annecros

Stepdaughter loves miso, and I suppose it may just be light enough to get by in the climate. Concentrated fermenting beans in a tub? Hmm. Think the West Virginians can handle that one?

Wow, hubby's German is still good enough to translate that. Looks like I would need to pull out my Dr. Oetker stuff, and buy that kitchen scale I have coveted for some time now anyway. Thanks.

Grouper should be plentiful. As well as Mahi (dolphin) and probably snapper. I was never fond of conch, but after all it is not all about me, and I am sure there will be guests curious about conch if nothing else. Hubby was thinking maybe an assortment of various "burgers" to include seafood, portabella, and somehting else, quartered on a platter.

I would love to include her, but her health is failing right now, and she will already be travelling from the Boston area and driving an hour and a half from the Miami airport to be there arriving rehearsal day. That's sort of how we got flipped over to the rehearsal dinner responsibility in the first place, that and the sunrise wedding thing. I think I will write her a nice letter, tell her how much we love her son, and ask for her input for ideas though. Good suggestion.

I have some ideas for the cookies off the top of my head, but I'd like to peruse a few of my cookbooks before making some specific suggestions. Soba noodles are Japanese fresh buckwheat noodles that are often served cold in various dressings. There is also "cha-soba" which is additionally flavored and colored with green tea. They are usually garnished pretty simply, but I've seen recipes with green onions and/or mushrooms. Probably some good additional real info on egullet in the Japanese forum. (Radicchio leaves are just an idea for an easy and pretty serving device.) The wasabi stuffed quail (or chicken) eggs were just a cross-cultural idea; salmon eggs are used in various sushi dishes and are pretty as well. Mirin (a sweet Japanase rice wine) or teriyaki glazed salmon is pretty common; should be lots of recipes online. "Satay" was a silly thing for me to say; I was mainly just thinking of serving them on sticks. Edamame are fresh soybeans; usually just boiled in their pods in salted water. If you've not had them; they really are a beautful bright green in color, delicious and are nice slightly warm. One can usually buy these frozen.) ← Consulted with daughter, and she says most definitely soba noodles should be there. She also explained to me that the Edamame are sort of a Japanese answer to boiled peanuts! I guess it is time for me to work with soba noodles, and will definitely visit the Japanese forum for tips. Thanks.

Well, a tea ceremony would be intresting, but I think they are trying to keep it low key and casual. I can handle Italian and Southern, a bit of German is no problem either, it is the Japanese that I am finding myself ignorant in regards to.

Any suggestions for the cookies would be most welcome. I make a great liebkuchen, that only gets better the next day or two, but other ideas would be fun to spring on the Germans. They get the liebkuchen every year at Christmas. I think the Eis Kaffees sound perfect. After all, everyone can use a shot of caffeine about that time, and it will be HOT at the end of August in the Florida Keys. We are including sample sizes of insect repellant and sunscreen in the goodie bags! I also have an ice cream freezer that I can bring along, and make a homemade vanilla that will bring in some southern there. Now, here is where I am going to show my absolute ignorance. I am going to have to google search and egullet search your suggestions for the japanese cold dishes in order to get my brain around them! I am much ashamed to admit that I have no idea what cold soba noodles should be, taste like, or are prepared. Now, the raw oysters. Hubby has already suggested those, but I have to keep reminding him that we are the HOSTS, not the guests. I find it hard to deny him anything though, and he will be spending the day with his high strung daughter, running interference between her and former and future in laws, and generally dealing with people that make me want to be in the kitchen communing with the food. Thanks for the ideas. Will be attempting to educate myself. ETA: My husband and Mother in Law are from Hesse. No Austrian cookies, unless I can convincingly pass them off as being invented in Hessen. Although, if they are good, they will convince themselves of that.

