House Husband's Cooking Log

PYO Crabs: The Other Summer Blues

2011-10-01T19:11:00.000-07:00

Snorkeling for Blue Crabs in a marsh on Southern Cape Cod. These are vicious bastards and fierce fighters. I got pinched good a bunch of times, and one even drew blood through my gloves. Nine great, big, plier-clawed monsters, 8 male and one female, hiding in the rocks at a popular children's beach.

This was a high adrenaline snorkel, because the tidal bore here was pretty strong, great for covering turf -- all you have to do is drift -- but trying to stay in one place in the current and track a crab with claws this wide, that will rip your face off in self defense, well, that requires finesse. Good density, too... I hit a crab about every three or four minutes, until I had nine -- three for each of us.

Now what I don't get is, I got these beautiful Blue Crabs at a popular beach, in three or four feet of water. Anybody and his dog could have had them. Are Blues just not really a New England thing, or am I the only one to think of looking there? This is the northern edge of their range, but blue crabs on the southern Cape are nothing new.

Friends David and Deborah and I went into these with heavy spoons and a bottle of Sri Racha. Here's going at one with the back of a cleaver, and the money shot, a perfectly split claw...

These were about the biggest, sweetest, crabs any of us remembered, and David's been eating them in Maryland since back in the day. I hadn't enjoyed crustaceans and company so much in a long time. A shout out here to my buddies from C.L.A.W., who also would have appreciated this.

Section Of A Cone

2011-09-22T16:44:00.000-07:00

Without explanation, this might look like an ordinary ice cream cone. You may notice the cone is filled, however, and that's because this was deliberately engineered that way to maximize the cone as an ice cream reserve. I had made a textbook chocolate cone, and gave it to my wife and made her promise not to have a bite.

Now giving someone a cone like that and a promise of 'don't touch' is a cruel thing to do to someone who'd actually listen. Neither of us believed she wasn't going to work it over while I attended to something or other in the kitchen, but it didn't matter because I had a backup ice cream reservoir.

Cold Turkey Vindaloo

2011-09-22T16:41:00.000-07:00

Quick snack: some fresh ciabatta, a single slice of turkey -- just enough to flavor a mouthful of bread -- and a smear of vindaloo paste over the mayonnaise. Or under it, I can't remember. But I do remember it was pretty tasty. I wonder, though... I'm too much of a snob to used jarred condiments, mostly. Are these crappy vindaloo but I lack the basis for comparison? It's made in India, anyway. Maybe grab a jar at an Indian market and tell me what you think.

Tenderly

2011-09-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

The chicken 'tender', that triangular one with the tendon hanging out the back, is pretty much a product of modern chicken processing. They didn't have them when I was growing up, and came on the market not much after the 'McNugget' turned the chicken processing world upside down.

I'm not crazy about them as a substitute for chicken fingers, because by the time you reduce the connective tissue in that tendon, you've totally overcooked the chicken. Or you get a chicken finger with a tendon in the middle.

Day one leftovers for the kids, a one pot microwave meal with pasta and corn. Day two is my obligation, and here's some leftover chicken fingers in a sandwich, chopped fine, avocado, mayonnaise, lettuce, sri racha, and a good squirt of lime, all on a fresh St. Joseph's roll from Virgilio's. And with a big damned spike through it, so it doesn't fall apart or lose its integrity. I hate that.

Brace of Virgilio's

2011-09-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

There's a pretty thing, two semolina loaves from Virgilio's Italian bakery, right there on the end of mainstreet. Dish of previously mentioned garlic salt. Room temperature sweet butter. Maybe some gravy from the pot. I want a chunk of that right now, but it's Friday night so I have to wait for blessings.

I Laugh At Your Puny Garlic Salt

2011-09-18T19:05:00.000-07:00

Durkee garlic salt is for weaklings. Dried garlic powder and table salt. Please.

If I want a salt and garlic kick, I take jarred Chinese fried garlic, and grind it in the ol' mortar and pestle with a good pinch of kosher salt. It's awesome just on bread and butter, or here sprinkled on seared vegetables, with a little olive oil.

My Small, Anorexic Greek Salad

2011-09-18T17:15:00.000-07:00

Why Small and Anorexic? Well, first, because if you google 'my big fat greek salad', you'll find dozens of greek salads under that clever heading. Google a small, anorexic greek salad, baby, and it takes you right to me.

The other reason is that each of these is near fatally flawed for a Greek salad. They both have feta, but we barely make the cut on that point alone; this feta is probably rated higher by Consumer Reports as a caulking agent than by Cook's Illustrated as a cheese, but never mind. One of these salads has no kalamata olives, and one has no tomatoes. Now everyone knows, you make a greek salad by waving feta, kalamata olives, and a styrofoam tomato at a piece of lettuce, and serving with half a nearly stale pita and prepackaged dressing. That's how it's done. So how, you ask, can I claim these are Greek salads?

Well first, there's the feta. But there's also a handful of fresh thyme, oregano, chocolate mint, and a little sage, rinsed, minced fine, and topping both. Fresh made dressing, a pretty simple job of good olive oil, kosher salt, fresh pepper, a mild vinegar. I bet a real greek salad is whatever you have lying around, with fresh herbs from the garden or hillside, and never mind the kalamata olives.

Artichoke Hearts

2011-09-17T05:19:00.001-07:00

They came jarred, preserved but unseasoned. About six hours before dinner, I rinsed them, drained the pickle from the jar, and replaced with olive oil, fresh, crushed oregano, thyme, and sage, kosher salt, pepper, and basalmic vinegar cut with unsweetened rice vinegar. Turn over occasionally, make them pretty on a plate, and move fast because if there are any left by the end of dinner, it's only because people are being polite...

Oh, Snap!

2011-09-17T05:13:00.000-07:00

Don't overlook the homely gingersnap amid labels blaring 'triple stuffed!' and 'now with colored chips!' or 'glow-in-the-dark frosting!' Simple, inexpensive, plain wrapper, not too sweet, and excellent with a cup of tea. It even says so on my mug, so I remember what I'm drinking.

Caramelized Bananas: Pancake Koan

2011-09-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

What is the taste of a banana pancake without the pancake?

