Later you can just laugh about it or forget it even happened.

#2 Always listen… even if you already know the answer. Sometimes, the way someone explains something to you can open up all new doors of understanding. When an idea is explained to you in a new way, that fresh perspective can open up floodgates of thought or turn on a light bulb. So listen and be open to old ideas.

#3 Your future is always changing… be open to it. I have no idea what my future holds. Jobs that I thought were secured, have fallen through and passions I was so ready to pursue have wavered; in the same vein, jobs have come out of nowhere and new passions have blossomed. While this transience used to freak me out, I have learned to sit back and take it as it comes. I can rest in the truth that God is in control and I have absolutely nothing to fear.

Now, I’m off to work. Wonder what I’ll learn today…

Abigail

A few years ago I fell in love with leeks… literally. I became obsessed with them when one of my roommates made a baked chicken dish with leeks and apples, and I just died they were so delicious! After that, I tried every leek dish I could. This is one of my favorites. A few weeks ago we got the most beautiful leeks in our CSA and I knew it was time to make it again. I tend to make different renditions of the dish using different pasta or greens… this time around I used kale and tried out a GF macaroni.

Leek & Pancetta Pasta with Kale
based on Pioneer Woman’s recipe
serves 4

Pasta of choice – macaroni, spaghetti, rigatoni – enough for 4 servings
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 medium leeks, white parts thinly sliced & washed
1/4 pound pancetta, cut into small chunks
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
1 bunch of kale, ribs removed and leaves coarsely chopped
Salt and cracked black pepper

In a large pot, boil water and get the pasta cooking.

Meanwhile, in a heavy saucepan, heat olive oil. Add leeks and cook until they start to go limp and brown slightly. Throw in the pancetta and cook until its browned. Add white wine to deglaze the pan, stirring well to get all the goodness mixed together. Add heavy cream, a little bit of salt and freshly cracked black pepper and stir well. Add 1/4 cup of Parmesan and mix it in. Mix in the kale and then cover the pan, giving the kale a chance to wilt a bit and cook through, about 5 minutes.

When the pasta is all done and drained (reserve a bit of the pasta water just in case), throw it into the pan with the sauce (if your saucepan is too small, you can always put the sauce into the pot with the pasta) and stir it all up to evenly coat the pasta. Add remaining Parmesan and stir until it’s all melty and gorgeous. If the sauce has gotten too thick for your liking, you can thin it with pasta water or some more cream.

When serving, top it off with a sprinkle of Parmesan and some black pepper.

NOTE: This dish is also delicious with spinach.

Enjoy!
Abigail

Yesterday I bought 10 pounds of grapefruit from Johnson’s Backyard Garden to make a grapefruit version of limoncello. That left me with 12 grapefruit to eat or juice.

So, I made some sorbet.

Grapefruit Sorbet
makes 4 cups

3 cups grapefruit juice
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste*
2 Tablespoons honey

Combine all ingredients and whisk until honey and vanilla bean paste are dissolved. Pour into ice cream maker and follow ice cream maker’s directions until frozen. Transfer to a freezer container and place in freezer so the sorbet can firm up.

Serve and enjoy!

*I bought mine at Williams-Sonoma. You could easily substitute with 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or the seeds from half of a vanilla bean.

Abigail

I’m gonna be off radar for a few days while I travel around with the parents. Today we head to the western coast of Scotland where we will stay for the night before we catch a ferry to Belfast. Other destinations of the trip are: Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Paris!

I’ll try and add photos along the way but wifi won’t always be available so it will be sporadic. Regardless, things will be back to normal in a bit over a week.

Until then!

Abigail