Quick Cioppino

I wanted to use up some shrimp and fish from the freezer, and most of these ingredients were already in the pantry. For the salsa, I used up the remaining fire-roasted salsa from Costco. The recipe did not call for it, but all the cioppino recipes I've seen in the past called for fennel, so I added half a sliced head for the added licorice undertone. Instead of the bagged frozen peppers mix, I used two green bell peppers chopped into large chunks. There was just enough Kendall Jackson sauvignon blanc, and although it's a little pricey to be throwing into a stew, it gave the sauce just the right amount of acidity needed to go with the tomatoes and seafood. I used only about 2/3 of an 8-oz. bottle of clam juice, as I find it to be a bit overwhelming, and made of the difference with some water. Fresh sea scallops along with leftover frozen shrimp and cod from Trader Joe's will be added just before serving. This will avoid overcooking the fish and making it tough. I had intended to buy some clams to add in too, but just six of them came to almost $6.50 at Stater Bros. market, so I gave them back to the guy behind the counter. This has a real kick of spice from the salsa, and I forgot and added a dash of crushed pepper flakes; so this is good and spicy. Lemon wedges on the side if needed complete the dish.

Usually we'd have chunks of buttered sourdough or French bread, but we're trying to cut down on the carbs for a while; hence, the sugar-free strawberry Jello for dessert with quartered strawberries added. Perhaps just a splash of fresh cream on top???





Shortcut Cioppino

Recipe courtesy of Dinners in a Dish or a Dash by Jean Anderson (William Morrow)

Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh or frozen onions (about 2 medium-large yellow onions)
Half of a 1-pound bag frozen bell pepper stir-fry mix (red, green, and yellow peppers; do not thaw)
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 large whole bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, with their liquid
Two 1-pound jars chunky salsa (as mild or hot as you like)
Two 8-ounce bottles clam juice
1 cup dry white wine such as a Verdicchio or Soave
1 pound boned and skinned halibut, haddock, or cod
1 pound shelled and deveined medium-size raw shrimp or 1/2 pound each shrimp and lump crab or sea scallops, these halved if large
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil in large kettle over moderately high heat 2 minutes. Add onions, stir-fry mix, garlic, bay leaves, oregano, and basil and cook, stirring often, until onions are golden, 8 to 10 minutes.
Add tomatoes, salsa, clam juice, and wine; bring to simmering, adjust heat so mixture bubbles gently, and cook uncovered just until flavors meld, about 20 minutes.

Add halibut and shrimp and cook uncovered just until shrimp turn pink and fish almost flakes, about 5 minutes.

Remove bay leaves, season to taste with salt and pepper, then serve with rough country bread.

Copyright © 2006 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved

Quick Trip to the Beach

Tuesday morning Eddie and I set off for a short trip to Laguna Beach. Our friends who recently moved to Arkasas are housesitting in the Temple Hills area of town, and we were lucky enough to be invited down for a couple of days. I hadn't been over that way in about seven years, so I had to brush up on the directions. The new toll roads through Riverside and Orange counties are fantastic. They cut out a huge chunk of distance and save a lot of time too. Anyway, the house we stayed at is way up in the hills with a panoramic ocean view from the front terrace.

We took a ride in the afternoon to San Onofre State Beach, which is in the shadows of the nuclear power plant. It was quite a walk down to the beach, which made the very comfortable water even more inviting. Just right, and not so cold as it is up the coast.

For dinner, Stan made a farfalle with a walnut pesto, which we really enjoyed out on the front patio area. The fog had rolled in and it would have been too cool on the back terrace.



On our way out of town the next day, Eddie and I had lunch at Johnny Rocket's. Two double burgers, two malts and an order of fries came to almost $33, but I must say the burgers were the biggest I've ever seen and I couldn't finish mine. So I guess for a one-time thing it's okay to splurge.

It was nice returning to the desert, even though the heat and humidity have not abated. The swimming pool temperature hit an unbelievable 100 degrees. All we had to do was turn on the bubbles in the spa, no extra heat needed.

We're looking forward to less humidity, which is forcasted for the beginning of next week, and it can't come a day too soon for my taste.

Got Corn?

