Culinary Muse

Who Doesn’t Need S’Mores?

I once wrote that cupcakes are the puppies of the baking world.  People come undone and practically fall to their knees when confronted with the cuteness of a cupcake.  I would like to add another sweet to the list: the s’more. While the s’more was once only an a-la-minute-do-it-yourself gooey treat served campfire side, it now serves as muse to confectioners and cookbook authors alike.
I realize that spring just began a few weeks ago but aren’t we all thinking about what we are going to do for our summer vacation? I thought it would be a great idea to give the reader a few ideas for summer entertaining and gift giving, especially since all of these ideas involve ordering ahead. 

S’Mores Cookbook: Before I tell you how charming this cookbook is I must disclaim that I was involved in the early stages of its planning.  (Really, all I did was read the first draft and provide a couple chocolate suggestions). 
GIMME S'MORES  is a self-published cookbook by John Felts. On vacation in Maui one summer, John was inspired by his family’s tradition of having s’mores for dessert after dinner.  While reaching for his glass of port and his second s’more he was heard to say ‘what the world really needs is a S’MORE COOKBOOK!’  And who are we to argue?  I think of this photo packed cookbook less as a collection of recipes and more as an indispensable handbook of assembly ideas.  There are recipes ranging from the classic to the experimental.  Loaded with photographs and diagrams the reader will learn how to roast the perfect marshmallow and how to create a s’more when there is no campfire in sight. How about a Range Top S’more or a Microwave S’more?  Wondering what other uses you might have for that blowtorch?  Never built a campfire before?  No problem. The Technique chapter offers how-tos on building a classic campfire.

There is no reason to confine the enjoyment of a s’more to summertime only.  Why not start your own Christmas tradition by leaving Santa a special peppermint Christmas S’more  - much more interesting than a chocolate chip cookie! And just in case you thought that s’mores are all about child’s play, there is a section on wine pairing.  Very adult, indeed!  A copy of this book ($21.00 soft cover) will make an amusing summer hostess gift, along with a box of graham crackers, a bag of marshmallows, some great chocolate and lots of imagination.

S’More Gear: August 10 is unofficially National S’Mores Day.  The Girl Scouts may have invented this graham-cracker-roasted-marshmallow-chocolate treat but my earliest s’more memory is from a Camp Fire Girl’s overnight camping trip.  The camping trip took place in a regional park not too far from our home but it still felt like we were all braving the wild. We were each responsible for finding our own marshmallow roasting stick that we had to strip the bark off of using our pocketknives. Why whittle when you can just go to PIE IRON  and purchase one of their marshmallow roasting forks?  You thought that it would be easy to decide what fork to use?  There is the ‘#RT-12 Roaster Toaster Fork, the #2200 Picnic Forks in four fashion colors, the #3000 Marshmallow and Weenie Roaster with vinyl dipped handle, or, my favorite, #4900 Marshmallow Tree fork made from steel that is bent and turned to look like the branches of a tree.  Each end holds a marshmallow allowing the user to roast ten marshmallows at a time.  I am trying hard to think of an occasion where I might want ten marshmallows ready all at one time.  I have always viewed the roasting of marshmallows as a kind of do-it-yourself activity.  I roast mine, you roast yours.  Clearly there are gaps in my marshmallow education

On the Go S’Mores: I received an email last week from RECCHIUTI   announcing the return of their ‘S’Mores Bites’.  I am a big fan of these easy, on-the-go treats.  No assembly required and they fit nicely in a handbag or lunch box.  The description reads: Fresh Recchiuti marshmallows lay atop tiny handmade graham crackers that are blanketed in pure bittersweet chocolate.  4 pieces, $8.00.  If you plan to ship these be sure to read the important note that will bring a smile to your face:
S’Mores Bites are made with fluffy marshmallows filled with air.  They are very yummy, but they pop their tops in high altitudes.  Shipping = Airplane = High Altitude. When your Bites arrive after shipping they will be slightly cracked on top. 

S’Mores Kits: For those who want to kick up the s’more experience a notch or two or three, Recchiuti San Francisco also offers a S’Mores Kit.  The kit contains eight handmade Vanilla Bean Marshmallows, 8 Recchiuti Graham crackers and a Bittersweet 85% Chocolate Bar.  Makes 4 to 8 servings. $22.00.

