During the concert, Portland experienced an historic downpour ... over 4 inches of rain fell in about two hours. And this after a full day of heavy rain. Manhole covers were blown from their fittings by gushing storm sewers, and streets filled with water. We tried three different ways to drive home from the city, and were met with sudden floodwaters the first two times. Eventually, we were able to make it to the highway, and were able to make it home safely.
And on Saturday, we welcomed flutist Peter Bloom, guitarist Mark Leighton, their managers and significant others - as well as flutemakers Forbes and Yola Christie to our house for a weekend stay that ended with a superb concert of classical and jazz pieces played by Peter and Mark.
All this was happening whilst Maine Fiddle Camp and the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann were ongoing in other locations. My fiddle remained in its case throughout the week, however - a humbling admission. But I really hope that will change this week, as we finish off the course work and prepare for the Cummington Fair!
The Fair is an end-of-summer delight that makes the transition of seasons a bit sweeter. It is an old-fashioned rural agricultural fair, with the addition of a fine midway, musical acts, and (my favorite) contests of animal (and human) training and performance. A family cookout on the farm is the highlight of the weekend - everyone gets to enjoy each other's company as well as a terrific meal and the unforgettable vistas of the hill country of western Massachusetts.
The Garden
This week's best flowers
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| Oriental lilies are really popping in the garden about now. Here's one gorgeous cultivar, surrounded by the leaves of one of my hydrangeas. If you look closely, there are a couple of insects enjoying these beauties too! |
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| Another shot of the Oriental lilies, this time surrounded by gooseneck loosestrife, at the end of its bloom. |
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| Annual New Guinea impatiens are still adding a lot of color to the front of the borders. There's an art glass ball here, as well as the foliage of sweet woodruff, German iris, hydrangea and lupine. The blue ceramic bowl holds leaf lettuce. |
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| Roses are well into their second bloom now! After their first bloom, in late June, I deadheaded them, sprayed them with an organic fungicide, and worked Epsom salts into the soil with some well-rotted compost. This is my David Austin English Rose, called "Carding Mill". I love the color - and the fragrance is wonderfully heady. |
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| What may be my favorite color of daylily in the garden. It's a peach-yellow combination that is not well-shown in the photograph. I bought a bunch of these at a closeout special from White Flower Farm about twelve years ago, and they have followed me to the new house from the summer place in Wells. |
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| The rose border. Catmint and cranesbill (also called wild geranium) are the mounds at the front of the border. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A couple of arrangements of backyard blooms: |
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| It's finally zinnia season! These spectacular and practically foolproof annuals are just so bright and sturdy that they need no further embellishment. I like shades of hot pink and orange, and I have arranged a bunch of very bright blooms simply in a white alabaster footed vase. There's nothing in the neutral background to detract from the hot pop of color. |
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| Sunflowers need some extra care and patience when arranging. They are almost always topheavy, and thus need support from a broad or sturdy vase, as well as the flowers surrounding them. The hardest thing is to arrange them so that their sun-seeking blossoms are shown to their best advantage. Here I have chosen an Irish crystal biscuit jar for an unsymmetrical, dynamic arrangement of small sunflowers. I've added sweet corn tassels as linear elements and dill flowers for their airy texture, a counterpoint to the solid sunflowers. |
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Recipes for the Week
An informal summer dinner party
When you're expecting summer guests (and, if you live in Southern Maine, that seems to be often - a true delight!) a make-ahead menu allows you to enjoy your guests as well as your own cooking. Last-minute preparation is minimal with this menu, and will happily accommodate offers of help from guests. Here goes:
Appetizers: Cheese board, with honey and hot pepper jelly as condiments. Chopped tomato and basil bruschetta on baguette toasts. Almonds.
I like to serve appetizers with an aperitif. Wine is fine, but for a bit of extra interest, try well-chilled white Lillet (a French fortified wine) with a thin slice of fruit.
Mains: Grilled turkey kebabs with chimichurri sauce, wild rice salad with grilled vegetables and za'tar, tossed green salad with steamed green beans, fresh corn, and bacon, with French vinaigrette. Warmed ciabatta or other crusty bread.
