Even though I have 4 closets in my Brooklyn apartment filled with clothes, shoes and memories, the funny thing was until I saw the play" Love, Loss and what I Wore" written by the sisters Ephron, Nora  & Delia, now playing at the Westside Theater on w43rd Street,  the other evening, I never really thought about their importance of my clothes and when, where and how I wore them in my own history. One closet has, my favorite pair of well-worn Ralph Lauren Jeans, in another the tiny robin’s egg blue and white eyelet lace puffy  skirted dress that I wore to my cousin Larry's Bar Mitzvah in Los Angles s when I was not much older than 6 or 7. I danced all that night, with fresh gardenias in my hair. I had never felt so happy and pretty, until that evening.
 I recently learn the back story how I came to wear that dress, my sister Rita, who because of our age difference, is also my second mom. She related the story of having a big argument with our mother over the cost of that beautiful dress, in 1964 is cost nearly $40 dollars, in today’s monetary value, I believe would be close to $200. quite a lot to spend on the dress for a 7 year old,  
   Nearly each piece has some sort of history attached to it, the coat closet alone, hangs, two sweaters from my late mother, that I will never wash, since they both still have her scent attached. 
  Each of my closets is divided into different items, one for tops, one for bottoms, another one for seasonal and the last one just for coats and jackets. As a woman, it is also divided into the many different sizes that my body has lived throughout my life.
   The play begins, with a monologue delivered by the incredible Anne Meara, one of the grand dames of all acting mediums and very deservedly proud mother of Ben Stiller. Kicks off the play talking about favorite items from her childhood, and how each different articles of clothing marked periods of her growth from childhood, into adulthood.


    A cardboard illustration of each item of clothing appears on a hanger, from a clothes rack next to her seat on stage. The floral dress when she her character married her first husband, a completely inappropriate older man, who she ends up catching cheating, on to the lovely Minka Kelly seated next to her, who spoke of that special pair of boots that helped to define not only her style, but also her rebellious spirit of her early 20s.           
    Conhata Ferrell the incomparable television actress, spinning tales and chiming on in as Anne Meara's character's mothers voice of adult reason. each piece of clothing telling tales of love and loss, growth and passages of time, each actress on stage telling more tales from B.Smith well-known actress and maven of style and taste. Next to her the very young and very thin, AnnaLynne McCord, bring up her own tiny rear, and making me envious that I will never in my own lifetime have a body that thin, on the other hand knowing that that would not even be possible with the way my own body and bones are built.
 

  Each actress arrives on stage armed with the history of each owns character s' history and persona.
 Woman's' history told through the clothes that they wore on that special day, now not all days or memories spun are happy ones, some tales involved loss from death and heartache, tales of violence from rape and being beaten. No two woman have the same history, no two items of clothes will bring the same feelings out when worn by different woman. 
 How as you add certain items, your first bra, heels, pantyhose (mine first bra came from my cousin Patty, it had a floral pattern)  and my first pair of pale pink pantyhose, for the occasion for my cousin Susan's wedding. Heels arrived with first painful steps when I hit H.W. Smith Junior High, in seventh grade. By high school it was jeans with hand sown leather patches, and a floppy black hat that defined my style
   I was thoroughly convinced a number of years ago that if I found just the right top, it would make all the difference, for my first date with Bob. I spent most of a day, wandering all over a mall in search of the perfect scooped neck black t-shirt with 3/4 length sleeves to complete what I thought make the perfect first date out, well, needless to say, the t-shirt outlasted my relationship with Bob, who I nicknamed the "cowboy", he had a penitence for always wearing expensive hand made, hand tooled cowboy boots.
  In the end, the heartbreak he caused cost me so much more than that just right black scooped necked tee.
  Throughout the play, you could not help thinking about your own history, as it hung in your closet, passages of time, and in your memories. Those clothes that your parents did not approve of in our reckless youth, didn't all of us  heard at least one or more of these comments from your mother, That skirt is too short you look like a hooker, that blouse is cut too low, that color is too loud, pattern too wild, all these comments usually followed by the phrase, are you trying to look like a prostitute. Put your father and I into an early grave, by bringing us shame. Maybe this is why so many outfits also have so much guilt attached.
  Then there are those items that make you feel safe, warm even happy, the soft feel of flannel pj's you wear when you are sick or alone, or both and need that special feeling of comfort wrapped around you pulling it tightly across your back and around your shoulders. Making you feel happy and comfortable.
  I know how well written and performed a play is by how many emotions it stirs in me through just one performance, though " Love Loss and what I Wore", I laughed many times, and cried a few.      

 In honor of todays' wedding of William and Kate,it is said that this is one of Williams favorite dishes for Kate to make for his supper.

 I, along with the rest of the world wish them both a lifetime of happiness, as they begin their own wonderful journey into a new life together.

 I hope that somewhere Diana's spirit smiling, Kate appears to be just the kind of sweet, smart and normal gal that Diana would have approved. 

This recipe is in British English. 

  I can't give this high enough accolades – it's a simply wonderful creation from the humble origins of British cooking. If only you could order it in a restaurant, though. Can I persuade anyone? It is, after all, a sort of fusion food – a fusion of light, crispy, crunchy batter and plump, meaty pork sausages, all moistened with a generous amount of roasted- onion jus. Here's hoping!

Like

Serves 2-3

This recipe is taken from How to Cook Book One

Method

   Begin by making the batter, and to do this sieve the flour into a large bowl, holding the sieve up high to give the flour a good airing. Now, with the back of a spoon, make a well in the centre, break the egg into it and add some salt and pepper.

    Now, measure the milk and 2 fl oz (55 ml) water in a measuring jug, then, using an electric hand whisk on a slow speed, begin to whisk the egg into the flour – as you whisk, the flour around the edges will slowly be incorporated. Then add the liquid gradually, stopping to scrape the flour into the mixture.

    Whisk until the batter is smooth. Now the batter is ready for use, and although it's been rumoured that batter left to stand is better, I have never found this, so just make it whenever it's convenient. Now place the sliced onions in a bowl, add 1 teaspoon of the oil and the sugar and toss the onions around to get the lightest coating, then spread them on the baking tray.

Next arrange the sausages in the roasting tin, then place the onions on a high shelf in the oven, with the sausages on a lower shelf, and set a timer for 10 minutes. When the timer goes off, remove the sausages from the oven but leave the onions in for a further 4-5 minutes – they need to be nicely blackened round the edges. When they are ready, remove them and leave to one side.

   Now place the roasting tin containing the sausages over direct heat turned to  

Ingredients:

6 good-quality pork sausages – about 14 oz (400 g)

1 tablespoon groundnut or other flavourless oil (if necessary)

For the batter:

3 oz (75 g) plain flour

1 large egg

3 fl oz (75 ml) semi-skimmed milk salt and freshly milled black pepper medium and, if the sausages haven't released much fat, add the tablespoon of oil.

2 fl oz (55 ml) water 

For the onion Gravy:

8 oz (225 g) onions, peeled and sliced

2 teaspoons groundnut or other flavourless oil

1 level teaspoon golden caster sugar

1 dessertspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 level teaspoon mustard powder

15 fl oz (425 ml) vegetable stock made from 11⁄2 level teaspoons Marigold Swiss vegetable bouillon powder dissolved in 15 fl oz (425 ml) boiling water

1 rounded dessertspoon plain flour

salt and freshly milled black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 7, 425°F (220°C)

Conversions

  When the tin is really hot and the oil is beginning to shimmer – it must be searing hot – quickly pour the batter in all around the sausages. 

  Immediately return the roasting tin to the oven, this time on the highest shelf, and cook the whole thing for 30 minutes.Now for the gravy.

  First add the Worcestershire sauce and mustard powder to the stock, then add the onions from the baking tray to a medium-sized pan. Now add the second teaspoon of oil, then, using a wooden spoon, stir in the plain flour. Stir all this together over a medium heat and then switch to a whisk, then gradually add the stock to the pan, whisking all the time, until it's all in.

  Then bring it up to simmering point and gently simmer for 5 minutes. Taste to check the seasoning, then pour into a warmed serving jug. When the toad is ready, it should be puffed brown and crisp and the centre should look cooked and not too squidgy.

  Serve it immediately with the gravy, and it's absolutely wonderful with mashed potato.

We all wish them, a very long and happy life together !!!!!

Spiced Pecans by Alton Brown - TVFN.com

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon dried ground orange peel
• 1 pound pecan halves
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions

 Cheese Stuffed Pecans from BGH.com

• 1 cup finely shredded Gouda cheese (4 ounces)
• 3 tablespoons dairy sour cream
• 40 large pecan halves

directions

1. Bring shredded cheese to room temperature in a medium mixing bowl (allow 30 to 60 minutes). Add sour cream. Beat with an electric mixer until combined and mixture is creamy. Using a scant teaspoon for each, pipe or mound cheese mixture onto the flat side of half of the pecans. Top with remaining pecans, flat side down. Serves 10.

Savory Pecan, Parmesan and Thyme Shortbread

Makes about 36 cookies

Ingredients:

• • 1/2 cup pecan pieces
• • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• • 1 cup flour
• • 1 tablespoon minced thyme leaves
• • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Spread the pecan pieces on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 8 minutes, until they are fragrant. Transfer to a cutting board to cool, then coarsely chop.

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand or hand-held electric mixer; beat on medium speed for several minutes, until fluffy and light. Add the Parmesan cheese and beat until well blended.

