Outside single digit temperatures haven’t diminished the activities in the abandoned building next door. A college-age couple is designer dressed and carry overstuffed backpacks. They wear soft-sculpture woven winter hats, huddle in an abandoned stairwell, and pass a crack pipe. A plastic bag-for-cash transaction is made.

A young woman arrives wearing a little-girl, puffy pink nylon jacket. She is carrying an infant swaddled inside a matching pink puffy pouch. The young man holds the baby while the mother nurses on the glass tit. Minutes later the baby lays against the chain link fence on the black asphalt parking lot while the mother walks in circles talking on her cell phone.

I’m inside my Ivory Tower baking a batch of 3X Chocolate Brownies. The mixture of unsweetened, bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolate provides hours of relief.

48 triangular pieces of ‘legal euphoria’ are measured out into 3 bite brownies. The prescription reads: “Take 3 bites a day. No more than one piece a day. Please do not abuse this drug”.

I started thinking about making some of these anti-depressant 3X Brownies after seeing Lars von Trier’s latest film, Melancholia, at the Flint Institute of Arts last week. Depressing films of this magnitude should not be shown here in this graveyard, ‘end of the world’ city.

At least the film had a happy ending when the miserable lives of the main characters ended. The apocalypse wedding was out of this world!

The mind-altering 3X drug of choice will be cut into triangles, packed into parchment lined, ‘born again’, “food coffins”.

Some go to a caregiver in the service of his ailing wife, some to an older friend who is feeling isolated. Other stops along the way include the sculptor next door, a disabled neighbor, and a ‘double’ to my parents who funded the ingredients.

The lion’s share of the brownies will go to the brave residents of the Occupy Flint camp. I’m hoping they are the ones who will help deliver a new Flint, transforming this compost heap of greed into a new postindustrial center of art and agriculture. These new ‘transformers’ are continuing the legacy of their grandfathers who ignited the workers revolution with the’ Sit Down Strike ‘ that created a new working class.

Sadly, this is the only hope I see for Flint now occupied by a Governor-appointed Emergency Manager.

When I arrived at Occupy Camp residents were gathered around a wood -burning stove. A musician put down his guitar when someone announced, “it’s the organic man”. When I was asked the contents of the box I answered “Dark chocolate brownies, my drug of choice”. A hearty response told me they had arrived at the right time.

The last stop is a hard-working grandma who refers to these dark anti-depressants as ‘pieces of pleasure’.

Me? I’ll pass on the brownies. I have all the well being I can handle right now.

Remember, ‘Never underestimate the power of chocolate’.

Brownies to the people!

3X Chocolate Brownies

Adapted from Recipe Bible

Makes 24 large brownies that I cut into 48 triangles

1 cup (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter

4 ounces (4 squares) Unsweetened Chocolate

1cup Bittersweet Chocolate Chips

4 Eggs

2 cups Light Brown Sugar

¼ cup Dark Corn Syrup

2 teaspoons Vanilla

2 ½ cups Unbleached Flour

½ teaspoon Baking Soda

½ teaspoon Salt

2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees.

Butter an 11×14 inch baking pan and dust with cocoa powder or flour.

Melt the butter, unsweetened chocolate and bittersweet chocolate in a bowl placed over hot water or in a microwave. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.

Whisk together the flour, soda and salt in a separate bowl.

Beat the eggs, brown sugar and corn syrup until smooth then add the vanilla. Add the chocolate mixture and continue to mix until combined.

Add the dry ingredients just until blended. Fold in chocolate chips.

Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 30 minutes or just until a toothpick inserted 1” from the side of the pan comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Cool the brownies on a rack until they reach room temperature before cutting.

Cutting the brownies is easier if they have chilled for several hours.

Actually, variations of this combination of ingredients can be found throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean region.

Many versions begin with soaking white bread in water that gives the sauce body and a smooth texture. This recipe does not contain bread.

Today’s Potato, Almond, Garlic, and Parsley Spread, that also contains olive oil and fresh lemon juice, resembles hommus (the Arabic bean paste). The blanched almonds give this appetizer some texture, using pine nuts instead will result in a smoother spread.

I often included this dish on my ‘meze platters’ for its pungent garlic flavor as well as its bright green color. I like to serve this spread with oval slices of raw carrots, cucumber wedges, and endive leaves. Surrounded by olives and strips of seeded flatbread it makes a beautiful appetizer plate.

