Tidbits 5

Tidbits 5 is out the door and into your hands...

Butterscotch Calypso Bean Soup.... I first had this at Roy's fusion restaurant many years ago.
I don't really have a recipe for it just some notes I got from the chef. Make the base of your
soup using whatever ingredients you want and in what ever order you want. I do puree the soup
and then strain it before serving. Also I add a little cream to it. None of the local stores
carry this bean so I have to order it from the internet. I have one last package of beans
left and I am going to use those to try in my baked bean recipe. Should be interesting.

What is so special about Harry's bar... I have seen this place mentioned at various times and
recently on this forum although I can not now locate the specific post. Tell me what I am missing
by never visiting this place. To my uninformed view I get the feeling that it is a
four star restaurant but without the stars. Is the attraction the food or the drinks or the
location or some combination of these.

Isn't Love Wonderful.... Looking westward from our deck there is a very large tall black water tower that somehow
has escaped being torn down and replaced with yet another condo. During the summer, every day at 7PM, a
male crow flys up to perch on a rod extending from the very top of the tower. He then begins calling for his
mate from that vantage point. You can hear him for miles. Within 5 minutes the female crow flies up to
the water tower. A minute later they both fly away, always in the same direction, to spend the night wherever
they call home. In this day and age it is nice to see at least one relationship lasting longer than 72 days.

WTTWC... I believe this is just another public broadcasting channel but boy is it different
than the useless food network channel. This one actually has chefs on it. I have seen Herbert
Keller, John Besh, Ming, Paul Prudhomme and Jacques & Julia on it so far. Big Big improvement.

Let it Snow..Let it Snow... I am almost stocked up for the winter months, Dec 1 to March 31st. I have
a choice location in that I can shop at 5 different stores and all are in walking distance. But I
can only carry 4 or 5 bags in each hand and on the snow and ice of winter I can easily take a
very quick fall as I did last year...falls just come with the aging process. So come Dec 1st I
will only have to carry fresh vegetables, dairy and whatever strikes my fancy...and, hopefully, I can
keep my fancy in check. I feel like a bear getting ready for a winter snooze.

Up Up and away.... No it's not your Delta flight taking off it's the price for coffee and half
and half that are rising into the stratosphere. Other items may also be on the rise but these are
two that caught my eye. No end in sight either. Something to ponder about I guess.

Croutons... No, I am not rekindling the flame and starting to cook again. I simply am bored with
buying the supermarket croutons. They are typically hard as a rock and have little taste. I was
putting together a reorder with the spice house and thought well, what the heck, try some
different spices on croutons. I used multi grain bread and cut them into irregular shapes instead
of the perfectly cubed ones that come in a bag. A spray of olive oil and spices on each side
and into a 400F oven for 6 minutes on each side. The one I liked the best was the one I used
the Togarashi on. Much to my surprise the one with the 5 spice powder came in second. I am going
to add some cheese powder and some mushroom powder to my spice order and try those along with
some different types of bread that I might not normally use.

Summertime... Finally, we had 8 straight days of sunny no rain seventy plus temp days. That was the last
chance for the green tomatoes to fulfill their mission. We do have a rash of green tomatoes getting
larger by the hour. We will break the cages down the middle of next week and they will go under the
grow lights to hopefully turn red. Next year I think I will grow a key lime pie tree instead of tomatoes.

Carrots... Ok, I know that carrots are supposed to be good for you but do you really like carrots or
do you just feel almost obligated to toss some into a dish just to make you more healthy. I have
yet to find a dish with carrots that I really enjoy... Wait... I love carrot cake... but other than
that what use do you make of this item.

Ratios.... Every one posts about the success they have with a particular dish. But I am curious as to how
many new dishes or variations to existing dishes you wind up tossing before you snap a picture of the
one that won the blue ribbon prize. I think I average about 4 out of 5 dishes that I try being tossed
into the garbage. Now maybe my ratio is high because I am winging it most of the time. So, fess up, what
is your ratio.

The First Snowflake... With the cold winter months approaching swiftly now what thoughts of hearty soups, stews or chowder enter your mind. I watched John Besch make an oyster stew yesterday. It looked very appetizing even
though I am not even sure I like oysters...I think I have only tried them once in my life... but anyway
my mind is racing and my heart is pounding... what to do... what to do.

Sorghum... I bought a jar of this about 30 years ago when I was down south. I seem to remember that it was
quite different and not that tasty. I never see this on the market shelves. Does anybody use this.

