The Barefoot Kitchen Witch: Beer Brewing

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Alex with a Camera

Julia with a Camera

Tasting Menu

A few weeks ago my husband and some of his buddies brewed up a batch of beer (about 20 gallons) to be divided among the four of them.

One of the guys brought his daughter along - a little girl right around Julia's age. This is the second time she's been over, so she and Julia were already well acquainted.

Long before that first play date, the little girl's father and Bill and I had been sharing stories about our respective daughters and their rather strong little personalities. We all figured the two of them would either hit it off or become mortal enemies. Fortunately for all, they hit it off. More or less.

This most recent time, Julia and "Jakey" as Julia constantly refers to the other little girl (her name is not Jakey, but it will be for this story) played together a lot, but their friendship was occasionally interrupted, as are many little girl friendships, by period of time when, as Julia told me "I'm not gonna be her best friend any more." So there were moments of silence. Times when one little girl played outside and the other one played inside.

But for the most part, they played together...dragged out all of Julia's toys and dolls together...colored with chalk in the driveway (and Jakey colored on her dad's truck with chalk, too). So it was a pretty good day. Jakey's dad also brought along Jakey's brother, who is about Alex's age, and the two of them were instant buddies. So alike. It was fun to watch them.

But anyway. Over time, part of brew day's routine has come to include muffins from Whole Foods, that one of the guys picks up on his way here...Bill and I make lunch (which, this day, was spicy fish tacos - yum) and Jakey's dad brought a 12-pack assortment from Dunkin Donuts. Alex had a glazed chocolate donut - he ate part of it and I saved the rest for later. I think Julia had a glazed one...I forget who else had what.

Anyway, the guys were outside tracking the beer's progress and playing whiffle ball (an important part of brew day, apparently)...the two little boys were watching a movie about dinosaurs downstairs...I was zesting lemons and other citrus for the beer, or doing dishes, or making guacamole for lunch - I don't remember where I was...and the girls were in the dining room.

And they were relatively quiet, and getting along nicely, and I wasn't really paying attention.

Which is probably why this happened:

That's Julia (she chose her own clothes that day. She has her father's sense of style.)...and that's her co-conspirator, "Jakey." And those are what's left of the donuts.

They were tasting them. Perhaps discussing the subtle nuances of flavor...the quality of the chocolate...texture and crumb. Not really sure.

But they both were pretty amused by the whole thing...and their faces were pretty well smeared with chocolate, too.

And here's what was left:

I especially like how they licked away most of the choclate frosting.

Posted on May 07, 2008 in Beer Brewing, Julia | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Books of Food and Cooking

