Do You Speak Rrrrredish?

I've finally figured out the best way to describe the way Number Two talks: he sounds like the love child of Scooby-Doo and the Swedish Chef. Any translators out there?

Baseball + Strawberries = True Love

Tonight was Number One's final baseball game, with pizza party immediately following. Because our last name is in the second half of the alphabet, we were assigned to bring a dessert. For some reason it occurred to me, and I could not banish the notion, that I should bring homemade strawberry ice cream to this event. So I looked through my books, took a guess as to how many times I should multiply a one-quart recipe for my larger ice-and-salt freezer machine (one quart being woefully insufficient for 14 Little League players and their families), and went to it. I made the custard last night (the original recipe does not call for any cooking, but since I'm not supposed to be eating raw eggs, I took the extra step), picked up some fresh-picked Hood strawberries this morning, and had it finished and in the basement freezer to cure before I went to pick up Number One from school. It could have used more curing time (I discovered when I started scooping and the middle of the canister was still quite soft), but that would have meant picking up the berries earlier, which just wasn't happening this morning.

Here's the recipe for a one-quart maker (which includes most frozen-canister or internal-freezer ice cream makers), adapted from the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream book:

Sweet Cream Base:
2 eggs
3/4 C sugar
2 C cream
1 C milk

Whisk eggs until light and fluffy (1-2 minutes), then gradually add sugar and mix until fully blended, light and smooth (another minute). Whisk in cream and milk (I used my KitchenAid for this, but I had to mix in the last bit of liquid by hand because I tripled the recipe and the top of the whisk attachment would have been submerged. As it turned out, 2 1/2 times the recipe probably would have been plenty, and I might have even been okay with 2 times). If you're going to cook/pasteurize it, put in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently (at the beginning) and then constantly (as it gets hot) until it reaches 180 degrees. You will need to do this part the night before so it can cool down to 40 degrees before you put it in the ice cream freezer.

Strawberry addition:

1 pint strawberries, sliced
1/3 C sugar
juice of half a lemon
pinch of salt*
1 T vodka*

Mix all ingredients together, then let macerate for at least an hour. Next time I do it, I'll probably try for three or four. The original recipe calls for slicing before macerating and then mashing before mixing into the base; I diced, which probably would have worked great if I'd macerated longer. As it was the berries were just a tad icy. I used about half the called-for sugar, which was still plenty for my juicy and sweet Hoods. If you're using California berries with a firmer texture and blander flavor, use the whole amount. I used less lemon juice than this (after tripling) and regretted it, so use it all even though it sounds like quite a bit--I think it really needs the acidic punch to bring out the strawberry flavor. The last two ingredients I added based on a Cook's Illustrated recipe for peach ice cream, and they seemed like a good idea here as well. The salt just brings out the fruit flavor, and the vodka helps make a smoother, less icy ice cream. Certainly you couldn't detect it at all in the finished product.

When both the custard and the berries are fully chilled, mix them together (mashing the berries first if desired) and freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.

Sorry I don't have pictures for you tonight--I'm not 100% sure where my camera is at the moment. I'll try to take a picture when I eat the leftovers tomorrow, and add it to this post then.

Birthday Bash Post Mortem

I know you've all been dying to know how the birthday bash went last Saturday. Well, we should have known that with the Rose Festival Grand Floral Parade scheduled for that day, we were destined to have rainy weather. It started raining just before parade time, and rained pretty steadily all day, growing harder in the afternoon. Fortunately, we had put up the main party tent on Friday evening, so the ground underneath it was dry, and it provided shelter during Saturday's rains to put up decorations. By the time of the party, the rain was letting up, and it only sprinkled sporadically throughout the evening. The overcast skies helped keep the temperatures warmer, too--I hedged my bets by wearing socks and shoes and a lightweight wool cardigan under my shawl, and even with temperatures in the low 60s I was comfortable all evening.

One of the best parts of the whole birthday weekend happened on Friday just before dinner. I was at J&J's (my brother and sister-in-law, who hosted the party in their enormous backyard) in the kitchen, and was surprised to see a car drive up that looked like my dad's Trooper. And then my dad got out! My parents and youngest sister drove all day Friday to come for my party, and left Monday morning first thing. I was so happy to see them! It really meant a lot to me that they went to such a great effort to be there. And their help in the final party preparations was invaluable.