Dessert: Cornmeal butter cake with mixed berry sauce
Here is the plan: the bruschetta, both salads, chimichurri sauce, salad dressing, cake and berry sauce can all be prepared in advance and wait for you either in the refrigerator or on the countertop if it is not too hot.
For bruschetta: I cheat. I used a can of Hunt's fire-roasted diced tomatoes with garlic. I added salt, pepper, and chopped basic and oregano to the drained tomatoes, and allowed the mixture to mellow for several hours in the fridge. Thinly slice a baguette on the bias and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with herb salt and bake until crispy. These will remain crisp on the countertop in a bowl or on a platter until you need them.
For chimichurri: There's a huge number of recipes for this all-purpose (and addictive) sauce for grilled meats. Here's an easy one: Wash a bunch of cilantro, and a bunch of flat-leafed parsley. Cut off the heads of the bunches (with some stems attached) and throw the leaves into the food processor bowl with four sliced cloves of garlic, 1-2 Tbsp. red-wine vinegar, a teaspoon of kosher salt (you may need more), 1/2 tsp. fresh-ground black pepper, and about 1/2 cup olive oil (you may need more). Process until the herbs are finely chopped and the sauce is spoonable. You may need to add more oil, or a tablespoon or two of water. Taste, and adjust seasoning. You may need a bit more salt. Scrape the sauce into a screw-top jar. It can remain on the countertop for many hours; the salt and oil preserve the herbs.
For the rice salad: pre-grill a bunch of vegetables such as sweet onions, zucchini, and red pepper strips - brush the veggies with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and za'tar (a spicy North African/Middle Eastern herb mix) before grilling. After the veggies are grilled, chop them coarsely and mix with wild and white rice that you have cooked beforehand. Moisten the salad with olive oil, salt, and more za'tar, to taste. This can sit, well-covered, on the countertop for several hours as well.
For the green salad: steam the green beans and cut the corn kernels from the cob. Store separately in the refrigerator, before mixing at the last minute with sliced romaine and chopped bacon. Mix with a vinaigrette that you have made beforehand, or a bottled dressing is fine as well. I like Penzey's Country French Vinaigrette mix, mostly for its bracing hint of chervil.
Kebabs: You should pre-cut the turkey into (smallish) cubes for the kebabs. Toss the cubes with a little bottled Italian dressing to provide a little flavor, oil for the grill, and preservation. Keep turkey well-chilled until ready to grill. Then, thread the cubes on wooden skewers that have soaked in water for an hour or so, and grill over high heat. Brush kebabs with an equal mixture of light brown sugar and balsamic vinegar at the end of grilling.
Cornmeal cake: This is one of my favorite recipes, adapted from an ancient (1991!) issue of Food and Wine magazine. I've made it for years, and each time it is a little different, but always very buttery, very good, with a distinctive crunch. First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease a pan well with butter and dust it with cornmeal. The original recipe calls for a loaf pan, but I have a cake mold in the shape of a scallop shell, and I use it exclusively for this cake. Then, combine 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a mixer, until the sugar dissolves and the butter is very light. Add 1 tsp. pure vanilla, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 3 eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The mixture may separate at this point, but don't worry. To the mixture add 1/2 cup cornmeal, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, and 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 30-35 minutes (for the scallop mold) or 45 minutes or so (for the loaf pan), or until a cake tester comes out clean. Run a knife around the perimeter of the cake, and invert over a cooling rack. After 15 minutes, lift off the pan, and cool completely. This cake needs no more than a sprinkle of powdered sugar for decoration, but a sauce made of mixed berries and some lightly whipped cream are delightful additions.
Make most of this ahead, and enjoy your own dinner party!
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I like to serve appetizers with an aperitif. Wine is fine, but for a bit of extra interest, try well-chilled white Lillet (a French fortified wine) with a thin slice of fruit.
Mains: Grilled turkey kebabs with chimichurri sauce, wild rice salad with grilled vegetables and za'tar, tossed green salad with steamed green beans, fresh corn, and bacon, with French vinaigrette. Warmed ciabatta or other crusty bread.
