My Favorite Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Cake
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Here's a recipe I clipped from Good Housekeeping Magazine in October of 1982. It was in an ad for Hershey's Cocoa and I've made this cake dozens of times over the years.

1 3/4 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup Hershey's cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup boiling water

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients, except for boiling water. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Remove batter from mixer, stir in the boiling water. The batter will be thin. Pour into two greased and floured 9" or three 8" layer pans or one 9x13 pan.
Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes for layers, 35-40 minutes for the 9x13 pan, or until a toothpick inserted in the the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes on a rack, remove from pans and cool completely.
I like to frost mine with cream cheese frosting.

Tomato Sauce

Tomato Sauce
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

This is a good, all-purpose tomato sauce that can be whipped up in minutes, and tastes fresher than jarred.

1/4 Cup Olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
fresh or dried basil, oregano or other herbs
2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes or 5 or 6 large fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped
Salt and Pepper

Heat the oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes to soften. Add dry herbs, if using. Add the tomatoes, crushing canned ones with your hand. Cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid is cooked down and the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper and fresh herbs, tearing any large leaves. Adjust seasonings to taste. Cover and remove from heat until ready to use.
For The Lancaster News

Pizza Dough

Makes 4 individual pizzas

1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry or instant yeast
1 1/2 cups very warm (110 degrees) water
4 cups All Purpose or Bread Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

“Proof” your yeast by stirring it into the warm water until dissolved and letting it start to foam. If using instant yeast, skip this step.
With a mixer on low speed, mix together 2 cups of the flour, the salt, olive oil, yeast and the water until well-blended. Allow the mixture to rest in the mixing bowl for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
After resting, remove the mixing blade and switch to a dough hook, or change to hand mixing with a large, sturdy spoon. Add in the remaining 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough climbs the hook or reaches a firm, satiny texture.
Knead the dough, either with a mixer on low or by hand, for 10 minutes.
Turn the dough into a large, oiled bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm part of the kitchen for about 1 1/2 hours.
After the dough has risen, turn it out onto a floured surface without punching it down. Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces and shape each portion into a smooth ball. Let it rest for 10 minutes before shaping into pizza crusts.
For pizza in the oven: place 4 unglazed quarry tiles on the bottom rack of the oven. Heat the oven to the highest temperature it will allow. Cook the pizzas one at a time. After shaping the dough ball into a crust(how to actually shape it into crusts that retain some air and light texture is fodder for another entry someday), lay it on a pizza peel that has been sprinkled with cornmeal. The back of a cookie sheet will substitute for a peel. Dress the pizza and then place it directly onto the tiles by sliding it off the peel or cookie sheet. Cook each pizza approximately 8 minutes. Remove from the oven with the pizza peel or a very large spatula.

For The Lancaster News

Grilled Pizza

Grilled Pizza
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

I’m not going to lie to you. Pizza is not the easiest thing to cook on the grill. But you don’t have to be an expert to pull it off, either.
The watchwords for great pizza on the grill are patience and diligence. Pizza is not the kind of grill item that allows you put it on the grate and walk away. You need to stand over it, checking it every minute or so. And when the crust is done, you have to be willing to let it rest on the cooler part of the grill while the cheese melts. For best results, you’ll do small, personal-sized pizzas, one at a time.
First things first: The dough. Remember that pizza dough is a basic type of bread dough. Though you are not allowing it to rise to the height of bread during the cooking process, the dough still has the basic ingredients of good bread dough, and you should allow it to rise at least once. You certainly can use the dough without letting it rise, but you will be happier with the results if you do. You will have a lighter crust with a nicer texture if it has risen at least once.
The next thing to consider is the toppings. If you want a quick pizza the kids will like, spread a good, jarred spaghetti sauce on and top it with a store-bought shredded pizza cheese mixture and pepperoni. Grownups may prefer a nice, light, homemade tomato sauce, fresh buffalo mozzarella slices and grilled Italian turkey sausage. Whichever way you go, set up your toppings for easy access before you start cooking. This technique, called mis en place, or “everything in its place,” will come in handy during the grilling process.