It depends, Orthopteran, on how long you let them caramelize before you add the syrup... [orthopteran = grasshopper. ortho - straight, ptera - wing)

In a rare demonstration of any sort of forethought on my part, I returned the box of pancake mix to save the effort of cleaning dishes and spills. But I still had the bananas to use, and a hot frying pan, and it was a weekend morning, and this wouldn't require much actual attention. So:

So: Coarse chop perfect bananas, just starting to spot, and brown them in a dab of butter (or margarine if you must, I had to), just like you'd do with onions. The starches in the banana will caramelize exactly the same way. Stop when you run out of time or the bananas are soft enough for your taste.

Pour in a bowl steaming hot, add some real maple syrup and don't stir too much. I had mine with toast, but you could dip a tire in this and not even notice it was chewy.

Thai Style Plums

2011-09-14T19:44:00.001-07:00

Go do this now, you'll thank me later. First, get some fruit that is really good but not truly excellent -- for example, I'd not encourage you to do this with perfect local peaches, though on second thought...

Anyway, get a small bowl and put in a spoonful or so of salt. Add enough sugar to create a nice sweet and salt balance. Nu, I'm not telling you how much. Add some. Taste it. Add some more. Taste it again. You put in too much sugar, add a little more salt.

When you get that right, add cayenne, as hot as you're willing to bear with good humor. Mix well, and dip sliced fruit before you eat it. The fruit adds acid, and you get a textbook burst of sugar, salt, sour, and hot. You might want to adjust the flavor of your mix to compensate for the sweet and acid already in your fruit; for sweet oranges, for instance, I'd probably just use salt and cayenne. Here's mine; go make yours. I'll wait.

Liftoff! We Have Liftoff!

2011-09-14T19:37:00.000-07:00

Looks like my kitchen is about to take off, or I'm using a small jet engine to crackle the surface of a pudding, perhaps. In fact, I've used a cable tie to stick a big f*cking fan to a cabinet handle for to cool sushi rice (stirring while cooling gives individual grains rather than a single mass).

Tuna Pizza? Mais Oui! or Pizza With A Schquirt

2011-09-09T10:57:00.000-07:00

Smadar, a cherished Israeli visitor, wanted a tuna pizza, so I brought a can down to Terry, at LaRosa's Pizza, and he kindly made a half tuna, half plain pizza for us and the kids. We do it all the time now. Some of the folks looked at me kind of funny, but it's pretty easy to sell a tuna pizza as the same thing as a tuna melt (bread, tomato, tuna, cheese, heat...). I also point out that it is tres European. My first tuna pizza was somewhere in southern France... had olives with the pits, too, wasn't that a surprise.

So here's the tuna pizza with a little crudite (elevates a pizza meal with a few jars and a little shopping, MIFLARD), and my piece halved, and topped with pitted kalamata olives and a generous schquirt (it's like a schmear) of sri racha. Uber pizza, and thank you, Terry and Smadi.

Frying Pan of Steamer Pot

2011-09-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm all for nice cookware, but a little junkyard science can save you from laying out big bucks for pan you don't need every day.

There's nothing better than cast iron for heating evenly, so to melt some margarine for a double batch of rice crispy treats, I took a cheap-assed, paper thin steaming pan, and nestled it in some cast iron on low heat. Viola, as sweet, slow, and even a heat as you could want, with the added benefits of heating the sides and not costing a bundle. Simple kitchen physics.

Off Beet

2011-08-31T12:36:00.001-07:00

Some beautiful fresh beets from Aprilla farms via the Cape Ann Farmer's Market. Can't abide beets... just kidding.

Readers may recall my basic formula for vegan dumpling fillings is a green, a mushroom, a root, and an allium. In this case, baby bok choy (also from Aprilla farms, reconstituted dried abalone mushrooms, shredded beets, and scallions.

The filling is parcooked just enough to wilt so it folds easy. Here's a bunch of dumplings, mine and my sister-in-law protege... can you tell which is which? Most folded as gyotze, with a couple of demo shumai there in the foreground.

Here they are cooked, crisp on the bottom and chewy on the top, with a soy/sugar/vinegar/garlic/ginger/scallion/sesame dipping sauce. they looked awesome, with the beets marbelizing the translucent wrappers. And when you bit them, they looked a little like meat. But they weren't, so you could eat a million of them, steaming hot and dripping sauce over your plate. Pass me another couple.

PYO Lobster and A Modest Proposal.

2011-08-28T04:54:00.000-07:00

My first and as of this writing only lobster taken on snorkel. I caught this in about 12 feet of water, at low tide in Rockport. Totally worth buying the permit to have this memory. Here's the lobster, next to the guage -- you can check it yourself with photoshop, if you've a mind.

The lobster dished up proper with black bean sauce, since I had some baby bok choy from Aprilla farms, at the Farmer's Market. I didn't (ie, never) work from a recipe, but I've seen this dish and experimented a million times (up to and including cutting up the lobster before you cook it. Don't. The meat adheres to the shell, and it's a mess to eat). It's a pretty direct process for me now. And I used black beans from scratch -- not a prepared sauce.

Were you inclined to do it yourself: Steam whole lobster. Cool, clean, and crack all joints on all appendages. Set aside, keep such contents of the shell as you'd enjoy adding to the sauce later. Saute crushed garlic and ginger with soaked fermented black beans. Add broth, greens, whole lobster, a little broth with corn starch, tune sweet and salt with palm sugar syrup and soy sauce. Look at that baby... I think a shout out to Dennis Liu is due here, who took me to my first asian grocery in C-town back in the day.

Finding lobsters is not hard; find legally sized lobsters is very difficult because they are under so much pressure, between pots and divers, that they get taken the moment they molt and become big enough to gauge. Of they few lobsters I've taken on SCUBA (less than a dozen since I was certified in '88) most of them were barely legal, and soft (ie, recently molted, and I got to them first).

As much fun as catching lobsters on SCUBA can be, I don't think the environment can sustain it. Plus, divers can dig and move rocks -- you'll do anything in the heat of the moment to bring up a trophy -- in a way more disruptive than traps. To say nothing of recreational poachers, that lowest of life forms, who should be used as bait. Live bait. In chunks. I grew up friendly with a lobstering family in Hull, summers back in the 70's, and it was common knowledge that anyone fiddling with traps could expect -- and soundly deserved -- a peppering with birdshot.

I propose diving for bugs be banned and replaced with the following compromise: Divers may take lobsters only on snorkel, and in return, there will be shallow water diver sanctuaries with no lobster pots, so the take will be better in the free diver's limited range. Or maybe no sanctuaries, but give the free divers a slightly shorter limit, like 3" instead of 3 1/4" and only males, something to give them an edge. Because it's hard to hold your breath that long.

