A Plethora of Pies

A friend just brought a gift of a homemade strawberry rhubarb pie. It tastes as good as it looks and was like a gift from the past. Pies and piemaking were an important part of my past. Not that I personally made pies but, as I grew up, they were the dessert of choice for all of my extended family. We had a rhubarb patch by the garage and a blackberry patch nearby. We took day trips enmasse to pick huckleberries in the Blue Mountains of nearby Idaho. There was always hot coffee and a piece of homemade pie to offer someone who stopped by just to say hi, and people did in those days. Every large family gathering boasted a plethora of pies from berry to lemon merangue.

How's the weather? Call a ham.

The sun is out in Seattle. We soooo want spring. Actually we so want constant warmth and blue skies. It has been off and on and iffy, cool and drizzly, then sunny and back to cool. I know, not a compelling way to begin a blog entry, the weather. It reminds me of a short foray I once made into ham radio. A guy I was with at the time was a bit of an electronic nerd (not meant derogatorily, he went on to own a cable TV company). We had an impressive, at the time, reel-to-reel music system, electronic chess and the aforementioned ham radio. I listened to it and considered trying to learn the Morse code but never did. In those days, learning to tap out code was required to become a “ham”. I remember feeling fascinated for a while listening to folks from all over the world chatting back and forth. I soon learned, though, there is a universal “ham” obsession with weather. Now, in many crisis, these folks have played impressive roles in lifesaving. Alerting to weather information at those times maybe critical. That said, it seemed like every time I heard “hams” chatting it was about the weather. How’s the weather? What’s the weather like there? I don’t know why I expected more esoteric banter, but I would have wanted to know more interesting things from someone across the world than the current state of their weather. “Have you given thought to Spinoza lately?” “What’s the state of mind/body medicine in your part of the world?” Ok, so I’m sounding a bit snobbish, but I never even heard them share a recipe! I know with new forms of communication available, ham radio has taken a very back seat. I’m sure ham aficionados are patient, though. The world one day may find itself with the scenario of communication satellites being obliterated; the world in chaos and once again the tapping of a simple mechanical key will become the lifeblood of communication. In the meantime forget the Internet when you want to know the weather somewhere in the world, call a ham.

Buttered Croissants, broiled lamb & a taste of India

Hot, buttered croissants with coffee have to be a top morning indulgence for me. I used to enjoy them only rarely as I had to go out amidst traffic and morning chill to get them, or remember them the night before and then they were day old. Trader Joe’s is now my hero. They sell packages of eight frozen mini croissants. You take some out the night before and let them “proof” on a baking sheet over night. Then you bake them till golden brown. They are perfectly flakey, and deliciously croissanty, if I may coin a word. I discovered them by reading through the Trader Joe’s crazy little opus that they publish regularly. It’s a store that has little gems of food items up and down the aisles. Sometimes, now, I take the time to browse more in Trader Joe’s. That’s how I found what’s now a kitchen staple, their Mango Ginger Chutney. It’s a great accompaniment to my Indian dishes and Hank loves it as a cooking sauce. He used it brilliantly last night over lamb chops. No, you won’t overtly taste the ginger, it’s just a delicious sweet sauce with some complexity.

His dinner was a definite winner. Broiled lamb chops with mango ginger chutney sauce, broiled giant scallops which benefited from the sauce, as well, mashed potatoes with butter and fresh asparagus. I’ve been spoiled this week as the night before we had liver slathered in onions along with mashed potatoes (thanks to a friend who recently fixed it and inspired us). We both love liver and onions but often don’t think to fix it. Hank went to three stores trying to find veal liver but had to settle for basic beef liver. It was good, though. He told the tale of asking for veal liver at the Metropolitan Market and getting an angry stare. They might want to inquire as to the politics of their meat salespeople. Vegetarians or PETA folks should be allowed to opt out.

Wednesday afternoon I was a little down and needed an Indian food fix, both the fun of preparing it and the interesting tastes. What did I have on hand…red potatoes, a head of cauliflower that needed to be used… I went to Google and typed in potatoes + cauliflower + Indian + recipe and came up with the following dish. I put it all through the ricer topped it with a little butter for an amazing taste not at all overtly spicy!

Cauliflower and Potato Curry

From: Lisa Corsetti http://www.ivu.org/recipes/indian-veg/cauliflower-and-j.html I buy most of my Indian Spices, like Garam Masala, at a local food cooperative (Puget Sound Consumer Cooperative in Seattle) that sells spices in bulk.

Ingredients:
4 Cups potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 small cauliflower, cut into florets
a pinch of asafetida (can be omitted)
3/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
big pinch of sugar
2 tomatoes, chopped (I used a can of diced tomatoes)

1 1/4 cups water
1/2 tsp garam masala

Instructions:

Add all ingredients to a crockpot and cook on low for approximately six hours. Mash together.
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