When you have your dough ready and your toppings set up nearby, it’s time to start to your grill. I will admit to you now that I thought I was going to have to tell you that gas grills reign supreme when it comes to cooking pizza. My first attempt at pizza, on my charcoal grill, was not that great. But when I tried this process again, with gas and charcoal grills going side-by-side, I found good results from both. I’d like to blame my grill, especially since I’m lobbying for a new one, but I have to admit that I think the cook might have been the culprit.
If you have a gas grill, turn one burner to “high” and the other burner to “medium” or “low.” If you are working with charcoal, start a good, hot fire on one side. Once your fire is going, scrape a few pieces of charcoal toward the center. Whichever type of grill you use, you want a hot fire on one side and a cooler spot on the other. Assemble your barbeque tools. For best results, have ready a long pair of tongs and the largest metal spatula you can find.
Once you’ve shaped your pizza crust according to the recipe, spread oil on the top. This is the side that will go down first. With an oiled paper towel, rub the grates over the hot side of the grill. Pick up your pizza crust and place it oil-side down on the grate. I found it best to lay the dough on my pizza peel (you could use the back of a cookie sheet if you have no peel), oil it, slide it to the edge of the peel and then onto my hand. With about one third of the dough on my hand, I drag the rest of it off the peel and let the dangling end down onto the grill grate, oil-side down. Then I ease the rest of the dough onto the grate.

Keep your eyes on the pizza dough. After a minute or so, depending upon the temperature of your fire, you’ll be able to lift the edge of the dough with your tongs. As soon as the dough gets to the color you want, remove it from the grill with the spatula. I usually find that one half is just right and I need to turn the dough 180 degrees to get the other half brown. The top will still be pretty raw.
After you remove the dough from the grill, take it to your topping table. Brush oil liberally over the uncooked part and place it oil-side down on a dinner plate or other flat surface. Now you are ready to dress the cooked side.
When you dress your pizza, remember you are going to be manipulating it a bit on the grill. If you laden it down with a lot of heavy toppings, you’ll run the risk of dropping bits and pieces into the fire. Try to keep your cheese a bit away from the edge, too. As it melts it will run and could drip into the fire and cause flare-ups.
Take your dressed pizza, on the plate, back to the grill. Slide it carefully off the plate onto the hot side of the grill. Follow the same technique as you did the first time, checking every minute or so for browning on the bottom, turning as needed. When the crust is the way you want it, slide the pizza over to the cool side of the grill.
At this point, depending upon the heat of your fire, your cheese may or may not be melted. If it still needs a bit more time, leave the pizza on the cool side and shut the lid on the grill. Go prepare your next pizza crust, periodically checking the status of the cheese on the cooking pizza. Remove the one from the grill when the cheese is ready and start the entire process over with the next pizza.

For The Lancaster News

Tomorrow I'll post the pizza dough and tomato sauce recipes

Cincinnati Turkey Chili

Cincinnati Turkey Chili
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

This recipe is from Weight Watcher's "Simply the Best All American" cookbook. The recipe does not call for cheese, although it is mentioned in the blurb above it. It is supposed to serve 4, but we had 5 and I'm eating this serving pictured for breakfast. Perhaps it went further because we put cheese on it?
The recipe is based upon Cincinnati Four-Way Chili, which my family tried while passing through Cinci this summer. We loved Skyline's chili that day and this recipe even more, as it had less cardamom and allspice than Skyline's.

Four-Way Cincinnati Turkey Chili

1# lean ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (13 3/4 oz) can low-sodium beef broth
1 (10-oz) can Rotelle tomatoes
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
4 cups cooked elbow macaroni (pictured is ditalini)
1 (15 1/2 oz) can chili beans in sauce, heated
8 scallions, chopped

Cook the turkey, onion and garlic in a non-stick skillet until turkey is browned and onion is tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the chili powder, brown sugar, salt, cumin, allspice, cardamom and pepper; stir until the spices coat the turkey mixture.
Stir in the broth, Rotelle tomatoes and the vingar; bring to boil. Reduce heat, partially cover, and simmer until the broth is thickened and flavors are blended, 30-40 minutes.
Serve the chili over the noodles and top with beans and scallions.

