"Tropical Fruit Cookbook" - Hawaiian Sunset Salad

Date I made this recipe:  August 21, 2015

Tropical Fruit Cookbook by Marilyn Rittenhouse Harris; illustrated by Charlene K. Smoyer

Published by: University of Hawaii Press

ISBN: 0-8248-1441-X

Purchased at Hennepin  County Used Library Book Sale

Recipe:  Hawaiian Sunset Salad – p. 70

People, at long last, it got stinkin' hot in these parts, with the temperature and the humidity heading up in the upper registers.  About damned time!  Still, it felt rather tropical outside and so what better thing to make than this tropical salad?

This book amused.  One should not be fooled into thinking that "tropical" equals "exotic" because most of the fruits listed here are ones we eat regularly:  avocados; bananas; grapefruit; lemon; oranges and so on.  And as I found, some of the less-popular fruits like passion fruit or guavas, are hard to find unless you live in the tropics in which case, jackpot!  My husband and I went to four grocery stores before finally and almost finding guava at Lunds & Byerlys.  I say "almost" because naturally, the store was out of guavas that I needed for the recipe and wouldn't have them in until the following week – maybe – and so I Googled substitutes and it recommended strawberries or pineapple; I used strawberries. So I'm afraid I cannot tell you all about guava and that's a damned shame but our schedules were such that it was now or never for the recipe.

The thing that sold me on the book though, was not necessarily the recipes but the illustrations by Charlene K. Smoyer.  I don't know who she is but I love her renderings. Alas, her illustrations are not sold separately, making me contemplate getting a second book just so I can deface it by removing and framing some of the artwork which I know, sounds horrible but how else am I going to get that artwork on my walls?

As to the recipes, most sounded really good but I was in a salad mood and was particularly swayed by the author's note (regarding the salad recipe): "In Hawai'i, many people watch sunsets carefully, looking for a "green flash" on the horizon as the sun's ball of fire sinks into the beautiful, blue Pacific.  This salad, combining green, gold, pink, yellow, and red, carries with it the memory of a Hawaiian sunset." 

I have been to Hawaii four times and while I have never seen the "green flash," I have seen some spectacular sunsets.  And since I love Hawaii, I thought the least I could do is to make this salad.  And by the way, and speaking of green and colors, I have seen the Aurora Borealis ("northern lights") a couple of times in the Boundary Waters area in Minnesota and that is impressive.  And I've heard wolf howls, happily from a distance.  One does not find wolves in the tropics and for this we are thankful.

So anyway, the recipe:  it was serviceable but it didn't float my boat, primarily because I felt something was missing in the dressing.  Although the author suggested using macadamia oil, I was not in the mood, especially after my guava search, to go track that down.  Had I done so, I would have likely thought the dressing was good.  As it is, it was just olive oil, pepper, minced kumquats and sesame seeds.  The author suggested I could use lime zest instead and I think I would have been happier with that.  And by the way, kumquats are like little mini oranges.

And as long as I'm being picky, the Chinese pea pods were bland and needed to be snapped in half as they were just too big to eat on their own and the water chestnuts are just silly.  Honestly, unless they are in a casserole, slathered with cream of mushroom soup, there is just no need to add water chestnuts to anything.  We added chicken because yes, this was a dinner salad, but Andy would have liked it more if I had marinated it beforehand.

All in all, this wasn't a bad dish but it wasn't a "nailed it" one either.  I think it could be good if you substituted a few more things and/or just selected another recipe like Lychee Champagne Punch (p. 834) or one of the many chutney recipes made from tropical fruit.  They sky is the limit in terms of recipes but you may have trouble sourcing some of the ingredients and that's a shame.  I had guava many years ago and would have liked to reacquaint myself with it but alas, 'twas not meant to be.

Aloha!

Hawaiian Sunset Salad – Yield:  4 servings

3 cups Chinese pea pods

2 guavas, unpeeled, deseeded, and diced

1 carambola, ("star fruit") thin star slices

½ cup sliced water chestnuts

½ cup thinly sliced red onion

3 cups coarsely chopped watercress

Dressing:

4 tablespoons macadamia or live oil

1 tablespoon coarse black pepper

2 kumquats, minced or 2 tablespoons lime zest

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Optional: The addition of 3 cups cooked chicken cubes turns this salad into a meal

Ann's Note:  If you cannot find guava – and believe me, it is not easy to find – Google says that you can substitute strawberries or pineapple.  Also, "carambola," is often called "star fruit" at the grocery store.

Steam or microwave pea pods to crunchy but tender.  Cool.  Mix dressing ingredients in a salad bowl.  Toss pea pods and all remaining ingredients with the dressing in salad bowl.  Cover and chill at least 30 minutes.

"Cooking for Kicks - The Sport of Tailgating" (the Minnesota Kicks was a former name of Minnesota's pro soccer team) - Sausage 'N Cheese Dish

Date I made this recipe:  August 13, 2015

Cooking for Kicks – The Sport of Tailgating – Recipes of sport stars and fans by Dottie Dekko

Published by:  Sprague Publications

©1978

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores

Recipe:  Sausage and Cheese Dish – p. 91 – submitted by Carl and Sue Nipp (part owners of the Minnesota Kicks, a Minnesota soccer team from 1976-1981)

Well so...hmm.... People, I don't know what to make of this recipe and that's a first for me!  It's a sausage and cheese "dish" that is in the entree section and yet the instructions say to eat it with corn chips.  Seems like that makes it an appetizer but what do I know?

But let's backtrack, shall we, on why this book?  Simple...sort of.  In order to talk about this book, we need to discuss professional soccer in Minnesota.  Ready? 

From 1976-1981, Minnesota had a professional soccer team, the Minnesota Kicks, thus the title of the cookbook.  The Kicks played outdoors at the old Metropolitan Stadium (Mall of America was built on that former site).  After they folded, they were replaced by the Strikers and when they folded, the Thunder and when they folded, the Minnesota Stars FC ("football" club which is what everyone else in the world calls soccer except for the U.S. = dare to be different!).  The Stars eventually changed its name to Minnesota United FC and that's where we are today.   If you knew all this beforehand, give yourselves a large pat on the back because I didn't.  I might have gone to a Kicks game after first moving here...or not.  Can't recall. 

Okay, so, as with every single sports team in the country and here in Minnesota, the Minnesota United FC needs its own stadium.  It's only fair, you know, seeing as how all the other kids teams got a stadium.  The Minnesota Vikings are almost done with the monstrosity they are building down the road from us so there's that (I am a Packers Shareholder so 'nuff said) and then several years ago, the Minnesota Twins baseball team got a stadium and this year the Saint Paul Saints minor league baseball teams got a stadium and even the Minnesota Golden Gophers of the University of Minnesota got a new stadium so now it's "We want a new stadium," from the soccer team - all day, every day.

The problem, as you can imagine and as we will not discuss, is funding.   Okay white lie, let's have a little discussion because I have a feeling, as with most of these stadiums, that I am going to be the one partially funding this thing and that irks. Nothing against soccer—excuse me, "football" (or, as the Brits say, "footie") but I'm not much of a fan of any of the professional sports teams playing in this state and so I have issues with paying for it, especially when they are owned by much wealthier people than I, but I digress.

