lamb - slightly experimental

as a half Greek, i love lamb and love to slow cook it.
With extra cinnamon Basil in the yard and lots of mint (spearmint) i decided to mix up my traditional recipe, putting both into my mix of on the bone leg of lamb with garlic (of course whole and pushed into slits along the entire leg), lemon and red wine.  The fresh leaves went on top of this with some salt and cooked slowly for 4 hours at 275 F, covered with foil with potatoes and carrot in the pan as well.  then the last hour up to 375 F.  Pull out and serve - i love it, moist, tender flavorful.

1 leg of lamb ( bone in
1 entire head of garlic
1 cup of fresh cinnamon basil
1/2 cup fresh mint
juice of 2 lemons
1 cup red wine
1 tablespoon of Burgundy wine.
1 pound of carrots
potatoes - as many as you will eat.

Spouting words in my head

If you did something truly bad to someone,
hurt them deeply
and then they forgave you completely,
would you then know forgiveness?
Would you then begin to forgive other?
And perhaps more importantly, yourself.

Life is an endless journey of love
and pain
and hurt and forgiveness
and then healing.

we should always search for that end point in our hearts and lives.

a day to reflect

After they finished detaching the electrodes from my head,
i walked home.
After i washed that gunk they put in my hair,
i slept.
I woke sightly disoriented,
knowing that i would not know anything for some time.
I was kinda dazed,
but not confused.
I wandered
and in that wandering i rested again
and i thought.
I cooked one of my favorites today:
my own enchiladas,
almost tasting like a Lasagna
in the way and manner
i slather and bake the tortillas with my own sauce.
Then the alarms went off in my head,
after we ate and i thought i had turned off the oven,
but had placed some chili peppers in to dry.
The second or may be the third time,
i had left something on,
when i thought it was shut.
I know there is something wrong,
whether they find it or not,
there is something wrong.

Ending the tomatoes

There were 2 things this year that went crazy in my garden- the first was tomatoes and so as the nights get cold for tomatoes, there was some significant culling going on recently.
There are some plants that i will keep for Indian summer ripening, but most i have removed.

My first thing to do with Green tomatoes is a Salsa:

GREEN TOMATO SALSA

Salsa Verde

 

1 Quart Green tomatoes
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon salt
2 Chipolte peppers, diced
1 cup Green onions, diced
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Clean and then boil the tomatoes till just soft with salt
Drain and run tomatoes through the food mill, discarding skins

add all other ingredients and simmer to reduce the volume about 1/2.

Chill and serve with what ever you want, i will probably do enchiladas tonight with them.

here i go again....

 The Bedford Street Arts and Crafts festival, Yesterday and today...
i actually should never go to these things...
even with my poor vision i see "issues":
 Butterfield 8 having trouble with their ice machine,
Volta selling crepes from a push cart (the Health Department does NOT allow push carts and seriously cooking crepes?). 
And Meridth Breads selling Quiche...again - got after them last year also....
sigh, the crafts are great tho.
I guess you can take me out of the Health Department, but not the Health Department out of me.
Waiting for the next great "Oyster festival outbreak" cause of these deviations

Saturday morn - the calm after the storm

i sit here quietly

on this beginning of autumn day,

still surrounded by the gren wall of plants

that i must soon take in.

Finding a bit of pease,

knowing that i lost so many songs during the past week of work.

How strange to know i lost those songs

and not to remember them.

Therre are various forces trying to make me stay,

but thism orning i am sure i will not.

It robs me of too much

and there are too many songs in my heart yet to bring.

be my tether

A tether.

No, i am not talking to you,

i am talking to me, about me.

I need a tether,

something to hold me down,

to secure my heart and mind from floating free.

In the strong winds that flash about,

threatening my very soul.

Freedom, is what we all want,

but not that kind,

for we are then slaves to the very wind.

Too long has this part of my mind been silent.

Too long since i heard me speak.

from the garden

So what happens near the end of the garden season (for us in CT it is now)
and you have loads of fresh veggies and herbs?
You become creative...
with unusual combinations
and although it is not timed...
you feel you are on an episode of Chopped...

Eggplant, cinnamon basil, garlic, parsley, red potatoes, onions, red bell peppers, long hot green peppers.
This is in your basket...
and your time starts now!