You most certainly have come to the right place, Anne! How about some ceviche made with local fish? Or even a gravlax as an appetizer? as for those who can not tolerate seafood, maybe something vegetarian in nature? There are so many variations which would bring in ethnic cuisines ... planning for 25 is not going to be oppressive, just fun and very creative ... Congratulations! This sounds like a perfect wedding! ← I know I've come to the right place! 25 feels comfortable to me, and I think it could be a very nice, memorable, family and friend oriented evening for all. Some of the ethnic food as conversation pieces can help some of the family members get to know each other, I think. The local fish would be the the best and freshest seafood available at that time of year. Lobster season will not be open then. There is a "Golden" crab that is kind of trendy down there, but I am completely unfamiliar with it, and do not know how it compares with the other crabs I am more familiar with. Thanks. We are very proud and excited.

My darling stepdaughter is getting married at the end of August at a little resort at Marathon in the Florida Keys. Very small intimate group, about 25 people, and we are booking most of the resort. The resort has a special significance for my stepdaugher and her future husband, as they were trapped last year (at the same time of year that they have set the date for ) by Katrina. My mission is to prepare the rehearsal dinner for the bridal party and the guests, 25 total as stated, on the evening before the wedding. The wedding will take place the next morning at sunrise, and then we have a very nice place for brunch booked for after the ceremony. I love the idea of blending cultural influences and familiar foods from both sides of the family, but here is where it gets tricky. The groom's mother is Japanese, and her husband was Italian America from a large family in upstate NY that centered around food, although his mother prepared traditional Japanese dishes whenever possible for her family. My husband is a German national, and his mother, the bride's "Oma" will be in attendance. My husbands exwife is from West Virginia, and her very West Virginian grandparents will be attending (she doesn't cook, at all). April spent her early childhood in Southwest Georgia, and is very emotionally attached to the foods and desserts she enjoyed there, and loves my traditional southern cooking, although I threw an Italian style "Feast of the Seven Fishes" for the family Christmas Eve, and everyone ate like pigs. We will be staying in a two bedroom suite at the resort with a "full" kitchen, meaning a four burner stove and oven, dishwasher, standard sized refrigerator and standard microwave. There is a small, separate dining area, but I am anticipating a more casual atmosphere, with people wandering in and out, because there is a balcony with a great view, and lots of outdoor seating. I also have access to several BBQ grills. So far, all I've settled on is Key Lime Pie for dessert. It is a favorite of both the bride and groom, and can sit and wait in the fridge until called upon. I do know that I will have access to a great deal of fresh seafood from a number of seafood markets in the area that I am familiar with. My husband and I will be arriving the night before rehersal day, I will have all day the day of the rehersal to prepare as other guests arrive from all over the country throughout the day, the rehersal will take place that evening, then eat drink and be merry at hubby and my suite until everyone goes to bed. I am bringing my food processor for sure, along with my most familiar and comfortable cooking utensils. My problem is the menu. I have had limited exposure to Japanese cooking, but access to a great many oriental food markets in the area. Hubby likes Tuna Sashimi, so that will happen for sure, but it is a bit exotic for other guests. Also, although I don't know of any, what about those who can't or won't tolerate seafood? Any suggestions for menu ideas would be greatly appreciated. I'd like to test the recipes well ahead of the big day. Thanks for any help ANYBODY can offer.

True.

Sorry, I am a D. I do enjoy the time to time indulgence in potato chips and oreos, but rarely. Just doesn't seem right. Raised in Krispy Kreme land, but not a Krispy Kreme fan. Knew people that worked at KK. Could get all I wanted for free. Didn't care. Maybe I knew too much? The chocolate glazed, I can eat two or three per year, if I am feeling frisky. Don't care for the straight up KK.

Oh, squirrel that has been dining in my grandfather's pecan trees, fat and sassy, yep a 22 and never a shotgun. Those pellets can ruin an otherwise lovely meal. Fried up with grits and eggs and gravy early in the morning. I think there is a cold weather issue with squirrel as well. Parasites, typical of other game. It has been years. Now they just rob my bird feeder with impunity. I watch them and giggle, but my suburban squirrels are not nearly the fine fat specimens that conspired to harvest all of my grandfather's pecans, and bury them for hard times.

