Pesto Turkey Sandwiches (dairy and egg free): How to be like others

The other morning, I called out to Son, "Hey, I'm packing you some soon tofu stew (순두부 지개) for your school lunch in your thermos."

Son ran over and hesitated for a moment as I madly put things into boxes.  "Mom.  What do I tell people it is?"

"What do you mean tell people?  Tell them it's spicy tofu soup."  With that I assumed the conversation was over.

When he brought home the lunch, all of the soup was gone, and I casually asked, "Did you tell people what you ate?"

"Yes.  They asked.  I told them," he replied.  "But mom, do you think you can pack me some bread with something in it - you know, like a sandwich?  All my friends eat sandwiches."

Suddenly our conversation earlier made sense.  Son realizes he is different.  He notices and others notice that his food is not like the food of his classmates.  We hadn't run into this problem last year because lunch was not a part of his day, but since eating lunch at school, the differences between his food and his mates' foods was noticeable.  He already feels set apart from his classmates as he isn't allowed to participate in many of the cooking activities (Friday challah baking for one).

However, packing sandwiches pose a few logistical problems for me.  Son is allergic to dairy and egg which is a staple in most breads.  He loves paninis, which I make with french bread, but french bread doesn't taste good cold on its own to him (must be in a hot panini) and I cannot pack him a hot sandwich.  The school he goes to is also kosher, so ham, bacon or salami, which are things that he enjoys, are not available to him.  I began considering a few options and none of them seemed to be feasible. I began to think that he was going to have to be different and just get used to it.

However, as I strolled through Costco the other day, I happened upon these torta rolls.

Curious I picked them up and squeezed them.  Hmmm.  They were soft.  They looked pretty tasty.  They looked like I could make a good sandwich with them.  I saw this organic (EXPENSIVE) turkey sandwich meat, which tasted good (love sample Friday at Costco) and thought, ah...why not.

I don't know about you, but a sandwich that has just has a slice of turkey in it doesn't sound good.  It actually sounds bad.  But I remembered my new discovery which is pesto with no nuts and cheese and it came to me - a bit of pesto with the turkey on bread would be tasty.

I did a run through this weekend, and VOILA!  Son likes it!  Son can feel like he's like the others.   I'm sure there will be a point (very soon I hope) where he wants his Korean food in his thermos and he doesn't mind bringing the stinky food to his kosher classroom, but for now, as long as he tries and eats this sandwich and tries to enjoy it, I'll be happy.

As a side note, I did make an egg and cheese filled one as well, which ended up being a huge hit with Daughter #1.  Daughter #2 strangely preferred the version given to her brother.

Pesto Turkey Sandwiches (dairy and egg free)
Makes as many as you can until the pesto, turkey, or bread runs out

Ingredients
2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

turkey deli meat (your choice - I used organic)
torta rolls (or if you can find bread of your choice)

Method
In a food processor or blender, blend together basil leaves, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  Set aside.  As a note, this pesto can be stored in a glass gar, with a nice layer of olive oil drizzled on top to help preserve the green.  Good for about 1 week.

Slice torta roll in half.  Smear a nice healthy tablespoon of pesto on one side of the bread.  Add turkey.  (and egg and cheese if desired and not allergy prohibited.)  Repeat sandwich making as necessary.

Serve.

Printable recipe

Pasta with Pesto, Chicken, and Green Beans

For SH - for making pesto for Son and inspiring me to try the same.

As Children got older, many things changed.  Their clothing changed as they no longer needed clothes that looked good with a diaper stuffed underneath it.  Their needs changed as it became less about getting a bottle or breast in their mouth and more about cooking a meal that would satisfy them.  As a side note, I wonder if I knew how much work it would be to feed them if I would have ever pushed them towards solids?  Their communication with me changed as well, as they went from cries, smiles, whimpers and coos to complete sentences that express multiple emotions.  These changes I expected.

However, I never thought much another change - and that is the change in my living space.  When the Children were young, they generally kept much to themselves in a small contained area - whether it was the playpen, their crib or their stroller.  As Children began to grow older, their STUFF began to land in spaces of the house I wouldn't expect like my bathroom, underneath the sofa, and in my bed.  And now that Son has his own idea about his favorite toy, suddenly I've discovered that I'm walking on pins and needles.