In the winter, this vegetable, nut, herb, and fruit spread can be thinned with some vegetable broth to make a sauce to accompany a plate of steamed or roasted vegetables.

As a spread, serve the garlicky mixture on a plate, drizzled with a bit of olive oil and garnished with some capers.

Potato, Almond, Garlic, and Parsley Spread

Makes about 2 cups

Be sure to use Russet potatoes for this recipe. Red or Yukon gold varieties, with their high starch content, produce a gummy texture.

8 ounces Russet Potatoes, peeled, cut into chunks, and cooked in lightly salted water until tender then drained

4 cloves Garlic, peeled

½ cup Blanched Almonds

½ bunch Fresh Parsley, rinsed and dried

4-6 tablespoons Olive Oil

4-6 tablespoon fresh Lemon Juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Press the cooked potatoes through a food mill or push them through a wire mesh strainer or potato ricer. Set aside.

Drop the garlic into a running food processor. Add the almonds and parsley and process until smooth.

With the processor running, slowly pour in the olive oil until the mixture becomes a paste. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.

Fold in the ‘riced’ potatoes. Season the spread with salt and pepper.

Add enough lemon juice to taste.

Adjust the seasonings and texture by adding more garlic, olive oil, or lemon juice.

Refrigerate for several hours. Serve at room temperature.

Before I had the opportunity to cook for vegetarians and vegans this soup started with bacon and ended with cream. Today’s Corn, Potato, and Coconut Soup is a 21^st century version of classic chowder. I’m using organically grown corn preserved in glass jars using a pressure canner soon after the harvest. Organic fresh, frozen, or commercially canned corn will work just as well. Roasting the corn brings out its caramel sweetness. When I don’t have access to organically grown corn Trader Joe’s Frozen Roasted Corn is a good substitute.

The potatoes, like all root vegetables, should also be organically grown. Adding them at the end of the cooking ensures they keep their shape.

Adjust the amount of heat in the soup by choosing hotter or milder peppers. In the winter I add peppers that have been roasted, peeled, and frozen.

Silk Brand’s Coconut Milk, in the paper carton, is light and not too sweet. If using canned coconut milk try one labeled ’lower fat’, a term that makes me growl.

When using Seitenbacher, my favorite vegan vegetable broth powder, add a heaping tablespoon to a quart of boiling filtered water. Add more powder to taste.

A crusty, chewy whole grain bread is the only thing you need with this soup. With a bean or vegetable spread and a winter salad it’s dinner.

Corn, Potato, and Coconut Soup

Enough for 8 generous portions

Roasted corn, peppers, potatoes and fresh herbs in a creamy dairy-free soup with coconut milk.

1½ pounds unpeeled Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes. Cook the potatoes in boiling water until tender but still firm. When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes.

3 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Red (or White) Onion, peeled and chopped

Kosher Salt

4 large cloves Garlic, peeled and chopped

2 stalks Celery, chopped

2 Jalapeno Peppers, remove and discard the seeds and stems. Chop into a medium dice

1 Red Bell Pepper, remove and discard the stem and seeds. Chop into a medium dice.

4 cups Fresh or Frozen Corn. For extra flavor roast the corn in a 425-degree oven on a parchment lined baking sheet for 15-20 minutes or use Trader Joe’s Frozen Roasted Corn

4 cup Silk Brand Coconut Milk

4 cups Vegetable Stock (Seitenbacher Vegetable Broth)

½ cup finely minced fresh Green Herbs (Parsley, Cilantro, or Chives).

Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onions, lightly salt, and cook only until the edges begin to turn golden brown.

Add the garlic, celery, jalapenos, and bell pepper. Lightly salt and continue to cook until the vegetables begin to wilt.

Add the corn, coconut milk, and vegetable stock. Salt and pepper to taste.

Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Taste and adjust the seasonings. Puree 2 cups of the soup in a blender then add the puree back into the soup to thicken it.

Add the cubed potatoes and minced herbs.

Remove the pot from the heat and allow the soup to reach serving temperature.

In my café, today’s Orange, Date, and Olive Oil Cake would be served with ‘chai’ brewed in a samovar. Thin hourglass shaped tea glasses, filled with deep amber tea, would sit on small gold-rimmed saucers.