The other day we picked up a dozen ears of corn from Costco. Also, I've had a hankering for corn chowder for a while, so since we're going to the beach tomorrow for a couple days, and the corn won't wait any longer, I made a batch of chowder this morning. I'll put it in the fridge, and it will taste even better after a couple days' sitting. The roasting step with butter sweetens up the kernels even more and gives a nice toasty flavor to the finished chowder. I added a pinch of cayenne pepper in the pureeing step to give a bit of a kick, and I'll re-season just before reheating and serving. Also, I'm not going to add the cream until that time, as cream once boiled may curdle. Yuck!

Notice that this is not high in calories, even with the cream; so go ahead and enjoy a big bowlful. A nice salad would complement this just fine, perhaps tomatoes and zucchinis from the garden, both of which should be plentiful just about this time of summer.

I got this recipe from the Simi Winery website.

ROASTED SWEET CORN SOUP
INGREDIENTS:
-- 10 to 12 ears of corn, unshucked -- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter -- 4 large garlic cloves, unpeeled -- 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock -- 2 cups water -- 1 large baking potato, peeled, cut into eighths -- 4 teaspoons cornmeal -- 1 cup heavy cream -- Salt and pepper -- Basil oil and basil sprigs (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS: Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Pull back husk partway on each corn ear. Using all the butter, put a small piece inside each husk, replace husk, and place ears in a single layer on a baking sheet (or two). Scatter garlic around ears. Bake 20 minutes.
Let cool, then peel garlic and shuck corn. Scrape kernels from cobs and set aside 2 cups. Reserve 6 of the cobs.
Combine stock, water and 6 corn cobs in a large pot. (Cut cobs in half if necessary.) Add peeled garlic and potato. Simmer until potato is soft. Discard corn cobs.
Transfer mixture to food processor. Add corn kernels (except reserved 2 cups) and cornmeal; puree. Return puree to pot and stir in cream. Thin, if desired, with a little stock. Heat just to a boil. Stir in reserved corn kernels. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve immediately, garnishing, if desired, with a swirl of basil oil and a basil sprig.
Serves 8.
(c) Mary Evely, Simi Winery
PER SERVING: 295 calories, 6 g protein, 32 g carbohydrate, 18 g fat (11 g saturated), 57 mg cholesterol, 29 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.

Road Trip to Las Vegas and Tucson

Hello to everyone again. I've not posted in a while. The computer has been at Gateway for a repair, and then it was lost in the delivery system for over a week, but it finally arrived back home on Monday, and things are all loaded again and seem to work fine. Fingers Crossed!

After Demi died, we took off on a much-deserved roadtrip. It was great to get away, but it was filled with some sadness knowing that we would have no frantic hello's waiting for us when we returned home. Of course, we are now in no hurry to rush home to relieve a dogsitter.

Anyway, we headed up to Las Vegas for five days. The weather was nice and dry, hot of course, but we're used to it. One thing, though: smoke from the big Yucca Valley fire drifted directly over Vegas and that made for some beautiful sundowns and sunrises -- just like being on another planet.

Eddie and I don't gamble, so that's no big draw for us, but we do like to just relax and see what's going on around town.

One place I must pass on to everyone is Terrible's Casino at the corner of Flamingo and Paradise. The coffee shop upstairs near the bingo room is a real find. The menu is varied and priced right. If you lived in town, you'd be eating leftovers for lunch the next day, guaranteed. Between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. they have a late night breakfast menu which is not to be believed for the amount of food and the cheap prices. Do not miss this one.

Our friends Brian and Don who live in town told us if we liked the Wynn Hotel that we'd flip over the new Red Rock Resort. It's on the far west side of town, way out on Charleston near the 215 Beltway highway. We drove out there midmorning and it looked like it wasn't even open. But it was and parts of the resort are still being worked on. We tried the buffet for an early lunch, it was quite good. I must say, though, that the Vegas buffets have all started to look and taste alike. So not bad, but not fabulous either. But you must go out there and see the place. It will knock your socks off!

On Friday we left early and drove to Tucson for a few days there. I had never driven that route before, U.S. 93, and I didn't know what to expect. A lot of U.S. highways are one lane each direction, but this was really nice. They're upgrading the road, even a new bridge over the Colorado to avoid having to cross the Hoover Dam. The scenery was spectacular and the road was very uncrowded. We especially were taken with the town of Wickenburg, AZ. Just like you'd expect a small town to look like, and it's only about 50 miles to central Phoenix.

