Incredible Inedbile - Homemade Playdough

Away from the maddening wedding crowd: All ages, from 18-months to 13 years, have fun at the playdough table. (Photo by Skye)

A few weeks ago, I hosted a small wedding ceremony and reception at our home for my brother and his bride. My job, big brother said, was to "just show up," and, in theory, I could have done just that. After all, the wedding coordinator, my brother and his bride had taken care of the the caterer, cake, flowers, music, photographer and the dozens of other details that go into pulling off a wedding.

But I wasn't content to loan the house and garden and "just show up." I wanted to leave my little mark in some other way. A few days before the wedding it hit me. I would create a play station for the five children (and any playful adults) attending the wedding.

On the wedding day, I set up a separate children's table away from the more formal adult setting and threw on a vintage table cloth. My niece helped me make the playdough while I perused two local thrift stores for fun things for shaping or poking into the dough. I hit "play dirt" at our local Altadena shop - for $1.00 I got a bag with dozens of miniature forks, little parasols and clowns. I found a bag of of small plastic animals in my garage and pulled out mini muffin pans, a meat ball maker and plastic cookie cutters from the kitchen stash.

The secret to a great playdough station: things for shaping and things for poking. (Photo by Susan)

Nephew Will shows off his mini fork. (Photo by Skye)

Forget fancy-schmancy tools from the toy store. Just use what's on hand at home. (Photo by Skye)

Playdough
(This is the same recipe that I used when my daughter, now 19, was a tadpole.)
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt

1 cup water
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons cream of tartar
food coloring

Mix flour, salt and oil, and slowly add the water. Cook over medium heat, stirring until dough becomes stiff. Turn out onto wax paper and let cool. Knead the playdough with your hands until of proper consistency. Add a few drops of food coloring. Store in an airtight container.

Advantages of Homemade Playdough
- It's cheaper to make than to buy.
- All of the ingredients are kitchen staples, so you don't have to run out to the store
- It's less crumbly than the commercial version.
- Children can be involved in the making.
- There's no need to get the right color playdough back into the right color can.
- You can create your own colors and even jazz it up with glitter. (Pink Princess Playdough, anyone?)
- No need to worry about children eating it - the salt will turn them off right away.

Bringin' Home the Bacon, Drowning in Spinach

Who says salads are just for summer? This hearty spinach salad with hard boiled eggs, mushrooms, red onions and bacon hits the spot any time of year.

When I'm rushing about on a day of errands, I sometimes stop for fast food. And there's nothing faster (and healthier) than cruising the salad bars at Whole Foods or Ralph's.

I'm not looking for Mr. Goodbar, just Mr. Good Deal. But buyer beware. The bars charge one flat rate per pound, whether you're filling up on beets or blue cheese, carrots or caviar. Stay clear of the heavy but cheap items like dense, raw veggies. I once paid Whole Foods more than $10 for a very small salad that was heavy on red onions and beets and light on lettuce. Ouch!

Since then I've made a bit of a science of getting the most salad bar bang for the buck. One of the best bets is the crumbled bacon, an easy (and lightweight) way to add pizazz to any salad. As a matter of fact, it's such a good deal that I often purchase a "salad" of nothing but the bacon crumbles from Ralph's.

When you consider that the average price of uncooked bacon is $5.00 per pound and half of that cooks away in grease, Ralph's salad bar bacon crumbles at $5.99 per pound are a steal. A quarter pound is enough to top several big salads and a few bowls of soup.

Best of all, it makes salad making a cinch when the bacon's already fried up and crumbled.

Last week, I was in the mood for a spinach and bacon salad, so I purchased a giant bag from Super King in Altadena. The bag was somewhere between the size of a small pillow and the Island of Guam. And at $3.49, it was about ten times cheaper than the 6 oz. bag for $3.99 I saw at Ralph's.

I made bacon and spinach salad for lunch twice last week. Since the bacon was already cooked and crumbled, all I had to do was boil eggs, slice red onions and mushrooms and whip up a balsamic vinagrette dressing. Lunch was ready in less than 10 minutes. And I think it cost me about a dollar.

Fast Food: Tossed with balsamic vinagrette and served with a side of cruncy bread sticks, this makes an easy, satisfying lunch.

