HUNTERS AND/OR GATHERERS…WHICH ARE YOU…..by ISABEL

There are those who are both…I am not one of them…..                                                                                                                                                 

I am an enthusiastic consumer of meat, poultry and fish, but I learned at an early age that I cannot participate in the process…..

 As absurd as it seems I am ok eating it if I don’t participate in the process of “Hunting”.

I learned this on my first fishing (hunting) adventure with my father and brother….. As you can see from the photo we had a successful fishing expedition.

However,  if you do have the good fortune to have a hunter in the family,  there are some treats to be had.

Our hunter would always bring back fresh duck breast…..attached, of course, to the rest of the duck…..

Cut into small strips,  and sautéed quickly in hot olive oil with garlic,  it is best eaten right out of the pan…..sometimes before it even makes it to the plate….

Nothing like it….!

A very special treat…!

BISCUIT DOUGH PIZZAS RECIPE……by ISABEL

Pre-made packaged biscuit dough
Squished canned tomatoes (today I would use Muir Glen Fire Roasted whole or diced tomatoes) It is much more more engaging for kids to squish the whole tomatoes into small pieces.  The tactile sensation is very intriguing for children and the pieces may be patted dry before cooking
Olive Oil
Grated or cubed Mozzarella cheese ( It is easier for children to control the placement of  cubed mozzarella cheese when placing on biscuit dough
Dried Oregano
(Non-stick cookie sheet with raised sides (to contain juices)

Pat biscuit dough to as thin as possible without tearing
Brush a light coat of oliveoil on top surface of biscuit dough

To taste layer:
Grated or cubed Mozzarella cheese
Pieces of canned tomatoes
Dried Oregano

Cook according to biscuit package directions adding additional time if necessary

For impromtu pizza making you can substitute English Muffins

MEMORIES…BISCUIT DOUGH PIZZAS…..by ISABEL

My earliest memory of cooking was making individual pizzas (yes…pizza again) with my father and brother.
We used pre-packaged biscuit dough which is still sold, in tubes, in the refrigerated section of the market.
My favorite part was squishing the canned whole tomatoes (no diced tomatoes in those days…) into small usable pieces.
It was so tactile and engaging that I would recommend letting your kids use their hands in this way while getting them “hooked on cooking”…..
The

was very simple.
I repeated this tradition with my children…..My brother did too…..

CHICKEN SOUP…EASY TO MAKE…? by ISABEL

For something that has been made forever..and has so few ingredients…it seems like it would be easy to find many versions of delicious chicken soup…. It is, however, surprisingly hard to find those who make it well, whatever the culture. My current favorite which I have NEVER been able to duplicate…is made by my sister-in-law.  Her’s is an asian version…again with very few ingredients…broth, small pieces of chicken, greens and asian egg noodles. Each thing is perfectly cooked and balanced for maximum flavor… I know she didn’t learn to make this from her mother…because she grew up in a home in Vietnam with servants who did the  cooking….I find it enormously frustrating because we live so far apart and I can’t even come close to duplicating it despite my best efforts…..

THOSE POTATOES FOR WHICH IDAHO IS SO FAMOUS…CURLY FRIES…..by ISABEL

When driving through Fairfield, Idaho, make sure to be hungry enough to stop at The Wrangler…..
In addition to a variety of burgers (I love the sauteed onions)…a large list of milkshake flavors (the old fashioned kind)…there are the Curly Fries…..
They look like corkscrews…the longer they are the more desirable…..
Fights have broken out over who gets the long ones…..
Order them how you like…I like extra crispy…..
With the special seasoned salt and the Fry Sauce (you are in Idaho after all)…it is almost worth the 50 mile (100 round trip) drive from Sun Valley to have the pleasure.

INSPIRATIONS…..by ISABEL

All I learned about the joys of hospitality I learned from my Aunt Bess…..
My father celebrated holidays of every variety and made them exciting with creativity and excitement…
At some point my parents no longer entertained large groups.
Bess took over that position in the family….
All her entertaining involved generous amounts of delicious food…even if it was gourmet takeout when she was older…..
All good relationships and memories of our family come from these occasions…..
Nothing brings families together like sharing a day filled with food.

LEGENDS AND MEMORIES…..by ISABEL

My mother was the middle child of five…but for many years she was a youngest child. Her two, much older, sisters had formed a kitchen “team” with their mother and they didn’t want her in the way. So…. she never learned how to cook. She spent a lot of time with her father having “intellectual” discussions and sometimes going to work with him. He died, tragically, when she was 12. Her mother soon remarried, as one did in those days, the younger children fit in with the new husband’s once motherless children but my mother was, once again, the odd “man” out.
The only things she ever cooked when we were growing up was a very good sour apple pie for Thanksgiving (pumpkin too..but the recipe was on the can) and very occasionally blintzes…which were also quite good.

LEGENDS…..by ISABEL

• My legendary debut in cooking was when I was about three years old…..
  Fortunately I do not remember it…..
  My parents were entertaining…and the main event was homemade pizza…..
  I obviously wanted to participate…but the “flour” I added to the dough was Tide laundry detergent…..!                                                                     

I was never told what the guests had for dinner…..

LEGENDS…..by ISABEL

My grandmother, for whom I was named, was a legend in her own time. My grandfather did not want his sons to grow up in New York City…… so he moved the family to the countryside…. to what is now mostly Hartshorne Park near Atlantic Highlands NJ.
My grandmother was a very forward thinking woman for her times, the early 1900’s, who played ball with her sons as well as winning blue ribbons at the county fairs for her cooking.
She passed on her skills, and her passion for cooking, to her oldest son who was my father.
My father, who passed on his passion for cooking to me, earned money during his college summers by cooking on yachts and did all the cooking and entertaining in our home.

THOSE POTATOES FOR WHICH IDAHO IS SO FAMOUS…SWEET POTATO FRIES…..by ISABEL

The Sun Valley Resort is not renowned for their cuisine…..

Therefore, it came as a huge surprise to discover that they do,  indeed, have some of the best Sweet Potato Fries,  in Idaho, at the Sun Valley Golf Course Restaurant…..

Crisp, wonderfully seasoned,  and served in a special cone-shaped holder… they are worth the trip just for the experience…..

The site where this “New” golf course restaurant is located is on the original, mature part of the expanded golf course…and there is a wonderful atmosphere and spectacular views.

The Sweet Potato Fries are the best thing on the menu…so have them with drinks on the outside terrace and enjoy the  views….

They are served with ketchup…which unless you are a ketchup addict… is completely unnecessary…..