Post-Irene Food

We were whomped by Hurricane Irene.  Had made the usual prep of cooking up a couple ahead-of-time meals, and checking all the flashlights and lanterns for working batteries.  Got out the old hurricane lantern (aptly named) and filled it with lamp oil, checked the wick (new).  Put out bird food and forgot to bring in the Hummingbird feeder.

Sunday, the wind began rising at 6:30 a.m.  I got up and made a batch of pesto Geneovese (using blender) using basil picked from garden the day before.  Ran the dishwasher.  Laundry all done on Saturday.  Hunkering down.  We were watching CNN at 10:30 when the lights went out.  They came back on Wednesday evening.  In the meantime, everything in the freezers (2 fridges) had defrosted.  We ate the prepared meal by candle light on Sunday, and Monday we grilled the thawed steak as shish kebabs.  Delicous.  Ate them twice.   I cooked A LOT of defrosted chicken breasts and we had chicken pesto and also chicken parm without sauce.   The only foods ruined were a pizza that melting ice had leaked into (el disgusto) and some leftovers that I was just as happy to pitch.  Fed the once-frozen bananas, saved for banana bread, to the cows.

We have a gas stove that can be lit with a match with the electric ignition  doesn't work and a gas water heater, so we were among the lucky ones.  Those with their own wells or an all-electric (or oil) house took cold showers and went for takeout.  In 1985, during Gloria, we were among those, and cooked on a one-burner camp stove and the Weber Kettle.   One can actually do with less, dontchaknow?

A huge oak fell across the wild flower garden (boo hoo) and I won't know how bad the damage is until it is removed.  Hoping the removal doesn't do more damage than the tree falling.

During the storm, the hummingbirds swooped and flew and appeared to be having a high old time.  They drained their feeder which had no damage.   The other birds found their old feeders about four feet nearer the ground and of course some enterprising creature dragged the suet feeder off.  We have another one, which the raccoons raid often, but we have large families of flickers, downy and hairy woodpeckers, all with babies, so we try to keep the suet coming.

It is nice to have a clean fridge, and the Highland Scottish cattle received some of the contents of the freezer such as old bread and a huge package of flour tortillas (ick!) that someone left here.

I made some peach ice cream a few days ago.  Lots and lots of peaches.  We ate the  remainder of the ice cream for lunch as soon as the lights went out.   So our losses were minimal.

Now we are eating up last fall's winter stores:  Spam, tuna fish and corned beef hash.  I'll replace them in a couple of months.  The Low Salt Spam was totally delicious.  We ate it with baked beans gussied up with onion, tomato, and bacon last night.

So yours truly is feeling pretty frugal and with the power out went to the discount Tuesday movie, The Help, and the first run non-discounted movie, The Debt, both pretty good.  Only missed one Red Sox game.   We had a battery powered radio.  You are ready for a big storm, aren't you?  Having light, batteries, radio, food and emergency supplies can make all the difference.

Oddly enough, the cats were kind of freaked out by the experience, and did not spend any time in the dark basement home office but came upstairs to bask in the lamplight.  I washed the dishes as we used them, and drained them on a towel on the counter.  Worked fine.  First thing I did when the power came back on was run the dishwasher.  Yay!

We are eating a lot of cucumber salad, as the garden has an abundance of cukes.  Cukes and basil are the current harvest.  Ate all the lettuce.  Also have a huge supply of oregano, which I will dry and sage, which hangs around until the coldest part of the winter.

Onward, onward.  After the lights came back on, we had a day of respite and then the Internet crapped out for 4 days.  8 of 9 days with poor or no Internet.  We did get wi-fi at the neighboring  library and Starbucks when the power was out in our town.   So:  the tree didn't hit the house, we coped pretty well and consider ourselves lucky.

The Cheeseparer

The cosmetics counter and traveller's tales.

It is possible to spend ungodly amount of money on cosmetics and toiletries.  One thing I like is the web sites that rate these items. They make it possible to avoid an expensive mistake.  Beauty Survival is one example.  I shop off and on at a discount mall which does have a cosmetics store selling Clinique, Estee Lauder and a few other brands.  Items are about 15-25% off.  There are a lot of "testers" open which helps.  I have also become a Walmart shopper and usually buy shampoo and other sundries there.   Sales at the local drugstore and an occasional purchase on the web round things out. 


If you find a lipstick, etc. that you absolutely love, buy in quantity because you never know when these items will be discontinued.  At the discount store, I will always take the empty lipstick tube and try to find a close match.  This works pretty well. 


We were in San Francisco last fall and I ran out of moisturizer.   There was a busy, cramped Walgreens across from the hotel, and I perused the shelves for a smallish size of moisturizer that did not cost and arm and a leg.  Found Aveeno, and you know what?  It's really good and I recently bought another bottle.  It's a fraction of the cost of some "name" brands.  I also like the Jergens product that promises you give you a slight tan.  Don't think it does, but I like it anyhow.   Both of these items come in small sizes that I like to use for travel.


