She did it! Danica Pollard was named  Food and Wine Magazine's The People’s Best New Pastry Chef of the Central Region!

And, we helped!

I have received so many messages to pass on to Danica, I will be going to Lidia's for lunch soon to pass them on to Danica in person! Thank you for answering the call!

Your votes certainly counted!

Congratulations, Danica!

I bet Lidia is very proud  of you!

Tomorrow night is 3rd Friday in Historic Overland Park. I am praying for good weather, but of course, it will be warm and cozy inside The Tasteful Olive! I will be there from 6PM to 8:45PM, with samples of Blood Orange Brownies and my Wild Mushroom and Sage Savory Shortbread. Please  come join us. Somerset Ridge will be there with their wines!

The shops and restaurants will be open and there will be live music, wonderful art, and, as I said, Brownies! They are wonderful! The recipe is from the Tasteful Olives web page, along with many other delicious ways of using their amazing oils and vinegars. http://www.thetastefulolive.com

BLOOD ORANGE OLIVE OIL BROWNIES

Ingredients:

4 oz unsweetened chocolate

1 oz bittersweet chocolate

1 C all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

4 eggs

1 T vanilla flavoring

2 C sugar

1/2 C butter

1/2 C Tasteful Olive's Blood Orange Olive Oil

1 C walnuts, coarsely crushed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 12 x 9 baking pan. On low heat, melt chocolate in sauce pan, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool. In separate bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt. Melt the butter, place in another bowl and add the olive oil, then incorporate one egg at a time into this mixture. Add in vanilla and then the chocolate. Fold in the dry ingredients and walnuts, but don't over mix the batter. Pour mixture into the pan, smoothing off the top. Bake for 25-30 minutes until brownies pull away from the side of the pan. Serves 12.

Hope to see you there!



Are you watching the 136th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show? Zeus and I are snuggled up in our recliner, watching the Hound category that includes the Daschund breed. The dog show is on tonight and tomorrow night, with tomorrow night’s show ending with the naming of “Best in Show”. JOY! The Wirehaired Daschund just won for the Hound group! I am looking forward to watching the miniature breeds, and I know Zeus is also.
The snow we received today sort of put a kink in our walking schedule today. Zeus’ tummy is so close to the ground, his Burberry coat was scooping up the snow; it was like walking a miniature snow plow! We left a rather strange looking path behind us.




My oven is on the blink, sort of, anyway. All of that electronic stuff offers so many opportunities for things to break, give out, just plain quit. I have turned the breaker off to my kitchen, then will turn it back on later tonight. You know, everything is a computer now, even my oven! Hopefully when I flip the breaker back on, the computer behind the controls will reboot itself and I will have an oven again. In the meantime, it looks like my electric soup pot will be put to work.
I have a package of French Lentils and a pound of Jasper’s wonderful sweet Italian Sausage, so I think I will make a French/Italian Lentil and Sausage Soup.


Sausage and Lentil Soup
• 1 medium onion
• ½ cup chopped celery
• 3 garlic cloves
• 8 baby carrots
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lb Italian sausage, removed from casings 
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 3 cups water
• 16 ounces lentils
• salt and pepper
• 1 dash red pepper flakes
olive oil for drizzling


Place onion, celery, garlic and carrots in food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Sauté the veggies in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Remove sausage from casings and crumble. Add sausage to vegetables and sauté until no longer pink. Rinse lentils and add to pot. Add broth, water and seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, stirring often. If soup becomes too thick, add more broth. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. When done, drizzle with olive oil, stir and serve.

Have you voted for Danica Pollard yet? Please do! She is in 2nd place as of today, so thank you very much for voting for this delightful Pastry Chef of Lidia’s of Kansas City!


Just go to http://www.foodandwine.com/the-peoples-pastry-central and vote for Danica today! I will keep you posted on how she is doing.

Please have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

All you loyal readers,

I have

A Favor to Ask!

I am asking each of you to vote for

a wonderful local chef!

 Kansas City’s Pastry Chef of Lidia’s Italy

DANICA POLLARD

has been nominated by Food and Wine Magazine as a candidate for

The People’s Best New Pastry Chef

Voting is easy and you have until February 14th at Midnight!

1. go to www.foodandwine.com/the-peoples-pastry

2. on the map click on CENTRAL

3. Scroll down and in the voting box on the lower right side click on DANICA POLLARD

4. In the voting box, click on SUBMIT

Let’s make it a sweet victory for our favorite pastry chef on Valentine’s Day!

Thank you for supporting Lidia’s Italy Kansas City!

and, thank you for reading my blog!

Congratulations, Danica!

According to fellow blogger, Debra of www.bagnidilucca.wordpress.com, It is only 2 degrees in Rome right now. I’m thinking our 21 degrees sounds pretty balmy. However, I would jump on a plane right now for Italy, no matter what the temperature is!


With the freezing temperatures here in Kansas City, and apparently most of the planet above the equator, I am thinking the pastries of Kansas City’s own
DANICA POLLARD
would be pretty darned good right now with a nice warm cup of cappuccino, or in my case, a beautiful cup of hot tea. So, for those of you not fortunate enough to have a Lidia’s near by, here is a recipe for one of my favorite pastries.

Lemon Ricotta Tart

72 vanilla wafers (from a 12-ounce box)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick) melted

2 cups ricotta cheese

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 large eggs

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons), plus 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)

1. Preheat oven 375 degrees. In a food processor, pulse vanilla wafers until finely ground (to yield 2 cups). Add butter and pulse until crumbs are evenly moistened.
2. Transfer crumb mixture to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press firmly into the bottom and up the sides. Place pan on a baking sheet; bake crust until lightly browned and set, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven.
3. In clean food processor, blend ricotta, cream cheese, eggs, granulated sugar, and lemon zest until smooth. Pour into hot crust in pan; bake until filling is set and browned in spots, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Just before serving, dust top of tart with confectioners' sugar, if desired.


