pedie

Finally some cold, overcast, drizzly days in Los Angeles! Today I picked some parsley, swisschard, leeks and have a nice soup simmering away!

I thank everyone who took the time to offer me suggestions. I am going to stick with the bechamel and go with the addition of "some" processed cheese...lower the heat to 350 and watch it carefully.

I am trying various recipes to find one I can prepare for a crowd of about 50 for a baby shower. Every one I have tried has a bechamel sauce prepared with a roux, then gently melted schredded cheese so it is rich and creamy when combined with the pasta. However, when it comes out of the oven, it seems to have broken down and it is oily. Is the oven too hot? (most recipes call for 375 degrees) Is it baked too long? (most suggest 30 minutes) Is it the cheese? (I used a combination of sharp cheddar and gruyere and some parmesan.) any suggestions would be appreciated.

I watched an episode of Masterchef recently and noticed that Joe Bastianich smells everything before doing his tasting. I don't think it is very attractive to watch and I found myself watching for a grimace that would say it smelled "off" to him.

Well, June gloom seems to have definitely hit the coastal area of So. California. My plants are doing well but I am watching carefully for the dreaded powdery mildew! So far, so good. I am watering by hand using the soaker on the ground, under the leaves. My cucumbers and tomatoes look good. They are both throwing flowers, so I hope it will warm up enough for a nice crop of vegetables this year. Last year was a real disappointment for me. I have started many plants from seeds this year...especially some unique tomatoes. However, I have to say that the volunteer tomatoes that came from my homemade compost looks the most robust at this time. I don't have the heart to pull them out and I don't have a clue what they will bear...kind of fun to have a mystery in the garden. My beans are germinating...just hope the critters don't eat their tender leaves. Here is a photo of a bold squirrel chomping on a chard leave in full view of my front window!

What an interesting question! Coming from an Italian-American background, preparing food for others has always been considered an expression of love and caring. I also think that being the "food provider" demonstrates the important connection between you and the loved one. When my children were younger, I always had emergency food in a baggie in my purse....cherrios, crackers...just in case. To this day I still keep a stash of granola bars in my pocket or glove compartment of the car, not for me but in case someone I love needs it. When I provide the nourishment, I demonstrate the connection I have with the person. I also think of times when you feel helpless. Illness is certainly one of the times, but also at the time of loss...when a friend has lost a loved one. There are no words to ease the pain but a tray of lasagna left in the refrigerator is at least something you can do to help. You ask who's need is it? Well, providing the food certainly fills a need of mine to feel connected to those I care about!

Picking the last of my fava beans. Just love this ancient plant!! Anyone have any special recipes to recommend. I have done dip with goat cheese and lemon, pureed soup, crostini topping, and tossed into vegetable pasta.

What a practical topic...thanks! I have lots of cookbooks but the majority of what I use these days are from clippings out of magazines or newspaper and printed recipes from the internet's various websites. My current method of organization is: one accordion file that holds "recipes to be tried" arranged by category. Once I have actually prepared the recipe and decide if it is a keeper, then I manually type it into my Mastercook software application. Most of my tried and true recipes are in this computer database. I do not use the cookbooks that come with Mastercook; I only use the database feature to hold my own recipes. One thing I like about Mastercook is that it allows me to convert the recipe as a pdf which I can then print out or email to a friend. I am going to look into Google docs. Thanks for the idea. Patricia

In my Italian-American Family we always bring the following 4 items to a relative or friend who has moved to a new house (own or rent): Bread: il pane - the staff of life, symbolizes basic sustenance Salt: il sale - symbolizes the extra zest needed to lift life from the ordinary. (In Italy, salt was taxed and only those who could afford it were able to have "tasty" seasoned food) In fact, my great-great grandmother was sent to "jail" for 6 weeks for stealing some salt water. In reality she had to live and cook for the man in charge of the jail and was permitted to take her nursing baby with her!) Wine - il vino - symbolizes joy and happiness, celebration and good wishes. Broom - la scopa - symbolizes the "clean sweep" of sweeping out the old baggage, old problems, negative emotions (that may be left behind by previous owners). Each item has a little card tied to it, with the above info as well as a "May you have...." wish on it. I have given this so many times, especially to my sons when they move from apartment to apartment that it got the point that when they were planning the move, they'd say "Yes, moving can be expensive, but at least I know Mom is buying me a new broom!" Patricia

I am experimenting with fennel pollen. I saw Emeril using it when he did his Emeril Green shows from the Napa Valley and while I was visiting in Napa found a small container of it. I prepared sauteed fish fillets and then made what I call a Sicilian topping...scallions, garlic, some slices of blood orange, a little white wine and blood orange juice reduced, then raisins and pine nuts tossed in near the end, and a glug of cold butter. I sprinkled the topping and the sauteed fish lightly with the fennel pollen and was surprised at how the flavor popped out! Any suggestions for other things to try?

I just watch some Lidia Bastianich cooking shows where she was cooking recipes from Sardegna and Molise and she used fresh bay leaves in all of the dishes...some with fish.

