You would not believe the things i've put down the bathroom sink...

There is a certain freedom that comes to you when you let things go. In my case, it has been letting go of the comforts that even a really bad kitchen can provide you. The past two weeks we have been letting go of many things...like walls...and a sink (you know, nothing major). This was depressing me at first, but it made me realize how much you can still do with very little at your disposal. I still have(minimal(it was out of commission for about a week due to plaster dust taking over our lives)) access to the flair (not much longer though, we had a gas line installed this week, just waiting on electrical, drywall, etc, before we hook it up!)so I still have a heat source and we have been washing dishes in a bus tub (not recommended:). About half of the food pictured was made on webster. I just put a cast iron pan in the coals and use that as my heat source. it works pretty well. The ham was mame's idea. we were without the use of the flair for a while and she suggested we use the smoker for it. it turned out really great and we made a glaze for it out of jaggery, tamarind concentrate, and water. the sweet and sour flavors went really well with the smokey, hammy goodness. next pic is pepper steak made on the grill. turned out a little spicy. mames and I are used to it (we've been conditioning for years), but I gave some to my neighbor and think it may have taken him down. also did some white beans in tomato sauce with homemade meatballs, sauteed pork chops, and potato and bean nachos. the nachos are one of my favorites (as far as nachos go), and ridiculously easy to make.

nonfoodstuff:

hmmm...already went over house stuff. lets see here...did finish a fantastic book I picked up a couple weeks ago. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, was the book's title and I thoroughly enjoyed it. it took a while to get going but as I look back on it, I am glad that the author wrote it the way that she did. I have a really weird process on picking out the books i want to read. I just go to the bookstore and look around. Sometimes (I know this is bad...) i will buy a book because i think that the cover is interesting (Yeah, I judge...).

jaggery/tamarind sauce

1/4 c jaggery

1.5 tbs tamarind concentrate

2 tbs water

heat until solids dissolve. brush on pork, fish, chicken, etc and grill/smoke/roast. or use as a dip for samosa or papadum.

potato and bean nachos (super easy)

2 russet potatos

14 oz can pinto beans

8 oz can tomato sauce

1 onion minced

1 pablano pepper diced small

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp cumin seed

1 tbs coriander

1 tsp chile powder

salt and peps

big hand full cilantro

salsas of your choice ( I think i used salsa verde and some red salsa heavy on the cilantro)

sour cream

feta cheese or cotijo cheese

cilantro to garnish

corn chips ( i like frontera corn chips)

oven at 400F

cube up the potato and fry along with half of the cilantro, onion and pablano, cumin seed, and salt and pepper until the potates are done. set aside. while that is going (in a saucepan) fry the rest of the onion and pablano, the cumin powder, coriander, chile powder, and cilantro. once that has some nice color and is starting to soften, add the beans and tomato sauce and turn to low until heated through. you can either smash them up or leave whole (i smash). once these two parts are done you can either make the nachos now or refrigerate for later (if you are one of those people who think ahead). Spread the chips out on a big sheet tray, top with the beans and then the potato mixture. add the cheese and then bake (if you are a warm salsa person, you can add the salsas now, if not just hold off and top later). garnish with sour cream, cilantro and salsa.