Fluff

I thought a fluff piece was in order after yesterday's heavy topic. That got me thinking about Fluff. I've recently rediscovered it. I told Pipsqueak that I had spoonful of Fluff in my hot chocolate instead of mini marshmallows when I was a kid. She wanted to try it, so I picked up a jar. It had probably been 25 years since I tasted it, and it made me feel like a kid again. I've enjoyed a few peanut butter and Fluff sandwiches for desserts in the week or so since it's been in the cupboard.

My mom makes to-die-for fudge from the recipe on the Fluff jar. Sweetie swears it's the best fudge ever.

Racism in My Own Backyard

I heard a story today that made me very sad and angry. I wish it was fiction, but it's not. I wish I could fix it, but I don't think I can.

A bunch of moms from our school got together for breakfast and one of them was new to the group. She moved to American from Jamaica with her husband. She's originally from the US; he's Jamaican. He didn't read, write or speak English when they moved here, but he learned enough so he could get a job, and pass a driver's test. He was was embracing his new life in America.

Seven years has passed since they moved here, and he's now tired, depressed and angry because of how he's been treated. He worked at a sandwich shop in a nearby college town. The other employees chewed food and spit it on his car. He changed employers and now works as a prep cook in restaurant in the same town. For awhile, things went well there. But the manager left, and the new manager started making him clean the bathrooms all the time and clean up after other employees. Luckily, he has a second job in a popular chain cafe where he is treated kindly and fairly. A local state trooper pulled him over several times, but never ticketed him. Why? Because he wasn't doing anything wrong; he was just being harassed. Those are probably just a small number of the acts of racism that have beaten him down over the years.

Vermont is a 97% white state, but I thought we were more progressive, tolerant and accepting than that. I guess I had my head buried in the sand. I don't understand how people can be so mean because someone looks different or practices a different religion. If someone lives in your community, pays their bills, doesn't commit crimes and works hard, can't we just leave them alone? I'm not saying everyone has to love each other, but a little civility doesn't seem like too much to ask.

If I had to say what Vermont is lacking, it would be diversity, mainly because I'd like Pipsqueak to be acquainted with people from all over the world. We can travel and see them, but it's not the same as having them in your community and interacting with them. She's learned about slavery and Martin Luther King in school, and we've talked about racism at home. She's disgusted by someone being treated unfairly because of the color of their skin. After what I heard today and they way I feel about it, I'm sure I wouldn't have had the stomach to watch what happened in the 60s.

Kindle is the Devil

A few friends, relatives and aquaintances have been singing the praises of Kindle. I will not be singing along. I don't care how many books can fit on it, or how light weight and portable it is or the fact that you can read in the dark. Here is why. Books have soul.

Have you ever purchased a used book and found a note, a receipt or something stuck in the middle that was maybe used as a bookmark and forgotten? It's like a little clue to the mystery of the previous owner. Have you read the inscription in a used book and wondered about the person that gave it and the person that received it?

There are books that I took on vacations, books that I read while nursing my baby, books that I wet with my tears and books that made me giggle out loud. I can look at them on my shelf and remember that. A file on a machine would not evoke those memories.

I love the weight of a book in my hands, the smell of the paper and ink, watching my progress as the bookmark moves through the pages. I even love the irritation of a dust jacket that won't stay in place. I enjoy the process of selecting two or three light weight books to take on a trip.

A book store is like a crack den for me. It's hard to go in without buying something, and once I'm there, I don't want to leave. Being there lifts my mood. I'll pick up book that I never would have considered reading just because the cover or title is eye catching. I can read two or three pages to see if it grabs me without committing to a purchase. If book stores go out of business because everyone is reading electronically, it will be a great loss to me.

I know, Kindle might be greener than paper books, but I do my part to recycle. I keep a few books and the rest are resold or given to the thrift store or donated to the library. I've read that paper production is not a cause of deforestation because of aggressive replanting.

So lets make a deal... I'll try not to sneer at your Kindle if you don't try to sell me on it.

Here's a leather bound, 1905 edition of The Works of Edgar Allen Poe, Vol. II, that I bought at a book sale near Rockport Massachusettes for $2. This book has so much soul, it nearly has a heartbeat. Or maybe it's just a "Tell-Tale Heart".

