Food Calendar

I'm not the first person to think about this (surely), but every January (or in this case early February), I wonder about how we cook our way through a year. It all starts on New Year's Day - with traditional food that brings good luck - here it is collards and black-eyed peas. I'm sure there is some historical meaning, I think if I remember correctly, the collards are supposed to represent money. In FIL's culture is was sauerkraut, which I like, but never heard of until we started hanging out w/the parents for New Year's Day. 
Next up... Super Bowl in late January or in this case early February. It's an evening of overdoing, snack food, hopefully good commercials, not any football (who cares), a joke of a half time show, and swilling beer  responsible drinking (and hopefully good commercials!!). I enjoy this one a great deal because I really like making appetizers for dinner or for anything really.
 Then the magazines/websites turn to Valentine's Day - make your lover something lovely ... or something equally hokey. That's one I skip because I'm not much into greeting card created holidays. I expect to be loved everyday even though I may not deserve it :). 
Speeding on from V-Day is something, I think that's depending on where you live. Here in the Gulf Coast Mardi Gras is a big (BIG!) deal. New Orleans is surely what's most thought of, but it's huge in Mobile and Pensacola too (Krewe de la stupid people who like to dress up and act stupid? nope, the name is too long...). Not being from here it seems a little cheesy thing and I'm not sure it's a food holiday when drinking and throwing moon pies are key activities*. So officially, the next food holiday is also not much of a food holiday, though I treat it as such is St. Patrick's Day**. mmmm Guinness brownies. 
Then we officially welcome spring with Easter - asparagus, eggs, all things springy, pastel, small lambs, bunnies, and baby chicks (though we eat their brethern). 
What's next... of course it's College Graduation Parties (yeah) and quickly into Memorial Day and bringing out the grill... it's the official start of summer. Get the grill out add steak, burgers, dogs, or chicken and have a picnic w/ potato salad and chips and dip and get in the pool. Hell, we've been in the pool more than a month by then... and we know what's coming next... start of the season. ugh.*** High School graduations are next and largely and rightly looked over by those it does not apply to... I mean what is graduation food - everyone goes out to eat anway. 
The big show of the summer is 4th of July. Spend time w/your grill in the middle of the friggin hot, humid backyard, being eaten by mosquitoes. But we do it anyway because, by god!, it's a tradition - I'm sure Patton would make a good speech about it... I can almost hear it (not quite because I'm not crazy la la). Blue Angels weekend quickly follows on the beach - sand, noise, heat, I'll stick to the end of year show on the base.  4th of July will be bittersweet this year.
August is the cruelest month. Labor Day marks the beginning of fall or in our case part-way through the season. It's an extra day off so cooking is always a good thing, but to be honest the grilling experience is largely the same as it is at 4th of July - there's not a hint of fall anywhere and the mosquitoes are usually worse. So full on fall kicks in whether the weater cooperates or not.
And on to...Halloween with all the gross stuff that comes with it - coffin-shapped cookies, eyeballs, blech. That said, soup recipes appear even if the fall weater still doens't. And now it rush rush rush to the end of the year w/more cooking, baking and candy making. 
All this crammed into a still warm month listening (Way. To. Early) to Christmas carols. Thanksgiving - American approved gulttony just preceeded by the release of the beaujolis nouveau (if you're a fan). Thanksgiving is fun, but not for the novice - you're asked to balance several skills and it's the one time of year that two ovens would help. So ... you need a turkey and dressing and cranberry something - these are required - then sides... and starters and which beer/wine to drink and new table linens and in my cases coordinating glass wear and flowers for the table and buffet and and and ....
Finally, it's December and it's cookie swaps and parties. Plus Christmas eve - which for me is appetizer buffet and Christmas day dinner - another turkey - perhaps, or ham or some large joint of meat appropriately cooked and whatever sides you thought about making for Thanksgiving but ran out of time and said screw it. You now have one week to get your New Year's Eve party planning - elegant, sophisticated New Year's Eve... champagne is de rigeur of course - or beer in my case (hey - it's bubbly and can be pour into cute little glasses).


And that's a wrap ... whew. I'm tired and it's only early February...


* If this doesn't make sense, you don't want to know.
** It's important for other reasons known only to two.
*** If you have to ask, you're not from 'round here.

Emma - Masterpiece Theatre

Well part two and part three (inexplicably) were on last night. How great to get two episodes when you're only expecting one. Nifty. That said, since I'll have to watch episode three next week :), this will just be my thoughts about last night's episode. Frank is still only just tolerable -- just. And Mrs. Elton (Christina Cole) is just so smug .. ugh. But that's what she's supposed to be ... base, vulgar, common, nothing to recommend her excepting she as somewhere near ten thousand pounds. That said, the film seems to perfectly match Mr. Elton and his wife. They are a perfect combination of smugness, self satisfaction, and superiority where none exists as I have seen lately. The problem is she's a comic character and this just makes her look mean -- nuance is lost (boo). Mr Knightley's firm character reappears as he denounced the surprise gift to Jane Fairfax and in his calmly telling Mrs. Elton to bugger off (which is really what he should have said...). Still a fan of Tamsin Greig as Miss Bates. She annoying (and that's the point), but somehow is still a feeling creature - even more so than in the book. I wish there had been more of Mr. John Knightley (Dan Fredenburgh) - his character is worth the time -- one of the few people in the book that wasn't afraid by convention or otherwise to say what he thought about things. Laura Pyper is just not pretty enough to be Jane Fairfax -- if she's held up, as implied, as Emma's rival of accomplishment and beauty -- it's just not working for me. Emma 1996 (Paltrow/Northam) with Polly Walker as Jane Fairfax - that worked. This time ... not so much.


