All posts by Clif Graves

News

GOING TO NEW YORK

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Tomorrow, my husband, Clif, and I are heading to New York City to visit our daughter Dee. While there, we plan to go to the Museum of Modern Art, walk the Highline (weather permitting), check out some donut shops and Italian restaurants, and go to a couple of movies.

Our dog, Liam, will stay with our daughter Shannon and her husband, Mike, in South Portland. Shannon is thrilled to have “her brother” come for the weekend, and we are so lucky to have such an enthusiastic dog sitter.

Clif and I will be traveling by bus—we’re too much the country mice to drive to Brooklyn. I’ve made chocolate chip cookies—Dee calls them my specialty—and pumpkin bread, and I’ve tucked them between the clothes in my suitcase.

I hope the pumpkin bread survives the bus trip.

Environment

SCROUNGED

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Whenever I go to our town’s transfer station (formerly called “the dump”), I am always on the lookout for useful items that have been discarded. While our transfer station doesn’t have an actual swap building—how I wish it did—it does have a table where people can put things that are still somewhat useful. There is also a huge box for discarded books, and I have found a gem or two in there.

Unfortunately, not everyone uses the table. A while back, when I was at the transfer station, I saw a man throw three perfectly good braided chair pads—they looked as though they were brand new—into the central pit. As it happens, those chair pads were exactly what I had in mind for the chairs around our dining room table, and three would have brought me half-way to my goal. Why would he just throw the chair pads away? It was beyond my comprehension. I stared at the chair pads for quite a while, considering how I might retrieve them, and I felt very bitter feelings toward this man for just flinging the pads into the pit.

However, I knew they were lost. Steve Knight, who teaches science at the high school, recently told me that he is no longer allowed to retrieve items from the pit. He was told that it’s too dangerous, which, of course, it is.  A funny story about Steve Knight, who is such a dedicated scrounger that he makes me look like a piker: Not long ago, someone asked Margy, his wife, if Steve had retired from his job at the high school to work at the transfer station. Steve was at the transfer station so often and seemed so much a part of things that it looked as though he worked there. No, Margy replied, laughing, Steve has not retired from teaching science at the high school. He just likes scrounging at the transfer station.

A couple of weeks ago, I found something at the transfer station that almost made up for the chair pads. It was a blender, an Osterizer, quite dirty but with an intact glass carafe. For a few minutes I debated with myself. Should I take it home? Technically, we don’t need a blender. We have a food processor and an immersion blender. But there are times when only an actual blender will do the trick, say, when you want crushed ice for some kind of drink or a really smooth smoothie. There was also the distinct possibility that it didn’t work, that it really was trash. Finally I grabbed it, thinking, “Oh, what the heck! What’s the worst that can happen? It won’t work, and then I’ll bring it back next week.”

Now, I have often and openly admitted how unhandy I am, and it really is a trial. Luckily, I am married to a man who is quite handy, and after fiddling with the blender, my husband, Clif, said, “Well, it doesn’t work, but it’s not because the motor is shot.” Rather, it was because someone had foolishly put the little rubber gasket under the blade, thus ruining both. A quick Internet search revealed that we could order the gasket and blade for $6.50 with free shipping. Clif ordered them that day.

We put the glass carafe and the cover in our dish washer to give them a good cleaning, and we scrubbed the base with window cleaner and rubbing alcohol until the base was so shiny that I could see my own reflection in it.

A week later, the blade and gasket came in. Clif assembled the blender, and violà! It worked. Smooth smoothies and crushed ice, here we come. Just in time for summer.

There are, of course, a couple of morals to this story. First, we got a perfectly good blender for $6.50. We also saved the blender from going into the trash before its time and adding to the mountain—and I mean this literally—of trash in a landfill just outside of Bangor.

But there is also a larger story. In this country, there is such a surplus that people throw away perfectly good items before they are truly trash. I’ve reflected on this as I buy hardly-worn clothes at the consignment shop in town. Who would get rid of such nice clothes? Lucky for me, some women do, and thanks to them, I can spend my money on things that really matter—a handmade pottery platter for a bridal shower present, a meal at a local restaurant, a CSA share from Farmer Kev, organic food. A play at the Theater at Monmouth.

So while a part of me cluck, clucks over such wastefulness, a part of me is glad to be the recipient of such items.

