Pear, Cheese and Almond Mini Galettes

The pear is an underappreciated fruit, especially in baking.  Pears are cheap, sweet and abundant in the late fall and early winter.  These desserts would be perfect for a party—they are handheld but more substantial than a cookie.  The crust is slightly sweet and fortified with almond paste, which is a little pricey but completely worth it. 

The crust is brought together similarly to pie crust, then set to chill.   A cream cheese and brown sugar mixture is then plopped on top and then a quarter pear.  20 minutes in the oven, and you have a very special Christmas dessert.

Pear, Cheese and Almond Mini Galettes

Makes 20

For the crust

2 cups all purpose flour

4 oz chilled almond paste (not almond meal)

1 stick very cold butter cut into cubes

pinch salt

3 tbsp sugar

¼ cup plus a few tbsp ice water as needed

Cream cheese mixture

8 oz cream cheese

¼ cup brown sugar

zest of one lemon

½ tsp almond extract

5 small pears or 4 medium pears, peeled, cored.  The pears should be slightly under-ripe but still juicy. 

juice of ½ lemon

2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp flour

Finishing sugar

In a mixing bowl combine butter, flour, almond paste, salt and sugar with a pastry cutter until well blended and the butter is in small pea-sized pieces.  Carefully with your fingers, blend the mixture together until it begins to combine.  Add the ice water 1 tbsp at a time and combine by hand until the mixture comes together easily in your hands.  Without working the dough too much, bring the dough into a ball and divide in two and cover in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. 

Soften the cream cheese and whisk in the brown sugar, lemon zest and almond extract.  Put aside.

Peel and core the pears.  Cut lengthwise and then then again widthwise into  quarters.  If you have larger pears, then slice lengthwise and divide the width into thirds.  You want pear sizes that can fit into each small galette.  Put the sugar, flour, pears and lemon juice in a bowl. 

Preheat the oven to 350.  Take the dough out of the freezer.  On a heavily floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick.   I didn’t have a 4” diameter cutter so I used a large wine glass.  Use whatever you have—a small bowl, or just cut them with a knife.  They are free-form so they don’t have to be perfect.  After you have cut out your crust, place ½ tbsp of the cheese mixture and then a pear slice on top.  Crimp the edges to fold around the pear.  Sprinkle a heavy dose of finishing sugar (plain sugar will work just fine) and place on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper.  Bake for 20 minutes or until the bottoms are slightly brown and the crust has set.  Allow to cool and enjoy!

Chocolate Crepe Cake with White Chocolate Peppermint Mousse

I’m pretty proud of myself for this one.  I have loved crepes for many many years and used to subsist on them in medical school.  This dessert would be perfect for Christmas dinner.  It is chocolate crepes wedged between a simple white chocolate peppermint mousse.  After it has chilled, the whole cake is doused in a glossy chocolate ganache and topped with powdered sugar.   The dessert is sweet but not overly sweet. 

Getting the technique down for making the crepes can take a bit of practice.   The beauty is that if you need some freebies you can easily make another half batch of batter to get enough crepes for the cake.   The first few crepes are rarely perfect.  You need about 20 for the beautiful layering effect.

I’m not usually a big fan of nonstick pans, but they are essential for having good results for the crepes.   I have a dedicated 9 inch crepe pan, however you could use any 9 inch non-stick pan with similar results.    Tricks to making good crepes include making sure your pan is not too hot, medium to low medium heat should be plenty.  The batter should be thin enough to easily coat the whole pan before the batter cooks –the excess can be poured off.  If your batter is too thick, then add some extra milk.  The video here is a good visual however I don’t think the butter to coat the pan is necessary and he doesn’t pour off excess batter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNIcZSt_I0E

Chocolate Crepe Cake with White Chocolate Peppermint Mousse

For the mousse

2 cups whipping cream

¼ cup powdered sugar

10 oz white chocolate

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp peppermint extract

3 oz candy canes

For the crepes

2 cups milk

6 eggs

1 cup flour

½ cup cocoa powder

2 tsp espresso powder

¼ cup powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla

½ stick melted butter

pinch of salt

For the ganache

6 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate

½ cup heavy cream

Extra powdered sugar for the top of the cake. 

