tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66698484975733054182024-03-13T11:17:14.983-07:00morsels & saucesjust a little blog wherein I cook, muse about literature, and champion my csa boxUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger388125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-20758410639178543982019-01-06T10:24:00.001-08:002019-01-06T10:24:33.712-08:00Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tlJaB3r8vPstQ9EpxGQtqG5pipeeCn0zfbVY1i27tm4oZ6JlgJSjXC6AFaQbmCbk79LwhbpA5CjAHWLTNtne_hS2cSmrvXjl28dtv2fQZrSlJmhFvs1RIGgNrNpokIEbxTo4q0k6UFI/s1600/IMG_8087.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tlJaB3r8vPstQ9EpxGQtqG5pipeeCn0zfbVY1i27tm4oZ6JlgJSjXC6AFaQbmCbk79LwhbpA5CjAHWLTNtne_hS2cSmrvXjl28dtv2fQZrSlJmhFvs1RIGgNrNpokIEbxTo4q0k6UFI/s640/IMG_8087.jpg" title="Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><i>In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I had chosen 15 books to read in 2018 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories; I failed. I failed not to read (I read a ton), but I failed to blog. So I reignited the quest in 2019. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. </span></i><i style="color: black;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">And I plan to write about that food. </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> It turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in.</span></span></i><i><span style="color: #666666;"> This <b>first for 2019</b> installment is </span></i><b><i>a novel about anxiety.</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">About a year ago, I sat around the dinner table with part of my family and I asked for four recommendations for book categories, and this (a book about anxiety) was one of them. And I have to tell you, outside of non-fiction, this was a tough one. A lot of fiction may include anxious characters, but not many where the anxiety rides front and center, but John Green's young adult novel, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Turtles-All-Down-John-Green/dp/0525555366" target="_blank">Turtles all the Way Down</a>,</i> does just that.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">In a nutshell, the premise to this book is that Aza Holmes, a 16-year-old girl, is hellbent on investigating the disappearance of a local billionaire with her best friend Daisy. (Rather, Daisy, who is adventure seeking and somewhat fearless, is more hellbent and Aza is along for the ride.) That is, until hunky Davis, son of said billionaire and childhood camp acquaintance of Aza, enters the picture, and the investigation falls a bit flat. Of course, all of this--investigation of parental disappearance, navigation of best friend relationship, and budding romance with hunky boy--is overshadowed by Aza's crippling anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">John Green spends the book writing from Aza's point of view, guiding the reader through the mundanity and the paralysis of mental illness--the obsessive cleaning of a cut she has had since childhood, which she opens and reopens in an effort to drain the germs inside of it; the "thought spirals" as she ponders whether she is a pawn or if she truly has any agency in her own life; a crippling fear that she will </span><span style="color: #666666;">contract</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/c-difficile/symptoms-causes/syc-20351691" target="_blank">clostridium difficile</a> <span style="color: #666666;">that leads Aza to sip hand sanitizer. And we see how hard it is to not only <i>be</i> Aza but also to be <i>with</i> Aza: Daisy has her own outlet of writing <i>Star Wars</i> fan fiction, where Daisy get to be the star in the relationship or at least the star in defining the relationship, as Daisy's current relationship with Aza is so hemmed in by that anxiety. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Aza's anxiety and ODC are exhausting--for Daisy, for Davis, for Aza's mother, and even for the reader. But most of all for Aza. And that's the point. Her thoughts spiral and she cannot escape them. Thankfully the end of the book doesn't just pretty mental illnesses up with pat answers and a lovely little cure-all tonic--Aza still has to deal with all of her anxieties, through cognitive behavioral therapy and medication and supportive relationships. But at least she's not sneaking nips of hand sanitizer in her hospital room after a near-fatal car accident anymore. In fact, Green suggests that she will go on and live a full and difficult and ultimately happy life, aware that the first love detailed in the book shows her what is lovable in herself--and delightfully, this first love is not just with Davis (although it ostensibly is) but it is also the first love of a best friend in Daisy. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKq9u6RnqW8a7ndA7ZV96o0XguC3tiUqriaMXQRsDoGjICJavvQOMlax4TJcfdR3Ele_aREff2xZ3-b0n07YyBc-nS0rtulbLETseWswtfHhHkTeiGOfCMc1FCiom0jJQGZ84BFH2JvJQ/s1600/IMG_8096.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKq9u6RnqW8a7ndA7ZV96o0XguC3tiUqriaMXQRsDoGjICJavvQOMlax4TJcfdR3Ele_aREff2xZ3-b0n07YyBc-nS0rtulbLETseWswtfHhHkTeiGOfCMc1FCiom0jJQGZ84BFH2JvJQ/s640/IMG_8096.jpg" title="Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And this is where and how John Green shines as an author of young adult fiction. He allows there to be a messy reality even when he's channeling a Nancy Drew investigation as a plot line. While these are </span><span style="color: #666666;">teenagers whose fathers have left their fortunes to prehistoric reptiles called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuatara" target="_blank">tuatara</a> and whose would-be boyfriends casually give away $100,000 to other teenagers to keep them pursuing the disappearance of their Indianapolis billionaire father. These are teenagers who have lived through tragedy, where their parents have died (Aza has lost her father and Davis's mother has also died), and are snapped up in underground art scenes. These are not ordinary lives. Until John Green makes it so: these are also teenagers who text, who bring coupons to </span><span style="color: #666666;">eat at Applebee's, who do homework, who name their cars (Harold!), and who spend two hours getting dressed before going on first dates. And that is how we know we're in John Green's world--the ordinary and the extraordinary collide just so.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyWrk7LYCGyVtpCGxVIYEGUhRoFP4jdERLTuCXNtQxCkDpE55fUsTOUqoBTFNB6_RTSnn1WDkBcrdvc5H7ZYzeUwIyyvgkLYJJHswaRq_aJltUnGJwNB1GGkIO8DIvGPUy6s7UbWzY0hc/s1600/IMG_8086.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="1600" height="544" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyWrk7LYCGyVtpCGxVIYEGUhRoFP4jdERLTuCXNtQxCkDpE55fUsTOUqoBTFNB6_RTSnn1WDkBcrdvc5H7ZYzeUwIyyvgkLYJJHswaRq_aJltUnGJwNB1GGkIO8DIvGPUy6s7UbWzY0hc/s640/IMG_8086.jpg" title="Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">And because this is a food blog and this series focuses on how food is important in books, let's take a look. Certainly, food plays a role in this book, but the variety is limited to that which a teenager consumes (for the most part). I could have written about Cheerios, peanut butter and honey sandwiches, pizza, or burgers. Indeed, pizza would have been interesting to examine as Daisy once claims </span><span style="color: #666666;">tha</span><span style="color: #666666;">t </span><span style="color: #666666;">Aza is like pizza--full of variety and the highest compliment Daisy can imagine (238), after Aza yells that she herself is mustard--astringent and redundant and ultimately caustic (217). </span><span style="color: #666666;">The book even opens, albeit slowly, in a discussion of food--or at least in a discussion of the herding of high schoolers into a lunch room:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">At the time I first realized I might be fictional, my weekdays were spent at a publicly funded institution on the north side of Indianapolis called White River High School, where I was required to eat lunch at a particular time—between 12:37 P.M. and 1:14 P.M.—by forces so much larger than myself that I couldn’t even begin to identify them. If those forces had given me a different lunch period, or if the tablemates who helped author my fate had chosen a different topic of conversation that September day, I would’ve met a different end—or at least a different middle. But I was beginning to learn that your life is a story told about you, not one that you tell. </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Of course, you pretend to be the author. You have to. You think, I now choose to go to lunch, when that monotone beep rings from on high at 12:37. But really, the bell decides. You think you’re the painter, but you’re the canvas (1-2).</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">So we see Aza's hyper-articulate and hyper-aware thoughts. She wants to have control, to be able to write her own story (or paint her own picture to use her second metaphor), but she feels as if so much, even when and how she eats lunch, is out of her control. Indeed, this is a book about control--from Aza and her anxiety to Davis and his simultaneous desire to find his father and not to find his father, from Daisy authoring fan fiction to Aza's mother trying to comfort her daughter after the death of Aza's father. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">And</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">t</span><span style="color: #666666;">his desire for con</span><span style="color: #666666;">trol is precisely why I chose </span><span style="color: #666666;">to</span><span style="color: #666666;"> write about veggie burgers and Applebee's, the place where Aza doesn't have to worry so much about control. Pizza be damned.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Early in the book, we learn that Aza's mother purchased a coupon book filled with sixty Applebee's coupons from a local Boy Scout. Each coupon offers "Two burgers for $11" and Daisy and Aza have been "working our way through them ever since" (52). So we--and Aza and Daisy--spend a lot of time at Applebee's. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Aza describes Applebee's as follows: </span><span style="color: #666666;">"Applebee’s is a chain of mid-quality restaurants serving 'American Food,' which essentially means that Everything Features Cheese" (52). The featuring cheese is a little tough for Aza, as is the burger part, as she avoids both the meat and the dairy while at the restaurant, coming out with a "veggie burger, no mayonnaise, no condiments at all, just a veggie burger and bun... with fries" (53). Again, a kind of control. However, what is also evident in this paragraph is a kind of comfort in location. While their waitress is often exasperated (mostly because of the lack of tips given by Daisy and Aza), Applebee's is a place of familiarity and comfort and acceptance, as Aza sits across from her friend, slowly peeling off the coupons and ordering their burgers. While the choice of location and even the coupon-mandated meal selection are authored, perhaps in Aza's mind</span><span style="color: #666666;">, by the fate of her mother buying the coupon book, the connection between Daisy and Aza is clear and is most palpable as they eat their burgers--one meat and one not--with one another and </span><span style="color: #666666;">try </span><span style="color: #666666;">to figure ou</span><span style="color: #666666;">t da</span><span style="color: #666666;">ting and employmen</span><span style="color: #666666;">t and some</span><span style="color: #666666;">times </span><span style="color: #666666;">the meaning of life (</span><span style="color: #666666;">this is a John Green novel af</span><span style="color: #666666;">ter all).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsynKIQUP9gMAPqbMHBMb3IgnvmS6tYCPM_QZqkau1RqvpRqqh4Ne0myGO9fqbP6K7NN5mv1EelX7S5QYTCLQE-hga-Swjhi6TSu2u3l5W7goVorYN12eMis6k1A23_x9oQzHO6c2p44/s1600/IMG_8081.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsynKIQUP9gMAPqbMHBMb3IgnvmS6tYCPM_QZqkau1RqvpRqqh4Ne0myGO9fqbP6K7NN5mv1EelX7S5QYTCLQE-hga-Swjhi6TSu2u3l5W7goVorYN12eMis6k1A23_x9oQzHO6c2p44/s640/IMG_8081.jpg" title="Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Applebee's is also the location of Aza and Davis's first date (along with Daisy and one of their friends Mychal) (95-99). And it is also the first stop for newly rich Aza and Daisy after Davis gives them money to stop their investigation of his father's disappearance (in part because if his father is found dead, his sizable fortune does to a tuatara research foundation--strange plot twist, I know) (121-2)--and this time, while they order their usual burger (or veggie burger) with fries (or an upgrade to onion rings), they don't use a coupon. It is at Applebee's they celebrate a fortune that might allow Daisy to quit her job at Chuck E. Cheese and leave an extravagant tip for a waitress who has suffered their teenage wit, and at Applebee's where these two best friends mull over every detail of Aza's relationship with Davis. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Applebee's allows for a teenager to be a teenager when so much else in the book does not allow them to be. Wi</span><span style="color: #666666;">th or wi</span><span style="color: #666666;">thou</span><span style="color: #666666;">t cheese.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKF0cxIIpl2y8retJxH2qjdy8gGLhu-QwgJ8GnM4Au3Rnlp8HBGdQqlcCWQCwNMyioMq3cqu3OlC9-DYM55ypL_cX-slX8DgAlzxDNT4qUMHWg7dGFelwLN4RraNT-Q3aR3LXgY4nSuAw/s1600/IMG_8160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="706" data-original-width="1080" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKF0cxIIpl2y8retJxH2qjdy8gGLhu-QwgJ8GnM4Au3Rnlp8HBGdQqlcCWQCwNMyioMq3cqu3OlC9-DYM55ypL_cX-slX8DgAlzxDNT4qUMHWg7dGFelwLN4RraNT-Q3aR3LXgY4nSuAw/s640/IMG_8160.JPG" title="Veggie Burger in Turtles All the Way Down // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And so, I offer up this veggie burger--it is certainly no Applebee's veggie burger (which I admittedly quite enjoy), and I did put mayo, quick-pickled cucumbers, and yes, a little bit of cheese on it. However, it was just the kind of burger that hits all the right spots, when you're hungry, contemplating an investigation of a disappeared parent, or just want to remember to be a teenager.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">The Really Hungry Burger</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">“I’d just like a water with no food please, but around nine forty-five I’ll take a veggie burger, no mayonnaise no condiments at all, just a veggie burger and bun in a to-go box please. With fries.” </span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">“And you’ll have the Blazin’ Texan burger?” Holly [the waitress] asked Daisy. </span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">“With a glass of red wine, please.” </span></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Holly just stared at her. </span></i></span></span><br />
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<i style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 17.6px;">“Fine. Water.” “I assume y’all have a coupon?” Holly asked. </span></i><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><i>“As it happens, we do,” I said, and slid it across the table to her. (</i>Turtles All the Way Down <i>53).</i></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text"; font-size: 17.6px;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Way-Eat-Satisfying-Vegetarian/dp/1607748037/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1545006990&sr=8-1&keywords=a+modern+way+to+eat" target="_blank">A Modern Way to Eat: 200+ Satisfying Vegetarian Recipes</a></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "crimson text";"><span style="background-color: white;">I am a <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/search/label/A%20Modern%20Way%20to%20Eat" target="_blank">fan</a> of Anna Jones, particularly this <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/03/dal-with-crispy-sweet-potato-and-quick.html" target="_blank">magnificent dal</a> from <i>A Modern Way to Eat</i>. I seem to have also made <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/search/label/A%20Modern%20Way%20to%20Cook" target="_blank">another veggie burger</a> from her book <i>A Modern Way to Cook</i>; however, I think this burger holds up a little better than the solely bean-based one. This veggie burger is, as promised, quite hearty, and I love the mushrooms all packed in there. Jones does call for </span></span></span><span style="color: #666666;">4 medjool dates, pitted and added to the white beans before they go for their blender spin. However, I removed them because I didn't want the bit of sweet in an otherwise savory patty. You could add them back in, but I certainly did not miss them. Finally, do as Jones suggests: make a quick pickle of raw cucumbers by placing thin slices of cucumber in a bowl with a pinch of salt, a squeeze of honey, and a tablespoon or two of white wine or champagne vinegar. Let them sit while you make the burgers, and then they'll be ready when the burgers are. Now, that's the perfect way to get a hint of sweet. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8 Burgers</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6 big portobello mushrooms, roughly chopped into small pieces</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 sprigs fresh thyme</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">salt and pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 (15-ounce) can of white beans (navy or cannellini) drained</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 small bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp tahini</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp soy sauce</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"> 1 1/2 cup cooked and cooled brown rice (2/3 cups uncooked)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2/3 cups breadcrumbs or oats</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"> grated zest of one lemon </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">To serve (optional)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Cheese</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1-2 avocados, peeled and sliced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1-2 tomatoes, </span><span style="color: #666666;">sliced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">pickles or quick-pickled cucumbers</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8 seeded buns</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Place a large pan over medium heat and add enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan. Once the pan is hot, add the mushrooms and thyme and season with salt and pepper. Sautée until the mushrooms have dried out and are slightly browned; set aside to cool.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">2. Drain the white b<span style="background-color: white;">eans and put them into a</span> food processor with the dates (if using, see note), garlic, parsley, tahini, and soy sauce. Pulse until the mixture is mostly smooth but with some small chunks. Transfer to a bowl and add the rice, breadcrumbs, lemon zest, and the cooled mushrooms. Mix well, then refrigerate for 10 minutes to firm.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">3. Once cooled, divide the mixture into 8 portions and shape into 8 patties. Place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and keep in the fridge until needed. This can be done the day before--and the burgers freeze well at this point.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">`</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Preheat the oven to 450° F.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">5. Bake the burgers for about 15 minutes until nicely brown. If using, place a slice of cheese on top for a couple of minutes before removing them from the oven. Really good if you broil the cheese for just a minute or two to get that fabulous umami flavor intensified.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">6. While the burgers are cooking, prepare any toppings, such as sliced tomatoes, avocado, pickles, or cucumbers. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Once the burgers are golden, toast the buns and layer the burgers with toppings.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-60052631560540786472018-02-20T07:42:00.002-08:002018-02-20T08:01:04.966-08:00Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666;"><i>In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. While we're well into 2018, I did finish reading this book last year--these posts take longer than I anticipate. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. </span></i><i style="color: black;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">And I plan to write about that food. </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> It turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. </span></span></i><i><span style="color: #666666;"> This twelfth installment is an <a href="http://www.oprah.com/app/books.html" target="_blank">Oprah's Book Club Selection.</a></span></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNf8h9hX0tOv8I_vbmn4ttsso40gCIguF2FlYWVCn6XzqCxBse_6PrqA_X6Xkc1krq8Lze87BeP7YcFNFv5F-UkuR_a-jkC48nVQ2TTnl8_DMgC9fA3A30MtfVac1OazWaV1jFNxI6SAM/s1600/IMG_5047.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1191" data-original-width="1600" height="476" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNf8h9hX0tOv8I_vbmn4ttsso40gCIguF2FlYWVCn6XzqCxBse_6PrqA_X6Xkc1krq8Lze87BeP7YcFNFv5F-UkuR_a-jkC48nVQ2TTnl8_DMgC9fA3A30MtfVac1OazWaV1jFNxI6SAM/s640/IMG_5047.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><b><br /></b></span>Oh, this book is brutal. Sexism, rape, systematic racial injustice, torture, cruelty. Compassion, community, family, love, magic realism, metaphor. Certainly, </span><i style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Ruby-Oprahs-Book-Club-2-0/dp/0804188246" target="_blank">Ruby</a></i><span style="color: #666666;"> by Cynthia Bond was all the talk of the Oprah airwaves in 2015, and I chose it for this twelfth installment. And what a whirlwind it was.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The book opens with Ruby Bell wetting herself in the street as the men circle on a center-of-town porch, jeering and judging. All save Ephram Jennings, who promptly returns home, asks his sister to bake her famous white lay angel cake, and rises the next morning to bring it to Ruby.</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">The first half of the book focuses on Ephram's journey through town, the cake on full display, as he withstands the jeers and cruelty of the townspeople. How could he deign to bring this heavenly cake made by a church-going woman (Ephram's sister) to Ruby, the mad woman on the outskirts of an east Texas town? How does he have the nerve to present this cake to a woman who has been used time and again for the sexual pleasure and abuse of many of these god-fearing inhabitants of the, perhaps ironically named, town of Liberty? But Cynthia Bond is no single-sided storyteller, for she points out that these god-fearing inhabitants--well, they too have been shaped and molded by a grinding American history of racism and misogyny. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimFYBU_k5c7kEbpz3yZ1aaRbm3ZykhzMGecsWFT_Th9BL7SVDHXbvhDZAXZGIjnx2PYLHstU0CZoBHoA5y_7SslsQ2fv7YL9mWGHDqtgXy7OWBQC1U1apbbvjl-KZHSsMUUVl35sr8FNI/s1600/IMG_5048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimFYBU_k5c7kEbpz3yZ1aaRbm3ZykhzMGecsWFT_Th9BL7SVDHXbvhDZAXZGIjnx2PYLHstU0CZoBHoA5y_7SslsQ2fv7YL9mWGHDqtgXy7OWBQC1U1apbbvjl-KZHSsMUUVl35sr8FNI/s640/IMG_5048.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">As much as these inhabitants would like to pin Ruby's "howling, half-naked" madness on her high-heeled red shoes that she dared to procure in 1950s New York, Ephram sees Ruby for what she is: a woman as beautiful as the girl he knew as a child, a woman who is haunted by her own searching for her mother who abandoned her after her own sisters were killed by the sheriff’s deputies for giving in to a married white man’s demands, a woman who spent part of her childhood in forced prostitution by none other than Ephram's own father, a woman in search of her red-headed green-eyed mother in the New York piano bars, a woman returned to east Texas when called home to her own roots, a woman haunted by ghosts that Ephram will never be able to exorcise but can at least make his own peace with and nudge Ruby to do the same. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhym5-5wp386aJO26sfmPQFXNC3IIch76_AQn2DVlPz135lWo_-Dp-K99rHo7UJY3wkfh6kdVoq8t2It9tNsdbM8kBCaMi5yuZGn-SrVGxF7PfY2kH7TEL34XZrH8U_CU88iME1IVzaqVY/s1600/IMG_5049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1105" data-original-width="1600" height="442" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhym5-5wp386aJO26sfmPQFXNC3IIch76_AQn2DVlPz135lWo_-Dp-K99rHo7UJY3wkfh6kdVoq8t2It9tNsdbM8kBCaMi5yuZGn-SrVGxF7PfY2kH7TEL34XZrH8U_CU88iME1IVzaqVY/s640/IMG_5049.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Ephram is single-mindedly bent on protecting Ruby from the gossip of his small town's population, from the purportedly saving graces of his sister Celia and her church, and from the madness that haunts Ruby from the traumas she experienced at the hands of any number of men. </span>Ephram also shares in tragedy--watching his mother be dragged away to a mental institution and knowing that his father (a hard-spirited preacher) was lynched by white men. His sister, Celia, raised him as her own, and now he spends celibate weeks bagging groceries at the local Piggly Wiggly and attending church on Sundays. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Such are the ghosts of the American South, the American West, the American past, and ultimately the American present. And these ghosts haunt the townspeople as much as they haunt Ruby. She just experiences the ghosts more directly and more presently. Oof. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIM7xZUf_qlg6r7Z80FAYoHA2qBtOogdWlM8FgmioNW6q9UA-vGdXk5eIHLbifylskBILQhBXk6LvyrMkuQn-yhUaAoUt7N93tVnNf_h4nsjGc2WkQNcjKNe2sXBY9_LhDBm9Xtd6pHQA/s1600/IMG_5051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1084" data-original-width="1600" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIM7xZUf_qlg6r7Z80FAYoHA2qBtOogdWlM8FgmioNW6q9UA-vGdXk5eIHLbifylskBILQhBXk6LvyrMkuQn-yhUaAoUt7N93tVnNf_h4nsjGc2WkQNcjKNe2sXBY9_LhDBm9Xtd6pHQA/s640/IMG_5051.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Let's take a closer look at the cake, shall we?</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Ephram asks his sister to make the cake for him, and she does, with a sense of duty and love and reverence:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">“She made it in that pocket of time before dawn, when the aging night gathered its dark skirts and paused in the stillness. She made it with twelve new eggs, still warm and flecked with feathers. She washed them and cracked them, one at a time, holding each golden yolk in her palm as the whites slid and dripped through her open fingers. She set them aside in her flowered china bowl. In the year 1974, Celia Jennings still cooked in a wood-burning stove, she still used a whisk and muscle and patience to beat her egg whites into foaming peaks. She used pure vanilla, the same sweet liquid she had poured into Saturday night baths before her father, the Revered Jennings, arrived back in town. The butter was from her churn, the confectioners sugar from P & K. As she stirred the dawn into being, a dew drop of sweat salted the batter. The cake baked and rose with the sun. </span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Ephram slept as the cake slid from its tin, so sweet it crusted at its crumbling edges, so light little craters of air circled its surface, so moist it was sure, as was always the case, to cling to the spaces between his sister’s long three-pronged silver fork” (6).</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Could there be a more reverent description of baking a cake? There is muscle and patience and memory and commitment here. This is work done in the dark while others are sleeping. Celia gets a bad rap in this novel--she is judgmental and rigid--but she is also steady, filled with conviction, and determined. Her love for her brother is solid, protective, and strong. This is a prized cake, baked with love, even if that love at times misdirects her. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfAQUrj5zrjgTgXaYNu081MgpRkqUz3Viwa_dUOr-bHDmrRAimSGINdfoxKhVbvGRGPZPR36nIDt3g4rzrP9nNV5BPLzCBFmIsz_xjGfXih9Q2Rg4nYcxXC4alKz7I9kHsUHU8DoJPnko/s1600/IMG_5052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfAQUrj5zrjgTgXaYNu081MgpRkqUz3Viwa_dUOr-bHDmrRAimSGINdfoxKhVbvGRGPZPR36nIDt3g4rzrP9nNV5BPLzCBFmIsz_xjGfXih9Q2Rg4nYcxXC4alKz7I9kHsUHU8DoJPnko/s640/IMG_5052.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Celia slices one piece out of the cake, leaving it for her brother at his door even though he says he doesn't want any. This is an affront to her, she who made this cake with such love, yet the act of disregarding his wishes is indicative of her character. She believes she knows best, especially in matters of the cake. However, Ephram has other designs on this cake, and it does not matter to him that one piece is missing. He simply restores order. When the time comes for him to journey to Ruby, he sees "the slice of cake Celia had cut with her special wire blade. It had a white cloth napkin draped over it like a flag of surrender. He carefully removed it, lifting it with both hands at the corners, slipped the three-pronged silver fork under the slice and fitted it like the last piece of a great puzzle into the whole" (53). Celia very much wishes to control whose allotment of sweetness she will mete out, when and where; however, Ephram wants something whole to deliver, something pure and unsullied, so he pieces it back together, gently, and prepares for his journey.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB8ANLyUcQZM2J7QhPKtIdLzKDNMi3-yI4pggqoRWuKuODDzWloB0Y5HYpUNqR8aLP5VAYPezpxQD_iVZswkw9DR3xr7n0FqBQvOKJswaECa5lg85ViWrjpuX90QnckCbtEKBgOSg-gz4/s1600/IMG_5053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1379" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB8ANLyUcQZM2J7QhPKtIdLzKDNMi3-yI4pggqoRWuKuODDzWloB0Y5HYpUNqR8aLP5VAYPezpxQD_iVZswkw9DR3xr7n0FqBQvOKJswaECa5lg85ViWrjpuX90QnckCbtEKBgOSg-gz4/s640/IMG_5053.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="550" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And it is no easy one. From his first steps into the world, he is met with dangers: "He leapt free onto the front porch but stumbled on the bottom stair. A pillar of will sent the cake up and out of his right hand. It was falling, flat and hard towards the earth. Time slowed. The yard spun before him. Then he swooped under the falling circle, fell to one knee and caught it in two steady hands. The cake quivered under its cloth but did not crumble. Ephram could have sworn he heard a holy jubilation, a swell of chee</span><span style="color: #666666;">rs from the passing clouds" (54). He is a man, however, ready to go to his knees to save this offering. Truly it is holy--a hallelujah bursts forth figuratively. This is no ordinary journey, but it is a spiritual quest, for him, for Ruby, for his community.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">This cake bears quite the burden. It is offering, it is salvation. It is community, it is true connection to another, and as such it is dangerous for it makes him vulnerable and exposed. "[H]e figured, he could .... reach Ruby's before nightfall if he was careful. And Ephram Jennings was a careful man. He was careful of the cloud of sweetness he cared on Celia's fine plate, careful not to let the August breeze blow dirt under the cloth. Careful not to hope" (75-6). </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ9qK7g7ZyUIq67yAmUZ-8DlIhfuoV7e6SC_XPasjiAFnOg2tq_fjovjQZD0XBjAJUXjnWMzgq8uclpoDWZhA8femJy6Yu0L6OM2FhEbYGS5kPiEVPoqOc-MQ79A0Hv4lcITDdj3KLsvA/s1600/IMG_5055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ9qK7g7ZyUIq67yAmUZ-8DlIhfuoV7e6SC_XPasjiAFnOg2tq_fjovjQZD0XBjAJUXjnWMzgq8uclpoDWZhA8femJy6Yu0L6OM2FhEbYGS5kPiEVPoqOc-MQ79A0Hv4lcITDdj3KLsvA/s640/IMG_5055.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">So much is his exposure that when he comes into town, he is heckled by the men who park themselves on the porch outside the P & K, the neighborhood store and center of gossip. Gubber, once a high school friend and now a man at whom Ephram only nods and grunts, challenges Ephram to a game of dominoes in exchange for the cake: </span><span style="color: #666666;">"Gubber relented, 'Hell, I'll give you five whole dollars if you win which you ain't 'bout to do.' Suddenly Ephram wanted to be rid of the cake. Wanted it stuffed between Grubber's large teeth, so he nodded yes and the porch leaped to watch" (92). </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Ephram wins the game, and he "stomp"s down the road with his cake teetering. The mocking begins from these men, who claim Ephram hasn't "wet his wick in twenty year" (93) and that it is a "[w]aste of good cake" (92). </span><span style="color: #666666;">This cake is a prized object of desire and possession and when it cannot be had, it becomes a symbol of derision and of failed or at least wasted sexuality. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzpz9CPIGtda1uGPrbEw-O4fnA7RCqXvCDwa9cZAKLZ6T1aByRFn5yh9a64-bK1jvKIBzHoN3zIWgmhUWhGjZfYlUYyGtnxcf223-V50UePMV42Bqu-x-n4G1Z0UtZdD8UQIXexHQrixQ/s1600/IMG_5062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzpz9CPIGtda1uGPrbEw-O4fnA7RCqXvCDwa9cZAKLZ6T1aByRFn5yh9a64-bK1jvKIBzHoN3zIWgmhUWhGjZfYlUYyGtnxcf223-V50UePMV42Bqu-x-n4G1Z0UtZdD8UQIXexHQrixQ/s640/IMG_5062.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">When he finally comes upon Ruby, she is clawing the earth with her bare hands and is miming the giving of birth. When she sees him, she assumes he has come to have sex with her and prepares herself. She is grateful that he brought cake, which is more than what most of the men--many of them the same porch-sitters at the P & K--bring to her to demand sex. Ephram ever the decent human, picks her up from the ground, takes out a bottle of iodine, and hopes to begin the slow process of healing her (105). </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But she kicks. She kicks hard and in the face. And hard enough to knock the cake from him: </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">"The cake in ruins at his feet, Ephram felt a lump rise in this throat and then he began to sob. Soft whimpers like a child. She looked at him. Then she caught the jagged tear of her breath. Her lungs calmed and she leaned over and let her hand pat his back. Gently like burping a baby. She said, 'There, there.' They stayed like that for awhile in the dark, until she reached over and grabbed a handful of cake from the ground" (105). </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">What seems ruined is not. What seems degraded is not. Instead, "</span><span style="color: #666666;">[t[he night shifted her horizon and contemplated the kindling of dawn. Ruby and Ephram sat in silence and ate the most amazing white lay angel cake, made theirs with bits of dirt and grass, while the piney woods watched from the shadows" (106). The journey is physically over, and there is a moment of peace between them.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NgMaNe7Q3WmAmk8D6kLxtExhWU3OJ8fjc1oLDegZ50_Ahu9jdQy4SL7BR24rbVVRl3jb7aqbFavTe8siwjW9jPWLWI4eFiUOBEKotA3UiFow7JpjjFcyNgkcHnrmlWxV_7OSffDr53I/s1600/IMG_5060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NgMaNe7Q3WmAmk8D6kLxtExhWU3OJ8fjc1oLDegZ50_Ahu9jdQy4SL7BR24rbVVRl3jb7aqbFavTe8siwjW9jPWLWI4eFiUOBEKotA3UiFow7JpjjFcyNgkcHnrmlWxV_7OSffDr53I/s640/IMG_5060.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This scene is a big one; however, it's also not one the reader fully understands yet (that takes the whole second half of the book to explore), but it is powerful. </span><span style="color: #666666;">In the second half, Ephram cares for Ruby, bathing her, scrubbing her home, tending to her family's property. And Ephram, and we, learn that Ruby is not mad--instead she is a conduit for spirits, spirits she is charged to protect. Now, this is about to sound a little wild, but stay with me--and think in terms of magic realism and metaphor. This spirit--known as a Dybou or an evil spirit--haunts our history and, without our willingness to confront it, must haunt our present. Enter decades of racism, slavery, misogyny, and injustice. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Ephram does not shy away. He stands with Ruby, sometimes ill-equipped and vulnerable, but always stands, with compassion and humility. Through Ephram and in witness to Ruby, </span><span style="color: #666666;">Bond challenges us to confront our individual and our collective pain. She will not let us look away. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4u469X7KFp_B3VjbusYF7dSoUwfjo4XJ5QHrJpqYi0RFlKlxYs4ZmEe0wxJqNJ6_1iJgq30F7m78MGngKdccyQnoHxMNOTWLhHIVn_VuDMTdkT9ySgjtV4l8_FR7s3cHn5XCDoqp9Gzg/s1600/IMG_5058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4u469X7KFp_B3VjbusYF7dSoUwfjo4XJ5QHrJpqYi0RFlKlxYs4ZmEe0wxJqNJ6_1iJgq30F7m78MGngKdccyQnoHxMNOTWLhHIVn_VuDMTdkT9ySgjtV4l8_FR7s3cHn5XCDoqp9Gzg/s640/IMG_5058.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">That said, Bond ends with hope as does Ruby herself: </span><span style="color: #666666;">“She turned to her children. She had so much to teach them. To stand. To fight. To believe in rising. She would teach them. She would teach herself. She felt her heart beating steady in her chest. She could give each of them this knowing. She would give it to them like angel cake” (330). Simple, perhaps, but a powerful testament to what we must do, how we must stand, and what we must not only confront but fight. This clear-eyed vision of our collective past is a gift, as much as any angel food cake. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqL2CixbxtMBMOAL7oSU44K_xS3Ay2QhqpUc5hyphenhyphen4yltW7YomLB7ElBV_23lYNUU-J-gmsfeFudM1jOl5g_UC0r34dyC1F_mUfuymn2LsWKmwRjQMweNoER2dhzOcfHibCCuTVxei-6Ex4/s1600/IMG_5055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqL2CixbxtMBMOAL7oSU44K_xS3Ay2QhqpUc5hyphenhyphen4yltW7YomLB7ElBV_23lYNUU-J-gmsfeFudM1jOl5g_UC0r34dyC1F_mUfuymn2LsWKmwRjQMweNoER2dhzOcfHibCCuTVxei-6Ex4/s640/IMG_5055.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">We may want the sanitized, pure, prized offering of our past, pre-sliced and placed outside our doors. Instead, what we get is the scraping of it from the piney woods floor with the knowledge that by eating it, we are growing closer in community and connection to one another. What we get is a reality worth sharing. What we get is truth.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Let's do this together.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4w-Kn-zkLW0QpclLFYFm5qjI_Uq8l8KYAVKrO0yYEFtGR0mwSxTFA2fVjiBIJhPotKTE8QsrADWjAHbl6Ojwm7e46nd-a6HSxzOAcstmhtMWGsoGqyCHHDvNxkhntEbMjYYbiei2Ik4/s1600/IMG_5056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4w-Kn-zkLW0QpclLFYFm5qjI_Uq8l8KYAVKrO0yYEFtGR0mwSxTFA2fVjiBIJhPotKTE8QsrADWjAHbl6Ojwm7e46nd-a6HSxzOAcstmhtMWGsoGqyCHHDvNxkhntEbMjYYbiei2Ik4/s640/IMG_5056.JPG" title="Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream in Ruby // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/02/banana-tonic-smoothie.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Banana Tonic Smoothie</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/02/royal-chicken-in-silky-white-almond.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Royal Chicken in Silky White Almond Sauce (Shahi Murgh Badaami)</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/02/green-pancakes-with-lime-butter.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Green Pancakes with Lime Butter</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/02/cioppino.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Cioppino</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/02/chicken-with-charred-cauliflower-and.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Chicken with Charred Cauliflower and Peppers</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/02/butternut-squash-oatmeal-rolls.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Butternut Squash-Oatmeal Rolls</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/02/cookbook-7-wok-stir-fry-fabulous-fast.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Stir-fried Rice Noodles with Chicken and Shrimp</a><br />
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #0c343d;">Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream </span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>“She made it in that pocket of time before dawn, when the aging night gathered its dark skirts and paused in the stillness. She made it with twelve new eggs, still warm and flecked with feathers. She washed them and cracked them, one at a time, holding each golden yolk in her palm as the whites slid and dripped through her open fingers. She set them aside in her flowered china bowl. In the year 1974, Celia Jennings still cooked in a wood-burning stove, she still used a whisk and muscle and patience to beat her egg whites into foaming peaks. She used pure vanilla, the same sweet liquid she had poured into Saturday night baths before her father, the Revered Jennings, arrived back in town. The butter was from her churn, the confectioners sugar from P & K. As she stirred the dawn into being, a dew drop of sweat salted the batter. The cake baked and rose with the sun. </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Ephram slept as the cake slid from its tin, so sweet it crusted at its crumbling edges, so light little craters of air circled its surface, so moist it was sure, as was always the case, to cling to the spaces between his sister’s long three-pronged silver fork” (</i>Ruby <i>6).</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The angel food cake is adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Baking-America-Traditional-Contemporary-Favorites/dp/0618048316" target="_blank">Baking in America</a></i></span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Here's <a href="http://www.readitforward.com/essay/article/angel-cake-recipe-ruby-cynthia-bond/" target="_blank">a link</a> to the actual recipe, but I made another recipe I enjoy from Greg Patent. He adapted this recipe from the 1951 winning entry in the <a href="https://www.pillsbury.com/bake-off-contest" target="_blank">Pillsbury Bake-Off</a>. Come on! You cannot do better than that. You do need a baker's dozen of egg whites. The only solution is to make ice cream with the remaining yolks. </span><br />
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Yield</b></span></span><br />
<div style="color: #666666;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1 10-inch cake, 16 servings</span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">Ingredients</span></b></span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup sifted cake flour</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup confectioners' sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">13 large egg whites</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp cream of tartar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp pure vanilla extract</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp pure almond extract</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://www.chowhound.com/recipes/basic-whipped-cream-30186" style="font-family: times;" target="_blank">whipped cream</a> to serve</span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">Instructions</span></b></span><br />
