Inspiration … Deal with It

I’ve been grumpy and complaining about our New Hampshire spring.  Everything is brown and gray. Fresh local fruits and vegetables will come, eventually, but not for a couple of months. Whether I use her traditional recipes or not, it’s time to channel Nana Nye,  knuckle up  (or is that knuckle or buckle down) and deal with it!

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Thanks to Chef Mario Batali for today’s inspiration.

“The tradition of Italian cooking is that of the matriarch. This is the cooking of grandma. She didn’t waste time thinking too much about the celery. She got the best celery she could and then she dealt with it.”  …………………………………… Chef Mario Batali

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My New England Nana Nye with her 1930 edition of The Boston Cooking School Cook Book by 
Fannie Merritt Farmer. Nana was not Italian but she too dealt with it.
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What are you cooking this spring? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going.  

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2012

Quote from a Broad

With apologies to my British friends and in celebration of  Australia Day …
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“I’ll bet what motivated the British to colonize so much of the world is that they were just looking for a decent meal.”

… Martha Harrison

Grilling Piri Piri Pawns

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More Quotes to assume or inspire.

What’s your favorite cuisine(s)? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going. To make a comment, just click on Comments below.

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2012

Inspiration … Virginia Woolf and Dining Well

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One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.                    Virginia Woolf                                                   

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Bon appétit!

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More Cooking Quotes to inspire you.

What does dining well mean to you? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going. To make a comment, just click on Comments below.

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2011

In the Kitchen … Or Not

In the infamous words of Harry S. Truman,

                          If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

It’s that kind of week. Sweltering hot, it is definitely a week to stay out of the kitchen. It is the perfect time to turn a salad into a one-dish meal. Toss up a big bowl of crispy veggies and top with leftover chicken, steak or shrimp. Two of my favorite one-dish summertime dinners are Thai Salad and Corn & Tomato Salad. I like the Thai Salad with shrimp and the Corn and Tomato Salad topped with chicken – but that’s just me.

Whatever you do, take dinner outside on the deck or to beach. Enjoy!

Bon appétit!

More Tips, Tricks & Tools and Cooking Quotes to inspire you.

What’s your favorite summer salad? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going. To make a comment, just click on Comments below. I’d be delighted to add you to the growing list of blog subscribers. To subscribe: just scroll back up, fill in your email address and click on the Sign Me Up button. You’ll get an email asking you to confirm your subscription … confirm and you will automatically receive a new story and recipe every week.

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2011

Inspiration … Julia Child on Cooking

I recently finished My Live in France by Julia Child and her nephew Alex Prud’homme. It is not a great work of literature but it is great fun. Especially for someone like me who lived abroad for many years. For almost two decades I lived a few miles from the French border and enjoyed many fun and fabulous meals in little country restaurants and inns.
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The food I found in bistros and cafés in France, in Switzerland and around the world inspired me. The chefs in these cozy little spots became my teachers, spurring me on to chop, stir, baste, bake and create.

In the closing pages of her book, Julia offers a bit of advice. I couldn’t agree more!

This is my invariable advice to people: Learn to cook – try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!                             Julia Child

Bon appétit!

More Cooking Quotes to inspire you.

What are your favorite moments in the kitchen? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going. To make a comment, just click on Comments below. I’d be delighted to add you to the growing list of blog subscribers. To subscribe: just scroll back up, fill in your email address and click on the Sign Me Up button. You’ll get an email asking you to confirm your subscription … confirm and you will automatically receive a new story and recipe every week.

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2011

Inspiration … Chef Mario Batali on Asparagus

You know, when you get your first asparagus, or your first acorn squash, or your first really good tomato of the season, those are the moments that define the cook’s year. I get more excited by that than anything else.

Chef Mario Batali

Bon appétit!

More Cooking Quotes to amuse or inspire you.

What are your favorite moments in the kitchen? I’d love to hear from you! Let’s get a conversation going. To make a comment, just click on Comments below. I’d be delighted to add you to the growing list of blog subscribers. To subscribe: just scroll back up, fill in your email address and click on the Sign Me Up button. You’ll get an email asking you to confirm your subscription … confirm and you will automatically receive a new story and recipe every week.

Want more? Click here for lots more to read, see & cook! In addition, I hope that you will take a minute to learn about my philanthropic project Eat Well-Do Good. ©Susan W. Nye, 2011