by Sam Tackeff | Jan 4, 2018 | Uncategorized
Huzzah! It’s that time of year again when my planning and organizing itch goes into hyperdrive. While I’m not really a “New Years Resolutions” devotee, I AM a goal oriented person all year long – I set a variety of long and short term goals in all parts of my life. No, I’m not some sort of goal-setting superhero, without them I’m an aimless, wandering, grump, prone to the gravity field of my couch. It’s for the best for all of us.
The only real resolutions I DO set are my kitchen resolutions – my re-commitments to spending more time doing the things I love: cooking, reading about food, talking about food, and eating…. all the food.
In 2017, my word for the year was “Share”. I had lofty goals for sharing my thoughts, dreams, and meals. But all in all, 2017 ended up being not much of a food year for me – I think it was a particularly difficult year for a lot of us. Surprisingly few kitchen projects, limited dinners out (probably for the best), and fewer cookbooks read than in probably any year of the past decade.
So, in 2018 the word for the year is “Finish” which is a good reminder to finish some of last year’s kitchen resolutions that I didn’t quite end up following through with… see what I did there? I also have a renewed sense of optimism about the future. I’m working on some amazing projects, with excellent people, traveling more, and being more organized with my culinary pursuits.
First, here are some of my 2017 kitchen resolutions I’d like to continue with:
- my weekly meal planning process – I did generally well with this, but this year I have a spiffy updated spreadsheet and process to keep me planning and updating on a regular basis.
- bucket list restaurants – in the short term, I’d like to eat my way through Boston’s Eater 38. Still quite a few amazing restaurants in my backyard that I haven’t made the effort to try. I actually ended up going to a few bucket list restaurants in San Francisco that I tragically had missed out on while living there: finally made it to Zuni Cafe!
- 100(0) fruits, nuts, and seed to try – here’s my list; quite a few of these I’ve definitely eaten (but can’t actually remember eating…. hello aging) so I’ve left them on my master list to actually re-try for the record.
- I didn’t end up doing much in terms of “challenging cooking” this year, but I’d like to spend some more time doing projects in my kitchen.
- While I didn’t hit my goal, I do like the idea of following through with cooking from one of my already owned cookbooks a month. I’m joining a little in-person cookbook club to help do that!
What other kitchen resolutions are on the docket for 2018?
I’d like to cook a weekly Turkish dinner – I’ve been thinking about writing a Turkish cookbook for well over a decade, so this is some measured effort to that end. But the more important impetus is to eat more of the food I grew up with, the stuff that brings me comfort and joy. Also, Turkish home cooking is pretty much all the food I WANT to be eating most of the time: healthy, loads of vegetables, lots of lamb, and all the spices. Also, pudding.
I try meal kits so you don’t have to – although I cook 90+ percent of my meals at home, I’m still smitten with the idea of an occasional meal kit to outsource all of the planning and shopping. I’ve tried Blue Apron, Purple Carrot, Home Chef, Sakara, and Hello Fresh, and I’m looking for any and all good recommendations (and free weeks if you have ’em!)
Deal with the (expletive redacted) lids to all of my containers – let’s face it, I’ve never seen a perfect solution to the container lid situation. But chance are there are better solutions than my current on (shoved in the top of one of my Raskog kitchen wheelies.
Minimize the amount of stuff on the counter in my kitchen – I generally like access to “all the things” in my kitchen. That doesn’t mean that they have to all be on the counters everywhere.
Improve the light situation and the art in my kitchen – my last few kitchens have been a little bit sad in both lighting and cheer. (And frankly, warmth, but that’s another issue.) Until I have my dream kitchen, I can’t make sweeping changing, but I can do some incremental steps to making the kitchen a better place. New lightbulbs and art it is!
What are your kitchen resolutions this year?
by Sam Tackeff | Jan 22, 2017 | Challenge, Lists, Vegetables
I added a new list to my list of lists this week: one of my kitchen resolutions for this year – a thousand new fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, stretching both my culinary chops, shopping habits, foraging opportunities, and encouraging and indulging my travel bug. I suppose this is more of a lifelong quest to eat with curiosity. I don’t exactly plan on trying a thousand new foods this year, but hopefully I’ll get a good start. Game, on!
