suzilightning

my mil just gifted me with a year of cooks illustrated ( through a filled out card) but in this issue(11-12/2006) issue is a note on The Ultimate Cooking Wine. they found that overall boxed wines did better than bottles over the long run because of the bladder system they used as opposed to corking. hmmmmmm may have to pick up some red for the kitchen

last night was our traditional "night before thanksgiving"(ok- 2 nighs before this year) dinner - homemade manhattan clam chowder with oyster crackers. this year i cheated and bought freshly shucked clams from my local fishmonger - 2 pints. sauteed half an onion in bacon fat, bay leaf, carrot, celery, potato cubes in the clam liquer and water. them chopped tomato. when the potato was just tender add the clams and turn off the heat. took a pint to my neighbor for her mom and john has a pint and a half in the freezer for a future meal.

last night was our traditional "night before thanksgiving"(ok- 2 nighs before this year) dinner - homemade manhattan clam chowder with oyster crackers. this year i cheated and bought freshly shucked clams from my local fishmonger - 2 pints. sauteed half an onion in bacon fat, bay leaf, carrot, celery, potato cubes in the clam liquer and water. them chopped tomato. when the potato was just tender add the clams and turn off the heat. took a pint to my neighbor for her mom and john has a pint and a half in the freezer for a future meal.

OMG...what a treasure!! miz d. is blogging...and while those pictures are purty the word pictures are the best. what can i say i am a librarian after all i never knew my paternal grandparents since - highly unusual for the time- my parents split in 1955 when i was a mere 1 year old. my maternal grandmother was nan or nana or nanny but her influence was small since she was in ill health and died when i was 5 almost 6. my maternal grandfather pretty much raised me till he died when i was 20. pop was a character - who preferred cooking and doing housework to doing outside chores. i am going to be making his clam chowder later today for johnnybird and a friend's mom and john still loves it when i make smooch(that pastiche of macaroni, tomato and ground beef). i also got to know - over 20 years- john's grandmother (granma)who was a diplomaed (?) cook from germany. while her daughter and granddaugher didn't have the inclination to cook, and only did under duress, i learned how to make apple kuken, esslin(butter cookies made in the shape of an s), spaetzle, potato salad and cucumber salad in her kitchen. i also spread out from there and have become adept at maltashen and a few other southern german items. really looking forward to spending this holiday with you......

our daube is reheating now... beef cut into 3" cubes then marinated for 48 hours in a reduced bottle of cotes du rhone with aromatics - garlic, bay, rosemary, parsley, thyme and onion/shallot. simmered yesterday for 3 hours or so adding a tea ball of fresh aromatics then, at the last 45 minutes or so some olives, capers, anchovy paste, and shallots. when reheating tonight i also added some criminis well cleaned and broken up will serve over pasta with a salad and a baguette for dipping. and another bottle of the cotes du rhone for drinking

i discovered quinces last year at the appletree store(mexican/asian owned and operated). i quartered them and stewed them with some water, sugar, cinnamon stick and some black peppercorns. it took about 45 minutes. then i used them to make a quince and port sauce for some duck breasts, on my oatmeal and with my yoghurt. i noticed them back in the market last week....

pouring rain here but still oddly warmish. i wanted to do some vegetarian soup to go with some pumpernickel bread i did yesterday/today. had borrowed Deborah Madison's book from work so riffed off her lentil ministrone - french lentils, leek, white onion, yellow onion, the last shallot, garlic, bay leaves, parsley, thyme, tomato paste, vegetable stock and water. i have some pepe and some kale that will get added in the next few minutes to finish it.

made gumbo after the HawkGawk today: 4 duck breasts 1 package of Shaller and Waller andouille sausage red and green peppers yellow and white onions garlic bay leaves thyme branches oregano beef and chicken stock then heresy of heresy - mustard greens used the rendered duck fat with Wondra flour to make my roux - only 1 1/2 bourbons with branch cajin napalm - herbage stock then the stripped andouille(johnnybird for whatever reason will not eat sausage with skin on it - why we don't have many hotdogs here) returned the shredded duck breast to the pot had some baby mustard greens that begged out for inclusion - so i did. what a nice counter point to everyting else - a green that stands up to the spice. since himself has only showed up will not serve it tonight but i have dinner for tuesday which is supposed to be wet and cold. some rice and i will be a happy camper happy cooking all

on the way to the hawkwatch this morning an intense craving for a western sandwich. i almost detoured to my favorite diner for takeout but.....i had to get to the watch and had food in the trunk. finished off three pieces of toast with miracle whip light and finlandia heavenly light swiss cheese and grape tomatoes as a side. off to run a few errands and a new craving for a circle burger with bacon and onion rings so a bit of a detour for an early dinner/late lunch. i still want red meat...

