Tag: guest-blogger

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My Cooking Identity Crisis

Interesting title, huh? Well, bear with me. Most of you know me as Peruvian Chick from Instagram or Facebook, the Peruvian Gal that loves to cook, post recipes, loves traveling and cherishes time with friends, family and dogs. What many of you don’t know is that as much as I love cooking, I love business. I first earned an engineering degree before I went on to earn a master’s degree in international business management. I currently run a successful business consulting and branding agency which I co-founded over 12 years ago and guess what? I LOVE cooking just as much!

When my parents discovered this new passion of mine was taking such a pivotal role in my life, the occasional “Oh my, all that money invested in education and all you want to do is cook?” would find its way into conversations. But then they tasted my food, started sharing my recipes and then told their friends that I was famous on “The Facebook.”

If we’re honest, the world at large still tends to be judgmental about women who don’t cook. But society can also be judgmental about women who do cook. Have you ever heard someone commenting on a Facebook or Instagram post: “Who has time for that?” or “I wish I had time to cook, I work.”

These types of comments took me to the unconscious (and unreal) conclusion that these two passions were mutually exclusive. For the past few years I have been living a double-life being a self-proclaimed Business Consultant by day and Peruvian Chef by night. Depending on the crowd, I would either wear my chef’s hat or my consultant hat. At times, I was embarrassed to admit I loved to cook out of fear it would make me look weak in the business world. Other times I was embarrassed to admit that I am an excellent business strategist out of fear people would not find me relatable anymore. Let’s face it, that was not only silly, it was arrogant of me.

I’ve come to believe that business, as an investigative science, as a practical discipline and as a creative art, shares many characteristics with the culinary world. Cooking is my love language and keeps me connected to my roots. It gives me satisfaction to know where my food comes from and is my form of meditation. On the other hand, business fulfills my insatiable need for research and learning. I love doing a deep dive into a business, begin the problem-solving process and then create the strategies that lead to growth. Both cooking and business feed my creative soul. Getting seasonal fresh produce excites me as much as presenting a new marketing strategy for a client. Have you ever tried to make a meal for 12 stretch into a meal for 30? You do the math. It’s about getting the right ingredients, at the right temperature, at the right time. It’s an analogy with many parts, and it has consequences.

Ultimately, cooking or not-cooking is a choice for both men and women. There’s no right or wrong and I am not here to judge. If for any reason, (out of fear that others will think you are bragging you have hesitated to post a homemade meal you made from scratch after a hard day of work, or a full day of home-schooling and watching the kids; believe me, you are not. You are just living your truth and that is your business!

 

With love and gratitude,

 

Sara Balcazar-Greene

(a.k.a. Peruvian Chick)

peruvianchick.com

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P.S. As I write this article my thoughts and prayers go to those affected by Hurricane Harvey.

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My Summer Garden

Last time we spoke I boldly proclaimed that this year I would finally give my little garden the attention it deserves. It has served us well in years past providing yard snacks of sugar snap peas, wild strawberries and raspberries. But this year I wanted to be able to cook a few dinners solely using the harvest from the garden.

In spite of me the garden flourished. By April I was giddy with the thought of spending extended periods of time outside again. Evening dinners by the garden seemed an impossible act when as the rains persisted. I started seeds on the ledge above our sink and watched their steady progress. For hours, I dug deep into the dirt extending the garden’s borders making room for squash, peppers, tomatoes, beans, zucchini, potatoes, lettuce, carrots, radish, and cucumbers. Hopes were high.

And then reality hit. Summer with three kids, camping trips, beach picnics, book writing and opening a retail/studio in Seattle leaves little time for pulling weeds. And yet the garden gives and rewards my efforts – no matter how lacking they may be.

Last week, after a quick jaunt to the islands, I came home to an empty fridge and a deep desire to order take out. I wandered into the garden to turn on the sprinkler but immediately found myself pulling weeds and making plans for dinner. There was a zucchini – a rare one not yet enjoyed by our squirrely garden guests, tender skinned potatoes, ruffled butter lettuce, green beans and plenty of fragrant herbs.

The potatoes I boiled in a vinegar brine then roasted until crisp on the outside and buttery inside. With the zucchini, I cut it into thick coins then fried in a bit of olive and finished with sumac – a brilliant red spice that tastes as if it’s laced with lemon – and mint. The greens were lightly dressed with a lemon yogurt dressing immersed with herbs. And the green beans, well, the kids ate those raw as a snack while they waited for their garden dinner.