Halfshells On The Halfshell, or Neck With Me

2011-08-27T17:33:00.000-07:00

I made sushi for my sister in law, and, well, thank goodness Intershell is open until six.

Anyway, the topnecks -- or countnecks -- whatever necks, they looked beautiful, and called to me from the ice, like the oysters in Alice. Opened cleanly, not a tough one in the batch, and I caught every drop of liquor in the scallop shell. Served cold with my world famous chili/lime/palm sugar/fish sauce and a dab of seaweed salad.

I hadn't had these in ages and they were just ... perfect. It consummates the relationship with the seashore like swimming. You go in the sea, you put some of the sea in you. I never got the hang of oysters, but these were fresh, crisp, salty, icy cold... I see another stop at Inteshell in my future.

Banana PBJ: Hit Me!

2011-08-27T17:26:00.000-07:00

Chicken wings aren't the only thing that make me hear funky baselines. This sandwich was specifically constructed to be high calorie -- and yummy -- for a day I skipped breakfast and had a lot to do. Thick sandwich bread, chunky peanut-only peanut butter, a thick schmear of brand name strawberry jam, and sliced bananas, baby, wrapped tightly in saran for at least a half hour to get some integrity. But where I love PBJ's that have sat around all night, that's not so friendly with bananas, and this sandwich has a shelf life of only a couple hours.

Nice Cleavage!

2011-08-22T18:53:00.001-07:00

Man, I was waiting to use that line...

I built a 'croc walk' for my kids' summer camp, using discarded lobstering rope and a couple of four by fours. I needed multiple easy, clean cuts and the cleaver is just the way to go. And more fun, too.

Line up your cut and whack! through the bottom strands. You have to think your cut what supports the object, and end with a crack to get every strand. Perfect cuts: clean, neat, doesn't disturb the lay of adjacent rope. The rest of the rope doesn't even know it happened.

That there cleaver is Onibocho. Well, one of the two knives I call Onibocho. When I finally get that big-ass gyoto from Shinichi Watanabe, that will be the new Onibocho.

Polly's Law (or Whitefish Spread)

2011-08-22T14:26:00.001-07:00

Quick breakfast for guests when I wanted to balance getting out the door with having something nice. Quick run to Market Basket produced a chunk of Acme whitefish, flaked into a bowl, and thrown on an unset table with two ciabattas (freshest loaf at MB at the moment), a tub of cream cheese, a pickle plate (two kinds of olives, dill pickles, pepperonci) and a bagel fixin's plate (sliced purple onion, tomato, chopped dill pickles (poor man's capers; essential), carrots for border and color, and fresh minced scallions mixed into room temperature cream cheese. Get your own plate and silver and enjoy.

And you know, looking this over in contrast to the phrase 'getting out the door quick' and I'm thinking, this is what you do when you want to get out the door quick? Give me a break. Admittedly, for guests, but still...

I carpooled with Polly for a year, and we're still friends, and she'll read this. Polly was late more than once because of a breakfast that got out of hand on my part, and I'm sure saw similar behavior in preparing snacks and god knows what else. Thus Polly's law, and I quote her: 'Never let Michael near food.'

Vindaloo Dipping Sauce

2011-08-21T17:23:00.000-07:00

Easy. Take a spoonful of vindaloo curry from a jar, mix well with an equal amount of olive oil, and serve with a good crusty bread. In this case, it's a whole wheat, paper thin pita from a bakery in worcester, also at the Indian market. But frankly, my preferred tipple for dipping will always be a crusty baguette.

The Other Tuna Melt

2011-08-21T17:22:00.000-07:00

Grilled cheese with fresh tomato, and a side of seared tuna, drizzled with soy and eaten right off the cutting board.

Triscuits and Stinky Cheese

2011-08-21T17:19:00.001-07:00

I like blues, gorgonzolas, that kind of thing. I really like Saga Blue (Saga Bleu!) and Cambezola and those spreadable, high fat spreadable veined cheeses.

This is a domestic smoked blue, very nice, with triscuits, one of my favorite substrates for cheese. Yes, I said 'substrate'.

Tapenade

2011-08-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

And I think this is the real deal... technically, tapenade should have capers, 'cause the nice folks at wikipedia say it's from the Provencal word for capers, tapenas.

Olives, anchovies, olive oil, capers, chopped fine but not too fine. Crusty bread, glass of wine (really, I'd probably have it with diet coke, shame), maybe a salad, and I'd be fine.

Roti Toti

2011-08-20T18:14:00.001-07:00

Roti from an Indian grocery store, and applied roti theory: Roti first heated and softened directly on the flame of the gas burner, turn it just when you smell burn. Breakfast sandwich of an egg cooked to roti size, sharp chedder cheese (Cabot's Private Stock Extra Sharp, thank you, it comes in *black plastic*), a generous squirt of sri racha (yeah, baby) and another scorched roti on top. Flipped once or twice in the cooling cast iron to melt the cheese and seal the deal.

Plierbread

2011-08-20T18:14:00.000-07:00

My homemade pita, cooked at the top of the oven between the broiler and hot cast iron. Called plierbread because I use the pliers of my Leatherman, claws, to move the hot pans around.

Puffed like a blimp, odd shapes, and steam in the morning sunlight.

Pizza Fixin's

2011-08-20T18:09:00.000-07:00

Whipping up a pan o' stuff to add some drama to a plain cheese pizza. This is all pantry and fridge, mind, but just the thing.

This is green olives, rehydrated abalone mushrooms, onions, fried shallots, chives and oregano from the garden, kosher salt, and a little bit of anchovy. Gotta have those glutamates. Spread in a layer as thick as the slice itself (a good formula, I think).

Mojito

2011-08-20T18:01:00.000-07:00

Yes, dear. Of course I'll make you a Mojito. How could I not? Food is love. Recipes all over the net... I don't even remember how I made this one now, but I worked backward from a pretty clear mental picture of 'mint limeade for grownups'. I could create that now without a recipe.

I was more curious about the derivation of the name. A quick internet search gives theories including sex and magic, where a quick trip to Uncle Cecil at the Straight Dope acknowledges those two but says 'mojar' is to celebrate by drinking, so a little celebration in a glass. Enjoy, dear.

His and Hers Rice Bowls

2011-08-20T17:58:00.000-07:00

A sort of Far East meets Southwest: Rice and beans with Thai basil and a sprig of lime. Hers: Smaller. More Dainty. His: bigger portion, and a heap of thai chilis. I cannot abide beans and rice without heat. I'd rather eat shoe leather with chilis than beans and rice without.

