Comfort Foods and Indulgences

Recently I had a tryst with an old flame. No, ‘old flame’ is not quite right. You see, I’ve mindlessly used him many times over the years--even recently--meeting him most often in dark movie houses. On rare, more daring occasions we met in my bedroom, on nights when I admit I much more anticipated my latest Netflix delivery or guilty-pleasure TV show. He was always a second thought; an accompaniment; a reliable, cheap snack I held back from enjoying fully, lest I spoil the more respectable dinner waiting for me at home.

But this night was different. I was alone. . .insatiable, yet I longed for something more substantial, more fulfilling. . .more memorable. Suddenly, and for the first time, I saw him in a new light. The idea seemed so silly given our past dealings, that I needed some kind of sanity check before making the call. I did what one does when faced with such a crisis. I grabbed my phone, and desperately tweeted:

No one did (talk me out of it), but when shortly thereafter I received an inquisitive tweet from none other than the brilliant Amy Ephron (“What does homemade mean?”, “Did you grow and dry the corn, or do you just mean ‘not microwaved’?”, “Recipe, please?”), I knew I was on to something, and that there was no turning back.

It would be great if I had the time to make "real" focaccia bread, unfortunately my life is just too crammed with a million other activities at the moment. However, this simplistic version of the classic Italian peasant bread comes together in an instant.

This is wonderful finger food and a great party appetizer. In the oven, the grapes become lightly roasted, soft and juicy. The contrast of the salt and sweet really make this a winner.

Because you are using already prepared pizza dough, it takes no time at all to get this on the serving table. Every Mom's dream!

Your friends and family will thank you! 

True confession…I’m not a huge red sauce fan, but I do love pizza, spaghetti, lasagna, etc…just with downplayed marinara and jazzed up cream sauce or cheese. A quick meal for two, this pizza can be doubled for a group or shared easily betwixt a couple folks. Paired with a good wine, this made a fine little supper. With a white pizza, I chose a white wine, Macon-Villages Chardonnay, which paired wonderfully with the pizza (said wine has been reviewed well with cheeses and cream dishes…this pizza vouched for that!).

Simple yet rustically elegant, this little meal came together in a flash. Good ingredients, fresh herbs, and an infused olive layered upon a crispy crust hit the spot. Since I always have rosemary and parsley on hand, they were the top candidates for this pizza. The latter herb is highly underrated – parsley has a wonderfully unsullied flavor and tastes somewhat like it looks… green, crisp, and fresh.

The bakery section of my grocery store has pizza dough for sale and it’s delicious. This dough is one I say to cheat with, since they’ve already made it and it’s just waiting for you to bake it. The canned versions aren’t bad either.

Years ago I lived on Aquidneck Island (home to Newport, Rhode Island) and every June we’d head over to Quonset View Farms, high up in the middle of the island where the cold fog off the ocean just kisses the plants and fades away in time for daily sun baths. The soil must be pretty special there, too, as I swear I’ve never tasted strawberries so sweet and juicy. At Quonset View, it was hard to get out of the field without eating most of your berries.

Ever since then, I haven’t really been able to eat much in the way of commercial strawberries, which tend to be hard and white in the middle and short on flavor. I wait 11 months for the real deal. It’s kind of torturous, but pretty blissful when the local berries ripen. I try to pick enough to freeze some for later months, too, but they never last very long.

My longing was made even worse this year by the fact that Rebecca has been selling strawberry plants at the farm stand where my garden is. Every day that I pass by these beauties, another berry ripens on one of the plants, red and juicy and drooping seductively on its green stem, just begging to be eaten.