When in Tucson, we ended up staying at a place called the Smuggler's Inn. Our usual place, the Radisson Suites, was fully booked, as were most other places, due to a Jehovah's Witness convention in town over the weeked. For $55 a night it was just fine, but the place had an eerie, not occupied and uncared-for feel to it. No complaints, though; it came with a daily cocktail and buffet breakfast, so it really was a bargain. When checking out, I asked the kid behind the desk, "What's up with this place? Is it being sold, or what?" And in a soft voice he said it had been sold and that the 31st of July is their last day. So that explained everything. Next time in Tucson the building will probably we bulldozed and an office already on its way to completion.

We were lucky enough to experience a real summertime monsoonal evening thunder and lightning storm. It was awesome!!

Palm Springs has had record-breaking heat, yes, even for us, and it's been a bit of a challenge. Yesterday's high was 120 degrees. Last night at 11:30 it was still 102 degrees! Today it's forecasted to be about the same, so I expect more indoor activities again.

We've been too hot to cook, so thank goodness for the freezer which is filled with enough goodies to last through World War III.

That's it for now, and I'll try to post more often.

Bad and Sad News

Our laptop went on the fritz and is being looked at by Gateway. It should be returned today or tomorrow. We've done a fair amount of cooking lately, but nothing worth mentioning. Heat-survival cooking -- cold foods, things made in the portable convection oven, the pressure cooker, etc.

The new Electolux fridge is working out. Since then, the Northland all-fridge in the garage started acting up. Sears took a look at it and estimated a new condenser would be about $900, and Northland Inc. sells new ones, same model, for about $1200. So we got another new fridge last week, and it should make a huge difference in our electiric bill. The old one rarely shut off, and the new one is off quite a bit.

Now for the bad news: we had to put our Schnauzer Demi down two weeks ago. We knew it was coming, but that didn't make it any easier. He was a great pet and friend for almost 15 years and we'll miss him terribly.

Going to Las Vegas next week for a little R & R after the ordeal of putting a friend down. As if it isn't hot enough here in Palm Springs!! Go figure.

More on our trip next week.

Posole Rojo

I mentioned in a post last week a stock I made from bags of bones and trimmings from the freezer. I thought it would be a nice base for a posole, also known as pork and hominy stew. Here's the recipe I made up, combining bits from several that were on my to-make list. It came out very tasty, especially after sitting in the fridge for a day. It's a great dish for company because it's make-ahead, all you have to do on the day of serving is cut up the accompaniments and heat up the stew. Warmed flour tortillas with soft butter are another thing to serve on the side. The beverage of choice is usually a cold Mexican beer with lime wedges, but anything cold works well.

Pork, Beef and Hominy Stew with Red Chiles

(Posole Rojo)

Day 1 Make Stock

Chicken backs, wings and whatever is sitting around in the freezer
Frozen corn cobs
Frozen tomato trimmings
Carrots
Celery
Onions
Garlic
Bay leaves
Peppercorns
Dry thyme
Parsley stems

Cover chicken bones with cold water by several inches. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Skim off impurities. Add other ingredients and adjust heat for slow simmer. Simmer at least 2 hours. Strain, cool, chill overnight and then skim off fat layer.

Day 2 Make posole

To stock pot, add 2 pounds country-style pork ribs, 2 pounds beef short ribs (all pork may be used); 1 head garlic, cloves peeled, then sliced; 1 white onion, peeled and quartered; 2 carrots cut into chunks; 2 cloves garlic sliced; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 10 cups stock and 2 cups cold water.

Bring to a boil, reduce to slow simmer and skim off impurities as they rise to the top. Then add 1 teaspoon oregano, crumbled. Simmer about 2 hours. Remove meat, let cool and then shred using two forks. Set meat aside. Strain stock and discard solids.

Return meat and broth to stock pot. Add chile sauce, 2 30-oz. cans hominy, rinsed and drained, 1 teaspoon salt, about ¼ cup lime juice. Simmer another 30 minutes and taste for seasoning. Add white wine vinegar to taste.

Serve with accompaniments or chill up to 2 days. Freezes well, too.

Chile Sauce:

Remove stems and seed from 2 ozs. Dried New Mexico, ancho or pasilla chiles, or a combination. Flatten and briefly heat in medium skillet. Set them in a bowl and cover with about 2 cups boiling water. Cover and let sit up to an hour.

In blender add chiles and liquid, 14 ½ oz can chopped tomatoes, ½ white onion chopped, 1 garlic clove, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon sugar. Blend well until smooth. In skillet heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and add sauce. Simmer until slightly thickened.

