A Garden of Earthly Delights

It is that very special time of the year when we can be eating straight out of the garden.

Green beans from mine. Sweet corn from a local grower.

Boil green beans till al dente. Drain.Add olive or canola oil or your favorite healthy oil to a preheated saute' pan and add beans, season w/salt, pepper, garlic,crushed red pepper. Add dry roasted peanuts. Saute' over medium heat for a couple of minutes until beans are tender, but not overcooked.

Do fresh cooked sweet corn - either shucked and boiled - or roasted on the grill or a weber unshucked - you do not have to soak them in water - control the temperature and turn so you do not burn them up. Do yourself a favor and use a real wood fire in your weber - oak, maple, birch or whatever hardwoods you have available. The woodsmoke adds a dimension of flavor that you cannot get otherwise.

Shuck the roasted or grilled corn, and slice the corn off the cob. Make a batter like a scratch pancake batter - 1 cup flour, 1egg, 1 teaspoon baking powder, salt and pepper to taste. Stir in corn - 2 cups. Here's the best part - add garlic, fresh or granulated, diced green onions, and crushed red pepper( if you have hot peppers in your garden, use them but be careful they can be very hot). Add oil to your frying pan and fry big spoonfulls of cornbatter over medium heat for a couple of minutes till golden, turn, and fry till golden again.

Serve the corn fritters with a sauce of orange marmalade, balsamic vinegar, garlic, crushed red pepper( or your own garden hot peppers), chopped parsley and cilantro. and a little soy sauce to taste.. It is a spicy asian adaptation of the traditional southern fried corn fritters.

You will know that you are eating when you are eating these green beans and corn fritters. Have some cold beers at the ready.

Give Me The Money , I'll spend it at the Bar

I went to a wedding last Friday at The Refuge in Oak Grove. Beautiful weather, great preacher that really personalized relevant scripture to the soon to be bride and groom, verdant landscape, geese in the distance, lowering sun, etc... . Ceremony not too long. Perfect.

Reception, dinner and dance immediately following in a spectacular post and beam constructed lodge type bldg reminiscent of Lutsen on the N shore of Lake Superior. I was impressed.

And then came the food. Iceberg lettuce - the bagged pre-prepared foodservice kind w/ the shredded carrots and red cabbage - plastic tomato wedges and of course, ranch dressing. Accompanied by a super market soft wheat roll.

Um - where's the dixie cup w/ the peanuts and mints was my first thought and then I went oh oh remembering that I ordered salmon.

Worse than expected. Way overcooked dry as a dead stick salmon topped w/ a cucumber dill creamy salad dressing. Under cooked carrots, decent skin on mashed potatoes, which I used to envelope the salmon so I could swallow it. The plate probably cost the father of the bride 20 or 30 bucks or more.

I would rather spend the 20 or 30 bucks at the bar. A relative, Jim, said he'd had worse food at weddings. He also said that in the south burbs its better, but as you get north the food gets worse. Even at these fancy places. Millions on the bldg and grounds and a pittance for the food and chef/cooks.Sad. Inexcusable, embarrassing, pathetic.

Family Friendly Chili

If you are going to make chili for your family and you have kids and they don't like beans like most kids these days it seems, use refried beans - your own or canned( w/o lard). They will not identify them by sight, yet you get the wonderful depth and heartiness of flavor as well as the health benefits of beans. Good for both of you. A twofer.

Serve the chili over brown rice or angel hair pasta. If you serve it over pasta, add allspice to the chili , as well as the usual suspects of chili powder, garlic, red pepper, bayleaf and parsley. Garnish w/ grated or canned parmesan cheese.

As a special treat serve it over polenta - seasoned corn meal mush - recipe on the carton of Quaker cornmeal - but add garlic and parmesan cheese to it. Simple, family friendly, delicious.

Perfect w/ a cabernet or shiraz or zinfandel or your favorite beer.