Java Sweet and Hot

Coffee is good and good for you. Hallelujah! I am celebrating with a cup of Poor Richard's blend coffee from Reading Terminal Market. Life is good.

I was so happy to read this article. How much do we love coffee? We love coffee so much that we write songs about coffee. Coffee songs below.

Good to know that our love for that first cup in the morning is not in vain. And that drinking another two or three cups may have health benefits.

The illustration is a vintage tin sign. You can find more signs of this type HERE.

Why Coffee Is Good for You
Kris Gunnars, Authority Nutrition

It is more than just dark-colored liquid with caffeine. Coffee actually contains hundreds of different compounds, some of which have important health benefits.

Several massive studies have now shown that the people who drink the most coffee live longer and have a reduced risk of diseases like Alzheimer’s and diabetes. Read more ..

Rain Gardens with Music

Spring is here. I am ordering Herb Seeds and plotting Flowers. I am planting Milkweed for the Monarch Butterflies this year. I am getting that Happy Green Feeling in spite of the cold outside.

I have learned you can make that boggy place in your yard a thing of beauty and help clean and conserve water by planting a Rain Garden. 

Once planted, such a garden is maintained with little to no effort. And that is good news. Gardening can be hard work.

The woman in the photograph below is teaching a class in Rain Gardens and you can see the perfect sort of location. Find out all the particulars at this link.

"To select a location for a rain garden, begin by observing your yard during a good rainfall. Notice where water is flowing. Rain gardens should ideally be located between the source of runoff (roofs and driveways) and the runoff destination (drains, streams, low spots, etc.)."

The photograph on the right is a rain garden in Philadelphia, designed by Edgar David.

"Rainwater that flows from the house roof to the stone cistern is used to irrigate an intimate collection of woodland plants."

The Philadelphia Water Department has some excellent information about making Rain Gardens. The PWD also has a rain barrel program for those of us who do not have a boggy spot and still want to utilize and help manage rain water runoff. And now it is time for a Spring song by The Velvet Fog.

Tutti Frutti Pie

My Aunt Carrie (rest in peace you Great Cook) made Tutti Frutti Pie often. I was so happy when I found this old recipe in a community cookbook Simpson-Fletcher's Soul Food Recipes.

This pie is delicious and inexpensive. Best of all there is no need for fresh fruit. Pie in the Winter. Pie from the pantry.

Miss Maxie Gaine's Tutti Frutti Cream Pie

1 cup Sugar
2 cups Milk
1 tablespoon Corn Starch
1/8 teaspoon Salt
1 tablespoon Butter
2 Eggs
1 tablespoon Flour
2 tablespoons Sugar
1 cup canned Fruit Cocktail, well drained

Heat one cup Sugar, Milk and Butter together. Make a smooth paste of Flour, Salt and Corn Starch with a little Water. Add this gradually to the heated Milk. Separate Eggs. Beat Yolks well; blend into the Milk mixtures, stirring constantly to keep smooth; cook 5 minutes over low heat until mixture becomes thick. Remove from heat and fold in well drained Fruit Cocktail. Pour into a baked Pie Shell. Beat the Egg Whites until stiff and blend in two tablespoons of Sugar until very smooth. Spoon onto the Pie filling. Place in a 300 degree oven until light brown.

Never Fail Pie Crust
(makes 4 single crusts)

4 cups Flour
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
1 3/4 cup Vegetable Shortening
1 tablespoon Vinegar
1 Egg
1/2 cup Water

Mix Flour, Sugar, and Salt. Cut in the Shortening with a fork or cutting tool (or you could give it a whirl in your food processor for a bit).

In a separate bowl mix Vinegar, Egg, and Water. Add it to the flour mixture, stirring with a fork until moistened. Use your hands to mold into 4 equal balls. The dough may be frozen and thawed for future use. Four frozen homemade pie crusts and four cans of fruit and you do not have to go out in the snow all Winter. 

First Day of Spring 2018

“If winter comes, can spring be far behind?”
- Percy Bysshe Shelley, Ode to the West Wind

Today is the official First Day of Spring. The United Nations declared today is official International Happiness Day.

Humbug! We have a 24 hour Winter Storm Warning In Philadelphia today. Happy Spring all the same. I am planning my garden. It must be Spring.

Jeffrey Koterba is the cartoonist. His blog is HERE.

Polish Dill Pickles

Is there a difference between a Polish Dill Pickle and a Kosher Dill Pickle? No difference, although I think a Polish pickle has much more garlic. I am sure pickle enthusiasts will disagree.

