Working for It

For my one of my day job gigs, I write about food for the Philadelphia Inquirer. For an upcoming story, I had to test several recipes at home, most of which were pretty labor intensive (a rolled omelet and lamb chops with several sauces that got dotted around the plate, restaurant-style were among them). By Sunday night, I had one left to do. Fish en papillote*. In my mind, I thought it would be super-easy, so I saved it for last. Just throw everything in a packet and bake it. Meanwhile, my husband and I could enjoy a cocktail, lounge leisurely and soak in the Sunday vibe.

Yeah. Nothing is ever that easy, is it?

I mean, don't get me wrong. I got in my own way here a little bit. I went all the way to the market and drove the 15 minutes back to my house before I realized I forgot the, uh, fish. So that added an unnecessary ten miles' worth of exhaust to the planet. Once I started prepping, I noticed that one of the potatoes was half rotten and I realized I should have gotten one extra tomato. I spilled the herbs everywhere and undercooked the vegetables. By the time I was wrestling with the four giant pieces of parchment in my already-crowded kitchen, I was completely sweaty and grumpy and no longer interested in eating this thing.

But it did look pretty. I will give it that.

I'm not even going to spell out the metaphor here, except to say that it's always the things you think will be simple that turn out to be the most grueling. What, in food or in writing, has been your fish en papillote nightmare?



*I can't share the recipe since it hasn't run in the newspaper yet, but here's another fish en papillote recipe I like.

Chocolate and Writing....and Chocolate :D

When life gets hectic and projects beckon, sometimes a writer can use a little pick me up. And what could be better than chocolate? :) However, we've been trying to be a little more healthy at my house lately, so there is nary a piece of chocolate to be found. So I looked around (hey, a writer trying to push through the last half of a tough revision NEEDS her chocolate!) and found Chocolate-Covered Katie and her healthy dessert blog who had a wonderful recipe for...wait for it....healthy chocolate! Well, at least sugar-free chocolate :D

For this recipe you need exactly three ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 4 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil (melted)
• 1/4 cup agave or Katie suggests you can also use NuNatural vanilla stevia drops (she uses 10 drops. Triple or quadruple that amount if you don’t like extra-bitter chocolate.)
• optional: extracts, cocoa nibs, or other add-ins

• Combine coconut oil with agave or stevia drops. 
• Stir, then add cocoa powder (and add 3-4 T water or nondairy milk if using stevia.). 
• Stir until it gets thick. 
• Pour into any flat container (or candy molds or smush between layers of wax paper or in ziploc bags). 
• Fridge or freeze until solid.

And enjoy :)

(recipe and picture came from Katie's blog. Click the links for the original info and to visit her awesome blog)