Rainbow Dinner

Monday night we had like the most perfect meal of all time. It wasn't fancy, we made it ourselves, we didn't use any recipes, we shot from the hip. The whole thing took about 15 minutes. We split a grilled peppered steak topped with sauteed mushrooms and onions. On the side we had grilled acorn squash and roasted Brussels sprouts, carrots and brocolli. There were so many colors and the flavors were true - everything really tasted like what it was. The vegetables were crisp. Right now I'm all about being healthy and making my body strong, and that's a great thing to share with someone.

Late to the Party: Kale Chips

Some of the 127,000 image results for kale chips

I hate hype. The more something is hyped, the more it annoys me, which causes me to eschew things that might actually be really good ideas just on the grounds of their popularity.

One of the super annoying things that people won't shut up about is kale in general and kale chips in particular. Kale is good for you! And kale chips are surprisingly delicious and so easy to make! Blah, blah, blah. After several months of this, it occurred to me that they were something I would probably actually really like.

And guess what? I was right! I am officially jumping on the kale chip bandwagon and here is my obligatory food blog post about it.

Kale chips basically take my favorite way of cooking kale (which I discovered from Molly Wizenberg in her Bon Appetit column) to the next, crispier, charrier level. They are just kale leaves roasted with oil and salt. Roast just about anything with oil and salt and it will taste really good, but unlike more substantial veggies, which get sweet, tender and starchy when you roast them, kale gets REALLY CRISPY. And I love crispy. Slightly charred kale sometimes takes on a deep herbal/skunky flavor, which I find intriguing even though the skunk is not really my thing. Believe the hype - you will want to eat the whole batch in one sitting. I looked at a couple different recipes online and adapted them into an ultra lazy version. They would also probably be really good with freshly grated parm. Put cheese on just about anything and it will taste really good.

Kale Chips - Recipe

1 bunch dino kale
1 T olive oil
salt, maybe pepper and spices

Cut off the ends of the kale. Cut crosswise twice in equal-ish sections. Toss with oil. Throw them on a cookie sheet in a single layer, sprinkle with salt and whatever, and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, turning once. It might take two batches, they take up a lot of room. Kale chips!

I Love Hash

I normally don't like going out for breakfast because having to wait and deal with crowds when I'm hungry sets the stage for a toddler-style meltdown, which is even less cute in a grown woman. However, there are a couple places I like because they aren't crowded, and you can go in and have someone set a delicious plate of food in front of you relatively quickly, and eat it in relative peace. I am hesitant to talk about these places on my blog because I don't want them to start being crowded and annoying, but on the other hand, I do want them to stay in business so I can keep eating there.

So, OK, one great breakfast place is J&M Cafe on SE Ash, but don't tell anybody. Among other positive attributes, there are large windows that face south and east, letting in bright, warm, happy light. This morning they had corned beef hash on special and it was probably the best thing that happened today. Better even than going to watch the Blazers cream the Spurs, it was that good! Corned beef hash is heaven on a plate. It is everything good, all at once. This one had mushrooms, potatoes, onions, some other stuff, and big juicy chunks of corned beef. Served with a delicious English muffin and runny basted eggs. MMMMM!