Left-overs! Read all about it!

Personally, I like to snack-it-up whenever I can. Who doesn't? There's something very pleasurable and very 'weekend' about a cheese and cracker plate with some On Demand... Peanut butter and jelly crackers over the kitchen sink... Cold pizza...You know where I'm going with this.

But every now and then, the obvious snacks are missing and all you have are left over veggies from last nights dinner. So, I suggest cranking up your oven to 425' and getting those veggies back in the oven for an amazing left-over snack. You'll be so proud of yourself, you might even blog about it. Wink wink.

Roasted Left-over Veggies with Spicy Garlic Dipping Sauce

Two hands optional.

Dress left-over veg in olive oil and re-reason with salt and pepper. Roast in a hot 425' oven for 10 minutes, until crisp around the edges. In a small bowl combine cider vinegar, chili flakes, garlic, a little honey and salt and pepper. The goal here is to create a bright, piquant sauce. Pile the roasted veggies in a warm bowl and dip and eat!

Easy Green Soup

Forget peeling anything, that is out of the question. How long this one-handedness will continue, no one knows. Not my hand specialist, not my acupuncturist, and certainly not me. But thank god for the distraction of having to cook for myself. And nothing could be as simple as a bowl of green soup. No chopping. No dicing.

Broccoli Kale Potato Soup with Egg and Parmesan

In a pot of salted boiling water, cook a few large leaves of kale, a handful of broccoli florettes, a small potato (skin on) and a clove of garlic (these days, mine come from a jar) until soft and still green. If you are fortunate enough to have a chopped onion nearby, add that too.

Oh yeah-- add a good pinch of dried rosemary, thyme, or whatever herb you like, to the boiling pot.

Dried herbs are especially great if you can't chop things (fyi me) but remember, they are much more concentrated in flavor. A little goes a long way.

In a blender combine the cooked veg, still green, with a ladle-full of the cooking liquid, and purée. If you have a little texture that's okay, and actually very nice. Season with salt, pepper and a little cider vinegar, and heat your soup bowl.

Poach an egg in the remaining cooking liquid, being careful to bring it to a soft simmer. If poaching an egg is too challenging, or you have a hard-boiled egg laying around, you can use that instead.

Ladle your piping hot soup into your warm bowl and top with an egg and some shredded Parmesan. And don't forget the drizzle of fresh, fruity olive oil!

Now-- the gosh darned dishes...

Lost Bread-- Parmesan Turkey French Toast

Just four weeks ago I was a highly functioning person. I was up early with my French coffee press, then out the door on a run or beach walk, and back home to clean up for a bike ride to my fave morning spot for a coffee, oatmeal and the news of the day. And that was just my morning. By noon I was in the car to the market and up the hill to my client's beautiful French country kitchen. The view from my work bench was Sienna, Napa, Provence, or as the trainer once amusingly said-- Nairobi.

I know. You want to slap me now. Knock me back to reality where the rest of the world has no such view from their work space, and no such beach to walk, run or see. And you would be right. Poor me for missing my sharpened knives, well oiled cutting board, and glorious herb garden. Poor, poor chef.

Trust me. I've paid my dues, and am still in 'debt'.

But I am a little lost without it. My days are consumed with trying to feed myself, followed by trying to clean-up after myself, followed by more of the same. Not the menu I want. I know, it could be worse, and this is all just temporary, but disability is what it is-- disabling.

So, out of a need to make something single-handed and a desire for something comforting, I thought of pain perdu. Or, as Americans call it, French toast. And how ironic that the French to American translation is "lost bread"? Bread that is stale, no good, transformed into something luxurious, and new. A perfect metaphor for my own healing.

But here's the twist-- Parmesan and turkey.

You see, by the time I cleaned the kitchen, it was time for lunch. So, pain perdu became a savory masterpiece of 'making lemonade out of lemons.'

Here you go:

In a shallow pan or bowl, whisk together a fresh egg, a half-cup of milk, a palm-full of grated parmesan (parmiggiano reggiano, if you have it) and salt and pepper.

While you get a skillet nice and warm, soak two slices of sandwich bread in the egg mixture.

Build your wet sandwich-- layering slices of deli turkey and a good melting cheese between the wet bread. A tablespoon of butter melts very well in a medium-hot pan, just perfect to slide the sandwich into. Brown one side and flip. Bake in an oven at 400' about 5-6 minutes, until browned.

