Archive for the ‘Food Stuff’ Category
The Birth of the Cuisinart
Last night I was looking through a cookbook* and read this concise and interesting story of the birth of the Cuisinart food processor from the introduction to the book. When the Cuisinart Food Processor was unveiled at the Chicago housewares show in January, 1973, it scarcely could have been called a hit. indeed, myopic department-store […]
Mandelbrot's Vegetable Stand
I can't say I expected to see fractals mentioned in an article about cauliflower — or a casual mention of "the Mandelbrot theory" by a cauliflower farmer — but I wasn't terribly surprised either. I've seen these Romanesco cauliflowers and they are visually astonishing, regardless of whether one is a "Caltech guy" or not. I'm […]
In: All, Food Stuff, It's Only Rocket Science
Spam & Corn Chowder
Recall that our holiday meal's theme was "Ham, Lamb, and Spam"; this recipe provided the Spam component, and it was remarkably tasty, not to mention easy. Isaac thought the texture of the Spam was not optimal — another person thought the idea of the Spam was not optimal! — but something else like firmer baked […]
Cranberry-Raisin Pie
This recipe for "Cranberry-Raisin Pie" is keeper #2 from the holiday experiments. The mixture of cranberries and raisins seemed to me to have some of the dark, rich complexity of mince-meat, but with a brighter, more refined flavor. This pie could be a reason to stock up on seasonal bags of cranberries — they keep […]
Fruitcake Metaphysics
I have never much cared for fruitcake. Regardless of the generally low esteem in which fruitcakes have generally been held for as long as I can remember, I was always willing to give them a try but never found them very satisfying. The reasons, I think, are several, among them that I don't much care […]
In: All, Food Stuff, Laughing Matters
Deviled Ham
There are several recipes that I tried out for Xmas eating this season, and a few turned out to be keepers. Topping the list is this ultra-simple, ultra-tasty recipe for deviled ham. These few simple ingredients make a sophisticated taste. It's a great alternative to the too expensive little-can stuff from the store, and it's […]
A Feast of Footnotes
I am reading a delightful book by Nichola Fletcher, called Charlemagne's Tablecloth: A Piquant History of Feasting (New York : St. Martin's Press, 2004). Fortunately for my taste, since I always enjoy a good footnote, she has a number of amusing examples that have attracted my attention. Herewith a few choice morsels. First, the one […]
In: All, Food Stuff, The Art of Conversation
My Passion for Cookbooks
There are many things I like, but rather few for which it might be said I have a passion bordering on obsession. One of those is cookbooks, about which I've been meaning to write for some time, although I don't think I've accomplished it yet. If I have already, you'll forgive the meanderings and forgetfulness […]
A Fresh Asian Salad
This title is not metaphorical or oblique, but the name of a recipe a friend sent; she found it in a magazine from the supermarket check-out lane, but I don't remember which one. I was interested in it for the rather simple approach to the "Vietnamese Dipping Sauce", which I perennially enjoy at our local […]
Types of Wheat Flour
Not long ago, I was having a discussion with our young friend Scotty* about different kinds of flours, and I found I really had no idea what the differences signified. Fortunately, the editors of The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook had (on page 2) a brief but useful summary: The main difference between types of […]
In: All, Food Stuff, Naming Things
Memorial-Day Margaritas
A weekend ago Isaac and I went to a large, backyard picnic, hosted by some friends, to celebrate Memorial Day in the traditional way. Among other amusements, we were entertained by a young magician who kept the adults and the annoying and precocious children amused. I ate hot dogs; they always taste better at Memorial-Day […]
Walnut Ketchup & Friends
I quite enjoyed reading Cooking with Jane Austen (by Kirstin Olsen, Greenwood Press, Westport, CT, 2005). Talking about food that had been mentioned by Ms. Austen in her writing, the book is about Regency period eating habits, food, and cooking. There were some recipes I wanted to make a note of, and I didn't really […]
Bunpeepegg
Some years ago, I was fascinated by the experiments that some people performed on Hostess Twinkies to determine their physical properties (conductivity, Young's modulus, stuff like that). Later on, that seemed to have inspired various fun stuff that could be done with marshmallow Peeps. Although I've never tried it myself, I'm fascinated by the idea […]
In: All, Curious Stuff, Food Stuff
Four Treasure Frog
Although the english-language descriptions of the menu selections at our favorite Chinese restaurant (that would be Grace's Fortune, in gracious downtown Bowie, Maryland, USA) are generally idomatic and non-poetic in the way that some creatively translated menus can be, it does have it's moments. Our favorite describes a unique and delicious dish called "Tibetan Lamb", […]
In: All, Food Stuff, Laughing Matters
Dandelion Wine
A few nights ago at one of our local mega-bookstores. our interest was drawn to a table of "last chance" titles, 3 for $9.99. What a deal! I've always been fatally drawn to remaindered books — my obsession for remaindered cookbooks is legendary in some circles — so naturally this was an interesting table. We […]
In: All, Food Stuff, Reflections
Spam Cake II
Just a few days ago, I posted a short piece about a recipe for "Spam Cake" that came my way, and mentioned my morbid fascination for Spam — second only to my love of Jell-O and "congealed salads". Of course, we knew it wasn't likely to stop there; I wouldn't be surprised if, soon, I […]
In: All, Curious Stuff, Food Stuff
Spam Cake
Second only, in the realm of strange food fascinations, to an unnatural interest in congealed salads is my fixation on Spam, the Hormel canned-meat product. I still have hanging, right here where I can see it, a Spam Calendar from 2004, where each month features a recipe illustrated by an appetizing, full-color picture. Yumm. Someone […]
In: All, Curious Stuff, Food Stuff
Congealed Meal
A treasure from tonight's trip to the library (as mentioned in the previous post) was finding, on the book cart of cheap books for sale, a cookbook* from 1981 called "Favorite Brand Name Recipe Cookbook". I always like these, and this one is just old enough to have some fantastic recipes from a slightly earlier […]
Behold Capybara: Fish!
Most rodents are mouse-sized, but they range up through marmots, beavers, agoutis and maras to the sheep-sized capybaras of the South American waterways. Capybaras are prized for meat, not just because of their large size but because, bizarrely, the Roman Catholic Church traditionally deemed them honorary fish for Fridays, presumably because they live in water.* […]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Food Stuff, Raised Eyebrows Dept.
Clam Names
Because sometimes just knowing the names (finally!) is useful, if not necessary: All hard-shell clams on the East Coast are the same species, Mercenaria mercenaria, and their common names connote their sizes. The quahog (pronounced CO-hog) or chowder clam is the largest, followed in descending order by the cherrystone, top-neck and little-neck. [Erica Marcus, "Hail […]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Food Stuff