<div style="font-family: times; margin: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 475℉. Have ready a grease-free 10-x-4 inch tube pan. If you have one with a removable bottom, all the better, but don't worry too much.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Resift the flour with the confectioners' sugar. Set aside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. In a large wide bowl, beat the whites with an electric mixer on medium speed until frothy, about 1 minute. Add the salt and cream of tartar and continue beating until the whites are thick and fluffy and form soft billowy mounds that droop a little at the tip. Beat in the sugar 2 Tbsp at a time, beating for a few second after each addition. Add both extracts and beat for 30 seconds, or until the whites form slightly stiff peaks that curl and the tips.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Gradually fold in the flour mixture, sifting about 3 Tbsps at a time evenly over the whites and using a large rubber spatula to fold the two together with a few gentle strokes. Using the spatula, gently transfer the batter to the tube pan. To remove any large air bubbles, run a long narrow metal spatula in 3-4 concentric circles through the batter, beginning at the tube and working outward or bang the tube pan on the counter. Smooth the top with the rubber spatula.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 10 minutes. Quickly open the oven door and remove the foil (this is a kind of souffle or meringue, so move quickly here). Close the oven door and reduce the temperature to </span><span style="color: #666666;">425℉. Bake for 15 minutes more, or until the cake has risen to the top of the pan, is well browned, and springs back when gently pressed. The cake may have a few cracks. Immediately invert the pan on a narrow-necked bottle. Let cool completely, upside down, for 2-3 hours.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. Loosen the sides of the cake from the pan, using a narrow thin-bladed knife. Run the knife between the cake and the central tube. If you have a removable bottom, lift the cake out of the pan by its tube, and release the cake from the bottom of the can with the knife. Carefully turn the cake out onto a wire rack. Cover with a cake plate and invert the two so the cake is right side up. If you don't have a removable bottom, knock the cake out of the pan (it took a good whack from me). Gently turn the cake over so it is right side up.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">7. To serve, cut into portions with a serrated knife with <a href="https://www.chowhound.com/recipes/basic-whipped-cream-30186" target="_blank">whipped cream</a>.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-16701506453962405122018-02-19T19:42:00.002-08:002018-02-19T19:42:30.580-08:00Spicy Meat Dolma from Samarkand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHH5EsXnYUIb_lKGYHrgd8NkQ5fXTFfwAEEKdmyMMsdGpW614GoPEMBTn4L-MUeRDsIACuddViMqa09x7e81z7nZg4adhFLLGaJvPvDjFslM0YrG_zk6o8zoFZq3BB5g3cHwKabyvwuIo/s1600/IMG_3829.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHH5EsXnYUIb_lKGYHrgd8NkQ5fXTFfwAEEKdmyMMsdGpW614GoPEMBTn4L-MUeRDsIACuddViMqa09x7e81z7nZg4adhFLLGaJvPvDjFslM0YrG_zk6o8zoFZq3BB5g3cHwKabyvwuIo/s640/IMG_3829.JPG" title="Spicy Meat Dolma from Samarkand" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Very few things I can make without a recipe, and dolmas are one of them. Why? Well, when I was a vegetarian for a decade, I taught myself how to make dolmas because, people, they were so freaking tasty, and if I made them myself I could guarantee that they were meat-free and low on oil. Nowadays, the meat doesn't matter, which is a boon for this recipe, for I am telling you, friends, this is all meat. <i>All</i> meat wrapped up in a grape leaf. And I couldn't be happier.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh82OFDF2Ak80cX4H7_FblBNFmkL70XLrQmvgQjvSOtjOQjtIwvMxImE_-ebp4luRdoP-Kwk_N7GPTK-eZjI7MMcitGeW7X3_gbwu_GLo6e9i3IxNVEKp8vEzuxHq7CbaM3xeb76vtrRYA/s1600/IMG_3831.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh82OFDF2Ak80cX4H7_FblBNFmkL70XLrQmvgQjvSOtjOQjtIwvMxImE_-ebp4luRdoP-Kwk_N7GPTK-eZjI7MMcitGeW7X3_gbwu_GLo6e9i3IxNVEKp8vEzuxHq7CbaM3xeb76vtrRYA/s640/IMG_3831.JPG" title="Spicy Meat Dolma from Samarkand" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I snatched up this cookbook a while back, and I don't cook from it nearly enough. This fabulous glimpse into the cooking of the Caucasus region leaves one mouthwatering and aching for dill, eggplant, beets, cucumber, mint, rose petals, and pomegranates. Caroline Eden and Elanor Ford take you on a culinary tour, and they promise that you will not only <i>not</i> get lost but also that there will be delightful stops along the way.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkp3JGu4pcT5rS70wYGePFafaBFBjZc3wugylhq9uJ1NSXKZ1lT6Adk8f3cCJSREepy3Y9IgyxWfoGlHhDiRr463pJnqGgk14FDxTlvBoGiz_Z5WFV3BNpzZ6t6mk09fP2GNgiQmQ9GZk/s1600/IMG_3832.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkp3JGu4pcT5rS70wYGePFafaBFBjZc3wugylhq9uJ1NSXKZ1lT6Adk8f3cCJSREepy3Y9IgyxWfoGlHhDiRr463pJnqGgk14FDxTlvBoGiz_Z5WFV3BNpzZ6t6mk09fP2GNgiQmQ9GZk/s640/IMG_3832.JPG" title="Spicy Meat Dolma from Samarkand" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">For my first stop, I went with this recipe, for it was an old standby with a new twist for me, and I was not disappointed. Because I like meat now. Lots of it. And it's even better when it is well spiced, wrapped in a grape leaf, and boiled in yummy spices. The perfect dinner. And then takeaway lunch the next day. I'll take it, with or without a recipe.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibsyh6__tZTd0NKMo1RZ7dOdtR6wwIaqR_YUGlU6IICudv6vYZMp42WVo-lLRby3tElXn8beDOzci2eFLsrgpvqlW7y-2M324E4ZfWTepjUQ_mwWXgaxIkcEUpPOMwweDS8fK29fi-Vx8/s1600/IMG_3835.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1433" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibsyh6__tZTd0NKMo1RZ7dOdtR6wwIaqR_YUGlU6IICudv6vYZMp42WVo-lLRby3tElXn8beDOzci2eFLsrgpvqlW7y-2M324E4ZfWTepjUQ_mwWXgaxIkcEUpPOMwweDS8fK29fi-Vx8/s640/IMG_3835.JPG" title="Spicy Meat Dolma from Samarkand" width="572" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/02/polenta-with-winter-salad-poached-egg.html" style="font-family: times;" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Polenta with Winter Salad, Poached Egg, and Blue Cheese</a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/02/banana-tonic-smoothie.html" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Banana Tonic Smoothie</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/02/japanese-flavor-pounded-chicken.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Japanese Flavor-Pounded Chicken</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/02/roasted-cauliflower-with-hazelnuts-salad.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Roasted Cauliflower with Hazelnuts Salad</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/02/blood-orange-goat-cheese-and-beet-salad.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Blood Orange, Goat Cheese, and Beet Salad</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/02/chicken-with-charred-cauliflower-and.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Chicken with Charred Cauliflower and Peppers</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/02/butternut-squash-oatmeal-rolls.html" target="_blank">Seven Years Ago: Butternut Squash-Oatmeal Rolls</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/02/cookbook-8-new-book-of-middle-eastern.html" target="_blank">Eight (!) Years Ago: Frakh Ma'amra (Mediterranean Pigeons or Squabs Stuffed with Couscous)</a></div>
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #274e13;">Spicy Meat Dolma</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Samarkand-Recipes-Stories-Central-Caucasus/dp/1909487422" target="_blank"><i>Samarkand: Recipes and Stories from Central Asia and The Caucasus</i></a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">12 Dolmas</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">7 ounces beef </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 shallot, finely chopped </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 red chile, seeded and finely chopped </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp </span><span style="color: #666666;">dried </span><span style="color: #666666;">cranberries or barberries</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ </span><span style="color: #666666;"> tsp paprika </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">tsp</span><span style="color: #666666;"> cayenne pepper </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">tsp</span><span style="color: #666666;"> ground cumin </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 </span><span style="color: #666666;">Tbsp</span><span style="color: #666666;"> finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">16 grape leaves, in brine</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 </span><span style="color: #666666;">Tbsp</span><span style="color: #666666;"> olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;"> onion, sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 carrot, sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 tomatoes, diced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">salt and freshly ground black pepper </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Greek yogurt, to serve</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Mix the minced beef with the shallot, chile, cranberries (or barberries), spices and parsley. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Season with salt and pepper. Set a small amount of the mixture aside, then use your hands to shape the rest into 12 sausage shapes. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Put the grape leaves in a colander and pour over hot water to rinse off the brine. Choose the 12 largest grape leaves and remove the stalks. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<span style="color: #666666;">3. Lay a leaf on the surface with the stalk end towards you. Sit a sausage on top, roll up the leaf to just cover the filling, then draw in the sides and continue rolling to make a neat parcel. Repeat with the remaining leaves. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Choose a casserole pan that will accommodate all 12 dolmas snugly in a single layer. Heat the oil and add the reserved meat mixture to flavor the stock. Cook over a medium heat until golden, then add the onion and caramelize. Add the carrot and tomatoes and cook for a further minute or two until beginning to soften. Season with salt.</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">5. Place each dolma on top, seam-side down. Add enough hot water to the pan to come three-quarters of the way up the dolmas. Cover with the remaining grape leaves–broken ones that would not work for stuffing are perfect here–then use a plate a little smaller than the pan to weigh the stuffed leaves down. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">6. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook the dolmas for 40 minutes. Leave to cool in their cooking juice. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">7. Drain and serve at room temperature with Greek yogurt.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-7451185819231338972018-02-18T09:19:00.001-08:002018-02-18T09:19:34.011-08:00Review of The Drinking Food of Thailand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUcBBhJYKqBmQgLwJOECEa1fDStLpIyyZ_iBKWDV1O2TWtjtyT7eT-9FlniygEMpt09ANiME4FXUDnN9psjI_AAVOc2lW-SYfWQEulxdu5118j2AgQxipz-CEouXffNDn7OM4LC0klJ3s/s1600/9781607747734.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUcBBhJYKqBmQgLwJOECEa1fDStLpIyyZ_iBKWDV1O2TWtjtyT7eT-9FlniygEMpt09ANiME4FXUDnN9psjI_AAVOc2lW-SYfWQEulxdu5118j2AgQxipz-CEouXffNDn7OM4LC0klJ3s/s400/9781607747734.jpeg" width="273" /></a></div>
<br />
I wanted this to be my cookbook. I get the premise of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/POK-Drinking-Food-Thailand-Cookbook/dp/1607747731" target="_blank">Andy Ricker's new book, <i>The Drinking Food of Thailand</i></a>: easy food that is perfect for a 2 a.m. snack in the midst of a night on the town. However, I am generally not awake at 2 a.m. and my nights on the town are somewhat circumscribed.<br />
<br />
However, if you're in the market for an adventure-filled cookbook, this might be your book. If you're looking for photos that are meant to capture the nightlife in Thailand, this might be your book. If you want to go on a bit of your own journey to find some ingredients, this might be your book. If you're delighted by <a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/pok-pok-portland" target="_blank">Ricker's work with Pok Pok in NYC and Portland</a> or a fan of Anthony Bourdain, this is most certainly your book. If you want to get out of rut with your own Thai cooking, people, pick this book up immediately.<br />
<br />
If you're looking for a Tuesday night meal before sitting down to answer all those work emails you didn't get to during the day, this is not your book.<br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-38117340505460503072018-01-01T20:15:00.001-08:002018-11-04T08:41:42.518-08:00Cook Your Books Series for 2018<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYB5fRkY8R5pLMJ5NDHREyD7K92dnhDsd5htwZInwAoLu03h8bN3XdSXmiRt_FlyTgQw3C5dHsAJyvd6ZyLlGYp5Q-GWWbUW_pPt9xrDS8049tHkEajp9ksH_JHLV0tu8XE3q5QVJpSDI/s1600/Cook+Your+Books.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYB5fRkY8R5pLMJ5NDHREyD7K92dnhDsd5htwZInwAoLu03h8bN3XdSXmiRt_FlyTgQw3C5dHsAJyvd6ZyLlGYp5Q-GWWbUW_pPt9xrDS8049tHkEajp9ksH_JHLV0tu8XE3q5QVJpSDI/s640/Cook+Your+Books.png" width="425" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Whew. And we're back for round two of my series. Last year, I proposed to read 15 <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";">relatively arbitrarily chosen books on 15 different topics. My theory is</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";"> that no matter what I choose to read, food will somehow play an important role. Turned out to be true. So I am doing it again. (And while I am behind in posting, I promise you the four books I still have left over from 2017 actually all have food in them: <i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2018/02/angel-food-cake-with-whipped-cream-in.html" target="_blank">Ruby</a>, The House of Spirits, The Sympathizer, </i>and<i> Spendthrift</i>--when I post them, I'll link here, but I promise I actually finished the books in 2017; I just haven't done the posting.) </span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";">
<span style="color: #666666;">Ready for my 2018 list? </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">1. A book of letters.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>2. </i>A rewriting of a Shakespeare play.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3. A post-apocalyptic or dystopian novel.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4. A book by an author from a country I have not visited. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">5. A book that is more than 500 pages. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6. A book that feature anxiety.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">7. A book written by a woman under 25.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">8. A classic Austen.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">9. A book I always think I have read, but haven't.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">10. A book set in pre-colonial India.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">11. A book by an author who uses a pseudonym.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">12. A book with multiple narrators.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">13. A book that features poverty or low-income housing.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;">14. A book my mom loves.</span></div>
<div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">15. A book set during wartime.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "crimson text";"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books-past-years.html" target="_blank">Want to see my 2017 list? See here</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">I will be posting and then linking back to <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">this tab</a> (also found at the top of the page) and to each category.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Let's get cooking and reading, shall we? And feel free to join me--what are you reading, and what are you cooking based on what you're reading?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Oh, this is going to be fun. I promise.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-54273880454690169142017-12-29T17:16:00.000-08:002017-12-29T19:49:35.189-08:00Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbW5pk6m2dNyeMzmsfbxAw1P04WeDB_BRPFRyDZOl6fKVvywzY7sTHn6Vh7TED4_07rkKRT_eewZUVaq8D7DUkp62o4MnXGVtczQtNwrs-_o17b_hKj84R4CLA4WOoPuP4_OGdL1ukbw/s1600/IMG_E4858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1430" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTbW5pk6m2dNyeMzmsfbxAw1P04WeDB_BRPFRyDZOl6fKVvywzY7sTHn6Vh7TED4_07rkKRT_eewZUVaq8D7DUkp62o4MnXGVtczQtNwrs-_o17b_hKj84R4CLA4WOoPuP4_OGdL1ukbw/s640/IMG_E4858.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="572" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="color: #666666;">In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food. </span></i></span><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";"><span style="color: #666666;">And it turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. This eleventh installment is a book set in Illinois</span></i>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTCyPH4a-LoZYzxsDVGrOuun92SBNdtJBHb4DT71bE11kS-TLwMVbrpZKcZuWOkkGbgZSZYM9GhXLxg_33NkIsZgL64z2OvzPjRnu0J_LC2m0wguFe8BdWIarw8lS-BXM5GsRKir1Akt0/s1600/IMG_4833.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTCyPH4a-LoZYzxsDVGrOuun92SBNdtJBHb4DT71bE11kS-TLwMVbrpZKcZuWOkkGbgZSZYM9GhXLxg_33NkIsZgL64z2OvzPjRnu0J_LC2m0wguFe8BdWIarw8lS-BXM5GsRKir1Akt0/s640/IMG_4833.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Oh, Desire. With a capital "D." There you are. Haunting around Chicago and New York (and their restaurants) in this old chestnut from the turn of the century.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">I picked up <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sister-Carrie-Theodore-Dreiser/dp/1530942926/ref=la_B000APWR3S_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514596801&sr=1-3" target="_blank"><i>Sister Carrie</i> </a>in the Chicago History Museum gift shop while I was wiling away some time before catching my plane from O'Hare back to San Francisco. I needed a book set in Illinois, and there was no way I was going to write about one of my most loathed books <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Augie-March-Penguin-Classics/dp/0143039571" target="_blank">Augie March</a></i> (with apologies to my father-in-law, who is a big fan) or about the meat exposé <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Jungle-Upton-Sinclair/dp/1503331865/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501599323&sr=1-3&keywords=the+jungle" target="_blank">The Jungle</a></i> (a great book, but it seemed, well, a bit inappropriate for a food blog). I thought about going to two books that I <i>love</i>: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Native-Perennial-Classics-Richard-Wright/dp/006083756X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1502555450&sr=1-1&keywords=native+son" target="_blank"><i>Native Son</i> </a>and <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/House-Mango-Street-Sandra-Cisneros/dp/0679734775/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1502555432&sr=1-1&keywords=house+on+mango+street" target="_blank">House on Mango Street</a></i>, but I have read both already, and I wanted to explore something new to me. So I considered some more contemporary books (including <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Then-We-Came-End-Anniversary/dp/0316473782/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1502555332&sr=8-1&keywords=Then+We+came+to+the+end" target="_blank"><i>Then We Came to the End</i> </a>and <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sailed-Magellan-Stories-Stuart-Dybek/dp/0312424116/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1502555348&sr=1-1&keywords=i+sailed+with+magellan" target="_blank">I Sailed with Magellan</a></i>), but then there she was, our heroine Carrie, staring at me from the Penguin paperback, and I had a four-hour flight in front of me. And so, that is how we landed on this eleventh chapter of Cook Your Books.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWV44qioBAx82Jop7NoGVG3nn3iiiD7-E9S9DWzBwiqulCNr04saPBZaEOvkFcT57yue-Bakp771Ei9Ki4X2l0HWvBe1jVKRbvnfTk6uhdrYpsCQNC_yF9KuJDvhO5BwAod9k2v2qPRIM/s1600/IMG_4841.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWV44qioBAx82Jop7NoGVG3nn3iiiD7-E9S9DWzBwiqulCNr04saPBZaEOvkFcT57yue-Bakp771Ei9Ki4X2l0HWvBe1jVKRbvnfTk6uhdrYpsCQNC_yF9KuJDvhO5BwAod9k2v2qPRIM/s640/IMG_4841.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Okay, for those of you who have never read <i>Sister Carrie</i>, or just need a refresher from your high school days, this Theodore Dreiser book was published in 1900 to the weak reception of only 456 copies sold. In a coming-of-age, American dream tale straight out of the history books, Carrie Meeber leaves behind the doldrums of Columbia City, Wisconsin, boards a train (with "a small lunch in a paper box," no less (1)), and lands in Chicago, home of numbing jobs, cold winds, a disapproving sister, middle-class heartthrobs, and a ticket to fame and (comparative) fortune. Of course, on said train from small town America to the big city, innocent and naive Carrie meets the dashing and urbane traveling salesman Charles Drouet, who leans forward and offers Carrie familiarity with an overwhelming city and assistance as she disembarks the train (and, oh so much more). Of course, ever the proper Midwestern maiden, she refuses, disembarks alone (but under Drouet's watchful eye), moves into her sister's home, and takes a tedious and coarse job. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibUIS2nBsLUlU49QRVheys6wStaqTtvSTTPK731g6KKWoMILHxVbUQ4tg2t9QinP9OAkr5wy2tDwcdGfy15tRMNy8b-TaIUquvIRZJ3ss9HIciRaW5PJUmGPCp2h5AwddRybMDkxnESQc/s1600/IMG_4849.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibUIS2nBsLUlU49QRVheys6wStaqTtvSTTPK731g6KKWoMILHxVbUQ4tg2t9QinP9OAkr5wy2tDwcdGfy15tRMNy8b-TaIUquvIRZJ3ss9HIciRaW5PJUmGPCp2h5AwddRybMDkxnESQc/s640/IMG_4849.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">However, Carrie gets sick, loses her job, and happens to encounter Drouet on a downtown street, of course. Because Carrie is a looker straight out of provincial dairyland, he takes her to a fancy restaurant--the Windsor Room </span><span style="color: #666666;">(which can still be found in Chicago, </span><a href="http://www.lawrysonline.com/lawrys-primerib/chicago/private-events/weddings" target="_blank">here</a><span style="color: #666666;">)</span><span style="color: #666666;">--and over sirloin and potatoes, he convinces her to take $20 for new clothes, and eventually to leave her sister and move in with him. That seems fast. But let's slow down and take a closer look.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Previously, when Carrie was </span><span style="color: #666666;">out searching for a job, she had entered into a restaurant with prices so high that all she could order was a bowl of soup (21). Thus, restaurants seem fraught for her; they are places of exclusion and consumption. They are reminders of what she desires but cannot have. The Windsor Room is "a large, comfortable place, with an excellent cuisine and substantial service" (61). It is, for Drouet, a place "to see and be seen as he dined" (61) </span><span style="color: #666666;">and he is completely at home here among its</span><span style="color: #666666;"> pageantry and wealth. But, Carrie is overwhelmed and full of desire: "She was very hungry, and the things she saw there awakened her desires, but the high prices held her attention" (62). But Drouet has no worry about the prices, and he quickly commands the situation, ordering s</span><span style="color: #666666;">irloin with mushrooms ($1.25), stuffed tomatoes, hashed brown potatoes, asparagus, and a pot of coffee.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwXh_bjCY6JDoBAfhmbmLC37cj0QsF2vy3hlg0xLWGOblIO00ToHI9zXeg5YsoWUXpOXW9gUBpizDyZnqDMJ6wToCKSDnmZ2gTnEAt5h0Gjjf8_-OdjefUuM1csoXfdFyrIdoROehmFXA/s1600/IMG_E4859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1193" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwXh_bjCY6JDoBAfhmbmLC37cj0QsF2vy3hlg0xLWGOblIO00ToHI9zXeg5YsoWUXpOXW9gUBpizDyZnqDMJ6wToCKSDnmZ2gTnEAt5h0Gjjf8_-OdjefUuM1csoXfdFyrIdoROehmFXA/s640/IMG_E4859.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="476" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I, on the other hand, served my steak with sweet potato fries and <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/12/creamed-kale-and-broccoli-rabe.html" target="_blank">creamed broccoli rabe</a>.</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And oh how Drouet becomes more attractive over that meal:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999;">Drouet fairly shone in the matter of serving. He appeared to great advantage behind the white napery and silver platters of the table and displaying his arms with a knife and fork. As he cut the meat his rings almost spoke. His new suit creaked as he stretched to reach the plates, break the bread, and pour the coffee. He helped Carrie to a rousing plateful and contributed the warmth of his spirit to her body until she was a new girl. He was a splendid fellow in the true popular understanding of the term, and captivated Carrie completely.</span> </blockquote>
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<span style="color: #999999;">That little soldier of fortune took her good turn in an easy way. She felt a little out of place, but the great room soothed her and the view of the well-dressed throng outside seemed a splendid thing. Ah, what was it not to have money! What a thing it was to be able to come in here and dine! Drouet must be fortunate. He rode on trains, dressed in such nice clothes, was so strong, and ate in these fine places. He seemed quite a figure of a man, and she wondered at his friendship and regard for her. (63)</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZVJaV5EHy49UisSUYJKiqgdsiLy17ozak5b2bjRUaapmk5h71QOoKOSbpE0b_p0e_A7iqrwOAqWfrrcn7G47bwCvh5abS9ZeEMUHfuLEo8Pv2DGH-lFga5KkDpQ5ae7nDonQQEPFv1A/s1600/IMG_E4863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZVJaV5EHy49UisSUYJKiqgdsiLy17ozak5b2bjRUaapmk5h71QOoKOSbpE0b_p0e_A7iqrwOAqWfrrcn7G47bwCvh5abS9ZeEMUHfuLEo8Pv2DGH-lFga5KkDpQ5ae7nDonQQEPFv1A/s640/IMG_E4863.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">There he is in all that finery and abundance and pageantry (seeing and being seen, particularly by Carrie), and he comes out all the better. She notices that his suit is new, he wields cutlery in such a way it draws attention to his body, his rings almost speak. In this moment, he is the promise of Chicago: American. Masculine. Wealthy. Comfortable. Urbane. Generous. It's no wonder she's willing to take the "two soft, green, handsome ten-dollar bills" (66) he later presses into her palm. As out of place she feels in the gleaming Windsor room, he impresses her with his ease with money and with the city. He is all she desires to be, all that she longed for back in Columbia City, Wisconsin. And all of this done over a hearty, American meal of steak and potatoes. This is it, the American Dream. And the longing for wealth and ease.</span><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<span style="color: #666666;">So she, </span><span style="color: #666666;">our sin-loving sister, </span><span style="color: #666666;">moves in with him. How can a country girl resist? But then Drouet introduces her to George Hurstwood, who is ever more dashing than Drouet (it just might be his healthy employment as the manager of Fitzgerald and Moy's, a saloon in Chicago). And isn't that just it? The American Dream, Dreiser suggests, is something we touch on, but then we want more. We desire and then we desire and then we desire.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfMdBDqLPKBjPYxrr8QQHeAvY-ipY30nuD3gxr9PPBEMsXm0V5PIpuxOmRyh9ubr43krxpGNtPAvEz4Eb0NQ_iBMW04ToZH71fwmjHk_NqZ1yaoc-dGkPd2-beG80vLjA8sWixHN5T3g/s1600/IMG_E4856.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1462" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfMdBDqLPKBjPYxrr8QQHeAvY-ipY30nuD3gxr9PPBEMsXm0V5PIpuxOmRyh9ubr43krxpGNtPAvEz4Eb0NQ_iBMW04ToZH71fwmjHk_NqZ1yaoc-dGkPd2-beG80vLjA8sWixHN5T3g/s640/IMG_E4856.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="584" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Thus, Hurstwood and Carrie begin a flirtation that turns into more, despite Hurstwood being married (a small detail he fails to mention to Carrie). Through a series of events (most of which include Drouet being humanly incapable of letting people down and always wanting to look a bit more debonair and sophisticated than he is), Carrie ends up on the stage of the Elks Club theater.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">The next day, all hell breaks loose: Drouet learns of the affair, as does Hurstwood's wife, and Carrie learns that Hurstwood has a wife. Heavy drinking (on Hurstwood's part) ensues, as does a bit of thievery from an unlocked safe at Hurstwood's employer's, and a lie to Carrie lures her onto a train, and both Carrie and Hurstwood abscond in the middle of the night to the wilds of Montreal. A guilty conscience leads to Hurstwood returning most of the money but not guilty enough to keep him from committing bigamy (and Carrie agreeing to it) and whisking her away to the even bigger city of New York. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3xncuYbs62ihMgQ1t1QCuRnNRHm6DheAJ1HxNt_ej-ItIwg4Tt5xBJRej739KhZi-5ZJfiR-5rlSTpstgCJnYxAttkOhpg91meGfvQalUN6o92EHlLDiXGD84XFO-bbJyYzsRhmEruc/s1600/IMG_E4858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1430" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3xncuYbs62ihMgQ1t1QCuRnNRHm6DheAJ1HxNt_ej-ItIwg4Tt5xBJRej739KhZi-5ZJfiR-5rlSTpstgCJnYxAttkOhpg91meGfvQalUN6o92EHlLDiXGD84XFO-bbJyYzsRhmEruc/s640/IMG_E4858.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="572" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Oh, New York. You provide more desire than even that burgeoning cow town of Chicago, and Carrie's desire is fueled further by Hurstwood's ability to provide for her, at first, a sumptuously decorated apartment with a view of Central Park and her fancy neighbor, Mrs. Vance. But Hurstwood, who had achieved his wealth through hard work and perseverance, loses it all through his inability to find another manager's job at a reputable saloon. All that desire. All that inability to find contentment.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">After some steps down the social ladder, a hiatus on Carrie's and Mrs. Vance's friendship, and a real beating to the pocketbook, Carrie comes across neighbor Mrs. Vance again, who introduces Carrie to her cousin, Robert Ames. And they go out to a fancy dinner in a fancy New York restaurant (sound familiar?) where Ames suggests that there is more to life than a fancy dinner in a fancy restaurant. And that something is art. Let's zero in again </span><span style="color: #666666;">(This time <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherry%27s" target="_blank">Sherry's</a> in New York)</span><span style="color: #666666;">:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Carrie, down on her luck again, is hyper-aware by the prices on the menu, attuned to what food is worth. Soup is 50¢ or a dollar (which is about $27 in 2017) and entrées cost the same as a night in a hotel:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999;">Carrie noticed [the prices on the menu], and in scanning it the price of spring chicken carried her back to that other bill of fare and far different occasion when, for the first time, she sat with Drouet in a good restaurant in Chicago. It was only momentary — a sad note as out of an old song — and then it was gone. But in that flash was seen the other Carrie — poor, hungry, drifting at her wits' ends, and all Chicago a cold and closed world, from which she only wandered because she could not find work. (335)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCkH9xKyKtdXT-4knnDzmuUXjl_wNCOPnx8LhaTvgirdZSXHpSBDLbOHShIYep58RDEfWaadb9S90YTbc4V7SZLYmPJGH6Bo762JXUwHa3lty1JVPnG80mnhG9TMfwerWsCEpaczz9XPs/s1600/IMG_E4864.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1185" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCkH9xKyKtdXT-4knnDzmuUXjl_wNCOPnx8LhaTvgirdZSXHpSBDLbOHShIYep58RDEfWaadb9S90YTbc4V7SZLYmPJGH6Bo762JXUwHa3lty1JVPnG80mnhG9TMfwerWsCEpaczz9XPs/s640/IMG_E4864.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="472" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And just like that we're transported right back to the Windsor Room, that world that she longed to belong within but did not. Right back to who is included and not, and all of it based on money. But then Ames bursts this reverie:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999;">"Do you know," he said, turning back to Carrie, after his reflection, "I sometimes think it is a shame for people to spend so much money this way." </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #999999;">Carrie looked at him a moment with the faintest touch of surprise at his seriousness. He seemed to be thinking about something over which she had never pondered. </span> </blockquote>
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<span style="color: #999999;">"Do you?" she answered, interestedly. </span> </blockquote>
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<span style="color: #999999;">"Yes," he said, "they pay so much more than these things are worth. They put on so much show." (336-337)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobwLz2hZOkqt48YQtXQKKQo1OAekcuMPDOgtL7CSEFB2a-qFC9WpRwRjoNLQxhiL07iLxDN2oPhkQLCRUUwrj06YKKwL92p3VHY5o3Iuiha4nUcHJmrM1Hd1jdtqwk9cMHbEX5btRjQQ/s1600/IMG_E4877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1393" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobwLz2hZOkqt48YQtXQKKQo1OAekcuMPDOgtL7CSEFB2a-qFC9WpRwRjoNLQxhiL07iLxDN2oPhkQLCRUUwrj06YKKwL92p3VHY5o3Iuiha4nUcHJmrM1Hd1jdtqwk9cMHbEX5btRjQQ/s640/IMG_E4877.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="556" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Which, of course recalls Drouet and his love of the Windsor Room, as it was a place to see and be seen. Ames surprises her that there could be another relationship one could have with money. That maybe there could be something more than having it. And so, our Sister Carrie begins her great awakening. And the end of the book entirely depends on how you read this:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">"I shouldn't care to be rich," he told her, as the dinner proceeded and the supply of food warmed up his sympathies; "not rich enough to spend my money this way." </span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">"Oh, wouldn't you?" said Carrie, the, to her, new attitude forcing itself distinctly upon her for the first time. </span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">"No," he said. "What good would it do? A man doesn't need this sort of thing to be happy." </span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">Carrie thought of this doubtfully; but, coming from him, it had weight with her. </span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">"He probably could be happy," she thought to herself, "all alone. He's so strong." (339)</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">Just after this moment she and Ames speak about the theater, and she vows to return to the stage, in part to impress him and in part because he has inspired in her the desire for something more. The juxtaposition of the over-priced meal in a too-fancy restaurant and this purity of art are troubling for Carrie, but she is "beginning to see" (341) </span><span style="color: #666666;">Yes, she wants to be seen by Ames, or someone like him, and thus gain his approval. But</span><span style="color: #666666;"> she also wants more than just pageantry. </span><span style="color: #666666;">So, return to the stage she does. And she gains oodles of money as she works her way up from Chorus Girl to Star. And Hurstwood finds himself a scab, driving a Brooklyn streetcar, then abandoned by Carrie, then homeless. He dies alone and unhappy, truly fallen from the pinnacle of the American Dream we saw him embracing early in the novel.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdyot9ravuEss9gwZAiQr0iaYkFkkpdLjgHv-P-kmESzTp-hXQZQJjhDAvyYSMSm8_0KvxHNlr4w-0Nt3A6JkmmNjavdhDhVoOyOUKQCBT9SN8UIdh0QvGGsuxwQKKuUEyVSmA2AfMlHw/s1600/IMG_E4865.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1247" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdyot9ravuEss9gwZAiQr0iaYkFkkpdLjgHv-P-kmESzTp-hXQZQJjhDAvyYSMSm8_0KvxHNlr4w-0Nt3A6JkmmNjavdhDhVoOyOUKQCBT9SN8UIdh0QvGGsuxwQKKuUEyVSmA2AfMlHw/s640/IMG_E4865.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="498" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But Carrie's end is also solitary, </span><span style="color: #666666;">wanting, and ambiguous. Some argue this ending is tragic. Others, not so much.</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">Sitting alone, she was now an illustration of the devious ways by which one who feels, rather than reasons, may be led in the pursuit of beauty. Though often disillusioned, she was still waiting for that halcyon day when she should be led forth among dreams become real. Ames had pointed out a farther step, but on and on beyond that, if accomplished, would lie others for her. It was forever to be the pursuit of that radiance of delight which tints the distant hilltops of the world.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">Oh, Carrie, Carrie! Oh, blind strivings of the human heart! Onward, onward, it saith, and where beauty leads, there it follows.... In your rocking chair, by your window dreaming, shall you long, alone. In your rocking chair, by your window, shall you dream such happiness as you may never feel. (527)</span></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaORihcAE3wIaP6ZI2eP1sdlciLS-mp1zrO1NRENCi3mMbJ-Pghl6lLaj4qRXqspddg2dhzFfQsBgA3PWsBbDUvNmzxtIuqMhzmsmgIcs-mwH0eOlh-UK1n8KdvfWnmQMpWNw8z-vg2_4/s1600/IMG_E4872.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1300" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaORihcAE3wIaP6ZI2eP1sdlciLS-mp1zrO1NRENCi3mMbJ-Pghl6lLaj4qRXqspddg2dhzFfQsBgA3PWsBbDUvNmzxtIuqMhzmsmgIcs-mwH0eOlh-UK1n8KdvfWnmQMpWNw8z-vg2_4/s640/IMG_E4872.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="520" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But Carrie ends the book alone, wanting, desiring, and never really in the reach of that "halcyon day" when her dreams have become real. She is going to keep striving, keep desiring for happiness, and from the looks of it never really find it. But let's hold tight for a second. We have a woman who has engaged in a pre-marital affair with a man in Chicago, knowingly committed bigamy with an on-the-lam man in New York, and she leaves both of them for a life of theater. Perhaps, t</span><span style="color: #666666;">otally ho-hum to the 21st-century reader, but a true scandal for an early 20th-century reader. And (gasp!) she's not punished for these relationship. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Let's consider other options for such a woman in 1900. Dreiser could have written her in the hackneyed way where the sinful woman with a heart of gold still has to end in suicide or despair (see </span><i style="color: #666666;">Maggie, Girl of the Streets</i><span style="color: #666666;">). But no, she sits alone just as Ames suggests, aching for more, yes. But Ames suggested that being alone is actually not so bad. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Her failure to find happiness in the end has nothing to do with her extra-curricular activities. Instead, that failure to find happiness is wrapped up in that ever-consuming desire to consume. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Girlfriend loves money. More than she loves George Hurstwood or Charles Drouet or, one might guess, the stage. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqAI4VMNKkYvItvSDGmb-IHB9PGhMT-rB5Hmfa1X_HqgllsNXrmDYBjAxVHbEiPzhNPdgL_tvMpNxqkEjrKGiAsHbW-pfObeBNWPs_uSslfmd_k6JK-abnUaYtXXUxCWMKAkw_Nxn6SRk/s1600/IMG_E4867.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqAI4VMNKkYvItvSDGmb-IHB9PGhMT-rB5Hmfa1X_HqgllsNXrmDYBjAxVHbEiPzhNPdgL_tvMpNxqkEjrKGiAsHbW-pfObeBNWPs_uSslfmd_k6JK-abnUaYtXXUxCWMKAkw_Nxn6SRk/s640/IMG_E4867.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So, unlike Edith Wharton's <i>Summer </i>(which I wrote about <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/10/apple-pie-in-summer-cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">here</a>), wherein the fallen woman gets the apple, this time we get the fallen woman who just desires to consume and consume. Just like any other character in this book. Just like any other man. And she gets the Windsor Room, The Chicago Opera House, the Elks Lodge, Sherry's, and the Broadway stage. Ain't nothing going to keep this consumer down.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">P.S. (Totally a sidenote and not at all related to food in this book.) </span><span style="color: #666666;">John Berryman asserted that Dreiser </span><a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2003/mar/9/20030309-085850-3626r/" target="_blank">"wrote like a hippopatomus</a><span style="color: #666666;">," an apt (and perhaps my favorite) description if ever there was one. While this book is a bit pedantic, it is a great look at early 20th-century Chicago, where one was able to have a full lawn in downtown Chicago. Totally worth any hippo-plodding.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7zUgDMbeElLEnZl6ybrMF9rP2LrV0jRgvCLLMJgqXzAgcf9i61UKoe1onwAitVXO-iWi8LRyxO2n6rlcAzCb5w3YbAsRY3UWgA0GXG_ungcDtoOp5vYY7iw5G7causTyj6uYNfy0Wic4/s1600/IMG_E4882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7zUgDMbeElLEnZl6ybrMF9rP2LrV0jRgvCLLMJgqXzAgcf9i61UKoe1onwAitVXO-iWi8LRyxO2n6rlcAzCb5w3YbAsRY3UWgA0GXG_ungcDtoOp5vYY7iw5G7causTyj6uYNfy0Wic4/s640/IMG_E4882.JPG" title="Steak in Sister Carrie // Cook Your Books" width="510" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/12/emily-dickinsons-black-cake.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Emily Dickinson's Black Cake</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/12/radishes-with-anchovy-butter-and-salt.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Radishes with Anchovy Butter and Salt</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/12/sesame-and-soy-pumpkin.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Sesame and Soy Pumpkin</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/12/pork-loin-braised-in-milk-bolognese.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Pork Loin Braised in Milk, Bolognese Style</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/12/broiled-salmon-with-citrus-herb-crust.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Broiled Salmon with Citrus Herb Crust</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/12/duck-braised-with-red-wine-and-prunes.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Duck Braised with Red Wine and Prunes</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/12/cookbook-53-baking-in-america.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Irish Whiskey Fruitcake with Spiced Walnuts and Pecans</a></div>
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<br />
------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Marinated Steak from Ad Hoc</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>"She was very hungry, and the things she saw there awakened her desires, but the high prices held her attention"</i> <i>(</i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sister-Carrie-Theodore-Dreiser/dp/1530942926/ref=la_B000APWR3S_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514596801&sr=1-3" target="_blank">Sister Carrie</a><i> 61).</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444;">Very liberally adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hoc-Home-Thomas-Keller-Library/dp/1579653774" target="_blank">Thomas Keller's <i>Ad Hoc at Home</i></a></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444;">Keller does a lot more wonderful things to this steak than we did. We grilled it, because we live in California and can grill in December. I suspect that basting it in the oven in a very cozy home (say, in Illinois) would be just delightful. As for your cut of meat, use whatever you want. He uses skirt steak. I served this with sweet potato fried and a glorious creamed broccoli rabe, found <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/12/creamed-kale-and-broccoli-rabe.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #783f04;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 Steaks</span><br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="color: #783f04;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Marinade: </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 sprigs of fresh thyme </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 long sprig of fresh rosemary </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 fresh bay leaves </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ teaspoons black peppercorns </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 garlic cloves, smashed with skins left on </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup extra virgin olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Steaks: </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">24 ounces steak (your choice: Keller uses skirt, but any steak is fine)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Freshly ground black pepper </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 tablespoons unsalted butter </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 sprigs of fresh thyme </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 garlic cloves, smashed with skins left on</span><br />