I have seen articles of very clever things done with children's swimming pools!

I am fortunate that I live in So. California so the fall months are the beginning of a wonderful growing season for us. I have a regular in the ground garden, but I also use containers. I have a very large pot that I use for growing lettuce. I just sprinkle the seed from some of last years seed pods and cover with a think layer of compost...keep it moist and let it go. Having the pot on wheels allows me to move it to areas most conducive to its growth...for us that means indirect sunlight. I also have a dwarf bay tree in one pot and thyme in another.

Thanks for the suggestions...I will try to remember to post our dining experiences when we return. :-)

We just completed a Learning-in-Retirement class on the topic of food. The format is peer-taught, so each member was responsible for teaching one class. Each person selected a food item and did extensive research on the item and then taught us what they learned. It was a bit on the order of reading one of the food books written by Mark Kurlansky. The research covered everything from the origination of the item, the cultural aspects, the political aspects (Were wars fought over it! Were people fined because of it? Were legal battles entered over it?), the nutritional aspects of it and ways to enjoy it. It was a fantastic class, especially when someone brought sample items. We were surprised at how fascinating it all was and we even looked at humble barley differently. This is all a prelude to suggest that you take a food item and share little known facts about it...maybe ending with a recipe?

We are leaving in a couple of weeks for St. Goar, Germany on the Rhine River where we will spend one week in an apartment, taking day trips to various places. Is anyone familiar with local restaurants and local dishes that we should try while we are there? We are interested in places for an tasty, local, not-too-pricey meal. We really like "mom and pop" places with authentically prepared local cuisine. This will be our first time in Germany and we want to experience the culture and a big part of that for us is the food! :-)

We are leaving in a couple of weeks for Leiden (Holland) where we will spend one week in an apartment, taking day trips to various places. We have been watching the Amsterdam postings and have a number of suggested places for an tasty, local, not-too-pricey meal. But, since our home base will be Leiden, we would appreciate any recommendations for that town. Also any local dishes that we should be sure to try while we are there. This will be our first time in the Netherlands and we want to experience the culture and a big part of that for us is the food! :-)

Heidi, My father and my grandmother were the ones who passed on their knowledge to me. My grandmother could not take a walk down a street without reaching out to deadhead someone's flowers or rose bush...telling me the plant needs the energy to make new flowers. Every house I moved to was not a house until my father brought me my tomato plants and made sure I knew how to plant it deep so it established good roots and not to be afraid to pick off the hornworms should they arrive. Sadly both of them have left this earth so it is my job to be the one passing on the wisdom. My own sons have not discovered the joys of raising their own food, but I have a 9 year old grandson who knows when he is at my home, we are picking the vegetables ready for harvest. He recognizes a growing fava bean and know how to remove the pod. He waters the vegetables underneath the leaves slowly so they don't get powdery mildew. He runs out to pick the corn when the water is boiling. Our garden is small...in the backyard in Southern California but hopefully I can share with him the joy of gardening. Patricia

My favorite fast pasta is Spaghetti with Tuna. While the pasta is cooking, I saute garlic with red pepper flakes in olive oil until golden, add a can of tuna in olive oil and break it up with a wooden spoon. Once it is heated through, I add a ladle of so of the pasta water to make it saucy...then add the al dente spaghetti to finish cooking in the tuna sauce. throw in some fresh chopped parsley and it is wonderful. I like it with grated cheese...even if you are not supposed to have cheese with fish sauce.

Interesting to see who the various sponsors of this website are...

The sound you hear is my clapping! I could not agree with you more. We loved last season of Masters for that very reason. They were true masters that had achieved a level where they could demonstrate a graciousness and "class" in all that they did...admirable! This season feels contrived, as if they are being pushed or "edited" to display what reality TV has come to feast on...the underbelly of the human psyche...jealousy, back-stabbing, whining, ruthlessness. As my grandmother would say..."Che peccata...what a shame!"

I compost in a bin. While everything does decompose, it is never "hot" enough to destroy seeds...so I get lots of volunteer plants. After our wonderful rains (Southern Ca), I have all these volunteer tomato plants scattered throughout the spring garden area and I just keep looking at them and trying to decide what to do with them. I haven't a clue as to the variety. Good chance they are heirloom since that is mostly what we eat, but they could also be hybrids. It seems a shame to just pluck them out as weeds since they showed such determination to sprout! :-) I have potted some in containers to just see what they do. Anyone else faced with this situation?

We had a "topsy-turvy" upside down plant last year as an experiment. We used a bush type hybrid and it did well. We got a decent amount of tomatoes and had no disease or pests problem. I still prefer the wild heirlooms but this worked and we will do one again this year. Here is an early photo of it.

The Italian restaurant you are referencing is Lido di Manhattan. It has a nice menu and well prepared. We have eaten there a number of times.

A little closer to LAX would be Cafe Pinguini in Playa del Rey, if you are in the mood for Italian. My link