I had something else planned for my post today, but the truth is that I am completely under the weather. As in having to rest between the kitchen and the bedroom, as in bundled in blankets and fleeces and warm socks. What are your magic remedies when you're not feeling great? Here are some of mine:

Dr. Mathra's Totally Hot Toddy. Ever since I got my hands on this recipe, it has been my go-to hot toddy drink when I'm under the weather. A pinch of red chili flakes is a great addition.

Tom Yum Goong from Thai House Express on Geary at Larkin. This hot and sour soup warms me up and helps clear up any congestion. If I don't have the energy to pick up, I order from Chai Yo on Polk street.

Pho from Mai's on Clement. There's better pho in town, but this small restaurant is a comfortable spot to slurp some pho when you're under the weather.

Parmesan toast with tomatoes. This is one of my tribe's comfort foods. I've been eating it since I was a kid.

In an ideal world, I would have the energy to whip up my own lentil soup or chicken soup or spicy tomato sauce, but when all I can think about is going back to bed, these quick food options provide comfort and sustenance.

What do you do when you're under the weather?

If you live anywhere near the Northern California coastline in a house that was built during the first two decades of the 20th century and if you haven't had a chance or don't have the heart to remodel your home completely, then you probably still have a strange, little cabinet in a corner of your kitchen. Unlike the other cabinets in the room, it has open shelves of wire or slats or perforated wood. It also feels very cold and breezy, and you might even be able to glimpse sunlight through the back of it if you stand at a certain angle and tilt your head a certain way. It may have a lock or, at the least, a secure latch.

This, my friend, is a California cooler.

In the days before easy electricity and Freon™ there was cold air from the ocean to keep your root vegetables crisp and your ham succulent. In San Francisco, a city built on sand, California coolers replaced the Midwestern cellar as a family's depository of food. An ingenious architect came up with the idea of a louvered box attached to an outside wall of the building. With some open shelving and an easy-access door right from the kitchen, busy housewives could stay close to their pantry staples.

Currently sitting in my California cooler are some onions and garlic, some potatoes, lots of vinegar and oils, a few heavily brandied fig and almond cakes from last Christmas, and a cloth-wrapped hunk of what will, I hope, become duck prosciutto by the end of next week.

Many modern designers remove these cabinets entirely, but I love when homeowners retain the cooler in their modern kitchen. There really is no better way to keep ingredients for weeks and months at a time in precisely the cool, dark, well-ventilated, and off-the-grid way that is best for the food that sustains us.

What are you keeping right now in your California cooler?

I've just booked a trip that ensures that in less than a month, I'll be happily winging off to my home state of Minnesota. Minneapolis is where I grew up as the pickiest of eaters, eschewing nearly every vegetable aside from corn and artichokes. (Don't ask where my mother got artichokes in Minneapolis in the 70s and 80s. Or Pomegranates and avocados for that matter, but my mother was born and bred in Glendale, CA and she knew what she liked and she made sure she found it for us.)

However, on this next trip home, I will finally (FINALLY) visit the St. Paul's Farmers' Market, the jewel in Minnesota's market crown. I've done Mill City and the older Minneapolis Farmers' Market. I've also done the tiny Thursday stalls along Nicollet Avenue back when I worked downtown at my dad's law firm. Now, it's time for St. Paul, the city on the other side of the river. Capitol twin to my beloved Minneapolis.

Befitting a hardworking Midwestern state, the SPFM is only open from April 26th to November 15th. Those dates are certainly significant to any Minnesotan, because we all know that snow is no stranger to May, and I fondly remember a historic Halloween my senior year in high school when we got 33 inches of nice fluffy white stuff between 9 PM and 5 AM.

It was the first actual Snow Day of my memory. (See, we went to school even when the power went out at Jefferson Elementary and when the busses stalled. In the former, we just wore our snowsuits and in the latter, other busses came to get us.) However, Minnesota being what it is, in 1992 the roads were plowed and my dad was on his way to work by noon.

A farmers' market of some fashion has been operating in St. Paul since 1852. Back then, fresh produce was -- as it is now -- only available during the feverish and fecund summer months. However, throughout the year and even during the glacial, killing months, they had dairy, flour, cakes, and candies. Now, they also have local baked goods, cheese, poultry, buffalo, venison, beef, pork, lamb, maple syrup, eggs, honey, organic produce, flowers, plants, and shrubs.

Living in the (comparatively) warm Bay Area has definitely softened my Midwestern hide and it's also babied my palate and kitchen. I'm excited about checking out and cooking the fruits and vegetables I would have despised in my callow youth and remembering, celebrating my sturdy roots.

