A Grand Day in Hudson

OK - what's Lisa Dolan is telling Chris Jones that's so funny?

Marilyn, of Cedaroth Farms, with beautiful early summer flowers for sale

 

It's unlike me to blog  so quickly on the heels of a post ( especially since I've been a bit sloth-like for the past few months) - but after a day like this one I feel that I need to get the word out right away.   Aside from the fact that today's weather was the kind that you want to bottle for use  on a particularly dreary day in February - this day, for me, began at the Hudson Farmers' Market where we hosted our first cookbook author of the year under the market's Book Tent.

Rebecca Miller Ffrench signed her new  book, Sweet Home (Kyle Books, 2012), for shoppers, and graciously offered samples made from recipes in her book.   It would be difficult for me to say which tasted more delicious; Kahlua Chocolate Pound Cake - buttery, chocolaty with slight bittersweet coffee flavor, Brown Sugar Glazed Cardamom Cake - maybe my favorite, only because I love cardamom flavored anything (Rebecca gave me the leftover samples which I brought home and immediately soaked in homemade kefir and  topped with strawberry - rhubarb compote, Smiles from a Summer Night ), and her book-cover-photo recipe, Mile-High Strawberry Shortcake.  Which she only made a third of a mile high for anxious-to-taste shoppers.   When she ran out of the strawberries that she brought with her - she dashed right over to the Samascott Orchards' tent and bought some more. 

MILE-HIGH STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

Rebecca says, "Layers of buttery shortcake, juicy  berries, and thick cream piled sky high are the epitome of a summer dessert, and the perfect finish to a family barbecue or Fourth of July picnic."  You listening?

Serves 10

Shortcakes
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
14 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, plus 3 tablespoons melted
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Filling
1 quart plus 1 pint strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 quart heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1.   Make the shortcakes:  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Grease three 8-inch round cake pans with baking spray.
2.   Stir together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl.  Sprinkle the butter pieces into the bowl.  Using a pastry blender or two forks, work the butter into the dry ingredients until it's coarse and crumbly.  Slowly add the cream, little by little, until a soft dough forms.  Do not over stir.
3.   Using your hands, form a large ball with the dough and then divide into three parts.  Press each section firmly and evenly into one of the prepared pans.  Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the tops become a very pale golden.
4.   Meanwhile, make the filling:  Put the strawberries in a bowl and toss with the granulated sugar and  lemon juice.   Remove half of the strawberries and lightly mash the remaining.  Stir the whole strawberries back in and let stand for 30 minutes.
5.   Remove the cakes from the oven.   Let cool for 15 minutes before carefully removing them from the pans.
6.   Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream until thickened, but still soft.  Stir in the confectioners' sugar and vanilla extract with a spoon.
7.   Brush 1 tablespoon of the melted butter on top of each cake with a pastry brush.  Place one layer on a serving plate, butter side up.   Spoon a third of the berries with their juice on top.  Spread a thin layer of whipped cream over the berries.   Top with a second cake layer.  Spoon half of the remaining berries on top and another thin layer of cream.  Repeat with the remaining cake layer and berries, reserving a few berries to decorate the top.
8.   Dollop the remaining whipped cream on top of the cake and decorate with a few good-looking berries.  Serve in wedges.

Papier mache puppet heads made to represent the characters from The Wizard of Oz by Ken Polinskie & Dan Rupe

Singer, and entertainment, Maya Azucena

 

 

 

 

Poppies from the field of poppies, The Wizard of Oz

 

Trixie Starr, mistress of ceremony

Today is Pride Day in Hudson - not just gay pride - everybody pride.   The day, called "Over The Rainbow" has included  many celebrations. I stood on Warren Street and watched the parade.  A good old-fashioned parade it was, with organizations from church groups to the Antique Dealers Association, dogs, from the ladies dressed in vintage, colors-from-the-rainbow dresses (Five and Diamond) to bagpipers, dogs, marching bands, the mayor, and the president of the Common Council, the radio stations, dogs, and I can't remember - but they were all fabulous. Dogs.