2011-08-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

I'm a big fan of calling ahead for take out, and finding the best value item on a menu. At Ocean Garden here in Gloucester, it's the noodle soup for two, if you make it a meal for one. That's five bucks, and beats a sub on a rainy day. But it needs touching up first, I can't abide their broth... I think it's a classic case of downplaying the good stuff for white people. In this case a splash of soy, sesame oil, and oil chili for heat makes it more to my liking.

It's Miflard Time

2011-08-20T12:53:00.000-07:00

Yes, it is. For those of you new to this forum, MIFLARD is the acronym of Make It Feel Like A Real Dinner'. Very important for socializing young boys, or making the best of leftovers.

The meal is the basic unit of family harmony and discipline. The first gesture of love an infant gets is 'have a suck on this' and the first boundary is a reprimand to be gentle. It's worth putting in the effort to make it special.

Carrot and celery sticks (or something a touch more elaborate for grownups, pictured), pickles, something extra to put a couple extra dishes on the table and give folks the feeling of choice.

Sweet, Salt, and Sour Wings

2011-08-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

Ah, yeah... I'm hearing a Barry White bass line right now... or maybe 'Business Time', by Flight of the Conchords... you know you wanna just reach out and touch those, take them in your teeth, I know I do...

Ahem, excuse me.

Anyway, some poor guest of mine couldn't handle hot wings, so I made these instead. Homemade teriyaki type glaze with light soy, dark soy, sugar, garlic, light touch rice vinegar. Basted early and basted often, cooked to a crisp glaze. Jesus, I need a cold shower.

Flight Of Sliders

2011-08-19T19:07:00.001-07:00

Three BFTLT's (that's Bacon Fried Turkey, ie turkey cold cuts fried in canola oil 'til brown and crisp, lettuce, and tomato.

Martin's wonderfully squishy potato flour hamburger rolls, plenty of mayo, fresh tomatoes. Good lunch at work... how can you go wrong?

Banksy

2011-08-19T19:05:00.000-07:00

Swiss chard, just cut in the garden. Quick-fried with soy, a little ginger, a little garlic.

Swinging Both Ways

2011-08-19T18:59:00.000-07:00

Vegan pan fried noodles and dumplings. The tofu is first pressed, dusted in corn starch, crisped in hot oil, then while the noodles are frying on the bottom and steaming on the top (drop in a quarter cup water and cover tightly), the stir fry is assembled and added to the noodles in a pre-heated dish.

The dumplings are hand filled and folded. My standard formula for a vegan filling is a mushroom, a green, an allium, and a starch, most likely napa, shredded scallion, rehydrated abalone mushrooms, and carrot.

That there venison, on the other hand, was shot by hunter buddies of my neighbor next door, and we have a very cordial arrangement involving the occasional exchange of protein and use of a snowblower, most satisfactory. Sliced thin and cooked expertly with onion by my friend David Mager: 'slide the venison across the pan and into the serving dish...'

Bagel Pizza

2011-08-19T18:42:00.000-07:00

You know you want it... look at those babies, fresh from under the broiler and sliced in clean quarters for easy eating. Cut with my curved chinese cleaver that laughs at high-tensile cheese floating over squishy sauce (the only knife I named: Onibocho, which means demon knife in Japanese. Cost me nine bucks, I think).

Anyway, toast the bagel first for a good crust! This is the critical step in bagel pizza, too often neglected by people who have no consideration for the finer points in the art. If you can melt on a medium sharp cheddar, over a sauce (of forgotten origin, I'd like to think I made it but there may have been some Newman's Own kicking around) as I have done here, so much the better.

Don't forget the simple, ordinary, healthy, good stick-to-your-ribs stuff in the rush for a microwaved quick fix.

The Kramer of Soft Drinks?

2011-08-19T18:40:00.000-07:00

I refer, of course, to the quote 'He's a loathsome, offensive brute, but I can't look away'. Well, autocrat isn't that bad, but there's more HFCS than anything else. I took the plunge after the Globe reviewed the three local brands and hey, this on is the state drink of Rhode Island. Thoroughly enjoyed it, but did not get another one.

Garlic Beans

2011-08-19T18:36:00.000-07:00

Ends trimmed, sauteed green in my big wok/pan hybrid, tossed at the last minute with garlic, light soy, palm sugar...

Artichokes

2011-08-19T18:34:00.000-07:00

Pretty things. Steamed tender, and served with a sweetened rice vinegar-mayonnaise dip. Simple, but pretty and worth the attention.

super aged cheddar

2011-08-19T18:32:00.000-07:00

Old cheddar, that any sane person (those who eat fugu are stupid; those who do not eat fugu are also stupid) probably would have thrown away. It had nearly crystallized, like good parmesan. Very sharp. Crumbled and melted on toast.

Salmon and Avocado Maki

2011-08-17T17:29:00.001-07:00

You don't need to know every time I throw down a maki roll, but these are pretty enough to share. Except for that bloody looking travesty on the wooden platter, somewhere near the bottom. It's a spicy tuna roll gone badly awry, and I was horrified enough to give it a name: the Lizzie Borden roll.
I get my accessories, nori and wasabi and rice and whatnot, in the Chinatown markets mostly, because they are cheaper. The crab stick is from Intershell, and I get my tuna and salmon from the nice folks at Connelly's seafood here in Gloucester. If I call first thing in the morning, Brad will cut a fresh piece and set it aside. Awesome. Then I get to use my knives, also awesome.

Comfort Food For A Rainy Day

2011-08-15T16:24:00.001-07:00

I had to drive past Chinatown on 93 this morning, not enough time to stop, and I needed my noodle fix in this wet weather.

The noodles: thin hong-kong style par-cooked noodles, a freezer staple for me. I go to Chinatown when I run out. Running out of noodles is like running out of bread. Anyway, boiled al dente and -- this is important -- rinsed well in cold water. Starch is what makes your noodles stick, so wash off the extra. Plus, you don't want it to cook any further until it hits

The Broth: totally off the cuff, and off the shelf. Start with -- sigh -- chicken and vegetable bouillions and canned broth. Bring on the Asian backbone with star anise, fresh ginger and garlic off the microplane, dried abalone mushrooms (another shelf staple), fried shallots, palm sugar syrup and a spoonful of black bean and oil chili (pictured), for the glutamates (soy and yes, the msg).