Remove the bowl from the mixer, then add the flour, toasted pecans, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula, then use your hands to help the dough come together. Divide the dough in half, then shape each half into a log 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cut one of the logs crosswise into 1/4-inch slices, arranging the rounds of dough 1 inch apart on the baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden. Transfer the shortbread to wire racks to cool completely before storing. Repeat to use all of the dough.

Recipe Source:

Adapted from "Outstanding in the Field," by Jim Deneven with Marah Stets (Clarkson Potter, 2008).

Sweet Potato Soup with Buttered Pecans

• 3/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup finely chopped leek, washed well and drained
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 3 large carrots, sliced thin (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 pounds (about 3 large) sweet potatoes
• a 1/2-pound russet (baking) potato
• 5 cups chicken broth plus additional for thinning the soup if desired
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1 1/2 cups water

• 3/4 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• crème fraîche or sour cream as an accompaniment

Sautéed Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Smoked Ham and Toasted Pecans

• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 1/4-inch-thick slices smoked ham (about 6 ounces), coarsely chopped
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 2/3 cup low-salt chicken broth
• Coarse kosher salt
• 1/2 cup pecans, toasted, chopped

Trim root ends from brussels sprouts. Using sharp knife or processor fitted with coarse shredding disk, thinly slice brussels sprouts into shreds. DO AHEAD: Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

Melt butter with olive oil in large deep skillet over medium heat. Add ham; sauté until golden, about 3 minutes. Add garlic; stir 30 seconds. Add brussels sprouts and broth; sauté until crisp-tender but still bright green, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with coarse salt and black pepper. Transfer to serving bowl. Sprinkle with pecans.

Mushroom Pecan Burgers

• 1 1/2 pounds (685 g) cremini mushrooms
• 1/2 cup (30 g) fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil, divided
• 2 large-size yellow onions, finely chopped
• 3 large-size garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups (165 to 220 g) bread crumbs or cracker meal
• 3 tablespoons (45 g) tahini
• 2 tablespoons (30 g) hoisin sauce
• 3/4 cup (85 g) toasted pecans or walnuts, chopped
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) tamari soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon (2 g) dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• salt and ground pepper, to taste

In a food processor, mince mushrooms and parsley. Remove and set aside.

In a sauté pan over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil and cook onions and garlic for 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer onion mixture to a large-size bowl, and combine with minced mushrooms and parsley, bread crumbs, tahini, hoisin sauce, chopped nuts, tamari, oregano, sage, salt, and pepper.

Place mixture in refrigerator for at least half an hour. Mixture will be soft, but you should be able to form patties. Add additional bread crumbs or tahini, if needed.

Create patties using your hands. In a sauté pan, warm remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil, and fry patties over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes on each side, until lightly browned and crispy. Be careful to keep patties intact.

Serving Suggestions and Variations Instead of making patties, put mixture into 5 x 9 x 2-inch (13 x 23 x 5 cm) loaf pan and bake at 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4) for 20 to 25 minutes.

Pecan- and Panko-Crusted Chicken Breasts

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• 1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• 1 cup finely chopped pecans
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, divided

• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 3/4 cup low-salt chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400°F. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Mix panko and pecans in dish. Melt 4 tablespoons butter in heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Remove skillet from heat; brush some of melted butter onto chicken, then coat chicken in panko mixture. Place skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and sauté until brown on bottom, about 2 minutes. Turn chicken over. Place skillet in oven. Bake until chicken is cooked through, about 18 minutes. Transfer chicken to platter.

Using slotted spoon, remove any crumbs from skillet. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter and shallots; sauté over medium-high heat 1 minute. Add broth and simmer until slightly reduced, about 1 minute. Mix in parsley. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper; drizzle over chicken.

Here is a fun and tasty way to start your week. I have tasted this item, and deemed it calorie worthy.

 Enjoy !!!
 
  Crack Pie may not be the prettiest dessert, but like a date with a new person. they may begin with a first impression of just kinda OK...then as you get to know them, and dig in deeper,  they who turns out to be so charming and intelligent, they just keeps getting sexier and more interesting.

Crack Pie, a Manhattan bakery's creation, is addictive -- even at $44 a pie.

Momofuku's Crack Pie

Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times

   71 years ago, Saint Patrick’s Day circa 1940, a lovely dark haired, blue eyed beauty rose extra early on a cold and snowy morning in Syracuse New York.  To begin her special day, she started the day by baking a multi-tiered Lady Baltimore cake. This day was her Wedding Day; 71 years ago it was not unusual for a child of immigrant parents to make their own wedding cake and supper.

  Luckily she had the help of her 3 sisters, Rose the eldest, Cecile, the middle and Lee the youngest at barely 12 years old.

  As the cake bake her and her 3 sisters and Mother Fanny, set about cleaning and arranging the house for the upcoming wedding later that day, putting the finishing touches to Anne’s cream colored wedding suit, this would be the dress she would wear walking down the stairs to meet her jubilant groom,  a tall handsome hazel eyed Lithuanian man with brushed back dark brown hair that tended to curl on the edges unless he slicked it down properly, named Robert who would be waiting for her under the wedding Chuppah in her parents’ living room.  Throughout the day, the supper was prepared, the table set with the best china and lace tablecloths, possible made by her about to be new Mother-in-Law Sarah whom was known for her tatting skills, for the party later that day.  Finally the four tiered Lady Baltimore wedding cake with its filling of chopped dried figs, raisins and nuts, frosted in a light white, creamy boiled frosting then decorated, and place in the center of the table.

  It was to be a wonderful day Anne and Robert were married surrounded by each other’s large family, she and her 3 sisters,, and Robert and his 5 other brothers. Along with other assorted family and friends gathered celebrated and enjoy the day, then off the newlyweds went onward to their honeymoon destination of New York City, unfortunately because of the heavy snow that day, they only made it 30 miles to Utica, NY. The bright lights of New York City were still a day away. Not that is mattered all that much to a pair of happy newlyweds.

 As a child I learned about this story when I found a paper bag of tiered wedding cake pans in the back of a wooden shelf in the basement of our house in Scott Ave. I remember being a bit shocked as a small child growing up in the 60’s, to discover that my mother had had to make her own cake on her wedding day. She even still had the cookbook which the recipe came from: The American Woman’s cookbook by Ruth Berolzheimer published just the year before in 1939. I still have this book in my collection, though it’s green cloth cover is tattered and binding held together with masking tape from long ago, even the first 11 pages are missing for the book, lost somewhere among the ages.

  Though  St Patrick ’s Day is usually a holiday set aside to celebrate  the Irish, however, from this day on for myself and my siblings Rita, the eldest, Alex the middle and myself Paula the youngest  would celebrate this day as our parents wedding anniversary.

 Anne & Robbie were married for 53 years until Robert’s passing in 1993, then Anne followed 11 years later, mom always said she was never just another widow, she always  felt married until the day she died.

  I and my siblings will continue to always remember; this day fondly, though born of Russian- Lithuanian heritage, we are a bit Irish thanks to our clever parents… I did always wonder if just maybe my mother planned it this way, So that my dad could never say; honey I forgot our anniversary.

  Lady Baltimore Cake

For the cake layers

¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2 cups sugar

3 cups sifted cake flour

1 tablespoon double-acting baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

½ cup water

1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

6 large egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Make the cake layers:

Line 3 buttered 9-inches round cake pans with rounds of wax paper, butter the paper, and dust the pans with flour, knocking out the excess.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer cream the butter with the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy and beat in the vanilla and the almond extract. In a bowl stir together the flour, the baking powder, and the salt, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in batches alternately with the milk, and stir the batter until it is just combined. In another large bowl beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar and a pinch of salt until they just hold stiff peaks, stir one third of them into the batter, and fold in the remaining whites gently but thoroughly. Divide the batter among the prepared pans, smoothing the tops, and bake the cake layers, in batches if necessary, in the middle of a preheated 325°F. Oven for 25 to 35 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pans on racks for 5 minutes, turn them out onto the racks, and let them cool completely.

 ** The cake layers may be made 1 week in advance and kept wrapped well in plastic wrap and frozen. Let the layers thaw before proceeding with the recipe.

Frosting and filling

3 cups sugar

1 cup water

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

3 large egg whites, stiffly beaten

1 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup finely chopped dried figs plus sliced dried figs for garnish

 1 cup raisins, chopped

 1 cup pecans, toasted lightly and chopped fine, plus pecan halves for garnish

.

  In a small saucepan combine the sugar and the water, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, and boil the syrup until it registers 248°F.on a candy thermometer.

While the syrup is boiling, in a large bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they hold soft peaks and with the mixer running add the hot syrup in a stream. Beat in the vanilla and beat the icing until it is cool. Transfer 2 cups of the icing to a bowl, reserving the remaining icing, and fold in the chopped figs, the chopped pecans, and the raisins.

Arrange 1 of the cake layers, flat side up, on a serving plate, spread it with half the dried-fruit icing, and top the filling with another cake layer, flat side down.

Spread the top layer with the remaining dried-fruit icing and top the filling with the remaining cake layer. Spread the top and side of the cake with the reserved plain icing and garnish the cake with the sliced figs and the pecan halves.

 Elizabeth Andoh is a wonderful writer, cookbook author, and courageous person. She has lived, written and taught classes in Tokyo and Osaka for over 20 years. 

 I was very happy to hear that she and her family are safe. Here are her reflections on the disaster around her.
 Our hearts and prayers go out to the people of Japan.
 
 Do yourself a favor and look at Elizabeth' 5 cookbooks, you will be so happy you did.  

