Off the Eaten Path A collection of short stories about food ALONG THE PATH, COLLECT SMALL PEBBLES OF WISDOM I HAVE COLLECTED COOKBOOKS AND RECIPES OVER THE YEARS AND FOUND THAT AT ONE POINT I WAS REALLY ONLY USING THEM FOR REFERENCE. LOOKING AT THE BEAUTIFUL PICTURES IN MAGAZINES FOR IDEAS OR PRESENTATIONS. SINCE COOKING IS A PROCESS OF SURVIVAL THAT CAME WITH UG AND OG IN A CAVE LONG AGO, AND, SINCE THE WORLD HAS EVOLVED, IT DOES SEEM STRANGE THAT THERE ARE A FEW OUT THERE THAT SIMPLY CANNOT EVEN BOIL WATER. I AM NOT PUTTING THESE PEOPLE DOWN, AS THEY ARE USUALLY WONDERFUL EATERS, THEREFORE BALANCING THE SCALE. ERGO, THE GOURMET AND THE GOURMAND. A PERSON NAMED GEORGE HERBERT SAID: "ALL THINGS REQUIRE SKILL BUT AN APPETITE." WHEN A PERSON IN IS A POSITION TO BE COOKING AND SERVING ON A LARGE SCALE, OR ON A REGULAR BASIS, IN THEIR LIVES, ONE WILL EVENTUALLY DO A LOT OF IT BY ROTE. FOR THOSE WHO NEED A HINT, A NUDGE, AN EASIER WAY, THERE SEEM TO BE AN ENDLESS LIST OF IDEAS FROM EVERYWHERE. NECESSITY, BEING THE MOTHER OF INVENTION, HELPFUL HINTS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. J ALWAYS OF COURSE, IT HELPS TO READ AND REREAD THE RECIPE THROUGH AND TRY TO UNDERSTAND THE STEPS, BEFORE YOU BEGIN. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU CANNOT CHANGE THE INGREDIENTS OR EVEN THE MEASUREMENTS, {EXCEPT WHEN BAKING, I THINK THOSE MEASUREMENTS SHOULD BE RESPECTED}, BUT IF YOU WANT TO BE EXACT, YOU NEED TO HAVE ALL THE INGREDIENTS AT HAND. THEN IF IT DOESN’T TURN OUT, YOU CAN ALWAYS BLAME THE RECIPE. I CAN REMEMBER A FEW TIMES, SOMEHOW OVER LOOKING A CERTAIN INGREDIENT AND HAVING TO PUT EVERYTHING ON HOLD AND RUSH TO THE NEAREST MARKET. THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT, WOULD NOT HAVE COME TO AN END IF I HAD OMITTED IT. UNLESS IT WERE THE APPLES FOR AN APPLE PIE. SOME ONE SAID "COOKING IS NOT CHEMISTRY. IT REQUIRES INSTINCT AND TASTE RATHER THAN EXACT MEASUREMENTS." WHAT I REALLY ENJOY WHEN I COOK IT TO DO "EYEBALL" COOKING, AS I CALL IT. I JUST EYEBALL THE STUFF AND SAY O.K., THAT MUCH OF THIS AND THIS MUCH OF THAT, AND IT ALWAYS WORKS IN SOUPS AND STEWS, SAUCES, JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING EXCEPT BAKING, WHICH DOES NEED SOME EXACTNESS. HANDS ON COOKING, IS VERY THERAPEUTIC. WHEN YOU ARE CHOPPING OR KNEADING IT CAN BECOME A MEDITATION. IF YOU FIND YOURSELF IN A STRESSFUL SITUATION, AND HAVE A WAITING PERIOD UNTIL THE SOLUTION IS WORKED OUT. TAKE THE TIME AND RETREAT TO THE KITCHEN. BAKE UP A BATCH OF COOKIES OR MUFFINS AND TAKE THEM TO A FRIEND. I DO THIS FREQUENTLY AND IT IS A GREAT STRESS RELIEVER. J Brewed Awaking I don’t know about you, but the thought that comes to mind when I first wake up, (after my furry alarm clock is through tap dancing on my face, and rattling the blinds, pulling my hair with her teeth and making quite sure that she should come first), is coffee. After feeding the Queen, I then have to decide whether to make a real ritual of it and grind the beans in my ancient coffee mill or scoop in to the already ground, (kept for dire emergencies) or jump on Jessica and bike down to Starbucks for a Latte. I walk every morning, or I swim laps, or bike, but whatever, coffee comes first. Did you know that the world’s first coffee house was opened in Constantinople in 1475. England opened it’s first coffee house at Oxford in 1650. Coffee was selling for 5 Pounds an ounce. Oliver Wendell Holmes said, "The morning cup of coffee has an exhilaration about it which the cheering influence of afternoon or evening cup of tea cannot be expected to reproduce." But certainly a cuppa needs a little something on the side. Several years ago my friend Marilyn and I went on a "scone hunt", up and down the Marin coast. Stopping at little cafes along the way, definitely off the eaten path, testing