So with all the news swirling around soccer, I thought I should pull out this cookbook – Cooking for Kicks – and give a recipe a go.  Plus, I thought it would be a good time to acknowledge the accomplishments of the U.S Women's Soccer Team about a month ago when they won the World Cup.  And then, don't you know, in an incredible moment of timing, MY Green Bay Packers played their first pre-season game against the New England Patriots (happily beat them) on the same night I made this recipe.  This book is subtitled "The Sport of Tailgating" and wow, do the Packers have a lock and load on tailgating or what?  (Never mind last night's game was played in New England).

So all signs pointed to "yes" and I thought I had a recipe all picked out just from the name alone – "Boom Boom Brown's Tailgate Tacos" (p. 21) but then I looked and saw that this recipe was submitted by Bill Brown, former Minnesota Vikings running back.  And since making that dish would be tantamount to Packers treason, I let it go and it's a shame because it sounded good but I could not make a Vikings dish – retired Viking or no retired Viking – on a Packers game day. (Nothing personal, Boom Boom.)

And so I flipped through the book, seconds before leaving with my husband to head to the grocery store and decided to make this "dish" instead.  But as I said above, the intended use of this "dish" is unclear and so while Andy ate it with the suggested corn chips, I opted to cook some rigatoni and use it as a pasta sauce.  And that's because to my mind, it was a pasta sauce rather than a dip.  The whole thing was so unclear, as is the answer to the question of "Who is going to pay for a new soccer stadium?"

Here's the thing:  if this "dish" is a dip, then as dips go, this sort of fails.  If you ask me, and you didn't, if you are going to make a dip using sausage and cheese, then I suggest making an "American favorite:" Velveeta + sausage + Rotele tomatoes.  Now that is a cheese dip!  And if this "dish" is more of a pasta then leaving out the beef bouillon will make the dish less salty and more authentic.  (And speaking of the bouillon cube, the recipe didn't say whether or not to add the cube as is or to add water to it to make a broth and then add it to the dish.  I added it "as is.  As always, incomplete directions are my pet peeve!)  And if this "dish" is something else entirely, then I give up!

The previous owner of this book starred a couple of recipes that might also float your boat:  "Cheese Ball" – p. 33; French Dip Sandwich – p. 35; "Tossed Chinese Spinach Salad – p. 37" or "Corned Beef Sandwiches" – p. 39, just to name a few.

And so there it is, your soccer/football/tailgating recipe to help you celebrate and embrace "your" team.  

Sausage 'N Cheese Dish – serves 6

1 lb. hot Italian sauce (bulk or links cut into bite size pieces)

1 c. chopped onion

1/3 C. chopped green pepper

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 (16 oz.) can stewed tomatoes

1 c. tomato juice

4 oz. mushrooms

2 beef-flavored bouillon cubes

½ tsp. Italian seasoning

1 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Corn chips

In a large skillet, brown sausage, drain.  Add onion, green pepper and garlic, cook and stir until tender.  Add tomatoes, juice, mushrooms, bouillon and seasonings, mix well.  Simmer uncovered 30 minutes.  Stir in ½ c. cheese, heat through.  Serve with chips and remaining cheese.

"The Harley Biker's Cookbook - Big Bites for Hungry Bikers" - Sara Liz's Garlic & Honey Chicken & Dial 911 Mashed Potatoes - for the annual Harley Davidson Rally in Sturgis, SD

Date I made these recipes:  August 7, 2015 – Celebrating the annual Harley Davidson Rally in Sturgis, SD

The Harley Biker's Cookbook – Big Bites for Hungry Bikers by Owen Rossan (with Biker Consultant Tod Rafferty)

Published by:  Chartwell Books, Inc.

ISBN: 0-7858-1531-7

Purchased at Har Mar Mall Antique Show

Recipes:  Sara Liz's Garlic & Honey Chicken – p. 38 and Dial 911 Mashed Potatoes – p. 53

So every year for the past 75 years folks, Harley Davidson rider from all over the planet congregate in, of all places, Sturgis, SD for a week-long Harley Rally.  I have no idea why Sturgis is the watering hole but it is so there you go.

Now while I know a few people from MN who have attended this shindig, I do not keep this event on my calendar mostly because I don't own a motorcycle, never mind a Harley.  But this year I didn't have to keep track of the dates because my favorite local radio station, 89.3 FM – The Current, did it for me.

This station (which you can and should stream online if you don't live in these parts), is my favorite of all stations because they play a wide variety of music (almost never the Top 40), do not have commercials (it's public radio-owned so you'll hear brief info about sponsors but that's it), and have very fun segments like The Morning Show's 9:30 Coffee Break,  Theft of the Dial and a No Apologies segment where you might hear anything from disco to – and I'm not kidding – The Osmond Brothers.

The 9:30 Coffee Break is genius:  the station selects a "theme" for the morning and then encourages listeners to email or call with musical selections to fit that theme.  On Friday, August 7, for example, the theme was "a) songs named after a city or b) from an album with a city title."  Other times, if a famous singer is having a birthday, they'll say call in with that singer's best songs.  But on Monday, in honor of Sturgis, they asked listeners to call in with songs involving motorcycles or motorcycle riding.  And here was the lineup:

Steppenwolf – "Born to Be Wild"

Yo La Tengo – "Speeding Motorcycle"

The Shangri-La's – "Leader of the Pack"

Jimi Hendrix – "Ezy Rider"

The Hopefuls – "Motobike"

The Allman Brothers – "Midnight Rider"

The Byrds – "Wasn't Born to Follow"

I pretty much hate mornings but I tell you what, there's nothing like a little Steppenwolf to put a gal in a good mood for the rest of the day:  "Get your motor runnin', head out on the highway...."

Now just because I don't have a motorcycle, doesn't mean I don't have a great Harley Davidson story because I do.  And how convenient that I also have a Harley Davidson cookbook, right?  There is no such thing as a coincidence, my friend.

Many years ago, I worked for a data processing company whose headquarters were in Milwaukee and so we ended up having a lot of Milwaukee-area clients.  Milwaukee is also home to Harley Davidson.  As these things co, a co-worker, Mary, and I ended up having to visit a Milwaukee client during Harley Davidson's 90^th birthday celebration and luckily, we were able to (just barely) find a motel that still had rooms available because the city was overrun with Harley riders.  In fact, picture your favorite freeway and then picture it with wall-to-wall motorcycles and riders all in black, stretching for miles and miles and miles and you have what we encountered.

So we got to our hotel and I pulled up in the car port area so we could check in when a couple rode up on their – of course – Harley Davidson motorcycle.  And I noticed that they were speaking French and commented on that to my co-workers.  You should know that I speak some French although I'm not even close to being fluent. Anyway, my coworker then said "Say something in French" and so I said "Bon jour" and the French couple started laughing, as did I.  I mean, she didn't ask me to have a discussion on international politics, she just wanted me to say something in French so I did! My co-worker was not as amused as we were:  "You know what I meant!"  "Oui, Mari!"

So we got checked in hauled our luggage to the elevator and then waited along with six fairly big guys all decked out in black and leathers.  We were not in the proper colors at all, but no matter.  So the elevator opened and several of their friends got out, dressed for the pool and we got in and how we all fit – six big guys, two not-so-big gals and several pieces of luggage and equipment - I don't know but I do know they made sure Mary and I were all situated and that was very nice. 

