Earning my keep

I'm in Key West, Florida for the second annual Food & Wine Festival. My friend Judy and I are here for a glorious 6 nights, escaping what I believe to be the coldest winter in North Carolina history. Judy will be reporting her adventure on the Port City Foodies blog. Her first post was about the dinner, check it out by clicking this link.

Last night we arrived at 5pm and by 7pm I was serving the first of course of a delicious vegan tapas party for the owners and some employees of Bone Island Vacation Rentals. I had prepped the night before and converted my Heys suitcase into a mobile refrigerator. How? With soft sided coolers and LOTS of ice packs. The good thing about vegan ingredients is they travel well...vegetables, cous cous, tempehcans of coconut milk, herbs, etc... You can see my bag in the first picture.

Ken, Connie, John, Amy and HB all enjoyed the meal. Judy and I nibbled in the kitchen as well. The comments ranged from, "It was so much more than I had expected," to "I can't tell you which I like more, they were all so good!" The whole rental team has gone vegan as their new year's resolution. I decided to give them a taste of what vegans should really be eating, instead of plain old rice and vegetables. I also brought a treat from NC, Catdaddy Moonshine. I made daiquiris with mango, lime, ice and the moonshine...finishing them off with some mint...they were a great way to start the party off, and they went really well with the first two courses;)

Here is the Vegan Menu

Course 1

Thai Spring Rolls with Sweet Chili Sauce

(carrots, cucumber, green onion, baby bok choy and Thai basil leaves)

Course 2

Coconut Soup
(straw mushrooms, baby baby bok eggplant, galangal, kaffir lime, Thai basil and cilantro)

After the second course, most of the folks switched to prosecco which went well with...

Course 3

Spinach Salad with Herb Vinaigrette

(tempeh bacon, shaved fennel, red onion and roasted beets)

Course 4

Mediterranean Cous Cous Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

(carrots, onion, zucchini, garlic, cumin, mint and some other seasonings)

Course 5

Tempeh Marinara Sandwiches (simple marinara with fresh oregano and enoki mushrooms on toasted bread)

To finish the meal I made my first vegan 'pastry' if that is what you want to call it. The night before I was pureeing dates and almond paste, struggling to get a balance of flavor and texture. I added tofu, cinnamon, nutmeg and other flavors and the final result was really very satisfying.

Course 6

Date & Almond Tarts

(pureed dates and almond paste with tofu, vanilla and maple syrup in a graham cracker crust, topped with slivered almonds and marshmallow sauce)


The dinner ended with Judy and I sitting down with everyone...chatting about cooking shows, cooking for celebrities, how I transported all of the ingredients in a refrigerated suitcase. The house-adorable, the kitchen-lacked much counterspace, but it was still a great space. I especially liked the cutting board table and the perfectly white dinnerware...makes for a clean blank canvis for the food. Sometimes the energy of a kitchen makes up for it's lack of counter space and a ceramic top range.

I'd say the meal was worth it for everyone. I say this because Ken and Connie, the owners of the rental company were thrilled with their meal...and Judy and I are thrilled with our trade...accommodations. I just love a win-win situation. Yes, that's right, we are staying here for 6 nights in exchange for that delicious meal. How's that for a good deal!

In the end, I think I may be onto something...cooking a meal in exchange for a place to stay. I could take this show on the road for sure. Grilled lamb in Greece, puttanesca in Campania...

Julie & Julia

I'm watching my oh so beloved movie Julie & Julia...and of course, I've shortened the length of the movie considerably by watching the Julia parts only. Tonight I watched all of the extra bonus features before starting the movie and shed a tear once again during the heartfelt moment Julia's neice talks about her last day...to be that loved.

Julia Child inspired me to cook before I even knew who she really was...I had no idea as a preschooler the woman I was impersonating (while playing with my play-doh) a woman who the entire world knew. I only knew her from a PBS show we could capture with our rooftop antenna. Sitting alone in front of the tv, in our living room, I was mesmerized by her size, her voice, her zest for life, the strange foods she fondled, carved, sauteed, peeled, sliced and diced. It was such a revelation...and I couldn't even read a cookbook, yet.

Around the age of 12 my mother announced she was in possession of a cassette tape I had made in my bedroom, on one of those little rectangle single cassette recorders with the record button you had to press along with 'play' to get it to record. Well, it was of me, when I was 4 or 5, playing with play-doh and impersonating Julia Child. As a young girl I was terrified this tape would cause hours of humiliation, so I taped over it...to this day it is one of the biggest mistakes I think I've ever made. Not that it was worth money, but the idea I could hear myself, as a little girl, full of gumption and a talent for impersonating people, trying to emulate a woman who still is such a source of inspiration...anyway, it makes me miss Julia even more when I watch the movie...it inevitably leads me to think of that recording. It reminds me of how long she has been in my life.

Thanks Julia for opening my eyes to the world of food, thank you for teaching me, entertaining me, keeping me company and telling me to be fearless in the face of uncertainty. You may ask,"did she really do all of that?" My answer, "ask anyone who has seen me cook."