Given sufficient time in the gym I would love to wear this beautiful Rachel Roy dress (only $99!!!) to a holiday party. Check out more suggestions on Refinery29.
Party DressNovember 28th, 2010Maple-Braised Butternut Squash with Fresh ThymeNovember 28th, 2010I truly miss Gourmet magazine, it was a beautiful and intelligent publication I looked forward to receiving every month for the years I subscribed. That said, I have actually been finding some really good recipes in Bon Appetit magazine, the publication I began receiving as a substitution for the remainder of my Gourmet subscription. **Once my subscription ran out I did not renew Bon Appetit, but I have picked up several issues. Andrew Knowlton, the Restaurant Editor, really seems to know his stuff and of course I love Molly Wizenberg’s column. This recipe was easy to follow and only took about 30 minutes to make (not including the 7-8 minutes the squash spent in my friend’s microwave softening up so I could easily cut it open). It received ample oohs and aahs from the table, so I am adding it to my go to recipes for future Thanksgiving dinners.
Maple-Braised Butternut Squash with Fresh Thyme from November, 2010 issue of Bon Appetit Ingredients: Directions: Melt butter in heavy large deep skillet over high heat. Add squash; saute 1 minute. Add broth, syrup, thyme, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook until squash is almost tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer squash to large bowl. Boil liquid in skillet until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Return squash to skillet. Cook until tender, turning occasionally, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with more pepper, if desired. Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Cranberry Orange RelishNovember 28th, 2010For holiday feasts my go to recipes are those I have made several times in the past. This is as much to do with recipe reliability as it does time. Fact, once I have made something more than twice, it does not take me as long to make it. I read and reread recipes before starting. This was not always the case, I used to get midway through a recipe and might find I needed some ingredient I did not have on hand or more likely that the next step involved overnight refrigeration. GREAT, with 25 minutes to go I now have to rush to the supermarket that is not open on this particular day or at this hour, when…if I had just read this #$%$ recipe yesterday I would be done. I am sure most, if not all of you, know what I mean. Yes? Folks, notice this direction…Cool, and refrigerate overnight. AND enjoy!!
Cranberry Orange Relish from Martha Stewart Living (probably the 1997 issue, when I first started picking up the November issue) Instructions: Directions: Place the sugar, 1 cup water, and the orange juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Add cranberries; cook just until berries start to pop, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in orange zest and segments. Cool, and refrigerate overnight. Yield: makes 4 cups Derby PieNovember 28th, 2010Don’t ask me how, but yes I managed to forget to take a picture of this pie. It isn’t that I didn’t think about doing it while making the pie and then unwrapping it for dinner. I’ve made this pie a dozen times and will again at least as many so maybe I’ll just add a photo later. Anyway, hope you all had a wonderful holiday. Mine was relaxing, which is the single best thing I can say about time away from the desk. It was enchanting with a tiny bit of snow, “Harry Potter” with friends, a fire in the fireplace, delicious meal, an extra hour of sleep in the morning, and a pedicure (bright glittery green). I even saw wild turkeys. Brave things those birds! This is not a hard to pie to make, and one that gets better the day after and the day after that. On the third day, it being the holiday season and all, I even recommend it for breakfast. Oh, and feel free to be generous with the whisky (meaning 1 1/2 Tbsp not 1). Derby Pie Pecan Pie recipe adapted from Schooner Taber cookbook Ingredients: **to make Derby Pie add a handful of milk chocolate chips Directions: Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Add remaining ingredients and pour into a lined pie pan. Bake 40 minutes at 375. ***1 unbaked pie crust : Combine flour, salt and 1/2 cup shortening. Mix well (Taber cookbook recommends with palm knife, I prefer using my hands). Add remaining 1/4 cup shortening. Blend well again and add water. Mix till it is pie dough. Yield: one single-crust pie Fair GameNovember 28th, 2010Help Save Public Access to Higgins BeachNovember 23rd, 2010Passing this on to anyone in Maine who appreciates being able to enjoy a day at the beach. A few home owners in Scarborough are trying to privatize Higgins Beach by suggesting ridiculous parking restrictions. This is a method I am learning is being used across the country from Hawaii to New Jersey, North Carolina to Maine. Create prohibitive restrictions behind the false curtain of public safety…to try and ensure the public has minimal access to a natural resource. I cannot tell you how angry this makes me. I support the democratic process and feel every individual should have the right to present his/her concerns to a community body for consideration. What I do not understand is why anyone would want to prevent the public from enjoying a morning surf session, afternoon dog walk, or evening sunset stroll on the beach. I am thankful I do not understand, do not even want to know what is on a person’s mind who would do this. Cheers to all the lovely residents of Scarborough I have met at Higgins Beach and to the scores of friendly folks I continue to run into on the beach and in the water. May there be more sunny days, great waves, and gorgeous sunsets we can enjoy - I hope, I really really hope!!! Okay, talking points I’ve received from those participating in the SAVE HIGGINS campaign…These are meant to be used in letters to Scarborough Town Council members (keep it clean and positive please) and letters to the editors of local papers. 