I dressed it, on a plate, with a shower of fresh Parmesan, and arugula with lemon. And, since I had some cauliflower florets, I made a quick turmeric and cider vinegar pickle with a squeeze of honey to sweeten it. It took three minutes to steam. A perfect side-dish.

I could get used to this attention

When you're lame people from all around come out to help. It's so reassuring. My neighbor Jerry opened a jar for me; my friend Karla took my laundry to my laundry-lady; Nadia, at the Marine Market, tied my shoe; and the lovely guys at Flake, my fave morning hang, made sure I was comfortable, even signing my receipts for me. And cheerful Nick wrote me a helpful note. So thoughtful.

And a sweet student of mine ended class with this simple, get-well recipe. Very nice.

Undefeated Lentil Stew

This one-hand-thing has really started to get to me. The last two weeks have been occasionally devastating. After seeing three hand specialists, all with the same news-- it will get better, when, we don't know. I started to feel defeated. There is nothing reassuring about early-arthritis and tendinitis, and de Quervains. And I'm not sure if cortisone shots are the work of the devil, or god. I just want to cook-- for the rest of my life.

So, I pushed back the relentless lame thought-- 'what's a chef with one hand?' bullshit, and said screw it. So what if I can't open jars and button things. And who cares if I routinely tear tea bags open with my teeth. And so what I have to ask friends to cut my food. At least I have friends.

And from a distance I could hear the battle-cry of my awesome friend Anita--"who cares!"

And so I cook.


Undefeated Lentil Stew

Here it is:

Cook some French Puy lentils in double it's volume of water. Add diced onion, carrot, celery, fresh thyme and a bay leaf. A crushed clove of garlic is nice too, and a couple of scratches of lemon zest to lift everything. A pinch or two of cumin really rounds everything out, as well as a drizzle of olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper.
If you have any cooked sausage, bacon, or meat, add it to the stew, either diced or shredded.

Serve your stew in a warm bowl with a bundle of arugula dressed with lemon and olive oil. A little feta crumbled over the top is nice too.

Enjoy!

I love to ruin my appetite-- chocolate pie

Who's the genius who said, "life is short, eat dessert first"?

Who cares! They were right. Dessert first is a brilliant way to live!

Truth be shared, I rarely indulge outside of a few squares of dark chocolate smudged/heaped with peanut butter. And... on occasion, dig into a fat slice of my fave chocolate pie from the Apple Pan-- a local institution of oldschoolness.

They have been making pies and burgers since 1947. And nothing has changed. Not the horse-shoe shaped counter, the green checked wall paper, or the paper boat hats the men sport. Not even the sandwich cooks, as they are known, have changed. Gordon has worked there for 30 something years (!). And the burgers and the pies are the same, as well. I just can't stay away!

Unfortunately, my single-hand is too tired to drive me there. Thankfully, I have a back-up recipe that a 4 year old could make. In fact, I've been it making since I was kid. I'm sure many of you have had this pudding' pie, too.

It's so Bill Cosby!

one box of chocolate Jell-O pudding
Graham crackers
Whipped cream

Break the grahams into medium pieces and cover the bottom of a pie dish with them-- crumbs and all. Make your pudding and let it cool. Once its cool, smooth it over the grahams until it looks like a pie, and cover with whipped cream. Eat right away or let it set in the fridge. Heaven.

Shrimp scampi for two... hands

For those of you with two operable hands and arms please appreciate the ease and grace of toweling off after a morning shower. And please don't take for granted the slicing of an apple, the buttoning of your jeans, the brushing of your hair... Oh, the list goes on.

But I do like a challenge, so why not make dinner? I did manage to semi-fold a bathroom towel and hang it. And I did swiffer the hardwood floors. Well, sort off.

Faux-shrimp scampi and rice pilaf seemed the obvious choice with a bag of frozen shrimp, a bag of spinach and a box of rice pilaf in the kitchen. I had a bag of pre-diced onions, minced garlic, a lemon, olive oil, and white wine, not to mention a lightweight stainless steel pan I purchased for 11$ (my pans are too heavy for single-handed cooking), done, and done. It was too easy.

And who knew I had become Rachel Ray?

*While you are steaming the rice with a 1/4 cup of onion, salt and pepper the shrimp and add a drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, some minced garlic, diced onions and a splash of white wine. Bake at 425' for 10 minutes. When the pan-juices are released, add the raw spinach and bake for five more minutes. Make sure it's seasoned well and serve with a wedge of lemon. Everything needs something bright.

BTW. No butter, so, healthy!