Dessert: Cornmeal butter cake with mixed berry sauce
Here is the plan: the bruschetta, both salads, chimichurri sauce, salad dressing, cake and berry sauce can all be prepared in advance and wait for you either in the refrigerator or on the countertop if it is not too hot.
For bruschetta: I cheat. I used a can of Hunt's fire-roasted diced tomatoes with garlic. I added salt, pepper, and chopped basic and oregano to the drained tomatoes, and allowed the mixture to mellow for several hours in the fridge. Thinly slice a baguette on the bias and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with herb salt and bake until crispy. These will remain crisp on the countertop in a bowl or on a platter until you need them.
For chimichurri: There's a huge number of recipes for this all-purpose (and addictive) sauce for grilled meats. Here's an easy one: Wash a bunch of cilantro, and a bunch of flat-leafed parsley. Cut off the heads of the bunches (with some stems attached) and throw the leaves into the food processor bowl with four sliced cloves of garlic, 1-2 Tbsp. red-wine vinegar, a teaspoon of kosher salt (you may need more), 1/2 tsp. fresh-ground black pepper, and about 1/2 cup olive oil (you may need more). Process until the herbs are finely chopped and the sauce is spoonable. You may need to add more oil, or a tablespoon or two of water. Taste, and adjust seasoning. You may need a bit more salt. Scrape the sauce into a screw-top jar. It can remain on the countertop for many hours; the salt and oil preserve the herbs.
For the rice salad: pre-grill a bunch of vegetables such as sweet onions, zucchini, and red pepper strips - brush the veggies with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and za'tar (a spicy North African/Middle Eastern herb mix) before grilling. After the veggies are grilled, chop them coarsely and mix with wild and white rice that you have cooked beforehand. Moisten the salad with olive oil, salt, and more za'tar, to taste. This can sit, well-covered, on the countertop for several hours as well.
For the green salad: steam the green beans and cut the corn kernels from the cob. Store separately in the refrigerator, before mixing at the last minute with sliced romaine and chopped bacon. Mix with a vinaigrette that you have made beforehand, or a bottled dressing is fine as well. I like Penzey's Country French Vinaigrette mix, mostly for its bracing hint of chervil.
Kebabs: You should pre-cut the turkey into (smallish) cubes for the kebabs. Toss the cubes with a little bottled Italian dressing to provide a little flavor, oil for the grill, and preservation. Keep turkey well-chilled until ready to grill. Then, thread the cubes on wooden skewers that have soaked in water for an hour or so, and grill over high heat. Brush kebabs with an equal mixture of light brown sugar and balsamic vinegar at the end of grilling.
Cornmeal cake: This is one of my favorite recipes, adapted from an ancient (1991!) issue of Food and Wine magazine. I've made it for years, and each time it is a little different, but always very buttery, very good, with a distinctive crunch. First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease a pan well with butter and dust it with cornmeal. The original recipe calls for a loaf pan, but I have a cake mold in the shape of a scallop shell, and I use it exclusively for this cake. Then, combine 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a mixer, until the sugar dissolves and the butter is very light. Add 1 tsp. pure vanilla, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 3 eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The mixture may separate at this point, but don't worry. To the mixture add 1/2 cup cornmeal, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, and 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 30-35 minutes (for the scallop mold) or 45 minutes or so (for the loaf pan), or until a cake tester comes out clean. Run a knife around the perimeter of the cake, and invert over a cooling rack. After 15 minutes, lift off the pan, and cool completely. This cake needs no more than a sprinkle of powdered sugar for decoration, but a sauce made of mixed berries and some lightly whipped cream are delightful additions.
Make most of this ahead, and enjoy your own dinner party!
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| Paul and I were fascinated witnesses to the approach of a huge thunderstorm the other day, at Kennebunk's Parsons Beach. Here is a photo of a portion of the Mousam River estuary, with layered thunder clouds above. |
Sally, Thank You for this lovely slice of your life in Maine -- the gardens, the blossoms, the diary and recipes. This could be a future Sally's Garden magazine. Just wonderful. Cathy
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