What Did You Eat?

Happy Birthday, Julia!

Today is Julia Child's birthday!    Lisa, at Champaign Taste, extended an invitation several weeks ago, asking bloggers to celebrate by cooking a recipe from one of Julia's cookbooks. Go to her site to learn about the other bloggers who are celebrating Julia's birthday. It was a great idea Lisa!

It was hard for me to decide what to cook. Should it be a cake?  Or maybe one of the recipes my mom and I adored, like Fish Souffle On A Platter?  But, I finally settled on a recipe for Cobb salad from Julia Child and More Company.

WOBAT: Bibb Lettuce Salad With Okra Croutons And Buttermilk Dressing

Most people think of Paula Deen when Southern cooking comes up.  But, for me the best cookbook on Southern food is Ronni Lundy's From Blackberries to Butter Beans.  When I first read this book I was immediately transported back to my childhood in the South, eating speckled butter beans, gumbo, and gathering dewberries (a form of blackberry) for my grandmother's cobblers.  The book's title comes from a wonderful story where the great Southern writers William Faulkner and Katherine Ann Porter had just finished a fabulous meal in France.  As they looked at the food debris on their table, Faulkner mused, "Back home, the speckled butter beans are in."  And Porter replied wistfully, "Blackberries."   As a Southerner who no longer lives in the South, I immediately understood their sentiments.  Those foods are a part of me, and I always think about them when their season arrives. 

WCB: Would Fred C. Dobbs Wear Swim Goggles?

What do you think?  What movie reference does this make you think of?  Master And Commander?  Pirates Of The Carribean?  If only it was a sombrero. I could say my favorite movie lines, "Badges? We ain't got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any stinking badges!"  Do you know the movie?  Hint:  Think of Humphrey Bogart

On the other hand, swim goggles.  Not cool at all.  What's the point?  Am I ever going to swim? Put that right up there with kayaking.  And would Fred wear swim goggles? If they helped him find the gold, he would.

Ugh!

OK, I think I'll snooze. Did you know that cats spend 70% of our day sleeping?  While I catch a cat nap, go over to Clare's site at Eatstuff and see all the other cool cats and their assistants who are Weekend Cat Blogging. Hope all is well with Clare and Kiri. We miss you!!!!

WHB: Black Cod In Tomato-Saffron And Fennel Stew

I made a mental note to cook this dish when I saw a picture of it in Martha Stewart Living several months ago.  The intense red color of the broth and the garnishes of scallions and almonds immediately appealed to me.  And the recipe appeared to be very easy, which is a consideration when I'm not inclined to cook much of anything.  And being in just such a disinclination right now, I knew the time was right to make this dish.  May I say, I was so happy with my decision!  Quick to make, low in calories, with a wonderful broth laced with saffron and fennel, it's perfect for Weekend Herb Blogging, the splendid event instituted by Kalyn.  Don't forget to visit Kalyn's Kitchen to see what the other herb bloggers are making.

Chicken And Eggplant In Black Bean Sauce

The extreme heat is gone now, but it left some of my garden in tatters.  For the first time ever, my green and wax beans are not giving me a good harvest.  The few beans that I've managed to pick are stunted little things. Fortunately, I'm  getting lots of tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. 

The eggplants seem to have weathered the extreme heat the best, with no blossom drop.  I'm growing the standard black globes, as well as white and Chinese varieties. However, my favorite is the small purple variegated type. Not only are they pretty, but I think they taste better, with a sweet, creamy texture.  They're also very prolific, covering the plants with fruit, so I'm able to harvest many of the little devils when they're only a little bigger than my finger.  For some lovely pictures of this type of eggplant, go over to In Mol Araan.

Wild Mushrooms And Pasta

Before I talk about anything else, I wanted to mention the great idea Lisa at Champaign Taste had this weekend.  She realized that Julia Child's birthday is next week on August 15 and had the grand idea of bloggers cooking a Julia recipe to celebrate.  I love the idea because Julia had a big impact on the way I cook and my interest in food. Plus, I spent a lot of time watching her shows with my mom.  So, I urge you to go over to Lisa's site to find out about the event.  Even if you don't think you'll want to cook a Happy Birthday dish, Lisa has some great pictures on her site.  I really loved the one of Julia towering over a tiny stove.  Thanks for thinking of this Lisa!! 

