Have you cracked a black walnut? Or, perhaps more precisely, have you tried to crack a black walnut? I found this half of a walnut shell on my walk this morning. The squirrel who enjoyed the nutmeat at the heart chewed through against the grain, avoiding what little help the seam between the shell halves gives. His […]
Category Archives: food
Leftovers
One of the marvels of modern society has been the ability of the packaged food industry to get our children to eat what are, essentially, leftovers. Campbell’s soup in a can, for example. It’s already cooked. We just heat it up. How is that different from leftovers? Swanson’s TV dinners: cooked, frozen, just thaw and […]
We Have No Choice
I read Underground Airlines yesterday. It’s fresh in my memory. This morning browsing through Edible Santa Fe I ran across an advertisement for work the Quivera Coalition is doing with the Southwest Grassfed Alliance. And a sense of why some arguments bother me congealed. We have no choice. This is the only way we can [fill in […]
Obesity is the Government’s Business
NPR has an excellent series of debates on various topics called Intelligence Squared (U.S). On February 10th, the question was “Is Obesity the Government’s Business?“. Listen to the debate (or read the transcript), and then come back here.
Grandmother’s Bread
By way of my sister’s recipe box, comes this memory. Scald all together and set aside to cool: 2 c. milk 2/3 c. shortening* 5 tbsp. sugar 2 tbsp salt Add 2 cups water to above mixture. 1 cake yeast** 1/4 c. water 13-14 c. flour (approx, depending on flour) Crumble yeast into water to […]
Grenadine
Many cocktails call for grenadine, which, it seems, is much more than Red No. 40 and high-fructose corn syrup. It’s pomegranates! Who knew? (The FDA seems not to care.) But more importantly, can we make it at home? Once one finds Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s recipe for grenadine, one can. Morgenthaler’s Grenadine 2 c. fresh pomegranate juice […]
Things to do with Vermouth
I have a rather large bottle of Cinzano Extra Dry Vermouth in my refrigerator. One might ask why I have such a large bottle. That’s easily explained: it was the smallest vermouth sold at the store I visited the day I purchased vermouth. Why am I looking for small bottles of vermouth? Mainly because I […]
Buffalo Trace Bourbon Marinade
1/4 c. Buffalo Trace Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey 1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil 1/4 c. apple cider vinegar 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp. sea salt 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper Combine the ingredients, then let your meat soak in it for several hours before grilling, turning every now and again to ensure that […]
Grandmother’s Creamed Tomatoes
From my younger sister, Grandmother Cox’s recipe for Creamed Tomatoes 1 pint whole tomatoes pinch of baking soda 1/3 cup flour 1/3 cup milk salt pepper 3 Tbsp butter Empty tomatoes into saucepan and crush them. Add pinch of baking soda (prevents milk from curdling) and stir. Put over medium heat. While tomatoes are heating, […]
A Pinch of Mustard
On the shelf is a bottle of mustard. Or, to be more precise, “You Could Win $25,000 see back for details French’s since 1904 Made with Real Honey Honey Mustard.” Mustard is the smallest word on the label. Let’s check what’s in this, shall we? The ingredients, listed in order of quantity, are “distilled vinegar, […]
Steamed Artichokes
Look for artichokes that are hard through, with the petals tight together. It’s OK if the petals have begun to open, but you do not want the base of the artichoke to be soft. Cut 1″ off the top of the artichoke. This removes the sharp points. Trim the stalk to within 1″ of the […]
I Spent My Last $10 on Birth Control, and Beer
The bagel shop is raising prices. The pizza place is raising prices. And a six-pack of my favorite beer has just passed $10 at the grocer. What, you may ask, am I doing buying beer at the grocer’s? It’s convenient, but that’s beside the point. The point is that commodity prices are going up. The […]
Local Honey
Food doesn’t get any more local than this. My younger sister’s family found they had a hive between the floor joists.
The Menu
We’re having Christmas Eve dinner at our house this year, and we’re planning fish, though not the traditional baccala since the Little Sister is, we think, the only one who would eat it. Most of the rest don’t like fish anyway, but it’s tradition.