So i thought i would have pictures, but blogger is acting out...
The basil is very strong - so i saute this to crisp it, add onions and then set it aside.
Eggplant - slice thin, soak in salt water, drain dry and fry - add to onions and basil.
Red potatoes - cut into chunks after washing, boil till just soft.
separately - fry some diced red peppers and hot peppers.
Drain potatoes add pepper mixture, stir in some chopped parsley and some butter, salt and serve.

So what is the deal?

No, i have not posted much,
I have not been reading much...
I have kinda out somewhere past left field
and i really do not expect to be returning anytime real soon.
Too many Doctor appointments and tests...
too many decisions that need my attention now.
No time to relax, save when i sleep.
distractions at all times.
This is not what i need,
but it is what i am getting.
Learning, yes, a lot.
still learning how to find Peace in all of it.
to be thankful in all of it.
to know that nothing is truly an end, only a new beginning.
So in all, it is good,
other wise i complain too much.

Texas Brisket

It has been said and repeated many times, that only 2 groups of people in the world know how to cook beef brisket (that fatty tough under the rib part of a cow) - The Jews and the Texans.
  I happen to be the latter and while my process is long, it is realativily simple.
  Temperature - under 225 - 180 is best on a smoker for at least 4 hours (my best is a 10 hour smoke, but that requires some attention).
The wood is what you want. I use a mixture of maple and cherry (what i have available) and some hickory.
  Rub? Salt pepper plus what you want.  Mine - in the following ratio:

                               1/3 Cumin

                               1/3 Hot paprika

                               1 paprika

                               1/6 Garlic/parsley mix

                               1 black pepper

                               1 salt
                               1/6 Cayenne pepper
                               1/6 dried Chipolte pepper
                               1/4 instant coffee
The major thing is it needs to be moist heat - so a pan of water between the brisket and any heat is essential. Let the juices and fat drip into this pan. 
The juices i will reduce with a beer and apple juice for a "dipping sauce" (this is a Texas thing)Remove and put into a pan with apple juice and seal with tin foil and cook over night at 180. 

This will be the juicest, tenderest, most flavorful meat that you will ever taste.
  Time yes, work, not really, eating is 5 stars!

last night dinner

three recipes in one post!

1)

Rice - Mex-Tex

not your pretty fluffy white rice you think about

1 cup of white rice

1 tablespoon cooking oil (canola best, but it can vary)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili power
1/2 teaspoon Annatto (anchiote molido) powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cups liquid (chicken stock, white wine or combination)

Mix rice and oil in a pot and begin to heat.

add salt, Cumin, chili powder and Annatto and let every thing get hot.
the rice just begins to become translucent before it burns, so this requires some watching.
When the rice is just translucent, add liquid and stir.
bring to a boil and cover and then reduce heat to low.
cooking time is 15 minutes, total.
Stir in cilantro and pumpkin seeds and serve.

2)

Plantains my way with chorizo

3 yellow plantains (Sliced)

1 one pound package of chorizo
cooking oil to cover pan
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 Chipolte pepper
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
salt to taste

cook chorizo in frying pan, browning the skin.

when 2 sides are brown add 1 cup of water and then bring to dryness.
remove chorizo and dice.
Add oil to frying pan with cumin, chili powder and Chipolte pepper.
When the oil is hot, add the plantains.
After turning them so one side is brown add the chorizo and stir.
add in cilantro and continue cooking until the plantains are just brown.
Add salt and pumpkin seeds, stir and serve.

3)

Cold fruit avocado shrimp

1 one pound bag of pre cooked shrimp (remove shells if they are not)

juice from 3 limes
1/2 red bell pepper (diced)
1/4 red onion (diced)
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro
1/2 mango (diced)
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds
2 avocados (diced)

mix everything together and add salt to taste.

