Of Grief & Hollandaise

Pete. 199? - 2010

On Sunday my beautiful dog, Pete, died.  On Monday I made Hollandaise sauce. I did this with swollen eyes, shaking hands, throbbing head, nauseous stomach, and empty heart.  I clarified butter, I whisked egg yolks,  I squeezed a lemon, I seasoned my sauce with salt and cayenne pepper. It came out well enough; I suppose it was good.

I didn't do it because I'm going to be tested on it tomorrow in my culinary final. I didn't do it because I was hungry. I suppose I did it because of the amount of precision and concentration required. While in the past I have always cooked to be fully in the moment, this time I cooked to be out of it. I cooked to escape into the cooking, and out of the grief. Just for a minute.

Homemade Pretzels with Black Lava Salt: International Incident Salt Party

Pretty mustards all in a row: Zwiebel (onion), horseradish, & Dijon

 Wars have been fought over it. People have been killed for it. In the wrong hands it can be underused, overused, or  downright abused. It is the single most important seasoning in the culinary world. Of course I'm talking about salt - the theme for this month's International Incident Party, hosted as always by our incomparable founder and host, Penny aka Jeroxie.

This salt theme has happily given me the push I (apparently) needed to fulfill a promise I made to Penny many months ago when I won The Salt Book in a giveaway she had. She asked that the winners make a dish from the book and share it with everyone. "Oh yes!" I said. "Definitely!"

Well, that was back in April ... 

Moroccan Chicken, Preserved Lemon, & Olive Tagine with Dried Cherry & Almond Couscous

If you've followed this blog at all, you may be a bit surprised - or even, if you're vegetarian, disappointed - to see me writing about a chicken recipe. In fact, this is the first meat dish - other than fish - that I've ever featured here.

So, what has gotten into me? Let me explain ...

Beans & Cornbread (had a fight ... but don't you worry, it worked out allright!)

Beans and Cornbread had a fight
Beans knocked Cornbread outta sight
Cornbread said,  "Now that’s alright, meet me on the corner tomorrow night"
I'll be ready, I'll be ready tomorrow night
I'll be ready, I'll be ready tomorrow night
I'll be ready, I'll be ready tomorrow night 

 --Louis Jordan, "Beans 'n Cornbread" 

In the famous Louis Jordan song I quote above, beans and cornbread start out fighting, but by the end of the song, they become best of friends and realize that they go together like "hot cakes and molasses," "strawberries and shortcake," and "sour cream and biscuits." Silly beans and cornbread! I knew it all along.

Za Vas! Eating and Drinking My Way Through the Russian Festival

Because why wouldn't you put a creepy big-eyed baby head on your bite-sized chocolate??

The gravity-defying moves of the Ukrainian Dance Troupe

Anyone who reads this blog knows just how much I love a good festival. I get ridiculously worked up about them, really. Latino, Korean, Greek - just put a fork in my hand and point me towards all that  food.   So you can only imagine how excited Poppa Trix and I were for the Russian Festival. Just think: Vareniki!  Babka! Blinis! Vodka.  And even though the festival took place in a relatively small space - under a tent and an  adjoining room, part of a Russian Orthodox church - there was no shortage of goodies and fun.

Sweet & Spicy Lavender Honey Quickbread for the International Incident Lavender Party

Hey lavender! Are you ready for the party?

Have I mentioned how grateful I am for these monthly International Incident Parties? So often these days, my life gets overwhelmingly busy and I find myself neglecting (and missing) both my blog and the many, many food blogs I love to read. But these parties give me an assignment (the theme) and a deadline (the party date). And I always make my deadlines! Best of all, they help me stay connected with many of my fellow food bloggers. So many thanks (as always) to our awesome hostess and founder Penny aka Jeroxie!

Truthfully, at first I was a bit at a loss when I found out that this month's theme was lavender. Ironically, I had just used culinary lavender for the first time in the recent Incident Scones Party, in my lavender, cardamom, and cracked black pepper drop scones. Eek! Just how many lavender dishes can one person come up with?

Spaghetti Squash with Sage, Roasted Garlic, & Gruyere

 

 Why do I always forget about spaghetti squash until someone or something reminds me of just how awesome it is? This time, my memory was jogged thanks to fruit and vegetable day in culinary class. As a demo, Chef whipped up a wickedly tasty dish of spaghetti squash and cheese and fresh herbs. (And I'm not singing the praises of Chef's cooking  just because he happens to know that I write this blog and may in fact read this post  ... That's like asking for extra credit points just for flattery. Which I would never, ever do. Ahem.)

Korean American Fest: Colors, Music, and Fab, Fab Food

Yes, yes, I know this is a food blog, but the traditional costumes at the recent Korean American Festival - held in downtown Baltimore on a broiling hot September Sunday - were just too gorgeous, too colorful, and too darn pink for me to resist.

Ei Candy: Viennese Eiersalat, Two Ways, for the International Incident Eggs Party

 

Welcome to the September International Incident Party!  Because this is my birthday month, I'm thrilled to be co-hosting with the fabulous Penny aka Jeroxie. These little shindigs she started back in February just keep growing - not only is this the biggest party yet, but Epicurious just did a write up about the Incidents. Cool stuff.

In the past, party themes have included gnocchi, noodles, pizza, and tacos, but I don't think we've ever had a party with such a wide-open theme as this one: eggs. Eggs! The sheer number of possibilities made this one tough to nail down. I had so many ideas: a souffle? eggs en cocotte? a cake for my birthday? Too bad I already made Julia Child's gateau omni omelette!!

But then I remembered those tiny little sandwiches I fell in love with in Vienna.

It's an Eggs Party, and You're Invited!

 

Have you joined in on an International Incident Party yet? If not, now is the time! Who wouldn't want to come to an eggs party, after all? And September is my birthday month, and that means I get to co-host the shindig on September 26th with the awesome Penny aka Jeroxie, the founder of these monthly soirees.