THINGS DON'T CHANGE
AND SOME THINGS GET BETTER
The World Is A Simple Place — The two things that are common but define nations, ethnic diversity and difference are food and music. We all eat. And we all have a love somewhat of music. Yet to some the habits and customs of either the food or the music might not be so appealing.
In Greece, they mix ground beef or lamb with rice and herbs and wrap it in a blanket of grape leaves and tastefully drape it with a sauce made from lemons. In Israel they mix ground beef with rice, herbs and spices, wrap it in a blanket of grape or cabbage leaves and cook it in a sauce made with a tomato base. Similar dishes are found in central Europe and the middle east.
In almost every other country that has beef and rice the story is similar including corn meal, beef and rice or chicken and rice served in a taco shell or soft burrito. The answer is simple, the Greeks in volcanic soil grow a lot of lemons, the Israelis are big on hydroponic farming, actually world leaders with Tomatoes, the Mexicans know corn meal.
Same foods, different condiments, bases or spices. Common to all those countries is peppers which are grown world wide in varying strengths and potencies from mild to death threats.
When You Seek Recipes On The Web — Ten Thousand Variants —
Here are recipes that I may of culled stock ideas from and modified from the web closest to how I cook. I rarely use a cookbook, most chefs on TV never show you the stock recipes they cook from, adding a pinch here and a new flavor there. And rarely show you the ten to twelve people backstage that make them look so good.
I rarely write things down. I am what they call taste motivated and you would not like some of the concoctions I have made since I thought they were terrible too. Simple lousy taste on occasion, I missed, blundered and fortunately my fifth floor condo has a garbage chute ( like a dumb waiter) for simple, and fast removal of the evidence.
Many processes came from my Mom, memory and family, since I am older now, a lot older than some of these TV chefs and I chuckle a bit since most of these common recipes have been around, some dating back centuries, some slightly different based on country of origin. They all are like copyright hackers they add teaspoon of something and claim it as their own.
The Cook-Off Answer And Fun — We are also a tourist town during the whole year and a Winter Wonderland for the snow birds before Covid or as we say the Southern Home of our Northern neighbors who are running from harsh winters, isolation, cars that don’t start, snowplows and other things. Can’t blame them. But global warming has put Florida into 92+ days with 75+ humidity. Huricanes and thunderstorms, tornadoes etc. Paradise lost --
When they get here most do a lot of eating out, creating traffic jams, a few car accidents, (the right turn from the left lane is a killer) and crowded restaurants. Nevertheless its good for local economy and business, especially body shops, you just have to pick the right times to go out and wear your seatbelt and a helmet.
The Cooking Club — A Project After Covid Threat is Gone — And gathering with friends for a community cook together is not a new thing but I’m promoting, THE FOOD CLUB. We have four couples I put together, they like food, we draw and themes are picked and we bring the dish or cook together at each others homes on a rotating basis with some great stuff on weekends with friends for fun.
In other words you cook for the group every fourth month. It’s your task. The next three months the other cook for you and the entire evening is spent in friendship, recipes, cooking and enjoyment.
Since It is on a rotating basis, the theme and the location changes each time. The four course meal is Appetizers, Soup, Entree and Desert. You feed the other couples, the course changes each week, you cook once, and get three meals back… and that is your assignment for the next cook-off at the next host-house. You can make up themes and have a drawing… create your own rules, as to budget limits, pepper heat, and ethnic considerations.
One time I got my Mom involved and she taught me her fabulous recipe and technique for the Jewish version of stuffed cabbage in tomato sauce similar to the classic Greek version using grape leaves and lemon sauce called Dolmathakia..
Thanks Mom — Tricks only a real cook would know like raisins and shredded carrot cooked in with the tomato sauce for a sweetness no one figured out, it was a hit and not a drop left on the plates or the oversize batch I made… and I printed the recipe as handouts… It was a hit…
We had done this before and the parties were fabulous, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention two things. First make sure your couples are compatible. And keep it simple. Do an allergy check and post ut to all players. Same for religious beliefs or those who don’t eat meat or shellfish.
The quality of the dishes will improve with every party and people love new things. Second, diversify, with the web even ethnic dishes are found quite easily and constructed.
Themes rotate and may also may also be on the basis of a draw. Labeled Poker Chips, One time Tex-Mex Burritoville, Americana Traditional, Chinese - Japanese Night, Ocean Seafood (Fish Night), Middle east, India, Micronesian, Ethnic call, House Specialty, and once done, removed from the other chips. You can start over later.
I will tell you now, with a good crew, the food will just absolutely skyrocket week after week as the players look to improve on their diversity and skills, great competition and you get three meals back for each one you do.
The Dean And Duchess Of French Cooking —
Have fun in the kitchen, just like the Dean and Duchess of French cooking, Julia Childs and Jacque Pepin used to say. "Bon Appetite”! French cooking would not be as popular if it wasn’t for these two people. But there is a small problem…
Between her (Julia’s) scratchy voice, and my ears — 32 years of wearing headsets in noisy airplanes Jacque’s blurred French accent attempting English, and my hearing ruined by years of headphones and airplane engines — I couldn’t understand either of them. But you loved them for their passion in cooking. Not like today with a chef and behind the scenes thirty food staff.
I called it “ Cooking by Pictures". I couldn’t understand a word and my ears pained and strained to understand what he was saying. Thats why his daughter who speaks perfect Engleeeesh…was on his newest series of shows. On the reruns on the Food Network, I turn on music instead and hit the TV mute button because even on the reruns I still can't understand a word he says, some things are timeless and I like good music. I just look at the pictures and get the drift, try to copy what I see.
VOILA! Brilliant… I think they listened to me. They made a book, several books. One in particular, They have a fantastic book out available on Amazon and thats an easy read and a way into American French Cooking. The product number is B00009WO95 and it's called Julia-Jacques-Cooking-At-Home. In English, you can read it, you do not need an interpreter nor muffled earphones.
Recipe’s Are Just Guides — Feel free to alter, change, modify, correct, substitute, and let your taste buds lead the way.... These recipes are endless and passed down through the generations, once in a while a burnt hair smolders in my kitchen reminding me of the real chefs a long time ago who scratch cooked things and wrote them down...on cave walls, the beginning of the recipe.
After my Mom passed on I realized when I cleared out her belongings for charity, I never found a cookbook, no notes, it was all in her head, passed down from her mother.