i’m still alive.

i swear.

i’m still here, collecting cook books. reading and cooking.

just been a little busy to write about it on the internet.

don’t give up on me yet.

potato leek soup

i got this cookbook

a couple of years ago. Fannie Farmer is a 19th century cookbook sweet heart. she wrote six books on cooking and directed one of this countries first cooking schools. she was also an advocate of health and nutrition, speaking loud and clear about the correlation between good diet and recovery of the ill.

i’ve never actually done a recipe out of this book. and well, i guess i didn’t really do a recipe out of it this time either – more like i used it as a guide.

i chose potato soup because it’s winter and it’s cheap.

i started with this recipe:

but pretty much did what i wanted (who says i don’t like to follow directions).

i basically boiled whole peeled russets in water till soft – drained them and then put them through the ricer. then i sauteed some leeks in butter and added the potatoes, some milk and water, salt and pepper. the measurements are not as important as the potato cooking and processing. boiling whole keeps them from getting water logged, keeping the starch nice and dry which makes the end product fluffy and not pasty. the ricer (much like a food mill) makes the potatoes smooth without mashing the starches, which can make the potatoes gluey.

potato soup. it’s a nice winter warmer.

SLOUP!

who knew, something super cool is happening in st. louis!

a few weeks ago i was asked to be part of some thing at the Contemporary Art Museum – make some soup, talk a little, blah blah – “sure” i said, not thinking (or investigating) anything of it.

so i showed up, not knowing what to expect, with 22qts of soup (plenty more than the 50 portions they asked for) and was greeted by three smiling faces – the two ladies from SLOUP and the generous gentleman from the Contemporary.

once the soup was in place and things started rolling i went out to see what it was all about. best described straight from their blog:
Sloup is a monthly soup dinner in St. Louis that supports projects, primarily artistic or communicative, that need a little funding and belief. Soup dinners will be on one Sunday a month from 6-8 p.m. Soups will be provided by local establishments, chefs and community members, as well as grant recipients returning to share their projects. We’re asking for a $10 per person donation at each dinner (100% of which will go directly into that month’s Sloup Fund), entitling you to vote on that month’s proposal which excites you the most! Grant proposals will be accepted until the Saturday before the soup (see application below).

it was super cool. there were tons of movers and shakers there and everyone was in the spirit of giving and sharing.

you can read about more of it here.

i’m super glad i went and super glad to have met all the folks involved. check it out next month.
(just so you all know, i have resisted the urge to write “souper” this whole post. you’re welcome for not doing it.)

chocolate cream pie. repost.

check out my pie recipes on Earth Eats!

here

ice storm breakfast.

here, in stl, we are experiencing the end of the world – or at least that is how people are treating it.

i’ve dubbed it “Ice Armageddon”, but sometimes just simply refer to it as “snowgeddon 2011″.

it looks like this:

so, this morning was a perfect pancake morning.

i went to my trusty Good Housekeeping Cookbook from 1963. it was my mom’s, she used through our entire childhoods. it is worn and full of scribbles – i love it!

i especially like the line drawing in the front cover:

i chose buttermilk pancakes – light and fluffy – and super delicious. i love anything with buttermilk, but i rarely buy it for some reason – so i always end up making my own with milk and lemon juice – but it is not the same.
this is what the recipe looks like: (you can click on it to get a bigger image)

it’s funny, old recipes never really yield as much as they say – is it because people back in the day ate way smaller portions? most likely.

however, my slightly larger and golden brown pancakes were incredibly good.
try the recipe – it is worth beating the egg white.

keepin’ em warm in the oven.

winter tomatoes.

we all hate ‘em – pink, mealy, horrible winter tomatoes. but a few weeks ago i found a winter tomato i could love : big, juicy, lovely (and local) green tomatoes.

i went searching through my cookbooks to find a recipe to fry up these babies (disclaimer: yes, i know how to fry green tomatoes – but i was looking for some classic american recipe that would ground me and my cookbook collection squarely in my culture).

first, duh, i went to my southern section – absolutely nothing. i sort of gave up. then, while searching for fried plantain recipes, i found fried green tomatoes in “The Art of American Indian Cooking.”

the recipe looks something like this:
FRIED GREEN TOMATOES
(serves 6)

2 lbs green tomatoes, washed
4 eggs
1 1/4 c cornmeal
3/4 c water
1/4 c minced chives
1 T salt
1/4 t fresh ground pepper
1/4 c butter

1. Slice the tomatoes 1/2″ thick (do not peel or core). Drain well between several thicknesses of paper toweling until most of the moisture of the tomatoes is absorbed.
2. While the tomatoes are draining, make a batter by beating the eggs until light, then mixing in the cornmeal, water, minced chives, salt, and pepper.
3. In a large, heavy iron skillet, heat the butter or margarine, until bubbly.
4. Dip tomato slices into batter, and brown quickly on both sides. Serve at once.

so i followed the recipe almost exactly.

-i used coarse cornmeal…bad idea. it didn’t really cook all the way.
-i used dry dill instead of chives…perfect for winter time.

this recipe has my full support. try it next time you run into some green tomatoes.

roast beast, my way

buying my beef a half of a cow at a time has it’s advantages – lower cost, less trips to the market.

but the disadvantages come in the form of weird cuts of meat that no one wants to eat – but this is some stuff that will have folks asking for seconds: Beef Tongue Pot Roast.

turkey left overs.

here is my delicious idea for what to do with those turkey leftovers in the freezer.

yum.

the beginning.

it started, like it always does, with a few. just a few.

my mom’s old Good Housekeeping cookbook, my baking text book from school, a book on etiquette, an Alice Waters’ cookbook, the new edition Joy of Cooking.

then it snowballed. books piled – piled so high. they littered the living room floor and covered the couch.

but since my the official organization, it has quieted down in the house – i can actually sit on the couch without books stabbing me in the back and look around at the world of knowledge surrounding me.

it is a bit overwhelming, actually. i don’t know where to begin.

so i guess i’ll start at the beginning – with the oldest and coolest…the Americana section.

my favorite titles from this section are :
“Nebraska Pioneer Cookbook”
“The Little House Cookbook”
“Whistler’s Mother’s Cookbook”
“Simple American Cooking”

the coolest ones to look at are these:

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Cookbook – it’s from 1925

All About Home Baking – 1933 – super informative and extremely beautiful inside

Calumet (Baking Powder) Cookbook – beautiful illustrations from the 20′s

gifts for foodies.

here are some gift ideas for your foodie, or maybe not so foodie, friends and family.

they are easy and quick.