Okay now, don’t forget to vote for DANICA POLLARD
by going to www.foodandwine.com/the-peoples-pastry


Thank You!

Zeus, the Wonder Dog, and I have just returned from a stay at Rudy’s house. Rudy is my "Nephew”, that beautiful Collie I have blogged about before. When my brother and sister-in-law spend time in the Palm Springs area, I stay with Rudy.



Zeus discovers the joy of a BIG bed!

 The 2 dogs bonded beautifully, mainly due to the loving nature of Rudy. He allowed Zeus to eat out of his bowl, drink his water, and to play in his backyard. He did become rather restless when Zeus decided to stretch out in Rudy’s very large, comfy bed…..but I soon realized Rudy’s pacing back and forth was for a very good reason and I moved Zeus to his own bed. That was our only incident which I would say is pretty good considering we were there for several weeks!
I did have a moment when I thought we should rename the boys Felix and Oscar!

 I did have one other snag while I was there. It seems that RoadRunner and Everest are not nearly as friendly as the dogs. I could not get onto the internet or my email program at all while I was there…..so, I haven’t been blogging. So, you have had a vacation from me. But, I have returned.

While I was “away”, I did the Pig 103 dinner along with Jasper Mirabile at his beautiful restaurant, Jasper’s, here in Kansas City. We had 45 guests who dined on all things PORK. Jasper is such a delight to work with…..he puts up with me in his kitchen just as Rudy puts up with Zeus.

My paintings at ARTichokes Gallery are coming down today. I must admit, I am rather anxious to get them back home! Becky Pashia and her team will be hanging a new show for an opening on Friday evening. The artist is Lucie Phillips of Chicago. I am looking forward to the opening.

I just received an email telling me that the jewelry of artist Ana Herrera http://www.ahjewelrydesigner.blogspot.com/ will be featured also at ARTichokes!! I am the very proud owner of 3 beautiful pieces of Ana's jewelry! I recommend that you stop by ARTichokes to see her latest collection, Amore Mio!

Jewelry by Ana Herrera

I am also looking forward to the Kansas City Artists Coalition Annual Auction. Once again, David Gross, Vicki Johnston, Audrey Benskin, Ada Koch and I have all donated paintings for the event. It is the main fund raiser for the Coalition every year. They certainly throw some grand parties in connection with the auction. The first event is February 15th. In staying with the Valentine theme, they are having a Sweet Art Reception on Wednesday before the auction on Saturday evening, the 18th. The food and wine are excellent and I might add, in abundance! If you would be interest in one or both events, call the KC Artists Coalition at 816-421-5222 for tickets. The gallery is located at 201 Wyandotte in Kansas City, Missouri.

The painting I have donated is a 36” square oil on canvas of Kansas landscape. I call it “Home, Home on the…..”


Now that Valentine’s Day is next week, I was thinking of giving you a chocolate recipe…..but there are so many that I love, it is difficult to choose one to share.

……and then I remembered this recipe!

Does anything say I LOVE YOU more than a light, warm gooey Chocolate Soufflé? Okay, so maybe a big diamond says it better, but this is a wonderful chocolate soufflé from Jules Clancy of sydney food blog stonesoup  Since it is from Australia, some of the ingredients and directions may take you a moment to figure out, so I will try to make it simple for you.

Chocolate Souffle with Dulce de Leche

You can make the chocolate mix ahead of time and refrigerate until needed. Then all you need to do is whisk your whites and combine everything and bake. For die hard chocolate fans, refrain from using the caramel sauce and serve plain or dusted with a little cocoa powder.

150g dark chocolate, preferably 70% cocoa solids
125ml (½ cup) whole milk
110g (½ cup) caster sugar (caster sugar is a very fine ground sugar. Not powdered sugar fine, but certainly more fine than our sugar here in the US. You may substitute regular sugar if you can’t find the fine sugar. A moment or two in the food processor will help.)
3 egg yolks, lightly whisked
4 egg whites
pinch of salt
pinch cream of tartar
butter for greasing
extra caster sugar for dusting
4 tablespoons dulce de leche sauce, optional to serve (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 180C. (Here in US, 320 degrees Fahrenheit) Grease 4 tea cups or 4 large ramekins with butter and sprinkle with caster sugar, tipping out excess sugar. Break chocolate into small chunks and place in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, ensuring that the water does not touch the base of the bowl. Allow chocolate to melt gently. When almost melted remove from heat and stir, allowing the residual heat to melt the remaining chocolate. Stir through cold milk. Combine yolks and sugar and stir through chocolate. (by “stir through”, she means add, stir in.)

Beat egg whites in an electric mixer until frothy and add salt & cream of tartar. Continue to whisk until firm peaks form. Stir a tablespoon of egg white through the chocolate mix to lighten it then gently fold through remaining whites.

Gently divide the mix between the 4 prepared dishes and wrap each with a collar of baking paper that stands at least 4cm (about 1 ½”) above the rim of the dish. Tie with string. Place dishes on a baking tray and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until soufflés are raised and the top looks cooked through.

Meanwhile warm the dulce de leche sauce in the microwave. When soufflés are cooked, dollop each with a spoonful of sauce and serve immediately.

