Look What I Got

Do you see it there?Lurking in the background. Yep, you're seeing right. That's a great big piece of prime rib. I couldn't help myself. And to think that one month ago I took the PETA Vegetarian 30 day challenge. When I got an email the other day congratulating me on making it for 30 days .....I felt like sinking into a hole. Congratulations. I have to admit I was a little ashamed of myself. I briefly considered staying on the challenge. Thought I could secretly sneek meat when I was alone. Maybe even make a break for a drive thru. The nice people at Mc Donalds don't know me. They don't care. A friend of mine actually gave me the idea. He's a vegetarian. And I admired him for his efforts.Kind of almost had him on a pedestal. Wow..a vegetarian. How cool.And then he dropped the bomb. He sneeks meat. Nobody knows. He lives alone...so who even cares. Says he orders pizza with pepperoni. Eats turkey at Thanksgiving, prime rib at Christmas and ham at Easter. But only when he is alone. Seemed like a good way to go...but honestly ....why would you do it? Does anybody even care? And it got me to thinking. Do all vegetarians sneek meat when nobodys looking. I bet they do.

Vermont Maple Cake

John LOVES the world series.Even though his Dodgers are out. It's kind of sad. I really do feel sorry for him.But what can you do? His family all loves the world series too. And Thurday night we were invited out to his mom and dad's house for pizza and the game. (They don't like to cook..it was take-out.) That's fine by me.Everyone has there own thing- makes- the- world go 'round and all that. So I said I would bring a dessert. I wanted something old fashion and homey. Nothing fancy. So I scoured my cookbooks looking for just the right thing. I've already made them a couple of apple pies so I was kinda burnt out in that department.I'm sure they are too. But I wanted something that gave me the feeling that I was going to see the game at someone's house up in Vermont. With a stiff cold wind blowing, pumpkins glowing from the porch, woodsmoke wafting in the air, leaves tumbling down the road....you get the idea.

Vermont Maple Cake. That was it. From my beloved John Hadamuscin's Special Occasion Cookbook. There were about 4 different books that he wrote. All out of print. I love them so much. One of these days I will do a post and highlight the books for you.In the book it is actually called Buckeye Maple Cake.But I'm not getting a "happy" off of that. So I switched it from Buckeye to Vermont. There you go. That's better. At least it is for me. It's a big cake and it is square. The book said the reason it is square is for "easy transportation to a picnic". That got my attention. Then I got to thinking about it and wondered what's the difference between transporting a round cake or a square cake? Don't ask, I guess.

So I made the cake, loaded it up and took it out to the house. There was no woodsmoke, no pumpkins on porches, no dancing leaves,it wasn't even cold. But we had a good time anyway. It's California....what did I expect?

Getting Close

I feel like I'm getting a cold so this will be short,but I couldn't NOT say something as we are so close to Halloween and all.

I am in one of those Gooseberry Patch moods....I am downing Vitamin C and drinking juice and water like to crazy to try an knock this thing out before Halloween....haven't been sick all year..and here we are at the doorstep of the greatest day of the year...geezzz.

So I got up and being that the weather FINALLY changed I felt like making chili. Nothing fancy..nothing with 25 ingredients..just plain old fashion Halloween on the horizon chili.

Smells good. I'll make cornbread later as we get closer to supper. Last night we watched The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. We're 53. Oh well.

So tonight it's chili and cornbread. I just hope the cold fall winds stay..at least till Halloween. Please.

Feeling Cozy

Got into the recipe box and was looking for something that I could make ahead and just put into the oven and not be rushing around making dinner last minute. So I got into Red Plaid and pulled the Meatball Recipe. These aren't the pasta and meatball kind of meatballs. These are the cooking in Campbell's Onion Soup kind of meatballs. This recipe is from my aunt Rose who lives in Santa Cruz. As kids we called her Gog or Goggy. I still don't know what that means or where it came from. She is from Genoa, Italy. Maybe the name came with her all the way from there. I have mentioned her and my uncle Emillio before. We call him Mill. They live on acres and acres in Santa Cruz and are a hard working family in the produce business. If you are up in the bay area and are in a market, mostly likely the twist tie around the carrots will say Maggiolo. That's their last name.

The meatball recipe is hers. And it never fails to please. It is Fall Comfort Food.I usually serve it with white rice tossed in butter and salt.


Meatballs
Recipe of Rose Maggiolo

1 pound ground beef
2 slices bread
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teasppon salt
Pepper
1/2 cup milk
1 can Campbell's Onion Soup

Remove the crust from the bread, break bread up into small pieces. Add ground beef. Add salt and pepper and baking powder. Add milk and let set a few minutes. Shape into 12 balls, roll in flour and place in casserole. ( I love to use my cast iron skillet )Add onion soup and 1 can water. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 to 50 minutes.

Red Plaid Recipe Box ...Recipe 1.