442 calories, 4g total fat, 10g dietary fiber

Additional note: I browned the turkey, onion and garlic, tossed with the seasonings and then dumped the whole thing, along with all the rest of the ingredients except for the noodles and scallions, into my crockpot. I turned the crockpot to "low" and left for the afternoon. When I came back 4 hours later, I cooked up the noodles, grated some cheese and we had supper about 20 minutes later. It was great for a day when I was home earlier in the day but gone right before evening activities were to start.

At this point I'd like to invite you to support the Susan Komen Race for the Cure we are having in the Charlotte, NC area on October 1. My Jazzercise class is going to the race and if you'd like to sponsor us, please click here. Thanks for your support!

Pressure Cooker Beef Stew

Pressure Cooker Beef Stew
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

This meal took about an hour to make. A pretty good deal, I think. Usually it takes me 5-6 hours to make this stew in the oven, or even longer in a crockpot.
This recipe is from the Mirro manual that came with my pressure cooker. It's for a 6-8 quart cooker. Another note: usually I use a chuck roast for my stew. The meat is more tender and, a lot of times, cheaper. But since I was using the pressure cooker and the stew meat was on sale, I used that instead. I found the meat to be just as tender as my usual stew.

3# stew meat
2 Tbsp shortening
2 Tbsp kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika-I used half-sharp
1 3/4 cups water
2 medium onions, chopped
7-8 carrots, cut in half
8 potatoes, peeled and cut in half or quarters

Brown the beef in the shortening in small batches. Remove from pot and sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika (I ended up using more than the suggested amounts of the spices).

Place the rack in the bottom of the cooker and return the meat to it. Cover and bring to pressure at 10 lbs. Once pressure is reached, cook for 10 minutes. Cool by turning the heat off for 5 minutes, then run under cool water to release the pressure.

Add the veggies. Cover and bring back to 10 lbs pressure and cook for 10 minutes.
Cool instantly by removing from heat and running under cool water.

Remove the stew to a bowl and make gravy with the drippings. Pour the gravy over the stew and toss to coat. Serves 8-10

GRAVY
Pour drippings into a measuring cup. For each cup of drippings, you'll need a thickener made of 2 Tablespoons flour and 1/4 cup of cool water. This stew made a little over 3 cups of gravy, so my thickener was 3/4 cups cool water and 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons flour.
Bring the drippings back to a simmer, stir in the thickener and cook, stirring constantly until smooth and there is no flour taste.

Freezing Okra

No photo today. Just a bit of thinking. For the "Sugar & Spice" column in The Lancaster News, I included a blurb about freezing okra. Here is what I said:

"Okra is coming in abundantly now and it’s a good time to lay some by for those winter soups. Start a pot of water boiling. Wash the okra pods and cut off the stem ends without cutting into the pods. Drop the okra into the boiling water and allow it to cook for 4 minutes. If your okra is small, cook for 3 minutes. Remove the pods from the water and cool immediately by dropping into a bowl of ice water. Drain. Slice the okra into rounds or leave whole. Pack into zip-top bags, being sure to leave 1/2 inch of headspace in the bag when sealed. Freeze. Vegetables can be frozen for 8-12 months at 0 degrees.
From the Iowa State University Extension Service"

What I did NOT say is that my own preferred method is to skip the blanching and just cut the okra into 1-inch pieces and freeze them. I did this last year because I'd been advised that I could freeze bell peppers without blanching them. I just chopped the peppers into medium-sized pieces and froze them in snack-sized bags. I figured...what could happen? It's not like I'm going to thaw the okra and eat it raw. It goes into soups and gumbos. So I just skipped the blanching.

I'm still alive.

I did find a spot on Cooks.com that suggests freezing without blanching. But I'm not going to have that printed in the paper. When it comes to advising others, better to be safe than sorry.

Lundberg Black Japonica

Lundberg Black Japonica
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Now THIS is good stuff! You know how sometimes you are grocery shopping and for some reason you get stuck in an aisle, with some woman and her 3 toddlers plugging the way in front and a little old couple discussing what kind of [insert product name here] they got last time that they really liked and how they better be sure to get more of that this time?

