Sunshine Food and Wine: August 2011

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Gifts of Love

I was just thinking today about gifts of love from family and friends. The little things you do for someone during a difficult time, or even just a token of love and cheer when things are going great! I dedicate this blog to all the special, giving people in my life who demonstrate their love not only in words, but in deeds and thoughtful gestures.

For a few days now, I have been sick with the flu. That's nothing unusual, moreso than any other person has to deal with. But for me, sometimes it can have serious implications because I have asthma. I have to be extra cautious in case my condition suddenly worsens. Fortunately this time, with bed rest and some antibiotics (to deal with bronchitis), I am successfully fending the illness off. And you know what really made me feel even better? When my Dad dropped off 2 big jars of my Mom's homemade vegetable soup this morning, along with some of her coveted skillet cornbread. YUM!! I ate a bunch of the soup for lunch and it filled my belly with warmth, and her cornbread....now that is the BEST!! Not only did the soup & cornbread do my body good, but it did my spirit good as well, because it was a gift given out of love.

That got me to thinking about another recent time where I received a gift of love. My Mom dropped by with 2 of my nieces, Sarah and Rebecca....they'd worked really hard making a bunch of super-delicious, utterly scrumptious mini cupcakes....a whopping 268 of them!!!! And not only were they very beautifully and artistically decorated, but many of them were

filled, too!! They really did a wonderful job. And we were so happy when they all stopped by to drop off a nice, big bundle of them for us. We chowed them down...I enjoyed several with my morning coffee...some to wake me up during the afternoon 'doldrums' at work (LOL)...and my husband, John, well he pretty much just ate them at all hours of the day (LOL). Those beautiful cupcakes were so cheery, and such a delightful gift of love. Think of all the effort and care it took to make each one of them.

This is the kind of thing that inspires me even more to want to give gifts of love of my own to others...sort of a "pay it forward" mentality, if you will. And while I often like to express love through cooking or baking, that by no means is the only way....there are so many ways to express love to another....how about changing someone's spark plugs or mowing someone's lawn for them in a time of need- just because- like my thoughtful husband has done on more than one occasion. It can be as simple as walking a dog, giving fresh flowers, taking someone out for lunch for a much-needed break...or simply giving someone a call out of the blue to ask how they have been or even an email (or snail-mail card!) to say.."Just thinking of You".... I encourage you to appreciate the gestures, big and small, given by others in your life...and to reach out to others with your own expressions of love.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Tres Pollos!

Three chickens! Chicken is one of my all-time favorite foods...not only is it inexpensive, but it is so versatile and delicious! Chicken is used quite a bit in Florida cooking. Think southern fried chicken for one...yum! The recipes I'm featuring this week are chicken done 3 different, distinct ways.....but I suspect that if you try them, you will love them! As you may already know, Florida has many cultural influences. And given our warm, sub-tropical climate, we can grow many of the fruits and vegetables associated with warmer climates, such as those in South America and the Carribean....and we can also grow more "south-Asian"-style choices (such as lemongrass).

How about trying Sticky-Chicken Skewers with 3 Sauces? The chicken, marinated in Asian spices,including some fresh-chopped lemongrass and chives from our garden, is paired with 3 different sauces of your choice: Banana Curry, Thai Peanut and Sweet n' Sour. Along with fragrant Jasmine rice and a side of spicy cabbage, it is a meal that can transport you! *These Asian flavors can seem difficult to pair with a wine, but we paired this particular meal quite well with a lovely, German Riesling "Funf: 5". I was pleasantly suprised because I'd always thought rieslings were nearly candy-sweet wines...but this one was not that at al!! This riesling went very well with this meal!

Another, more South American, option for chicken is Chicken Enchiladas. Leftover cooked chicken (such as that from last night's rotisserie chicken) is folded, along with shredded Mexican cheeses, in corn tortillas....rolled up, topped with a sauce and served with rice and the vegetable of your choice. Yum!

How about trying Fontina Chicken? This is my 'take' on Swiss Chicken. While I do admit that I used a bit of whole, whipping cream to make the sauce (really, nothing has the body of that nor thickens up better), it is not all that bad once in awhile, especially utilized in small amounts. And I have found that a carton of whole whipping cream can keep rather well in the fridge...generally you don't have to use the entire carton that week! Just the same, I'd recommend getting the smallest size you can (unless you really do plan to use quite a bit in a short period of time or have a group to cook for)....this time I bought the smaller, 16 oz carton. I only used a portion of it for the recipe for just the 2 of us, of course. Try pairing this dish with Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.