Dulce de leche sauce

Nowadays you can buy cans of pre prepared ‘caramel filling’ but I prefer to make my own when I have the time. This sauce is delicious on its own, or drizzled over vanilla ice cream or better yet spooned in the middle of this hot chocolate soufflé.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
¼ cup – ½ cup pouring cream (heavy whipping cream)

Place unopened can in a very large saucepan and cover completely with water. Bring to the boil and simmer covered for 3½ hours making sure the can is submerged the whole time. Allow to cool in the water.

Place caramelized condensed milk in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Gradually add in cream until you have a saucy consistency. Serve as is but try not to eat the whole batch with a spoon in one sitting.

so, there you have it…Simple and simply delicious!

Blackberry Shrub



For close to 25 years, I have been the keeper of a few of my Grandmother Johnston’s handwritten recipes. They are yellowing with age, showing faded ink. I find them fascinating, and they give me the feeling of a connection to Ann Baker Robnett Johnston.
Ann was born in Deer Park, in Boone County, Missouri in 1895. She was the Daughter of John Thomas Robnett and Harriet Lyle Whaley Robnett. From the recipes that I cherish, I can see her Grandmother Whaley influenced her in the kitchen also, just like mine did.
One recipe caught my attention and has been on my list of recipes to research. Ever heard of Blackberry Shrub? Me either. But I am sitting here with the recipe right by me, wondering how many years ago she wrote it on this yellowed card. I am sure it has to be at least 75 years ago, probably longer.


At the top of the card she wrote


“Blackberry Shrub…Grandmother Whaley’s….. Fine”


I think she liked it, so why wouldn’t I try it?
One good reason….it isn’t blackberry season here in the Midwest. I’ll have to wait until summer. That gives me lots of time to keep researching.


Recently I ran across a bog called Kitchen Konfidence
http://www.kitchenkonfidence.com/2011/08/blackberry-shrub


There I found a posting on Blackberry Shrub! It was posted on August 4, 2011 by Brandon Matzek. I have emailed him for some possible assistance with an ingredient that my grandmother has listed….it looks like “tarbic acid”. When googled, nothing comes up as tarbic, except one spot, my own blog from 2009. I am no help at all!


On the Kitchen Konfidence blog, Brandon gives the recipe’s history as follows:


“The origin of these drinking vinegars dates back to the Roman Era where acetified wine diluted with water was consumed as an everyday thirst quencher.* Shrubs came to America via England during the Colonial Era.”


Brandon’s recipe calls for a blackberry syrup, balsamic vinegar and fresh rosemary.


Blackberry Shrub
2 3/4 cups blackberries
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup good quality balsamic vinegar
3 sprigs of rosemary
Add blackberries, water and sugar to a medium saucepan and cook on low until the berries are soft (10 – 15 minutes). Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon, slightly mashing the berries each time you stir.
Pour the mixture through a fine mesh basket strainer then return to the saucepan. Discard solids. Add balsamic vinegar and rosemary sprigs. Increase the heat to medium-low and bring the mixture to a slow boil.**
Take the mixture off of the heat and carefully remove the rosemary sprigs. Let cool then transfer to a pitcher or bottle. Chill shrub in the refrigerator before using.


Makes about 4 cups.


From his blog I was led to an article in the New York Times from November, 2008. why it did not pop up on Google is a mystery to me! Here is a excerpt from that article:


If chugging vinegar sounds curious to you as well, be apprised that this centuries-old practice has only recently been abandoned. The Romans diluted acetified wine with water to make an everyday thirst quencher called “posca”, and vinegar has been touted as a cure-all in Asia and Europe for centuries. The practice was brought to the Colonies from England, where it was commonly referred to as shrub, a term confusingly used both for a nonalcoholic drink and for one mixed with rum. In the United States, shrub seems to have thrived particularly in the South, gaining enormous popularity with the temperance movement. Many Southerners still fondly remember grandmother making up “raspberry vinegar” in the summer.


The vinegars that one drinks are not, happily, your toe-curling shelf variety. The gamut is varied and complex, with vinegars produced from every conceivable fruit and grain. (In Japan, where the trend exploded several years ago, some department stores have vinegar sommeliers.) They’re most easily categorized as pure vinegars, compound vinegars and additive vinegars. A pure fruit vinegar is a labor of love and skill in which ripe fruit is crushed, fermented and acetified. The most concentrated, intense vinegars are made this way, the best of them requiring no sweetening in dilution. A compound vinegar is what most home recipes call for: fresh fruit is macerated in a bulk vinegar, typically wine or cider, then boiled to make a shrub (or what the French call a gastrique), which can be added to water, soda or an alcoholic drink. Shrub can replace citrus in any number of commonplace cocktails with three-dimensional results. Additive vinegars, which dose mass-produced vinegar with extracts or artificial flavorings and a sweetener, are to be avoided. So read the label carefully.


The world of vinegars can be sampled at a click, from an Italian pure raspberry one called Etruria — so delicate it can be sipped neat — to the Japanese Yokoi Ma-Kurozu, a black malt vinegar made from glutinous brown rice and barley. (Coupled with soda water, Yokoi provides the satisfying heft and tang of a dark English bitter.) ChefShop.com in Seattle carries some of the best small producers worldwide. It is currently one of very few American suppliers for the European cult producer Acetoria, which makes small batches of superb vinegars from sources as disparate as tomato, fig, apple-balsamic and trockenbeerenauslese dessert wines. Tait Farm Foods in Pennsylvania markets its own shrubs at taitfarmfoods.com. Its ginger shrub, mixed with soda water, dark rum and lime, makes an unusually piquant Dark ’n’ Stormy.


