Under a Red Roof ·

Peachy Keen

September 19, 2009 in Cooking + Baking, Eating by Colleen | 4 comments

Happy Saturday, everyone!

We bought some rather fabulous looking local peaches at the market this week – big perfectly shaped, and oh, the scent, heavenly. The problem? Mealy as all get out. I took one bite and felt such a wave of sadness that something so pretty and sweet smelling could be so icky. However, with a bit of baking experience under my belt, I knew there was potential for them. Here it is – clafoutis. Creamy and custardy, like a soft pancake, though with a slight crunch of a crust on top, and a snap to make, too. I forget how easy they are, and much prettier than a stack of pancakes, too.

I took the best of a recipe from Richard Sax and another from David Lebovitz to suit my quite particular tastes and it was perfectly delicious. You can use peaches, apricots, cherries, berries, plums, or a combination. It’s really hard to go wrong. Also, if you can, get up before the hubster (or the kids) and make it for breakfast, like I did. The sleepy smile plastered on his face and delight at the first bite is well worth the time and effort.

I also gilded the lily and made a peach sauce with the remaining fruit. I used the recipe included with my pancakes. Actually, I very nearly called this post, “How About Orange?” in homage to a rather snazzy blog and the fact that we had peach clafoutis, peach sauce, and charentais melon for breakfast – a rather monochromatic but happy coincidence!

Clafoutis

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 pound firm, ripe plums, peaches, apricots, sliced OR 2 cups berries or cherries (pitted) OR a combination

3 eggs

1/2 cup flour (I like using 1/4 cup whole wheat and 1/4 cup all purpose)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon brandy (optional, but very good, especially with peaches)

1/4 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for sprinkling

1 1/4 cups milk (2% or whole milk give the best flavor and texture)

Position your baking rack in the top third of the oven and preheat to 375. Liberally butter the bottom and sides of an 8 or 9 inch gratin dish or pie pan. Arrange the fruit in a pretty pattern.

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs until smooth. Whisk in the butter and flour until smooth, add vanilla and brandy (if using). Whisk in the 1/4 cup sugar, then the milk.

Pour the custard mixture over the fruit (be gentle about it so you don’t disrupt the prettiness you’ve made). Bake for 30 minutes.

Gently slide out the rack the clafoutis is resting on so you don’t disturb the crust that is forming. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, and continue baking for about 30 more minutes. It will be slightly firm in the center and the top will be a gorgeous golden brown. Serve right away or warm. It will deflate a bit, so snap your photos quickly (hopefully you’ll have better light than I did today).

Enjoy!

Tags: Cooking and Baking

Julie and Julia

September 18, 2009 in Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 3 comments

I don’t tend to be an envious person. I know I’ve got it pretty darn good, but sometimes, as I am positively human, and therefore absolutely imperfect, my little green monster rears its tiny head. And so it did during Julie and Julia, an utterly delightful Sunday afternoon movie, if ever there was one.

The film follows Julie Powell, a rather mousy Amy Adams, as she flounders at a considerably depressing and highly unsatisfactory job. All of her friends are wildly successful, with assistants, lots of money, and the like, while she can’t seem to get it together. Save for her saint of a husband and her love of cooking, she’d be one unhappy camper.

Enter Julia Child, played by the incomparable Meryl Streep (seriously, what can’t she do?), and the seminal Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Julie decides to make, as well as blog about, all of the 524 recipes in the span of one year. 365 days. A whole lot of cooking.

In the mean time, dear Julia is furthering her exquisite love of butter and eating, in general, while she flounders a bit herself. What is she to DO with her life now that she is no longer a spy? Okay, maybe this is a slight exaggeration, but she did work for the OSS in China for Pete’s sake. I digress a bit here, as the thought of this makes me chuckle – the six foot two inch gregarious woman in China? I don’t suppose they were looking for someone inconspicuous, were they?

Anyway, I watched with rapt attention as Julie and Julia struggle, in their own ways, to find fulfillment and happiness, their days chockablock with writing, perfecting recipes, and, of course, eating. Not to mention their fantastically supportive husbands, kind, patient, loving, and sexy, too. Though they aren’t without their troubles, either: failed recipes, complicated relationships, trouble at work, and infertility among them.

And this is where I circle back to me. Me, me, me. It is my blog, after all. I could not help but identify with these women as they struggled to find someone to take an interest in their work, to share their passion, and, ultimately, to one day be published, to feel as though their time and sincere effort had not been lost or wasted.

I count myself in their fine company knowing that, first and foremost, the work is for the person doing it. Just as Julie and Julia cooked and wrote to save themselves from despair and boredom, I write to express my love for life and this wondrous third planet from the sun. Then, like them, it is my great hope that others will find my work and be inspired or tickled or perplexed by it and keep coming back for more.

But where they found success in the form of published works, television shows, and movies, I have yet to do. This is where I turn a slightly green hue, where I cry just a little bit and feel sorry for myself. Don’t fret, however, as it doesn’t last terribly long, for like the movie and these fine women in real life, I know good things are on their way and the music will turn from maudlin to cheery, and I will be reminded that life truly is sublime.

Cheer

September 17, 2009 in Quoting by Colleen | Permalink

A light heart lives long.