Theodora FitzGibbon: A taste of London: Traditional food
Recipe mentioned: Crumpets. A bit of my history: Like "Great British Cooking" below, this belonged to my late grandmother. I like this book because of all the old photos interwoven with the traditional recipes. I also liked the flavor of this crumpet recipe better than the one in "Great British Cooking" - but I can't really say which recipe is more authentic, since I don't have firsthand knowledge of how a crumpet is REALLY supposed to taste. (***)
Jane Garmey: Great British Cooking: Wellkept Secret, A
Recipe mentioned: Crumpets. A bit of my history: this originally belonged to my mom's mother. It's interesting to me that she had cookbooks about British cooking, as she was born and raised in London, and wouldn't she just KNOW how to cook like a Brit? And of course that's a totally ridiculous assumption, as people aren't just born knowing how to cook their native cuisine. Anyway, I've also made the Yorkshire pudding from this book, and it's just as good as the recipe my grandmother and mother had/have used all these years. So that's something. (***)
Dorie Greenspan: Baking: From My Home to Yours
Recipe mentioned: As of today (4/10/08), only the Most Extraodinary Lemon Cream Tart. A bit of my history: Actually, more like the future - I've joined the group Tuesdays with Dorie - and so just about every Tuesday you can expect to see another recipe from this book. I've got a separate recipe category just for those posts, too. This is gonna be fun! (*****)
George Greenstein: Secrets of a Jewish Baker: Authentic Jewish Rye and Other Breads
Recipe Mentioned: Potato Rye Bread with Onion and Caraway. A bit of my history: I bought this book years ago, when I was in the midst of either a breadmaking frenzy or a Judaism frenzy - or probably both at the same time. Though I messed up the posted recipe when I made it recently, I've baked plenty of other things from this book which have turned out fine. Clearly the problem with the Rye bread was mine and mine alone! (*****)
Charmaine Solomon: The Complete Asian Cookbook
Recipes mentioned: Mutton Kari (Lamb Curry), Garam Masala. A bit of my history: I think we bought the hardcover version of this as a bargain book. It's a huge treasure trove of all dishes Asian. So much to explore...so little time. (*****)
Lynne Rossetto Kasper: The Italian Country Table: Home Cooking from Italy's Farmhouse Kitchens
Recipe mentioned: Apricot-Pistachio Pockets (Ravioli Dolci). A bit of my history: I have two of Ms. Kasper's books - this and her huge success - "The Splendid Table." I may have said this before, but I think somewhere in my soul there's some Italian in me. Something about the food resonates with me. I can't explain it - but there it is. (*****)
Janice A. Wilke (editor): For Days of Auld Lang Syne
Sorry - you won't find this one anywhere. I have the only copy. Before I got married, my mother compiled recipes provided by family and friends on both Bill's side and my side of our soon-to-be-joined families. The result is a cornucopia of familiar and new recipes for everything from my sister's Cinnamon Toast to Lemon Sponge Pie, to a couple of Bill's mom's German Christmas cookies. The book is a treasure trove of ideas, and clearly a labor of love. (*****)
Editors of Cook's Illustrated Magazine: The Best Recipe
Recipe mentioned: American Pie Dough for Fruit Pies. A bit of my history: Our friend John gave this to me for Christmas in 2002. Inside he wrote "Jayne, I'm not quite sure this will help, as you are already the best cook..." A very kind and flattering inscription indeed. Anything produced by the Cooks Illustrated people is gold. I love their trial and error approach to finding these "Best Recipes" - and the explanation of what they did, what happened, and what ultimately worked best. (*****)
Bernard Clayton: Bernard Claytons New Complete Book of Breads
Recipe mentioned: Royal Hibernian Brown Loaf. A bit of my history: I bought this years ago while I was on a bread baking kick. Not really a kick. A reunion. Mr. Clayton's tome is 724 pages of recipes and tips and history and background and culture and back story - not including the index. The chapters and the recipes they contain are well organized and easy to follow, easy to understand, and inspiring. (*****)
Brinna B. Sands: The King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook/Dedicated to the Pure Joy of Baking
Recipe mentioned: Irish Whiskey Soda Bread. A bit of my history: It's not so much a history as it is an everyday facet of my life. Not the book, specifically, but King Arthur Flour. Never Bleached, Never Bromated. I don't think I've ever bought any flour other than King Arthur, unless it was a less-popular kind of flour purchased from a small, organic mill. I receive the King Arthur flour catalog year-round. It's where I buy my 100-pack of half-sheet-pan sized parchment paper. I've been to their retail store in VT. I attended a bread baking seminar they sponsored years ago - with my mother and Bill's mother. King Arthur flour runs in my veins. Okay, not really. They'd be really clogged if that was happening. Anyway. I've made some of the muffin recipes in this book, probably a quick bread or two, and who knows what else. Everything has come out great. It's a huge book, very friendly in tone, and filled to overflowing. (*****)