At dinner the other evening, the man who, for the purposes of my blogging, wishes to be referred to as “that guy who like smoothies”, was recounting his recent trip to Pittsburgh for a friend’s wedding. Having attended a small college near the city, he became rather nostalgic talking about his late nights chugging coffee and cramming for finals at the local Kings Family Restaurant. Never having been to neither Northeastern Pennsylvania, nor Ohio, I had never heard of such a place and said as much. He then proceeded to mention that Kings Family Restaurants were the home of the “Frownie”.

“The what?” I asked, though the name seemed to illustrate itself with near-perfect precision.

“A Frownie is a brownie, but with a frownie face piped onto it. If you purchase a whole pack, it’s called a Pity Party.”

I stopped hearing anything more about the wedding. I only wanted to know about Frownies, so I went home to do a little research.

That’s one mean dessert.

Kings Restaurants’ latest dessert offering, which they are calling The Angry Mob, includes twelve frownies, accompanied by hot fudge, whipped cream, twelve scoops of vanilla ice cream, and a poster. I suppose that, if one can manage to ingest such vast quantities of fat and sugar, one might as well eat the poster, too.

The Frownie, as much as I have been able to learn, was dreamed up about three years ago to drum up business at the 40 year-old restaurant chain, which had been flagging in recent times. Thanks to Smith Brothers Advertising, who make the likes of other Pittsburgh-area brands like Heinz Tomato Ketchup sexy, the Frownie has caught on.

It’s not surprising that the Frownie originated near Pittsburgh, home of Carnegie Mellon University. Carnegie Mellon, if you didn’t know, is the birthplace of the emoticon, thanks to Scott Fahlman, who started the whole sideways smiling business more than 25 years ago on the University’s Computer Science community b(ulliten)-board. He invented the frowning emoticon, too. In the same message, no less.

Where I attended culinary school, plating foods in such a way as to resemble a human face was frowned upon– the thought being that no one wanted to dig into something that resembled one’s self. Clearly, they were mistaken. Then again, they were mistaken about a lot of things. Children are undeniably attracted to the cannibalization of smiley-faced pancakes, so who can say eating a scowling brownie is wrong?

Imagine living through a Northeastern winter. I know if I were to spend months freezing my hind quarters off battling the elements, I might find myself entering a local family restaurant and sitting down to a hearty meal and mugs of hot coffee to warm my hands and insides. If a dessert happened to come to the table with a scowl frosted onto its face, I’d most likely take another swig of coffee, look out the window at my iced-over car, and think, Frownie, I know just how you feel.

Katharine Hepburn’s Frownies
I had been thinking about brownies even before Frownies entered my consciousness, thanks to the September 2008 issue of Saveur Magazine. In their article, they list Katharine Hepburn’s home recipe, which originally accompanied and interview with the actress in the August 1975 issue of The Ladies’ Home Journal. Needing a basic brownie recipe, Hepburn’s seemed worthy, based upon name-recognition alone. It had been suggested to me that I might wish to give these Frownies some Hepburn-like quality. Since I neither know anyone who can lend me an Oscar on short notice, nor do I possess the ability to create slacks for dessert items, and taking a tremorous, Parkinson’s-like blurry photo would have been in extremely poor taste, I decided to just let the unhappy things alone.

Makes: 9 Frownies.

Ingredients:
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
1⁄4 cup flour
1⁄4 teaspoon fine salt
1⁄2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon water

Preparation:

1. Pre-heat oven to 325°. Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with butter. Line the pan with parchment paper; grease the paper. Set pan aside.

2. Melt the butter and chocolate together in a 2-quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, since one cannot imagine Miss Hepburn using anything else. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir to make a smooth batter. Add the walnuts, flour, and salt; stir until incorporated. Pour batter into the baking pan and spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40-45 minutes. Let cool on a rack. Remove from pan and cut into nine squares.

3. Mix the powdered sugar and water in a small bowl, making a smooth, thick icing. Place icing into a piping bag fitted with a fine, plain tip, or place in a zip-lock bag, cutting a very small amount off one of the bottom corners with scissors. Pipe two blank, disappointed-looking eyes and a frown onto each brownie. Serve.

I only make homemade pasta a few times a year, but when I do, I am always surprised at how easy it is. One thing I never forget is how good it tastes. Making pasta from scratch is always worth the effort as the freshness of the flavor and the silkiness of the texture exceeds that of any noodle you can buy, unless you’re lucky enough to have a good local shop near your house that makes it daily.

Contrary to popular belief, making pasta from scratch isn’t difficult. Although the process can take a while and your arms will get a workout kneading the dough, the steps themselves are not only basic, they’re pretty fun. And, if you have some friends or kids around to help, you can all have a great time making unique shapes and rolling out the dough together. There’s no need to buy a pasta maker. I’ve had one for years, but have only used it once as my rolling pin does a great job and it doesn’t take that long to roll the dough out by hand.