Try these recipes if you're looking for something different from perhaps the usual chicken offerings! And if the weather is balmy enough, by all means, serve dinner on the patio with candles.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Forever in Blue Jeans

My husband and I have been married 20 years! Sometimes it is hard to believe how fast time has flown by, but at the same time I feel like I have known him all my life. He is my best friend and soul mate. I know that may sound corny, but let me tell you why.

We were only dating for two months when we decided we wanted to get married. We wanted to marry as soon as possible, but neither of our jobs paid very well, and we wanted to have things lined up...such as a place to live. And we wanted to have a nice, little church wedding. As time went on it became more frustrating, things weren't moving along fast enough! I can remember praying to God, "Please help us find a way to get married!". Not long after, things started to fall into place. John found a place for us to live and everything else started coming together.

We bought our plain, gold wedding bands at Kmart. We put them on layaway. I can remember that both of them cost us a total of $99. I know many couples buy expensive, specially-designed wedding rings...and if we had the money at the time, we would have! After all, if you're going to spend the money on any part of the wedding, it should be the rings. Even so, when I look at my plain, gold band now, I have to smile. That ring, simple as it is, represents LOVE. And I wouldn't trade it for anything.

We have never had a lot of money, like many couples. But we've had so many good and wonderful times! And we've also had some trials to go through. But somehow even the trials, even in the midst of the sad and bad times, there was a thread of hope and LOVE in them. I think it is because we have always faced them as a "team". One of my most favorite sayings is, "Joy shared is doubled, pain shared is halved". It is so true!!

I can remember when we went through some trying years when I was frequently sick with adult-onset asthma. I was hospitalized twice with pneumonia. My husband was my hero!! He was always there for me, helping me. One time when I was particulary down while in the hospital, I was crying when he called. (He was at home super-cleaning the house so it'd be ready for when I came home...he didn't want my lungs to have to contend with any dust or any other contaminants). When he heard me on the phone, he instantly dropped everything and drove up to the hospital. And while a nurse was a little wary about me going outside, he walked me out to a little area to sit down so I could get some fresh air and clear my head. It did wonders for me! I will never forget that.

There was another time when John won tickets for us to see a show in Tampa (he is so funny in that way, always able to win, barter or work things out for us). We were so excited as we drove there in our old car. We had so much fun! On the way home we were happy and talking about the show and we briefly mentioned how nice it would be if we could eat dinner out, too, since we were down that way...but at the time things were just too tight. It was right around then that we were at a stoplight and I looked over and saw a couple in a very nice car. They obviously had money. But I noticed that the woman was looking down at the road out her window. She looked so sad. I felt so bad for her! It was then that an important lesson really hit home: just because someone has money, it does not guarantee that they will be happy.

We may never have a lot of money, but then money was really never a primary goal of ours. I know that I am so very blessed to have my wonderful husband...that we found eachother...and our life together is the best thing I could ever have imagined. I am a rich woman, indeed.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Florida-Style Paella!

I love Florida. I was born and raised here. I love the salt water and sunshine

. The summers may be quite hot for a long time, but we get by, luckily with air conditioning. When I was very young, we got by with fans. And we went swimming to cool off. Luckily, I grew up right on the water. I think that is why I appreciate the salt water so much. While I don't live right on the water now, I'm not too far away from it. And whenever I do go to the coast, I close my eyes and breathe in the salty air, and it just fills my heart with joy! The water is absolute tranquility. I think it is in my blood.

Florida is home to all sorts of people. There are a lot of northerners, for sure. And they have brought their northerly influence. We appreciate new influences and experiences, even though some of them complain that the "NY Pizzas" aren't the same as in NY because of the water, and that is probably true; we have different water here, but we also have our own, local foods that are quite good.

There are the "southerners" like me. We cherish the deep south and the cooking of the south. Think sweet iced tea, fried chicken or fried catfish and biscuits. But Florida is also home to other cultures, like the Cuban culture. The Cuban culture is very prevalant in South Florida, but also has influence in mid-Florida, such as in Ybor City. I love Cuban food, with its use of garlic and lime....black beans and rice....and the ubiquitous "pressed cuban" sandwich...YUM! We have melded a lot of our foods into a "Florribean" theme based on Cuban and Carribbean influences. I think it is a wonderful, tropical melting-pot!