We ran into these same guys a bit later at the bar along with about a billion of their close, personal biker friends, and the scene was hilarious.  Every single person except us was in black and leather.  Mary and I, of course, had on our best "going to the hotel bar to unwind from the trip" jewel-toned summer outfits which all but screamed "Which of these is not like the others?" but what could we do? Our excuse, and it's a good one, was that it was 1993, jewel tones were all the rage and black was only worn for funerals or if you lived in NYC which we did not.  Now, of course, I wear black quite a bit but not biker black so there's that and I'm pretty sure my leather jacket would be too prissy so we'll leave it at that.  And of course, I don't own a bike.

The next day we went to the client's office and got to talking about the Harley anniversary and Mary mentioned that she was under orders to stop and purchase some commemorative t-shirts before we left Milwaukee and that seemed like an easy task.  But we learned that the shop would be closing before we could get there and so we decided, with the client's blessing, that I should make a separate journey to the Harley store to purchase Mary's items along with stuff for half the staff who were also too busy to go.  And so armed and dangerous with a wad of cash, I set off to the Harley store.

People, again, let me paint a picture and the picture I am going to paint for you is NOT black.  The company car we were driving at the time was not only a "mom car" i.e. station wagon but it was powder blue.  And that is the car I had to drive to the store.  And I took up about four parking spaces when I got there which I'm sure didn't please the rest of the people waiting to park and get in line at the store but what can you do?

So I parked said "mom car" and commenced walking to the store.  I was in a beautiful raspberry-colored suit (my favorite summer suit ever), complete with jacket, skirt,  matching accessories, pantyhose and of course, high heels.  And so I clacked my way to the end of the line and stood there, once again sticking out like a sore thumb among the rest of the shoppers who again were all in black and leathers.  (I hope you're sensing a theme here!) Thankfully, not one person pointed at me and said "What the F are you doing here" but if so, I was determined to assume my best "bad-ass-biker-chick-on- break- from-my-day-job" persona just in case. 

When I got back to the client's offices, of course I regaled them with the story and to this day, I still chuckle to myself when I think of the picture I must have made at that store.  It was probably one of the more memorable client visits I have ever made and so last Monday, as soon as my radio station mentioned Sturgis, I knew what I had to do and that was to pull out the Harley Biker's Cookbook and get to work.

There were lots of good recipes in this book and I had a completely different menu in mind but then Andy took a look and decided that we should go with the chicken and then since the chicken recipe mentioned that the dish would go well with the Dial 911 Mashed Potatoes, how could I resist? (We passed on the peas this time around.)

Should you want to pass on the chicken and go with something else, this book is divided into the following sections:  "Breakfast & Brunch;" "Appetizers;" "Meat Dishes;" "Poultry;" "Fish & Seafood;" "Vegetables & Salads;" "Sandwiches;" "Dressings, Sauces & Marinades" and "Desserts and Snacks."  Several recipes make liberal use of jalapeno peppers and so I passed on those but plenty of options remained and in fact were in hot contention for a while such as "Claude's Blue Cheese Soup;" "Thunder Grunt Stuffed Mushrooms;" "Torque Master Meatloaf" and "Mario's Meatball Sub."  But the man decided that he was in a chicken kind of mood so there it is.

This chicken recipe is easy and as they often say on Food Network's "Chopped" was cooked perfectly.  The chicken was very moist and the garlic did not overwhelm the chicken at all, probably because you cook it with garlic slathered on it for 20 minutes and then pour on the honey and bake for another 20.  Simple and delicious.  And the 'taters?  OMG, delicious!  Absolutely delicious.  I mean, how can you go wrong with butter and cream? 

And that concludes our culinary "ride" commemorating 75 years of the Harley Davidson Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota!

Sara Liz's Garlic & Honey Chicken – serves 2 to 3

10 chicken pieces; thighs and drumsticks work best buy any cut pieces will do

6 cloves garlic, minced

6 Tbsp honey

Chopped chives, to garnish

Salt the chicken pieces and rub them all over with the garlic.  Let sit for about 15 minutes.

Put the chicken pieces in a roasting pan, making sure that the garlic is still on the pieces.  Make sure the pan is big enough so that you don't have to stack up the pieces.  Roast in a 400F oven for about 20 minutes.

Take the pan out and drain off any liquid (not the garlic) that has accumulated.  Pour the honey over the chicken making sure that each piece is well covered.  If you need more honey for this, then use it.

Roast for 20 more minutes or until the chicken pieces are crisp and shiny brown.  Put on a warm platter and sprinkle with chopped chives.  Serve with mashed potatoes and buttered green peas.

Ann's Note:  Please note that it does not say to actually cover the roasting pan you are to use with the cover itself and so I left it off for the first 20 minutes, then hedged my bests and put it on for the second 20 minutes and then because my potatoes were not quite done, I lowered the oven temp to about 170 for maybe 15 minutes and the chicken was perfect!

Dial 911 Mashed Potatoes – serves 4

2 pounds potatoes

½ cup heavy cream

6 Tbsp melted butter

Cayenne pepper

Salt and black pepper

Freshly chopped parsley

Peel the potatoes and boil until they are soft.  Ann's Note:  Maybe if I boiled potatoes all the time, I would know how long "until they are soft" means in terms of minutes but I don't so I didn't.  So I looked it up on the internet and the general consensus is:  peel and quarter potatoes, place in a pot and fill with cold water about an inch past the potatoes.  Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on either medium or low for 20-25 minutes.

While the potatoes are cooking, warm the cream slightly.  When the potatoes are cooked, drain and put them back in the pan over a low heat.  Mash the potatoes using a potato masher or a grater.  Do not use a blender or food processor unless you want glue.  Ann's Note:  You cannot go wrong using a potato ricer instead of a potato masher or grater.

Slowly add the melted butter and beat into the potatoes.  When well blended, add the warm cream in the same way.  Keep stirring until smooth and creamy.  Sprinkle in a few shakes of cayenne pepper.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley.

Author's note:  This dish takes a lot of salt.  Ann's Note:  I added some but not too much and that was fine by me.

"The Joy of Ice Cream" - Brown Cow (a mix of root beer, milk, chocolate syrup and ice cream) for National Ice Cream Month

Date I made this recipe:  August 3, 2015 – a belated celebration for National Ice Cream Month (July)

The Joy of Ice Cream by Matthew Klein

Published by:  Barron's

© 1985

Purchased at Goodwill

Recipe:  Brown Cow – p. 135 (root beer + milk + chocolate syrup + ice cream)

Well, as the character, Maxwell Smart, of the TV show, Get Smart, would say of (observing) National Ice Cream Month:  "Missed it by 'that' much."

As always, we were busy and so as per usual, we were just a tad behind on making something to observe National Ice Cream Month (who knew?) in July.  As in the entire month of July. But seeing as how I tried out the chocolate syrup for this recipe for the 4^th of July and just now made another batch for this recipe and I think that counts as "observing" and/or celebrating (not really).

And I should tell you that since I have at least six ice cream cookbooks, I probably should go out and buy an ice cream machine but instead, I keep looking for loopholes (I should have been a tax preparer) and I found it in this recipe for a Brown Cow, a tasty beverage featuring ice cream.  Still, I'm seeing an ice cream machine purchase on my horizon and this is probably why I've been stockpiling Bed, Bath & Beyond coupons so I can strike at dawn take a road trip to my nearest store.

