Freshly Brewed Babble: Cooking Time-Savers to Feel Like A Kitchen Whiz While Supporting BLM

In light of the dense history textbook chapter we’re currently living through, my university announced its decision to adhere to an “Accelerated Academic Calendar” for the approaching school year. As August nears, I’ve had my transition from dorm survival to apartment living on my mind. My own room with a bed big enough to prevent me from falling out (yes, this did happen, and I have X-rays to prove it), a bathroom floor clean of littered shotgunned beer cans, and most importantly, a kitchen filled with opportunity to cook for myself and escape the dining hall mayhem: what a concept. Being that I’m a self-proclaimed amateur—emphasis on amateur—chef, I’m most excited about whipping up some epic recipes that’ll keep the neighbors wondering who hired Gordon Ramsay.

As I mentioned, my junior year plans have been top-of-mind but overwhelmingly dominated by the critical steps being made to address the systemic racism in the US. I consider myself an ally for my black friends, neighbors, peers, fellow citizens and members of the human race. I’ve had a very reflective few weeks; I’ve put in the time and effort to read and educate myself before I ramble on writing about my own experience based on sheer white privilege. I tend to poke fun at and make sarcastic comments about aspects of my life that are products of my privilege that I am truly grateful for. It’s saddening, disappointing and, quite frankly, disgusting that racism and other biases are so deeply woven into the functions of this country. If I haven’t made it clear by my past blogs that Bon Appétit has become essentially a personality trait of mine, please refer to my Instagram to see a picture of my beloved BA Test Kitchen T-shirt birthday gift. As a devoted fan of the BA brand, I’m so let down and admittedly shed tears over the news that spiraled from inconsiderate photographs based on racial stereotypes taken in poor taste to lack of equal compensation and appreciation for the POC who are truly some of BA’s best assets. Workplace discrimination, police brutality, school-to-prison pipeline, tokenism, arrest disparities, the list of injustices goes on, and we are way overdue for true freedom for ALL in this country.

My time for learning how to be a better ally is not over, so circling back to my excitement over my apartment kitchen, here are some simple meal time-savers that’ll make people envy your “phone eats first” Instagram stories and make some room in your schedule so that you absolutely have no excuse to not educate yourself. Click HERE to see what you can do in those minutes you’re now saving.

---

Don’t Just Glaze This Over

Balsamic glaze, a single-step staple. Dress up your lackluster lunch meat sandwiches or drizzle on top of your delivery pizza, and you’ll have yourself convinced that you’ve had years of culinary training. Boil two cups of balsamic vinegar and reduce to low heat for about 25 minutes until it thickly coats the back of a spoon and drizzles off nicely. Store in an air-tight container. Side note: most recipes call for a sweetener, but take it from me, you can afford to cut out the extra sugar without sacrificing the great taste.

Photo by Chelsea Stern

Lost in The Sauce

I don’t really expect myself to make pasta sauce every evening I come home too exhausted to do much more than boil some orecchiette, which is obviously the superior pasta shape BTW. They’re like adorable little hats and impossible not to love. So, a true life hack is keeping some sauce on-hand from a day when you had a bit more motivation. Either doctor up a store-bought marinara or start with a base of EVOO, fresh tomatoes and tomato paste. Sweat some chopped onions and garlic. I actually prefer my garlic thinly sliced, not minced because it adds some texture and the flavor is a little less pungent. If you can handle the heat, add a generous amount of crushed chili flakes. Play around with some Italian seasoning and fresh herbs, like basil or thyme. For a blush sauce, add heavy cream. Store in an air-tight container, heat it up when you’re ready to use, add in some pasta water, coat your noodles and thank me later.

V-Edgy Dinners Are Better

This could probably go unsaid, but for the true rookies, chop up your usual cooking veggies in advance and freeze! They last nearly forever in the freezer, probably decades if you ask my Grandmom. It’s convenient and cheaper than buying those pre-chopped money scammer veggies from the grocery store. Onions and peppers are the go-to, but hey, there aren’t really rules here. Side note: just be careful when you throw some in a pan; the icy veggies might throw up a pretty big puff of smoke if your oil is too hot.

Photo by Chelsea Stern

Dry Rub-A-Dub-Dub

Inspired by the culinary commemoration of the end of slavery in the US with 2020 Juneteenth Cookout Takeover, I wanted to feature a recipe from the blog “This African Cooks.” It utilizes Suya, a Ghanaian seasoning that’ll make for a tasty dry rub on any protein and last for about three weeks in the fridge. For the ratio that perfectly blends cashews, olive oil, salt, cayenne, smoked paprika, garlic powder, nutmeg and onion salt, visit Erica’s page.

---

Do some prep and you’ll be sure to save some time, money and hassle later on. Want to make this into the perfect TV dinner or book club snack? Click HERE for a worthwhile list of entertainment to educate yourself with while you chow down. Black Lives Matter.

#BlackLivesMatter #food