 

News

COOKING FROM SCRAPS

In yesterday’s New York Times, Andrew Scrivani has written such a good piece about creatively using leftovers that it’s worth featuring all by itself on this post. Scrivani gives so many good tips that I’m tempted to print his piece so that I can refer to it whenever I like.

His point is simple but requires a bit of planning: Stock some basics—frozen pizza dough, won ton wrappers, panko bread crumbs—and you have the means to not only use leftovers but also to turn them into a meal that is worthy in its own right. Something to relish rather than to endure because it’s the right, green thing to do.

 

News, Recipes

AN UNCONVENTIONAL EASTER DINNER

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Easter dinner

Now that the children are grown, except for the odd bag or two of chocolate eggs, Easter is no longer a big celebration in our house. Therefore on Sunday, my husband, Clif, and I decided to go to Portland Stage Company to a matinée performance of Heroes, a very witty play adapted by Tom Stoppard. As the house was nearly full, it seems that plenty of other folks had decided this was a good way to spend an Easter afternoon.

Because our daughter Shannon and her husband, Mike, live in South Portland, we dropped off our dog, Liam, with them before going to the play.

“Do you want to come for dinner afterward?” Shannon had asked earlier.

“Sure!” I had answered, never one to pass up an invitation to dinner.

Keeping in mind my recent decision not to eat meat, Shannon found a Martha Stewart recipe called Easiest Indian Stew, and she made this for our “Easter” dinner. Readers, Easiest Indian Stew is fast food at its best. It doesn’t have many ingredients—chickpeas, tomato sauce, ginger, curry, garlic, onion, and rice—it is quick to make—less than a half hour—and it is good for you. As a bonus, the whole house is fragrant with garlic and spices as the stew simmers.

Shannon made corn bread to go with the stew. A perfect accompaniment.

The stew was a hit—Clif could have easily gone back for thirds—and we all agreed that it would be good for any day. I could certainly eat it once a month, and I will be adding it to my repertoire of quick but healthy dishes.

Now, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that other ingredients could be added to this stew: peanuts, roasted cauliflower, peppers, broccoli, to name a few. A bit of allspice could be added to give it “dimension,” as Rosa at The Flaky Tart puts it. We added red pepper flakes to give the dish a little heat.

However the stew was good as is, and I’ll be making it sometime soon. Very soon.

Recipes

FAST FOOD A LA GOOD EATER: ASIAN WRAPS

As I noted in yesterday’s post, it’s a busy time for me right now, and during these times, even a homebody must have a few tricks up her sleeve, so to speak, so that she can prepare quick, tasty, yet nutritious meals. As a rule, my husband, Clif, and I eat out once a week at some local restaurant where the food is fresh but can still only be considered a treat. (I also slide in a solo lunch trip to The Flaky Tart once a week.) Often we go to The Red Barn in Augusta or to Bolley’s Famous Franks, also in Augusta. Both places feature delicious fried seafood, just perfect for our weekly treat.

The other six days, I cook dinner, and because I am a homebody, I usually have time to make meals that require lots of chopping and simmering. But not right now. So for the next week or so, the emphasis will be on fast food at home, but homemade rather than overly processed.

One of my absolute favorite quick meals—so good that I could happily eat it once a week—is something I’ve dubbed Asian wraps. In brief, here is what I do. I cook 1 cup of rice as directed on the package. Since I use organic white basmati, this only takes 10 minutes or so. I know that brown rice is better for me, but I can’t help it—I like white basmati better. While the rice is cooking, I steam about 1 cup of broccoli and grate one carrot. I grind some peanuts. There is a bit of a cheat with this dish as I use packaged tortillas and a ginger soy sauce from Trader Joe’s to finish it off. Dedicated cooks could make their own tortillas as well as a ginger soy sauce, but then the meal wouldn’t be quite as quick, and that is today’s emphasis.

Despite the store-bought tortillas and the bottled sauce, this is a tasty, nutritious meal that can be made oh so quickly. I hardly need to add that many other vegetables and even meat could be added to this wrap, and when they are in season, we use veggies that we either grow or get from Farmer Kev. Sugar snaps are especially good and so is sautéd zucchini. A chopped fried egg would be a nice addition as would sautéd peppers or onions. Whatever suits your fancy.

Recently we had those wraps, and I photographed the assembly process as Clif made a wrap. Note: The corn in the photos was used as a side, but the corn could have easily been added with the other vegetables.

 

Everything in place

 

First comes the rice

 

Then broccoli and shredded carrots

 

A garnish of chopped peanuts

 

A touch of sauce

 

It’s a wrap!