Elizabeth's latest book is:

 Kansha: Celebrating Japan's Vegan and Vegetarian Traditions

 

March 13, 2011

2011 Japan Disaster: Elizabeth Andoh’s Experience & Requests

On Thursday night I was emailing with Tokyo-based Japanese food expert Elizabeth Andoh (author of Kansha, Washoku, and many other wonderful cookbooks) and didn’t hear back from her until this morning. My questions to her about Japanese food matters instantly became irrelevant on Friday when I heard about the Sendai earthquake and tsunami. Not knowing if I’d reach her, I sent an impotent note, hoping that she was at her Osaka home when the quake hit. There was no response.

Around 9am today, I received the message below. Elizabeth sent it out via the email list of A Taste of Culture, her cooking and teaching program in Tokyo and Osaka.

For those of us who have lived through natural disasters and war, Elizabeth reminds us of the importance of being prepared. Help out, if you can.

Elizabeth Andoh’s personal update and request:

When the first huge, terrifying quake hit on Friday afternoon, March 11, I was in Tokyo preparing for a class the following day. Having lived through several large quakes before (including one in which I was trapped in an elevator for hours before being rescued), I knew what to do. Trembling (me, and the earth together), I went into automatic mode, shutting off anything that could cause a fire, propping open the front door and one other escape route in the kitchen (door frames can shift causing them to jam shut), donned my emergency kit-knapsack (containing flashlight, extra batteries, water, essential medications, money, identification papers, gloves, face mask, first aid supplies, extra sweater with hood). The initial quake lasted for several minutes -- it seemed as though it would never stop.
 
Still trembling (me, and the earth together), I turned on the emergency news channel and learned the center of seismic activity (the largest on record in Japan, currently revised at 9.0) was Miyagi Prefecture, on the Pacific coast, north of Tokyo. Gigantic tsunami (tidal waves) were predicted, and came... and keep coming. As do tremors of varying degrees (as I type this, my desk sways slightly in a minor aftershock).
 
Transportation and communication services have been widely disrupted -- frustrating and frightening. To conserve energy, limited and rotating shut-downs are being scheduled throughout the Kanto Plains area. At this time I have access to the Internet and grab the opportunity to make two requests:

To those of you who live in Japan, especially in areas likely to be directly affected by heavy seismic activity in the next few months, PLEASE take this moment to check on your own preparedness to manage during emergencies.  I highly recommend you look at 72 hours (based in San Francisco), a wonderfully thorough site that provides good basic information.

To those who want to offer help to disaster relief efforts in Japan, please contribute to your favorite charity or organization collecting for this occasion. If you have no established route, please consider one of the following: 

• Japanese Red Cross
• Doctors without Borders
• International Medical Corps
• CARE
• NetHope

Japan class update:
March programs at A Taste of Culture in Tokyo have been canceled. At this time, the class in Osaka on April 2nd, as well as programs in Tokyo planned for May, June and July will meet as scheduled.

Elizabeth is a tough cookie. Look how she’s only cancelling the March classes in Tokyo! In addition to the resources Elizabeth pointed to, check out the CNN page, "Tsunami Relief and How You Can Help" for listings of non-profits and resources such as Google's People Finder, which is helping people reconnect with loved ones.

Let the Good Times Roll - Laissez les bon temps rouler!

   Today is Fat Tuesday - in New Orleans, Mobile, Rio, throughout the Caribbean and around the world colorful parades making their way down city streets and country roads. People are cheering; children are running to catch the bright sparkling beads that fly through the air from the painted and feathered folks on the floats sailing by the happy crowds.
 
   If like myself you do not find yourself in a hot and humid places chasing after colors beads and drinking hurricanes. Then the next best thing is to throw your own Mardi Gras party.
 Invite over some friendly souls, brew up a batch of spicy jambalaya, and dirty rice, bake a kings cake, King cakes, commemorate the Epiphany—the wise men's discovery of the baby Jesus. I personally leave the little plastic baby on the outside, what you do is up to you. Tradition does have it bake into the cake, now on the other hand if you actually like your guests and they are drinking and partying and possible not totally paying attention to what they are putting into their mouths. You may want to leave the baby out just to avoid any possible chocking incidents.
 
 Now the next morning after all the partying the night before you will want a Ramos Gin Fizz to cool off the fire left behind. This is the perfect way to start the first day of Lent, as long as your choice for lent, is not to give up alcohol.
  
 

Henry C. Ramos's Gin Fizz

SERVES 1

A mix of orange flower water and gin gives this venerable New Orleans cocktail a floral character with hints of juniper, while an egg white and heavy cream give it frothy body. The longer you shake the cocktail, the frothier it gets.

2 tsp. fresh lime juice
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. superfine sugar
1 1⁄2 oz. gin
1 oz. heavy cream
1⁄4 tsp. orange flower water
1 egg white
1 oz. cold seltzer

1. Combine lime juice, lemon juice, and sugar in a cocktail shaker and stir to dissolve. Add gin, heavy cream, orange flower water, and egg white. Cover and shake vigorously for 10 seconds.

2. Add 2 cups cracked ice, cover, and shake vigorously for about 45 seconds more. Strain into a chilled rocks or highball glass and add seltzer.

This article was first published in Saveur in Issue #114

Jambalaya

 Jambalaya is a great reason to break out you favorite cat iron skillet.

  There are two basic schools of thought when it comes to a jambalaya recipe and that is Creole Style with Tomatoes or Cajun Style without Tomatoes. There is a third way to make it that is not as common but ill throw it in as well.

Chicken & Andouille Sausage Jambalaya

Ingredients

1 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 Cup Andouille Sausage, Diced
1/2 Cup Onion, Diced
1/2 Cup Bell Pepper, Diced
1/2 Cup Celery, Diced
2 Tbsp. Garlic, Minced
1/2 Cup Tomatoes, Diced
1/4 Cup Tomato Sauce
1 1/4 Cup Chicken Stock
3/4 Cup Enriched Long grain Rice
1 Cup Boneless Chicken breast, Diced
Basic Jambalaya Spice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter, sauté the Andouille until slightly browned. Add 1/2 of the trinity (onion, bell pepper, celery) sauté until tender. Add tomato cook about a minute, then add the tomato sauce, cook 1 minute more. Add the garlic and rice, cook 1 minute. Add the stock, basic jambalaya spice, other half of the trinity, and Raw Chicken. Stir well and bake uncovered for about 30-40 minutes, or until the rice is cooked, but still has a little bite. Top with chopped parsley, and sliced green onions. This will feed about 2 to 3 people

Basic Jambalaya Spice

This is the basic Jambalaya Spice and can be modified to your own taste.

2 bay leaves, crushed or ground 
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 
1/4 teaspoon dried or ground sage 
1 teaspoon file powder 
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard powder 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper 
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon onion powder (optional) 
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
Yield: Provides ample spicing for 1 jambalaya or gumbo recipe that feeds 4 to 6 people.

Kings Cake

   The New Orleans tradition, begun in the 1870s, borrows heavily from European customs. As part of the celebration of Mardi Gras, it is traditional to bake an oval cake in honor of the three kings - the King Cake. The shape of a King Cake symbolizes the unity of faiths.

   Each cake is decorated in the traditional Mardi Gras colors: purple represents justice, green represents faith and gold represents power. A small baby, symbolizing the baby Jesus, is baked into each cake.

  Now last year I began making my first kings cake for an assignment touring the city with a great New Orleans chef.

  It first I began by making the kings cake from total scratch, until Chef CW exclaimed to me , you know most people down here just use pre-made cinnamon roll dough from a tube.
 
  Well so be it, this lovely man just made my life a whole lot easier, since I would be making upwards to 10 Kings Cakes for him throughout our week together.

  So I suggest you buy follow my own method

 What you will need for each cake:

 2 tubes of your favorite high quality cinnamon roll dough
 1 container soft cream cheese
 1-2 cans creamy white frosting
 Gold, Purple and Green sparkling sugar sprinkles 

 Remove prepared dough from tubes and unroll and using your fingers mush the two sheets of spiced doughs together into one sheet, spread evenly with cream cheese.
 Roll back up and form into a ring, place on a greased cookie sheet.
 I like to either use the new non-stick Reynolds foil, or parchment paper beneath the dough, much easily removal after baking and clean-up.
  Bake according to manufactures directions.
 Let cool completely

 Place tub of frosting into your microwave and nuke for about 30 - 45 seconds, use 10 second intervals or until frosting is pourable.
 
 Evenly pour liquidized frosting over the prepared and cooled ring cake. Quickly sprinkle frosting with lines of the 3 colors of sprinkles, decorate with a tiny plastic baby.
 
 Serve and enjoy.
 
 
              


                      
 

   It is official it has been just over 2 month since I have not smoked a cigarette, before you get to excited, I quit actually smoking six months ago. Of course I had also quit 6 months before that, and started back because of a broken heart. So I got to put myself through the hell of withdrawal twice in a 12 month period.

   The problem with quitting cigarettes’ for me is that this is not the first time in the 30 or so years I was a smoker to quit. I had quit many times before, most times I got down to the magical 1 a day, usually bummed from someone else, you stop buying packs and become a bum.

 Many people ask how did you finally do it, in the past I tried nicotine patches and lozenges’, wellbutren (gave me anxiety attacks while driving, on bridges and overpasses, best way to get past the attack, smoke a cigarette) not a good idea. I sucked lollipops, and chewed gum, gained and lost weight.

 As so many before me told me and turned out it was true, it will happen when you are ready for it to happen. Also, I finally found my perfect weapon for quitting. This time I successfully used dark chocolate, 60 -70% cacao, one of the worst times is for a smoker is after a meal, when you sit back and push your plate away, you want that cigarette to finish your meal.