Im right there with you. I dont want to injure anyone at the dinner table but it does upset me when those without allergies use that and make it harder for those with serioius allergies. I guess im learning from this little discussion is that there really are all kinds. And ones perception is ones reality so its a tough spot for the caring food preparer to be put in. ← Well, you never really know what another person is going through. Sometimes, I know that I take things personally when they are really not directed at me. I call it being human. Do the best you can. That is all that anyone can ask.

Yes. I believe it does. Allergy and "sensitivity" very different things. If a person becomes physically ill exhibiting symptoms it is one thing. If a particular food item or ingredient doesn't "agree" with someone that's quite different. (I'm sure someone really qualified here-maybe DocSconz could step in and help sort this out) ← Actually, an allergy is a subset of "sensitivity." People who are photosensitive effectively have an allergy to light, breaking out in hives. The body's immune system reacts inappropriately. Take it from scleroderma girl here. I have a deep itch with my autoimmune disease, which is the result of histimine being deposited in my flesh.

Well, to be fair, it is a lot easier to say you have an "allergy" than to explain the mechanics of an inflammatory bowel disorder. And sometimes, people take the phrase "I can't have..." to imply that there is an allergy, and it is easier just to let that sleeping dog lie. Quite often I am forced to leave food on the plate, because my GI cannot handle the portion. I always apologize and smile sweetly, and I know that I have brusied some egos from time to time, but I HAVE to stop at a certain point. The less said, the better. Especially at a dinner party. People really do not want to know, and those that are stricken with it are not inclined discuss. Makes it that much easier to enjoy what you can, relax, and have a good time. Besides, why should a guest have to produce medical records in order to pass on a particular dish? It really isn't anyone else's business. I don't want to share, and you don't want to know. Which is on topic in this particular thread, concerning those that "say" they are allergic to this or that. We are not talking just some discomfort here, either. Many people with inflammatory bowel diseases also have malabsorption issues and can eat all day and still starve to death, and diarrhea can put you in the ER pretty quick with dehydration. Been there, done that. Had a tube in my arm and two full bags of saline in order to stave off the admission. It is hard for anyone who has never lived with someone with this sort of disorder to understand. The typical person has an upset tummy for a day or two, then they are back to work. There is no predetermined "sick" time with these illnesses, and there is really nothing to do for them except treat the symptoms as they arise. A social situation will not clue you in to the realities of what some people are living with. Most are very adept at keeping it together for a few hours.

Amen to that!! I have Crohn's disease, an inflammatory digestive disorder with occasionally unfortunate consequences. There is no "set list" of what I can and cannot eat (except broccoli and other Brassica veggies, I can't eat many of them in one dat.... too bad.... ). Sometimes, there are certain normal foods that I know will make me sick. If I pick at a item that a host serves, sometimes a barrage of questions ensues: "did you not like it?" "was it too salty?" ... "can I make you something else?".....etc. My extended family is particularly guilty of this. Sometimes I want to scream at them "If I eat this, I'll be in the little girl's room for the next 8 hours!!" Maybe next time I will ← So sorry about the Crohn's. I know it is miserable. Don't bother demonstrating for your family. After all, they won't be in the little girls room holding your hand. Trust me. Hubby is the only one in the family that truly appreciates the extent of my much less serious bowel disorder, and only because we share the master bedroom. Not pretty. Funny how you can tell what is going to make you sick as soon as you smell it, isn't it? I have had the same experience. Listening to your body is the important thing.

I think the aging issue needs to be taken into account as well. After all, those kids in the Woodstock video cavorting in the mud and dropping acid are now retired with grandchildren, and things change my friends. Things change. The boomers are a significant proportion of the US population. You adjust and move on, but your body changes as it ages, and you have to change your habits in order to cope. Maybe we are living longer than we were designed for? I heard the other day that the 100th birthday may very well become closer to the norm than exceptional. Don't know, but I want to eat what I like when I want to eat it. I just can't pull the all night, drunken, bar hopping binge any more without paying for a couple of days. Turns out, I no longer have a desire to do so. Learned the hard way! If I knew I was going to live to be this old, I would have taken better care of myself.

