Out & About #708 | Week #57 Quarantine Update Feat. Kale & Cheese Galette

"It was...probably the hardest week in the past three hundred and seventy-three days." (and you bet I NETWORKDAYSed it!)

​However easy it may be to fall victim to unintentional overtime amidst lockdown, I can affirm that the seemingly endless hours of screen-staring, spreadsheet-scanning, memo-making, and written/verbal correspondence have the ability to summon more than simply physical discomfort. With the end of each work day, I found embers in my eyes, stinging to the point where headaches would result, then persist for several days. Letters began dashing about the keyboard, while the limbs were left limp from excessive inactivity. For the first time in recent memory, post-work indulgence in K-Pop comebacks and variety shows delivered no delight; I could summon forth no more energy.​

​Evaluating the unexpected turnout of events, my heart wrenched at the words that been relayed: "You'll get used to it."
But I don't want to. I refuse to grow accustomed to exhaustion and constant fatigue. I refuse to be coerced into workaholicism.
Most importantly, I refuse to surrender the remaining shreds of my social life and social media engagement to duties that oughtn't be shed upon me.

A new degree of despair had been attained. As always, I will purge and continue to purge with elements of enjoyment. Appended to the list, though, is the notion of confrontation.

​Creations of the week included:

1) Granola
A heavy handful of olive oil resulted in sogginess unsalvageable even by silica gel packets.

2) Vanilla Bean Pudding (aka untorched crème brûlée), constructed from leftover egg yolks, heavy cream, and artificial flavouring.

3) Coconut Ice Cream

Inspired by Scoops and a desire to nix lengthy ice cream runs, I set out to mimic the household favourite by combining coconut milk into the previously tested no-churn ice cream method. Instant coffee was swapped for lightly toasted fine shredded coconut and an entire can of AROY-D. Future renditions shall see a reduction in liquid, for the final result was more icy than scoop-able. In regards to the flavour profile, it was satisfactory, harnessing the potential to evade Port Credit lineups once success is declared.

A sweetened variation of shredded coconut could also be employed in this formula, however I found the condensed milk to offer a plentiful portion of sugar.

4) Lemon Potatoes

When I had first caught sight of this post, I became intrigued with the idea of introducing liquid into the roasting process. And the arrival of the weekend finally provided an opportunity for experimentation.

​True to her words, the potatoes were crisp yet fork-tender, flavourful with lemony undertones - born from a method by no means traditional but nonetheless phenomenal. In the absence of oregano, I swapped in for rosemary; dill and cilantro were sourced from the freezer, chopped roughly, then tossed in as well.

5) Cocoa Thumbprint Cookies

Against my better judgement, I made the premature promise of homemade cookies in exchange for tech support. With limited time on my hands, I took to the most flexible recipe in the book, reduced the moisture content, then indented their centre.

I adapted a recipe demanding two egg yolks to utilize one whole egg, as anxiety stems from the thought of raw eggs in my fridge. The additional protein (read: dampness) from the egg white was offset by the dehydrating properties of non-alkalized cocoa powder; butter and flour quantities were scaled down proportionally. The dough was shape-able and neither too soft nor too firm. XXXL tapioca pearl-like to start, the generally spherical shapes were retained with faint cracks at the edges once candy melts had been smushed in.

Two styles of filling were used: white chocolate candy melts and grape jelly.
When using a jam or jelly, it is recommended to form larger cookie balls to enable dramatic indents from experience. I provide this advice from experience, given that mine spilled over due to generosity.

6) Apricot Bran Muffins

Behold yet another endeavour to rapidly deplete soon-to-expire Greek yogurt and a handful of dried apricots.

7) Kale & Cheese Galette

Some several weeks ago came an urgent need to exhaust a tub of sour cream; one of the items that emerged from this need was a galette dough that I had stashed in the freezer for a rainy day. While the weekend weather was far from drizzly, it emerged to combat the slew of kale stems that came with our grocery run.

Drawing inspiration from SK's most recent upload, I proceeded to assemble the savoury pastry with the ingredients on hand. Having already been chopped into bite-sized pieces, the kale stems readily accepted a seasoning mix of olive oil, salt, and minced garlic; a hint of acidity was also incorporated.
The dough was allowed to defrost overnight, refrigerated, then rolled to a rough circle with a heavy dusting of flour. What followed was merely a matter of layering my seasoned filling with chunks of old Cheddar (also frozen and from the freezer). A thorough coating of egg wash later, the galette was slid into the oven, where it would reside for approximately forty minutes.

The entire ordeal took a total of 60 minutes, washing up included. However, the results were absolutely fantastic -  "impressive", as many had relayed in awe.

And I shall admit: It was. Aromatic tidbits of kale and buttery bits of cheese encased in golden flaky goodness was a combination few could resist, especially when fresh. My sole gripe was sogginess in its base, for although it retained structure (unlike my Apple Pie), it was moister than the ideal.

​The remainder of the week was a blur of emails and Excel workbooks, with many a cider breaking the weekday evening routine.

​Chip Ahoy cereal was repulsive, to say in the least. Ribs and Grilled Chicken from Mario's BBQ were quite delicious, albeit pricey and undercooked in some (nonuniform) sections