Crappie for Kiki

     My son-in-law, Jake. is a fisherman. Contemplating proposing to my daughter, Jennifer, he requested she sign a contract allowing him to fish if they ever got married. She agreed.
      He asked her to marry him while they were ice fishing stringing the ring inside a fish's mouth.  The man loves to fish!
      I love the fish he catches. He freezes them in water and labels them for a perfect meal portion. Tonight I enjoyed a delicious dinner with 'Crappie's for Kiki".
     Knowing that I love this small fresh water fish, Jake takes the time to filet and package them just for me, making me feel very special. Although they are delicious fried, baked or simply sauteed, tonight I tried a different recipe more Mediterranean and I was delighted. I prepared some white rice for my starch. I sauteed onions, garlic, green peppers and plum tomatoes in olive oil, seasoning with fresh ground pepper, garlic salt and oregano. Lightly flouring my fish, I brown one side in butter. Quickly flipping the fish, I ladle the sauce on each piece adding some juice from the sauce. This allows the fish to finish with steam heat. I turn off the heat and cover the pan. By the time I scoop my rice onto the plate the fish is ready. Delightful!

Minimal Indulgence

      I prefer a little bit of a good thing to a lot of bad. When  New Year's Eve 2017 rolled around I decided to give myself a little treat.  I toasted in 2017 with Lobster.  It was an 8 oz. tail that I baked and paired with a baked potato. The butter warming dish was a favorite find from an estate sale and just added a bit of elegance to the meal. It was the perfect amount of food because my tradition of eating creamed herring on New Year's Eve, for good luck, proceed with this minimal indulgence. 
      Thinking ahead, I purchased four large scallops and some oysters Rockefeller for my New Year's Day meal. I cooked two baked potatoes the night before so I could create an awesome twice baked potato for this meal. Hollowing out the potato I mixed the inside with butter, pepper, salt, sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, and chives. I spooned it back into the potato and baked it for about an hour. I steamed some fresh spinach and cut up a fresh lemon. While the twice baked potato cooked I indulged in the Oysters. When the potato was golden brown on the top, I lightly floured the scallops and quickly seared them on one side in butter until brown. Turning off the heat on the stovetop I flipped each scallop, squeezed in some fresh lemon juice, and put them in the oven with the potato, turning the oven down to warm. This was just enough time to finish cooking the scallops. Mounding four heaps of steamed spinach on the plate around the butter warming dish and slivers of fresh lemon wedges, the scallops were placed on top of each spinach bed and drizzled with warm lemon butter. Served with the hot twice baked potato this was the perfect minimal indulgence to begin a new year. Happy New Year to all!

EGGcited!

      Cooking a hard boiled egg is not rocket science. Or is it? I have been cooking hard boiled eggs for over fifty years and some have turned out good and some have turned out not so good. Examples of not so good, shells that won't peel off, runny yolks, and my favorite mess up, a green ring around the yolk.
     There is an old saying, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." And so when my daughter Amy told me the way to cook a perfect hard boiled egg; I did what any mother would do, I laughed. Why? Amy is not known for her love of the kitchen. Love of food yes! Cooking said food, not so much. To add insult to injury her sister quipped, "Did you really just tell mom how to cook an egg?"
     I am a chef, by profession. The irony hit us all then and we enjoyed a good laugh at Amy's expense. In my years working with a vast variety of food service personal I have learned to keep an open mind. My way is not always the best. With that mindset I decided to give Amy's technique a try. Amy multitasks and so keeping her eye on or time boiling eggs does not work. Her solution, when they start to boil turn off the flame and let them be.
     While preparing dinner the other evening I placed six raw eggs in a pan of water and turned on the flame. Going about my prep work I caught a glimpse of boiling water and turned off the flame under the eggs. Then I basically forgot about them. 
     After dinner I returned to the kitchen and began to clean up. I drained the cool water from the egg pan and peeled the eggs to make sure they were hard, indicating they were cooked. Then, using a little cold water I peeled the eggs, easily. I cut one of the eggs in half to discover a bright yellow yolk peering up at me like a burst of sunshine. There is no better gift, from a mother to a child, than to say, "You were right Amy, the eggs turned out perfect!"
     I am EGGcited to say "You can teach old dogs new tricks."

