These are the ties that bind

Today is June 29th, my sister and brother's birthday.

The twins - Marcia and Brian.
 

My mother always said that Brian was a gentleman because he allowed his sister to come into the world first. Wasn't that thoughtful of him?! A good guy, even back in the womb.

Marcia

My dear, devoted sister Marcia is always ready for a good time.  She's willing to go anywhere, do anything, and gets along well with everyone.

Her creativity comes through in so many ways: in her choice of gifts, her way with words, and her baking skills.  Also, she was a talented seamstress in high school and was the "mistress of ceremonies", as we called it back then, for her High School's Home Economics Fashion Show. Marcia made a bathrobe for me and had me model it for the show. I remember being totally humiliated wearing that bathrobe, completely lost in the school, wandering the halls, trying to find Marcia, when someone finally told me that she was on stage hosting the show! 

Here is Marcia, pictured above, sporting a bathrobe of all things, on the sleep sofa in our cottage in Maine! 

Marcia is a gifted writer. Her talent even won her a trip for two to Waikiki!

We were thrilled when we heard Boston radio personality & TV host, Dave Maynard, announce on the talent show, Community Auditions, that Marcia had won the grand prize of the Weetabix Cereal tongue-twister contest! 

Here's her winning entry:  

Why not wage war against those wilted wheats? 

When wee ones whine & whimper

and workers walk in weary, what will win 'em over? 

Why not nutlike, wholesome Weetabix,the fortified fiber food?

With whatever one wishes, one-hundred percent whole wheat Weetabix biscuits 

is the worthwhile weapon to wipe away the woes. 

Wise up with wheaty Weetabix, the well-chosen winning way

to the wonderful world of the sweeter wheat!

With warm wishes,

Marcia

Coincidentally, Marcia's favorite method for roasting a turkey comes from none other than Dave Maynard!  

Dave Maynard's Bottoms-Up Turkey

"Moist & flavorful - enjoy!" - Marcia

Slather the outside of a thawed turkey with vegetable oil. Put 4 slices of buttered toast in the bottom of a roasting pan. Place turkey - breast side down - on toast. Bake in a 425F oven for 45-60 minutes. Do not bake longer than 1 hour. Remove from oven. Remove turkey from pan, and throw away toast. In a clean roasting pan, criss-cross 2 pieces of aluminum foil long enough to wrap the bird. Place turkey on foil, breast side up. Cool turkey a bit and stuff with your favorite dressing, if desired. Wrap foil tightly around turkey.

Turn oven to 350F and bake turkey 18-20 minutes per pound, subtracting the amount of time you previously baked the turkey. Twenty minutes before the turkey is done, open the foil to about halfway down, drain the juices for gravy, and return the turkey to the oven to brown for 20 minutes.

Marcia and I inherited our love of food and cooking from our mother. Marcia and Mama took cake decorating classes together. For years, we insisted that Marcia make the cake for our birthdays and holidays. She finally got wise to us and put a stop to that.


When Marcia & I get together, we spend a lot of time talking about food, sharing recipes, baking, and making meals. My children and I love it when Marcia spends time with us at our house. MARCIA equals FUN and makes any day special. I recommend her for your next occasion! Just be aware, however, that toward the end of the evening, she might fall asleep at the dinner table.

Brother Brian
Here he is on the ferry on our way to the Statue of Liberty back in 1979.

I don't recall my brother ever cooking anything. Opening up a bag of Wise Potato Chips, yes, that I remember. Gotta have those Wise Potato Chips! And how about it when you pull out one of those chips with the really dark edges? Mmmm, good! I can see Brian licking his fingers right now. 

Brian does have some knowledge of baking, however, because when I was quite young, he helped me with a recipe. I had a kids' cookbook, and I wanted to make some cookies. My brother and I were home alone. I'm not sure where Mama was at the time. I got all of the ingredients that were listed and mixed them all together. What confused me, though, was when I started reading the directions and it said, "Melt the butter". I asked Brian, "How do I melt the butter if I already mixed it in with the other stuff?" He knew the answer!

I tell you, my brother is so smart! And caring! Before I had ever tasted lobster, I asked him if he had ever eaten it, and if he liked it. He said, "Oh, yes! It's delicious! You just have to watch out for the bones!"

Like most families, we had a traditional Sunday dinner growing up.  Around 7 o'clock at night on Sunday we had another tradition, too. Pizza! The best pizza in the world was from Crossroads Cafe in Easton, Mass.  And when I got my driver's license, Brian taught me the meaning of "I'll buy, you fly!"

Brian has always been a great brother, kind and generous. When I was in my early twenties, Brian was working in New York City, and I visited him at his apartment in Queens. One night we ventured off to a restaurant. When we ordered steamed clams, the waiter said, "OK then, piss clams!"

"Piss clams?" we asked.

"Yeah, you know," said the waiter, "that's how you find clams. You stomp on the sand and when the water comes shooting up you know there's a clam underneath and you dig it up! Piss clams!"

We had a good laugh over that one!


So, Happy Birthday, Marcia and Brian!

Thank you for these and many other fond memories. Wishing you much love and happiness in the years to come.

Your little sister, Anita.

Double Good Blueberry Pie

Blueberries were on sale last week, 2 pints for $5 in my neck of the woods. And 2 pints of blueberries is exactly what you need for this yummy favorite.

        

Double Good Blueberry Pie 
A recipe given on the Yankee Kitchen Radio Program back in the 80's 

This is the very first recipe that I posted on my blog. It's delicious. And since it's summer, it's a recipe worth repeating.

