Kitchen Contemplation

Cooking is one of my favorite things, in case you haven't noticed.

Randi's Blueberry Cornbread

I love creating new flavor and texture combinations, and even if they don't all come out right there's still a lot of fun involved.

The holidays really bring out the kitchen maven in me; filling the house with seasonal aromas....cinnamon,  cloves, garlic, lemon, basil....
Spices, herbs and such to me are essential kitchen tools, important as knives and spoons-heck! Just about as important as stoves and mixing bowls!  They are the ribbon that can tie a dish together or the bomb that can blow it all apart. 

A person should really experiment with a new ingredient or combination before introducing it into the dining fare.  Some folk don't like mixing garlic and rosemary, for example.  I know an entire family who don't eat onions.  That's when true mastery comes into play....finding alternatives that will produce a well rounded flavor without using a dreaded ingredient.  But there are ways to do it.

Adaptability is the key....and the cook should be adaptable enough to render a meal their diners will enjoy.
It's not up to the chef to force their will on their guests....of course, the guests could be missing out on a wonderful experience if they are too closed minded, so there's a trade-off.

Anyway, for today, Fifty Five Is The New Kitchen Contemplation...preparing food is another way to say I love you.

Apple Time!

Apple Time! Bounty from Jack's sister's garden.

It's Apple Time!  We went to visit Jack's sister and she gave us some apples from her wonderful apple tree!
They're green with gold, Granny Smith I think.  Anyway, she's invited us back to get a bunch of them, which is gonna be great, with all the pending holiday baking about to take place!  Apple everything!  Can't wait!

I have so many recipes, I should just sit down and write that cook book!  Sure have been threatening to do so for a long time.  Well, if there are any readers out there interested, let me know and I'll send a few recipes out, and if there's enough interest maybe I'll write a cooking blog...that could be a lot of fun. So feel free to let me know via the comments thingie.

The pending elections are pretty much all that's being talked about on the buses and street corners here in North Beach.  During one of my walks, I just took a seat in the park for a little while and listened.  Word on the street?  Jobs.  We need jobs.    People are confused about the health care bill, most agree we need something to happen.....that's true.  But what?  The economy is the most important thing on everybody's mind. Seems like rich or poor (if "rich" means nice clothes, styled hair and good shoes and poor means the rest of us schlubbs) alike feel the same way.   So it goes.

But here I am, enjoying the moment with my booty basket of apples, getting ready to go into baking mode for the next several weeks...I'm in hog heaven!

Even though we don't have the same kind of four seasons here in California as can be had back in Philly, we set our calendars according to the fruits and veggies...like right now.  Autumn...Apples.
The only thing missing?  Falling leaves......I miss raking them up into a big pile then jumping in!  There's nothing like the smell of autumn leaves, or the crunch, or the color....brings out the kid in me!

So for today, Fifty Five Is The New Apple Time!  Let's go find a pile of fresh raked leaves and dive in!

Senior

Aging isn't a graceful process; it's full of little aches and pains, weird noises, unidentified sweats and chills, lots of dental drama and so on.  Aging is not, I repeat NOT graceful.

Those who seem to do so probably have either a clone, a painting a la Dorian Grey or a poly-suit they zip into every morning before facing the world.  In my case, what gravity hasn't attacked years of hard living has.  Well, my youth wasn't exactly graceful either, so no doubt that quality will be absent in my Golden Years. 

I remember as a young girl, watching women in their fifties and sixties.  They looked old...I mean older than folks that age look and act today.  Back then I wondered what it would be like, watching my life ebb away in slow, calendared moments.  Looking back, it seems I've stuck to my vow of not getting "old," so far I've maintained a youthful attitude.  And although I'm graying and will probably soon be in dentures, I'm far from over the hill.

A big improvement over the days when people were put out to pasture when they got past fifty.

So for today Fifty Five Is The New Senior....a lot younger now than we ever were.

Social Sorter

September's just about gone, one more calendar page to turn.

I'm trying to get ready for the holidays a little....right now more planning in my head than anything else. 

The whole cycle begins with remembering Janie and T's and Brother Ben and Diane's birthdays then we go onto All Hallows....of course after that come the November days...Brother Bob and Mom's  and Jack's birthdays leading into Thanksgiving and so on.

It's a busy time of year, so I'm just sitting at the calendar sorting it all out. 

For today, Fifty Five Is The New Social Sorter....that's me, pen in hand and full of good intentions.

School Yard

Carpet Design by rcw

St. Cyril of Alexandria in East Lansdowne PA was a great big Roman Catholic complex with adjoining Rectory and, further down the same block, the Convent.  Up behind them stood the school and, for what it was worth, the school yard.

Please understand, I have no argument with people worshiping what they will, but why is it that every Roman Catholic school I've ever seen has the distinction of NOT having a playground in their school yard.   It's not that we didn't have Recess every day....we did.  Sort of.

The idea was to stand us all up on these specially painted parallel lines, arm length apart, and do calisthenics.  Gee, that was fun.  Meanwhile our counterparts just down the road were playing on squeaky swings, slippery sliding boards and yelling at the top of their lungs 'cos they could.

That was the Public school.

We uniformed Catholics got a chance to run around, too.  For about ten minutes before going back inside to continue our education.  What to do with all that blacktop and concrete?  Well, the lines were pretty.

For the most part, everybody stayed in their own groups...the 6 through 8th graders off to one corner neath the shade of said huge church, 5th and 4th over near the school building's old wing-also a shaded location, and the young-uns near the Convent yard fence.

It was the same before school and coming back from lunch.  Everybody would cluster into their groups until the first bell, then scurry into straight lines according to grade to be marched into the halls of learning in true pseudo-military fashion after the second bell.

Anyway, one day when I was in about the Second grade, I remember getting a wild idea. I started a Farmer In the Dell game and somehow encouraged everybody in the schoolyard to join in.
Well, everybody...and I mean EVERYBODY got in on the act.

It was incredible!  The entire school yard was rimmed with this circle of St. Cyril's uniformed students of all ages, boys and girls mixed (HEAVENS!), hands joined and circling while singing The Farmer In The Dell.  The folks at Guiness' Book of Records should have been there.

We got to the Cheese standing alone when the school bell rung. For a brief moment we all looked around and saw how big the circle had gotten.  Nuns came running out of the school building, clapping hands and ordering us about...

"Line up, everyone!" Sister Mary Drill-Sargent (our name for one of the towering Imaculate Heart nuns who taught the 6th grade)  "Joseph! Where's your brother James?"  "Line up!"

Their goal was to get us in proper order before the second bell, and they almost succeeded.   Almost.
We were about five minutes late, and heard all about it at the next morning's loudspeaker broadcast of the school's daily announcements.

From that day forward, all disruptive games were banned from our schoolyard. Any large group games would have to be approved before being played, and everyone was chided for what was considered a poor example of St. Cyril's philosophy and a breach of the school's discipline.

Gee....I didn't know The Farmer In The Dell was a disruptive game, bad enough to be banned from the Catholic School playground!  Who'da thunk?!

To this day I wonder why Catholic schools don't allow playgrounds in their school yards.  I'll bed if they did, they wouldn't have such problems.

What does that has to do with Fifty Five being the New anything?  Well, back then I wasn't afraid to shine and or instigate...actually had no choice. It just seemed to happen.  I want to gain that courage back, to not be afraid.  So for today Fifty Five Is The New School Yard- I'm there for lessons, but ALSO FOR FUN!