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I must admit that I’m not in a very foody phase of life right now—I live in a rental house with a kitchen the size of a bathroom, a tiny oven original to the house (1957), which leaks heat like a colander streams water when you’re draining pasta; a stove top where one of the burners doesn’t work; a sink with a chipped, stinky, and dysfunctional garbage disposal (the landlord tells me to put ice down it, which just makes an ugly noise); an old refrigerator that holds moisture and mold more than a chill; a dishwasher that requires pre-washing; cabinet doors that won’t latch and which the cats love to leave open for me to bang into; and countertops roamed by rats that nibble every bit of fruit that I leave out to ripen (the landlord does send someone to remove them, but they just come back because the house is full of cracks like an Easter egg that a child has squeezed too tight). So, I don’t really cook right now.
However, I’m from a long tradition of southern cooks and have spent time living with adventurous vegetarians and searching for good Thai food in Central Pennsylvania (and it’s there—at Bloomin’ Thai in Bloomsburg). So here are a few honorary recipes and thoughts, just for the principle of it. Someday this part of my life will rise again, like a good loaf of bread.
Steam-Cooked Cornbread
an old southern recipe—a sweetish bread, which will also entail very cooked (not al dente beans)
from my greatgrandmother, Gertrude Craddock
1 c. buttermilk
1 t. soda
1 t. baking powder
½ c. sugar
½ c. shortening
2 eggs, beaten
about 1 c. flour, sifted
1 scant c. cornmeal
½ t. salt
Use a double-boiler, and either line the top with waxed paper or grease it. Cook for 30 minutes or up to an hour over beans or peas. Transfer to hot (350-degree F) oven to brown. You can also use any heat-proof glass casserole that will fit over the top of a pot.
Cobbler
I like these best with blackberries, or a mixture of peaches and blackberries, but you can really use just about any fruit. Thanks to my mother for this rendition.
Use your favorite pastry recipe, or even a boxed one if you are short of time. I don’t really recommend that you use the refrigerated kind, but I guess you could.
Grease cobbler pan and lay strips of crust in bottom. Put in about 6 c. fruit. Mix 1 c. sugar with 2-4 T. flour, depending on how moist the fruit is (green peaches, for instance, won’t take much, but ripe berries will be very runny without more flour). Dot with butter. Arrange crusts on top, in a lattice if you are so inclined. Bake at 400-425 degrees F for about 20 minutes until crust is browned.
Tea Scones
I have no idea where this recipe came from, but it’s my friend Tish’s favorite. She always asks me to make them for her when I visit her or she visits me. Now she’s given the recipe to another friend where she lives, so I’ll probably never see her again!
2 c. unsifted flour
½ c. sugar
2 t. cream of tartar
1 t. baking soda
¾ t. salt
½ c. shortening
½ c. raisins or currants
2 eggs, slightly beaten
¼ c. milk
Sift dry ingredients together. Blend in shortening with pastry blender until mixture resembles fine bread crumbs. Add remaining ingredients. Handle gently, mixing with fork, then divide into two parts, and turn each part out on floured board. Handle very little. Flatten with rolling pin into circles about ½-inch or more thick. Cut in triangles, put on greased and floured baking sheet. Bake in hot oven (400 degrees F) for 15 minutes or until golden. Serve warm, slightly buttered. Makes about 16.
You can vary this recipe endlessly by putting in cinnamon chips instead of raisins or currants, by adding finely chopped nuts, by substituting orange oil for the shortening and adding grated orange peel, etc. It’s also very fine with a little drizzle of icing made from confectioner’s sugar and milk.
Aseljanka (Cod Soup)
This recipe was given to me by a lovely Finnish lady that I used to wait tables with in St. Paul, Minnesota, Mariella.
1 lb. cod
1 leek (or some green onions), sliced
(2 T. butter)
1 ½ quarts beef or fish broth (appx. 6 c.)
1 large tomato, chopped
1-2 dill pickles, chopped
1 T. capers
1 bay leaf
salt, pepper, dill, and whole allspice to taste
For garnish: fresh dill, sliced lemons, and sliced green or black olives
Brown the leek in butter or broth. Add tomatoes and rest of broth, and let it come to a boil. Add fish and spices and pickles. Cook about 15-20 minutes.
If you like it heartier, cook 2 c. chopped potatoes beforehand and use that water as part of the broth. Add along with the fish.
Panzanella
I can never eat a full loaf of bakery or homemade bread before it gets stale, and I love the flavors of the Mediterranean, so this is a common dish for me.
2 tomatoes, chopped up
1 small cucumber, peeled and sliced, and cut into half-moons
1 small onion, preferably Vidalia or sweet red, thinly sliced
1 c. fresh basil leaves, torn or chopped into small pieces
other fresh herbs as available
½ c. olive oil
3 T. balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
6-8 slices of good bread, stale, cut into small pieces
Combine vegetables and herbs. Add the oil and vinegar and seasonings, and toss. Layer the bread and vegetables—bread, veggies, bread, veggies—in a shallow bowl or pan. Cover and refrigerate. Before serving, stir all together. Doesn’t keep well.
My Friend Gigi’s Potion for a Bad Cold or Cough
2 inches of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
juice of 2 or 3 lemons
touch of cayenne
a good pour of honey
a shot of brandy
a packet of powdered Vitamin C
Simmer the first three ingredients in a cup or so of water to make a sort of tea. Then pour into a mug and add the last three ingredients. Stir well and enjoy the relief.
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