Pierogi

Tonight's dinner will be the Provencal Tomato Quiche from "The Way To Cook". It's a tomato filling (cooked down tomato, onions, garlic and parsley mixed with the eggs), sprinkled with Parmesan and topped with whole slices of tomatoes. The hook is that, before the filling, you schmeer the pre-baked crust with mashed anchovies. Sounds perfect for a summer's night, with some chilled Rose. And a couple of Americanos for apperitifs. Happy Centennial, Mrs. Child ! Bon Apetit.

Yes. It is *all* about the attitude of the parents. I was taken out to eat, at everything from diners to white-linen establishments, from the time I was old enough to walk. If I misbehaved, I was taken outside and given a chance to think about my behavior. If it persisted, WE ALL LEFT. All of us, my parents and me (I'm sure the servers/kitchen were compensated well for the early exits.....). It (dining out, even at Mickey D's) was presented to me as a treat, and a privilege, but it was also understood there was a code of acceptable behavior that went along with that privilege. If I didn't choose to comply, I didn't get the benefits. I was a smart kid. I learned quick. I liked the service, and I liked good food, and I liked the change from routine that restaurants of any kind offered, and so I learned to reign it in while in polite company. A whole load of parents these days just don't get that.

Oh Scotty.....that looks.......beyond description ! But thanks for the captions, so the rest of us can vicariously experience it. What an experience. Wow.

Looks like a grand time ! Sure wish, however, that there were captions/explanations to some of those photos, so us non-insiders could tell who was who and what was what.

I got a beautiful, lush bunch of French sorrel from my CSA today. It's about 10 ounces worth of very green, very interesting-tasting herbage. I've never even tasted French sorrel before, let alone cooked with it. The resident farmer had no real suggestions on its use, save "well a lot of people mix it in with other salad greens". Problem is, with all the lovely, ripe produce right now, and my continuing glut of tomatoes, I'm not doing a lot of green salads at the moment. I did a quick Google when I got home, and found, yes, lots of salads and a few soups. Which I had also immediately thought about. There was also a couple of suggestions for a pesto type preparation. So, what say my fellow eGers, who certainly have the most collective brillance in cooking of any one spot, "virtual" or not? I'm toying with the idea of a chilled soup, like a chilled cream of watercress (a bunch of which I also got in this share) or a vichyssoise. Whatcha got for me? Thanks in advance.

Scotty, that's so weird that your's are just starting to come in. Did you start them late? I put mine (all seedlings) in around mid-May, and I've been rolling in the 'maters for about a month now. Of course, your climate is much cooler than mine, even with the very cool and foggy summer we've had (to this point, sadly that's all gone now). I'm actually on the down slope now. The plants aren't setting any new fruit, so it's just maintenance at this point to ripen the ones on the vine. This.... is pretty typical of what I've been picking once or twice a week for the last month or 6 weeks. Leading to this.... which is the current inventory. Many, many, MANY tomato sandwiches have been enjoyed, and BLATs are on the agenda for this week. As is gazpacho..... The large red ones are "Beefmaster" (I've had some of them that weighed over a pound each), the yellow/red ones are "Marvel Stripe" (I got the seedling from my CSA, it's an heirloom) and the cherries are "Big Cherry". I'm a little disappointed in those. Up until the recent harvests, they've been a little mealy and flavorless. Next year, I think I'll try some grape tomatoes instead of the cherries.

It's that Puritanical heritage of us Americans (USA Americans, that is....), isn't it? If we're enjoying something, it *MUST* be bad for us, and we must repent from it, and punish ourselves for it.

interesting, I've actually appreciated the TJ grinders--which are not throw-away, you can refill them with whatever you choose. I have a row of dedicated grinders for salts, peppers, and other large spices, thanks to TJ's salts and peppers sold in inexpensive grinders. But I agree with your point, it is too bad that they don't also sell the spices in bulk. I'm with you, Linda. I love those things, and have repurposed every one of them since I discovered that you can easily screw off the grinder top and refill. The price point on the filled grinder is stupid low, considering how much utility you can get from the grinder once the original spice is exhausted. Just another thing I love about TJs.