For the mousse.  In a mortal and pestle or in a plastic bag with the back of a pan, pulverize the candy canes until it is a fine powder.  A few slightly larger pieces of candy cane are ok.  In an electric mixer, whip the cream with the powdered sugar until soft peaks form.  In the microwave on high heat in a glass heatproof bowl, melt the chocolate (if it is a whole block, then chop up the chocolate) for 30 seconds.  Remove and stir.  Again, cook the chocolate in the microwave, this time for 20 seconds.  Stir.  If your chocolate is not completely melted, cook for 10 seconds at a time until melted.  Do not overcook as white chocolate can seize easily.  Fold the white chocolate, peppermint, vanilla and candy canes into cream.  Chill the mousse.

For the crepes—in a blender sift the cocoa and espresso.  Add the eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla.  Blend on high for 30 seconds.  Add the flour and blend until well combined and there are no lumps.  Add the melted butter and pulse for a few seconds.   Strain the batter.  Over medium heat with a nonstick pan, pour about 2 tbsp batter into your 9 inch non-stick pan.  Swirl around the batter until it coats the entire pan and pour off any excess batter back into the bowl.  Cook the crepe until small bubbles form and the edges begin to separate from the sides of the pan.  Flip the crepe and cook for another 10-20 seconds.  Place the crepes on a plate and continue until you run out of batter.  When you are done, place the crepes in the fridge and chill. 

To assemble the cake.  Using a 9 inch springform pan with a piece of parchment paper on the bottom, stack the crepes and place a thin coat of mousse between each crepe.  Continue until your run out of mousse.  Chill.  When ready to glaze with ganache, invert the cake onto a cake stand and remove the base of the springform pan.  To make the ganache, mix the chocolate and cream in a heatproof glass bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, 20 seconds then 10 seconds as above, stirring between each until the chocolate is melted into the cream.  Pour on the cake while it is still cold and spread around the sides to completely frost the cake.  Clean off the excess. 

I made a stencil for the snowflake using the template found here:

http://www.altogetherchristmas.com/crafts/stencils.html.  I printed the stencil and then using an exacto knife cut out a replica on a piece of cardstock.  Then sift powdered sugar over the stencil on the cake.  To slice, run a very sharp knife under hot water and dry.   Serve and enjoy!

Roasted Cauliflower and Barley Salad with Caesar Dressing

Merry Christmas!  I have a few minutes to spare.  I am going to TRY and post some fun recipes for Christmas and I have some good ideas for salads, appetizers and deserts.  Salads seemed like a good place to start—as a good recovery from Thanksgiving (for now) and also as a nice accompaniment to a main course (for Christmas).

This warm salad is substantial enough for lunch or a light dinner, but would also taste great with a roast or fish.  Roasted cauliflower is probably one of the best foods in the world, and something about a smooth coat of egg, garlic and parmesan from the Caesar dressing makes it so luxurious.  Don’t be scared of the sugar, it just helps it become more crispy brown—it doesn’t make it too sweet.  The egg, not unlike carbonara, coats the grain and cooks through, so don't fear the raw egg.
 

1 head cauliflower
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp olive oil 
1 tsp pepper

8 ounces barley 

1 egg yolk
1 clove garlic
2 tbsp. lemon juice (from 1 to 1/12 lemons)
1/4 cup grated parmesan
pepper
1 anchovy fillet
pinch salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 cup olive oil 

4 sprigs thyme, leaves picked, finely chopped 

1/2 cup pine nuts 

Preheat the oven to 400.  Cut up the cauliflower into florets and spread them on a cookie sheet lined with foil.  Sprinkle the salt, sugar and drizzle the olive oil.  Cook the cauliflower until golden, approximately 25-30 minutes.   On a separate baking sheet, bake the pine nuts for 5 minutes at 400 when the cauliflower is almost done.  