Interesting question. For example, everyday there seem to be more people with lactose intolerance in the US, and most of them won't even touch aged cheeses under the pretext that they will get sick. Of course, aged cheeses have had all, or the vast majority of the lactose in the milk converted into different compounds by the bacteria, and thus shouldn't impact the lactose intolerant person's health. I recommend reading the article, because though he is--always--being a bit facetious, I think he is also hitting on some truth (i.e., many people have imagined allergies). However, I also think that food allergies--knowing about them and being tested for them--have become part of US culture. ← Well, according to my GI doc (yeah, I've got one ), celiac sprue is one of the most underdiagnosed illnesses in the world, and lets face it, there is gluten EVERYWHERE. That and Lactose Intolerance are particularly insipid, I think, because so much of it is "hidden" in other product and day to day items people come into contact with. For example, adhesives on postage stamps and envelopes contain lactose. Got to love those self adhesive thingys. 3M did something right. I think people are generally exposed to the allergen, and don't know it. They just know they are sick with something. Fortunately, there are very well defined tests for these problems these days, and any competant medical practitioner should be able to pinpoint these problems definitively, right off the bat. I have neither problem. Now, IBS, is another issue. Stress, I think. Stress kills. Although it may go the way of ulcers eventually, for which they have found a specific medical test for, and yes it is a bacteria. I don't have an ulcer, but I do have IBS. Doc prefers to call it "Undifferentiated Inflammatory Bowel Disorder." I call it crappy. Go figure. There is so much they have yet to learn about the human body. In the meantime: Eat, drink and be happy - what you can and while you can!

That's an excellent question Simon_S. I don't know the answer, but am eagerly awaiting responses from others. In my case, sensitivities and allergies developed as I reached middle age, and seem to have come into play hand in hand with a chronic illness that developed at the same time. I have never been terribly keen on shellfish, with the exception of shrimp, my entire life. I had a medical test run which required contrast, and had an ugly reaction. I was advised by my doctor to avoid shellfish, which I always have, but now I am even conscious of the shrimp that I do eat, and am a bit careful with ocean fish. We switched to kosher salt several years ago. It is amazing that the body knows what it can handle sometimes, before we are rudely awakened. Hopefully, the more I limit my exposure, the longer I will be able to enjoy these foods in moderation. I can't stand regular table salt at all. Tastes incredibly metallic to me. My mother had a thing for a while with graveyards. Not a morbid thing, but she wanted to make sure that we knew where our great granparents, great greats, and even great great great grandparents were buried, because much information can be gleaned from death records and tombstones. I was struck at the time at the number of women ancestors and relatives that died in the third or fourth decade of life, which is the typical age of onset for my particular flavor of illness. It may simply be a case of improved medical care, and appropriate diagnosis. Or it may be an exposure issue. I am not sure. We keep the epipens handy. Between my bad reaction to iodine, and a son who is deathly allergic to bee stings, it makes sense.

Thank Edna! It was really a wonderful roast, and it seems to "bloom" as it bakes. The aroma is amazing when it goes into the oven, but occaisionally we would get the lovely whiff in the air as the flavors developed, and each whiff was richer and more complex than the last. This is definitely a keeper. Gifted Gourmet, that apple cake looks great, and I am a big Granny Smith fan. We even eat them out of hand around here for snacks. Going to have to try that cake soon. I did the roast chicken from "In Persuit of Flavor" last night, only I added carrots, onions, celery and potatoes to the bottom of the roaster. It was chickeny perfection! No pictures, hubby came in hungry as a bear.