A Kosher or Polish pickle is made without using vinegar, uses a crock or glass jar (with a weight if necessary) to keep the cucumbers submerged in the liquid, and involves lactic acid producing fermentation. 

I was going to type the recipe and then I discovered Danny Mac's Kitchen video. Lots of good suggestions in the comments. Seeing is believing. Making Pickles is easy and you can do it even if you think you cannot cook. After four days of fermentation, you can make Pickle Soup.

There is more than one way to sour a Pickle. A charming Russian Lady gives us her system which includes Lemon and Apple Cider Vinegar. So yummy.

In my house old fashioned winter preparation starts with pickling cucumbers. So enjoy my grandmothers old fashioned Naturally Fermented Kosher Dill Pickles - Рцепт Малосольных Огурцов.

Crochet and the Impatient Woman or Xmas is Coming Sooner than You Think.

I crochet. It is a very soothing occupation. What beginning and/or impatient crocheters (like me) need is simple patterns that work up fast. This impatient crocheter sticks with hats and slippers. These free patterns are the best. I am going to make the Yoda Hat for my son-in-law. Yes, there is a pattern for Baby Yoda hat at the link as well.

This is the easiest fastest slipper pattern I have encountered. And the video is a great tutorial for beginning crocheters. Who does not need cozy TV socks. Warning: No running in slipper socks on slippery floors. I think I will look for a tutorial on how to add nonslip soles. Note: 7 terrific suggestions for making your slippers slip free HERE.

The newest fashion trend is Dog Hats. This video will teach you how to make a small dog hat. Same teacher has tutorials for large/medium dogs as well. Be kind. Some dogs love their new hats. Some dogs hate them. Do not force your dog to wear a hat.

Haitian Mango Pie from Simpson-Fletcher Soul Food Recipes

Tommy Atkins Mangos are in season now. I enjoy a Mango more than a Peach. And I love Peach. We do grow them in the United States. And we import some as well. They make a luscious Pie. You can find some variety of Mango year round.

Haitian Mango Pie

4 cups chopped Mango

1 cup Brown Sugar

1 teaspoon grated Lime Peel

2/3 cup Flour

1/2 cup Lime Juice

1/2 cup Butter

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 unbaked Pie Shell

Combine the Flour, one half of the Sugar, Lime Peel, and Salt with the Butter. Mix until they are like crumbs. Chill. Toss the chopped Mango with Lime Juice and the remaining Sugar. Mix the Mango mixture and pour into the Pie Shell. Sprinkle the chilled sugar crumbs over the fruit, covering well. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees continue baking until crumbs are brown and fruit is tender. 

This divine recipe is from Simpson-Fletcher Soul Food Recipes and Albert the Chef, who also gave us Fish Stuffing.

Never Fail Pie Crust
(makes 4 single crusts)

4 cups flour
1 Tbl sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 3/4 cup vegetable shortening (non trans fat, such as Crisco or other). 

1 Tbl vinegar

1 egg
1/2 cup water

Mix flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the shortening with a fork or cutting tool (or you could give it a whirl in your food processor for a bit).

In a separate bowl mix vinegar, egg, and water. Add it to the flour mixture, stirring with a fork until moistened. Use your hands to mold into 4 equal balls. The dough may be frozen and thawed for future use. 

Salsa Criolla - Comida Latina

This recipe comes from a paperback cookbook Comida Latina published by Center for Latin American Studies at Stanford University.

A covered glass bowl of this condiment appears on the table of every restaurant in the Sierras. And you find it on the counter in every kitchen. This recipe came from Helene and Fredrick Kruger of the School of Earth Sciences.

Salsa Criolla from Peru

Onions, Pepper, Salt
Marjoram or Oregano
Ground Yellow Chili Pepper
Fresh Chilis
Bitter Oranges or Lemons
Olive Oil

Cut Onions in this slices and soak in heavily salted water for 10 to 15 minutes. Rub the onions lightly through the fingers to loosen the rings, then rinse in cold clear water and dry. Place onion rings in a china or glass dish. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and marjoram to taste. Add a pinch or two of ground yellow chili pepper. Cut fresh chilis, without seeds and fiber, into very thin strips. Add to the onions and mix gently. Pour juice of bitter oranges or lemons to barely cover. Set aside for a couple of hours, then add a little olive oil, mix and serve with boiled potatoes, fried fish, salad, etc.

Please Note: Ingredients may be adjusted in amount to suit taste and number of servings. Some add fresh chopped Cilantro or Marjoram to this condiment.