Cook the barley in salted boiling water according to instructions.  (I bought parboiled barley and cooked for 12 minutes).  Drain when tender. 

To make the dressing, combine egg yolk, garlic, lemon juice, pepper, pinch of salt and anchovy in a blending.  Add the oil slowly and then the parmesan.  Blend for 1 minute until creamy.  While the barley, pine nuts and cauliflower are still warm, combine all ingredients in a bowl including the thyme.  The warmth of the salad should cook the egg through.

Sherry Poached Apples

I just got back from a wonderful trip to New England.  How luxurious to sneak a few fall days in with beautiful leaves, lattes and gingerbread pancakes.  I even got lucky enough to spend a few days with my lovely grandfather who took me apple picking.  The trees were full of red beauties—we picked up Cortlands, Empires and Pinovas. 

I made a similar dessert a few weeks ago for a party using pears.  I avoided using cinnamon, instead opting for a combination of vanilla bean, fresh ginger, cardamom and black peppercorns.  Sherry is a great wine to use for dessert.  This dessert is easy to make and keeps well in the fridge.  The syrup cooks down to a rich caramel that is beautiful warmed and drizzled over ice cream. 

It’s still hot as heck here in Dallas, but I’m going to pretend it is fall and make a simple fall dessert.  Humor me, ok?

Sherry Poached Apples

4 large apples good for baking, peeled, cored and quartered

1 750ml bottle sherry

2 cups water

1 cup sugar

1 knob ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

1 tsp black peppercorns

½ vanilla bean, scraped

2 green cardamom pods

pinch salt

In stockpot, bring sherry, water, sugar, ginger, peppercorns, vanilla bean scrapings and pod, cardamom and salt to boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium low, add apples, cover and cook for 15 minutes or until apples are tender but not mushy.  Remove apples and set aside to cool. 

Bring heat back to medium high and cook liquid down until it is a thick, dark syrup, about the consistency of maple syrup, will yield about ¾ of a cup.  This will take about 20 minutes at least.  Allow to cool and strain.  Serve with vanilla ice cream.  If you refrigerate, allow to reheat in microwave on high for 1 minute.

Cannellini, Tuna and Herb Salad

This is the perfect summer lunch.  Light, refreshing and healthy with a huge dose of fresh herbs.  You can use whatever herbs you have on hand, parsley and mint are always excellent, rosemary and tarragon would also taste delicious.  This salad would be great on sandwiches, on lettuce or just by itself served with hard boiled eggs, avocado and tomato.  The options are really endless. 

2 cans tuna drained

1 15 oz can cannellini beans drained and rinsed (other white beans such as great northern would also be good)

1 cup loosely packed roughly chopped herbs.  I used a combination of parsley, mint, dill, basil, lavender and thyme

juice of 2 lemons

2 tbsp sherry vinegar (red wine vinegar would also be good)

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp salt

1 small shallot finely chopped

pepper

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Make the vinaigrette by adding the herbs, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, shallots, salt, pepper and oil.  Allow to sit 5 minutes to let the herbs soften.  In a large bowl, combine tuna and beans and then add the vinaigrette.  Combine everything.  Enjoy!  

Spicy Thai Eggplant Dip

How’d that happen?  I started this blog when I was a 4^th year medical student, anxiously awaiting the future.  Tomorrow is my first shift as a 4^th year resident running a busy labor and delivery.  Residency has been no doubt the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but in many ways, also the easiest.  I love what I do and feel so blessed by the challenges and rewards of my job.  I sure hope I learn a lot this year before I am released into the wild!

In residency you can really only have one hobby and even though I continue to cook, keeping up this blog has proven to be very difficult.  I still exercise with frequency, which is no minor feat to stay in shape through my busiest year.   Hopefully I’ll have more time in the next 12 months to update here. 

