Monday, December 1, 2008

I O.D.'d on Pie.


Pecan pie, specifically. I ate so much on Thanksgiving that I couldn't eat a bite of pie. Well, I made up for it by eating mostly pie for the following 3 days and consumed almost 3/4 of the pie myself. Mmmmmmmmm.

I moved here almost six years ago during the holiday season. I was so excited to bring a little bit of the Midwest to the East Coast so I made cookies and cakes and pies (we are all about the dessert tray) and nobody touched a thing. Well, hardly a thing. Except me and my daughter. I wondered what was wrong with these people. Seriously. This family doesn't really like sweets. My youngest stepdaughter eats sweets (and cheese) almost exclusively but she doesn't really like homemade things, only processed, packaged sweets. It breaks my heart.

Our first Christmas here, my oldest stepdaughter and I made an apple pie. It was gorgeous and sky-high, with a flaky, homemade crust. She said, "What's wrong with it? Why is it so tall?" And nobody touched it. Everybody claimed they were too full from dinner but I think perhaps they didn't trust pie that didn't come from a box.

In subsequent years, I learned to restrain myself. I now make a couple of things my daughter and I like for treats and sometimes I don't even make dessert. It's just not right. I even make cake out of a box sometimes now because I know only two people will touch it and you don't want to eat the entire cake so it's less sad to toss out the remainder of a cake made from a box, right? Right?

My mother would disown me.

So, last year I made Red Velvet Cake for Christmas dessert. Every Red Velvet Cake recipe I found contains something like 2 cups of oil. It was disgusting. All I could think of was how moist it was because if you put a gallon of oil in it, it is going to have no choice but to be moist. And when you add a gallon of Red Dye No. 40, it will be red. And a little carcinogenic to boot.

But for today, I will be detoxing with Miso Soup. Ever since I discovered how easy this is to make with Dashi (dried Bonito Fish Soup Stock granules), it is my go-to lunch and pie detoxification program (and it only takes about 7 minutes to make fresh):

Miso Good For You

Shiro (Mild) Miso Paste

Hon-Dashi Soup Stock Granules

Dried Cut Wakame (Seaweed)


Miso Soup

3 T. Shiro (mild) Miso Paste
3 c. water
1 t. Hon-Dashi Soup Stock granules (you can use flakes and remove flakes after water simmers)
1/2-in. pieces silken (or firm) tofu
Dried wakame (seaweed)

Note: This recipe can be easily divided by 3 for a single serving.

Heat 3 c. of water to boiling. Before it boils, add the soup stock. When it begins to boil, remove from heat and add miso paste. Put back on burner at reduced heat and heat until dissolved - do not boil. Add pieces of tofu and broken pieces of dried seaweed. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes to rehydrate seaweed. Top with scallions, if desired.

8 comments:

Kyla Bea said...

Oh home made miso!! My goodness, that sounds like an ideal detox item - and just an amazing thing to be able to make, I'm going to have to steal that.

Thanks!

Decorina said...

Er, yum. I seriously need to detox myself. Too much pie!

Don't know why your notices showed a three week gap - mine does that sometimes. I haven't a clue.

Haven't seen you at Decorno either.

Anonymous said...

Seriously, what IS wrong with those people??? At our Thanksgiving dinner, the food is usually edible at best, but the desserts are fantastic. Homemade pecan pies, cherry cream cheese pies, Italian wedding cake made from scratch, buttermilk pies... delish. I gained about 5 pounds, to be sure. Worth it.

Greta said...

Detox after pie? The most wonderful food on the planet? That sounds like an oxymoron to me.

And if it was me, I'd detox the good ol way with coffee and cigarettes.

David said...

From pecan pie to miso soup, that's quite a culinary range you've covered there!

Totally understand though. I can eat my weight in pecan or pumpkin pie.

Anonymous said...

I knew I forgot to make/eat something on Thanksgiving... it was Pecan Pie. My husband made a delicious Apple Strudel, and my mind totally forgot about the Pecan Pie. I'm craving it now, and my teeth hurt just thinking about it!

Raina Cox said...

I pledge an oath on a stack of Martha Stewart magazines that should I ever be invited to a soiree or a shindig at your home, I will eat a gluttonous amount of your delicious baked goods while weeping at the sheer enormity of your culinary talents.

Pinky swear.

Raina Cox said...

And can you believe I've never had pecan pie?

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