Monthly Archives: August 2009

Fresh Fish

Coming to a location near me. A location I can walk to. Starting next month approximately 12 vendors will set up in an interior space right here in our back yard. We went to a market today, mainly hippie clothing, jewelry and other items. They also had prepared food and about eight farmers market stalls, one which had the most beautiful mushrooms I’ve ever seen since Mendocino – chanterelles. But by then I’d run out of cash. I bought yellow and red cherry tomatoes, some organic summer wheat berries to grow wheatgrass, 1# of frozen sea scallops that look gorgeous, and 1# of freshly flown-in Coho salmon, tail sections. I re-froze the scallops, cooked one salmon fillet and froze the other. I got a summer sun hat as there is no atmosphere here to keep the sun off one’s face, and Jim bought a leather one evocative of Indiana Jones.

For fresh fish here, you’ll probably get trout from the local rivers. Otherwise it’s flown in. But the Coho was gorgeous. I looked for pin bones and there were none, easily removed the skin with my fish filleting knife and cooked a marinade of 1/3 c soy sauce, 1 c water, several 1/4 inch coins of ginger, two large crushed garlic cloves, a pinch of freshly ground red pepper flakes and black pepper, and a few drops of roasted sesame oil. I used the microwave and cooked the sauce on high for about six minutes then let it cool. When Jim’s ribeye (he’s allergic to anything that swims) was ready on the grill outside, I put the salmon in the marinade and guessed cooking times but only used 50% power so it wouldn’t cook too quickly. I probably did it 6-7 minutes, flipping it carefully midway and ended up with the tail end a bit flaky and the rest just as I wanted it. I wish I had some lemon but wasn’t going to go back to the grocery store and I’ve two limes but they didn’t fit my personal flavor profile.

I served the ribeye and the salmon with an organic baked potato and 1/2 of the red and yellow cherry tomatoes, sauteed with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and dried basil from Penzey’s.

Here’s a photo of a unique welded metal “see saw” at our first try at Park Silly Market:

We had lunch at our favorite burger joint then went to see Julie and Julia across the street. It was a good weekend but now Jim’s coming down with something. Not good news. Husbands are never good patients, especially when they brought back some bug from the office, you have it worse than him and he still moans and asks for a cup of tea. Not to mention he’s on contract so every hour he doesn’t work is an hour he doesn’t get paid.

Luckily we have plenty of fresh OJ, chinese herbs, tea and chicken broth. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow. Cheers, Dee

The Spirit of Julia Child

lives. While we lost the culinary lioness five years ago, Meryl Streep has breathed life into the spirit of this American icon (one icon playing another) for a mainly enjoyable movie. Two of the first cookbooks I ever purchased were volumes I and II of Mastering the Art of French Cooking. You can buy them direct from this site on Amazon just by clicking on my exhaustively researched Cookbooks section at right. The credits today stated that the initial volume is in its 49th printing, that’s about one a year as I count. They share my precious bookshelves (well now climate-controlled storage) with the likes of Simca Beck, James Beard, and many others.

I’m sorry to say that the character of Julie in the movie is hard to identify with. Who can compare a Cordon Bleu graduate who writes the seminal book on French cooking for Americans (without servants in their kitchens) and changes the world? Especially given a depressed, narcissistic wife in Queens who cooks all the dishes in the book in one year and blogs about them. An admirable pursuit and she got an audience, book and movie and is no longer working as a government drone, which is what she wanted. Even the ebullient fairy princess of Enchanted couldn’t make this woman worth caring about. But what they accomplished was night and day.

Perhaps if I was 6′ 2″ I could have faced the disapproving head of Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and the stony-faced room of professional male chefs that Mrs. Child, the neophyte, chose to join. Probably not. I also was not blessed with the je ne sais quoi that was Julia Child. Twenty years ago when I quit the NYC rat race and went to cooking school, women were accepted. Perhaps not after graduation, which is why I chose to apprentice in the kitchen of a female chef and cookbook author.

