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Oscar Menu 2009: Spiced Popcorn

In lieu of dessert for my Academy Awards-themed dinner, I opted for making Indian-spiced popcorn, which could be enjoyed during the 4 or so hours of the show. The flavors, of course, were inspired by the Bombay-set Slumdog Millionaire. It fits the bill when you want a simple, light snack, that also feels a little special. (And it makes your kitchen smell wonderful!)

Spiced Popcorn
(serves 2, by my standards!)
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
10 cups plain popcorn (I use Bearitos Organic No Oil Microwave Popcorn, 2 bags)
cooking spray

Mix spices together in a small bowl.

Spread a layer of the popcorn on a cookie sheet or piece of parchment/wax paper. Give a light coating of cooking spray, and sprinkle spices over popcorn. (I did this in three shifts, transferring the popcorn to a plastic bag afterward.)

Serve and enjoy.

Oscar Menu 2009: Sausage and Turkey Gumbo

As part of my Oscar-themed dinner, I prepared sausage and turkey gumbo, in honor of New Orleans (setting of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.) Gumbo does take some time, but much of it is unattended. And, the results are delicious, healthy, and highly freezable. Below is my recipe (which has evolved over time, and is based on a Cooking Light version from several years back.)

"Sausage" and "Turkey" Gumbo

(Makes 8-10 generous servings)

Cooking spray

3  tablespoons  canola oil, divided

1 pound  vegan chicken or turkey (or, substitute firm tofu, roasted or pan-fried until browned)

1  pound  vegan sausage (I use Yves breakfast patties, cut into quarters)

2  cups  chopped onion

1  cup  chopped green bell pepper

1/2  cup  chopped celery

1  tablespoon  minced fresh garlic

1  teaspoon  chopped fresh thyme

1/2  teaspoon  ground red pepper

1/3  cup  all-purpose flour

5  cups  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1  (14.5-ounce) can no salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained (I love Muir Glen's Fire-Roasted tomatoes)

3  cups  (1-inch) slices fresh okra

2  bay leaves

rice 

Wash and chop vegetables (pepper, onion, celery, garlic, okra) and set aside.

Heat a large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1 teaspoon oil and sausage; sauté for 3 minutes or until browned.

Remove from pan. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery to pan; sauté 4 minutes. (Add additional 1 t oil here if needed.) Add garlic, thyme, and red pepper; sauté 4 minutes or until onion is tender and garlic is fragrant.

Remove from pan.

Add remaining oil to pan. Add flour to pan, stirring constantly with a whisk. Cook 10 minutes or until roux is light brown, stirring constantly with a whisk.

Gradually add broth, stirring constantly with a whisk.

Add chopped turkey/chicken/tofu and sausage, onion mixture, tomatoes, okra, and bay leaves.

Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until gumbo is thickened and vegetables have cooked down.

Discard bay leaves, and serve with rice.

And the Oscar goes to... a vegan, Academy Awards-themed menu!

I have always loved the Oscars. Even when I haven't seen any of the movies, even when the show is long and boring, even when the stars are painfully self-indulgent, even when the host is awkward and unlikable. I still love them. 

And, every year since being old enough to have my own kitchen, I have either hosted a full-on Oscar party, or at least prepared a special meal. Always with a theme (obviously.) This year, I crafted a menu inspired by the setting of each best picture nominee:

Mixed greens with avocado, walnuts, dried figs, and lemon-olive oil vinaigrette

Frost/Nixon (Monarch Bay, California)

Sausage and turkey gumbo

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (New Orleans, Louisiana)

Sourdough bread

Milk (San Francisco, California)

Reisling

The Reader (Heidelberg, Germany)

Spiced popcorn

Slumdog Millionaire (Mumbai, India)

So as to not overload one post, I'll split the recipes (for the salad, gumbo, and popcorn) and photos into separate posts. I'll begin with the salad.

California Salad Ingredients

(Makes 2 generous portions)

Mixed greens

1 ripe tomato, cut into slices

1 stalk celery, cut on a diagonal

3 dried figs, diced

1 small (or 1/2 large) avocado, cut into chunks

4 button mushrooms, quartered

2 T sunflower seeds (roasted, unsalted)

Handful of sprouts

Handful of chopped walnuts

Dressing

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 

1 T neutral oil (peanut or canola) 

2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice 

1T red wine vinegar

1 t agave nectar

1/2 t Dijon-style mustard

3/4 t fresh thyme leaves, chopped 

1 clove garlic, minced 

3/4 t coarse salt 

Pinch freshly cracked black pepper

In a jar or bowl, whisk olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, agave nectar, mustard, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. Toss with prepared salad. 

Cheese is very, very important to Oprah.

After completing her 21-day diet that was completely free of animal products (as well as other things like caffeine, alcohol, and sugar), Oprah told an ABC 7 reporter during an interview on June 18 that she learned she is "not a vegan spirit." Apparently, she found herself to be angry all the time because she could not eat cheese. (What kind of insane cheese addiction must one have to be driven into a rage when it's not in steady supply?)

It's a puzzle that Oprah apparently has such a keen understanding of her own spirit yet is so utterly deficient in recognizing the spirit of so many millions of other (non-human) animals. It's fine, I suppose, if Oprah has determined that the vegan life is not for her. But it seems grossly irresponsible for someone who at least claims to be sympathetic to the plight of people and animals of the world to basically mock the entire exercise, which she at one time at least seemed to take pretty seriously.

But, I guess it's too much to expect her to be thoughtful and level-headed when she'd been cheese-deprived for three weeks straight! Poor thing.

Dr. Phil is a huge....something.

Don't get me wrong, there is no love lost between Dr. Phil and I. But, I'm telecommuting today, and the sad reality is he is just the best of the worst in the 3pm time slot. I start to drag mid-afternoon, and the noise helps. So he has on this woman whom he is chastising for being overly invested in her chihuahua. In trying to demonstrate how down he is with our four-legged friends, he shows slides of his dog curled up underneath his desk and tells stories of how his dog goes with him "everywhere" and has indeed "traveled the world with him." Props, Dr. Phil.

But then he proceeds to describe himself as a HUGE (in all caps cause he pretty much yelled it) advocate for animals. He repeats this a couple times. HUGE, he says. He waves his arms.

Really, Dr. Phil? I'm sure he believes this. He loves his dog. A lot. And to him, and zillions of other people, really thinking that your dog is super awesome is identical to being an "animal lover" or "advocate for animals." But I'd wager that a fair percentage of the people who toss around claims like that could more accurately be described as "certain animal lovers" or "advocates for particular animals." Because I find it pretty difficult to reconcile understanding how someone could be a huge (HUGE, HUGE!) lover of animals and simultaneously be a lover of barbecue ribs.

Instead, just fess up and say "I love my dog but really could not care less about chickens or mackerel or pigs or frogs or any other animal on the planet."