My parents, bless them, who always traveled by car, carried a humongous cosmetics case with giant industrial sizes of hair spray, deodorant, etc. Huge bottles of shampoo.  Of course, now every motel has the sample sizes.  When I travel, I carry ziplop plastic baggies to tote these items home in.  They are nice to give to homeless shelters and even food banks.  Or use on your own if  you're staying in frugal places like Microtel.  I do like Microtel, because they operate on the theory that a travel needs a place for everything, and I find their rooms very convenient and the prices, too.  We are more likely to carry our breakfast or find a local cafe to pick up some local color. 


The Inn where we stayed in Nantucket actually had delicious blueberry muffins, obviously homemade, and good orange juice and decent coffee.  How often does that happen?   The Brant Point Inn.  Friendly people and we got a last minute suite for 4 that didn't quite break the bank.  

I have rambled a bit.  It is possible to save on cosmetics and breakfast but not Nantucket inns in August.   We go to the Cape for one weekend in the winter and stay cheaply which evens things out.  With the economy tanking again, the staycation will resurface.  So much to do in Boston in the summer that it's not really onerous, and with restaurant week you can even eat cheap(er).  


There is a sales tax holiday this weekend.  I may buy some catfood.  It has gone up and now even Walmart wants 54 cents a can. My diabetic cat needs certain flavors in one brand and dry food I can only get from the vet.  I love my kitties but they are a definite luxury.  The ginger cat has taken to sleeping on a leather ginger pillow.  He's relentless in seeking out luxurious spots for napping.   The down duvet, mostly.   Cats aren't dumb.  

Onward, 


The Cheeseparer

David Eyre's Pancake

David Eyre's "Hawaiian" Pancake 

A while back, the New York Times Food section asked readers for their all time favorite recipes.  The response was overwhelming, and this was one of the best.  We lived in Illinois at the time, but got the Sunday Times.  I made it immediately, as apparently did many others.  The next week, there came a retraction.  4 Tablespoons, not 8 of butter. The following week, more comments, mostly to the effect that 8 T. of butter was just fine, thank  you.  This is cheap to make but today for 4 people, I made three.  Two regular size, and a small half-size (2 T. of butter).  Please use real butter--stock up when it's on sale and freeze.  Freshly grated nutmeg is best, and for heaven's sake use an honest-to-god lemon, not store-bought lemon juice.  Yuck!  I just use  generous squeeze of lemon, and also, maybe somewhat less powdered sugar.  Experiment until you find the exact right proportion for your family.  Cast iron works best.  Flour, milk, and eggs.  What could be simpler?  

Here is the link to the recipe and some of the history, etc.  Life is good.  David Eyre's Pancake

Easy Italian

I found a super-easy recipe for focaccia that is ready from start to finish in 2 hours.  My kind of bread.  Here is the link.  Tasty and Quick Focaccia   It's very forgiving.  The supermarket had "very quick" but not "instant" yeast, so I used that.    Also baked it at the wrong temperature.  I didn't have the cheese whatever or the pizza spice so I used about 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan and some "Florentine" seasoning from Penzeys.  Came out just fine.  Makes a lot but you will eat a lot.  Our entree was a pasta dish. 


Cook 8 oz of your favorite pasta.  While it is cooking. slice 4 garlic cloves thinly and put to simmer in a skillet with  2 T. olive oil.  When the garlic is golden, add 8 oz. cherry tomatoes and saute until just bursting.  When the pasta is done, drain and add to the skillet along with 1 T. chopped fresh basil.  Serve with parmesan cheese.  So good and fresh and if your garden is producing, you have a cheap meal.  Cheap does not have to mean processed food or flavorless.  Nope.  Not at all.  


The Cheeseparer

Potatoes to Die For

I  haven't posted for a while due to 1) preparing to go to camp, 2) being at camp 3) a trip to the big Apple and 4) laid up with sciatica.  If you like you can add falling behind in everything and a young houseguest to the mix. The houseguest is a vegetarian and us carnivores work around that in various ways.  The simplest way is to prepare a vegetarian meal, and here is a good one:
Southwest Potatoes 


With cilantro from the garden, grated cheddar on sale, and so forth,  this really rocked.  Today I'm making sweet corn and basmati rice salad. This is a winner that I make every summer.  Here is the link:  Sweet Corn and Basmati Rice Salad  


Corn is ridiculously cheap these days, and I have pecans from Georgia relatives.  Went to Whole Foods for the cress, as they always have some.  Other supermarkets iffy.  