The first half of school we learned the basics of French cuisine. I joked at one point that we should have checked our weight and cholesterol before we began and after Phase I. Classic cooking: butter; cream; eggs. And we had to eat everything we cooked. Egg day was always feared, for its difficulty as much as knowing eggs were all we would get to eat all day. Phase II brought in a stagiere who stocked the kitchen for us depending upon the lesson, and cooked us a balanced lunch. Consider that we spent two solid weeks on pastry and baking, so we had to have something nutritious to get us through what was nearly a 12-hour day for me with commuting. There were eight students in the class so we all got individual attention. I’ve had really great teachers in grade school, high school and college (not many, but a few really stand out even years later) but this was literally the most fun I’ve ever had in school. Luckily so, because I blew my entire life savings on it.

One hopes that this book and movie will bring a new generation to cooking, instead of take-out and the prepared aisles of the grocery store. It made such a difference when I shopped the outside (produce, meat, fish, dairy) aisles and only ventured inside for olive oil, rice, soy sauce, pasta and other staples.

Instead of my regular sign-off this evening, permit me to say “Bon Appetit!”

R.I.P.

Last Friday Jim and his brother went fly fishing in the mountains (first time for both, no guide) and were gone over 13 hours. I wondered why they hadn’t called. Turns out even though I gave them quart-sized zipper bags for cell phone, wallet and fishing license, Jim drowned his iPhone.

Two years ago returning from Scotland, Jim’s Razr’s screen went blank and so the next day he went out and bought two new BlackJacks. I made sure our covers were different so he wouldn’t take my phone to work by mistake and lose his work contacts for a day. Hot pink was the choice. Prior to that I had a four year-old Nokia 3650, a hand-me down and the first smart camera phone that Jim purchased to write an app.

When the iPhone came out he ordered it right away. I stuck to the BlackJack and we used his Blackjack on trips for tethering in rural areas (WiFi via cell with large data plan).

Now the first generation iPhone is toast and today we received an iPhone 3G(s) for him in white, and a refurb 3G for me. While awaiting arrival of cases, he’s going to borrow one from a guy at work because he tends to drop, or drown, them. Right now we’re awaiting verification of activation, which according to AT&T “may take some time.” Hopefully our other phones will work until they’re switched over.

Now I have to go from known paradigms into the unknown. I’ve had a MacBook for over two years but the iPhone is daunting to me. So once I learn the basics I’m going to look for some cooking apps that make sense. Will let you know! Off to finish making homemade pizza for dinner. Hope you’re having a great weekend. Cheers, Dee

Peaches

I’ve got five unripe peaches, the ripe one was eaten this morning, on the counter. They are the size of softballs. I’m going to try a pain perdu, which is basically cooking the fruit, peeled, in a reduced sugar syrup and placing it atop an egg bread (I’ll get Challah).

I’ve never done pain perdu and believe it or not, I’ve never made french toast in my life! So tomorrow morning should be interesting.

Tonight it’s baked potatoes, roast chicken and beet and endive salad. I look forward to a great quiet weekend. Hope yours is enjoyable, too. Cheers! Dee

His Rocky Mountain Highness

A couple of days ago I replaced my dreadnaught guitar I’ve had a whole three months with a smaller-bodied folk acoustic guitar. When I was growing up John Denver was big, then he was un-cool. I always liked him but did not seek him out. Now, I’m awaiting my love to come home and seeing a PBS special and his songs are bringing me to tears.

Fly Away, and others are played between pledge breaks. I remember his simple melodies and angelic voice, and lyrics of the place I can call home. As he talks about the mountains I know their beauty, the moon and the stars… and am lucky to be here, however briefly.

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Out with the old (dreadnaught on the left) and in with the new (folk on the right). Maybe it’ll make me cook better, too! Julie and Julia comes out tomorrow and I may just go see it. Cheers, Dee

Dream Living

My husband always asks where I’d like to live. We move around according to his work, a few years here permanent, a year contract. We do get around and love seeing different areas of the country, and the world. We have to take practical matters to heart. I think we would both love to have a small lakeside retreat as a home base to travel from.

We grew up in such different places Northeast/TX and have different priorities. For me my kitchen reigns supreme and I need dining and living space for family and friends. For Jim, when he was a kid he built a workshop and did a lot of experiments and invented things. So our home would need those features. Anything else is added, fireplace, etc.