The End

Tim

[Jenise]

I adore carrots! Grew up hating them, as all I knew were prepared in sweet glazes plus the overcooked nothings that showed up in stew and canned soups. Then one day in a restaurant I was given a properly sauteed carrot as a side dish, and it had been cooked with but butter and onion and then finished with a lot of parsley. Sweet, slightly crunchy in the center, earthy and beautiful on the plate. Been a fan ever since.

And do you mean Harry's Bar in Venice, Italy? If so, it's a place where a plate of pasta and a glass of wine will set you back a hundy. Oh, it's where you might also see the CEO of your international oil company, a lifelong bachelor, having lunch with some flamboyantly beautiful gay men. So, it'll cost you but you won't be bored! Or at least, we weren't.

And do you mean Harry's Bar in Venice, Italy? If so, it's a place where a plate of pasta and a glass of wine will set you back a hundy. Oh, it's where you might also see the CEO of your international oil company, a lifelong bachelor, having lunch with some flamboyantly beautiful gay men. So, it'll cost you but you won't be bored! Or at least, we weren't.

We were just in Venice and sought out Harry's just to see it. (It was not super-easy to find.) When I opened the door, you could have heard a pin drop. We felt too conspicuous immediately, so we retreated and had a some great pizza down a different alley.
I did get a photo of the door at Harry's (Ironically, I am currently reading (and enjoying) "The Paris Wife," a book about Hemingway and his first wife.)

Harry's Bar - compressed.jpg

And check out this amazing pizza we opted for. Probably the best I've ever had, anywhere.

Venice Pizza - compressed.jpg

We went to Harry's Bar in Venice in 2000 -- and we also had to beat a retreat. It's not THAT hard to find (everywhere in Venice is hard to find) but it's right near the waterfront and just around the corner from San Marco Cathedral. I thought we might be able to have a light lunch, but a light lunch for me, my wife, and our son would have cost a minimum of $250 there. And that's my impression of all of their branches, they want to squeeze a ton of money out of people without putting too much effort into the food. People who are rich enough not to care feel pampered there. If I want to splurge, I would go somewhere else...

Ratios -- nearly everything I cook is delicious. There are explanations for that. A lot of what I cook is a tested recipe that I know is wonderful. I vary those a little but one way to get delicious food is to TASTE while cooking, you can't go too far astray. When I am trying something new (like those lamb shanks) I find recipes either in my cookbook collection or more likely online. I tend to look for recipes with comments, and five stars or whatever. I am really good at following directions.

I have had failures, and quite often those are for the benefit of an audience. I cooked boned quails into stiff little boards. I served big sardines from the oriental grocery with bones intact, thinking they would magically be absorbed, and had everyone kind of crunching and choking. I cooked my heart out for "cailles en sarcophage" and had them turn out rather dry and uninteresting. Those are very memorable (wince wince) but those were years ago.

[Jenise]

Carrie, that pizza looks absolutely sensational. What are the toppings? I see ham, and maybe mushrooms and sausage? (Since just looking at the picture started a jones, I do want to get the craving right.)

Carrie, that pizza looks absolutely sensational. What are the toppings? I see ham, and maybe mushrooms and sausage? (Since just looking at the picture started a jones, I do want to get the craving right.)

It was just good ham and a mushroom mixture, good olive oil, garlic, and very fine dried herbs, and a sprinkling of fresh "rocket" arugula. Heaven. I actually went up and spoke with the pizza-maker to find out more about the mushrooms. One of the varieties in there was Chiodini, which apparently is a local mushroom in the area. I had never had that type and loved it--extremelyy flavorful. The mushroom mixture was also on what I ordered so I had the chance to really taste those little buggers. This was called "Special Toast." Get ready to swoon some more. The second photo is how small some of these chiodinis are. Third photo is where this all took place. You've seen a million of these places, right?!

Special toast - compressed.jpg

Chiodini - compressed.jpg

Pizza restaurant Venice - compressed.jpg

I went on a little Googling binge with Chiodini. Others also have said that they are the perfect mushroom for pizza.

Chiodini are a species of Armillaria. Remember the news about the "largest living thing" being in Michigan? It turns out that they meant the root structure of a forest full of Armillaria, the mycelium of which was bigger than many blue whales.