No pix, since both the last pick-up (2 weeks ago) and this one (yesterday's) were made late in the day, I was rushed to get dinner going when I got home, and tired, so no attempt to artfully arrange the cornucopia of goodies for their moment in the sun.....or in pixels or somethin'. But. Both pick-ups were a HUGE abundance of seasonal goodies. On July 12, I got 16&1/2 pounds (!) of produce; including 2 leeks, a bunch of mint, a bunch of watercress, 15 tomatoes, 8 cucumbers (almost 3 pounds worth !), 14 really juicy nectarines (2 pounds worth), 8 zucchini/yellow squash (3&1/2 pounds), 7 huge radishes, 3 eggplants (ugh) and 10 apples (2&1/2 pounds). Yesterday was another bunch of mint, another bunch of watercress, 7 apples, 10 nectarines, 16 dead-ripe figs....(a pound's worth....swoon), 54 cherry/grape tomatoes (2 pounds), 4 eggplants (ugh...), 10 ounces green beans, 3 large tomatoes, 2 cucumbers, 4 zucchini/yellow squash and one melon of unknown ilk, but smells vaguely cantaloupe-ish. Total of 17&1/2 pounds this week !! For both of the last shares, the (ugh.....) eggplants have been donated to someone who appreciates the evil purple things. But mercifully the greens, beets and turnip flow has ceased ! Bring on more figs, I say !! Edit because last time I looked "radishes" has an "H" in it.

Zuke pancakes/fritters are a good sort of in-between that don't go all the way to the breading and frying scene (which I don't do either....). Ina Garten has a good recipe in one of her cookbooks, and Michael Symon has an outstanding one that uses feta cheese in the batter. I found that one on Ruhlman's blog about a month and a half ago. The other day I also made zucchini/coconut muffins that I found on the King Arthur flour blog. It's called "Baking Banter", it's NOT the normal KA website. They're really yummy. Not too sweet, seasoned with ginger, nice and moist. They're glazed with a simple powdered sugar/milk glaze, and topped with toasted coconut. I recommend them.

'Though it won't kill ALL of the overflow of greens (been there, lived that, mercifully my glut has slowed for the summer.....), I do have a couple of great recipes to recommend. First, Dorie Greenspan's "Swiss Chard Pancakes" from her book "Around My French Table". I copied the recipe out of the copy I borrowed from the library, but I believe it's also available on-line. Dead-bang easy (you blitz the batter AND the chard in a blender and fry them up), and so good. AND, the cooked pancakes freeze well for later reheating in a low oven. Also Emeril Lagasse's "Caldo Verde". This is probably not great for a summer dish; it's a hearty soup with spicy smoked sausage, potatoes and greens (kale is traditional, but I've used collards and loved it), but it's nice to have in the back pocket. I saw it first on an episode of "Emeril Green" that used to air on the Planet Green pay channel, and got the proportions on-line for sure. I've made it a couple of times, and it really is great. Kale, especially the Tuscan kale, also surprisingly makes a great raw salad. Just chiffonade it really finely, and let it sit in the dressing (a lemon or regular vinaigrette, you need the acid) for a bit. Nuts or seeds, and dried fruit like dried cherries or cranberries, make a really nice addition.

There is one down the street from me complete with the historically often stolen statue. Have not been though so not sure if it is revamped or original in burger style. REALLY?!???!!!!!!!!! Cool. Lomita/Torrance is a whole heck of a lot closer to me than Glendale or Central CA. Maybe time for a field trip....

....Snippity.... The chain is essentially defunct. There are a couple of scattered outposts, I know the original (?) one in Glendale still exists, and as Toliver just posted that there's one in Central CA. There *was* one in the Long Beach area (Signal Hill), but that closed about a year ago. I was very sad. They certainly aren't the presence they were back in the day.