Perhaps next year is the year I really dig deep into gardening and I can live out my dreams of weedless rows and towering teepees of greens beans. In the meantime, I’m thankful for tangled stems that produce tomatoes sweet and bursting with flavor, and jungle-like web of green beans that bring smiles to my kid’s faces, and potatoes springing from the dirt in which I proudly hold them high in the air and proclaim to my husband, I grew that! Really, the earth does the work and for that I am so grateful.

 

Ashley

 

Get Ashley’s recipe for this week’s box menu, here.

 

Ashley Ashley Rodriguez is a NW Mom, Chef, Food Blogger at notwithoutsalt.com and author of Date Night In: More than 120 Recipes to Nourish Your Relationship

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Tacos 101

 

Gabe’s grandfather has repeatedly encouraged me to write the cookbook, 101 Tacos. When we see him which unfortunately isn’t often enough as he lives in northern Mexico, he always has more ideas for tacos. “Shrimp tacos, beef tacos, tacos de fish, chicken tacos…” He’s relentless in this idea and honestly, I totally get it because if there is one thing I can eat on repeat its tacos. And now, as I’m working on my second cookbook I’m realizing that we do indeed eat quite a few tacos. In my opinion, they are quite possibly the best solution for quick weeknight meals. My 15 minute steak tacos never disappoint and my latest favorite, asparagus tacos, have me really reconsidering that 101 Tacos book idea.

Summer is the perfect season for minimal prep for quick easy cooking. The ingredients available to us right now overwhelm me in the best sort of way. To capture the maximum nutrition and flavor very little cooking is needed as the warmth of the sun has done the hard work for us. These Swiss chard tacos, like so many other tacos, quickly became a staple in our house the moment I found the idea in one of Rick Bayless’ books. While greens aren’t necessarily a favorite at the dinner table for my three children when you wrap them around a tortilla suddenly they get devoured.

The Swiss chard gets a quick and simple sauté with caramelized onions and then topped with store-bought or homemade salsa and then creamy queso fresco. If you’re out of Swiss chard, spinach makes a fine substitute. Throw in some other roasted vegetables for variety and extra nutritional heft.

For quick summer meals that give you more time outside and less time in the kitchen, learn from me and always keep tortillas at the ready along with a good salsa, and crumbly, salty cheese. A quick roast of whatever you have lingering in your vegetable crisper and you have yourself a taco that would make Gabe’s grandfather proud.

For Ashley‘s Recipe for Swiss Chard Tacos, click here.

 

Ashley

 

Ashley Rodriguez is a NW Mom, Food Blogger at NotWithoutSalt.com and author of Date Night In: More than 120 Recipes to Nourish Your Relationship

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Thoughts with Ashley

I have decided that this is the year I really fall for gardening. If you have been a Klesick subscriber for a while you have probably heard me boast about my tangling sugar snap peas or my sweet strawberries which often got snatched by the squirrels before we have a chance to enjoy them. This year I’m feeling optimistic and I have a windowsill filled with little starts eager to live in the garden to prove it. At least I hope they are eager. Visions of tidy rows of carrots, radishes, beans, beets, lettuces and fresh herbs fill my mind as I sprinkle fertilizer onto the garden beds doing my best to ensure success.

Already my garden dreams have had to deal with some harsh realities. Our number one predator currently is our 9 month old terrier who has a knack for digging and a hunger for freshly planted broccoli starts. I know this isn’t the first problem I’ll run up against as I work hard to make my bustling garden dreams a reality. There will be bugs, too much rain, not enough rain (which is hard to imagine right now isn’t it?), and there will be many lessons to learn along the way as I am far from a seasoned gardener. But I’ll consider this garden a success if I’m able to pluck something, anything from its rich (newly fertilized soil) and eat it with the sun on my face, and at the end of the season if I’ve learned something new.

In the meantime I’m even more grateful for the work of farmers like the Klesick’s who have spent years honing this craft. The one thing I do know about gardening and farming is that it is incredibly hard work and as I set out to roast my rhubarb or eat freshly plucked sugar snap peas I feel immense gratitude for their work.

 

Ashley Rodriguez

notwithoutsalt.com

Award-winning food blogger

Author of Date Night In