February 2017 Spiced Garbanzos & sauteed onions+peppers

Our Second Separate Joint Event

Feb 17th  Chicago and Oakland 

Our plan was/is to put the recipes at the top, followed by the cheerful banter. 

In this case, we link to the chickpeas because of their low final grade (graded M for "meh"); - the peppers and onions, however, were delicious, but need no instructions- just saute in olive oil.

 •
Chorizo-Spiced Chickpeas  

with Sauteed Peppers and Onions
Recipe is from http://vegetarianventures.com/chorizo-spiced-chickpea-fajita-pitas/. 

         In Chicago, 
the chickpeas and vegetables were served up together as a kind of side dish; there was also asparagus and macaroni and cheese, the latter so the kids would have something they would eat...

 Da Veggies cooking first...(in Chicago, I didn't brown the onions).
[Carel: I let the onions brown so the peppers would get nicely soft. Very happy :)].

and Da Chickpeas, prepared the night before... appearance better than flavor.

Chicago

Oakland

 So we had a nice dinner party... Brisa even ate a half asparagus spear! Big progesss on the veggie front.  

Not sure the chickpea dish is worth trying again, though I'll eat the leftovers...  Seems to be the same as the judgment from Oakland. 

Here's the Skype connection to Oakland. 

That's Oakland (in the small upper right window) looking at Chicago (on the main screen)...

            In Oakland,

  everything was part of the make-yourself-a-burrito spread:  chickpeas, sauteed red peppers & onions, cheeses, avocado, mushrooms, lettuce, broccoli roasted with tahini, cilantro, corn-relish, yogurt, rice, and Rumeli's amazing black beans with "garlic, & cinnamon & ask"; --and big, floppy tortillas, warmed on the comal..

When I asked Dreese to light the Shabbat Candles, he said:  
                                    "I get the honor???"

an open-face burrito without the tortilla...... :)

The Tahini Broccoli, right out of the oven, was sooo satisfying.  

https://food52.com/recipes/33114-tahini-roasted-broccoli    It should be added to the hummus-in-pide sandwich tradition,  but on the side for Fred-types who don't like Tahini.  (what????)

Bye!

BANTER South:

CAREL: I loved the Skype call with Chicago!  Next time,  Fred, could you also give us a Skype call when my kids are here?  I find myself too busy Betty-Crockering to remember to call you.   Or, was it the wine... 

Jan 2017 OUR FIRST separate JOINT MEAL Thai soup

 Today's Recipe

CHICKPEA & VEGETABLE COCONUT CURRY SOUP

Makes 7 cups

INGREDIENTS

½ tbsp coconut oil [[or sweet butter; we used Ghee]]

1 can chickpeas

1 zucchini, quartered and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped (we used 2 handfuls of spinach, chopped)

3 cloves garlic

1 tbsp + 1 tsp mild yellow curry powder

¼ tsp turmeric

¼ tsp cumin

¼ tsp coriander

⅓ cup rinsed, uncooked quinoa

⅓ cup rinsed, uncooked red lentils

4 cups (1 litre) vegetable stock [unsalted if possible]

2 cups water

1 can coconut milk  [whole fat]

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat oil over medium heat.

Add the chickpeas, zucchini, carrot, garlic,

            and if you're using kale instead of spinach, add that now too.

Cook until garlic becomes translucent.

Add the curry powder, turmeric, cumin, and coriander.

            Stir and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Add 1 litre of vegetable stock, ⅓ cup uncooked red lentils, ⅓ cup rinsed, uncooked quinoa.

Turn heat up to medium-high.

            Simmer for 15 minutes. Add more liquid as needed.

Add 1 can of coconut milk.

            Bring back to a simmer for another 5 minutes.

Add the spinach and cook for 1-2 minutes.

 Thin with water or vegetable stock as needed.

Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.

Recipe is from "I Love Vegan"

                                                    

How it looked in Chicago (and I forgot the spinach!) 

      How it looked in Oakland (my red quinoa shows up)

 Note the napkins...same on both tables

                                                        

OAKLAND

OAKLAND:  Who will say Kiddush?

OAKLAND: Who will toast the Challah in the Shabbat Candles?

OAKLAND: afterwards:  Sandriz

OAKLAND: Afterwards: Naveed &Selim

 

OAKLAND afterwards: the Kitchen



CHICAGO:

 The Chicago dinner party -- Brisa, Mauricio, Lucy, Lou, and Samuel (Junior)

How it looked starting off on the stove in Chicago...no broth, etc. yet

FRED's MUSINGS on the SOUP
Had a successful Chicago trial of the Chickpea and Vegetable Coconut Curry soup-- A double recipe was far more than Lucy, Louie, and I could eat so I will have leftovers for...um, quite a while.  It was very good. I used low sodium vegetable stock, so it needed quite a bit of salt to get the flavor right.  Lucy and Lou liked it and even Brisa...reluctantly...tried about 1/2 tsp of the broth--declared it OK but didn't want any more. However...I realized much later (the next day?) that I never added the spinach at the end...it was still good.

Even spoke with Carel briefly on the phone during dinner! How's that for togetherness?
  
CAREL's MUSINGS on the SOUP
 It's a great template.... I can see making all sorts of additions or subtractions related to the offerings of the fridge.   To my taste, it needed a lot more spice... +ginger would be good.    We both doubled the recipe (because I'm always afraid there will not be enough :).  So: the next day, when we returned from the Women's March, I heated it up with extra coriander and curry.  and salt.  Much improved.  Reheating was perfect, so this can be made in advance


                
FRED
 WHAT WILL IT BE NEXT MONTH? 
Looking forward to it... :-)

CAREL
   I'm hoping to put some pictures of US in.  (I didn't even think of that.)  Do you think we should be hiring photographers and archivists?   I also wished we could have talked more or had the kids talk to each other... but the timing is tricky...and cooking and organizing is distracting.  Maybe we could have Skype on for a bit?

FRED
   Guess we'll have to have our guests take pictures of us (or indulge in selfies). Shouldn't be so hard.  Skype might work at least sometimes, if we're actually eating at the same time...maybe 7 here, 5 for you? 
   Today (Sunday, Jan. 22) I had the soup again--eating some of the leftovers.  This time I remembered to put the spinach in. I don't think it made much difference, maybe a bit more nutritious.  But overall, the flavor of the soup was better (even better!) than on Friday--more blended together. Yum!
  I still have a ton...may freeze several portions for later use. If I can find room in the freezer!

Welcome to Cooking Together Separately

Here we are together.

It does happen once in a while.

HOWEVER,

When we're not together, 

we try to live as if we were --

Hence, our Blog: 

"Cooking Together, Separately."

OUR PLAN:  

Once a month, more or less, we'll both prepare the same recipe (and maybe, the same meal,) on the same day, and eat "together" at the same time (more or less, as we're in different time zones.)  Then we'll share photos of our meal, photos of our table, photos of our guests, and compare notes.  

We might even call each other while we're eating, you never know.   

It's a Carel & Fred joint venture.