Bob's Big Boy used the "special/secret" sauce too, and if I remember correctly they started in the late 40's/early 50's, so they also pre-date Mickey D's. They also did the lettuce/tomato/onion/pickle thing, and the double patties. Sesame seed buns. Sure miss them. They had GREAT burgers, and those shakes were to die for.

Continuing on the martini theme (and a fine theme it is), there's my signature line.... "Let's slip out of these wet clothes and into a dry Martini" by the everso cool Robert Benchley. And of course, there's the unattributed "one Martini, two Martini, three Martini, floor". I try to avoid acting out the latter......

So, every night on the evening news, I've been seeing the reports about the horrendous drought in the middle of the country, and what it's doing to the crops, most especially corn. Apparently, according to the network sayers of doom, everything from gas to beef to clothing to cosmetics are going to cost astronomically more in the months to come, because they all use corn (or ethanol) in some way, shape or form. Well, today I went to the local MegaMart, and thought I'd get a couple of ears of sweet corn to toss on the barbie over the weekened. I mean, it's Summer, peak corn season, and I was relatively sure the corn would be somewhat local (I mean, really, I live in Southern California, we grow EVERYTHING here save peonies and real lilacs). I bought corn a couple of weeks ago for 4th of July, at the same store, and it was lovely. Juicy, fresh, CHEAP, squeeky it was so recently picked. Today. Well, today was a totally different story. The display was about 1/4 of the size I expected. The husks were dry and sad looking, and most ears didn't have silk or tassels showing. Those that did had blackened, desiccated silks, that looked as though they'd been picked LAST July. And when I tried to burst a kernal with my thumb nail (yes, I'm one of those....), there was no milk whatsoever to be seen. And the price was about double what it had been 2 weeks ago. I was stunned. Again, somehow I thought that the corn I was buying was from California, and we'd be somehow immune to at least the fresh corn scourge. I guess not. I guess our sweet corn, at least in the MegaMartz, is trucked in from the arid Midwest. I'm sad.....corn's one of the best things about Summer. What's the corn like in your neck of the woods?

Heidi, thanks for raising this topic ! I've wrestled with the same dilemma, and have the same limited options, since I'm in the same general area as you. So far, I've been most pleased (although that is certainly damning with faint praise, as they say....) the frozen ones from the Sea of Cortez, when I can find them. I assiduously avoid any farmed seafood from Asia. Aside from the environmental issues you noted in your later post, I'm not convinced that the food handling in those countries is up to US standards (such as *they* are). I also find that most farmed Asian shrimp contain tetrasodium biphosphate or sodium metasulfite to "plump" them, which leads to watery, rubbery shrimp. Not to mention an off taste I can discern. Sure wish we could get wild Gulf shrimp out here....

Due to the harmonious convergence of this eG cook-off, and my having checked Andrea Nguyen’s “Into the Vietnamese Kitchen” out of the library a week or so ago, I decided to take the banh mi plunge as well. Earlier this week, I’d made Nguyen’s “garlic roasted chicken” using chicken parts I’d had in the freezer for a while. 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks and a breast. That recipe was a dead-bang winner, but left solitary eater me with leftover chicken up the you-know-what. Before the book went back to the library yesterday, I copied out her recipe for banh mi and also for a spicy chicken salad with cabbage that will kill the last of the garlic roast chicken. As Bruce (C. sapidus) noted upstream, Nguyen’s banh mi recipe also gives you the recipe for the daikon/carrot pickle, which I also followed (with a minor tweak…..). Verdict ! Another dead-bang winner !!! Boy was this a mouthful of yummy. I used “French” rolls from a local “gourmet/organic” grocery store (Sprouts, for those of you in the southwest). Following Nguyen’s suggestions, I hollowed out the bready part of the roll, and tossed it into the oven at 325° for about 5 minutes to crisp up. I took it out when I could smell toasty bread. Bottom layer was Best Foods mayo, drizzled with a copious amount of Maggi. Followed by schmears of an “herbed” liver sausage from the same grocery store. Then the shredded roast garlic chicken. For this I used the remaining dark meat, after having stripped off the skin. Then ribbons of cucumber that I shaved off with my veggie peeler. Then very, very thinly sliced jalapeños, seeds and all. Then herbs. Nguyen suggests only cilantro, which I certainly used. But I also mixed a couple of leaves of mint with a couple of leaves of “normal” basil, and shredded them finely. I used more cilantro than the mint/basil mix, but I liked the addition of that, and will keep it in future renditions. Then the pickle. I’d taken my julienne cutter (looks like a veggie peeler, only has a julienne blade) and cut thin strips of both a carrot and a daikon. I had a handful of red radishes I needed to use, so I just sliced them into thin half-moons and threw them into the mix. Toss around with sugar and salt for a bit to wilt, rinse and drain, then cover with white vinegar mixed with more sugar and water, and let mellow for at least an hour before you use it. I’m sure it’ll taste better after sitting in the fridge for a day or so, but it was still pretty good after only a couple of hours. Here's the little pretty before closure: And the money shot: Yeah, I *will* be buying this book ! (THANKS, Bruce !)

