A few weeks ago my host family insisted that I cook something for them from home. Their cooking is so fantastic I was hesitant to waste a night of tastebud bliss by putting my haphazard cooking skills in charge. I usually cook with only hazy guidelines, and it's never anything to swoon over. I feed myself and the occasional starving student that wanders into my kitchen. That's about it. I do quite enjoy cooking, but I hardly have a repertoire of recipes. So what do you do when you have a demand and no supply? Call your mother, of course. I had a little hair-brained idea about recreating my mother's popular invention. I remember loving it when I lived at home, and was pretty sure our exchange students liked it too (meaning it might appeal to the European palate...? I don't really understand my thought process here). Basically it was my best chance at coming up with something from home that they hadn't ever tasted.
So what is this magical dish of delight? She called it, unflatteringly enough, 'green rice'. Yeah, sounds like a bad Asian twist to Dr. Seuss, right? Well, it may not sound nice but I sure loved it. And I was determined to make it happen for my lovely hosts. My mom consulted my grandmother (apparently it's a family recipe) and gave me some bare-bones instructions. These, paired with some internet searches, resulted in enough structure for me to have a go.
I definitely improvised on measurements, but what follows is a fairly accurate guide to Hinkle Family Cheesy Green Rice:
6 cups cooked white rice (can be brown rice, but white works best)
2 eggs
2 cups milk (less if you use cream)
1 medium yellow onion
3 cups frozen spinach (more if fresh)
plenty of butter
lots of grated cheese (cheddar works, but get creative. I remember sage cheese was a big hit)
salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste
Cook rice first, give it time to cool. If spinach is frozen, let it thaw on medium heat in a saucepan. Don't let it warm up though. Meanwhile, saute the onions in butter until translucent in a large, deep pan (you'll mix everything in here later). Beat eggs and milk/cream in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once spinach has thawed and rice is cool, add both to the onion pan with half the grated cheese. Let cool for a little while, then add egg mixture. Combine well. Salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste (I always err on the light side, just to be safe). Put into a large baking dish or bowl, sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake for about 30 minutes at 180 degrees C / 350 degrees F.
Eet Smakelijk! :)
This turned out to be a great success, and they were extremely pleased with me for having treated them to something they'd never tasted before. They cook an astonishingly wide array of dishes, so I think it surprised them to eat something completely new. I felt proud to have represented my family's cuisine favorably :)
The next morning three of my American friends came over and we made a big fuss about making a 'true american brunch', which included two kinds of bacon, tons of pancakes, my own special recipe for hash browns, and sixteen fried eggs. My host family was again shocked by food they'd never even conceptualized, let alone tasted. They were dumbfounded by the idea of putting everything on your pate at once: salty and sweet. They were flabbergasted when i put syrup (not maple, alas. that's only for neighbors of Canada, apparently) not just on the pancakes but on everything else too. And they were happily surprised by our 'american pancakes', very different from dutch pancakes.
We all ate ourselves into oblivion and beyond, and my host mom snuck into the kitchen and made a quick batch of poffertjes just as we were winding down, pushing us past the limits of full and into the man-vs-food territory.
It was blissful, nostalgic, and satisfying.
Besides digesting, we spent the afternoon touring the northern countryside outside Amsterdam. Seven of us crammed into the family's tiny 5-seater, trundling down crazily narrow roads and nearly running into countless bikers, runners and other little cars.
Since then I've been focused on school mostly. I started a practicum at a local shop called Mail&Female, a female-pleasure focused and sex-positive sex shop about four blocks from school. I do fun things like suction cup dildos to table tops, hand out flyers, drink champagne, move furniture... you know, normal stuff. I'm supposed to work about 30 hours here, but I may work more because the staff is so wonderful. I'm not getting paid, but the knowledge gleaned is priceless ;)
Last Saturday was Blue's band's second performance. They're called Oleander Punch and they play upbeat indie rock style stuff. They're a power trio boy band, quintessentially 17 years old and surprisingly talented. They totally stole the audience's heart, especially because they were followed by an over-the-top rock/metal band of 20-something guys who were too obvious about pretending their guitars were their penises and just reminded everyone of Linkin Park. The douchy-ness that exuded them really solidified the honest, unassuming talent of Blue's band. The whole family went to watch him play, including his uncle (who filmed the whole thing). It was nice to feel a part of that supportive family.