Now in an amazing case of timing, just last week, Bon Appétit magazine had an article about how to make ice cream by hand (i.e. not using a machine) and while it was interesting, it also would have taken forever to use their method and time is one thing we do not have in the summer, as evidenced by the fact that I am always weeks behind on making my summer dishes to celebrate various events.  But if you wanted to check it out and give some of the ice cream recipes in this book a whirl, go right ahead because they all sounded yummy.

This cookbook, one of several in a series of "Joy of" cookbook published by Barron's (and not to be confused with Irma Rombauer's Joy of Cooking), includes recipes for ice cream flavors; sundaes and parfaits; sodas and drinks; cakes, molds and bombes and toppings, sauces and syrups. Since I was in a nostalgic mood, I decided on the refreshing Brown Cow ("How now, brown cow") containing root beer, ice cream, chocolate syrup and milk.  And I have to say, the first thing that came to mind upon reading that the recipe called for the milk and root beer combination was of Laverne DeFazio's (character on Laverne & Shirley) love of Pepsi and milk.  That concoction made me go "ugh;" this one made me say "yum!"  Not included in the beverage selections though, was one of my childhood favorites, a Boston Cooler, made with Vernors Ginger Ale and ice cream.  And I'm here to tell you right now that it has to be made with Vernors Ginger Ale.  Has to.  If you can't find it, don't bother making it!  But if you do, the recipe is simple: fill a glass with ice-cold Vernors, and a scoop of vanilla ice cream and you are done!)  (Vernors Ginger Ale is a Michigan product but I can buy it here in Minnesota at Lunds & Byerlys.)

So here's how you make a "How now" Brown Cow and it's really delicious, easy and screams SUMMERTIME!

Brown Cow – makes 4 sodas

6 Tb. Chocolate Syrup (Ann's Note:  an easy recipe for home-made syrup follows)

1 cup cold half-and-half or milk

2 chilled bottles (12 oz. each) good root beer

4 scoops Vanilla Ice Cream

Chocolate syrup

6 oz. semi=sweet chocolate

½ cup evaporated milk

¼ cup water

Place ½ tablespoons of chocolate syrup (*see recipe instructions below) into each of 4 tall soda glasses.  Add ¼ cup half-and-half or milk to each and stir to blend the syrup.  Add about half of each bottle of soda to each glass, then stir soda briefly and gently with a long-handled spoon.  Top each soda with a scoop of ice cream and serve at once.

To make the syrup, melt the semi-sweet chocolate in a double boiler until melted.  Add the evaporated milk and stir until blended.  Take off the heat and add the water.  Done!

"Bocuse's Regional French Cooking" - Vegetable, Basil and Garlic Soup (Soupe au pistou) for Le Tour de France

Date I made this recipe:  July 26, 2014, the final day of the Tour de France

Bocuse's Regional French Cooking by Paul Bocuse

Published by:  Flammarion

©1997

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores

Recipe:  Soupe au Pistou (Vegetable, Basil and Garlic Soup) – p. 68

Well o-la-la- folks, yesterday the Le Tour de France wrapped up three weeks of heavy-duty racing and hill climbing and now what are we supposed to do?

My answer:  celebrate regaining control of the remote.  My husband's answer:  go out on more bike rides (although not in France).

And there you have it!  And congratulations to this year's winner, Chris Froome for his impressive victory. 

As is usual and customary though, we observe the end of this race down the Champs Elysees by making a French meal and this year's selection was a good one – the famous Soupe au pistou – a dish that slow simmers on the stove (thankfully, no oven involved) and is rich with beans and vegetables and all kinds of other goodness.

This dish hails from Provence, in the south of France, and although I've been to that region twice, I never had it before so it was kind of nice to close that circle.  I love how it makes use of so many summer vegetables and just flat out looks healthy to eat! 
And actually, my version of this was totally vegetarian since I left out the [raw] pork rind in the recipe, mostly because I couldn't find it but also because the cheese used for the toppings wiped out my budget and I wasn't in the mood to find a substitute so we went without and it was fine.

So.  Paul Bocuse, our chef/author, is considered by many to be one of the greatest French chefs ever and one of the first chefs to unveil a French "nouvelle cuisine" menu. Traditionally, French menus are heavy on the sauces, heavy on the wines and just plain heavy.  Nouvelle cuisine focuses on light sauces or broths and fresh ingredients, particularly fresh vegetables. The soup recipe definitely falls into the nouvelle cuisine category.

Hailing from Lyon, Chef Boucuse is now 89 years old and – interesting factoid - in 1969, was one of the chefs preparing the menus for the maiden flight of the Concorde, an airplane that made the journey from France to the US in three hours.  C'est tres "cool."  Unfortunately, I never got to travel on it and taste his cuisine because the cost of the flight was tres cher (very expensive) but I flew on Air France once and was amazed to be handed a beautiful menu of all the food served on the flight, including perfectly poached salmon (and I hate salmon), bread and lots of it and wine!  For free!  Classy outfit, that Air France.

This book is divided into recipes by region:  Lyonnais; Provence; Bordelais; Perigord; Brittany-Normand and Alsace.  And each region's section features foods found in that region, as follows:

Lyonnais – Cabbage soup; pumpkin soup; cheese, eggs and sometimes sausage entrees and the famous Boeuf Bourguignon.  I thought about making a macaroni and cheese dish (gratin de macaroni) but that was too heavy for summertime and required the oven.  Mais non.  (But no.)  

Provence – I love Provence.  Love it, love the food, love the little towns, love.  Today's featured recipe, Soupe au pistou is Provencal and it was very good.  Besides, I loved walking around the house pronouncing it because it just sounds so French!  Go figure, right! (Word of warning:  speaking French will give you lockjaw.  I had to "rehabilitate" my jaw and mouth after both of my trips.)  Other recipes that sounded fun were olive and caper spread a/k/a tapenade; Nice-style salad a/k/a Salade nicoise and several fish recipes including Bouillabaisse (Provencal Fish Stew). 

Bordelais – This area if French wine country, home to the famous Bordeaux wines.  It also borders the Spanish Basque country, a region of northern Spain that is a mix of French and Spanish cultures.  Because of that, you'll find Basque-influenced dishes like Basque-style cod and Basque-style chicken along with the famous French cassoulet, a dish that combines many meats and sausages with beans that is baked in a casserole.  Since I'm not big on duck or lamb which are two of the main ingredients, I passed on that dish and besides, it requires slow-cooking and that was not going to happen on a day it was 90 degrees outside.  Non.

Perigord – is in the south-west region of France, an hour's drive from Bordelais and here, the recipes feature preserved meats like duck and pork as well as the world-famous and often controversial Foie Gras (basically fatted duck liver). There's also a recipe for Garlic Soup, a dish I've heard about but have never eaten or made – yet.

Brittany-Normandy– This region, made famous during WWII when the Allies stormed the beaches of Normandy, is heavy on seafood seeing as how it sits on the opposite side of England on the British Channel/Atlantic Ocean.  Dishes like Mussels in White Wine; Coquilles Saint-Jacques (Brittany-style Scallops); Stuffed Clams and [Holy] Mackerel take up the front half of this section while veal recipes finish it off.

