I Say Clematis...

Clematis, with the 'a' spoken like the 'a' in apple, is the Midwestern pronunciation. I planted this Jackmanii next to an orange Trumpet Vine in anticipation that the Clematis would weave in and out of the trumpets.

The Clematis though likes to weave itself to the driveway side of the fence and display itself there. Of course that's where the sun first shows it face....and I'm wondering if all my flowers lean toward the East?


The trumpets are in bud, but look like their a week away from blooming. The other day, I spotted a returning hummingbird checking for blooms.

Off Topic Tuesday

Tuscany shawl knitted in Berger du Nord Belle (silk, 5 skeins). Given to a friend in need of comfort. Soaked, blocked, and ironed.

Simply the Best Dad

One of the most important things I've learned in life is the ability to smile. 

I'm not quite sure where I learned it - but on this - Father's Day - I think I need to give some credit to my Dad.

Always remember to smile - a good lesson

Again - smiling.  How can one person be so happy.....?

but that's Dad!

Dad loves a good pint - and perhaps going to Ireland was the supreme pilgrimage....

Dad loves a good brew - in fact he loves one.  Now he's a hip-ster, toting an iPod, a Blackberry, and a laptop.  But lets grab a snapshot in 2001 - when technology puzzled him.  Interested - Curious - Clueless.

i

WDC = Washington DC - the Smithsonian.  Dad  is an American, thru and Thru.  

But he loves a quick pint - and so we oblige.

Foreign countries don't phase him - bring on the Canadians - in Niagara Falls.  Does it phase him?  Nope - he's still smiling.

And there they are - Mom and Dad.  They got married nearly sixty years ago -  bursting with the passion of youth.  What do they do as an encore, when their children are all grown?  

My friends, I fret and hem and haw, but I can truly say when they meet, it's hard for me to describe - but my parents are In Love.  Still Crazy After All these Years........

So today, on Fathers' Day - I give thanks and praise - and love - to Mom, and of course, Dad - still together, and still crazy, after all these years......

And sadly, we bid farewell to the Dad of Dad this year - a man who passed with no regrets.  At this end - I thank both of them - my grandfather (who I'll never see again) and my father (may many moons pass) - 

To All Our Fathers

Happy Father's Day to all the dads in the world! Do any of us really know our effect on our offspring? How often do we--as parents thank our children for being themselves and thus model to them what we would like to hear in return. What have we yet to say to our parents and hope our children say to us in return? A contrived social holiday offers me the chance to gather my thoughts and express my thanks to my Dad who always stood beside me. I knew if worse came to worse Dad would be there--how lucky is that? And I am grateful that my children feel the same about their father. Celebrate the moment!

Not Quite Spice

Not quite a Saturday Spice.... but this incipient pepper is growing in a pot on my deck. It is surrounded by baby parsley plants. Like many others, I'm trying to lessen my carbon footprint on this planet. And like many others, I was heartened by Michael Pollan's article about growing even a little of one's own food as a way to keep green.

In the past my yard did have a vegetable garden, but the growth of neighboring shrubs and trees (planted in anticipation of global warming) keeps the yard in light shade most of the day. My deck though probably gets about 6 hours of sunlight. So...I'm trying veggies in pots--I even found a book at the library: Crops in Pots by Bob Purnell. The book details an assortment of planting combinations that make your veggie plantings look as good as pots of flowers.

Along with the peppers and parsley combo, I'm trying beets with bush cucumbers, tomatoes with bush basil, and separate pots of carrots, mesclun, rainbow swiss chard, fennel, and pattypan squash. At the farmer's market I even found a hanging pot of Tiny Tim tomatoes which now hangs on the fence.
Here's the rainbow chard.


And the Tiny Tim tomatoes.

Trying to keep Green!

Lemons Again!

Lemons! Lemons are a common ingredient here in the USA. Lemons are not really that prevalent in the rest of the world. The rest of the world uses limes. I actually like limes ALOT!--because lime is so good with rum. But back to lemons.... last night I marinated my pork-loin kabobs in the...

juice of 1 lemon

1 smashed garlic clove

splash olive oil

good shake of Mrs. Dash

1 1/2 Tbs of pestle ground rosemary (next time I'll try fresh rosemary).

a shake of salt and pepper

( Next time I'll add a TBS+ of honey).

Marinate for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Grill 12-18 minutes.

Serve with veggies of choice.

The Saucy Husband was impressed....always a good thing!