But to taste the best of these Model T-era coolers, you must make your own — particularly in the summer or autumn, when abundant local fruit is on hand. Modest mess aside, shrubs couldn’t be simpler to make: find a good-quality apple-cider or wine vinegar, soak any fresh fruit in it for a week, then add sugar, boil for an hour, strain and bottle it up. It can keep in the fridge for months. Unsurprisingly, the vinegar you begin with makes an enormous difference. The savior of the home shrubbist is Bragg, an excellent, widely available unfiltered and unpasteurized apple-cider vinegar. My first effort was a classic raspberry, which turned out to be so surprisingly delicious that I felt as if I’d broken some secret code. I then went a bit shrub mad, boiling up vats and fobbing off bottles on puzzled friends. Blueberries made a dense, showy shrub, thick with pectin. Black currant with white-wine vinegar produced a lithe, perfumey cassis. As a sour-cherry version boiled away on the stove, my 4-year-old said she smelled cherry pie. The resultant elixir was so good that I couldn’t bring myself to give any away. No matter; now that citrus season is swinging in, I’ll redeem myself by wrapping up bottles of blood-orange or Meyer lemon and ginger shrubs for my newly enlightened circle.


For a recipe for shrub, I took Brandon’s advice to go to nytimes.com/tmagazine. There I searched for Shrub recipe. Thus is what I found:


Shrub


Makes about 1 1/2 to 2 quarts, depending on fruit used. These measurements can be played with quite liberally, as some fruits contain more natural sugars.

2 quarts fruit, use any fruit, pears, figs, raspberries, cherries
1 liter apple-cider vinegar (preferably Bragg) or other vinegar.
1/2 to 1 cup raw sugar
Soda water
Ice.


1. Rinse the fruit and discard any rot. Place in a large non-reactive or ceramic pot and mash for several minutes with your hands or a wooden spoon to break up. Pour in enough vinegar to cover and top with a lid. Let macerate at room temperature for a week, stirring once a day. (Do not be alarmed by the smell or the sludge on top.)


2. After a week, stir in 1/2 cup of the sugar and gently boil for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly, then strain. (The smell created from boiling is a bit offensive, so open the doors and windows.)


3. Make a test shrub: cool 3 to 4 tablespoons of the fruit mixture. Fill a 20-ounce glass with ice. Add water or soda water to almost the rim, then add the chilled fruit mixture. Taste to determine sweetness. If it is too tart, add sugar to the fruit mixture, little by little, while still hot. Cool fully and funnel into bottles. Will keep indefinitely in refrigerator.

Pears! Yipee! Pears are available now! I love the sound of Blackberry Shrub, and I will make it, next summer. But for now, I might as well try the pear, don’t you agree?


If you are interested, I will be at The Tasteful Olive this Friday evening, January 20th, 6 to 9 PM for Downtown Overland Park’s 3rd Friday Celebration. You will find some wonderful vinegars as well as olive oils in this shop owned by Jeanne and Jay Mackay.
Hope to see you there!

There they go again!

I may be way off base here, but I’m thinking those people who try to predict or control food trends have gone way off the deep end. We have had cupcakes coming out our ears for several years now. On  ABC's"the Chew" television program yesterday, they were predicting that homemade marshmallows are the next trend. Does that mean all of those cupcake shops are now going to switch to marshmallows? But the big question is, does that mean we are going to have sticky fingers until they tell us what the next trend will be? To tell you the truth, in the early 70s, my sister, Ann, and I had C and W Gourmet Gifts, and we made some pretty mean marshmallows. So, does that mean “those people” are over 30 years behind the times?
I am sure my “trends” are usually wrong, they are, afterall, decided by what I like. What I think is cool is usually far different from what “those people” think….and personally, I don't give a damn. As a chef at Crown Center here in Kansas City during the early 90s, it seemed like every one of the 25 to 30 year old “boy chefs” felt they had to put lemon grass in everything. I never could figure out why, because trust me, some of their concoctions were dreadful!


I did agree with the Burger Trend a few years ago. There is nothing like a big, juicy burger on a grilled bun. All Americans like a burger....be it beef, chicken buffalo, veggie, etc., they are loved.

a Martha Stewart photo

I think a beef burger with mustard, pickle and onion is still the number one choice in America…..but make that bun a great bun, spread it with butter and grill it until it is a nice golden brown. As for the mustard….good old French’s Yellow is the choice of many, but for me….I want Dijon.
When it comes to onion, it depends if it is Vidalia season. If it is, a big quarter inch thick slice is perfect. If a Vidalia isn’t available, make mine sautéed diced yellow onion, with a little bit of salt and pepper. Simple and perfect. Pickles are a problem for me. I don’t want some limp sour thing from the shelf at the grocery store, (you know, the kind McDonald's uses). No, I want a crunchy, garlicky, tangy pickle from the refrigerated case. Better yet, I want a homemade Bread and Butter pickle….lots of them! As for cheese, sure, why not? Make mine Havarti, please. If the burger is as thick as it should be, lettuce and tomato just make it harder to  eat. Fix a salad on the side!


My Dad used to make a hamburger that was huge! Each burger was about a half a pound of the best ground beef he could buy. He brushed them with Heinz 57 Sauce, seasoned them with Lawry’s, and on to the grill they would go. They were NEVER well done…medium rare was the only way! I must admit, they were a little large to eat neatly, but they were fabulous! I bet if someone opened a Bing’s Burgers, it would be a hit, even though they say we need to go with marshmallows!
I guess it all comes down to eating what you like. Set your own food trends and ignore everyone else. Don’t fall for their schemes. They are just trying to make a name for themselves and a buck or two along the way.