Exactly. What are the chicken nuggets, fried OR baked, doing in the lunch line as an offering? Everybody here knows it is just saline and chicken "parts." Just check out any Tyson plant. They go in chickens, and come out "nuggets" of all the unholy things to do to a perfectly good chicken. And if that brownie is so evil, why offer it in the first place to these "innocent" young pucks?

Well, thinking back upon my own school lunch days, and after checking with my kids, it probably won't make any difference at all. They trade. They get the plate and eat what they want and throw away the rest. Sometimes they throw the lunch you packed them into the garbage, and skip lunch. Just because mom and dad bought that lunch, doesn't mean they eat it. If they just offered a good, well rounded, nutritionally sound lunch to everybody and at all times, Mom and Dad wouldn't have to hurt their heads keeping track of the kids intake. If the kid is hungry, and he or she will be if they get sufficient exercise, the kid will at least try what is offered. I have a problem with some of the shift of responsibility for children that are in their charge, by school administration. Also, Mom and Dad have to let go sometime. Going to school is one of those learning experiences that kids go through while transitioning from childhood to adulthood. MOO

Leftover pork roast from the night before, with some lovely southern vegetables. Saute of tomatoes and okra with a bacon garnish Sliced cucumbers dressed with vinegar and sugar Leftover bay studded pork roast, sliced cold right out of the fridge Cornbread vegetable bake It seems to defy reason, but I enjoyed this meal better than I enjoyed the meal I had the night before! I have always sort of thought of meat as a side, and the vegetables as the main. I don't think I will ever get away from that frame of mind. The saute was lovely, however I think the next time I do it I will limit it to the onions and okra, and just slice the tomatoes straight up with a little salt. The tomatoes aren't cooked, just warmed through, but if I want hot tomatoes I generally prefer tomato sauce. The sliced cucumbers I think I have probably eaten a million times. If I am correct in that estimate, they were probably prepared for me 500,000 times and prepared by myself the other 500,000 times. Nothing wrong with those cucumbers. I robbed the baggie all day yesterday straight out of the fridge for the leftover pork. Nothing wrong with that either. This cornbread vegetable bake was wonderful. Sort of like cornbread dressing, reminded me of hushpuppies as well. This was my favorite. Hubby suggested cracklings, or at least rendered bacon next time, but he is the biggest fat consumer in the house, and his health and bloodwork give me no excuse to not feed him in the manner in which he prefers. I baked it in the cast iron grill pan, something I stole from an egulleter somewhere, I unfortunately cannot remember who. Thanks whoever you are. It is pretty, and very effectively doubles the crusty surface of the cornbread. Son came by after work and polished off half the cornbread. I love the way that Edna Lewis addressed the myth of "overcooked" southern vegetables in the "Persuit of Flavor." I am sorry, but if you got overcooked vegetables in the south, you just happened to run across a bad southern cook. Vegetables should be properly cooked, in the words of Miz Lewis. Some vegetables should be served raw, with a little seasoning with salt and pepper. Others need to be cooked to bring out the most natural flavor that lives within that particular vegetable. I owe the desire to bring out the very best flavor from anything I cook to Edna Lewis. ETA: All recipes can be found in "The Gift of Southern Cooking"

I've been seriously looking at that cake myself. We have access to some very nice marmalade's here in South Florida, and I think there may still be some Honeybells around. Like you, I need a much larger crowd than just me and hubby to justify baking it. Maybe I will make it my stepdaughter's birthday cake?

Anticipation building .. can't wait, Anne! Edna Lewis' Thirteen-Bean Soup is one of the dishes I plan to make exchanging only the ham for kosher smoked turkey ... and those Creamed Scallions will also be a must-try ... ← I love, love, love 13 bean soup! I usually make up some cheese toast to go with, and hubby generally eats three bowls. Smoked turkey wings are a great source of flavor. I use hocks a lot, because hubby considers them obligatory, but the wings can impart an awful lot of smoke flavor. We especially like them from our home smoked turkeys, and will keep the wings and drumsticks just for this purpose. Sounds like a great, wholesome, cold weather meal.