 Now instead of lighting up I take a hard square of deep rich dark chocolate, I let it slowly melt in my mouth.

 The best part is thanks to all the antioxidants in the dark chocolate I was actually putting something good into my body. Best of all I only gained about 2 pounds in the following weeks of quitting.

 So I am happy to recommend Dark Chocolate as the perfect way to quit smoking.

The Rules of Traif

  Growing up as a nice Jewish child in the snowy land of Syracuse NY,  my father set the rules of Traif. Traif refers to those things that are forbidden to eat if you are truly a good Jew. As far as I know there is a different list, for every different religion, . The categories’ for anyone of the Jewish persuasion include; anything from the delicious piggy, any fish that does not have scales, and all shellfish, and of course, the mixing of meat and milk. How sad for some people to never experience the wonders of cheeseburgers, sausage and / or pepperoni pizza.

  In opposition to these archaic rules of yore, a bright and talented young Jewish chef named Jason Marcus,an alumni of Judson Grill, Le Bernardin, and Eleven Madison Park is committing delectable blasphemy at his new restaurant “Traif “. Backing up Jason,  in the front of the house position, his girlfriend, collaborate  & muse the redheaded non Jew Heather, aka the truly adorable self professed “Shiksa”.

  For many a Jewish household when I was growing up, pork was only allowed into your home under certain conditions

 a> In the form of Chinese food, spare ribs, sweet & sour pork, egg-rolls, or pork fried rice, this was also the rule that shellfish fell under, shrimp in lobster sauce or with vegetables.   Only made mode legit by eating this delicacy on a folding  tab;e in the living-room in front of the TV.

B> Breakfast on Sunday morning, whereas eggs are never to be served without either bacon or sausage, I assumed curing pork turns it into a new form, was a way of making it semi-kosher.

 You must understand that meanwhile, pork chops, roasts and whole ham, ham being an exception , whereas when the ham has been thinly sliced, and served  on rye bread in the form of a sandwich (usually joined by sliced Swiss cheese and a good dollop of brown mustard) .

Whole hams glazed or unglazed were in other words unkosher and forbidden.

  Now fast forward to 2011, a bright young chef is boldly thumbing his nose at convention, at his new restaurant deep in the heart Williamsburg Brooklyn, in of all places a traditionally Hassidic neighborhood.

    Where Mr A  & I fresh from an gallery opening of contemporary Mexican art thawed out from the chill of the January winds upon entering Traif , a warm and inviting dining space. Beginning our meal with warm savory bacon broth amuse bouche, next up  meltingly tender spare ribs bathed in strawberry- cinnamon bbq, and garnished with fresh tart pomegranate seeds, I indulged in a special of the evening, meltingly soft pork creek,

wrapped in crispy brown duck skin served with broken fingerling potatoes, doused with Foie gras fat and juices, served with slightly sour port cherries, I moaned at the first bite. We followed with a this feast of pork with tender and light as air Bacon doughnut doused with dulce de leche, topped with crispy amber brown bits of crunchy bacon, and served with coffee ice cream, and an small cup of even  more creamy rich dulce de leche for dipping.They finished our meal with a palate cleanser of perfect squares of fresh pineapple drizzled with pomegranate molasses and grated fresh lime zest, a perfect explosion of flavor to cut through all the richness of our meal.

  Being only two of us, we could not explore to deeply into this mouth-watering menu, I must return to dabble in the crispy sweetbreads, roasted marrow bones, seafood hot pot and glazed bacon wrapped blue cheese stuffed dates served hot and crispy atop spinach a la catalana.

   So many things to taste, I plan to return soon worship at this modern day temple of the forbidden, the chef and his adorable muse whom has dared to deliciously broken the rules of Traif.

 Traif

    Sometimes I hear about a story  that's ideas and ideals move me to reprint it here on my own blog.

 All over the world access to the materials for the cooking fuel that people to use to prepare healthy meals for their families, can be scarce. Luckily there are people addressing this important problem. As we all know, for humans to move forward, we must eat well to have the energy to learn, work and grow as a society. In turn contributing to that countries overall well-being.

 Now if the self proclaimed "Stove Geeks" of Oregon need someone to assist in working out some recipes for a booklet to accompany the Rocket Stove, please contact me, I would love to work on this project.

The results are deforestation and black carbon, which contributes to global warming. And smoke-related disease kills an estimated 1.6 million people a year.

In war zones, the daily hunt for firewood can present families with terrible dilemmas, says Veronique Barbelet of the World Food Programme.

"You hear women in northern Uganda and places like that telling you, 'My choice is between going out there and collecting firewood and being raped, or for my husband to go out and get killed, and I would rather go and get raped,' " she says.

For these and other reasons, the World Food Programme has turned to a small nonprofit organization called Aprovecho.

In a rustic research center near the railroad tracks in Cottage Grove, Ore., Aprovecho builds stoves that use minimal amounts of wood, don't release much smoke — and are cheap enough for the Third World.

'We Don't Know How Fire Works'

Making the stoves is no simple task, says Damon Ogle, a retired mining engineer. He helped build a new large stove that the World Food Programme plans to deploy in refugee camps and schools in Africa.

Enlarge Martin Kaste/NPR

At its lab, Aprovecho teaches people how to test the efficiency and emissions of wood stoves.

Martin Kaste/NPR

At its lab, Aprovecho teaches people how to test the efficiency and emissions of wood stoves.

"Our ancestors have been making fires for probably 400,000 years," Ogle says. "And we still don't know how fire works."

But Ogle knows more than most. The stove he helped build can cook rice for 20 people with two fistfuls of sticks — up to 90 percent less wood than required by a traditional cooking fire.

"Rocket science is very simple and straightforward compared to what's going on in your fireplace or inside one of these wood-burning stoves," he says.

The stove is made from a steel 55-gallon drum, but that belies the precision engineering of what's inside. A well-insulated combustion chamber made out of a special steel alloy concentrates the fire of just a few sticks of wood. The combustion is more complete than what you'd get in an open fire, burning the particles that usually become smoke. The hot gases are directed around the cookpot. As the water boils, the stove's metal skin and stovepipe barely get warm, an indication of how little heat is wasted.

The 'Rocket Stove'

Aprovecho's stoves weren't always this good. In the late '70s, the group was active in Central America — aprovecho is Spanish for "I make use of." The group taught locals to build a solid-looking clay cookstove dubbed "the Lorena."

Only later did the group discover that the stove's clay walls absorbed much of the fire's heat and actually increased the consumption of wood.

Enlarge Martin Kaste/NPR

The rocket stove is built and sold by StoveTec, a spinoff of Aprovecho.

Martin Kaste/NPR

The rocket stove is built and sold by StoveTec, a spinoff of Aprovecho.

The effort was rescued in 1982 by Larry Winiarski, who has a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering. He had recently lost his wife in a traffic accident, and had quit his job with the EPA to stay home in Oregon and raise his kids. But he still wanted to make a contribution.

"I made this deal with the Lord, so to speak. I said, 'I'm going to do what's right,' " Winiarski says. "I discovered Aprovecho, and they had a reputation for doing stoves around the world. And I thought, 'Gosh, I could contribute something there.' "

He certainly could. The "rocket stove" Winiarski invented in the 1980s is the prototype for Aprovecho's current crop of clean, efficient stoves, and his 10 principles have become the catechism for good stove design around the world.

"Aprovecho has been a real and fantastic leader in this field for some time," says Jacob Moss, who runs the U.S. cookstove initiative at the State Department. Besides inventing the rocket stove, Aprovecho has advanced the science of testing stove emissions and efficiency. It may be a group of aging hippies in rural Oregon, but Moss says Aprovecho gets things done.

"Their approach to things is they want to help the world, they're not making any money doing it, and they want to do things rigorously," Moss says.

An Expanding Movement

In the past few years, the movement for clean cookstoves has expanded, fueled in part by concern over global warming. Oil companies are funding stove programs, and last fall the State Department and the U.N. Foundation launched a public-private partnership called the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves.

As the movement expands, there's been a divergence in philosophies about how to get the job done. Aprovecho comes out of an older school of thought that sees stoves as a means to create local industries: If you teach people how to make the stoves, goes this thinking, you can clean the air and create jobs.

But others say it's time to shift gears.

Enlarge Martin Kaste/NPR

Aprovecho executive director Dean Still lights a "rocket stove." Once the fire is going, it takes only two or three sticks at a time to keep a pot of water boiling.

Martin Kaste/NPR

Aprovecho executive director Dean Still lights a "rocket stove." Once the fire is going, it takes only two or three sticks at a time to keep a pot of water boiling.

"There have been thousands of stoves programs; I'm familiar with hundreds of them," says Bryan Willson, a professor of mechanical engineering at Colorado State University. "And it's hard to identify programs that have been successful."

Willson says it's time to bring 21st century capitalism to bear.

"There's a global need for 500 or 600 million cookstoves," he says. "And nobody is willing to write a big enough check to donate our way to that solution. So we really need to be able to develop products that people will want to buy."

He helped start a company called Envirofit, which mass-produces slick-looking rocket stoves in China for export to places such as rural India.

Aprovecho doesn't oppose this approach; in fact, it has its own spinoff company, StoveTec, which also makes consumer versions of the rocket stove in China. But Aprovecho keeps its distance from the business side of things.

Executive director Dean Still says he has qualms about identifying himself with a particular brand or model of stove.

"It's the opposite of what we really believe in," he says.

