In good company

Five Ricker brothers

Clifton - US Army

Erold - US Navy

Rick - US Army

Edgar - US Army

Vernon - US Air Force

Uncle Vernon's Pool Party for Nieces & Nephews

My nephew, Kevin Ricker

and his son, Josh

will arrive for a visit on July 6th

and on the 7th

the three of us are going to a

Red Sox Game!

Kevin and Josh would like to meet their cousins

so I am going to host a pool party

to celebrate my nephews Benjamin and Dan's

graduation from high school.

Benjamin

Dan

The pool party

is at 1pm

Saturday

Winthrop

July 9, 2011

I am hoping that cousins from near and far

will join us.

Maine Baked Beans

Yesterday, the yard people came and raked and cleaned my garden for spring, and I prepared the herb garden for planting.

The forecast called for snow over night. I didn't want to believe that but thought that some comfort food might be in order.

I went into my pantry and retrieved a bag of those big yellow eye beans I had stocked up on during my last trip to Maine.

This morning, April Fools Day, I woke to a heavy wet slushy covering of snow, not a lot, but enough to know its too early for any gardening.

After having soaked the beans overnight, I now parboiled them.

I quartered an onion and placed it in the bottom of my bean pot. The beans were added to the pot. I took a slab of salt pork

slit it down though the rind and put it on top of the beans.

A half cup of molasses, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons of dried mustard, salt and pepper were stirred into a pint of boiling water,

and poured over the beans.

The cover was put on the electric bean pot, the temperature turned t0 300.

Now I don't want you ladies up in Maine telling me I should be using a bean pot in my oven because this lady, my Mom, supervises everything that goes on in my kitchen and I could sense her approval.

Soon the wonderful aroma of baking beans was wafting through the house.

They cooked all day with more boiling water being added as needed.

I don't know about you but these big beautiful yellow eye beans are so superior to those wimpy pea beans.

Tomorrow, I just might make some home-made steamed brown bread cooked in a coffee can.

A slice of ham

Here is an interesting and easy way

to take a slice of ham from the supermarket

and turn it into a very flavorful and tender piece of meat.

Smear about a tablespoon of dijon mustard on the ham slice.

Place it in a small roasting pan

and surround it with about a cup of milk.

Add some sage and 2 or 3 teaspoons of dark brown sugar.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for an hour.

The milk will curdle a bit.

Spoon the milk occasionally over the ham.

The aroma in the kitchen will be great.

I took some corn from the freezer

and had a very nice supper.


I still have half of the original slice
to have with an omelet for tomorrow.

Bon Appetit!
and thanks again to Judith Jones.

Meatloaf for One With a French Accent

This isn't a dish you decide to prepare at the last moment.

The meat mixture has to "macerate" for 24 hours before cooking.

I start with a half pound each of ground sirloin and ground pork.

The market didn't have any ground veal today.


I made a paste of two big cloves of finely chopped garlic and salt and added to the bowl with the meat..


Next 2 finely chopped shallots.



Four chopped sprigs of parsley from my indoor herb garden.




1/4 teaspoon of herbes de Provence
which Ed and Mary brought back from France.







1 dried porcini mushroom crumbled into small pieces.
these mushrooms are called cepes in France.




1/4 cup of red wine left over from dinner last night.
Sorry France, but I used a California wine.

Add salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Mix well, squishing the meat with my fingers.

Cover with plastic wrap let the meat mixture

macerate in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

The next day form into a small loaf,

place a bay leaf,

and some bacon on top.

Arrange some carrots and potatoes,

which have been brushed with olive oil and salt,

aound the loaf.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes,

turning the vegetables half way through.

By the way, I use a small battery-operated

vacuum pump which I purchased at Walmarts

for under 20 dollars

to store items like bacon to keep them airtight and fresh

in the refrigerator.

Correction: This was a gift from my good friend, Beth Sirois.

This dinner plate doesn't represent how I like to eat

which usually emphasizes the vegetables

more than the meats.

It was amazing how the wild flavor

of the mushrooms came through in the

baked meatloaf.

Just enough left over

for a sandwich tomorrow.

Bon Appetit!

Based on a Judith Jones recipe.

Portuguese Chicken

Portuguese Chicken with tomatoes, cipolline onions, roasted red peppers and prosciutto ham

This dish is based on a recipe in the current issue of Bon Appetit.

I started with one whole chicken cut into pieces.

The chicken pieces were coated one at a time in a mixture of 1 cup flour, 1 tlbs + 1/4 tsp of smoked paprika, 1 1/2 tsp salt and a 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

I sauted the chicken in olive oil in large skillet and then placed them in a large pot.
I poured 2 cans of diced tomatoes with the juices over the chicken.

I hope you have one of these gadgets to open those stubborn jars in your kitchen.

I chop 4 oz of prosciutto

and 2 large roasted red peppers

and add to the pot.

Next I blanch a small bag of cipolline onions

in boiling water for 1 minute

which makes them easy to peel,

and add them to the pot.

I add 6 large garlic cloves, pressed

4 flat parsley sprigs

4 bay leaves, bruised

The recipe called for 1/2 cup of port wine and 1/2 cup of white wine neither of which I had.

I added 1 cup of sweet red vermouth to the skillet to deglaze it.

I whisked in 1 tlbs Dijon mustard and 1 tlbs tomato paste.

I poured this mixture over the chicken and brought the pot to a boil.

Then covered and into the oven for a couple of hours until the chicken was very tender.

I set a nice table.



Note the snow piled up against the window.

I placed the chicken and toppings onto a serving platter.

I simmered the remaining sauce in the pot until it thickened a little and then spooned some of it over the chicken.

I served it with a nice bowl of boiled carrots

and accompanied it with a loaf

of crusty chiabatti bread

served with a spanish olive oil and balsamic vinegar

for dipping.

Bon Appetit!

Snow