The Big Bakery Conspiracy

A conspiracy of Big Bakeries has turned whole wheat bread into white bread. Anyone notice?

I heard about plans to do this - make ww bread w/ the consistency of white bread about a yr ago on NPR or MPR. It has happened.

The new whole wheat bread lacks bite( texture) and the depth of flavor you get when you chew food. It has the feel of white bread in your mouth - soft glop.

New England Brown Bread is one of the few over the counter real breads remaining - grainy texture, great chew - flavor becoming deeper, nuttier and more complex as you chew. Even tho' it is technically not whole wheat.

Some of the artisanal breads are excellent and I appreciate that trend, but some have crusts that are difficult to chew. And some are not cheap.

Jumbo Wild Raspberries

Not a great photo, but it does show the size of the wild berries that I have been waxing on about in the past few posts.

It Just Keeps on Getting Better

And of course put the wild raspberries on your breakfast cereal, french toast and pancakes.

Do yourself and your family a favor by using whole grain cereals and grains. Make pancakes w/1 c whole wheat flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tblsp sugar(or honey or real maple syrup) 1 tsp baking powder, 1 cup milk( skim), 1 egg , 1 tblsp oil. They taste similar to buckwheat cakes, have substance, depth of flavor, nutritional value, and a great nutty taste.

Eat the cakes w/ real butter, and real maple syrup , top w/ berries. It's all about balancing taste and nutrition. I guarantee you that once you eat whole wheat pancakes you will not go back to the empty flavor and calories of white pancakes. If you are eating mostly good stuff, it is ok to eat the butter and syrup.

A Toast to the Wild Berry

Gotta love summer - fresh caught fish pan fried and finished off w/ white wine, parsley,tarragon and butter - the French way. Wild raspberries for dessert, alone, or w/ vanilla yoghurt, or cream, or ice cream. Or as my favorite - the galette - an open faced rustic tart or pie.

When you eat them alone, they are not alone - they are in company with their own sweet/tart nuance of flavor, aroma, and their history of rain, sun,extremes of heat and near frost, the birds and the bees and bears, too. A passing fox, deer, a coyote, grouse, wild turkeys and more. And finally me. Lucky me.

I raise my glass.

Berry Patch Blues

Attacked by mosquitos in the wild raspberry patch this morning. I got one stuck in my throat like a tiny fishbone and couldn't stop coughing.

My young mama lab - currently nursing 7 little ones - came with me - and competed with me for the low growing berries. She picks faster than I can. She also likes cantaloupe and watermelon, including the rind.

Marinade for venison:
1 c red wine
3/4 c soy sauce
1 c vegetable oil
1/3 c lemon juice
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp dry mustard
1 tbsp black pepper
2 lg bay leaf
4 cloves garlic
4 sprigs parsley( 2 tsp dried)

Use a food processor or jar w/ a lid to make an emulsion. Marinade roast ( 2 or 3 lb) for a day or more in the fridge of course.

Wild Raspberries and Venison Stew

A profusion of ripe wild raspberries in my patch. I thought last yr was great - this year's crop may be better, and it's only the beginning of the blooming. You've got to pick mid day to diminish the impact of mosquitos, and preferably in the sun w/ a breeze.

Venison stew and the raspberries for dinner last night with a Pinot Noir. A perfect marriage or should I say menage a trois. I added the wine to the stew, as well as brandy, bay leaves, Herbs de Provence, potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, mushrooms, plus an au jus base for meat( beef) flavor. And plenty of garlic, of course. ( I will post the marinade recipe for the venison, tomorrow).

Ask your favorite restaurant if you can buy a bag of au jus base from them because a good restaurant will have a better quality base then you can get in a store. I was always glad to sell stuff like that to customers when I had the restaurant.If you are a good regular customer, they will be glad to do it for you - that extends to, for example, prime rib, whole beef tenderloins( filet mignon), Alaskan King Crab, etc... . Probably would have to be an independent restaurant.

Midsommarsdag on Upper Lake St Croix

Midsommarsdag at Tim and Beth's on Upper Lake St Croix Lake in NW Wisconsin was a Memorable Feast and more. It included of course many traditional Scandinavian foods like Swedish meatballs, gravlax - wild caught salmon quickly marinated in salt, brown sugar, dill, black pepper, elderberry juice and cider vinegar, as well as salt( important) - ready to eat in 20 minutes. Exceptional and melt in your mouth.

Cold Swedish meatballs were served w/ lingonberry sauce, but my preference was to eat them w/ a slice of pickled beets; the lingonberry sauce with the cold boiled red potatoes. A personal favorite.

Cloud like rice pudding and almond cookies;a layered strawberry and whipped cream cake that was pure heaven.

We drank Swedish ales, Aquavit, and danced around the "stang" ( pole garlanded w/ birch leaves and daisies) as we sang songs of loss and regret for the homeland in the native tongue., accompanied by Tim and Beth on the guitar and violin.

We played "Kub," a Swedish cross version of horseshoes and Bocce Ball and it is better than either. Sport, drama, strategy and you can win if you are 9 or 90.

All part of an ancient fertility rite and celebration of summer that continues to this day in Scandinavia and certain locations in America. It was great.