I have been able to keep the weight I lost off for more than a year (!) and even gave all of my old clothes to the women’s shelter—my closet now filled in with new attire.  Who needs all of that temptation in the form of flowy dresses and baggy jeans sitting in the back of the closet?

In attempt to stay thin, I have been cooking many more healthy foods.  I will try and post healthy and easy recipes this summer for everybody to try.  The easiest way to eat well is to buy and prepare your own food, eating whole grains, lean proteins, fruits and vegetables.  Eating well is completely delicious by using herbs, spices and lots of fresh produce.  And, unfortunately for my husband, bake less.

This recipe is based off an appetizer that is served at one of our favorite restaurants near our house.  The tangy eggplant dip is served with sticky rice, which is used as a chip of sorts to scoop it up.  It could just as easily be served with pita or tortilla chips and be equally delicious. I emulated the recipe and wanted to amp it up a bit by grilling the eggplant, peppers, garlic and shallots that go in.  I know sticky rice isn't a whole grain but, oh well, it's good.

Spicy Thai Eggplant Dip

1 eggplant

4 green or red thai peppers (more if you like really spicy)

1 shallot whole

2 cloves garlic in their shell

6 kaffir lime leaves (can be found at Asian grocery stores, or if you are my neighbor, I have a plant)

1 handful of cilantro, stems and leaves

juice of 1 lime

2 tbsp fish sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp sugar

2 tbsp vegetable oil

Wrap the whole shallot, garlic cloves and peppers in a foil packet.  Cut the eggplant in half and prick it with a fork all over.  Grill the eggplant and peppers until the eggplant is tender, about 30-40 minutes.  Peel some of the eggplant  (I like the texture of leaving some of the peel and it has more fiber) and cut the eggplant into cubes.  In the food processor, add the peeled shallots, garlic, peppers, lime leaves.  Add the lime juice, fish sauce and sugar.  Roughly chop the cilantro and add.  Whiz all of the ingredients until everything is combined and then slowly add the oil.  Serve room temp or cold with sticky rice or chips. 

Superbowl Snack Stadium

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a picture of a snack stadium on the internet.  I knew then that I had to make one for the superbowl.  Let me tell you people, marry an engineer.  My wonderful husband designed, crafted and wired a beautiful stadium out of foam board and then completed it with lights and a working LCD screen with our own advertising.  All I had to do was fill it in with spinach artichoke dip field and crab dip end zones.  I painted the lines with sour cream and filled the stands with chips, veggies, dips and brownies.  Let's just say we had fun. 

Merry Christmas Everyone

Merry Christmas Everyone

Have been busy.  Things happened.  Including not blogging and delivering my first set of triplets.

Andy and me after we finished running.  Look tired? I can't walk.

Running a lot.  Every Sunday a 10 mile jog around the lake leading up to running a half marathon yesterday, and now limping around.  I think I bummed my knee.  Anybody know a good orthopedist?

My publishing debut

Getting published in a cookbook.  This humble potato soup recipe, one of my first blog entries, was picked by the editors of a lovely website Food52 to be published as part of a compilation of recipes on their website.  The cookbook is beautiful and is evidence of the wonderful and inspiring home cooks across America.  You should buy it for Christmas.

Baking hundreds of cookies, including these beauties.  I just love the Christmas palms. Frosting them took forever but I think they were worth it.   Here is a good guide about how to decorate sugar cookies with royal icing.  I used Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook for my recipes.

These cookies were inspired by this lovely idea.  Basically, they are citrus based cookies (I used James Peterson's pate sucree and added the zest of 2 grapefruits and 2 oranges) with a grapefruit juice glaze and charred brulee style with a torch.  They have that lovely crispy deep caramel flavor that I just love. 

And I've also been doing just a bit of work. 

How have you been?

Polenta and greens casserole

The last few months have been some of the most challenging of residency.  I felt stretched to the limit of emotional and mental energy.  4am and I became great friends. 

