Dec 30

The Christmas Cookbook Haul

I got three cookbooks this year. One is a memoir with recipes, the other two are conventional cookbooks.

Unforgettable: The Bold Flavors of Paula Wolfert’s Renegade Life, by Emily Kaiser Thelin. This is the memoir with recipes, and has a poignant story behind it. Thelin (along with Andrea Nguyen) decided that Wolfert’s story needed to be told. Thelin and Nguyen started a Kickstarter campaign to get the book published. Wolfert is dealing with dementia, and the book cuts between past and present. The book is a true labor of love.

The Malaysian Kitchen, by Christina Arokiaswamy. In an earlier post, I joked that my ancestors took the Mayflower the long way to Plymouth Rock through Southeast Asia. They may have stopped in Malaysia along with Vietnam. Many of the recipes use ingredients that are easy to find (in Seattle, at least).

Pok Pok: The Drinking Food of Thailand, by Andy Ricker with J.J. Goode. Pok Pok is the go-to Thai restaurant in Portland. (One of my coworkers spent an hour on line earlier this week to eat dinner there.) Ricker highlights the food that goes along with alcoholic beverages in Thailand. Some of my friends would have to be very drunk to try some of these dishes, e.g., pork brains grilled in banana leaves. There are a few more accessible dishes that don’t require heavy inebriation.

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Dec 25

White Christmas at Casa Sammamish

The Seattle area has not seen a white Christmas since the weeklong snowstorm of 2008. This was when our neighbors turned our street into a sled run for the annual Candy Cane Lane festivities.You can see pictures on Julian’s Zenfolio site. The then-Seattle mayor graded his handling of snow removal on the streets as a B. The voters of Seattle thought otherwise and voted him out of office the following year – during the primary.

The snow started falling yesterday during the Seahawks-Cowboys game. I was too busy chopping up and roasting vegetables to notice until just before we left for the annual Christmas Eve dinner-white elephant gift exchange. We took Julian’s car and made it to our friends’ house. After living in that neighborhood for 10 years, I knew the least steep way to get there. A fine time was had by all. Julian got a crafts with cat hair book, while I got a Rosie the Riveter action figure. We went back the way we came, without drama.

The snow was still around when I got up this morning. With luck, it will be gone before I have to go to work tomorrow. Merry Christmas!

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/12/25/white-christmas-at-casa-sammamish/

Dec 25

Bad Taxidermy

This critter was seen in a store in one of the passages in Paris last week. For some reason, Paris has several shops that specialize in taxidermy. One of these shops is on the chichi Boulevard de Saint-Germain.

A wolf-raptor cross???

I may not have made it to veterinary school, but I think this animal is along the lines of the jackalope.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/12/25/bad-taxidermy/

Dec 23

Quintessential Cookbooks

I was looking at the cookbook shelves this morning and thought about what I’d deem as the seminal cookbooks of each decade. Each choice had to sum up the food zeitgeist. Some decades were easier than others. Discussion is welcome.

1950’s: The Betty Crocker Picture Cookbook. My mother’s copy of this cookbook is in tatters, she used it so much. I think my sister has it now. I bought a facsimile copy about 20 years ago. The recipes bridge the frugality of the Depression and World War II with the prosperity of the postwar era.

1960’s: Mastering the Art of French Cooking, by Julia Child, Simone Beck, and Louisette Bertholle. This was an easy  choice, even though I didn’t get a copy of it until many years later. (I was a child then, what do you expect?) This book shook America from its convenience food torpor and toward a higher plane of cooking.

1970’s: This decade wound up in a tie between Diet for a Small Planet, by Frances Moore Lappé, and The Vegetarian Epicure, by Anna Thomas. Lappé laid down the philosophical basis for eating less meat, while Thomas made going vegetarian palatable. Many of my college friends have both of these books to this day. Honorable mention goes to The Moosewood Cookbook, by Mollie Katzen, because of my time in Ithaca; however, I preferred the long-defunct Cabbagetown Café and its cookbooks by Julie Jordan.

