Late August Harvests

 It''s still summer even though there are pumpkins and pumpkin spice everywhere. What that means is late August harvests and the tasty dishes that come with them. Take advantage of this, especially with your local farms and farmer's markets.

Even though there is nothing but Cylospora and salmonella your nearby farms offer picking for a price . There are also good  local farmers markets where the produce comes from smaller , more manageable farms where produce can be monitored. Tomatoes and bell peppers are thriving at this moment. Tomatoes mean sauce for fall and winter pasta dishes but use fresh ones for a silky tomatoes Provencale and ratatouille. For a cooling dish then tomatoes stuffed with tuna and mayo and the peppers with leftover rice and home grown herbs. Also think soups. Create a tasty minestrone with  them and the addition of white and green beans along with veggie broth, fresh garlic and parsley. Cook it in your crockpot if it;s too hot to use a stovetop. Onions are also in harvest right now. Tyr them stuffed with beef ,Piedmontese style or just have them sliced and battered for onion rings. Zucchini and squash are big right now. Make them stuffed with rice ,any kind of chopped meat and rice or sliced into coins and then sauteed in a mix of oil ,butter and garlic.

There are fruits that are ripe for picking in late August. This is peach season so go to the farms and start picking. It's a great activity for the whole family and many farms do offer family rates. What to do with peaches? Try a peach  jam.This only has the peaches  , some  lemon juice for preservation and sugar to create a lovely spread for croissants .Of course there is peach crumble . This is a tasty baked fruit dish topped with a mix of oats , brown  sugar ,cinnamon and lemon juice. Keep in mind that charred peaches are the perfect dessert with vanilla ice cream. Just split and it the fruits , brush with melted butter or oil and put on the grill for three to five minutes. Serve with scoops f ice cream or whipped cream for  more decadence.Blackberries are another late August fruit that's in abundance right now. A lot of the thickets are in the wild so you can easily go into  woods and pick them . Try blackberry crumble bars for a tasty sweet snack.Use old fashioned rolled oats and  whole wheat flour for a healthier version. Blackberries can also be made into a curd.It's pureeing the berries and  add ing whole eggs and butter>These are whisked together very a low flame and then placed into jars. Use it to slather on toast for a different breakfast treat. 

It's late August.There are still harvests to be used. Try what the month has to offer in tasty savory and sweet recipes.

Rethinking Cranberries

Everyone thinks that's it's written in stone that cranberry sauce is to be served at the Thanksgiving table. Yet cranberries cna make n appearance in other, much more appealing forms too.The bright little berries can appear in everything from savory to sweet. Use them in a variety of different ways.

It's time to consider them in savory dishes. Stuffings can be given a boost in both color and flavor.. A cup of them gives  a sage laden stuffing a bright , zingy taste. Everyone will love the burst of unexpected sweetness they'll bring to a usually spicy , savory dish. Veggies love this gems as well. A different and colorful side dish is a mix of sweet potatoes and cranberries.If they are too sweet together give them a jolt of saltiness with some crumbled feta.Another sweet but nutritious side are a blend of carrots and cranberries. You can add maple syrup to bring out both their sweetnesses or almonds to cut back on them.Brussels sprouts are good on their own however cranberries some color while the addition of pecans brings in crunch. The sprouts are first sauteed in olive oil and then the cranberries and pecans are added.If you don;t want them in with your cooked veggies, then think about  a cranberry laced salad. Add them with apple slices to a simple Romaine. The dressing should be a simple vinaigrette. Add in a handful of slivered almonds for some crunch and more taste.

Of course there are cranberry desserts. You can make them in two kinds of pie. The first has pulsed or chopped cranberries that have been soaked in sugar for an hour.For more fruitiness orange juice and zest are added to them along with cornstarch and flour to thicken the filling..Ginger salt, and vanilla are also added to this stovetop cooked filling. The second kind of pie is filled with cranberry curd. This is similar to lemon curd except you use the berries.They're mixed with a combination of sugar, eggs , egg yolks ,butter, lemon.  juice and salt. Everything is cooked in the microwave fr a fluffier , lighter curd. The cranberries should be pureed too for a silkier texture in the filling..If you want a lighter dish but with the same fluffy texture.then go for a cranberry mousse.It is slightly tart , not like a chocolate or vanilla mousse. What gives it body and lightness is the addition of heavy whipping cream and gelatin. Orange juice and zest are added to cut down on the intense flavor while there is two cups of sugar needed. It can be  topped with lightly whipped cream for an elegant dessert.