Actually what I'm walking on are Lego pieces of varying sizes.  I land on them regularly and because of the nature of the carpeting of our house, it's hard to see where they are all the time. If I'm rushing around the house in a hurry to do something, forget it - I'll step on a bunch of them.  The other day, in an attempt to retrieve something for a darkened playroom I managed to step on a series of Legos that led to a series of screams, yells and G-rated expletives.  (poop!)

Now, I've tried asking Son to clean up his Lego pieces.  And he does.  He gets in there and picks up the pieces that are in a variety of places, but I am convinced that on some level he thinks that if he SPRINKLES the pieces throughout the house, he'll manage to grow some.  But he loves his projects, loves his ideas, and has decided that the entire house has to be a place for him to find something to build.  I'm all for keeping the house clean and neat and safe from potential foot injuries, but the other half of me realizes that sometimes creativity is messy, thinking requires space to spread out, and that in the joy of the moment of creation, cleaning up is the last thing on Son's mind. 

This doesn't mean that it doesn't drive me crazy.  My friend this ecard for me based on a Facebook post I had made a while ago.   It pretty much sums up how I feel about it all.

But I'm embracing the change that comes from having Children.  Although my space seems a bit insane and dangerous, it's a place that is filled with the laughter of Children and the chaos of happiness.  It's not a bad thing to have in my adult space and it's part of the adjustment I make. 

Change also happens most often in the kitchen because of Son's allergies.  Although I love pesto, I never thought at all of making it at home because of the whole forbidden nut and dairy thing.  However, a couple months back, friend SH brought over a delicious pesto pizza for Son, something like a flatbread with roasted potatoes and onions and a green pesto sauce that she had made for him that was safe for him to consume.  It was completely delicious and I'd been pondering how to make it work for something that I make at home and came up with this idea.  Pesto with chicken, pasta, and green beans.  The end result is really easy, a great pack-to-school lunch, and everyone in my home devoured it without stopping.  Son, as it turns out, ADORES pesto in this form and has asked for it as a dipping sauce for a variety of unusual food items.  (Waffles are the strangest.) 

This can be served warm or cold and tastes great both ways.

Pasta with Pesto, Chicken, and Green Beans
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients
1 lb of pasta
1 lb of cooked chicken, cut up into bite sized pieces - either a rotisserie chicken or you can just cook up some chicken breasts.  Leftover roasted chicken here is also perfect.
12 oz of green beans

2 cups fresh basil leaves
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper

Cheese (your choice) for serving

Method
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Blanch green beans for about 1 minute.  Remove from water and immediately rinse in cold water.  Bring water in pot back up to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions.

While pasta is cooking, cut green beans into 1 inch pieces.  Set aside.

To make basil pesto, into a food processor or blender, add basil leaves, olive oil, cloves, salt and pepper and puree/process until mixture is even in consistency.  Taste - it should be a little bit salty.  Add additional salt and pepper if desired.  Set aside until pasta is fully cooked.

Once pasta is cooked, drain.  Immediately add green bean pieces, chicken and pesto.  Toss well together.  Season, if necessary with additional salt and pepper.

Printable recipe

Whole Wheat Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies: The fingerprints we miss

The other day, I overheard Daughter #2 saying to Daughter #1, "I'm only going to have one kid. More than that is just too many."

I quickly whipped my head around and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Mommy.  You always tell us that three kids is a lot of work," she stated.  

I asked, "Do you think Mommy doesn't like having three kids?"

"You always say three is hard work so I'm only having one," and she walked off.

After she left, I wondered what decisions she would make for her future life based on her current one.  I grew up with two brothers (younger) and had in my head that I definitely wanted an older brother and that I wanted my kids to have an older brother.  As we all know, this did not happen.

I wonder how many of my actions will determine their actions.  I wonder how many of my own choices help them decide their own.  I'm curious to see if Children take on the strongest parts of my personality - my activist side, my cooking side, my writing side...my baking side.

I do know that these cookies caused a major stir in the house because of the smell of brown butter.  Daughter #2 has never been one to INSIST on eating a cookie after I've told her that one is enough but this particular bunch has her all worked up.  She came home from school today after I had baked a bunch for the teachers and danced around the kitchen saying, "But I want one SOOO BAD!"  I told her no and to eat her fruit and her crackers for snack.  I heard her mutter later, "When I'm a mom, I'm just going to bake and eat them all."  Hmm....not sure about my influence on this point.

