Too Many Veggies

The summer gives us some amazing harvests.That means we have endless bushels of tomatoes ,corn and peppers along with anything else veggie.Yet what happens when we over buy or over pick? What can be done with all this bounty. Julia Moskin wondered the same thing in yesterday's New York Times Dining section.She wrote about what happens when there are too many veggies in the kitchen or pantry.Most adults only eat less than half of the produce they buy or harvest themselves. the rest usually rots or gets thrown away.This should not be the case. Cook veggies and then store.They make excellent toppings for pizza or pastas.You can also use them in salads too. How to make veggies fly. Go wild and mix them with oils, salts and butter.These are the ingredients that make peppers and onions tasty for all ages.You can also cook cooked veggies into all sorts of dishes.Ms.Moskin has an excellent recipe for a leek and summer vegetable fritter.This combines healthy combos such as leeks ,as wells carrots and peas in a crunchy buttery fried puff which is served with a lemon cream dip. Another idea is turning cooked veggies into a kind of relish such as caramelized onions mixed with peppers and tomatoes as a topping for burgers. Extra veggies in the fridge? Not to worry .Use them for innovative dishes that will make summer dining fun.It's a great way of eating healthy and fun.

Welcome Sprouts!!!

The New York Times Dining section has a brand new and interesting column called Sprouts.It's all about teaching kids to not only eat healthy but cook healthy as well.The column now written by Elaine Louie will be a godsend to those parents who want to introduce their kids to the love of good food and good cooking. The first article is all about a subject dear to my heart - polenta.This is a tricky food to introduce to kids.Little ones through teens are not always happy with this corm mash because it's too mushy or served with meats and sauces that kids detest.This one is different. The recipe is by the chef of the famed Manhattan restaurant Toqueville,Marco Moreira and his ten year old daughter Francesca.It is an easy recipe that involves a yummy blend of polenta and butter along with Parmesan and topped with a simple pomodoro sauce. Anyone would love this as a dinner or even a simple Saturday lunch. In the upcoming months Sprouts will have interesting interviews with chefs and their children. The focus will not just be on young foodies but also good vegetarian eating with easy recipes.Also cookbook authors and restauranteurs along with their offspring will weigh in with all sorts of dishes and opinions. I like the accompanying recipes that come with Sprouts. They're very kid friendly with a strong emphasis on kitchen safety. Each step tells who should do what , the adult or the child.This is a great way of introducing kids to all aspects of cooking, from prep to the actual process. Sprouts is opening a new chapter in the Dining section history.Elaine Louie recognizes that children need to learn not only how to cook but how to eat healthy.It's a great way of turning the next generation into conscientious foodies.

Summer Wines

Most people eschew wines in the summer. They feel that a good beer or mixed drink goes better with  barbecue or pool party fare. However this is not true. There are plenty of good vintages that are excellent with grilled meats or salads. It's just a matter of picking the right one.

Barbecues consist of grilling mostly red meats. Everything from thick juicy steaks to quarter pounders are served. A great mate to these , even for burgers is a red Zinfandel. It's a bold zesty wine that compliments the meat's flavor with it's acidity and pepperiness. Another that works well with ribs and chicken is a Merlot.Its' fruitiness complements both beef and poultry. If you're serving fish or burgers then open a bottle of Pinot Noir.. Other good reds are Shiraz which goes well with saucy barbecues. If you're serving shrimp or grilled veggies then think about the German white Reisling.

Even wines can go well with salads.If you're making the ultra chic salad Nicoise then think about pairing it with a crisp Sauvignon Blanc It'll hold up well with the brininess of the anchovies and the tuna and the acidity of the tomatoes.It can also be great with a delicate seafood salad too A chicken Caesar salad calls for sweet Beaujolais. This wine is an extremely food friendly kind so you could also try it with a Cobb or chef salad.Spinach salad , a summer fave, can go with another popular one, the Pouilly Fume .It's gooseberry and smoky taste works well with th espinach leaves muskiness.Also try it with a Muscadet too.

Don;t be afraid to serve wine with your summer meals.Any bottle is perfect with a delicious grilled meat or cool salad. Try one to liven up warm weather dining and to bring out the flavors of good cooking.

Provincial Picnics

Summer is the time for picnics.It's always fun to eat en pleine air as the French would say and what better than to add a Gallic twist to a fun outing.There's nothing like a baguette stuff ed with good meats and cheese, along with crudites. Add some cider or sparkling water , bring pillows and have une pique-nique worthy of Provence.

Sandwiches are a must for any picnic. Bring a crusty , light baguette instead of the usual boring white bread. it's delicious when cut into long slices and slaterhered with pate and cornichons. If you cant;get a good pate, sub in liverwurst mixed with a little brandy. You can also spoon tuna in olive oil on slices as well for a kind of Nicoise . Also layer on sliced roasted peppers and tomatoes and some olives too. Another treat is pissaladeire  Provencal pizza. This is usually premade but you can take an already made focaccio and top with chopped anchovies andblack olives along with  , caramelized onions that can be quicky made that morning.

