Journey to Éiden: Pantry on Wheels. Also, BROWNIE BATTER.

[Disclaimer: Most of this post was written late at night. 10:38 pm. Way, waaaaayy past this old lady’s beddy bye. I get a little bit insane at such an hour. Read on at your own risk.]

We’re taking a trip. A real family holiday, for NINE WHOLE DAYS. This is a first for us all as a family. We are going to fetch my new wooden baby Éiden. Who is Éiden, you ask? Stay tuned. Enjoy the mystery in the meantime.

No trip is complete without food. And we’re generally too cheap to eat out, even whilst travelling. Therefore, it was needful that before we actually embark on our adventure I get together a fully equipped Pantry-to-Go. I gave myself loads of time to do this, beginning to actually think about it concretely Tuesday night, 3 whole days before we leave.

So Wednesday morning I did what I do best: ALL THE THINGS. I made kale chips and granola and bulgur burgers and a Mount Everest of dirty dishes, which I then had to wash.

I also made a single serving of brownie batter so I could get my chocolate fix and continue my mission to clog the interwebs with more amazingly flattering photos of myself.

So flattering. But face it, holding a bowl like that while using the iPad to take the picture DOES require at least a little talent.

If you want a single serving of brownie batter too (you know you do), throw the following in a small bowl: 1/4 c white flour, 1/4 c sugar, 1 1/2 T cocoa powder, 2 T oil, 2 T water, 1/8 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp vanilla. Stir until mixed and consume like the crazed closet chocoholic that you are.

Today, I made cookies. I made kati rolls for lunch. I made a Mount Kilimanjaro of dishes.

Tomorrow, I will make two pear frangipane pies, 48 chapatis, and do some serious packing. I’ll probably have a Pike’s Peak of dishes also.

Asian-Style Pasta Sauce

I had a couple of Very Ripe Tomatoes that needed to be used up, and a couple of partially-cut into onions, so I decided on a whim to make pasta sauce. And as I was sauteeing the onions, I thought, “What if I added some ginger to this? And maybe some soy sauce? And then ate it on RAMEN NOODLES??”

So, here you go. You can thank my random aging vegetables for the creation of this dish.

Asian-Style Pasta Sauce – with RAMEN.

In a little oil, sautee together:
1 c white onion, chopped
1 1/2 c red onion, chopped

While the onion is cooking, add:
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1 T grated fresh ginger

Sautee together until onion is tender.

Add:
2 T soy sauce
1 c chopped tomatoes
1 tsp paprika

Simmer over low heat until sauce is reduced as much as you like. I didn’t time mine, but it was at least half an hour. And then I let it sit a while.

I cooked 2 packages of Ramen according to the directions (just the noodles) and mixed it all up.

And then I ate it with some sesame seeds sprinkled liberally on top.

Cherry Pine Nut Cookies

By far the most common search term that gets people to my blog involves “cheap pine nuts”. Everyone thinks they can find cheap pine nuts if they just ask Google! So sorry to disappoint you, lovely people. Pine nuts are so labour-intensive to harvest that I can’t really naysay the high cost. But, if you want to help me rack up Amazon Affiliate cash, then go here to buy 8 oz of organic pine nuts. 🙂

The other day, however, there was a search term I hadn’t seen before. Someone came to my blog seeking “vegan cherry pine nut cookies”. It sounded intriguing. I still have my birthday bag of pine nuts and a jar of maraschino cherries. So, today I make you vegan cherry pine nut cookies.

A few notes: If you feel super rich, you could use all pine nuts instead of pine nuts and almonds. If you feel super poor (or just have common financial sense), you could sub sunflower seeds for the pine nuts. I would imagine that fresh cherries in season would be an awesome sub for the maraschino cherries.

I was very pleased with the results. There is a nice crunch to the sugar coating, a juicy burst of cherry flavour tucked inside… what’s not to love?

1 c vegan margarine
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c pine nuts
1/2 c sliced almonds
1/2 c maraschino cherries, well-drained (about 18 cherries)
2 T powdered sugar
1 c white flour
1 c whole wheat flour
Pinch salt

More cherries for filling, cut into quarters (optional)
Pine nuts for garnish (optional)

Additional powdered sugar for rolling (roughly a cup)

In a food processor, pulse nuts and cherries to chop. Add margarine and vanilla. Add flour and sugar.

Roll into balls around the quarter-pieces of maraschino cherry. The balls should be roughly walnut to ping-pong sized. After making the ball, roll the ball in powdered sugar until coated. I rolled mine twice in the powdered sugar. Garnish with pine nuts if desired.

Bake 12-15 minutes at 350 until firm. (I did mine a bit oversized and it probably took 18 minutes.)

Makes roughly 24.