The trickier part of these cookies are making brown butter.   (For a great tutorial, check out this post on Simply Recipes.) After that, there is nothing different from a regular cookie making trek except for the use of whole wheat flour.  Before you tell me that you're not interested in a whole wheat cookie, let me assure you that no one will know and no one can tell.  They'll only wonder what makes this cookie so special. I love it because the whole wheat gives a thicker, less "spread out" texture and toasted flavor of whole wheat provides an extra interesting note to this killer cookie.

Whole Wheat Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce
Makes 5 dozen

Ingredients
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3 cups whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method
Make brown butter.  Heat a heavy pot or skillet over medium heat and add butter pieces.  Whisk frequently to ensure even melting of the butter. After about 5 to 6 minutes of melting, the butter will foam up and subside.  At this point, watch the butter carefully to see if the bottom of the pan is becoming covered in brown specks and the color of the butter has turned from yellow to warm brown.  The difference between brown butter and burnt butter (which is used in other recipes) is about 15 seconds. Once the pan bottom has golden specks, remove butter from heat and set aside to cool for about 2 hours.

 Whisk together flour,  baking powder, baking soda and salt into a mixing bowl.  Set aside until needed.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the browned butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer; beat on low speed for about 1 minute until just mixed . Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition, then add the vanilla extract.  Scrape sides of the bowl.  

Add the flour mixture and mix slowly until just combined.  The dough will be stiff.  Add chocolate chips and mix until chocolate chips are incorporated throughout the dough.   Scoop cookies however you normally like; I use a tablespoon scoop.   Make sure to lightly press down the tops of the cookies so that they have a chance to spread out evenly and nicely.

Bake for 16 minutes, until golden brown and the flavor of nutty brown butter fills your home.

Serve warm  or cool.

Printable recipe

Korean Style Cold Bok Choy: Why practice?

For KY - you continually challenge me and make me try harder.

I've been on a bit of a quest recently to improve the quality of practice, everywhere I have a chance.  Mostly this means that Daughters and Son are subjected to some strange experiments, but it also bleeds over into my work volunteering at schools and in Sunday School.  What is the goal?  Be more efficient in practice.

I've been reading the book, Practice Perfect, and I haven't even gotten that far in it (Rule 2 out of 42) but I keep going back to the one point daily.  The rule is to "Practice the 20" which according to the book is about deciphering and analyzing which 20 percent of the things that are most important are you going to practice 80 percent of the time.  In the books words, "...to become great, you should focus more on practicing the 20 percent of things that most create value than the other 80 percent of things you could plausibly spend time on" (29).  Now, this looks like a lot of things to a lot of people, so I've been thinking and mulling over what it means for me and those with whom I have the most contact. (Children and students.)

I decided to apply a little of the book to Daughters' swim practices, because I am currently their teacher.  It makes for more flexible scheduling and allows me to take advantage of the pool when it is less busy.  Daughters have been doing tons of laps with me, over and over and over again, and in my mind, I figured, yes, this is practice.  But repeatedly I kept on seeing the girls not improve their stroke, but rather deteriorate in their stroke, and as I am not a swim teacher, I couldn't figure out HOW to help them.  I was good at getting them into the water and forcing them to swim their 800 to 1200 yards when we had a chance, but in terms of refining and perfecting their stroke, not so much.  I questioned, WHY ISN'T IT GETTING BETTER!!!

The book challenged me to rethink what I was asking them to do.  I wanted them to get better at the complete strokes, the complete movement across the pool, but what I needed to do was to break down those strokes into small drills to force them to improve on tinier parts.  I had assumed that since Children "knew" how to swim, that they no longer needed to practice the smaller parts of each individual stroke since CLEARLY (not) they had already learned the stroke.  The problem I didn't realize was that knowing and MASTERY are two different things and I needed to move them towards mastery.  The way to mastery?  Practice 20 percent of the important things they need to do 80 percent of the time.  I wasn't clear what that was, but I challenged myself to rethink our 40 minutes in the water to make it more efficient.  What I came up with was it wasn't the distance that we did in 40 minutes, but it would be how we would use the 40 minutes to be better.  32 minutes of our 40 minutes would be spent on drills, which would essentially distort and focus individual swimming techniques and make Daughters strengthen specific areas.  8 minutes, I decided to just have them swim as they normally had, full complete strokes.