I once had a chance to take my fantasy for a test ride when I was hired to bake Middle Eastern desserts for ‘Cecropia’, a Turkish café located near the Fulton Fish Market in NYC. This cake was part of my repertoire that included a pistachio and rosewater baklava, an almond pudding, and a seed and nut brittle.

Cardamom and orange blossom water perfume this fragrant baked confection. Yogurt, olive oil, and an orange juice-honey glaze provide the moisture and keep the cake fresh until it’s gone.

Go easy on the cardamom, its potent. I purchase the dried pods, crack them open, remove the tiny seeds and grind them in my spice mill. It’s easier to purchase it already ground, (not nearly as strong) but I tend to find the most labor-intensive ways to do everything.

I make this dessert in winter when the oranges are in season and dates are plentiful and on sale after the holidays.

Orange Blossom Water can be purchased at any Middle Eastern Market. I use it in Ginger Molasses Cookies, Pear Upside-down Molasses Spice Cake, Rhubarb Pie, Semolina Almond Cake, and Prune Cake. It also appears in several stews, marinates, and puddings. If you end up hating it, use it in your bath water; I’m not kidding. Not sure about the orange blossom water, use some Gand Marnier.

It’s been snowing all night and will continue through tomorrow. Later in the day I will sit down with a mug of Constant Comment Tea, cut a wedge of this orange and date cake, look up at my samovar on the shelf above the sink, and imagine my ‘end of the world’ café.

Orange, Date, and Olive Oil Cake

Serves 6-8

1 cup Unbleached Flour

½ -1 teaspoon Ground Cardamom

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

¼ teaspoon Baking Soda

1/8 teaspoon Salt

½ cup Sugar

1/3 cup Olive Oil

2 Eggs, beaten

1/3 cup Yogurt

Zest of 2 Oranges, preferably organic

12 Large Pitted Dates (or 16 Regular Dates), cut in half lengthwise

Juice of 2 Oranges

1 tablespoon Honey

1 teaspoon Orange Blossom Water or Grand Marnier

Zest the 2 oranges and set aside. Juice the 2 oranges and set aside.

Place the dates in a bowl. Pour some boiling water over the dates, cover, and let them plump for 30 minutes.

Combine the flour, cardamom, baking powder, soda, and salt. Set Aside.

Combine the sugar and olive oil in a mixer bowl. Beat the mixture on high speed for 2 minutes.

On a lower speed, slowly add the eggs, yogurt, and orange zest until blended.

Add the dry ingredients and continue to mix until a smooth batter is formed.

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees. Brush the bottom and sides of a 9” spring form pan with some olive oil and lightly dust with flour.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Level the top.

Drain the dates and arrange them, cut side down, over the top of the batter.

Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until the top is lightly brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Transfer the cake pan to a cooling rack. Prick the top of the cake with a skewer.

Combine the orange juice, honey and the orange blossom water  (or Grand Marnier). Mix well then spoon the glaze over the warm cake.

Allow the cake to cool to room temperature.

Store extra cake in the refrigerator.

He also smoked opium from a brass hookah with a green silk wrapped hose. My grandmother broke him of his habit in the 1950’s; he was never quite the same. I inherited the pipe and his taste for poppy seeds.

More than an excuse for using up yesterday’s mashed potatoes, today’s Potato-Poppy Seed Bread is just another reason to use the seeds from the opium poppy.

On a recent trip to Cincinnati I found a bag of the dark blue-gray seeds at Country Fresh Farm Market. Packaged by Bob’s Red Mill, the source of so many grains and flours, these tiny wonders are currently driving my blog menu.

This moist and flavorful bread with its nutty crunch is my first choice to serve with hearty salads, such as the Roasted Root Vegetable (in the recipe archive), and at brunch. It makes excellent toast and is even better spread with some Persian Sour Cherry Jam.

The rest of my poppy seed stash will end up in a Lemon Cake, Onion Flatbread, and Thumbprint cookies.

Add some toasted poppy seeds to butter noodles. The seeds love to get together with onions, and lemons. Poppy seed ice cream is on my ‘last meal’ menu.

Poppy seeds are raw and should be toasted to experience their full flavor. Spread the seeds on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast them for 10-15 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven. Keep your poppy seeds in the refrigerator or freezer; they go rancid quickly.

Life without opium is possible but a pantry without poppy seeds is a hardship.