The full list (or at least the start!) is here.
Have you gone on any epic culinary quests? Traveled the world to try a new food? I want to hear about it!
by Sam Tackeff | Jan 16, 2017 | Challenge, Lists
Well yes, it’s that time of year again! I’ve spent the better part of the weekend taking stock of my kitchen resolutions – really, the only resolutions I make each year!
Some of my 2016 and previous years’ kitchen resolutions included:
:: to use my large/fancy appliances more often (done!)
:: to do a weekly assessment of fresh produce in my refrigerator (done, and was significantly less wasteful!)
:: to cull the pantry (did a decent fridge cull, pantry is still overwhelmed)
:: to take better care of my cast iron (nope, yikes!)
:: to not use the wrong lid on the wrong pot (learned my lesson and stuck with it)
:: to not season directly into the pan (took this one to heart!)
:: to read my new cookbooks cover to cover before buying several more (fail)
:: to wash all dishes and wipe down counters before going to bed each night (mostly)
:: to keep a running kitchen journal (for the most part, electronically this year)
In 2017, I’m doing things a little differently. My word of the year is share, and so this year I’m focusing my kitchen activities on content creation. I thought it would be a good year to get a head-start on two of my cookbooks that I’d like to write. I’ve had these bubbling for the past decade, and thought that it’s a good time as any to get crackin’.
This year I’d like to write two cookbook proposals – one for a Turkish cookbook with family recipes and a love letter to Istanbul, and another for an everyday eating cookbook, in the style of Nigel Slater, Anna Jones, or the Leon cookbook.
Create two seasonal healthy cooking e-books – with meal plans to take advantage of the seasonal bounty, fresh produce storage tips, easy dinner ideas, and suggested pantry upgrades.
Continue with my weekly meal planning – I was quite consistent in 2016 writing my meal plans, and I’d like to continue the trend. I’d like to write more about how I go through the process of meal planning, the resources that I use, and how I simplify the process of making weeknight meals.
I’d like to start eating my way through some restaurant bucket list restaurants – as part of an overall goal to start traveling more. Since moving back from California, I can count my exquisite dining experiences on about one hand these days. We’re not talking all Michelin, but really experiencing the work of some notable chefs and global cuisine to continue my lifelong education in food.
Start working my way through at least 100 new fruits and vegetables – and come up with my list of 1000 to try. This is more complicated living in New England, but it occurred to me that I’ve been lacking in novel food experiences lately and need a good place to start. I’m going to be compiling a list by sitting down with Elizabeth Schneider’s Uncommon Fruits & Vegetables, Alice Waters’ fruit and vegetable tomes, Deborah Madison’s Vegetable Literacy, and some of my River Cottage Guides, and researching vegetables and fruits unique to specific global cuisines in some of my regional cuisine specific cookbooks that I already own.
Write out a list of challenging cooking experiments to try, and add in a good weekend cooking project at least once a month. My default in the kitchen is quick weeknight meals, and there are some great projects that I’m missing out on.
A short list of cookbooks that I already own and love that I’d like to re-read and cook a recipe from this year:
January – 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer
February – Zuni Cafe by Judy Rodgers
March – The Nordic Cookbook by Magnus Nilsson
April – French Feasts by Stéphane Reynaud
May – The Italian Baker by Carol Field
June – Into the Vietnamese Kitchen by Andrea Nguyen
July – Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce
August – Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin
September – The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen by Paula Wolfert
October – My New Orleans by John Besh
November – Japanese Cooking by Shizuo Tsuji
December – Around my French Table by Dorie Greenspan
Do you have any kitchen resolutions this year?
by Sam Tackeff | Feb 7, 2016 | Meal Planning
I finished two books this weekend.
Saturday afternoon I finished a book I’ve been reading – Stephen Pressfield’s The War of Art. I’ve started (hesitantly) marking up my non-fiction personal development reads, and this one had so many notations. It’s going on my desk in my little self-help reminder zone, so I can pull it down and re-read sections when I’m feeling stuck.
