Like Thanksgiving, Christmas is another tradition-laden holiday. For seven or eight years now, one of our traditions has been to go to Chinatown for dinner on Christmas Eve. It started when Marion’s sister Lena told us in an offhanded, “isn’t that interesting” kind of way that two of her coworkers did this every year. We are HUGE fans of Chinese food—and of Chicago’s Chinatown—so any excuse to go there is fine by us. Thus, a tradition was born. Continue reading ““…Christmas gifts. Hahahaha!””
Steaming salmon over a bed of vegetables in wine keeps fish moist and delivers delicate flavor. Recipe below.
This is the salmon dish I was going to prepare last week, before painting the living room got in the way. So it’s a week late—and given my history with fish, it’s much later than that.
Fish and I haven’t always been on the best of terms. I grew up in the midwest—St. Louis, to be exact—before reliably fresh fish was readily available in just about any supermarket. Fish for my family was frozen, breaded ocean perch, fried up and served with canned stewed tomatoes, cold from the fridge, and my grandmother’s sour German cole slaw. Even though we weren’t Catholic, this dreaded meal appeared without fail every Friday. So Friday became my day of semi-fasting at the evening meal, breaking up the fish and tomatoes with my fork and redistributing them around the plate, while consuming as little as humanly possible. I don’t think I fooled anyone at the table—I just outwaited them. Eventually, I would be excused so dinner dishes could be washed.
If this weren’t enough to put me off fish, every winter also brought daily tablespoon-sized doses of cod liver oil, which tastes exactly like its name. I can’t remember now what my mother thought this vile, viscous liquid would ward off. What it in fact warded off was any hope of me liking fish for many years to come.
So of course I married a fish lover. Marion, to her credit, was patient and gentle with me as she gradually reintroduced seafood to my palate—much as one would be with any rescued abused creature. She only served fish occasionally and then, only milder-flavored species. That she is a superb cook also helped. But it took years before I willingly chose fish in a restaurant if any creature that had walked the earth was also offered on the menu. And even more years before I attempted to cook fish.
Now I really like fish—like cooking it too. Thanks, Marion! After you try this simple, quick, delicious dish, I think you’ll thank her too. Continue reading “Salmon Tarragon on a Bed of Vegetables: Better late than never”
This was supposed to be a photograph of a quick, delicious salmon dish. But Sunday Marion and I started painting the living room. We’re moving this spring and had to return the living room to a more landlord-friendly off-white [see the wall behind the boombox] from its lovely deep coral 
[see the wall behind the brandy bottle from an earlier post]. So instead of salmon, today I’m going to serve up some music as the main course, with a side of painting antics.
Let’s start with the antics. Sunday is normally the day I cook and photograph the week’s upcoming post. Instead, we spent the morning moving a couch and a loveseat, three side tables, an old flea market find kitchen table that is our computer desk, various lamps, three paintings [one of them 6′ x 8′ and another 5′ x 7′], a rug and a mountain of family photos, tschotskes and vintage cameras. Oh, and about a bazillion little jingly cat toys discovered under the couch and loveseat. Oh, and a beautiful but monstrously heavy piece of decorative terra cotta from some long ago demolished St. Louis building.
Sunday afternoon, Marion took on the umpteen other things that needed accomplishing around the apartment and out in the world, and I started painting. With the first few brush strokes, I could see this was going to be a two-coat job. Two coats in our 12′ x 19′ living room. With two built-in shelving nooks. And five windows, one door and miles of baseboard to tape around. And a radiator to work around. Yep, this was going to be fun. Continue reading “The kitchen boombox moves to the living room”
Vegetable oil in place of butter and heart healthy flaxseed meal make luscious Lemon Flaxseed Cake relatively guilt-free. Recipe below.
Is there anything as fresh, clean and bracing as the fragrance of lemons? Slicing or juicing lemons or grating their skin for the zest immediately fills your kitchen with tantalizing promise, on par with smashing garlic cloves: Something wonderful and delicious is about to happen.
This loaf cake is a perfect example. Light and sweet—but not too sweet—it is a perfect holiday treat. To bring to a party, to serve at a party of your own or just to have around the house for the family. It’s a substantial cake, not unlike pound cake in density, but the lemon flavor [and the lack of butter] makes it seem lighter. And because it contains flaxseed meal, it delivers those much sought after omega-3 fatty acids that are good for the heart. So you don’t even have to feel guilty eating it. This recipe is based on one found in Cooking Light magazine. Continue reading “Light and Luscious: Lemon Flaxseed Cake”