Potato-Poppy Seed Bread

Makes 1 large round loaf

7 cups Flour Mix: 5 cups Unbleached Bread Flour and 2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour

2 tablespoons Wheat Gluten (Bob’s Red Mill)

2 medium or 1 large Russet Baking Potato, peeled and cut into chunks (Or 1 cup plain Mashed Potatoes)

1 tablespoon Active Yeast

2 ½ cups Warm Potato Water (110-115 degrees)

1 tablespoons Salt

Vegetable Oil

½ cup Poppy Seeds (also from Bob’s Red Mill), toasted on a parchment lined baking sheet in a preheated oven for 10-15 minutes

1 Egg White, beaten

2 tablespoons Poppy Seeds (untoasted) for the top

Cook the peeled potato chunks in boiling water until tender. Drain the potatoes but reserve 2 ½ cups of the cooking liquid. Push the potatoes through a food mill, ricer, or a wire mesh strainer. Set aside to cool.

Transfer the 2-½ cups of warm potato water to a large bowl. When the mixture cools to 110-115 degrees stir in the yeast. After the yeast has softened (5 minutes) whisk in 2 cups of the flour mix. Cover the batter with a damp towel and allow it to set until the mixture begins to bubble (about an hour).

In a large mixing bowl, combine the starter batter with 1 cup of mashed potatoes, salt, gluten, poppy seeds and enough of the flour mix to make a soft dough. Turn out the dough on a floured board and knead it until the dough is smooth and elastic (about 15 minutes). Continue to add flour to keep the dough from sticking to the board or your hands.

Rinse and dry the large bowl. Add a small amount of vegetable oil.  Place the dough in the bowl then turn it to coat the other side. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Allow the dough to rise until it is double in bulk, about 1-½ hours.

Punch the dough down and knead for several minutes. Form the dough into a round loaf and place on a piece of parchment paper. Brush the top of the loaf with the beaten egg white and sprinkle with poppy seeds.

Cover the loaf with a light, slightly damp towel and allow it to rise until almost double, about 45 minutes.

Place a baking stone or sheet pan on the middle rack of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400-degrees 15 minutes before the final rise is finished.

Transfer the loaf and the parchment paper to the baking stone or sheet pan. Bake the loaf in the preheated oven for 55 minutes or until the internal temperature is 200 degrees.

Transfer the loaf to a cooling rack and allow it to cool until it reaches room temperature.

Onions are the workhorse of the menu, the building blocks of good taste, and the root of everything delicious.

Today’s Prune, Onion, and Citrus Jam is a winter condiment that combines deep concentrated plum flavor with the caramel smokiness of slowly simmered onions. A mix of bright and sour citrus juices, with dried peppers and spices, balances the central flavors of this preserve.

This fruit and root jam, spread on a flatbread then topped with shavings of a sharp sheep’s milk cheese (like Manchego), is an explosion of flavors. With a simple salad or a bowl of soup it is a winter meal that transcends the cold gray landscape.

Meat eaters (don’t think I’ve turned my back on you) will enjoy some of this jam on a roasted pork sandwich, beside a braised lamb shank, or with a grilled sausage.

I am preserving most of the jam in small glass jars using the hot water method; that’s ‘money in the bank’.

Once, at a cooking class, I was instructed to refer to ‘prunes’ as ‘dried plums’. It seemed ‘prunes’ were associated with old age and a reference to shriveled and deeply wrinkled skin. It conjured up images of a constipated class of adults eating stewed fruit in monkey dishes.

Was the word ‘dried’ any better? When I worked in the cosmetic industry ‘dried’ was a powerful fear trigger that drove sales along with the promise of youth.

I like everything about the prune, their shiny puckered skin, the sweet stickiness, and even the pit. They are a good investment and a decadent bite size snack.

Prunes add moistness to many desserts, add body to sauces both sweet and savory, and enrich stew and stuffing recipes.

Tomorrow I will spread some creamy homemade goat’s milk cheese on a slice of toasted potato-poppy seed bread and smear the top with some of this prune-onion jam. With a mug of perfectly brewed black coffee the day will be off to a good start.

Prune, Onion, and Citrus Jam

Makes about a quart

An addictive and versatile winter condiment.

1-pound Pitted Prunes

4 cups Juice from 4 Oranges, 2 Lemons, and 2 Limes

2-3 tablespoons Olive or Canola Oil

4 Sweet Onions, peeled, cut into quarters then into ¼ inch slices

Kosher Salt

½ teaspoon Ground Coriander

½ teaspoon Ground Cumin

¼ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

1 teaspoon Ground Ancho Chili Powder or any other pure ground chili powder. (I’m using the Chili Powder in the recipe archive)

Place the prunes in a bowl. Heat the citrus juices and pour them over the prunes. Cover the bowl and allow the fruit to plump, about an hour.

Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add the onions, lightly salt, and cook over medium-high heat until most of the steam has evaporated and the onions begin to brown on the edges.

Lower the heat, cover the pan, and slowly caramelized the onions. Check them every 15 minutes or so and give them a stir. After an hour the onions should become a rich golden brown color and have the texture.

When the onions are caramelized add the spices and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.

Strain the prunes and add the liquid to the onion mixture. Roughly chop the prunes and add them to the onion mixture. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.

Taste and adjust the seasonings. Salt to taste.

The jam keeps in the refrigerator for weeks. For longer preservation store the jam in glass jars and process using the hot water method.

There I learned how to make seiten that tasted like cosmetic sponges and lasagna with a spaghetti sauce made from beets.

Many of my classmates seemed to enjoy the black seaweed that looked like worms and tasted like fish. For me it was just another situation where I tried to pass as ‘one of them’.

I gave up cooking beans with Kombu, the dried seaweed that seemed better suited for basket weaving that eating. I stopped pretending that ‘wheat’ was ‘meat’. But this dish of pan-fried tofu and sweet winter vegetables became a family classic. It is still a warming winter meal.

Pressing the tofu gives the soy curd a crispy crust and slightly chewy texture. The dark sesame oil adds a deep smoky flavor.

This medley of stored winter vegetables is naturally sweet. Roasting them in a hot oven intensifies their individual flavors. The hot chili oil adds a little (or a lot of) heat.

Only a small amount of mirin is needed to bring the flavors of the tofu and vegetables together.

Root vegetables, especially, should be organically grown. Turnips, beets, rutabagas, and celery root also do well in this dish.

I prefer to serve the tofu and vegetables over simply steamed brown rice although I have used buckwheat noodles or mashed potatoes.

Scallions, finely minced cilantro, chives, or thin slices of hot fresh chilies all make good garnishes.

Pan Fried Tofu and Chili Roasted Winter Vegetables braised in Mirin

Serves 4

Sweet and smoky flavors with some heat.

1 pound Firm Tofu, sliced and pressed

Salt and Pepper

Dark Sesame Oil for frying

3 Carrots, preferably organically grown, peeled and cut into bit size chunks

1 large Parsnip, peeled and cut into bite size planks

½ Large Red Onion, peeled and cut into ¼ inch crescent shape slivers

½ small head of Cabbage, cored and cut into ½” strips

Hot Chili Oil

Kosher Salt

¼ to ½ cup Mirin*

Garnish: Thinly sliced Scallions

*Mirin is a Japanese sweet low-alcohol wine made from rice.

Slice the tofu into 16 rectangles. Line a flat plate with a kitchen towel or several layers of paper towel. Lay the tofu slices on the towel. Cover with another towel or paper towels. Place another plate over the towel(s). Press the tofu by laying several cans or a cast iron skillet on the plate. Press for at least 30 minutes.

Place the prepared vegetables in a large bowl. Drizzle the mixture with just enough hot chili oil to polish the vegetables. Adjust the heat by mixing the hot chili oil with some canola oil.

Preheat the oven to 425-degrees.

Spread the polished vegetables on a parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle the vegetables lightly with some Kosher salt.

Roast the vegetables on the top rack in the preheated oven only until the edges begin to brown, about 30 minutes. Toss once during the roasting.

Heat some dark sesame oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Salt and pepper the tofu slices on both sides. Fry the slices until they are lightly browned on both sides.

Discard the excess oil in the frying pan.

Transfer the roasted vegetables to the frying pan. Arrange the fried tofu over the vegetables.

Sprinkle some mirin overall. Cover the frying pan and steam gently over medium low heat until the vegetables are heated throughout and tender.

Serve with steamed brown rice. Garnish with thinly sliced scallions.

This was also the answer given to my young son who always asked, “Hey dad, what’s for vegetarians”. The beautifully roasted chicken only grossed him out.

‘Kugel’ is the Yiddish word for ‘pudding’ although similar dishes made from potatoes, eggs, and onions appear in other cuisines. In France it’s a ‘gratin’ if its topped with broiled cheese, in Ohio its is a casserole made from yesterday’s mashed potatoes and taken to a potluck.

