Frying Eggs on Sidewalks

There's been sizzling heat the last couple of weeks. Eggs come to mind and the time my brother actually tried to fry an egg on the sidewalk. It took a while to sort of cook and then there was the problem of getting it off the ground. He didn't butter the walk. We scrapped up a mess.

But, all stunts aside, I am noticing eggs making a resurgence in all kinds of kicked up ways. There's even a web site devoted to The Incredible Edible Egg.

So why is this common ingredient now taking a starring role? Well, one reason may be that after decades of banishment, eggs are no longer considered a cholesterol enemy. And egg producers, encouraged by the shift in attitude, are expanding their market by creating healthier designer eggs. More nutrients and heart healthy omega-3's.

Eggs are also a budget friendly protein. (And these days we need budget friendly) You get a lot for a relatively small amount of money. Besides, now we can bring back deviled eggs....no longer considered too pedestrian and (redesigned) retro food is in.

So here are some cool egg ideas

"Who’s Your Mama….?

.....Are You Catholic and Can You Make A Roux?" That’s what greeted me every time Fred opened his front door. All brazen as can be. Daring me, my Yankee self, to try my hand at roux.

Not that lovely French roux of unsweetened butter and flour cooked to a shiny off white paste. No. This was a mix of plain old vegetable oil (and/or bacon fat or grease) mixed with equal parts plain flour and slowly cooked (seemingly for hours) until it turned almost the deep color of reddish brown mahogany. 

I put off that challenge as long as I could until one day---years later---I screwed up my courage and made a gumbo which of course, has to start with that roux.

Here’s Gumbo y’all…my way

There's A Cow on the Cover

Food Arts magazine came today. There's a fat brown cow gracing the cover. The headline says, "America The Bountiful."

Well we are, bountiful. "From sea to shining sea," Food Arts asserts and quite frankly, I agree. We do produce some of the world's finest foods and in some spectacular variety and abundance.

But there is another side to all of this magnificent largess (and those who enjoy it). It is called Hunger and the problem has become acute.


There is a rapidly expanding number of this country's population who regularly sleep with hunger clawing at their belly. These are not the homeless or the disenfranchised but the ordinary families next door, down the block around the corner.....most with children under 18.

This growing population---the newly poor who are out of work for the first time in their lives---forgo food to stave off landlords, banks and utilities. Another 44 million American depend on food stamps to eat...that is 1 out of every 7 human beings living in this fabulously bountiful land.

Feeding America, which distributes more than 2 billion pounds of food every year, says the demand at food banks has gone up a startling 30% since 2008.

So how the disconnect from a publication devoted to the art of food? Quite irresponsible I'd say. I intend to send them this blog.

Needed Fixing

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10 Simple Kitchen Tips You Wish Someone Told You Earlier

I’d like to think that I’ve got enough imagination to fill up this blog with ideas of my own. But today I stumbled across something I wish I had thought of and didn’t. I guess it’s because I can cook and often forget that there’s an entire generation who never learned. So here it is…

10 Simple Kitchen Tips You Wish Someone Told You Earlier
by Darya Pino, PhD

1. Use tongs to cook pretty much everything
Spatulas are awesome for anything that needs to be flipped or scraped, like eggs and pancakes. For everything else, tongs are the way to go. They're much more nimble and less awkward to use, and you'll find far fewer things jumping from your pan onto the floor. If you have teflon cookware, be sure to use tongs with nylon tips. And always go for the 12-inchers.

2. Store everything in Tupperware
As much as I'd like to be the kind of person who trims their herbs, puts them in an vase then wraps them in a damp paper towel so they last a week, I'm way too lazy for that. The good news though is that tupperware keeps almost everything fresh for much longer than your crisper, including berries, salad greens and produce that has already been cut. Because it is reusable, it is also more ecofriendly.

