Category Archives: musings
Ode to My Cast Iron Pan
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ODE TO MY CAST IRON PAN
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Hark! You indulge me
by not letting me wash you
with soap. Cleaning sucks.
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Dazzle Ships / Least Resistance
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I Swear This is Food-Related
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Nathan came over last night to help me start a project involving 2 handles of whiskey. Recipe to come in about… 2 weeks.
I mean, what’s really that bad that starts with that much bourbon?
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Early November Farmer’s Market, Plus, How to Pick a Winter Squash
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The Front Range here in Colorado has seen no snow so far this fall. It’s kind of a big deal, apparently. According to Brad’s internet research, the latest that Denver has ever seen snow is somewhere around November 21st. So basically, if we don’t get snow for the next two weeks, we’ve broken some sort of record. I’m extremely, almost perversely happy about this because I think snow is highly, HIGHLY overrated.
So all this “hot” weather (read: temps in the 40s-60s) extended the growing season on the front range. The Boulder Farmer’s market, which usually closes on the last weekend in October, is staying open for two more weeks in November. I ventured up to Boulder yesterday to see what delicious things I could cook.
I came home with a large bag of curly and lacinato kale, some baby bok choy, and some green onions, all of which I’ll be using up tomorrow. I got some multi-colored carrots, too. Then I got a large Cinderella squash, which I’ve heard makes an excellent pie pumpkin… we shall see! And then I got another squash, but it’s like the Unidentifiable Squash-Like Object, because I have no idea what kind it was… and neither did the 9-year old girl who sold it to me. We traded ideas on how to pick out squash – she said the more barnacles a squash has, the tastier it is. My theory is similar: the uglier the squash, the better it tastes.
Then I got down to the last stall, manned by Isabelle Farms, which had a veritable MOUNTAIN of acorn and kabocha squash. As I eyed two kabocha, I asked the lovely girl who was manning the table how to pick out a good winter squash. Her response?
“Well, there’s really no way to tell which will be the tastiest. My advice? Pick the squash that speaks to you.“
Ahahahaha. I love it.
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My latest Cookbook!
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Sometimes I buy myself presents. I tell myself I deserve the occasional present because it’s hard to be THIS awesome, ALL the time. (I am clearly full of BS, but you knew that already.)
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So, as I mentioned before, B and I flew to DC to help celebrate our friends Nick and Siobhan getting hitched (and by “celebrate,” I mean we partook of their open bar in the most varsity manner, and ate our weight in wedding cake. We’re such gracious guests.) I decided to fly to DC a little early, since my cousin Amelia lives there and I never ever get to see her. Amelia had to go to work on Thursday (LAME) so I spent the whole day by myself, whizzing about on the Metro, drinking hipster coffee, taking pictures, and stalking used bookstores. (Don’t worry, I remembered my hipster scarf. I know some of you were worried.)
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After a delightful extra-foamy cappuccino at Tryst, I stopped next door at Idle Time Books. I’ve only recently started to like used bookstores, but now I can’t get enough of them. I’m always going in to used bookstores to see what kind of cookbooks they have. I like the regular books, too, but I really just want to see what they have in the cookbook section!
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This time I felt I was really lucky. I found a copy of the New York Times Cookbook, the 1961 edition. The binding is FABULOUS. I couldn’t get over how beautiful it was. I took a flip through the book, and the last sentence of the introduction reads:
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This book is a collection of nearly fifteen hundred selected recipes that appeared in the pages of The New York Times between 1950 and 1960.
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There are so many things that I love about old cookbooks like these. I like the idea that the recipes are a sort of time capsule, a representation of what was popular to cook at the time. I love the physical aspects of a used cookbook; the battered binding, the randomly folded pages throughout, the notes in the margin.
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And then, of all things, I found a bookmark in the middle… and not just any bookmark.
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A card with directions to a house on Old Gun road in Midlothian, VA. Old Gun Road is no more than 5 miles from my childhood home. Crazy, no?
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I was pwned. OF COURSE I had to buy the book. And it was only $12!
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It remains to be seen what I will cook from this book. I need to devote quite a few nights to browsing through it. But I can guarantee you it will NOT be this:
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Yeah… no.
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The Golden Dogs / Permanent Record
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I was told there’d be cake.
