Wednesday, January 24, 2007

How to Make a Frittata

To make a frittata you have to have eggs.
You need six eggs.
They should be as fresh as possible.
You do not have to wait by the hen and grab them as they come rolling out.
Get some nice fat eggs at the market.
Organic or natural if they are available.

Get out a mixing bowl and break the eggs into the bowl.
Put a few tablespoons of water in the bowl.
Add some fresh or dried herbs.
Oregano, rosemary, thyme, mint, cilantro amd parsley are good choices.
Mix the eggs well with a fork or wire whisk.
Set the bowl aside.

Put a 10 inch non-stick frying pan on the stove.
Turn the heat up to medium-high or high.
You will have to decide based on your own stove.

Ok now you have to decide what kind of frittata you are going to make.
Actually, you should have already decided that.

Here are a few ideas.

Asparagus and mushrooms.
Roma tomatoes and green onions.
Carmelized onions and gorgonzola cheese.
Left over pasta with a little sauce.
Zuccini and tomatoes.
You could add ham or other cooked meat.

Put the vegetables in the pan with some extra virgen olive oil.
Add salt and pepper. Add a little dried chile flakes.
Cook until al dente.
That means a little cruchy not mushy.
If you are using carmelized onions you already slow cooked them in butter until they turned brown and sweet.
The pasta just needs to be warmed up.
If you are using any cheese add the cheese to the eggs.

Now pour the egg mixture into the pan.
Stir the eggs into the vegetables or pasta.
Now let it cook for awhile.
When the eggs are no longer runny on top but have begun to solidify run a spatula around the frittata and seperate it from the pan.
Slide it out of the pan onto a plate.
Now turn the pan upside down over the plate and turn it over.
Try not to burn yourself.
The uncooked side should now be facing down.
Cook for a few minutes more.

Slide the frittata back on the plate.
Let it cool.
Slice into pie shaped wedges and serve it with a salad and crusty bread.
I like the frittata at room temperature.

How to Make A Fruit Salad

To make a fruit salad you have to have fruit.
The best places to get fruit are from orchards and farms.
Fruit grows on trees, bushes and little plants that come out of the dirt.
Fruit also grows in the wild places.
Like forests and by the side of the road.
Don't pick any old berry.
Some of them are poisonous.
Stolen fruit is always sweeter.
But do not get caught.

Most fruit salad makers rely on grocery stores and farmer's markets.
They will have a good selection and you can even get fruit that has been harvested in foriegn countries.
You can steal fruit from the supermarkets.
I would only advise stealing a grape or two.
Do not try putting ripe fruit in your pockets.

In this recipe I am assuming that you are making this salad for a lot of people.
So you will need a lot of fruit.
Here is what you should have.
Red crunchy red apples. Red Delicious
Green apples. Maybe Granny Smith.
Ripe pears. I like Anjou pears the best.
Bananas. Yellow.
Red and green grapes.
Cherries.
Blueberries.
Musk melon.
Honey dew melon.
Watermelon.
Oranges.
Blood oranges.
Plums.
Mangoes.
Pineapple.
Avocadoes.
Papaya.
Red ripe roma tomatoes.
Limes and lemons for the dressing.
Dried fruit like raisins, dates,cranberries and figs.

Now find a big bowl.
Why don't you use that big white one on the top shelf.

Wash all of the fruit.
Squeeze the juice out of the limes and lemons.
Set the juice aside.
Now cut up all of the fruit into bite size chunks.
A bite size is what you can fit into an open mouth.
For people with fat mouths the pieces can be bigger.
For small mouths you need smaller pieces.
Remove the seeds and pits.
Cut the cherries and grapes in half.
The roma tomatoes should be diced finely.

Put all of the fruit in the big white bowl.
Pour the lemon and lime juice on it.
Stir the fruit.

Now add some chopped nuts.
Walnuts, almonds, filberts and pecans.
Any combination will do.
Please do not use peanuts.
Uncle Larry has an alergy to peanuts.
And you may or may not be in his will.

Now drizzel some honey onto the fruit.
Use a lot.
Next put some spices on top of the fruit.
They should be ground up.
Use cinnamon bark, cardoman pods, cloves, ginger root and coriander seeds.
Coriander is another name for cilantro.
Not to be confused with culantro, that long herb used in Vietnam and other places.
Put lots of these spices on top of the fruit.
You cannot use too much.
Do not be cheap here.
After all this is for your stomach and the stomach of others.
Then put some ground chile powder on top.
Maybe a teaspoon full.
I am not talking about that spice mixture that is used to flavor soup, but whole chiles that have been ground up.
Next a little sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
Stir this all up making sure the honey and spices are spread all thru the fruit and nuts.

Now cover the salad and let it chill in the fridge.
This will give all the flavors a chance to get acquainted.

Before you serve the salad stir it one more time.
Now you eat the salad.
Eat a lot of it.
At the bottom of the bowl will be a lot of juice.
Pour it out and drink it.

You can use whatever combination of fruit and nuts you like.
If you have some fresh mint, chop it up and add it to the salad.
If you like wine or rum, put some in.
Plain yogurt can be added if you want the dressing to be a little creamy.
Do not put chicken broth or anchovy paste in this fruit salad.
You can however add a little unsweetened chocolate powder when you are adding the spices.

A good fruit salad is a welcome addition to any feast be it a wake, wedding or just watching the saturday night fights on TV.

You can even forget about sharing it.
Make the salad, buy a rotisserie chicken, a loaf of french bread and a bottle of wine.
Put everything on the TV table, get out the remote control and watch the fights.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Stan Getz - John Coltrane performing Rifftide

Recently discovered video of Stan Getz and John Coltrane playing together in a European JATP concert in the early 60s; it was the Miles quintet on the bill but Miles was sick and Trane led the group as a quartet. Check out Oscar Peterson sliding into the piano chair at the beginning .. N

Monday, January 01, 2007

Foto of the Dead Dog(Closeup of A Tooth)

Foto



















You were asking me to take some fotos of the Sacred Spaces and Places. You know that I do not own a camera. So I went to the Superstore and bought one. I got one of those one time use ones. It was on sale for four bucks. Well I drove around the neighborhood and took some fotos. I took one of the little river formed by the water leaking from the dumpster at the grocery store. When I took it the water was frozen and there were lots of different colors. Primaries and secondaries. I went to the garage down that alley. I took several shots of the outside focusing on the hole in the door. I got a few from the inside. I took some fotos of the tools on the wall. The hacksaw. The hammers. The screwdrivers. The oil spot and saw dust on the floor. I got a nice one of the pushbroom in the northeast corner of the garage. After I used up the whole role of film I took it back to the Superstore to be developed. The only foto that came out pretty good is the one above. I took several of the dead dog. But the sun was real bright. And the angels were singing real loud. All I could hear was " and Bingo was his name, oh". If you look real close you can see a reflection of one of the angels on the tooth. It is on the drop of blood right near the gum line.