Be Ready When the Luck Happens, or Push on til it Does?

Our most recent Cook the Books Club selection (February - March) is Ina Garten's new memoir, Be Ready When the Luck Happens.  I was clueless as far as this author goes.  Having never read any of her cookbooks, or watched her on TV, etc., this was an interesting memoir as a commentary on the life of a celebrity, though more so for her fans, I'm sure.

Ina, as we read in her memoir, was shaped by a sad, difficult and actually abusive childhood.  You come to realize afresh that some people really should not have children at all.  Because of which upbringing, Ina Garten it seems was driven to assert herself in adulthood.  With her accomplishments and ambition in the face of obstacles, at times including her marriage, it was a wonder to me that her relationship with her husband, Jeffrey survived.  She was blessed indeed with that man in her life, and that they were both able to grow through it all.

I checked out several of her cookbooks for inspiration and have tried a few recipes, with mixed reviews.

One, an Oven Baked Asparagus Risotto, from her Go-To Dinners book was very good, delicious in fact.  and we both enjoyed it.  Loved the taste of saffron in there.

One of our last meals together, in fact.  This has been a very stressful and sad time for me.  So this post won't go on too much.  Bob went to heaven last Friday morning, after a long bout with bone cancer.  This was about done, so just finishing up here.  Cook the Book Club for this Feb/March edition. Apologies for being a day late!

All Things Bright and Beautiful - For Sunday Salon and Beyond

 

Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb Nance is a place where we get to share what has been happening in our lives.  And, it's been a few weeks since I've posted here.  Sometimes life gets in the way!  

A friend and I started things off with a bang, well at least a good view of the current eruption. Having some delicious Volcano House pizza while viewing is the Bomb! Especially after taking in an art exhibit and demonstration by a fantastic Pyrographic Artist!       

       

                Aloha Reef by John Mydock

Some mediocre books as well as a few better ones were gone through.  On the mediocre side, since I last posted here, The Last List of Mabel Beaumont.  Ho hum.

On the other hand, for sheer fun and breaking into frequent laughter, there was my catching up with Janet Evanovich and her Stephanie Plum silly series.  I'm caught up to here with, Game On: Tempting 28.

And, Alexander McCall Smith is always dependable for insight and wisdom, along with a good story. My latest read from his No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Great Hippopotamus Hotel.

In the garden, my interesting subject is commonly called Lipstick Pod, otherwise known as Achiote, a tree from which I gathered some ripe pods to make a small batch of the oil.  This spice is used in Puerto Rican cooking as well as others, as a flavoring and coloring agent in things like tamales, mole sauce and ceviche.

I was making a batch of Gandule Red Rice.  A local favorite here in Hawaii.

On the table, thanks to Simona of Briciole, I made up some her recently posted warm salad, Radicchio and Red Grapes.  I love the contrast of bitter and sweet.  Though admittedly I added a bit of maple syrup.:)

Inspired by my current Reading: Be Ready When the Luck Happens, by Ina Garten.  This recipe came from her book,  Modern Comfort Food.  Roasted Sausages, Peppers, Tomatoes and Onions served with Corn Polenta.  Really a seriously good meal. 

And, Brews

My latest experiment with Kombucha, is a second ferment (where the flavors are added and carbonation happens) of cacao nibs, cinnamon stick pieces, vanilla bean pieces and raw cane sugar.  May it not explode!

Until next time!  Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Food for the Land of Milk and Honey

We participants at Cook the Books Club have been reading Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang.  The novel centers on an unnamed chef, 29, who is trying to survive in the wake of an environmental catastrophe which has wreaked havoc on the earth's biodiversity.  According to Publisher's Weekly...

She had "chased complex flavors and busy kitchens since she was 19. But when the disaster decimated kitchen ingredients and shuttered borders, she was left cooking with years-old fish and bioengineered flour: "Chef had lost its meaning... like fresh." In a desperate attempt to change her surroundings, she takes a head chef position at a secretive food research community on the mountainous Italian-French border, which holds a surprising storeroom with the world's last strawberries, Parmigiano, and boar meat. Her transition to cooking for investors she cannot meet is difficult--she has no access to the outside world and she can't stomach the rich food. But she becomes preoccupied with Aida, the boss's mischievous 20-year-old daughter, who shows up to test her cooking. Aida and her father see their facility as the planet's last hope, and the chef soon learns that her role extends beyond food to enabling a world that caters to their ambition. Wrestling with her desire for both excitement and stability, the chef must squash the inner voice that asks, "Hadn't I meant to feed anyone else?"