Well, when that happens, it can pay to browse the shelves near you. You sometimes find interesting stuff and it keeps you from pulling your hair out. This Lundberg Black Japonica was what I found on the shelf in my last traffic jam at Lowe's grocery.

It took a little longer than basmati rice to cook ... about 45 minutes, actually. And instead of using 2 cups of plain water, I put 4 vegetable bouillion cubes in with it, along with a speck of olive oil. It was a big hit at home and this package was about $2.69 or thereabouts. I'll buy it again. It's a nice change from potatoes,noodles or white rice for a starch. More substance and fiber, too.

Pressure Cooker Fried Chicken

Pressure Cooker Fried Chicken
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

This is definitely something I'll do many, many times.
This recipe is for a 6-8 quart Pressure Cooker.

2 1/2-3 lbs Chicken Pieces
1/2 cup Flour
1 Tbsp Kosher Salt
1/4 tsp Paprika (I used half-sharp, to make it "zippy")
1/4 cup Shortening
2 sm Onions, cut into halves
1 1/4 cups Water

Mix flour, salt, pepper and paprika together on a plate. Coat the chicken with the flour mixture.
Brown the chicken pieces, a few at a time, in hot shortening in the pressure cooker.
Place the rack in the bottom of the cooker. Place the chicken pieces on the rack, put the onion pieces on top and carfully pour in the water.
Cover, set the control at 10 and cook 15 minutes after the control jiggles, or cook at 15 for 12 minutes.
Cool the cooker normally for 5 minutes, then place under faucet.
Once the pressure is released, take the lid off the pot. Place the chicken on a cookie sheet and put it under the broiler for a few minutes to crisp.
Prepare gravy with the drippings.

GRAVY:
Skim any excess fat from the broth. Add enough water to the broth(if necessary) to measure 2 cups. Heat to simmering.
Mix 1/4 cup Flour with 1/2 cup Cold Water until smooth.
Gradually stir the flour mixture into the hot broth.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the gravy is smooth and thickened.

This recipe from the Mirro Recipe & Instruction Book that came with my Pressure Cooker.

For The Lancaster News

Pork Loin

Pork Loin
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Smithfield is the preferred pork producer in our local grocery stores, it seems. In Minnesota it was Hormel. Hormel pork loin packages contain one piece. I was surprised to see two pieces in this Smithfield package. And dismayed. One end of each piece was very thick, the other rather thin. I decided to tie the two pieces together for more even cooking. No butcher's twine. Toothpicks? Too short. Finally I decided to skewer the two pieces together before placing it on the grill.

They turned out great.

I did not put anything on the loin. Didn't even salt and pepper it. It was not a pre-marinated one, either. I just decided to put soaked mesquite chips on the charcoal while it was cooking. That turned out to be all the flavor I needed.

Chuck Roast in a Pressure Cooker

Chuck Roast in Pressure Cooker
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

A friend reminded me of the convenience and quickness of the pressure cooker. I drag it out only about 4 times per year, always for roast beef. I've never had roast beef turn out more juicy and tender than when it's been cooked under pressure.

This particular meal had problems, though. When you don't use the appliance very often, then each time you do, you have to learn its idiosyncracies all over again. In this case, I had the pressure too high and the selective control never jiggled. While it was steaming steadily, I mistakenly thought it was still BUILDING pressure, not that it was already at it's maximum. Consequently, I cooked the roast too long, waiting for the control to jiggle. Finally a burning onion smell prompted me to reduce the pressure and open it.

I did find the bottom of the roast burned to the pan and the onions were a disintegrated mess, but the roast itself was as flavorful and moist as it always is. Of course, since the bottom of the pan was full of burned meat, I couldn't make gravy out of it, but we were fine.

I really need to get this thing out more often.

Grilled Okra

GrilledOkra
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

This might become my new food obsession for the next month. I do like Okra very very much. That is an aspect of the southern culture that I, a "damn rich yankee," can definitely embrace. My mom also likes okra very much and last August we had several late-afternoon snacks of fried okra.

But this grilled thing is even better.