We'll see how it ends up (as if we don't already know).

Spring?

It's hard to believe it, but I noticed the leaves are starting to bud out on the trees in the parking lot of the office. Does it always happen this early? Or is it because we've been comparatively mild since the 13 day long hellish deep freeze at the beginning of the month? Now we just have to cross fingers for no serious freeze or all that will be for nought.


The daffodils are blooming, but that's normal. We have daffs that bloom here in December. We're expecting more rain. We've had way to much for the fall/winter, I can only imagine when the spring rains come what it will be like.

Carrots - What the frig....

You've got to be kidding me... carrots! .Groan - I know that I have no recipe for preserving carrots and probably don't have anything with carrots in them - at least not in my files. It's time to get out the books - thankfully, I have several. I'm betting Oded Schwartz's Preserving will have something for me to work with. What a great book - and beautiful to look at too. I'm a big fan of chutney, so I'll likely lean in that direction. We'll see how it goes ... going to be interesting. Or maybe not so much ...

Emma - Masterpiece Classic

I remembered last night that when I was a kid I hated the sound of Masterpiece Theatre coming on - isn't it funny now - it always meant something boring.

Emma (2009) started last night and I'll have to admit, while too much dialogue had been changed and all the actors were a little fast and loose with their formalities and body language - too modern for my taste - it was charming. Not subtle by any measure, which it really should have been, but not bad, all things considering.

I don't like the choice for Frank Churchill - not handsome enough by halfs and not that charming either - perhaps he will get better. I expected that I would not like Jonny Lee Miller as Mr. Knightley, but was surprised at how well he handled the role. I have to say, I've changed my mind about him as George Knightley. 

Pluses:

Hartfield  solidly played by Squerryes Court, Kent

Donwell Abbey equally well played by Loseley Park, Guildford, Surrey (love love love it)

And the charmingly dirty village of Highbury  played by Chilham, Kent

Jonny Lee Miller - nicely surprising. He has my permission to continue in the role. 

And my most surprising plus ... Tamsin Greig as Miss Bates. Silly, lovely, and sad ... just played perfectly. I can't believe I like her, because I can barely tolerate her otherwise - even in the book.

Minuses:

Mr. Elton - Blake Ritson - he's too obvious. It's like he's making Emma for dummies. See, I have a crush on Emma. meh                       Mr. Woodhouse - Michael Gabmon - too winey. Somehow the combination of his age (not old looking enough) and the over exageration of the I mean really, again are we trying to dumb this down for someone? blech

Frank Churchill - Rupert Evans - no where near cute enough ... so. unfortunate.

Who was this dumbed down for? Certainly not for those of us who like Jane Austen. So much of her dialogue has been removed that it's more like the idea of Emma, but not Emma. This is not my favorite book by Miss Austen. It swaps place with Northanger Abbey and ocasionally even Mansfield Park for bottom of the list, often holding the position the most when I'm actually reading the book, but this is like a shade of Emma, and not the real thing - too bad. Sometimes too much tinkering can produce a weaker product.


Let us hope for better things....


Photos: Jane Austen's World

Tangerine & Lime Marmalade

As part of the Tigress' Can Jam, I made Tangerine & Lime Marmalade. I've never made marmalade before, but I thought making lemon curd would be a total cop out since I make it regularly - it's best to try new things and see what you think. There were several other options, but the tangerines were so pretty (and on sale) that I thought I would go with them and then find a recipe to work. Citrus is perfect this time of year - even my little potted Meyer Lemon tree produced two beautiful lemons this year - which will be made into lemon curd this week. I had thought too of getting clementines as well, but we'll see - their season is short so if I'm going to, I had better make up my mind. 

The recipe was from A Passion for Preserves by Frederica Langeland and is the first recipe from the book that I have made. It's really simple which is a plus for a new recipe. Now, of course, I did mess w/it a bit, but that's normal for me. And I did it in the step method, which I'm realizing is easy as long as you think ahead a bit. 


Tangerine & Lime Marmalade
9 Tangerines
3 Limes
5 cups H2O
6 cups Sugar*

Wash all fruit, juice them and slice rind as thin as you can (I thought about using a mandoline, but went with a super sharp knife instead). Put the juice/rind/water in saucepan.

NOTE: There are a ridiculous amount of seeds in tangerines so pay close attention to not have those end up in your marmalade.
Bring mixture to a boil and reduce to simmer until the rinds are soft  - this took me about 1 hour 15 minutes. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved and continue to boil until set - this took, for me any way, longer than the 20-30 minutes in the recipe, but it wasn't a big deal. 