Nu, put your cooled al dente noodles in a bowl with shredded greens and scallion, and top with broth. Add more oil chili or a squirt lime for bite, or more shredded ginger if you have a cold.

Like Buttahfish!

2011-08-02T19:30:00.000-07:00

I saw my good neighbor Paul nosing through a 5 gallon bucket, so of course I came over to check it out and lo, a bunch of butterfish fresh from the trawler and due for lobster bait. He kindly gave me four of the largest. Cleaned, lined up the cast iron, and eaten as god intended: with the fingers, fresh from the sea that morning, a little salt and lemon.

Spiral Pancake

2011-07-21T20:18:00.000-07:00

Trying to keep one step ahead of the boys.

Bubble Milk Dessert

2011-07-21T20:17:00.000-07:00

Yep. Bought my own tapioca balls in chinatown, and made this for dessert at a chinese style meal. Served with soy milk, palm sugar, and crushed ice.

chocolate and coconut

2011-07-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

Fresh coconut shredded with my new microplane grater. Served simply over chocolate ice cream. The awesome thing about the microplane is the fine slices release lots of oil into each bite. I may have to get another one of these tomorrow....

Coconut Caramel

2011-07-11T20:04:00.003-07:00

I frequently buy new stuff in Chinatown, but never two jars of something I haven't yet tried. Coconut caramel, ingredients are 100% coconut, I figured how could I go wrong?

It doesn't taste like coconut or caramel... somewhere more between dark soy and maybe tamarind or something. I found it of most value during passover (there's wheat in soy sauce) and have not opened the second jar.

Here's some chicken scraps cooked down to jerky in coconut caramel.

2011-07-11T20:04:00.001-07:00

Big Knife

2011-07-09T05:05:00.000-07:00

My brother in law Yishai was a slaughterer for Hebrew National... This was several years ago; he had put his name in a pool of available rabbis and (he lives in Israel) got a call saying 'Be in minnesota in 72 hours, bring your knife'.

He made a stopover to visit us on the way; this picture is from that first trip. He's sharpening the knife for slaughtering cattle before his first day of work. Typically, he saw about 400, er, 'clients' a day.

Devilled Eggs

2011-07-09T05:02:00.000-07:00

Take the time - they are yummy and not that hard. First make sure you don't boil the eggs so much they turn green -- some sort of sulfur compound, I think -- but leave them a little soft.

Mix with mayo and sri racha, stuff back into the eggs and dust with paprika. Voila.

Li'l Color

2011-06-10T16:52:00.000-07:00

This is from the autumn... threading a bunch of hot peppers up to dry for the winter. I hung them on a cabinet and they dried nicely.

Bean Thread Salad

2011-06-06T05:40:00.000-07:00

I love bean thread salad, and learned to prepare it the way I learned in Thailand. The formula, roughly, is to prepare your bean thread, and mix with a dressing of palm sugar, fish sauce, hot pepper, and lime (sweet, salt, hot, sour). Then add some vegetables, and maybe a protein with a chewy or crunchy texture. In bangkok, that might be shredded pomelo and dried shrimp; here it's fresh cucumber and salmon cracklings. The serving bowl has shredded radish for color.

Served alongside an avocado/cucumber/scallion futo maki I whipped together, sort of a Japanese sub sandwich in my book.

Big Assed Buckwheat Pancake

2011-06-01T12:51:00.001-07:00

Buckwheat pancakes for breakfast, with Hodgson's Mill mix. Final seconds in the cast iron, and still steaming on the cutting board, with traditional Gerber precision cutting. Served with real maple syrup and butter.

Better Tuna Melt

2011-05-31T07:53:00.001-07:00

Grilled vermont sharp cheese with tomato on whole wheat potato flour bread, browned on cast iron. Served with a bit of sushi tuna likewise browned on slightly hotter cast iron, with a simple splash of tamari on the cutting board. How can you go wrong? I mean, besides by making tuna extinct.

Gimme S'more o' that!

2011-05-28T18:31:00.000-07:00

I needed lunch snacks for the boys, and there wasn't a piece of the usual cellophane wrapped junk to be seen. So I made my own.

Graham Cracker
Chocolate Chips
Saran Wrap
mini marshmallows

Lay down a neatly cut half of graham cracker. Cover with marshmallows and chocolate chips. Wrap tightly with saran wrap.

This violates my usual 'microwave only in ceramic' rule, but as the marshmallows expand, the plastic wrap reins them in. They looked perfectly tasty. Pop in lunch box. Bingo.

Put De Lime In De Coconut

2011-05-26T05:43:00.000-07:00

A rum drink served in a coconut shell for Paul on his birthday, now an annual tradition.

First, you need to neatly top the coconut with the back of a cleaver (or a file, as I first saw it done). Once you know the trick, they open, as food critic Bret Thorn notes 'like they're supposed to open that way'.

Singe fibers off the shell over the stove, and then fill with the following mixed to taste in a blender:

to taste:
coconut milk
vanilla ice cream
lime juice
palm sugar
aguadiente (a kind of rum, but literally 'fire water')
ice cubes

Now add more rum. How can you go wrong?

Armenian Style Grape Leaves

2011-05-21T12:12:00.000-07:00

Inspired by the grape leaves at Eastern Lamejun in Belmont. I grew up eating them, they got more expensive by the minute, and I thought I could never duplicate the blend of spices. I finally wised up and simply googled 'Armenian Grape Leaves', and lo, a recipe that comes out just as good.

Simple enough: saute onion with cumin and allspice, some salt, add a little tomato past and enough water to parcook the rice and give it some bulk. Roll and pack them tightly, weigh down with a plate so they don't unravel, and simmer a good long time so they get soft and expand. Stack in serving container and cover with olive oil and lemon juice.

Pictures here of my rolling station in front of the TV (doesn't even take that long), pan waiting for cooking, and finished grape leaves, nearly perfect with a single exploded unit covering the rest with rice.

Oranges Donna

2011-05-14T22:19:00.000-07:00

Well, OK, I was showing off for a friend's birthday, but I backed it up solid -- I had been thinking about this for a while. It's based on cherries jubilee, but with oranges instead of cherries, a smoky Islay single malt instead of brandy, and chocolate. Again, how can you go wrong?

Anyway, oranges Donna:
slice orange into sections, peel on, but cut away white pith
sear orange sections on hot cast iron
put on oven safe plate, cover with chocolate and dot with butter
broil until chocolate melts and starts to just burn

cover with reduction of orange juice, orange peel, and a smoky single malt scotch. serve flambe, like cherries jubilee. No lie.