The parade, which started near the top of Warren Street, ended at the park on the river which was set up to receive the spectators with refreshment stands, information booths and rides for the kids.

And it's not over.  There are parties, and barbecues and a big dance party tonight at Club Helsinki.  I think that I'm done.   I need my legs to work tomorrow.

It was a grand day in Hudson.

SUSANSIMONSAYS:  If I don't get to it - and I may not by next Saturday.  Please come to meet Raymond Sokolov who will be signing his new book, STEAL THE MENU at the Hudson Farmers' Market on Saturday, June 22nd.   The book is a memoir of forty years in food that included taking Craig Claiborne's job as food editor of The New York Times, more recently the Eating Out column for The Wall Street Journal, and writing cook books like the invaluable SAUCIER'S APPRENTICE, and THE COOK'S CANON: 101 CLASSIC RECIPES EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW.   His appearance at the markets' Book Tent offers a wonderful opportunity to meet one of the legends of  food writing - and have him sign a copy of his latest book for you.

If you didn't get to the Farmers' Market today and would like to have signed copy of SWEET HOME - there are a few available for sale at MarxHome on Warren Street in Hudson.
 

Disaster Averted, Distraction Not

This is the first time in over a year that I've let so much time lapse between posts.  And I don't have the excuse of having been without power due the destructive storm innocently called Sandy.  I was prepared for her arrival - she just never really demonstrated much force here in the upper Hudson Valley .  I remember a summer lightening and hail storm that did more damage than she did. So how did I prepare?   I cooked up a BIG pot of kale and mustard greens.  Actually, simply sauteed the leaves, ripped off their ribs, in olive oil with garlic, and hot peppers and finished with freshly squeezed lemon juice.  I knew that these cooked greens would last days longer than fresh greens and would serve as a backdrop to versatile preparations.   A poached egg on the greens,  for that matter an omelet with greens( and grated any kind of melting cheese), or chopped hard cooked eggs with greens would make rather tasty meals.   Fully aware that if the power had gone out that the first thing in the freezer to thaw would be the sausage so I preempted the possibility and made a potful of pasta e fagioli  - pasta and beans  (I actually used chick peas) with bits of grilled sausage tossed into the mix - the potful of starch and protein - cooked with an inch of its life would surely have lasted a few days - unrefrigerated.  And gotten tastier as each passed and the flavors of the ingredients absorbed each other.

 

 

Another freezer package that I knew would not have survived 12 hours without electricity were those plump strawberries from Blue Star  that I froze in June with hopes to let them defrost  on New Year's  Eve in order for them to accompany a first bite of panettone on New Year's Day (the Italians believe - among many other things - that a first-of-the-year morsel of the classic sweet bread augers well for the upcoming year).  Instead, I let them thaw and cooked them for a few minutes with light brown sugar and cinnamon.  I made pancakes - nothing special - just Bisquick pancakes - Yikes! you say?   Yep, from time to time I use a classic convenient food.  Pancakes with June strawberry sauce - for dinner.  Very satisfying.   And of course, a strawberry - banana smoothie makes for an excellent breakfast.

 

 

Not finished yet.  There was a big old cauliflower staring at me through its bag.  Something had to be done with it.  So I made soup:

.  Cut the cauliflower into florets, placed them on a parchment paper -covered baking sheet with sliced red onions, sprigs of fresh thyme and some red pepper flakes.  Tossed everything with olive oil and roasted them at 350 degrees F. until the cauliflower and onions were nicely browned - about 30 minutes.
. Added the cauliflower, onions and thyme leaves (removed from their stems) to a large saucepan and covered it with about a quart and 1/4 chicken broth.  Simmered the soup until the vegetables were soft.  When it seemed that the vegetables were about 2/3 of the way finished I added maybe 1/4 cup crumbled Black Ledge blue cheese from Cheese! in the Hudson Farmer's Market.  The cheese had begun to dry out but hadn't lost any of its wonderful nutty flavor.  It was a perfect addition.
. Pureed the mixture with an immersion blender.  Reheated soup and served it with a dollop of whole milk yogurt and some crumbled blue cheese.
Something happens to the cauliflower when it's roasted.  Its flavor changes.  The soup tasted almost like a veloute of Jerusalem artichokes.  Maybe it was the addition of the cheese too.