I get a lot of food from my CSA farmer and yesterday, while waiting for my roast to cook in the pressure cooker, I quickly washed off some red and green okra, dried it, rolled it in olive oil, and tossed it onto my new toy ... a Lodge Cast Iron Grill Pan.

There was a smoky haze in the house when I was done, but munching on roasted okra, heavily sprinkled with kosher salt, was well worth it.

And I will not have to share most of the time. My three men will not touch the stuff!

Melting Pot

Melting Pot
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Here's one of the new toys I bought at the Lodge factory outlet on our way home from Minnesota. It holds about 14 ounces of whatever you want to melt. I could see baking a giant muffin in it, too. It was $10.95. I like having it on the stove all the time, although it can tip over if it's bumped...it just fits on the grates.

These are a few of My Favorite Things

Favorite Things
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

When you move from one part of the country to the other, there is a whole new world of tastes and products available to try.

But sometimes you find yourself wishing for things you used to get easily that don't seem to be available in your new locale.

We did eventually find Malt-o-Meal. But it was in single-serving pouches in a grocery store we don't use.

The Spring Grove pop is a Southeast Minnesota thing. It's even a little hard to find in Minneapolis. Spring Grove is a tiny town in SE MN and they have a small company that makes this pop. It comes in orange, root beer, creme soda and lemon sour.

Texas Sting Buffalo Wing sauce. I was really surprised to see we couldn't get that here. We've been using Texas Pete instead.

The dills. Gedney is the "Minnesota Pickle" but I really didn't think that meant we wouldn't find it all over the country. But it's not the brand name we miss ... in fact my husband says he always preferred Vlasic. What we miss is dills that are not kosher. I don't know why they taste different from kosher dills, but they do. And we miss them.

I did not bring back any Hormel Wrangler hot dogs. We missed them like crazy until someone turned us on to Nathan's. We are so over Wranglers now, I suspect we'd have to ship Nathan's if we ever moved back to Minnesota.

Fresh Tomato Salsa

salsa&chips
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

4 large, ripe tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped onions or scallions
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
1 Tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped oregano or basil or dash of dried herbs
Pinch of sugar
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a serving bowl, adjusting ingredients to your taste. Cover and set aside for several hours for the flavors to blend. Before serving, drain off excess liquid.

Note: At first, the salsa might seem mild. After it sits for a while, the salsa will get spicier and spicier. A good general rule of thumb is to make the salsa about half as hot as you want it, allowing for the heat to build as it sits.

For The Lancaster News

Back to Cooking & Blogging

Well, I'm home now, and I have some food blog fodder for you, but not today. I picked up a couple of cool culinary items at the Lodge Cast Iron Store in Tennessee, so I'll tell you about those and my first attempt to use them. I also have a tomato article that was in the newspaper on July 20 to put up here for you. I thought I'd saved it to my laptop, but I guess not. So once I get my desktop from the computer guy, I'll upload that for you.

I'm also writing an article today on "Healthy School Lunches" to be in the paper Wednesday. My heart is not in it. I've started to write it once and today I just have to. I also have to get my pizza on the grill experience written and tomorrow night I'll hang with the local boy scouts so I can do a feature on their cobbler. They will be making it for our annual "National Night Out" event.

I'm also responsible for the paper's "Sugar and Spice" column this week, which is a series of food tips down the left side of the B section. Anytime you have tips or interesting trivia, send it to me and tell me I can use it. I usually give them 4 or 5 blurbs. Some examples of past items are: Storing Spices, Keeping Cutting Boards Clean, Care and Cleaning of Garbage Disposals, Where to Pick Your Own Blueberries. I've also included nutrition info on some foods...like the fact that pineapple is an excellent source of vitamin C and may be good for asthmatics because it's a source for the enzyme Bromelain. If you do send some tips, and you got the info from somewhere like a magazine or website, let me know the source.

So come back soon. Like tomorrow.

Ice Cream Freezers

Most of us remember cranking ice cream by hand in Mom and Dad’s or Grandma’s old ice cream freezer. We’d whine and complain about how long it was taking, how hot we were, why we were doing more cranking than our younger siblings. Oh. Wait. That may have just been me.

I doubt it, though.