Reading to Cats

This is the feel-good Pennsylvania story of the month. I love cats.

The Animal Rescue League of Berks County PA has a program called “Book Buddies.” Children volunteer to read to sheltered cats. Via Reddit.

Have patience if you go to their website. Everyone is going there for more information, more pictures and to donate to this great program. The boy in the photo thought he was "too dumb" to learn to read. Nope. His reading and grades have improved tremendously. And the cats are finding forever homes. 

Since You've Been Gone Valentine

since you’ve been gone

since you’ve been gone, I’ve been alone.
like an arm without a bone.
dangling limply like a phone that’s out of charge.
like homer without marge.
like an egg without a spoon.
like a dugong on the moon.
like a clownfish without nemo.
like twilight without emo.
like hardy without laurel.
like high ground without the moral.
like disney without walt.
like battery without assault.
like a pet shop without gerbils.
like hitler without goebbels.
like a dilemma without the di,
just a lemma and a sigh.
like déjà without vu,
I am nothing without you.
till the day that you come back,
I’m like whitney without crack.

- Bill Bailey (via acupofpoetry)

Food and Artists

I have an ongoing interest in Food Art. Food Artists continue to redefine the relationship between Art and Food. It is not just about the plate and the table anymore. Or even the advertising business. It seems like a culture shift. We are looking at food itself in new ways.

I thank Providence for visually oriented folks like Ms. Alice Yoo who created Fine Art of Food.  Go there for more images that will startle and amaze.

Fantastic Food Photo Manipulations by Jean Francois De Witte

Incredible Food Landscapes by Carl Warner

Hyperrealistic Food Paintings by Tjalf Sparnaay

English Cottage Pie

This is another recipe from Sadie Dell. She writes:

 “Proper English Cottage Pie is a delicious, very traditional mince pie topped with mashed Potato. Serve with garden or mushy peas.”

Ingredients

1 pound lean ground Beef

1 Onion, diced

3 Carrots, diced

2 tablespoons all-purpose Flour

½ teaspoon ground Nutmeg 

1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning

2 tablespoons chopped fresh Parsley

1 ½ cups Beef Broth

1 tablespoon Tomato Paste

Salt and Pepper to taste

4 Potatoes, peeled and diced

¼ cup Butter, softened

1 cup Milk

Salt and Pepper to taste

¼ pound shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place a large skillet over medium heat. Crumble in ground Beef and saute one minute. Add Onion and Carrot and continue to saute until Meat is no longer pink and Onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes.

Mix in Flour, Nutmeg, mixed Herbs and Parsley. In a small bowl, combine Beef Broth and Tomato Paste. Mix together and then add to the Beef mixture. Add Salt and Pepper to taste. Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until almost all of liquid has been absorbed. Spoon the mixture into a 9 inch pie plate.

Place diced potatoes in a medium saucepan. Cover with water and boil until potatoes are tender. Drain. Mash Potatoes until smooth, and then add Butter and Milk. Whip until fluffy. Add Salt and Pepper to taste. Spread potatoes over Beef filling. Sprinkle with Cheddar Cheese. Bake for 25 minutes until top is browned and Cheese is bubbly.

Beautiful Soup So Rich and Green

BEAUTIFUL Soup, so rich and green,
Waiting in a hot tureen!
Who for such dainties would not stoop?
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
- by Lewis Carroll

January is National Soup Month. I love soup both hot and cold. The soup recipe below had its start with a recipe by Poppy Cannon in Eating European at Home and Abroad published by Doubleday in 1961. I altered it to suit our family. Poppy Cannon (August 2, 1905 - April 1975) was at various times the food editor of the Ladies Home Journal and House Beautiful.

Perhaps best known for her books on food, Miss Cannon was also the author of 2,000 magazine articles on a variety of topics, and wrote newspaper columns ranging from fashion and travel to race relations as well as poetry and fiction. Read more...

Emeril LaGasse makes this Portugese soup with linguica sausage added. I have tried that and my children like this Vegan version better.

Ingredients for Caldo Verde Soup:

6 Potatoes
4 tablespoons Olive Oil
¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
1 tablespoon Salt
1 Dried Hot Pepper (optional)
4 cups shredded Greens (Kale or Turnip are especially good)
2-6 cloves fresh Garlic
2 quarts Water

Wakame finely shredded with scissors (optional and to taste)

Peel and slice the potatoes. Cover with water and add olive oil and peeled garlic cloves, and cook until tender. Remove the Hot Pepper. Mash the potatoes and garlic in the broth. Add salt and pepper. Then add 4 cups shredded fresh greens or one large package of frozen greens and the wakame if using it. I almost always use frozen because it’s faster than shredding fresh greens and the results are good. Cook for an hour or until the greens are tender.