Another good thing happened on Wednesday, when I mentioned at Enrichment that I wasn't sure if the tent I had ordered would arrive on time. A woman sitting at my table had purchased a party tent for her daughter's wedding several years prior, and offered to let us use it. With the way the weather turned out, having that second tent ended up being crucial--I don't know what we would have done without it.

With a few last-minute cancellations due to illness, everyone who said they'd come did, and brought marvelous food to share. The band, Mariachi Viva México, was amazing.

Here's the erection of the main party tent on Friday night, just after the arrival of my parents and sister:



A bird's nest, perilously close to the party setup. I hope the bird didn't abandon her eggs as a result!



My sister and nephew hanging pompoms in the party tent:



The finished effect. I found the instructions for the pompoms via someone's blog, who found them on Martha Stewart. Very cheap materials, but quite expensive in terms of labor. These will all be hung in a basement for future re-use. The heap of brush containing the bird's nest can be seen at right just behind a table.



My brother feeding the fire. The fire pit was another loaner from someone in my ward.



The dinner/music tent. The woman in the band had an amazing voice that could carry over all the instruments without amplification.



Cutting the birthday cake. You can't really see it, but the icing on top says, "Feliz Cumpleaños." The cake, filling and icing were all chocolate (of course!).



Whacking the birthday piñata. When was the last time you went to a party where they had a piñata for grownups? This one was filled with about six different flavors of Lindor balls.



People actually brought me presents! There were quite a bit of chocolate, no fewer than three copies of the new Pink Martini CD, the 80s Trivial Pursuit edition (thanks to my best friend from HS--all of us children of the 80s did fine, but my parents felt completely lost), and (my favorites) original art from MWR (a framed photo) and my sister (a batik).



Thanks to all who made my birthday bash a smashing success! Especially J&J who hosted, arranged for the band and made marvelous chalupa (both beef and pork) to anchor the food table, plus tons of cookies. And my parents and sister who traveled the farthest (beating out MWR who drove down from Seattle), then slaved for hours helping assemble the decor. And the nice people in my ward who loaned the items that took the party from good to just perfect. Now I just have to start thinking what I want at 50! High on my list is figuring out some way to get all the Scary Feminists there--start planning now, gals!

Angelic Imps

Number Two likes to try on his brother's baseball cap:



And look: a rare shot where Number One's smile doesn't look terribly grimace-y!



The orange shorts were a gift to Number One from Auntie Swizzies lo these many years ago. The elastic in the waist is totally dying, but they are too cute to give up.

Number Two is about the cutest kid imaginable, but lately we're all growing increasingly frustrated with his unwillingness/inability to use actual intelligible words. He's got a large repertoire of animal noises, and knows what sounds most letters of the alphabet make (and he knows all his letters and numbers), but he's just not putting sounds together to make words. This weekend he seemed to be taking an Ugly American approach to making himself understood: if they don't get it the first time, say it slower and louder. Lots of shouting (fortunately mostly in a happy tone of voice), not much communicating. Sigh.

Oh, and because I know you've all been dying to know, it looks like Number Three's in utero name will be Ingeborg. Recognizably (to reggler 'Murrican folks) Scandinavian + odd enough that we'd never actually use it + popped into my head before I got to that section of the name book (and before I'd read MWR's "Inger" suggestion => hint of synchronicity) = perfect choice.

Something to take to all those summer potlucks

I actually made this a couple of weeks ago, remembered to take a picture and then never got around to posting on it. It's one of my favorite recipes ever: easy, usually assemblable without a lot of shopping, and almost universally popular (though Number One now says he doesn't like it, after eating it like there was no tomorrow as a toddler). The recipe comes from The Barefoot Contessa cookbook. She calls it Curried Couscous, but we call it Couscous Salad.