Last night we had panzella, a tomato bread salad with mozzarella balls that also satisfies.  I'm going to eat the soggy remains for lunch.  


On the bad news front, the chipmunks and even the birds are eating the tomatoes.  When I left for camp, there were lots of cherry tomatoes on the vines.  None when I returned.  Significant Other professed not to have eaten any.  Somebody sure did, and it wasn't the neighbors.  I have oregano for the masses, and good basil.  Parsley has been tempermental this year, and mint is out of control.  Lots of cleomes reseeded themselves from last year, and the Four O'Clock seed I gathered in Boston's North End is doing great.    Garlic harvest sparse.  Cukes growing like crazy.  Every year is different and one learns to roll with the blows.  Some of the tomatoes got the blight, and now we may not get any unless I can find a hiding place from the critters.  Grrrrr.  So it goes and whatever.   And did I mention I gained all the weight I lost back? 


The Cheeseparer

A Mllion Dollar Berry Dessert

Whether you pick your own, grow  your own, and shop the supermarket specials, this dessert is soooo good.  It is from this month's (July, the Grilling Issue) Bon Appetit.  


Macerated Berries with Vanilla Cream - serves 6  (I cut the ingredients by 1/3 to serve only 4). 
Berries:
6 cups fresh mixed berries (scant 2 lbs., divided)
3/4 cup sugar 
1/4 cup fresh (used o.j. from the dairy case) orange juice

Vanilla Cream 
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, or 1  1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chilled heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup sugar 


Berries:  Using a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon, (I used the tool to cut butter into pastry) mash 1 cup berries with sugar and orange juice in a large bowl until sugar begins to dissolve.  Gently stir in remaining 5 cups berries, let sit a room temperature, tossing occasionally until berries are juicy, 1 -2 hours.


Vanilla cream:  Scrape seeds from vanilla bean in to a medium bowl.  Add chilled c ream, sour cream and sugar.  Using a whisk or an electric mixer, beat until soft beaks form. 


Do ahead:  cream can be made 30 minutes ahead.  Cover and chill. 


This dessert has huge bang for the buck.  The vanilla cream is to die for, and the berries look luscious in the red juiciness.  Perfect end to a nice dinner party or a family dinner. 


I used an ancient vanilla bean and will have to order more.  I always go to Penzey's for spices.  They're the best. www.penzeys.com.

Retro Recipes with Chicken

These recipes never heard of the food pyramid, or the nutritional enlightment.  They remain ignorant of the food police.  Both are cheap (when chicken is on sale, as it usually is) and tasty and make delicious leftovers. 


I got the recipe for "Chicken Little" at my first job in Northbrook, Illinois in the early 80's.  I loved to make it for my family, because the little kids scarfed it down and asked for more.  Rich?  Yeah.  Simple ingredients that you do not have to shop all day for. 


Chicken Little: 


1 stick butter;1 cup uncooked rice; 1 medium onion, chopped; 2 cans chicken broth; 2 lbs.  (approx) small chicken pieces. 
Process:  Melt butter.  Pour into a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish.  Add rice, onion and broth.  Lay chicken pieces on rice mixture.  Bake uncovered one hour @ 350 degrees.  Serves 4.  
If you want to gussy it up, sprinkle with parsley or rosemary or thyme.  
Easy as pie, no, easier. 


Chicken-Cashew Casserole.  My mom made this and it always tasted so good to me as a kid.  I think it dates to the early sixties, maybe earlier--that age of Campbell's soup creation.  The only change I make is to use fresh mushrooms.  I always thought I hated mushrooms until I tried fresh ones and discovered they weren't the slimy things out of a jar/can that I found so disgusting. 


Stew 1 whole chicken.   Do not stew the little bag(s) of giblets that come inside the chicken.  No indeed.  If you don't know how to stew a chicken, look it up. 
Mix one small diced onion, a cup diced celery, 1/4 cup diced green pepper, 3/4 cup uncooked rice, 1 can mushroom soup, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 2 cups chicken broth (from the stewing will work) and 1 can whole mushrooms (substitute fresh, please!)  
Mix in  the  stewed now skinless chicken which you have in the meantime removed from the bone and cut into small chunks.  This whole business (chicken, veggies and soups)  goes into a 2 quart casserole with a lid. Make sure to stir until everything is nicely mixed.
Bake covered for 1 hour 10 minutes at 350 degrees F.  Remove from oven and sprinkle 1 cup cashews on top.  Bake 20 minutes more, uncovered.  Serves about six.  It is hard to stop eating this.  Just tastes so good.  
If you are a nervous cook, buy a rotisserie chicken and remove the skin (I recommend eating it) and take the meat off the bones and cut up.  Proceed with the recipe. 


In the midwest, these recipes would be called chicken hot dish.  And remember, canned mushrooms are the devil's spawn.