Jim and I love the Western post and beam construction with lots of glass, great kitchen with places to congregate, but also places for privacy. I always wanted a trickling Italian (Renaissance, not styrofoam cherub peeing in the pool) fountain in a place with slate stepping stones, thyme as ground cover, ferns and perhaps evergreens and hardwood trees for a shady reading area.

What’s your favorite dream house? I’d have slate floors in the kitchen with granite countertops, gas top range, electric wall ovens w/convection. Separate area with extra frig, laundry, dog bath (hey, I’ll be 70 by that time and I don’t send her out to be cleaned so should have a tub at my level!).

More importantly, what’s essential in YOUR kitchen??? Cheers, Dee

Recipe Request

This comes from my sister, Lisa, who is asking for a “stellar” granola recipe. If you have one, please feel free to share it. I’ve looked up recipes in the past but have not found one to my liking. Any assistance you can provide is appreciated. Cheers, Dee

Family Day

We saw some strange critters today, on a trailer nearby. They were so fierce they had to be tied down! Imagine what havoc they would have wreaked in this tiny mountain community! Jim’s brother John is visiting from the great state of Texas.

We drove south through the mountains then north towards Salt Lake City and checked out both lunch and a neighborhood recommended by Jim’s colleagues. We went to a BBQ place we were used to last time we were here on a short-term deal and Jim had his signature Fred Flintstone ribs. Jim wanted to look at the name of a Mexican place across the six-lane road but John said “that can’t be real Mexican food out here in Utah.” He was right, the Texans ascertained that “Guadalahonkies” would not be traditional fare. For those out there from Cafe B, where Ms. Diana Kennedy visited and I offered to drive her three hours to SF to be in the presence of greatness, please don’t tell her I even said the word “Guadalahonkies.” Thank you. It was enough for her to tell me that Diet Coke would ruin my palate.

The neighborhood was quite nice. It was a good day. We couldn’t go to Park City because of a huge art festival going on, no traffic allowed in town, and it would have cost us $30 to just get in town to go to lunch, without the price of lunch, of course.

Jim’s brother is in town and they set out bicycling this evening to allow me to prepare dinner, and he’s flying back tomorrow afternoon. He’s been doing some genealogical research and has a few holes to fill to get his family tree back to the 1500′s! Impressive work so far so we’ll go to one or two research sites tomorrow morning before we head for the airport. Take care and have a good evening, Dee

NY Strip on the Hook

Yes, husband Jim and his brother John were all outfitted for fly fishing, hiked five miles, never caught a fish. Eschewed half of my gorgeous ham sandwiches to take off their waders and drive down the mountain for a drugstore burger. Now, they did say it was an excellent burger with terrific service.

A week ago I bought an applewood smoked ham, glazed it with orange juice, dijon mustard and brown sugar and baked it. I took off a few slices for dinner that night after baking, cooled it completely and froze it for a week. Yesterday morning I sliced it, placed it on organic wheat bread with more dijon, romaine lettuce and a couple slices of provolone. They brought two back because Jim had to have burgers.

They went back to fish. This was going to be a 13-hour deal. I ended up giving up on them (Jim drowned his i-Phone) and hanging out with neighbors. They came home, we invited the neighbors, cooked the steaks I hunted and killed at Whole Foods Market plus some fish and skewers they brought along and everyone was happy and tired.

Today we drove through downtown Salt Lake City, but construction is making car travel impossible. I finally sneaked my way around to get to the State Capitol building and we went in and it is a magnificent building! The old brick building that preceded it is just down the hill.

It’s not as impressive as other state houses, especial NY in which I worked for years, but it is light and bright and now nearly earthquake-proof. From there we traveled to Ogden where we ate lunch on 25th Street amid an arts fair, then went to the train depot for the train museum, John Browning (weapons) museum and car museum. Then we headed home, probably an hour’s trip on the “country roads.”

We had baked chicken breasts, corn on the cob, potato salad and cole slaw. Then we walked down the path and somehow found our way to gelato. John had apricot, Jim had a mixture of chocolate and highland berries and I had plain limone. Delicious end to an interesting tourist day.

Tomorrow is an open book. I think we’ll tour Park City and environs and perhaps remember to bring the camera this time. ‘Night now. Dee