Purists still say that the old hand-crank freezers make the best ice cream. The reasoning goes that a human can sense when the ice cream is starting to thicken and respond by speeding up the crank. Faster cranking whips more air into the ice cream, giving it a nicer texture.
Hand-crank makers are still available, and you can get a hand-crafted machine with a pine bucket and stainless steel blades from the White Mountain Freezer company (now owned by Rival) for $150-$200. But most of us go for the electric models now. Electric crank models that are similar to the old bucket models run from $20-$40 and can make 4-6 quarts of ice cream. I have one of these and I break it out when I want to make ice cream for a crowd. But for ice cream for the family on a Friday night, I use my Rival 1 1/2-quart maker. The freezer canister has a gel in it that freezes the ice cream without ice. It lives in the deep freeze at my house. When I get the urge to make a batch of ice cream, I mix up the ingredients, take the canister from the freezer, snap on the electric motor unit and in about 15 minutes I have ice cream. It makes a nice, small amount.

Today’s electric ice cream freezers make homemade ice cream a snap. But if you find yourself missing the whining of kids during the freezing process (hey, someone might!), try this recipe for “Kick the Can Ice Cream:”

Kick the Can Ice Cream

A couple of kids, bored ones work best
1 empty 1-pound coffee can, with lid
1 empty 3-pound coffee can, with lid
Masking or Duct Tape
Crushed Ice
3/4 cup salt
3/4 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Flavoring, if you choose, like chocolate or strawberry syrup

Mix the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla and flavoring together in the small coffee can. Put the lid on and tape it shut. Place the small can inside the larger can. Pack crushed ice around it. Pour the salt all around on the ice. Put the lid on the can and tape it shut. Have the two bored kids roll the can back and forth with their feet for 10-15 minutes.

This recipe is from http://www.funology.com
Information on ice cream freezers from Alton Brown’s “Gear for Your Kitchen”, Steward, Tabori & Chang, 2003.

For The Lancaster News

Dinner on the Grill

Dinner on the Grill
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Steak on the grill is one thing. But steak on a campfire is an entirely different experience. You can get that campfire taste by using hardwood charcoal, but sitting around the campfire in lawn chairs, watching your supper cook over an open fire really adds to your meal.

The corn was wonderful. It's recommended that you soak it in water for a while before grilling it, but we found just putting it directly on the grill with the husks peeled back worked just great. And the little fires that burned away the husks were entertaining, too.

Stick to Your Own Backyard

Actually, I do like to travel. But when it comes to food, I find it's best to stay home. I mean that in more than one sense of the word. No, I am not stuck in a rut, thinking I have to eat all one kind of cuisine. I like to try foods from all over the world. I learned that from my mother. And no, I am not necessarily thinking I have to eat at home all the time, never going out to eat at restaurants.

But the fact of the matter is, most of the time the best food I have is that which I prepare myself. And furthermore, the best food I have is locally grown. And to go even further, I really do think it's best to eat what's in season.

That said, here is my conundrum: tomatoes and okra just hit their stride in South Carolina, where I live. What did I do? Did I rush out and get as much of it as I could and then start preserving it for the winter, stuffing as much down my gullet along the way? No! I left on a trip to Minnesota!

Here in Minnesota the tomatoes are still green and very hard. And there is very little okra grown here. It will start coming in at about the time I leave for South Carolina, where the tomatoes will be pretty much done for the year.

So, I'm here for two weeks, feeling kind of bad about missing all that tomato and okra bounty. I am, however, assuaging my grief with lots of fresh sweet corn.

So folks, the posts here will be a bit sporadic for the next couple of weeks. I thought about posting about the places where I'll be eating, but decided against it. I've decided that this food blog is about home cooking, not restaurant cooking. To me, the best food blogs are photos and stories about home cooking efforts. I'll put "eating out" stuff on the other blog: Gone to Carolina, where I'll be posting nearly every day.

Heart Attack on a Plate

okra7.15.05
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic.

Mmmmm! Okra, rolled in cornmeal and fried in bacon grease. It gave my Zocor prescription a real workout!

The okra came in just days before we left for Minnesota. I had to snag a small amount to snack on before leaving.