AT LAST!!! Dan, who works at the front desk at The Gant, called to tell Clara, (L) and Emma (R) that Mrs. Berg’s cookies had arrived. They ran to pick up the bigggggg box.
Although Dorie calls this week’s recipe, Spur-of-the-Moment Vegetable Soup, she admits it’s really Stone Soup. She’s referring, of course, to that glorious ancient folk tale which, in 1947, writer Marcia Brown used as the basis of her children’s book entitled Stone Soup. And for writing it, Brown won a prestigious Caldecott Medal that year.
Before we get to the soup, let’s move on to dessert, Oatmeal-M & M’s Cookies baked by Liz Berg of That Skinny Chick Can Bake. In July, Liz participated in an on-line baking auction to raise money for victims of our devastating Colorado fires. After a fierce bidding war, I successfully won her cookies. We decided that she would wait to bake and send the cookies until mid-October when my entire family, including two little girls who love cookies, would be in Aspen.
Emma is older so she gets to open the box.
This past Tuesday we celebrated Michael’s Life with family and friends at a wonderful and joyful service. Our two little cookie monsters stood at the altar, in a church full of strangers, and sang like angels. Is it sacreligious to say they nailed “Amazing Grace”? It goes without saying that when the anticipated cookies arrived, even their Mother (that’s Melissa), let them each have a bag, no sharing. Thanks, Liz, you baked a great reward!
“It’s a big box, Grandma.” (Clara)
The Mother Lode.
“One bag of cookies for each of us. Thank you, Mrs. Berg.”
The vegetable soup, which was our main course for dinner tonight, was a wonderfully simple and nutritious entrée. After cooking sliced carrots, onions, celery, and seasonings in olive oil, I added chicken broth, diced potatoes and brought everything to a boil. After taking it down to a simmer for 20-30 minutes and adjusting the seasoning, I did choose to puree it. And to that pureed soup I added cooked quinoa for extra nutrition, texture and flavoring. I served the hearty soup with yellow/red beets and crusty bread for a delicious meal.
I put together a mixture of sliced carrots, onions, celery, garlic and Provençal seasonings and tossed them together with olive oil into a Dutch oven .
After adding chicken broth and diced potatoes to the mixture, I brought it to a boil and then let it simmer, partially covered, for 20-30 minutes.
To see what stones my colleagues threw in their soup this week, go here.
After adjusting the seasonings and pureeing the soup, I added cooked quinoa to make a heartier soup.
Lacey (l) and Molly are just two of the many young people at The Gant in Aspen, where I live, who keep my life on-track. All of them are eager and willing food-testers. Both the girls liked the addition of mint to the apple jelly glaze. ” And Kiley (another Gant employee) doesn’t even like mint at all, Mrs Hirsch,” Molly told me. “She honestly cannot stand it, but she liked the minty flavor of the topping and thought it was really, really good.”
Yep, today’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe choice is a tart. To my thinking, however, there is nothing about this tasty dessert that looks tarty. As Dorie explained, “It’s so thin and crackly, you get to eat it out of hand.”
Have you ever met a tart that is “thin and crackly” ? What makes it so are multiple sheets of filo dough, each sheet carefully slathered with butter, piled in layers. This was my first experience with fragile, easily torn, uncooperative filo dough. Surprisingly, it was no problem.
Hold that thought……
As I was walking through the Cooper Street Mall in Aspen this afternoon, I spotted a one-to-two year old black bear, napping in a tree. This cub, in all probability, has been abandoned by his Mother who is more concerned right now about packing on 30 to 40 pounds of body fat to survive hibernation and give birth to the next generation of bears. This cub, who obviously cannot find enough food to eat, will probably not last through the winter.
Let’s talk Bear Business. Last week I returned to my home in Aspen to stay until Thanksgiving. This is a particularly lovely time of year because the fall color extravaganza is ending and there’s no snow in sight. Translation: no tourists. Although we love, adore, need and want tourists – we are a resort community, after all – every so often it’s nice to grab our town back.
This fall, more than ever, we are sharing our town with black bears. According to Colorado Parks & Wildlife, there are about 16,000 blackies in Colorado. Aspen is probably the epicenter of bear-human interaction in the state. This year, as the bears prepare for hibernation, needing 30 to 40 pounds of extra body fat for winter survival, they are more desperate than ever for food.