<b><span style="color: #783f04;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: #783f04;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Marinade</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Combine the 3 springs of thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, peppercorns, 3 garlic cloves, and olive oil in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from the heat and let the cool to room temperature. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Place steaks in a large, shallow dish and cover with the marinade. Cover the dish and marinate for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator (or preferably overnight). Turn the steaks in the marinade half way through the waiting time. Thirty minutes before you are ready to cook the steaks, remove the meat from the marinade and let sit at room temperature. Pat the meat dry with paper towels and season both sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Discard the marinade. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Steaks</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3. So this is what Keller says to do: </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">Preheat oven to 350°F, set roasting rack in a roasting pan. Heat some canola oil in a large frying pan over high heat. (Have a splatter screen ready.) When the oil shimmers, add half the meat and quickly brown the first side. Turn the meat and, working quickly, add 1 tablespoon of butter, 2 thyme sprigs, and 1 garlic clove, and brown the meat on the second side, basting constantly; the entire cooking process should only take about 1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">minutes. Transfer the meat to the r</span><span style="color: #666666;">oasting rack and spoon the butter, garlic, and thyme over the top. Wipe the pan, and repeat with the remaining steaks. Place the baking sheet into the oven and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the steaks rest for about 10 minutes in a warm spot.</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Here's what we did:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">Grill. </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">(Okay, to be more specific, grill for about 8-10 minutes over a medium high heat.) </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-2323936936082235202017-12-18T06:55:00.001-08:002017-12-18T07:44:50.020-08:00Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRx_fFGAkvVV6ac6QsPHL9fxK7wmtS-z3gKCipcKVCHqYQF5TuS8RiBrKlcxKubpZG9TorfAfEZHc6wY2Rid6tkcHBeaQwsOaHcO187fcFgPzU6q7W211GAng2-t2Qt752bE4ZjL885XI/s1600/IMG_4781.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1456" data-original-width="1600" height="582" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRx_fFGAkvVV6ac6QsPHL9fxK7wmtS-z3gKCipcKVCHqYQF5TuS8RiBrKlcxKubpZG9TorfAfEZHc6wY2Rid6tkcHBeaQwsOaHcO187fcFgPzU6q7W211GAng2-t2Qt752bE4ZjL885XI/s640/IMG_4781.JPG" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #666666;">In this <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food. </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> It turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. </span><b><span style="color: #666666;">This tenth installment is </span>a book of essays.</b></span></i><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7zn3PVyKHnQZLOWS8WjnCD049i_ZnNM-0Jg55mtRozjkxD5NejtLh_ER4AbYjdv99DzUVsalK1d8xMDvAL5BI0oJW8G6XZyVDiGrlrk07Pk3KFZm0c5RiNDL1YPsuySx8azrCA-yZuUM/s1600/IMG_4769.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7zn3PVyKHnQZLOWS8WjnCD049i_ZnNM-0Jg55mtRozjkxD5NejtLh_ER4AbYjdv99DzUVsalK1d8xMDvAL5BI0oJW8G6XZyVDiGrlrk07Pk3KFZm0c5RiNDL1YPsuySx8azrCA-yZuUM/s640/IMG_4769.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><b><br /></b></span>In this aspect of the challenge, I really did think about choosing a wonderful Wendell Berry collection, but I knew there was an essay on food in that collection, so that seemed to be stacking the deck in my favor. So I went for something that seemed less obviously connected to food. And I am going to admit, there were a few moments of panic that I would be making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to pack on the trail.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJqXqisG-bpuOixpo8zIdkx6yP50KauObky4TOM8K9-b3PtstS6grLqcnqNRPRCeNbwGv8YVF682_xlljK8rXA5E2Fw09XFVXWaZlA0-l1jvW987_H1VZXEVFcWlaQs7SC2gN1uCj6GUI/s1600/IMG_4773.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1229" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJqXqisG-bpuOixpo8zIdkx6yP50KauObky4TOM8K9-b3PtstS6grLqcnqNRPRCeNbwGv8YVF682_xlljK8rXA5E2Fw09XFVXWaZlA0-l1jvW987_H1VZXEVFcWlaQs7SC2gN1uCj6GUI/s640/IMG_4773.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="490" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">In Terry Tempest Williams' latest collection of essays <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hour-Land-Personal-Topography-Americas/dp/0374280096/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1513530777&sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America's National Parks</a></i>, she explores 12 national parks and what they mean to her personally and, one would hope from her urging, what they mean to us nationally. The very first national park, Yellowstone, was signed into law in 1872 by Ulysses S. Grant; less than a decade previously, Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Land Grant into law in 1864, protecting Yosemite Valley (and it later became a national park in 1890). Williams starts us off with the question of just precisely from whom was Lincoln protecting the land?. The government itself, which as Williams details throughout some of the chapters, encroaches on some of these national parks with a gusto and glee? From the very white frontiersmen who sent back pictures of El Capitan and the Merced River, as they displaced the indigenous people so that tourists who would later travel to the parks would not encounter the hostility of someone wanting to protect their homelands? From industry and westward expansion? From frontierspeople with visions of McMansions in their eyes? She doesn't answer the question, but she certainly suggests that the answers are complex.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFUQ68C1bzWoB09jQPE2utcUhq28_kGS1Vx2H1lX_A7wEd6Cln6u6gQ5_HjGzvvPTEBkk0zJovtKxMKfFxttzuihqD3amB8U99QYH-xsPQhXEzOr-MgFJayhWaTfKxVnRY_cL1fW7pYig/s1600/IMG_4736.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1367" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFUQ68C1bzWoB09jQPE2utcUhq28_kGS1Vx2H1lX_A7wEd6Cln6u6gQ5_HjGzvvPTEBkk0zJovtKxMKfFxttzuihqD3amB8U99QYH-xsPQhXEzOr-MgFJayhWaTfKxVnRY_cL1fW7pYig/s640/IMG_4736.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="546" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Williams writes that the purpose of her book is to bring a "fuller and more honest narrative" of our national parks, considering the "particularity and peculiarity" of the national parks which will "show us as much about ourselves as the landscapes they honor and protect" (12). In order to do so, we must move to restoration--not the restoration of self-serving myths, but of integrity in a fragmented nation, moving from independence to interdependence (12). Williams admits that she is "not a historian or a scientist or an employee of a federal land agency privy to public land policy and law. My authority is simply that of a storyteller who lives in the American West in love with this country called home" (13). However, this authority is the authority we all can have, or was at least entrusted in us as a nation with each national park. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBCCTxBOARTkZZqyhrO3ow1Jf0xsRCz2fMEhqsRvyPjIiHl3fprv7iOomeM_wwplSdNXU70PN0Mysj2TVTE8aN84QamfiVmYr8L5sDy0GEts0_gsURzjaaWQ5MWKGcLWb1oo4BIieMG8/s1600/IMG_4777.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBCCTxBOARTkZZqyhrO3ow1Jf0xsRCz2fMEhqsRvyPjIiHl3fprv7iOomeM_wwplSdNXU70PN0Mysj2TVTE8aN84QamfiVmYr8L5sDy0GEts0_gsURzjaaWQ5MWKGcLWb1oo4BIieMG8/s640/IMG_4777.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And so Williams journeys to a dozen parks, some of which she was visiting for the first time, and others of which she considered home (she <i>does</i> live in Southern Utah, home of five national parks (Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Bryce)). I feel a connection to Williams (on a side note, I once sold her a book at the bookstore I was working in while I lived in Utah myself, and there was a little bit of a starstruck quality to the exchange. I was 22), and this collection of essays, which at times is a bit uneven, truly is a great read for any naturalist, nature-loving, camping or hiking enthusiast you know. It's a beauty.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1Nv7KS_Ju7rCkTF3XRjvzSz5_m0TGma6h1WJ-fd3jrGP-JUCN20VeM5Cr2O9wjgQEFNaNUmgsPN2PIqrh5gyDQLxQvsVtDyDhfjnR9wdiyvpME5hi7WS2EbH8anQ6Gn6vrTXwPMYeNA/s1600/IMG_4774.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1333" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1Nv7KS_Ju7rCkTF3XRjvzSz5_m0TGma6h1WJ-fd3jrGP-JUCN20VeM5Cr2O9wjgQEFNaNUmgsPN2PIqrh5gyDQLxQvsVtDyDhfjnR9wdiyvpME5hi7WS2EbH8anQ6Gn6vrTXwPMYeNA/s640/IMG_4774.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="532" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">From her gorgeous rumination on the oil industry in North Dakota and its effect on Theodore Roosevelt National Park to her musing on American politics and racism in Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania, this is not a book for the politically shy. Williams will take it all on--from drug addiction to the economy, from latent racism to energy independence--but she does it in a complex and often poetic way, celebrating the mythic qualities of the land itself. This is an American heritage--filled with an ugly history of destruction and a spiritual connection to the restorative qualities of the land. She writes in layers, </span><span style="color: #666666;">recognizing the desire for sweet simplicity in our solutions but acknowledging that such simplicity is a myth in itself. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCME22blYzhRye-iyH7LiWvGQuaUVpsL454rL9_9paoo4RHkpyvlnQ0oNzf6tt81-1ieeSwxQg_dJXkL8kJolrlLtzoK6-2iqh5Alq_EdXwuPqKmjPWyeSoK8NE6JfWj5RmIVYLjLy4pk/s1600/IMG_4770.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1487" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCME22blYzhRye-iyH7LiWvGQuaUVpsL454rL9_9paoo4RHkpyvlnQ0oNzf6tt81-1ieeSwxQg_dJXkL8kJolrlLtzoK6-2iqh5Alq_EdXwuPqKmjPWyeSoK8NE6JfWj5RmIVYLjLy4pk/s640/IMG_4770.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="594" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">This is also an idiosyncratic book about near miss tragedies and personal losses: she survives a near forest fire in Glacier National Park in Montana and laments the addictions of both herself and her brother in Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska (in possibly the most beautiful of the essays). But she comes back, time and again, to the communities we need in order to restore our individual selves, our land, our sense of nationhood, and ultimately a much larger global community. And along the way, she eats a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7O0cdjOuhIr92VrywM958iBE5yfGFjLzCSNQcV-LNbtn_S2Oxs9EbyYi7d6rY324vXXuxO8YUhBsONM91A7kMSJ_Yox2y_3TrDgyblzIuTEOuh2NcCPMz1lk5pbUzvi001qWTd2zCgkk/s1600/IMG_4780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7O0cdjOuhIr92VrywM958iBE5yfGFjLzCSNQcV-LNbtn_S2Oxs9EbyYi7d6rY324vXXuxO8YUhBsONM91A7kMSJ_Yox2y_3TrDgyblzIuTEOuh2NcCPMz1lk5pbUzvi001qWTd2zCgkk/s640/IMG_4780.JPG" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Until her ninth essay on Canyonlands National Park in Utah, her own backyard: finally, a lamb stew with winter squash. Served with cornbread, a Southwestern coleslaw, and apple slices with caramel sauce, all served with a Cabernet. But let me tell you how we got to this feast.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJbYrAUQoyrN4JhI9zvIAzULo4zGe-mkHvvYkJzFqg0DHk7J0JDHJdFNcH8yiu-XDkqg_9RTZUfT3APsrd9Jt-d6FGfgLsWRB1yWLnmWl3ilqXnp5q3nzY_HamZZXxh3g7uJ5IF8WBvec/s1600/IMG_4775.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJbYrAUQoyrN4JhI9zvIAzULo4zGe-mkHvvYkJzFqg0DHk7J0JDHJdFNcH8yiu-XDkqg_9RTZUfT3APsrd9Jt-d6FGfgLsWRB1yWLnmWl3ilqXnp5q3nzY_HamZZXxh3g7uJ5IF8WBvec/s640/IMG_4775.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">In this essay, she details the letters she has written--some of them never sent--to eleven people or organizations in order to save the southern part of Utah, which is '[d]ownwind from nuclear testing. Downwind from the state lawmakers who want to sell public lands to the highest bidder so they can develop them. Downwind of shale oil and gas extraction that threatens to erode the very beauty that defines America's red rock wilderness" (255). These letter recipients include the environmental writer and activist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Abbey" target="_blank">Edward Abbey</a>, her neighbors and friends, multiple newspapers and media outlets including <i>The Los Angeles Times</i>, the great western explorer and geologist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wesley_Powell" target="_blank">John Wesley Powell</a>, the environmental activist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_DeChristopher" target="_blank">Tim DeChristopher,</a> and </span><span style="color: #666666;">the former secretary of the interior</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally_Jewell" target="_blank">Sally Jewell</a>.<span style="color: #666666;"> Her net is wide. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirxq9BQIar0ITApoYfUkc7H-TfyQK8iUHpar7YdOX8t32p3QoiRlAFBETiwDKnwq5TcKFQFGmT6Y2CRSsvOFSAh2BxlN424JCccqyjaI7suqeyb2kZKbIV1BT-aw3NtyEfQmi-GfPX70s/s1600/IMG_4776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirxq9BQIar0ITApoYfUkc7H-TfyQK8iUHpar7YdOX8t32p3QoiRlAFBETiwDKnwq5TcKFQFGmT6Y2CRSsvOFSAh2BxlN424JCccqyjaI7suqeyb2kZKbIV1BT-aw3NtyEfQmi-GfPX70s/s640/IMG_4776.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">She writes to the <i>Los Angeles Time</i>, worried that the land adjacent to <a href="https://www.nps.gov/cany/index.htm" target="_blank">Canyonlands</a> and <a href="https://www.nps.gov/arch/index.htm" target="_blank">Arches</a> National Parks (as well as to the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/dino/index.htm" target="_blank">national monument of Dinosaur</a>, where the husband and I once spent my birthday) will be sold for oil and gas drilling back in 2008. She details the outcry, and the subsequent backing down of the BLM, as well as the auctioning of the land which involved DeChristopher (who was convicted of two felony violations and for making false statements). Williams holds the government--under Bush and subsequently under Obama--to task. She pulls no punches, saying in 2013, "I write to you [Major John Wesley Powell] from the banks of the Colorado River at a time when the landscape before me feels much like the political landscape in our nation's capital. Both are collapsing. Both are experiencing a state of drought: one involves a lack of water; the other involves a lack of vision" (285). </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaMI0bm4Nct9D8DhdIw6zbJ1Jao4nkvW4_PB3yezCcm8iJ-itKpTSJ3kdsgI0WXuFRHl18VQrDrfNHCCjMv_S-vROKG2MTEClRUom_QxL6Vx7Hkhw73RAiXfeKr-ed3R07WZCvi6TRS5k/s1600/IMG_4779.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaMI0bm4Nct9D8DhdIw6zbJ1Jao4nkvW4_PB3yezCcm8iJ-itKpTSJ3kdsgI0WXuFRHl18VQrDrfNHCCjMv_S-vROKG2MTEClRUom_QxL6Vx7Hkhw73RAiXfeKr-ed3R07WZCvi6TRS5k/s640/IMG_4779.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">She then writes in 2014 to Sally Jewell about a dinner she held in Castle Valley, Utah, with Jonah Yellowman, a Navajo-Diné </span><span style="color: #666666;">spiritual leader from Monument Valley, her friend Gavin Noyes, and fifteen students from the University of Utah's Environmental Humanities Program (291). There, they discussed the proposal to protect the Bears Ears National Monument. Together, they witness a rare horizontal rainbow, a sight both part of Navajo-Diné stories but also just plain beautiful. Amongst the 18 of them, there is a sense of hope, that this is land that can be protected and preserved and held onto for one another. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ErgQz4NXoaKDrUhzypRYOfbWnpJz1oV2Vidc2AWGu_9p0YScQ1b5O3Ef2elgVCrboCK34nXHxmZ5dgApClmaaAJBUHln9558bv9s35w58d345hzQXkAFrc-eo-vv5fSo8BeynA01S4I/s1600/IMG_4762.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2ErgQz4NXoaKDrUhzypRYOfbWnpJz1oV2Vidc2AWGu_9p0YScQ1b5O3Ef2elgVCrboCK34nXHxmZ5dgApClmaaAJBUHln9558bv9s35w58d345hzQXkAFrc-eo-vv5fSo8BeynA01S4I/s640/IMG_4762.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">A week later, she held a dinner party of Yellowman, Noyes, and leaders from the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, the Grand Canyon Trust, Canyonlands National Park, the Nature Conservancy, and San Juan County officials. These were not all people who could agree on the boundaries of Bears Ears. These were people who had different stakes in this race. These were people not in agreement. However, a student from the previous dinner party made a lamb and winter squash stew, and there is a sense of blessing and togetherness, despite the disparate viewpoints of those around the table. "Politics were set aside. The conversation was lively and spirited, full of wit and affection and stories" (293). </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">After dinner, they pulled together maps, all of which had different boundaries for a national monument; however, despite these differences they all realized they were "gathered around one common table of concern" (293). In this letter, Williams then chastises Jewell for recommending that the Navajo not work with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. In other words, Jewell suggests tht each of political sides not work with the others--even if Jewell ostensibly seems to be siding with Williams in calling for the creation of the monument. Instead, Williams calls for alliance, connection, and continued communication with <i>all</i>, including those who are opposed to the monument. She does not want division and politics; she calls for a sit-down meal. She calls for conversation and community, even with those with whom we disagree. Such was her optimism in 2013.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZx63gFyj4wPGqaG2xg27PcNVcqbVhEcL2Qj7uCNjrgfIRTvfq7V0AlPgzfDlNqtje_Wm0dwVXNstdfDHe8UQXOS6V4K-XYNgdBTXdxMcIX8WsDy29-j3OCQrwFJA-eyfRj9FtmqJ39Ns/s1600/IMG_4735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZx63gFyj4wPGqaG2xg27PcNVcqbVhEcL2Qj7uCNjrgfIRTvfq7V0AlPgzfDlNqtje_Wm0dwVXNstdfDHe8UQXOS6V4K-XYNgdBTXdxMcIX8WsDy29-j3OCQrwFJA-eyfRj9FtmqJ39Ns/s640/IMG_4735.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">This book was published on May 31, 2016.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">On December 28, 2016, President Barrack Obama signed Bears Ears into a National Monument (with <a href="http://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=5216776&itype=CMSID" target="_blank">full support from Sally Jewell</a> and Terry Tempest Williams!). </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Only to be undone on December 4, 2017, when President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/08/climate/bears-ears-monument-trump.html" target="_blank">slashed the size of the monument by 85</a>%. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">This past spring, Williams had <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/06/opinion/sunday/will-bears-ears-be-the-next-standing-rock.html" target="_blank">a few more things to say </a>about it:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">No amount of money is a substitute for beauty. No amount of political power can be matched by the power of the land and the indigenous people who live here. If we do not rise to the defense of these sacred lands, Bears Ears National Monument will be reduced to oil rigs and derricks, shining bright against an oiled sky of obliterated stars.</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">I suspect this conversation is far from over for Williams. I just wonder if it's going to take a lot more than a large, albeit pleasing, pot of lamb stew with winter squash.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_RXGcbYUNvMJR0PgwNy1hw_o0IPCn-LcgSAEplJv0H3RsgCDZYy-wABPtmeRKw7V8yKQSuxx4U71vha2PwjXSBWuMeJd0RxI6tiegcOCDqvDIIqqbz2VbjAgBl9-7aROdX8DKrRhYsu8/s1600/IMG_4778.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1219" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_RXGcbYUNvMJR0PgwNy1hw_o0IPCn-LcgSAEplJv0H3RsgCDZYy-wABPtmeRKw7V8yKQSuxx4U71vha2PwjXSBWuMeJd0RxI6tiegcOCDqvDIIqqbz2VbjAgBl9-7aROdX8DKrRhYsu8/s640/IMG_4778.jpg" title="Lamb Stew with Winter Squash in The Hour of the Land // Cook Your Books" width="486" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/12/hanky-panky-cocktail-from-amaro.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: The Hanky Panky (Cocktail)</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/12/bolognese-meat-sauce.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Bolognese Meat Sauce</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/12/ottolenghis-squash-with-cardamom-and.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Ottolenghi's Squash with Cardamom and Nigella Seeds</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/12/pork-loin-braised-in-milk-bolognese.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Pork Loin Braised in Milk, Bolognese Style</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/12/broiled-salmon-with-citrus-herb-crust.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Broiled Salmon with Citrus Herb Crust</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/12/duck-braised-with-red-wine-and-prunes.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Duck Braised with Red Wine and Prunes</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/12/cookbook-51-chez-panisse-vegetables.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Grilled Cèpes</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Red Wine Lamb Stew with Parsnips and Butternut Squash</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>[A] student... offered to make the meal for the dinner party. Her menu was simple, thoughtful, and local: lamb stew with winter squash; cornbread; a southwestern coleslaw, and for dessert, apple slices with a communal caramel sauce for dipping. A Caste Rock cabernet was served with the inner. Jonah gave a blessing on the food. We broke together as neighbors and friends. Politics were set aside" </i>(<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hour-Land-Personal-Topography-Americas/dp/0374280096/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1513530777&sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America's National Parks</a>, 293).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food52-New-Way-Dinner-Strategies/dp/0399578005/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1513570510&sr=8-1&keywords=a+new+way+to+dinner" target="_blank">A New Way to Dinner</a> </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="color: #666666;">Oh my. My, my, my. This is a wonderful little stew, filled with umami countered by sweet parsnips and nutty butternut squash. The original was beef stew with carrots and parsnips; however, this rendition is delightful, and you will love the lamb. No, you will. Oh, and if you have the wherewithal to whip up a batch of mashed potatoes, you would do yourself well. But why bother? Because this works just fine on its own.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #660000;"><b>Yield</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><b><span style="color: #660000;">Ingredients</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">1½ pounds lamb, cut into 1½-inch cubes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 ounces pancetta, diced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8 ounces (about 1 cup) peeled and ½-inch cubed butternut squash</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 medium parsnips, peeled and sliced into ½-inch chunks</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ large onion, diced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 celery stalk, cut into ½-inch slices</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ large garlic clove, peeled and smashed</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup dry red wine</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup beef stock</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup canned chopped tomatoes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 thyme sprigs</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 small rosemary sprig</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 bay leaf</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><b><span style="color: #660000;">Instructions</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">1. Heat the oven to 350℉.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">2. Sprinkle the lamb with salt and pepper/ Warm </span><span style="font-family: "times";">½</span><span style="font-family: "times";"> Tbsp of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Working in batches, add the lamb, being careful not to crowd the pot. Cook the lamb on all sides until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the browned meat to a plate and keep warm while you Brown the rest.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "times";">2. Pour off all but about </span><span style="font-family: "times";">½</span><span style="font-family: "times";"> a Tbsp of the fat in the pot and turn the heat down to medium-low, and add the remaining 1 Tbsp of olive oil an the pancetta. Cook until it starts to crisp, about 5 minutes.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;">3. Add the parsnips, butternut squash, onion, and celery, and cook until they start to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic an cook for a minute more.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;">4. Add the wine, stick, tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, bay leave, and 1 tsp salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the lamb, submerging it in the liquid. Cover, and bake until the meat is very tender, about 2 hours.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times";"><span style="color: #666666;">5. Remove from the oven. Let the stew cool slightly. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Discard the herbs. (At this point, you can cover and refrigerate the stew, gently reheating over low heat for 10-15 minutes when ready to serve.)</span></span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-22990861295300602942017-12-09T12:59:00.000-08:002017-12-10T13:55:45.384-08:00Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTLMe9is0xHnbG1J3cmvLmNa0JwE8SQtfpi2Ggcrulr0e4mk45q81xfBB6QhxMmGy4TE0Y7BUxn8drnSYaIYTsl8YRT5rFJ8osGiggYPnuu3g6pyaXch-SGhLO2E_rKGzkHYikXOXWsk/s1600/IMG_4693.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1319" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTLMe9is0xHnbG1J3cmvLmNa0JwE8SQtfpi2Ggcrulr0e4mk45q81xfBB6QhxMmGy4TE0Y7BUxn8drnSYaIYTsl8YRT5rFJ8osGiggYPnuu3g6pyaXch-SGhLO2E_rKGzkHYikXOXWsk/s640/IMG_4693.jpg" width="526" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><i>In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food.</i></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "crimson text"; font-size: 17.6px;"> It turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. </i><b><i><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">This </span>ninth</span><span style="color: #666666;"> installment is </span></i></b><b style="color: #666666;"><i>a book published in the 1970s</i>.</b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><b style="color: #666666;"><br /></b></span><span style="color: #666666;">Aghem. I am not sure what possessed me to choose this book, given what we know about its source material.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So John Gardner's wonderful little novel <i style="color: black;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Grendel-John-Gardner/dp/0679723110/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512853233&sr=8-1&keywords=grendel" target="_blank">Grendel</a></i> is a retelling of <i>Beowulf</i> from the point of view of the beast. But here's the rub. The beast eats humans. Both in <i>Beowulf</i> and in <i>Grendel</i>, and I should have known that. I knew that. I took "Beowulf to Dryden" in my first semester in college. I <i>knew</i> that. But I have promised myself I wouldn't preview books to ensure that they have a connection to food (that would sort of ruin the project); but seriously. I have a graduate degree in English. I probably should have thought this one through. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Ur4ftwNwabo8qQv8BxOnSSQTHO8ZQDJ_07fv5TAFhzvLbH4M2jsXsdN20T0kpO4QC7nBZZrse7ZXHpj0voQ7gFgKXyLGQHB8XjaEmAn_sFr5UOhF20jKmfAVL_lmTmneIAmt9jDPb6w/s1600/IMG_4687.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Ur4ftwNwabo8qQv8BxOnSSQTHO8ZQDJ_07fv5TAFhzvLbH4M2jsXsdN20T0kpO4QC7nBZZrse7ZXHpj0voQ7gFgKXyLGQHB8XjaEmAn_sFr5UOhF20jKmfAVL_lmTmneIAmt9jDPb6w/s640/IMG_4687.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So, to be quite clear, I am not making human. I promise. I am, instead, focusing on what those 10th-century Brits who retell stories about 5th-century Danes may have eaten (because we don't <i>really</i> know). And so we're having steak and cheese pie. That makes reasonable sense, right? It seems like the best compromise, I think.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I will tell you this: the resulting steak and cheese pie is actually quite good. However, if your belly is a bit squeamish, you might just want to skip ahead to the recipe.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsghunO-ho2gdWcBCIGiMdpqEcDQ5CPeu6QZEwQRkD6_9jXfUe6_L9wfiUy3KDHoRGouaOV67IUxDtK6kYDFfl-54UyUfHDKXtW1-fkj5ngsHTKhwrkayxxlhjjxC5dbxoHvFK1CcWfE/s1600/IMG_4691.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1336" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsghunO-ho2gdWcBCIGiMdpqEcDQ5CPeu6QZEwQRkD6_9jXfUe6_L9wfiUy3KDHoRGouaOV67IUxDtK6kYDFfl-54UyUfHDKXtW1-fkj5ngsHTKhwrkayxxlhjjxC5dbxoHvFK1CcWfE/s640/IMG_4691.jpg" width="534" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
Alright, let's recap <i>Beowulf</i> to prep us for <i>Grendel</i>, and then let's get down to business, my friends. <i>Beuwulf</i> goes something like this: we have a Danish king (Hrothgar) who is plagued by the monster Grendel. Nightly, Grendel attacks the meadhall, killing <i>and eating</i> (of course) the Danish warriors. This goes on for some time (okay, 12 years), with Grendel snatching up the men and eating them, until the remaining warriors are scared to sleep at night. Declining with age, Hrothgar accepts the help of the Geats (a seafaring people from the south of Sweden), specifically our hero, Beowulf. That night, there is feasting, as can be expected. Grendel attacks Heorot Hall, and Beowulf fights Grendel in hand-to-hand combat, tearing the monster's arm off at the shoulder (and subsequently displaying it in the mead-hall). Grendel flees into the wilderness and dies. Festivities ensue. Let's imagine it is here that meat and cheese pie would be served. However, the story is not over. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Grendel's mother arrives to avenge her son's death. As the warriors are sleeping off a night of mead and ale, she attacks. Panicked, she retreats to her lair, a cave beneath a lake. Not to be outdone, Beowulf follows, dives into the lake, slays her with a sword he finds in her mountains of treasure, and returns to the surface of the earth with her severed head. Again, much partying ensues. Perhaps more meat and cheese pie. Beowulf heads home, eventually becomes the King of the Geats, and rules for fifty years. However, Beowulf has one last battle in him: he goes after a village-slaughtering dragon who doesn't take kindly to thieves. With only one man, Wiglaf, at his side, he defeats the dragon, but suffers his own wound, thus shuffling off this mortal coil. Funeral follows. Earthen memorial mounds are built. Perhaps more meat pie is eaten. Hard to say.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09vsLa4jIpUz-Qy9vrIeYqpeeZ-dKXFCMpwGTjF8SNxHu006rUIa3wlqSNOn8hRRXTiV0r0R5XjDG32_8hI3pUUNUW9QxLGIHaU_8sm5-kX8BpC9_hi9cHHlIy2tJvN_LhAvtp2BjuzE/s1600/IMG_4689.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1120" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09vsLa4jIpUz-Qy9vrIeYqpeeZ-dKXFCMpwGTjF8SNxHu006rUIa3wlqSNOn8hRRXTiV0r0R5XjDG32_8hI3pUUNUW9QxLGIHaU_8sm5-kX8BpC9_hi9cHHlIy2tJvN_LhAvtp2BjuzE/s640/IMG_4689.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="448" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Enter in John Gardner's retelling of this epic, this time from the monster's point of view. Nearing the end of his 12-year run on terrorizing the Danish meadhall, Grendel has sort of had it with all things Danish. Each year is the same as the last, and like any eye-liner wearing, existentialist teenager, he cannot see the point of any of it. He fancies himself the intellectual philosopher, stranded in a lonely world, and the humans are the base consumers. It's as if he's dressed all in black and just carrying around Sartre's <i>Being and Nothingness</i>. Yes, he eats people, but it's the part he has to play: even he says, </span><span style="color: #666666;">"I had to eat them" (33)</span><span style="color: #666666;">. Sure, he has eaten a</span><span style="color: #666666;">n old woman who tasted of "urine and spleen, which made me spit" (7), and </span><span style="color: #666666;">"[M]y belly rumbles, sick on their sour meat" (13). This is duty, this is fulfilling one's role in a society. This is fate, but not some fate from the gods. No this is a human-inflicted fate. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Twelve years prior, Grendel merely lurked around the meadhall, fascinated by The Shaper, who takes the reality of a brutal world and retells it as poetry ("he stares strange-eyed at the mindless world and turns dry sticks to old" (49)), where monsters, such as he, are to be feared. While the beauty of the songs enrapture Grendel, they remind Grendel that he can communicate with no one, including the meadhall goers, whom he pleads for "Mercy! Peace!" (51) as he tries to join them, and they do not understand his language, as they scream and flee in terror. Nor can he communicate with his strange mute mother who smells of "wild pig and fish" (29). And when he returns to the meadhall two days after killing those who attacked him when he asked for peace, the Shaper sings of how the brave dead fought the monster (54). Grendel comes to understand that language is just another way to create the world, and currently the Shaper is creating a world where one race is to be saved, and another--Grendel's--not (55). Tormented and lonely, Grendel does not know what to believe--the Shaper, who prophesies a life of loneliness or his own understanding of reality, where he is also tormented by loneliness. No way this monster is going to win. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4vxxAJod1B5jR6ypQySGiCi-TXWz4pmk43n9bJ_LTiK18eo5FD7SZiJFS7WDCWQ-bHVajGbO6MrcQwr3A22FtYat_qVAPraWZ8Z-Sa2oCvan9HZmUBmBQDgG4iTZ9FSyj4av98GNknM/s1600/IMG_4692.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1370" data-original-width="1600" height="548" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4vxxAJod1B5jR6ypQySGiCi-TXWz4pmk43n9bJ_LTiK18eo5FD7SZiJFS7WDCWQ-bHVajGbO6MrcQwr3A22FtYat_qVAPraWZ8Z-Sa2oCvan9HZmUBmBQDgG4iTZ9FSyj4av98GNknM/s640/IMG_4692.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Grendel falls in with a bad crowd, mostly a dragon who encourages Grendel to make a choice--either be a hero or a monster. But no matter what he chooses, he should choose it fully. We're all going to die anyway. So Grendel chooses monster, in part, because when he returns to the meadhall, he hears the Shaper. The Shaper sings of the goodness of a god that blessed the Danes with Hrothgar, who accepts their toast with "bits of food in his beard" (77). A guard comes upon Grendel as he listens, "I'd meant them no harm, but they attacked me again, as always" (79). And so, Grendel devours the guard "with glee" (77). Thus, he begins his reign of terror on the meadhall, launching his first of many raids on the meadhall, killing seven and devouring them on the spot (79). He claims: </span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">I was transformed. I was a new focus for the clutter of space I stood in: if the world had once imploded on the tree where I waited, trapped and full of pain, it now blasted outward, away from me, screeching terror. I had become myself, the mama I'd searched the cliffs for once in vain. But that merely hints at what I mean. I had become something, as if born again. I had hung between possibilities before, between the cold truths I knew and the heart-sucking conjuring tricks of the Shaper; now that was passed: I was Grendel, Ruiner of Meadhalls, Wrecker of Kings! (80)</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">He has found it now: the ability to be something. To claim an identity. Yes, an identity of the destruction--ruiner, wrecker--but an identity nonetheless.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY812ScUEtnpzFJv0BX5XAY9hqoUp20iWttpwetl8Jir7IJ0O-obUtWzcWl-eFLdm6ubRv248Jh04CAO_HXVgXu9esxQ2lg-830O-RiJdM9YfDW9rYBnRQMkYIrSYygVJaXwe6NCfpS7I/s1600/IMG_4690.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY812ScUEtnpzFJv0BX5XAY9hqoUp20iWttpwetl8Jir7IJ0O-obUtWzcWl-eFLdm6ubRv248Jh04CAO_HXVgXu9esxQ2lg-830O-RiJdM9YfDW9rYBnRQMkYIrSYygVJaXwe6NCfpS7I/s640/IMG_4690.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Upon realizing his own new identity, Grendel ends up in a conversation with Unferth, the best of Hrothgar's thanes. It takes some time, but eventually, Unferth understands, at least part of, what Grendel is saying: finally, the ability to communicate with language. They have a talk about heroism, or at least Grendel does, and he mocks it thoroughly because he comes to understand his role in others' heroism: "I went on polishing the apple, smiling. "And the awful inconvenience," I said. "Always having to stand erect, always having to find noble language! It must wear on a man."" (84). Heroism is itself as much destruction as Grendel's consumption is:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">Ah, ah, it must be a terrible burden, though, being a hero—glory reaper, harvester of monsters! Everybody always watching you, seeing if you're still heroic... But no doubt there are compensations," I said. "The pleasant feeling of vast superiority, the easy success with women... And the joy of self-knowledge, that's a great compensation! The easy and absolute certainty that whatever the danger, however terrible the odds, you'll stand firm, behave with the dignity of a hero, yea, even to the grave!" (84-85)</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNtxZ58IKEV9HL2vsL5YQRORcQxNn-awkYK6Ie6KWBAp-5pL5ONnPusEQwAT9BlLctoUFqjHuUKzvf_ASHtg3NyQFrhbJbV41iSjriErWik3P7HoiV6rotbeNawdc187-P6D5x4xm05U/s1600/IMG_4696.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNtxZ58IKEV9HL2vsL5YQRORcQxNn-awkYK6Ie6KWBAp-5pL5ONnPusEQwAT9BlLctoUFqjHuUKzvf_ASHtg3NyQFrhbJbV41iSjriErWik3P7HoiV6rotbeNawdc187-P6D5x4xm05U/s640/IMG_4696.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="456" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">This is not the glory that Grendel had hoped for in finally making the overtures with the Danes. </span><span style="color: #666666;">"So much for heroism. So much for the harvest virgin. So much, also, for the alternative visions of blind old poets and dragons" (90). </span><span style="color: #666666;">And Grendel toys with Unferth mocking him and not even killing him, which would afford him a hero's death. He is beginning to realize the part he is made to play, and that they are dependent upon him always remaining monstrous: "</span><span style="color: #666666;">My enemies define themselves...on me" (91). "So much for heroism," indeed. </span><span style="color: #666666;">The Shaper dies. And Grendel is bored, so achingly bored by playing his role</span><span style="color: #666666;">. He fancies that his killing gives the Danes as much meaning as it gives them--it gives them a sense of purpose and the opportunity to engage in battles and perform great deeds. His killing gives them their humanity, but it is so </span><i style="color: #666666;">boring</i><span style="color: #666666;">. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">And we're only in year two (of twelve).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ5l5SopgmZAYWBG4NM0FPbkNB9rAlA8KHCAELh-mC-sf05KRLrJAYk0Yfut2bLRSa2cky1cQrldOj8bodL5bE9rroVhLuMX-QI9p9ko6WzwMHe3BGK2l3PGcHqaJeuGwhEL-NW_ddnk4/s1600/IMG_4697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1185" data-original-width="1600" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ5l5SopgmZAYWBG4NM0FPbkNB9rAlA8KHCAELh-mC-sf05KRLrJAYk0Yfut2bLRSa2cky1cQrldOj8bodL5bE9rroVhLuMX-QI9p9ko6WzwMHe3BGK2l3PGcHqaJeuGwhEL-NW_ddnk4/s640/IMG_4697.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Then a woman Wealthoew arrives as a gift from her brother to Hrothgar, and she is breathtaking. Wealtheow is new queen and meadbowl-bearer, and, of course, Grendel falls hopelessly in love with her. Or as much as a teen-aged monster with no real ability to communicate with his beloved can do. And he decides to kill her because he is a teen-aged monster with no real communicate that he is frustrated by the men's lack of ability to see her sorrow and her isolation in a community that is not her own. And just as quickly he decides not to kill her. Such is the fate of teen-aged love. </span><span style="color: #666666;">So he goes back to his more general killing and eating. "Tedium is the worst pain" (138). </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Then the Geats arrive. The Danes are embarrassed to have to be rescued by the Stranger (whom we all know is Beowulf), and even Grendel notices "Honor is very big with them; they'd rather be eaten alive than be bailed out by strangers" (159). Much mead boasting ensues. And Grendel declares that Beowulf "was insane" (162). He one-ups Unferth in stories, and Hrothgar calls for Wealtheow to pass the meadbowl some more. They sleep, and Grendel enters the meadhall's "great cavernous belly" once more (169). The hall itself is the consumer of Danes, Geats, and Grendel alike, and Grendel merely an active agent. He ties a tablecloth around his neck as a napkin and eats one sleeping man and goes after another--Beowulf (168). </span><span style="color: #666666;">Then we learn that Beowulf is more monstrous than the monster. He rips Grendel's arm from his body. "</span><span style="color: #666666;">I scream, facing him, grotesquely shaking hands—dear long-lost brother, kinsman-thane—and the timbered hall screams back at me--who is the monster? Who is the hero?" </span><span style="color: #666666;">(168-69). He is Beowulf and Beowulf is he. Long lost brothers, ripping limb from limb. </span><span style="color: #666666;">And Grendel realizes he will die, just as the dragon suggested, without a lot of fanfare or importance and merely out of an accident, a slip of fate (or in this case on blood). The only one who will mourn him is himself, in this indifferent world.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vhvLmtMScq3hOWwT2vF2B-sZUk_f1DveS0LR98kz-SWacpxRqawt5L6g7G1b8P3tc7uegccwIMFWighSgTO98eilMGK_AE0hEiqqKD3aL4j7w70RzzV8-eVUEfrOmGuEHKgq5PY8GMc/s1600/IMG_4685.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1530" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vhvLmtMScq3hOWwT2vF2B-sZUk_f1DveS0LR98kz-SWacpxRqawt5L6g7G1b8P3tc7uegccwIMFWighSgTO98eilMGK_AE0hEiqqKD3aL4j7w70RzzV8-eVUEfrOmGuEHKgq5PY8GMc/s640/IMG_4685.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="612" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">So let's think about consumption in <i>Grendel</i> and by extension in <i>Beowulf</i>. In this world, Grendel consumes and consumes, so let's recap three different ways this voracious consumption matters--</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Identity: As much as he consumes these people he so wants to be accepted by, they will not recognize him as any more than monster. Yes, it's the consumption that makes him monstrous in their eyes, but he can be and <i>is</i> nothing else. Might as well consume the very thing he wishes desperately to be associated with.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The threat the the host/guest relationship: Grendel likes to crash a good feast. And in doing so, he serves as a threat between the host/guest relationship. Hosts welcome guests, provide them food, warmth, shelter, protection. Guests act accordingly with gratitude. Enter monster. Now everything is all awry. To not be a protective host is to lose your standing, and Hrothgar cannot protect his guests or even his kinsmen. He has no power, and Grendel, it seems, has it all. </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK958EfUfWl88x6yjPDk56wahoa5LTgHfdy0eRccGG6NtNFposS8EgkUQTf2QV7sgHRuSXYF36j_b8q006qRgD59cDjxQjOlzCe5BWwvZAqZwRsJ1dmJJ3K7RkXd1krkleHshFYm8vTOM/s1600/IMG_4694.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK958EfUfWl88x6yjPDk56wahoa5LTgHfdy0eRccGG6NtNFposS8EgkUQTf2QV7sgHRuSXYF36j_b8q006qRgD59cDjxQjOlzCe5BWwvZAqZwRsJ1dmJJ3K7RkXd1krkleHshFYm8vTOM/s640/IMG_4694.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Power: There is certainly power in Grendel's consumption, but it is a nihilistic power that brings him nothing in the end. His power becomes tedious and predictable, and</span><span style="color: #666666;"> it doesn't have any meaning, or fulfillment for the teen-aged and petulant monster</span><span style="color: #666666;">. From the well-stocked meadhall (filled with wine, mead, ale (and let's assume) meat and cheese pie) to Grendel's feasting upon the Danes, this is a world of blind consumption that gives a thin identity. What does all this consumption add up to save a nihilistic recognition that we are trapped in some cycle of celebrate, consume, mourn? We are completely dependent upon each other for binary power definition, breaking the power is nigh impossible, and again and again we slip back into the cycle, try as Grendel might to change the narrative. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Oh John Gardner, you pessimistic but wickedly brilliant fellow (beyond this little blog post, apparently Gardner was interested in exploring <a href="https://mseffie.com/assignments/beowulf/12chap.html#1." target="_blank">"the main ideas of Western Civilization. . . and go through them in the voice of the monster, with the story already taken care of, with the various philosophical attitudes (though with Sartre in particular), and see[ing] what I could do"</a>--go have a gander). </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Let's just go eat some meat pie, shall we? I should have served our nihilism with mead. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX9y83oo8Ydh1Tnvu85f9Rmwv2iFA5D6IXdUGHYoe7fIj8PmrivyWt708nhhrkCRLIt4XdySmwnVEDuVymO88ExFMW4MfuBrHBGpHNGNKYPCk0JJN15YqCcOiGWOoQOV0BkAarpDG21pg/s1600/IMG_4695.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1290" data-original-width="1600" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX9y83oo8Ydh1Tnvu85f9Rmwv2iFA5D6IXdUGHYoe7fIj8PmrivyWt708nhhrkCRLIt4XdySmwnVEDuVymO88ExFMW4MfuBrHBGpHNGNKYPCk0JJN15YqCcOiGWOoQOV0BkAarpDG21pg/s640/IMG_4695.jpg" title="Steak and Cheese Pie in Grendel // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/12/stuck-pot-rice-with-recipe-for-stuck.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Stuck Pot Rice (with a recipe for Stuck Pot Rice with Creamed Kale and a Fried Egg)</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/12/lamb-stewed-with-almonds-and-tunisian.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Lamb Stewed with Almonds and Tunisian Spices</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/12/safardjaliya-tagine-of-lamb-with-quince.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: <i>Safardjaliya </i>(Tagine of Lamb with Quince)</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/12/pork-loin-braised-in-milk-bolognese.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Pork Loin Braised in Milk, Bolognese Style</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/12/white-cheddar-gougeres-apple-pulp-bacon.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: White Cheddar Gougères, Apple Pulp, Bacon and Sage</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/12/butternut-squash-cappellacci-with-brown.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Butternut Squash Cappellacci with Brown Butter and Nutmeg</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/12/cookbook-49-thai-food.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: <i>Lon Pla Raa </i>(Fermented Fish Relish)</a></div>