This was wicked good.. by the time I thought to get the camera, there were only two left.

Plier Bread: EZ home made puffed pita

2011-05-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

Or Plierbread, so named because I use pliers (usually my beloved Leatherman, 'Claws', inexplicably missing here) to move the oven rack. This make an Israeli style pita bread (hand sized and thick; it's sandwich bread), as opposed to several others (bedouin, yemenite) mentioned elsewhere. And it uses store made pizza crust dough.

Pita puffs because the bottom and top are cooked simultaneously, and the two crusts pull away from the middle. My setup, picture, has a cast iron serving plate in the bottom of a big, cheap aluminum roasting pan. The roasting pan nearly seals to the roof of my oven, though I'm sure I void the warranty here.

I divide a bag of store made pizza dough (regular and whole wheat) into four equal portions, roll flat in flour, and let them sit for a couple hours. Shortly before dinner, I let the roasting pan contraption heat up until the plate is smokin' hot, grab the rack with pliers, pull it out, drop in a flat of dough, push it in, and maybe flip once. The heating element cooks the top, and the cast iron cooks the bottom.

Just keep an eye on it until you get your timing down, and make sure it's not going to catch fire from the heating element. Good luck... if anyone tries this, send me pictures. Photos: my pita oven, and served with the Gerbiquitous pickles (see 'The Miflard Principle'), and home made armenian grape leaves a la Eastern Lamejun in Belmont, to be posted later.

Egg Roll Wrapper Cannoli

2011-02-18T21:02:00.001-08:00

Interesting exercise. The filling was, well I don't quite remember, but ricotta, brown sugar, whipped cream, a touch of vanilla, a bit of rum... something like that. I mean, how can you go wrong?

The shells are deep fried egg roll wrappers, shaped with individually made aluminum foil molds. Shatteringly crisp -- too crisp -- right out of the oil. But after they had sat with the filling for a while, they were fine. Certainly excellent for a beta version.

Big Assed Spinach Pie

2011-02-09T06:08:00.000-08:00

Cast iron lined with alternating layers of phyllo and melted butter and olive oil. Covered with a layer of steamed and drained spinach, decent feta, a little onion and lemon and a couple of tablespoons of cream cheese for creamier texture.

Bottom crisped stovetop, top crisped under a low broil. Pretty damned good.

Veg Burger Rock

2011-01-23T05:19:00.000-08:00

Boca Burger, grilled in cast iron, with sharp cheddar cheese, ketchup, hot sauce, lettuce, grilled onions, and a side of grilled mushrooms. Rockin' lunch.

New Knife: Ultimate Test

2011-01-08T19:14:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I don't get a whole fish very often -- which is a shame, I can walk to the place I got this -- but when I do, I'm thinking, 'this is what a good knife is made for'.

This is a Shun, the first VG10 steel knife I've used. Scary sharp out of the box, and for long after, like cutting with a scalpel. But I still like the balance of my homemade better. (see http://foodislove1.blogspot.com/2010/08/favorite-knife.html)

Don't waste my time

2010-12-31T19:54:00.000-08:00

Here is the perfectly cute, entry level salad I prepared for my boys, and for which I am still mocked. I figure they can't try it if it's not out there. They were much more receptive to the vanilla ice cream with oreos hand crushed and mixed in. I can't imagine why.

Doing Justice

2010-12-30T13:17:00.000-08:00

You know I keep taking these pictures... This is for Sue, who inspired me to put a couple up the other night. Single Pan Cooking: the stuffing mixed in the cast iron I will cook the mushrooms in, stuffed mushrooms slowly displacing stuffing. Ready to serve, in cast iron, with restaurant-style house spuds (restaurant style: generous on the oil and kosher salt) with fresh sage, thyme, and garlic. A few leftover mushrooms the next day, easily a meal.

ICE CREAM CAKE

2010-11-22T06:10:00.000-08:00

As promised for a ninth birthday, with a Mario theme. This thing was a beast, and I thought it would last forever, but that top picture is all that survived the party.

I melted and blended butter, sugar, and nestle's semi-sweet chips in a double boiler, and softened a gallon and a half of ice cream. I used plastic wrap to line the pot I usually use to make spaghetti, and alternated crushed oreos, my home fudge sauce, mint chocolate chip and chocolate ice cream until it was full. Hood Mint Chocolate Chip for preferece; they used shaved chocolate rather than chunks, so they don't melt way after the ice cream into a ball of cold chocolate in your mouth.

Served with hot fudge.

Egg Garotte

2010-11-20T16:43:00.000-08:00

I'm not just crazy about good knives: I'm crazy about optimum cutting. In the case of hard boiled eggs -- which I make for my son every morning -- they stick to any knife.

To that end, I made this cutting wire for egg, a bit of 10 pound test line between a couple chopstick handles. Goes through eggs smooooth. The halves don't even come apart until you pull them.

The red crescent shapes behind me are devil horns I made for my son's birthday costume.

Crusty Old Man

2010-11-17T20:25:00.000-08:00

Crusts from three different, amazing MA bakeries. There was some Pain D'Avignon from Sandwich, some Iggy's from Cambridge, and of course some Virgilios from here in Gloucester.

Throwing away bread is a sin.

So, here they are, stuffed in the toaster and smoking, and they sure don't look so bad with a couple of perfect over-easy eggs, and a jar of Garam Masala, for a little change from my usual Chinese or Thai chili sauces.

I'm Leftover. Fry me.

2010-11-10T19:50:00.000-08:00

These were excellent when served with the Causeway's excellent lobster pie. Not so excellent after two days in the refrigerator, imprisoned in polystyrene foam.

I revived them in half a roasting tray under a low broil, frequent turning and a generous sprinkle of kosher salt. Stick to your ribs and good crunch. They didn't last long.

Chili Shakshuka

2010-11-08T20:39:00.000-08:00

A great one pan meal. Shakshuka is a middle eastern dish, eggs poached in a tomato sauce, and there's a million versions. Here's a middle east/southwest/northeast spin (shakshuka with kosher turkey chili. Poached until the eggs have soft centers, served in the pan with herbs from the garden and fresh bread.

String 'Em High and Dry

2010-11-04T21:09:00.000-07:00

More summer pictures. These peppers are the contents of the 'hot' bin at a friend's CSA in western mass. More than I could use at once, so I got a needle and thread and strung them up to dry. A Pretty Thing.