Note: If you are cooking for dedicated hot food haters, make Caldo Verde without the hot pepper and serve Louisiana hot sauce or Tabasco as a condiment. Ms. Cannon writes that this soup may be made with a combination of cabbage and spinach. I found that combination insipid. She also does not include garlic. I don’t think she would recognize my version but I must thank her for the fabulous start.

And to those who know and love Lewis Carroll as much as I, please forgive the poetic license and quotation wantonness. I know the soup spoken of was Turtle, Mock Turtle.

The Other French Onion Soup

It is icy and cold in Philadelphia. I want hot comforting soup. January is National Soup Month so I am republishing this easy Soup recipe.

This onion and cheese soup is simple to make, really tasty, and does not require any special cooking skill at all.  The quantity is infinitely expandable, just maintain the proportion of  equal weights of onion to potato. Serves 2 to 4 people.

3 large potatoes
3 large onions
8 ounces Swiss Cheese (quantity to taste)
Garnish of Minced Celery Tops

Peel onions and potatoes and place them in a deep soup pot. Be generous about removing outer layers of onion that are too tough to cook. Add enough water to cover the vegetables plus one inch above them. Bring water to a boil, then turn down and simmer until onions and potatoes are very soft. Grate the cheese. Mash the vegetables in their own broth when tender. Season with Salt and Pepper. Stir the cheese into the hot soup and serve. Garnish with minced celery tops.

Note: Do not overcook or it will be glue. Cook only until the vegetables can be pierced with a fork. You want some texture in your soup.

You may wish to substitute another cheese or garnish (minced parsley, bacon bits, etc.).  I prefer the combination above, as taught me by an elderly French woman whose surname I never learned. She was Madame Sophie always. A little green salad and some good bread and I feel a happy well fed person.

White Deviled Chicken

This dish is from Virginia and is of British origin. I found the recipe in Nika Hazelton's American Home Cooking. This out of print cookbook is a selection of recipes from all regions of the United States. I would never part with my copy.

Ms. Hazelton was an expatriate from England who married an American. This cookbook of hers is not just an exercise in ego. Every recipe works.

She published 30 books and they reflected her firm, no-nonsense taste in food. "American Home Cooking" (Bobbs Merrill, 1967), "French Home Cooking" (Viking Penguin, 1979,) "International Cookbook" (Harper & Row, 1967) and "The Italian Cookbook (Henry Holt, 1979) remain standards. Read more...

DEVILed Chicken

Here are the Ingredients - To Devil Four Servings:

3 cups 1/2 inch cooked chicken pieces, white meat only
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco or to taste
salt
freshly ground pepper
hot buttered toast

Place the chicken in a generously buttered 1 1/2 quart baking dish, the dish should not be too deep. Whip the cream until stiff. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, Tabasco, and a little salt and pepper. Spoon mixture over the chicken. Cook in a preheated hot oven (400 degrees) for ten minutes. Serve immediately on hot plates, with hot buttered toast.

Do this dish for company. So elegant. More than worth the trouble to whip the cream. It is divine. Even though it is also Deviled.

Date Pie

This Pie recipe comes from Simpson-Fletcher's Soul Food Recipes. Seems like the perfect Pie for Winter when there is no fresh native Fruit.

Dates have been a staple food of the Middle East and the Indus Valley for thousands of years. Date Palms are believed to have originated around Iraq, and have been cultivated since ancient times from Mesopotamia to prehistoric Egypt, possibly as early as 4000 BCE.

Miss Melvina Price's Date Pie

1 cup chopped Dates
3/4 cup of Sugar
2 Eggs, separated
1/2 cup chopped Pecans
1 cup Butter
1/4 cup Milk
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1 unbaked Pie Crust

Cream Butter and Sugar together until light and fluffy. Add beaten Egg Yolks. Blend in milk. Beat well. Stir in Pecans and Dates. Beat Egg Whites until stiff. and fold into the Date mixture. Bake at 350 degrees until set and browned. This Pie is good served with Whipped Cream, Ice Cream, or Custard Sauce.

Clark Gable's Coconut Squares

This rich bar cookie comes from Corinne Griffith's cookbook Eggs I Have Known. Clark had a habit of stopping by Corinne's after a night on the town for these cookies. I learn the most amazing things in old cookbooks. 