the texture, the taste and of course the crumbliness. Thinking of her the other morning, and needing to do some therapeutic cooking, I tried yet another version of scones. I like this one because is has a different twist. They are somewhere between a muffin and a scone, so I call them scruffins Go to the kitchen and click on the scone picture. Enjoy! J Scones In the history of breadstuffs, there is a tantalizing but inconclusive bit of information regarding the proper pronunciation of this delectable kin to the biscuit. A working class family in England pronounced it with the long "o", so it was scone, like own. The upper class claimed it to be properly said : scon, with a short "o". On the other hand at the base of the Coronation Chair in Westminster Abbey, there is a chunk of rock called the Stone of Scone, pronounced scoon. So, it seems the upper class, the working class and the royal family all say it differently. So choose your own way and enjoy! Go to the scone recipes OFF THE EATEN PATH~ The English have a dish called "Bubble and Squeak" which Is basically beef and cabbage cooking in the same pan, making this sound which gave it it’s name. The term "simmer" is onomatopoeic: the sound produced when liquids are cooking just below the boiling point. If one had a boring day , you could rename various foods according to their sounds. Now aren’t you glad you learned this? CHOCOLATE!!! How could we live without it?……. It originated in Mexico The word comes from the Indian "xocolatl", which translates to "bitter water". Introduced to France in the seventeenth century, first popular as a beverage. Milton S. Hershey made the first commercial candy bar in Lancaster, Pa. in 1874. +The word dessert comes from the French, "desservir", which means to "clear away"; i.e., prior to enjoying the sweet course, the table was cleared away. Check out the desserts! A LONG STORY A baker in Thailand crafted the world's longest noodle, in October 1988. It was 2900 feet long according to Japan Airlines. Some 120 pounds of flour, a gallon of oil, and 360 eggs went into it. A noodle making machine had to be cranked around the clock for an entire day to produce it. Can you imagine the suction it would take to slurp that one up? Look at all the Pasta recipes in the pasta section. Pasta
COMFORT FOOD ~ EDIBLE THERAPY IT SEEMS THAT AS WE GROW INTO ADULTHOOD, PHYSICALLY, WE STILL RETAIN SOME OF THE EXPERIENCES OF OUR CHILDHOOD. THESE ARE USUALLY MEMORIES THAT BRING BACK GOOD OR BAD TIMES. I THINK OF THE GOOD TIMES, OR OF THE BAD TIMES THAT WERE MADE BETTER BY COMFORT FOOD. IN A PERFECT WORLD THERE WOULDN’T BE ANY STRESS, WE WOULDN’T NEED TO BE COMFORTED. ERGO, YOU WOULD NOT NEED MACARONI AND CHEESE, MASHED POTATOES AND GRAVY OR CUSTARD. I’M READY!! COMFORT ME! WAS IT AN INSTINCTUAL ACT TO FIX MILK TOAST, CHICKEN SOUP, OR BREAD PUDDING OR FRENCH TOAST? THESE CONSOLING COMESTIBLES, HAVE COME DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, AT LEAST IN THIS PART OF THE WORLD. PASSED ON FROM GRAMMA TO MOM, TO HELP US FEEL BETTER, GIVING IN TO THE ORAL SATISFACTION OF TAKING IN FOOD, BUT IN A LESS SPIRITED WAY, THAN A FULL COURSE FOUR STAR GOURMET DINNER. MY CHILDHOOD FRIEND, CHARLOTTE, WAS FROM TENNESSEE. I SPENT A LOT OF TIME AT HER HOUSE AND HER MOTHER WAS A SOUTHERN COOK, BUT ALSO A MOTHER WHO HAD TO MAKE ENDS MEET FOR HER FAMILY. ONE OF THE THINGS SHE WOULD MAKE FOR US, WAS PIMIENTO AND CHEESE. VELVEETA CHEESE AND DICED PIMIENTOS MELTED TOGETHER, AND SPREAD ON WONDER BREAD. I’M NOT KIDDING! BUT WE SCARFED IT DOWN WITH SMILES ON OUR FACES. FOR HER DAD THE BROTH FROM COOKING GREENS WAS SOLELY HIS. HE WOULD SIT AND EAT HOT CORN BREAD WITH BUTTERMILK POURED OVER IT AND DRINK A GLASS OF WHAT HE CALL "POT LICKER". PURE COMFORT FOOD! HERE ARE SOME OF MY FAVORITES, SLIGHTLY OFF THE EATEN PATH: |