Bless You, Paul

2010-11-04T05:24:00.000-07:00

I've been too busy to post lately, and I've missed it, so I'm catching up on a couple of summer pictures.

The fish here isn't just any fish; it's tuna and mahi mahi my neighbor paul caught on a charter. Any fresher and it would slap you with a fin. Knocks on the door, hands me the ziplocs, and says, 'these were caught a few hours ago'.

I seared them both with a rub of salt, black pepper, cayenne, I can't remember what else but it was pretty damned good.

Sun Tea In A Vase

2010-08-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

Sun Tea is best made in the the glass pitcher you'll serve it in, or -- better yet -- a big mason jar. Lacking either of those, I used a well washed glass vase, a bunch of brand name tea, and set it in the sun for a couple of hours. Brewed strong, served with palm sugar simple syrup, a little fresh lemon and plenty of ice.

In the picture, I'm pouring freshly made (ie, scalding hot) sugar syrup down a chopstick, rather like I'd do with acid and a glass rod in chemistry class.

Like Chinatown In Your Backyard

2010-08-16T19:07:00.000-07:00

Brought home some steamed shrimp and greens with oyster sauce from [will provide name] in Chinatown. Good, good, but the smell of head on shrimp, plus the nearly raw garlic, would have given my wife conniptions. So I hauled the ol' microwave outside and cooked them there. Eaten outside with plenty of chili paste.

Fishcakes Fancy

2010-08-16T18:52:00.001-07:00

We were having a party, so I took some of the fishcake 'batter', mixed with soaked and chopped dried abalone mushrooms (which I will never be without from now on) and fresh sage, and formed into little silver dollar fishcakes, a heaping teaspoon each for consistency. Served with (what else) a hot pepper tartar sauce.

It was educational for the tastebuds to have a little bit of the plain fishcake first. The contrast made the mushroom and spice really stand out.

Fishcakes Plain

2010-08-16T18:44:00.000-07:00

Fishcakes. I love fishcakes. And they are Very Glossta. Here's the raw materials, chowder fish from Connelly's and a bunch of potatoes. Uncooked fishcakes, frozen for later, over cooked fishcakes. On a plate with two over easy, the natural habitat of the fishcake in my book, though they can occasionally be found with baked beans.

The hot sauce in the urine sample jar, btw, is srug (Yemenite Chili Paste, see elsewhere) homemade in Israel. I am not just proud, but positively smug to say that my homemade version was universally preferred by the Israelis.

Favorite Knife

2010-08-16T18:37:00.000-07:00

There's no one Favorite, but this is what I reach for to make short work of stir fry vegetables, or cut waffles into the precise eighths my children have come to expect. It's a cheap Thai cleaver, weighted on the handle with four quarters wrapped in electrical tape, so I guess it cost me $8, not $7. Razor sharp when I'm in the mood. Balanced like a gymnast. Walks through push cutting, just never forget what you're holding.

Spring Roll Deck

2010-08-16T18:35:00.000-07:00

Ready to roll: shredded carrot, bean thread, scallion, mushroom, steamed napa, fresh mint, and Giladi's chicken. Just add elbow grease.

Spring Roll Deck

2010-08-16T18:19:00.000-07:00

Set to go: shredded carrot, bean thread, scallion, mushroom, steamed napa, shredded red cooked chicken. Just add elbow grease.

What I Like About You!

2010-08-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

Best thing about Gloucester: a neighbor knocking on my door to ask, 'you want some striped bass? It's about five hours old', and handing me a fillet thick enough that I have to steak it sideways.

Here's the neighbor in question, Paul, with the striper chunk now five hours and two minutes old, and that self same chunk of striper steaked, with barbecue rub for seasoning, and after searing in the ol' cast iron. I got another meal out of that piece, and made fishcakes with the leftovers.

Ditalini

2010-08-04T20:41:00.001-07:00

My eldest, Nadav, fixated on the name 'ditalini' in the supermarket, and so we had ditalini with hotdogs that evening. For those unfamiliar, as I was, it's a small tube, about as big across the end as it is long.

And I know what these are engineered for. Don't tell me soups, I know better. Ditalini is the best shape for falling off a spoon and making a mess. If they were smaller, or stringy, they'd adhere and fall off less. If they were bigger, you could eat them individually, like penne.

I attach empirical evidence.

First Tomatoes Out Of The Valley

2010-08-04T18:38:00.001-07:00

Back in June, I rose above the common lot of styrofoam store tomatoes with the first of the Pioneer Valley crop, courtesy of Jack Czajkowski of Czajkowski farms in Hadley, MA. Seen here with fresh picked cucumbers, olive oil, thyme from my garden, coarse salt, and Market Basket's finest mozzarella, which is to say mediocre but perfectly serviceable.

Another chunk on a crust of Virgilio's semolina bread, with a little bit of my soon-to-be-world famous anchovy-caper pesto.

pesto, pestere, pesti....

2010-08-03T18:43:00.000-07:00

That's two entry titles in Latin. Don't say I never did anything for you. You say basil and I say pesto. You say two kinds of basil, oregano, and parsley, and I say two kinds of pesto.

First, since someone had a nut allergy, a nut-free pesto with parsely, thyme, capers, olive oil and anchovies, coarse chopped and worked over in a mortar and pestle to bring out the flavor, and additionally make a true pesto (pestle and pesto from Italian pestare, to crush, says a shallow web search).

Second, a classic pesto, save walnuts for pinenutes: chopped basil, Mark's heirloom garlic, walnuts (pine nuts are too damned expensive), good salty parmesan, and olive oil until it has the texture of quicksand. Lump it all in the food processor, and don't puree.

Both good on pasta, tomatoes, or for dipping Virgilio's semolina bread. Note, by the way, the Japanese beetle at the very top of the herb bouquet. We consider this a plus: straight from the field.

Corn, Medium Sweet

2010-08-03T18:20:00.000-07:00

Jack was coming to visit, and I wanted sweet corn that wasn't too sweet. The high sugar strains at the supermarket were killing me. For Jack Czajkowski, of Czajkowski Farms in Hadley, this is not a problem. He knows, or can ask, which farmers planted which varieties. Custom corn. Whoever took this photo, btw, and didn't bother to take a better one will be spoken to.

