RSS Feed |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
All That's Fit to Print It is almost tomato season. I have four sitting on my counter. They aren't real tomatoes, the kind ripened on the vine in the hot summer sun. They don't smell like tomatoes, but they look pretty good. If nothing else, they serve as a reminder of things to come. We did enjoy fresh corn this weekend. It was perfect for boiling and for once I cooked it to perfection. It was, as Goldilocks would say, just right. Lacy cornbread or biscuits would have been nice along with the ribs and potato salad, but I just wasn't up to it. I did read my collection of biscuit and hoecake recipes. I have added a new biscuit and two new cornbreads. One day, I might actually attempt to cook them again. But, back to the fresh vegetables. June is coming up. It brings smut grass and gnats and hot, muggy afternoons. It also brings vegetables. I feel sorry for Yankees and city folk who never get the opportunity to understand what fresh really means. Buying produce in a grocery store isn't the same as walking the field rows and picking it yourself. When we were little, the first mess of garden vegetables was small, never enough to feed a family. My mama would take whatever was ready and make a pot of soup and pile of lacy cornbread. I can still see the soup. The vegetables were colorful and she always served it to us on dark green plates so it would cool faster. It didn't seem odd to eat soup on days when the temperature outside soared. Of course, when you're small nothing seems odd. But back to the fresh vegetables. I also have fresh cucumbers. I used to hate picking cucumbers. I would pick a row and I swear the cucumbers were ready to be picked again by the time I reached the end. But, a fresh cucumber from the garden beats those foot-long waxed things in the grocery store by a mile. I made refrigerator pickles out of this mess. I have squash, too. I love yellow squash cooked with onions in a cast iron frying pan. I've tried them in other frying pans, but the cast iron is what makes the whole thing turn out right. Over the years, I have come to enjoy food for more than eating. I love the smell of the ingredients, the sounds of preparation. I love the way corn shucks sound coming off the ear, the way they smell. They are sweet while the silk is earthy smelling, earthy tasting if you happen to leave a little on the corn. I love the look of the bright yellow squash in the black pan and the way a fresh tomato looks with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. It looks especially fine next to a serving of fresh peas and homemade fried chicken.
I am making myself hungry. I need to check on those pickles. They should be about read to sample.
|
for larger version       |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
