A Plethora of Pies

A friend just brought a gift of a homemade strawberry rhubarb pie. It tastes as good as it looks and was like a gift from the past. Pies and piemaking were an important part of my past. Not that I personally made pies but, as I grew up, they were the dessert of choice for all of my extended family. We had a rhubarb patch by the garage and a blackberry patch nearby. We took day trips enmasse to pick huckleberries in the Blue Mountains of nearby Idaho. There was always hot coffee and a piece of homemade pie to offer someone who stopped by just to say hi, and people did in those days. Every large family gathering boasted a plethora of pies from berry to lemon merangue.

How's the weather? Call a ham.

The sun is out in Seattle. We soooo want spring. Actually we so want constant warmth and blue skies. It has been off and on and iffy, cool and drizzly, then sunny and back to cool. I know, not a compelling way to begin a blog entry, the weather. It reminds me of a short foray I once made into ham radio. A guy I was with at the time was a bit of an electronic nerd (not meant derogatorily, he went on to own a cable TV company). We had an impressive, at the time, reel-to-reel music system, electronic chess and the aforementioned ham radio. I listened to it and considered trying to learn the Morse code but never did. In those days, learning to tap out code was required to become a “ham”. I remember feeling fascinated for a while listening to folks from all over the world chatting back and forth. I soon learned, though, there is a universal “ham” obsession with weather. Now, in many crisis, these folks have played impressive roles in lifesaving. Alerting to weather information at those times maybe critical. That said, it seemed like every time I heard “hams” chatting it was about the weather. How’s the weather? What’s the weather like there? I don’t know why I expected more esoteric banter, but I would have wanted to know more interesting things from someone across the world than the current state of their weather. “Have you given thought to Spinoza lately?” “What’s the state of mind/body medicine in your part of the world?” Ok, so I’m sounding a bit snobbish, but I never even heard them share a recipe! I know with new forms of communication available, ham radio has taken a very back seat. I’m sure ham aficionados are patient, though. The world one day may find itself with the scenario of communication satellites being obliterated; the world in chaos and once again the tapping of a simple mechanical key will become the lifeblood of communication. In the meantime forget the Internet when you want to know the weather somewhere in the world, call a ham.

Buttered Croissants, broiled lamb & a taste of India

Hot, buttered croissants with coffee have to be a top morning indulgence for me. I used to enjoy them only rarely as I had to go out amidst traffic and morning chill to get them, or remember them the night before and then they were day old. Trader Joe’s is now my hero. They sell packages of eight frozen mini croissants. You take some out the night before and let them “proof” on a baking sheet over night. Then you bake them till golden brown. They are perfectly flakey, and deliciously croissanty, if I may coin a word. I discovered them by reading through the Trader Joe’s crazy little opus that they publish regularly. It’s a store that has little gems of food items up and down the aisles. Sometimes, now, I take the time to browse more in Trader Joe’s. That’s how I found what’s now a kitchen staple, their Mango Ginger Chutney. It’s a great accompaniment to my Indian dishes and Hank loves it as a cooking sauce. He used it brilliantly last night over lamb chops. No, you won’t overtly taste the ginger, it’s just a delicious sweet sauce with some complexity.

His dinner was a definite winner. Broiled lamb chops with mango ginger chutney sauce, broiled giant scallops which benefited from the sauce, as well, mashed potatoes with butter and fresh asparagus. I’ve been spoiled this week as the night before we had liver slathered in onions along with mashed potatoes (thanks to a friend who recently fixed it and inspired us). We both love liver and onions but often don’t think to fix it. Hank went to three stores trying to find veal liver but had to settle for basic beef liver. It was good, though. He told the tale of asking for veal liver at the Metropolitan Market and getting an angry stare. They might want to inquire as to the politics of their meat salespeople. Vegetarians or PETA folks should be allowed to opt out.

Wednesday afternoon I was a little down and needed an Indian food fix, both the fun of preparing it and the interesting tastes. What did I have on hand…red potatoes, a head of cauliflower that needed to be used… I went to Google and typed in potatoes + cauliflower + Indian + recipe and came up with the following dish. I put it all through the ricer topped it with a little butter for an amazing taste not at all overtly spicy!

Cauliflower and Potato Curry

From: Lisa Corsetti http://www.ivu.org/recipes/indian-veg/cauliflower-and-j.html I buy most of my Indian Spices, like Garam Masala, at a local food cooperative (Puget Sound Consumer Cooperative in Seattle) that sells spices in bulk.

Ingredients:
4 Cups potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 small cauliflower, cut into florets
a pinch of asafetida (can be omitted)
3/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
big pinch of sugar
2 tomatoes, chopped (I used a can of diced tomatoes)

1 1/4 cups water
1/2 tsp garam masala

Instructions:

Add all ingredients to a crockpot and cook on low for approximately six hours. Mash together.
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Voila! Our Experience

We dined at a small French restaurant, Voila!, in the Madison Valley area of Seattle last night. We began with an hors d oeuvre of escargot and a salad. The Escargot was placed on French bread baguette rounds dripping with a garlic butter mixed with finely chopped parsley and basil. Hank is fond of the escargot; I loved the garlic butter mixture in which I dipped the French bread served at the table. The salad was three endive leaves topped with rough chopped endive, leeks and walnuts, finely chopped shallots, vinaigrette, and blue cheese chunks.