Jack brought his family out for a play at the beach and a minor league game at Fenway. In addition to the dozen ears were fresh zucchini and cumcumbers, an herb bouquet, green beans, squash, and the first tomatoes out of the valley. Squash sauteed and served next to the beans, just steamed and served with toasted almonds, salt, pepper, dash of olive oil. And you say fresh basil to me, and I say pesto.

Sashimi

2010-08-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

Is this not beautiful? Tuna from Intershell's retail market. Salmon from Connelly's, custom cut by Brad who also kindly pulled the pin bones. Native scallop shell dishes.

Sancta Joseph, Interride Pro Me

2010-08-02T19:17:00.000-07:00

Ah, the Saint Joe's Roll from Virgilios. It's like a small loaf of Italian bread, and makes just the best sandwich. Here's a roll baked that morning (there's no other way), with olives, mozzarella, fresh herbs, tomatoes... good stuff.

PB and C

2010-08-02T19:12:00.000-07:00

I was craving a peanut butter and jelly sandwich but lo! we were out of J. So I substituted with a little chocolate syrup.

Tasted fine, but way too thin... dripped all over the place. Good with a glass of iced soymilk.

Good Eggs

2010-08-02T18:08:00.000-07:00

Basically, to visually ID a fresh egg, consider that the fresher the egg, the more it wants to stay in a ball shape. The older the egg, the more it spreads. Here are eggs that I could just tell were about as fresh as supermarket eggs are going to be.

If you want to bother reading the package, the three digit number is day of the year the eggs were packaged, and a five digit code (letter and four numbers) that is the plant that produced the eggs, in addition to the sell by date (30 days) or a use by date (45 days).

I always root around, read dates, and find the freshest eggs at the back of the shelf.

Perfect Egg Salad

2010-08-02T18:03:00.000-07:00

Eggs must be boiled to creamy yellow yolk. Never overcook. Once you get those green iron sulfides, or whatever they are, it smells eggier. (Yep, just looked it up. Iron in the yolk combining with sulfur in the white. That's why it only happens on the outside I'm a genius).

Meticulously turned through three dimensions in the egg slicer, creamy yolk mixed with mayo, a touch of sri racha, a touch of dijon. Look at that texture. Spread on fresh bread. And Triscuits. I love egg salad on Triscuits. The salt and texture combine perfectly.

Banana Pancakes

2010-08-02T17:58:00.000-07:00

Special for Smadi. We love you, Smad.

Tuna Pizza: Final Cuts

2010-08-02T17:46:00.000-07:00

Tuna pizza, how European. I have to bring a can down to La Rosa's just down the street. They looked at me funny, but I point out it's your basic tuna melt.

Meanwhile, what began as riffing off the unreasonable stubbornness of a five year old has become part of the household vocabulary. Pizza is available with one of three named cuts, not unlike steak.

A Rockport cut, the house favorite and what started this mess, is cut in half and the tips removed. The Gloucester cut creates two complete mini pieces, with a big diamond in the middle that Dad has to eat. And the Kfar Saba cut, a clean angle bisector.

Rowrrr!

2010-08-02T17:41:00.000-07:00

Chunk of paper thin chicken schnitzel, seconds from the hot oil and frosted with kosher salt. Eat, eat!

Hard Boiled Tea

2010-08-02T17:38:00.001-07:00

I avoid throwing away energy when I can, and try to have a backup use for hot water instead of discarding it. My textbook example is morning tea from the hard boiled egg water.

Chateau Plonque

2010-08-02T17:30:00.000-07:00

A case of budget wines from Kappys. My wife is not fussy about wines but has to draw the line somewhere. In this case, the line is just above five dollars a bottle. Six dollar Australians, fine. Those three for twelve dollar jobs, wherever they are from, don't make the cut.

But Is It Fresh, Conclusion: Mackerel Nigiri

2010-07-15T20:53:00.001-07:00

To recap: visit to see the fishies on the ice at Atlantic Banks Fisheries turns into buying a handful of mackerel, filleting, salting, and pickling them to include in a sushi dinner. And I'm due another sushi post... you all don't need to know every time I make a maki roll, but this is the first since day 1.

Local Weed

2010-07-15T20:37:00.000-07:00

Seaweed for a sushi dinner garnish, and from the dog bar breakwater, thank you, not the butt end of Cripple Cove. It *is* going on a plate, you know. Just as I might do with broccoli, it's steamed to bright green and plunged in cold water to keep the color. Before and after.

But Is It Fresh, Part II Continued

2010-07-15T20:17:00.000-07:00

So I had these famously fresh mackerel I hadn't really planned on buying (but they were so fresh!), guests coming, and sushi on the menu so I prepared shime saba. Of course, I could have probably just sliced and served, but just to be safe I filleted them, salted the fillets, cured in mostly rice vinegar, but I beefed up with a dash of plain old caustic Heinz white vinegar to speed things up. Basically, it's ceviche. Filleting, salting, the final product. Pretty.

But Is It Fresh, Part II: The Mackerel

2010-07-15T19:59:00.000-07:00

Took my 6 year old for his first walk to see the fishes and maybe buy dinner from Mr. Dave Wright at Atlantic Banks Fisheries. These Mackerel called to me. They just called to me. Mackerel are so damned beautiful to begin with, and they were so fresh ('How fresh were they?!') They were so fresh, the eyes still had that translucent half light, actually the retina magnified by the lens. Double click on the fish heads and look closely. It's a little ghostly, and fades hours after death.

Here's my boy holding the fresh fish, fish heads, and a lens I dissected out for your edification, at fingertip and on the table. I almost ate it, but not quite (crystal caviar from mackerel eyes... someone could make a fortune).

scape plan

2010-07-06T20:48:00.000-07:00

My man Mark has like six varieties of heirloom garlic in his backyard. Here's scapes and cloves that still have fresh dirt in the roots. Scapes and the garlic meet the chopping board, and helping along a dish of seafood destined for some pasta.

Interestingly, the seafood was scavenged from a take-out Causeway seafood marinara Shane left at my house. Anyone else, I would think they forgot. Shane probably left it for me deliberately. Anyway, rinsed of marinara sauce, and just heated up in fresh garlic and scapes sauteed in olive oil. Yep.

Release The Kraklin!

2010-07-06T20:40:00.000-07:00

God, I've made a trashy pop movie reference. I never make trashy pop movie references. I never even saw clash of the titans.

But I did release the cracklin's, after freezing salmon scraps from several meals and cooking them all at once on the grill, in a cast iron pan so they don't stink up the house. Kosher Salt. Don't fight, plenty for everyone... (my wife would only eat one of these under duress).