PASSPORT TO INDIA

A cookbook is a passport to other countries and other times and other lives. It is the one book that will always have a happy ending. I discovered the transporting magic of cookbooks very early on. My mother had remarried and moved us to San Diego during the summer before my senior year in high school with the promise that I could return to Northern California to finish my senior year. But I had to stay with her, in San Diego, for the summer. An older friend presented me with a going away gift of The Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas. I spent the summer reading it from cover to cover. At 17, I could have cared less about vegetarianism. This cookbook introduced me to a world that was the polar opposite of the one I had grown up in. It was more than a collection of meatless recipes. It opened a window to possibilities. Its descriptions of well planned meals and bread making reminded me of the comforting times I had spent in my best friend Elizabeth’s kitchen where order ruled supreme and a three course meal was on the table every night promptly at 5:30. It gave me something to aspire to. In short, it was a book that helped me get through a summer of home sickness and teenage angst by transporting my imagination.

The next cookbook to affect my life in a profound way was The Silver Palate Cookbook. This cookbook is the diary of what I cooked in the 80's. Here were the tasty dishes that I imagined sophisticated New Yorkers purchased on their way home to their Brownstones or Park Avenue Penthouses. As you can see my image of Manhattan was informed early by multiple viewings of ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ and ‘The World of Henry Orient’. A Culinary Muse Time Capsule circa 1986 would include a copy of Woody Allen’s ‘Hannah and Her Sisters’ and the recipe for Chicken Marbella. I did visit the Silver Palate store on the West Side one sweltering summer day. As with many things in life the store was much smaller than I had imagined. In fact the word ‘tiny’ comes to mind.

There have been other cookbooks that I have enjoyed since the 1980's. My copy of The Barefoot Contessa’s first cookbook is full of food splattered recipes. Still the best roast chicken recipe in print. But until last month, nothing has stirred me or pointed me in a different culinary direction in the way that the new cookbook 5 Spices, 50 Dishes: Simple Indian Recipes Using Five Common Spices by Ruta Kahate has.

I enjoyed a cooking class at Ruta's Indian Kitchen in Oakland at a press event hosted by Chronicle Books. (Thus the pictures of the Muse knocking back a glass of bubbles with friends Marcia from tablehopper and Lisa from tuttifoodie).

I love going to Indian restaurants but I have never seriously considered cooking Indian food at home. The number of unusual ingredients involved seemed daunting. I am sure that I am not alone. Ruta has addressed this dilemma by developing recipes which require just a few key spices along with easy to find ingredients and cooking methods.

I have spent the past month cooking my way through the book with great joy. I have asked Ruta ingredient questions via email. She is charming and funny and a good teacher. Her fine cookbook is opening up the door to India's cuisine in such a welcoming, easy way. Best of all, I finally got to shop and not just browse through BOMBAY BAZAR on Valencia Street. With my cookbook tucked under my arm I strolled around and found the five spices: coriander seeds, cumin, mustard seeds, ground cayenne and turmeric.  Everything I needed for less than $10.00. I now have at least a six month’s supply.  What great prices, too. Cardamom that would cost $7 for a small jar at Whole Foods was $2.00 for three times as much at Bombay Bazar.

My husband can’t seem to get enough of the Black-eyed Peas in a Spicy Goan Curry and neither can I. The Sauteed Beets with Mustard and Lemon joined us at our Fourth of July picnic. I have made what seems like gallons of the Cardamom Chai. This book is a keeper.

A PIG IN PROVENCE

Enchanting. That is the word to describe dinner at Chez Panisse on Tuesday night. If you don’t believe me, take a look at this picture of Georgeanne Brennan and me taken by Frankie Frankeny. Do I not look like I am under a spell? And it wasn’t because of the bottle of Domain Tempier Bandol Rose either. We were invited by Chronicle Books to celebrate the release of James Beard Award winning cookbook author Georgeanne Brennan's memoir A Pig in Provence  described as a story about ‘good food and simple pleasures in the south of France’. Which pretty much describes our evening in North Berkeley.

The Chez Panisse menu was inspired by the book and read as follows:

Hors d’oeuvre (which included cubes of head cheese that Mr. Muse devoured)

Goat Cheese with Cannard farm salads and herbs (with garlic fried slices of bread)

Bouillabaisse: fish and shellfish soup with fennel and garlic crouton (which was tucked into the soup and spread with a thick layer of rouille)

Spit-roasted Laughing Stock pork loin and braised shoulder with mustard and capers, Chino Ranch vegetables and creamed greens. (We love that the kitchen left a lovely layer of fat on the pork loin and garnished the top with a crispy cube of pork skin)

Page mandarin, Meyer lemon, and blood orange sherbet in citrus cups (meringue was swirled beautifully on to the top of each and then torched ever so slightly)

The food was divine, the service friendly and efficient, the conversation between tables fun and lively. A feeling of bon temps embraced the evening as old friends and colleagues greeted each other with hugs. Even complete strangers began talking to each other as though they had known each other for years. Something was in the air.

