Strawberry Dipping Sunday

In honor of the feast of Saint Valentine, I couldn't resist having a little chocolate. What better way to eat what some people believe is their daily dose of heaven, then on a big ripe red strawberry!

They were hard to resist in their unadorned state...

and even harder after they were dipped! Saved for a bit later & Sunday dinner dessert, hopefully. They may not make it past "I had you at hello".

But one last thought which absolutely cannot go without mention. What do you think of when you see a big, red, ripe strawberry?

One of our family's favorite children's books and a story I think of each and every time I bite into a sweet juicy strawberry! Can't wait...yummmm.

Picked Pounds

Just to finish up like we finished it off, the Lobster Dip of Christmas 2011 readable recipe follows plus a few more shots of the process.

The picking was done quickly and efficiently by my sons Peter & John. Experts at this point in their lives and knowing it's O.K. to sample the fare, they volunteered! That was fine with me because all traditions must eventually be passed down in families. Along with picking came Lobster Dip Cooking lessons.

Too bad we don't use the shells like my Mother's neighbor used to do. I have tried to find an easy way to make a Lobster gravy as she called it but no luck thus far. If anyone knows how, please let me know!

Fast forward, my old camera just couldn't do the cooking lesson segment any justice.

Recipe for Carlee's Christmas Lobster Dip

3 tbls. margarine (yes, we used it)

3 tbls. flour

1 1/2 ups of lowfat milk (you can make it richer if you'd like)

3 inch square block of Cheddar cheese, grated

Good shake of onion powder (isn't this how all good cooks measure?)

Good shake of garlic powder

2 tbls. of Heinz Chili Sauce

Worcestershire Sauce, a medium shake

2 tbls. Sherry Cooking Wine

2 lbs. of picked lobster meat!

Melt margarine slowly in large sauce pan and stir in the flour gradually. Add milk immediately but slowly as the mixture simmers, stirring constantly on very low heat. Add grated cheese, add a drop or two more milk if the sauce gets too thick too soon.

Add spices, when cheese has melted, add chili sauce a bit at a time - see above, the end product is not too red. (This even looks too colorful but that was just the lighting). Add the dash of Worcestershire, stir and stir! Add the Sherry....and finally the seafood. 

Continue to simmer to reduce milk and let flavors mingle. Don't be afraid to add a drop of one ingredient or another after taste testing. Yes, taste it!!!!!! Then, before serving, let the dip cool a bit... we use our old electric warming dish that has been in the family for 40 years worth of Lobster Dip Service. This dish could probably make the dip itself on auto pilot.

Serve with plain Melba Toast.

Lobster Dip Anticipation

Every year around this time we look forward to the Bonney family traditional Carlee's Christmas Lobster Dip! I am going to go ahead and post this story because I have already had a few calls asking for the recipe. I will follow up when the dip is ready to serve and we are ready to dive in, Melba Toast in hand!

It all started here. Ye Yacht Yard in Southport, CT. So many memories. From bluefish fisherman to lobster fisherman, my father, an old salt, lived for his time at the boat yard. He brought his 4 children down here to play on the rocks, walk the plank down to the dock at low tide and cast for snappers off the rocks. It was heaven on earth.

He loved the water to say the least. That trait runs in my veins and my siblings' as well. He became an avid lobster fisherman at some point and the rest is history. Bait barrels-smelly as can be, homemade lobster pots and ropes, and buoys and knitted bait traps. Our garage growing up was amuck!!!!!!

But his hobby was endearing and we were proud, plus others thought the same! Once there was a segment on a local television station and my dad was the star. Of course, I saved the old VCR and had it made into a CD with a cover I designed pictured here. (have it still if anyone wants a copy!!)

The business card was another design I did, yet B.C. – before computers as I say. I still love lettering by hand! The saying, "You take the best. We eat the rest" was one we used often.  If you know lobsters, they aren't always 2 clawed perfect specimens! Bullets (no claws) or Culls (one claw only) were brought home for the family. Christmas with extended family was a perfect time to share!

A class to get me back up and running in the graphic design world in the 90's produced this tribute to both my mother & father. Quite a feat back then. Learning Illustrator, Photoshop and more in one semester was fun but scary! (this first project I don't consider good art at all) but it preserved a feeling, a story and a recipe that I have been able to share time and time again.