Clark Gable's Favorite Coconut Squares

1 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter

Mix flour, butter and sugar together thoroughly. Press into a 9x9 square pan like a thick pie crust. Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

While the above is baking mix the following:

2 eggs, beaten slightly
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 box coconut (1 and 1/4 cups)
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup chopped nuts (toasted almonds are wonderful)

Spread on top of the baked mixture. Bake at for 20 minutes at 325 degrees. Please Note: a lower oven temperature to get the best results.

Auntie Cherry's Painless History:

Clark Gable, the quintessential movie star, served his country in WWII. You can find more about Clark Gable and Corinne Griffith the Movie Stars at Wikipedia. If you go there, give some money (a fiver even) to keep this fine site up:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clark_Gable

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinne_Griffith

Treats for Doggos

“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.” ― Will Rogers

I love my dog. She is my baby and that is her name Baby. I fuss over her because she fusses over me. I make her these treats from Sadie Dell. Baby will not eat any other kind of dog treat.

Sadie Dell's Dog Biscuits

2 and 1/4 cups Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup powdered Milk
1 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 Egg
6 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
8 to 10 tablespoons Water
2 small jars of strained Baby Food (beef, chicken, lamb or liver)

Mix all the ingredients together and knead for 3 minutes. Roll out 1/2 inch thick. Using a dog bone shaped cookie cutter or the baby food jar, cut biscuits and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven set at 350 degrees.for 20 to 25 minutes. Makes about 2 dozen doggie biscuits.

Jasmine Liqueur and Organic Rum

We entertain more in the Winter Holiday Season and we go to more parties. I like to bring a unique hostess gift and make interesting new cocktails. So I am repeating this.

Corporate distillers use additives that ordinary folks would not use, if we made our own spirits. An excellent cookbook which has a chapter on home liqueur making is Spoonbread and Strawberry Wine. Making liqueur at home used to be common in American life as this scene from Arsenic and Old Lace attests:

Greenbar Organic Distillery makes their own Vodka, Gin, Tequila, Liqueurs and Bitters without additives, using classic distillery techniques and all organic ingredients.

A bottle of anything Greenbar makes would be a welcome hostess gift. I have nothing to gain from any transaction you make with Greenbar beyond the success of the company. Quality counts.

TRU Jasmine Martini                                 

Ingredients:

1 1/4 oz TRU vodka
1 oz FRUITLAB jasmine liqueur
1/4 oz simple syrup

Glass Types: (Martini/Coupe)

Instructions:

Shake + strain into a martini glass
Garnish with an edible flower

Happy Holidays! 
Joy to the world.

Best Party Meatballs

No matter how elegant a buffet I turn out, these delicious bites are always the first to be consumed. Mildred Albert did everything well. And her recipe for Sweet and Sour Meatballs is an example of her culinary and social talents.

MILDRED ELIZABETH LEVINE ALBERT

1905 – 1991

BibliographyDiscuss

by Sara Alpern

“M.A.” and “The Mighty Atom,” as Mildred Albert was called, charmed the fashion world as an international fashion consultant, lecturer, columnist, and radio and television personality.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Makes 75 to 85 Meatballs

1 clove Garlic, minced

2 pounds ground Beef
2 Eggs
3 tablespoons Chili Sauce
2 tablespoons dried Parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Pepper, divided
1 quart (32 ounces) cocktail Vegetable Juice (V8)
1 box (1 pound) light Brown Sugar
1 cup white Vinegar
3 cloves Garlic, halved
30 prunes, pitted

Mash minced Garlic with ground Beef, Eggs, Chili Sauce, Parsley flakes, Salt and 1/4 teaspoon Pepper. Shape the mixture into 75 to 85 meatballs.

Combine Vegetable Juice, Brown Sugar, Vinegar, split Garlic cloves, and remaining Pepper. Bring the sauce mixture to a boil.

Drop Meatballs into the Juice mixture. Reduce heat to low. Cook at a low simmer for 40 minutes. Add prunes to the sauce and cook 30 minutes more. 

Drain off most, but not all, of the sauce before putting meatballs and prunes into a chafing dish. Serve hot with toothpicks.

Note: 
Make these a day ahead, refrigerate and skim fat from surface before serving. I find if I use a very lean grind of meat, there is hardly any fat.  I also add 1/4 cup of very fine dry bread crumbs to this mixture. It makes a difference if you use fresh parsley. However, both are optional and to your taste. You can increase the recipe to 115 to 125 meatballs by adding 1 more pound of ground Beef to make a total of 3 pounds. But be sure to leave the sauce ingredients as they are. Do not increase the liquid. Use exactly one quart.