Stories

Despite the anxiety-producing hit that my 401K has taken, I’m quite sure that the current belt-tightening is not bad for me.  I agree with my friend Marc that “it doesn’t debit your happiness to live with less.”  Yet Marc still gets grief from his friend for driving a VW now instead of a BMW, and I recently got grief from my friend for returning a $45 pair of windshield wipers to Pep Boys when I found Consumer Reports “best buy” ones on Amazon for $12.  Only someone wealthy, arrogant and out-of-touch belittles driving a VW or saving $33.  So here are some thoughts for middle-class people like Marc and me about how to live a very good life on a VW-with-Amazon-wipers budget.

Ya gotta say:
Goodbye Neiman’s – hello Loehmann’s.
Goodbye Barney’s – hello Ross.
Goodbye Nordstrom’s – hello Nordstom’s Rack.
Goodbye Lancome – hello Neutrogena.
Goodbye mani/pedi – hello nippers and PedEgg.

If you want to entertain high on the hog and go hog wild then – in fact – why not go hog wild and pig out high on the hog!

Seems elementary!

The only other declaration that generates as much gleeful excitement as “T*O*G*A!“ is “B*B*Q!” – especially if you bring in the best meats from the great BBQ states of Texas, Tennessee and the Carolinas! And, that is exactly what we did for a season farewell dinner last week in Palm Beach.

Our Menu:

For appetizers we had pulled pork sliders, brie and mango quesadillas, and Virginia stone milled grits “martinis” with Charleston style shrimp and Andouille Sausage.

Our buffet consisted of Blackened Catfish; Florida style BBQ chicken; BBQ Brisket of Beef flown in from Railhead BBQ located in Fort Worth, Texas; BBQ Tennessee pulled pork and ribs, flown in from Corky’s in Memphis, Tennessee; sweet potato fries, home made black eyed peas, grapefruit and avocado salad with poppy seed dressing, Jalapeno cornbread and biscuits. Whew!

In the fall and winter I really enjoy cooking with beans. I make lentil soup or sometimes black-eyed pea soup for New Year's. I love chili with beans. And I particularly enjoy bean salads, either warm or cold, as side dishes or mixed into green salads for a healthy lunch. Black beans and cannellini beans are some of my favorites to cook with, but I'm always looking for other types of beans that I haven't tried before.

There are many varieties of beans and I've been on a trek to discover them all, especially heirloom ones. I recently discovered French flageolet beans and loved them right away. The unique feature of this bean, besides its pale green color, is that they keep their shape very well after cooking and, if soaked overnight, they cook up quickly—in about 30 minutes. Their firm texture is what makes them perfect for this French-style bean salad.

In this recipe I play with Mediterranean flavors like fennel, garlic, lemon, and olive oil. I use fennel stalks and fronds, which most people would otherwise discard after using the bulb. (I usually use the fennel bulb in a roast chicken recipe and use the stalks for this salad. Then I pair the two dishes to make a meal.) The fennel adds a sweet anise flavor to the salad and the carrots lend additional sweetness. Lemon as well as red-wine vinegar add tartness. Serve this bean salad warm or cold, as an appetizer or side dish to fish, chicken, or meats. You'll enjoy the bright and fresh flavors.

Sorry for the bad-pun headline, but I do love fresh thyme. Right about now I’m getting to use a lot of it, for two reasons. First, I’ve got several plants flourishing, both right outside the kitchen door and also along the edge of the vegetable garden. Secondly, I keep cutting bunches to sell at the farm stand, and no one buys it. So it goes.

Herbs are not a huge seller, even in the high months, but I stubbornly put them out there, just in case. Secretly, I just like to look at the pretty little bunches arranged in cute cups. Thyme and all the rest of the herbs cut fresh from the garden last a remarkably long time compared to store-bought herbs. (And despite how pretty they look at room temperature in a little container, they will keep even longer in the fridge in a sealed zip-top bag. Dry them well before storing.)