Bacon and Spinach Salad
Fresh spinach
Hard boiled eggs, sliced or chopped
Red onions, sliced
Mushrooms, sliced
Crumbled bacon
Other yummy options: chopped tomato (when in season), peas, blue cheese, chopped avocado

Balsamic Vinagrette Dressing
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
squeeze of fresh lemon juice
minced garlic clove
minced shallot
salt and pepper to taste

Put the ingredients into a small jar, shake and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

In addition to those two spinach salads, I made a big batch of spinach Florentine. I gave away a two-quart bag to a neighbor, and I'm still drowning in spinach. I think I'll try this recipe from Closet Cooking for sauteed chard with raisins and pine nuts. I'll just substitute spinach for the chard and will probably use dried cranberries instead of raisins. And maybe I'll try pecans instead of pine nuts because that's what I have on hand. So much for following the recipe, but I think I'm true to the concept of something bitter, something sweet and something crunchy.

Do you have any other favorite spinach recipes?
Do you have a salad bar strategy?

We have a winner - Wandering Chopsticks

It's a good thing I used the random integer selector on random.com to pick the winner of the copper kettle apple butter from West Virginia. It sure beat writing names on slips of paper and asking my cat to pull one out of a hat.

When the computer program selected #6, Wandering Chopsticks, I thought, "Oh, no. People are going to think this contest is rigged and I'm after the chilli sauce she offered to trade." And a few of you may know that I first discovered Wandering Chopsticks a year ago when I was a three-week guest at Hotel Hope (City of Hope) for a stem cell transplant. WC's blog was a triple E hit with me - it kept me entertained, educated and engaged with food. I spent hours perusing her blog and making lists of foods and restaurants I wanted to try. In the springtime, I had the privilege of meeting her in person during a fruit exchange at my house.

Congratulations to Wandering Chopsticks. I couldn't have picked a better winner if I tried. (But I didn't. Honest.)

150 Year Tradition: Making Apple Butter and a Give Away

A Taste of Autumn - Home Made Apple Butter

Smearing apple butter on a hot buttered biscuit will never be the same for me again.

I always thought that apple butter was just apple sauce with a dash more cinnamon and a little more time on the stove. I had no idea that "a little more time" meant 10 hours of brewing in a 150-year-old copper cauldron.

At least that's how the Allen clan of Sardis, West Virginia, do it. They whip up 150 pints of apple butter every year as a fund raiser for a local church youth group. Three days and dozens of hands go into making a jar of the bread spread. Start with a day of picking local wild apples. Spend another day, slicing, chopping and cooking down the apples. Finish off in the cauldron, where the apples are mixed with sugar and cinnamon oil. That final day stretches from 6 am to 6 pm.

Double, double, toil but no trouble: the 150-year-old copper cauldron was first used by cousin Nathan's great-great grandfather. Now seven generations have stirred the pot.


The key to good apple butter is constant stirring so that the bottom doesn't stick. This year, the Allens retired the original 150-year-old paddle and replaced it with this one, hand crafted by a sixth generationer.


The finished product is scooped into sterilized jars.


Nathan's son Travis (on the right)is the great-great-great grandson of the copper pot's original owner. He and a friend retire the pot until its next 10-hour workout.

Now when I spread some apple butter on my biscuit or toast, I'll think of crisp air, fallen leaves, copper cauldrons, a labor of love and a 150-year tradition.

Leave a comment if you think you deserve to win a pint of home-made apple butter. The winner will be randomly selected.

My brother and I did a taste comparison of the 2007 and 2008 batches. This year's is as complex as a fine wine and a definite winner. You can taste the sweet, tangy and cinnamony hot components in each luscious bite. Now could someone bake me up a batch of biscuits?

Sunday Italian Brunch, The Lazy Woman's Way

The after-brunch cleanup crew discovers the creme fraiche.

I like to think of my approach to having people over as "The Lazy Woman's Guide to Entertaining" (inspired by my friend Judie O'Neill, author of "The Lazy Woman's Guide to Just About Everything.")

The premise of the book (and my entertaining philosophy) is that it's OK to be "lazy" and eliminate or cut corners and and still live a big, luscious life or throw a lavish dinner party.

For example, years ago I spent hours shopping for, preparing and cleaning up after our traditional Christmas dinner of turkey and dressing with all the trimmings. My daughter, the picky eater, would eat a small slice of turkey, a spoonful of mashed potatoes and a slice of jellied cranberry. My husband was finished with his dinner in 20 minutes. I began to resent the low effort to reward ratio (i.e. big effort, little satisfaction).