Accompaniments:

Shredded red cabbage
Shredded iceberg lettuce
Diced avocado
Sliced radishes
Lime wedges
Chopped white onion
Sour cream or Mexican crema

Here are some pictures of our 15-year-old, quickly failing Schnauzer, Demetrius, "Demi," who is having sort of a bad day today. Doesn't want to eat, just lays around, and looks pretty wobbling on his legs. His blood work looks a little better and we'll start him on some new meds today. He's lost another 1 lb. 2 oz, which for a small dog is a lot. The vet is very concerned and each time she sees Demi, asks us how his quality of life is, which a very scary question at this point. Each day is different and causes a new set of worries and challenges.

White Chocolate Ice Cream with Baked Apples

Last week we had delivered our new kitchen scale. Believe me, the last one had really lost it; it wouldn't keep weights consistently, among other troubles, so I threw it out. It lasted at least eleven years, so I guess that's pretty good. The new one is a My Weigh i5000H, 11 pound capacity, weighs in grams and pounds. We do a fair amount of bread and pastry baking, and measuring by weight is definitely the most accurate way to go. Eddie used it yesterday to weigh out white chocolate for a batch of ice cream, and it came out perfect. Yummy! We had it alongside of microwave "baked" apples with caramel sauce, another recipe I tried to avoid stove and oven cooking.

Thanks to Joe and Nick Maglieri for their advice about what kind of scale they use and recommend.

White Chocolate Ice Cream

(From "The Dessert Lover's Cookbook" by Marlene Sorosky)

6 oz. white chocolate, chopped (Eddie used Trader Joe's white choc. chips)
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 cups milk
3 large egg yolks, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
pinch salt
1 cup half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt the chocolate with 1/2 cup milk in top of double boiler over simmering water. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Whisk yolks and sugar and salt in medium saucepan until blended. Gradually whisk in 1 1/2 cups milk and half and half. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with wooden spoon, until mixture is thick enough to leave a path on wooden spoon when you run a finger along it. Remove from heat. Stir in white chocolate and vanilla. Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until cold. (May be refrigerated, covered, up to 2 days.)

Freeze according to manufacturer's directions. Serve immediately, as soft serve, or freeze up to 1 week.

Baked Apples in Caramel Sauce

(from "The Well -Filled Microwave" by Wise and Hoffman)

1/2 cup walnut halves or pieces
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
4 large apples, such as Granny Smiths, cored

Spread walnuts on a plate and microwave, uncovered, on High for 3 minutes, or until toasted. When cool, finely chop and set aside.

Place the brown sugar, butter and cream in a dish large enough to hold the apples without touching each other. Microwave on High for 3 minutes or until bubbling. Whisk to mix.

Set apples in the dish and stuff apples with walnuts and spoon some sauce over. Cover the dish and microwave on High for 5 to 6 minutes until apples ae soft all the way through, but still hold their shape.

To serve, spoon some sauce back over the apples.

This and That

It's been H O T for the last week and a half, (would you believe 110 - 112 degrees? On top of that, the humidity is spiking due to monsoonal activity) and I've turned into a lazy slug and don't even want to turn on the stove unless absolutely necessary.

The new fridge arrived on time (see Death of a Refrigerator), but there were a few kinks to work out. One, it wasn't leveled properly. Two, the right-side door didn't open properly. It made a distinct clunking at the halfway point and then would not close on its own, as we've all come to depend on over the years. After two service calls in the first week, I think the problems have been corrected. All that's left is replacement of a piece below the door which got scratched due to a piece missing in the hinge of the door.

Aside from all that, we've been trying to eat leftovers and stuff from the freezer as much as possible. Sunday evening a few guys came over and we grilled top sirloins we had in the freezer. Also I made my favorite gazpacho, a mixed bean and pasta salad, and a fruit salad. Prepping was a bit of a challenge, as we are being rather stingy with the a/c after receiving our last power bill.


We've taken to using the grill and its side burner more, and also we had, unopened in the garage for over a year, a perfectly fine convection oven/toaster which is big enough to hold two quarter sheet pans. Hey, these save turning on the oven and/or stovetop.

In this kind of heat, we just don't have a hearty appetite at dinnertime anyway, so this has worked out really well. I'm keeping my eyes open for things that lend themselves well to outdoor cooking, including the crockpot and electric pressure cooker, both of which can be plugged in outside.