The greatest challenge is fitting “it all” in.  There are only 24 hours in a day.  With work between 12 and 16 hours a day plus commuting to work, bathing, and dressing, what does that leave? At least I’m lucky enough to be able to come home every night as we have a night float system. 

What is “it all” then?  There’s no such thing.  For me, making dinner, exercising 3 to 4 times a week, sleeping, spending time with my husband and occasionally meeting a friend is enough.  Long gone are the days of piano lessons, reading Madame Bovary, and watching Law and Order marathons.

But sometimes I need those piano lessons and Law and Order marathons to feel like me.  And sometimes I need “me” to be there when my patients are sick and asking hard questions.  So thank God for some moments of peace and quiet for the past couple of weeks.  Thank God for sleep and books, mountains and fresh air.  Bless the hour I had to sit in front of the stove on a Sunday afternoon and lazily stir polenta. 

I shouldn’t complain.  I should be grateful to have a job at all, especially one that I like that’s fulfilling.  It could always be worse, much much worse.  But I want my life to be great.  So, I’m just going to keep trying to find those moments just for me to make me me.  Keep stirring my polenta.

This polenta casserole could be lasagna’s green, vegetarian, gluten free cousin.  It is a great main course but also a wonderful side dish.  It is quite rich but also very healthy, thanks to a properly made polenta that tastes rich with just salt and water.  It is topped with a layer of green veggies and a small layer of cheese and butter to help it brown.  The beauty of this dish though is that it could be an afternoon affair or very quick to prepare.  It could be made with pre-cooked polenta in one of those plastic tubes and topped with frozen spinach which would still be delicious. 

Polenta and greens casserole

4 cups cooked polenta***

2 cloves garlic

4 eggs

½ cup skim milk

1 can artichokes in brine

2 bunches fresh greens (I used yellow beet greens and brocollini) but the options are endless, kale, chard and spinach would all be wonderful

½ lb brussel sprouts quartered

6 oz fresh mozzarella

¼ cup fresh parmesan grated

1 tbs unsalted butter

salt and pepper

chili flakes

Make the polenta or unwrap it.  Pre-heat the oven to 375.  Butter an 8x8 casserole.  Pat down the polenta into the bottom of the casserole in an even layer.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Blanch the greens in the boiling water for 5 minutes.  Remove the greens and strain but keep the water boiling.  Chop the greens and wring out all of the water by squeezing them in your hands or through a strainer.  Blanch the brussel sprouts for 5 minutes in the same water as the greens.  Do not press but drain well as you want the vegetable layer to have as little water as possible.  Drain the artichokes, chop and wring as much liquid as possible from them.  In a medium bowl whisk the eggs and milk with salt and pepper until the eggs are foamy and a paler color.  Add the vegetables, chili flakes and garlic to the egg mixture and stir to combine.  Layer the egg mixture on top of the polenta.   Thinly slice the mozzarella.  Evenly distribute the cheese on top of the casserole.  Add the grated cheese.  Cut the butter into very small pieces and place on top of the casserole.  Bake for 45 minutes at 375.  Increase the temp of the oven to 450 and bake for another 10 minutes until golden and bubbly. 

****To make the polenta, I stole the recipe/idea from Marcela Hazan.  You need 7 cups of heavily salted water boiling over medium high heat in a large pot.  With 1 2/3 cups of Italian polenta add the corn meal grain by grain through your hand over boiling water, constantly stirring to avoid lumps.  Continue to stir.  Once the mixture starts to be violent and sputter, reduce the heat to medium-low or until there are only a few bubbles emerging from the polenta.  Continue to stir constantly with a wooden spoon.  After about 45 minutes, the mixture will be thick and will completely come off the sides of the pot. 