i'm sending up to poughkeepsie this year: turkey breast in gravy green beans with garlic the inevitable portugese sweet bread and oatmeal bread black forest mousse pie my mil will provide country crock potatoes bruces yams with brown sugar and butter country crock macaroni and cheese sara lee raspberry cheese cake edward's key lime pie i will eat whatever i feel like after i finish my hawk count probably a nice burger with some salad i have found since i am so busy at this time of year doing other things the food really isn't that important to me. it's in late december/ early january when the nesting - food thing is most important to me. when i have time to even think of anything other than a cheese sandwich for lunch -if that- and more importantly the time to spend on thinking about and creating the food for someone i love and want to share with

nor is it something if you grew up on the east end of long island you didn't make your potato salad without, sandy. (thought the octaroon heritage comes from my dad's side i really didn't know). viva la mw!! once the hawkgawk is over i want to try that recipe for miracle whip. ido a boiled dressing for my coleslaw....

score the skin and fat without biting into the meat. season with salt and pepper. start on a sear, skin side down then lower the heat drastically so the fat renders out, the skin crisps up and the breasts cook. remove from pan... now where do you want to go? remove all but about a Tbsp of the fat. add minced shallots then deglaze with port, add quartered figs and serve over the breasts. use the extra fat to fry brabant potatoes in red onions...poached quinces... flat leaf parsley... red wine red onions(again) ... roasted ancho chile strips...crema ...heated tortillas lettuce leafs... thinly sliced onions...a mix of hoisin sauce and sesame oil then thin strips of the duck with the skin cracklins baked potatoes hollowed out... the potato meat mixed with sour cream(in our case a fake sour cream that is kosher), chives, the cracklin skin then served alongside the slices of breast mixed salad with the breast thinly sliced and served over it with a vinaigrette of the fat, sherry vinegar and shallots uh..... invite me for dinner?

what about a vegetable beef soup using carmelized onions, carrots, celery (if you can tolerate it), the ground up beef, potatoes, garlic, some thyme and some peas? add in some bread and a green salad - ohh....or if you have good greens - mustard, kale, chard- can you chiffonade them and add to the soup? it is supposed to be quite cold tonight so when i get home from work tomorrow i'm planning on a white bean, pasta and greens soup using some squash, onions and some mystery greens(maybe mezzaluna?) i got from the farmers market last weekend. because they are organic and fresh i find they do keep well. i am adding some raw milk cheddar and the rest of the loaf of an olive bread for our dinner.

some of the more "odd" (mostly local) cookbooks this time that came to me from a well meaning patron who knows i love to cook as well as one more mainstream. please PM me if you are interested - as always first come first served... Campbell's: Easy Meal Ideas from the Campbell Family of Brands Cooking Around the World: Favorite Family Recipes from the Sparta School Community Favorite Recipes: New Jersey State Council of Emergency Nurses Association Sharing Our Best: Recipes from Jefferson Families edited to remove claimed book(s)

ok - am i the only person whose mind went directly into the gutter - at first?! ny strip the beautiful rack of venison i have right now in the freezer ground lamb burgers filet wrapped in bacon really good pulled pork with a vinegar sauce

if i'm eating with johnnybird he will NOT allow me to say anything if the food is inedible since he is paranoid about the boh doing things like spitting/ etc on the food (i worked boh and have tried to reassure him the staff really aren't like that if there is a genuine problem). if i'm on my own - usually lunch - i will say something if i feel there is a problem with the spicing/heat of the fryolater/supplier of the seafood. i have never had any problems though i have suggested that the oil was a "bit " under 350 when i had calamri come out with the batter oil soaked, at another establishment the fish came out and smelled of ammonia though assured "it was just delivered today", and had calamari that had the consistancy of rubber bands(it was an iqf product that didn't work). the kindest was when i had ordered a kind of steak sandwich with mushrooms and mozzarella(i always ask for no cheese) that was more like frozen steak um's with brown gravy and canned mushrooms. when the bartender asked if it was ok i said it really wasn't to my taste and she tossed it, asked me if i wanted a replacement and i said no - i'd lost my appetite by then. she removed it from the bill but of course i tipped her on the full meal/drink bill. the worst was in vt. eating on my father-in-laws christmas present (gift certificate we had asked for) at a place he had patronized. the food was so oversalted i could not eat it. mashed potatoes, filet with a bernaise sauce so salty...the only thing edible was the cold soba and shrimp with peanut sauce. again john didn't want me to complain but we changed plates and his entree - chicken with mushrooms in a wine sauce was also so salty as to be inedible. when the server came by and asked i said it was inedible and who had been seasoning the food. the floor manager came over and said the chef had just left and a new chef was taking over the kitchen "soon". unfortunately that left the sous and staff on their own - i don't buy that a good sous has to be able to do service when the head is on his/her day off. they offered to comp us a dessert but didn't take the filet off the bill - guess if you taste it you bought it there. i took it back to my mother-in-laws, rinsed the sauce off, thin sliced it and it was still salty - though johnnybird ate it.