What I have planned:

Last week I made a clean-out-the-freezer stock using lots of chicken backs, wing tips, tomato scraps, corn cobs, and the usual stuff like onion, celery, carrot, bay, thyme and peppercorns. It has a distinct Mexican flavor from the corn cobs, so I am thinking of doing a large batch of pozole for the freezer. Unfortunately, I'll have to do it inside, so I'll just endure for a couple of hours.

Went to see the DaVinci Code two weeks ago, and we really enjoyed it. It followed very closely the book. I'm so glad it's done well, just to prove all the critics wrong. Now we're looking forward to seeing Cars, which comes out today, and also Prairie Home Companion.

On TV most of our favorite shows have gone into reruns, but the new season of BBC America's Footballers Wives began last Sunday, and it just keeps getting better and better. If you get BBC America, check out this show. It's awesome!!!

Having a DVR from Time-Warner has changed our lives; it's just too easy to watch shows now, including my soap, All My Children, which I've watched since its first year of 1970. Any other fans out there? Have you ever watched a show and you can't decide if you love it or hate it, whether it's good or just plain unbelievably stupid? If you watch AMC, you know what I mean, but it's like a bad habit you can't break. At this point, I can't just drop it.

Right now I'm reading The Rule of Four, and then I'll get back to The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. I'm on the third one and they are all easy and fun reads.

Tonight for dinner we both want something grilled and a simple potato salad, so that shouldn't be too much effort to expend in the heat, although today it's ONLY going to be a cool 102 degrees, so we are happy about that.

Our new nextdoor neighbors Fred and Gonzalo are coming by Sunday night for a light dinner, maybe burgers, etc. just to give them a break after moving into their new house.

That's all for now. More later.

Death of a Refrigerator

Well, we knew this day was coming. We tried to ignore it. We stuck our heads in the sand. But there's no avoiding it anymore. Our fridge-freezer is dying! As a result there will be no food brought into this house until the new one is delivered, hopefully tomorrow sometime.

Not bad timing, though; it's Memorial Day weekend and we are fully booked, so there's really no need to cook.

When we get to clearing out the freezer, I'm sure we'll come across many items, the likes of which I'm sure we've long since forgotten about. "Oh, yeah, I was wondering what happened to that. I could have used that last month when I made that batch of stock." "Hey, there's that bag of overly ripe bananas I put away for smoothies." "What is that??!!" And so on. So we'll start over with a beautiful new machine, swear we'll only put things in there that will be used within a certain period of time, and then sometime down the road end up with a fully packed freezer again. I know how we are.

If only I were more like my mother, the freezer queen. She'd keep taped to the side of the machine an inventory, no kidding, that she actually would use. As something was pulled out, a line was drawn through it. Honestly, she'd be able to have company over and not even go the store for groceries. Complete meals ready to serve at a moment's notice. Granted, sometimes the combinations sound a bit bizarre, but it always worked and tasted great. As she got older, things started to age a bit past their prime; e.g., bags of sunflower seeds, ziplock bags of walnuts, a bag with a handful of frozen peas and carrots, etc. She just couldn't throw anything out. Who could blame her?

Anyway, the Electolux should be here tomorrow and then we can just stand back and stare at its stainless steel beauty.

Perfect Dish for Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner

Want a dish that's perfect for any meal, it's easy to prepare with on-hand ingredients and everyone will like? Try savory calfoutis. This one is made with cherry tomatoes and basil, recipe courtesy of Nosheteria. This is nothing more than a dessert clafouti minus the sugar. Dairy, eggs, seasonings, a bit of flour for structure, herbs and tomatoes. Easy, huh? By rights, this recipe should have been enough for four, but Eddie and I scarfed it up. Very light and appropriate for a light dinner or outside brunch. Salad on the side and good wine or champagne would complete the meal. Going with the simple theme, fresh fruit as is or macerated in liquer-spiked sugar is a nice complement. Having reformatted the memory card on our camera, I accidentally deleted the photo of the finished product, but take my word for it: It was good! Here's the recipe.

Cherry Tomato and Basil Clafoutis

butter for greasing
1 pound cherry tomatoes
4 eggs
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup creme fraiche, sour cream, or plain yogurt
4 tablespoons milk
handful of roughly torn, fresh basil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 inch pie plate with butter. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, then beat in the flour. Add the yogurt and milk, beating until smooth. Stir in the basil and all but 2 tablespoons of the parmesan cheese.