Easy as Fudge, Four Ingredient Fudge Pops

Greetings from the faraway lands of third year of residency.  I’m busy.  This is the fourth month in a row that I have to get to work at 5am.  I took advantage of the business to put myself on a diet and start exercising to keep myself sane.  And I lost 15 pounds. 

I was never fat, but as happens to most of us, I used to be much thinner.  A couple of months ago, I was reading the 2011 Medscape survey of practicing OB GYNs across the country.  I was shocked at how few docs in my age group exercised and that almost 40% of all OB/Gyns were overweight.  As I am now half done with residency and starting to prepare for life as a practitioner, I want to be healthy and have good habits.

It is amazing how much more energy I have back at my high school weight.  Exercising is easier, and eating vegetables, lean proteins and whole grains doesn’t bottom me out, so I spend less time feeling like I got runover by a Texas truck.   People at work ask me how I lost so much weight, and really the answer is simple.  I downloaded an app for my phone called Lose It that helps you track your daily caloric intake.  I ate between 1300-1500 calories a day for 2 months and exercised.

Now I’m trying to keep a happy balance.  I am back to a 2000 calorie diet, but keeping healthy habits that got me here.  Still, this girl can’t cut out dessert.  So, here is something delicious and rich, but less dangerous than two dozen cookies.   I figure that each of these fudge pops is about 120 calories apiece, but made only from real ingredients. And they couldn’t be easier.  No guar gum or any of that crap. 

Luscious fudge pops

4oz high quality dark chocolate (I just love Callebaut and you can buy blocks at Whole Foods)

1 12 oz can fat free evaporated milk

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Popscicle molds (we bought ours at Target)

Cut the chocolate into fine shards or small pieces.  Over a simmering pot of water on medium heat, place a well fitting bowl with the milk and chocolate.  Whisk continuously until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.  Whisk in the sugar and the vanilla and pour the mixture into your popsicle molds and freeze until hard, about 4 hours or more.  To dislodge, run the pops under warm water for a few seconds.  

Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Lace Cookies

It's been a while since I posted a nice cookie recipe.  Well this is certainly one I'm proud of.  You’ve gotta make these cookies.  Chewy and crispy, nutty and buttery, bathed in chocolate, these are worth the time.  I based them on the Lacey’s cookies, which are tubs of heaven at Whole Foods, purchased to soothe the pain of a busy night at the hospital.  The cookies capture the same lacelike look, with a slightly less sweet and chewier mouthfeel.  I used Rice Krispies for most of the starch, keeping an airy quality. 

These cookies are very candy-like, in fact the first step is the same as making toffee. In the humid and already hot days of Texas spring, they are best stored in the fridge.  The whipped egg white, which I realized if done by hand takes the same amount of time as a kitchen aid with the right whisk, adds a meringue like quality.  They need to be baked just perfectly, between 6-8 minutes until the edges are darkened but not burnt otherwise the texture isn’t right.  

Makes ~18 cookie sandwiches or 3 dozen unadorned cookies

1/2 cup hazelnuts

2 cups Rice Krispy

1 stick butter

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup cream

Pinch salt

Tsp vanilla

1/4 cup flour

Pinch cream of tartar

1 egg white

6 oz chocolate (dark or milk)

Preheat the oven to 350.  Chop the hazelnuts until they are fine.  In a large bowl combine the cereal and the hazelnuts.  Over medium high heat in a heavy saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, honey and cream.  Bring to a boil and let boil for one minute.  Turn off the heat, allow to cool slightly, and whisk in the flour, salt, vanilla and cream of tartar.  In a small bowl, whisk the egg white until it makes soft peaks.  Add a small amount of the warm butter mixture to the egg and fold in.  Fold the rest of the butter mixture into the egg.  Combine the butter and egg mixture with the cereal and hazelnuts.  On a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper, add a heaping teaspoon of batter, spacing at least 2 inches between cookies as they spread when baked.  Bake for 6-8 minutes until the cookie is lacey and the edges are dark brown but not burnt.  Allow to cool, then transfer to a baking rack. 