But, a big plump marshmallow in a cup of rich hot chocolate is a very good thing!


Here is a recipe for a great sauce/relish for any kind of burger.  It can change the entire feel of your meal. I particularly like it on pork burgers.


Onions and Cherries
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
1/2 cup dried tart cherries
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste


Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions; cook, stirring, 5 to 6 minutes, or until onions are light brown. Reduce heat. Add cherries; mix well. in a small bowl, combine brown sugar, vinegar, thyme and pepper; pour over onions. Mix gently. Simmer, covered, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.


Makes 4 to 6 servings.


For an interesting twist on barbecue sauce, try this one....


Fig Balsamic Onion Barbecue SauceExtra-virgin olive oil, for liberal drizzling plus 2 tablespoons
1/4 pound pancetta, chopped
2 red onions chopped
Salt and black pepper
1 fresh bay leaf
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
1/2 cup aged balsamic vinegar (I use The Tasteful Olives Fig Balsamic, marvelous!)
2 to 3 tablespoons honey or dark brown sugar
Zest and juice of 1 orange


Put 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a pot over medium high heat. If you're cooking outside you can cook over the grill flames. Add the pancetta to the pot and crisp it up, 3 to 4 minutes, add the onion to the pot and season with salt and pepper - go heavy on that pepper. The black pepper will really balance out the sweetness of your sauce later on. Add the bay leaf to the pot.
When the onions are very soft and begin to caramelize, remove the bay leaf and add the Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, honey or sugar, and orange juice. Let the sauce thicken up and sweeten up 6 to 7 minutes until the liquids are syrupy. Adjust the black pepper level to your taste.

It may be too  cold to go out and light up the grill, but if you have a grill pan or an iron skillet, you have perfect equipment for making a great burger. Just make sure you don't skimp  on any of your ingredients or procedures....after all, the American Burger is a beautiful thing! For dessert,  toast some trendy marshmallows!

All Hail the Mighty Pig!

Pig 103....from Snout to Tail 

is right around the corner!

This year, Jasper Mirabile and I are going to be cooking up some wonderful new ideas for you, starting with appetizers and continuing on through soup, salad, entree, and even dessert....

all from Pork!

For details and reservations,  come to our

Pre-Party!

Jasper's

Wednesday, January 11th

6 to 9 pm 1201 W. 103rd Street

Kansas City, MO 64114

Phone: (816) 941-6600

Fax: (816) 941-4121

 

Cindy and Dennis Reynolds will be there

with their wonderful wines, expertly paired with our food!

Come get a sample of what our PIG 103 dinner will be on January 30th!

MY, oh my….did I open a can of worms! In my last posting, I mentioned I had been doing some heavy duty reading…..time spent reading, not heavy duty subjects.



I have been reading the Jack Reacher series by Lee Child. These fun novels are full of the FBI, CIA, and military. Jack is a former Army Colonel, who took early retirement and is now wandering about doing his save-the-world-kind-of-stuff.

My first response was an email stating their love of the Jack Reacher novels, but questioned how in the world Hollywood could put Tom Cruise in as Jack. It turns out, that was just the beginning of many email, bemoaning the choice of Cruise. You see, Jack is 6’5” tall, really BIG! Hollywood’s choice of, as some referred to him as “the runt” we know as Tom Cruise is apparently not going over so well. On a good day, Tom is only 5’7” tall, and is getting up there in age to be playing a big tough guy. Now, I want you to understand, I am only 4’11” tall and I am old enough to be Tom’s mother (God forbid!), so I’m not saying older short people are bad….no, they are good….generally speaking. But TOM CRUISE? Give me a break!


As much as I love the Reacher novels by Lee Child, I am really turned off by the casting of Cruise in the lead role. I will probably skip the movie. So often movies of books I have read just never meet my expectations anyway. I cannot imagine Tom Cruise helping this one.

One movie I am looking forward to is Janet Evenovich’s Stephanie Plum novel, One for the Money. I always pictured Sandra Bullock as Stephanie, the very Italian, big haired girl from New Jersey who is a bounty hunter, but that was probably 10 years ago when I imagined Bullock as Stephanie. If you haven’t read this series of 18 books, I recommend them. they are a HOOT! Now, when I heard they had cast Katherine Heigl as Stephanie, I was confused, to say the least. I kept thinking of Heigl as the blond in Grey’s Anatomy. But she is funny! She can have dark hair; I understand she had to go with a wig to get that really Big New Jersey Hair! I am looking forward to the movie coming out at the end of this month. I can’t wait to see Debbie Reynolds as Grandma Mazur! I am not familiar with the Sherry Shephard, the actor they cast as Lula, Stephanie's ex-hooker sidekick, but the part is an outstanding chance for a comedy actress. 
I hope the movie does Evanovich's novel justice. It should be exactly what it is…a fun time!
But, back to Jack Reacher....
I suppose I have to admit I am very much affected by Hollywood’s efforts to change our world into a very liberal world. Their outspoken views on politics have done much damage to their appeal, in my humble opinion. Tom Cruise and his Scientology connection is about on the same level….strange.
Just to give you an idea of the comments about Tom Cruise (and I will tell you not even one was a positive)….
“Once again Hollywood shows what idiots they are. Are we surprised?”
“OMG! You have got to be kidding!”
“I will just read Jack Reacher novels, no movie for me!”
“BARF!”
“Why didn’t they just hire Justin Bieber for the part?”


That about sums it up! Time will tell…………

Here I am, 3:20AM and I am wide awake. It isn't uncommon for me, but it is frustrating. I read until 2AM, then tried to tire myself by watching some boring middle of the night television. Figuring I would accomplish sleep by watching something like Murder She Wrote, I was clicking on the "up channel" button when I happened upon Book TV.