Spread the tomatoes, evenly over the bottom of the pie plate. Pour the batter over the tomatoes and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until top is golden brown, and tomato juices are bubbling. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Pasta Carbonara and Salty Oats Cookies

Thanks once again to Amy for her permission to use and reprint her recipe for Spaghetti Carbonara. This was perfect; it was written for two servings. Forgive me, Amy, but I added about a quarter cup of heavy cream to the egg-Parmesan mixture. Also, I added back in the crumbled bacon and garnished with chopped Italian parsley. Yummy!! Here's the recipe, with my revisions.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

1 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a knife
4 slices diced bacon
2 eggs
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 pound of spaghetti or bucatini or linguini
1/3 cup grated Pecorino or Parmigiano (or combination)
salt fresh ground black pepper
chopped parsley

Bring salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water to use in the sauce if needed to thin it out a bit. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon, and saute until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss a smashed clove of garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to flavor the oil, then remove it. Remove half of the bacon grease and save the rest for another purpose. Beat the eggs, cream and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps, set aside. Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the skillet and toss to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, toss the spaghetti quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (that is why you do this off the heat) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. The sauce should be creamy, not "scrambled egg" crumbly. Season with lots of freshly ground black pepper, a sprinkle more of grated cheese and taste for salt. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Serves 2 people.


For dessert I made this cookie recipe from Bakingsheet called Salty Oats. The sprinkling of kosher salt on top and the exclusion of salt in the dough intrigued me. These were a snap to throw together and if using 1/4 cup dough for each, it made 15 large cookies. Eddie and I had to "test" one after they cooled and then two more each for dessert. Needless to say, after a plate of pasta and two cookies, we're both plenty full.



Salty Oats

1 1/4 cups ap flour
1/2 cup rice flour (white or brown)
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup large raisins
Salt, for sprinkling (kosher)

Preheat oven to 375F. Line three large baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together rice flour and all purpose flour. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream butter for 30-60 seconds to soften. Add brown and white sugars, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Cream until mixture is very well blended. Add in eggs, one at a time, followed by vanilla extract.
With the mixer on low speed, beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats and raisins.

Drop dough, measuring with 1/4 cup dry measure, on to prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle cookies with salt, giving each cookie a light, but even, coating.
Bake for 12-14 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before storing.

Yield: 15 large cookies

Blueberry Pancakes... for Lunch!!??

There was half a pint of blueberries in the fridge, for over a week I'm ashamed to say, and they miraculously did not mold. Amy gave me permission to reprint her recipe for Double Blue Pancakes, which I just finished.

These were great -- not too sweet, a bit of crunchiness from the blue cornmeal -- and on a hot day like today, I only could eat two, Eddie had one, and the rest will be frozen for toaster breakfast tomorrow. Considering I got the blueberries at the 99 Cent store, this made for a rather economical meal. Actually, almost two meals.

Although they did not need it, I smeared mine with some soft butter and gave them a drizzle of real maple syrup. These would be great for dinner too with eggs and oven-baked bacon.

Again, Amy, thank you for the great recipe.

Amy's Double Blue Pancakes
Serves 2--double the recipe for 4 people

1/2 c flour
1/2 c blue cornmeal
2 t baking powder
1 T sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 c blueberries
1/2 c milk
1 egg
1 T oil
1 t grated lemon peel

Mix the dry ingredients. Add the blueberries to the dry ingredients, this will prevent clumping. Mix all the wet ingredients in a separate bowl, then add to the dry ingredients. Mix well. Pour by the spoonful on a greased, preheated non-stick skillet or griddle. Cook until bubbles form and pancakes turn brown on the bottom, then flip and continue to cook. Serve with maple syrup, preferably warmed.

Candy and Dinner

Today in the mail, Eddie received a parcel from his Scottish friend Joyce, currently on vacation in Boston (nothing but rain for the whole trip). Inside we found these . They are incredible mint chip maltball candies from Marich Confectionery in Hollister, CA. Thank you, Joyce!



We treated to dinner our neighbors and friends Ray and Steve at Boscoso Restaurant in Palm Springs. This is one of the restaurants owned by the guys that run Wang's in the Desert and Woody's at the Beach in Laguna Beach. I have to add this place to our list of not-so-great places to eat. What can I say? Medicore food, high prices, hip decor. What's new about that?

