15.9.05

Loving Boyfriend has an odd late night snack

last night as we were lazing around watching television before bed, Loving Boyfriend decided he was hungry (well, Loving Boyfriend was watching television, i was reading my newly arrived How to be a Domestic Goddess, by Nigella Lawson, which i hope to be baking out of soon as so many of the recipes look positively scrumptuous).

this is after i served him up a truly delicious meal of yellow squash ribbons with red onion and parmesan...one of our 'busy night' favorites (recipe follows below), that generally does keep you full, especially when combined with some of Farmgirl's
crusty artisian bread with butter.

anyway, we're sittin' in the living room together all calm and quiet and all of a sudden he belts out with: "i'm craving squid in their own ink! yep, that's what i want right now - squid in their own ink!" (no kidding, those are his exact words)

what an odd craving to have at 10:00 at night.

but, lowe and behold, because of my weakness for strange new foods to try, we had picked up a can of squid in their own ink on a trip to mexico last march! ah ha! craving satisfied!

then of course there was me, chasing after him: "wait, wait! let me get my camera!"


believe it or not, it's actually not bad. i decided against putting a picture of the actual squid on here, as they aren't very pretty unless they're alive (i'm a marine biologist) or at least not cooked in their own ink - sounds kind of cruel and morbid, no? it's an Argentinian specialty, according to Loving Boyfriend, whose Argentinian friend's family introduced it to him, but i've also seen it in Spanish restaurants. i do have to admit that from a can, they taste a bit like smoked oysters. but, should you ever have a chance to venture to Washington, D. C., do stop by a restaurant called "Jaleo." they have a version of this that is melt-in-your-mouth tender, with its own unique and subtle flavor that is just superb. plus, the chef there, Jose Andres, was Bon Appetit magazine's chef of the year for 2004. he deserves the title, AND it's tapas, so it's affordable (essential for us poor starving grad students...um, except i guess we're just poor, not starving, as this is a food blog). we actually went there twice in a four-day trip.

Yellow Squash Ribbons with Red Onion and Parmesan
from Cooking Light magazine, adapted slightly

1 tbsp. olive oil
4 medium yellow squash (you could use zucchini too, or a mix)
1 cup red onion, sliced into thin slices, vertically (walla wallas or vidalia would be great too)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup shaved parmesan cheese

1. Using a vegetable peeler, shave squash into ribbons. Discard core and seeds.
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add squash, onion, and garlic, and cook until onions are tender.
3. Add salt, red pepper and black pepper. Mix together, then sprinkle with cheese. Servings: 4 (3/4 cup) side-dish sized servings or 2 large servings with crusty bread.

4 comments from you:

Farmgirl Susan said...

LOL, that was too funny. And that squash sounds really good! Just popped over to look at your CSA haul one more time. Loved this latest post. I can see this guy is obviously going to provide you with some great material for your blog! : )

P.S. Thanks for the mention of my bread. So sweet are you!

Michelle said...

Hi Farmgirl,
Yes, he's a constant source of entertainment and laughter (honey, I know you're reading this too and that's laughter with you, not at you!). We made some of your simple summer harvest soup last night because there just happened to be a huge pile of red italian sweet peppers at the farmer's market yesterday. It was truly delicious - I'm sure we'll be making it again before winter sets in! Now I just need a wooden bowl to try some of that bread of yours... Thanks for the raspberry tartlet idea, I may just use it this weekend for our Supper Club because we're supposed to bring something with fruit (I'll talk about that next week).

vlb5757 said...

Okay, Michele, I know you read my blog about my out of control collection and now I have come to read your blog and I am so excited! I went to the store today (you need to read today's entry) and spent a boatload of money on produce. So guess what I am going to fix for dinner? The Squash Ribbons sound like they are right up my alley. We can have a marinated flank steak, the Squash Ribbons and...we need a carb. Ah! Roasted Red Potatoes with Fresh Rosemary and Olive oil. There dinner is done. Yeehaw!!

Your site is really good and I too will be a regular. I have put you as a link on my blog. We have reverese job envy. How fabulous you live where there are trees and you are truly smart. I love listening to smart folks. I learn things and if I don't know about something I look it up later. You have a great job! Okay, enough sappiness!

Anonymous said...

Squid in it's own ink is in fact a basque dish (northern spain) that came over with the basque people when they aided in the conquista.

Although it sounds repellant it is in fact squid in tomatoe sauch - the ink is only used to dye the sauce that dark colour and give the tomatoe sauce the edge that gives it it's taste.

And yes - once you've tried it - you do get cravings!