say what?!

So, there I was, eating lunch in the break room at work.  I work in a large grocery store with all kinds of people from all around the world.  Typical break room fare includes the expected deli sub or fried chicken combo meals, bags of chips, lots of sodas and other assorted drinks in plastic bottles, frozen entrees of varying virtues, and my all-time favorite, Lunchables.  The Haitian folks always bring their own meals of rice, chicken, and beans, sometimes fish, and they always smell delicious.  The Haitian women were so surprised when I asked them how to make Soup Joumou forNew Year's Day-"How do you know about that?" they asked!
I digress.  So there I was, eating my greens and beans soup.  I bought a most stunning "bouquet" of turnip greens at the Farmer's Market last winter, and made an enormous pot of soup.  I used on of those packages of 15 beans minus the seasoning packet, added some onions and garlic and iced tomatoes, and froze it. There were 5 or 6 people in the break room, and I endured the usual remarks about how healthy I eat, and did you make that, and isn't there any meat in that?
Being me, I chose to see it as a teaching moment.  I explained that, in the words of one of my foods gurus, Mark Bittman, I am choosing to be a less-meatarian.  There was a long, loud moment of silence, followed by an outbreak of absolute hilarity!  The flower lady, through her tears of mirth, said, "What did you say?!  Lesbian Vegetarian?  Really?!"
Needless to say, it made the rounds to the whole store.  We are all laughing-except maybe the one associate who has been flirting with me.  He kind of gave me a sideways glance and went on stocking.  And I got to explain that no, I do like boys.  I also, like Mark Bittman suggests, choose to use meat more as a condiment than as a main course.  This caused more than a few raised eyebrows, but also generated some great conversations.
It is always good to laugh, especially at yourself!

popcorn

When was the last time you made popcorn?  I'm not talking about popping a greasy bag into the microwave and pushing the right button.  Or even using an air popper, which is just another gadget to drag out of the cupboard or gather dust on your counter.  I'm talking about popping popcorn, real corn kernels in a pan on the stove.  I did tonight.  For the boy and the niece, while they watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in a nearly-darkened house.  The niece asked, "Is that real popcorn?"  And the boy was amazed that the popcorn tasted buttery.  "That's because I popped it in butter," I said.  I served it in paper bags, with a little salt.  They eached dumped a bag of M & M's in the bottom, like we always do at the movie theater.

Try it.  Medium heat, a big pot with a lid.  Add a little vegetable or otherwise unflavored oil and a tablespoon of butter.  Add a layer of popcorn to cover the bottom of the pan.  Shake the pot over the heat, and when you hear those kernels start to burst, tilt the lid of the pan to let the steam out.  Keep shaking until the pops slow, and remove from the heat.  Season and serve.  Try it with coconut oil for an exotic and healthy treat.  Play with your seasonings-cury powder, Old Bay seasoning, rosemary and garlic.  Have fun.  Enjoy!  It's real popcorn.  Real Food.