Over a pot of simmering water on medium heat, add a snug mixing bowl and chopped up chocolate.  Stir constantly until barely melted.  Smear a teaspoon or so on a cookie and immediately sandwich another cookie on top.  Allow to cool and then place in the fridge for the chocolate to harden.  Enjoy!

Texas v. Planned Parenthood

Poor Planned Parenthood.  I’m not a particularly political person, however I do care deeply about the health of women.  The de-frocking of Planned Parenthood by the Komen foundation, a Dallas based organization, is just another step that Texas took to halt preventive care for Texan women. The defunding of Planned Parenthood by Susan G Komen highlights the tragic rift that already happened between preventive health care and politics in Texas, written about today in the New York Times regarding Title X.

Last year, Texas legislature attempted to pass a bill that would halt all funding for the Women’s Health Program, a Medicaid associated program that provides annual exams and contraception for all reproductive age women that qualify, simply because Planned Parenthood participated in the Women’s Health Program.  This puts programs such as where I work in a bind.   The funding is in serious jeopardy of being eliminated completely. 

According to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, the Women’s Health Program saves Texas at least $20 million a year.  By providing an annual exam, contraception, STD screening and cancer screening, patients also get their blood pressure checked, are screened for domestic violence and substance abuse and connected into a hospital system. 

As a second year resident in my training in OB/GYN at one of the busiest county hospitals in the country, Parkland Hospital in Dallas, I’ve seen a lot.  Parkland is a massive safety net for north Texas, catering to women of all races, creeds, nationalities and ages.  Parkland Hospital takes care of over 10,000 pregnant women a year alone, at a cost much below the national average, yet manages to have excellent outcomes including one of the lowest pre-term birth rates in the country.

Parkland maximizes utilization of state programs that fund preventive care. The Texas Medicaid Women’s Health Program allows uninsured women below a certain income level to qualify for annual well women exams and reproductive health maintenance.  Outlying clinics staffed by nurse practitioners provide these vital services.

Beginning last year, under financial and political pressure, Governor Rick Perry attempted to cut funding to the Women’s Health Program because the Women’s Health Program also funded Planned Parenthood.  Planned Parenthood, although providing abortion services, focuses on “[helping people] make responsible choices about their sexual and reproductive health”.  The main focus of Planned Parenthood in fact parallels Parkland’s ideals of health care by promoting prevention through screening and education.  (Parkland does not perform abortions.)

The consequences spell disaster.  Already, with decreased funding to family planning clinics in the Parkland Health system, the number of patients crowding the Women’s Emergency Room at Parkland has steadily increased for both low and high acuity issues.  Compared to a low cost preventive visit to a family planning clinic, the cost of an ER visit charges a base of about $1500.  The state eats this bill, as patients cannot pay.  Without preventive care or contraception, the unplanned pregnancy rate will rise, placing increased burden on a breaking Medicaid system.

Regardless of individual opinions of abortion, taxes or politics, I hope we can all agree that having healthy women who get pregnant when they want to is an important goal.   How did we let a bunch of stuffy men in suits and really ugly sweater vests start to hack away at women’s rights that we have been fighting for the last 100 years?

I am pro-choice but not pro-abortion.  I would love for every pregnancy to be loved.  Abstinence is a great option, and should be taught, however people are not going to stop having sex.  Our evolutionary drive to reproduce is stronger than morals or politics.  If we as a country of parents, educators and health care providers could teach our children, students and patients about safe sex and provide them with mental and physical resources to make healthy decisions for themselves, then we would reduce the abortion rate.

We are eliminating a program that saves money, increases patient choice, reduces unwanted expensive pregnancies and reduces abortion.  Even though abortion only encompasses 3% of the services provided by Planned Parenthood, sadly the almost 100% of women will be affected that participate in the Women’s Health Program.  The results of undermining Planned Parenthood—Unplanned (and very expensive) Parenthood.