1980’s: The Silver Palate Cookbook, by Sheila Lukens and Julee Rosso. Break out the power suits with shoulder pads and whip up some chicken Marbella. (Confession: I never made chicken Marbella until about 10 years ago.) Raspberry vinegar, a 1980’s ingredient if there ever was one, also figures prominently in the recipes.

1990’s: Taste, by David Rosengarten. This probably seems like an obscure choice to some, but hear me out. Rosengarten was one of the first Food Network celebrities who published a companion book to his show. He predated Emeril, Alton, Paula, Mario, etc. His recipe for Cuban black beans is one of our favorites.

2000’s: This was the most difficult decade for me to pin down. I went with three books. My personal favorite is Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table, by Mai Pham. I bought this book solely for the bun bo Hue recipe, but the other recipes we’ve tried make it a go-to volume. The other two are The Gourmet Cookbook and The Gourmet Today Cookbook, both edited by Ruth Reichl. As some of you will recall, Reichl turned Gourmet magazine from fusty and formal to a more accessible periodical for the times. The Gourmet Today Cookbook had the misfortune of being published just as Condé Nast decided to kill off the magazine.

2010’s: I realize we still have two years left in this decade, but I nominate Plenty, by Yotam Ottolenghi. This is the only book on the list I don’t have (yet), but I do have Jerusalem, by Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. Ottolenghi’s books make the Mediterranean diet more exciting than just olive oil, hummus, and pita bread.

As I said, this is just one woman’s opinion. Feel free to chime in with your choices.

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Dec 23

Lessons Learned on This Vacation

As always, travel gives us a chance to try new things and see new places. As with last year’s vacation, we also learn new lessons.

  • Keep the claustrophobia at bay. We were in the midst of huge crowds at every stop on the trip, not to mention long lines to catch the flight home at Charles de Gaulle Airport (see below). Much of this was a function of traveling during the holiday season. We gave up trying to see some of the light installations in Lyon because of the crowds. Our hotel rooms and rental apartment became refuges from the cacophony.
  • Make use of the street markets and traiteurs for easy meals, so you don’t have to overbuy groceries.
  • An occasional fish sauce or soy sauce fix is a good antidote to heavy French food. We found Asian food in every city on our trip.
  • Finally, sometimes airlines will actually do right by passengers. We ran into snarls at Charles de Gaulle. The check-in line wasn’t onerous; however, the Border Control and security lines were hellacious. At the latter, Julian got pulled out for further frisking. (It’s always him, for some reason. Maybe it’s his past as a fireworks aficionado and high-energy physicist.) Luckily, Delta held the flight for us. We were the last passengers to board. And, miraculously, our luggage arrived in Seattle with us.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/12/23/lessons-learned-on-this-vacation/

Dec 19

Dressing for Paris

This is a guest post from Julian.

Here in Paris, women generally choose modest but stylish outfits for their appearances in public. Black is the preferred color, although pastels and earth-tones are acceptable.  Bright splashes are reserved for accessories. But when it’s time to party down, they may choose bizarre and outrageous creations with sequins, beads, leathers, feathers, and colored furs that did not originate from any naturally occurring species.

Emulate the locals, if you want to blend in. You will be immediately pegged as an American tourist if you are sporting tee-shirts and shorts (even in summer). The pickpockets and scammers will be looking for you.

Here is Cindy’s ensemble for a trip to the neighborhood pâtisserie. A silk scarf sets off her pink cashmere sweater (just purchased from Galeries Lafayette). She chose black slacks, and a utilitarian mercury-hued coat.  A pair of cute shoes from Joseph Seibel completes the look. The residents of this fashion-conscious city will certainly respect Cindy’s style sense, even as they probably recognize her as an American trying to look like a Parisienne.