From the 11th annual National Book Festival on the National Mall in Washington, DC, historian David McCullough was presenting his book, The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris. McCullough became a favorite of mine when I read both John  Adams and 1776. As wonderful as his writing is, Mr McCullough himself is the fascination for me. Listening to him speak on why he wrote the book, and why he felt the need to write it was inspiring. I will be buying the book this week.
One of the things he spoke on in this interview was his views on the importance of the written word. He challenged each one in the audience to start a diary; to keep a record  of daily events, no matter how mundane is important more than ever because no one ever does it anymore. He spoke of the diaries and letters written by both John and Abigail Adams. He said they both wrote beautifully and left such incredible documentation of our country's history.  He laughed when he said no President would dare to leave a diary in today's world....they would be scared to death  to document their days in office! How true, how true.
But by encouraging us to start a diary, he was trying to impress upon us the fact that no one keeps a diary today, and that is so sad for tomorrow's generation. Their lessons will be learned from what is in the press, from newscasts. We know for a fact that is certainly not an accurate source!
When the program ended, I turned off the television and tried to fall asleep....but, here I am at 3:50...wheels are still turning. So I started thinking about my blog. It is sort of a diary....nothing that will ever contain anything for the history books,  but if it survives out there in space for years to come like they say it will, maybe my grandchildren, great grandchildren will get to know their Mimi even though I will be long gone. I think that would be cool!  I also think maybe I need to watch my spelling, edit my thoughts; I don't want my future generations to doubt my intelligence.
Thanks to David McCullough for giving me a swift kick in the pants!

Zeus, the Magnificent

Here it is, 2012, Day 2. It is pretty chilly outside, 25 degrees, but nice and warm here by the fire. Either my laptop or my Kindle and Zeus are keeping my lap and legs nice and toasty. Actually, between you and me, I may never feel my legs again. I hate to disturb Zeus, but I really need to get the circulation going again!

I’ve been enjoying my new Kindle; reading like a mad woman. I am really hooked on the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child. I’ve read 4 in the last week and I’d say that qualifies as “hooked”, wouldn’t you? The problem with that is I am not painting, not working on the cookbook, nor am I cooking! My big mission for the day, besides walking Zeus 4 times, is making Jacquie Davis’ Potato Soup. So, you see, that means this evening I will be in my Lazyboy, Zeus in my lap, Kindle in one hand and a steaming bowl of Potato Soup by my side. Sounds pretty comfy to me. Problem is, #1, the cookbook needs to be worked on, #2, there is a gallery show coming up in April for the Somerset Ridge Painters and I haven’t even started!

I love my time outdoors with Zeus, even though this tiny little dog drags me around the block; I see so many Canada Geese overhead, the sky is clear and blue, and I am enjoying the short conversations with the neighbors out walking their dogs. It isn’t that I am a bad neighbor, I’m just not a “I want to get to know you” neighbor. But Zeus seems to be changing that.

Speaking of Canada Geese and the great outdoors, I just received the See What’s Happening in Kansas newsletter, and they suggest winter eagle watching. I have done this and it is exhilarating! The majestic American Bald Eagle is here in Kansas and so worth a few hours of your time! Here is the information from Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism.

Winter Eagle Watching   January 2012, Kansas Wetlands Complex, Great Bend


Winter on the Byway is a magical time. The wetlands may be blanketed in snow & sheathed in ice, but wildlife watching and gorgeous winter photo opportunities abound. Eagles often appear in the icy blue skies over Cheyenne Bottoms & Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (two of the largest inland marshes & hottest birding spots in the US). For eagle watching details email cvb@visitgreatbend.com or visit www.visitgreatbend.com.

I wish I could give you the wonderful recipe for potato soup, but I just tried calling Jacquie for her permission and, sadly, she isn’t home. Maybe next time….but that doesn’t help with something warm and creamy for tonight. After much thought, I’ve decided to give you a recipe for a rich woodsy mushroom soup. Years ago, as a caterer and personal chef, I made this constantly….even in the summer! I had clients that were addicted to it. It is very earthy, therefore, I call it

A Walk in the Woods Mushroom Soup

5 ounces fresh shitake mushrooms

5 ounces fresh Portobello mushrooms

5 ounces fresh porcini mushrooms

1 tablespoon good olive oil

1/4 pound (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon butter, divided

2 cup chopped yellow onion, divided

1 carrot, chopped

1 cup chopped celery

1 sprig fresh thyme or rosemary, your choice

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup flour

1 cup Somerset Ridge Chardonnay wine

1 cup half-and-half

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup minced fresh flat leaf parsley

Clean the mushrooms by wiping them with a dry paper towel. Don't wash them! Separate the stems, trim off any bad parts, and coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4-inch thick and, if there are big, cut them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

To make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped mushroom stems, the 1 cup onion, carrot and celery, the sprig of thyme or rosemary, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Add 6 cups water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid. You should have about 4 1/2 cups of stock. If not, add some water.

Meanwhile, in another large pot, heat the remaining 1/4 pound of butter and add the other cup of chopped onion. Sauté for five minutes, stirring, until onions are golden, just beginning to brown. Add the sliced mushroom caps and cook for 10 minutes, or until they are browned and tender. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the white wine and stir for another minute, scraping the bottom of the pot. Add the mushroom stock, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the half-and-half, cream, and parsley, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and heat through but do not boil. Serve hot.