I researched a few drills and brought them to the water today.  I explained to the girls the math behind the practice - 80% spent on working on smaller parts of the stroke and 20% on practicing the full stroke itself.  What was so interesting is that as an experienced swimmer, there wasn't a significant difference in my doing drills versus the full stroke.  Of course I felt more stretched and pushed, but I didn't flail on the drills. Daughters however, despite having been proficient and good on whole strokes STRUGGLED through the drills.  In one, I asked them to swim on their side and kick  with their heads relaxed and one arm pointed straight up in the water and the other relaxed at their side and neither of them could swim straight across without swerving.  It took 5 lengths of that drill in order for them to figure out how to position their bodies and get their legs and arms long and balance on their side and still kick.  We ran through a few other drills and then I allowed them to swim the whole strokes.  After months of no improvement, I could clearly see improvement in their overall strokes.

It's a lot more work trying to figure out the smaller pieces to work the practice. but I can say that from this small experiment (and there have been many tiny little ones this week as well) that I'm ready to alter how I view practice.  Encouraging and pushing mastery of the small fundamentals truly impacts the overall growth and improvement.  This totally also applies to cooking.  Mastery over smaller things - choosing the right produce, chopping, boiling, sauteeing, blanching, all work together to make a great meal.

I've decided to focus on (drill) a particular Korean technique, a classic Korean technique for making many green vegetables - blanching and then squeezing out the excess liquid.  I love this method of cooking vegetables because it can be made ahead and then seasoned at the last minute.  It's the same technique I use to make the spinach side dish, ubiquitous at so many Korean restaurants.  I applied this technique to bok choy, with the idea that I could make a side dish that would have a similar feel as spinach, but just done with bok choy.  The results were great and Children and friends gobbled it down.  There is room on seasoning, by adding soy sauce or other things to make it fit the flavors you're looking for, but the technique of blanching and squeezing out the liquid is one worth learning.  

Korean Style Cold Bok Choy
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 lb bok choy
¼ teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon crushed sesame seeds

Method
Fill a large pot with water and add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil.

While water is boiling, prepare bok choy. Trim the base of the bokchoy, cutting off the stem, so that the bokchoy separates into individual leaves. Wash well.

Once water is boiling, add bok choy all at once and stir, mixing into the water, allowing to cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and drain all the water.

Arrange bok choy in a ring in your colander,so as to promote cooling of the bok choy.

Once bok choy is cool enough to handle, take a handful, and squeeze, removing excess water from the bok choy. Repeat until all bok choy has been squeezed.

Lay bok choy out on a cutting board and cut into 1 inch sections. Bok choy can be chilled at this point and dressed before serving OR can be dressed and served immediately.

Over bok choy, sprinkle salt and toss well. Taste and add more salt if desired. Drizzle sesame oil and add sesame seeds and toss together again. Serve immediately.

Printable recipe

If you're interested in the book on practice.

Korean Twice Cooked Chicken Wings: Understanding my child

I know that the blog post have literally dwindled down to the tiniest trickle of almost non-existence.  I've been going through a bit of emotional upheaval and stress and it seems that I am under-qualified for motherhood.

My latest stress has been over Daughter #2 and her true nature - an introvert.  In my mind she is this confident, well-spoken, audacious student, but who she really is is quiet, internal, introspective, and introverted.  She spent the first three years of preschool only nodding her head yes or no when asked a question.  She began coming out of her shell her final year of preschool, thanks to the lovely teachers (J and Y) at her school and in kindergarten I began seeing some hints that perhaps she might come out of her shell.

But she hasn't really.  I haven't given up hope and sometimes that hope pushes me to force her into situations that I shouldn't be pushing her.  Our most recent situation was the Bible Verse Memorization Festival that we held at our church.  It was our first time hosting it and I didn't give it much thought.  I assumed Daughters (Son is too young) would just do it and it would be no big deal.

Upon receiving their assigned verses, both Daughters flopped into the minivan and on our way home from church adamantly declared that they were NOT going to do it. Daughter #1 was very vocal and protested vehemently.  Daughter #2, I could see in the rear view mirror, was completely withdrawn and in another place.  I just quietly reminded the girls that yes, they needed to do this and they could do it with enough practice.