Let sit in the refrigerator for 1/2 to 1 hour.
Serve cold

Ah

the clouds came yesterday,
with the rain
and the wind.
They seemed to mark an end to the dreary Stamford weather,
that has made me dislike the summers here,
but this year, it was only for a week.
The rest of the summer was more to my liking, hot, drier than normal.
For the second time now the temperature has dropped,
reminding me fall, and then winter are close.
The clouds have blown away and the air is crisp.
I think of falling leaves and apples,
not what will come after.
Still struggling with ends and endings,
the weather actually adds to that,
but it is better.

i forget

for sure i forget,
 but what is the import?
To take averages of complex numbers
or do computational statistics in my head?
No, work is not the only place...
for tonight i found,
from last night
a thick breaded pizza type thing,
still in the oven.
No it is not the first time,
but iwonder now do i throw it away
or serve it
with hopes that no one will get sick?
Thins i forget,
and i have no recourse but to discard
sad it is.

Salmon - grilled

Salmon - grilled

on nut wood (hickory or Hazelnut)

 1 One inch or more thick piece of salmon

2 cups orange juice
1 teaspoon dried smoked hot pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon dried orange zest

The Salmon is soaked in 1 cup orange juice, 1/2 of the maple syrup,the hot pepper and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the refrigerator for up to 3 days (the acid protects from spoilage).

The juice is decanted and then reduced with the remainder of the orange juice, salt, maple syrup and dried orange zest.

 The grill is kept at a medium low temperature and the grill is oiled.

The nut wood is soaked for 1 hour and placed on the charcoal.
Salmon is cooked skin side down (to crisp it), with the grill top down for 20 to 30 minutes.
When the skin is done flip the salmon over and cook an additional 5 to 10 minutes.
Serve with the orange sauce

Breathe

inhale,
exhale,
breathe deep.
For each moment that we do this,
we release Carbon Dioxide
and that attracts the mosquitoes.
No, tho this should be an environmental post,
it is here,
for the worries of life and death;
sickness and health
 are universal.

West Nile - enough cases here in Stamford
and the mosquito population seems incredible.
It was not just the mild winter that did this,
but rather the early spring that has brought this danger to new heights.
Careful, careful we must be
in our gardens,
in our play and any time outdoors.

Dolmades

i am still going Greek with my recipes, this week:

Dolmades

(Stuffed Grape Leaves)

1 jar preserved grape leaves

( i have made my own in the past from Concord grape leaves in the area, but jarred is easier)

1 lb ground lamb
1 medium onion, diced fine
2 tablespoon dry spearmint (crushed)
the juice of 3 lemons
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

 

• brown the lamb making sure that it is crumbled and set aside
• use the lamb fat for the rice and add the crushed mint when cooking, let cool
• mix the lamb and rice and add onion, salt, lemon juice from 2 lemons and 2 eggs
• Boil 8 cups water in a large pot. Remove the grape leaves from the jar, and unroll them. There is no need to separate individual leaves yet; just unroll/unwrap the batch from the jar. Place the leaves in the pot, reduce the heat to medium, and cover the pot. When the water boils again, turn off the heat, and let the leaves sit in the hot water for 10 minutes. Remove the leaves from the pot. Empty out the pot, and replace the hot water with cold water from the tap. Put the leaves in the cold water and set aside.  This removes bitterness.
• separate the leaves and remove any stems
• I like to use a specific area for the leaves (about 5 square inches) and will use more than one grape leaf per dolmade and add 2 tablespoons of filling and roll in a way that the filling is sealed inside.
• place in a baking pan with olive oil and bake until the leaves are just crispy (about 30 minutes at 350 F)

Cool and squeeze the remaining lemon juice on top.

sloggish

yea, its how i have felt.
Dave's Mom's passing did not take me by srprise,
but its effects were difficult because they brought up so much in my head and heart.
She and my mom were conected because Dave and i are connected.
I just did not think the emotion would be so debilitating.

I was looking for places for release

and did not find any.

I sought comfort,

but did not know what kind.

I was with out a doubt,

confused in my head

and hurting in my heart.

The reality is that she is in a much better place
and it seems i am beginning to get there also.
Dave is still away with his 2 sisters and the memorial service is today.
That should help bring closure for all.

Dosis passed on peacefully Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 5:30 AM.
She was 91 years old.

The wife of a Luthern paster, John Sanborn.
A mother of 3 children.
A Song leader in church
and a social worker.
and now she is at peace.



John and Doris Sanborn in 2007 with my mom