Would you be surprised to learn that more than two weeks after I made all of that food that I've just finished it?   Egad.  Better safe than sorry.  I guess.

Now, I avoided nature's disaster simply by geography.   I'm sorry for my friends and strangers in my favorite city, New York, and along the east coast, who suffered the supreme discomfort of lack of electricity (ancient doggies who had to walk up and down many, many flights of stairs several times a day) - and so much worse.

I am, however, extremely distracted from my normal routine because of the recent purchase of a new home - which is really an old wreck and needs more work than I ever could have imagined - even although everyone warned me this would happen.   Honestly, it makes me nervous all the time.  Except for the moments when I imagine all the beautiful colors on the walls.  Thanks to some friends, I was directed to Hudson Paint in Red Hook, NY.   I was bowled over by the colors and then learned that the wall paint was made with lime.  I was hooked.  In addition to all the benefits of having my walls painted with a substance that has low VOCs and is a natural disinfectant - my walls, when covered with the gritty paint will look like frescos - blank frescoes.
So, excuse me if I get distracted for awhile again.  You're never far from my thoughts.  Color = food, food= color.
SUSANSIMONSAYS:    
FINALMENTE - finally.  BONFIGLIO & BREAD  (formerly LOAF) is set to open its 738 Warren Street doors on Friday, the 16th November.
VIVA  Gabriele e Rachel.   Can't wait to patronize you.

HV Waldorf Salad & Bee Things

It's time to start thinking about salads that can be made with ingredients other than the usual suspects; green leaves, tomatoes and cucumbers.  They're gone until next summer - unless you want to consider hothouse greens which aren't bad at all or imported tomatoes which taste something like pink angora sweaters (even if they're "tomato" red) and cucumbers that have traveled halfway around the world.  I found a pile of ingredients at last week's Hudson Farmers' Market and was inspired to made them into a Hudson Valley kind of Waldorf salad. 

According to Jean Anderson, writing in her information-filled "The American Century Cookbook"  (Clarkson Potter, 1997), "The first Waldorf Salad was created in New York City in 1893 by Oscar Tschirsky, the formidable maitre d'hotel at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.  The original recipe was nothing more than a mix of diced red-skinned apples, celery, and mayonnaise.  The chopped nuts were added later (perhaps by Rector's, another Manhattan restaurant...)."

I picked up a celery root, some radishes, and apples at the market.   They seemed to whisper, rather loudly, "make me into a Waldorf Salad".   Which I did, adding a few raisins to the mix as well - some people use grapes.  That's a good idea too - especially now when you can find highly-flavored Finger Lakes' grapes in some markets.

I also bought a cabbage and decided to thinly slice a quarter of it and use it to make a bed for the the  salad which traditionally sits on lettuce leaves.

HUDSON VALLEY WALDORF SALAD

Serves 4 - 6

For the Salad:

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 medium celery root
1 - 2 sweet apples such as Fuji or Gala
4 medium radishes cut into thin half moons
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup good quality commercial mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon salt
a pinch of freshly ground white pepper

For the Bed:

 quarter green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons plain, whole milk yogurt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
pinch of salt