For the main course I ordered the Cassoulet topped with buttered breadcrumbs and Hank the veal liver. The Cassoulet wasn’t quite as good, I felt, as Café Campagne near the Pike Place Market but was tasty. (Leftovers brought home were even better the next day.) It had the requisite duck, pork and sausage (and I thought I tasted some lamb), Cannalini beans and, for texture and taste, the breadcrumb topping. I felt it had a stronger tomato base to the sauce than I prefer.

Hank’s veal liver was served in 2” medallions in a sauce consisting basically, he felt, of dark wine and onions. He didn’t like the sauce and wasn’t impressed with the dish in general. The meat was surrounded with a mashed and piped yams seasoned mildly and poorly. One taste that came through was nutmeg. The liver wasn’t overdone, but not impressive.

We finished the meal with coffee and Sambuca (they didn’t have our desired anisette and Sambuca doesn’t hold it’s own in the coffee as well.)

I believe I’m sounding like a bit of a snob here, The entrées were in the $15 range, less than Café Campagne, The small chandelier and candle lit interior was pleasant.

Hail Tupperware!

It just doesn’t seem possible that the last entry here was before Christmas. Hank’s been through a successful knee replacement and three weeks recuperation at his sister’s in Issaquah. Thanks Helen! Here it is, mid February, the sun is shining on a Saturday afternoon. I’ve been making Snickerdoodles for Valentine’s gifts to neighbors. A small gesture, but a good Snickerdoodle is always a treat. I spent the day cleaning out the refrigerator and then the pan hole. I suppose on a boat it’s more properly called the pan hold, but hey. Pans on our boat are kept in a hole. To clean it out you have to get on hands and knees and sometimes lay flat on the kitchen floor to reach the bottom. Today I purged pans. Actually mostly I purged plastic ware that sneaks into the pan hole. I had to rematch all the Tupperware and sundry lids. I have more lids than containers, as usual. Tupperware is like socks; for some unknown reason you are always losing the lid or its matching container.

I fondly remember attending Tupperware parties with my Mom. It was the 1950’s and in-home parties were a new source of fun. Mary Kay was probably still selling Fuller brushes while Earl Tupper started setting the pace back in 1945. I remember burping lids, nested bowls, those pastel colored tumblers and cereal bowls and the amazing deviled egg carrying container (this was an era before the obsession with cholesterol) everybody made deviled eggs. They were the quintessential hors d oeuvre.

Things have come a long way. The last Tupperware party I attended was a couple years ago. A very fun-loving single guy friend of ours was talked into throwing a Tupperware party. He hardly knew what Tupperware was but was up for fun. He invited 30+ people and just about all showed. People brought wine and hors d oeuvres and he’d arranged live music (a neighbor couple, he played piano and she sang French love songs and show tunes). The Tupperware Lady was game – she demonstrated mango salsa in the Quick Chef hand chopper (throw in a tomato, a mango, an onion, some cilantro some lime juice, a couple spins of the handle and Viola! salsa) Bowls of chips and salsa circled the room and I bought the Quick Chef. I also bought the Tupperware cutting board and the deli meat and cheese storer and I love them all! The more wine people drank the more Tupperware they ordered. Based on amount of sales the host ended up with just about every hostess gift available (I don’t think Earl Tupper thought in terms of Host gifts).

I still love Tupperware, especially because moisture is a boat dwellers bane and glass breaks no matter how hard you try to store it creatively. Ironically, when I was first invited over to my sister-in-law’s house some thirty years ago I took deviled eggs as an hors d oeuvre (I’ve found even in the ‘age of cholesterol’ whenever you show up with deviled eggs they get scarffed up quickly). She was ecstatic about the treat from her past. She went to a high cupboard and returned with a Tupperware deviled egg-carrying container. “It was our mothers”, she proclaimed, “and I am gifting it to you with the mandate that you bring deviled eggs to all family dinners!” Hail Tupperware, it connects us through the generations.

Small Gestures

How many times in your life have you glanced out your window to observe a log floating by? It's one of the reasons we love living on the water. Something is always happening; something is always changing. Calling Harbor Patrol to alert them they thanked me and said they’d “go wrangle it”. Log wrangling is a concept you won't hear in too many circles.

A neighbor invited us out to follow the Christmas Ship in Seattle last night. http://www.argosycruises.com/themecruises/xmasSchedule.cfm

It’s a tradition around the waters here. Onboard his well-lit powerboat, amidst a highly decorated gaggle of other boats, like the geese that travel our waters, we trailed a large Argosy Cruise vessel with onboard Dickens Carolers singing at several stops. The night was clear and warm; literally shirtsleeve weather. We passed Seattle’s floating home community and turned the corner passing through the cut where University crew’s race and into Lake Washington. Many homes around the lakes here deck out in Christmas lights. It’s a unique and festive sight for those lucky enough to view it from the water.