Following is the recipe I use when making pasta along with some suggestions for varying it. Please keep in mind that pasta-making is not an exact science. You can include extra eggs for a richer dough; make different shapes and thicknesses to match your sauce (or simply to have fun); or add herbs, lemon zest, pureed vegetables, squid ink, or whatever sounds good. It’s best to first become comfortable with the basic recipe, but once you do, there are no limits.

I’ve also included one of my favorite pasta recipes: Fettuccini with Heirloom Tomatoes, Fresh Basil, Ricotta Cheese, and Parmesan. When tomatoes are in season, this is a great way to capture their flavor in a warm meal without cooking the fresh flavor and plumpness out of them. The ricotta then provides a creaminess to the pasta that I really love.

Mangia!

Homemade Pasta
Serves: 4-8 people (depending on how hungry you all are)

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
4 - 6 eggs (the more eggs you add, the richer the dough)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp warm water

Preparation:

Preparing Dough by Hand
1. Set flour on a marble or wooden counter or board, making a well in the center.
2. In a bowl, mix the eggs, salt and olive oil.
3. Pour the egg mixture into the well and slowly incorporate the flour into the egg, mixing everything together as you go along.
4. Add the warm water slowly if you need to moisten the dough (I almost always do this). Sometimes you may need it all, sometimes you will only need a bit.
5. Collect the mixture into a ball.

Preparing Dough Using a Mixer with a Dough Hook
1. Place the flour into your mixing bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, salt and olive oil.
3. Turn the mixer on low and then slowly pour the egg mixture into the bowl, incorporating the egg into the flour.
4. Add the warm water slowly if you need to moisten the dough (I almost always do this). Sometimes you may need it all, sometimes you will only need a bit.
5. When the egg is added into the flour and you have a rough dough, take everything out of the bowl and set it on a marble or wooden counter or board.

6. Collect the mixture into a ball on a marble or wooden counter or board.

Preparing Dough by Using a Food Processor
1. Place the flour into your processor’s bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, salt and olive oil.
3. Pulse the processor while slowly pouring the egg mixture into the bowl and incorporating it into the flour.
4. Add the warm water slowly if you need to moisten the dough (I almost always do this). Sometimes you may need it all, sometimes you will only need a bit.
5. When the egg is added into the flour and you have a rough dough, take everything out of the bowl and set it on a marble or wooden counter or board.

Kneading the Dough
1. Knead the dough for 10-15 minutes. When you’re done, it should be smooth with everything fully incorporated. Be sure not to stop too soon (even if your arms are tired) as your dough won’t stretch well later and you’ll regret it.
2. Let the dough rest in a bowl covered with plastic wrap for at least an hour on the counter or up to a day in the refrigerator.

Making the Pasta
A. Rolling out the Dough by Hand
1. Line a cookie sheet with paper towels that have been sprinkled with flour.
2. Spread some flour onto your counter or board and set the dough on top of it.
3. Cut a 1/2-inch slice off your dough ball, and keep the rest covered with the plastic wrap.
4. Using your rolling pin, roll your dough to your desired thickness (I like it on the thin side) and then cut into whatever shape you’d like. I think pappardelle, tagliatelle, and fettuccini are the easiest to cut.
5. Set the cut noodles onto the cookie sheet, being sure not to clump them too much. Sprinkle on more flour if needed.
6. Continue until you are out of dough.

Making Individual Shapes by Hand
1. Line a cookie sheet with paper towels that have been sprinkled with flour.
2. Spread some flour onto your counter or board and set the dough on top of it.
3. Cut a 1/2-inch slice off your dough ball, and keep the rest covered with the plastic wrap.
4. Make whatever shapes you’d like (I think orecchiette is the easiest as you just make little balls and then press your knuckle into them), being sure not to make your shapes too thick or too big as they won’t cook well. About.com has a nice pasta gallery you can look at if you’re interested.
5. Set the cut noodles onto the cookie sheet, being sure not to clump them too much an sprinkling on more flour if needed.
6. Continue until you are out of dough.

Note: I won’t provide pasta-maker instructions as I rarely use mine and each machine comes with a helpful manual.

Cooking the Pasta
1. Add the pasta to salted boiling water. Be sure to have a nice full pot so there’s enough room for the pasta to move around and cook in separate batches if your pot isn’t big enough.
2. Boil for 3-5 minutes, or until the pasta seems cooked through.
3. The pasta should be firm, but cooked through, when you take it out. Just be sure not to let it get mushy.
4. Serve with your favorite sauce.