En fin (Finally), we have the Alsace region, sometimes referred to as Alsace-Lorraine, famous for various savory and sweet tarts.  This region borders Germany and so there are also dishes for sausages and sauerkraut for you to try.

And so that concludes our culinary tour to complement the bicycle tour that just took place in France (and Belgium and Spain) this week.

I liked the Soupe au Pistou a lot as it was easy, used next to no heat (you simmer it for two hours), and it was easily halved.  Since we are only two, I often cut a dish in half to ensure we don't have endless leftovers.

In the "If I were to make this again" department I have just two minor things:  1) I think I would have cooked the beans all by themselves for a while to avoid having mushy vegetables and 2) I might have added pancetta to the recipe to add a bit of fat and flavor but like I said, I just didn't want to spend more money on the recipe than I did and felt it was essential to have the cheese for topping rather than the meat.  And perhaps if I went to an actual butcher I might have found the required [raw] pork rind but that was just too much effort for a hot day.  I love summer – bring on the heat – but it is wilting to go from store to store.

And so there you go: Viva la France, Viva le Tour, Viva la Soupe au Pistou!

Vegetable, Basil and Garlic Soup (Soupe au Pistou) – 6 servings

Ann's Notes:  1) Pistou is a mixture of garlic, basil, olive oil and tomatoes that is added just before serving.) Pistou is made by grinding the garlic and basil with a mortar and pestle.  I don't have one and tried to improvise and that was fraught with peril.  In the end, I decided to use my mini food processor and that was okay but not the best.  Search the internet for other solutions. 2) You will need to soak the beans overnight; cooking time is 2.5 hours. 3) As mentioned above, good luck finding raw pork rind.  I couldn't even find a substitute on the internet.  Were I do to this again though, I might use pancetta as it is pretty fatty and should yield the flavor Chef Bocuse was looking for. 

½ pound fresh or dried pinto beans

½ pound fresh or dried white beans (like navy beans)

½ pound green beans

6 carrots

2 medium potatoes

1 white onion

1 leek

2 zucchini

3 quarts water

½ pound pork rind

Salt

Pepper

3 ½ ounces shell-shaped pasta

For the pistou:

1 pound ripe tomatoes

6 cloves garlic

10 stems basil

Salt

Pepper

¾ cup olive oil

For serving:

1 ½ cups grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup grated Gruyere cheese

If using dried pinto and white beans, begin soaking them a day in advance.  Place them in a large mixing bowl, add enough cold water to cover and let soak overnight.  The next day, drain thoroughly.

If using fresh pinto and white beans, they need only be shelled.

Trim and string the green beans and cut into ½-inch lengths.

Peel and dice the carrots, potatoes, and onion.  Trim of all but the white park of the leek, rinse thoroughly under cold water, and dice.  Rinse the zucchini (but do not peel) and dice.

Place the water in a large stock pot, add the pork rind and bring to a boil, skimming off the foam that rises to the top.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add the beans and diced vegetables and simmer over low heat for 2 hours.  Ann's Note:  Since I didn't use pork rind, I added the vegetables and let that mixture come to a boil before turning the heat to low.  If I had to do it over again though, I would have added just the beans, brought them to a boil and then simmered them for a bit before adding the vegetables.  The beans were fine but some were a bit chewy.

As the soup cooks, prepare the pistou:  Peel, seed and chop the tomatoes and place them in a colander to drain.  Peel the garlic, place in a mortar and crush with a pestle.  (See Ann's Note above.)  Remove the leaves from the basil, chop and add them to the mortar.  Remove a few pieces of the cooked potato from the simmering soup with a slotted spoon, drain and add to the mortar.  Work all the ingredients in the mortar together, grinding them with the pestle to obtain a smooth paste.  Season with salt and pepper.

Add the olive oil a little at a time, starting with a very thin stream and whisking after each addition until thoroughly incorporated, as for a mayonnaise. (Ann's Note:  even when I cut the recipe in half, I felt like that was too much olive oil so yes, I added it a little at a time and very carefully as well!)

When the mixture is blended, add the drained tomatoes. 

About 15 minutes before the soup has finished cooking, add the pasta and cook until tender.  Remove the pork rind.  Add the pistou mixture and mix well.  Cover a tureen (if you are using one) and let it stand for 10 minutes before serving.  Place the Parmesan and Gruyere in separate bowls and pass to sprinkle over the soup.

Ann's Note:  The price of Parmesan cheese has gone up considerably such that I have taken to going to a few stores that I know sell it by weight and search until I find the cheapest block.  You do not need all the cheese called for in this recipe, not even if making a half recipe.  And Gruyere cheese has always been pricey so again, I looked until I found an inexpensive block and used that. 

The search for the cheapest cheese reminds me of "Mousier" Keith, a friend of my friend, Susan, who was living in Paris when Susan and I went to France in 1988 (Oh my God, what a hilarious trip that was).  At any rate, Mousier Keith was a starving artist and told me and Susan about how he always scrounged around the French markets, pricing potatoes (in the same way I did my cheese).  When Susan later left Paris to go to England to visit her mother's family, Keith and I went out for dinner which I bought because the poor man was starving.  But to this day, I regret swapping out my very lovely vegetable salad for his seafood salad (in oil as is customary) because I took pity on him.  And by the way, Susan and I always referred to him as "Mousier Keith" because he kept trying to call us to set up a meeting time and when the hotel gave us the messages, they always said "Mousier Keith t'a téléphone hier soir!  (Mr. Keith called while you were out!)

"All Star Feast Cookbook" &" [Minnesota Twins] Home Plate Hits" - Artichoke Spread and Chicken Parmesan - Celebrating MLB's All Star Game

Date I made these recipes: July 21, 2015 – one week after Major League Baseball's All-Star Break

All Star Feast Cookbook – Over 130 Star Athletes Reveal Their Favorite Recipes,  Benefiting the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis and the Women's Sports Foundation compiled by Wendy Diamond

Published by:  Global Liaisons, Incorporated

ISBN:  0-9647316-1-4; ©1997

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores

Recipe:  (Derek Jeter's) Double-Play Chicken Parmesan – p. 70

(Minnesota Twins) Home Plate Hits – Recipes from the Kitchens of the Minnesota Twins' Wives, Players, and Staff

Published by:  Waldman House Press

ISBN: 0-931675-27-1; ©1994

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores

Recipe:  Ace Artichoke Dip from Sherry and Rick Aguilera (former pitcher) – p. 5

Whew, there is so much to discuss about these recipes, I cannot tell you!

So last week was MLB's annual All-Star Break baseball games between the American League and the National League.  Although we sometimes watch the game, this year it was competing with the Tour de France and my husband, who loves to bike ride, takes over the remote controls and never looks back.  And so we watched the Tour, quel dommage (what a pity)!

Also?  It was ridiculously hot and humid last week, and the thought of turning on my oven remained just that – a "thought."  No way was I going to heat up my house just to make a dish.

Finally, it took me until yesterday morning – July 21 – the day I actually made these dishes to make up my mind because I just could not commit to any one thing from the Twins' cookbook until the very last second. But since the dish was a [home run] hit, I'm glad I vacillated.