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No post today, as we are helping to celebrate B’s college roommate Nick getting hitched to the sweet and lovely Siobhan. We love you both and wish you a long happy life filled with lots of you-make-everything-better hugs, Saturday morning breakfast dates, and Siobhan winning the argument over what to watch on TV.
(Note: Brad officially doesn’t agree with the last part… but whatever.)
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Farmers’ Market Finds | Winter Squash
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All varieties of winter squash are popping up at Denver, Colorado farmers’ markets! From the top:
Rouge vif d’Etampes (a.k.a. Cinderella squash)
white acorn
sweet dumpling
butternut
buttercup/turban (I’m unsure which one)
spaghetti
kabocha
Most farmers’ markets close around this time so head out and get some locally grown, delicious winter squash!
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Jamie Lidell / Music Will Not Last
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Labor Day Shenanigans
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Yesterday B called me while I was at work to ask me if we had plans for Labor Day. Well, no, not big plans. I told him that I thought I’d make a bunch of new recipes. Maybe a new potato salad? A spice-rubbed grilled chicken perhaps?
“Why?” I asked. “What do you want to do?”
“Something fun” was all he said. “I’ll look for something.”
I figured he might come home and threaten to take me camping for the weekend. (I don’t camp.) Or maybe we’d go to a baseball game. (I hate baseball.) Or maybe he would go all out and buy us a new DVD to watch. (I had my hopes up for “The Last Song” – we’ve talked before about my addiction to bad teen movies – it’s a problem.) (Damn you, Nick Sparks!)
So, when B came home yesterday, bearing nothing but his cell phone and his keys, I wasn’t surprised. Until he whipped out a piece of paper… a print-out as it happened.
“I found something for us to do,” he said nonchalantly.
Uhhhh yeah, I’d say he did. He went and bought us tickets to San Francisco for the weekend. (Mad husband points, duh.)
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We’re leaving tomorrow morning and returning to Denver on Monday night. So, we’ll be missing the last hurrah of summer in Denver, the requisite lets-get-drunk-by-the-pool-and-eat-lots-of-hot-dogs-until-we-barf fun. Instead, I’ll spend my weekend crushing oysters at Hog Island Oyster Company. (Well, B will crush oysters. They’re not my favey-fave, honestly. I would feel so much more sophisticated if they were, though.)
In the meantime, if you’re looking for good eats for the holiday, may I suggest…
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Pulled Pork Sandwiches – Super easy to make. Like, RIDICULOUSLY EASY. And so good.
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Spicy Grilled Shrimp – The best beach food ever. EVER. The end.
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White Cheddar, Chive, and Black Pepper Biscuits with Ham – Amazing little bites of deliciousness, and they can be served room temp! (i.e. the best Labor Day food to serve, right?)
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Red, White and Blue Potato Salad – Screw the mayonnaise-heavy potato salad. That’s disgusting. (This one uses sour cream, which is way better.)
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Cabbage and Apple Slaw – Crunchy cabbage and sweet apple with a spicy mustard dressing. Serve room temp!
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And for dessert… Blackberry Buttermilk Cake. Super easy, super light cake using mostly pantry ingredients. Amazing with any type of berry, so use whatever is in season at your house!
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I’ll see you guys back on Tuesday. We won’t have a computer so I won’t be posting until I get back! Have a great Labor Day Weekend!
Oh, and if you have any San Fran tips, leave a comment so we’ll know where to go!
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How to Give Carter a Heart Attack
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Step One: Find Carter’s blog, The Kitchenette.
Step Two: Post a link to her blog on www.foodnetwork.com.
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The End.
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Thanks Michelle! I was very honored to be included with heavyweights such as Giada de Laurentiis and Alton Brown. I’m sure Bob Tuschman will call me any day now to offer me my own cooking show. Looking forward to it!
Oh, and I just bought 20 pounds of peaches, y’all. So um, look for my 193857023465 recipes that I’m trying this weekend… in about 24 hours.
Have a great weekend!
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This makes me really happy.
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This, my friends, is 4 pounds of pluots that I made into jam this weekend.
Does this not make you happy like it does me?
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Like it’s not totally obvious, I’m back!
Did you miss me?
If you were my husband B, I might tell you that unless you plan to say “more than a frat boy misses his pride during Hell Week,” then… feel free to keep mum.
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But you’re not B. So no worries.
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