Florida definitely has a very big Spanish influence, too. After all, our state was named by the spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leo'n: "La Florida", meaning "flowery land". I absolutely appreciate the spanish influence on our food. We have a myriad of choices! In honor of Florida's great culture, I made my idea of a "Florida Paella" for dinner...I just interpreted paella to fit with what I had on-hand and what I wanted it to be, which is what I think they do with their Paella in Spain.

I made my paella with chicken, chorizo, shrimp and cooked tuna (not out of a can; flaked from a tuna steak), short grain rice and other ingredients....if you want to recreate it, I'm providing directions under the "recipes" tab on this blog...but I have to tell you in advance that I am not one to stick to or know strict measurements. I'll describe them the best that I can, then I encourage you to "taste as you go" so it comes out exactly like YOU prefer!

I hope you will be inspired to make your own Florida-Style dinner! Preferably eat it alfresco....and think of the salty waves lapping at the shore on a balmy summer evening.

This meal would be great with a lovely white wine such as Sauvingon Blanc or even Pinot Grigio.

Friday, August 5, 2011

My Instinct to Cook....

This is my FIRST post for my brand new blog! I wasn't sure how to 'kick it off', but it was pretty easy to decide my first post once I read the week's topc for the GBE 2 writing group. The topic is "Instinct". It came to me rather quickly that I should blog on one of my strongest compulsions, my "instinct" to cook. Like so many people, I grew up in a family where food was an expression of comfort and love.

I can remember my mother making homemade doughnuts, fresh from the fryer! And we all loved her peanut butter cookies...the first batch would be scarfed down, hot from the oven, before the second batch even made it out of the oven! My mother made these things called "Pasties"...I really hadn't heard of them or seen them elsewhere down South where we lived, but I later learned that is because they are a scrumptious, Midwestern food that my mother brought with her from growing up in Michigan. The folded-over "pies" were filled with beef and potatoes and other good things! They were a lot of work, but they were good! And all these years, to this day, Mom has kept us mesmerized by her wonderful "knot" rolls! Everytime she asks what she can bring to a gathering, before she can finish asking, we blurt out, "Knot rolls!"

I have many food memories from my childhood. One of the fondest things I can remember were family Sunday dinners. Those don't seem to happen so much anymore in our society today, but I'd love to start them up again at my house for my family & friends! And I plan to do so soon.

I can remember being dressed up for Church and Sunday School and going to my grandparent's church on Tarpon Avenue in Tarpon Springs. After we'd congregate at my grandparent's house. It was an older house that had window air conditioners. I can remember us sitting in the chilled-down living room, the window air blasting away, and we'd all be talking/playing games. A quilt was hung in the doorway between the living room and kitchen to block the heat of the kitchen. Sometimes we'd venture past the quilt into the HOT kitchen, and Gran would be slaving away, cooking us a big, home-cooked meal.

When we had chicken or turkey, my cousin Missy and I would fight over the skin...that is one of the best parts, you know! And I absolutely LOVED Gran's mashed potatoes...all the food was good....the banana pudding and peach cobbler. YUM!! I've thought about those days long past when the family got together, and I thought about how we went to church then for sunday dinner after, and it made me think of the old hymns we used to sing in church. "In the Garden" is one of my Mom's favorites, and mine, too.

The love of (and instinct for) cooking was instilled in me long ago. When my sister and I were young we tried some adventures in cooking and baking. One time we set out to make a cake (without checking the ingredients list first). Once we started going down the list, we realized we did not have all the ingredients. At that point we decided to "veer off" into our own, creative direction! We were adding stuff, and then we thought that we'd like to have a pretty, blue cake (like an azure blue), so we added blue food coloring...the batter sure was pretty! But then we continued adding ingredients. At some point we added grape jelly...it sounded like a good addition, but it had a profound effect on the coloring of our lovely cake. The batter turned to an atrocious green. Yikes! We thought it might look better after baking.

Out of the oven the cake turned a near flourescent green! It was hilarious!! Once the cake cooled we decided since the cake was so obnoxiously green, we'd go ahead and do a flamboyant frosting...so we frosted it red. We presented the cake to our parents for dinner. Mom cut into it and started singing Christmas carols and Dad put us on "kitchen probation" (supervised cooking), as he explained that food was supposed to "look appealing" as well as taste good. LOL! So those were the beginnings of my adventures in cooking. Nothing has been able to tame my strong instinct to cook, and I just pick up more steam as I go along..... And in true form I have served hot pink beet risotto alongside bright green broccoli with a steak. Sometimes I never learn! LOL

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