October 4, 2013

A Thought for Today

"The most important fact is not what society and environment made of us, but what we ourselves made under these influences"

                             EMM, letter to IR, 1960

A Piece of My Work

A Memory (III)

 

I hoped to be able to remake a head similar to that I made in June 2012, which broke in my hands. It's like the desire of having again a child like the one lost... I am not there yet...

A Recipe for the Day

Meat Ball Ciorba

The word "ciorba" come from Turkish and is used to describe a soup that had some "dressing" with lemon or lemon and eggs.

 

Ingredients:

3.5 quarts water

2 Tbsp. salt

2 tsp. black pepper

1 lb. ground beef (15% fat)

½ cup rice

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. savory

1 tsp. thyme

¼ cup flour 

1 bunch of green onions, finely sliced

2 medium sized carrots, peeled, and thinly sliced

1 large green pepper, chopped

3-4 tomatoes, chopped

 

½ chili

½ bunch parsley, finely chopped

2 eggs

 

Juice of 1 lemon 

Preparation: Combine water, 1 tbsp. salt, and1 tsp. pepper;

                      In a food processor, chop coarsely the green onions, carrots, green pepper, and tomatoes and add to the water in a large kettle. Cover, bring to a boil, and immediately lower the heat and simmer 30 minutes;

                      Combine meat, rice, 1 Tbsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper, paprika, savory, and thyme and make 1” balls.  Roll them in flour;

                      Add meatballs to the liquid, cover, and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.                      

                      Add chili and continue simmering 5-10 minutes;

                      Remove chili and continue simmering 20 minutes;

                      Add parsley and simmer 5 minutes;

                      Beat the eggs with the lemon juice.  Stir 1-2 tablespoons of hot soup into the egg/lemon mixture, and then stir the mixture into the soup.

Makes 14 servings.

September 27, 2013

A Thought for Today

Solitude develops perspicacity and reflection.

                                                   EMM, 1959

A Piece of My Work

Human memory is a wondrous matter. I recall my first visit at a physician who was not a pediatrician. I believe I was about 14-15 years old. It was a routine visit required for admission to a particular school. While listening to his talk, I noticed on his desk a human hand made in stone, which impressed me by its expressiveness. It was saying to me: "I will". It stuck in my memory... Now, after so many years, I suddenly felt that I must make it in clay and I glazed it.

" I will" (Made in August 2012)

A Recipe for Today

Leg of Lamb

Ingredients:

2 cups tamari soy sauce

2 cups orange juice

4-6 lbs. leg of lamb

1 head of garlic, each clove slivered

1 sprig of rosemary

6 oz. Dijon mustard

 

Procedure:

 

Combine soy sauce and orange juice. Put leg of lamb in a non-reactive container and pour soy-orange juice mixture over. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

 

Cut slits 1” deep and about 1” apart all over the meat. Stuff each slit with a sliver of garlic and a few leaves of rosemary.

 

Cover generously with mustard.

 

Cook at 325 degrees until meat reaches internal temperature of 140 degrees for medium-rare, about 15 min. per pound of meat.

 

Let stand 15-20 min. before serving.

 

Makes 8 servings.

 

Each serving contains about: 298 calories; 4211 mg. sodium, 109 mg. cholesterol, 7 gm. fat, 14 gr. carbs, 44 gm. protein, and 0.24 gm. fiber.

September 20, 2013

A Thought for Today

"I believe that man will not merely endure, he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice, and endurance".

 

William Faulkner in his Acceptance speech, Nobel Prize for Literature, 1963

A Piece of My Work

I made a number of coil vases. This one I made for Claudia Kaneshiro, a talented colleague in ceramic arts.

A Recipe for Today

Eggplant and red peppers – side dish

Ingredients:

1 eggplant (~1lb.)

2 red peppers

1 Tbsp. canola oil

2- 3 cloves of garlic smashed

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper

¼ cup vinegar

¼ cup water

Few bay leaves

10 grains of allspice

 

Procedure:

Cook the eggplant on the barbeque or on the range at a moderately hot fire. Cut it lengthwise and let it cool. Scoop the pulp and let it drain, about ½ hr. Squeeze out the liquid.

Cook also the peppers. Remove their skin and their stem and seeds and let them drain.

Boil the vinegar with the water, bay leaves, and the allspice grains. Pour only the liquid over the eggplant.

Process the eggplant pulp and the red peppers in a food processor  with the rest of the ingredients. Don’t puré it.

A nice side dish, best with grilled meat or fish.