Personally, I had a hard time identifying with this nameless chef who seemed, to me anyway, a very unsympathetic character. Her namelessness is symbolic.  Zhang attempts to tie everything up at the end.  Chef survives and, in the after years, has a daughter by some man, also nameless.  A theme of difficulty with men ran throughout the story.  Though the dystopian setup was interesting it really didn't get satisfactorily resolved. 

I went with "the years-old fish and bioengineered flour" or as the book says,"mung-protein-soy-algal flour distributed by the government", for my cooking inspiration from this book - a jar of Tuna Ventresca, which I keep on hand, in a Bechamel sauce, served over some rolls made with my stored breadfruit and tapioca flours - the bioengineered bread.

P. 98 “It wasn't tuna ventresca that drew diners to this community over others, nor was it heritage beef. It was the final bottle of a 1985 Cannonau, salt-crusted from its time on the Sardinian coast. Each diner had barely a swallow. My employer bid us not to swallow, not yet, but hold the wine at the back of the throat till it stung and warmed to the temperature of blood and spit, till we wrung from it the terroir of fields cracked by quake and shadowed by smog; only then, swallowing, choking, grateful, did we appreciate the fullness of its flavor.” Oh well....

                   Brazilian Cheese  Bread

Servings

12 to 16 pao de queijo

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups Tapioca Flour

• 1 cup Ulu (breadfruit) flour

• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

• 1 cup Whole Milk

• 1 ½ teaspoon Salt

• 1 Egg

• 1 cup Grated Parmesan

• ½ cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar

• Butter to grease pan

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F oil baking sheet or muffin pans with butter.

2. Add tapioca flour, ‘ulu flour and salt to bowl and mix well.

3. Warm liquids (milk & olive oil) over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Add hot liquids over flour & salt mixture and mix well. The texture should seem like glue. Let cool for about 5-10 minutes so you do not cook egg and cheese when you add them in.

4. Beat 1 egg and combine. Mix for about 2 minutes or until it is well incorporated and has a sticky texture. Slowly add cheese until the mixture forms into a dough. You can leave a little cheese to add on top later on.

5. Add a few drops of oil into your hands and rub evenly. Scoop a spoonful of dough, make small balls and roll in your hands. Place the dough balls 2 inches apart on your sheet or add to your muffin pan.

6. Bake for 10 minutes. Then turn the sheet 180 degrees and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the balls for additional cheesy appearance & texture. Bake for an additional 8 minutes or until slightly golden. Be careful not to over cook, as the bottom of pao de queijo can easily burn.  

The rolls were a bit on the dense side, which is what you can get without gluten flour. This is a simple dish I usually have over toast.  The Tuna Ventresca in white sauce was very good.  It's a high end tuna, worth every bit of the extra.

Linking up with Cook the Books Club for this December/January book selection.  And with the February Foodies Read, hosted by Heather at Based on a True Story.  Our next Cook the Books Selection February/March, is Be Ready When the Luck Happens, by Ina Garden, and hosted by Debra of (Eliot's Eats).

Time Marches On!

Cheers to all you Sunday Salon people and any others!  Sunday Salon is a weekly re-cap of what we've been reading and doing.  Hosted faithfully by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz

We are Marching inexorably toward Christmas, and Yikes!  Shopping to do, or else everyone will end up with a bottle of Lillikoi Syrup or Lillikoi Kombucha. Yes, the passionfruit are plentiful at the moment. Feel free to come and pick up some.

I missed a week which just means more stuff here.  Above you see the kombucha right before bottling, with the SCOBY on top. After pouring it into bottles, some fresh passionfruit juice was added to create a second ferment.  That's why room is left on top, and a secure lid, so we don't get what they call a Booch bomb!

BOOKS READ:

Recipes for Love and Murder, by Sally Andrew, was set in rural South Africa, and interesting for the setting.  Not as insightful or profound as the Alexander McCall Smith series based in Botswana, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.  I was continually flipping back to the glossary, looking up African words.  I mean if you write in English, why switch back and forth?  Just annoying.

The Marlow Murder Club, by Robert Thorogood, was a delight however.  Several women of a "certain age" unite to solve a murder in their backyard.  Intriguing mystery, capably written, the characters develop as the Murder Club evolves, including a harassed woman police officer.

Death comes to Kurland Hall is #3 in the Kurland St. Mary, Regency mystery series by Catherine Lloyd.  I loved the two previous ones, and this was enjoyable though a bit overcomplicated.  

The Gardener's Plot, a promising debut, by Deborah Benoit.  The bodies are piling up as our amateur sleuth, Maggie uncovers the plot, in the heart of the Berkshires.

