Living in the West

What is it about a row of cypress that takes me to a happy melancholy? Did you see the Pasadena yard with cypress and agave from the recent Martha Stewart magazine? It is truly a dream on paper. To walk such a space would be a highlight. I am looking at the cover of the June Sunset magazine. There is a citrusy laid outdoor cement table with wooden benches on a gravel plain. And in the distance, a wonderland Seuss would draw, complete with a row of cypress.

Cypress are figurative symbols of death. I know because we had a widely spaced row in our back area in Glendale. In addition to thinking of Tuscany (where I’ve never visited), I think of my youth.

Sunset is a magazine of applicable fact and pleasures. Each page is relevant. This month I have learned about outdoor dining, one wall rooms in nature, a rose drink in Portland garnished with a single petal, a trailer that is the RV equivalent of the iPod, the history of Pike Place Market, fifteen varieties of bougainvilleas, and some spicy meatballs that look super yum.

For those in the Pasadena area, there is a Maynard Dixon exhibit from June 1 to August 12 with masterpieces from BYU and private collections, including twelve classic covers for Sunset. See it at the Pasadena Museum of California Art.

I enjoyed the article Vintage Getaway about an updated cottage and harmony of past and present objects. It also got me thinking how I would sit on the couch if a magazine was photographing me. This person is sitting up very straight in a casual leg cross. I enjoyed the window that opened up and in, reclaimed wood-plank floors from old chicken coops, and most of all the white and red wide striped entrance mat. The room with the mat is my favorite.

Unfortunately for you, I avoided the articles on Alaska, Kings Canyon, and most of the Idyllwild feature. These locations have mountains. I have a genetic predisposition not to be in love with mountains. I don’t hate them. I just don’t gape and gaffe. Yes, I like waterfalls, crevasses, and valleys.

Disguise the Hot Tub really wakes up on the second page of the article. Sunning beds and a hot tub cover that slides under the larger bed when the hot tub is in use. I said audibly, No way.

In the last year, Margo True (formerly of Saveur) showed up at Sunset as the food editor. I don’t know how they lured her but this fish is loving it. Her article on the Blenheim apricot makes the mouth water. Tangy-sweet. The recipe for chilled poached halibut with fresh apricot salsa tempts me to poach something beyond an egg.

The Art of Barbecue features Santa Fe’s Bill and Cheryl Jamison. Just listen to this:

First there’s direct grilling, in which smaller cuts of meat (and vegetables) are cooked quickly, right over a hot fire. It’s ideal for boneless chicken breasts, fish fillets, or meats that need a good sear, such as steak.
At the opposite end of the spectrum is barbecuing, the “low and slow” indirect-heat method that turns large cuts like pork shoulder and brisket into tender, smoky piles of meat.
In between these approaches is the hybrid one called two-level grilling, which allows you to cook medium-size pieces of meat (such as pork tenderloin or ribs) all the way through without burning the exterior. For this you need two temperature zones: one hot, one cooler. The meat is first browned in the hot zone, then moved to the cooler area to cook through.

As always, I don’t know how to take Diane Keaton who ends the issue with her new home restoration of a Lloyd Wright (son of Frank) in Los Angeles. I’ll just leave it at that.

As solstice approaches, I renew my goal of growing numerous citrus and fruit trees when I have some dirt. I embrace temperate climes and gentle winds.

F is for Fridge

There is only so much I can take. First, the White House white tie dinner with QE II and Philip. The handwritten invitation, the menu, the music. I can’t believe they invited a jockey and they overlooked me. Everyone knows (the whole world read Seabiscuit) that a jockey “rids” himself of food as soon as it is down the hatch. I shudder to think the fresh pea soup with lavender, fish, lamb, and sugar flowers did not nourish this chosen one. Though Itzhak Perlman is a master, my joy would have been full had Yo-Yo Ma been listed on the playbill. I would have framed the invite and the menu. I would have worn a sparkly red raspberry confection and golden sandals à la Grecque.

Second, I have been reading M.F.K. Fisher on and off today. I love this woman for more reasons than there are meals in her writings. I have focused on An Alphabet for Gourmets. Having skimmed, I am at O is the Ostentation. I was most taken with D is for Dining Out. One can only read so many references to aspic and consommé before the same voices, “what is in my fridge?”

And, here is the root of this tree. I became quite merry thinking of just a few occupants in the ice box.

First, a plastic container of vodka sauce.

I don’t use alcohol in my cooking (I’m sure it would be an improvement), but I seem to have little qualm eating other people’s spiked delicacies. This began when we dined with my maternal grandparents. My grandmother enjoyed a more elevated menu than we did at home, her champagne mustard being a specialty. As I grew to be interested in her menus, I would ask and without fail each dish boasted either a hard liquor or liqueur. Spirits. My brother and I would address this after and play the role of the punch drunk. This is my second dose of vodka sauce prepared by Gloria. It is the color of Thousand Island dressing. Add warm linguine, parmesan, sliced basil.

Until ten minutes ago, I had another plastic container. This one of pot roast and mashed potatoes and carrots. I supped with the Bunkers last Sunday. I felt it was a house warming as they moved into larger digs and embrace the prospect of a garden and full sun. We enjoyed a very appropriate green salad (I served myself numerous times) and chilled cantaloupe. She slyly slipped a container of the dinner into my square Tupperware that conveyed these brownies to the festivities.

Supernatural Brownies
15 large or 24 small brownies

2 sticks (16 T) butter, plus more for pan
8 ounces good-quality bittersweet chocolate, such as Valrhona or Callebaut
4 eggs
1/2 t salt
1 C dark brown sugar (muscovado)
1 C granulated sugar
2 t vanilla extract
1 C flour
1/2 C chopped walnuts or 3/4 C whole walnuts, optional

Butter a 13-by-9-inch baking pan and line with buttered parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In top of a double boiler set over barely simmering water, or on low-power in a microwave, melt butter and chocolate together. Cool slightly. In a large bowl, whisk eggs. Whisk in salt, sugars, and vanilla.

Whisk in chocolate mixture. Fold in flour just until combined. If using chopped walnuts, stir them in. Pour batter into prepared pan. If using whole walnuts, arrange on top of batter. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until shiny and beginning to crack on top. Cool in pan on rack.

For best flavor, bake one day before serving, let cool and store tightly wrapped.

Adapted from “Chocolate: From Simple Cookies to Extravagant Showstoppers” by Nick Malgieri.

Yes, I did buy Dark Muscovado sugar from Mauritius at Whole Foods for $3.99/lb. I used the bittersweet bar from Trader Joe’s that is inexpensive and fine but not the quality of the French or Belgian.

Back to the fridge. One bottle of Izze Clementine sparkling juice. 3 mangoes, a few broccoli heads, grapefruit, lemons and oranges (from Cami’s parents’ trees), blueberries, goat cheese, 1/2 a red onion, a quart + of 1 percent milk, whole wheat tortillas and sharp white Cheddar, a few eggs, leftover cold salads that need to go soon, jars of olives and cornichons (I am addicted to picholine olives also from TJs), All the fruit is on the far side of ripe. I am only one person and need a few more mouths to feed.

What’s happening in your fridge?