Split-Pea Soup on a Hot Evening

Last week I made a nice ham stock using a ham bone which a neighbor brought over. In the pressure cooker, I covered the bone with water, an onion, quartered, and a couple of garlic cloves. After 30 minutes on high pressure, I let it cool down naturally and then strained the stock and chilled it until I used it yesterday. I skimmed off the layer of fat which had congealed on top and strained it again through a very fine-mesh strainer to remove any remaining impurities.

We had this today, the day after, and it was absolutely fantastic. Even on a very hot evening, this hit the spot with a nice glass of chardonnay.

Split-Pea Soup

1 pound green split peas, picked over, rinsed, and drained
2 large smoked ham hocks, about 1-1/2 pounds total
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalk celery, chopped
2 large carrot, chopped
10 sprigs parsley (optional: made w/o first time)
4 sprigs fresh thyme (or ½ t. dry, or to taste)
1 bay leaf
8 cups cold water (okay to use 3 ham stock, 5 water)
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more
Freshly ground black pepper

Blanch ham hocks for five minutes; drain and rinse w/ cold water.

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven combine the peas, hocks, onion, celery and carrot. Tie the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf together with kitchen string. Add the herb bundle, water, and salt, bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 1-1/2 hours or until the peas are tender. Remove the pot from the heat and remove the hocks. Cool. Remove the meat from the hocks, discarding the bones, fat and skin. Cut the meat into cubes. Remove the herb bundle and discard.

Puree the soup with a hand held blender or in batches in a blender. (If you want a more rustic and unblended texture, do not blend.) Reduce if tastes too thin. Heat the soup to a simmer with the meat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in heated bowls with the croutons, if desired.

A Few Pix Before Summer Hits

Dinner Tonight: Eddie's Potato Pasties

With the leftover smashed potatoes from the other night, Eddie made up a batch of real British pasties, one batch with potato, another batch with some leftover corned beef. Yummy!

He uses Pepperidge Farm puff pastry, industrial size, bought from Smart & Final. The sheets are bigger than those from the grocery store and he seems to prefer how they roll out better, too. I think these are as good as anything from a professional baker's. They freeze really well and whenever we want one he just pops them into the oven on a sheet pan and when they're good and hot, we eat.

Eddie doesn't really have a set recipe, but to learn more about the history of the pasty, and for a sample recipe, go here.

Chilled Avocado Soup with Lime and Jalapeno

This is a recipe I've made lots of times, especially in the summer. It can be made ahead and tastes better with a good long set in the fridge. It's nice as an afternoon snack or as a starter in the summer instead of a salad. I'm putting the recipe up in response to Joe and Jeff's first experience with avocados. The soup may need a bit of thinning after it sits a while, but that's up to your personal tastes.

Look for Haas avocados as opposed to the Florida variety. The Haas simply taste better and have a nicer texture, although they may be a bit more expensive.

Chilled Avocado Soup With Lime and Jalapeno
(Preparation 15 minutes)

3 limes
3 ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
1 garlic clove, chopped
Handful of parsley
1/2 – 1 small jalapeno pepper, with seeds, chopped
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt, plus additional to taste
1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large (8 inches) flour tortilla, cut into 2-by-1/4-inch strips
Sour cream, for garnish
Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
Squeeze the juice from 21/2 of the limes. Cut the remaining half lime into 4 wedges for the garnish.

In a blender combine 3 cups of ice water (a mixture of ice and water) with the lime juice, avocados, garlic, jalapeno and salt. Blend until smooth. Chill the soup until ready to serve.
Heat the oil in a large skillet or saute pan over a medium flame. Add the tortilla strips and fry until they are crunchy and golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain the strips on paper towels and sprinkle them with salt.
Spoon the soup into bowls. Place a dollop of sour cream in the center of each bowl, then top with tortilla strips. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Serve with lime wedges on the side.
Makes 4 servings.(Recipe from Peter Berley’s "Fresh Food Fast," Regan Books, 2004

Supernatural Brownies

Today is Eddie's birthday, so for dinner I'm taking him to Shame on the Moon restaurant in Rancho Mirage. Not wanting to eat too late -- we try to finish eating and having dessert by 8:00 p.m. -- I made a six o'clock reservation; so I guess we'll be eating with the seniors tonight. After about 8:00 the clientele becomes decidedly more "diverse." We'll probably have a dessert with dinner, so instead of making a cake, I found this recipe by Nick Malgieri which has been sitting on my computer for a few years. 'Bout time I tried it out. Here's a blurb that came along with the recipe:

"This past spring, the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) handed out their prestigious IACP/Julia Child Cookbook Awards. The book, Chocolate: From Simple Cookies to Extravagant Showstoppers by master baker Nick Malgieri, won in the best baking book category. This beautiful book is full of great chocolate recipes, including this one, which Nick tells me is one of his favorites."