Colorado has been scorched by a summer of fires, the drought has destroyed the bears’ food supply and more homes are infringing into bear habitats. Serviceberry and chokecherry bushes as well as other natural food sources are being bulldozed under for development. Unable to find natural food sources, at night, these savvy and hungry bears wander into town, dismembering our crab apple trees and dumpster-diving into the ones that are unsecured. Although it’s against the law to leave dumpsters and garbage cans unsecured, every night five or six bears charge into downtown to scrounge for their daily rations. By day they sometimes hang in a tree, napping, in the heart of downtown Aspen.
An adult Colorado black bear can weigh anywhere from 150 pounds (a sow) to over 350-400 pounds (a male).
These guys even have their own Facebook page, Aspen Bears.
The little bear I saw this afternoon, dozing in a tree on the Cooper Street Mall, is probably an abandoned cub. It’s “survival of the fittest”, the mother’s harsh reality. She’s gone off to take care of herself.
Those of us who live here try to protect our bears. There are laws, strictly enforced, to make our county “bear-proof”. Once a bear, considered a nuisance, is tagged, the next naughty-bear report means euthanasia. As local writer Barry Petersen wrote, “ Most people in Aspen stay cool about it all, perhaps remembering that the houses and cars and streetlights are all late arrivals — that, in truth, it was the bears who for centuries have thought of this area as their home.”
The tart with its eight layers of buttered filo dough, almond cream and then, apples, ready to bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Thanks for allowing me a timeout for our wild animals. Now, let’s get back to the tart.
Luckily, this recipe for the Crispy, Crackly Apple-Almond Tart is here and I suspect if you try it, you’ll love it. I made the almond cream 2 days ahead and then brought it to room temperature before spreading it on the delicate filo dough. If you haven’t baked with filo before, it will not be difficult if you carefully follow the directions on the filo box and in Dorie’s recipe. I chose Braeburn apples to peel, slice and fan onto the tart base.
The tart, baked and glazed
Since I could not find apple jelly for the glaze, I used mint apple jelly and really enjoyed the additional slight minty tang. Although we ate this immediately, the tart can also be served at room temperature. Next time I might even dump a scoop of ice cream on top!
An oil on canvas painted by Carlos Soson, an artist who is handicapped and paints by holding the brush in his mouth. Purchased at the La Boca street market in Buenos Aires.
It was a dark, cold and windy night. The clock read 12:00 AM. Earlier in the day, or, maybe the day before, I had boarded airplanes that headed south. Two planes and 17 hours later, I disembarqued and found myself, alone, in Santiago, the capital and largest city in Chile.
My only question to myself? “Why?”
The last three weeks, as Lights went dark on this blog, they were shining brightly in South America where I had gone to meet three countries: Chile, Argentina and Brazil. Foreign travel is not for sissies, as I reminded myself every day. Flying solo, as I did, adds yet another layer to an international adventure, and, to my mind, a worthwhile one. Whether this was a vacation,educational experience,trip-of-a-lifetime or challenging slog– take your pick – it was not a week on the Jersey shore.
Iguazu Falls, bordering the three corners of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, is comprised of 275 cascades. The Iguazu National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This photo is from the Brazilian side. From Argentina, you can hike into the Falls, which I did. It’s a badge of honor to get soaked. Spectacular.
Which brings me to Hummus, this week’s French Friday with Dorie recipe choice for our cooking group. Hmmm, isn’t Hummus Middle Eastern? Ms. Greenspan suggests that Hummus, has “captured the imagination of the French and wiggled its way into the Gallic repertoire” along with imports like Tzatziki (Greek) and Guacamole (Mexican).
That’s why I decided this week to introduce the Frenchies to Puré dePallares, the South American wonderfully flavorful version of hummus. Made with creamy and tasty lima beans mixed with aderezo (seasoning), the dip is simple to make and also works as sandwich spread, pizza topping or a vegetable side with chicken, fish or meat.