One of the old original, wooden handmade lobster pots lives on. My sun porch has a lobster pot coffee table that is topped with glass from the old Bonney Electric window (broken from a break in!!) and clearly shows the inner workings of a pot, an identification number and some good dust it has collected.
Memories can get dusty too but if you brush them off, it sometimes hurts and sometimes feels good.

Traditions feel good...so here's to looking forward to our Carlee's Christmas Lobster Dip this year.

Thanksgiving Treat

This holiday we wanted a few different side dishes. Corn on the Cob, grilled and Brussels Sprouts au Gratin were the winners. Have you ever seen the whole stalk of sprouts? It is fun, they are fresh for sure and made for some fun photo opportunities.

It is a 2 foot long unique but awkward stem of these little cabbages.

Here they are cleaned of outer leaves and broken off their stem.

And the barren stalk remains.

Grilled corn, the roasted sprouts, other sides, wine & candlelight. It was a bountiful and blessed feast. Again, I am very thankful for everything.

Brussels Sprouts Au Gratin Recipe

Prepare the sprouts. Peel off outer leaves and cut the stem on each. Slice in half and arrange on a cookie sheet with sides to prevent rolling sprouts! Drizzle and massage with olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt & pepper. Roast for approx. 1/2 hour @ 350 or until sprouts are just slightly tender. Don't over cook these little gems...they can become bitter if overcooked.  Remove, Put into a covered baking dish and sprinkle with parmesan. This can all be done in advance! Roast again covered in 350 oven until warm and serve immediately...and enjoy them!

Where's the Boeuf?

This week I made the dish made famous by a blog...or a movie...but actually by Julia herself. I inherited Julia Child's book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking from my great aunt. It is an early edition dated April 1965. I wish it was a first edition!!

I think the first time I was truly aware of such a thing as a "blog" was while watching the movie Julie & Julia in 2009. I rushed home to pull out my book, look up the recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon and try it myself. Since then, I have made quite a few batches of this rich, savory stew and have obviously now started a blog myself!

Following the recipe almost exactly, the whole process takes 3-4 hours. A labor of love.

Frying the bacon, browning the meat. (important-dry the meat first!!)

Browning the onion and carrots.

Adding the essential spices, broth and wine & cooking at a low heat for 3 hours...

And finally, the next day, boiling the potatoes and spooning the tender, tasty concoction atop. A sprinkle of Parmesan and time to enjoy.

The recipe taken from the book follows. More steps than I have photographed but believe me, take the time to do it all, it is well worth the effort.

Boeuf Bourguignon

Recipe created by Julia Child

As is the case with most famous dishes, there are more ways than one to arrive at a good boeuf bourguignon. Carefully done, and perfectly flavored, it is certainly one of the most delicious beef dishes concocted by man, and can well be the main course for a buffet dinner. Fortunately you can prepare it completely ahead, even a day in advance, and it only gains in flavor when reheated.

Vegetable and Wine Suggestions
Boiled potatoes are traditionally served with this dish. Buttered noodles or steamed rice may be substituted. If you also wish a green vegetable, buttered peas would be your best choice. Serve with the beef a fairly full-bodied, young red wine, such as Beaujolais, Côtes du Rhône, Bordeaux-St. Émilion, or Burgundy.

Servings: Serves 6

Ingredients

·      9- to 10-inch, fireproof casserole dish , 3 inches deep

·      Slotted spoon

·      6 ounces bacon

·      1 Tbsp. olive oil or cooking oil

·      3 pounds lean stewing beef , cut into 2-inch cubes

·      1 sliced carrot

·      1 sliced onion

·      1 tsp. salt

·      1/4 tsp. pepper

·      2 Tbsp. flour

·      3 cups full-bodied, young red wine , such as a Chianti

·      2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon

·      1 Tbsp. tomato paste

·      2 cloves mashed garlic

·      1/2 tsp. thyme

·      Crumbled bay leaf

·      Blanched bacon rind

·      18 to 24 small white onions , brown-braised in stock

·      1 pound quartered fresh mushrooms , sautéed in butter

·      Parsley sprigs

Directions

Remove rind from bacon, and cut bacon into lardons (sticks, 1/4 inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts of water. Drain and dry.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Remove rind from bacon, and cut bacon into lardons (sticks, 1/4 inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts of water. Drain and dry.

Sauté the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you sauté the beef.

Dry the stewing beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Sauté it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.

In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sautéing fat.

Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole, and turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Stir in the wine, and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers
very slowly for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.

When the melt is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat.

Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. Recipe may be completed in advance to this point.

For immediate serving: Covet the casserole and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in its casserole, or arrange the stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles, or rice, and decorated with parsley.

For later serving: When cold, cover and refrigerate. About 15 to 20 minutes before serving, bring to the simmer, cover, and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.

Green Tomato Relish

The season is basically done. Time to harvest the green tomatoes and tend to the garden...still dripping with withered tomatoes, plants drying up and too many cool nights to expect anything more. Sad to see it end but excited to try the old family recipe for Green Tomato Relish!

Let me just start with the fact I have been meaning to make this relish for maybe...30 years? It was an old favorite and I believed I was not capable. See here the old recipe card, splattered and used many times. I decided this was the year to go out on a limb and just DO IT. How could I fail?

Slicing and salting...easy enough, right?

Cooking the tomatoes and onions, sterilizing jars, adding spices, boiling, filling jars, sterilizing again, phew! I was beat.

But the label was my time to shine. I had a grand old time making the tag. We taste tested one jar and it was just as we remembered. Carlee knew how to cook, and she taught me to never be afraid of trying new things! Her passion for cooking, sharing and life is what I aspire to daily!

Recipe for Green Tomato Relish

3 lbs. Green Tomatoes
4-6 Onions
1/2 cup salt
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 quart cider vinegar
 

Seasoning: 2 tblsp. cracked cinnamon
& 4 cloves (in a cheesecloth bag)
1 tblsp. dry mustard
1 1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tblsp. celery seed
1 tblsp. cayenne 

Slice & soak in salt green tomatoes &
onions overnight. Drain. Bring brown
sugar & vinegar to a boil with spices
and bag of spices. Add tomaoes, onions.
Lower heat and cook approx. 20 minutes
or until tomatoes are tender.

Follow professional instructions for jarring
produce, but simply....buy pint jars with
canning lids. Boil jar and lids separately.
Por hot tomato mixture into sterilized jars.
Wipe lids, seal with tops. Boil again 10 min.
for pint sized jars. Cool overnight.

Seaglass Sunday Summer Wrap Up!

Better late than never. Before we get even further into the fall season, I wanted to show a few moments of Summer 2011. It was a wonderful. Gardening, beach days, tomato harvesting and more.....

 The summer's haul. Soon to be organized into bowls and vases.

  Tomato in the tree??? Squirrels are quite clever.

The Pandora Shell collection.

Summer Salads.

Shell and driftwood collections on display.

While I dug in the garden, Sally dug in the yard!

Tomatoes runneth over. And over.....

Gardens survived, came into their own and filled in nicely by September.

 AND, I signed up for a watercolor class this fall.

So is this Indian Summer? Not yet! When the weather is sunny, clear and warm and after we have had the first killing frost...then we can claim a day like this to be an "Indian Summer" day. Today finally felt like the season has changed though...a brisk breeze off the water, a few falling leaves yet a warm sun. Just wonderful!

And the Tomatoes Keep Coming

We were fortunate to have our plants survive the wrath of Irene...and they are still quite prolific! What to do with so many ripe tomatoes? Give some away and keep cooking!

This is a cold salad my daughter has made a few times. When I say we have tomatoes, I really mean we are inundated!!! Here, we have the Beet, Tomato and Feta Salad.

Steamed beets, fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, a good piece of feta (not the crumbled kind!), red onion sliced extremely thin, olive oil, sea salt and pepper. This photo was taken before we folded the mixture together, creating a pink feta look. Delicious, fresh and no need to prepare hours before. This one can be served immediately!

And the next night, it was baked stuffed tomatoes! I chopped the top off my next in line ripened tomatoes and hollowed out the insides with a small melon scoop. With the chopped insides into a bowl I added fresh basil of course, Quattro Formagio blend from Trader Joe's and a very small amount of olive oil. I seasoned the hollowed out tomatoes with sea salt and coarsely ground pepper....and scooped the tomato mixture into each awaiting tomato bowl.

Topped each with a good dose of panko bread crumbs....and then baked them at 350 until they looked a little toasty!

So good... as the roasting brings out the sweetness of the tomatoes! The insides are hot, be careful! We served with fish and some great, oversized stuffed clams from a local fish market. Friday seems to be our fish night. Some traditions live on forever.