Seriously, can being obsessed with food, experimenting endlessly with recipes – savory and sweet, following the best of food media, adding to my collection of cookbooks and food implements (currently obsessed with Burleigh mixing bowls), trying out restaurants wherever we go, and conspiring to travel to the great food venues of the world be anything but “A Plum Life”? I don’t think so……….
I can hardly believe it is September 3. I am glad to have the page turned on my calendar. The last several weeks of the Summer has been a near disaster for me. My poor dog, Kit has had a number of afflictions, some potentially very threatening, and I have spent most of the last several weeks trying to find someone who could figure out what has happened to her. Right now, she seems, dare I say, a little better. I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice it to say, I have been totally distracted with taking care of her, and rightly so, for she is the most wonderful dog ever! I’m not apologizing to anyone. Let’s just hope this episode with her is over for a very long time!!!!
I have tried to stay in tune with what was going on in the food world – watching, reading and visiting. I feel like I have been off the mark to a great extent, cooking and baking only when I felt unencumbered with worry about her, taking my son back to college, tending to other family issues, etc. The latest issues of magazines have had lots of great late Summer fodder in them, highlighted by the celebration of figs and plums. In addition to roasting chicken, cooking brown rice and veggies for Kit for the 30 days of her Doxycycline regimen, I did manage to squeeze in the great chocolate chip cookies last weekend (Saveur), my first apple pie of the season from the new crop of Ginger Gold apples from Wightman’s, made yet another batch of scones, a birthday cake and tart and a pot of Autumn Vegetable Soup. So, I haven’t been entirely absent.
I must confess that I have not, until this point, been a big fig fan. This is primarily derived from two major vantage points – one is, my dear Mom ate dried figs as snacks for as long as I can remember and I have to say I found not one thing appealing about them – the appearance, fragrance or physicality of them. I stayed away, feeling much the same all my life about prunes. (I have to say I was once suspicious of all dried fruits) Much later, when I was pregnant with Christin, my ob suggested I snack on figs for digestive purposes. Well, I did try this with dried figs and I will not get specific with the reaction my palate had to these at that time – let’s just say I was not a fan. Now, however with chefs waxing poetic all over the place about these jewels in their fresh form, and all that can be done with them, I am determined to give it another try. I will keep you posted on this.
But, now on to plums. I was very happy to see the huge cover page article in the Saturday WSJ Off Duty Section devoted to plums. I loved this article, written by Gail Monaghan. Plums are fruits I can saddle up to and enjoy. I made a tart of plums, peaches and blueberries for George’s birthday and have used Ina’s recipe for Plum Tart Tatin (and substituted blueberries) but I am bound and determined to explore a variety of recipes this week – principally starting with those in this article. The recipes include: Carmelized Plum and Rosemary Polenta Pound Cake, Carmelized Plums with Lemon and Orange Zests and Grand Marnier, Plum Tart Tatin with Vanilla Creme Fraiche, Individual Carmelized Plum and Lavendar Souffles. Don’t these sound great? This is a great article – look for it and enjoy – I plan to. I also found a recipe on Epicurious.com for Santa Rosa Plum Compote – I plan on trying this for desserts and maybe on some pork. Martha Stewart had a good collection of recipes using plums and other stone fruits on her website. And, as I said, there is always Ina’s Plum Tart Tatin – a definite go-to. Today, I found a Savory Plum Tart on Food 52, and I am going to try a plum-applesauce in the vein of Ina’s famous, and my favorite, Roasted Pear and Applesauce recipe.
I love mostly the Santa Rosa Plums – with their red flesh and sweet/tart flavor. (I can not wait to sample these locally when I go to California in late September!!!! Santa Barbara Farmer’s Market, my absolute favorite, here I come!) I tend to like their texture and juiciness – it is fleshier than the dark plums, which tend to be drier and not as lush tasting – at least in my experience. So, try something with plums tonight – even if it is an arugula salad with plums and goat cheese! Or, these are also a candidate for a lovely bowl of slices topped with Mascarpone Cream! Quick, Easy and Delicious! I intend to do more research for recipes and will keep you posted.
I am so excited that I am going to the Newport Food Wine Festival on September 22 and 23! I can’t think of a prettier place to be on the third weekend of September. I am a huge fan of Roseann Tully, as you have read here many times before. She is the wonderful publisher of Intermezzo Magazine – a publication I have humbly dubbed one of the best culinary magazines published in the US today! I can’t wait to go and finally meet Roseann in person – as she demos her Seafood Paella on Saturday! Maybe I can score the recipe from her then! Thank you Roseann!!!! Meanwhile, I am still working on scoring the Oyster Chowder recipe (wouldn’t a bowl of this tonight be just perfect? it is feeling very Fall-ish right now)from Fin in Dennis, MA and the Gazpacho from Straight Wharf Restaurant on Nantucket. And, speaking of Intermezzo magazine, Roseann posted a beautiful Plum Tart with Sweet Ginger Crust on her Facebook. Check this out!
Off to Whole Foods now – love to see what’s new and beautiful!
Sweet bounty of Summer – still coming along……….
And, last night’s little indulgence……..
75 7th Ave South at Bleecker – West Village Location