Tragedy Strikes - Day 1.

We ran out of tonic water.
I'll let that sink in a moment.
We ran out of tonic water.
 That meant, it seemed, no *something* and tonics to drink.  My husband, a devout x and tonic drinker if ever there was one, sprang into action.  He stomped his feet into his sneakers and went charging out the back door, into the darkening night, to find some.  There was wailing, gnashing of teeth, and wringing of hands, mostly on the part of little Bar who thought Dad had gone off on some elaborate adventure involving planes and race cars and missing bed time and trucks and tractors and construction work and pretty much everything he ever wanted to do in his entire life (2.5 years long yesterday).  I confess, I was more than a little concerned that, after all my trumpeting today about my commitment to local spending, I'd be writing a contrite apology in the morning explaining just why I had to scrap this project entirely because life without an elderflower gin and tonic was just too hard.  But!  All was not lost, my spouse appeared at the door as quickly as he'd gone carrying a chilled bottle of tonic purchased from the bodega you can see from the end of our driveway.  For those who follow my other blog, it's the same bodega where our cat, Ralph, used to be allowed to hang out and solicit cat food from unsuspecting customers.  I liked these people then.  I like them even more now.  Throw another point in the local shopping column.  Besides, if my husband had actually had to get in the car to drive somewhere, he'd have been gone long enough that Bar may well have run away from home.

By now you have figured out that I am not
a food photographer and that I am especially
fond of a particular potter.

On to the less eventful preparation of tonight's meal.  I selected a recipe for Braised Chicken and Chickpeas from Mark Bittman's, How to Cook Everything.  All I needed that I did not have on hand was a whole chicken.  I purchased said chicken from the butcher on Main Street.  They happily cut it for me into the 8 pieces I required, no more hacking away at my food with knives and scissors in an effort to inelegantly butcher my own meat.  Butchering is a skilled trade, what a thrill to let the professionals do the work.  $7.15 later, I had what I needed for dinner but stopped, at Bar's request, at the Italian specialty market.  As he snacked away on the samples, I priced their whole, select breed, chickens.  I was surprised to see them going for $3.99 /lb, not far off from the price of a Whole Foods chicken.  I thought, since I'm already accustomed, though grudgingly, to paying that price for whole chicken, that perhaps I could always buy from here and know that I'm getting a select, local bird, free from antibiotics - all truly important to the rules of my ethical eating compass.  And yet, for $1.69 /lb, I can vote yes to a local business operating out of the same location for 50 years as of this year.  50 years.  I wonder what would happen, and what it might cost, if I asked if they could source me some "kinder" meat.  I'll find out for sure.
Dinner itself was well received by the eaters.  The recipe is below, taken from Bittman.  I made a few changes, based on what I had on hand (black chickpeas from my freezer and parsley from my garden).  I served it with a 7 grain pilaf, made by Kashi and poured directly from a pouch into boiling water.  In these early days, I'll be using up a lot of things I already have on hand.  Oh, and one more confession, I forgot to make a vegetable.  Yes, Miss I-get-my-totally-awesome-socially-important-organic-produce-delivered-right-to-my-door forgot to make a single green thing for my family to eat for dinner.  Now you know.

Braised Chicken and Chickpeas
by Mark Bittman
A simple, spicy North African-style dish made in one pot.  Serve this with rice, warmed pitas, or any crust loaf.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 whole chicken, 3 to 4 pounds, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 8 pieces, or any combination of parts
1 large or 2 medium onions, sliced
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon chopped or grated fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup chopped tomato (canned is fine; include the juices)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large bunch fresh cilantro or parsley sprigs, tied together with kitchen string
Two 3-inch cinnamon sticks
2 cups mostly cooked chickpeas (and a little of their cooking liquid)

1. Put the oil in a deep skillet with a lid or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  When hot, add the chicken, skin side down, and brown it well, rotating and turning the pieces as necessary; the process will take 10 to 15 minutes.
2. When the chicken is nicely browned, remove it from the skillet and turn the heat down to medium.  Pour or spoon off all but a tablespoon of the oil.  Stir in the onions, garlic, ginger, tomato, coriander, and some salt and pepper.  Add 4 cups of water, along with cilantro or parsley bundle, cinnamon sticks, and chickpeas.  Adjust the heat so mixture bubbles gently but steadily, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes, or until the chickpeas are almost tender.
3. Discard the herb bundle and cinnamon sticks and return the chicken to the pan, skin side up.  Cover and continue to let the mixture bubble gently until the chicken is cooked through, another 10 to 20 minutes; the chicken is done when an instant-read-thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 155-165 degrees F.  Taste and adjust seasoning and serve.  (At this point, you may let the dish sit for a few hours or cover and refrigerate for up to a day before reheating and serving; you may have to add a little water to thin the sauce a bit.)