Alice Benjamin and Harriett Corrigan: Cooking with Conscience
Recipe Mentioned: A Mess of Pottage. A bit of my history: I think this was my mother's book originally and somehow I ended up with it. Published in 1975, the subtitle is "A book for people concerned about world hunger." So it's vegetarian and healthy and socially conscious. I need to go through this book again and try out some of the other recipes - I've only ever made the "mess of pottage." (****)
Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck: Mastering the Art of French Cooking (Volume 1)
Recipe mentioned: Leek and Potato Soup. A bit of my history: As I've mentioned elsewhere in this blog, I grew up watching Julia Child on PBS and she and my mother were my two biggest food influences growing up. Julia was like family, somehow. She was a regular person who goofed up now and then and could laugh about it. Her fearlessness and sense of humor appealed to me tremendously (and still do) and that, combined with my mother's cooking and adventurousness in the kitchen were a flesh and blood example of Julia's message, I think. I also love cooking shows that are in the Julia tradition. Programs that teach by example. Chefs and cooks who are passionate about food and can convey that effectively, so that you are ready to rush out and buy ingredients and try that recipe right away. That, I think, is part of Julia Child's legacy. She rocked. (*****)
Howard Early: Fast Breads (Crossing Press Specialty Cookbooks.)
Recipe mentioned: Quick Onion Flat Bread. A bit of my history: I bought this book many years ago when I was obsessively buying bread books of every kind. I lived in a cockroachy apartment outside of Boston and had a tiny kitchen with a half inch of counter space, but I managed to bake a few things anyway. (***)
Rick Bayless: Mexico One Plate At A Time
Recipe mentioned: Chiles Rellenos. A bit of my history: We've made quite a few recipes from this book and every single one of them has been fantastic, such as the Ceviche (lime-marinated seafood) and the Tamales. (*****)
Betty Crocker: Betty Crocker's Mexican Made Easy
Recipe mentioned: Green Sauce. A bit of my history: The first meal my husband ever cooked for me was Mexican, and some of the recipes came from this book, which he bought as a bargain book at Building 19 for $2.99. I think it's out of print now. The Green Sauce is fabulous. (***)
Nobuyuki Matsuhisa: Nobu: The Cookbook
Recipes mentioned: Soft Shell Crab Roll; Seafood Ceviche, Nobu Style; Ceviche Sauce. A bit of my history: Actually, not a long history with this one - I've had it maybe a year or so. But I'd heard of Nobu and had seen him on an episode of Martha Stewart years ago, and we love sushi here, so it was a natural addition to the library. (*****)
Yasuko Kamimura: Sushi Making at Home
Recipes mentioned: Sushi rice. A bit of my history: This is one of the books Bill bought me a long time ago when we started cooking various Asian dishes together. Our first date was for sushi, so this was appropriate. (****)
Masaki Ko: Taste of Japan: Over 70 Exquisite and Delicious Recipes from an Elegant Cuisine (Creative Cooking Library)
Recipes mentioned: Daikon with Sesame Miso Paste, Shrimp and Avocado with Wasabi. A bit of my history: This is one of the cookbooks Bill and I bought very early in our relationship and we've tried a LOT of the recipes. Having two small kids and little time, we got away from a lot of the kinds of cooking we used to do way back when, but we're making a huge effort to change this now that the kids aren't babies and don't need to be picked up and carried around. At least not as much. I believe it's out of print - but if you find a copy in a bargain bin, buy it. (*****)
Renee Pottle: I Want My Dinner Now!: Simple Meals for Busy Cooks
Recipes tried (so far): Taco Salad, Beef Goulash, Vegetarian Burgers. A bit of my history: I received my copy from the author, Renee Pottle with a request that I review it on my blog. I've now done so (1/20/08) - finally - and it's definately worth a look.
Lisa Dyer: Classic Oriental Dishes
Recipes mentioned: Sesame Noodles. A bit of my history: Bill's sesame noodle recipe is based on the one in this book. We wrote "EXCELLENT" at the top of the very splattery page for this recipe. We used to do that a lot - scribble our opinion on the final product...or any changes we've made, etc. Looking through these early cookbooks, when we were becoming "us" is a culinary stroll down memory lane. Definitely worth stopping and reliving. (****)
Keo Sananikone: Keo's Thai Cuisine
Recipes mentioned: Thai Spring Rolls, Green Thai Curry Paste, Red Thai Curry Paste. A bit of my history: This is one of several Asian cookbooks Bill and I bought early on in our relationship. We used to cook a lot of Asian meals - mixing and matching cuisines from different countries and regions at will. This book, like the others, has lots of splatters and drips on the pages - proof it has been well used. And will continue to be, now that we have more time to cook together again. (****)