Still wants Aprovecho's designs and testing methods to be like open source software, meant to be shared and improved by anybody who takes an interest. He's not even comfortable with the idea of entering a stove-design competition, such as the forthcoming clean-stove challenge organized by the X Prize Foundation.

"People think it's a great idea to have a prize, but it just makes you selfish," he says. "You're not as likely to share information if you think you can win a million dollars by keeping it to yourself."

In the end, Still says, Aprovecho will enter a stove in the X Prize competition. But he says he and his colleagues don't need the incentive of a cash prize to keep doing what they've been doing since the 1980s: obsessively tweaking and redesigning their stoves to squeeze ever more energy, ever more cleanly, out of wood.

  Anyone who knows me, has ridden in my car, or checked out the podcast and music play list on my Iphone and Ipod, knows I am a rabid fan of NPR. In addition to being a culinary anthropologist. In other words,
 
 ***I study how food and cuisine has pushed forward civilizations through the ages. My belief is that as a countries cuisine and food supply grows, the quality of life then in turn grows to higher levels of intelligence, and in turn a better lifestyle of all peoples.
 However, more of this in a future posting.
 
  I remember I had a friend in Florida riding with me in my car, who noted  / complained to me that she guessed some people like music more than others.

 It is not that I do not  love music, and that NPR in anyway fall short of playing and enjoying music.  It is just that the music on NPR is more diverse than on any one other station, who plays only one genre of music.

 In addition, I love to hear what in happening in many walks of lives and news and many different levels.

 In this reprint of a recent story on NPR, the delicious ancient grain of Quinoa is not only discussed in-depth, it pointed out that this little grain in working it magic in transforming an whole country's economy.

  Bolivia's economy wants to thank all the Americans who has discovered these delicious slightly crunchy curly q's.

 When preparing these tasty grains, be sure to soak and rinse them extra well before cooking to wash off a slightly sour and bitter outer covering.

 Quinoa is wonderful serve cold in salads and hot in many other dishes, experiment and enjoy and feel good about helping a poor county lift up it's people.

  Just a note about the second article, I am not advocating that anyone trades in there normal lifestyle or becomes vegan or goes organic. I will not and have no intention of becoming either.
 This is also a great grain for anyone who is on a gluten-free or high protein diet.

Enjoy this high protein grain in so many ways and in so many dishes.

 

                                             

  Quinoa, once a staple of the Incas, is now increasingly popular in the U.S. It's high in protein and iron, and much of it comes from the windswept, high-altitude plains of Bolivia, known as the altiplano.

  The Bolivian altiplano doesn't look like good farmland. It doesn't even look fertile. Everything is covered in bleached-out scrub and rocks. Llamas graze on the barren landscape amid occasional whirls of dust.

  But this seemingly hostile environment has ideal conditions for quinoa: It's about 2 miles above sea level, sandy and arid. The nearby Uyuni salt flat provides the right minerals, and dung from herds of grazing llamas and sheep means good fertilizer.

Lives Transformed

  Farmer Ernesto Choquetopa admires the soil. He says quinoa's recent popularity is changing the lives of farmers.

  "Before people didn't go to study," he says. "They were born, they grew up, and that was it. They went on to herd sheep and llamas. Nothing more.

"Now people here, we think about doing something with our lives."

Thanks to his earnings from quinoa, Choquetopa's oldest daughter is now in medical school.

  The dark-green quinoa plants have cone-shaped flowers, fill

d with the edible seeds, and look like a cross between broccoli and lupines. Once ready for harvest, they'll turn gold, deep red, even purple.

  Choquetopa is part of an association of organic farmers. His harvest will go to their processing plant where it is cleaned, rinsed, packaged and bought by exporters like Fabricio Nunez, general manager of Andean Organics, which sources quinoa to stores such as Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.

  "Once we promoted it and the product was on the shelves, it started flying off," Nunez said. "People are still looking for quinoa and we're not able to supply as fast as they want it."

Rising Cost

  But for all the health benefits, and the way sales support small farmers, popularity abroad is pushing up prices and gradually making it harder for Bolivians to buy.

  Nunez says a few years ago, 16 ounces of Andean Organics quinoa retailed for $2 at Trader Joe's. It's now $4. And if prices keep climbing, quinoa could stop showing up in traditional soups and porridge's in Bolivia.

  But on the street corners of downtown La Paz, quinoa remains a popular breakfast: The delicate, curly seeds are served with hot milk and sugar, as a thick drink. At about 30 cents for an unce cup, it's still cheap even by Bolivian standards.

  The Bolivian government is backing quinoa, supporting loans to small farmers and promoting internal consumption by giving rations to pregnant women and young children.

   Dr. Margarita Flores, who works for Bolivia's Ministry of Health and oversees the program, says that a drop in production would worry the government because Bolivia has obligations at home and abroad to produce quinoa, and because it's part of the country's strategy to fight malnutrition.

  The challenge is striking a balance. In spite of growing prosperity, many quinoa farmers are concerned about the environment. In fact, in Choquetapo's community, people who use chemical fertilizers or uproot native grasses around quinoa fields are fined, or even punished.

  "We want to keep the production sustainable," Choquetapo says. "We don't want to exploit every bit of it. This piece of earth has to support our kids and grandchildren, too."


Quinoa: A Sacred, Super Crop

by Nicole Spiridakis
October 31, 2007

  I've been making quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) since a friend practically force-fed it to me in college.

"You're a vegetarian," she said, ladling out a heaping spoonful. "This stuff is a complete protein — you gotta eat it."

  This was early on in my meat-free career, and I was more accustomed to eating pasta, potatoes and more pasta. I looked askance at the pot of crumbly white seeds. When it was piled high on my plate and augmented with sauteed squash, I still wasn't at all sure I'd like it. But I took one bite, and I was hooked. After that, plain old rice just didn't cut it anymore.

  I love the texture of quinoa — a bit crunchy and chewy, still firm after cooking — and its nutty, earthy flavor. Quinoa plants grow at high altitudes and produce round kernels that can be boiled into pilafs, turned into soups, stirred into a breakfast porridge or even ground into flour.

  Of course, one doesn't have to be a vegetarian to appreciate the glories of quinoa. It has been a quiet essential on the global plate since pre-Columbian civilizations. The Incas considered it sacred, and held it in such high regard that they referred to it as chisaya mama, or mother of all grains, because of its nutritional properties and ability to survive the harsh environment found at high altitudes.

  I like to imagine an ancient emperor sowing the season's first seeds, as was the custom, moving magisterially through mountain fields under a blazing sun. Later, there would have been a solemn ceremony, perhaps, and an indulgence in chicha, a beer made from fermented quinoa.

A 'Super Crop'

   What was a sacred crop to the Incas has been classified as a "super crop" by the United Nations because of its high protein content. It is a complete protein, which means it has all nine essential amino acids. It also contains the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair, and is a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorous.

  While many think of quinoa as a grain, the yellowish pods are actually the seed of a plant called chenopodium quinoa, native to Peru and related to beets, chard and spinach. The plant resembles spinach, but with 3- to 9-foot stalks that take on a magenta hue. The large seed heads make up nearly half the plant and vary in color: red, purple, pink and yellow.

  In the Andes Mountains, where they have been growing for more than 5,000 years, quinoa plants have overcome the challenges of high altitude, intense heat, freezing temperatures and little annual rainfall. Peru and Bolivia maintain seed banks with 1,800 types of quinoa. It has been grown in the U.S. since the 1980s, when two farmers began cultivating it in Colorado.

  As I stumbled my way toward healthful eating in my early vegetarian days, I turned again and again to these ancient seeds. They can be prepared equally well as a savory or sweet dish. A variation of a breakfast cereal, for example, with honey and dried fruit, is delicious.

Healthful, Comforting Meals

  I used quinoa in place of my usual white rice with vegetable stir fries to great effect. I even foisted it on my unwitting dining companions, who also had initial trepidations when I presented them with a steaming bowl. They, too, came around. I'd eschewed meat but I still needed protein — and with 12 percent to 18 percent protein content, quinoa fit the bill.

  When preparing quinoa, rinse the seeds before cooking to remove any lingering soapy saponin. The coating, which protects growing seeds from birds and the intense rays of the high-altitude sun, can make your quinoa taste bitter. (A quick rinse in cold water, after placing in a strainer, should do the trick). Then add one part quinoa to two parts liquid in a saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cover. In a mere 15 minutes, the seeds will be plump, fluffy and ready to eat.

  For years, I took a quinoa soup mix with me on backpacking treks in the Point Reyes National Seashore. After a six-mile hike through Northern California's bay leaf-scented forests out to the Pacific, I'd set up camp and get water from a nearby stream. I felt my muscles — good and sore after the long journey — relax as I eagerly anticipated the first spoonful of soup: chewy, hot and infinitely satisfying.

  Somehow, this grain from a distant land seemed just the thing to have while spending the night in a campground by the sea. Of course, it tastes just fine as a morning pick-me-up or quick weeknight supper, whether you're vegetarian, or omnivore.

Garlic-Toasted Quinoa with Vegetables

This is a restorative and healthy meal after a run, or a long day in the office.

Makes 2 generous servings

1 cup quinoa, rinsed

4 cloves garlic, diced

5 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups vegetable broth or water

1 bay leaf

1 bunch spinach or baby chard, rinsed and chopped

1 bunch asparagus, washed and chopped, with woody ends removed

10 shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup slivered almonds

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Saute garlic in 2 tablespoons oil in a large pot over high heat for 2 minutes or until tender. Add quinoa and another tablespoon of oil to coat the quinoa.