Yesterday was Sunday, and we biked to the biggest monthly market in Amsterdam. It's held in a huge ship warehouse, and took us about three hours to explore. I got a cool vest and a designer scarf for 50 cents each :) I tried to keep up with the dutch bike pace, but it really took it out of me. Ended up napping on the couch with Hassan by the crackling fire until dinner was ready.
I really do love living here.
So what is this magical dish of delight? She called it, unflatteringly enough, 'green rice'. Yeah, sounds like a bad Asian twist to Dr. Seuss, right? Well, it may not sound nice but I sure loved it. And I was determined to make it happen for my lovely hosts. My mom consulted my grandmother (apparently it's a family recipe) and gave me some bare-bones instructions. These, paired with some internet searches, resulted in enough structure for me to have a go.
I definitely improvised on measurements, but what follows is a fairly accurate guide to Hinkle Family Cheesy Green Rice:
6 cups cooked white rice (can be brown rice, but white works best)
2 eggs
2 cups milk (less if you use cream)
1 medium yellow onion
3 cups frozen spinach (more if fresh)
plenty of butter
lots of grated cheese (cheddar works, but get creative. I remember sage cheese was a big hit)
salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste
Cook rice first, give it time to cool. If spinach is frozen, let it thaw on medium heat in a saucepan. Don't let it warm up though. Meanwhile, saute the onions in butter until translucent in a large, deep pan (you'll mix everything in here later). Beat eggs and milk/cream in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once spinach has thawed and rice is cool, add both to the onion pan with half the grated cheese. Let cool for a little while, then add egg mixture. Combine well. Salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste (I always err on the light side, just to be safe). Put into a large baking dish or bowl, sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake for about 30 minutes at 180 degrees C / 350 degrees F.
Eet Smakelijk! :)
This turned out to be a great success, and they were extremely pleased with me for having treated them to something they'd never tasted before. They cook an astonishingly wide array of dishes, so I think it surprised them to eat something completely new. I felt proud to have represented my family's cuisine favorably :)
The next morning three of my American friends came over and we made a big fuss about making a 'true american brunch', which included two kinds of bacon, tons of pancakes, my own special recipe for hash browns, and sixteen fried eggs. My host family was again shocked by food they'd never even conceptualized, let alone tasted. They were dumbfounded by the idea of putting everything on your pate at once: salty and sweet. They were flabbergasted when i put syrup (not maple, alas. that's only for neighbors of Canada, apparently) not just on the pancakes but on everything else too. And they were happily surprised by our 'american pancakes', very different from dutch pancakes.
We all ate ourselves into oblivion and beyond, and my host mom snuck into the kitchen and made a quick batch of poffertjes just as we were winding down, pushing us past the limits of full and into the man-vs-food territory.
 |
| Poffertjes |
Besides digesting, we spent the afternoon touring the northern countryside outside Amsterdam. Seven of us crammed into the family's tiny 5-seater, trundling down crazily narrow roads and nearly running into countless bikers, runners and other little cars.
Since then I've been focused on school mostly. I started a practicum at a local shop called Mail&Female, a female-pleasure focused and sex-positive sex shop about four blocks from school. I do fun things like suction cup dildos to table tops, hand out flyers, drink champagne, move furniture... you know, normal stuff. I'm supposed to work about 30 hours here, but I may work more because the staff is so wonderful. I'm not getting paid, but the knowledge gleaned is priceless ;)
Last Saturday was Blue's band's second performance. They're called Oleander Punch and they play upbeat indie rock style stuff. They're a power trio boy band, quintessentially 17 years old and surprisingly talented. They totally stole the audience's heart, especially because they were followed by an over-the-top rock/metal band of 20-something guys who were too obvious about pretending their guitars were their penises and just reminded everyone of Linkin Park. The douchy-ness that exuded them really solidified the honest, unassuming talent of Blue's band. The whole family went to watch him play, including his uncle (who filmed the whole thing). It was nice to feel a part of that supportive family.
Yesterday was Sunday, and we biked to the biggest monthly market in Amsterdam. It's held in a huge ship warehouse, and took us about three hours to explore. I got a cool vest and a designer scarf for 50 cents each :) I tried to keep up with the dutch bike pace, but it really took it out of me. Ended up napping on the couch with Hassan by the crackling fire until dinner was ready.
I really do love living here.
Mail&Female? They have PO Boxes, too?
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