Yes, I’ve had my share of potato kugels and decided after three attempts they were ‘out’. All of them were made using the same ingredients and methods as Latkes, except everything was put in a square pan and baked.

If I’m going through the process of peeling and shredding potatoes, squeezing out the excess liquid and grating onions, I’m frying Latkes. Baking the mixture only produces a dense, heavy, and often bland ‘pudding’ that reminds me of Izzy’s Latkes! Oy.

Today’s Potato, Onion, and Goat’s Cheese Kugel makes good use of my stash of local organically grown red potatoes. These spuds drive the winter menu and the blog, today the kugel, tomorrow the bread, doughnuts the following day. James Beard had the same fondness for the versatile vegetable.

I’m using my homemade goat cheese (future blog). It’s easier than you think. The milk is readily available around town and always in the dairy section of most grocery stores including Trader Joe’s where you can get the cheese too. In a perfect world I would have goats in my back yard.

The six eggs in the recipe lighten the batter. The large amount of slowly simmered onions provides the sweetness and much of the flavor. The goat’s milk cheese supplies a rich creaminess. The whole-wheat matzo crust uses up some of the cracker meal that lives in the freezer and makes sure wedges of the kugel are easy to remove from the baking dish.

Serve the kugel slightly warm with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped chive.

May Ploy, the Thai sweet and hot chili sauce, is another good condiment. So is the Cranberry-Fig Chutney.

I’m enjoying my kugel with yesterday’s red cabbage braised in grape juice.

Oh, the kugel is good cold too!

Potato, Onion, and Goat Cheese Kugel

Serves 6-8

2 pounds Red or Gold Potatoes, preferably organically grown

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

2 large Onions, peeled and chopped

Kosher Salt

4 large cloves Garlic, peeled and chopped

8 ounces Chevre (soft goat’s milk cheese), room temperature

6 large Eggs, beaten

Ground Black Pepper

Extra Oil for the pan

¾ cup Whole Wheat Matzo Crumbs

Drop the unpeeled potatoes in a large pot of boiling water. Cook until they can be easily pierced with a skewer. Pell the potatoes when they are cool enough to handle.

Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan with a lid. Add the onions, lightly salt, and cook until most of the steam has evaporated. Do not brown. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and continue to cook slowly until the onions are very tender and almost pureed. Stir every 15 minutes or so. When the onions are almost finished cooking add the garlic, stir, replace the cover, and remove the pan from the heat. Allow the mixture to cool slightly.

Transfer the peeled potatoes to the bowl of a mixer. Roughly crush the potatoes with your hand. Add the goat cheese and the onion mixture. Mix only until the ingredients are combined. Salt and pepper to taste.

Pour in the beaten eggs and mix until blended.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Brush a baking pan with some olive oil. Coat the bottom and sides with the crushed matzo meal.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven until the top is golden and spotted with brown, about an hour.

Serve warm.

The soup’s slightly sweet and mildly spicy flavors along with its creamy texture and brilliant color contributed to its popularity. The fact that it had very little fat and was ‘vegan’ made it a family favorite.

The vegetable drawer of my refrigerator brought you today’s Root Vegetable Soup with Basmati Rice and Cilantro. Inside the ‘crisper’ some organically grown carrots, half a butternut squash, a large parsnip, and some leftover cilantro and dill were almost forgotten and beginning to wilt.

A tube of ginger paste, left over from my cooking class at Jungle Jim’s, needed to be used. I don’t usually buy herbs in a plastic tube but agreed to try it in the Dark Chocolate Gingerbread on the “Mexican Christmas” menu. Sure it lacked the punch and heat of freshly grated ginger but it was creamy, easy to use, and has a long shelf life.

The soup is flavorful, creamy, and warming; just in time to counter the deep freeze and howling winds outside.

Garnishes for this soup change according to my tastes (and what is on hand). A dollop of canned Romesco Sauce, a spoon of Columbian Pepper Relish, a swirl of Yogurt Cheese, or some Zaatar toast are all tasty additions.

A splash of fresh limejuice also adds a bright acidic note.

The soup freezes well and keeps in the refrigerator for days.

Root Vegetable Soup with Basmati Rice, Ginger, and Cilantro

Serves 6

Creamy, full of flavor, and low in fat.

