Blog Bites #3: Adaptation

Blog Bites is an event where we cook from other blogs, with a different theme for each month. The credit for this month's theme goes to SS who blogs here

She shared her idea on this post where I was asking for suggestions for themes, saying 

"One thing that struck me as a theme, maybe its been done, I don't know.. am mentioning the thought here anyway - Make a dish from another blog, but change one major ingredient to create a variation. ex: Palak Paneer becomes Aloo Palak becomes Green Rice becomes Palak Chicken becomes Green Egg Curry... etc. Spices might not change too much, but one ingredient is totally changed to get a new dish."

I liked it, so that's the theme for this month: Adaptation. As in modification, alteration, adjustment and interpretation. Most of us who like to cook do it already- changing recipes around to suit our needs and whims. In ecology, adaptation is the way organisms learn to fit in better with their surroundings. In the home, adaptation helps the cook to do  their best within the environment of their own kitchen.

So choose a recipe from another blog and give it your own spin.

There are many ways you could adapt a recipe- By making a meat recipe vegetarian or vegan to suit your dietary needs. By making a recipe eggless because you don't eat eggs. By replacing nuts or gluten in a recipe because of food allergies. By substituting ingredients that are not available where you live. By adapting fried food to a baked format or adding whole grains to a recipe for a healthier alternative. By adapting a cake recipe into a muffin format for portion control. By adapting a small-scale recipe to a large scale to feed a crowd. The adaptation does not just have to mean swapping out ingredients; it can be any sort of change in the recipe.

There are endless possibilities so let your imagination run free!

The Rules

1. From now until May 25, try a recipe from another blog and adapt it in some way. That's the theme of the month- Adaptation.
2. The recipe has to come from another blog. This is the whole premise of the Blog Bites event, so please turn to other blogs for inspiration. 
3. Write a post telling us about the recipe you tried, with the following: (a) a link to the recipe on the other blog that inspired you, (b) a link to this post, (c) a picture of your final dish.
4. Please do not copy recipes word for word from another blog- that would be both illegal and unethical. Either re-write the recipe in your own words with the adaptation, or simply tell us the modifications you made. One of the reasons I am hosting this event is to promote the idea of cooking from blogs while giving them due credit.
5. Please make sure your entry meets all the rules above. Then, send me the link (URL) of your entry, either by leaving a comment on this post, or using the contact form. 
6. You can send in as many entries as you like.

I will acknowledge the entries you send in by leaving a comment on your post. Check back on May 26 to see the round-up. We'll ask readers to vote for their favorite entry and I will send that participant a gift.

Thank you for your participation!

Dale's Tales

So I had the brilliant idea of baking dog treats. I have many dogs in my life- Dale is the resident pooch but the two neighbors who I am very close to and meet on a regular basis are also owned by dogs, and I am on a first-name basis with dozens of other dogs in the neighborhood.

Anyway, I chose this recipe for pumpkin peanut butter treats (do read the post for the incredible story of the blogger's dog). This would be an example of adaptation (theme of this month's Blog Bites event) because (a) I used cooked carrots instead of pumpkin and (b) adapted the dough-making to a food processor instead of a stand mixer. 

1. Chop 3 medium carrots into large chunks. Cook in a small saucepan with some water until the carrots are tender. Let them cool.
2. Place the carrots in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Puree them.
3. Add the following to the food processor and made a stiff dough (dribble in water, but only if required): 2 cups whole wheat flour, half cup old-fashioned oats, 2 eggs, 3 tbsp. peanut butter, sprinkle of salt
4. Roll the dough and cut into shapes or diamonds. 
5. Bake at 350 F until they are dry. 

With great enthusiasm, I offered a freshly-baked treat to Dale. He sniffed it, turned his head away, refused the treat and walked away to his bed.

I've never been so humiliated in my life. The dog who loves to gobble half-eaten, discarded, moldy muffins from the sidewalk refused to eat my baked goods.

My ego recovered only after I gave a bag of treats to Shanti, my friend's husky, and watched her gobble them down.

Here's Shanti: how beautiful is she? She has a very petite build as huskies go (her growth is stunted because she was malnourished as a pup, before my friends rescued and adopted her), and has one brown eye and one gray-blue eye. Such a doll. And she eats my treats, thank goodness.

When I first heard her name, I was very intrigued because Shanti is a popular Indian name and her parents are not from India. Turns out they have many friends from India and they liked the meaning of the name- it means "peace". They wanted this sweet dog to know some peace and joy once they adopted her.

Interestingly, all the dogs I know have been rescued- some of them are purebred dogs and others are one-of-a-kind mutts. All have been cast away and homeless at some point in their lives. But that's history; they are now living in homes surrounded by love and care. For me, the way a pet comes into a person's life matters a great deal. People who bring home shelter dogs/ street dogs (or cats or other pets) are very special to me.

And with this post, I send my love to the gorgeous Lucy, she of the golden fur, who is recovering from a difficult surgical procedure. All ye dog lovers, please send healing thoughts her way!

I am off on a short vacation, so things will be a little quiet around the blog for a few days. I'll be back on May 4th with the results of the blog bites contest- please keep on reading the fantastic entries and voting, and have a great weekend.