 

A full plate for Clif

 

 

News

LUNCH AT THE FLAKY TART ON A WINTHROP KIND OF DAY

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A busy time for me. Spring, with all its attendant chores, is here. With my family’s help, I’m in the process of tweaking Maya and the Book of Everything, a young-adult fantasy novel I recently finished writing. And, Earth Day will soon be here, which for me means organizing a Mostly Maine Potluck Dinner for Winthrop. (Earth Day also, coincidently, happens to be my daughter Shannon’s birthday.)

Still, I did find time to go to The Flaky Tart for lunch yesterday. I go there once a week and spend about $5, which, in my opinion, is money well spent. The Flaky Tart has really jazzed up Winthrop’s main street, which, truth be told, had become a little ragged over the years. (It was much more vibrant when we moved here 28 years ago). A snappy little café can really add heart to a community, and even though our budget is modest, I feel as though The Flaky Tart is worth supporting. I feel the same way about other places in town—Mia Lina’s, Tubby’s, and, when I was eating meat, Pete’s Roast Beef.

Other people must feel the same way as I do because the little café was busy as can be when I was there yesterday. How nice it was to sit at a table by the window, eat a tuna sandwich made with delectable fresh whole wheat bread, and watch the comings and goings. Richard, the library’s director, came in, and we had a chat about all things library.

After lunch, I did some shopping. I went to Foshay-Carlton and bought some birthday gifts for Shannon, and I went to Becky’s Second Time Around and got some “wicked” good deals—$14 for four tops that were in excellent condition. Good thing I brought my knapsack because it was stuffed full when I left.

After a quick trip to the library, I rode by the lake. Above, the sky was a deep blue, and Lake Maranacook was a perfect reflection of this. What a pleasure to ride my bike into town on a spring day, have lunch, and do a little shopping.

You might even call it a Winthrop kind of day.

Still life at The Flaky Tart

 

 

News

MARCH 30, 2012: BITS AND BOBS FROM THE INTERNET

From Yahoo! Health: In “Eat This, Not That,” David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding highlight processed food that is expensive, high in fat, high in sugar, or all three. I must confess, I didn’t even know that food such as Bagel-fuls, boxed bagels stuffed with cream cheese, existed. I guess I lead a sheltered life.

From the New York Times: The excellent Sam Sifton’s ode to The East Coast Grill and cornbread.

From Epicurious: How to poach an egg. Seems like unnecessary instructions, but as a poached-egg lover, I have learned over the years that those simmering eggs can be a little tricksy.

From the Portland Press Herald: There’s a new donut shop in Portland, and it’s called Holy Donut. I’ll be checking it out, that’s for sure.

From the Bowdoin Daily Sun: A piece about a late-night snack truck. If I lived in the area, I’d be there on cheat day.

Animals - especially dogs, Environment, Food for Thought

FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD TOWARD VEGETARIANISM: DON’T EAT WHAT YOU AREN’T WILLING TO KILL

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I love animals and I have for as long as I can remember. Dogs are at the top of my list and so are horses, but not far behind come cats. I also like chickens, goats, pigs, sheep, and cows. Wild animals are a source of beauty and wonder for me, and I even have sympathy for the little creeping creatures that sometimes make their way into my house. Then there are birds, those fluttering beauties who grace the woods, the fields, and, best of all for me, my backyard.

Here’s a funny thing: I am quite claustrophobic, and I hate being squeezed in by people, which means when I go to the movies, I am not comfortable unless I sit in an aisle seat. However, I have no problem being squeezed by the dog and the cats, and often times, when I am reading on the couch, I’ll have a cat in my lap and a dog pressed up against me. Somehow, this feels cozy and comforting.

So, how does someone who loves animals so much eat them? Especially the ones who live miserable lives on factory farms, which are not only bad for the animals but are also bad for the environment? I’ve asked myself this over the years, and I have come to the conclusion that I am a very queasy carnivore who has more than once considered becoming a vegetarian. As a result of this questioning, last year my husband, Clif, and I resolved to eat mostly vegetarian, with meat added once or twice a week for a treat. We would, however, continue to eat some dairy and eggs.

I am happy to report that we stuck to our resolution, and our meat consumption went down tremendously over the year. Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian has been a tremendous help as have my Moosewood cookbooks. In the process, Clif and I discovered what we really already knew: There are so many wonderful vegetarian things to eat, and this variety means we don’t miss meat—at least not too much. But we both like meat—there’s no point in denying this—and we enjoyed our twice-a-week meat indulgences.