My folks loved decorating our home inside and out every Christmas. Dad would spend several months building motorized displays. Imagine Rudolph hoisting Santa Clause up the side of the house by pulley and having him slide back down upon reaching the top, Sort of a holiday “myth of Sisyphus”. They won prizes in numerous years. Imagine having the whole town alerted to drive by your house alive with lights and moving Rudolphs. At age 16 it was a bit embarrassing. Now I salute them. They loved doing it, thus indulged themselves. And, they created fun for those who make a holiday tradition of a night viewing Christmas lights.

Their Christmas decorating

extravaganzas all started one year when Mom ordered a life sized, plastic, stuffable Santa Clause from Hancock House. (I think that was the company name, it was little catalogue that had every odd thing imaginable). She stuffed it with newspapers and sat him on a bench in our yard. Dad got the idea of putting Santa’s feet in a bucket with some dry ice and shining a light on him. Someone entered them in the town’s Christmas display contest and after winning third prize, they were off and running.

What a treat it is to think back on the fun they had. Mom would help come up with the concept and design. Dad would build it downstairs in his shop cutting and painting plywood, rigging motors and lights. I don’t remember being asked to help, it really was their project and must have been fun for them. It was never about the competition with others, they loved outdoing themselves year after year.

I now have a friend who finds pleasure in creating over 100 custom-made Christmas cards involving cut outs and pop-ups and tales of her yearly adventures. It takes her hours of work, but it’s work she loves. I, and I’m sure all on her list, look forward to receiving them. I’m glad to know there are still folks whose indulgence involves creating holiday surprises for the purpose of bringing smiles to others. She and my folks remind us of how much fun can be had constructing simple things and sharing them. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for my appreciation, last night, of the folks who took the time to light their homes and boats. And, today, when most holiday cards arrive with just a signature or printed name and gift cards are often the extent of creative giving, I thank my friend whose hand made cards are reminders that there still are good people who enjoy sharing their sense of fun with others. I want more people like that in my life.

Yam Curry an Amazing option for the traditional Thanksgiving candied yam dish

My hobby is cooking Indian cuisine. It's a country that does amazing things with vegetables. I feel like an alchemist creating Indian dishes. The aromas are so compelling, often, my neighbors saunter over to see what I'm cooking. I've made this Yam Curry twice. This year, it's going to be my alternative to the traditional Thansgiving sweet potatoes and I know it will be a hit. The spices blend together and when you take a bite it's subtly sweet, savory and addictive.

You can purchase Indian spices in bulk (small amounts) at many natural food stores. In Seattle, Puget Sound Consumer Coop stores have most of them. I keep a little of a lot of them in a separate Rubbermaid container on hand for my experiments. Many Indian dishes freeze very well.

Yam Curry
Yields: 6

Ingredients
1 pound sweet potatoes, or yams (I use 3 large yams)
1 teaspoon salt (to sweat the yams)
1 large onion, chopped coarsly (I use a sweet onion)
1 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil to shallow fry potato chunks (can deep fry in 3" hot oil)
2 inches fresh ginger root, grated (or bottled chopped ginger or ginger paste)
3 garlic clove, chopped (or ready chopped garlic)
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil (for frying onion, garlic, ginger, tomato mixture)
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
2 green cardamom seeds (seeds removed)
1 bay leaf (I omit)
4 whole peppercorns
2 inch cinnamon stick broken in half
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon chili powder or use cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground coriander
Salt to taste
4 ounces tomatoes fresh (I used 1 large tomato or you can use 8 oz canned)
4 tablespoons plain yogurt or sour cream
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon cilantro leaves chopped,  (for garnish)

Directions
(1) Place all the spices except cumin seeds in a smal dish ready to add.

(2) Peel the yams, cut them into 1 inch cubes, place in a colander and sprinkle liberally with 1 teaspoon salt. Let stand 10-15 minutes, then rinse and drain.

(3) While potato chunks are sweating, finely chop the onion, ginger, and garlic, and roughly chop the tomatoes.

(4) Heat the 2 to 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil over a moderate flame, add the cumin seed, and cook until they begin to sputter. Add the chopped onion, ginger, and garlic. Cook until the onion is a rich golden color.

(5) Add all the spices and season with salt to taste. Cook a few seconds more, and then add the tomatoes.
Let this cook while you continue as below.

(6) Heat oil for shallow frying the yams. Cook the yam cubes, a few at a time, until golden brown. Drain on absorbent kitchen paper. Pour out oil and set potatoes aside.(I removed the ginger onion garlic mixture and used the same frying pan to shallow fry the yamchunks in about 1/4 in oil.)

(7) Return the onion, garlic, ginger, tomato mixture to the frying pan, add the yogurt to the mixture, and continue to cook until the oil begins to separate out.

(8) Add the water and bring to a boil. Let boil a few minutes, then add the yam cubes, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for about 25 minutes.

(9) Serve hot, garnished with the chopped coriander.

Traditionally served with chapatis and rice. I took it to my sister-in-laws as replacement for the traditional sweet potato/yams at Thanksgiving and it got raves. (If somebody "must" have marshmallows, dish up a serving and nuke it with a couple marshmallows on top.)