3. If you own a knife, don't use a garlic press
Peeling and pressing garlic is a huge waste of time. To use a clove of garlic, set it on a cutting board and smash it with the flat side of a big knife (any chef's knife will do). The papery skin will come right off, and you can mince it real quick right there in about 10 seconds. Done.

The Plate

The Food Pyramid is history. Enter, The Plate. The new food icon, introduced today by First Lady Michele Obama, is split into four sections: fruits, vegetables, grains and protein with a side plate of dairy. The idea being that it will be easier for busy parents to use it as a visual guideline when it’s time to feed the kids and themselves…it provides a clearer picture of what a healthy plate of food should look like.

Evidently the pyramid was not effective as 68% of American are now considered over weight or obese. First Lady Michelle said, “As long as [our plates are] half full of fruits and vegetables, and paired with lean proteins, whole grains and low-fat dairy, we're golden. That's how easy it is."

So, what did you eat tonight? Did it reflect the plate?

Mmmmmm…..

Bologna (Italy) is a light hearted, happy city with friendly people. Referred to as “La Grassa” (the fat one) Bologna sits at the center of Italy’s culinary heartland, Emilia Romagna. It is a city that serves up abundant food in the dozens of cafes and trattoria that line the streets.

Aside from the ancient University, Italy’s oldest, Bologna is best know for an enviable variety of pasta and most famously, its wonderful ragù---the rich meat sauce we know as Bolognese.

A rich ragù is a culinary wonder….tossed with silky homemade pasta, it is a marriage made in heaven.  The Bolognese claim a true ragù cannot be made anywhere else. That may be so but, with a little care, we can come very close.

Four things to remember in order to produce a delicious ragù :

• The meat must be sautéed just long enough to barely lose its raw red color. Do not try to brown it.
• The meat must be cooked in milk before tomatoes are added. This tenderizes the meat and adds a delicate sweetness. 
• The sauce must cook at the barest simmer for a good 3-4 hours. Do not try to rush this. The longer the better. 
• The best pasta for ragù is fresh pasta and the best fresh pasta is tagliatelle…long flat ribbons of pasta similar to, but denser than, fettucine. 

Bolognese Sauce

 (4 generous portions)

3 TBS sweet butter

3 TBS extra virgin olive oil

½ cup finely diced onions

½ cup finely diced carrots

½ cup finely diced celery

2 cloves finely minced garlic

2 links sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing and crumbled

¾ LB ground chuck –or-- ¾ LB piece of chuck roast, finely minced

1 tsp salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1 cup dry white wine

½ cup whole milk

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

½ tsp fresh thyme, lightly chopped

1-28 ounce can San Marzano peeled tomatoes, crushed with their juices

Method:

• Select a heavy deep pot (I use my Le Creuset). Set it over medium low heat and add the butter and oil.
• When the butter has melted, add the onions and sauté until translucent, about 3 mins.
• Add the celery, carrots and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, or until the vegetables are just soft.
• Add the meats and the salt and cook just until the beef looses its red raw color.
• Add the wine, turn the heat to medium high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the wine has evaporated.
• Add the milk, nutmeg, pepper and thyme, turn the heat down to medium and cook until the milk has evaporated. Stir frequently.
• Add the tomatoes and their juices and stir well.
• Turn the heat down to keep the sauce at the laziest simmer, just an occasional bubble
• Cook, partially covered, for 3-4 hours. Stir occasionally. Taste and correct for salt.

To Serve:

• Bring 4-5 quarts of water to a boil. Add 1 1/2 TBS salt and gently drop in enough fresh pasta for four generous servings. Stir with a wooden spoon. Bring to a boil, count to 5, then immediately drain the pasta.
• Spoon some of the ragù in the bottom of a warmed platter or serving bowl. Add the drained pasta. Pour more sauce over the top, add 1 TBS softened sweet butter and and good handful of freshly grated Parmesan. Toss & serve without delay. Mangiare e godere.

Tagliatelle alla Bolognese