Daughter #2 proceeded to have four meltdowns for unexplained reasons the rest of that evening, and it became clear to me that something was really bothering her.  I pulled her aside and asked what was wrong and she declared that she didn't want to perform the Bible verse in front of an audience.  I told her I needed time to think about what the right thing to do and would get back to her an answer.

I took a step back and slowly thought about the situation.  I thought of what my objective was and what the desired outcome would be.  I considered long and hard and came up with two disparate objectives.

#1.  Get her to do the required task.

#2.  Help her to learn to do the required task.

They seem similar but they really aren't.  #1 really focuses on the outcome of the actual performance.  #2 focuses on the idea that the process of learning is more important than the actual performance.  The tiger mom in me (ROAR) wanted to push #1.  "You will memorize this verse; you will get up in front of people, and you will do it."  But the teacher in me, which generally doesn't turn on around Children, spoke up.  "You know your child.  You know she doesn't easily get up in front of people.  How is forcing her to do it right off the bat going to teach her anything?"

In the end I went with #2, despite the fact that many around me (including Husband initially) felt that forcing her to do it would teach her to do it in the future.  I explained that I saw her doing it in the future, but it just didn't have to be in four weeks. Her road could be a little bit longer to get to the end result.

I explained to Daughter #2 that she did not have to get up on stage and perform her memorization.  She did, however, HAVE to memorize it.  "The only people who are going to care whether you learn it or not are Mommy and God.  You'll have to do it for the two of us.  I will however, give the entrance fee to the festival, and SHOULD YOU decide that you want to recite it on that day, you may.  If you choose not to do it, it will not be because you didn't memorize it, but instead because you choose not to perform in front of others."   Despite giving Daughter #2 an expectation that I knew she could manage (she memorized Psalm 23 in less than two days and recited it for me) her moods were erratic and unpredictable for the four weeks leading up to the festival. There were lots of spontaneous tears, shrieks of anger, a time when I was playing piano for church service only to see a little girl bolt down the aisle and land in my lap as I played, and a variety of unexpected unusual behavior.  I didn't know what was bothering her.

Turns out, it was Big Sister.  Daughter #1 informed Daughter #2, that no matter what, in two years, she would in fact HAVE to perform the Bible memory verse as a 3rd grader.  This two year future event plagued the psyche of Daughter #2 and made her nuts.  I suggested to her that we focus on simply just making it through this year before worrying about two years in the future.  It didn't help.  The only thing that appeased her was the same offer I made for her this current year.

On the day of the festival itself, I still had some hope that Daughter #2 might overcome her fear and get up and try.  Her verse was memorized perfectly and I even found her saying timidly to me, "I think I might want to do it."  She changed her mind several times over the course of the morning, and I tried not to react too much either way.  I clarified that she had fulfilled her end of the bargain and that whatever she chose to do at the festival was up to her.

In the end, she chose not to do it. Truthfully I was a little bit frustrated that she didn't, because other kids made it up there to do it, and you could see the fear in their eyes, but they got up and tried.  And I give much kudos and admiration for that.  I kept on hoping that she would see others pushing through and she would as well.  But I did watch her, silently observing, calculating, and measuring the risks and rewards.  I saw her carefully examine each participants' face, and I saw her measuring the looks of pride and joy on the parents' faces as their own child performed.  Watching her carefully looking at others gave me reassurance that she in fact did fulfill objective #2, learning to do the required tasks.

I'm hoping that after she observed other participants not being eaten up by alligators, not bursting into spontaneous flames, not turning into pumpkins, and not bawling their eyes out, her own worst fears about performance will begin to be alleviated and she too, can get up and try.  Maybe not this next time, but soon.

Daughter #2's favorite thing to eat?  Chicken wings.  She particularly loves this new creation I came up last week and it appeased her for a long while and kept her occupied preventing a couple of meltdowns.  The mix of two types of cooking, roasting and braising, yields a really wonderful texture and flavor.   It's not difficult to make (the roasting part is just merely sticking it the oven) and it can be made ahead by roasting the chicken first and just doing the braising portion right before serving.   Daughter #1 said, "THIS is my favorite chicken." Daughter #2 showed me it was the best chicken by eating 8.  They want it again this week.