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #783f04;">Steak and Cheese Pie</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>She was brighter than the hearthfire, talking again with her family and friends, observing the antics of the bear. It was the king, old Hrothgar, who carried the meadbowl from table to table tonight. He walked, dignified, from group to group, smiling and filling the drinking cups, and you'dhave sworn from his look that never until tonight had the old man been absolutely happy. He would glance at his queen from time to time as he moved among his people and hers, the Danes and Helmings, and with each glance his smile would grow warmer for a moment and a thoughtful look would come over his eyes </i>(Grendel, 106).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Doesn't it seem as if Steak and Cheese Pie would be served at such an event? If only I had purchased mead!</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cottage-Kitchen-Cooking-English-Countryside/dp/0451495764" target="_blank">The Cottage Kitchen</a> </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This is a lovely steak and cheese pie. You might cut up some button mushrooms and throw them in for even more umami goodness. Do watch the salt--we put a little too much in. Also this is delightful the next day, too.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp salted butter, plus more for greasing</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2-3 garlic cloves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ pounds stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ cups chicken or beef stock</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 medium yellow onion, chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp all-purpose flour</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup plus 2 Tbsp dry white wine</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ Tbsp dried porcini mushrooms, roughly chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3-4 fresh thyme sprigs</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp chopped fresh sage leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 dried bay leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8 ounces frozen puff pastry, thawed</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">7 ounces <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taleggio_cheese" target="_blank">Taleggio</a> cheese, chopped</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><b><span style="color: #783f04;">Instructions</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">2. In a large ovenproof saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter with 1 Tbsp of oil. Working in batches, add the garlic and the cubed beef and brown the meat on all sides, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add a splash of stock to scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook until stock is evaporated, about 1-2 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Add the remaining Tbsp of oil and the onion and cook, stirring, until lightly transparent, 2-3 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the stock, wine, mushrooms, thyme, sage, and bay leaves, and bring to a boil. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Return the meat to the pan, and place the pan in the oven. Bake until the meat is tender, about 1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ hours. At this point, you can cool the filling and refrigerate overnight. Or you can sally forth. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. Butter a 9</span><span style="color: #666666;">½-inch round pie dish with a depth of 1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ inches.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. On a slightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry into 2 circles large enough to fit the pie dish. Place a circle in the bottom of the pie dish. Add the meat filling and cheese pieces in 3-4 layers. Cover the dish with the remaining pastry, trim, and pinch the edges to seal. Cut a hole in the middle of the pie to allow steam to escape.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">7. Bake until browned on top and heated through, 40-55 minutes. If the pastry browns too quickly, cover with foil. Serve hot straight from the oven.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-83265045979119026152017-11-30T20:03:00.001-08:002017-11-30T20:07:31.815-08:00Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghg1seuy_e7vTudH2gxEnJrV2R_O7LSOlpjHHl-EGl_xOAgiUX5f0VP_KD1egI6ris5mWh0xw8NNy7m0pQyDJhYTzZzs2kObgKuAMUDJzQh_GH47TFoDSBEx-0ZPmEmOlzkjtGFwleEnE/s1600/IMG_4351.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghg1seuy_e7vTudH2gxEnJrV2R_O7LSOlpjHHl-EGl_xOAgiUX5f0VP_KD1egI6ris5mWh0xw8NNy7m0pQyDJhYTzZzs2kObgKuAMUDJzQh_GH47TFoDSBEx-0ZPmEmOlzkjtGFwleEnE/s640/IMG_4351.jpg" title="Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I like a shrub. Mostly because I like sour things. Well, I also like salty things. And sweet things. And hot things. Okay, okay, I just like things. Especially if those things have strong flavors. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWAqyx9WhGkBBSCPFT8HTMBMht3APDvEQBd5cuIuT5u_dmbcy58LVki4xp-Jb3jpEUAF7x27zpzeWYRIoZeXPgrwqGsZmWlgbRE_YlFMhI5wx94KzMnW5P6ufiLLONmhh-bk2rXmNdD10/s1600/IMG_4349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1551" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWAqyx9WhGkBBSCPFT8HTMBMht3APDvEQBd5cuIuT5u_dmbcy58LVki4xp-Jb3jpEUAF7x27zpzeWYRIoZeXPgrwqGsZmWlgbRE_YlFMhI5wx94KzMnW5P6ufiLLONmhh-bk2rXmNdD10/s640/IMG_4349.JPG" title="Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)" width="620" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But this lovely cocktail is subtle, sweet, piney, citrusy, and spicy. It's the perfect holiday drink. And it packs a punch. A one-two punch. So plan to sip slowly.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Fed9_F7KKPG_SpGdahBsAOzI9KZpPkNwnlMwwEFfAQWao4N6wm2wlJylj1cM40fBjUc3j90zy9aDCTmWKKC9NZDlwcC6iglJvAdfy8SUgLRzAaru_qJpnc3iw_NTFbYxd_WWERxDP90/s1600/IMG_4348.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Fed9_F7KKPG_SpGdahBsAOzI9KZpPkNwnlMwwEFfAQWao4N6wm2wlJylj1cM40fBjUc3j90zy9aDCTmWKKC9NZDlwcC6iglJvAdfy8SUgLRzAaru_qJpnc3iw_NTFbYxd_WWERxDP90/s640/IMG_4348.jpg" title="Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">To make this shrub, simply grate up some apples and crush some cardamom pods. Then you let them soak in some apple cider vinegar mixed with <i>a lot</i> of sugar. Let a little fermentation happen. Strain. Bottle. Serve. Pucker up. </span><span style="color: #666666;">To learn more about a shrub, see</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/05/celery-shrub.html" target="_blank">here</a><span style="color: #666666;">. To drink more shrub, see below for a fabulous recipe. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIC3WL-3t3mJSjEbiMVfsaqiRaABWARVwflMw6jjbXTQTpyCWVdhbGz8gwqj35TMACPIuf7xZpy92jetaRpIthV5IpZpYJqy7qX4fYECCaqqPmpFeXshMHTW61MK91F8X81yu7-L7hEX4/s1600/IMG_4346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIC3WL-3t3mJSjEbiMVfsaqiRaABWARVwflMw6jjbXTQTpyCWVdhbGz8gwqj35TMACPIuf7xZpy92jetaRpIthV5IpZpYJqy7qX4fYECCaqqPmpFeXshMHTW61MK91F8X81yu7-L7hEX4/s640/IMG_4346.jpg" title="Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Once you have the shrub hanging out in your kitchen, you're officially qualified to dig your own shallow grave. Aghem, I mean <i>make </i>your own shallow grave. This one calls for gin, Pimms cup, and lemon. Yes, yes, <a href="http://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/drinks/a9967357/pimms-cup-recipe/" target="_blank">Pimms is usually associated</a> with the summer and Wimbledon, but let's splash some in a coupe glass and toast the holidays. We can do it; I believe in us.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhroCHiZleo35-BVFSNvsf7KHRVQR9BxDQvpmxffeIxlQ2hkfnFhm2KDqMOweTiS1-8GNa4BL7NgxZlEqhgjxrJmyFxEiJwIVKEo_V1mvr0NKV7Crv0xQxX1Ey4vKJTctkhbpr8PAjUECY/s1600/IMG_4347.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1053" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhroCHiZleo35-BVFSNvsf7KHRVQR9BxDQvpmxffeIxlQ2hkfnFhm2KDqMOweTiS1-8GNa4BL7NgxZlEqhgjxrJmyFxEiJwIVKEo_V1mvr0NKV7Crv0xQxX1Ey4vKJTctkhbpr8PAjUECY/s640/IMG_4347.jpg" title="Shallow Grave (and Apple-Cardamom Shrub)" width="420" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/11/infused-whiskey-3-ways.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Infused Whiskey--3 Ways</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/11/endive-with-sardines-and-lemon-from.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Endive with Sardines and Lemon from <i>The Homemade Kitchen</i></a><i> </i></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/11/tortilla-espanola-with-charred-red.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Tortilla Espanola with Charred Red Peppers</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/11/butternut-squash-soup-with-coconut-milk.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk, Miso, and Lime</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/11/blueberry-pie.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Blueberry Pie</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/11/roast-pork-with-apricots.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Roast Pork with Apricots</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/11/cookbook-47-essentials-of-classic.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Ravioli Stuffed with Parsley and Ricotta in Tomato Sauce with Heavy Cream</a></div>
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #b45f06;">Shallow Grave (with Apple-Cardamom Shrub)</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Shrubs-Old-Fashioned-Drink-Modern-Second/dp/158157388X" target="_blank">Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times</a></i></span><br />
<div>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">
<span style="color: #7f6000;"><b>Yield</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 drink</span><br />
<div style="color: #666666;">
<b><span style="color: #7f6000;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: #7f6000;">Ingredients</span></b></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">2 ounces gin </span><br />
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;">½ to 1 ounce Apple-Cardamom Shrub (the husband preferred this on the less "shrubby" side) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ ounce lemon juice </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ ounce Pimms Cup No. 1</span><br />
<b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #7f6000;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #7f6000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: times;">1. Add ingredients to an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake hard to blend ingredients and to dilute the cocktail.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: times;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: times;">2. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Yes, it's this simple.</span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">
<span style="color: #274e13;">Apple-Cardamom Shrub</span></span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">
</span></div>
<span style="color: #274e13;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">About 1 cup</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #274e13;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 medium apples, quartered (no need to peel, core or seed them)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup apple cider vinegar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup turbinado or </span><span style="color: #666666;">demerara sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp cardamom pods, lightly crushed</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #274e13;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Using a box grader or food processor, shred the apples.</span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Add the shredded apples, cider vinegar, sugar, and cardamom to a nonreactive container. Cover and leave in a cool place on the countertop for 2 days.</span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;">3. After 2 days, place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl. Strain the apple mixture, squeezing or pressing the mixture to remove any remaining liquid. Discard the solids.</span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Pour liquid into a clean mason jar or bottle, cap with lid, and then shake well to combine. refrigerate for up to one year.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-25718169560862528102017-11-21T08:02:00.000-08:002017-11-21T08:10:02.752-08:00Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPZfwLITjEa6SEq3NgbqiIN8ngXzzk-pcrtGq5IXobPtqoY769PkaFdBhGB3dKOWYu0g0CVApbB3iziPoyEnyO6VGUw5itKGDEYV4VcDSImfE8NFjQ6Cv6vPlosAtKghZ33vMft-c6Qu4/s1600/IMG_4394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPZfwLITjEa6SEq3NgbqiIN8ngXzzk-pcrtGq5IXobPtqoY769PkaFdBhGB3dKOWYu0g0CVApbB3iziPoyEnyO6VGUw5itKGDEYV4VcDSImfE8NFjQ6Cv6vPlosAtKghZ33vMft-c6Qu4/s640/IMG_4394.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i style="color: #666666;">In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food. This eighth</span><span style="color: #666666;"> installment is </span></i><b style="color: #666666;"><i>a book written by someone under 30</i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIbjPfaWq1O9RapX5B7lsvuIUaD6R5GtiHNebLRE0dYh4fbkQ5YI0hfjCVWBSXJ1ca_APHYaX_V1ZCuBcPYrsqBdUbu3JjZXtz2ikHsiV2a1WrF6ty0CV837Y5ELTWX7Wbyg47quqyqRs/s1600/IMG_4386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1362" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIbjPfaWq1O9RapX5B7lsvuIUaD6R5GtiHNebLRE0dYh4fbkQ5YI0hfjCVWBSXJ1ca_APHYaX_V1ZCuBcPYrsqBdUbu3JjZXtz2ikHsiV2a1WrF6ty0CV837Y5ELTWX7Wbyg47quqyqRs/s640/IMG_4386.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="544" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><b><br /></b></span>
Lately, there haven't been many books that keep me up at 1 a.m. weeping on my couch. Lately, I have been arguing at book club that most 20th- and 21st-century novels (or at least the ones I have been reading) highlight the futility of community. Lately it's been hard to find books about connection or, let's face it, even meaning. Lately, such a viewpoint seems depressing, because it is not truly the viewpoint I actually take on the world. Lately, I have been looking for a book like this book.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj48SzMC4maHaMDZDKQolvSinE5iWJkPPMSRb7rGQb-pPNmFjQCVzeinhVQJKJxH8hqdJq_e6waiI9VSdWThw3CC20DRuSwd5zWjycFqZue6cHJpvoQ3KkiFHsXXKTdv8xN_aKh57FaHi0/s1600/IMG_4389.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1523" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj48SzMC4maHaMDZDKQolvSinE5iWJkPPMSRb7rGQb-pPNmFjQCVzeinhVQJKJxH8hqdJq_e6waiI9VSdWThw3CC20DRuSwd5zWjycFqZue6cHJpvoQ3KkiFHsXXKTdv8xN_aKh57FaHi0/s640/IMG_4389.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="608" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">In Anthony Marra's absolutely stunning debut novel from 2013, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Constellation-Vital-Phenomena-Novel/dp/0770436420" target="_blank">The Constellation of Vital Phenomena</a>, </i>one must be ready for the brutality and cruelty of the Chechen Wars. One must be prepared for the absurdity, betrayals, hopelessness, and horror of rape, torture, betrayal, land mines, and check points (it is not a book I would recommend lightly). And, yet, one must also be ready for humor, whimsy, and coincidence. For meaning and hope and beauty. For a sense of community and connectedness. It's kind of just the book I needed.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Su69QWBK4RD8vi3WA8LHN03WzTh7lbMsaGUXrqQmQfk6W1QkQ_B8bhVgp7dHX5FIkKN7edtYnCN4UhnplVqX1GSehwgMjCnYqfmeGj1LcMtoPZAOLVhIEByrG2EOYBb6aVU0ietuKNE/s1600/IMG_4390.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Su69QWBK4RD8vi3WA8LHN03WzTh7lbMsaGUXrqQmQfk6W1QkQ_B8bhVgp7dHX5FIkKN7edtYnCN4UhnplVqX1GSehwgMjCnYqfmeGj1LcMtoPZAOLVhIEByrG2EOYBb6aVU0ietuKNE/s640/IMG_4390.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This book is big--not necessarily in page numbers (but it does clock in at 379 pages)--but it is big in scope. T</span><span style="color: #666666;">his plot is complicated, contains what feels like a multitude of coincidences, almost to the point of eye rolling. Then I realized that was a limitation on my part, not the book's. More on that in a moment. But let's look at a fraction of the plot.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6b65SJnAX1_a-sB2VbTyasCiZ9oWj8mluTvDn-KPdTw4gLt6DjdrTb5h4xZy59r0-sH-jWZ34UrLPFQ-IdCeuXtXY4thERWTx1oOide9ZZ6h4PSBZd3dzAXnDeC_XD4ebU-MoCo7remE/s1600/IMG_4482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6b65SJnAX1_a-sB2VbTyasCiZ9oWj8mluTvDn-KPdTw4gLt6DjdrTb5h4xZy59r0-sH-jWZ34UrLPFQ-IdCeuXtXY4thERWTx1oOide9ZZ6h4PSBZd3dzAXnDeC_XD4ebU-MoCo7remE/s640/IMG_4482.jpg" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The book opens with an abduction, with loss and brutality. Set in Chechnya between 1994-2004, this book is unrelenting. Eight-year-old Haava hides in the forest with a small blue suitcase as her father, Dokka, is taken by Russian soldiers in the middle of the night. They accuse him of aiding Chechen rebels, because an informant (a man he considered his friend) tells them so. A neighbor, Akhmed, also watches, afraid of what has happened to Haava as the soldiers set fire to her home. While the house burns,</span><span style="color: #666666;"> Akhmed finds Haava, and he brings her to a hardly-functioning hospital, where the sole remaining doctor, Sonja, almost single-handedly tends to the wounded. Sonja, who is an ethnic Russian born and raised in Chechnya, gave up a career in London to return to her sister, Natasha, who is recovering from </span><span style="color: #666666;">enforced prostitution. Now, Sonja is consumed with grief as her sister has vanished in the wake of the Russian bombing of Grozny,</span><span style="color: #666666;"> and she has no emotional space to take in an orphaned child. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So that's the premise. Or at least the opening chapter.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwJLeeaWwyhzTbMKHckLO7Cl_eXkmnWCTrCWZIaadR2r7E-Ia9zzrzNe8IYRi-Liz8IAgzYYs2DJ3vRez1tRlh9a218pf6jeaEQ3nvfY3mQdkki8w2z9XWfxPbP82LR91kolwqPlVobhA/s1600/IMG_4475.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1523" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwJLeeaWwyhzTbMKHckLO7Cl_eXkmnWCTrCWZIaadR2r7E-Ia9zzrzNe8IYRi-Liz8IAgzYYs2DJ3vRez1tRlh9a218pf6jeaEQ3nvfY3mQdkki8w2z9XWfxPbP82LR91kolwqPlVobhA/s640/IMG_4475.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="608" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Then the book continues with stories of gun-running neighbors, </span><span style="color: #666666;">a military officer with a </span></span><span style="color: #666666;">chest</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">stitched with </span><span style="color: #666666;">dental-floss, a one-armed security guard, multiple affairs, and a gun that holds together all of these characters coincidentally, tragically, and heroically. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Yet, more than any of the horrors of war is a sense of the power of one's stories, this sense of community, this sense that we are actually bound to one another, in spite or and sometimes because of cruelty and pain and betrayal. As heartbreakingly brutal as this book is, and it is, there is this beauty that permeates it all--from the poignance of Havaa dreaming of sea anemones on the night of her father is duct-taped and thrown into the back of a truck to the tender embrace of two men who spin and spin in the mud. That bond stems from a sense of purpose, of the commitment to one another, of the stories that we tell one another about the meaning we create in our own lives. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3W25mppCsUJk4agm1iEeRkplbdAUk9AkQogIScvATu6yrk8uZxaMsbn3kVNjyXcO0lghVlWdiEpGLc__O_OpE8ea2sIsDXJCfzrVVriSJXrUCcTAkfqJmlJh0ygX2nUhCHPbKWPhUGsk/s1600/IMG_4480.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3W25mppCsUJk4agm1iEeRkplbdAUk9AkQogIScvATu6yrk8uZxaMsbn3kVNjyXcO0lghVlWdiEpGLc__O_OpE8ea2sIsDXJCfzrVVriSJXrUCcTAkfqJmlJh0ygX2nUhCHPbKWPhUGsk/s640/IMG_4480.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">And, because of the nature of this blog and this project, I have to mention that there is food--</span><span style="color: #666666;">all over the place: </span><span style="color: #666666;">Akhmed and Havaa share black bread together on the road to the hospital (9); Sonja's sister Natasha drops an entire pot borscht, staining the Sonja's couch and providing a reminder of her sister's prolonged absence (32); Akhmed feeds broth to Ula, his bed-ridden and dementia-stricken wife (31); Sonja cooks Natasha potatoes and onions in a sisterly gesture of care (104); Natasha wistfully remembers starting her day with such simplicities as an alarm clock, breakfast <a href="http://www.shalts.com/hcd.html" target="_blank">djepelgesh</a>, morning news, and a cigarette </span>(180); the informer Ramzan trades cured meat for shotgun shells (233); in the mountains Dokka and Ramzan can eat freely, without the need to talk as their mouths are full of and satisfied by mutton (245); in contrast to the landfill pits where prisoners are taken, Ramzan has a fantasy of modern Chechen prisons that store banana peels, potato skins, and apple cores along with broken shoelaces, last-year's calendars, and deflated tires (257); the Chechen army comes to the hospital and tells of a commander who ate only antacids and an army that could only eat breakfast kasha (307); Ula used to take carrots from her mother's stew and feed them to her rabbits (327); <span style="color: #666666;">Khassan taught his young son Ramzan to eat sunflower seeds, long before Ramzan is tortured and becomes a Russian informant (365).</span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"> And so many, many cans of sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk because nobody can access fresh milk, as it was the first to go in the food shortages (302); next to go were plums, cabbages, then cornmeal (302). And while there are stories here, and</span></span><span style="color: #666666;"> some of them are central, none stand out quite like the plums.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvgRPzC4J9KvIYxRmI32e1cn094a_kIJ_cIlJnXv3VSEafTXhf2vQkqmevss849bpMehb5PCMc-O-JciYzIGjmYqWEAoqzEXwytO2QThV_UVau90CfSItVyiBb8BoH5Ut0Vb0d_ha6yaw/s1600/IMG_4473.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1571" data-original-width="1600" height="628" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvgRPzC4J9KvIYxRmI32e1cn094a_kIJ_cIlJnXv3VSEafTXhf2vQkqmevss849bpMehb5PCMc-O-JciYzIGjmYqWEAoqzEXwytO2QThV_UVau90CfSItVyiBb8BoH5Ut0Vb0d_ha6yaw/s640/IMG_4473.jpg" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">One character, Khassam--who is the scholar neighbor of both Akhmed and Dokka and disappointed father to the informant Ramzan--is trying, in some small way, to lay bare purpose, commitment, and meaning--from an historical perspective. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Khassan publishes only a fraction of the 3,302 of pages he has written on Chechen history in a chapter entitled "</span>Origins of Chechen Civilization: Prehistory to the Fall of the Mongol Empire." The only story that he can publicly tell is that of before his country was a country. This tome burdens him; he obsesses over it, a</span><span style="color: #666666;">s he wrestles with the decision of whether or not to kill his own son, Ramzan, for his son's turn as a Russian informant. Khassam resorts to writing</span><span style="color: #666666;">, instead, the simple and private stories. Khassam knows, like us, that </span><span style="color: #666666;">Dokka is doomed; he will be killed. Not in this book, but the ending leaves no doubt that it is merely a matter of time. In order to preserve for Havaa the stories that she, as an eight year old, will forget, that she is doomed to forget, just as Khassam is doomed to forget as a future sufferer of dementia, he writes down the stories of Dokka and Haava. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUT-CAgwbU_WyY5CKpxGVlSlrkkE2zDv-6f5F_WpSbrMaw7co_XHvLJGcU2kWOYhXNHeec62tELh5lG7SAHhye764tyCf-6kbBW2DPdA5OQUKLHsjOU0TdAgLHbUss7xn-JK-MDSAy7V0/s1600/IMG_4478.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUT-CAgwbU_WyY5CKpxGVlSlrkkE2zDv-6f5F_WpSbrMaw7co_XHvLJGcU2kWOYhXNHeec62tELh5lG7SAHhye764tyCf-6kbBW2DPdA5OQUKLHsjOU0TdAgLHbUss7xn-JK-MDSAy7V0/s640/IMG_4478.jpg" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">And the first story he writes involves a beautiful gesture and a plum. Allow me to quote rather extensively:</span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">These are stray memories, plucked from the air. But if I closed my eyes and force myself to find your father, to truly find him, I would find him at his chessboard. In his forty years he lost only three matches. One was to you on your sixth birthday. </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;"><span style="color: #999999;">I would find him peeling a plum. You haven't forgotten, have you, how he peeled the skin with a paring knife? A dozen revolutions and the skin came off in a thin, unbroken coil, a meter-long helix. He transformed that skin of that squat little fruit, smaller than your fist, into a measurable length. Then he held the blade to the naked flesh and rotated the plum vertically. One half fell from the other, the clean so cut not even a filament clung to the seed. Pale pink beads dripped to the plate. If Sharik [Khassam's dog] was with me, the dog would contemplate his hands eagerly. But when your father finally let them fall within reach of Sharik's tongue, he tasted the disappointment of dry skin; your father wasn't a graceful man, but he could cut a plum like a jeweler. </span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #999999;">He pretended to prefer the skin, and always gave you the flesh. You devoured the slices because you had to wash your hands before touching the chess pieces. It was a beautiful set, hand carved, purchased by your great-grandfather, before the Revolution, when a postal clerk could afford such intimate craftsmanship. He taught you to play chess, and on your sixth birthday, he let you win. Your father did many things in his forty years. Yet if pressed to recall his finest moment, I would chose to see him in the living room, with you, by the chess set peeling a plum. (131-2)</span></blockquote>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuSHMlwHJo1sZQe0eFB2CC9m4-CsPjmbkAEqQQbXoUr812GFZ1CiGEo2UC5Jno2n9N1E-vfFayzsz2BmDsoEHsZarutfVBeWOCmWyMQBlsFqnX7ivqPalrGDKwNZEvt48TBai0z7eDXs/s1600/IMG_4479.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1492" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuSHMlwHJo1sZQe0eFB2CC9m4-CsPjmbkAEqQQbXoUr812GFZ1CiGEo2UC5Jno2n9N1E-vfFayzsz2BmDsoEHsZarutfVBeWOCmWyMQBlsFqnX7ivqPalrGDKwNZEvt48TBai0z7eDXs/s640/IMG_4479.jpg" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="596" /></a> </div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">That skin is continuous, unbroken despite being peeled from the fruit. A stretch, perhaps, but much like the stories told within this novel. More obvious though is the description of the peel as a helix, which can only call to mind DNA, this connection of genetic material of one to another. And Dokka is masterful in peeling it, transforming the"s</span><span style="color: #666666;">quat little fruit," something ugly into something vulnerable in its "naked flesh" but also exquisite with its "pale pink beads." Further, there is something magical about the peel, which is over a meter long, coming from a fruit "smaller than your fist." This is a gesture of wonder and delight--a gesture that suggests even the smallest fruit holds this massiveness, just as the smallest stories or gestures hold within them a multitude of possibilities. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Dokka makes small sacrifices for Havaa (eating the skin while offering her the flesh), sacrifices she cannot understand or appreciate, as she is only six. She "devours" the plum, ready to wash her hands promptly, as she has other things on her mind rather than the beauty of her father artfully peeling a plum as a gesture to her. She has a chess game to play. The logic of the game seems--to her--paramount</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666;"> to the experience; for her there is nothing tangible to be savored here. However, Khassan sees instead the g</span><span style="color: #666666;">ift of the plum flesh and the ethereal offering of a father sitting with his daughter, letting her win at chess game played on a board purchased by her great-grandfather.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAvtodLuKRi2Xoie81nX7hc1c_r1SCjDizT9Tp-mddUs0r7G5Ba1cYfvfS-Ctfc3WtqQhmDmu6KqWV4jl_97duSKGE9oVL7d_q5U0kMDnLxMyv_OLr_okRIqMXs7E12hOJLDxt7tHvSbc/s1600/IMG_4471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1600" height="532" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAvtodLuKRi2Xoie81nX7hc1c_r1SCjDizT9Tp-mddUs0r7G5Ba1cYfvfS-Ctfc3WtqQhmDmu6KqWV4jl_97duSKGE9oVL7d_q5U0kMDnLxMyv_OLr_okRIqMXs7E12hOJLDxt7tHvSbc/s640/IMG_4471.jpg" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Most poignant and breathtaking about this novel is that the stories we tell are inadequate, not because there is no purpose or meaning, but because we cannot always know the full story. That there are stories outside our own that are as steeped in their own purpose that lend meaning to our own lives without us fully knowing how or why or when. And we lend meaning to those stories without realizing it either.</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">If we were to write the stories of our own lives, or better yet if someone, who knew the stories of all of the lives that have touched our own and we have touched theirs, were able to tell to those stories, too, then our stories would look coincidental and concentric. Like an unbroken, continuous peel of a story. And they would have an insight that we would not--perhaps because of our haste to move on (to wash our hands and get to the game of chess, perhaps) but more often than not because of our ignorance of the larger picture or the concentric circles of the stories of others around us. Our understanding of our own stories is inadequate but not without meaning.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimMS9L-4cJH0rl-CZlC7HQp3pL9xLvXfKZu7kV9VnjUw4rvy09VlKCrglt6u3pf6Gctqf63x172z0ihZTJlqeFP52v4NnptpKq4KmqCcwbrlBR_C-sf3eNkddSDBm-pYyYoXwP0c6h4fc/s1600/IMG_4481.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1391" data-original-width="1600" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimMS9L-4cJH0rl-CZlC7HQp3pL9xLvXfKZu7kV9VnjUw4rvy09VlKCrglt6u3pf6Gctqf63x172z0ihZTJlqeFP52v4NnptpKq4KmqCcwbrlBR_C-sf3eNkddSDBm-pYyYoXwP0c6h4fc/s640/IMG_4481.JPG" title="Spiced Plum Jam in The Constellation of Vital Phenomena // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Thus, any eye rolling at the number of coincidences in the book that I may have felt the urge to do was immediately squelched. My limitation. Not the book's. And Mazza wants us to know it--look how he titled the book. <i>A Constellation of Vital Phenomena</i>—the title comes from the definition of “life” in a Russian medical dictionary. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Yep, a constellation. Or a helix. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Now I have to curl up on the couch and read this one again.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/11/holiday-roast-chicken-with-cranberry.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Holiday Roast Chicken with Cranberry-Fig Stuffing</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/11/dark-chocolate-truffle-tart-with-walnuts.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Dark Chocolate Truffle Tart with Walnuts</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/11/cream-biscuits-with-jam-butter.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Cream Biscuits with Jam Butter</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/11/butternut-squash-soup-with-coconut-milk.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk, Miso, and Lime</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/11/blueberry-pie.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Blueberry Pie</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/11/roast-pork-with-apricots.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Roast Pork with Apricots</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/11/cookbook-45-mastering-art-of-french.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: <i>Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons</i> (Fish Fillets Poached in White Wine With Mushrooms)--with really, <b>really</b> bad pictures</a></div>
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #4c1130;">Spiced Plum Jam </span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>"Your father did many things in his forty years. Yet if pressed to recall his finest moment, I would chose to see him in the living room, with you, by the chess set peeling a plum" </i>(<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Constellation-Vital-Phenomena-Novel/dp/0770436420" target="_blank">A Constellation of Vital Phenomena</a> 131-2).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food-Jars-Preserving-Batches-Year-Round/dp/0762441437" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Marisa McClellan's Food in Jars</a><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">This is the perfect fall jam. Make it every summer. Then slather it on everything you eat, including oatmeal, toast, or straight from the jar. </span><br />
<div>
<div style="color: black;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #741b47;">
<b>Yield</b></span><br />
</span><br />
<div style="color: #666666;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">about 8 ½-pint jars</span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">
</span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #741b47;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8 cups pitted and finely chopped plums (about 4 pounds whole plums)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ cups granulated sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Zest and juice of one lemon (preferably organic)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 tsp ground cinnamon</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ tsp ground cloves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 (3 ounce) packets liquid pectin</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #741b47;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">Prepare a boiling water bath and 4 regular-mouth 1-pint jars or 8 </span><span style="color: #666666;">½-pint jars </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">(see </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><i>To Sterilize the Jars </i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">below). </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">2. In a large stainless steel or enameled cast iron pot, combine the plums and sugar. Stir so the plums begin to release their juice. Bring to a boil and add the lemon zest and juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Cook the jam over high heat for 15-20 minutes until it looks quite syrupy and (as McClellan calls it) "molten."</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Add the pectin and bring to a rolling boil for a full 5 minutes. The jam should look thick and shiny.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">Fill prepared jars (see </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><i>To Seal the Jars</i></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">), wipe rims, apply lids and screw rings. Lower into a prepared boiling water bath and process for 10 minutes at a gentle boil (do not start counting time until the pot has achieved a boil).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">5. When time is up, remove jars from the pot and let them cool completely. When they are cool to the touch, check the seals by pushing down on the top of the lid. Lack of movement means a good seal.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<i><span style="color: #666666;">To Sterilize the Jars:</span></i></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. If you're starting with brand new jars, remove the lids and rings; if you're using older jars, check the rims to ensure there are no chips or cracks.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Put the lids in a small saucepan, cover with water, and bring them to a simmer on the back of the stove.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Using a canning rack, lower the jars into a large pot filled with enough water to cover the jars generously. Bring the water to a boil.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">4. While the water in the canning pot comes to a boil, prepare the jam (or whatever product you are making).</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">5. When the recipe is complete, remove the jars from the canning pot (pouring the water back into the pot as you remove the jars). Set them on a clean towel on the counter. Remove the lids and set them on the clean towel.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<i><span style="color: #666666;">To Seal the Jars:</span></i></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Carefully fill the jars with the jam (or any other product). Leave about </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">¼-inch </span><span style="color: #666666;">headspace (the room between the surface of the product and the top of the jar).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">2. Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, damp paper towel.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">3. Apply the lids and screw the bands on the jars to hold the lids down during processing. Tighten the bands with the tips of your fingers so that they are not overly tight.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">4. Carefully lower the filled jars into the canning pot and return the water to a boil.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">5. Once the water is at a rolling boil, start your timer. The length of processing time varies for each recipe; for the jam, cook for 10 minutes at a rolling boil.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">6. When the timer goes off, remove the jars from the water. Place them back on the towel-lined counter top, and allow them to cool. The jar lids should "ping" soon after they've been removed from the pot (the pinging is the sound of the vacuum seals forming by sucking the lid down).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">7. After the jars have cooled for 24 hours, you can remove the bands and check the seals by grasping the edges of the jar and lifting the jar about an inch or two off the countertop. The lid should hold in place.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">8. Store the jars with good seals in a cool, dark place. And jars with bad seals can still be used, just do so within two weeks and with refrigeration.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-26817119101523847642017-11-11T16:14:00.000-08:002017-12-03T08:57:46.301-08:00Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDMQU0wQLxmqEMio30VmE5673BbCFUE25Og5qlWMBXoE172KDYd6jX-Fc_vhfZkBLY4KrQe5X7MGF6FSMIDcLSvJHR4_ArvXWl3IQt3_KltPcUeHilQnT53AKA_9XQVYR_3XKt6-_Rzz4/s1600/IMG_4465.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1154" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDMQU0wQLxmqEMio30VmE5673BbCFUE25Og5qlWMBXoE172KDYd6jX-Fc_vhfZkBLY4KrQe5X7MGF6FSMIDcLSvJHR4_ArvXWl3IQt3_KltPcUeHilQnT53AKA_9XQVYR_3XKt6-_Rzz4/s640/IMG_4465.JPG" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="460" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">In a last hurrah to summer and, perhaps, even to the fall, I present to you this lovely tomato tarte tatin. And I wistfully bid farewell to tomatoes, or at least good ones, until next July. In the meantime, let's just drink Pimms Cups with cucumbers (probably from the hothouse) with good friends, cook from fun cookbooks, and settle in for the winter.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZgz1N-Y9lXnmJq8Pzim9GMSVzvj1SIViREp3pBGDn5r8mROb1OPXlvkjZG1iv6L5ORqfScGY6J6yrqm-iKiav9SxMw4NXLAvHXzZ2YYY_1lSpd1WpmNSszd7ypLiUtWa6DhNTjAJqh_M/s1600/IMG_4463.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZgz1N-Y9lXnmJq8Pzim9GMSVzvj1SIViREp3pBGDn5r8mROb1OPXlvkjZG1iv6L5ORqfScGY6J6yrqm-iKiav9SxMw4NXLAvHXzZ2YYY_1lSpd1WpmNSszd7ypLiUtWa6DhNTjAJqh_M/s640/IMG_4463.jpg" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This little inspiration comes from my latest acquisition, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cottage-Kitchen-Cooking-English-Countryside/dp/0451495764" target="_blank">The Cottage Kitchen</a> </i>cookbook from <a href="http://www.mmforsberg.com/" target="_blank">Marte Marie Forsberg</a>. Forsberg is one hell of a photographer (seriously, if you didn't click on her link in the previous sentence, do so now. I'll wait.)--her images are lush and abundant and inviting and casual and snug--something like a Dutch Renaissance painting. Oh, I want to visit her cottage in England. I want her to make me dinner. I want her to photograph said dinner. <i>Sigh</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGam5e4VOqg9hcnx9Q47icMY8wGNh9H18S2xsQtKwVtOvfbDGfaFanE-QEslD48zlW6S5oOEYCMAMQ9fZ0HUtaba8EjiWv8qv2JLGx1HoIQNXA9X295L1hU4Qk9N9pcbMPZWrGSB0EzE/s1600/IMG_4470.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="955" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGam5e4VOqg9hcnx9Q47icMY8wGNh9H18S2xsQtKwVtOvfbDGfaFanE-QEslD48zlW6S5oOEYCMAMQ9fZ0HUtaba8EjiWv8qv2JLGx1HoIQNXA9X295L1hU4Qk9N9pcbMPZWrGSB0EzE/s640/IMG_4470.JPG" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="382" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Her cookbook is equally lush. And it gives the air of casualness, but I am not going to lie to you. It is extravagant. I <i>want </i>to eat Foie Gras and Kidney Bruschetta with Parsley; I can convince myself I <i>need</i> Black Pudding with Scallops and Caviar; who doesn't hanker for Grilled Lobster with Lime and Cilantro Butter? Lest you think this cookbook is only for the rich of taste and of pocketbook, Forsberg tosses in such delights as Norwegian Waffles with Strawberries and Sour Cream and Fennel and Potato Soup, reminding us that simple starches are equally delightful. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Forsberg divides the cookbook into seasons, with photographs of frosty countrysides and of utterly snuggly white dogs in front of fogged-in gates that are framed by bare vines. Or of spectacular pewter cups being filled with Brandy Hot Chocolate with Cardamom (yes please). I suppose she does make the coming winter look as equally good as she made the tail end of summer taste.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl9ztA8CixESmGh6ldMBEmKSlejp9cswVlbBYceCCd6hlRjYIn56dt_3UldiOPD4xuvkxG9-R5Nnsu7mU72RBiU3DQDfiFhC2I_lvpFKarqMc-dZS2wFPa6QgP4K5Lydv4AJ-X2uznsUo/s1600/IMG_4466.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl9ztA8CixESmGh6ldMBEmKSlejp9cswVlbBYceCCd6hlRjYIn56dt_3UldiOPD4xuvkxG9-R5Nnsu7mU72RBiU3DQDfiFhC2I_lvpFKarqMc-dZS2wFPa6QgP4K5Lydv4AJ-X2uznsUo/s640/IMG_4466.jpg" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">About the Tomato Tarte Tartin:</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This is one of those dished that I will need to make again and again to get it just right, and I will enjoy the process of perfecting it. The tomatoes are salty and sweet and I think if you added some anchovies, you would not go wrong. Unless you are married to the husband, who is not an anchovies fan. However, I have a sneaking suspicion that I could sneak some in and he wouldn't even notice. He just thinks he doesn't like anchovies. He is wrong. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNBFAhjL5wKGVpWKcPSuqGfBCsAaXEBEzIFvibK4h0QhLyhzpJW_OMqKYFPeWuCx8kSGsPLaYvl3V_tReQl5U1Ykm1atwqeP2QDtkGhY_-fNlOGa0vgFToqRya6rj5Ezpe1tRY2rRTWBc/s1600/IMG_4469.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNBFAhjL5wKGVpWKcPSuqGfBCsAaXEBEzIFvibK4h0QhLyhzpJW_OMqKYFPeWuCx8kSGsPLaYvl3V_tReQl5U1Ykm1atwqeP2QDtkGhY_-fNlOGa0vgFToqRya6rj5Ezpe1tRY2rRTWBc/s640/IMG_4469.JPG" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Also, I added the step to dry out the tomatoes a bit. In my photographed version here, you can see that the puff pastry got a little steamed rather than toasted. The taste was still lovely, but I wanted to bump up the texture a bit.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">And finally, don't skimp on the burrata. That is a heavenly cheese. No doubt. However, if you have dear friends who are not cheese fans (what!), you can always put it on the side. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Okay, people, summer is officially over. Bring on the rain and the fog and the green hills. I am so ready. And let's crack open the winter section of </span><i style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cottage-Kitchen-Cooking-English-Countryside/dp/0451495764" target="_blank">The Cottage Kitchen</a> </i><span style="color: #666666;">because I can see some afternoons sipping Crema Catalana or a breakfast with a lashing of Forsberg's Lemon Curd in my future. I can tell. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn4PxSN0_vFVBR2BgRXvuzJGEGViCfnUfF-cx7k0I_Br7EJkK6JCNjdRxe72ti8dQ7eeoSbEpgdKRCR6Dp0xLWMWul5BzX7EE4OhLyIPxm5_bXZ4BG9OO_nScXhAPE1wh7fiLWtl627ZM/s1600/IMG_4468.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn4PxSN0_vFVBR2BgRXvuzJGEGViCfnUfF-cx7k0I_Br7EJkK6JCNjdRxe72ti8dQ7eeoSbEpgdKRCR6Dp0xLWMWul5BzX7EE4OhLyIPxm5_bXZ4BG9OO_nScXhAPE1wh7fiLWtl627ZM/s640/IMG_4468.jpg" title="Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata from The Cottage Cookbook by Marte Marie Forsberg" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<div style="font-family: times; margin: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">I received this book from <a href="http://www.bloggingforbooks.org/" target="_blank">Blogging for Books</a> in exchange for an honest review.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/11/indian-spiced-chicken-with-cilantro.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Indian-Spiced Chicken with Cilantro Chutney</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/11/i-really-like-it-when-other-people-make.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Grilled Squid with Cucumbers and Anise Hyssop</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/11/quinces-poached-in-syrup.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Quinces Poached in Syrup</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/11/butternut-squash-soup-with-coconut-milk.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk, Miso, and Lime</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/11/blueberry-pie.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Blueberry Pie</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/02/moroccan-chicken-with-dates-and.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Moroccan Chicken with Dates and Couscous</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/11/cookbook-45-mastering-art-of-french.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: <i>Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons</i> (Fish Fillets Poached in White Wine With Mushrooms)</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Tomato Tarte Tatin with Burrata</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from </span><i style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cottage-Kitchen-Cooking-English-Countryside/dp/0451495764" target="_blank">The Cottage Kitchen</a> </i><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 6-8</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #660000;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 large red onion, halved and thinly sliced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp salted butter</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 Tbsp honey</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp red wine vinegar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">14 ounces cherry tomatoes halved</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½cup green or black olives</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ tsp finely chopped fresh thyme</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Salt and pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6 ounce puff pastry</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4</span><span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> ounces fresh burrata, torn into pieces</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Olive oil, for drizzling</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Fresh basil torn, for garnish</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #660000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. In a large, ovenproof skillet set over low heat, cook the onions in the butter, stirring occasionally, until caramelized, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. In the same skillet, saute the halved tomatoes until they release their juices, about 5-6 minutes. Add the olives, thyme, salt and pepper. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. In a small skillet </span><span style="color: #666666;">set over medium heat, bring the honey to a gentle simmer, and cook until warmed through and slightly thickened, 5-6 minutes. Add the vinegar and cook, swirling the pan until combined, 2-3 minutes.</span><span style="color: #666666;"> Add the honey mixture to the tomatoes and toss to coat.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Arrange the tomatoes into a heap in the middle of the skillet as much as you can, so you have room to tuck the pastry around everything. Pile the onions on top.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry and cut into a circular piece just slightly larger than the skillet. Lay the pastry over the tomatoes and onions in the skillet and tuck any excess down under the vegetables.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. Place the skillet in the middle of the oven and bake until cooked through, 27-30 minutes. After removing the tart from the oven, let it cook for a few minutes longer before placing a large plate upside down on top of the skillet Using oven mitts, press the plate down and quickly flip the skillet and the plate so the skillet is update down and the tart dislodges onto the plate. Carefully remove the skillet.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">7. Scatter the torn pieces of burrata on top of the tart. Serve warm, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with basil and pepper </span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-13218319861690954662017-10-21T09:59:00.001-07:002017-10-21T10:02:01.253-07:00Bowl of Red (Texas Chili)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2-P2J_8GnaNoqhEEU16gvm4GPHcgnrtM9Cq3-QY7GilMc5m-Xp2NAHbKkxHmWJUOMdqn8Ygc0g_JP-2nf7hUPDzqyta8TevYeQgXWlLZ-UA0tcrLZbCjef42rTVuBXFnxYV7jwfus1U/s1600/IMG_3935.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2-P2J_8GnaNoqhEEU16gvm4GPHcgnrtM9Cq3-QY7GilMc5m-Xp2NAHbKkxHmWJUOMdqn8Ygc0g_JP-2nf7hUPDzqyta8TevYeQgXWlLZ-UA0tcrLZbCjef42rTVuBXFnxYV7jwfus1U/s640/IMG_3935.JPG" title="Bowl of Red" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">My father-in-law and I disagree about chili. We also disagree about most of the books we read in Bookclub, but that's another issue, especially when one has the pressing issue of chili to discuss. You see, he's wrong. And I am right. Beans <i>belong </i>in chili.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqiV-K_CPcCnhZ7HydaJM_EFnecBphoLv2-0IN3FL0pVqbzVjdj6ctyZaTfVpxHI1h_ltngShnGkStusfrCGzndoxFkiEZnPgr2ejvwk_H5algILnon-QOrY-Saf11H0o8U8lqTFLjlMk/s1600/IMG_3937.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqiV-K_CPcCnhZ7HydaJM_EFnecBphoLv2-0IN3FL0pVqbzVjdj6ctyZaTfVpxHI1h_ltngShnGkStusfrCGzndoxFkiEZnPgr2ejvwk_H5algILnon-QOrY-Saf11H0o8U8lqTFLjlMk/s640/IMG_3937.JPG" title="Bowl of Red" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">And that's where he chimes in: He argues that chili should not have beans in it. He ascribes to Texas chili making, where beans are eschewed for more meat. And then some more meat on top of that. I guess, the happy part about a Bowl of Red is that if you're paleo, this is one meat-friendly pot of soup.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVAnuQaxLBwpCZKJo03GeUCQoyf_R1ghDu2jq5WToknVEjppNyAL3hOYYVImIi9JvVBpfTKB4dxx-6ELm0VtZRls_2vIfF6SkrzvO6BNRknBf8LBtKSLqYuIIe0HWIfFTt1Oab1jX2bec/s1600/IMG_3936.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1433" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVAnuQaxLBwpCZKJo03GeUCQoyf_R1ghDu2jq5WToknVEjppNyAL3hOYYVImIi9JvVBpfTKB4dxx-6ELm0VtZRls_2vIfF6SkrzvO6BNRknBf8LBtKSLqYuIIe0HWIfFTt1Oab1jX2bec/s640/IMG_3936.JPG" title="Bowl of Red" width="573" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from </span><i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/New-American-Heart-Association-Cookbook/dp/0553447181" target="_blank">The New American Heart Association Cookbook</a>, </i><span style="color: #666666;">this bowl of red is incredibly simple, especially since I didn't stew this on the stovetop for an hour, which you are welcome to do. Instead, I put this is in the slow cooker after browning the meat. Then I went to work. And when I came home I had a fantastic bowl of chile-meat soup, which is what we non-Texans might call this dish. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Now, if you add beans, you'd have a bowl of chili. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h_LQxrvY0OHIAbfDlPwEQ4xqmZok3YUeRv6hFiiLkn6LBggCzwEfitWyOJNbjuCmnhkGYCEVTxp-XuunsFZmlGuvlQXzXmWcJahc39FFKPmbniCrWLm6hIWwVwqOKAchHwzzqbftrhI/s1600/IMG_3933.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1594" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h_LQxrvY0OHIAbfDlPwEQ4xqmZok3YUeRv6hFiiLkn6LBggCzwEfitWyOJNbjuCmnhkGYCEVTxp-XuunsFZmlGuvlQXzXmWcJahc39FFKPmbniCrWLm6hIWwVwqOKAchHwzzqbftrhI/s640/IMG_3933.JPG" title="Bowl of Red" width="636" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/10/spicy-black-bean-soup-with-lime-crema.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Spicy Black Bean Soup with Lime Crema</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/10/sweet-fig-and-black-pepper-scones.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Sweet Fig and Black Pepper Scones</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/10/creole-mushroom-and-pepper-stew.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Creole Mushroom and Pepper Stew</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/10/ottolenghis-salmon-steaks-in-chraimeh.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Ottolenghi's Salmon Steaks in Chraimeh Sauce</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/10/are-you-hungry-because-this-breakfast.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Breakfast Bomber Sub</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/10/roast-pork-with-onion-and-apple.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Roast Pork with Onion-and-Apple Marmalade</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/10/cookbook-42-american-food.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Good Earth Bread</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE8dFrKpa6c7HNR8tNqNpkZz4oVdr1RR5G37o7xGncZLZuur3qYT3au9kyYoi9JgVN8Rvhm1IFQ4uzeSEhUIHJdzi4kqfXywsG9MYk0D5I9C5rGbmzZHOehONlbV_kjogpxGeJk6wqozY/s1600/IMG_3938.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE8dFrKpa6c7HNR8tNqNpkZz4oVdr1RR5G37o7xGncZLZuur3qYT3au9kyYoi9JgVN8Rvhm1IFQ4uzeSEhUIHJdzi4kqfXywsG9MYk0D5I9C5rGbmzZHOehONlbV_kjogpxGeJk6wqozY/s640/IMG_3938.JPG" title="Bowl of Red" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #990000;">Bowl of Red</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/New-American-Heart-Association-Cookbook/dp/0553447181" target="_blank"><i>The New American Heart Association Cookbook</i></a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 Servings</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #990000;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 pound boneless top round steak, visible fat discarded, and cut into </span><span style="color: #666666;">½-inch cubes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup water</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup dark beer</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ medium onion, chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ 8-ounce can no-salt added tomato sauce</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 ancho chiles, seeded and chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 medium fresh jalapeno, seeds discarded and chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp chile powder</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp ground cumin</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 medium garlic cloves, minced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp ground coriander</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp dried oregano</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ tsp salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅛ tsp pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅛ tsp </span><span style="color: #666666;">cayenne</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup sour cream</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Fresh cilantro, chopped</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #990000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">1. Lightly spray a pan with cooking spray. Heat over medium-high heat. Cook the beef 3-5 minutes until browned on the outside. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">2. Add the beef to a slow cooker. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cook for 6-8 hours on low.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">3. Ladle the chile into bowls. Top each serving with sour cream and sprinkle with cilantro, all optional. </span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-25601736272224688932017-10-11T18:52:00.002-07:002017-10-11T19:04:14.758-07:00Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPlb8_VlX59jiSNaK4Z6wpLOYnq2LSQwL-6394if3uD0Ktq-sd5IkXRUKP2thu5jGRzQk8xzOIvc7Jm5QBr9Nk9dKrNyt6Fq2t3Zc-FhHbc_oXFuF32ETls3Q6bnIXwOvqAaSEX7b5OKY/s1600/IMG_4264.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="922" data-original-width="1600" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPlb8_VlX59jiSNaK4Z6wpLOYnq2LSQwL-6394if3uD0Ktq-sd5IkXRUKP2thu5jGRzQk8xzOIvc7Jm5QBr9Nk9dKrNyt6Fq2t3Zc-FhHbc_oXFuF32ETls3Q6bnIXwOvqAaSEX7b5OKY/s640/IMG_4264.jpg" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="color: #666666;">In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food. </span></i></span><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";">And it turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. This seventh installment is a book published in 1917</i>.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #666666;">Where there is a fallen woman, there is usually an apple. Even for the venerable Edith Wharton.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">In Wharton's little novel <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/0140186794/ref=sxbs_sxwds-stvp_1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=3171424582&pd_rd_wg=gM7YO&pf_rd_r=SKDSVGVRY7678JYHQ0E1&pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-bottom-slot&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=0140186794&pd_rd_w=KokMX&pf_rd_i=edith+wharton+summer&pd_rd_r=7d2c7939-aef0-11e7-b145-5116ae7790c7&ie=UTF8&qid=1507773356&sr=1" target="_blank">Summer</a>, </i>published exactly 100 years ago, Wharton likes to talk about eating. A lot. She is not particular about the food, itself. But eating--well, eating and its environs take center stage. Eating becomes a place of transaction. </span><span style="color: #666666;">And apples, both in their pie and in their unsliced, unsugared, and unbaked forms, show up </span><i style="color: #666666;">a lot</i><span style="color: #666666;">. But then again, we've got a fallen woman, the Fourth of July, and New England. Seems just about right. But it's Edith Wharton, so let's not get ahead of ourselves. For, you see, she's going to complicate these apples a bit.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbo2LIlHTEzHM37URx8rhyCngbJGi1932L8Jb87UP_HTJTMcgt7mFRszRUORM_MY4wBUbj4YbqQj54nHtJwkMrrOnkWNnidr820HfDzbkCVUOEB39s9XgfawntCm5pItqKy8wziyz6aL0/s1600/IMG_4148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1504" data-original-width="1600" height="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbo2LIlHTEzHM37URx8rhyCngbJGi1932L8Jb87UP_HTJTMcgt7mFRszRUORM_MY4wBUbj4YbqQj54nHtJwkMrrOnkWNnidr820HfDzbkCVUOEB39s9XgfawntCm5pItqKy8wziyz6aL0/s640/IMG_4148.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Summer,</i> which takes place in New England (only one of two of her works to be so),<i> </i>is lesser known than <i>Ethan Frome </i>(that oft-assigned chestnut of middle school) but it certainly shares similarities; Wharton herself said <i>Summer</i> was her "hot Ethan," and like <i>Ethan</i>, it is about sex and sexuality and desire. And it suggests, perhaps, there's more to life than a hot romance with a ne'er-do-well outsider and a longing to leave one's small hometown. Not much more, she concedes, but something just a little bit more.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji31rstUetdcN8YaXQIFUo4p6IrQKw5sUebz4-b9VQzdV6L6oI9b-EX3Iid6Evm5KOMrDtmiN5y-hNqglCQrSiDNUuOOMuMhx3E057uQ32Nvk9ett_-5C3D3MO6zsB4rOOHGAZKU5pYUY/s1600/IMG_4157.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1314" data-original-width="1600" height="524" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji31rstUetdcN8YaXQIFUo4p6IrQKw5sUebz4-b9VQzdV6L6oI9b-EX3Iid6Evm5KOMrDtmiN5y-hNqglCQrSiDNUuOOMuMhx3E057uQ32Nvk9ett_-5C3D3MO6zsB4rOOHGAZKU5pYUY/s640/IMG_4157.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Set in the small town of North Dormer in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, the story details the coming of age of Charity Royall, bored teenage librarian from "the Mountain," as she is often reminded. In other words, not from town, from a lower class of squalor and lawlessness not spoken of. Rescued as a child from said Mountain, which looms over North Dormer, by the town's premier citizen Lawyer Royall, Charity finds herself aching for something more than either the Mountain or her oppressive small town but with little means to get it or even name it. Enter visiting architect and dreamy city slicker, Lucius Harney. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1OowHMX84eY7DPZTjQmS1Jo56nJ9siOdFXxOzTpxUrHgAT6S713jwaSRE3rr8DgJQiFUauUSL27lcRJTfSn3Wus4Auvd3TJ1deUYOX16BF4WJqsnzGKH9VCMdKzuOT52fvcmhD0uOTbI/s1600/IMG_4152.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1OowHMX84eY7DPZTjQmS1Jo56nJ9siOdFXxOzTpxUrHgAT6S713jwaSRE3rr8DgJQiFUauUSL27lcRJTfSn3Wus4Auvd3TJ1deUYOX16BF4WJqsnzGKH9VCMdKzuOT52fvcmhD0uOTbI/s640/IMG_4152.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="478" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">When she first meets Harney in the library, he is interested in learning more about the architecture of the old houses "about here" (104). Charity knows that there was a book, <i>North Dormer and the Early Townships of Eagle County</i>, a book against which she holds "a special grudge" (105) because it a "limp weakly book" that falls off the shelf or disappears between more substantial volumes. Oh, how she hates the limp and weakly (and the library, for that matter). And she cannot understand "how anyone could have taken the trouble to write a book about North Dormer and its neighbors: Dormer, Hamblin, Creston, and Creston River" (105). Dormer, apparently, is where North Dormer goes "for its apples" (105). She then lists the other claims to fame dismissively: "Creston River, where there used to be a papermill, and its grey walls stood decaying by the stream; and Hamblin, where the first snow always fell" (105). This is hardly an impressive place to Charity. Apples, papermill, snow. Ho hum. Could it get more New England? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcy0Vf4KIGliTOkRK3aq_lexnXMf5RVaoS-2hxnNwuvBuhDVwcZj6M9jiPt-bApJ0WaE5PZN97zkwbqfHX6KnO5Qovp41oq0T-OKKux89AQJgi1PL7zCpyjcD3ZvV4vCdDJeW1P9UNuOQ/s1600/IMG_4151.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1240" data-original-width="1600" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcy0Vf4KIGliTOkRK3aq_lexnXMf5RVaoS-2hxnNwuvBuhDVwcZj6M9jiPt-bApJ0WaE5PZN97zkwbqfHX6KnO5Qovp41oq0T-OKKux89AQJgi1PL7zCpyjcD3ZvV4vCdDJeW1P9UNuOQ/s640/IMG_4151.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">But then Harney becomes a border in the Royall household for some time (a plot twist involving an out-of-town cousin), and Charity becomes his tour guide as he traipses through the countryside exploring buildings for a book on colonial houses. What better, then, than a picnic of </span><span style="color: #666666;">cheese sandwiches, freshly decanted buttermilk, and wrapped slices of apple pie (135)? Possibly one's slightly dingy pink calico and a sassy sense of triumph at being "a part of the sunlight" (you cannot make this stuff up) (135-6). Charity is a claustrophobic teenager </span><span style="color: #666666;">on a mission and Harney is her ticket to excitement. They unpack their basket under a walnut tree and she muses on the fact that just the night before Lawyer Royall had revealed the secret of her childhood on the Mountain to Harney. Embarrassed by her past and a little unsure about how he will take it, Charity demures to the lovely Lucius Harney, and they share a meal. Complete with an apple. Temptation at its core. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4hKbpiKfzkqQ_6Fpx5hTdJNeHvGpb1jXlyFnpoxe81SkQ0phFodU_lTUJfxluEO0XZ5VN950xur0CTQBfmtmbMgTEU-k8_Ixuy0NuNZVouC8p4gWjUcptAVaLxlX50VfASeXGj3D8s4/s1600/IMG_4158.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1316" data-original-width="1600" height="526" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4hKbpiKfzkqQ_6Fpx5hTdJNeHvGpb1jXlyFnpoxe81SkQ0phFodU_lTUJfxluEO0XZ5VN950xur0CTQBfmtmbMgTEU-k8_Ixuy0NuNZVouC8p4gWjUcptAVaLxlX50VfASeXGj3D8s4/s640/IMG_4158.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Not surprisingly, a storm brews over the Mountain, and the two race off to Hyatt house (137), a home filled with Mountain dwellers, possibly and likely Charity's blood relations, and certainly those who live in abject poverty. And all Charity can think is "this is where I belong" (139). And the Hyatt's offer her something kind--a broken teacup half full of whiskey (140). She cannot escape this past that is passed around as knowledge among these men (Royall and Harney) without her consent and she cannot escape this town or its looming mountain, even with a pretty little picnic.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctwfoxqd_X8LL2XOp8JAx4_BPas312pRkhCIVWJ-hsFTAyKJ0nRqizdOxbe8K6hf-ZfkaFaVLB8K40uB24QA7h7Lvz3wXo0a8IIIO-NYRkYlQUxJrzcfPK3wBMqxgihFSqeOZTMcs-sk/s1600/IMG_4160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctwfoxqd_X8LL2XOp8JAx4_BPas312pRkhCIVWJ-hsFTAyKJ0nRqizdOxbe8K6hf-ZfkaFaVLB8K40uB24QA7h7Lvz3wXo0a8IIIO-NYRkYlQUxJrzcfPK3wBMqxgihFSqeOZTMcs-sk/s640/IMG_4160.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Later, Harney and Charity go to Nettleton (the bigger neighboring town) for the Fourth of July, and Charity is impressed: </span><span style="color: #666666;">the town is overrun with "other excursionists" and while the shops were closed, you can scarcely tell, as "glass doors swinging open on saloons, on restaurants, on drug-stores gushing from every soda-water tap, on fruit and confectionary shops stacked with strawberry cake, cocoanut drops, molasses candy, boxes of caramels, and chewing gum, baskets of sodden strawberries and dangling branches of bananas. Oranges, apples, spotted pears, and dusty raspberries, stale coffee, beer, and sarsaparilla and fried potatoes" (164). This is a community of abundance and commerce and opportunity. As well as an abortionist and her childhood friend, who has essentially become a prostitute. It is also where </span><span style="color: #666666;">Harney kisses Charity for the first time, buys her a brooch, and tries to take her to dinner at a fancy restaurant (where they wait is too long and they end up with a clam chowder at another, less elegant restaurant). Literal fireworks ensue. As do more figurative ones with a kiss between Harney and Charity. Only to be sullied when they run into a drunken Lawyer Royall, who is accompanied by prostitutes and calls Charity as much. Not surprisingly, just after Charity's first kiss, the harlot. Nettleton is complicated at best. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdBI7dfiE9NNvt67alBsVpYGIKXKN989TRZQJLZx0MmuS5px1vdRzevv5TJw6WQTTuOCw4mUCuBBzCVQocpBkhEnJxDPLQ517M2kFQAtlCgAmVPQhHyGZRAme7-gqDzxGzstt7voSoVOQ/s1600/IMG_4116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdBI7dfiE9NNvt67alBsVpYGIKXKN989TRZQJLZx0MmuS5px1vdRzevv5TJw6WQTTuOCw4mUCuBBzCVQocpBkhEnJxDPLQ517M2kFQAtlCgAmVPQhHyGZRAme7-gqDzxGzstt7voSoVOQ/s640/IMG_4116.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">And then shortly therafter Wharton gives us a love affair and apples <i>everywhere</i> in a secret home created out of an abandoned house. Let's review. For starters:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">"</span><span style="color: #666666;">The garden palings had fallen, but the broken gate dangled between its posts, and the path to the house was marked by rose-bushes run wild and hanging their small pale blossoms above the crowding grasses. Slender pilasters and an intricate fan-light framed the opening where the door had hung; and the door itself lay rotting in the grass, with an old apple-tree fallen across it" (182). </span></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Oh my. That seems a bit obvious, Edith. An overrun garden, wild and disheveled. A dilapidated farm house with its door torn from its hinges. And there it is: an old apple tree, just aching to be a meeting point for this burgeoning, aching pair. And so, </span></span><span style="color: #666666;">Harney brings Charity some tablets of chocolate inside a little abandoned house. He asks her to kiss him again they way they did at the 4th of July. And there it is, that old apple tree: </span><span style="color: #666666;">"</span><span style="color: #666666;">The room was empty, and leaning her bicycle against the house Charity clambered up the slope and sat down on a rock under an old apple-tree. The air was perfectly still, and from where she sat she would be able to hear the tinkle of a bicycle-bell a long way down the road...." (188). Can't you just hear the ache in that bell tinkle? And even later, "</span><span style="color: #666666;">For a few minutes, in the clear light that is all shadow, fields and woods were outlined with an unreal precision; then the twilight blotted them out, and the little house turned gray and spectral under its wizened apple-branches" (190). Daaaaang, Edith. We get it. Abandoned house. Somewhat Edenic atmosphere. Apple tree looming, coloring how everything is seen. Got it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5l5rCELdsn-gABFAsr8lw_v7XdOGZ-G-6excCVQq0jBNVoMBaTJG7L5Zx9TSY0ahLfOdG3UdpCnNy4uMKC8ZvgmtwZYWFncINtCgUeg3ahMTw7PiwcfrNq34M_Subee12ZWUGUtZSb1g/s1600/IMG_4153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5l5rCELdsn-gABFAsr8lw_v7XdOGZ-G-6excCVQq0jBNVoMBaTJG7L5Zx9TSY0ahLfOdG3UdpCnNy4uMKC8ZvgmtwZYWFncINtCgUeg3ahMTw7PiwcfrNq34M_Subee12ZWUGUtZSb1g/s640/IMG_4153.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">And Harney, for all of his faults (and boy he has many), does awaken something in her that is found, most often, when she is alone. </span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">"She was always glad when she got to the little house before Harney. She liked to have time to take in every detail of its secret sweetness--the shadows of the apple-trees swaying on the grass, the old walnuts rounding their domes below the road, the meadows sloping westward in the afternoon light--before his first kiss blotted it all out....The only reality was the wondrous unfolding of her new self.... She had lived all her life among people whose sensibilities seemed to have withered for lack of use; and more wonderful, at first, than Harney's endearments were the words that were a part of them. She had always thought of love as something confused and furtive, and he made it as bright and open as the summer air." (188-9)</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">He brings her a newfound appreciation for the natural world. He opens up a world of excitement and brightness. And he reminds her, through language, that she is worth something. That love is open and bright. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The night of the first time Charity and Harney have sex, she bicycles home. The family cook is siting at the kitchen table and gets Charity a glass of milk and a plate. She eats pie hungrily. She sees her dress for the upcoming dance in virgin whiteness (192). You know this isn't going to end well. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOSLsHYM1ws0d5m-YiOMPcbhhyJldgRht7uwdEQSuv5YdO047sR2EMNRhc7MSydXITeAk4aW9nyg1rVWqlFFjkhO5OTBoOPc8x82y657-7moX6CmCnILnNZufLdCzT-Uk2a4CfCU4oMqo/s1600/IMG_4163.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1180" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOSLsHYM1ws0d5m-YiOMPcbhhyJldgRht7uwdEQSuv5YdO047sR2EMNRhc7MSydXITeAk4aW9nyg1rVWqlFFjkhO5OTBoOPc8x82y657-7moX6CmCnILnNZufLdCzT-Uk2a4CfCU4oMqo/s640/IMG_4163.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="472" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Harney is, of course, engaged to another woman--the society darling Annabel Balch--and despite Harney's assurances that he will marry her, Charity insists that he do the right thing, uphold his promises, and marry Annabel. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Charity doesn't feel well--and well, you can tell where this is going to lead--and it turns out she's pregnant, a diagnosis that costs her five dollars (which she doesn't have and instead she leaves behind her brooch). Melodrama ensues, Charity determines she cannot remain in North Dormer, and decides to return to the Mountain, to reunite with her mother, and to be the person she believes she was destined to be: </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">"The hours wore on, and she walked more and more slowly, pausing now and then to rest, and to eat a little bread and an apple picked up from the roadside. Her body seemed to grow heavier with every yard of the way, and she wondered how she would be able to carry her child later, if already he laid such a burden on her....</span><span style="color: #666666;">She herself had been born as her own baby was going to be born; and whatever her mother's subsequent life had been, she could hardly help remembering the past, and receiving a daughter who was facing the trouble she had known" (218). </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Yep, our fallen woman with a code of ethics is munching on apples on her way back to the Mountain. This is her exile from her Eden. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwpPNBfXeChRFlgzq8KcqBQa_U_AFydgU88gKhAra9i4cgG4j8Aj6wEXSHQvIB_GbujWW36XbSObleStrHsqcSs8fVrVwdrdEfHFj8tOvJI42EJjUYk6M-tWOfzmh6yQVx0n45RvPQTpA/s1600/IMG_4156.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwpPNBfXeChRFlgzq8KcqBQa_U_AFydgU88gKhAra9i4cgG4j8Aj6wEXSHQvIB_GbujWW36XbSObleStrHsqcSs8fVrVwdrdEfHFj8tOvJI42EJjUYk6M-tWOfzmh6yQVx0n45RvPQTpA/s640/IMG_4156.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">However, she's too late--her alcoholic mother is already dead, and instead Charity buries her mother's body. She is caught. The Mountain is no attractive alternative for Charity. She doesn't, however, want the abject poverty that her mother would have had to raise her in, so she decides to come down from the Mountain again, become a prostitute, and pay someone to raise her child. Enter in Lawyer Royall again (forgot about him, didn't you?) and his proposal.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Lawyer Royall is hardly the upstanding citizen he would like us all to believe. Yep, he's a windbag and a pompous drunk who once tried to force his way into Charity's bedroom after the death of his wife. But Wharton found something compelling about him, if only because Wharton said "of course </span><i>he's</i><span style="color: #666666;"> the book" </span><a href="http://www.ala.org/programming/sites/ala.org.programming/files/content/pastprograms/storylines/files/Summer.pdf" target="_blank">when Bernard Berenson complimented her</a><span style="color: #666666;"> on the good lawyer.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWxgpWBGuB68YMdy_widTfiUZIFNTMWoKL_uTHmrJOEZOphehwO4mWh308cdC9rdMhzNHDAUOr1JTPMIF7J75vXgS7yQjl07YA4LQ_szzERjMrnN2sKIruzpTi2_l4On11DE5NfXorKq0/s1600/IMG_4159.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWxgpWBGuB68YMdy_widTfiUZIFNTMWoKL_uTHmrJOEZOphehwO4mWh308cdC9rdMhzNHDAUOr1JTPMIF7J75vXgS7yQjl07YA4LQ_szzERjMrnN2sKIruzpTi2_l4On11DE5NfXorKq0/s640/IMG_4159.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But Wharton is smarter than the simple apples to apples connection of a fallen woman and the forbidden fruit. She is interested in the transaction. </span><span style="color: #666666;">The decision by Charity to marry Royall is just that--a transaction. </span><span style="color: #666666;">They go to breakfast and she knows that he knows that she is not a virgin. He tells her to go shopping and gives her money to buy clothes</span><span style="color: #666666;">; instead she goes to buy back her blue brooch (but the doctor won't part with it without an even hefiter sum of money, so Charity filches it)</span><span style="color: #666666;"> (240). Some transactions can be completed openly. Others need to be done furtively.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">And Royall saves her from the fate of bearing a child out of wedlock. Her reputation can remain unsullied, as the child will be passed off as Royall's not Harney's. This is business. Not love. This is realism, not romance. Charity was the illegitimate child of an alcoholic. She has been given and has chosen something more for her child. But what a sad transaction. It's better than the Mountain. It's better than prostitution in Dormer. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Charity and Royall are a kind of twins--they are set apart from "the stifling environment" of North Dormer. Both are rebels rejecting village life. Both are village outsiders. They both desire more than North Dormer. They both have fantasies of escape, and neither of them ultimately can. Wharton gives us the gradual exposure of destructive illusions and the reality of a transactional world.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghLXEvFs9sqqxatxFnQMo6ht1FRD4kHjmmEyd6zzo3Nj34Vp9q6IAIaltPwZRgznnpkEwvSUD65qRJhcjfmHgCcEsPFpih2hGctNcBDEsRQQ5zL50q1Z4nca4rCgK4HlWxqL3rkxSWh90/s1600/IMG_4149.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1176" data-original-width="1600" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghLXEvFs9sqqxatxFnQMo6ht1FRD4kHjmmEyd6zzo3Nj34Vp9q6IAIaltPwZRgznnpkEwvSUD65qRJhcjfmHgCcEsPFpih2hGctNcBDEsRQQ5zL50q1Z4nca4rCgK4HlWxqL3rkxSWh90/s640/IMG_4149.JPG" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Is the ending a tragedy or a triumph? I am going to go with tragedy, in part because it's packaged as a transactional triumph. Charity raises her child, yes, with little shame. But she has lost the illusion of wrapped apple pies and abandoned houses with withered apple trees. Yes, we saw this coming. Harney was no good. He treats her like a transaction as well. But the price is paid not by Royall or Harney. Nope. It's paid by Charity. How's that for the most depressing, transactional, fallen from grace apple pie you're ever going to eat? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">The good news, it's a damn good apple pie.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTzEzNSrddS0Yvy0r5hjm0KGPC6j-Ew_XHjVQDs6we-QGaNHEONzh8Tq8kqsHXZGdYMd-7gTWBiE7y_ylY6bgLGHL5UGAf4_heKslotpNPYil0Q9y106CbwgPi9a3NMYnyt0xeGNca-Lw/s1600/IMG_4263.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTzEzNSrddS0Yvy0r5hjm0KGPC6j-Ew_XHjVQDs6we-QGaNHEONzh8Tq8kqsHXZGdYMd-7gTWBiE7y_ylY6bgLGHL5UGAf4_heKslotpNPYil0Q9y106CbwgPi9a3NMYnyt0xeGNca-Lw/s640/IMG_4263.jpg" title="Apple Pie in Summer // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/10/creme-fraiche-scones-from-miette.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Crème Fraîche Scones from Miette</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/10/goat-cheese-and-red-bell-pepper-stuffed.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Goat Cheese and Red Bell Pepper Stuffed Mushrooms</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/10/chard-ricotta-and-saffron-cakes.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Chard, Ricotta, and Saffron Cakes</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/10/ottolenghis-raw-artichoke-and-herb-salad.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Ottolenghi's Raw Artichoke and Herb Salad</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/10/are-you-hungry-because-this-breakfast.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Breakfast Bomber Sub</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/10/roast-pork-with-onion-and-apple.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Roast Pork with Onion-and-Apple Marmalade</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/10/cookbook-42-american-food.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Good Earth Bread</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #990000;">The Quintessential Apple Pie</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>The sun rose without a cloud, and earlier than usual she was in the kitchen, making cheese sandwiches, decanting buttermilk into a bottle, wrapping up slices of apple pie, and accusing Verena [the cook] of having given away a basket she needed, which had always hung on a hook in the passage. When she came out into the porch, in her pink calico, which had run a little in the washing, but was still bright enough to set off her dark tints, she had such a triumphant sense of being a part of the sunlight and the morning that the last trace of her misery vanished. What did it matter where she came from, or whose child she was, when love was dancing in her veins, and down the road she saw young Harney coming toward her? (</i>Summer <i>135)</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Art-Pie-Practical-Homemade-Fillings/dp/1581573278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1507475295&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+the+pie" target="_blank">Kate McDermott's <i>Art of the Pie</i></a></span><br />
<br />
Kate McDermott is <a href="http://artofthepie.com/welcome-to-art-of-the-pie/" target="_blank">a master pie maker</a>. Trust me on this one. And McDermott does not peel her apples, for she finds the peels breakdown in the baking process. Plus, it gives a little interest to the texture of the pie. She's right. Don't doubt her. Also, serve with a slice of cheddar cheese--it's the dairyland thing to do.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 gorgeous, 9-inch deep-dish </span><span style="color: #666666;">pie</span><br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="color: #990000;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the crust:</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2</span><span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> cups all-purpose flour unbleached </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> teaspoon salt </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">14 tablespoons salted or unsalted butter cut into tablespoon-size pieces</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> cup ice water and 1–2 tablespoons more as needed </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Additional flour for rolling out dough</span><br />
<i><br /></i>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the pie filling:</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">About 10 cups apples (skin on), quartered and cored</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp cinnamon</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 gratings nutmeg</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp allspice</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1-2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (or 1 Tbsp artisan apple cider)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 to 2 tablespoons Calvados or apple liqueur, optional</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup flour</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 knob butter (about the size of a walnut) cut into small pieces</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1-2 tsp sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 egg white plus 1 Tbsp water, beaten with a fork</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #990000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the crust:</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Put all ingredients but the ice water in a large bowl. With clean hands, quickly mash the mixture together, or use a pastry blender with an up and down motion, until the ingredients look like cracker crumbs with lumps the size of peas and almonds. (We used a food processor, pulsing quickly and in short bursts--and the results were grand. McDermott says that you lose about 3-5% tenderness and only a true pie geek will notice.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Sprinkle ice water over the mixture and stir lightly with a fork. Squeeze a handful of dough to see if it holds together. Mix in more water as needed. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Divide the dough in half and make two chubby discs about 5 inches across. Wrap the discs separately in plastic wrap, and chill for about an hour. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the pie filling:</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Cut the apples into </span><span style="color: #666666;">½-inch thick slices or </span><span style="color: #666666;">chunks you can easily fit in your mouth. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. In a large bowl, mix apples with sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, vinegar, Calvados, and flour. Stir until mixture begins to look sandy. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Putting it all together:</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Take out the dough discs and let them temper until they feel slightly soft to the touch and easy to roll out. Unwrap one disc and place it on a well-floured board, pastry cloth, parchment paper, or plastic wrap. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">7. Sprinkle some flour onto the top of the disc. Thump the disc with your rolling pin several times. Turn it over and thump the other side. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">8. Sprinkle more flour onto the top of the dough as needed to keep the pin from sticking, and roll the crust out from the center in all directions. When the dough is 1 to 2 inches larger than your pie pan, brush off the extra flour on both sides. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">9. Fold the dough over the top of the pin and lay it in the pie pan carefully. Don’t worry if the crust needs to be patched together. Paint a little water where it needs to be patched and “glue” on the patch piece. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">10. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Pour in apple mixture. Distribute the pieces of butter evenly on top. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">11. Roll out the top crust; place over the filling. Cut at least 5 vents in the top. Trim any dough that hangs over the side of the pie pan. Crimp the edges. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">12. Cover pie in plastic wrap and transfer to fridge for about 30 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">13. Meanwhile, heat oven to 425 degrees. Remove wrap from the pie. Brush the top of the pie with the egg white and water mixture. Transfer pie to middle rack in the oven. Cook, 20 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">15. Reduce heat to 375 degrees. Bake, 30 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">16. Sprinkle sugar on pie. Continue cooking until evenly browned on top, and liquid just starts to bubble from vents, about 10 minutes more. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">17. Remove and let pie cool for at least an hour.</span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-72828823259645444882017-10-08T20:21:00.001-07:002017-12-10T07:07:20.092-08:00Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOn_T48pt6i0mnpVk5gPNxWqBwEf1okjrEW6LAFFl0Rk_ql-0DWTMOisvlS02F8GN0srU_N3u2uaJsE5KUpBw92LedVSi_AMadzLrvLe54W1lS5aUeuCgzIIv0tA6-R2bbXCuEwJY4mA/s1600/IMG_4259.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOn_T48pt6i0mnpVk5gPNxWqBwEf1okjrEW6LAFFl0Rk_ql-0DWTMOisvlS02F8GN0srU_N3u2uaJsE5KUpBw92LedVSi_AMadzLrvLe54W1lS5aUeuCgzIIv0tA6-R2bbXCuEwJY4mA/s640/IMG_4259.JPG" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">This cookbook is not for the faint of heart. In <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maricel_Presilla" target="_blank">Maricel Presilla</a>'s new cookbook, </span><i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Peppers-Americas-Remarkable-Capsicums-Forever/dp/0399578927/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507477918&sr=1-2&keywords=peppers" target="_blank">Peppers of the Americas</a></i><span style="color: #666666;">, one must be a serious connoisseur of peppers, either as a gardener or a cook. One does not dabble with this cookbook. Instead, one must commit.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWhgGUhbMxRX5QtP6dQdi5RCB1ugJ0oe6ZM6BABc3It42lrHLcDcDCv2t3lXB-4YPM6fn4WZzkmqf6e3L6justyVSRsfRd8ahm_Yx6IlV5TsKUqK5KEWwcVpW6UEdLvtz72JLdy3ePcGU/s1600/IMG_4254.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1054" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWhgGUhbMxRX5QtP6dQdi5RCB1ugJ0oe6ZM6BABc3It42lrHLcDcDCv2t3lXB-4YPM6fn4WZzkmqf6e3L6justyVSRsfRd8ahm_Yx6IlV5TsKUqK5KEWwcVpW6UEdLvtz72JLdy3ePcGU/s640/IMG_4254.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="420" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Do you want the history of this capsicum? Do you ache for a breakdown of pepper anatomy and heat? Do you long for pretty little naturalist drawings of calyx, flower, and seed, and then hope for well-shot, full-color photographs of hundreds of peppers? Do you need the Latin name, the approximate lengths, and a thoughtful catalogue of the growing season of each of those hundreds of peppers? Again, I ask of you, are you a serious connoisseur of peppers? If you answered yes to even just one of those questions, then this just might be your new cookbook. In fact, I think this is the perfect book for my friend at</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><a href="https://www.batbarnfarm.com/" target="_blank">Bat Barn Farm</a>. <span style="color: #666666;">He's a food geek, and this book is for geeks. Period.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqbfvKPN_M8xqUYrSrr6qtxQ9LWazAJHxFce-lzzvsl88XJ9hMAyfPSiIrL2o_5PUMri9zOEyIUsmVt2lGTrtZ65xAU1zai3anViasxudjFG4O2B77roEGeRJe_tE_RsjZ1wyY8Kf5tQ/s1600/IMG_4255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1280" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqbfvKPN_M8xqUYrSrr6qtxQ9LWazAJHxFce-lzzvsl88XJ9hMAyfPSiIrL2o_5PUMri9zOEyIUsmVt2lGTrtZ65xAU1zai3anViasxudjFG4O2B77roEGeRJe_tE_RsjZ1wyY8Kf5tQ/s640/IMG_4255.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="512" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Presilla is the first Latin American woman invited to cook at the White House; she has been nominated six times by the James Beard Foundation (both for her non-fiction writing and for her cookbooks) and one of her cookbooks, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gran-Cocina-Latina-Latin-America/dp/0393050696/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8" target="_blank">Gran Cocina Latina</a>,</i> won the 2013 James Beard Foundation Cookbook of the Year. She is chef and co-owner of <a href="https://www.cucharamama.com/" target="_blank">Cucharamama</a> and <a href="http://www.zafrakitchen.com/" target="_blank">Zafra</a> and owns the little shop <a href="http://ultramarinoscatering.com/" target="_blank">Ultramarinos</a>--all in Hoboken, New Jersey. </span><span style="color: #666666;">And she is no slouch in the intellectual business either. She has her PhD in medieval Spanish history. Yep. She's got chops.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivWeyXSUviUIGGTeXxWdC42PER8mCVgjjFApdTRfAqIgojpDnxC3nbC2WUPKCGxL5zCHbrXbtOILI_QgqHiMmWbF1dE0dj6Gh1Tgh41OPk2npG6V0ePYO-Q9CR1BxFygnqt18uXinZziw/s1600/IMG_4256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1600" height="598" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivWeyXSUviUIGGTeXxWdC42PER8mCVgjjFApdTRfAqIgojpDnxC3nbC2WUPKCGxL5zCHbrXbtOILI_QgqHiMmWbF1dE0dj6Gh1Tgh41OPk2npG6V0ePYO-Q9CR1BxFygnqt18uXinZziw/s640/IMG_4256.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Since I am a food geek myself, I decided to be ambitious. If I was going to cook from this book, it was going to be an all day endeavor. It was going to involve three recipes. It was going to call for three different kinds of peppers. I would not call myself a serious connoisseur of peppers, no. But I would call myself a curious geek on the look out for interesting combinations, and this cookbook provides!</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBHTBGsQ-Fg5LVCWf_s0_WQG32ugfiozoy76x9HXRx9NjEmL9jVE4pT6XF4aKGO6Y4PoSDAXMsI2jmOusDWtyq5e55doxvVEteU9Aw2GPjD3kVsBUgM69Iykhe6aYzy5Td9b9mwCTTxA/s1600/IMG_4260.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBHTBGsQ-Fg5LVCWf_s0_WQG32ugfiozoy76x9HXRx9NjEmL9jVE4pT6XF4aKGO6Y4PoSDAXMsI2jmOusDWtyq5e55doxvVEteU9Aw2GPjD3kVsBUgM69Iykhe6aYzy5Td9b9mwCTTxA/s640/IMG_4260.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="640" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Let's break it down by recipe and pepper.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<u><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">The first recipe: Refried Black Beans with </span></span><span style="color: #666666;">Chile de Árbol</span></u><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: black;"></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Chile de Árbol are potent little peppers. These are dried peppers, found sometimes in the bulk section of your grocery, with thin skins and bumpy exteriors. Presilla describes the flavor as "clean and sharp" with "an edge of bitterness without acidity or great complexity." And the beans take an afternoon to cook, they make your house smell amazing--all garlic-y and onion-y and bean-y. As the afternoon wore on (with October baseball in the background), my belly growled and I grew hungrier and hungrier. What an amazing smell. Such delightful torture.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSKSgpI4NcgoxTTUzoOf5ezfSBzVpiphTjQ27wv7WGlRxoj1zH-JwMVxomFl3i8rxvVeAXtbeSJxc3-UiyodLn-vmBAyRt1dGgnTKtNWWwN9HgrvWbuYRihRDjfGAr1m631osIeshfMjA/s1600/IMG_4257.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSKSgpI4NcgoxTTUzoOf5ezfSBzVpiphTjQ27wv7WGlRxoj1zH-JwMVxomFl3i8rxvVeAXtbeSJxc3-UiyodLn-vmBAyRt1dGgnTKtNWWwN9HgrvWbuYRihRDjfGAr1m631osIeshfMjA/s640/IMG_4257.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="480" /></a></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><u>The second: Chipotle and Vanilla Sauce</u></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">The chipotle? Well, it comes from what Presilla calls the "chicken of the pepper world": the jalapeño. It's just one of those workhorse peppers that can often be substituted in for harder to find peppers. The dried, smoked </span></span><span style="color: #666666;">jalapeño is simply the infinitely more interesting chipotle. With a powerhouse of concentrated flavor, the chipotle is often housed in a lovely adobo sauce and is easy to pick up at just about any grocery, these days. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Okay, this sounds a bit unusual, I am not going to deny it. But it seemed interesting enough to try. And interesting it was. Presilla grinds <i>all</i> of the bean (pod and seed) into a crumbly paste and combines it with a smack of chocolate in a tomato-chipotle sauce. It is big and bold and complex. And my only regret is that I made only enough for this recipe. And next time, I am not going to add the sugar. It seemed a little sweet to me, but still amazing. Looks like I will need to make more.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUA37jzvvDR4P6xcsCNi4Fg6rNNhJVgMD3edWd2scLO6nrFAu3-DKgIEhJM7xKYShvvaJl8IRW3bdpzOjno6kQE-yvQtDbXyjwaqoL5KKP36Mzv6IABWdd1iy4Zfo8FLjYWFp2ORXcmo/s1600/IMG_4258.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUA37jzvvDR4P6xcsCNi4Fg6rNNhJVgMD3edWd2scLO6nrFAu3-DKgIEhJM7xKYShvvaJl8IRW3bdpzOjno6kQE-yvQtDbXyjwaqoL5KKP36Mzv6IABWdd1iy4Zfo8FLjYWFp2ORXcmo/s640/IMG_4258.JPG" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="480" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><u>And the third: Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce</u></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #666666;">Finally, the piquillo is a specialty pepper originally from Navarre, Spain (although there are plenty of growers in the US, China, and Peru). These are the ultimate sweet pepper for cooking for they do not tear easily, they boast a sweet and tangy flavor, and their size (small) and shape (heart shaped with a pointy tip) just beg to be stuffed. But you can also just saute them in olive oil and be almost equally as happy. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">And once we put the beans in the piquillo peppers and sauced everything up--oh, it was much greater than the sum of its parts. This instead was an algorithm of flavor. Yes, it would be just fine with some polenta, but it's also delightful all on its own. The best parts are the little charred bits of cheese and pepper. And the beans are an anchor to the sweetness of the sauce. And, oh, sweet lord, this recipe alone was worth the whole book. Connoisseur of peppers or not. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilCRwEiXcSBdybhnSForal2my7TAL5x-RlwahAIKp7gUogLnPPPFDl3LgT7AzFPnl7HskkuE6ZpjeCGtoOmNHF3IsAZkoXl9EkBmYbPK3NwIwzddacU6GNR-Xi8Ke2zEr8EVDZBqwtAa0/s1600/IMG_4252.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilCRwEiXcSBdybhnSForal2my7TAL5x-RlwahAIKp7gUogLnPPPFDl3LgT7AzFPnl7HskkuE6ZpjeCGtoOmNHF3IsAZkoXl9EkBmYbPK3NwIwzddacU6GNR-Xi8Ke2zEr8EVDZBqwtAa0/s640/IMG_4252.JPG" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="480" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">So the final assessment: this is a cookbook for the serious gardener or cook. The rewards are sweet, indeed. I declare, it is time to geek out.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg645yNSJ4m0EY0oSWMxHxjDzybwLnhwX-G1y-7sG-icr-F88WpGzRxq7iuwY4lmhd-dxRrpfj-l5NAlzCr4gJvR3HLsrvLWtykv6kumRWvgq-wcZ4a6C7hL36hbt9k6h4kkermo0cNm0M/s1600/IMG_4262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg645yNSJ4m0EY0oSWMxHxjDzybwLnhwX-G1y-7sG-icr-F88WpGzRxq7iuwY4lmhd-dxRrpfj-l5NAlzCr4gJvR3HLsrvLWtykv6kumRWvgq-wcZ4a6C7hL36hbt9k6h4kkermo0cNm0M/s640/IMG_4262.jpg" title="Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce" width="480" /></a></div>
