Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, June 23, 2011

Published by Thursday, June 23, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

I must….descant a little upon the mint-julep, as it is, with the thermometer at 100 degrees F., one of the most delightful and insinuating potations that ever was invented, and may be drunk with equal satisfaction when the thermometer is as low as 70 degrees.–Captain Frederick Marryat’s diary (1838)

Captain Frederick Marryat (July 10, 1792 – August 9, 1848) was an English Royal Navy officer, novelist, and a contemporary and acquaintance of Charles Dickens, noted as an early pioneer of the sea story. He is now known for a widely used system of maritime flag signaling.

Click here for a mint julep recipe.

 

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, June 22, 2011

Published by Wednesday, June 22, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

He who receives his friends and gives no personal attention to the meal which is being prepared for them, is not worthy of having friends.–Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (April 1, 1775 – February 2, 1826) The Physiology of Taste

Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, a French lawyer, magistrate, and politician, wrote one of the most celebrated works on food, Physiologie du goût (The Physiology of Taste), which was published only months before his death.

 

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Food Play: Coca de San Juan, especialidad de Catalunya

Published by Tuesday, June 21, 2011 Permalink 0

por SandeeA

Click here to read English version

Coca de San Juan. La receta de la felicidad

La coca de San Juan es un dulce típico de Cataluña para celebrar la Noche de San Juan, que se celebra del 23 al 24 de Junio. La forma típica es de una coca ovalada, pero yo he querido darle un toque diferente… te animas a probarla?

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, June 16, 2011

Published by Thursday, June 16, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

[A Comice pear is] sweetly and subtly perfumed…so soft it is best eaten with a spoon, a tenderness more appealing to gourmets than to those who have to pick, ship, handle and store it in constant fear of ruinous spoilage.–Waverley Root, Food

Waverly Root, author of Food: An Authoritative and Visual History and Dictionary of the Foods of the World, was an American journalist and writer, best known for the book The Food of France published originally in 1958, and is still in print today. He died in 1982. Click here to read his obituary.

 

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DESTINATION DESSERT: From America to France

Published by Wednesday, June 15, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jamie Schler

MON PETIT CHOU: A Love Affair with the Perfect Treat

Chou: cabbage

Chou: cream puff, a type of pastry

Chou: cute

Chouchou: teacher’s pet

Mon petit chou: my little sweetheart, darling

It’s funny how one single food ties my old, American childhood to my new adult life in France. This one food, the perfect choux, was a favorite, one my father would make, light and airy, crispy and golden on the outside, so ethereal on the inside. He would shape them into perfect, saucer-sized rounds, bake them until they were puffed up into pillows and lovingly fill each one with thick, creamy pudding, chocolate, vanilla or pistachio. The almost flavorless choux puff was the perfect casing for the flavorful filling, tempering the sweetness and adding texture to the smooth creaminess of the pudding, and quickly became my most loved sweet treat of all that my father baked for us. My dear old dad passed away a mere two months before I married my French sweetheart (mon petit chou) and as I prepared to join my soon-to-be husband, I pulled the carefully clipped recipe off the refrigerator in my parents’ house, my childhood home, where it had been taped for decades, words and image now faded with time and handling, and tucked it lovingly and ever so carefully amongst my few worldly possessions in my suitcase and carried it with me across the ocean to France.

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, June 15, 2011

Published by Wednesday, June 15, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

A significant part of the pleasure of eating is in one’s accurate consciousness of the lives and the world from which the food comes.–Wendell Berry (1934-)

Wendell Berry is a Kentucky poet, novelist, essayist, philosopher and farmer. He has always remained close to the land, continuing to farm on his family farm, and this is reflected in much of his work. His most well known book, The Unsettling of America, provides a classic critique of industrial agriculture which is foundational to today’s agrarianism and a precursor of the Slow Food movement and the current food revolution taking place in the U.S.

The American Poetry Foundation says of Berry: “Critics and scholars have acknowledged Wendell Berry as a master of many literary genres, but whether he is writing poetry, fiction, or essays, his message is essentially the same: humans must learn to live in harmony with the natural rhythms of the earth or perish.”

 

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Food Art: Middle Eastern Food Meandering, a photo exhibition by Sukaina Rajabali

Published by Tuesday, June 14, 2011 Permalink 0

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, June 14, 2011

Published by Tuesday, June 14, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

How much cheese is a handful? How much more or less is a cupful? What is the capacity of a glass, a tumbler, or a soup ladle? What is the difference between a suspicion and a pinch? How much more is a good pinch? How much wine is a little, how many olives a few? When a book says a tin of chopped almonds or pomegranate juice what are you supposed to understand by that?–Elizabeth David (1913-1992), English food writer

 

Elizabeth David made significant contributiosn to the food world. Her book Spices, Salt & Aromatics in the English Kitchen is a classic.

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Food Art: Grilled mullet with Mediterranean salsa, food photography by Steve Homer

Published by Monday, June 13, 2011 Permalink 0

Our ongoing series of tapas photos from our latest food artist discovery: food photographer Steve Homer of Sabor de Almería in the southeast of Spain.

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Wild Woman on Feral Acres: Can One Eat Soapweed Without Frothing at the Mouth?

Published by Friday, June 10, 2011 Permalink 0

by Esmaa Self

 

In a word: yes.

Narrow leaf yucca blossoms.

Soapweed is a common name for narrow leaf yucca, which is also known as yucca angustissima and moohu, the latter being the Hopi name for this useful plant. No matter what you choose to call it, you can find yucca growing wild all over the American west.

Our back yard, for instance.

The yucca plant is exceptionally beneficial: the leaves contain a strong fiber that can be used to weave cloth, the root can be used as soap, plus the long stem can be used as a vegetable, as can the flowers and the fruit.

As part of our plan to reduce our exposure to GE and GMO foods, and to further reduce our carbon footprint while optimizing our use of this fabulous property, eating free, readily available and nutritious wild food just makes sense.

So when the yucca plants began to bloom this week, I began to harvest.

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