Saffron

I have found my calling in life. I was apparently destined to be the go-to-guy for all questions regarding food/herbs at a weekly trivia contest at a small pizza parlor known as the Pizza Joint in an obscure land that some people refer to as "the AUG." Last week, I went to play trivia for the first time, and the final Jeopardy category was herbs. We were in 5th place going in, nowhere near the top, but with that category we knew we were money, $50 worth in fact. "Name 5 of the 10 herbs that McCormick sells in leaf form." (Insert 4 minutes worth of cheesy, yet good, 80's music) I mentally sort through my past and present collection of herbs in my kitchen cabinet. The most common, essential Italian herbs: basil - check, oregano - check, thyme - check... what else? Cilantro, yep, I had that at one time. Bay leaf, yep, had that one too. And that was all we needed. We shoot to 1st place and the prize was ours. Some of the others included marjoram (which I've never actually had nor used before), sage, one of my recently discovered herbs, and some others I forget.

This week was no different, but unfortunately, the food question came in the middle of the game. "What is the most expensive spice in the world?" The spice is none other than the small stigma section of a flower, saffron. Saffron (Crocus sativus) is hand-picked, and approximately 225,000 stigmas (at 3 stigmas per flower) make up one pound, which explains why it is the most expensive spice in the world, fetching upwards of $5000 per pound. Despite the cost, a little bit of saffron goes a long way. I've never used it, but I have had it on a couple of occasions, and if I ever get any, this is how I'd use it:

SAFFRON RICE AND RED PEPPER PILAF
Using the risotto method with long-grain rice yields rich flavor and light texture.
5 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups chopped red bell peppers
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups basmati rice or other long-grain white rice
3 cups (or more) low-salt chicken broth
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon (generous) crushed saffron threads
6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Parmesan cheese shavings

Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add peppers and onion. Sauté until soft, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add rice; stir 1 minute. Mix in 3 cups broth, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and saffron. Bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until liquid is absorbed, about 18 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in 6 tablespoons grated cheese. Season with salt and pepper. (Pilaf can be made 30 minutes ahead. Keep covered. Rewarm over low heat, adding more broth by tablespoonfuls to moisten if necessary.) Stir 1 1/2 tablespoons chives into pilaf. Mound in serving bowl. Top with cheese shavings and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons chives.

Makes 6 servings.

Courtesy of epicurious.com

Holy guacamole!

"Not another blog!" you say. But this one is different. This one is about food. I could spend countless hours rambling about my favorite restaurant or the smell of the freshly picked produce at the farmers market or the times I've made food more suitable as household cleaning agents rather than as edible delights. While I can't guarantee regular updates, I'll probably have enough inspiraton to write good entrees! (where are those goofy accents when you need them?)

Last night, I went over to Jeremy's for a cookout he was having. Whenever I go to a cookout, I always feel like it's a great excuse for me to splurge and make something that I might not make for myself. Although guacamole isn't quite a splurge, it was something I had only made once before - actually, only a few days before - and it hadn't come out quite right, so I wanted to make it right this time. It didn't hurt that Publix had avocados on sale 2/$1, so how could I pass up such an opportunity (note, that price is good until Tuesday, so go get you some!)

I took the guacamole to the party, and it turned out to be quite a hit. I think I have higher expectations of my food than anyone else, so I didn't think it was that great, but everyone seemed to think that it was just that great. You know how people will tell you they think something is good if you make it, but only when it's really good will they go out of their way to come tell you that it's fantastic. So I guess the guacamole hit the spot.

When people started asking me for the recipe, I couldn't really say, because I hadn't really followed an exact recipe. Unless I'm baking, I take recipes more as a general suggestion than an exact blueprint to engineer the perfect dish. It's because the ingredients you use are almost inevitably going to vary. Sometimes, the avocado may taste a little sweeter and other times, it may taste a little richer. Same holds true for other vegetables, fruits, meats, even spices. What I learned in my past year of cooking is that using fresh ingredients and acquiring a good taste is more important than any recipe. What I mean by acquiring good taste is to fine tune your taste buds. From my experiences, it's a lot like listening in a cappella. You have to really focus on listening to the pitches and the blending if you want to sound good. While some people can do this pretty naturally, for most people, it takes effort, but it IS something one can improve.

When I made this guacamole, I looked up some recipes to get a feel for proportions, and then, threw some stuff together and adjusted the taste to get to a good point. One of my favorite sites for finding recipes is Epicurious because it lists lots of user comments and ratings. Go take a gander over there to get an idea of basic guacamole, and make it for yourself. Or you can try what I did (but this is only an approximation).

Holy guacamole

-serves 1 if eat like me, but maybe up to 12

Ingredients:
4 ripe Hass avocados
3 tbsp. lime juice (juice from about half of a lime)
1 large Roma tomato seeded and diced
1/2 small yellow onion diced
1 large clove of garlic minced
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1. Mince garlic, place in bowl.
2. Cut open avocados and scoop out the innards. Squeeze lime juice on top. Place in bowl with garlic and mash with fork until desired chunkiness.
3. Add tomato, onion, salt, pepper, cumin, and mix. Adjust seasoning as necessary.

As with any food, this tastes better if you let it sit a bit and let the flavors meld, so make it an hour or so in advance.

The picture at the top is a picture of the mortar and pestle like thing that is traditionally used in making guacamole. If anyone wants to be really nice and get me one, I'll make you the most delicious guacamole in the world!