Reduce heat to medium and toast, stirring constantly, until the quinoa turns brown (about 10 minutes).

Add the broth or water and bay leaf, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes (until liquid is absorbed).

While the quinoa is cooking, sauté the mushrooms in remaining 2 tablespoons of oil until soft. Add asparagus and cook until just tender. Add the greens and cook until wilted. Remove bay leaf and add the mushroom and greens to the quinoa. Add the almonds, and stir well to combine. Season with the soy sauce.
 

Warm Quinoa Salad with Edamame & Tarragon

Reprint from Eating Well Magazine

ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa (see Note)
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (10 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 2 teaspoons dried
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup drained and diced jarred roasted red peppers (3 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, preferably toasted (see Cooking Tip)

directions

1. 1.Toast quinoa in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until it becomes aromatic and begins to crackle, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a fine sieve and rinse thoroughly.
2. Meanwhile, bring broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the quinoa and return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook gently for 8 minutes. Remove the lid and, without disturbing the quinoa, add edamame. Cover and continue to cook until the edamame and quinoa are tender, 7 to 8 minutes longer. Drain any remaining water, if necessary.
3. Whisk lemon zest and juice, oil, tarragon and salt in a large bowl. Add peppers and the quinoa mixture. Toss to combine. Divide among 4 plates and top with walnuts.
4. Note: Quinoa is a delicately flavored grain that was a staple in the ancient Incas’ diet. It is available in most natural-foods stores and the natural-foods sections of many supermarkets. Toasting the grain before cooking enhances its flavor and rinsing removes any residue of saponin, quinoa’s natural, bitter protective covering. Cooking Tip: To toast walnuts: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes.

Per Serving: 431 calories; 18 g fat (1 g saturated fat, 6 g mono unsaturated fat); 0 mg cholesterol; 46 g carbohydrates; 17 g protein; 16 g fiber; 645 mg sodium; 318 mg potassium Nutrition Bonus: Fiber (31% daily value), Iron (25% dv), Vitamin A (20% dv), Vitamin C (20% dv).

 Enjoy this round up of new and what soon may be supermarket shelf favorites from a list complied by two of the most well respected experts in the field.

 Happy New Year !!!!

WHAT'S NEW ON THE GROCERS' SHELVES

We say this not because of the recent drops in unemployment claims and home foreclosures, but because of Willy Wonka's new Exceptionals line of upscale candy, Duncan Hines' expansion of its line of Decadent Cakes, and Buitoni's upscale frozen Italians entrees, including the introduction of a lobster-stuffed ravioli.

Some big food companies apparently think we have money to spend and have enough of their own to try some bold new ideas, like Dole's pairing of shelf-stable fruit and granola for microwaving into instant fruit crisp.

We also saw more all-natural products from mainstream companies and ate a lot of Greek yogurt and lower-sodium foods this year.

Are any of these new foods worth spending your reviving mutual funds on?

No, to the nine items on our joint Double Forks Down list, but yes, to what comes afterward: our individual best-of-the-year product picks, and the winner of our 21st annual Golden Shopping Cart Award for one outstanding new food that we agreed was both tasty and good for you.

DOUBLE FORKS DOWN

2. Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes. A heavier, greasier copy of Hostess' squiggle-decorated, cream-filled CupCakes, without Little Debbie's traditional compensating big price advantage.

3. Wheaties FUEL. A 21st-century update of this age-old brand featuring sinister athlete pictures, rice crisps and clusters in addition to the traditional flakes, and more sugar than anyone but a triathlete would need. In short, FUEL's a loser.

4. Honest Kombucha Drinks. Bonnie says the health benefits of this ancient but newly trendy fermented tea drink have yet to be proven. Carolyn says Kombucha's spoiled-cider taste is the best evidence it might be good for you (otherwise, why would anyone bother?).

5. Amy's Rice Macaroni With Non-Dairy Cheeze. At 520 calories and 22 grams of fat, this health-food product is anything but healthy. Moreover, noted Bonnie, this supposedly gluten-free entree is made in a plant that processes wheat. Carolyn complained about the fatty taste of its fake cheese.

6. Breyers Smooth & Dreamy Frozen Novelties. These replaced Carolyn's 2006 end-of-year fave Breyers Double Churned Light Ice Cream Bars. Why? is the question. That old line approached Dove Bar indulgence; these are more frozen dessert nightmare than dream.

7. Pringles Multigrain. Anyone crazy enough to look to a fat- and salt-filled tennis ball can for their whole grains probably deserves what he or she gets here: not even a partial serving of them.

BONNIE'S FAVORITES

2. Fresh Express Wild Rocket Zest Artisanal Salad. An unusual blend of the peppery wild arugula and other lettuces (depending on the season) packing so much flavor you won't want to drown them in dressing.

3. Seneca Farms Authentic Crisp Onions. Add an oniony crunch to your sandwiches, salads and soups with this better-tasting, more delicate alternative to French's.

4. Alexia Select Sides Chipotle Roasted Sweet Potatoes. A good-tasting blend of nutritious frozen sweet potatoes, beans, corn and spice-infused oil made mainly from ingredients you'd use to make it fresh.

5. Nestle Cherry Raisinets. Dark-chocolate-covered Michigan Montmorency tart cherries so sophisticatedly yummy that adults will want to hide them from the kids.

6. Lucini Italia Artisan Delicate Cucumber & Shallot Vinaigrette. Sustainable ingredients, an olive oil base and great taste make this a reasonable sub when I don't have time to whisk together my own dressing.

7. Chobani Champions Greek Yogurt for Kids. This good-tasting, all-natural thick yogurt makes a perfect sweet dessert for kids.

8. Seapoint Farms Soybeans in Pods. Single-serve, micro-steam-and-eat snack packs make it easy to incorporate this highly nutritious veggie into everyday eating.

9. Tostitos Natural Blue Corn Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips. Naturally blue-colored organic corn chips with only three ingredients: blue corn, oil and salt.

CAROLYN'S FAVORITES

2. Pillsbury Simply Peanut Butter Cookies. A new refrigerated cookie dough with a cleaned-up ingredient list and a homemade -- rather than an after- -- taste (though the companion Chocolate Chip variety needs upscaling).

3. Lay's Lightly Salted. This half-salt version of Lay's is still delicious but more potatoey-tasting and slightly less addictive than regular Lay's Potato Chips (thus leaving more room to eat cookies and ice cream).

4. Ritz Crackerfuls Garlic Herb. Lance cheese crackers with upscaled nutrition and taste.

5. Kraft Flavored Singles Meltdowns. Pizza-, nacho- and taco-flavored cheese slices that latchkey kids can use to create instant pizza, nachos and quesadillas.

6. Tyson Grilled Chicken Breast Fillets. Multiple failed attempts to charcoal chicken breasts without overcooking make me really appreciate these frozen precooked ones. Their great grilled flavor renders the standard frozen chicken breast patty's fatty breading unnecessary.

7. Red Baron Pan Pizza. Chicagoites like our prez might scoff, but I found these a credible, convenient alternative to Pizzeria Uno chain-restaurant deep-dish Chicago-style pizza.

8. Lea & Perrins Thick Classic Worcestershire Sauce. The classic marinade and recipe ingredient turned condiment for our no-time-to-marinate-or-cook age.

9. Dole Fruit Crisp. Attached cups of granola and fruit compote that can be combined and microwaved to create something close to homemade fruit crisp.

Now for our joint 10th pick, the winner of our annual Golden Shopping Cart Award for best new food product of 2010: McCormick Recipe Inspirations.

Bonnie: Amongst all the bad that has come out of the country's current recession is one good thing: It's brought people back into the kitchen to cook and interact with family and friends around the dinner table. And these new McCormick's Recipe Inspirations help folks get back to basic cooking.

Most spice blends, including McCormick's, have salt as the major ingredient. But Recipe Inspirations consist of six packets of unadulterated premeasured herbs and spices attached to a recipe card calling for them, plus four to eight other ingredients.

In other words, they're training wheels for inexperienced cooks, allowing them to easily make both Latin-influenced and more traditional dishes that include Garlic Lime Chicken Fajitas, Rosemary Roasted Chicken and Apple Sage Pork Chops with spices they might not have tried, at a fraction of the cost of a whole bottle. (They're also perfect for vacation homes, as you don't need to purchase or bring full bottles of spices.)

But it's Recipe Inspirations' potential to "inspire" folks to cook from scratch using real ingredients on a regular basis that made it worthy of this coveted award.

Carolyn: Regular readers of this column know that I actually cook very occasionally, preferring to reheat food made in factories. But when I do cook, I want a recipe that isn't too much work, doesn't require a bunch of expensive spices I'll never use again, and produces a dish better than what I can buy in the freezer case and make in the microwave in 5 minutes.

McCormick Recipe Inspirations is the very special product that fulfills all these exacting requirements and more: This food equivalent of a paint-by-number kit will also keep old, flavor-depleted herbs and spices from ruining a recipe, lets herbs and spices -- rather than bad-for-you fat and calories -- give a dish flavor, and proves that a convenience product can be part of contemporary, healthful eating.

Of course, the success of a recipe-card product has a lot to do with the recipes, and the six initial ones in the line are very tasty. My favorite, Rosemary Roasted Chicken, is also very easy. The debut of six new Recipe Inspirations cards in January should only increase the number of occasional cooks who will have a happier and healthier new year because of this outstanding and innovative new product.

(Bonnie Tandy Leblang is a registered dietitian and professional speaker. She has an interactive site (www.biteofthebest.com) about products she recommends. Follow her on Twitter: BonnieBOTB. Carolyn Wyman is a junk-food fanatic and author of "The Great Philly Cheesesteak Book" (Running Press). Each week they critique three new food items.)