Salad and fruit are vital parts of any good French picnic.  You can make a simple salad with a classic vinaigrette but instead of olive oil, try walnut oil or huille de noille. It's very popular in Southwestern France and usually drizzled over endive and Crumbled Roquefort cheese. Provence also yields up the famed salade Nicoise which is chock full of tuna and anchovies along with a host of veggies and greens. Fruit and cheese are musts and nicely finish off a piqué nique. Try cold plums or sliced strawberries. You can serve both with a creamy Brie or Camembert along with crackers. you even top the berries with the Brie. A French style picnic is a great way to celebrate the warm weather. Pack a few baguettes ,some anchovies or pate , fruit and a good creamy cheese.These are the perfect foods for a summer outing .Their flavors are reminiscent of a lovely meal in a beautiful country.

Plums Rediscovered

There's nothing that says summer quite like a plump juicy plum. It's flavor is sweeter than any candy and it;s just fun to bite into. Another version of it, the prune is another great treat(don't smirk, it really is!)

I love plums any time of year, but especially now during the hot weather. I think it;s because of my grandfather planted a plum tree in our backyard and every summer we had deep purple Italian plums. These are smaller than the ones we get today in the supermarket but just as sweet. To me they were better than any ice cream or cookie.They still are. There's nothing like a chilled one for dessert with iced tea or seltzer.Better yet plums don't need embellishment like cream as strawberries do or be dipped in caramel like apples and pears. Because their taste is just perfectly satisfying, they're just good on their own. One caveat though, once you eat one, you'll want another.They can be a bit strong on the stomach  but that's it.

Dried plums or prunes are another treat. Yes, they are used as a laxative and are the drink of choice by most old people. Yet the taste is like that of a ripe plum, sweet, mellow and earthy. Surprisingly one famed soft drink is made with prune juice  and that is Dr. Pepper. You can make your own with eighty percent juice to twenty percent (just a splash ) of seltzer. The taste is the same without all the extra added corn syrup. Another treat is Sunsweet, Plum Bits. Sunsweet has long been the distributor of prunes and has even campagined to change the name to dried plums. They;ve come up with an addictive snack - dried plum but dipped in dark chocolate. These are the greatest and one of the most healthiest treats for you.Instead of reaching for other candies have these.A bag will be gone in a day.

Instead of the usual summer berries and melons try plums and prunes instead. They are a wonderful treat whether in fruit or juice form for a summer day.Rediscover their earthy, sweetness as a true warm weather snack.


Happy Bastille Days to all my French and francophile fooie readers. Bon fete toute le personne!

Apple Update

Is there anything more perfect than an apple.It's not only sweet and delicious  but full of vitamins and antioxidants. Unfortunately there are some people who don't think that way . They want to alter and genetically change it? Why? Because after millennia of being accepted the way it is , scientists want it to improve it.

This was the subject of an article in today's New York Times Business section. The piece written by Andrew Pollack tells of scientists want to create an apple that doesn't spoil. Doing this requires genetic modification. On one level it would be perfect. People usually buy only one or two apples nowadays for fear of buying several will result in rotten fruit. An apple that keeps its'' freshness means more shoppers will buy more of the fruit, Since apple sales have fallen in the past few years this is a boon to the industry.

Yet it raises the question of genetic alteration. Despite this(and let's face it every kind of food stuff either gets stale or turns brown) the apple is fine left alone. Alter the fruit does change its' taste. it loses that sweet mellowness that makes it tasty. The same is becoming true with corn. There are now varieties of corn that have had their gene sequence rearranged. It results in a super maize however it also makes for a relatively tasteless ear. This is also happening with some strains of squash and tomatoes. These supposedly have a stronger flavor plus more antioxidants in them. I'd like to taste test them to believe these claims.

Should we allow our food to be tampered with? Personally no. I think our fruits and veggies are fine the way they are. I prefer my apples. at 2.0 not 9.0

Zucchini Flowers A Tasty Summer Treat

This is the time of year when zucchini plants are in full blossom.Gardens and even farmers' markets are showing these delicate bright orange blooms.They're an interesting and delicious addition to any summer table. Melissa Clark highlighted them in her A Good Appetite Column in yesterday's New York Times Dining section. Gourmets and Northern Italians have been cooking them for years.They were and are big part of my summer eating .Our family usually makes them two ways ,breaded and fried in butter or dipped in a delicate crepe batter and then fried, again in butter until they are crispy.Ms .Clark serves them raw in a salad or stuffed with mozzarella cheese. Either way is good .Raw squash flowers have a fragile taste ,sweet and slight Y herbal.Their stems are like arugula,spicier with a slight bite.The dressing should be Light.I'm thinking of a simple vinaigrette with just olive oil and red wine vinegar.The other way is fried and stuffed with a kind of mozzarella called bur rata.This is made from buffalo milk and has a creamy inside.Ms. Clark adds anchovies for a briny contrast along with garlic.The blooms are then deep fried in olive oil and Sprinkled with coarse sea salt. Squash flowers are a lovely and colorful addition to a summer table.Experience their delicacy in salads or stuffed and fried.Either way you'll fall for these bright,summery blossoms bursting with flavor.