This was supereasy to throw together. Our digital scale has finally found a new home in the garbage can, so I guess we'll be forced to buy a new one. We both are leaning to the old-style scale with a dial that seems to be more reliable.



Here's the recipe.

Supernatural Brownies
Makes about twenty-four 2-inch brownies

2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter
8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour

One 13x9x2-inch pan, buttered and lined with buttered parchment or foil

1. Set the rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.

2. Bring a saucepan of water to a boil and turn off heat. Combine butter and chocolate in a heat proof bowl and set over pan of water. Stir occasionally until melted.

3. Whisk eggs together in a large bowl, then whisk in the salt, sugars, and vanilla. Stir in the chocolate and butter mixture, then fold in the flour.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for about 45 minutes, until top has formed a shiny crust and batter is moderately firm. Cool in pan on a rack. Wrap pan in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature or refrigerated until the next day.

5. To cut brownies, unmold onto a cutting board, remove paper, and replace with another cutting board. Turn cake right side up and trim away edges. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares.

From: Chocolate:From Simple Cookies to Extravagant Showstoppers
by Nick Malgieri

Lentil Soup with Mideastern Spices and Spinach

No big entry today. Here's the recipe for the soup I made for dinner. There was a ham bone in the freezer, so I made stock with that first, stripped the meat and will use it and the stock for split pea soup in a few days. The recipe called for three and a half cups of water, but at the end of the pressure cooking, there wasn't enough liquid, so I added a couple cups of chicken broth from the fridge. Before dinner, I'll reheat and add baby spinach right before serving.

This recipe should be enough for four nice-size servings.

Lentil Soup with Mideastern Spices and Spinach
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and small diced
1 Tbsp. finely minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 Tbsp. whole cumin seeds
1 1/2 cups dried lentils, picked over and rinsed
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 1/2cups water (needed to add more liquid after cooking)
3 medium carrots, peeled and small diced
1 bay leaf
2/3 cup raisins
1 tomato, seeded, grated on box grater, skin discarded
1tsp. sea salt, or to taste
juice from half a lemon
5 ounces baby spinach
feta cheese

Heat the oil in the cooker over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the ginger and cumin and cook, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Add the lentils, allspice, cinnamon, carrots, bay leaf, raisins, tomato and salt; stir to blend.

Lock the lid in place and over high heat bring to high pressure (I used low pressure). Adjust the heat to maintain high (low) pressure and cook for 10 (I did it for 25 minutes) minutes. Reduce pressure with a quick-release method. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow any excess steam to escape.

Taste to determine the lentils are fully cooked. If not, cook over medium-high heat, until done, a few minutes more. (Here I needed to add more liquid.) Remove the bay leaf. Reseason with salt and add juice of half a lemon to brighten up the flavor. Stir in the spinach and simmer until the spinach is wilted, stirring frequently, about 1 to 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately topped with crumbled feta.

Paht Tahi Noodles

Received this recipe for paht thai noodles from our weekly newsletter from The Splendid Table.



The recipe comes from Quick & Easy Thai by Nancy McDermott. The grocery list was short and the ingredients were easy to find. Instead of buying a full package of rice noodles as called for in the recipe, I just used up a quarter pound of spaghetti from the pantry. Like most stir fry type dishes, it's best to do all your mise en place ahead of time and have everything ready to go. Even the pasta can be cooked ahead, drained, rinsed and held until you're ready to cook the dish. As suggested, I used on-hand cashews instead of buying a jar of dry-roasted peanuts. Hey, who doesn't like cashews? For Eddie's sake, I cut the crushed pepper flakes in half, from one-half to one-quarter teaspoon, and at that it was still nice and spicy. There was enough for four, actually, but we both had seconds and finished off the whole thing. Eddie thinks I should have used the rice noodles, so next time I'll take his suggestion.