In my university days the norm was to live in a house for a year and move on the next year - a kind of musical rooms. In 1979 I had the chance of living in a really nice house in Brooklyn that had great views out across the city.
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| Worth selling your soul for |
In my 'interview' the residents stressed that they only ate vegetarian and would not condone anyone eating meat.
Of course I said no problem, vegetarianism is me don't you know. I was duly accepted (hey, I was lovely back then) and planned to move in a week later.
In the following week I went to the library and researched vegetarian cooking. My old stand-by meals of spaghetti Bolognese, meatloaf, wiener schnitzel, sausage and apple bake etc weren't going to cut the mustard with this lot.
I spent a year in that flat doing my share of the cooking (usually once per week) with some adventurous and outstanding dishes. I discovered that the 'head of the household, a guy who had been living there for a couple of years and who had obviously set the vegetarian standard could only cook vegetarian baked beans (out of a can) and deep-fried chips. Prat.
As was de-rigeur, I moved out at the end of the year and reverted to carnivorousness but retained a knowledge of and love of vegetarian cooking.
When I say vegetarian cooking I don't really mean vegetarianism but more a love and appreciation of the use of vegetables, pulses, nuts and beans.
I eat meat about once a week (chicken, beef, lamb) usually in the form of strips in a stir-fry. I eat fish once or twice a week and the rest of the time I tend to make vegetable-based dishes.
OK?
Right. But before you think that I'm some kind of New Age nut let me tell you that I don't take this to extremes.
Basically I'm too lazy to go the whole vegetarian cooking and eating way. It's hard work ensuring that the larder and fridge is stocked with fresh, healthy and yummy-looking things. My fruit and vegetables always look a bit sad after a few days.
Tonight I cooked a 'vegetable dinner'.
I had some broccoli and cauliflower in the fridge that hadn't gone past it's best used date and potatoes in the cupboard. So. Roast potatoes - cut a large potato into pieces and par-boil. Add a little bit of a good oil and herb of choice (rosemary is best) and cook in a hot oven. Quickly microwave the broccoli and cauliflower until cooked but still crunchy (not with the shit boiled out of them like your mother used to do). The cauli and broccoli to go into a cheese sauce - teaspoon of butter or marge, flour, milk and grated cheese with a bit of pepper and mustard (wholegrain French is best).
The result? Bloody marvellous but - it won't win any brownie points with that lovely vegan woman down the road.
But then again, she wouldn't have looked twice at me in my 'salad days'.
5 comments:
My old mother would have said, "You're becoming a bit of a food crank."
When she said something like that the argument/discussion was over.
Bless her.
Yes mum was very intelligent.
Like Richard really when I think about it!
I hope you're being cynical Second.
Otherwise you're becoming a bit of an intelligence crank.
Maybe he's kinky.
I just had a thought that my comment above maight be misinterpreted.
When I said "Maybe he's kinky" I didn't mean that Richard is like his mother as Robert suggests in that he wears dresses and women's underwear (hopefully).
No, I was making reference to one of Richard's comments on my blog where he said that his mother sealed conversations with "Now you're getting a bit kinky"
I, in this case was suggesting that Robert was kinky and that the conversation was thus ended.
I hope that clears up and confusion.
Thank you.
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