Recipe of the Day: Leeks With Ginger and Shrimp http://bitten.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/recipe-of-the-day-leeks-with-ginger-and-shrimp/

Now growing up, we didn’t eat many leeks. They have a rather exotic connotation for me, kinda like bok choi.  Mark, on the other hand, being of Welsh extraction (as in his mother came from Wales), is much more familiar with the scallion’s giant cousin.  Well, Mr. Bittman’s recipe sounded intriguing, so tonight I finally got the chance to try it out.

And wow, what a great recipe.  Easy to make and delicious.  I did make a couple of alterations to the recipe, however.

First off, I didn’t cook the leeks nearly as long as the recipe called for.  One minute before I started tossing them in the pan, then another three or four minutes before taking them off the heat.  I just like my vegetables a little less than completely cooked.

Secondly, I added a little chili paste (Sambal Oelek, to be exact). I can’t say exactly how much – I finished off what was left in a container.  Personally, I think I added a bit too much; it was spicy! However, Mark, being Mark, didn’t think it was spicy enough and added some chili oil to it after the fact.  I swear that man’s tongue is made out of asbestos.

The whole thing was served over a bed of jasmine rice.  Definitely a winner and a recipe we will be making again in the future.

These are carrots. These are NOT Sasha's favorite food.

• bananas
• applesauce
• butternut squash

What does she like? Well, she deigns to eat sweet potatoes, if you coax her enough. But her only real favorite is oatmeal baby cereal. That’s right, the tasteless gray gruel that most reasonable humans, baby or otherwise, would tolerate, not enjoy.

Does she appreciate the fact that I make her babyfood from real ingredients, lovingly baking the sweet potatoes and squash and steaming the carrots for her then running them through the food processor to make a nice purée easy for her toothless mouth to handle? No. All she does is make a face as if to say, “What is this slop you’re trying to force down my throat?”

At the tender age of seven months, my daughter has already proven herself quite the fickle eater.

Update:

Here’s a picture of Sasha eating carrots. Notice the look of disgust on her face. Shortly after this picture was taken, she threw up the carrots and a significant portion of oatmeal. Shortly after that, she went to bed.

Ingredients

• 1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 c firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 c bread flour (yes, BREAD flour. this is important.)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon (I use Penzey’s Vietnamese cassia, very strong stuff.)
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 3 c oatmeal, uncooked
• 2 c raisins

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Beat together butter and sugars in stand mixer with flat blade. Add egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla; beat well. In separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add flour mixture slowly to batter; mix well. Stir in oats and raisins; mix well. Using ice cream scoop, drop batter onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Chill in refrigerator for at least an hour. Bake 14-17 minutes in a 350°F oven. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack. Makes 24 cookies.