A fabulous recipe for Ice Cubes, and another one for Rice

Ok, I'm kidding of course. Ice cubes are pretty simple. Hell, I'm probably one of the few people in this world who doesn't have an ice-maker in my freezer. I still use the trays. The trouble is that I needed ice so infrequently that I would find the ice had evaporated in the freezer, leaving behind foul tasting flakes of ice that would pollute the flavor of whatever I was putting it in. The trick I learned was to make ice, then store the cubes in a zip-lock bag. That way, the ice didn't evaporate or pick up any weird odors while sitting in the freezer for months on end (literally). So I guess this is about ice cubes after all.

But Ice cube trays have another really great use. Food storage.

Have you ever had a recipe that called for a tablespoon of tomato paste? Where the hell do you find that quantity of tomato paste? You need to open one of those little tins, use just one tbsp, and then put the rest in your refrigerator hoping that you'll need the rest before it gets fuzzy, and hoping that you'll remember that it's even there if you do need a small amount in the next few days.

Next time you need a small amount of tomato paste, open up several cans and measure out single tablespoons and place them in an ice-cube tray. Freeze them, and when they're hard, pop them out onto a zip-lock bag and keep it in the freezer. Next time you need a tablespoon of tomato paste, don't reach for the can opener, reach into the freezer. Voila!

Next time you have a recipe that calls for a roux, make up a huge batch. Measure out single tablespoons into an ice-cube tray. Pop them out when they're frozen and bag 'em up and put 'em back in the freezer.

I like to make chicken stock. It's good to have at hand, but it won't keep so long in the refrigerator, and I really don't want to try to can it myself. I pour premeasured amounts (one cup) into margarine tubs and freeze it. I then pop them out of the tubs and bag 'em up individually and keep 'em in the freezer. That way, I always have some on hand when I want it. You can do the same with beef stock or fish stock. Just grab a puck of stock when you need it.

So, here's the recipe for rice that I promised you in the header. It's for a quick and easy Spanish rice, the kind you always get at the Mexican restaurant right next to the refried beans. I have never been to Spain, and I'm sure that they don't make rice this way there, but I have ben to Mexico and a lot of Mexican restaurants and I can say (with confidence) that this fits the bill for your next fiesta.

Here's what you need;

1 cup of rice (long grain, white. I generally use basmati)
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup water
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp oregano
1/4-1/2 tsp chili powder (depending on how spicy you want)
Salt, to taste
1/4 cup frozen corn niblets
1/4 cup frozen peas


Pour the water, stock and tomato paste in a pot with the rice (if you started out with frozen stock and/or tomato paste, then make sure to thaw it in the water before adding the rice). Add the oregano and stir. Put it on high heat. When it starts to boil, reduce heat and cook covered for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, stir in corn and peas and cook (covered) for 2 more minutes then remove form heat and let sit for about 5 minutes. Then serve.

Another quick way to do this if you've got no chicken stock is to place a chicken bone in two cups of water with a tablespoon of tomato paste, oregano, chili powder, and a quarter of an onion. Bring it to a boil and simmer it for an hour or so, then fish out the onion and the bone, add the dry rice and cook just like above.

Now, you may or may not know this, but they sell a box of Spanish rice at the grocery store. It's basically a box of rice with a "seasoning" packet. Read the ingredients and you'll see things like "maltodextrin" and "hydrolized corn protien" (whatever the fuck that is). I'm sure there's nothing that's actually bad for you in there, but isn't it nicer to make things with a few simple ingredients at home than to pour the highly engineered contents of a foil envelope into a pot of boiling water? I know my way won't take you any longer.

Cheesus H. Christ!

Often, I get a wild idea in my head that I should try making something from scratch and then set out on a search of the web and the cookbook collection I have to find it. Usually, it's some convenience food that comes in a box or can that seems somehow wasteful or frivolous, but sometimes, it's a major undertaking. For example, today I made Lasagna from scratch. That entailed making tomato sauce, making sausage (I used ground beef and a turkey thigh plus spices and bacon fat), and making the pasta from flour and eggs. It pretty much took the better part of the day, but it came out good. Lots of left-overs in the freezer as well (about three dinners worth).

Recently, though, I turned my mind to a classic staple that is a major component of most kids diets. To wit, Mac & cheese. I have two boys (6 and 8) who would eat nothing but mac and cheese for every lunch and dinner. There's the Kraft stuff in a cardboard box, and since I'm cheep, I generally get the store brand by the cartload, but I feel like a slack-assed parent whenever I dump that crap into the pot for the boys.

I made up my mind the other day to try to make it from scratch. My first attempt was a disaster. You can't derive a recipe by reading the ingredients list on the box. that's all I'm gonna say about that. For those of you who read my blog (all 1 of you), you may remember my post on pancakes. You may recall that it was shockingly easy to make them. Well, the same is true for mac and cheese. In fact, you have all of the ingredients in the house right now. I bet you really do.

You will need

Some pasta (I use penne, but elbow macaroni would make the kids feel better, I suppose). I don't know how much it takes to fill two soup bowls, but that's how I measured it out for the boys. Of course, it'll be more once it's cooked, but the extra is good in case one or both of the kids want seconds.
3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp flour (all purpose)
1 cup of milk
1/2 cup grated cheese (cheddar works for me, but you could really use almost anything)
Some salt (to taste)


Get a pot of water on for the pasta and get that cooking as soon as you can, Get another pot (or pan) with the milk in it, and start heating that up. Don't bring the milk to a boil, just get it hot. Once it's hot, pour it back into the measuring cup and then melt the butter in that pan. Once it's starting to get all liquid-y, then sprinkle in the flour and stir that into the butter. You want to cook the flour in the butter (this is called a "roux", just in case you didn't know), but not so much that it starts to turn brown. Once the flour and butter are pretty much done, add the hot milk. It will foam a bit and thicken nicely as you continue to stir it on the heat. Now start stirring in the grated cheese. It will now start to look like real cheese sauce. Taste it and add salt (it will need it).

By now, the pasta is cooked. Drain it and then put it back in the pot and pour the cheese sauce on it. Stir and serve to a very appreciative child (or grown-up).

You see how fucking easy that is? Don't you feel silly for buying the boxes? I don't think this takes any more time or effort than the instant stuff, though it's probably a close call as to which one would be cheaper.