Winter Warmers - Park Slope Food Coop

11-01-27 pp1-12_Layout 1 1/26/11 7:40 PM Page 22 January 27, 2011 Park Slope Food Coop, Brooklyn, NYWinter WarmersCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1Karen Yau-Smith, a memberfor two weeks and shoppingin the Coop for the firsttime, described her household’scold-weather eatingstrategy: “My husband does alot of stews—we’re meateaters—alot of crock potstuff.” Soupy rice with chickenwas a savory dish thehousehold made that week.Roasted vegetables, includingpotatoes, beets and Brusselssprouts, also featureprominently on the Yau-Smiths’ menu, as does pasta.The family, which includestwo young children, alsoenjoys the occasional cup ofhot chocolate. As we spoke,Karen was looking over theCoop’s tea selection for ideasto counter winter’s cold.Claire Grandison has a simplewinter culinary approach. “Ibasically cook soup—anythingin soup form. Throw it in thepot and cook it for a while.” Aswe talked, she was scrutinizinga package of udon noodles,and decided to try them in anupcoming soup—a dish thatdraws its in spiration from afavorite dish at a local restaurant.Also going in the souppot will be shiitake mushrooms,carrots, onions, scallionsand garlic. Claire alsomakes a quinoa risotto in thewinter. A Peruvian friendshared the tip to add pisco, arobust South Americanbrandy—which complements quinoa’s Inca roots—in placeof white wine.At first, Val Vinokur couldn’treally put his finger ondishes or foods he was drawnto during the cold months,and he remarked about whatwas in his shopping basket,“It’s really no different thanwhat I get during the rest ofthe year; there’s nothing particularlywintery here.” But aswe talked, Val spoke longinglyof a dish he craves andmakes during winter’sdepths: cholent, which Valdescribes as a “traditionalSabbath meal. You can cookthe meat overnight on a very,very low heat. You can addlots of different kinds ofbeans, grains, barley.” Rootvegetables can go into thepot as well, and, according toVal, some cholent cooks willadd eggs still in their shells.The wind is roaring downFlatbush Avenue; spring seemsonly a remote possibility.What better way to counterBrooklyn’s cold months thanby serving up some heartycomfort food?Melissa Markley is a bigsoup and chili fan during thewinter. She was shopping forthe first time after rejoiningthe Coop, following a moveback to Brooklyn. In her basketwas purple kale, a prime ingredientin what Melissa terms asher “default dinner: red quinoa, kale and tofu.” A winterstew she likes to makeincludes garbanzo beans, kaleand lentils. Specific spicechoices were pending, butcurry was definitely on thewinter-seasoning list.In the produce aisle, DavidSt. Germain was deep intothe family shop; his wife washome minding their twoyoung sons. David details thehousehold’s winter meal planas “cook in bulk; we’ll find differentsoups. We’re vegetarians,so no chicken stock—weuse the low-sodium vegetablestock.” Minestrone is afavorite. Black beans andwinter squashes, particularlyacorn squash, find their wayinto the soup pot as well, asdo lentils. David will cook uplarge batches of soup andfreeze portions for quickmeals during the week. Forwinter veggies, David sautésbeets or carrots and roastscauliflower or broccoli, andBrussels sprouts put in a frequentappearance, too.Sweet potatoes are a stapleof the boys’ diet, as is quinoafor protein and as a replacementfor grains containinggluten. For added heft, Davidwill often add quinoa to hiswinter soups.Satomi O. fortifies her wintermenus with “soups, beansand greens.” For her soups,she mostly uses vegetablestock, but sometimes she’llchoose chicken. Noodles alsofind their way into the pot.From Japan originally, Satomiprefers udon or soba noodles,which she shops for in Asianmarkets in Manhattan’s LowerEast Side. Fresh greens, chickenbroth and beans (blackbeans and white are favorites)come from the Coop.When one encounters aCoop member passing ameandering, Saturday-afternoonwait on the checkoutline by reading Travels inSiberia, one surmises that theshopper knows a thing or twoabout cold climate cuisines.Tanya Ostromogilskaya didnot disappoint. “What is goodto eat? Borscht.” Tanya makeshers with “beets, carrots, cabbage;ideally you should havemeat bouillon.” She addedthat all kinds of vegetablescan go into the soup pot,including Brussels sprouts.Whatever one adds toborscht’s basic beets, thesoup should, according toTanya, cook for “severalhours. It’s a project, but youcan eat it for several days.”When the borscht is ready toserve, Tanya recommendstopping each bowl with a dollopof sour cream, remarking“the idea is that you eat someJamil Myrie says butternutsquash soup is one of hisfavorite winter meals.food with fat; it stays longer,with more calories.”Yoshi Sawyer eats a lot ofspices and hot peppers,cayenne in particular, duringthe winter to keep away thecold. He is a “soup person—hearty, brothy foods.” His is avegetarian household. When Iasked Yoshi what might go inthe household’s next meal, heheld out his girlfriend’simpressively organized shoppinglist. Together we reviewedit. Four bunches of kale, portabellomushrooms, okra, stringbeans, yellow split peas, adzukibeans, quinoa, thyme, rosemary,Valencia oranges, applesand raspberries were onlysome of the list’s entries. Herewere choices pointing to achef fully capable of cookingup a nutritional storm thelikes of which would hopefullyknock a chill cold in its tracks.What better way to endthan with a recipe for soup—awinter warmer that you canmake and call your own:Super-Easy Soba SoupServes two as a meal-main dish, four as a soup course.4 cups low-sodium chicken ½ cup white wineor vegetable broth, storeboughtis fine1½teaspoons butter or soymargarine or vegetablebasedoil8 medium radishes, slicedthin2 large handfuls of kale,stems removed, choppedfine2 tablespoons green salsa2 tablespoons fresh limejuice1–2 tablespoons dried or freshbasil, finely chopped½ teaspoon gingerOne 8-ounce package of sobapastaIn a large saucepan, add all ingredients but the soba.Bring to a slight boil for about half a minute and thensimmer covered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Addsoba and simmer gently for 10 more minutes.SudokuPuzzle author: James Vasile. For answers, see page 11.Delmi Garcia says mushrooms– grilled, stuffed,sautéed or baked – are afavorite winter ingredient.PHOTOS BY WILLIAM FARRINTONRead the Gazette while you’re standing on line OR online at www.foodcoop.com