Heidi, THIS ^^^ was brilliant ! I did the butter and Tony Chachere's on my corn from the grill, and it was amazing ! Thanks for such a great idea. I'll keep it in the memory banks for corn for a good, long time.

The rib recipe from the July "Bon Apetit". Dry rub of cayenne, paprika (I think I'll use smoked paprika) and I think chile powder and some other stuff I can't remember off the top of my head. Wrap in foil, then into the oven for a couple of hours, finish on the grill with BBQ sauce (using the meat juices as part of the sauce). It sounds yummy and easy. A tortellini salad with cheese tortellini, salami, olives and a vinagrette dressing, and some other stuff I can't remember off the top of my head. Corn, probably on the grill while the ribs finish. Watermelon. Or figs. Or cherries. Or apricots. Or nectarines. Maybe a small caprese with one of the two tomatoes I took off of one of my plants today (YAY !). The trip to the grocery store this week was like "SHAZZZAM !!! It's summer ! Here's all the fruit you could ever want......"

I really covet ALL the stuff. The candle holder, the toilet paper holder, and those lovely, lovely, absolutely stunning dishes and tea service. That pattern is so gorgeous ! But then I'm a stone fool for that cobalt blue.

SILLY neighbor ! Lucky Bruce !!!

Speaking of Trader Joe's, their "Wine Country" chicken salad is spectacular. Simply spectacular. I love it on a croissant.... It's chicken, I think only white meat, but I could be wrong, celery, pecans, and dried cranberries, with a dressing of mayo, apple cider vinegar, a bit of honey, poppy seeds and S&P. It's the cranberries that make the salad. The tart/sweet tang just work with everything else. The salad is magic.

Grating (yes, using a box grater) about 1/4 of a large onion into the meat before you form the patties does a couple of things. First, it helps to season it, and second, the juice from the onion, which you actually get more of than the onion flesh itself, helps to keep the meat moist. I salt and pepper pretty heavily before I mix the onion in, with a little less salt if I'm pan grilling in a cast-iron skillet. In that case, I salt the skillet liberally, so I ease back on the salt in the mix. If I'm outdoor grilling, grill panning or broiling, I salt the raw mix heavily. Use a light hand (some say fingertips only) to mix in the grated onion and S&P. I suppose you could throw in some herbs and grated garlic at this point, too, but I like my burgers without those extra flavors. Then, the dimple in the middle makes ALL the difference in the world. ALL the difference. It goes from tough, bulge-y little hockey puck, to bun-sized, juicy burger with that magic dimple.

I love savory bread puddings, even though I'm not a huge fan of the sweet ones ! Although, I have to say, I usually make my savory ones with bread that has more character than hot dog buns..... I make one that has thin-sliced fennel bulbs and sweet Italian sausage (with fennel seeds, of course). I think it also takes some Parmesan. The flavors on that are spectacular. I *believe*, with as much confidence as my sketchy memory will allow, it was a recipe I found in the LA Times several years back. I think I have another one with grapes(?) and prosciutto. I've been meaning to make both of them again, especially the fennel/sausage version, because I liked it so much.