I've also included my go-to pie crust recipe that I've been using for over 20 years. It was featured in an "ephemeral publication": What's Cookin' at Stonehill, 1990, a collection of recipes contributed by employees of Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts where I worked. During this time, I lived in a charming Quaker Community called Friends Crossing.  I call this period of my life "The Friends Crossing Years". I spent many hours listening to Gus during this time, perfecting dishes, organizing recipes, and hosting dinner parties for our friends and neighbors. I like to refer to this as the BC era - Before Children.

Double Good Blueberry Pie

9" baked shell
3/4 cup sugar
3 TB cornstarch
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 cup water
4 cups of blueberries (2 pints) - rinsed, dried and stems removed
1 TB butter
1 TB lemon juice

Combine sugar, cornstarch & salt in saucepan.  Add water & 2 cups of blueberries.  Cook over medium heat, stirring, until it comes to a boil & becomes thick and clear. Remove from heat and stir in butter & lemon juice. Let cool.

Spread 2 cups of blueberries in a baked and cooled pie shell.  Pour cooked mixture over & chill.

Fresh blueberries
 in a baked pie shell

A Heavenly mixture.
Cooked blueberries on top.

Good to the last lick

Foolproof Pie Crust

This pie crust rolls out beautifully and can be "patched" easily.

2 cups flour
3/4 cup shortening or butter (or a combination)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
2 TB lemon juice
2 TB ice water

Mix flour and salt together. Cut in the shortening. Combine the egg, lemon juice and ice water and beat slightly. Pour over the flour/shortening mixture and cut in with a pastry blender until absorbed. At this point, use your hands to mix gently and knead slightly so that the dough holds together and can be formed into 2 rough balls. Put each ball in plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes.

To roll out, dust a wooden board and rolling pin with flour. Flatten out the dough slightly, then sprinkle with flour. Turn the dough as it flattens from time to time, especially at the beginning if it starts to stick. Add a little more flour as necessary to keep it from sticking.

This is the method that I like to use when making a crust. Once you've got it into a round shape and about an inch larger in diameter than the pie plate, roll the dough gently onto the rolling pin to pick it up, then unroll it onto the pie plate. To make a nice edge with the extra dough around the rim, place your forefinger on the rim, and with your other hand, roll the dough around your finger and press the dough onto the rim. Remove your finger and place it next to the loop you just made, fold the dough over your finger again and press the dough onto the rim. Continue this way all around the edge of the pie until you've finished. Use a fork to poke a few air holes in the bottom of the crust before baking so that the crust remains flat when it's baking. Brush the edges of the crust with milk or a beaten egg if desired. Bake the pie crust shell in a 425 F oven for 7-10 minutes. Let cool before filling.

A good dose of chocolate should fix that!

You say you've had a bad day? Things ain't goin' your way?

You're bored with your life? You got nothin' but strife?

Is that what's troublin' you, Bunky? 

A good dose of chocolate should fix that!

Chocolate on Chocolate

Over-the-top ooey-gooey chocolate frosting with velvety rich chocolate cake inside. Pure evil.

A recipe shamelessly stolen from the wonderful Nigella Lawson. The debil made me do it.

Hey, you can't improve on perfection! And if I get cuffed for copyright infringement?

A good dose of chocolate should fix that!

Devil's Food Cake
From Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the heart of the home, by Nigella Lawson

For the Cake

½ cup best-quality unsweetened cocoa (sifted)

½ cup dark brown sugar

1 cup boiling water

9 tablespoons soft unsalted butter (plus some for greasing)

¾ cup superfine sugar

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

For the frosting

½ cup water

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1½ sticks unsalted butter (cubed)

11 oz. best-quality bittersweet chocolate (finely chopped) or 2 cups of chocolate chips

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Line the bottoms of two 8 inch round sandwich tins with baking parchment and butter the sides.

Put the cocoa and 1/2 cup dark brown sugar into a bowl with a bit of space to spare, and pour in the boiling water. Whisk to mix, then set aside.

Cream the butter and superfine sugar together, beating well until pale and fluffy; I find this easiest with a freestanding mixer, but by hand wouldn’t kill you.

While this is going on – or as soon as you stop if you’re mixing by hand – stir the flour, baking powder and soda together in another bowl, and set aside for a moment.

Dribble the vanilla extract into the creamed butter and sugar – mixing all the while – then drop in 1 egg, quickly followed by a scoopful of flour mixture, then the second egg.

Keep mixing and incorporate the rest of the dried ingredients for the cake, then finally mix and fold in the cocoa mixture, scraping its bowl well with a spatula.

Divide this fabulously chocolatey batter between the 2 prepared tins and put in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Take the tins out and leave them on a wire rack for 5–10 minutes, before turning the cakes out to cool.

But as soon as the cakes are in the oven, get started on your frosting: put the water, 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 1 1/2 sticks butter in a pan over a low heat to melt.

When this mixture begins to bubble, take the pan off the heat and add the chopped chocolate, swirling the pan so that all the chocolate is hit with heat, then leave for a minute to melt before whisking until smooth and glossy.

Leave for about 1 hour, whisking now and again – when you’re passing the pan – by which time the cakes will be cooled, and ready for the frosting.

Set one of the cooled cakes, with its top side down, on a cake stand or plate, and spread with about a third of the frosting, then top that with the second cake, regular way up, and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides, swirling away with your spatula. You can go for a smooth look, but I never do and probably couldn’t.