1 1/2 C couscous
1 T unsalted butter (I usually use a little less)
1/4 C plain yogurt
1/4 C good olive oil
1 t white wine vinegar
1 t curry powder
1/4 t ground turmeric
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1 t freshly ground black pepper (I usually use about half this much)
1/2 C grated carrots (I use a julienne peeler, and blanch them before adding)
1/2 C minced flat-leaf parsley (usually about a whole bunch)
1/2 C dried currants (I usually use a combination of currants and golden raisins)
1/4 C blanched sliced almonds (I use whatever I have on hand, usually diced roasted)
2 scallions, thinly sliced (I chop finely)
1/4 C small-diced red onion (I usually omit)

I usually add:
1/2 C frozen petite peas (has the benefit of shortening prep time by cooling the warm couscous and carrots)

I have added in the past at various times and in various combinations (and really liked--it just all depends on what I have on hand, and this salad is just about impossible to screw up):
1/4 C diced red bell pepper
1/4 C small-diced celery
1/2 C blanched fresh green beans
1/2 C blanched asparagus (snapped into two-inch pieces)

Prepare couscous according to package directions. A note here on couscous: I think the whole-wheat variety is vastly superior to the regular stuff. It tends to be less gummy, has a wheatier flavor, and according to the package has 7 (!) grams of fiber per serving. I used to be able to buy it bulk at our local co-op, but their source dried up and now I buy the Casbah brand in the little boxes.

Whisk yogurt, olive oil, vinegar, spices and parsley in the bottom of a large bowl to blend (I add the parsley to the dressing here so the olive oil can pick up and carry the flavor of the parsley, which otherwise dissipates quite quickly. The same goes for anything with cilantro in it, so I usually add just a tiny bit of oil at the beginning when I'm making salsa. Your handy herb tip of the day.).

Mix in the prepared couscous and all the other ingredients, and voilà! Serve at room temperature or chilled.

I also leave you with a family favorite: Fish Sauce. My dad did (and still does) a lot of fishing, so our menus while I was growing up regularly featured salmon, steelhead and trout that he caught. It was invariably served with this sauce. We try to eat salmon regularly (especially now, when the Copper River sockeye are at the market!), and I often but not always serve it alongside. These measurements are very approximate.

1/2 C sour cream
1/3 C mayonnaise (using light versions of either of these produces grossly unsatisfactory results)
2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
1 t capers, minced
1-2 T fresh lemon juice
optional, and not the way we had it when I was growing up: 1 T minced fresh herbs (tonight, a blend of dill, chives, mint and basil)

Mix everything together and taste. If it tastes sour, add more lemon juice. Counterintuitive, I know, but it works. Bon appétit!

Three Junes in June

Our book group selection this time was Three Junes by Julia Glass, a National Book Award winner from a couple years back and a very enjoyable read. Part of the book takes place in Scotland, which I thought presented the perfect opportunity to make the recipe on the page before the Salmon-Wrapped Poached Eggs from last time: Oatmeal Brûlée with Macerated Berries from The Gourmet Cookbook. The weather has also been ideal this week, plus I didn't feel like cleaning my projects off my dining room table, so I set up a small table and large umbrella on the back patio. Instead of having a floral centerpiece, we were surrounded by my profusely blooming backyard. Unfortunately, I am lame so there aren't pictures--I didn't remember until everything was entirely consumed.

We started with a simple cheese course: Valentine from Ancient Heritage Dairy (featured this week in the Oregonian FOODday section), a soft sheep's-milk cheese, and fresh goat cheese with dill from Country Pride (both purchased at the Portland Farmers' Market this morning). Then on to the Oatmeal.

First, you macerate the berries in simple syrup with chopped fresh mint. I knew I would want to use the same berries for the strawberry shortcake for dessert, so I doubled the recipe here, using two pints of berries, two tablespoons of chopped fresh mint, and a simple syrup made from 1/2 C sugar and 1/2 C water. The recipe says to macerate for at least four hours. I think I ended up with about two hours before I started serving them, and they were very juicy and delicious. I think with our juicy local berries, it would probably be fine (and save a step) to macerate in just sugar, without making the syrup.

Put racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 400 F.