About seven years ago, I changed the menu for our Christmas dinner to fresh crab from the Fish King in Glendale, Caesar salad and home-made French fries. This new tradition is an easy and lazy alternative that everyone loves. With the lazy approach, my effort goes way down, but my reward sky rockets.

I hosted a brunch for a dozen friends on Sunday and took a similar approach. My goal is to serve food that's beautiful and delicious without spending hours in the kitchen, especially after the guests arrive.

Instead of time in the kitchen, I tend to spend time "hunting and gathering" in the Pasadena area for my favorites that include:
- Cristalino Cava (Spanish sparkling wine) from Cost Plus
- Bellini mix from Cost Plus (I decided the home-made version was too laborious.)
- Prosciutto (for prosciutto and melon) from Porta Via (Jonathan Gold thinks it has the best in LA.)
- Pastries from Federico's Bakery
- Produce from Super King in Altadena
- Three-layer pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and marscapone cheese from Trader Joe's

The main dish was an Italian sausage casserole, a variation on the popular bread-meat-cheese, make-the-night-before brunch dish. I found the original recipe on my recipe, but made some tweaks after "taste driving" the dish for friends a week earlier. I also incorporated some tips from Jo at The Adventures of Kitchen Girl.

Here's the revised recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 pound of sweet Italian sausage (The 1/2 pound in the original recipe was too skimpy.)
  
• 8 green onions, sliced (1 cup)
• 3 zucchini, diced (increased from two in the original)
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tsp. dry mustard (Added, per Kitchen Girl's suggestion)
  
• 1 (7-ounce) jar roasted red bell peppers, drained and chopped
• About 5 cups of Italian bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (Reduced from original recipe)
  
• 3 cups (8 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 8 large eggs (increased from original recipe)
  
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 small block of cream cheese (Added, per Kitchen Girl's suggestion)
  

Preparation

• Remove and discard casings from sausage. Cook sausage in a large skillet, stirring until sausage crumbles and is no longer pink; drain.

• Add green onions and next 3 ingredients to skillet. Sauté 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in roasted bell peppers. Drain and cool.

• Mix bread cubes with sausage/vegetable mixture and half of cheese in a large bowl.
  

• In a separate bowl, mix eggs, milk and dry mustard.
  

• Add the egg mixture to the bread and mix thoroughly. (The original recipe says to layer the ingredients and pour the egg mixture on top. This results in uneven coverage. This bowl-mixing method results in a more uniform, moist casserole. Thanks, Jo.)
  

• Spread the mixture into a lightly buttered 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Top with the cream cheese and the other half of the cheese.
  

• Cover and chill 8 hours.

• Bake, covered, at 325° for 1 hour or until bubbly and hot.

I also served an easy caprese salad from a basic recipe from Culinary Cory. The only addition I made was some fresh chevre.

I don't know if it was an act of laziness or graciousness or a little of both, but I failed to take any photos of the food. (Bad food blogger, bad!) I do, however have these "after" photos revealing that everything was consumed.

The remains of the day: Italian sausage casserole and Bellinis

Tiger finishes off the last of the creme fraiche, but passes on the berry.
Only one Florentine cookie and a fourth of a petit four remain.

One Meal Three Ways - Ground Beef with Spinach and Mushrooms

Start out with ground beef, spinach and mushrooms rolled up

in a spinach-lined tortilla.

When I pick up our newspapers and see the words “collapse,” “crisis," and “catastrophe" (and that’s just on the comics page), it’s time for a little belt tightening. Or as my friend Altadena Hiker says, we need to exercise “fooduciary responsibility.”

That starts with letting no food go to waste. After all, leftovers, are not the fiscal equivalent of recycling bad debt. With a little ingenuity and pre-planning, their stock can go up, even when the Dow Jones is sinking faster than a failed souffle.

Take for example, one of my favorite dishes, ground beef with spinach and mushrooms. I’m a big fan of the leafy green vegetable. My family – not so much.
So when I cook up a skillet of ground beef with spinach and mushrooms, leftovers are a part of the equation.

With a little improvisation, I can take the base for the ground beef with spinach and mushrooms and create three completely different dishes:

• lunch in a pita
• dinner with penne pasta
• breakfast with eggs

What you’ll need:
For base:
- Red onion
- Minced garlic
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 2 tsp. curry powder
- ½ lb. sliced mushrooms
- 1 bunch of spinach

For pasta topping:
- ¼ C. marinara sauce
- Penne pasta (or any pasta you prefer)

For Eggs Florentine
- 3 eggs
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese

Meal 1: LUNCH

1) Brown one pound of ground beef with red onion and three minced garlic cloves.