So:  in the interest of full disclosure, I should tell you thanks to my late father, a New Jersey native and lifelong NY Yankees fan, I too, have been rooting for my Yankees for...forever.  I went to my first game in New York in 1974 and can still recall the thrill, even if they lost to the Milwaukee Brewers.  Since then, I've been to several games, both in NYC as well as here in Minneapolis when they play the Twins and it never gets old.  I've had the pleasure of going to the "old" Yankees stadium, the new one that was just built and in 1974 when the stadium was under renovation, we watched that game in the old Shea Stadium.  For the record, even though I am not a Mets fan, I'm still calling their old home Shea Stadium because that's where my baseball memory happened.

Favorite Yankees game memorable moments are:

• Buying and eating pizza by the slice from a vendor at Shea Stadium.  Only in New York.
• Taking the train then a bus then a subway to Shea Stadium – easily accomplished on the way there – and then reversing the order on the way back which was fraught with peril (too many people trying to squeeze onto the subway) but memorable nonetheless.
• One year Andy and I went to the game with friends, and every time I went up to get a bottle of water and/or to use the restroom (one follows the other), the Yankees scored a home run so the guys started yelling at me to stay back for a while so the Yankees would continue to score. I am SUCH a good luck charm!
• One year a a drunken man fell in the stands, knocking over a woman, injuring her such that the EMT's had to come up in the stands to assist.  When the cops came up to our section and asked "Who did this?" the crowd turned on the man in a New York minute and said "He did it!" while pointing straight at him.  And people think New Yorker's turn the other way – ha! 
• Being at the new stadium the day Hideki Matsui (Japanese player, former outfielder and designated hitter "DH") retired.  It's an odd thing to see so many people in kimonos rotting for the guy.  Yet another "only in NY" moment.
• At the same game, seeing Derek Jeter come off the DL (disabled list) only to hit a homer at his first at bat of that game.  In New York, the fans always yell "Der-ek Je-ter" followed by five claps.  (Go to YouTube, enter "Jeter Chant" and there'll you have it.)
• The year my dad who lived in Michigan, my home state, came to Minneapolis so we could take in a Yankees game against the Minnesota Twins.  We ended up in quite the Yankee fan rooting section and we had an absolute blast.  A few months later, he attended a Yankees game with my brother in the new stadium but it wasn't the same because my brother is a Detroit Tigers fan so...

I've also managed to be in NYC a couple of times when they were in the pennant race and one year, when they won the World Series, I even went to the ticker take parade and am here to tell you that is something I would never do again, not because it wasn't fun but because I, along with hundreds of others, were nearly trampled to death near the parade route.  I'll spare you the details because it's a long story, best told over cocktails, but it made for one, frightening moment.   

Now then, although I am loyal and true to my boys in blue (and gray and white), that does not mean that I don't care about the Minnesota Twins.  I do – so long as they are not playing my Yankees.  And it was impossible not to get caught up in Twins' fever when they were in the pennant race (which they won) in 1987 and 1991.  Somewhere in this house, I still have my "Homer Hankie," created and distributed by our local newspaper, the StarTribune. 

Like my Yankees, I also have fond memories of when the Twins won the World Series.  In October 1987, my best friend, Carol, and I took the train to Chicago for a long, birthday weekend.  When we stopped off overnight in Milwaukee to stay with her brother, we all watched the playoff games on his tiny (and I mean tiny) TV.  And then in Chicago, we interrupted our sightseeing and shopping to take in a day game in a sports bar somewhere in the Loop, along with a ton of other people interested in the outcome.  And then in 1991, we were swept up once again in World Series fever, and this time, my friend came over to our apartment and we watched the final game together.  As Carol said "It was tense.  So tense."  But great fun.

And I will say that although I saw the Minnesota Twins play several times at the old Met stadium, former home to the Minnesota Vikings, where the Mall of America now stands, as well as the Dome (and that was an experience, best forgotten), their new/newish stadium downtown is beautiful, absolutely beautiful.  Plus, we can take the light rail to it, no sweat!  I simply love door to (stadium) door service.

Speaking of no sweat," it was a little warm yesterday but luckily the artichoke spread from the Minnesota Twins' cookbook was made on the stovetop leaving the oven for the chicken parm which only took 20 minutes.  Cooking in the summer is fraught with peril and I often reschedule the making of a particular dish until the weather cools a bit. And this is why you are getting these recipes a week after the All-Star Game.  Needs must, people.  Needs must.

Okay then, so let's talk about our two cookbooks, both of which yielded some yummy recipes and used minimal oven time, be still my heart.

As the name (and cover photos) suggests, the All Star Feast Cookbook does not just feature baseball players, it features players and coaches from just about every sport we love to watch and/or play:  football, basketball, hockey, baseball, tennis, boxing, golf and so on and so forth.  That said, I pretty much eliminated half the book just because I didn't like a particular athlete and/or team (Yes, I'm bitchy that way) and then further culled the herd by eliminating foods I didn't like such as fish and then hmmm....suspiciously and perhaps in a Freudian way, that left me with...well what do you know, Derek Jeter?  How did that happen? ("Der-ek Je-ter, clap, clap, clap, clap clap!")  And actually, I liked his recipe because it was quick, easy, Italian and from a baseball player and seeing as how I planned this blog dinner around the All-Star Game, it worked perfectly.

Now if you don't like baseball, and some people don't, there should be plenty of other recipes to float your "All-Star" boat. In fact, there's a recipe from Bruce Jenner (and ex-wife, Kris Jenner) long before Bruce became Caitlyn.  And can I just say I'm disappointed that Arnold Palmer's recipes don't include one for his famous Arnold Palmer drink (of ice tea and lemonade and then maybe or maybe not some alcohol?). 

As to the Twins cookbook, like I said earlier, sheesh it was hard to pick a recipe to go with the chicken.  I had several pages marked throughout this book, pretty much one in every category that included:  Warm-Ups; Hey Batter Batter Breads and Soups; Play Ball!  Main Courses; Short Stops Salads  & Sides and Sweet Spot Desserts so there was that problem.

The next problem I had was that since I'm a Yankees fan, I had next to no idea who some of the Twins' players were and not that I couldn't have made something from somebody I didn't know, but I wanted to sort of tie it in together.  And I have to tell you that several of Kent Hrbek's recipes (former 1^st baseman) were in the running until I decided that they were really meals all by themselves and therefore too heavy to put with my chicken parm.  And then I considered a Shortstop Beef Casserole (because Derek Jeter played shortstop) but again, that dish was just too heavy to pair with the chicken parm.  And sure, I could have made another dish from the All-Star cookbook but my theme was baseball so everything else had to revolve around that dish, period.

Well, after much contemplation, I went back to the beginning to the appetizer section and made a split-second decision to make the artichoke spread and it was delicious and easy and I even knew who Rick Augilera was so there you go.

Both of these dishes are home plate hits so there you go and so batter up!  Your kitchen dugout awaits you.

Ace Artichoke Dip – serves 8-10  (Ann's Note:  I made half this recipe and that was still a lot of dip!)

1 cup mayonnaise

8 ounces cream cheese

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

½ cup grated parmesan cheese

¼ teaspoon garlic salt

2 6-ounce jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained and diced

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

12-14 slices wheat bread, toasted and cut into fourths

In small saucepan, combine mayonnaise, cheeses, and garlic salt.  Cook and stir over low heat until cheeses melt.  Stir in artichokes.