1.  Add the lemon juice to a large mixing bowl. Peel the celery root and then use a box grater to shred it directly into the lemon juice and toss immediately.  This prevents the celery from turning brown.    Cut the apple into quarters, remove the core and cut it into chunks tossing it with the celery root so it doesn't turn brown.   Add the radishes, walnuts, raisins, mayonnaise, salt and pepper.  Toss everything together to thoroughly coat all of the ingredients.
2.  Add the shredded cabbage to a mixing bowl.  Add the yogurt, chives and salt.  Toss together.
3.   To serve; arrange the cabbage on a serving platter or dish so it covers it all the way to the sides.  Mound the Waldorf Salad on top of the cabbage.   Garnish with a few extra toasted walnuts if you like.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I feel like just about everyone I've ever met in my life has passed through Hudson this  past year - and more will follow.  Two of the people that I was most delighted to bump into were Nonie and Walt Bauer.  I saw them in the summer at the Farmers' Market.  Nonie & Walt are the owners of Twin Apiaries in Climax, NY, just on the other side of the river.  Walt collects and processes the honey - he keeps hives spread out over two counties - and Nonie makes the most fabulously honey-fragrant candles with another product those industrious bees are busy making - wax.    I had been buying candles for at least two decades from the Bauers' stand at the Union Square Greenmarket in NYC.  Nonie makes beautiful shapes and sizes in natural honey color, sage green and pale burgundy.  My favorite shape are 14-inch, four-sided tapers.   The Bauers now only go into the city every other Saturday - but they keep a little shop in Climax where they sell their honey and candles.  Call ahead, 518 - 731-8303 for hours and directions.

SUSANSIMONSAYS:  report:  Olanfest was a wonderful event.  Somehow cozy and congenial under a tent, beautifully decorated by Hudson Home.  Food was generously, and plentifully provided by 10 of the Hudson Valley's most accomplished chefs.  There was a very fine signature cocoktail served named for the event, "The Afterglow". A good time was had by all - and the rain miraculously  held off until just the end of the event.  Mark your calendar for next year.

 

 

 

Cooking by the Book #1

I've been happy to have been able to curate and coordinate The Book Tent at the Hudson Farmers' Market for this past summer.  Every Saturday, at The Book Tent, which sits right along side all the
other market vendors (under a tent), we hosted cookbook authors who signed copies of their latest works and answered queries from curious shoppers.  The authors braved the elements; pouring down rain and incredible heat - and sat, and smiled, and signed.   Last Saturday we welcomed Ted Allen, the host of the Food Network's most popular program "Chopped".  Ted is not just a host who was hired because of his dazzling personality - he's the real deal.  He is a knowledgeable cook, and a student of food.  All of this is reflected in his latest book, "In My Kitchen".  A good read, it's full of      information filled  headnotes and sidebars, & it contains  100+   recipes brimming with combinations of ingredients destined to make a good dish. In a way it's an old fashioned cookbook arranged by chapters  that begins with  Starters and ends with Desserts, and Breakfasts and Brunches - you, know instead of by color, or place where the author found the recipe, or by cooking pots and pans, etc.    Ben Fink's  wonderful, natural light photographs complete the book.

As I drooled over each recipe, description and photograph I realized that I had all the ingredients required to make one of the book's appealing recipes.

PROVENCAL VEGETABLE GRATIN
Ted says, "This is a peak-of-summer southern French classic and a great way to showcase tomatoes and zucchini when they're abundant.  Besides height-of-season produce, the key to the success of this dish is draining some of the vegetable juices so the gratin isn't watery."    Well,  it just so happens that we seem to be be at the peak of tomato season right now in the Hudson Valley and there are still plenty of zucchini around.  I did tweak the recipe just a bit.  Sometimes the ingredients you  have don't have exactly the same properties as the creator of the recipe used.  Keep your eyes open and use common sense. As you can see from my photograph my finished dish didn't exactly match Ted's.   But the flavor was just as expected (summer in St. Tropez?).  A cup of breadcrumbs and a cup of grated Parmesan cheese were listed for the topping. It was way too much.   I used half of what I had mixed and put the other half in the freezer for future use.     However, I give you Ted's recipe verbatim:

1 pound zucchini, sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch rounds
1 pound yellow squash, sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch rounds   (I used 2 pounds of zucchini)
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 1/2 pounds heirloom tomatoes, preferably a mix of red and yellow, sliced into 1/4-inch slices (I used red, green and purple)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon thyme leaves, chopped (I used tiny fresh leaves, left unchopped)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup dried coarse bread crumbs
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1.   Put the zucchini and squash in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt, tossing a couple of times as you sprinkle so all the pieces get seasoned.   Dump onto a large cooling rack over kitchen towels (or straight onto the towels), and let drain 45 minutes.  Press the top with additional towels to dry the surface.
2.   Meanwhile, arrange the tomato slices in one layer on kitchen towels and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt; let sit for 30 minutes.  With additional towels, lightly press on the tomatoes to remove more juice.
3.   Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan or large gratin dish with the butter.
4.   In a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over low heat, add the onion and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until soft and golden, 25 minutes.
5.   In the gratin dish, layer the zucchini and squash, sprinkling with half of the thyme, half of the garlic, and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil.  Spread the onions evenly over the squash, and then layer the tomatoes, overlapping slightly, to cover.  Sprinkle with the remaining garlic, thyme, and 1 1/2  tablespoons olive oil.  Bake, uncovered for 35 minutes.
6.   In a medium bowl, blend the breadcrumbs and Parmesan.  remove the pan from the oven, and increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.  Sprinkle the veggies with the Parmesan topping.  Return the gratin to the oven and bake until the top is browned, up to 10 minutes, and serve.

I had some of the leftover gratin for lunch, baked with an egg on top.


SUSANSIMONSAYS:   Here's what I had for breakfast one day recently:  sliced green zebra tomatoes sitting on top of toasted and olive oiled pain ancienne topped with a poached egg.  And, a glass of iced coffee.  Here, in my house, it's still summer by day - even if it's definitely autumn at night.

Super Hot Weekend, Cool Monday

My first cookbook editor, and now, himself an author, old friend, Roy Finamore  came to Hudson last weekend to visit, and be the featured author at the Hudson Farmers' Market's Book Tent.   I prepared for the arrival by filling my house with brightly colored zinnias purchased from Eger Bros. Farm Stand at the junction of routes 9 and 23, Hudson.  I'm also addicted to Eger's white donut peaches.  The skin slips off with a tug and the super sweet flesh can be consumed in two bites.  Right now the stand is loaded with all sorts of fruits; peaches, several varieties of plums, early apples, blueberries, strawberries, cantaloupes - and SEEDLESS watermelon with which I made the endlessly refreshing and thirst-quenching juice - which just involves processing chunks in a blender (Roy makes it in a food processor then strains it).  Think about freezing some of the orchard fruit or berries to have a for tasty treat when the ground is covered in snow next January or February.
Roy and our mutual friend, Marian, arrived from NYC on Friday afternoon when the temperature and humidity were on the rise.  Actually, the humidity was impossible.   Only one solution for dinner -
The Red Barn.  Their grill was fired up - why turn on any cooking appliance at home?

A few months ago I had purchased a large, very large Muscovy duck from Turkana Farms which Roy and I had been discussing, on and off, what to do with it ever since.   The 9 pound bird needed to start thawing in the refrigerator 4 days before we started to work with it.  

Friday afternoon, shortly after his arrival, Roy butchered the duck.  The breasts were refrigerated.  I made a rub for the legs, thighs and rather hefty wing joints by pounding cloves of garlic, black peppercorns and coarse salt in a mortar with a pestle.  I rubbed it on the meat and set the pieces in a shallow receptacle in a way that they all would be exposed to the air. This would become a confit - preseerved duck. The dish was put, uncovered, into the refrigerator to dry out a bit and allow the rub to do its job.  Roy made a stock with the duck carcass, wing tips, onions, celery, carrots, and bay leaf.  The stock cooked - on very low heat, "with an occasional lazy bubble " for 18 hours!  Yes, it cooked while we slept.  Imagine the heat.  And, then again imagine the delicious risotto or soup that I'll make with it next fall.