Ladle into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe the rims, put lids in place and tighten down. Invert the jars for a few minutes, then place upright and let cool completely. Check seals, label, and store in cool dry place.  For me - this recipe made 6 half pints of marmalade - tasted the little bit of left overs - so. very. good. 
Step Method: Complete to the point just before you add sugar. Cool and refrigerate. In the next day or two (at the most!) put mixture back into a sauce pot and heat and add sugar and continue recipe. 


*I only used five cups of sugar. Have you ever looked at six cups of sugar? Good lord that's a lot of sugar  - that is perhaps while it took a little longer for my marmalade to set, but again it's not that big of a deal. 

Make Do .... and books

Use it Up
Wear it Out
Make Do, Or
Do Without


This was posted on Not Dabbling in Normal today and made me think about the fact that I do this for some things, but not for others. I do wear clothes out - I'm not a clothes horse to begin with, but I'll wear something until it's done - largely because I hate shopping for clothes.
I do a good bit of making do ... I try not to buy unitaskers, esp for the kitchen, but I start a lot of things and don't finish them - which is a rather annoying habit... kind of depressing too when you think about it. Part of it is space - I like being downstairs w/the guys not off in my office - but my office is right now a huge mess ... so it's a vicious little cycle.


The hardest part about doing w/out is that I am fascinated with books - esp. of late Georgette Heyer and always - cookbooks.
I've gone though all the local library cookbooks - and all the downtown library preserving books and most of the cookbooks and garden books - so what's  a girl to do but order from Amazon too often.


Just received from Amazon yesterday: In a Cheesemaker's Kitchen: Celebrating  25 Years of Artisanal Cheesemaking from Vermont Butter & Cheese Company (obligatory cookbook). I so want to learn how to make cheese, but just love the idea of a small cheese farm/store (just like Sweet Home Farm - sigh). 


Georgette Heyer books - These Old Shades and An Infamous Army: A Novel of Wellington, Waterloo, Love and War. 


These Old Shades and An Infamous Army because I had already purchased Devil's Cub and didn't realize it was part of the Alastair trilogy. So now I have the whole trilogy and can read it in order ... hate reading books out of order - it's irksome.

How to decide what's for dinner

Gave stickies, purple no less, to MotH to mark recipes for things he would like me to make for dinner and there were fifty (50! no kidding, exactly fifty) in More Best Recipes (America's Test Kitchen). So I've done two and have on the list one more this weekend and so far (along w/the key lime bar recipe I made at Christmas - v.v.g.) they have been fairly straight forward, as always, easy to follow, and good. Too bad MotH marked so many recipes for pizza, but eventually I'll get him redirected.

Parmesan-Crusted Chicken pg. 240
What worked: cruchy, cheesy, rather tasty

What didn't: it needed something - you know that something that makes you think - this was really worth the effort. The chives (or in my case finely minced scallions) didn't stick so there was none of that flavor. Perhaps they should be put in with the shredded parm? not sure.

What else: I made a pan sauce of white wine, lemon juice, veg broth and 3 T of butter. I may have done this because I'm used to my Chicken Francese with Lemon and Pecorino recipe inspired by David Rosengarten.

What now: I'll probably make again, if just to figure out where to put the chives in. But will certainly make a pan sauce with it.

Words that shall be banished

Several blogs have lately been noting "food" words that should be removed from our lexicon. There are several that come to mind when I think of it - which is more often when I'm watching something on the food network.* Sammie - needs to go - what kind of stupid baby word is that and yes, I'm thinking whomever at Quizno's thought that was a good idea, was, in fact, an idiot. Mouthfeel - that's another one that annoys me - in a pervy gross kind of way. I know what they mean, but there must be a better way to say it. Foodie - what are we supposed to do with that - it's deragatory to be sure, at least it is unless you refer to yourself as one (if you do, you're a loser). Foodie - what does it mean anyway, some concieted person who takes an interest in food fads, not trends, mind you, just fads. A bigger insult I can scarsely imagine. Sous vide - yes, I realize it's a cooking method and a bit of silly one at that, but I don't like to hear it. It's just brings to mind sea urchin or pasty, pale-looking pork - I don't know - probably an undiagnosed mental illness that I have, but honestly, ugh. Offal, is ... well ... awful.


I have an idea that this will be a continuing commentary.




* Food Network has become increasingly disappointing lately - not that it's stellar stuff in the first place but I've deleted more off TiVo lately than I thought possible.

Cookalong Live - ugh

MotH and I watched Gordon Ramsay's Cookalong Live last night on TiVo. I've never seen any of his television shows before - yelling isn't my thing, unless I'm the one yelling. So it's apparent from comments that he yells and curses a good bit and had to refrain from doing so -- and this is where it gets bad -- by laughing like a crazed psycho. What was wrong with him?
Whoopie Goldberg and her annoying daughter aside, the most objectional part of the show was the food - it looked terrible. There was no crust on the steak - no browning, barely cooked - who would eat that? ugh. I'm hoping this isn't a show that gets repeated - it was banal and certain no way to encourage people to want to make good food at home  - with or without flambe.