Now, back to our regularly scheduled program. I'm very happy that my grocery store began carrying beautiful fresh "wild" mushrooms.  Of course, these are wild varieties, grown by commercial mushroom growers. When I saw a box of lovely Trumpet Royale, brown and Alba clamshells, and velvet pioppini mushrooms at the store, I knew that my meal would be easy.  With lovely fungi like this, you don't have to do much more than toss them in some oil with a few herbs and serve them over asparagus, pasta, or some other willing participant. And that's just what I did.

WCB: Cats Don't Kayak!

Listen people, can you do this?  Unless you're a dog or a cat or another advanced type of animal--of course you can't!  Well, maybe that guy Gene Simmons can do it.   But, we cats don't expect you humans to do this.  So, let me tell you a basic cat rule:  Cats don't kayak!  We don't even like to think about it!

Last weekend Dad came home with a kayak he rented.  I immediately knew this could lead to an ugly situation.

So, then Dad said, "Maybe I should take Upsie kayaking."  And he put me in the freaking thing!    So predictable, make Upsie do something undignified for their amusement.

Seriously, don't you think I should report them to the authorities?  This is a clear case of animal abuse.

Enough's enough!

So, we have an understanding?  Cats don't want anything to do with kayaking, even on dry land.  OK, on to happier things. It's Weekend Cat Blogging, of course. Head over to the lovely Clare's (and Kiri's) place at Eatstuff and see all the other cool cats.   I need to take a nap.  Bye.

WHB: Zuni Cafe Chicken Bouillabaisse

I recently bought The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, which has been on my must read list for some time.  Happily, it lived up to the high praise heaped upon it by serious cooks.   It 's a delight to read, and I often find myself flipping through the pages at night, fantasizing making various recipes.   But as much as this cookbook is loved, it's also been criticized by many as "too difficult" and "obscure," filled with recipes impossible for most cooks to execute.  It's true that there are a handful of recipes that the author admits most people won't be able to replicate, due to the difficulty in finding some ingredients.  But, she includes them just for the pleasure of reading about them, and imagining how the dish tastes. I see that as a kind of armchair travel through a cookbook, which can be very pleasant.  It's sort of like reading about George Clooney's Italian home in Architectural Digest.  I'll never visit George there, but I enjoy reading about it.  (Hmm, I'm getting off topic. )

It's incorrect that you can't prepare most recipes in the book.  The majority don't appear intimidating at all.  They may look long and complicated, but the directions are written in a way that gives a clear idea of how to prepare a dish. This recipe for chicken bouillabaisse is a good example.  It was extremely easy to fix, made from easily obtained ingredients.  And it was one of those meals that you think about with great fondness after eating it.  It's certainly one of the best dishes I've ever made.  It contains several herbs, bay leaf, thyme, and saffron, which qualifies it for Weekend Herb Blogging, created by the lovely Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen. This weekend it's being hosted by the equally lovely Christa at  Calendula & Concrete. 

Paula Deen's Chinese Salad

I'd never heard of this salad until I saw Paula Deen prepare it on her Food Network show. I was intrigued because she scattered uncooked ramen noodles on top of the salad, which didn't seem very appetizing to me.  I've since learned that this salad is a popular dish, frequently seen at potluck parties.  I also learned that many people know that uncooked ramen noodles taste pretty good.  So, if you're out of the loop on this kind of thing like I am, reading this will bring you new knowledge. But, I suspect a lot of people will be saying, "Has she been living in a cave?"  I thought using the ramen was unusual and this would be a good recipe to try in honor of Glenna at A Fridge Full Of Food, who hosts a little shindig called Weekend Obnoxious But Amazingly Tasty recipes (WOBAT).  If you go over to her site I promise she will have something much more outrageous than this little salad.

BLT, Because Time Is Running Out!

There I was in the grocery store yesterday and I suddenly realized that it was the end of July, which meant time was running out.  Running out for what, you ask?  Tomato sandwiches. A chill came over me as I  looked into the future, a future without fresh picked tomatoes.  A future without a BLT!  By coincidence, this realization came to me as I was standing next to the bacon section of the store.  And there was a  package of thick cut, applewood smoked bacon warning me that the season for making a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich wouldn't last forever.  So, even though I had planned on fixing a  soothing curry for my cold, I decided to make BLT's instead.