On Saturday Roy bravely sat in Book Tent - a veritable Turkish bath - and signed copies of his books for all the stalwart shoppers who came by the Book Tent.  Thank you.    We cooled off by going to Grazin' Diner for a long, slow lunch.  And no, none of us ordered their famous burgers.  I had a melted cheese sandwich on Hawthorne Valley's rye bread toasted to a crunch, every bite oozing  Consider Bardwell's  Rupert cheese.  There was an egg sandwich and one with liverwurst at the same table as well.  It took all our strength to get up and leave the air conditioned diner.  There was work to be done.


I melted about a pint and a half of duck fat, then transferred the pieces of  refrigerator-exposed duck to another saucepan and poured the liquid fat over it -  Roy said as I poured, "You'd better hope that it covers it".  It did.  Whew.   I let the duck simmer, again, you want just an occasional bubble to appear, in the fat for a little over an hour, then placed them back into their dish, let it cool down then sealed it closed, first with plastic wrap then with tin foil.   When I pull the confit out in the cold weather it more than likely will become an ingredient in rib-sticking cassoulet.  I'll tell you all about it when it happens.

I made another rub.  This one was for the duck breasts.  I pounded star anise, fresh hot peppers and coarse sea salt into a paste then rubbed on the breasts.  

Roy made a velvety, cognac-laced duck liver pate to serve with our cocktails.

He also made a lovely saute of tiny new potatoes and radishes of the same size, in butter and a bit of duck broth.  They were finished with chopped chives.

The stranger who a few weeks ago presented me with a bunch of his garden vegetables has subsequently revealed himself to be David Ludtke.  David sells his baked goods at the Hudson Farmers' Market and also grows what appears to be a great variety of vegetables in his garden.  "This week's goodies", he said to me as he presented me with branches of spigiarello an Italian leaf called spigarello in English - close but not quite the same pronunciation - and some erba stella a.k.a. minutina or buck's horn in English.  Think of those branches of spigarello as coming from a broccoli tree.  I ripped the leaves from the branches, sauteed them with a bit of olive oil and chopped garlic until al dente.   Tender enough to chew but with enough sturdiness in texture to accompany its subtle, almost sweet broccoli flavor.

It grew dark by the time I put the duck breasts on the grill.  No photos (to speak of) - no lights outside and it was very dark.   That big old Muscovy duck was full of flavor and the potatoes, radishes and spigarello were just the right escorts.

Dessert should have been a plum tart.  Roy rightly said, "I'm not turning on the oven" and stewed the plums with some honey and white vermouth.  The room temperature plums, covered with heavy cream and garnished with crumbled amaretti cookies sweetened the palate in a pleasing way.

This is the salad I made with the leftover duck.   I tossed the ever-so-slightly bitter erba stella and a few peppery, spade-shaped arugula leaves - also from David - with a dressing made with Dijon mustard, sesame oil, soy sauce, sriracha (hot pepper sauce) and a splash of heavy cream.   I placed slices of cold duck on top (the star anise flavor really comes through after a day or two) and then garnished with some toasted walnuts.  Should have added some thinly sliced radishes  too.

Monday cooled down and the humidity dropped to a reasonable level.  Heaven.   And when you're in heaven you go, with a few friends, in a convertible along route 66 to Chatham, NY to the Hudson Valley Bounty Dinner at the Columbia County Fairgrounds.  Twenty restaurants, food shops and caterers, etc. made some of their specialties with products sourced from HV farmers.  The result was a dizzying selection of dinner options.  Options?  I think that I tasted everything.  Mark August 2013 on your calendar for this event.  What an embarrassment of riches.  And to be in the main building of the this country's oldest, continuous operating county fair is particularly pleasurable.
Pictured above Uncle Barry's Famous Waffles with Beth's Jam from The Cascades.

SUSANSIMONSAYS:   This Saturday, August 11th, at the Hudson Farmers' Market Book Tent come and meet Zak Pelaccio and let him sign a copy of his new book just for you.  He'll be there from 10:30am - 12:30pm. Well known restaurateur - Fatty Crab, Fatty 'Cue (to name a few) - Zak is poised to open a dining spot in Hudson, on 3rd street between Warren and Union Streets.  Aren't you just a little curious?