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<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">I received this book from <a href="http://www.bloggingforbooks.org/" target="_blank">Blogging for Books</a> in exchange for an honest review.</span></span></div>
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<div style="font-family: times; margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
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<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/10/creme-fraiche-scones-from-miette.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Crème Fraîche Scones from Miette</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/10/goat-cheese-and-red-bell-pepper-stuffed.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Goat Cheese and Red Bell Pepper Stuffed Mushrooms</a> </span></div>
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<div style="margin: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/10/pastry-turnovers-with-butternut-squash.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Pastry Turnovers with Butternut Squash, Leeks and Thyme</a></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/10/ottolenghis-raw-artichoke-and-herb-salad.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Ottolenghi's Raw Artichoke and Herb Salad</a></span></div>
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<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/10/are-you-hungry-because-this-breakfast.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Breakfast Bomber Sub</a></span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/10/grilled-shrimp-and-cucumber-salad.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Grilled Shrimp and Cucumber Salad</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/10/cookbook-405-country-cooking-of-ireland.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Liver in Whiskey Cream Sauce</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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</div>
<br />
------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #783f04;">Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Refried Beans on Chipotle-Vanilla Sauce</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Peppers-Americas-Remarkable-Capsicums-Forever/dp/0399578927/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507477918&sr=1-2&keywords=peppers" target="_blank"><i>Peppers of the Americas: The Remarkable Capsicums That Forever Changed Flavor</i></a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 Servings</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">9½ ounces canned or jarred piquillo peppers, drained</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup refried black beans with </span><span style="color: #666666;">Chile de Árbol</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6 ounces aged manchego cheese, grated</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups Zafra's Chipotle and Vanilla Sauce</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 0px;">
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. To stuff the peppers, place one on the palm of one hand and hold it upright and open between your thumb and index finger. Fill with 1 Tbsp refried beans and top with 1 Tbsp grated cheese. Gently transfer to a large plate. Repeat until all the peppers have been stuffed. Cover the plate with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes for the beans to firm up.</span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Preheat the broiler. Pour about 1<span style="font-family: "times";">½ </span>cups of the sauce into 12x9-inch baking dish and spread evenly. Arrange the stuffed peppers over the sauce. Pour the remaining <span style="font-family: "times";">½</span> cup sauce over the peppers and sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the dish. Broil 5 inches from the heat source until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese has melted, becoming golden brown and a bit charred in places. Serve hot. </span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Store any leftovers (right, like there will be leftovers) tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Would be great served on a bed of creamy polenta.</span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Refried Beans </i></span><i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">with </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">Chile de Árbol</span></i></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">Presilla recommends procuring 5 large dried Mexican avocado leaves, and charring them over a gas flame or in a cast-iron skillet over high heat. Then crumble the leaves into a blender with the peppers. </span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">3 cups</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">8 ounces dried black beans</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1 medium white onion, cut in half lengthwise</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">6 garlic cloves</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">3</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp salt, plus more</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1/4 ounces (about 7) <span style="font-family: "times";">Chiles de Árbol</span>, stemmed and seeded</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup extra virgin olive oil</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1 small white onion, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch roughs, rings separated</span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;"></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Place the beans, halved onion, and garlic in a medium saucepan with 2 quarts of water. Bring to a boil, lower the hear, cover, and simmer. Season with 1 tsp of the salt, just as the beans are beginning to soften. Cover and continue cooking until the beans are soft, about 1</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">½ hours total cooking time. Strain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid. You will need about 2/3 cup to blend the beans and about 1/4 cup if you plan to store the beans.</span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: times; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times"; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">2. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat and add the chiles. Toast for about 15 seconds, tossing with tongs. Transfer the chiles to a blender, and add the beans, 2/3 cup of the reserved cooking liquid and the remaining 2</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp salt. Process into a smooth puree.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Heat the oil in a medium skilled over high heat and add the sliced onion. Saute until the onion is golden brown and crunchy with small charred bits. Strain the oil through a sieve and set over a bowl, pushing he onion down with a spoon to extract as much oil as possible. You should have about 2 Tbsp oil. Pour the onion-flavored oil back into the skillet over medium heat. Pour int he bean puree and cook, stirring, until the puree bubbles, about 5-8 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. If not using immediately, let cool completely. Store in a tightly covered glass container in the refrigerator until ready to use. Te beans will keep up to 4 days. To reheat, place the beans in a skillet over medium heat and loosen with some of the reserved cooking liquid. It is best to keep the beans as thick as possible if using them as a filling so that they will not ooze out.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>For the Chipotle and Vanilla Sauce</i></span></div>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 large Mexican vanilla beans</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 lb ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and quartered</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 canned chipotle chiles in adobo with the sauce clinging on</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp <a href="https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-use-piloncillo-2343039" target="_blank">Mexican piloncillo</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panela" target="_blank">Colombian panela</a> or light <a href="http://wholesomesweet.com/faqs/what-is-muscovado-sugar/" target="_blank">muscovado</a> (optional)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 ounce 60% cacao dark chocolate (preferably made from Latin American cacao) </span><span style="color: #666666;">(optional)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Cut the vanilla beans into 1-inch pieces and put into a food processor or spice mill, and process until the texture resembles fine breadcrumbs. You should have about 1 Tbsp. Set aside.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Place the tomatoes and chipotle chiles into a blender or food processor and process into a puree.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Heat the oil in a 10-inch skillet or medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the puree and the salt. Saute, stirring occasionally, about 18 minutes, until the sauce thicken and the oil starts to separate. Stir in the ground vanilla, muscovado, and chocolate, and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: times;">
<span style="color: #666666;">4. If not using immediately, store the sauce in a glass container in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks. </span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-85546536357201144362017-08-27T14:50:00.001-07:002017-08-27T14:50:33.857-07:00Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt8K7m_6xtYV76-ipwjpstq1_plGYi8jXMzNfp1VxV_arUsw4e5j_sAajh54lGOohnuQcrbVuRuOBpmHm4Il6jbmhEiLdBWvgErlZQp5Aumuh5uHPtFjYH2-W4pLLaIg8T5W6FzCy4HS4/s1600/IMG_3541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt8K7m_6xtYV76-ipwjpstq1_plGYi8jXMzNfp1VxV_arUsw4e5j_sAajh54lGOohnuQcrbVuRuOBpmHm4Il6jbmhEiLdBWvgErlZQp5Aumuh5uHPtFjYH2-W4pLLaIg8T5W6FzCy4HS4/s640/IMG_3541.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Stop what you're doing. Fire up your oven. Boil a pot of water. Grate a ripe tomato. You won't be sorry. Mostly because there are tomatoes--lots of them--in this new take on that old summer standby of a pasta salad with raw tomatoes.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMYzzLEJtW1wH3zOy-eIlp-sjWP1LPzlfFjhO9dONfF279VxaoCwoEpFUtWX2T-EyhxOtqEmYr3Umt5i51cwGbQW7PnXwNn-jrN4Y2fGbE4F5ErZCBx4k9aaQoPqqhTndNCafgoTwlKc/s1600/IMG_3543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMYzzLEJtW1wH3zOy-eIlp-sjWP1LPzlfFjhO9dONfF279VxaoCwoEpFUtWX2T-EyhxOtqEmYr3Umt5i51cwGbQW7PnXwNn-jrN4Y2fGbE4F5ErZCBx4k9aaQoPqqhTndNCafgoTwlKc/s640/IMG_3543.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">As you may have noticed, I have been on a salad kick (see <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/08/lemony-greek-pasta-salad-from-food52.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/08/corn-barley-salad-with-tomato.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Oh, and <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/07/cobb-salad-with-hard-boiled-egg.html" target="_blank">here</a>.). It's summer. Produce is at its peak (or getting close to it), and all I want are tomatoes. And more tomatoes. Lucky for me, there are a plethora of tomato salads out there, and this one from </span><span style="color: #666666; text-align: center;"> </span><a href="https://food52.com/shop?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paidsearch&utm_campaign=brand&gclid=Cj0KCQjwh_bLBRDeARIsAH4ZYEOWO8fGP-gT5vU-KQTG3GHxmI9TUlcnDxOMeb9XRtWtM636iGR2vlAaAmlpEALw_wcB" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Food52</a><span style="color: #666666; text-align: center;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;"> is a hit because this summer-time staple of pasta salad with tomatoes brings you tomatoes three ways.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbVDj0O0FedzhRXy3t8V9HUGAxoZbvKsBawfDdJ7hwW_Svt9bp0ylMdYg_kRPj4OjtSJ41SPFBSygIGpI6bUetevYlafVgmvi1o6vpY3SPr98tRbeQ_HryGUvvyQAInBaWmQeIIEJ5xo/s1600/IMG_3549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbVDj0O0FedzhRXy3t8V9HUGAxoZbvKsBawfDdJ7hwW_Svt9bp0ylMdYg_kRPj4OjtSJ41SPFBSygIGpI6bUetevYlafVgmvi1o6vpY3SPr98tRbeQ_HryGUvvyQAInBaWmQeIIEJ5xo/s640/IMG_3549.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Well, actually it technically brings it to you only two ways, but I made some adjustments to the original recipe. Let me detail all of my modifications below, including that additional hit of tomatoes:</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">(1) I got inspired by another salad in the <i>Mighty Salads </i>cookbook: <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/08/corn-barley-salad-with-tomato.html" target="_blank">Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette</a>. That particular vinaigrette requires the grating of a ripe tomato in order to get its pulp and juices (without the skin) in a totally fresh and bright way. So I added it here. (Okay, two tomatoes.) You can leave it out if you're talking nonsense. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">(2) Our leaders at Food52 recommend a 1-hour roasting time for the cherry tomatoes. Maybe it's my oven, but it was </span><i style="color: #666666;">way too long</i><span style="color: #666666;">, and I was left with charred carcasses of tomato skins.</span><span style="color: #666666;"> I made another round of tomatoes and cut this back to 45 minutes. Crisis averted.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdKCVZZ4lOcuY-s0bnMCH16Js2AaZVdQLwVPvcrvqcDJa79Z1jfqlepPa_PBU7xIntSiDKplAAeHKGk7RwU6NuqFsFzksvOQH4OKtutYsp372fQ2AXdrm2njBPqT7OEJ8a4f34XeJrm5Q/s1600/IMG_3546.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdKCVZZ4lOcuY-s0bnMCH16Js2AaZVdQLwVPvcrvqcDJa79Z1jfqlepPa_PBU7xIntSiDKplAAeHKGk7RwU6NuqFsFzksvOQH4OKtutYsp372fQ2AXdrm2njBPqT7OEJ8a4f34XeJrm5Q/s640/IMG_3546.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">(3) Additionally they recommend adding 3-4 cloves of garlic, peeled, to the tomato roasting pan. Great idea. However, again, I found the roasting time far too long for the cloves of garlic. My garlic came out like pieces of crumbly charcoal--never appetizing in a salad or otherwise. Plus, I don't like garlic. So I cut it. If you like garlic, I imagine the shorter cooking time might be effective.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">(4) They call for 1 pound of pasta. That is also nonsense. Pasta salad should be more salad than pasta. So I halved it. You can put the other half pound in. But really, then you're just diluting all this tomato-y goodness. You don't need that in your life.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH9ZUadVQmTleZCccS1UsiiUGSoI2fDAj8-_YkCSiaJiS8iQkgWa-DaFiE-2k5DkiQ6j2xmrYRWH5bf2NLN7LqvLiARJCa80ehB5EUeCvNdVAeg1Tu8p5JRokIQNc5V2FskuBaOcDFakU/s1600/IMG_3544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1175" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH9ZUadVQmTleZCccS1UsiiUGSoI2fDAj8-_YkCSiaJiS8iQkgWa-DaFiE-2k5DkiQ6j2xmrYRWH5bf2NLN7LqvLiARJCa80ehB5EUeCvNdVAeg1Tu8p5JRokIQNc5V2FskuBaOcDFakU/s640/IMG_3544.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="468" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Okay, beyond the adjustments, let's talk a little more seriously about the end product of the work you're about to embark on. Yes, you need to turn on your oven. Yes, it's August. But it's worth it. The sweet, candy flavor of roasted tomatoes next to the bright acidity of the raw tomatoes (and the extra pulp in the dressing) is a revelation in late summer tomato bliss. You get velvety smooth tomato bombs next to crunchy tomato halves. And then, there is the cheese--torn chunks of creamy mozzarella and flakes of salty parmesan. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Drat, now I am hungry again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgha1FHCtF67N7GtcwnerzuuV8vtZeobmf4tlxdXb_yKA7ANbn6qsd2ftyYumUfSXwdicGUQ-jo_-Luu1ujB59n-Br5N3Mu8aj_a1y2Mb5nbJ1HeNMptIWJi_v_XaHOSNT6wHoxAGD4reo/s1600/IMG_3553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgha1FHCtF67N7GtcwnerzuuV8vtZeobmf4tlxdXb_yKA7ANbn6qsd2ftyYumUfSXwdicGUQ-jo_-Luu1ujB59n-Br5N3Mu8aj_a1y2Mb5nbJ1HeNMptIWJi_v_XaHOSNT6wHoxAGD4reo/s640/IMG_3553.jpg" title="Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad from Food52" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/08/deviled-eggs-two-ways-mustard-cornichon.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Deviled Eggs Two Ways: Mustard-Cornichon and Smoky-Toasted-Rosemary</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/08/tomato-salad-with-crisped-farro.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Tomato Salad with Crisped Farro, Purslane, Arugula, and Roasted Tomato-Miso Vinaigrette</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/08/lahmacun.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Lahmacun</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/08/alton-browns-blueberry-muffins.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Alton Brown's Blueberry Muffins</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/daiquiri-de-pepino-cucumber-daiquiri.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Daiquiri de Pepino (Cucumber Daiquiri)</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/rutabiya-tagine-of-meat-with-dates.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Rutabiya: Tagine of Meat with Dates</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/08/cookbook-35-marcella-cucina.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Tortino di Crespelle con Melanzane e Peperoni (Baked Crêpes Pie with Eggplant and Peppers)</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad</span></h3>
<span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food52-Mighty-Salads-Dinner-Make-Ahead/dp/0399578048/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500138564&sr=8-1&keywords=mighty+salads" target="_blank">Mighty Salads</a> </i></span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #660000;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Pinch of sugar (optional)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 large ripe tomatos</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tsp red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar) or to taste</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ tsp red pepper flakes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ pound of casarecce or other tubular pasta</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves, torn</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup loosely packed mint leaves, torn</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅛ cup lightly toasted pine nuts</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn into bite-sized chunks</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ ounces Parmesan, finely chopped or crumbled</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #660000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. <i>To make the vinaigrette:</i> Heat an oven to 375℉. Combine 2 cups of the cherry tomatoes, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and a pinch of sugar (if using) on a rimmed baking sheet. Season generously with salt and pepper, and toss until evenly coated. Spread the tomatoes into a single layer. Roast until the tomatoes have blistered and shriveled, about 45 minutes. Feel free to give them a stir about halfway through (just be sure to return them to a single layer).</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. While the cherry tomatoes are roasting, g</span><span style="color: #666666;">rate the large tomato halves on the large holes of a box grater over a wide bowl, collecting the juice and pulp. Discard the tomato skins. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Once the 2 cups of cherry tomatoes have come out of the oven, blend together </span><span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup of the blistered tomatoes, the large tomato pulp and juice, the vinegar, the remaining 6 tablespoons of olive oil, a pinch of salt, and the red pepper flakes. Add more olive oil if needed (a little at time) and continue to blend until the vinaigrette is smooth. Taste, adjust the seasoning, and set aside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">4. <i>Cook the pasta: </i>Bring a pot of generously salted water to a boil. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Cook the pasta </span><span style="color: #666666;">according to package instructions or to your taste. </span><span style="color: #666666;">While the pasta cooks, season the raw cherry tomatoes with salt. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">5. <i>To compose the salad: </i>Drain the pasta and toss with the vinaigrette. Let the pasta cool until just warm, then toss in the remaining blistered tomatoes, the raw tomatoes and their juices, the basil, mint, pine nuts, mozzarella, and Parmesan. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Add more red pepper flakes, olive oil, or pine nuts as needed.</span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-16251798060859068172017-08-19T07:33:00.003-07:002017-08-19T07:33:41.626-07:00Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheaYGlSC49gn11DU6D_3BC9jkBdE7C-hoGwW0g-yaqGzlt_n269Tz_Hu1hMYt7-wWFuu0Ez54hml_Nl4YB4pWbkXGFYGOe6t0k-Z1PxQwvmLWljOzKO0pZ9m2a2oLIJOSHFeouPHexKgI/s1600/IMG_3523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheaYGlSC49gn11DU6D_3BC9jkBdE7C-hoGwW0g-yaqGzlt_n269Tz_Hu1hMYt7-wWFuu0Ez54hml_Nl4YB4pWbkXGFYGOe6t0k-Z1PxQwvmLWljOzKO0pZ9m2a2oLIJOSHFeouPHexKgI/s640/IMG_3523.jpg" title="Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52" width="614" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">Pasta salads are ideal for packing up for a picnic. Or to be more quotidian, for lunch at work. Either way, it's better to eat food you're looking forward to having--be it after a hike to the perfect picnic spot or after a morning staring at a computer. So why not make this Greek-inspired pasta salad? The fine folks at <a href="https://food52.com/shop?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paidsearch&utm_campaign=brand&gclid=Cj0KCQjwh_bLBRDeARIsAH4ZYEOWO8fGP-gT5vU-KQTG3GHxmI9TUlcnDxOMeb9XRtWtM636iGR2vlAaAmlpEALw_wcB" target="_blank">Food52</a> encourage you to make without tomatoes, and I encourage you to ignore that directive.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg92i8d0_nR4v3TnypAo_RweEVcD9Dwb85SFDYRa5RKZ69Pp6qhGS4sBos0BUUev3TY4NWSKaBXitPXj4Go_lHVUCB4Aw-jEXE16tW0-4sSEWvX2gXmp9eDU7uM2fP55PVJD3Q8uGpQsSo/s1600/IMG_3519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg92i8d0_nR4v3TnypAo_RweEVcD9Dwb85SFDYRa5RKZ69Pp6qhGS4sBos0BUUev3TY4NWSKaBXitPXj4Go_lHVUCB4Aw-jEXE16tW0-4sSEWvX2gXmp9eDU7uM2fP55PVJD3Q8uGpQsSo/s640/IMG_3519.jpg" title="Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Intended to be</span><span style="color: #666666;"> a subtle accompaniment to salmon, roast chicken, or the like, this salad nixes the tomatoes and focuses on the cucumber and the dill, traditionally found in all walks of Greek Salad. I am in the middle of being in love with this summer's cherry tomatoes. And I have never been accused of being subtle. So here we are. With tomatoes. You make your own decisions, I won't judge. But we both know you should put tomatoes in this salad.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuM2TyFX2ibOpM6NZ05St7l0KTl0au2bwZ3vCogTV7I9dBY5eWco8mE6MMhQda2jUAasBYNE-KLFInSWKQTKFRIFGiQlPrPf4aPDokpFs2ULGNfi1EZ1ZEuy2PgBkLL48ijzTeYGt_Xv0/s1600/IMG_3521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuM2TyFX2ibOpM6NZ05St7l0KTl0au2bwZ3vCogTV7I9dBY5eWco8mE6MMhQda2jUAasBYNE-KLFInSWKQTKFRIFGiQlPrPf4aPDokpFs2ULGNfi1EZ1ZEuy2PgBkLL48ijzTeYGt_Xv0/s640/IMG_3521.jpg" title="Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The briny feta and olives are the perfect counter balance to the acidic and sweet tomatoes and the cool cucumbers. This salad will win you no points for originality, but I promise you, it will win you a sense of satisfaction while sitting on a picnic blanket or your desk. Or at your next potluck or even, yes, as a an accompaniment to salmon or chicken at your own dinner table. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdePeMk80uI8Bv24SiXWpWlnn-ArVCS1X1S2HLtM6afuIEtsggFN9PpE2RsPfVIfuXjwAZS1-IRfe0egD6Y8Um920h6b0nYk277-5a6uHaBGOJMW6jGB73Ubi_8IX04MKr12d1ZT4mkSU/s1600/IMG_3524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdePeMk80uI8Bv24SiXWpWlnn-ArVCS1X1S2HLtM6afuIEtsggFN9PpE2RsPfVIfuXjwAZS1-IRfe0egD6Y8Um920h6b0nYk277-5a6uHaBGOJMW6jGB73Ubi_8IX04MKr12d1ZT4mkSU/s640/IMG_3524.jpg" title="Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The only real problem with this salad is that I had only one glorious serving of it. Neither on a picnic or at work. You see, my mother-in-law mistook the container that I put it in (a washed out yogurt container) for her very own, so she took it with her on her trip back up the California coast. So she got to enjoy the seven other servings (I doubled it, too, because there was a long work week and a half in my future). She said it was delightful. And from what I could tell from a Sunday afternoon pasta salad eating on my back deck, she was right. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDXwL4qEBd6uRZWbb0-KErtPxTqG4OTu1saLAw2TphMy-D6E6kBLL_ZOXIKfqDDVa_uhvRx6RUyv9VNVnM88razjsQbHu9WHwpkrAZg-1e0vhHCGgKcbq8BGk-geQBGVR9Mrhushyeew/s1600/IMG_3533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1240" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDXwL4qEBd6uRZWbb0-KErtPxTqG4OTu1saLAw2TphMy-D6E6kBLL_ZOXIKfqDDVa_uhvRx6RUyv9VNVnM88razjsQbHu9WHwpkrAZg-1e0vhHCGgKcbq8BGk-geQBGVR9Mrhushyeew/s640/IMG_3533.jpg" title="Lemony Greek Pasta Salad from Food52" width="496" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/08/caramelized-onion-eggplant-olive-and.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Caramelized Onion, Eggplant, Olive, and Kale Calzones</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/08/tomato-salad-with-crisped-farro.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Tomato Salad with Crisped Farro, Purslane, Arugula, and Roasted Tomato-Miso Vinaigrette</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/08/macaroon-tart.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Macaroon Tart</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/08/alton-browns-blueberry-muffins.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Alton Brown's Blueberry Muffins</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/fresh-mint-sherbet-with-figs-roasted-in.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Fresh Mint Sherbet with Figs Roasted in Chartreuse and Honey</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/devils-food-cake.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Devil's Food Cake</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/08/cookbook-33-complete-cooking-light.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Peach Cobbler that's really Peach Slump</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #f1c232;">Lemony Greek Pasta Salad</span></h3>
<span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food52-Mighty-Salads-Dinner-Make-Ahead/dp/0399578048/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500138564&sr=8-1&keywords=mighty+salads" target="_blank">Mighty Salads</a> </i>and recipe <a href="https://food52.com/recipes/23175-lemon-dill-orzo-pasta-salad-with-cucumbers-olives-and-feta" target="_blank">here</a> </span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #f1c232;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ pound orzo pasta </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Zest of 1 lemon </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 tablespoons lemon juice</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 teaspoons Dijon mustard </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 medium shallot, grated </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 medium cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise, seeded and sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups halved cherry tomatoes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #f1c232;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Cook the orzo in abundantly salted water according to package instructions or to your taste. Drain and transfer to a large salad bowl. </span><span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Meanwhile, make lemon-dill vinaigrette to dress the salad: combine lemon zest and juice, mustard, and grated shallot in a medium bowl. Whisk everything together with a few pinches of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Slowly add the olive oil while whisking, then stir in the chopped dill. Taste and adjust as needed. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Pour the vinaigrette over the still-warm pasta and toss. Allow to cool to room temperature, then add the olives, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Fold in the crumbled feta cheese, adjust salt and pepper, and serve.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-26966625023530101472017-08-12T09:21:00.000-07:002017-08-12T09:21:28.051-07:00Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQSnFnWTX5FInKA9vpnuKK1NGD5wAMKOAyzVbU8JbZpMXl-d4S6_LZAp95lsluSlREfd6pkbTcyN5iBF9aIzNZ-jhpCEDGBQ7mnBoGDmmE9XT9aQc3ZPJtaUbLbegsLdc8zFzdNqRw5E/s1600/IMG_3409.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1307" data-original-width="1600" height="522" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQSnFnWTX5FInKA9vpnuKK1NGD5wAMKOAyzVbU8JbZpMXl-d4S6_LZAp95lsluSlREfd6pkbTcyN5iBF9aIzNZ-jhpCEDGBQ7mnBoGDmmE9XT9aQc3ZPJtaUbLbegsLdc8zFzdNqRw5E/s640/IMG_3409.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">Can we talk about the moment that cherry tomatoes are having? Be prepared to see a few more tomato recipes before the summer is through. Because, sweet jesus (or <a href="https://bonnieplants.com/product/super-sweet-100-tomato/" target="_blank">super sweet 100</a>, if you prefer), this has been a banner year for tomatoes in California, particularly for those of the minuscule kind. What about for you? Are your cherry tomatoes to die for?</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Yq52fMH9hSj8mS-h3LIxpxUq8OD1OWcdFjDP0ebdiUQVG6vU1QMO19mLmf7LHWmtebrl-e_nMk1xfpll6utyra3gt4XEzTzju9Z1BSuSPN7vnkP655SysALjdcrNrpMwneWXcrpAU70/s1600/IMG_3407.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Yq52fMH9hSj8mS-h3LIxpxUq8OD1OWcdFjDP0ebdiUQVG6vU1QMO19mLmf7LHWmtebrl-e_nMk1xfpll6utyra3gt4XEzTzju9Z1BSuSPN7vnkP655SysALjdcrNrpMwneWXcrpAU70/s640/IMG_3407.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">What is not always to die for in California is the corn. Being a Midwesterner by upbringing, I have certain standards when it comes to corn, and California corn does not always live up to these sweet-but-not-starchy, full-of-creamy-goodness expectations. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">However, if you can buy the corn in the morning, shuck it in the afternoon, and have it grilled by evening, usually you can do alright, no matter what part of the country you find yourself in.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb59SCGUDEj7S_shn0gIga5PyNK64G-FG5Pg_o1RkNRCk8PdgfrpJR8yLiGRGij0IH20D2vBJVgBQnI7kOX-_x460UvXsRdp6U_cWOgPgQTgLf9S32jsWeJPqecdlQdFNjzOS7R6NuDxU/s1600/IMG_3408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb59SCGUDEj7S_shn0gIga5PyNK64G-FG5Pg_o1RkNRCk8PdgfrpJR8yLiGRGij0IH20D2vBJVgBQnI7kOX-_x460UvXsRdp6U_cWOgPgQTgLf9S32jsWeJPqecdlQdFNjzOS7R6NuDxU/s640/IMG_3408.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This salad is one in a <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/07/cobb-salad-with-hard-boiled-egg.html" target="_blank">long line</a> of recent salads I have been making (prepare to see more), in part because I have been bringing lunch to work. And I need to ensure that I resist the siren sound of cheese-flavored snacks (read Cheetos and Sour Cream and Cheddar Ruffles) that can be found in the admissions office. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I don't know what it is. I have a humiliating weakness for cheese dust. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So I have been counteracting it with corn and tomatoes and basil and barley. Or at least this go-round that's what I have been distracting myself with. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_s9JDz8RXRVo-f6RxUqSbbFSvaqOdnVOhQ9KBzFOFJlSmLejZsLi1Do7yM0vCtsSXw5GmTG_IkZG27-JO__4-fIcMOoc_FZdtGUY-XRP5itzxBUbzsMxuhbqd5wc1HM5rCFW7tkljgls/s1600/IMG_3406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_s9JDz8RXRVo-f6RxUqSbbFSvaqOdnVOhQ9KBzFOFJlSmLejZsLi1Do7yM0vCtsSXw5GmTG_IkZG27-JO__4-fIcMOoc_FZdtGUY-XRP5itzxBUbzsMxuhbqd5wc1HM5rCFW7tkljgls/s640/IMG_3406.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">The beans in this salad are pretty nondescript, but I see why they are included. They add a smidge of protein and they bulk up this otherwise starchy salad. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Other bonuses include (1) doing a quick parboil of the corn with the barley to ensure that the barley has maximum corn infusion; (2) grilling said corn, a step that may feel extraneous, but it makes the salad quite smoky; (3) grating a super ripe tomato to make the dressing cry of summer; (4) topping the salad with basil and chives, thus essentially pushing this salad into the realm of impossibly good. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But for all the focus on the corn and barley, the title of this salad really is a misnomer. This salad is about the tomatoes. Plain and simple.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1oppu_lhROqn96vEotMmloB2oQi00kivmXgK4D9XAQTnd-06NbW1E0NrS002rhUpDTEo0UUz5121tbneVsZGGJ2dPlWDe-KIFSD0wlYv7H_tT7uZqbgvYEzSzdPtBXxCCoAVf-KaHW8/s1600/IMG_3410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1568" data-original-width="1600" height="626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1oppu_lhROqn96vEotMmloB2oQi00kivmXgK4D9XAQTnd-06NbW1E0NrS002rhUpDTEo0UUz5121tbneVsZGGJ2dPlWDe-KIFSD0wlYv7H_tT7uZqbgvYEzSzdPtBXxCCoAVf-KaHW8/s640/IMG_3410.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So if you can resist eating that entire pint of cherry tomatoes on the way home (and if you cannot, buy two pints), I recommend this summery salad for an August repast. And if you're lucky enough to have leftovers, it's just as good on day two and three as it was on day one. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Guess you better double the recipe. These tomatoes won't last forever.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNYrP5D2gexgxwveeSyj2DYEz2eRwH5i5VDnrHXW0-KuQWB71SlLvVF73-JoKVuCqlFN3oUyrbrhYEyO9DU1Xg02zYDtULNmmX6PYwSTG2780BBg5eeQfjGtqs6Z9aGCEfNDop8EpBp1Q/s1600/IMG_3411.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNYrP5D2gexgxwveeSyj2DYEz2eRwH5i5VDnrHXW0-KuQWB71SlLvVF73-JoKVuCqlFN3oUyrbrhYEyO9DU1Xg02zYDtULNmmX6PYwSTG2780BBg5eeQfjGtqs6Z9aGCEfNDop8EpBp1Q/s640/IMG_3411.JPG" title="Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette from Food52" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/08/ottolenghis-thai-red-lentil-soup-with.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Ottolenghi's Thai Red Lentil Soup with Aromatic Chile Oil</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/08/chiles-stuffed-with-zucchini-chiles.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Chiles Stuffed with Zucchini (Chiles Rellenos Con Calabacitas)</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/08/macaroon-tart.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Macaroon Tart</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/08/cooks-illustrateds-blueberry-muffins.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Cook's Illustrated's Blueberry Muffins</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/08/cookbook-32-cooking-light-vegetarian.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago:Corn & Barley Salad and Bulgur & Broccoli Salad</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Corn-Barley Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette</span></h3>
<span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food52-Mighty-Salads-Dinner-Make-Ahead/dp/0399578048/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500138564&sr=8-1&keywords=mighty+salads" target="_blank">Mighty Salads</a> </i>and recipe <a href="https://food52.com/recipes/13788-grilled-corn-barley-salad-with-tomato-vinaigrette" target="_blank">here</a> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup dried pearl barley </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 ears of corn (shucked) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Olive oil for grilling</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cup cooked cannellini, butter bean, or other white beans </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tomato, halved </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ teaspoons white wine vinegar </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 large garlic clove </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup basil cut into ribbons </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 bunch of chives, thinly sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ - ½ cup olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat. Bring a large stockpot of generously salted water to a boil. </span><span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. Add the barley to the pot and cook it according to the package directions: Usually in about 1½ cups of water, a generous pinch of salt, and 25 minutes. (See <a href="http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-barley-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-198693" target="_blank">here</a>.) During the last 5 or 6 minutes of cooking, add the corn. Remove the corn with tongs. Drain the barley (if necessary) and set aside. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Brush the corn with olive oil and grill until charred on all sides, about 8 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Cut the kernels from the corncobs. As you cut the kernels, collect all of the corn milk that drips into a bowl, then use the back of the knife to scrape the remaining corn milk from the cleaned cob. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. Grate the large tomato on the large holes of a box grater over a wide bowl, collecting the juice and pulp. Discard the tomato skins. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. Place the garlic on a cutting board, sprinkle with a couple of generous pinches of salt, and finely chop and smash it into a paste with the side of a chef’s knife. Add the garlic paste to the tomato pulp, as well as a pinch of salt, the red pepper flakes, vinegar, and reserved corn milk. Gradually whisk in enough of the olive oil (</span><span style="color: #666666;">¼ - ½ cups) </span><span style="color: #666666;">until the vinaigrette is emulsified.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">7. In a serving bowl, combine the barley, corn, cherry tomatoes, beans, basil, and chives. Add the vinaigrette and toss to evenly coat. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and serve.</span>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-81727675077773024202017-08-06T09:04:00.000-07:002017-08-06T09:13:10.338-07:00Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOaK2RcAWRrVwfidTJBW5qww2OwvAN19c2e-xQ0rD3lRyLC7LZVHz_xl8JdKCR3aBX0y-cjUuAEsJgJvEE-aI1fF-EjZx7ybiImaaFKES20ZlRsWLukA4EHfioKjtCm03KXf3qV89cM6A/s1600/IMG_3502.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1307" data-original-width="1600" height="522" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOaK2RcAWRrVwfidTJBW5qww2OwvAN19c2e-xQ0rD3lRyLC7LZVHz_xl8JdKCR3aBX0y-cjUuAEsJgJvEE-aI1fF-EjZx7ybiImaaFKES20ZlRsWLukA4EHfioKjtCm03KXf3qV89cM6A/s640/IMG_3502.jpg" title="Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">I love a cold soup. Mostly because I love soup, since it is reminiscent of my beloved sauces. I like how a bit of effort pays off in a pot of something delicious that can be extended for a few days, and is usually even better on the last day than the first. I love the hearty warmth of chowder in the winter and the light freshness of a clear broth in summer. And a cold soup in summer is like eating dessert for dinner.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">You know, I haven't declared <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/search?q=soup+week" target="_blank">Soup Week</a> in a while. Uh-oh. The husband had best be on high alert. Oh, and if you're interested in Jacques Pepin's version, please see <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/09/gazpacho.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnp0ZwhebsjSnBDNDj9Yb2-0T_APomJ3wYIIoPSdBg1-M8N1pTDL5Pxw7jmRzEkCbsup-LCNrWnsirV6CuoAuSqU6Y9Qsz1BtFDqgzc7s7BtRYEj7FbpPOsvQWy0lAcehTK-p7tqOj7tU/s1600/IMG_3509.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnp0ZwhebsjSnBDNDj9Yb2-0T_APomJ3wYIIoPSdBg1-M8N1pTDL5Pxw7jmRzEkCbsup-LCNrWnsirV6CuoAuSqU6Y9Qsz1BtFDqgzc7s7BtRYEj7FbpPOsvQWy0lAcehTK-p7tqOj7tU/s640/IMG_3509.jpg" title="Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">We did not grow up on gazpacho (mostly because it did not come in a box, and my feminist, Midwestern mother was going to spend as little time in the kitchen as necessary, thank you very much). But I don't remember when this divine summer soup came into my life, and I am pleased that it did. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Mostly because I love tomatoes. So much that, should I ever find myself with the option of one crop on a deserted island, I would choose tomatoes. Sure, there may be more nutritionally complete crops, but I stand by my selection. But I digress.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I am always looking for new recipes, because I like to try out other people's palates, but I find that I almost always end up reverting to my own.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOtLilnVSo5VAcd96GhiwDuKJA8quSJd-7f1u219cLyq9AVZRLcPS7bfXyIBmns4NvelZdaBw9Ra6sW8iMXZ5DAywQM4rNOo0eZof2wD8WGulO9COmuD_NM1vW2Ub_K-6BK4BDvwRwogQ/s1600/IMG_3504.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOtLilnVSo5VAcd96GhiwDuKJA8quSJd-7f1u219cLyq9AVZRLcPS7bfXyIBmns4NvelZdaBw9Ra6sW8iMXZ5DAywQM4rNOo0eZof2wD8WGulO9COmuD_NM1vW2Ub_K-6BK4BDvwRwogQ/s640/IMG_3504.jpg" title="Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I cracked open <a href="http://www.davidlebovitz.com/" target="_blank">David Lebovitz</a>'s <a href="https://www.amazon.com/My-Paris-Kitchen-Recipes-Stories/dp/1607742675" target="_blank"><i>My Paris Kitchen</i></a><i style="color: #444444;"> </i> (a lovely cookbook if ever there was one), and I had the best intentions as I began procuring tomatoes and peppers and cucumbers. However, as I was chopping, I tweaked this. And then when it came to add garlic, I tweaked that. As I started listing all of the changes I made to this delightful Gazpacho, you might say that I have no business linking it to the master chef here. And perhaps I do not. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But admittedly, his recipe inspired me to make my own quite delicious chilled tomato soup, so I should certainly give him all the props he deserves. Plus, he serves his with cheese. And second to tomatoes, I love cheese.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV98FMWesq188gl88qWnG-eqhHJa5hyRNzm4n0rvxCioMS1zVa-AZfvPri8qRya0xAXrBGNlmgu27l5Kr7Av1W77qOPSMlCf1VvhHA2mmH2K90EmKSLWBGn7agC38wrbEEeUuMViSF_Sw/s1600/IMG_3510.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV98FMWesq188gl88qWnG-eqhHJa5hyRNzm4n0rvxCioMS1zVa-AZfvPri8qRya0xAXrBGNlmgu27l5Kr7Av1W77qOPSMlCf1VvhHA2mmH2K90EmKSLWBGn7agC38wrbEEeUuMViSF_Sw/s640/IMG_3510.jpg" title="Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So here are the changes, in case you want to make David Lebovitz's gazpacho.</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I added an additional </span><span style="color: #666666;">½ red bell pepper to the tomatoes early on in the blender and pureed it up.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I removed all traces of garlic from the soup. But I did use 1 clove on the toasts.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I substituted </span><span style="color: #666666;">½ a shallot for 1 red onion.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I added </span><span style="color: #666666;">½ tablespoon vinegar (he called for 1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ and I used 2 tablespoons. I like vinegar as much as I don't like garlic).</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I removed the tablespoon of vodka, not because I am a teetotaler, but because we were out.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">He peels and seeds the tomatoes. I don't have time for that.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">I substituted <a href="https://www.chowhound.com/post/farmers-cheese-603014" target="_blank">farmers cheese</a> for the goat cheese. Definitely serve with toasts smothered in herb cheese, no matter your cheese choice, on the side.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666;">Not a change, but a revelation: Smoked paprika is transcendent in Gazpacho. Don't tweak this.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #666666;">And below, you will find what I actually made. And not even for Soup Week.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutcIIm9blOUv3n4PqBaL4yDgI2N5inGVd-raSTDBBu8E-zyfxNA5CkEwUA7nR9bWwF2e6GV4mVDhu4Z9m16joWKDKdOGYv2NUEF5NuEQ38vi1xVXmQ_UmE53K1TsV-eIg2BC0sQLOt0Q/s1600/IMG_3506.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1260" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutcIIm9blOUv3n4PqBaL4yDgI2N5inGVd-raSTDBBu8E-zyfxNA5CkEwUA7nR9bWwF2e6GV4mVDhu4Z9m16joWKDKdOGYv2NUEF5NuEQ38vi1xVXmQ_UmE53K1TsV-eIg2BC0sQLOt0Q/s640/IMG_3506.jpg" title="Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts wildly adapted from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen" width="502" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/08/chive-crepes-with-avocado-and-smoked.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Chive Crepes with Avocado and Smoked Salmon</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/08/strawberry-kiwi-candy-smoothie.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Strawberry-Kiwi Candy Smoothie</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/08/panzanella.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Panzanella</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/08/cooks-illustrateds-blueberry-muffins.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Cook's Illustrated's Blueberry Muffins</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/08/cookbook-32-cooking-light-vegetarian.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Corn & Barley Salad and Bulgur & Broccoli Salad</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #660000;">Gazpacho with Herbed Goat Cheese Toasts</span></h3>