Note: If you can’t find any of the wild mushroom varieties, you may substitute white button mushrooms, but you will loose a lot of the earthiness of the soup. Portobello are almost always available, but using just that variety makes for a very dark soup, but equally delicious. Half Portobello and half white button make a great combination.

Now, if you are up to baking a wonderful bread to go with your soup, may I so boldly suggest this one…..

Classic Dinner Rolls

1 cup whole milk

6 Tbsp. butter (room temperature)

1 pkg. active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water (105 degrees F to 115 degrees F)

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 Tbsp. sugar

4 cups all-purpose flour (not unbleached) (4 to 4 1/4)

1 Tbsp. kosher salt

Melted butter

Softened butter

1 Heat the milk to 120 degrees F to 130 degrees F; add the butter and set aside to cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, in a large bowl dissolve yeast in warm water. Add cooled milk, eggs, and sugar to dissolved yeast and stir to blend. With a wooden spoon stir in 2 cups of the flour and the salt; stir until smooth. Add 2 cups of remaining flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring vigorously for 3 to 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic and only slightly sticky. (Only if needed, after 3 minutes of stirring and dough is overly wet, stir in 1 tablespoon flour at a time.

2. Cover the surface of the dough with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Cover the top of the bowl with a second piece of plastic wrap.

Let rise until doubled (1 to 2 hours).*

3. Lightly butter 24 muffin cups. Gently press the dough to deflate. With lightly buttered hands pinch off generous 1-inch pieces of dough. Fold the dough over, turning and tucking the edges to form a ball. Pinch the seam together to seal. Dip in melted butter and arrange three dough balls in each muffin cup.

Let rise until fully doubled (about 1 hour).

4. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake rolls for 20 to 25 minutes or until well-browned. If needed, to prevent overbrowning, cover rolls with foil during last few minutes of baking. Remove from oven. Brush with softened butter.

Return to oven for 1 to 2 minutes.

5. Remove rolls immediately from cups to a wire cooling rack. Let cool about 5 minutes before serving. Makes 24 dinner rolls.

6. * For extra-light rolls, let the dough rise a second time (1 to 2 hours) before shaping. However, with this menu , the mushroom soup likes a less fluffy bread!

Happy New Year!

As I have said before, I read many, MANY blogs from around the world. I spend at least an hour everyday reading blogs about food, traditions, painting and genealogy.  Those are my interests, what can I say.
So often, a blog will be perfect....something that rings a bell, says exactly what I wish I had said....or teaches me something new
Today, I woke up to a new posting from Dianne Hales of Becoming Italian, Word by Word. In her blog, Dianne teaches us how to speak, or at least understand, the Italian language.  Her posting today explains how New Years came to be.....leave it to the Italians! (or should I say, to the Romans!) I hope you enjoy this excerpt from her blog.    http://becomingitalianwordbyword.typepad.com/becomingitalian/

Buon Anno! Happy New Year!

New Year’s Eve as we know it was an invention of the ancient Romans. In 153 B.C. they moved the start of the new year from the Spring equinox to January 1 and dedicated the first month of the year to Janus, the two-faced god of beginnings, who looks back toward the old year and ahead toward the new one.

For six days, Romans celebrated by hanging lights, preparing lavish banquets, and decorating their houses with boughs of greenery, including holly and mistletoe (considered magical plants because they bore fruit in the dead of winter). The Romans gave each other glass jars filled with dates and dried figs in honey so the new year would be sweet and full of good fortune. These offerings, called strenne from the Sabine goddess of prosperity, Strenia, were the predecessors of the presents we now exchange at Christmas.

Italians refer to New Year’s Eve by its liturgical name, la Festa di San Silvestro, the feast of St. Sylvester, a fourth-century pope. Traditionally families and friends share a huge dinner called il cenone (literally the big supper). Lentils, symbols of prosperity because they resemble coins, are almost always on the menu, often served with pork, another symbol of the richness of life.

Tuscans eat lentils with cotechino, a big pork sausage cut like coins. Italians in Bologna and Modena eat them with zampone, or pig’s trotter. In Piedmont, rice symbolizes money, so a cenone is sure to include risotto. Raisins, another symbol for coins, appear in desserts throughout the peninsula.

In a relatively recent tradition, couples give each gifts of red underwear—a color that wards off the malocchio (Evil Eye) and a symbol of love, prosperity, and fertility. Traditionally Italians wear these special undies only once and throw them away after New Year’s eve.

That’s not all that Italians toss out. In order to make room for the new, they once literally threw old brooms, dishes, even furniture out the window. (Kay here....can you say "Redecorating Time!") Regulations now prohibit this dangerous dumping, but the practice continues in some parts of Naples and the South.
After the evening feast, most Italian cities throw a big party under the stars with music, dancing, and fireworks. Italy’s equivalent of Times Square in New York is the Piazza del Popolo in Rome. Huge crowds gather for an outdoor concert and a magnificent midnight fireworks display. The favored drink is spumante or prosecco, Italian sparkling wine, for a toast (brindisi) when the clock strikes twelve.
Whether public or private, il Veglione di Capodanno (the New Year’s party) typically lasts all night. As they head home at the dawn of Capodanno (New Year’s Day), weary revelers watch the first sunrise—and look out for the first person they see in the newborn year. According to ancient traditions, an old man or a hunchbacked person carries good luck, while a child or a priest brings bad luck in the upcoming year.
Words and Expressions
Il conto alla rovescia -- the countdown to midnight (meno 10, meno 9, meno 8, meno 7 ...)
I botti di capodanno -- New year’s firecrackers and fireworks
“Anno nuovo, vita nuova” -- new Year, new life (let’s make a fresh start)
i buoni propositi per l’anno nuovo -- New Year resolutions, such as smettere di fumare (to stop smoking), mettersi a dieta (to go on a diet), and iscriversi in palestra (to join a gym).
Dianne Hales is the author of LA BELLA LINGUA: My Love Affair with Italian, the World's Most Enchanting Language.
Please visit her blog! http://becomingitalianwordbyword.typepad.com/becomingitalian