Make the custard in two small bowls. In one you whip 1/4 C cream with a handheld mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. In the other you whisk (I used my handheld mixer, without rinsing the beaters in between) together another 1/4 C cream, two eggs, and 3 T brown sugar. Then gently combine the contents of the two bowls.

Then, cook 1 1/2 C old-fashioned oats in 3 C water (the usual proportions, according to the side of the Quaker box) until it's thick and tender. Divide between four flameproof shallow soup bowls and smooth with the back of a spoon. Pour custard over oatmeal. Bake until set, switching positions after 5 minutes. The recipe says 12 minutes, but I think a minute or two shorter would have worked. Remove from oven, sprinkle top of each with 1 t sugar (recipe calls for granulated; I used turbinado), and melt/caramelize with a blowtorch. Top with a scoop of the macerated berries and serve.

For dessert we had strawberry shortcake, using the other half of the macerated strawberries, lightly-sweetened whipped cream, and Southern-Style Shortcakes I made from a recipe that ran in the Oregonian (which I can't find online for some reason). I mostly ignored their method instructions, and used my regular method of cutting very cold butter into the dry ingredients using the Cuisinart, then adding the liquid and just barely mixing them before transferring the dough to a bowl for a last 5-second hand knead to stick everything together. I also skipped rolling and cutting (this dough was quite sticky) in favor of my scone method of patting the dough into a thick round and cutting into wedges with my bench scraper, and reserved a tablespoon or so of the liquid ingredients to brush on (and then sprinkle with sugar) before baking.

2 C all-purpose flour
3 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1/4 t salt (I used 1/2 t kosher salt instead)
1/2 C butter, almost frozen, cut into cubes (they called for softened, which is asking for tough biscuits IMO)
1 egg, beaten slightly
2/3 C half-and-half

We talked about picking our next book, but didn't do it. I would really like to read something meaty and juicy, along the lines of past favorite reads like Ahab's Wife or Daughter's Keeper. We mentioned The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood as a possibility. And I've read interesting things about The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (yes, I know you hated it, Janet). Any other marvelous suggestions from you, my faithful yet mostly silent readers?

Baby Love

Several months ago, when my sister and sister-in-law were pregnant and I wasn't, I decided that I would make baby blankets for those two boys and for Number Two, who has only ever had hand-me-downs from his big brother. Somewhere in the process of making them, I found out I was pregnant, and so there was a time when I wasn't sure if Number Two would end up with the blanket after all. Now that I know Number Three is a girl, I'm back to the original plan, which is good because I was thinking of Number Two when I designed them.

When my parents moved to Utard several years ago, I inherited all my mom's stash of fabric. A lot of it is scraps from completed projects, and there were quite a few larger pieces from aborted projects. The latter category included 6.5 yards of baby flannel, surely originally intended for a baby quilt for one of my brothers. It's a slightly aqua blue, and has teddy bears and giraffes with gold bows around their necks, and roses with green leaves. The first category included some light aqua velours left over from a sweatsuit my mom made for me in the 70s (wish I could find a picture of it to include here!). Somewhere along the line I also acquired a turquoise velveteen bridesmaid dress probably worn by my mother's youngest sister some time in the late 1960s. It had a couple of faded spots that made it unsuitable for wear as a dress.

So, I cut up the dress into the largest regular-sized pieces I could, and started laying out fabric, filling in with the velours. An early decision over which I agonized was the size of the finished quilts. The size of the largest pieces from the dress helped me settle on 24x36. I had originally planned a simple gold satin binding for the edges, but then I saw a baby with a fleece stroller blanket with ribbon loops sticking out of the ends. Besides looking really cute, the loops have the developmental bonus of working the baby's fine-motor and hand-eye coordination. There were just enough smaller pieces from the dress left to make three bunnies, one to go with each blanket, using this pattern (thanks to Angry Chicken for the link).

With both nephews due in May, I had a deadline (always crucial) for my project, and I was able to finish everything but the bunny face embroidery before leaving for Utah last week. Hopefully the boys will like them as much as their mommies (and older siblings) do! I gave Number Two his blankie and bunny yesterday, and he is in love.







And here is new nephew #2--isn't he cute?!?!