Itinerant Muse

March Madness and Easter Musings

YES! The Wisconsin Badgers are the best in the Big Ten, having won the Championship game yesterday against Illinois. Now we are on to the Final Four Frenzy and NCAA basketball will occupy any free moments I have ~ I love college basketball and Wisconsin is in contention for the final four for sure.
That cheerleading note being rah-rahed, I will go on to my musings and many days past due notations. Since the Easter bunny is about to hop into our homes bringing lots of colorful eggs and candies, let’s look at where most of us like to sit ~ the dinner table, kitchen counter or a cozy cookery nook.
Usually, for our table, it is all about a fresh Swedish ham roasted and basted in vodka and laced with juniper berries and nutmeg ~ it is so unbelievably succulent, even the pig would enjoy it!
This year, my photographer son, slow with sports shoots right now, is serving at a wonderful upscale restaurant in Red Bank, NJ, called Gaetano's, so we will be doing an early brunch. (I will write about Gaetano's later.) I grappled with what to serve, especially since my daughter is bringing her beau, whom I have yet to meet and to whom (I am sure) she has touted my culinary attributes. And, he loves to cook ~ quite well, I understand ~ so Mom can not fall on her ‘foodie’ face. Keeping it simple, since my son will have to go to work and we will only have a two-hour window, I have decided to prepare my famous breakfast soufflé from a cookbook source I know not since I adopted it many, many years ago. All I have to reference it is that it’s the recipe of Carolyn Moses from Vidalia, GA., described by the author as one of the best cooks he/she knew.
Here is my adaptation for an Easter Breakfast Soufflé:
Sauce:
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
2 Tbsp. flour
2 cups milk
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese
¼ cup chopped scallions
½ tsp. salt
Egg Layer:
3 Tbsp. butter
12 eggs, well beaten
Options:
12 oz. crisply cook bacon crumbled, 6 slices of Canadian bacon diced OR for this recipe 6 thick slices of baked ham diced
Sauce: Melt butter and whisk in flour. Slowly add milk and heat until slightly thickened. Add cheese, onion and salt.
Soft scramble eggs in butter ~ and I emphasize soft.
Assemblage: Place chopped ham in bottom of 2-qt. casserole. Top with scrambled eggs and place mushrooms on top of eggs. Pour cheese sauce over mixture and top with buttered crumbs. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, slightly longer if casserole has been chilled (you can make this 2 days ahead and chill)
Options: For a heartier dish, add some sausage, e.g. kielbasa or spicy Italian to the diced ham.
Serves 6-8

Tomorrow, I will give you another idea for an easy alternative. It is Bon Appètit time!

Memories of my homeland

It's a frigid Playoff Sunday and I am anxiously awaiting my Green Bay Packers to hopefully knock the socks off the Giants. Of course, my son is here watching the games because he knows one of his favorite cold weather dinners will be our football fare tonight.
It is one of my favs too ~ my special turkey meatloaf spiced with whatever happens to pop into my culinary cranium at the moment, accompanied with twice baked potatoes and a very buttery, garlicky French baguette, complemented with a lovely dry Napa Valley Cabernet. A perfect meal to savor while watching the Packers defy sub-zero temperatures as they challenge the Giants.
You see, I grew up on the Packers as my Dad was a season ticket holder, even though we lived in Milwaukee. He went through college on a football scholarship with the nickname, "Cannonball" and a nose that was broken three times, so he looked a bit like Rocky. He loved football and the Packers ~ Vince Lombardi was a household name. And, thank goodness, the embarassing Cheeseheads hadn't been born yet. I cringe everytime I see them on the tube.
Not only did I grow up on the Packers, but an insightful knowledge of beef, good marbling and what make steaks so succulent. My father's company made Harvestore silos ~ those huge cobalt blue silos that dot the farmlands across the country. It was well known that the lining of those silos made the perfect storage for the very best mix of silage that cattle ate, hence producing the incredibly beautiful marbled beef, in particular, from Dad's favorite, the Black Angus.
As I await the Packer-Giants game today, cooking up a hearty warm dinner, memories of Wisconsin, my home, and my family fill me with the fondest memories. And, while I don't eat much beef anymore ~ when I do, it is with a very distinguished palate for the very best filet or tornedo cooked to medium rare perfection and, of course, Steak au Poive and a great thick, juicy burger. And to have my son here to share these moments is very special, although I wish my daugher were here, too. She was my father's "little princess." When my children were little and we visited my parents in Florida, on Sunday nights we always went to their country club for dinner and dancing. Dad, who loved to dance and wore a size 13 shoe, would put my daughter's little feet on his wingtips and whisk her around the dance floor while she beamed and giggled with joy.
All cherished memories from long ago.
It's half time of the Patriots-Chargers game and time for me to start cooking. The tiny lights of my Fraser fir have just come on sending a warm glow throughout my condo ~ and, no, I still haven't the heart to dismantle it ~ maybe, next weekend!
Enjoy the moment, raise a glass to health, happiness and fond memories ~ and Go Packers!