Bloody Mary

Fall has so many wonderful things... apples, pumpkins, wood fires, colored leaves. I love all of it, and I love that it's the beginning of Bloody Mary season.

As for how it got it's name, there are a few theories, but I like that one that says it was named after Mary I of England, a sixteenth century queen who was nicknamed Bloody Mary because of the number of people she had put to death. Of course, given the way English royalty condemned people to death, it surprising we don't have a whole lineage of drinks... the Bloody Henry, the Bloody Richard, the Bloody Harold. Perhaps the Brits gave Mary the nickname because such behavior was unbecoming to a female.

If you like yours hot and spicy, you've got to try this recipe...

Bloody Mary

2 1/2 ounces vodka

5 ounces V-8

1/2 ounce lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon celery seed

3 dashes Worcestershire sauce

2-3 dashes Tabasco sauce

1 teaspoon grated fresh horseradish root

1 celery rib

1 lemon wedge

In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine vodka, V-8, lemon juice, pepper, salt, celery seed, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauce. Shake well. Strain into a highball glass almost filled with ice cubes. Garnish with celery and lemon wedge.

I Love Apples... a Bushel and a Peck

Okay, technically it was a 1/2 bushel and a 1/2 peck, but it was still a hell of a lot of apples.

I bought a 1/2 peck of Cortland at the store, because I couldn't wait to make apple crisp with this year's fresh apples. Two days later, we went apple picking and picked a 1/2 bushel of Cortland, Macoun and Honey Crisp.

I made more apple crisp, and apple pie, along with a banana bread from three overlooked bananas.Every snack request has been met with apples. They've been regularly munched and packed in lunches, but I still had a 1/4 peck left and they weren't so crispy fresh anymore. Today I made a big pot of chunky applesauce...

another round of apple crisp...

and apple mini muffins.

All my recipes came from the Betty Crocker Cookbook. It's the first cookbook I ever owned, and I always seem to turn to it for the classics.

I still have 10 tiny apples left, but I think I'll chuck them down the hill for the deer to munch on.

Steak, Guinness and Cheese Pie

This is what we had for dinner tonight. It's not a quick meal since it requires 3 hours of cooking time, but the filling can be made a day ahead which cuts the cooking time on the day of to under an hour. The recipe is a little vague, but I took it from a Jamie Oliver recipe featured on the Food Network and adapted it to be my own. My favorite adaptation is step #8.

Steak, Guinness and Cheese Pie

2 pounds beef brisket, cut in 1 inch cubes

1 frozen puff pastry sheet, defrosted

3 onions, sliced

olive oil

1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T butter

2 sticks celery, sliced

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

1/2 pound or so crimini mushroom, sliced

1 large bottle Guinness

1 heaping T flour

1 small can beef stock

2 handfuls shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 egg, beaten lightly with fork

1 package frozen peas

1. Saute onion in a large heavy pot in a little olive oil.

2. Stir in rosemary.

3. Add garlic, saute about 30 seconds.

4. Add butter, stir until melted.

5. Add celery, onions and mushrooms. Saute about 3 minutes.

6. Add beef, a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir until well mixed.

7. Stir in flour.

8. Add 3/4 of the bottle of Guinness. (Drink the rest while you cook.)

9. Pour in beef stock to top off. Liquid should not fully cover other ingredients.

10. Bake at 350 degrees in oven safe pot or bowl. For saucier pie, cook covered. For thicker pie, cook uncovered. Or do a combination of both to suit your preference.

11. When filling comes out of oven, stir in one handful of cheese.

12. Put filling in a 8-10" square pan (glass or stoneware is best).

13. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

14. Place puff pastry on top of filling.

15. Brush top of pastry with beaten egg.

16. Score top of pastry lightly with knife for venting.

17. Bake in 350 degree oven for 40 minutes until bubbly and golden.

18. Serve with cooked frozen peas.

Serves 4 to 6.

All's Fair

Geez, another crazy day and weekend guests have just arrived, so it's another photo heavy post.

Two weeks ago tonight, we went to the Tunbridge World's Fair. We look forward to this every year. It's small and agricultural...

yet it has all the thrills...

and goodies...

that big fairs offer.