07/16/2007

In the Kitchen

Big store, little store, one guest, a crowd

By Sally Ketchum
Local columnist
ketchum1985@
gmail.com

Read Sally's past columns here

Friends summer in Michigan;
They want to golf, swim and fish again.
But here is the hook:
I am their cook!
Then, to dine out, I wish again!

Because people in northern Michigan live near water, beaches or a variety of amusements, they have summer guests. Also, here it's cooler than most places, even when it's hot.

Over the years, we've had summer houseguests, ranging from a single guest to a large group of far-not-close relatives. It including a 3-year-old who was "adorable” when she threw tantrums and whose little fingers snatched the anchovies out of everyone's salad, her two teen cousins whose goal in life seemed to be to flummox adults, and a very senior citizen who arose at 6 a.m. to drink her prune juice and then continued to drink spirited beverages all day and late into the night. Recently we hosted one friend, a young bachelor who is (really) a rocket scientist and could speak of nothing else.

We slip into our routine for guests: Morning coffee and juice set out at 6 o'clock (I can go back to bed if I wish.) Next is a large brunch about 10 or 11. This sets guests up for their days of fishing, golfing, shopping or loafing.

Snacks and drinks are ready when they return, and we have a late dinner in the cool of the evening. This works for us, and I suppose other hosts have a few tricks that make feeding houseguests easier, too. I'd love to hear them!

He-Who-Must-Be-Fed loves company. He's proud of our table, food and camaraderie, but he thinks that I can whip up most anything easily.

The truth is that I enjoy fussing around for days with a legal pad and a lap full of cookbooks and food magazines to make my menus ahead of time. I love to do this. I also have a notebook of past menus — some winners, some losers. My shopping lists (items listed in order of the market's layout) come from the menus.

But I also have a "first aid kit” of easy standbys. I check the pantry for staples, stock a few frozen dinners to use as a base, i.e., frozen cheese ravioli (I add chopped chard or spinach) and keep extra snack foods and fruit. I also make versatile foods ahead. (Our favorite is Liptauer, a paprika butter and cream cheese spread with a lot of interesting things in it like capers, shallots and dry mustard. We use Liptauer not only as a spread, but also to put a dollop on a steak or chop, to top Crostini or to put a teaspoonful to float in a cold soup.) Spinach balls, small meatballs and mini sandwiches, all frozen, are in our first aid kit, too.

I keep an idea list for brunch. Included are eggs, scrambled or baked in cream. Kids love Toad in the Hole. I've made deviled eggs, egg salad and pancakes or French toast (usually stuffed and fruited) and lumberjack brunch (sausages, hash browns, sweet rolls, fruit cups or melon).

Dinner this time for dear friends was Italian: Porchetta (pork roast seasoned with Italian seasoning, especially fennel), a Tuscan Bread Salad (I like the bread as croutons), Swiss chard (which really originated from Italy and not Switzerland) and an almond cheesecake. I broil whitefish from our neighboring fishery after slathering the fillets with Milani Dill Sauce (store-bought), then covering all with very thin lemon slices. Rosemary oven fries and fruit for dessert completed the dinner.

My personal touch seems to be some silly culinary accident. I do not plan these! I have burned breadboards, shrink-wrapped hot soup in a plastic jar and more.

The past visit was no exception. A garden salad looked as if it needed just a little something extra. My fingers meandering through the fridge, I found a few slices of deli Swiss cheese, slices so thin that they are separated by paper — just the thing!

I cut the cheese slices into slivers — they looked great with the shredded carrots, all dressed in vinaigrette on the table. I thought my guests were impressed, forking diving into their salads with gusto. They were, of course, forking out all the strips of that shredded paper I had forgotten to take out between the slices — my personal touch.

Crostini with Sweet Vinegar Onions

• 1/3 c. pignoli (pine nuts)
• ¼ c. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large Spanish onion, thinly sliced (see note)
• Salt, preferably kosher
• 3 T. sugar
• 1/3 c. red wine vinegar
• 18 fresh sage leaves
• 2 T. chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 6-8 pieces crusty bread, grilled

Heat a nonstick frying pan over medium heat, add the pignoli and toast them for 3-5 minutes, shaking the pan to brown them evenly. Keep a close eye on them because they burn quickly. Set the nuts aside.

Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until golden, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, add the sugar, and cook, stirring, for another 3 minutes. Add the vinegar, sage, and parsley and cook, stirring for about 4 minutes. Stir in the pignoli.

Serve on the grilled bread, either hot or at room temperature. (Note: Use Vidalia onions if you can find them.)

— John Mariani and Galena Mariani, "The Italian American Cookbook”

Sally Ketchum lives in northern Michigan, where she expects the last of this summer's company to arrive in late September. Ketchum can be reached at ketchum1985@gmail.com