Add chopped parsley.  Remove from heat and arrange on serving dish with toast points.  Have a knife handy for spreading.

Double-Play Chicken Parmesan – serves 6

6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves

1/3 cup flour

2 egg whites, slightly beaten

1 cup Italian bread crumbs

1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

¼ cup red onion, chopped

1 clove garlic

2 cups prepared spaghetti sauce

6 thin slices mozzarella cheese

Dredge chicken with flour.  Dip in egg whites until coated.  Combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.  Roll chicken in bread crumb mixture until completely covered. In a frying pan, heat oil.  Saute onion and garlic for about 2 minutes.  Add chicken and cook about 5 to 6 minutes per side.  Transfer to a baking pan.  Top with favorite spaghetti sauce and one think slice of mozzarella cheese.  Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until tender.

Anns' Notes (and lots of them):

1. They don't make chicken breasts like they used to because man, the ones I bought were huge and probably double the size needed.  So after frying them up in the oil, I microwaved them for 10 minutes before putting them in the oven so that they wouldn't end up raw in the middle.  This turned out to be the perfect solution as the breasts were quite tender.  You might want to cut the breasts in half when you make them but if not, just remember that athletes need protein!
2. Derek doesn't mention oil at all in his ingredient list (it shows up in the instructions) so I coated the bottom of a large frying pan with olive oil and even then, probably could have added more. 
3. Also MIA in the instruction department was what, if anything to do with the garlic.  I couldn't see the point of sautéing an entire garlic clove so I minced it.  Missing or incomplete instructions (or ingredients) are such a pet peeve of mine that is usually ticks me off but this is Derek Jeter we're talking about so...
4. Derek, Derek, Derek! One "thin" slice of mozzarella only?  Silly rabbit.  I used almost the whole ball of hand-pulled mozzarella I purchased from Kowalski's (I've never had hand-pulled before) and then promptly ate what I didn't use.  There is no such thing as too much mozzarella and no such thing as a "thin" slice.
5. In the interest of time, I succumbed to using jarred sauce as directed by on any other day, I would have made up my own family's recipe for authenticity. 

"Weiners Gone Wild;" "Serve It Cold;" "The Thirteen Colonies Cookbook;" "A Month of Sundaes" - 4th of July hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans and ice cream toppings

Date I made these recipes:  July 5, 2015 for a belated Fourth of July!

Wieners Gone Wild by Holly Schmidt

Published by: Running Press

ISBN: 978-0-7624-4727-5

Recipe:  Sloppy Dog (hot dog + Sloppy Joe) – p. 49-50

Serve It Cold by June Crosby & Ruth Conrad Bateman

Published by:  Gramercy Publishing Company

© 1968, 1969

Purchased at: Eat My Words used bookstore, Northeast Minneapolis

Recipe:  French Potato Salad – p. 108

The Thirteen Colonies Cookbook by Mary Donovan; Amy Hatrak; Frances Mills; Elizabeth Shull

Published by: Praeger Publishers

© 1975

Purchased at Bloomington Crime Prevention Association (BCPA) annual book sale, 2014

Recipe:  Boston Baked Beans – p. 30

A Month of Sundaes by Michael Turback

Published by: Red Rock Press

ISBN: 0-9669573-8-5

Purchased at Bonnie Slotnick's Cookbooks, NYC

Recipes:  Classic Chocolate Syrup – p. 43; Classic Caramel Syrup – p. 54; Fluffy Marshmallow Sauce – p. 54, served over (store-bought) vanilla ice cream

Well, as always, the 4^th of July came and went and such is life.  Still, we kept the party going on Sunday, July 5^th, by having my husband's aunt, a cousin and his mom over for dinner.  I had already planned to make this menu for just the two of us but having more people added to the fun and cut down on the leftovers.  A great time was had by all.

In my book, and maybe yours as well, the 4^th of July is not the 4^th of July without a hot dog.  I changed this up a bit this year by making a Sloppy Dog, basically a hot dog topped with Sloppy Joe mix.  Well that works, doesn't it?  This cookbook has a lot of very creative recipes although I am not sure how well the "Lasagna Dog" recipe on p. 146 would work.  Seems rather messy.  Other dogs though, seemed kind of fun like a "Quesadilla Dog" – p. 131 or the "Rasta Dog" – p. 139 or a "Soul Dog" on p. 93.  I hated to choose just one but given that I love, love, love Sloppy Joe's, that one won the day.

The 4^th of July is not the 4^th of July without some potato salad but since Andy does not really care for potato salad (it's all about the mayo), I had to work a bit to find a substitute that he would like and thus Serve It Cold saved the day.  Now I have to tell you that the gelatin-covered fish dish on the front cover almost dissuaded me from using this book because I consider that to be "rude food," but luckily there's a wide range of options, from things like "Spinach Mushroom Salad" – p. 102 or an "Antipasto Salad" on p. 103, not to mention entrees, sandwiches and desserts that are all served cold but my mind was set on "potato."  And really, since France gifted us Lady Liberty, it would be very rude not to invite them to the table, oui?

As to The Thirteen Colonies Cookbook, my baked bean selection was a no-brainer because hot dogs, potato salad and baked beans are almost a national requirement on our big holiday.  In fact, I should check the fine print of Declaration of Independence because I'm sure it's in there, way down at the bottom.  Way down.  "Get a magnifier" down.

Recipes in this book are divided by northern colonies; middle colonies and southern colonies.  Let me see if I can refresh your memory:  Northern Colonies – New Hampshire (often overlooked, am I right?); Massachusetts; Rhode Island and Connecticut.  Middle Colonies – New York; New Jersey; Pennsylvania and Delaware.  Southern Colonies – Maryland; Virginia; North Carolina; South Carolina and Georgia.  So there you go and give yourself an A+ if you remembered them without me telling you (because I sure didn't and I minored in history in college!).

Finally, no 4^th of July repast is complete without ice cream, preferably hand-cranked but since I don't have an ice cream maker, and most assuredly not an old-fashioned crank one, I decided to make sauces and just buy the ice cream.  That said, Andy and I laughed at how many ice cream options there are and why is this anyway when all we wanted was vanilla?  (Yes, but what kind of vanilla?????)

This book is very fun because it has all kinds of recipes for sundaes and other sweet ice cream confections but I wanted to keep things rather generic in case somebody didn't like a flavor of ice cream I might serve.  And you might think that three sauces is a lot but they were all very easy to make.  Well almost:  I burnt the caramel the first time around (do not look away while making this, do not!) and started over.  I put Andy in charge of the marshmallow cream and then I finished up with the chocolate sauce.  Again, a big hit with this tough crowd! 

And that concludes our 4^th of July meal and it was fabulous.  Even better?  Andy's Aunt Betty is 86 years old and was in town, along with 10,000 other athletes to participate in the National Senior Games, held in various venues around the Twin Cities.  Betty has been participating for many years in various events, but for a while now, she's been focusing on archery.  And so Andy and I and Andy's cousin, Sandy, went to watch Betty and her fellow archers in these games and well, color me impressed!  When I was a teenager, my dad let me use his bow and arrow set and I am pretty sure that the first two times "at bat," the bow flew out first, followed by the arrow!  The arm strength needed for this is incredible and here were 134 participants age 50-96 (the oldest man!) shooting arrows like it was no big deal.  Betty won a medal in her age class as did the 96 year-old man who stood alone in his age category.  As one of Betty's friends joked "Sometimes it helps if you're older as there are less competitors!"  Regardless, we are very proud of Betty and learned a lot while watching.  It felt like a very patriotic thing to do the day after the 4^th.