Sixty and still laughing; more at myself now.: A new hobby?

Sixty and still laughing; more at myself now.: A new hobby?: The other day I was bored and angry about all the stuffing from dog toys that lay about my house. I really do not want to clean today b...

Summer food fun.

    Summer is so food fun! All the fresh vegetables make healthy cooking a snap. I enjoyed swimming at my sister's and brother-in-laws place while they were away and decided to raid their garden. I downed the cherry tomatoes right away, could not resist. But then stole some fresh zucchini and regular tomatoes as well. That evening I made some tempura fried zucchini and a fresh tomato salad with capers, Gorgonzola cheese and balsamic vinegar to accompany the pasta con oleo. I also grabbed some cucumbers. So for lunch the next day I decided to make tuna stuffed tomatoes with fresh fruits and vegetables. Why does summer have to end? Enjoy it while it last in the company of food.

Me at the Lincoln memorial he, he, he!

The vacation is almost over and our last outing is to Washington to visit the WWII memorial on which my cousin had included the name of my father. I was excited to see his name engraved as one of the people who gave us our freedom. Unfortunately, anyone who knows me realizes history is not one of my fortes. Jude, on the other hand, is educationally well rounded and knowledgeable, a world traveler. Why are we friends? I bring her back to reality is my reasoning. However, my first question upon arriving at the Washington mall put even our lifelong friendship over the edge. I saw this big, straight, pointy white structure in the middle of the mall and asked Jude "What is that?" Her reply, "I can't believe we are friends!"

It got better after that? I am sure everyone else but me knows that Washington DC has a lot of museums. And most of them are free. It is a beautiful place to visit and has something for everyone. For me the exhibit on FOOD through the ages called. I have been personally effected by Michelle Obama's  new food incentive on childhood obesity. I found the exhibit very enlighten and humbling, Realizing that champions of all causes keep us focused on change, which is a difficult concept for most to embrace.

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Maria and Jude checking out the homemade bread.

Just so you can relish the finished product here is the oysters before I devoured them. They were delicious! The next day was the second adventure of the vacation sailing on the Chesapeake Bay. Maria had arranged with one of her resident professors to take a group of ladies out on his sail boat for an afternoon jaunt. The weather really cooperated with a nice wind and plenty of sunshine. To get ready for the sail we stopped at the farmers market to grab some fresh baked bread, cheese and wine for a snack. Are we having fun or what? This farmers market put our Woodstock rendition to shame, although I am quite fond of my hometown version. The vegetables and fruits were beckoning, lush and colorful. Maria stopped to chat with everyone in her college town and Jude and I were on a mission to find cheese; a chunk of cheddar horseradish the find. Our next stop was to the local health food store where I snagged some garlic and olive oil Chevre cheese spread. Yum! And we brought some white wine to sip with our treats. Then it was off to the boat and our sailor host, Dave, was preparing to set sail. This is the second time on my trip they tried to kill me.
 It started out calmly enough as we motored to the open water but then Dave hoisted the sails and the excitement began. The wind was brisk and the sun was blistering as the boat hummed along the water tipping to the side, skimming the rails. We finely all got our water legs and I decided to venture from the comfort of the cushioned seats and experience the  wind and the ocean. BIG MISTAKE! On the top of the cabin the breeze skimmed my cheeks and cooled the day. Holding on as we came about was a challenge but manageable. SO.. I decided to move forward and enjoy the full impact of sailing. Jude joined me kitchen towel hat and all. (I promised not to publish Judes' hat collection!) We spotted a group of rowing sailboats about to race and Dave had to do some damage control to get out of their way. As he tacked I rolled and could taste the water spraying on the deck. I yelled to Jude to grab me but she was holding on for dear life too. As soon as the drama began, it was over and we both rolled back into position. I realized sailing was not for amateurs and headed back to the safety of the cushioned seats.