I served this the night of the Presidential Debate with both veggies and homemade tortilla chips. It’s delicious as well as a lovely presentation, don’t you think? I also suggested that an Argentinian Malbec wine, celebrated for its deep color and intense fruity flavors, might be the perfect compliment to the evening.
Note that I added sun-dried tomatoes to the Puré de Pallares.
This is why my South American travelogue journal turned from “Why” to “Why Not”? Following a good night’s sleep, I woke up in Santiago that next morning to remember I’d just arrived in Malbec Country. Although Argentinian Malbecs garner the praise and applause, don’t discount their Chilean counterparts. Both are delicious. After six months of sobriety, my palate totally cleansed, I asked myself, “If not now, when?” My South American journey just got a whole lot better.
The bronze statue of Evita Peron unveiled in 1999 on a hillside below the National Library which sits at the site of the former presidential residence where she died. This year, July 26, commemorates the 60th anniversary of her death.
The only regret of my South America journey is that because of an Argentinian holiday and itinerary change, Paula Montenegro, a Dorista living in Buenos Aires, and I could not meet for lunch. However, Paula may be in the States late this Fall and will visit me in Aspen.
Puré de Pallares
Yield: 2 cups
Ingredients:
1 16-ounce bag of frozen lima beans or 2 cups of shelled fresh beans
1 packet Sazon Goya Seasoning with saffron (speciality stores or on-line)
1-2 cups cilantro leaves, according to your taste
2-3 tablespoons lime juice
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
Red pepper flakes to taste
Black pepper to taste
Directions:
Boil the lima beans and Sazon Goya Seasoning pack in a pot of salted water for 8-10 minutes.
Drain beans. Cool 5 minutes. Add beans to a food processor with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the cilantro.
Process beans and cilantro for 30 seconds. Add lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin and process until smooth adding more olive oil if mixture seems too dry. Taste and add additional seasoning, if necessary.
Store dip in the refrigerator, in a lidded container, covered with a thin layer of olive oil. It will keep for 3-4 days.
Adapted from About.com, South American Food
(For those of you who don’t know, French Fridays with Dorie is an online cooking group. We are cooking our way through Dorie Greenspan’s latest cookbook, Around My French Table, and each Friday we post our results on our own foodie site. (All 50 or so members cook the same recipe each week.) It is a Greenspan love fest, both serious and silly, and we sometimes call ourselves “Doristas.”)
This week’s French Friday with Dorie recipe choice, Spice-Poached Pears
Let’s play JEOPARDY:
Answer: Dorie Greenspan’s Spice-Poached Pears, this week’s FFWD recipe.
Question: How do you thank a neighbor who is driving you to the airport…..at 4 A.M……on a Saturday!?!
Mise en Place, so few ingredients yield such a tasty treat
This week’s recipe, cooked fruit, seems so basic, so un-special, a “why bother?”. Dorie describes this compote as “the simplest of French family sweets, and the most comforting too.”
After making a batch, even if cooked fruit wasn’t my idea of a palate pleaser this week, it tasted heavenly and refreshing. (That’s why Dorie writes the books and I only cook from them.) I picked Bosc pears to poach for this recipe. Really, it’s your choice because all kinds of fruits – apples, pears, plums, apricots, peaches, cherries, prunes, figs, kumquats – to name a few, can be simmered to tasty perfection.
Putting the syrup ingredients together, ready to boil and simmer. This spicy syrup recipe is a Keeper.
What I suggest is to link to Dorie’s recipe here and use her basic syrup recipe to create all kinds of delightful dishes. The sweet and fruity ingredients in the syrup combined with the spices of star anise, cinnamon sticks and vanilla beans, provide a lovely, flavorful and warm bath in which the fruit can bask.
Although the French, according to Dorie, usually serve their compotes with little more than heavy cream, crème fraîche or plain yogurt, I prefer the more-is-better approach. Embellish pancakes, waffles or French toast by spooning this spicy fruit on top. Ladle it over pound and angel food cakes, rice pudding or ice cream. With the right fruit combo, this would be wonderful with ham or poultry. Be even more creative than I am. Poach your taste buds gently, allowing your culinary imagination to run wild.
