Kat on Thyme

Drawer War

Time spent in the kitchen is time well spent. But time spent looking for things in the kitchen, opening drawers and digging, only serves to frustrate. I spend so much time searching that I forget what it is that I’m looking for. Yesterday, the family for whom I cook was out of town, so I spent the entire day cleaning out cupboards and organizing drawers. It was a long, rewarding day, and this is how it went.

• Step One:
  First I went to Storables. I didn’t have measurements of the drawers I wanted to organize, which would have been helpful, but I did have a sense of the size of the items that needed new homes. I prefer to buy individual organizing pieces rather than whole drawer units, so that I can be more flexible with the design. Also, if you manage to drop a dollop of dough or a spoonful of syrup into one of the organizers, you can remove just that one and toss it in the dishwasher. And that ease of cleaning is why I like plastic rather than wood. You can always buy more pieces than you think you’ll need and then simply return the unused ones. But somehow I always find a use for everything. If you’re on a budget, well-stocked Dollar Stores often have plastic baskets for organizing. They’re not as sturdy but if you’re not abusing them, they work just fine. Also buy some of the grippy drawer liner that will keep your organizers in place.
• Step Two:
  Take everything out of the drawers you’d like to organize and sort the pieces on the counter, putting like things together.
• Step Three:
  Vacuum out the drawers and wipe them clean.
• Step Four:
  Line the drawers with grippy drawer liner to keep your organizers in place.
• Step Five:
  This is the most important step… only put back the things you use often. If you don’t use it get rid of it! If you use it only occasionally, put it somewhere else. I have baskets on the top of my cupboards for stuff I rarely use but don’t want to get rid of.
• Step Six:
  Fit the organizers into your drawers. I like to put them in the middle of the drawers so that I create places to store long tools on the sides. That way you’re not having to buy long and narrow organizing pieces, which will save you money. Put the items you use most in the front and lesser used items towards the back. Put similar tools together. I like to put sharp things all in one organizer just to be safe. Knives go in the block or on the wall magnet, but there are still things like peelers, pizza cutters, cheese knives, etc. that can be sharp and need a place of their own. Try different configurations to get the look and fit that you’re after. Place your tools back in the drawer.
• Step Seven:
  Admire your work, call for a pizza, and have a glass of wine to celebrate.

You can do cupboards, the refrigerator and freezer, the pantry. And if you’re not the only one putting things away, it can be helpful to put labels on bins and shelves to get everyone on the same page of the organizational book. Every once in a while you have to take a break from cooking and reestablish that love relationship with your kitchen. Put on some old clothes and good music and have fun getting organized. 

Why the Y?

Why the Y? It’s taken me years to come up with the answer to that question. When I worked for Sea Education Association some years back now, my compadre in the galley (Erik, now owner of Pie in the Sky Bakery in Woods Hole) campaigned on behalf of his little Swiss Y-peeler. And me, I was believer in the OXO Good Grips peeler. We volleyed attributes of the two styles of peelers, each trying to convince the other that ours was the peeler to stay, as if someone were going to throw one or the other overboard at the end of our debate. The good thing about our difference of opinion was that he was never using my peeler and I never used his. It seemed like a good arrangement.

Quite a few years later, when I had quite forgotten about the Y-peeler, entered Chef Drew, another Y-believer. I just didn’t get it. Indeed the peeler was sharp, but you would think those Swiss, who make such precision time keeping instruments, could design a peeler that didn’t rust in the dishwasher. I actually bought one for Drew to keep in my kitchen, since we cooked together often, but I never used the thing. I did like watching Chef Drew’s nimble hands working the peeler, and I softened to the idea that perhaps, it might be a worthwhile addition to my toolbox. Drew still prefers the lithe little Swiss peeler, and thinks anything made my OXO is chunky and awkward, but when OXO came out with a Y-peeler, I tossed my little Swiss one in the Goodwill box and replaced it with the big, chunky, and comfortable grip of the OXO. Ahh, much better.

So of course, now that I own the darned thing, I use it all the time. I find it useful for slicing cheese for panini, and making carrot and cucumber ribbons for salads. Since I hold and use a regular peeler like I use a paring knife, I was a little uncoordinated with the Y-peeler at first, but indeed, it’s a good tool for the price and it takes so little room in the drawer, it’s a keeper.