COPYRIGHT 2010 UNIVERSAL UCLICK

    I knew that lunch on my first day in that toddling town would be at “Hot Doug’s”, famous for their in-house made hot dogs and encased meats aka sausages. My fate sealed long before I arrived, I knew I was ordering “Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse, and Fleur de Sel” served on a buttered, toasty, crisp roll, accompanied by a side order of decadent crunchy duck fat French fries.
 
From everything, I had read I knew to expect a line out the door before I arrived at this oversized shack. What I did not realize before my arrival, was that I was about to stumble upon another chef’s touchstone destination. The time before this had happened to me while I was sitting in the garden of Chef Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry in the northern California town of Youtherville, drinking champagne and eating incredible little desserts that exploded in my mouth with exotic flavors. Nearly every person I met at the restaurant that evening was also a chef who had made the pilgrimage to Mecca.
   Well, here I was having a bit of a déjà vu experience in a restaurant on North California  in Chicago, that is a complete 180 degrees from the elegance of one, to down home of another, without the quality, or chef’s vision, suffering. This time instead of exotic desserts, I was to experience exotic handcrafted sausages.
   This revelation began on the bus, sitting just behind me, a young chef and his girlfriend from Atlanta, all headed to Hot Doug’s. The feeling became reinforced as we joined the line halfway down the side of the building. As we stood together on a cold clear sunny day in early December, we exchanged notes of the places we planned to hit while we were in Chicago, a city known for its great restaurants. I started to tell them about my dinner the evening before at Henri’s. I told them of my disappointment with my starter appetizer, the Torchon of Foie Gras. How the Torchon was served to me ice cold and hard straight from the fridge. Then, suddenly, from behind my back another very tall, young twenty-something Asian man piped up and firmly stated that he is a chef, and that the Torchon had been served to me correctly. I knew it was up to me to correct this young man’s misconception. He explained firmly that he knew from which he spoke…well I guess he encountered the wrong person to get a bit pompous with, that wrong person being me.
  I quickly went on to “nicely” explain just how, and why a Torchon should never ever be served ice cold, and how it is necessary for the Torchon to be taken from the reach-in at least 7-9 minutes before serving. This ensures that the delicate mousse has an opportunity to come up to room temperature, for the flavors to come to full bloom, and for the silky mouth feel to be optimized. 


  After a few moments of back and forth, he explaining that he was a recent culinary graduate, and that he had just came from his job interview at Alinea, and I explained who I am, and my experience. He answered me back correctly, standing tall with a proper “Yes Chef”. Gee, it took me back to my years in the kitchen, I tried to be polite and not smile to broadly at that moment.
  As we slowly made our way up to the counter where owner Doug Sohn, himself, stands taking orders and overseeing his kingdom, we slowly walked past the menu boards, causing my mind to begin reeling. If only, suddenly, I could have a few more friends joining me. There are too many things on this menu I want to taste, too many delicious choices, From the spicy, spicy Selma Hayek, or savory Marty Allen…now that name took me back.

   
   To the game sausage of the week Brown Ale and Chipotle Buffalo Sausage with Guinness Stout Mustard and Port Derby Cheese, there was, of course, your basic Chicago dog complete with the obligatory bright neon green pickle relish; there is even a vegetarian dog for those who defer from eating meat. I knew what I was set on having: Duck & foie gras dog was on my bucket list to try at Hot Doug’s.
    I grabbed a cream soda from the case in the dining room and passed up the opportunity to try out a local Green River soda, again, neon green liquid this time, my goodness people in this cosmopolitan town appear to have a thing for neon green as a food color. I took my place at a table near the wall where I had a good view of both the dining room, and the very busy kitchen. While my order was prepared, I barely had time to sit down, get my coat off, and become comfortable, when I heard my name called out.
    

 Before me, my waiter dropped off my foie gras – duck dog and fries. It was truly a thing of beauty, and as usual, the folks at the neighboring tables took a bit of notice of my snapping away of pictures of everything I was being served. This opens the door for me to start asking my many neighbors if I could also photograph their dogs. Good food, a good attitude, and my smiling face, have opened so many doors to instant friendships for me.
    It was funny, I was sitting next to a very fun and friendly couple named Sam & Bonnie, who, as it turned out, have been coming to Hot Doug’s since the restaurant first started at another location. Not only were these people fun and dedicated local foodies, it turned out, to my happy surprise, that Sam turned out to be a fan and reader of this blog. This was a very happy first for me.
   Throughout my visit, Hot Doug’s kept giving me wonderful reasons to smile, from warm and wonderful mid-westerners I’d met there, to the dog I happily devoured.
   Next time you are in Chicago, I highly recommend Hot Doug’s for so many reasons, the great dogs being just one of them… Say hi to Doug for me. Now, that is a man whose talents and warmth have found a small place in my heart.
.
   

http://www.hotdougs.com/
http://twitter.com/hotdougs

Location:

3324 North California

Chicago, IL, 60618

     Your grandmother put a pinch of cinnamon in her matzo balls, and made them on the hard side, well then she must be from Lithuania, proclaimed Joan Nathan as she focused her warm smile back at me, during the Q&A period of her recent lecture I attended  in New York City. Joan had come to New York to promote her new cookbook “Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous” My search for Jewish cooking in France. Last week I had the joy of hearing Joan speak about her journey, about the adventures she encountered while finding the culinary history and traditions of a people that had been forced to buried their faith during WWII. In many ways this is a very sad passage in human history that so many people had to experience, families all but wiped out, some completely, some partially, children sent away to live with strangers, their names changed to protect them from the seeds and waves of hatred that invaded so many peoples lives.

  Food has been, and will always be a common thread that weaves through our lives, their are few things more powerful than a sense memory, to be caught in mid-step by a familiar scent in the air, taste something new yet familiar, a flavor that brings you back to a time and place that you might have nearly forgotten. Your taste buds and sense of smell never forgot that time or place. This is what Joan search for and found along the way through her travels, since she is also bi-lingual it was simple for her to make friends quickly and be invited into many peoples homes to share meals and memories in the many territories’ across France that she traveled, as she collected recipes, stories and memories along the way.

   Joan has again produced, not just another great cookbook; she also created a book that speaks to a forgotten history during a tragic period, to a group of people that had been nearly lost. One of the last questions asked and discussed during the Q&A was why do some home cooks and chefs alike always steal away on twist or ingredient in a recipe, why do some people recipe make some recipes a personal treasure?

 I thought about this question as I headed home back to Brooklyn that evening on the subway. This was not a new concept I was unfamiliar with, having worked with many an old French or German chef in my early days in the kitchen. Chef’s that had a special dish or two that they held dear, no matter how closely or how long you worked with them, somehow they always needed you to run a critical errand for them, just at the moment it came to adding that ingredient, or proceeding with their secret method.

  I have to admit there are one or two recipes of my own, that I feel quite proprietary towards, recipes that I have worked long and hard to perfect, possible hope to market someday. In the meantime, these recipes are mine.

  On the other hand as a chef, and sometime cooking teacher I do love to share my knowledge with my students, knowing that there is always the possibility that whatever I have taught someone that evening, will be passed on to give pleasure to the many people in there lives. Why do I know that this is true, I have occasionally run into past students, or friends and they relate to me how this recipe or that method is now a part of each year’s family’s holiday tradition? It is almost as if a tiny bit of my own spirit is at the holiday table each year, what I have taught to them will be carried on for generations’ to come. It does give me a bit of a warm glow just to think about it.

  When you do decide to deprive the world of your special recipe, that recipe will not live on past you; it will die with you, just as the memory of your part in someone’s life disappears with the passage of time.

 So many people I have spoken to throughout my career have bemoaned to me that they just wish they had sat down with there mother, grandparents, cousin or friend  while they were there, and had taken the time to write down the recipes that had meant so much to them all of there lives. Recipes that are now lost to someone’s ego, to the need for someone to have just one small thing that made them feel special each time they served that special dish.

  I urge you to share, I urge you to let your memory live on through the joy you have brought to people throughout your life and let it flow into their lives, allow your legend to live on, in the many generations yet to come.

  Joan Nathan is a renowned cookbook author who again has written a wonderful new cookbook full of well researched, easy to execute recipes, each with there own history of love and great flavors. That will be a wonderful addition to anyone cookbook collection or even as a first cookbook to get someone started.

 As this holiday season is upon us, why not also think about not hitting the mall, instead hit the keyboard, and share your own family memories in recipes and tales as gifts for your many family members and friends. Create a gift that will not just be enjoyed for a day, a week, or even a month, craft a gift that will last for years and generations to come.

   As they say tis the season for love and giving, give a bit of your own families’ history this year.

  As in the beginning I talked about my own Grandmother Sarah Block, Grandma Sarah will always live through me each and every-time I making a recipe of hers, especially when I add that good pinch of cinnamon to my own chewy hard matzo balls each time I make them. I know that she will be sitting on my shoulder and smiling.

  If not how about giving them a copy of Quiches, Kugels and Couscous by Joan Nathan, either way everybody wins.

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This week’s issue of PW lists our editors’ picks for the best books of the year, including five cookbooks: The Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman (Simon & Schuster), One Big Table: 800 Recipes from the Nation’s Best Home Cooks, Farmers, Pit-Masters and Chefs by Molly O’Neill (Simon & Schuster), The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion & Cooking Manual by Frank Falcinelli, Frank Castronovo, and Peter Meehan (Artisan), In the Green Kitchen: Techniques to Learn by Heart by Alice Waters (Clarkson Potter), and Around My French Table: More Than 300 Recipes from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). I wholeheartedly endorse all those titles—and here are 10 more (plus 10 honorable mentions) from this year that I loved.