Papa Pear said to Mama Pear and the little Pears, “Where’s my warm, syrupy bath. I need a soak?” After poaching the pears in the syrup, gently remove the pears to a bowl and continue boiling and reducing the syrup for an additional 10 to 15 minutes before again pouring it back over the fruit.
I made my spicy poached pears midweek, pleased that they’d become a special thank you-treat for my neighbor and friend, Ray, who is taking me to the airport Saturday morning. Although the Hot Now sign isn’t even on at our local Krispie Kreme shop by 4 A.M., Ray, ever the good guy, never complains and, especially not after today when I gave him a bowl of spice-poached pears. Memo to me: Next time, double the recipe.
For the next two weeks, I will be in South America, joining a Tauck Tours excursion which begins in Santiago, ending in Rio de Janeiro. After traveling alone for five years, I find there are some trips that are far easier and safer to do with others. (Or, so my children say………) Tauck seems to understand the independent traveler. I can often turn left when they go right.
Because the celebrations for Chilean Independence Day begin this weekend, I am arriving early to watch the colorful festivities. With the assistance of guide Liz Caskey, I’ll have the opportunity to visit La Vega and Mercado Central, Santiago’s largest markets, following her virtual tour to experience the local foodie scene. As far as the South American culinary culture is concerned, consider me clueless. I hope to change that as I taste my way through these countries.
My Posts the next two weeks will be sporadic and, with appreciation, I am handing off my FFWD administrative duties to Laurie and Betsy. Perhaps, just perhaps, I’ll even catch up with our Argentinean Dorista, Paula, when I am in Buenos Aires. Stay tuned, please…….
Project Dinner Table, a charity event last Saturday in Las Vegas, where 175 people gathered to eat together, family-style.
My dinner partners for the evening, Todd Harrington, Executive Chef at Central Michel Richard at Ceasar’s Palace, and his assistant. Thousands of dollars were raised to benefit Safe Nest and The Shade Tree, organizations dedicated to aiding abused women and to the eradication of domestic violence.
This week’s FFWD recipe is all about veggies: Eggplant Tartine with Tomatoes, Olives and Cucumber. A tartine is actually an open-faced sandwich with a spread on top. For today’s presentation, however, the bread has been banished and replaced by eggplant. The result is so delicious and tasty, you don’t realize the grain product is missing. Don’t ask. Don’t tell.
I’m especially pleased to be making a nutritious dish today because Less is More this week. Needing to eat Less this week because More is happening on Saturday night. I’ve returned to Nevada to attend my first Project Dinner Table charity event on Saturday. This exciting event benefits two organizations that have become dear to my heart lately: Safe Nest, a charity that promotes the eradication of domestic violence and The Shade Tree, a 24-hour shelter designed specifically to support abused women and children in Southern Nevada.
The purpose of PDT is to create meaningful and adventurous experiences around the dinner table, celebrating local food, community and philanthropy. That the dining table is loooooong, accommodating 175 people, six courses, and served pass-the-plate family style, brings Pop-Up Entertaining to an entirely new level. Oh, yes, this time it’s open-air, streets closed, a Main Street meets the Strip atmosphere. Hello, new experience.
The Chefs for this PDT, Executive Chef Royden Ellamar of Sensi at Bellagio and Executive Chef Edmund Wong of Bellagio, only raise the bar.
Executive Chef Ellamar of Sensi, Bellagio, Las Vegas PDT Photo
Executive Chef Wong of Bellagio, Las Vegas PDT Photo
What I have found, since moving to Henderson, is that local casino conglomerates are very philanthropic and generous locally. They can afford to be, of course. One-upmanship is the game name here. Now is Bellagio’s moment and I’m betting they’re up to the glitz-and-grits task. Their Horticulture department, in charge of decor, is already loading up citrus trees and potted fruit plants. No chandeliers necessary, stars will suffice. A feel-good moment for Las Vegas.
The Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens, a popular attraction on the Las Vegas Strip. Kudos to the hotel-casino’s reknown horticulture department. destination360.com photo
The tartine dovetails nicely with this upcoming gastronomic overload. Roast 1-inch thick eggplant slices for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Toss together a delicious salsa using tomatoes, celery, onion, garlic and green olives. The dressing is simply red wine vinegar and olive oil with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper added for seasoning. Throw some cucumber slices haphazardly over the top and you’ve got a lunch, snack or dinner.