I suppose I should pass on one more recipe for the year. I've thought it over and had trouble narrowing it down to just one. It has to be a recipe that screams CELEBRATION! That made me remember the greatest New Year's Eve I ever had. It was just Arch and me, at home, fire in the fireplace, Ella Fitsgerald singing softly in the background, tv on mute waiting for the ball to drop. On our plates?  Arch's now famous Blackeyed Peas and warm corbread dripping with butter!  So, once again, here it is....the only way for me to celebrate New Year's Eve......
Arch's Blackeyed Peas with Ham Hocks

6 Servings

1 cup dried black-eyed peas
3 cups water
3 meaty ham hocks
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
additional salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Directions:
· Sort the peas, removing any broken ones or rocks; rinse well and place in a large saucepan.
· Cover with water, bring to a boil, and boil for 10 minutes.
· Let the peas sit for at least 1 hour; drain.
· Return the peas to the pan and add the water;
· Bring the peas to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook until the peas are almost tender, 1-2 hours.
· Add the remaining ingredients and simmer covered until the beans are very soft and tender, checking periodically to make sure there is enough water.
· About 15 minutes before serving, remove the ham hocks from the mixture; remove the meat from the hocks, chop, and add back in to the peas.
· Taste for seasoning and add salt and freshly ground pepper if necessary.
· Simmer for about 10 more minutes, then serve.
Happy New Year!
Kay

For those of you who know me well, you will laugh at this next recipe.  Those of you who do not know me personally will have to understand I am "addicted" to Cheetos.  When I saw this recipe on the Saveur Magazine's blog, I had to laugh. Can you imagine Brocolli with Cheetos? Me either, but here it is!

Broccoli with Cheetos

SERVES 6

2 cups heavy cream

3 tbsp. minced garlic

2 tbsp. minced shallots

6 black peppercorns

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 cups grated aged Gouda

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Kosher salt, to taste

1 1/4 lbs. (about 2 large heads) broccoli, cut into small florets, stems cut crosswise into 1/4″ slices

3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 tsp. crushed red chile flakes

2 cups original Cheetos, crushed by hand

Make the cheese sauce: Heat cream, 2 tbsp. garlic, shallots, peppercorns, and bay leaf in a 2-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring often, until reduced by half, about 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat, stir in cheeses until melted, and season with salt. Set a fine strainer over a small saucepan and strain sauce, discarding solids. Set aside and keep warm.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add broccoli and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain broccoli, transfer to a bowl of ice water, and let chill. Drain and transfer to paper towels to dry; set aside. Heat oil in a 12″ skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining garlic and chile flakes and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add broccoli and cook, stirring often, until just subtly browned, about 6 minutes.

To serve, spoon cheese sauce evenly among 6 warm serving bowls or small plates. Top sauce with broccoli and a generous sprinkling of Cheetos. Serve immediately.

Here are my personal thoughts.....I would eat that sauce on everything!  I would even add the crushed cheetos to it......maybe. As for the broccoli, I can't eat it, so, no broccoli. But, I have to admit, I can see this happening...strange, but true!

Here are several of the reviews of the recipe from Saveur:

"Seriously? A recipe with Cheetos - out of the bag - puts a dent in Saveur's credibility "

"The inventor of Cheetos has to be lovin this one!!! So if you haven't tried it don't knock it. It was absolutely delicious :>) "

I'll be darned! Visit the Saveur webpage for wonderful recipes, including those with Cheetos.
http://www.saveur.com

The Country Club Plaza Lights

    Merry Christmas from Kansas City!

 Writing a food blog has several advantages, one being you are read by other food bloggers and are accepted into a sort of sorority of foodies.



This week, I have received so many Christmas greetings from around the world, each wishing me a Merry Christmas in a foreign language. I received 7 from Italy wishing me a Buon Natale! 2 from France with messages of Joyeux Noël! A Spanish wish for a Feliz Navidad, and I must not forget
a Munter Jul from Sweden!
I realize this recipe is a little late, unless you read this blog tonight and just happen to have the ingredients and the evening free. The dough needs to be refrigerated overnight, so you will bake them tomorrow! (I've added some American equivalents
where needed, they are in red)




Swedish Pepparkakor
("Pepper cakes"...these cookies contain black pepper)
1 cup (2 dl) water
1/2 cup (1 dl) syrup (molasses)
2 tablespoons of ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon of ground cloves
1 tablespoon of ground ginger
1 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon of bicarbonate (baking soda)
10.5 oz (300 gr) butter (1 1/3 cups)
2.5 cups (5 dl) sugar
7.5 cups or about 1 lb. (1.5 liters) flour


HOW TO DO IT: Mix butter, sugar and syrup. Add spices and bicarbonate, then water and finally part of the flour.
Mix in the rest of the flour.


Let the dough sit over night, wrapped in foil in the fridge.
Roll the dough as thin as possible using flour.


Cut out figures - preferable Christmas figures, hearts, stars etc.
Bake in oven for about 5 minutes at 200-225 degrees C (400-425 degrees F).


Watch it! They burn fast once they start.
You can get about 300 cookies, depending on how big you make them. It is nice to make some quite big hearts, decorated with frosting and maybe hang them up in the window.

Enjoy! Merry Christmas!