2) When beef is still slightly pink, add approximately ½ pound of sliced mushrooms and sauté for about two minutes.

3) Drain excess grease.
4) Throw in enough spinach leaves to cover top of meat mixture. Stir, reduce heat, add lid and let simmer for approximately 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6) Take out 2/3 of the mixture and save for later.

7) Add curry to taste. I use about two teaspoons.
8) Serve in a pita pocket or a flour tortilla lined with fresh spinach leaves.

Top with a dollop of sour cream if you like. Roll up the tortilla and congratulate
yourself for preparing the first of three great meals.

MEAL 2: DINNER

Heat up the leftover beef and spinach with a little marinara sauce and toss over the pasta of your choice.

I had a small container of penne pasta with marinara sauce in the freezer, so I was technically having double leftovers. I think I get extra credit.

Meal 3: BREAKFAST

1) Add a few more fresh spinach leaves to the leftover meat mixture.
2) In a separate bowl, whisk three eggs, a little milk and salt and pepper.
3) Add to meat mixture.

4) Scramble mixture, top with a little grated parmesan cheese and serve.

A hearty, yummy easy eggs Florentine

What are you doing to exercise "fooduciary responsibility"?

A Fresh Look at Fraiche and the Ultimate Buns

Both Angeleno Magazino Magazine and the LA Times Magazine named it "Best New Restaurant." Irene Virbilia of the LA Times and Jonathan "Mr. Pulitzer" Gold of the LA Weekly undoubtedly salivated all over their keyboards when they wrote their reviews. And New York Times columnist Frank Bruni put it on his list of top ten restaurants in the United States.

Even though the raves for Culver City's Fraiche Restaurant had been pouring in faster than opinions after a Sarah Palin interview, I still hadn't bellied up to the bistro. It took Jen at Oishii Eats to get me to cross to the "other" side of town to sample one of the best restaurants in LA.

After I commented on Jen's blog about my love affair with the gougères at Tartines in SF, she clued me in that I could get a burger on a golden roll at Fraiche. I've always considered the bun the weak link of the hamburger, but a gougères, a savory cream puff, could become the ultimate bun. I hadn't been this excited about a new food pairing since I dumped my sour Gummis into my popcorn at the movie theatre.

So when a friend asked me where I'd like to go for my birthday lunch, I didn't hesitate. "Let's get Fraiche," I answered.

With all the accolades, I was prepared for a bit of airs from our waiter, but he couldn't have been more unpretentious. I asked him, "Now how do you pronounce that wonderful French bread that comes with the hamburger?" (Strangely enough, the menu doesn't mention the type of bread.) He hadn't a clue, but looked at the menu and saw the word "gruyère" and attempted to pronounce that. I explained, "No, gruyère is the cheese that's in the gougères and on top of the hamburger." Even though he didn't know a gougères from a gruyère and I still couldn't pronounce gougères, I liked our waiter.

The burger was everything that I dreamed it would be. Prime beef cooked to perfection, melted gruyère on the ultimate bun - crusty on the outside, light and airy on the inside and infused with herbs and the same yummy "king of the Swiss cheese" that tops the meat.

I ate mine with just a touch of homemade mayo, but my friend loaded up her medium rare burger with the tomatoes and lettuce.

These photos are fuzzy, but check out Eat Drink & Be Merry's review for some tantalizing shots and a more comprehensive rundown of lunch items at Fraiche.


Check out the golden gougères surrounding the cash register.

Look for the "Royale with Cheese" on the menu. It's served with a side of herb fries for $13 and is only available at lunch. No matter how you order it ("The hamburger on the French bread I can't pronounce"), you're in for a treat.

Fraiche
9411 Culver Blvd
Culver City
310-839-6800
www.fraicherestaurantla.com

Consider combining a visit to Fraiche with one or more of these other Culver City activities:

- Do the write thing at an IWOSC (Independent Writers of Southern California) meeting on the fourth Monday of the month.
- Get lost at Surfas, the Mecca for cooks and food lovers.
- Yield to affordable massages and facials at the Massage Garage.
- Sip a Manhattan at the bar and check out the historic Culver Hotel, where parts of The Wizard of Oz were filmed in 1939. Find out if those rumors about the Munchkins are true.
- Catch a play at the Actors' Gang at the Ivy Substation.