two, maybe three years ago, we were at a wine dinner. served as the amuse was a shot glass of caesar salad soup. can't remember totally but it was blanced romaine, parmesan, some vinegar(sherry maybe), anchovy and some garlic croutons (?) whizzed up and served at room temperature. it was wonderful. johnnybird downed it and he is familialy allergic to anything that includes a lettuce or anchovies. eg member lreda created it so maybe he could tell you more

ohhhhh... from you maggie that is high praise indeed. why? soy youghurt is kinder to my uh...alimentary system than a milk based youghurt and i love lemon and lime flavors for that sweetish/sour taste. today it was a boston cream donught..... edited to say i am also craving massive chunks of protein but don't have the time - or energy right now to cook them. think i need to have the johnnybird take me out for steak...nah, ain't gonna happen.

Hi Suzi, do you have any recipes for spice crab apples? You need such a lot for crab apple jelly... What are people's policies on gathering food not on common ground? The crab apples I found the other day technically belonged to the local university but I don't reckon they were really in high demand. I love the word 'scrumping' to refer to stealing people's apples from their orchards, it reminds me of the 1950s storybooks I grew up on, full of mischievous young boys in flannel shorts and girls called Susan. Maybe I should start 'Poaching: the thread' ←

ok. ladies. i am sliding quickly into full blown menopause at age 52. but i am still getting the monthly cravings even though i don't get my aunt flo except every other month(for the meantime). today was hell... first day back at full schedule for work(9-3), by 11:30 i had finished 1/2 container of lemon soy yoghurt, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, 3 (1" square) pieces of raspberry crumb coffeecake and about 5 pieces of milky way dark chocolate minis(the best ever!!!!!). add in some more assorted mini chocolates during the meantime. at 1330 i ate the snack i prepared for the hawkwatch - some triscuits and 2 laughing cow light cheese snacks. after work on the way to the hawkwatch i stopped at Wendy and got a 1/4 pounder and a vanilla shake.........oh, the humanity....

for the fall we would actually start in mid/late summer. while picking wineberries and blackberries my mom and i would mark places with wild grapes. then in late august we would drive around places we had seen them the prior year(only 1 in every 100 vines or so produce grapes that grow to maturity). we would cruise slowly around the island - me with my head out the window- guess kinda like a dog- and spot bearing vines for a later date. mom once asked me how i was able to do it and i told her that i knew what i was looking for and would tell my brain only to react when the profile hit. kind like how i see and identify hawks at our hawkwatch now. there were some abandoned orchards on the island as well and we would pick apples when we walked to school or home. next door one of the neighbors had a crabapple tree that we used to gather the windfalls from and make either spice crabapples to go with our poultry or jelly. tart and lovely. spring, though was my favorite time - stalking the wild asparagus. less than a pencil in diameter and i couldn't bear to cook it. i only wanted to eat it freshly picked and raw as it was crisp and sweet/salty since the best grew near brackish water in the creeks.

Haymaker is on Rt. 44E in Pouughkeepsie/Arlington in a strip mall with Arlington Wine and Liquors(good selections) and across from Adams Fairacre Farms, Marlene Weber Dayspa and a bakery(sorry can't remember the name since we aren't really sweets people). johnnybird and i have eaten there several times and have enticed his mom and sister out there for a meal or two. as ada said the food is good and fresh. we've had sandwiches, salmon and soups along the way. here's the website: http://www.thehaymaker.com/

this summer i have been buying cheese from these vendors at our local farmer's market Farmstead Fresh http://www.farmsteadfresh.com/ the sharp cheddar is my favorite - nice and tangy. the baby swiss is nutty and mellow and paired with apple slices last night in a toasted sandwich. the only one i didn't really care for was the portelet wine - but that is just me. hmmm.... think it's time to pull the swiss and cheddar out for noshing in about half an hour when johnnybird may(or may not) be home...

fig jam fig tatin and my favorite - figs stuffed with a blue cheese, wrapped with prosciutto di san danielle and in a 400 oven for 5-8 minutes for dessert

and the book is up for a Quills Award. you can vote here:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13737551 the book shows up in the cooking and overall award sections