Marcia Adams: Marcia Adams' Christmas in the Heartland
Recipe I've mentioned: The Christmas Gingerbread Bowl recipe was used to make the Gingerbread Houses listed "In the Cookie Jar" above. A bit of my history: I have the hardcover, which seems to be out of print - this link is to the softcover edition. Apparently there was a PBS series of the same name, and this is the companion volume. I never saw the series, but I think I've seen parts of another series "Heartland Cooking" years ago on PBS. Homey and comforting, Christmas in the Heartland is a cozy chair by the fire, comfort foods, warmly glowing candles and loved ones gathering near. There are recipes, decorating ideas, and stories of Old World Christmas traditions. (****)
Lou Seibert: Biscotti
Recipe I've mentioned: (Well, I haven't....) And a bit of my history: I've used the book as a guide in developing my own biscotti recipes, such as the Biscotti with Candied Ginger, etc., listed in my "In the Cookie Jar" section above. I've made quite a number of the recipes in this great little book, and have used them as a launching pad for my own experiments. (****)
Linda Fraser: The Curries and Indian Foods (Book Of...)
Recipe I've mentioned: Cucumber and Chilis. A bit of my history: Bill brought this book into the relationship. Before we met he had started teaching himself to cook Asian, Indian, and Mexican, and had a small collection of books in those categories. His copy of the book is out of print, so I'm linking to a more recent edition. I don't know if it has the same recipes, but I'm assuming it does. The layout is nice and simple - a photo of the finished dish and a concise listing of ingredients and instructions. This Book of Curries and Indian Foods is part of a large series of similarly designed books about a wide range of cuisines and cooking styles. (***)
Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid: Hot Sour Salty Sweet: A Culinary Journey Through Southeast Asia
Recipe I've mentioned: Stir Fried Fish with Ginger. A bit of my history: I love these people. Their cookbooks are also exquisite books of photography, travel, and food cultures of the world. Hot Sour Salty Sweet explores the cuisines of Asia with obvious affection and respect for the food and the people. Through the words and pictures of Alford and Duguid, you are there, in Thailand, in Cambodia, Vietnam, and so on. Or you wish you were. (*****)
Sue Kreitzman: POTATOES (Particular Oalate Cookbook Series)
Recipe I've mentioned: Potato Gnocchi. A bit of my history: I don't know how long I've had this - I believe it's now out of print. But I think I was a temporary vegetarian at the time and was accumulating books about vegetables. The Gnocchi recipe is my favorite. (****)
Lynne Rossetto Kasper: The Splendid Table: Recipes from Emilia-Romagna, the Heartland of Northern Italian Food
Recipe I've mentioned: Egg pasta. A bit of my history: I remember when this book came out - I drooled over it. I think my mom had a copy of it first - I may have given it to her, as I worked for Barnes & Noble at the time. The Splendid Table reminds me of Mastering the Art of French Cooking in some ways, because of the minutely detailed instructions - the importance to the author of getting the dish done the right way - and the depth of history and culture of the Emiglia-Romagna region of Italy. I really need to delve more deeply into this gorgeous book. (*****)
Dorie Greenspan: Baking with Julia: Sift, Knead, Flute, Flour, And Savor...
Recipe I've mentioned: Boca Negra. A bit of my history: Julia Child, though she didn't know it, was as much a part of my cooking influence as my own mother. Somehow the two of them are linked in my head, as though Julia was a distant cousin that we didn't see often enough, but were close to nonetheless. Of course, I remember seeing her often on TV - the melody of her "The French Chef" theme music brings me back to the darkened living room of my childhood, the black and white images of Julia in action, and the softspoken voice of PBS reminding us that The French Chef was made popular by thus and sundry sponsors. There was no one like her, and I actually get a little weepy, remembering. This book was put together in the later years - based on the fabulous PBS series of the same name. Not only will you find an enticing range of breads and cakes and pies and other goodies to pull you into the kitchen, but the book is also full of basic advice and information on tools and techniques. I could go on and on.... (*****)
The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook: America's Bestselling Step-by-Step Cookbook, with More Than 1,400 Recipes
Recipe I've mentioned: Chilled Cucumber Soup. A bit of my history: My mother gave me the original 1980 edition for Christmas in 1987. That one's out of print, so I've linked to the most recent edition. Inside the cover she wrote "For Jayne - I hope this book brings you as much pleasure as I think it will. I hope, too, that in years to come favorite pages will have as many drips on them as mine do. With love, Mom" There are many pages with many drips...the binding is broken, and whole sections of pages fall out. It's a terrific book. Thanks, Mom! (*****)