The Way We Eat…isn’t
I always reach for the magazine section of the Sunday NYT first because in my bleary-eyed, not yet fully caffeinated stupor, it is the only section I can physically manipulate with a large cup of coffee in my other hand. I always go front to back but I don’t read any of the large articles until the afternoon. I usually polish off the weekly features like On Language, The Ethicist, The Way We Live Now. This is all just on the way to what I’m really after and that is The Way We Eat. A year or two ago the food column was changed and it is now written by different food people each week who represent different attitudes towards food. I have to say that I adore anything written by Jonathon Gold or R.W. Apple but I am extremely indifferent to many of the others. Yesterday’s article represents a new low in food writing. The topic was what to do with the odds and ends that rattle around in your pantry. In this case it was dried wasabi paste, dried beans, canned pumpkin, and rice. My answers are toss it, cook it, toss it, cook it, respectively. I don’t want recipes or inspiration about what to do with old bean, grains, and canned foods. Toss it or eat it…whatever, move on.
I heard that the Wednesday Dining and Wine section of the NYT was about to get a new editor. Perhaps the Sunday magazine will get a makeover too. At least the crossword puzzle remains consistently excellent.
Are pies a thing of the past?
Are pies a thing of the past?
I think not. Two weeks ago NYT columnist Mark Bittman wrote “For most of us, the two-crust fruit pie is a thing of the past, a calorie-bloated hassle that buried its contents under a mound of dough, and so dry that it begged for ice cream the way some cookies need milk.” But while I don’t agree that pie is over, I do agree that I rarely bake a full-fledged pie. Usually I resort to a galette, a crisp, or a cobbler.
This week our fruit share from Vermont Valley was 24 very large Colorado peaches. They aren’t as perfect as the ones we got two weeks ago but they are darn good. But with 24 peaches just two weeks ago we are allmost peached out. We’ve eaten many just out of hand, still others on cereal. It seemed that I would have to bake something and peaches are just too juicy for galette. A cobbler was the only solution. So I took Mr. Bittman’s recipe for blueberry cobbler and substituted peaches and then doubled the recipe because my family eats a lot. Here it is and it is definitely a keeper. Light, buttery, crispy yet creamy…a perfect peach dessert.
Peach Cobbler
Time: About 1 hour
6 to 8 peaches, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 cup sugar, or to taste
Cinnamon to taste
2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits, more for greasing pan
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 Pinch salt
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put fruit into a buttered pan ( I use a large gratin pan or another baking dish). Toss fruit with half the sugar and cinnamon
2. In a food processor, combine flour, baking powder, salt and remaining 1 cup sugar and pulse. Add butter and process for 10 seconds, until well blended. Beat egg and vanilla together by hand and add to mixture.
3. Drop mixture onto fruit by tablespoonfuls; do not spread it out. Bake until just starting to brown, 35 to 45 minutes. Serve within an hour or so.
Grass Point Farms
It seems only natural that my first post would be about dairy…Wisconsin is the dairyland state. I am so excited about this product.
Grass Point Farms is a new local dairy in Thorp, Wisconsin. Their products come from cows that are fed only grass and that are treated in an humane manner. I found their products at Woodman’s in Madison. The 1% milk is tasty on cereal and in lattes. The mozzerella cheese is salty and tangy and excellent on pizza. According to Chad Pawlik, President of Grass Point, they have been working over a year to bring their products to market.
If you don’t know about grass-fed beef check out Micheal Pollan’s book Omnivore’s Dilemma. The first section about corn tells what happens to cattle when they are fed a corn diet. Thanks to Chad Pawlik and Grass Point Farms for bringing such great products to market.