Armillaria species do grow in America but can't be cultivated. Chiodini are also known as "honey mushrooms" and I found conflicting information about whether they can be bought in New York, some said they were available. A Google Images search showed cans and jars labelled "Chiodini." Some people are allergic to raw chiodini so it is recommended that they be par boiled before use -- so you may not lose too much buy getting the kind in a jar.

The name chiodini means "little nails" and one thing that shows up on Google Images is a board game with playing pieces the size and shape of the mushroom but painted in bright colors. It is a peg-board game so each round peg has a mushroom like stem.

Carrots?

What is to dislike?

Its the one vegetable all my family like -- I cut into batons and simply steam to accompany roasts and whatever.

Its one of the few vegetables I can get the youngest son to eat, and he'll eat it ray in a salad.

Carrots are sweet, colourful, crunchy raw, simple to prepare and foolproof.

Also chopped very small they add texture, body and flavour to stews.


However - I loath grated carrot in restaurant and supermarket pre-prepared salads because they go stale, and grated clogs the mouth and seem there only to add weight.

Carrots?

What is to dislike?

I agree. They're so sweet they seem very easy to like. Assuming we're talking about good specimens here. I agree that jarred/tinned/shredded carrots in restaurants etc can be horrible. And some of the carrots in my local farmers market can get a bit woody, especially as winter picks up. But for any half-decent specimen, carrots seem a lot more user-friendly than the more bitter vegetables.

I went on a little Googling binge with Chiodini. Others also have said that they are the perfect mushroom for pizza.

Chiodini are a species of Armillaria. Remember the news about the "largest living thing" being in Michigan? It turns out that they meant the root structure of a forest full of Armillaria, the mycelium of which was bigger than many blue whales.

Armillaria species do grow in America but can't be cultivated. Chiodini are also known as "honey mushrooms" and I found conflicting information about whether they can be bought in New York, some said they were available. A Google Images search showed cans and jars labelled "Chiodini." Some people are allergic to raw chiodini so it is recommended that they be par boiled before use -- so you may not lose too much buy getting the kind in a jar.

The name chiodini means "little nails" and one thing that shows up on Google Images is a board game with playing pieces the size and shape of the mushroom but painted in bright colors. It is a peg-board game so each round peg has a mushroom like stem.

Thanks for doing the research Frank! It looked like the ones that were used on our pizza were reconstituted or maybe par boiled (?). When he showed them to me they were in a big vat of liquid.

Isn't Love Wonderful.... Looking westward from our deck there is a very large tall black water tower that somehow
has escaped being torn down and replaced with yet another condo. During the summer, every day at 7PM, a
male crow flys up to perch on a rod extending from the very top of the tower. He then begins calling for his
mate from that vantage point. You can hear him for miles. Within 5 minutes the female crow flies up to
the water tower. A minute later they both fly away, always in the same direction, to spend the night wherever
they call home. In this day and age it is nice to see at least one relationship lasting longer than 72 days.

I am an avid birder but I don't think I can tell a male crow from a female crow. I think you're guessing?

Croutons... I used multi grain bread and cut them into irregular shapes instead
of the perfectly cubed ones that come in a bag. A spray of olive oil and spices on each side
and into a 400F oven for 6 minutes on each side. The one I liked the best was the one I used
the Togarashi on.

I came back to this post because I remembered you had said something about Togarashi. I wonder how many people here have shichimi togarashi in their spice rack?? Probably a much higher percentage than the population at large. I bought it when I got into Japanese cooking. Really nice and hot. And what you do to make croutons is just about precisely what I do to make "Keller Toast" -- except I have never put spices on that, just olive oil and salt. Interesting. Gotta try the togarashi thing.

Isn't Love Wonderful.... Looking westward from our deck there is a very large tall black water tower that somehow
has escaped being torn down and replaced with yet another condo. During the summer, every day at 7PM, a
male crow flys up to perch on a rod extending from the very top of the tower. He then begins calling for his
mate from that vantage point. You can hear him for miles. Within 5 minutes the female crow flies up to
the water tower. A minute later they both fly away, always in the same direction, to spend the night wherever
they call home. In this day and age it is nice to see at least one relationship lasting longer than 72 days.

I am an avid birder but I don't think I can tell a male crow from a female crow. I think you're guessing?

[quote]


I know because I understand crow talk. His name is Ishmel and her name is Priscilla. They have been happily married now for 3 years. Btw, Ishmel voiced his concern that this useless stupid Ethanol program should be stopped immediately. He asked me to hang a large banner at the top of the tower saying...Leave more corn for crows.

Tim