We're getting close to Halloween and it got me to thinking about Holiday Cooking. So I got out my mom's red plaid recipe box. I think I have mentioned it before. It's one of those"if the house was on fire what would you grab" kinda things. I treasure it. So as I was going through the box...I am thinking...all these recipes look so good..and what I really liked about them was that each recipe seemed to have a history behind it and told a story. Who's recipe was it? Where did it come from? A relative? A neighbor? An old friend? I love old recipe boxes . Each one so different...each one someone's own private treasure box.

Alot of the recipes were from Bessie. The lady that introduced me to "The Treasury Of Great recipes" by Mary and Vincent Price. My other "house is burning" grab. Bessie came every afternoon when my little brother was a baby and got supper started. Alot of the recipes are from relatives too. Since we are getting into the Holidays and winter, I thought it would be fun to work my way through the box and share the recipes with you...my friends.

The other day I wanted to make a lasagna. Not one of those all day make your own pasta affairs... I just wanted something simple and easy. So I tried the recipe for spaghetti sauce from the recipe file of Enide Allison. What a way to start. I don't know Enide.I have never heard of her. Ever. She must have been a real person..her recipe card has her name engraved right next to the little pot bellied stove.She must have taken her cooking pretty seriously to have her name engraved on the card.

So I made the the spaghetti sauce. And it was good. I just layered it with lasagna pasta and cheese. That was it. Simple.


from the recipe file of --- Enide Allison

1 onion, diced
1 large can whole peeled tomatoes (I'm on a San Marzano kick)
1 teaspoon oregano
Chopped italian flat leaf parsely (I used about 1/2 cup)
Salt and pepper

Saute the onion in olive oil till soft
Add tomatoes
Add oregano and parsley
Salt and pepper to taste. (to be perfectly honest, I just add salt, it's just a personal thing I have going on)
Simmer for about 40 to 50 minutes

Layer in a casserole dish lasagna and cheese with the sauce

Baker 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes till bubbly and hot

The Door To Gopher Glen In October

I looked North yesterday afternoon and saw the sky turning a dark blue black color. The sun was gone. And I was cold. It has been in the 90's here the past few days, so every morning we get up, put on our shorts and t - shirts, slip into our flip flops and head out the door. So yesterday was no different. I just figured we were in Indian Summer around here...even though, secretly I don't like it. Everyone else seems to like it. So I just smile and say, "Oh, yes, we are so lucky." So as the temperature sank and my mood rose, I knew a trip to See Canyon was the goal of the day. John and I got Buddy and loaded up in the car. We made our way through See Canyon, watching the yellow leaves of the apple trees swirl in the cold October sun. The air was damp and smelled of apples and leaves.

When we got to Gophen Glen .... we were greeted with rain. As the rain began we ran inside to check the board for the "Apples of the Day." Heavenscent, Turley Winesap and Limbertwig were the ones we got. We got back into the car the conversation turned to one of my favorite topics...Thanksgiving Pie. Should we make pumpkin or pecan or apple. Definelty apple..if for nothing else than an excuse to go to Gopher Glen on Thanksgiving Eve.

Some Things Never Change

I'm REALLY lucky. We have an old bakery that is about a 20 minute drive from the house. It is called Carlock's and it is just up Los Osos Valley Road. And the best part is ...in the Fall you drive right past Mary's Pumpkin Patch.I wanted to see if Mary survived the BIG STORM. And as I had feared, she had not. She was closed. It was sad to see. But it looked like she might have dodged a bullet. It didn't look as bad as I thought it would. I'm sure she is back up and running by now. I'll be stopping by soon to check. But on my way to my doomed fishing expediton I made a side stop to Carlocks. It is the kind of bakery that is frozen in time. If you stepped inside you would not know it was 2009. Old men sit at the tables in the back drinking coffee, eating donuts and reading the newspaper. The tables are formica and the chairs are aluminum. Crumbs are on the floor and the place smells of burnt coffee and cinnamon. You don't see anyone on a laptop, no one is sipping an espresso or a latte. No one has a tatoo or pink hair. It is just old fashion. Down home. Farmy. Comforting. It makes you happy. I really like going there on any given holiday. And they do it right. No, it's not like the pastry shops you see in San Francisco or Los Angeles.Not like the ones that have french tarts. There are no pear tart tartin. No pumpkin creme brulee.No panforte with candied quince. Nothing is garnished with a rose petal or mint.There are no croissants. Nope. Not here.It's donuts.

When I was a little girl and we lived in Los Gatos there was "The Cream Puff". I think I told you about it. It's not there anymore. When I was in high school here in San Luis Obispo there was "Delight". It too. Gone. What has happened to all the old fashion bakeries. Now it is either Vons or Safeway..or those real fancy ones. I guess when you get right down to it...they really do have to be old in order to be good and have the charm. Even these new bakeries like "Magnolia" and "Sprinkles" that go for the old fashion feel..well, they just are lacking because they aren't old. There is something about time standing still in these places. And the desserts that are offered are stuck back in time too. And therein lies the charm. Halloween at Carlocks ...what can I say. I love it. Did you see those cakes and cookies? I can feel my heart race when I enter the door..the little bell rings and the ladies run to the counter to help you. They assemble the bakery boxes, line them with waxed paper and load your goodies. And tie it with a string. I miss those days. I wish all my boxes were tied with string .