• I’m thankful for my husband, Egan. He never grumbles when I drag him to a “chick-flick”; in fact, he usually ends up enjoying himself, and sometimes even sheds a tear (most notably at the Nicholas Sparks movie “The Notebook” a few years back, though he won’t admit it). He does owe me, however, after all the semi-violent action thrillers I’ve taken in, just for him, this summer. Violence in movies gives me bad dreams and makes my head hurt, bad.
• I’m thankful for my girlfriends Patty and Beth, who made me feel so much better after a tear-soaked afternoon recently, when I dropped my daughter off at the Syracuse Airport and knew we wouldn’t see her again until Thanksgiving. I seriously cried so much on that two hour drive home that I was a danger to myself and everyone else on the road. Beth told me that it’s actually good for me to cry all I want, which totally goes against my “suck it up,” tough girl persona. And Patty, on Facebook, reminded me that we’ve given our daughter roots, so now it’s time to give her wings. She should know: her son Paul is back in Nepal (in the Katmandu Valley—how awesome is that? He has a blog—I’ll try to get you that address in an upcoming column so you can follow his travels.), and this time for at least two years. And she has two more sons away at college, as well. I am also sooooo very grateful for all of the recipes my girlfriends send my way; be on the lookout for Patty’s vegan Orange “Chik-N” recipe in this column, very soon.
• I’m thankful for my silly dawg, Wee Willie Willard (although he’s not so “Wee” anymore.). That pound pup has turned into the sweetest and most affectionate dog, ever, and he makes me laugh, every single day. He also makes me get my ever expanding Honky Tonk Badonk-A-Donk up and off of my couch for daily walks, even in the pouring rain; he truly cares about my fitness. Why, he’s my very own personal trainer, and only accepts Iams kibble and biscuits as payment.
• And lastly (for now, anyways) I am so thankful to have worked for Editor Leslie Bailey over the last 2 plus years, and I am so thankful to get the chance to now work for the awesome M. Lisa Monroe. Lisa has the most wicked sense of humor of anyone I know, and she’s insanely brilliant, soI just know she’ll do a bang-up job at The Express. You GO, Marilynn Lisa.
And now, onto this week’s recipes. I’m really trying to take advantage of the summer’s fruits and vegetables for as long as possible (which are easily picked up at The Old Forge Farmer’s Market each and every Friday afternoon, by the way), so I’ve got an awesome recipe for a Peach and Blueberry Cobbler that I prepared recently. The “cobbles” bake on top of the cinnamon and nutmeg dusted fruit, and taste like the best biscuits you’ve ever eaten. Don’t forget the vanilla ice cream on the side. And, if you are looking for a way to use up a bountiful harvest of zucchini, my Zesty Zucchini Pie is just the ticket. It makes an awesome side dish, and feeds 6 to 8 people. Enjoy.
OOPS—one more thing. If you happened to prepare the Betty’s Hotel Ohio Refrigerator Pickles from last week’s column, and found them to be waaaay too salty—you weren’t alone. I received an e-mail from a lovely woman who just couldn’t eat them. I have no way to get ahold of Betty Kelley, but I did do a little research on pickling cucumbers, and most recipes that produce similar quantities of pickles suggest using 3 to 4 tablespoons of salt, not 3/4 CUP, so I would go with that, unless you really, really like your pickles salty.
PEACH AND BLUEBERRY COBBLER
Serves 6
Filling:
2 lbs. ripe but firm peaches (5 or 6 medium)
1cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 to 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
Pinch salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
Biscuits:
1 cup all purpose flour
3 tblsp. sugar, plus extra 1 tsp.
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
5 tblsp. cold butter, cut into cubes
1/3 cup lowfat plain yogurt
Peel and pit peaches; cut peaches into thick wedges. Gently toss peaches and sugar together in a large bowl; let stand for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Drain peaches in a colander set over a large bowl; reserve 1/4 cup of peach juice. Whisk reserved peach juice, cornstarch, lemon juice and salt together in a small bowl. Toss peach slices and blueberries with peach juice mixture and transfer to an 8 inch square baking dish. Sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon and bake for 10 minutes (or until fruit begins to bubble). While peaches and blueberries are baking, in a food processor pulse flour, 3 tblsp. sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt to combine. Add butter cubes and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to medium bowl; add yogurt and mix until dough is formed (you might need to add an extra tablespoon or so of yogurt if dough is too dry). Do not overmix. Break dough into 6 or 8 evenly sized mounds and set aside. Remove peaches and blueberries from oven and place dough mounds on top—space them around 1/2 inch apart—do not let them touch. Sprinkle each mound with additional sugar. Bake until cobbles are golden brown and fruit is bubbling, about 15-18 minutes. Cool until just warm; serve with ice cream, if desired.
ZESTY ZUCCHINI PIE
Serves 6-8 side dish servings
1 cup Bisquick
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/2 cup salad oil
3 cups grated zucchini, unpeeled
1 small yellow onion, chopped fine
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. red chili pepper flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour into a greased 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes, or until lightly browned. Do not overbake. Let pie cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Happy eating.
Please send all recipes or comments to P.O. Box 111, Old Forge, NY 13420, or e-mail them to lnwillard@hotmail.com">lnwillard@hotmail.com.