Shakespeare – Love’s Labour’s Lost

Colorado Friends

September 16, 2009 in Admiring, Celebrating, Exploring, Loving by Colleen | 1 comment

Here are the reasons why our trip to Denver included so much talking and driving, the reasons why it is always so, for that matter. Whenever we head back to Colorado, we, quite literally, fill our days with special people. This trip was no exception, driving hither and yon to catch up with friends from the present and past. Though acquaintances from the past played an even larger role this trip, as Facebook has brought us back in touch with the multitudes from our school days.

Unfortunately, the hubster was only with me on the first leg of the trip, as he doesn’t have much time off from Boyd’s just yet (March 9th, I’ve got my eye on you!). Pictured with him are Lance and Eric (all with such handsome baby faces!), good friends from junior high and high school. The trio played on the tennis team together, and Eric was the best man at our wedding. This was the start to my super sore throat, as we easily chatted, ate, and drank the evening away at Lance’s former place of employment, Riever’s. Thanks fellas!

If you’ve been with me for a while, you may remember a certain jerk I referred to back in this post. Well folks, here he is. “That Tim Brown,” as my dad used to say. We got re-acquainted on Facebook late last year, oddly enough, at the hubster’s urging, as I was a bit weary. I know – the man is a gem. Anyhoo, we had a fantastic time, gabbing away, eating at my favorite Greek restaurant – Pete’s Central One, spending the afternoon at the awesome Denver Art Museum (love the architecture – the old from my memory as well as the new, a delightful assortment of sharp angles and lines), and enjoying a cool drink and some crisps at Pints Pub. A very fine day among friends, indeed.

Here’s another fella I’ve talked about before, Steve White, my longest lasting school crush. We also chatted like mad, zipping through our personal histories of the past twenty-one years. It turns out I was right about him, too. All those math skills and not asking me to be his girlfriend translated into a life full of contentment and success with a lovely wife, adorable son, a passion for cooking, and a career in advertising. I could not be happier for him.

Finally, some ladies! Stacy and Kari. We have yet to figure out why we weren’t best friends in high school, as we have so very much in common. One of those mysteries of youth, I suppose. We spent our time at one of the best independent book stores in the world, with one of the best names, as well, The Tattered Cover, and their adjoining, and quite delicious restaurant, Encore. Of course we chatted gaily, and laughed at each other’s expense, and reveled at how marvelous it is to be in touch again.

This lovely portion of my visit was the one I never thought would happen. Dear Maura, on the left, has a very busy and demanding job that takes her to all points in the Denver-Metro area. Luckily, the stars aligned and we met, along with Chrissie (who shares my passion for yoga, even teaching it) and her cutie pie of a son Sam at a shopping center in Arvada. Oh, the places you’ll go! I know I sound like a broken record, but we delighted in each other’s fine company, as well, and laughed at all the people wanting an Einstein Bagel. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many desperate souls banging on doors after closing time. Seriously people, it’s just a bagel.

And now, for the big night! This was the large, though not as large as we’d hoped, group of fine folks from Arvada High School, former home of the Redskins, now just the Reds, as, well, you know, it isn’t terribly kind or PC to say such things. Ignorance was bliss back then. This is Ann (my best friend in first and second grade – more about her later), Karen, and Mike. They’ve all turned out to be such exceptional people. I am proud to know them.

This is a sweet story – Garrett and Adina secretly liked each other in ninth grade and even shared a dance way back when. Now they are long-distance sweethearts (she lives in Nebraska) after quite a rough and tumble divorce for Adina. It’s nice to see something wonderful happening between them!

Hello Jessica and Don! Jessica and I shared a passion for the color black (no pastels for us!) and clove cigarettes in high school, smoking and enjoying infectious chatter at Paris on the Platte in days gone by. I am happy to say the chatter is just as infectious as ever – she is a good friend. As for Don, we used to read to each other during our free period in high school. He was (and still remains) Tim’s best friend, thus serving as interpreter and go-between in our rather complicated relationship. Bless his heart, he’s one of the kindest men I shall ever know.

The whole gang, including Mike’s terrific wife Erica on the far right. It was a highly satisfactory evening for reminiscing and getting to know the people we are today!

A New Routine

September 15, 2009 in Being by Colleen | 4 comments

Good morning gentle readers. I hope you had a good week! Mine was a whirlwind of driving, talking, eating, laughing, hugs, kisses, more talking, definitely more driving, and sleeping in my grandparents gigantic bed. In all, it felt like the pictures, a tall glass of delicious boba tea drained, quite magically, in an instant.

It was a week of infinite blessings, of good cheer and camaraderie, of seeing people I hadn’t in ages, and appreciating the wonders of technology that brought us all together. Life, quite simply, is GRAND.

And now, today at least, I’ve got to figure out what to do next. I need a new routine. My body is finally ready for a little more vigorous exercise. I want to get the self-publishing ball rolling for Polite Society, finish the short story I started before I left, as well as the novel I began last year (The Sometimes Sordid Tale of My Penmanship). My generous mother-in-law Martha gave me a beautifully bound book of paper, much in need of drawings and watercolors, and my precious Portland friends now have their kidlets in school, so there’s time during the day to be together. So much goodness, I tell you. I just need to get it all on paper and figure out a way to do it all, as Mary Poppins would say, “In the most delightful way!”

So rather than recount my Colorado adventures (don’t fret, this will be done), today I am setting my intention to arrange my time so that I can be all that I can be. Maybe there’s something you’re wishing to organize? I say, let’s go forth together!