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Dec 19

Bistro Mode

The bistro (sometimes spelled bistrot) is a standard French restaurant term. According to Wikipedia (article in French), the bistro occupies a space in the restaurant hierarchy between brasserie and fine-dining restaurant in terms of food and price point. As you’ll see below, those definitions are quite fluid. The origin of the word may be Russian, as bistro is Russian for fast. [Julian’s wiseacre question: “Does that mean that Burger King is a bistro?”]

From what we’ve seen over the years, the bistro category is all-encompassing. It can be a basic beer and coffee bar with whatever can be cobbled together for food; alternately, a bistro can be very close to haute cuisine. Some bistros are neighborhood joints, others cater to a wider clientele. As with bistros, the customers vary from average folk to tourists to business tycoons.

Last night we had dinner at Le Grand Bistro, about a 20-minute walk from our apartment. (Many restaurants are closed on Mondays, as they are in the US.) Le Grand Bistro occupies the close to haute end of the bistro spectrum in ambiance and food. We each ordered the 44 Euro menu, which came with complimentary cocktails (Kir or Bellini) and a bottle of house wine to share. For entrée (appetizer), Julian had oysters and I had a mushroom soup with a scallop garnish. Main dishes for us were duck and lamb. Julian got a cheesecake for dessert, while I got “Chocolat, Mon Amour” – a molten chocolate cake with a small scoop of ice cream. We both left very full and more than a little inebriated.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/12/19/bistro-mode/

Dec 18

Wandering in Paris

Julian observed that our travels follow a predictable pattern. We (actually he) are obsessive-compulsive about plane and accommodation reservations. Witness that, for this trip, he had all of these in place by early March. But once we get to our destinations, we tend to wander about, often without premeditated objectives. In old European cities and villages, serendipity often reveals wonderful discoveries.

Paris is a good city in which to wander. Yesterday we did have a bit of a plan: we went exploring passages. These are arcades within ancient buildings, populated with shops to keep customers and the products out of the rain. Some of them have elegant architectural details. Passages can be seen as the precursors to modern shopping malls. Many of the stores were closed on Sunday, but others were open due to the upcoming Christmas holiday. Two days in a row we managed to wind up in the neighborhood where we stayed two years ago. When we last visited, Forum Les Halles wasn’t much more than a hole in the ground. Now it contains lots of stores, and has a small ice rink for the season. The obelisk in honor of Napoleon on Place Vendôme was undercover last time, but has since been restored. I didn’t notice any reference to the disastrous invasion of Russia or to his defeat at Waterloo on the monument – I wonder why.

Julian and I have distinct differences in how we wander. He relies on cell phone map apps, which may or may not point you in the right direction. If it’s somewhere we’ve been before, I’m more focused on streets and landmarks – restaurants, churches, and stores. I also do a bit of dead reckoning. Somehow, between the two of us, we manage to find our way back to the rental apartment.

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Dec 17

Restaurants in the US versus France

The average American will notice significant differences in restaurants in France (and Europe in general) compared to home. Here are a few:

  • Waiting on customers is considered an interim position in the US. Students and starving artists of all types make up a high percentage of waitstaff. In Europe, especially in high-end restaurants, customer service is considered a profession.
  • There’s no tipping waitstaff in France. They’re paid a flat salary, which is usually a living wage.
  • There are fewer waitstaff in French restaurants and cafés, so they’re in perpetual motion on busy evenings.
  • Don’t expect the “Hi, I’m Heather and I’ll be your server tonight” treatment. Because of the last two bullet points, they don’t have time to chitchat. However, if you want detailed information on the menu items or wine list, the waitstaff in France will be able to answer your questions.

Here are a couple recommendations to keep you in good stead with French restaurant staff:

  • Some waitstaff in France can speak English; however, it helps to start off with some French.
  • Don’t call a waiter “garçon.” The translation is boy, and is an insult in any language. If your server is male, call him “monsieur.” If you want to get a waiter’s or waitress’s attention, make eye contact or subtly wave your hand.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/12/17/restaurants-in-the-us-versus-france/

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