Best reason to stick close to home
Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America's Farmers by Sur La Table and Janet Fletcher (Andrews McMeel). It’s earthy, beautifully-photographed, and reminds you how some of the simplest foods can be the tastiest.
Honorable mention: The New Brooklyn Cookbook (Morrow)

Best Italian
Cooking with Italian Grandmothers: Recipes and Stories from Tuscany to Sicily by Jessica Theroux (Welcome Books). This made me think of my Great Aunt Marge, a giant among Italian home cooks. She left behind a trove of recipes, but more than that, kitchen memories my family still savors—just like the women in this tome.
Honorable mention:  Molto Gusto: Easy Italian Cooking by Mario Batali and Mark Ladner (Ecco)

Best book we’ll totally cook from
In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite: 150 Recipes and Stories About the Food You Love by Melissa Clark (Hyperion). Clark is witty, charming, and approachable as she writes about dishes like Dahlia's fragrant chicken fingers, conjured for her chili and bratwurst-eating one-year old's advanced palate.
Honorable mention: The SoNo Baking Company Cookbook: The Best Sweet and Savory Recipes for Every Occasion by John Barricelli (Clarkson Potter, Mar.)

Best international baking book
A World of Cake: 150 Recipes for Sweet Traditions by Krystina Castella (Storey). Pictures of marzipan-covered fruitcakes are gorgeous, and sidebars on such topics as street cakes make this an educational book in addition to a holiday workhorse.
Honorable mention: Turkish Bakery Delight by Deniz Göktürk Akçakanat (New Holland)

Most fascinating food book
What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio (Ten Speed). A fascinating, insightful look at what 80 people around the world eat in a typical day.
Honorable mention: The Essential New York Times Cookbook: Classic Recipes for a New Century by Amanda Hesser (Norton)

Best book to read while you eat
Spoon Fed: How Eight Cooks Saved My Life by Kim Severson (Riverhead). Severson manages to pull off a two-fer: an honest memoir about her alcoholism, journalism career, and love of food; and an homage to eight women who've made an impact in America's kitchens.
Honorable mention: Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook by Anthony Bourdain (Ecco)

Tomorrow is another election day, here in New York, we will finally be free of the incompetent Governor Paterson, and our governor being blind, has not made the people of New York blind to the corruption and off color antics of the administration.

 This year’s selection of politician has to be one of the most diverse and strange I have seen in my many years of voting.

  I have heard the mud throwing between candidates’ in all races, here I hear the most mud slinging between Connecticut candidate Linda McMahon and her opponents. I just read that the battle has been so ruff in California that last week Senate candidate Carly Forina was hospitalized for treatment of an infection, I think it may have been more to do with stress. Witchcraft denials by Christian O’Donnell running in Delaware, boldfaced homophobic statements, not to mention bad behavior during the debate and racist e-mails of Buffalo, New York’s gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, and ignorance of what is written in our own constitution. Many people so disgusted by the behavior this year’s crop of incumbents is that they will not be voting at all in protest. This is not the way to protest how bad thing have become, voting is a right we should be holding highly. Women and people of color for more than the first 100 years of our country were not able to vote. This right to vote is something American’s in our past have had to fight and many die for this right so many people today take for granted. Possible someday we will feel this way about the rights of gays to marry, and the legalization of Marijuana.

  Is not one of the reasons? We sending our citizens to fight and die in so many far off places. So we can bring our ideals of democracy to these other countries so that their own people also will now have the right to vote for the person of there choice.

  At this point, our election vote appears to go to the candidate who spends the most money on commercial advertising. Here we are in the depths of one of the worst recessions, in our country’s history allow me to make a proposal. Instead of politician spending all there money mud sling there opponent, and creating splashy commercials about what they are promising to accomplish in the name of whatever state they are trying to represent.

  What if that same multi millions of dollars was spent on our infrastructure problems repairing bridges and roads and putting more people to work, on helping our schools have up to date schoolbooks, safe buildings, and quality teachers that are properly paid for the job they are doing. We have homeless college graduates; gay teens killing themselves because of bullying, by self righteous, possibly overtly religious people; cities and citizens under water both in reality and metaphorically.

   Instead, we have politicians’ who are under indictment while running for office. Pols running and already in office, that have been proved to be lying and stealing before and after they were elected to office. Why is this not against the election rules, if you are under investigation of indictment you should not be allowed to be a lawmaker.

 Please get out and vote tomorrow, if you want to see real change, change your own patterns and vote.

   Make your own voice be heard !!!!!!!

Penn & Teller's Bleeding Heart
Penn & Teller's How to Play With Your Food© 1992 by Buggs & Rudy Discount Corp.

 With the upcoming Halloween holiday I will be posting a few fun things this week for adults and kids to enjoy. Let's begin with a recipe from one of my favorite comedy duos Penn & Teller whom I had the pleasure of seeing preform and meeting afterward in Las Vegas a few years ago.

 Just be careful your guests do not eat any of the plastic bag holding the "bloody ooze".

INGREDIENTS

4 cups of water
four 3-oz. boxes or two 6-oz boxes of peach (pink; think of lung tissue)
or strawberry (redder; think of livers and hearts) gelatin dessert mix.
4 envelopes unflavored gelatin
one 12-ounce can unsweetened evaporated milk

1/2 cup grenadine syrup or Chambord
1 cup light corn syrup
one small bottle (0.3 fl. oz.) red food coloring
3 drops blue food coloring
one 1-gallon food-storage bag (do not use Ziploc type bags)
6 1/2 cup heart-shaped gelatin mold or cake pan
 a few plastic spiders to garnish

PREPARATION

Boil the water. Put the packaged gelatin dessert and unflavored gelatin in a bowl and pour the boiling water over it, stirring constantly. Cool to room temperature (very important or the next step may present problems). Stir in the evaporated milk. Note how it already is acquiring the color of freshly skinned flesh.

Pour the mixture into the gelatin mold. Cover the bottom of the mold (this will be the top when you serve it) with a layer about half an inch think. Refrigerate until it gels firmly.

Meanwhile, prepare a nice bladder of blood. Stir together the corn syrup, grenadine, and food colorings (we do it right in the measuring cup to save dish washing. For the bladder (the bag that keeps the blood together inside the mass of gelatin) take the plastic food-storage bag and turn it inside out. Pour the blood mixture into one corner of the bag and twist it closed so that no air bubble is caught between the sauce and the twist. Tie a knot in the twisted plastic. Adjust the position of the knot so that when the bag lies on the counter, it's about 1 1/2 to 2 inches high, and tighten the knot. With a pair of scissors, snip off the frilly extra plastic outside the knot.

When the gelatin on the bottom of the mold is stiff and firm, position the bladder of blood in the mold, with the point of the bag just inside the point of the heart. Make sure there is at least 3/4" of space between all sides of the bag and the walls of the mold (this will ensure that your guests don't see clues ahead of time). Pour in the remaining gelatin until the mold is as full as you can handle. Don't worry if you see a little of the blood-bladder grazing the surface of the gelatin, as longs as it doesn't project too much; the side you are looking at now will be the bottom when you serve it.
Refrigerate until gelled firmly to the texture of fine, lean organ meat. It takes about 4 hours.

To unmold, put about 2 1/2 inches of hot, but not boiling water in your sink. Set your mold in the water so that the water comes just below the edge of the mold for 15 to 20 seconds; the time depends on the thickness of the mold pan. Remove the mold from the water, and run the blade of a knife around the edge of the gelatin. Invert your serving platter, ideally a white pedestal cake plate, on top and hold it firmly in place. Then use both hands to turn over the mold and the plate. Remove the mold; you may need to tap or shake the mold slightly to free the gelatin.

PRESENTATION

The blood looks prettiest when it flows over white plates, doilies, and table linen, which it may stain permanently--but what the hell, it's the effect that matters. To serve, use a nice, big Psycho-style chef's knife and stab the side of the gelatin about one third of the way up from the pointed end of the heart. Twist the knife slightly, and blood will start to ooze out. Bare your teeth like a Marine jabbing with bayonet, and widen the wound. When the blood is coming at a good slip, grab a dessert plate, and cut a slice from one of the lobes of the heart. Flip it onto the plate, and drizzle it with blood by holding it under the edge of the pedestal. Add whipped cream and serve.

This dish delights all five senses:

1. Sight: red, glossy, and elegantly surreal when the blood starts to flow.
2. Taste: sweeeet.
3. Smell: classic artificial-fruity
4. Touch: cold and wiggly.
5. Hearing: the screaming of guests.

A NOTE ABOUT SAFETY: Be careful not to serve pieces of the food-storage bag to your friends. They could choke to death. We want to help you become a more exciting host, not a criminally negligent klutz. If, on the other hand, you're deliberately trying to murder your guests, please think up your own modus operandi. Don't try anything that might implicate a couple of innocent fun-book writers.

1. We developed this with Jell-O brand gelatin dessert, Knox unflavored gelatin, Carnation unsweetened condensed milk, Karo syrup, Rose's grenadine, and Baggies food-storage bags. This is not product placement--we haven't received truckloads of free Jell-O; it's our attempt to use ingredients we know people can find easily in grocery stores everywhere. This is not to say that we'd reject any research and development supplies the abovementioned companies might graciously bestow now that we've given them such a big plug.

Enjoy & Happy Haunting!