A Summer Smile

New camera: Canon SX100. The macro setting is fabulous. Now to work on keeping the hands steady. Summer heat is building here in central Ohio. Lucy is on the lookout for the first signs of chipmunks.

And we here on the deck are enjoying a mojito.

Watching the flowers grow.

Celebrate!

The House of Saucy
is in celebration mode today.

This recipe came to me from a SaucySister and her SpicySpouse. SaucySister#5 labeled it Celebration Biscotti, and might of been commenting on her (then) soon to be wedding to her SpicySpouse. Beng a SpicyMama myself--I knew what she was referring to... I've probably had this recipe (typed and written from her hand) over 18 years. The paper folds are yellowed, and the spots are probably brandy residue. I often make this recipe as part of my Christmas cookie repertoire. Its a nice big batch that will serve any crowd....

SpicySister Celebration Biscotti

2 C Sugar
1 C Butter
4 TBS Pernod, or Anisette, or Amaretto
1 1/2 TBS Cognac, or Brandy
2 Tsp vanilla extract
2 Tsp almond extract
2 C coarsely chopped toasted almonds
2 eggs
4 C unsifted all-purpose flour
1 TBS baking powder (Martha Tip: make sure its fresh, because it can wear out)

Toast nuts for 5 minutes in 400º oven or until lightly browned. Let cool to touch. Mix sugar with butter, Pernod, cognac, extracts and nuts.
Beat in the eggs.
Mix flour and baking powder and stir into mixture--blend thoroughly.
Cover and chill the dough for at least 2 hours.

Shape dough directly on greased baking sheets (without sides) with your hands.
Form flat loaves that are about 1/2 thick and 2 inches wide, and as long as the baking sheet.
Place no more that 2 loaves, parallel and well apart on a pan.
Bake at 375º for 20 minutes.
Remove from oven and let loaves cool on pans until you can touch them (if the loaves crumble, let cool longer).

Cut into diagonal slices about 1/2-3/4" thick.
Lay slices on cut sides, close together on the baking sheets, and return to the 375º oven for 15 minutes more, or until lightly toasted.
Cool on wire racks.
Store in airtight containers.
Makes about 9 dozen.

Italian Tradition calls for Vin Santo, but we are not. I like my cookies with cappuccino, although the SpiceQueen and the PepperPrince would choose tea.

Saturday's Spice: Bay Leaf

THE LOVELY BAY LAUREL

My first memory of hearing about herbs and spices is linked to the bay leaf. It was probably the wonderful beef stew made by the SpiceQueen. Before this, I just ate--never thinking about the flavoring that was done to food. I'm guessing I was 9 or 10 years old, and had spooned out of my stew a bay leaf, thinking it was a sibling joke. What followed was my first lesson in food flavorings. Later sometime in school, I found it hard to believe that those dried bay leaves were the laurel wreaths of ancient Greek and Roman heroes. The words baccalaureate and poet laureate, as well as the name Laurence owe homage to the ideas that surround the bay laurel.

Bay leaf was one of my kitchen start-up herbs when I began my married life, and so it has flavored my numerous stews and soups, and broths along the way. Lately, I've begun to sniff my spices like I sniff my wine looking for the aromatic elements that make them individuals. I noticed that the smell of bay leaf is mildly reminiscent of rosemary, although rosemary is stronger and more piney when crushed. Bay leaf is also part of that fragrant mix we call pickling spice.

In looking to stretch the boundaries of how I cook with ingredients, I discovered this most adventuresome cook who has opened my MiddleNorthernEastern European cooking eyes to the baking side of bay leaf. Scroll down to September 17th '07 for a pistachio tart flavored with bay leaf. I don't have a bay leaf recipe to share yet, but I'm now thinking in a new direction.

Habaneros: How Hot is Hot?

I've always found it interesting that the word for Hot can mean both full-of-heat, and spicy.

Today's post focuses on the Spicy side of Hot.  Specifically, the Habanero pepper.  This hot little number scores a 500,000 on the Scoville scale.  By contrast, that "hot" jalapeno clicks in at about 5000.  So its hot.  Of course, those Pepper Sprays have something like 1,500,000 units of Scoville, so I don't think I'm stepping into permanently damaging behavior zone...

But how hot? Today I put that to the test.   To see how many Habaneros I could eat without drinking a glass of water.

So I went to the store and grabbed a 6-pack of Corona cervezas.  These are the best thirst quencher for a hot bite to eat.  Spicy foods go best with Mexican-type beers.

Along side of that, I bought 24 Habanero peppers.  