Eggplant slices waiting for olive oil, salt and pepper, before basking in 350 degree temperatures for 45 minutes
Saturday evening will be an eye-opener for me, a charity function, Vegas-style. Since moving here, I’ve been so focused on my personal life and responsibilities, I’ve spent little time thinking about those less fortunate. For me, now, it’s a different world and I’m looking forward to using my considerable energy to help others, particularly women. A feel-good moment for me.
Eggplant Tartine with Tomatoes, Olives and Cucumbers
Minted Zucchini Tagliatelle with Cucumbers and Lemon, this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe choice
If you read my Blog, it’s a given that I have great friends and a spectacular daughter. You already understand that. What you may not know is that as far as relationships with me, it’s usually Go or No. Meaning, I’m the kind of woman you either flat-out like or flat-out don’t like. Nothing middle-of-the-road. Pretty clear-cut.
Ouch.
Let’s just admit that if it’s a popularity contest, I won’t win. However, credit me with being solid, fiercely loyal, unwavering and (fun)/ny. Always got your back. If you need to laugh, I’m your girl! Promise always to make you smile.
Who knew a mandoline could cause so much havoc?
That’s why this week’s FFWD recipe choice, Minted Zucchini Tagliatelle with Cucumbers and Lemon, almost sent me kicking the can down the road. Touch-and-Go. First, with a friend. Then, with a daughter.
I’d not seen my friend, Linda, who lives part-time in Aspen, for two years. Since she’d be heading South soon after my arrival back in Colorado, we needed to make a lunch date.“Why don’t you come to my condo for lunch,” I asked, during our first telephone conversation. “I’ll do the salad we’re making this week for French Fridays with Dorie.”
“Oh, that might be fine,” she replied, cautiously. “What is it?”
I explained that we were making a zucchini, onion and cucumber salad with pistachio oil dressing and mint flavoring. “That sounds interesting,” she said, sounding optimistic.
Then, I mentioned, “It will be the first time I’ve ever used a mandoline.”
“No,” she stated emphatically. “Let’s go out.”
Normally, Linda, a former Miss Savannah, is gracious, diplomatic and kind. However, hidden behind every Georgia Peach is an Iron Magnolia. Right? “No” meant “No”. As much as she wanted to support my blogging adventures, she did not trust me with my mandoline. I realized visions of all things unappetizing must have danced through her head. In the end, we thoroughly enjoyed our lunch at “Above the Salt” in downtown Aspen.
The mandoline guard/gadget that allowed me to safely and carefully create 1/8th-inch-thick zucchini tagliatelle strips. It’s a process!!!
Soon after that, my daughter, Melissa, called. During our conversation she asked what I was cooking this week. Without thinking I described the salad, telling her I was using a mandoline for the first time. Five seconds of silence. Then, “Mom, don’t you have a potato peeler?”
Our conversation deteriorated quickly. Me, laughing, hysterically, insisting I’d be careful. Melissa, not laughing at all, insisting “my” careful might not be careful enough. “Mom, seriously, those blades are dangerous. You’re a writer. You need all your fingers.”
“Mom, I am not kidding, you’re still scattered these days and shouldn’t be using a sharp instrument.”
And then, the shot through my heart, “Well, I think you know, Mother, I won’t sleep a wink tonight.”
In the end, I used the mandoline to make beautiful 1/8th-inch-thick zucchini tagliatelle slices. I was very, very, very careful. Still, except for very, very, very special occasions, I will not be using my mandoline again. For the amateur cook, caution is prudent.
I must admit that, to me, this salad looked better than it tasted. I didn’t enjoy this dish.
After all the drama, I didn’t enjoy this salad, finding the zucchini, cucumber, onion combo rather pugnacious, battling each other for the primary taste position. The pistachio oil/lemon juice/salt dressing didn’t blend the veggies strong flavors together. Surprisingly, the mint seemed to grab the salad and play a more important role than was ever intended. Although handsome in appearance, this wasn’t a palate-pleaser for me.
If you want to try out your mandoline on this salad, you will find the recipe here. To see how other mandoline mavens fared this week, go here.
