Crepes

My intention for this blog was never a "how to" or a compilation of recipes. However, a family visit and an old pear led to the creation of this crepe video. This one is for you Aunt Joan. Plus I got to try out the video feature on my new camera, which by the way isn't easy to use and cook at the same time by yourself.

Standard crepe batter recipes can be found in a variety of places so I won't repeat one here. Most tell you to let the batter sit before cooking. it keeps in the fridge for several days. If it separates just stir it back together.

At a recent family visit we were discussing how to make crepes. The way I was taught is that you want a lightly greased pan, i.e. I only butter it for the first crepe (which usually isn't the best one) and that's enough to get you through a batch. It is also really important to swirl the pan, so you get good coverage, and pour out the excess  batter so that you get the desired thinness of a crepe. You can tell when it is time to flip, similar to pancakes, when the edges are just lightly brown or beginning to cook.  It is easier to show, hence the video, although I haven't quite mastered flipping one-handed.

 Perhaps I will learn to edit the video next time...


A pear that had been hanging around a little too long was calling out to me to be sauteed in butter, so on a recent Saturday morning I made crepes.  Cooking crepes can be done so quickly they should definitely be made more often. As I slid the buttery browned pears, their over-ripeness only adding to the carmelization, into the crepes a second wave of inspiration struck. I am such a lucky girl to have beautiful homemade marmalade waiting in my cupboard. Thanks Rich! Adding a spread of of this amber deliciousness brought just the right balance of tartness to the sweetness of the pear and a little bit of texture. I guess if everyday started this way it wouldn't be appreciated as much, at least that's what I am telling myself. Plus I get to feel good about using up an old pear.

Lessons from dogsitting

1. Kasmir is too scared of dogs to come out from under the bed to remind me how hungry he is at 5am.*
2. If you get up and out early and enough on a Saturday you might just see people finishing a marathon.
3. naps and treats are to be enjoyed by everyone
4. It is easier to fit in at the dog park if you actually have a dog

Fozzie makes new friends

5. A great thing about living in DC is that you don't have to fight the hoards of tourists to see beautiful cherry blossoms, just go for a walk with a companion that must sniff every spot a dog before him has marked.

6. It takes good timing if you must first intently smell the lamp post and then sit before crossing the street and make the cross walk light.
7. Even though every pet I have ever had, has been untrained and spoiled perhaps I do have the discipline it takes if I can make Fozzie sit every time before crossing the street.
8. Homemade broth heartens the appetite homesick dogs and people alike.

*At least for one night.


Another reason to love Lincoln Park in the spring is that you never know what you will see including a girl in braids and a skirt playing catch with her dad, a man simultaneously rollerblading and smoking a cigar, kids hiding in a tree just like I did. Although pretending you are a spy in a tree I imagine is much easier to do in a city park than in a suburban neighborhood with no one else around to spy on.

If spring has sprung, can someone please remind March it's supposed to exit like a lamb? In my mind that does not mean more snow.

A Perfect Day

cafe au lait

tuna melt tartine

With the first hints of spring, I pulled out my bike and spent this Saturday having a perfect day. I treated myself to brunch out.  One of my attempts at being frugal means brining my cup of coffee with me to work every day so lingering over a café au lait is a special treat.  Next I toodled around Eastern Market equally enjoying browsing the fresh produce, art, and people watching. This is when the perfect day really starts to kick in. As I select ingredients ideas for dinner start to swirl n my head. Inside I buy some andouille sausage. Oranges are bought to make freshly squeezed juice to linger with over the Sunday paper. 

I shop in style thanks to my Aunt B!

Thanks to my parents I can now carry a
 lot more than a pork butt on my bike!

    

 Every Saturday Chat’s has a free wine tasting.  This was why I first started shopping there but I continue to go back because Bernie the owner always has time for a chat, answers my questions with enthusiasms and interest even though my price point stays in the $8-$15 range. He has intimate knowledge of every bottle in his store and the most radiant smile that draws you in making you feel a part of the community.   I picked up a Portuguese red blend because the Cork Boat is one of my favorite books and I have had Portuguese white wine but hadn’t yet tried a red.

In my mind I was imagining a twist on a Spanish tortilla. I love the simplicity of eggs and potatoes but this is not a recipe I have mastered so every once in a while I give it another go.  I sautéed the potatoes in a little olive oil with some sliver of garlic tossed in. When the potatoes were almost cooked through with a lovely browning, I added some asparagus and a spring onion, and pat of butter just to give it extra richness. I set this mixture aside and cooked some of the andouille. I tossed the potato mixture with a couple of beaten eggs. All of this was added back into the pan with the sausage and cooked over very low heat.  The result was nothing like a Spanish tortilla. Too much stuff and not enough egg, but it still tasted really good.  I grated a little pecorino on top and just because they had been so beautiful at the market I sautéed a few shitake mushrooms in butter.

At first I thought the wine might be too dry to go with the dish. But as it opened up and the butteriness of the potatoes, saltiness of the cheese, and spiciness of the sausage melded together the flavors all came together in harmony. The asparagus added just the right crunch and freshness.  Not to mentioned I spotted the first daffodils of the season today.

Sometimes a day on your own is just the thing, but it’s also nice to think ahead, the days will grow warmer and longer and my perfect day will be repeated with the increased bounty at the market and shared in the backyard with friends, Saturday Night jazz playing through the window.