I must have been some sight at the checkout lane, me with my 6 beers and 24 habanero peppers.  Oh what did the cashier think I was up to?  

Anyway, I chopped about 5 of the peppers in half, thinking that if I can't get to five, I might have to settle with halves.  So, say, I might get to  3.5  But once you get over 5, well, its whole number time, no halfzies.  Although I guess I could save the last cut-in-half ones for the final half, if I could stand it.  

Ok, so I settled down to begin my insanity.  Perhaps first, I should describe the rules I allowed myself.

1)  No water or other liquid to drown the taste

2)  At least three chews of the pepper.  

3)  If I spit it out, it doesn't count.  I must ingest the pepper.

4)  I don't need to eat the stems

5)  No eating of other food.

6)  I can drink as much Corona as I want when I'm done.

So I tossed in the first pepper.  Whooooo - it was hot!  Too hot.  I eyed the trusty half-cut pepper thinking I might not make it to 2.  Would 1.5 be respectable?  I took more than a few chews....munching the pepper into my mouth.  I didn't chew too hard, as I didn't want to release the spice in the seeds.  Everyone says the seeds are the spiciest part.  Well, let me tell you, seeds or not, this is one HOT PEPPER.

My mouth was on fire, burning.  I tried not to touch my lips because I know that the spice on the lips really hurts.  And my tongue?  Oh my, as they say in Spanish, En Fuego!

After awhile, a silly numbness settled on me.  I tossed in a second pepper.  And the burn was back.  They talk about getting addicted to spice, and I like spice, but this was too much.  I had set the Corona to chill in an icy water bath.  They looked very good.  I had put the bottle opener far away though, to prevent me from an impulse beer opening.  

I had looked for the Habanero world record, and couldn't find it.  No doubt, if you can eat one, you can eat as many as you want....so that record probably has a time limit.  Or maybe not.  As the spice eats away at your stomach and intestinal lining, perhaps it makes you stop.  We'll find out.  I hadn't consulted medical advise, but was beginning to think perhaps I should have.

In went pepper 5.  Mouth on fire.  Stomach on fire.  Beer looking cold and neglected.  I couldn't just leave it there, could I?  It was lonely.  I looked at the peppers, there were 10 slices and then another 10 or so while ones.  They seemed happy, shiny, sitting there with friends, but the poor beer was all cold in the ice.  I reached for the beer.  Grabbed it, and placed it against my sweaty forehead.  In fact my forehead was so sweaty that the drops were running down my nose and mixing with the tears pouring out of my eyes.  It was painful, but tolerable.  But barely.  Each movement of my jaw brought new waves of pain.  I didn't think I could manage the three chews that I had required of myself.  Each chew invited more pain.  I decided I would do 3 more, so I would end on 8.  It was 2008.  The year of the Rat and all.  

I ate number 6.  Ouch.  Each bite was pain.  Three chews isn't enough to eat something, of course.  How many is?  Well, I'll tell you, its 12.  12 bites.  And the effort it took to bite, well, took effort.  Strong effort, such that any attempt not to chew seeds was right out.  I am sure I mashed them up.  So much for strategy.  I reached for the bottle opener.  Put it by the bottle.  I was beginning to feel like you feel when you have to take a leak so bad, but you're still 10 minutes from home.  Your legs cross, and you envision pulling into the driveway, before fighting with your keys to get the door open to run into the house and into the toilet. 

So it was as I popped in pepper number seven and started chewing.  It was too much, and the next thing I heard was the POP of the bottle-cap, severed from the top of the bottle in one swift practiced motion, as if I'd been practicing my entire life for this one moment.  And no time for a lime, the Corona touched my lips, filling my mouth, already half full with Habanero, and woosh, gulp, down went pepper number 7.  A gasp of air, one last jolt of pain, and then the Corona again, swoosh swoosh swoosh, until my mouth was cold as ice.  No feeling.  And no more beer.

I relaxed.

Then feeling returned to my mouth and I wished it hadn't.  The burn.  And burn.  The burn snuck in, but became a raging inferno almost instantly, coming out of nowhere.  It was there all along, but you couldn't feel it.

Minutes turned to hours.  The Corona disappeared, leaving only clear glass bottles with squeezed limes in the bottom.  And finally, normalcy returned to my mouth.  

I suspect I won't eat anything spicy again for a long time.  

And yes, I'm counting that last pepper.  It counts when you chew it.  If you don't believe me, go ahead, try it yourself.