However, even this reduced meat consumption still made me queasy, and not long ago, I asked myself the question: What would you be willing to kill to eat?

I started at the bottom with clams, which I have happily dug without one twinge of conscience, and scallops, mussels, and other bivalves fall into the same category. Shrimp are a little higher up, but it would not bother me to catch and eat them. The next level includes crabs, lobsters, and fish, and here things become a little more equivocal. I’ve cooked lobster and have eaten fish that I’ve caught. I don’t enjoy the process, but I can and have done it. What about chicken? No. I’ve seen my father kill them, and I didn’t want any part of the process. Sheep, goats, cows, rabbits? Not unless I was literally starving to death.

After reviewing what I would be willing to kill to eat, I came to the next question: Is it ethical to eat food you wouldn’t be willing to kill yourself? For me, the answer has come to be no. If I’m not willing to kill it, then I shouldn’t eat it, even though I have for many years. My love and sympathy for animals stop me from going too far up the food chain when it comes to killing.

The time had come, I decided, to go to the next level, to only eat and cook what I would be willing to harvest or kill—mostly vegetarian with the occasional fish, bivalve, or crustacean added for variety. I discussed this with Clif, and he was willing to go along with this scheme, albeit not quite as completely as I am. For example, when eating out, Clif might still order a meat dish, but he said he would be perfectly happy to eat this way at home. Fair enough. We all have to make our own decisions.

I want to conclude by noting that even with this new eating regime, I don’t plan on applying for sainthood anytime soon. I still have plenty of gray areas in my life. The cats and dog eat food with meat, and that’s just the way it goes. They are carnivores. I still plan to eat eggs and dairy. The eggs come from Farmer Kev, whose chickens live nice lives, and the dairy is either organic and/or local. And, yes, I realize that to keep the eggs and dairy coming, some killing is often involved, however indirectly. But I just can’t give eggs and dairy up yet.

So onward I go, thinking about food as well as cooking and eating it. Will I ever become a vegan? Only time will tell.

 

 

 

 

News

SCENES FROM A WEEKEND—MAPLE SYRUP, BIKING, AND LAUNDRY

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This past weekend, the freakishly warm weather ended, but it was still warm enough to do the things we wanted—go on a bike ride, hang laundry on the line, and visit Mike’s Maple House, which is about 2 or 3 miles from where we live.

Unfortunately, while we humans might have enjoyed the unusually warm weather, the sugar maples did not, and they are done for the season. Jason Smith, at Mike’s Maple house, told us that they made only 65 gallons of syrup this year. Usually, they make between 150 to 200 gallons, and Smith estimated they were down by 60 percent. Nevertheless they had enough to sell, Clif and I bought some of their delicious syrup as well as some maple sugar candies and some maple cream chocolates. As far as I’m concerned, the more maple, the better.

We had stopped by Mike’s Maple House on the way to our friend Diane’s house for dinner—where we had an utterly delicious meal of sweet potato salad, pumpkin soup, and fish with capers and artichoke hearts. Plus, blueberry cobbler for dessert. (Alas, I didn’t take any pictures. It seems a little too intrusive to take pictures at a dinner party where there are other guests, even if those guests are good friends.)

During the course of the evening, I commented on how much I love Maine food—blueberries, clams, mussels, lobster, maple syrup, potatoes, apples, and fresh vegetables when they are in season. Maine food does not have the reputation that food from other states has. Much of the time it is cooked very simply, and there is a decided lack of sauces and flourishes. However, for me, at least, when Maine food is fresh, it is irresistible, and it is at the top of my list of favorite food.

Here are some pictures from our weekend:

It's a happy time of year when laundry can be hung outside again
The ice is out
The precious substance
Jason Smith overseeing the production
Nature, News

PICTURES FROM A BIKE RIDE

Spring has come very, very fast this year. The ice is nearly gone from the little swamp up the road. Soon there will be peepers. And Maranacook Lake, which last weekend was solid enough for ice fishing, is nearly clear. There is just a cold layer of slush icing up the blue, blue water, and when I ride along the lake, I periodically get blasts of cold that mingle with this freakishly warm weather we’ve been having.

Here are some pictures from yesterday’s bike ride:

The little swamp up the road
Maranacook Lake
Another view of Maranacook
Another view of Maranacook

I wonder what the swamp and lake will look like on my next bike ride.