Green Bean & Carrot Ribbon Salad with Thai Style Vinaigrette

2 Tablespoons lime juice   
2 Tablespoons fish sauce   
2 teaspoons granulated sugar   
1 small clove garlic , minced or pressed
1 small red jalapeño chile , minced  (green if you can’t find red)
2 medium carrots , peeled of skin and then peeled into ribbons
1 Tablespoon peanut oil or vegetable oil 
1 pound green beans, blanched and shocked in cold water
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves, or a combination of mint and basil
1/3 cup chopped roasted, salted peanuts
1 avocado, a few cherry tomatoes, and some slivers of red cabbage, for garnish

Whisk lime juice, fish sauce, 2 tablespoons water, sugar, garlic, and jalapeño in medium bowl until sugar dissolves. Reserve half in large bowl; toss carrots with remaining dressing and set aside. Toss blanched and shocked green beans with the other half of the dressing. Toss half the mint into each bowl and stir to blend.

To assemble the salad, arrange the green beans on a platter and using tongs, top with the carrots. Arrange the garnishes around the beans and carrots and drizzle with the dressing that is left in the bowl. Sprinkle with the peanuts and serve.

Serves 4.

Pantry Puttanesca

If you can’t make pasta from what you have in your pantry, you need to go shopping. My friend, Geoffrey, from the health department caught a ride into Seattle with me after work this evening, to hang out with old Baci dog and me, and have a bite to eat. We couldn’t decide whether we should go out or just fix something at my place, so we agreed that we’d let the contents of my refrigerator dictate our dinner plans. What’s amazing about my refrigerator is that it’s always packed and it rarely contains anything to eat. It’s a palette for creating a meal, but never the meal in itself. And the top shelf is devoted to culinary inspiration, in 750 ml bottles.

A half of a cucumber, a few carrots, an avocado… not much in the way of dinner was presenting itself. But no matter what’s in the house, there’s always a pasta dish waiting to be concocted. Geoffrey’s a big fan of Pasta alla Puttanesca, so I checked the pantry for salty stuff and tomatoes, turned on the red light, and got cooking. There is controversy in the culinary world over how the pasta dish got such a shady name- Pasta in the style of the Prostitute- but I’ve heard that got its name from being quick to prepare with ingredients you’d always have around. If you’re a busy Neapolitan prostitute, that is. And regardless of reputation, I would recommend the prostitute’s pantry to anyone who likes to make quick and delicious pasta meals on the fly.

Pantry Puttanesca

12 ounces spaghetti or long skinny noodles

2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 tin of anchovies in oil, drained
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1- 28 ounce can whole peeled plum or Roma tomatoes, unsalted, pulsed in the food processor until rustically chopped
½ of a 12 ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts, chopped (capers are traditional but I didn’t have any)
¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
3 small sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped
1 or more teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
3 large sprigs (or more) freshly chopped Italian parsley
Freshly ground pepper
A healthy splash of olive oil
Salt if it needs it (all of the ingredients are pretty salty so only salt at the end if it needs it)

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the anchovies and mash them, cooking until they disintegrate into the oil. Lower the heat if it’s splattering too much. Add the garlic and cook it until it is fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and maintain the heat to simmer the tomatoes for about 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens some.

Meanwhile put a large pot of water on to boil. When the water comes to a boil, add a generous tablespoon of salt and bring to another boil. Add your pasta and cook until al dente- check the package for directions.

Then to the sauce, add the artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, pepper flakes, and rosemary. If you like the consistency of the sauce, turn off the heat until the pasta is done cooking. If it’s a bit runny, continue to gently simmer the sauce while the pasta cooks. When the pasta is al dente, drain it in a colander and then toss it in with the sauce, along with the parsley, black pepper, and a healthy splash of olive oil. Toss to coat the pasta with the sauce and divide onto pasta plates. Cheese is not traditional with this dish but it is good with a hard grating cheese.

Serves 3 to 4.

Along with the pasta, I made a simple salad of sliced avocado and cucumber with carrot ribbons. I sprinkled it with a quick vinaigrette of olive oil, Dijon mustard, and balsamic, salt and pepper, and some freshly chopped dill.