FOOD ANCHORS IN STRESSFUL TIMES

WITH EASY TAKES ON LATE SUMMER VEGETABLES

Like many people who write in this space I ask myself how I can write about food as the genocide continues and authoritarians in the US and elsewhere hurl accusations and threats.

Rosehips and raindrops today. You can almost hear the ground gulping down the rain after the dry summer we’ve had. Happy new moon to all.

For me thinking about food is a way to stay centred in this era of uncertainty and unhinged untruths. We need our sanity, we need to stay grounded. Appreciating our ingredients and what we can do with them in the kitchen is a great way to do that (along with talking with friends and avoiding too much time scrolling on our phones).

The other day I listened to an excellent online talk and discussion with anthropologist and activist Sarah Duignan of @anthrodish (here on Substack). She spoke about the moralising of food choices that makes everything a personal responsibility, and the beauty standards that underpin a lot of the moralising about food.

No wonder many people, especially women, feel anxious about making food choices. Many of them are pinched economically. They try to do the “right thing”: to choose foods that are, for example, good for the environment and for the health of their family. We judge ourselves (and others) about our food choices and eating habits, our food performance. We do it automatically, and mostly subconsciously I think.

When food becomes a place for moral judgement, it’s no longer a refuge. Instead it’s a fraught arena. It’s another source of anxiety and uncertainty.

There are no easy solutions to this kind of food anxiety, but finding a few basic foods and recipes that feel comfortable is a good place to start. And if you can find vegetables that are in season and then figure out easy ways of preparing them, it’s hard to go wrong.

KITCHEN EXPLORATIONS - seasonal vegetables at the Equinox: flat beans, delicata squash, and more

Green beans (green or yellow) have been available for several months. I make them a lot (see earlier posts).

Green beans simply parboiled but left firm, dressed with a light vinaigrette; best eaten with the fingers like asparagus, so then there’s no need to trim them before cooking

Recently I have discovered flat green beans. Also known as runner beans or romano beans, they are a variety of phaseolis vulgaris (translates as ordinary bean), that have a more green-veg flavour and take longer to cook than the fine green beans often known as French beans.

At the Tuesday market I go to, at Trinity Bellwoods park in Toronto, a vendor named Lily (whom I mentioned last week) has flat beans, sold in a bundle with an elastic around it

These beans need longer cooking and are best cooked until very tender. I chop them into short lengths and start them in a little hot olive oil flavoured with a few spices and minced garlic. Once they’ve cooked a short while and taken on some flavour, I add a little water so they do a combination of steam cooking and parboiling. The first time I made them I added previously cooked (boiled) potatoes that I had in the fridge, chopped into bite-size, and extra salt. I let the combination simmer under a loose lid with about half an inch of water to start, until the beans were meltingly tender, about half an hour. It’s a great combination. This week I did a similar thing, but added kernels cut off one cob of cooked corn (left over from the previous day). The tender beans and soft potato, with the little crunch of corn, was a delight. I can imagine, if you’ve read my last few posts, that you’re picturing me adding corn kernels to everything. Not quite! But while corn is fresh and so available, it’s tempting to include them in many places.

My first skillet-cooked flat beans with potatoes from two weeks ago, with a scattering of tender pea shoots on top

Sometimes corn kernels are the star: My friend and neighbour Dawnthebaker made corn fritters the other day as part of a casual supper for three. She combined a few last zucchini flowers with kernels cut from several cobs and added them to an egg and flour batter. She heated olive oil in a heavy skillet and poured spoonfuls of the loaded batter onto the pan, as you would add batter for pancakes. The fritters are delicious and pretty… a treat and a last hurrah for summer’s bounty. (Sorry, I forgot to snap a photo.)

delicata squash with flat beans

I’ve started into autumn mode with the arrival of delicata squash in the markets. Their elegant green-striped golden-yellow is an early promise of all the squash to come this winter. Their flesh is very close-textured which makes them a challenge to cut with a knife, but the skin is tender and edible. I use a Chinese cleaver to cut the squash in half crosswise, then stand each half on the flat cut side so I can cleave it in half lengthwise. Then it’s easy to use a metal spoon to scoop out the seeds. After that I usually cut them into slices or small chunks for quicker cooking.

The other day I included them in a kind of one-pot meal. I started with a little olive oil in a heavy casserole, then added mustard seeds and fennel seeds, and later some minced ginger and minced garlic. Then in went four small chicken thighs (previously rubbed with salt and a little ground coriander) to brown on both sides. I added one chopped delicata squash (see above; a large double handful) to the chicken. I stirred it a bit to expose it to the flavoured oil, then added about 2 cups/500ml leftover light chicken broth. (Normally I’d just add water; the chicken broth was an extra bonus.) I had a small amount of carnaroli rice, the end of a package, so I tossed that in too. Then I brought it to a boil, added salt, half covered the pot, and let it all cook at a low boil for about half an hour. Later on I added a little more water and several splashes of soy sauce

An earlier one-dish meal combo with delicata squash, a sliced pork chop, and spigarello greens. I forgot to photograph the chicken with delicata (cut into smaller chunks) that I made this week. Sorry!

You could use mushrooms as your flavour base instead of the chicken or pork; you could include slices of firm tofu, or corn kernels cut from the cob; and of course if you have any washed chopped greens (for example radish greens, spinach, arugula, spigarello) you could toss them partway through (spinach needs little time, spigarello needs a good fifteen minutes).

This dish makes great leftovers, easy to reheat with the addition of a little water. And they can be refreshed by adding chopped greens or fresh herbs.

Out walking today in the west Annex I came on a quince tree, a rare sight here, loaded with fruit, next to a well-tended patch of tomato plants. Autumn has arrived!