Sloppy Dog – serves 8

1 ¼ pounds ground beef

¼ large onion, finely chopped

½ green pepper, seeded and finely chopped, divided

2 garlic cloves, minced

¾ cup ketchup (store bought or use the recipe on page 23)

1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon mustard powder

1 tablespoon tomato paste (buy a tube if you can so you don't waste a can)

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (the larger amount makes for a spicy Sloppy Joe, so use the smaller amount if you don't like heat)

¼ teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

8 potato sub rolls or hot dog buns (store bought or use the recipe on page 15)

8 hot dogs

8 ounces Muenster cheese, grated

Ann's Note:  at first I just made a little less than half of the recipe but that was too stingy so I made up another batch.  One must not skimp on Sloppy Joe mix.)

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the ground beef.  Cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until the meat is universally brown.  Remove the beef with a slotted spoon and set it aside in a bowl.  Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the pan, add the onions, all but 3 tablespoons of the green pepper, and the garlic.  Saute the vegetables until they are soft, about 10 minutes.

Add the ketchup, brown sugar, chili powder, mustard powder, tomato paste, Worcestershire, red pepper flakes, and ½ cup of water.  Stir to combine and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes.  Add the salt and pepper to taste.

Heat a second large skillet or grill pan over medium heat.  Butter the insides of the rolls and toast them in the skillet.  Set the rolls aside.  Cook the hot dogs according to your preferred method and place them in the rolls.  Top each hot dog with the Sloppy Joe mixture, some grated Muenster cheese, and some of the remaining 3 tablespoons of green pepper. 

French Potato Salad – makes 4 to 6 servings

"The French trick of pouring a little white wine or stock over warm potatoes before adding the dressing is a good one to know.  Less oil is absorbed by the potatoes, they are lighter, more flavorful.

2 pounds small boiling potatoes

Salt (for the potato water)

2 tablespoons dry white wine

2 tablespoons light consommé

½ cup Sauce Vinaigrette (to follow)

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon and chervil, mixed (or 1 teaspoon dried fresh herbs) Ann's Note:  I used dried Herbs de Provence

2 tablespoons minced shallots or green onions

1 tablespoon minced parsley

For the vinaigrette

¾ teaspoon salt

1 clove garlic, crushed with the salt, optional

Pinch dry mustard, optional

3 to 4 tablespoons [white] wine vinegar

¾ cup salad oil or olive oil (or a mixture)

Generous grinding of black pepper

Cook potatoes in boiling salted water until just tender.  Drain, peel while warm and slice about ¼ inch thick.  Mix wine and consommé and pour over them.  Let stand until liquid is absorbed.  Beat vinaigrette* into mustard until smooth.  Add herbs.  Sprinkle shallots, parsley and dressing over potatoes.  Toss gently until mixed.  Taste and adjust seasonings.  Cover and chill only until flavors blend.  Serve cool but not icy, in a pretty glass bowl.  Sprinkle with more parsley if you wish.

*Vinaigrette recipe:  You may combine all ingredients and shake vigorously in jar until blended, but we like to beat it with a wire whisk to a soft creamy emulsion.  The flavor seems richer, mellower.  With whisk, beat salt, garlic, if used, and mustard into vinegar, then beat in oil, in small portions, until sauce is smooth and lightly thickened.  Season with pepper.  Use at once or store in bottle and shake vigorously before using.  Ann's Note:  don't forget to beat the vinaigrette into the mustard – see above.

Boston Baked Beans – serves 12 (Ann's Note:  please note how much this full recipe makes!  I made half a batch. Also note that you will need to soak the beans overnight and then bake the mixture for 4-5 hours.  In other words, plan in advance!)

4 cups pea beans (a/k/a navy beans)

1 large onion, studded with cloves

½ pound salt pork (Ann's Note:  if you can't find salt pork, trying using a thick slab of bacon)

1 cup brown sugar

3 teaspoons dry mustard

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

½ cup dark molasses

Soak beans overnight.  Drain.  Cover with water and cook until the skins burst when blown on.  (Ann's Note:  What the hell does that  - "cook until the skins burst when blown on" – mean?  This is not a proper cooking instruction.  So I Googled "cooking navy beans" and found I needed to cook the beans between a half hour and an hour.  So honestly—was that hard?)

Drain and ladle the beans into an earthenware bean pot.  Press the onion into the center of the beans until barely covered.  Cut salt pork 1 inch deep every ½ inch and splay out to cover a larger surface.  Push salt pork slightly below the surface of the beans.

Over pork and beans, pour mixture of ¾ cup (leaving ¼ remaining) brown sugar, mustard, salt, pepper, and molasses.  Pour 1 cup boiling water over the beans; slowly stir with a large spoon.  Add enough boiling water to cover the beans.  Cover the bean pot and bake at 250 for 4 to 5 hours.  Uncover for the last half hour.  Sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar to brown and crisp the pork.  Add water as needed during baking.

Classic Chocolate Syrup – makes 1 cup

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

½ cup evaporated milk

¼ cup water

Melt chocolate in top of a double boiler.  Gradually stir in evaporated milk, and continue stirring until sauce is fully blended and smooth.  Remove from heat and stir in water until smooth.

Syrup may be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.  To reheat, set over a double boiler and stir until smooth.  If re-heating over direct heat, use very low flame, and be careful not to let the sauce bubble or burn.

Classic Caramel Syrup – makes 1 cup

1 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup water

1 cup heavy cream

Combine sugar and water in a heavy medium-size saucepan.  Stir constantly over medium heat until sugar is dissolved and the mixture comes to a boil.  Stop stirring and boil until the mixture turns a deep caramel color (6-12 minutes).  Watch carefully to make sure mixture doesn't get too dark.  (Ann's Note:  and this can happen in a heartbeat unless you are vigilant.  If you start to "smell" the sugar, yank it off the stove or it will burn.  I ruined the first batch because I was not quick enough on the draw!)

Remove from heat and add cream (Caution:  mixture will bubble up fiercely).  Return pan to high heat and boil, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and pour into a glass measuring cup or other heatproof container.  Allow to cool to desired temperature.

Fluffy Marshmallow Sauce – makes 3 cups

2 large egg whites (Ann's Note:  I keep powdered egg whites on hand for baking because it's easier and cheaper to use than buying fresh eggs that I never use up in time.)

1 cup sugar

½ cup water

16 regular marshmallows

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in a mixing bowl on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 2-3 minutes.  Set aside.  Combine sugar and water in a medium-size saucepan and place over medium heat.  Stir until sugar dissolves.  Stop stirring and allow sugar/water mixture to come to a boil.  Boil for 3 minutes without stirring.  Reduce heat to low, add marshmallows, and stir until they are completely melted and mixture is smooth, about 4 minutes.  Remove from heat and, using the electric mixture at slow speed, beat hot marshmallow mixture into the egg whites.  Continue beating for 2 minutes.  Beat in vanilla.  Serve warm or cold.

Sauce may be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.  To re-heat, microwave on low power for 30 seconds, or until warm.