Pickling it up--Italian style grilled spring veggie pickles

As my resident life advances and becomes more surgical, having clamped through my first few hysterectomies, tied and cut dozens of tubes of postpartum women, and delivered hundreds of babies abdominally through C-sections, I have had my share of complications.  My wise attending told me “if you haven’t had a complication from surgery, you haven’t done enough surgery.”

The inability to always prevent complications unsettles me.  An adverse outcome during a case provokes a feeling of desperation.  Sometimes I just feel like a stupid jerk that doesn’t want to operate anymore.  But I have to get over myself, because I’m going to be doing surgery for the rest of my life, and no matter how much I study and practice, things aren’t always going to go right. I am lucky to have great teachers who have coached me through fixing mistakes and counseling patients postoperatively. 

Thank god I have the kitchen.  Complications arise all the time, under-whipped egg whites, a cake that falls apart the second you invert it, awful tasting crab sauce, and overcooked T bones.  The beauty of the kitchen is the cauliflower won’t bleed, the chicken doesn’t need its ureters anymore (does a chicken even have ureters?), and best of all, there’s always Chipotle.

When I find myself in a funk at work, stressed or depressed, nothing distracts me like the kitchen, my improvised operating room.  Just like surgery, I gather my supplies, wash my hands, gown in an apron and begin.  The knife courses through pork fat and onions, on my feet for hours.   

The comparison between chefs and surgeons has been made more than once.  Both jobs heat up quickly, promote distended bladders and last long hours.   The stakes separate the two.  Kitchen failures are frustrating, sometimes depressing, but rarely scary or life changing.  I’m just fine with that. 

I’ll keep my day job and my hobbies separate, enjoying pickles in edible instead of existential forms.  These Italian style pickles with grilled spring vegetables taste salty, sour, oily and herby.  They make a great snack.  They are beautiful on their own or served over toast with ricotta for a wonderful bruschetta.  They would also taste great in a pasta salad, over grilled fish or a plethora of other foods.  They take a little effort, but they last for weeks.  I use a grill pan to grill the asparagus and eggplant, however roasting them in the oven or over an open grill would produce equally tasty results.

The veggies I use in the recipe below are just what I had in my fridge.  Surely other vegetables such as fennel, carrots, or zucchini would also be delicious.   The pickles do not taste sweet at all, the sugar merely softens the blow of the vinegar and salt, as does the water. 

Pickled Grilled Spring Veggies Italian Style

Half an eggplant

10 spears asparagus

1 red onion

½ head of cauliflower

2 ribs celery

4 birds eye chiles or other peppers

2 cloves garlic smashed

10 black peppercorns

½ tsp fennel seeds

½ tsp dried oregano

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

¼ cup chopped fresh basil

1 ½ cup white vinegar

½ cup red wine vinegar

1 cup water

¼ cup plus 2 tbsp kosher salt

¼ cup sugar

½ cup canola oil, ¼ cup olive oil

olive oil and salt for grilling vegetables

To grill the eggplant, asparagus and onion:  Slice the eggplant into thin slices.  Cut off the woody end of the asparagus.  Cut the onion in half.  Salt and oil the veggies.  Over medium high heat on a grill pan, cook the vegetables in batches until they have grill marks and begin to soften, however they do not have to be completely cooked.  Cut the eggplant rounds in half, cut the asparagus into 1 inch pieces and slice the onions in strips.  Set aside.

Cut the cauliflower into small pieces and chop the celery.  Slice the chiles, keeping the seeds.  Over medium high heat in a medium pot, add the garlic, chiles, peppercorns, fennel and oregano until fragrant but not burnt, about 20 seconds.  Add the vinegars, water, sugar and salt and bring to a boil.  Add the basil, parsley, celery and cauliflower and cook for another 5 minutes. 

Pour the hot liquid in a large jar over the grilled vegetables.  Float the oil on top, if the oil does not cover the vegetables, add more.  Allow to cool on the countertop and then refrigerate overnight.