In this latest, of my reading anyway, in the Martha's Vineyard mystery series(the third) the 92 year old police deputy (for her extensive knowledge of the area and its citizens),  down-to-earth, Victoria succeeds once more in helping to solve the murders.  Great characters, including a raucous toucan.  Luckily there are more to read!

NOW READING:

A debut by Clara McKenna, set in 1905, Hampshire, England.  We'll see, good so far.

MEMORABLE MEALS:

A pasta dish made with my new purchase, Tonnino Tuna Ventresca.  Apparently the high end of the tuna world, which I was persuaded to buy.  Good though, and worth it.

And a lovely, spicy Lamb Tajine.  Thankfully I made enough to provide for several meals.

FUN OCCASIONS:

We had a very well attended Art Studio Tour here, and the works were overall just fabulous!  Some really talented Artists.  I went with a friend and we had a great time, going from studio to studio, most with several artists represented.  I got a few gifts and some items to keep!

FROM THE GARDEN

Breadfruit, known as ulu here, dehydrating and dried.  Next stop flour!

Well, that's about it for now.  Enjoy the weekend everyone!

Praising God and Practicing Gratitude!

Thanksgiving is a great time to practice gratitude!  Doing that here, whilst Joining up with Deb Nance of Readerbuzz for her Sunday Salon.

We are celebrating many things!  Family, friends, good food, fruit from our trees, and this week a report of over 9,000 shoebox gifts  collected at our Operation Christmas Child Hilo Drop Off location! The boxes go to hurting and impoverished children in Third World countries and other places, wherever folks are going through various disasters, to orphanages, etc. This is the second and final container.

Much to be Thankful For!

ABSOLUTELY!! Looking back at the highlights of our week, to be posted on the Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz. Did you know that Wednesday, the 20th was National Absurdity Day? Well, I happen to have one of those calendars that let you know all the important days! We had a fun drive to Waimea on Wednesday, ate at my favorite restaurant and shopped at my favorite (one of them) dress shops, while Bob took care of some Real Estate.

A Thanksgiving Lunch

Going into the week approaching Thanksgiving we do have much to be thankful for, and to celebrate!  Since my grandson and family are going to be away on the Mainland, for the holiday visiting the other grandparents, he took us out to lunch.  The kids were adorable and amusing!  Bob was taking the pictures and mom got lopped off.

Onward and Upward All!

 A delightful week, altogether!  

Here we are, at Sunday Salon again, and in the universe!  Yes!  I too choose love!!  We are celebrating!  With Champagne even, or at least Prosecco.  This is some art my husband Bob posted recently (Sean is his younger brother) and I was reminded of it by Deb at Readerbuzz, the stalwart hostess of Sunday Salon, as last week she posted this cover of Bob's Saucer Repair, which is now on my reading list for Sci-Fi month.

Sunday Salon - Another Week in Review

 

A Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz,  Recap of my week, wherein I try to remember what all went on.  Some Gardening, collecting produce, reading, and cooking.  Oh and a bit of working at our office.  It does help to pay the bills.

Sometimes Eating Helps - For Crying in H Mart

She certainly did quite a bit of both.  Crying and eating in this memoir, which is our Cook the Books Club pick for October/November.  Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner, and hosted by Simona of Briciole, with lots of interesting, some deliciously so, Korean food.  I struggled at times getting through the story of her upbringing.  Some parents can be so overbearing even in their love, wanting to direct every aspect of their children's lives.  Of course, in my case, there were 7 of us, and a different nationality, so not too comparable to an only child in a Korean American home.

From the Publishers:  "#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the indie rock sensation known as Japanese Breakfast, an unforgettable memoir about family, food, grief, love, and growing up Korean American—“in losing her mother and cooking to bring her back to life, Zauner became herself” (NPR). • CELEBRATING OVER ONE YEAR ON THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST

In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. With humor and heart, she tells of growing up one of the few Asian American kids at her school in Eugene, Oregon; of struggling with her mother's particular, high expectations of her; of a painful adolescence; of treasured months spent in her grandmother's tiny apartment in Seoul, where she and her mother would bond, late at night, over heaping plates of food.

As she grew up, moving to the East Coast for college, finding work in the restaurant industry, and performing gigs with her fledgling band--and meeting the man who would become her husband--her Koreanness began to feel ever more distant, even as she found the life she wanted to live. It was her mother's diagnosis of terminal cancer, when Michelle was twenty-five, that forced a reckoning with her identity and brought her to reclaim the gifts of taste, language, and history her mother had given her..."