2 tablespoons Olive Oil or Unsalted Butter

1 medium Sweet Onion, peeled and chopped

Kosher Salt

1½ tablespoon Fresh Ginger, peeled and grated or an equal amount of Ginger Paste from a tube

1½ pounds Root Vegetables- ½ pound each Carrots, Parsnips, and Butternut Squash, peeled and cut into chunks

6 cups Vegetable Stock, I like Seitenbacher’s Vegetable Broth powder

1/3 cup Basmati Rice, rinsed and drained

Salt and Pepper

½ cup Fresh Cilantro (leaves and stem), finely chopped

¼ cup Fresh Dill. Remove and discard the stems and finely chop the leaves or use ½ teaspoon Dried Dill Weed.

Suggested Garnishes: Finely minced chili peppers, scallions, or parsley. A dollop of Ajvar (roasted pepper and eggplant spread). Romesco Sauce. Sour Cream. Labna (yogurt cheese). Zaatar Croutons. Or just a splash of fresh limejuice.

In a large pot, heat the oil (or butter), add the onions, salt lightly, and cook over medium heat until they are translucent.

Add the vegetable chunks, rice, ginger, and stock.

Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer slowly until the vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add the chopped cilantro and dill. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to set for 15 minutes.

Using a blender, or a blender stick, puree the mixture until smooth.

Return the soup to the pot, taste and adjust the seasonings. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the soup with your choice of garnishes and whole grain bread.

All the necessary ingredients for this ‘people’s cookie’ are in the pantry. No need to hitch a ride to the stop and rob and get a special ingredient.

Old fashion rolled oats are often on sale and always affordable, especially at Aldi’s. Toasting the oats in the oven really makes a difference.

Raisins are just another miracle from the vine. I’m using a mix of blonde and brunettes (they even have auburn-red ones). They’re all just dried up and shriveled grapes.

The jar life of the cookie is long. Sometimes I store mine in tins that are lined with parchment paper. My favorite is a vintage one with the Sun-Maid raisin girl on it.

With a cookie everyone gets an equal share, the dough carefully measured out in an ice cream scoop. Best of all cookies can be mass-produced at home making them a perfect crowd (or mob) pleaser. All of this makes them sweet fuel for a revolution.

Tea, a drink often associated with the rebellious, is the best beverage to serve with these Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. I save my coffee for the chocolate chippers.

A white ceramic cookie jar, in the shape of ‘Pagliacci’ (that Opera clown), lives in my kitchen. He stands next to a porcelain canister of Aunt Jemima; she’s got a stash of raw sugar inside. There seems to be something going on between them.

He was once a gift from my mother to her mother using the money she made working at the Bokay Ice Cream store in Flint. When he was new, the edges of his ruffles were trimmed in red that slowly disappeared after numerous washings. My young teenage mother replaced the missing red glaze with nail polish that slowly chipped away over the last 70 years. Only little bits of red have survived.

Today the Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are not filling my antique family heirloom. They are tucked inside sheets of ‘deli-wrap’, packed in a glossy recycled paper bag with polka dots and a red ribbon handle, and delivered to the Occupy Flint Camp.

The People’s Cookie; there are enough for everyone.

Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies

Makes about 18 cookies

Toasting the oats really does make a difference.

3 cups Old Fashion Rolled Oats, toasted*

8 ounces White Whole Wheat Flour

½ teaspoon Baking Powder

¼ teaspoon ground Nutmeg

½ teaspoon Salt

2 sticks (½-pound) Unsalted Butter, room temperature

6 ounces each Light Brown and Granulated Sugar

2 Eggs, beaten

Zest of 1 Orange

¾ cup Raisins

¾ cup Golden Raisins

*Preheat the oven to 400-degrees. Spread the oats on a baking sheet. Toast the oats in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until they lightly brown. Set aside to cool.

Combine the flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt in a separate bowl and set aside.

Place the butter and both sugars in the bowl of a mixer. Beat the mixture until fluffy. Slowly add the eggs then the orange zest. Scrape the sides of the bowl.

Slowly add the flour mixture and mix until the batter is smooth.

Add the oats then the raisins.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using a ¼ cup ice cream scoop, form the balls of dough.

Place 6 balls on a parchment lined half-sheet baking pan.

Bake the cookies in the pre-heated oven for 18 minutes.

Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes then transfer them to a cooling rack for 30 minutes.

Store the cooled cookies in a tin lined with parchment paper or in a cookie jar.