 

 

September 13, 2013

A Thought for Today

"Un juif est un homme que les autres hommes tiennent pour juif" ( A Jew is a person considered to be a Jew by other persons)

                                                            Jean-Paul Sartre

A Piece of My Work

"A Memory (II)"

 

 

 

 

A Recipe for Today

Eggplant – Romanian style 

Ingredients:

1 eggplant (~1lb.)

1Tbsp. canola oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1-2 cloves of garlic smashed

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper 

Procedure:

Cook the eggplant on the barbeque or on the range at a moderately hot fire until it's very soft. Don't burn it. Cut the end and discard it. Cut  lengthwise, open, and let it cool. Scoop out the pulp and let it drain, about ½ hr.

Remove the pulp and process it in a food processor or chop it coarsely. Add the rest of the ingredients. Don’t puré it.

September 6, 2013

September 6, 2013

A Thought for Today

An injustice made to one is a threat to many

Charles de Montesquieu (French philosopher, 1689 - 1755)

A Piece of My Work

I love the simplicity of Constantin Brancusi's heads and I started to exercise myself in rendering the same. I started this series in June 2012 and titled it "A Memory", because I feel that these heads represent the essence of what we recall from a face. Here is "A Memory (I)".

 

  

A Recipe for Today

From Shelly Zucker – January 2011 

Marinated eggplant

Ingredients:

1 eggplant (~1 lb.)

2 tsp. kosher salt

½ cup Canola oil

¼ cup white wine vinegar

2-3 garlic cloves, finely grated

2 Tbsp. dill, finely chopped

1 tsp. white pepper

2-3 tsp. sweet Asian chili sauce 

Procedure:

 

Remove skin of eggplant. Cut eggplant crosswise in 2-3 parts and then lengthwise in ½“-thick sticks. Mix them with kosher salt. Cover and place in the microwave on high for 6 min. Rinse quickly under water.

 

Marinate:  Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the eggplant pieces after being cooked in the microwave. Mix well. Let stand at room temperature for one hour before serving.

August 30, 2013

August 30, 2013

A Thought for Today

"Studying and learning history allows youth to have the wisdom of the elderly people"

                                                         Diodorus of Sicily (60-30 BC)

 

A Piece of My Work

 

Another vase

 

 

A Recipe for Today

 

Edgar's “Guacamole” * 

(My Mediterranean version or an Avocado dip)

Ingredients:

 

2 ripe avocados

⅓ cup minced green onions, including the green part (about 3 pc.)

2 garlic cloves, squashed

2 tsp. ground cumin

¼ tsp. salt

½ tsp. white pepper

2 Tbsp. lemon juice 

Procedure:

In a bowl mash the avocado pulp coarsely. Add the minced green onions and mix a bit. Add the garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, and lemon juice and combine well the mixture without making it too smooth. Serve with Doritos, pita, or crackers.  

* My Mexican-American friends told me that a genuine guacamole should not have cumin. They are right and, for this reason, I prefer calling this recipe a Mediterranean version of guacamole. De acuerdo, amigos?

August 23, 2013

August 23, 2013

A Thought for Today

"I prefer characters without culture to a culture without characters..."

                                                                                             Rembrandt

A Piece of My Work

The idea of an image of two protective hands holding the body of a woman came to me spontaneously last year. I did not mean to give any religious meaning.

A Recipe for Today

Dolmades

Ingredients:

5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

3 Tbsp. fennel, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

½ medium red onion, minced

½ cup basmati rice

½ tsp. cumin

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

¼ cup fresh dill, minced

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced

1 tsp. dried mint

34 grape leaves, drained

¼ cup lemon juice  

Procedure:

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a 12” skillet over medium-high heat. Add fennel, red onion, and garlic and cook until soft, 3-4 min. Add rice and toast for3 min. Add cumin and 1 ½ cup water. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice absorbed the water, 12-15 min. Stir 1 Tbsp. oil along with dill, parsley, and mint. Let cool.

Coat bottom of a 3-qt. saucepan with the remaining oil and 3 Tbsp. water. Cover with 4 grape leaves. Set remaining leaves on a work surface vein side up. Flatten one leaf, remove the base part (about 1”) of thickest part of the central vein, cross the two halves of the leave, and place 1Tbsp. of the rice mixture in the center. Fold the bottom of the leaf over the rice filling, fold in the sides and roll the dolma into a tight cylinder. Tuck in the ends.

Place dolmas seam side down into the pot. Add lemon juice and ¾ cup water. Cover dolmas with a small plate and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 15-20 min. Serve cold or warm with the yogurt. Makes about 30 dolmades.

Garnish: “Tsatsiki”

1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and grated

½ tsp. kosher salt

1 cup Greek yogurt

1 tsp. black pepper