Korean Twice Cooked Chicken Wings
Serves 4

Ingredients
2 lbs chicken wings, sectioned off into wings and drummettes (or if you’re lucky only the one part that you like)
¼ cup sake
¼ cup soy sauce
½ teaspoon black pepper

¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup honey
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons sake
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 inch ginger root, peeled and sliced into thin disks
2 or 3 dried whole chili pepper, or in a pinch, any fresh whole chili pepper will work (thai dragon or jalapeno)

Toasted sesame seeds for garnish

Method
Mix ¼ cup sake and ¼ cup soy sauce in a container where you will marinate the chicken. Add the chicken. Cover and marinate - at least 4 hours, if not overnight.

Preheat oven 400. Drain chicken from marinade. Line roasting pan with foil and lay chicken in a single layer and roast at 400 degrees for 1 hour, until chicken is golden dark brown.

While chicken is roasting, begin preparing braising liquid. To a large pan (big enough to hold 2 lbs of chicken wings) add soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, sake, rice vinegar, garlic cloves, ginger, and chili to a large pan. Bring mixture to a boil AFTER the chicken is removed from the oven. Once braising liquid is boiling, add roasted wings to the mixture, reducing heat to simmer gently, until a thin, shiny glaze forms over the chicken. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

Serve hot with plenty of napkins.

Printable recipe

Sake Chicken Wings: Building community

In recent days, my normally quiet, peaceful, child-friendly community has been shaken up.  One of our own community members has perpetrated crimes against others of our community and the neighborhood, community and city have been shocked and outraged by the incidents.

It hasn't been an easy week as somehow I have found myself midst much of the dialogue about the crimes as well as conversations about how to proceed after the crimes.   Because of the very nature of the incidents, it has become clear in the past week that our community has to get to know one another.  This week I met so many new faces, even though they are old people of the neighborhood; I have shaken hands with as many people as possible and most likely have failed at putting the proper name with each face that I have seen. I've met people that I've only heard about and have even gotten to know fairly quickly people that were not known to me even a week ago.  It has been a week filled with anger, outrage, discourse, conversation, and unfortunately much disagreement.

Our community is in the process of recovery and healing after the crimes and dealing with lots of anger and frustration.  As we begin the process of trying to build up our community and getting to know one another, I find myself turning to the words of Atticus Finch, in Harper Lee's novel, To Kill a Mockingbird.  In this particular passage, Scout, Atticus' daughter comes home, completely frustrated from a day at school.  Her day at school leads to anger towards her nanny which just puts her in an awful mood. At the end of the day, when she's in her arms of her father venting her frustration, he gives her some advice.   "...if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks.  You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it" (Lee 33).   In order for me to manage being a part of this community, it will help me immensely if I can just understand individual people and where they are coming from.  I need to know from where they are coming, where they are going, and where they've been.  I need to stop thinking about how people are so different from me, and instead focus on how I can understand them better.

I won't lie.  It really hasn't been easy at all.  I've suffered many sleepless nights this past week, and the sleeplessness has less to do with the crimes themselves and more to do with the rebuilding of this space in which my family and I live.  But I keep hearing Atticus telling me, in his ever-so-gentle, matter-of-fact way (by the way - if you've not read the book - you MUST), that I too, must climb into another's skin and walk around in it.

I've been preoccupied and unwilling to cook this week, but this dish of sake chicken wings, I did manage to make.  It is the ease and mindlessness of prep that allowed me to put this dish together, and with steamed rice and a bit of ginger sauce, Children gobbled them up with little complaint and discussion.   It was nice, just to think about something else, however brief.

Sake Chicken Wings with Ginger Sauce
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 ½ to 2 lbs chicken wings, sectioned off into wings and drummettes (or if you’re lucky only the one part that you like)
½ cup sake
½ cup soy sauce

2 inches ginger root, peeled finely chopped (I use my mini food processor)
1 scallion, finely chopped
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon salt

Method
Mix sake and soy sauce in a container where you will marinate the chicken. Add the chicken. Cover and marinate - at least 4 hours, if not overnight.

Make ginger sauce by mixing together finely chopped ginger root, scallion, oil and salt in a bowl. Mix and set aside.

After chicken has marinated, prepare to cook. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a roasting pan or baking sheet with aluminum foil. Drain marinade (throw it away) and carefully lay chicken wings in a single layer on a baking pan.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until wings are dark golden, much fat has rendered, and the skin is crispy.

Serve hot with ginger sauce.

Printable recipe

I'm thinking the next time I invite a few neighbors over, I'll be making these.