1. Maine has a tradition of beach access dating back to colonial times. Many people use Higgins Beach; dog walkers, beach goers, fishermen, kids, swimmers, surfers, runners, families, vacationers. If street parking is further limited, persons will be exposed to a safety hazard walking the two blocks to the beach when there is ice and snow - particularly the elderly/and small children. Many elderly cannot even walk that distance. They will effectively be prevented from Higgins Beach access during the off-season. IF YOU ARE A SURFER remember when talking about this issue (to people who agree and disagree with you on this issue.., remember… We are business owners, mothers, fathers, lawyers, doctors, professionals, builders, fishermen (even grandfathers!) — we are Maine people (and proud of it). We are surfers and we are great stewards of our beaches and water quality. 2. The proposed limited time parking (30 mins) is not long enough for people to effectively use the beach for their recreation. Public use of the beach (a natural resource) will become extremely limited. 3.For the past two years on-street parking during the winter has satisfied the public’s needs with no incidents in terms of safety. While we support the sidewalk, it has eroded some parking access to Higgins Beach. Bayview Street currently offers approximately 25 parking spots, the Ad-Hoc Higgins Beach Parking Advisory Committee has suggested limiting the number to 6. We ask to maintain the number of public parking spots available or increase them, not reduce them and thus cut off public access to beach users. 4. A proposal by the Higgins Beach Parking Lot Committee (comprised of one town employee, one Higgins Beach property owner, an architect, and an engineer) suggests a bath house and parking space usage plan in the parking lot that would consume 38 of the current 100 spaces. This means 1/3 of the parking spaces in the summer could be lost to the general public. **This is an item you should be aware of as the Town of Scarborough assesses how to address different operational challenges while providing amenities. These figures could be the worse case scenario, or not. This issue has yet to become public record and will eventually be presented to the public to weigh in on. Please keep this issue in mind when understanding why it is so important we preserve public parking opportunities. 5. For consideration in letters to Scarborough Town Councilors and maybe the Executive Director of the Scarborough Chamber of Commerce Nick LaVecchia’s Winter Surfing PicturesNovember 23rd, 2010ApplesauceNovember 23rd, 2010Tomorrow I depart for the holiday weekend, and am so excited. Cooking with friends, college football games, hiking and maybe skateboarding, and the movies. That Diane Keaton movie looks so good! Hope you all have fun plans!! I promise a full report with recipes of all I contribute to the Thanksgiving table. Included will “my” beloved Derby Pie recipe (mine has healthy amounts of chocolate and whiskey) and the sweet potato and butternut squash recipes I will add “completely reasonable” amounts of maple syrup to for that sweet bite. One gem of a recipe I am happy to share in advance of the holiday is this one for homemade applesauce. A delicious addition to any table, but especially good for scooping up with stuffing, brussels sprouts, and sweet potato.
Applesauce from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. Makes about eight pint (500mL) jars or four quart (1L) jars Ingredients: *I used the remainder of apples from my Out on a Limb Apple CSA - Idared, Northern Spy, Jonagold, and Winter Banana (descriptions on the farm’s website). **Prevent browning - submerge cut fruit in a mixture of 1/4 cup (50 mL) lemon juice and 4 cups (1L) water. (I squeezed a little lemon juice on the apples when/if they started to brown.) Directions: Prepare canner, jars, and lids. (Visit this DM post for details.) In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine apples with just enough water to prevent sticking. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 20 minutes, until apples are tender (time will depend upon the variety of apples and their maturity). Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Working in batches, transfer apples to a food mill or a food processor fitted with a metal blade and puree until smooth. Return apple puree to saucepan. Add sugar, if using, and lemon juice; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Maintain a gentle boil over low heat while filling jars. Ladle hot applesauce into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch (1 cm) headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot applesauce. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip-tight. Place jars in a canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process both pint (500 mL) and quart (1L) jars for 20 minutes. Remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars, let cool undisturbed for 24 hours and store. Portland Skateboard Park OpensNovember 21st, 2010CranberriesNovember 19th, 2010 It is almost that time of year to string up popcorn and cranberries. One more reason to get a tree. Photo by Clodders. |
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