<span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/My-Paris-Kitchen-Recipes-Stories/dp/1607742675" target="_blank">David Lebovitz's <i>My Paris Kitchen</i></a><i> </i></span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #660000;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 slice firm, white country-style bread, crusts removed</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 pounds ripe tomatoes, cut in half</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 red bell pepper, seeded, cut in half</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely diced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ shallot, peeled and finely diced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp red wine vinegar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp kosher salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp piment d'Espelette or smoked paprika or chile powder</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">freshly ground black pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">16 baguette slices, about ⅓-inch thick</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups fresh goat cheese, ricotta, or <a href="https://www.chowhound.com/post/farmers-cheese-603014" target="_blank">farmers cheese</a></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp chopped herbs (basil, mint, chervil, chives, or dill or a mixture of herbs)</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #660000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. <i>To Make the Gazpacho</i>: In a small bowl, soak the bread in cold water for 1 minute, drain, and press some of the water out of the bread. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2.. Working in batches, pulse the tomatoes and one of the red pepper halves</span><span style="color: #666666;"> in the bowl of a good processor or blender with the bread, until they're almost liquefied, but still have a few chunky bits barely visible.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Finely dice the other half of the red pepper. Mix the pureed tomatoes, bread and pepper in a large bowl with the cucumber, shallot, remaining pepper. Stir int he olive oil, vinegar, salt, and piment d'Espelette. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and add additional salt if necessary. Chill thoroughly.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. <i>To Make the Toasts: </i>Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the baguette slices on a baking sheet and brush the tops lightly with olive oi. Bake for 5-8 minutes, until the toasts are light brown. Remove from the oven and, when cool enough, rub generously with the cut side of the garlic clove.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. With a fork, mix the cheese in a small bowl with the herbs, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, and some salt until it is smooth. Smear a tablespoon of the cheese mixture onto each toast.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. Divide the soup among six chilled bowls and serve the toasts alongside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-78175675861544848322017-07-30T17:03:00.002-07:002017-07-30T17:03:29.100-07:00Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing from Food52<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvq_2Q4wG2MEv96dL2jnTGTHhFRjmHeFgbavDRpCTHmqWrWF2CrwpTN3AEI7AEIu6f4mJfnsYAESdkljRr73L3wBeoPi59GRX6Rj4kP4tRe7phYPh6slVvc0lwXE1VWGcXFHdLK81uJ1o/s1600/IMG_3471.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvq_2Q4wG2MEv96dL2jnTGTHhFRjmHeFgbavDRpCTHmqWrWF2CrwpTN3AEI7AEIu6f4mJfnsYAESdkljRr73L3wBeoPi59GRX6Rj4kP4tRe7phYPh6slVvc0lwXE1VWGcXFHdLK81uJ1o/s640/IMG_3471.JPG" title="Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Do you really need a recipe for this salad? Not really. Do you sometimes need a nudge to eat better for yourself than you have been? Probably. Or at least I know I sometimes do. Consider this your nudge.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbiIaW7wxVEFAQWrbFx-O1dkmQSA9lcqlrE9sS6EnZfF8HThL1tMKVG81bvmFI5Yn3CqLH_80Ntb58XjXenDL54DU6pg5SCOfHW6Q9KPkZhfCnXBRA2mUWK6-dRYC4ENJ3iYCMGjxcnUw/s1600/IMG_3474.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbiIaW7wxVEFAQWrbFx-O1dkmQSA9lcqlrE9sS6EnZfF8HThL1tMKVG81bvmFI5Yn3CqLH_80Ntb58XjXenDL54DU6pg5SCOfHW6Q9KPkZhfCnXBRA2mUWK6-dRYC4ENJ3iYCMGjxcnUw/s640/IMG_3474.JPG" title="Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This Cobb Salad from the fine folks at <a href="https://food52.com/" target="_blank">Food52</a> claims to be a rebellious kiss off to the more traditional Cobb Salad. And sure, perhaps it is. Normally a <a href="https://www.chowhound.com/recipes/classic-cobb-salad-11061" target="_blank">classic Cobb Salad</a> would have tomatoes, chicken (or turkey), bacon, and iceberg lettuce. So, I suppose this is a nice riff on the Cobb Salad, wherein the beets stand in for all things meat based, olives make a briny appearance, and the dressing has eggs blended right into it, rather than just having your hard-boiled eggs scattered across the top of your shredded lettuce and cubed chicken. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMaFYDB9jr6jG7DLgLIedmgFXpjTCqXE7cC7Aej2l0Wz5PB2IymYF1zDzTq53bY0rRRRar79OvlvTs5Nz8kcmsazYEkC1A-FudbjXto4xPqg1qqxZGqtoMisOI9vjQIDI30HUycmjq8ms/s1600/IMG_3466.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMaFYDB9jr6jG7DLgLIedmgFXpjTCqXE7cC7Aej2l0Wz5PB2IymYF1zDzTq53bY0rRRRar79OvlvTs5Nz8kcmsazYEkC1A-FudbjXto4xPqg1qqxZGqtoMisOI9vjQIDI30HUycmjq8ms/s640/IMG_3466.JPG" title="Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Bonus: The beets get their own vinegar infusion during the steaming process. So while they are not truly pickled beets (a favorite around these here parts), they have a little zing to them. Which I always appreciate. And I love me some rich and creamy blue cheese. Especially next to the zingy and sweet beets and the salty olives. And don't look too closely at the pictures, because then you will see that I am not a huge fan of lettuce--Bibb, iceberg, romaine, or otherwise. A salad, in my book, should be more topping than leaf.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoijbxHddo1JrxmLRrUuQtBJzNkfPaQFlMEAnYySDA2JD_ebhZdyLHk1J0v42sA19txxLBHBrL5efd5kS-hjCZtrG0o7gUSm4dm9fzFfLQay5YgdXqIjkbcjxNWFnl1qCvrj66yhnSV04/s1600/IMG_3470.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1256" data-original-width="1600" height="502" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoijbxHddo1JrxmLRrUuQtBJzNkfPaQFlMEAnYySDA2JD_ebhZdyLHk1J0v42sA19txxLBHBrL5efd5kS-hjCZtrG0o7gUSm4dm9fzFfLQay5YgdXqIjkbcjxNWFnl1qCvrj66yhnSV04/s640/IMG_3470.JPG" title="Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This is a fine weeknight meal, especially if you steam up these beets the night before and just have them hanging out in your refrigerator. You might as well do that with the hard- (or soft-) boiled eggs, just to cut down on cooking time. You don't need a recipe, per se, but you still need dinner on a Tuesday night. Why not this little twist?</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbvHlx_Hwk8jgIVHdXhRmaFMbhq9hDueEm-LZFTGTyfJMDNJbhsAcHbDFt1v7ir76dHtTA-mnVWb5CNA3pRFgXJKlS6c7Ae6SZyF8dmHALYczmSjfpu6aDGDsiMzPKWlg8VPMqpNs05yc/s1600/IMG_3468.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbvHlx_Hwk8jgIVHdXhRmaFMbhq9hDueEm-LZFTGTyfJMDNJbhsAcHbDFt1v7ir76dHtTA-mnVWb5CNA3pRFgXJKlS6c7Ae6SZyF8dmHALYczmSjfpu6aDGDsiMzPKWlg8VPMqpNs05yc/s640/IMG_3468.JPG" title="Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/farro-salad-with-roasted-eggplant.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Farro Salad with Roasted Eggplant, Caramelized Onion, and Pine Nuts</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/nivik-chickpeas-with-spinach.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Nivik: Chickpeas with Spinach</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/halloumi-and-seared-red-peppers-olives.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Halloumi and Seared Red Peppers, Olives and Capers</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/the-best-shepherds-pie.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: The Best Shepherd's Pie</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-31-thrill-of-grill.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Bourbon Peaches</a></div>
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------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #274e13;">Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing</span></h3>
<span style="color: #444444;">Adapted from <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Food52-Mighty-Salads-Dinner-Make-Ahead/dp/0399578048/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500138564&sr=8-1&keywords=mighty+salads" target="_blank">Mighty Salads</a> </i>and recipe <a href="http://www.tastecooking.com/recipes/cobb-salad-with-hard-boiled-egg-dressing/" target="_blank">here</a> </span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #274e13;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #274e13;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup white wine vinegar </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 large red beets, scrubbed well, trimmed, and halved <i>(I didn't halve them. Everything turned out okay)</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 large head Bibb lettuce, torn into large pieces</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅓ cup loosely packed fresh tarragon, dill or chives, coarsely chopped </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 hard-cooked eggs, quartered </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 large avocado, thinly sliced </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅓ cup Niçoise or Kalamata olives, pitted </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup crumbled blue cheese </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Dressing: </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 hard-boiled egg plus 1 hard-boiled yolk </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Grated zest of 1 lemon </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tablespoon capers </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 teaspoons Dijon mustard </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Red pepper flakes </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #274e13;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666;">In a large saucepan, bring 2 inches of water, the vinegar and a good bit of kosher salt to a boil over high heat. Put the beets in a steamer basket and set the basket over the boiling water. Cover, lower heat to medium and steam until the beets are tender when pierced with a knife, about 20-30 minutes (depending on the size of your beets and whether or not you remembered to halve them). Let cool, then peel and cut into bite-size pieces. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. To make the dressing, blend all of the dressing ingredients together until smooth and emulsified (stand or immersion blender are both fine). Add salt and red pepper flakes to taste. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. On a large platter or wide bowl, toss together the lettuce and half the herbs. Add enough dressing to lightly coat the leaves, and toss again. Arrange the beets, eggs, avocado, olives and cheese on top. To be traditional, you should put the toppings in rows. Scatter the remaining herbs. (You can also toss everything together.) Serve with the remaining dressing on the side.</span><span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-56607841713060085482017-07-23T08:33:00.000-07:002017-07-23T08:35:02.853-07:00Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-JyAzqV7ZBXqMqA3wCYZu3ZWs11aT9PCOss3bW2qqwTv3x9z4vle4_B6QzNgZswJDTTlTXDoZu0C0Kyfx7nSfAMvgdiR-WmHjgmTs3qvOWImq4ILHHrjvf4o2EsYMvoOmov4JXJLjho/s1600/IMG_3456.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-JyAzqV7ZBXqMqA3wCYZu3ZWs11aT9PCOss3bW2qqwTv3x9z4vle4_B6QzNgZswJDTTlTXDoZu0C0Kyfx7nSfAMvgdiR-WmHjgmTs3qvOWImq4ILHHrjvf4o2EsYMvoOmov4JXJLjho/s640/IMG_3456.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="480" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">Let me apologize by saying that you will have to turn on your oven for this recipe. So start early in the morning. Or really late at night. Because, people, it has been hot out there.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">But once you do, once you fire up that oven and roast these tomatoes, once you layer them atop a thick lashing of homemade yogurt cheese mixed with fresh herbs... I promise, this is worth any hot kitchen. Especially if you roast <i>a lot </i>of tomatoes so that you can make this simple, light meal for dinner, and then have it again for breakfast, and if you plan it just right, for lunch again, too.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZX-1m82Uk3Eanh26zd21YI1xYCYThxIl_f0IoMZrWEl5tGmWwXXrl5FYkeNGMG0oEYCSEVWTqay-OJ-oUu7b1N1FhTGvMypqXBB2hhIEpGIok6nqq5t_WjzUbyYuRegaf7ISWZqiWAM0/s1600/IMG_3457.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZX-1m82Uk3Eanh26zd21YI1xYCYThxIl_f0IoMZrWEl5tGmWwXXrl5FYkeNGMG0oEYCSEVWTqay-OJ-oUu7b1N1FhTGvMypqXBB2hhIEpGIok6nqq5t_WjzUbyYuRegaf7ISWZqiWAM0/s640/IMG_3457.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="480" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">As you may know, I am a fan of <a href="http://www.davidlebovitz.com/" target="_blank">David Lebovitz</a>. He's a great chef, of course, but on top of that, he's a great writer. He's been blogging for <i>years</i>, l<span style="font-family: inherit;">ong before it was trendy to be a food blogger, and his book <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Life-Paris-Adventures-Perplexing/dp/076792889X" target="_blank">The Sweet Life in Paris</a></i> is the go-to gift for any foodie who is actually traveling to Paris or just wants to do so via arm chair. So it's no surprise that I am cracking open his lovely cookbook, </span></span><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/My-Paris-Kitchen-Recipes-Stories/dp/1607742675" target="_blank">My Paris Kitchen</a>. </span></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBX2nxVWmwJt2w83XZuYDo0nLkSW6AcQ50vqUnVBcoF2c3sZ5W2TqEHevR0m3F3S6GGl69fnlNU58iCRVqxs3Fb3PNF2QT0q4LIrEwCyIZBj6jZ-thiDmE2VCCMp0bHIZ-XYWtY1eiXDE/s1600/IMG_3460.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBX2nxVWmwJt2w83XZuYDo0nLkSW6AcQ50vqUnVBcoF2c3sZ5W2TqEHevR0m3F3S6GGl69fnlNU58iCRVqxs3Fb3PNF2QT0q4LIrEwCyIZBj6jZ-thiDmE2VCCMp0bHIZ-XYWtY1eiXDE/s640/IMG_3460.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Before we go any further, let's talk about two important things with this recipe: the cheese and the tomatoes.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Cheese</u>:</span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">You may ask, does this really qualify as cheese? It's just highly strained yogurt, you claim. Oh, but it is so much more. This is <a href="http://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/why-labneh-is-better-than-greek-yogurt-article" target="_blank">labneh</a>, a super-tangy and super-easy cheese that takes a few hours or overnight to make. Labneh preserves all of the zingy sourness of yogurt but removes the whey, resulting in a smooth, velvety cheese. You also get to control how thick it is. The longer you strain it, the thicker it is. Be sure to salt your yogurt well, which helps mellow the cheese a bit, and if you have some left over labneh, may I recommend dousing it in olive oil and a pinch of <a href="http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/zaatar-106776" target="_blank">za'atar</a>. And then I recommend eating it with a spoon. Or pita, if you're fancy.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsWb55fvDssBSlB4yuBoI2gEJ4rbbIblYmj8QJd9p_v8wxuHluiLINXAvHoRntyiz4yQVS4IcXtYT9F-BtB_KqQFZlECZLM9fezU6YQledfRUOj9DRVx9x51zCo46x_AQyfaGJps6UIhU/s1600/IMG_3463.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsWb55fvDssBSlB4yuBoI2gEJ4rbbIblYmj8QJd9p_v8wxuHluiLINXAvHoRntyiz4yQVS4IcXtYT9F-BtB_KqQFZlECZLM9fezU6YQledfRUOj9DRVx9x51zCo46x_AQyfaGJps6UIhU/s640/IMG_3463.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><b><u>Tomatoes:</u></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Roasted tomatoes are a reminder of why these are fruits. With just enough caramelization, they become these sweet, umami bombs of flavor. They're absolutely irresistible. I am going to admit, I made some changes to the original recipe here. I am not a huge garlic fan (blasphemy, I know, but it's because of a garlic tart the husband made. Another blogpost, another story), so I just eliminated them altogether. If you want to re-add them, by all means, do so. Just keep an eye on them and on your oven. Finally, give your tomatoes a stir about halfway through. And maybe even again with 10 minutes left.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO4huWKbGkTTmVg7ezOoUlm-7ZOL9hO9_ktg7fGaf8VFuoeC5T8noDvYC-5r2GS0q88-9dE6swAu-9J7x2XeHcx0S5yk6of0L96f04NymVxh6JQ63QDUByHBCZ7eYDtSSxsfoHyyx7kO0/s1600/IMG_3459.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1194" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO4huWKbGkTTmVg7ezOoUlm-7ZOL9hO9_ktg7fGaf8VFuoeC5T8noDvYC-5r2GS0q88-9dE6swAu-9J7x2XeHcx0S5yk6of0L96f04NymVxh6JQ63QDUByHBCZ7eYDtSSxsfoHyyx7kO0/s640/IMG_3459.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="476" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So, here you go. While the recipe does require an oven, with plenty of leftover roasted tomatoes, this is a simple <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/tartine" target="_blank">tartine</a> to make any time of day, either as a light dinner (maybe with a salad?) or as an appetizer. Or as breakfast. Or a snack.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;">And it's perfect for hot summer days when the cherry tomatoes are divine. Which ours are out here in California right now. (I even found some for 89 cents a pound at the <a href="http://www.berkeleybowl.com/" target="_blank">Bowl</a>, a grocery store that even has its <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkeley_Bowl" target="_blank">own Wikipedia page</a>.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So I am totally celebrating the cherry tomato. And even roasting them when it's hot out. I am that committed.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-wciV9i4h7Yt5rDMRX1-Bocy9WAKIRifQid-nyRrSq3yUfWr83IxlzO3QUVBZ9Z_PnaJZm7zhTH-eNBVrGf5ztHnvBkYHOi_z3sjcY43wMqZ5CbYmMkZr_UV2jUJiy-RnNJTdqUcazc/s1600/IMG_3465.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-wciV9i4h7Yt5rDMRX1-Bocy9WAKIRifQid-nyRrSq3yUfWr83IxlzO3QUVBZ9Z_PnaJZm7zhTH-eNBVrGf5ztHnvBkYHOi_z3sjcY43wMqZ5CbYmMkZr_UV2jUJiy-RnNJTdqUcazc/s640/IMG_3465.JPG" title="Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/ahi-tuna-poke-bowl-with-snap-pea-and.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl with Snap Pea and Edamame Salad</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/plum-nectarine-chutney.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Plum-Nectarine Chutney</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/grilled-west-indies-spice-rubbed.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Grilled West Indies Spice-Rubbed Chicken Breast with Equatorial Fruit Salad</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/the-best-shepherds-pie.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: The Best Shepherd's Pie</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-30-chez-panisse-fruit.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Grilled Cured Duck Breast with Pickled Peaches</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #990000;">Cherry Tomato Crostini with Herbed Goat Cheese</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/My-Paris-Kitchen-Recipes-Stories/dp/1607742675" target="_blank"><i>My Paris Kitchen</i></a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #990000;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Herbed Fresh Cheese </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups whole milk yogurt (goat or cow)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 generous tablespoon very finely minced mixed fresh herbs (be sure to include chives, as well as an assortment that could include thyme, sage, basil, or flat-leaf parsley) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 teaspoon minced shallots </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ teaspoon minced garlic </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¾ teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt (or more, if you want it a little saltier)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Generous pinch of cayenne pepper </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Roasted Cherry Tomatoes </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> pounds cherry tomatoes, stemmed and halved </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 tablespoons olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Handful of fresh herbs (any combination of whatever you have on hand, including chives, rosemary, thyme, basil or sage) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Sea salt or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Toasts</i> </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 thick slices bread, such as ciabatta or sourdough</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Olive oil </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 clove garlic, peeled </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">A few leaves of fresh basil, sage, or flat-leaf parsley, to garnish</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #990000;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. </span><span style="color: #666666;"><i>To make the herbed cheese:</i> line a mesh strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth or muslin and set it over a bowl. Scrape the yogurt into the lined strainer and refrigerate the yogurt for 24 hours. Put the strained, thickened yogurt into a bowl and mix in the herbs, shallots, garlic, salt, and cayenne pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. <i>To roast the tomatoes</i>: preheat the oven to 350ºF . Combine the cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and herbs in a baking dish or pan that will hold them all in a snug single layer. Season with salt and pepper, mix well, and spread them out in a single layer. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Roast the tomatoes in the oven for about 45 minutes, stirring once or perhaps twice during baking, until they’re wilted and their juices are starting to concentrate—and perhaps brown a bit—in the bottom of the baking dish or pan. (The baking time will depend on the material of the baking dish and type of cherry tomatoes used.) Ideally, you want the tomatoes to juice, and for the juices to thicken and concentrate. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">4. Scrape the tomatoes and any juices into a bowl and let cool to room temperature. They can sit up to 8 hours, and improve the longer they sit. (I have also refrigerated them and used the leftovers. Just pop 'em in the microwave for 30 seconds to get 'em nice and juicy again.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">5. <i>To make the toasts:</i> Evenly brush the bread with olive oil. Place them on a baking sheet in a preheated 350ºF oven or a toaster oven and toast for about 5 minutes, until light golden brown. Remove and when just cool enough to handle, rub the slices generously with the garlic clove. Let cool to room temperature. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">6. <i>To serve:</i> thickly smear each piece of bread with the fresh herbed cheese. Set each one on a plate. Spoon the tomatoes and their juices onto the slices of bread. Coarsely chop any remaining herbs for the garnish, and scatter them over the top of each portion.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-84165777941418062792017-07-19T21:17:00.002-07:002017-08-09T08:56:18.434-07:00Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_oNteAF_jcSpddS1eECuHCFjevBbjnEgkEqrHYkrX19ZQyYvl0a__owPEKDdX9EOMicA0OEBALgOHc2Rpqes1SD4Zzuku7APjHg9KO-tWOovDa5rqx_GmwbB0B5socfe89eAfjXI2sYU/s1600/IMG_2760.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_oNteAF_jcSpddS1eECuHCFjevBbjnEgkEqrHYkrX19ZQyYvl0a__owPEKDdX9EOMicA0OEBALgOHc2Rpqes1SD4Zzuku7APjHg9KO-tWOovDa5rqx_GmwbB0B5socfe89eAfjXI2sYU/s640/IMG_2760.JPG" title="Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika (Diana Henry)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Is it too hot to cook inside? It sure was this Sunday in the Bay Area. Smoking hot. Of course, there are two answers to hot weather: grilling and gazpacho. We did both. (Gazpacho found <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/08/gazpacho-with-herbed-goat-cheese-toasts.html" target="_blank">here</a> <strike>to come later, I promise</strike>.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-B2w8iaxaeVZ_xXioAwDEbVoiROU5jcisc-G8x-vV-xpgtsZWgDeB46hGks88HgiBQ4v4JJrUFD1term9gUe2hDYIpTlXVi-WIhxhwIYZub8xjSATQauhl-1Bn4OhnPGQOeO6COp8Qc/s1600/IMG_2756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-B2w8iaxaeVZ_xXioAwDEbVoiROU5jcisc-G8x-vV-xpgtsZWgDeB46hGks88HgiBQ4v4JJrUFD1term9gUe2hDYIpTlXVi-WIhxhwIYZub8xjSATQauhl-1Bn4OhnPGQOeO6COp8Qc/s640/IMG_2756.jpg" title="Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika (Diana Henry)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This little lamb skewer comes from none other than my favorite person, Diana Henry--this time from her cookbook, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Change-Appetite-Diana-Henry/dp/1845338928/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498438940&sr=8-1&keywords=a+change+of+appetite" target="_blank">A Change of Appetite</a>. </i>(Want to read a great review of this book? See <a href="https://food52.com/the-piglet/judgments/89-smashing-plates-vs-a-change-of-appetite" target="_blank">here</a>. While Alex Guarnaschelli says she loves the book, she finds that it's culinary whirlwind tour a little discombobulating and she's not sure what she would turn to this book for. I do. I turn to it whenever I want something light and fresh and filling without weighing me down. And that happens throughout the year--be it on a hot summer day or after enjoying too many holiday treats come January. I know exactly why I come to this particular Diana Henry book.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Vk-mxvOVbFAPdJWVQnksrI-cOYuiJsLMuvzPBExDfQsU8huxnYnmdiM3N76WST9FI7xCqxo5fO893vDoD4huljtztp0g560hAzfcg4_ihl1kEcLczbrUfAMRkvIatp6uIZv6H-lWGTw/s1600/IMG_2759.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Vk-mxvOVbFAPdJWVQnksrI-cOYuiJsLMuvzPBExDfQsU8huxnYnmdiM3N76WST9FI7xCqxo5fO893vDoD4huljtztp0g560hAzfcg4_ihl1kEcLczbrUfAMRkvIatp6uIZv6H-lWGTw/s640/IMG_2759.jpg" title="Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika (Diana Henry)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">So the husband fired up the grill and made some lamb, which was simple enough. Shockingly simple, indeed. And I hoisted out the blender to mix up this </span><span style="color: #666666;">Adzhika relish/salsa from Georgia (the country, not the state) on the side. My only regret is that I did not make even more of this sauce. While this recipe made <i>plenty</i>, and we had a good deal of it leftover, I found myself mixing it in with everything over the next few days. Tuna and bean salad? Okay. Yogurt with tomatoes? Sounds fine to me. Should we grill up some more meat? I'd top that too, but it appears I have eaten all of the Adzhika and need to make more. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Want to learn a little more? Here are two links, one describing it as a </span><span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ajika" target="_blank">salsa</a> and another as a hot pepper <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/adzhika-georgian-style-hot-pepper-relish-483996" target="_blank">relish</a>. Is it no surprise then that I love it? A sauce? To go on morsels? Hush, say no more.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4E2Zv9AJKOi9rhBq033ukL_JvRujzzGbVSHEwajYTl_f59TmPloXaXgggPOR4kAZDt9ybHkK_c_NXmwMcYNL27KrKC1jtEjt9n9g8IFujE1Kyp-lF05UAnpS-qUAVtGFnKyL1gszKCA/s1600/IMG_2757.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4E2Zv9AJKOi9rhBq033ukL_JvRujzzGbVSHEwajYTl_f59TmPloXaXgggPOR4kAZDt9ybHkK_c_NXmwMcYNL27KrKC1jtEjt9n9g8IFujE1Kyp-lF05UAnpS-qUAVtGFnKyL1gszKCA/s640/IMG_2757.JPG" title="Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika (Diana Henry)" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adzhika is hot--or as hot as you want to make it, given you get to control how much of the chile you put in. But it is complex. The dill and cinnamon and celery are unexpected, at least for this palate, but the heat of the chile next to the cilantro brings me right back home to a more familiar salsa. However, upon some searching, this may be much more Adzhika "inspired" than Adzhika replication. <a href="http://www.sras.org/adzhika" target="_blank">Some</a> adzhikas have no celery or cilantro and some purists claim that they should be only chiles, salt, and very specific herbs (coriander, dill, blue fenugreek, garlic). I guess I need to get on a search for true adzhika. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">In the meantime, I definitely am going to layer this sauce on the gaminess of lamb for a big, bold flavor. Perfect for a hot summer afternoon with a side of rice to help cool your mouth after this palate cleanser. I am so on board with this salsa. At least until I can find some true adzhika. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">And I suspect I would be on board with that, too.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio08oxYSXlOKvjalNKyj06ZRJW5GC3Gj_FNKMYh07weh1fiwqGmda_5VeLx_N1P3i_LmmHJoPQirELNw-l55JxC7mHvkjYJfcUjCxv-c4srCMr94bZbLKiyFZRcsJOPzcBZwkV-rVH8uk/s1600/IMG_2754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio08oxYSXlOKvjalNKyj06ZRJW5GC3Gj_FNKMYh07weh1fiwqGmda_5VeLx_N1P3i_LmmHJoPQirELNw-l55JxC7mHvkjYJfcUjCxv-c4srCMr94bZbLKiyFZRcsJOPzcBZwkV-rVH8uk/s640/IMG_2754.JPG" title="Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika (Diana Henry)" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/ottolenghis-lemon-and-eggplant-risotto.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Ottolenghi's Lemon and Eggplant Risotto</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/barley-zucchini-and-red-pepper-risotto.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Barley, Zucchini, and Red Pepper Risotto</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/spaghetti-with-lime-and-rocket.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Spaghetti with Lime and Rocket</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/american-potato-salad-with-hard-boiled.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: American Potato Salad with Hard-Boiled Eggs and Sweet Pickles</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-28-new-best-recipe.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Basic Pilaf-Style Rice</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<br />
------<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #274e13;">Lamb Kebabs with Georgian Adzhika</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Change-Appetite-Diana-Henry/dp/1845338928/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498438940&sr=8-1&keywords=a+change+of+appetite" target="_blank">Diana Henry's <i>A Change of Appetite</i></a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 Servings</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">¼ cubed leg of lamb</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp ground cinnamon</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp ground allspice</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 tsp cayenne pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 garlic cloves, crushed</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 celery stick, coarsely chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3-4 red chiles, chopped (seeded if you would prefer a milder sauce)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 red bell pepper, chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup dill leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ cup cilantro leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3</span><span style="color: #666666;">½ Tbsp red wine vinegar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ cup olive oil</span><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="font-family: times; margin: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Trim the lamb of any fat or sinew. Mix the olive oil through the 2 garlic cloves, crushed, together in a bowl. Put the lamb in the spice mixture. Turn the meat over in the marinade, cover with plastic warp, and put in the refrigerator to marinate for 2-24 hours. Turn the meat over every so often. Soak six bamboo skewers in water for at least 30 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">2. To make the adzhika, put the garlic in a food processor and blend. Add the celery, chiles, and bell pepper and pulse-blend to a salsa-like mixture. Add the herbs and pulse about 3 times. You don't want a puree--just a rough mix. Scrape into a bowl, add salt, vinegar and olive oil.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">3. Thread the lamb cubes onto the skewers and season with salt. Cook on a grill pan or a grill, until golden brown, turning them regularly. Keep these a bit rare in the middle, so these need about 7 minutes total. Serve with the adzhika. (We clearly also added some rice and wild rice--see pictures.)</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-33457238935513891372017-07-15T16:28:00.001-07:002017-07-15T16:29:21.103-07:00Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSdgaTO-mk-E84gT8fBNb-4hmRd4OaIg-IHBTGUbkBUsrKeiYwjCSjkcxScAq2PU-2qZcJ-xX-yDVJ9KQWBgRREJqNd1kh2dJwRJo1ecBQIlsdvGLjVlwFmxYWTpi4OrxGgPW9Onnt-9U/s1600/IMG_2498.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1270" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSdgaTO-mk-E84gT8fBNb-4hmRd4OaIg-IHBTGUbkBUsrKeiYwjCSjkcxScAq2PU-2qZcJ-xX-yDVJ9KQWBgRREJqNd1kh2dJwRJo1ecBQIlsdvGLjVlwFmxYWTpi4OrxGgPW9Onnt-9U/s640/IMG_2498.jpg" title="Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens--Diana Henry and Bird in Hand" width="508" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">We have been away--I have gone back to Illinois and then the husband and I went up to Mt. Shasta to see a volcano and to hike around. But we still need to eat. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Is it Tuesday? (Okay, truth here, it's Saturday, but this dish will do anytime during the week.) Do you, too, need something to eat? Are you willing to put in 30 minutes? Do you need a revelation in broth? Well here's the little soup for </span><span style="color: #666666;">you, no matter if you're traveling or hanging out at home.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd-5TUN5rL5TEjoNLOrV4OZwVjbZeT_meMNO1iQ1vC4GiAVbIiNr5UlFHFx4gouIB4tQCYSxcVwskLrgltGQL9102OYOGt_L4M8pvHASk-yGj94o4CZLu6t4feahKWpPmaEkenRdcmvO4/s1600/IMG_2473.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1386" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd-5TUN5rL5TEjoNLOrV4OZwVjbZeT_meMNO1iQ1vC4GiAVbIiNr5UlFHFx4gouIB4tQCYSxcVwskLrgltGQL9102OYOGt_L4M8pvHASk-yGj94o4CZLu6t4feahKWpPmaEkenRdcmvO4/s640/IMG_2473.jpg" title="Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens--Diana Henry and Bird in Hand" width="554" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">The meatballs are a snap. As many of you know, <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/search?q=diana+henry" target="_blank">I am huge fan of Diana Henry</a>, in part because she takes ordinary ingredients and whips them into fine flavor combinations. More importantly, though, she does so without a lot of fuss and fanfare. Just make a meatball. Then put it in a broth. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">But before you do that, why don't you make your broth a little more flavorful? Don't have time? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Let's not talk nonsense.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifR_ltPVRZCBNHJ6uweoE4sALFn7Pdd8sKI2Hz90j0sZYY9ZKl3ZbRtWPqiEvo52wcobWkmnMm3J-eqMzzxm7guEY7o2GJoVOeG0lciPRhxuC_HeArOTK_Udzq_Ic2qkbxGdkxwrSqVLU/s1600/IMG_2481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1472" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifR_ltPVRZCBNHJ6uweoE4sALFn7Pdd8sKI2Hz90j0sZYY9ZKl3ZbRtWPqiEvo52wcobWkmnMm3J-eqMzzxm7guEY7o2GJoVOeG0lciPRhxuC_HeArOTK_Udzq_Ic2qkbxGdkxwrSqVLU/s640/IMG_2481.jpg" title="Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens--Diana Henry and Bird in Hand" width="588" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">All you need is 10 minutes, some ginger and some chiles. If you have homemade broth, this is going to be divine. If all you have is store bought, well, trust me on this one--infusing it with some aromatics will boost this little soup. And, well, we all need a little boost from time to time. Why not now?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">So let's get to it. We all have to eat, and whether we're going fully homemade or just upping the ante on what is in our pantry, Diana Henry is to the rescue, as usual. Let's have some soup together.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE-eStV1LRipx7kijHdRCAsoJo0h3PNZuepv-A0z5UtySkIejaXnhfrY5DD1wYoyE-PiQ70xzYmXCuBrq7uFknweKcgsA9Msjj4JhxFsJl2YP4tglizo5EN2AbDKAJdPKxiy2Pj7Fqc3Y/s1600/IMG_2493.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE-eStV1LRipx7kijHdRCAsoJo0h3PNZuepv-A0z5UtySkIejaXnhfrY5DD1wYoyE-PiQ70xzYmXCuBrq7uFknweKcgsA9Msjj4JhxFsJl2YP4tglizo5EN2AbDKAJdPKxiy2Pj7Fqc3Y/s640/IMG_2493.jpg" title="Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens--Diana Henry and Bird in Hand" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/braised-cabbage-with-chewy-fried.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Braised Cabbage with Chewy Fried Potatoes, Feta, and Dill</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/open-faced-sandwich-of-spinach.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Open-Faced Sandwich of Spinach, Caramelized Onions, and Roasted Peppers</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/chilli-crusted-lamb-cutlets-with.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Chili-Crusted Lamb Cutlets with Cucumber Yogurt</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/american-potato-salad-with-hard-boiled.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: American Potato Salad with Hard-Boiled Eggs and Sweet Pickles</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-28-new-best-recipe.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Basic Pilaf-Style Rice</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #274e13;">Ginger-Chicken Meatballs in Broth with Greens</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from Diana Henry's <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bird-Hand-Chicken-recipes-every/dp/178472002X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1498437936&sr=1-3&keywords=a+bird+in+hand" target="_blank"><i>A Bird in Hand</i></a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 Servings</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 lb ground chicken</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 garlic cloves, minced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">½</span><span style="color: #666666;"> Tbsp soy sauce</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1-inch piece ginger root (¾-inch finely minced, plus 2 slices, about ¼-inch thick)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 scallions, sliced, divided</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">salt and pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">5 cups chicken stock</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 chile (red or green), halved, seeded, and minced, divided</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp olive, peanut, or sesame oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 small heads of bok choy (feel free to substitute spinach and add more than you think)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">juice of 1 lime</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">1. Using your hands, mix together the chicken, garlic, soy sauce, </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">¾-inch finely minced ginger, and half of the scallions. Season with salt and pepper. Wet your hands and shape the mixture into small balls, each about the size of a walnut. If you have time to chill, these will be easier to work with. Set them on a baking sheet, and put in the fridge for 30 minutes or the freezer for 15.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">2. Bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add the ginger slices and half the chile. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat--this is just to flavor the broth with the ginger.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">3. Heat the oil in a saut</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">é pan and cook the meatballs, rolling them over to ensure that they brown all over--you may need to do this in 2 batches. It should take about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate using a slotted spoon.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "times";">4. Add the stock to the pan and bring to a boil, scraping the base of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Reduce the heat, return the meatballs to the pan, and bring to a simmer and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the greens (and then add a little bit more than you think you should) and the rest of the chile and cook for another 3 minutes. The meatballs should be cooked through and the greens should be tender. Discard the ginger slices. Add the lime juice and remaining scallions. Serve with more chile, if you like.</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-65404832319628678442017-07-10T16:15:00.001-07:002017-07-10T16:36:28.306-07:00Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb9xD6uKOw9BZjAR_ZGNdVJL-Q50bf0LqXoZms0GNwAEBITxDtQkpIJWdMIrt8cKvlAJ4NSWLhP5T5df9srZ0LKKSqH5CkZVDneh27MGaaHjAw6vkfATO6xdJwNI_j9vv1_JTW9ddcw6I/s1600/IMG_2693.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb9xD6uKOw9BZjAR_ZGNdVJL-Q50bf0LqXoZms0GNwAEBITxDtQkpIJWdMIrt8cKvlAJ4NSWLhP5T5df9srZ0LKKSqH5CkZVDneh27MGaaHjAw6vkfATO6xdJwNI_j9vv1_JTW9ddcw6I/s640/IMG_2693.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><i style="color: #666666;">In this </i><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/p/cook-your-books.html" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank">Cook Your Books</a><i><span style="color: #666666;"> series, I have chosen 15 books to read in 2017 based on somewhat arbitrarily chosen categories. My theory (bogus it might turn out to be) is that all 15 of these books will somehow connect to food. And I plan to write about that food. </span></i></span><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="background-color: white; font-family: "crimson text";">And it turns out that these entries are a sort of long-form blog-post. So settle in. This sixth installment is <b>a book published this year</b></i></span><b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: red;">.</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">No doubt, I feel a kinship to Mark Twain. The summer of 1984, I went to <a href="https://www.visithannibal.com/" target="_blank">Hannibal, Missouri</a>, with my family. One hundred miles north of St. Louis, Hannibal boasts being the boyhood home to Mark Twain and the inspiration for Tom Sawyer's spelunking adventures and picket fence white washing and for Huck Finn's hogshead barrel sleeping. It was also the site of numerous family and school trips. But one trip stands out in particular.