You don;t have to serve that jiggling cylinder of cranberry jelly. Try it in either sweet or saviry dishes this holiday. It's a different and tasty spin on the tradition, whether in a bright salad or a fluffy mousse.

An Ambrosial Cake

One of the best warm weather salads is ambrosia.It's a sweet concoction that usually finds it way to backyard barbecues and picnics. Take it one step further and transform this classic dish into a cake. It then becomes truly worthy of its' name - ambrosial food for the gods.

Melissa Clark wrote about it in her A Good Appetite Column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. I think it would be an excellent end to an Easter dinner, the cake's sweet fluffiness being a great foil to a salty ham and potato salad. Ambrosia, for those not familiar with this American classic, is a sweet salad that can be served before, with or after a meal. It's mostly made during barbecues or family buffets and every family has their own spin on the recipe. It's made with a heavy dose of tropical fruit, some kind of frosting and plenty of flaked coconut.Some go heavy with the  fruit, going  heavy with the orange slices and pineapple chunks along with adding extra banana slices. A few home chefs like the idea of crunch so pecans are thrown in while others turn their ambrosias technicolor with the addition of maraschino cherries Whipped cream is usually blended in but yogurt can be used as well. Of course, there's the flaked coconut that's added in by the cup (or cups).Imagine all this  modified in a cake with a tangy curd filling along with a slug of coconut rum.It's iced in a fluffy meringue and then doused with sweetened coconut flakes.

The ambrosia element is modified. Ms. Clark decided on fewer elements and uses them with a slight difference than from the original recipe. She skips the cloying pineapple and banana but keeps the zingy citrus, going for seedless clementines over mandarins and oranges.She juices them to go into a tangy curd that will be used as the cake's filling. She suggests if you like the pineapple and banana, then add them but only to the filling to get the taste, The flour used is all purpose  and there's only a tablespoon of baking powder added for leavening. It's a rich, eggy cake employing four of them.There's also a stick and a quarter of unsalted butter to give the crumb a  golden color.The filling is again a curd, zested up with clementines and a third of a cup of lemon juice. the filling is butter rich too  with a stick of unsalted butter used .The whites from the filling's yolks can go into making the frosting, a sweet fluff made over a simmering water bath.The frosting has to be immediately put on the cake and then press the coconut flakes on the sides and  top. You can decorate with sliced clementines and strawberries.

Ambrosia cake is the perfect cake to serve on Easter Sunday. It's a rich blend of butter cake, fruit and curd, wrapped in a sweet and light marshmallow coating. Serve this dish  - that's worthy of the gods/

Chinese Cuisine - From Ancient Times To Modern Day

Recently our thought and prayers have turned to China and its' devastating earthquake. This proud , ancient land has survived a lot over the centuries from natural disasters to barbaric regimes. Yet the Chinese maintain the grace to survive and with it their love of their heritage. This heritage includes an amazing history of culinary dishes that people the world over love.

Most Americans have grown up with Chinese restaurants and take out food. I bet a lot of you foodies may not know that four regions make up the bulk of Chinese dishes. They are Szechuan, Canton, Peking and Shanghai.Most Westerners are most familiar with Szechuan and Cantonese dishes. These areas produce the most fruits , vegetables , spice and seafoods in the country. Szechuan is known for its' fiery cuisine thanks to its' native peppercorns. Canton has provided the world with sweet and sour pork as well as chow mein. Peking is known for its duck but also for its' sesame shrimp toast and drunken chicken. Shanghai is known for its' fish dishes but has also given us the delicious bean curd soup.

Anyone can create this cuisine at home. You need a good cast or steel iron wok. There are Teflon and aluminum ones out there at much lesser prices but these really aren't the best choice. You're going to need a heavy duty one that will stand up to oils and heat. Not only will you be able to stir fry but you can also steam rice and warm soups in it as well. Another must is a bamboo steamer. You can steam vegetables and rice in it, and the bamboo imparts a special flavor all its' own to it. A steamer consists of a domed lid and a circular slotted bottom or basket.These come in a variety of sizes so you can easily buy a smaller one if you have very little or no storage space. Most department and specialty shops such as Williams and Sonoma and even some Targets will carry steamers. Another must are good knives for cutting. Chinese dishes tradionally have bite size pieces of meat, tofu and vegtables as opposed to larger stalks or cuts.

Chinese cooking is a noble ancient cuisne. It is rich and varied , bringing together a unique union of meats, seafood and vegetables. It has always been with us and will continue to for future generations of Chinese nationals and foodies alike.