We have enjoyed many meals at Chez Panisse. We have celebrated birthdays, anniversaries and graduations in this dining room. They have all been wonderful evenings but this one was perfect. We floated home. The trick with perfect evenings like these is to see how long the spell lasts. And what was it about the evening that was so mesmerizing? Would the book hold the answer? In a word, yes.

I gave myself the gift of uninterrupted time yesterday to enjoy the book from cover to cover. First things first: the book feels great in the hand. It is the perfect size to toss in a beach bag or hand bag or carry-on. The smooth paper cover with an illustration of the iconic Provencal fields of lavender is lovely. The inside white end papers are embossed with bouquets of rosettes reminiscent of wallpaper in 6^th arr. Paris hotel rooms or the inside of an antique bon bon box. Charming.

The story is organized into a series of chapters that each have a theme. Whether it be about goats or pigs or long summer meals, Ms. Brennan is able to convey how that theme has played itself out in her life in Provence. Goats and the making of goat cheese brought her to Provence. Pigs initiated her into the region’s longtime ‘subsistence rituals’. Long summer meals became the ritual of sharing food and connecting with family, old friends and new neighbors.

The stories transported me to Provence. The Provence of both my real experience and the mystical Provence that lives in my imagination. It was the perfect book to read after just finishing the The Omnivore's Dilemma. The rural life of Province is seductive. It is life played out on a human scale. It is a place where daily life is consciously dependant on the farmer and everyone knows who baked their baguette. Isn’t it this tradition of sharing at the table that we are trying to regain in our own lives? Which gets us back to Ms. Brennan’s book and our dinner together. It wasn’t a mysterious spell that was cast across the dining room on Tuesday night. That’s just what it feels like to enjoy well prepared food fresh from the farm, a glass of wine and the company of new and old friends. Sheer magic.

TARTINE COOKBOOK ARRIVES!

There are lots of delicious ways to spend a morning. For some it is remaining in bed with the covers pulled over their head, a loved one snuggled up close. For others it is the morning ritual of coffee making. Pouring the water in the electric kettle and turning it on. Grinding the coffee beans. Putting away the clean dinner dishes while the kettle heats up. For a lucky few it means throwing on a fleece jacket and heading down the street to TARTINE BAKERY. The light streams in the front windows. The counter is brimming full of just out of the oven delicacies. Are the scones out of the oven yet? What about the croissants? Morning buns? A quiet hum pervades. All is good in the world....And if you can’t get to Tartine every morning? The next best thing is TARTINE COOKBOOK just published by Chronicle Books.

THE LEE BROS HIT TOWN

If you have ever had the pleasure of reading an article by Matt and Ted Lee in the New York Times, you will not want to miss the chance to meet them and get your own copy of their new cookbook THE LEE BROS. SOUTHERN COOKBOOK: Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-Be Southerners (W. W. Norton). They will be appearing at Borders Books & Music, 400 Post Street, on Thursday, November 9 at 7:00 PM for a discussion and signing. At over 500 pages this could be the last word in Southern Cookbooks.

Whenever I am asked to review a new cookbook I choose the recipes with the least number of ingredients to test. This may seem lazy but I assure you that it is far more difficult for a simple recipe to work than it is for a recipe with 20 ingredients. (This is the same way I go about evaluating a pastry shop. If they can’t make a simple lemon tart there is little hope for the rest of their offerings).

The Brothers Lee don’t disappoint. While including all the Southern classics you could hope for they have also updated simple recipes like Pimento Cheese spread. Instead of using a little jar of gooey pimento pieces, they have you blacken a red bell pepper to remove its skin. This adds a lovely smokey quality to the spread. Nice touch. Adding a generous pinch of spicy smoked red paprika to finish off their delicious deviled eggs brings this classics into the 21^st Century.

If you want an immediate Southern hit but don’t feel like getting into the kitchen yourself you can visit their website THE LEE BROS. BOILED PEANUTS CATALOGUE to mail-order a variety of pantry staples and their new cookbook.