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BaJaN_BFbjjzgAH_M9ChVlhdiaCUkMUKuTsMVs8RABrpGsHW7LYN4aQD6azl1qHejU2tUScwaEbqIjYYNlN0-vOcLrAv_ns-LaUDmP30dNXFH0bc-rXdoCYsPuvExgRI4XqA4Fx_178/s1600/IMG_2688.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1543" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BaJaN_BFbjjzgAH_M9ChVlhdiaCUkMUKuTsMVs8RABrpGsHW7LYN4aQD6azl1qHejU2tUScwaEbqIjYYNlN0-vOcLrAv_ns-LaUDmP30dNXFH0bc-rXdoCYsPuvExgRI4XqA4Fx_178/s640/IMG_2688.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="616" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Instructed to buy one souvenir, I lingered over plastic trinkets and snow globes and novelty spoons, I am sure. But something in me wanted more. I wanted something grown up, because I was feeling grown up. I was about to turn ten and I felt the weight of a full decade upon me. So I browsed the bookshop, tracing hard cover spines with my whole palms, and I settled on <i>The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn</i>. I still have this copy. The inside cover of the book boasts my name, the date (7-6-84), "Hannibal, Missouri" (in a handwriting that is distinctively mine still) and my name written again (with more flourishes this time) on a fancy bookplate depicting a unicorn rearing up, its hind legs perched atop the earth, a rainbow snaking through the celestial spheres, and a twinkling crescent moon. I was almost ten, and Mark Twain certainly would have been hometown proud.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjapuH7Ks04WoFpfL-8-J6u4z1M7icsiFkFVu4FXhdUprDKeWrm3a7PIpSByCoxJaRtqxSmRyLeA0p_odRC-L4dwAB6gJJ4FJXpFxgJuM8-1iMXDvAbc4HTvkqDVCPjx49cv5F17RF5Hf8/s1600/IMG_2671.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjapuH7Ks04WoFpfL-8-J6u4z1M7icsiFkFVu4FXhdUprDKeWrm3a7PIpSByCoxJaRtqxSmRyLeA0p_odRC-L4dwAB6gJJ4FJXpFxgJuM8-1iMXDvAbc4HTvkqDVCPjx49cv5F17RF5Hf8/s640/IMG_2671.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Since then, I have taught this book many, many times, and it frustrates, delights, disgusts, and challenges me. It is the book of my youth, my adulthood. Hemingway even claimed that "All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called <i>Huckleberry Finn</i>." </span><span style="color: #666666;">So it came as no surprise that I snapped up Robert Coover's </span><i style="color: #666666;">Huck Out West</i><span style="color: #666666;"> earlier this year, and tore through it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">In Coover's postmodernist extension of <i>Huck</i>, we find Huck exactly where we should--the wild west of Kansas, Texas, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Montana during and after the Civil War. Indeed, Huck lit out as promised for the "territories" with Tom and Jim, in order to join the Pony Express. Given that the Pony Express won't take Jim, Tom sells him off to a slaveholding Cherokee tribe. And then uses the money to buy riding boots. Of course.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">And so Coover gets this world right. Tom, ever amoral, commands Jim's fate once again and Huck, ever the innocent abroad, records it all. However, Tom departs soon (headed east to study law in order to control the sivilized world when he can and rekindle whatever romance there was with the wealthy Becky Thatcher), and we find Huck alone, scouting for General Custer, bedding down in Deadwood Gulch, riding shotgun on coaches, wrangling horses on a Chisholm Trail cattle drive, and suffering an almost hanging for a trumped-up murder charge. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuLWT1DJHs17wvY4HTE405qTC9zaeDLk9YZYSX4jrlA4r9makJeytnLeWQubUNEJc78yMO7xI5qJGX-zmrdi-dX-hEaK2epzgW_b-wP-QlvAorFORDg6lv9DZ8DtBZa9zacrKxUnrwqc/s1600/IMG_2691.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuLWT1DJHs17wvY4HTE405qTC9zaeDLk9YZYSX4jrlA4r9makJeytnLeWQubUNEJc78yMO7xI5qJGX-zmrdi-dX-hEaK2epzgW_b-wP-QlvAorFORDg6lv9DZ8DtBZa9zacrKxUnrwqc/s640/IMG_2691.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Given my project of cooking my books, I had plenty of food to choose from, including roasted horse meat (22), post-wedding beer with jelly and donuts (36), bread and coffee (54), buffalo jerky (113), corn bread and wild pig sausages (182), thin, brothy soup (211), Becky-Thatcher-offered butterscotch cookies (252), dried corn and desecrated fruit (284), and plenty of whiskey. <i>Plenty </i>of whiskey. Huck did not fall far from Pap's tree. He just knows how to hold his liquor better.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">However, I chose fish (trout to be exact when crappie is called for, but I know you're willing to go along with me, right). </span><span style="color: #666666;">A grilled fish on the frontier, pulled straight from the river and roasted over an open fire (with a rather long pull of whiskey), well, this just seems like the perfect meal for one out west in search of their very own Edenic paradise away from the ever-encroaching, swindling, "sivilizing" forces of the east, right? And so it is for Huck, who has come to see the simple processes of fishing and cooking as the act of making a home. He says, "</span><span style="color: #666666;">When I rode Ne Tongo [his horse] into the little hid-away cluster of unpainted broke-down shanties and raggedy tents at the edge of Deadwood Gulch, nigh to cricks too fast and shallow for rafting, but prime for fishing--there was even a patch of sweetly clovered meadow beside the crick for Tongo to graze on--I knowed I was home. A place I could take my boots off all day long" (3-</span><span style="color: #666666;">4). A bit of a dangerous place with a shallow but fast current. No more constraints of footwear. Just sweet clover and a prime creek and your munching horse.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuttDbmei1IK1ToBXCPkYox4teGhw02iHPJQW04w5EgBsjmUOG0BiPLgtGvicSoB_otZTV-WWgIuWKGlo_Morj8RqJgDdcjAQEH4y_WxDOXL5ZKFgzo7hvDkHjc4BoblTP3NQpbqYLRuE/s1600/IMG_2697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1367" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuttDbmei1IK1ToBXCPkYox4teGhw02iHPJQW04w5EgBsjmUOG0BiPLgtGvicSoB_otZTV-WWgIuWKGlo_Morj8RqJgDdcjAQEH4y_WxDOXL5ZKFgzo7hvDkHjc4BoblTP3NQpbqYLRuE/s640/IMG_2697.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="546" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">And Huck goes on about this paradise (and I am going to quote a little more extensively here because this is almost homily):</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">I opened the smoke flap in the tepee and started up the fire, and then took my pole down to the crick to catch us some supper. Dusk's half-light is always prime for fishing. Hardly before I'd begun I had me a handsome black crappie close to a forearm long to go with the half-dozen panfish on my morning trotlines, some of them still snapping their tails about in a kind of tragic greeting when I hauled them up. I know it don't make them happy, but it seems only fair for us fellow creturs to give up our bodies to others' appetites. I don't want to get et by mountain lions, but I won't hold it against them" (15). </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">There is a sense of ritual without pomp: the preparation of a fire, the knowledge of the land and its best times for fishing, a fortuitous capture. There is recognition of community with his fellow creturs. He cleans the fish, and he smokes from a carved stone pipe given to him by the Lakota people. "It was what I had for good luck when the world was mostly throwing bad luck at me. It was such moments as made me feel I'd finally come to the right place. Plenty grub and an easy life, ain't no bad thing.... (15) </span><span style="color: #666666;">He recognizes it won't last, that at the next moment he could be mountain-lion dinner, but he relishes this time for what it is and when it is. And this time won't last (and he says as much, "At the same time, I misdoubted it would last" (15))--not in the novel, not in American history--so he urges us to relish these little moments of peace, even if they are singular and stolen, while we can.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">Later, he says, </span><span style="color: #666666;">"A river don't make you feel less lonely but it makes you feel there ain't nothing wrong with being lonely" (35). This river, these fish, this frontier without the sivilizing influences makes you feel there ain't nothing wrong with being by yourself, with being with only yourself. Sounds like a home to me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmA_pcf5zBYxLMKZCYoNp0Ap9-CGcV4qhwGBK7QbawVTBdprndODI24koUp1YwbnoazeXOVLR0D1l_QpGkDUz5tVR4LDD8PfXrjWTUouH7VSKWVfm6BDHdiIQR25zOPwiFNOoiu2qVV3Y/s1600/IMG_2694.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1438" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmA_pcf5zBYxLMKZCYoNp0Ap9-CGcV4qhwGBK7QbawVTBdprndODI24koUp1YwbnoazeXOVLR0D1l_QpGkDUz5tVR4LDD8PfXrjWTUouH7VSKWVfm6BDHdiIQR25zOPwiFNOoiu2qVV3Y/s640/IMG_2694.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="574" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">That said, we were "this close" to making pancakes <a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2017/01/blueberry-multigrain-pancakes-in-snow.html" target="_blank">again</a>. This was almost a post on the reconnection of friends (although ostensibly, it already is). There is a brief reunification with Jim, who makes a cameo appearance as the chuck wagon cook on a trail of missionaries searching for a fountain of youth, quite possibly in Montana, or hoping to join the Mormon trail. Calling Huck "Huck honey," Jim once again shows a love of Huck that he is perhaps not deserving of, if simply by association with Tom. Recognizing how "dog-hungry" Huck truly is, Jim puts together a stack of flap jacks (69-71). Together they let out unrestrained whoops, embrace deeply, share stories, and tuck into breakfast. However, this, like all other moments, cannot last. Distracted by the flirtations of woman who distracts herself with flirtations, Huck has to leave (and rather quickly) this particular trail ride and his beloved Jim, despite promising Jim he would not leave his side until they find Jim's wife and children. Another promise made. Another promise left unmet.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivjxW4ngCV0-rikCGpWG6zqLR87eUyO4iiAIWNURS2nRA4QVu3gtHhZwG5LKQahuet3XsglDAW2NyPDOpEvuuTM_LFc4s7yy3N8_JpG2-pQU1t_r6kxEY4kIJknQ_-qailGa0ESCTmuT0/s1600/IMG_2701.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1532" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivjxW4ngCV0-rikCGpWG6zqLR87eUyO4iiAIWNURS2nRA4QVu3gtHhZwG5LKQahuet3XsglDAW2NyPDOpEvuuTM_LFc4s7yy3N8_JpG2-pQU1t_r6kxEY4kIJknQ_-qailGa0ESCTmuT0/s640/IMG_2701.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="612" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">However, despite Huck's quickness to flight, this is, of course, a book about that companionship where which we can find a sense of home, a sense of connection beyond explanation. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Throughout much of the book, Huck's closest companion is Eetah, a Lakota Indian and another self-described misfit who was"having about the same trouble with his tribe as I was having with mine" (3). And their bond is strong--in part because Huck loves a story teller, and Eetah tells Huck Coyote and Snake stories, many of which Huck cannot understand but still appreciates. Coyote, that great trickster, has always fascinated and attracted Huck--no wonder, then, that he was and is so enamored of Tom, who enters into the novel at the almost magically perfect moment.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcCn-nhyphenhyphengyUbMa91rg1jryZrCy8iAZv5GV2gr8999SBvFD5qxNYhCZnOp0aWENps845XnFM16bryMyBGDNRoM0BT7d6QVTm2ZdBQuwJ1DtcWfjckD2WlE-Kw-KwnfNKEiiPYXmtzEyA48/s1600/IMG_2702.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="1600" height="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcCn-nhyphenhyphengyUbMa91rg1jryZrCy8iAZv5GV2gr8999SBvFD5qxNYhCZnOp0aWENps845XnFM16bryMyBGDNRoM0BT7d6QVTm2ZdBQuwJ1DtcWfjckD2WlE-Kw-KwnfNKEiiPYXmtzEyA48/s640/IMG_2702.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">Oh and when he does, Tom <i>lights</i> this novel up. And we hate ourselves for that. Saturnine and amoral, Tom literally comes in hot, guns blazing, sharpshooting a lynching rope from the gallows just as the trap door opens, and thus saving an about-to-be-hanged Huck. But Tom's a gold-hungry imperialist, a murderer of Indians, a dominant and aggressive shaper of stories, a racist, and the consummate adolescent. He has never grown up, despite the oft-mentioned growing bald patch on the back of his head, and it seems unlikely that he ever will. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Undoubtedly, Tom is titillating in this book; his hyperactive antics drive a novel that is hardly concerned with plot beyond the picaresque, and he brings us narrow escapes and bawdy sex and horrific violence, all seemingly without consequences. And it is an thrilling, if harrowing, comment on our desire for excitement, for stories without endings, or repercussions.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9-p7hX25yij7KZHNwJ_P9Ocd7IEibvCSdw6jXXSKrUsvIegE0WTiktFgSAFnUIPC534NiIbRdQGTLkI4BDEZuhvcE2v5UYuPWe-zgErGZ0kSxpgTzSoHmDeg9yl2amI9I2S_hdHnHiM/s1600/IMG_2703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1194" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9-p7hX25yij7KZHNwJ_P9Ocd7IEibvCSdw6jXXSKrUsvIegE0WTiktFgSAFnUIPC534NiIbRdQGTLkI4BDEZuhvcE2v5UYuPWe-zgErGZ0kSxpgTzSoHmDeg9yl2amI9I2S_hdHnHiM/s640/IMG_2703.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="476" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;">But then there's Huck. A scrappy innocent, uncorrupted in a world that, <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/fiction-this-week-robert-coover-2016-09-12" target="_blank">as Coover himself describes in </a><i><a href="http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/fiction-this-week-robert-coover-2016-09-12" target="_blank">The New Yorker,</a> </i>is quite worrisome: </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>I</i></span><span style="color: #666666;"><i> probably worry more that America today is making me think (or write) differently about late-nineteenth-century America. The story starts at the outbreak of the Civil War and ends with the Deadwood Gold Rush. This era, not the Revolutionary period, was what truly made us who we are. It was an adventurous time, but also one full of greed, virulent hatreds, religious insanity, the slaughter of war and its aftermath, widespread poverty and ignorance, ruthless military and civilian leadership, and huge disparities of wealth. Not a pretty history. But I hoped that Huck’s sympathetic and gently comical voice might make it bearable.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">Huck makes us want to see consequences for all of these actions--both personal and historical--that leave the vulnerable at the mercy of charismatic and unscrupulous leaders (Tom or otherwise). And in a world where these consequences don't come often, where stories are strung together with the most tenuous of connections, Coover presents us a world of Huck, Eetah, and </span><span style="color: #666666;">Ne Tongo, who are trying to save what is worth saving. This is the world with the ability to sit with your closest friend and fellow misfit and with your loyal companion over some simple fish. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZCe4wrM_fNtSZapDYPTmnCNfBGg6Ox-1XH12KuXHWMR8AJWUiTc9t5unRjqPmqEmXME11tXGoL9IUDgC3AyXFbE5TPWPYL7rXK2eGsRdsWK-UUNS1sUjexOQIOJndUS8-YDMmFSii7Q/s1600/IMG_2692.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1203" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZCe4wrM_fNtSZapDYPTmnCNfBGg6Ox-1XH12KuXHWMR8AJWUiTc9t5unRjqPmqEmXME11tXGoL9IUDgC3AyXFbE5TPWPYL7rXK2eGsRdsWK-UUNS1sUjexOQIOJndUS8-YDMmFSii7Q/s640/IMG_2692.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">At other points in the novel Huck interrupts t</span><span style="color: #666666;">hree men frying fish from Huck's trout lines (107), and he c</span><span style="color: #666666;">ooks fish for breakfast after hiding guns in his tent (138). But more importantly than not, j</span><span style="color: #666666;">ust as the book opens with fish, so it closes with it. This is a ritual. A way to carve these little moments that Coover suggests don't last long but are the ones worth savoring. Otherwise, all we have is Tom commanding this unethical and almost pornographic world. Let's just have some fish by ourselves or with others. Let's just enjoy something caught with our own hands for the time being.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">As the story progresses, through a series of Tom-instigated plot points--because Tom stars in his own story without regard to others or concern for the outcome--Huck is in the position to have to save N<span style="color: #666666;">e Tongo in order to go with Eetah to "where the war ain't" (291): </span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666;">Then I spied a gnarly old miner with a shovel and a pan and a bottle he attended to regular. I went over and told him we was looking for a partner with a shovel, and he was happy to obleege. He says his name was Shadrack and he was from Ohio where he's been a farmer mostly till the grasshoppers et him out. I knowed Tom would a somehow got him to pay for the chance to shovel up the steps in the pit, but I was grateful just to have the shovel, and mostly let Shadrack lay off. Him and Eeteh nodded at each other without saying nothing, and Shadrack went down to the water with his pan to poke around, he didn't find no gold, but he catched a big fish, which he shared with his partners (292). </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666;">Another fish caught, this time not by Huck. Another fish shared one's partners, even if they are not Huck and Eetah. Another community making a connection, deciding whom to include because they are your closest companions, and whom not to. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Ne Tongo is saved, he and Huck race "all the way to the sunset" (296) four pages later, and then Tongo leaves them, this time for good. So in rides Tom again, wearing white (both hat and gloves) and a red bandana tied around his neck, "so he warn't Tom so much as Tom's fancy of Tom" (297), ready to betray Huck (and by extension Eetah and Tongo). Huck, for a moment, holds his ground, knowing that "Tom was hurting and I was sorry, but I was hurting too. And I was worried about Eeteh" (299), whom any of Tom's friends could shoot without worry about retribution or justice. But Eetah's community comes to save Eetah and Huck. Not out of any allegiance to Huck, but out of allegiance to Tongo, who is a "spirit horse. God dog" (301). </span><span style="color: #666666;">A friend of Tongo's is a friend of the Lakotas. A community. A set of partners. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">And Huck invites Tom to join him to light out once again. Tom refuses and so Huck goes, leaving Tom behind. One community forged, another abandoned.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxZfe0sEaegO50ErNN3ngEDiuDCY3Cw2GSx35p8r94a8QKjtSN87TB8KAVmEmSir3N35tfDI7Qe_bdGr7bh9MiWBybu698LcvWsfzXVszVHroJVX7Qu-peVnxkoCk1OZSSpZ9suybAaI/s1600/IMG_2695.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxZfe0sEaegO50ErNN3ngEDiuDCY3Cw2GSx35p8r94a8QKjtSN87TB8KAVmEmSir3N35tfDI7Qe_bdGr7bh9MiWBybu698LcvWsfzXVszVHroJVX7Qu-peVnxkoCk1OZSSpZ9suybAaI/s640/IMG_2695.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Finally, this book opens and closes with fish. Or at least the potential of fish. In a final chapter, as Eetah and Huck light out, no clear territory in mind, just away from Tom and his new moral order of constant worry of betrayal, Eetah tells the story of Coyote's talking "members," of which apparently he has multiple. Huck tells Eetah that he heard Coyote speak directly to him when he was on a wild 4-page ride with Tongo, and Eetah suggests that it was Raven, not Coyote, who spoke to him. Huck is confused, "lost again" (308), he admits, because he doesn't know who or what dismembered body part has been speaking to him. All he knows is that Coyote and his stories are truly Eetah's, not his. He is content enough knowing that there "was a crick down below us in the twilight without no prospectors on it, where we could probably fish up a supper." There they will make camp, drink whiskey, and "muddytate" on trickster tales. And so, it is without a doubt that Huck will make, if only for a moment, another Edenic home or another "right place," over fish, with his true friend--one without malice or motive. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">And so, perhaps, should we.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSOZt3O9-PwORdhmuZ6dFEY_PYRpsLrL-7xXRxDGbH57ZKZqAS7RBEhBBCsYFQoEqM3vv2BrteH6dY0WHSAk_0XUqq8UE3ed4eDkP0LccKsQ1M5JVvixNNI547PXTb21Z2gQspQhHAz1A/s1600/02D5A866-6384-423F-873E-B5CE75178FF0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSOZt3O9-PwORdhmuZ6dFEY_PYRpsLrL-7xXRxDGbH57ZKZqAS7RBEhBBCsYFQoEqM3vv2BrteH6dY0WHSAk_0XUqq8UE3ed4eDkP0LccKsQ1M5JVvixNNI547PXTb21Z2gQspQhHAz1A/s640/02D5A866-6384-423F-873E-B5CE75178FF0.jpg" title="Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs in Huck Out West // Cook Your Books" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/braised-cabbage-with-chewy-fried.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Braised Cabbage with Chewy Fried Potatoes, Feta, and Dill</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/almond-polenta-tart-with-sherried-plum.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Almond Polenta Tart with Sherried Plum Compote</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/chilli-crusted-lamb-cutlets-with.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Chili-Crusted Lamb Cutlets with Cucumber Yogurt</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/david-lebovitzs-peach-amaretti-crisp.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: David Lebovitz's Peach Amaretti Crisp</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-28-new-best-recipe.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Basic Pilaf-Style Rice</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #20124d;">Fire-Roasted Trout with Grilled Figs</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>"I larded up a frypan and set it on the fire, throwed in some salt and the cleaned fish, and set back to enjoy an evening pipe... It was such moments as made me feel I'd come to the right place. Plenty grub and an easy life, ain't no bad thing..." (</i>Huck Out West<i> 15).</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444;">Very liberally adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Twenty-Dinners-Ithai-Schori/dp/0385345283" target="_blank"><i>Twenty Dinners</i></a></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">A pretty little dish, this is as easy as can be, and rather economical. Every time we make fish, we say, "We should make fish more often." You can grill with or without the head (the husband chose to grill without the head). Be careful of bones, but seriously, this is worth a grill-firing-up. The figs are a sweet counterpoint to the unctuous skin. The smoke from the grill is the perfect and only necessary accompaniment to the fish, though the microgreens (or just a salad of mixed lettuces) are a nice touch. Twenty Dinners does a great job here making a perfect backyard Eden. </span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Serves 4</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Ingredients</span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1/2 cup hazelnuts (optional)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">12 fresh figs</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">grapeseed or vegetable oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 whole trout (about 1 pound each), cleaned and butterflied (ask your fishmonger to do this for you)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Extra-virgin olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">8-12 sprigs fresh thyme</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 bay leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">salt </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">A few handfuls greens (or microgreens)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 lemon, cut into wedges</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Salt, pepper, and olive oil for finishing</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1. Prepare your fire and set up your grill. Allow the fire to get really hot--and the grill to be completely cleaned from the heat of the fire--then wait for it to burn down enough so it's a very hot be of coals.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">2. Toast the nuts: When the fire is ready, set a small saucepan over the grill grate and allow it to heat. Toss the nuts and let them toast, until lightly browned and fragrant. Remove them from the pan and set aside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">3. Coat the figs with grapeseed oil. Coat the fish with a small amount<span style="background-color: white;"> of olive oil, both on the outside and inside the cavity. Stuff each fish with 2-3 sprigs of thyme, 1 bay leaf, and a pinch of salt; then lightly salt the outside. Arrange the fish and the figs on the grill, leaving enough room to flip the fish over when the time comes. Cook the trout for 3 minutes on the first side, then flip over with a thin spatula and finish for 2 minutes on the other side, or until the fish is just cooked through. While the the fish cooks, return the small saucepan to the grate. Add the balsamic vinegar and let reduce by half. Reserve.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;">4. When the fish is done remove it from the grill and let it cool for </span>3 minutes on a warm plate. Meanwhile, roll the figs around with a spoon so they don't overcook on one side. Remove the figs and toss them in a bowl with the reduced balsamic vinegar while still hot. Set aside.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">5. Once the fish has rested, serve the fish whole, advising them to be aware of errant bones. M</span><span style="color: #666666;">ake a bed of greens on each plate and top with a few figs. Lay a trout on top of the figs and finish with a generous squeeze of lemon, a sprinkling of salt, the hazelnuts, and some olive oil.</span><br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-49681404665877668792017-07-08T11:21:00.002-07:002017-07-08T11:27:39.934-07:00Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4JGfoZNFZhHoojKrXNr7o71xLFmM6ygTrvTmIhRpDrDlxCAsvQsHu_u3l0WhohKrM3wtaocEGRGqFAai5qos3a5dMwNJIArJYMXZtsCrS2C8SD-kN1kjmJAVq-oPSomfZ0s0p_nXOJA/s1600/IMG_2730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1568" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4JGfoZNFZhHoojKrXNr7o71xLFmM6ygTrvTmIhRpDrDlxCAsvQsHu_u3l0WhohKrM3wtaocEGRGqFAai5qos3a5dMwNJIArJYMXZtsCrS2C8SD-kN1kjmJAVq-oPSomfZ0s0p_nXOJA/s640/IMG_2730.JPG" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="626" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Life has been complicated as of late. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">From switching jobs again to moving homes, from having our new home burglarized (man, oh man!) to a quick visit back to Illinois, my personal world has been somewhat hectic. (The burglary was scary, but everyone's okay, including the cats. And we're still in the annoyance of figuring out insurance. No one was home and the damage was, all things considered, minimal.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">I could say something pat that this is an uncomplicated dish in response to a complicated world, but I think this dish is a little more nuanced than that as were the experiences of the past three months. But one still needs good food even when trying to figure out insurance itemizations.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFybr-sB5hZWlOP3YBzweT-udh-s12ANPqnnYLh_thCCr_PjHHP26GYzHJIMuOFrSmQEGca_8mphyphenhyphenxFZd5Ha8qWRnGsIcvXPBUn6yYt1PY4_LRtlfZKOP_ieye1YpH4WvnOh4Zl1_RSAY/s1600/IMG_2734.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1236" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFybr-sB5hZWlOP3YBzweT-udh-s12ANPqnnYLh_thCCr_PjHHP26GYzHJIMuOFrSmQEGca_8mphyphenhyphenxFZd5Ha8qWRnGsIcvXPBUn6yYt1PY4_LRtlfZKOP_ieye1YpH4WvnOh4Zl1_RSAY/s640/IMG_2734.JPG" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="494" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">From Tara Brady's </span><a href="http://sevenspoons.net/" target="_blank">Seven Spoons</a><span style="color: #666666;">, these baked eggs have some complicated spice mixtures. It is similar to</span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span><a href="http://www.ottolenghi.co.uk/shakshuka-shop" target="_blank">shakshuka</a><span style="color: #666666;">, and I can get behind anything that pairs eggs, tomatoes, and spices. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">When I was young, I used to make scrambled eggs with every spice imaginable from the spice drawer. Who says oregano, garlic salt, tarragon, red pepper flakes, chili powder, and dill do not go together? Then I would feed them to my seven-year-younger sister. She probably had a better palate than mine, for she turned away from those concoctions. Had I been able to make something like this, perhaps she would have liked them more.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7upUy_gks1gzADagT6OtCqpXwWLnclc0JP6OiAqOC8YO6-dclSQnau6LSatLGOU5V-OEVdcN5c6tp1JbAicfYmuVQItOXY10g2bCcrppPPXe8h3wT6pP8JpLVQUqQXbcjVZPEHX8mRI/s1600/IMG_2731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1173" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7upUy_gks1gzADagT6OtCqpXwWLnclc0JP6OiAqOC8YO6-dclSQnau6LSatLGOU5V-OEVdcN5c6tp1JbAicfYmuVQItOXY10g2bCcrppPPXe8h3wT6pP8JpLVQUqQXbcjVZPEHX8mRI/s640/IMG_2731.jpg" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="468" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">This is a relatively easy, Tuesday-night kind of dinner and doesn't require a lot of fuss or precision. </span><span style="color: #666666;">Lord knows I am </span><i style="color: #666666;">not</i><span style="color: #666666;"> great at timing eggs (you can even tell in the pictures that they are a little over cooked, in part because the husband prefers a hard-cooked egg and I prefer a runny egg. He won out.). They still turned out tasty and satisfying.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFybr-sB5hZWlOP3YBzweT-udh-s12ANPqnnYLh_thCCr_PjHHP26GYzHJIMuOFrSmQEGca_8mphyphenhyphenxFZd5Ha8qWRnGsIcvXPBUn6yYt1PY4_LRtlfZKOP_ieye1YpH4WvnOh4Zl1_RSAY/s1600/IMG_2734.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1236" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFybr-sB5hZWlOP3YBzweT-udh-s12ANPqnnYLh_thCCr_PjHHP26GYzHJIMuOFrSmQEGca_8mphyphenhyphenxFZd5Ha8qWRnGsIcvXPBUn6yYt1PY4_LRtlfZKOP_ieye1YpH4WvnOh4Zl1_RSAY/s640/IMG_2734.JPG" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="494" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">A few things to note--O'Brady suggests serving with some combination of toasted almonds, fresh green chutney, minced fresh chile and lime wedges. I didn't include them below. I used the fresh dill she suggested. Also, she asserts that some baby spinach, baby kale, or pea shoots would be fantastic with this. I mixed in about 3 handfuls of spinach into the dish itself, just to tuck in some more veggies. Trust her assertions.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVldhiRB3ulXlhXGd72XHuAvMU3RyXopsBAHofvWUebLd_gixasHu0AoqDvjeONMhse40Dm76dj154nLezAEB7cI-pVDgzUQBpDKWutgdRLMeimdMtBeIsuy-dueXh97orFZMYKzlprdU/s1600/IMG_2732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1485" data-original-width="1600" height="592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVldhiRB3ulXlhXGd72XHuAvMU3RyXopsBAHofvWUebLd_gixasHu0AoqDvjeONMhse40Dm76dj154nLezAEB7cI-pVDgzUQBpDKWutgdRLMeimdMtBeIsuy-dueXh97orFZMYKzlprdU/s640/IMG_2732.jpg" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666;">Now I hope things become a little less complicated, and we can settle in a bit this summer. I am ready for backyard barbecues and rose on the deck. Are you with me?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsp_Ty-KhyoeBTA_fSu6CeeCDN9Nc5DQJFGt0DSvYB0gPI0aWewOWfchmJ2xHA2g4Qysoa2v5tb_Dm-0N7W1C6Dul8D6_7h1XQyqOztkpWBLEE4FEAChgvb5YPGLkZ-2YDP7ruoWiswpc/s1600/IMG_2735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsp_Ty-KhyoeBTA_fSu6CeeCDN9Nc5DQJFGt0DSvYB0gPI0aWewOWfchmJ2xHA2g4Qysoa2v5tb_Dm-0N7W1C6Dul8D6_7h1XQyqOztkpWBLEE4FEAChgvb5YPGLkZ-2YDP7ruoWiswpc/s640/IMG_2735.JPG" title="Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style from Seven Spoons" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2016/07/toasted-oatmeal-with-earl-grey-tea.html" target="_blank">One Year Ago: Toasted Oatmeal with Earl Grey Tea-Soaked Raisins</a><br /><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2015/07/almond-polenta-tart-with-sherried-plum.html" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">Two Years Ago: Almond Polenta Tart with Sherried Plum Compote</a> </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2014/07/chilli-crusted-lamb-cutlets-with.html" target="_blank">Three Years Ago: Chili-Crusted Lamb Cutlets with Cucumber Yogurt</a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2013/07/grilled-pork-tenderloin-with-roasted.html" target="_blank">Four Years Ago: Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Corn-Bacon Relish</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/08/soba-noodles-with-eggplant-and-mango.html" target="_blank">Five Years Ago: Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2011/08/mussels-linguica.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Mussels Linguica</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/07/cookbook-28-new-best-recipe.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Basic Pilaf-Style Rice</a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #274e13;">Baked Eggs, North Indian-Style</span></h3>
<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Seven-Spoons-Favorite-Recipes-Every/dp/1607746379" target="_blank"><i>Seven Spoons</i></a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4-6 Servings</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 Tbsp butter or olive oil</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp cumin seeds</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 onions</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 bunch of cilantro</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">3 garlic cloves, minced</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Kosher salt</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1½ tsp garam masala</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp ground coriander</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">½ tsp ground turmeric</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¼ tsp dried red pepper flakes</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4 pounds fresh tomatoes, cored and chopped or 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, crushed</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 bay leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2-3 big handfuls of spinach</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">⅓ cup plain yogurt (O'Brady suggests </span><span style="color: #666666;">greek-style, I used European. Everyone was okay)</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">4-8 eggs</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">freshly ground black pepper</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Fresh dill, roughly chopped</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Cooked grain of your choice</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Instructions</span></b><br />
<div style="font-family: times; margin: 0px;">
<span style="color: #666666;">1. To make the eggs and sauce, in a large, ovenproof skillet over medium-low eat, melt the butter or heat the olive oil. Sauté the cumin seeds, shaking the pan often, until the cumin is fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the onions and cook until golden brown, 10-12 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">2. Pick the leaves from the cilantro and set aside. Mince the cilantro stems. When the onions are cooked, add the cilantro stems and garlic, and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the garam masala, coriander, turmeric, and chile powder, and stir constantly to toast the spices for about 30 seconds.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">3. Pour in the tomatoes and their juices and add the bay leaves. Raise the heat to bring to a boil. Then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes with occasional stirring. Season with salt. Add the spinach and cook until wilted, about 2-3 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">4. Preheat the oven to 375℉.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">5. Dollop the yogurt into the sauce, then use the spoon to marble the sauce and yogurt together slightly. Create small wells for the eggs with a spoon, and crack the eggs, one by one, into the wells. Season with salt and pepper.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666;">6. Bake the pan in the hot oven, uncovered, until the eggs have reached the preferred set. It takes about 12 minutes for a firm-set white with a loose yolk. Serve immediately, sprinkled with the reserved cilantro leaves and dill. You can also serve with a grain (brown or white rice, barley).</span></div>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6669848497573305418.post-45867497155057205992017-06-25T15:36:00.002-07:002017-06-25T17:30:50.017-07:00Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8f4eOxT-aywvXlSs0cS_zaQE0tOrQ5vNwpytAMbQLIHckD__FviuK5M7VTi-XxpSGmU9-393Dyj2t5Z-ErY1kNaKjrLfL4J4APW5QWpZAJdmxFib7U2RaYiewijcanmumo72Y9FHx9I/s1600/IMG_2636.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1206" data-original-width="1600" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8f4eOxT-aywvXlSs0cS_zaQE0tOrQ5vNwpytAMbQLIHckD__FviuK5M7VTi-XxpSGmU9-393Dyj2t5Z-ErY1kNaKjrLfL4J4APW5QWpZAJdmxFib7U2RaYiewijcanmumo72Y9FHx9I/s640/IMG_2636.JPG" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">I love a good picnic. However, the husband and I have very different ideas of what a picnic should be. I fancy a game of croquet and a gaffe over the strawberries a la Emma Woodhouse. The husband is satisfied with a length of salami and a hunk of cheese. So this was my compromise.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlg48DBK5Tt3N5M2_ZVQ-XRDnO2S1i5qA73szLWvSh42OHen9ki9Mzinx8UNwuxNe5hCR_siPv-2BbSWnYL9CQZL8_Vc3PiqEVhwSFRN12ohb9Xz52zV_gpRwIQ6e9G0yAytWD_lELygQ/s1600/IMG_2639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1418" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlg48DBK5Tt3N5M2_ZVQ-XRDnO2S1i5qA73szLWvSh42OHen9ki9Mzinx8UNwuxNe5hCR_siPv-2BbSWnYL9CQZL8_Vc3PiqEVhwSFRN12ohb9Xz52zV_gpRwIQ6e9G0yAytWD_lELygQ/s640/IMG_2639.jpg" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="566" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">We hiked on a Saturday afternoon the northern-most tip of <a href="https://www.nps.gov/pore/planyourvisit/maps.htm" target="_blank">Point Reyes National Seashore</a>. A simple (but longish) drive to Pierce Point Ranch (a dairy ranch from about 1858 to the 1970s) and a few-mile hike afford gorgeous views of the Pacific Ocean and Tomales Bay (assuming the fog hasn't rolled in). If you're lucky, and we were, the elk will be on full display, and there are plenty of rock outcroppings and a one Monterey cyprus tree patch, all just aching for a picnic blanket (and no croquet). </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgECK3oN-qLn-z1ow5sFOudmql6lBHCtIhQ7lUMlRTBT2IV-oPp7xjO6IKxPX4NNZwdFCTGmQMOYOZhyphenhyphen4ezV503CrrXAJnMzsaXnOAmBXEH1IyNm6uOx5HLlmPexLdDqQ0Ievvq_OPAS9s/s1600/IMG_2629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgECK3oN-qLn-z1ow5sFOudmql6lBHCtIhQ7lUMlRTBT2IV-oPp7xjO6IKxPX4NNZwdFCTGmQMOYOZhyphenhyphen4ezV503CrrXAJnMzsaXnOAmBXEH1IyNm6uOx5HLlmPexLdDqQ0Ievvq_OPAS9s/s320/IMG_2629.jpg" width="240" /></a></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RBwODr4Rb47irvxqsDR1s8p-9vJTWpaV_t067NXO6fse9DEDXaTPbyfLgF1iiHiLrYQluYtQd131-uQsfPnKxyPU9VPe2vrzEq7I8DzfZwjdQv_jbvJ4SzFDTzgmoXUXeMYw0dDYYKA/s1600/IMG_2630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RBwODr4Rb47irvxqsDR1s8p-9vJTWpaV_t067NXO6fse9DEDXaTPbyfLgF1iiHiLrYQluYtQd131-uQsfPnKxyPU9VPe2vrzEq7I8DzfZwjdQv_jbvJ4SzFDTzgmoXUXeMYw0dDYYKA/s320/IMG_2630.jpg" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjteiqUZpprBMMWjJT1xKl1lGQEy5cKqLl9k_kd4B2r1f_MNiJSEolkdZgeo1Q09nVeoPA4Iy3XgkT5z_sNwrGLYGoCbMUx5nMzdgviJhk-NP9-SZ0xMMMJ3Cv0R-k_KTSwo49y63dAcr8/s1600/IMG_2627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjteiqUZpprBMMWjJT1xKl1lGQEy5cKqLl9k_kd4B2r1f_MNiJSEolkdZgeo1Q09nVeoPA4Iy3XgkT5z_sNwrGLYGoCbMUx5nMzdgviJhk-NP9-SZ0xMMMJ3Cv0R-k_KTSwo49y63dAcr8/s320/IMG_2627.jpg" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dG5mp8rdbvmAhZDyr3u5fkFgiX_1aTma87Xeu0TLqF3E09kBSbOPLNiKztYf_epfmaKuQPbN7VCu6a6VKpvX4bPGeNhc9erfxHkVSMwOzlc-x9_bFyn58opYGMqr30_47_pQ3guiTUc/s1600/IMG_2547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dG5mp8rdbvmAhZDyr3u5fkFgiX_1aTma87Xeu0TLqF3E09kBSbOPLNiKztYf_epfmaKuQPbN7VCu6a6VKpvX4bPGeNhc9erfxHkVSMwOzlc-x9_bFyn58opYGMqr30_47_pQ3guiTUc/s320/IMG_2547.JPG" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC0sv_hb4S3ToALLZ7GOC8cp3yi0Qbd6kFUgW5lafPl7pSwUkV61-MEZ0swEHMdDteMB6Q67sznlsElQVOG8ZExwzaSkwq19zR-EEVk6-oiAZVqgxW5739pavjs6PrcUiUhHgLoNX7SA8/s1600/IMG_2620.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC0sv_hb4S3ToALLZ7GOC8cp3yi0Qbd6kFUgW5lafPl7pSwUkV61-MEZ0swEHMdDteMB6Q67sznlsElQVOG8ZExwzaSkwq19zR-EEVk6-oiAZVqgxW5739pavjs6PrcUiUhHgLoNX7SA8/s320/IMG_2620.JPG" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitoWcHpF2m7IxnuDJZbHeVmWo2MuXjBTn3YlBkMPudf-5qb9pyOwc8cObMeAsxcYDBciR_N9wQ49hrkucU6FApl81ayVuaIqkyA8vNQYh_y2q8QY0c4rciRwuLoGT4VSn9ilbYYudTlng/s1600/IMG_2622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitoWcHpF2m7IxnuDJZbHeVmWo2MuXjBTn3YlBkMPudf-5qb9pyOwc8cObMeAsxcYDBciR_N9wQ49hrkucU6FApl81ayVuaIqkyA8vNQYh_y2q8QY0c4rciRwuLoGT4VSn9ilbYYudTlng/s320/IMG_2622.JPG" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Yes, I brought some salami, and we stopped in Point Reyes Station at the <a href="https://www.cowgirlcreamery.com/library-of-cheese/red-hawk" target="_blank">Cowgirl Creamery for some Red Hawk</a>. However, I also made this Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf--an adaptation of Diana Henry's Blackberry and Brown Sugar Loaf. Henry's own loaf is an adaptation of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Thorne_(writer)" target="_blank">John Thorne</a>'s Raspberry and Brown Sugar Cake. So I fiddled a bit more, and here we are. In Henry's recipe, she uses blackberries and lemons. Here I use raspberries and limes. I encourage more fiddling on your part.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYrISwjl-X9HBq70GVFEoJRFytuOI4ES6WO5cORnnup0a5qOcfDB44qIe90jcC_ibKU5RygkGyUeBq4AzDJhJuD87waapcRjynfFtcwTw7c_FAhmqQHOuypdvBikwYHLC6KnBKHC8EVk/s1600/IMG_2641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1197" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYrISwjl-X9HBq70GVFEoJRFytuOI4ES6WO5cORnnup0a5qOcfDB44qIe90jcC_ibKU5RygkGyUeBq4AzDJhJuD87waapcRjynfFtcwTw7c_FAhmqQHOuypdvBikwYHLC6KnBKHC8EVk/s640/IMG_2641.JPG" title="Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf" width="478" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">While I wasn't able to channel the wit, charm, acerbic tongue, and forced humility of Emma, I was able to munch on this hearty, no-nonsense cake as we listened to song birds and watched the fog roll in. There was no croquet, but there was lounging, a picnic blanket, and warm water from water bottles. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;">You take what you can get. You watch elk. You hike. You have a beautiful picnic, complete with salami and cake. </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2012/06/polvorones-mexican-wedding-cookies.html" target="_blank">Six Years Ago: Polvorones (Mexican Wedding Cookies)</a><br />
<a href="http://www.morselsandsauces.com/2010/06/cookbook-25-williams-sonoma-essentials.html" target="_blank">Seven (!) Years Ago: Meatballs in Tomato Sauce</a></div>
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<span style="color: #4c1130;">Raspberry and Brown Sugar Loaf</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #666666;">Adapted from Diana Henry's <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1845335732/ref=asc_df_18453357325032517?smid=A130V2QBFUDTCY&tag=shopz0d-20&ascsubtag=shopzilla_mp_1437-20;14984288780724416351610070302008005&linkCode=df0&creative=395105&creativeASIN=1845335732" target="_blank">Plenty</a></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d;"><b>Yield</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">Makes 1 loaf, Serves 8-10</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span><b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Ingredients</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">¾ cup unsalted butter, softened</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1</span><span style="color: #666666;">¼</span><span style="color: #666666;"> cup brown sugar</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 large eggs, beaten until frothy</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 heaped Tbsp sour cream</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 Tbsp grated lime zest and the juice from one lime</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">pinch of ground cinnamon</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">2 cups all-purpose flour</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;">1 tsp baking powder</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">8 ounces (1⅔ cups) raspberries </span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Instructions</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">1. Preheat the oven to 325℉. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">2. With an electric mixer, beat the butter until light. Then add the brown sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs, a little at a time, and beat until creamy. Turn the speed down to low, and add the sour cream, zest, lime juice, cinnamon, and flour. Beat until the mixture just comes together.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">3. Sift the baking powder over the top, sprinkle on the raspberries, and gently fold these into the mixture with a wooden spoon, breaking them up as little as possible.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">4. Spoon the mixture into the buttered loaf pan, smooth the top, and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;">5. Let the loaf cook in the pan for about 15 minutes. Then run a knife around the edge and turn it out onto a wire rack. Turn right side up and let cool completely.</span></div>
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