Adventures in eating 2016 edition

Long ago--infinitely long ago--I was blogging weekly about the new foods I'd tried. Although I dropped that habit, it seeming incredibly trivial to be chirping merrily about stupid things, I have started trying new foods again.  Darya Rose of Summer Tomato uses a "habit monitor" app to help her develop good lifestyle habits, one of which is trying new things.  I may not go the full app route, but I'll attempt to follow her good example in my own way.

(Like I really need new ideas of things to put into my mouth!)

Lately I've attempted four: sardines, fresh papaya, escarole, and farro.  Sardines were difficult. I'm not a fishy-fish kind of eater, even in my sushi choices, and sardines smell like a two-day dead carp on the riverbank.  But after I chopped them up, mixed them with panko, salt, egg, onions and lemon juice, then fried them into little cakes, they became almost good. Especially with a dollop of horseradish sauce on top.

The cat likes them without all that adulteration, but he likes tuna better.  The fresh papaya was even more challenging but I've learned my lesson.  If the store doesn't have a great big pile of really dark yellow-orange fruit without any green, don't bother.  It isn't ripe.  They say you can ripen it at home, but the first one I bought rotted first.  On the second one I was scared to wait, so I ate it after a couple of days. 



Or rather, attempted to eat it.  It tasted sour-ish and musty. I gave up.  For now.


The escarole was an impulse purchase on a really cold Saturday morning at the farmer's market.  The nice lady and gentleman from whom I'd bought some great spinach last year, had big bunches of it for only three dollars.  They suggested I not try to eat it raw since it was slightly bitter.



Maybe so--I tasted--but what some people call bitter, I call flavor.  In any event, I washed and simmered it with a small bunch of turnip greens and it was heavenly good.



Last comes farro. It's a grain in the wheat family. Soaked overnight and cooked, it has this kind of two-lobed shape like Kellog's sugar smacks.  It's slightly lower calorie than brown rice or quinoa.  And it's delicious with a scoop of searing hot posole on top.  Next time I'll try it with butter and honey and see if it can beat out oatmeal on a level playing field. 
Game on.