Today, I finished Patti Smith’s M Train. It was exactly what I needed it to be. There’s a few pages in there about an adventure seeking the greatest coffee in the world, and they may have been the best few pages I’ve read in a long time.
After finishing the book, I took the pup on a long overdue walk. In my Secrets of Self Care course last week, we had a module on personal development – and someone mentioned their dog being a large part of their current personal development – which on reflection couldn’t have been more true for myself as well. I’ve learned so much about myself over the past few months of getting to know, love, and train my little puppy. One of my favorite parts of the week is training class – we are working through puppy kindergarten, and then I’d like to work with him on both agility and therapy dog training. It’s a great way to engage your dog, keep them thinking, and work on your own communication skills – you have to clearly communicate with an animal who can’t speak in your language, but when it works, it’s so satisfying!
I then progressed to planning out my weekend chores. The dishes needed a new system, and we need a new dishwasher, so I’ve been working on the backlog. We have yet again, an abundance of cardboard boxes that have piled up, and an IKEA bookshelf that needs to be assembled. (I actually enjoy assembling IKEA, but it’s not clear where this is going to go.) The fridge needed a purge and cleaning.
Then I sat down to meal plan. Here’s what was on my mind this week before heading to Trader Joe’s during the Superb Owl:
:: a breakfast plan for my weekly co-working date
:: a crunchy salad that can be assembled in the fridge and last for several days
:: a tray of roasted vegetables
––––––
:: The Weekly Meal Plan: Week of February 6th, 2016 ::
After I cleaned my fridge, and realized that I had absolutely nothing left in there to eat. When I got to the store, I ended up scrapping a few of my ideas in order to get in more vegetables. I took home a pile of greens, and will be eating them throughout the week on top of my planned meals.
Sunday: mandarin orange chicken thighs with broccoli slaw, and a slice of almond cake. Not quite wings and pizza, but delicious none the less. (See header picture.)
Monday: lamb chops and cruciferous salad with balsamic dressing and thyme honey – I need to remember to defrost some lamb from the freezer!
Tuesday: cheesy chicken with Brussels sprouts and dubliner usually I make this with Laughing Cow cheese, but I noticed that they make spreadable Dubliner flavored wedges, and thought I’d give them a go.
Wednesday: eggs for dinner. Same as last week. I’ll keep this one simple and make a regular scramble and a green salad.
Thursday: roasted sweet potatoes with beef and tahini sauce, and broccoli. Inspired by Jules Clancy’s recipe on Stone Soup.
Friday: out! or as we do these days – takeout and an On Demand movie at home.
by Sam Tackeff | Nov 22, 2013 | Lists, Random
This week I’ve been thinking about relaxation, and how I’m not very good at it. While I advocate self care to everyone I know, I’m not always as good at taking care of myself. Self care need not be about doing the right things all of the time, but it is about doing the right little things most of the time. Here are some of my most recent small comforts that I rely on to stay healthy and happy.
Small Comforts
1. Flowers – small, beautiful, colorful flowers. I don’t need to buy myself roses, or even a large bouquet – a single stem usually does the trick. But if you like bouquets, by all means, go all out!
2. Hot Water Bottle. I fill mine and put it under the covers to warm up the bed before I get in at night.
3. Slippers. I have the Wicked Good Moccasin from L.L. Bean. Classic. Warm and toasty.
4. Chai Hot Chocolate. I tried the kind from Starbucks this week, even though I don’t usually purchase their sweetened beverages. I was seduced by the red cups. It wasn’t terrible. (Usually I make my own with black tea, spices, and cocoa.)
5. Hot water with ginger and honey. I try to drink hot water all day long. Ginger and honey when I need a little zip.
6. Verbena Tea. I steep verbena leaves in water (technically a tisane.)
7. Baby Cacti (and other succulents). Nothing I do will kill them, and they remain bright and happy on my windowsill.
8. Eggs. In the kitchen, always.
9. Grapefruit. With a little sprinkle of maple sugar on each half. A coworker today mentioned that she had never had grapefruit. I am concerned for her well being.
10. Chocolate. For curing all the things.