Freezing the Pasta
An entire batch usually makes two full dinners in our house, so I freeze the other half for later use. Just follow these simple directions:
1. Take your fresh (uncooked) noodles still lying on the cookie sheet and cover them with a layer of paper towels.
2. Stick the cookie sheet in the freezer for about an hour.
3. When the noodles are frozen, place them in a freezer bag or container and freeze until ready for use.

Fettuccini with Heirloom Tomatoes, Fresh Basil, Ricotta Cheese, and Parmesan

Makes: 4 Servings

Ingredients:
Half a batch of freshly prepared and cooked fettuccini
1 -2 pounds of heirloom tomatoes chopped
1/2 cup fresh ricotta cheese
3 Tbsp chopped basil
Olive oil
2 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

Preparation:
1. Add the cooked pasta to a large bowl, adding enough olive oil to thinly coat the noodles.
2. Add the tomatoes, basil, ricotta cheese and Parmesan and toss.
3. Season with salt and pepper if desired (I find that the Parmesan often adds enough saltiness to the dish, but you may need more).
4. Serve and enjoy.

On Labor Day weekend there are a myriad of culinary experiences to choose from including Slow Food Nation in San Francisco and further north, the Sonoma Wine Country Weekend. While this tremendously popular annual event consistently sells out, there are still a few tickets left to some of the winemaker lunches on Friday, August 29th, winemaker dinners on Saturday, August 30th and a chance to attend a high rolling wine auction on Sunday, August 31st.

What: Sonoma Wine Country Weekend

Where: Events take place at wineries in Sonoma County

When: August 29 - 31, 2008

How: Buy tickets to attend, tickets range from $75 to $750, depending upon the event.

Why: Get up close and personal with winemakers, chefs and local producers from our own backyard. My pick is the Taste of Sonoma a local food and wine tasting showcase event on Saturday at the historic MacMurray Ranch, that's rarely open to the public. There will be chef demonstrations, wine seminars and more.

Whichever events you choose to attend, you'll be helping to support local charities that serve the students, children, farm workers and those in need.

Local restaurants and chefs will be participating all weekend. Here are two terrific recipes courtesy of Duskie Estes and John Stewart of Zazu and Bovolo Restaurant and Farm.

Peach Bellini Sorbetto
1 1/4 pounds ripe peaches
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup iron horse sparkling wine

Combine the peaches, sugar, and lemon juice in a food processor. Stir in the sparkling wine. Freeze in ice cream maker according to its directions.

Redwood Hill Goat Yogurt Gelato
4 cups plain goat yogurt
1 cups sugar
3/4 cup water

In a small sauce pan on high heat, bring the sugar and water to a boil to melt the sugar. Cool. Mix the yogurt with the simple syrup and freeze according to your ice cream machine’s directions.

A few years ago I met a fellow who talked some very big words about pie. He seemed to think he knew a lot. He said he had this friend, Aligator, who organized a pie competition every year, and, if I was lucky, I might get to attend.

Through veils of secrecy and language written to intimidate even the most scholarly, Pie Off was turning out to be something to be reckoned with. People who came just to watch and snack and spy were turned away. Gorgeous, fruit-laden pretties were disqualified for blatant disregard for the rules, and stories were told about past year rule breakers, who were, conspicuously, missing from the day’s event.

Pie Off was going to be a serious affair.

Weeks before the date, emails came from an undisclosed location. There was an argument about whether I would be allowed to make a pie. Ransom notes for the precious Pie Off Trophy were hung in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood. Christo* was hired to wrap the secret location. More emails came.

I was asked to be a Pielebrity. Star-struck like a fan in line all night I said yes, having absolutely no idea what I just said yes to.

Pie Off Rules were challenged. An interloper threatened meat pie and the Committee issued a warning.

“Dear Bakers,

As you have no doubt heard, the Pie Off Steering Committee and International Sisterhood/ Brotherhood/ Sockpuppethood of Pie Bakers, Iron Ship Builders and Boilermakers, PIE-TCB have been embroiled in a summer-long dispute over banned substances appearing in award-winning filling throughout the ten-year lifespan of Pie Off, Pie Off East, and all related Pie Off events.

I am happy to report that these disputes and allegations have been resolved in their entirety, and thankfully without much media fanfare. And while I am not at liberty to discuss any settlement terms or amounts, suffice it to say that you will most likely see the value of gourds, tomatoes, and lamb suffer a rather steep decline in the coming months.”

A baker’s dozen of questions about filling categories were raised and answered,

“the combo rule is one of preponderance. bakers/teams are allowed to enter combo pies. the choice of category should be based on whichever fruit is the preponderant ingredient in the filling. if different fruits share equal representation in the filling, then bakers/teams are allowed to make a game-time decision, submitting their pie into one of the appropriate categories.”

The date approached. An invite arrived on Facebook. The location stayed covered. I asked the Committee if I could talk about Pie Off on Eggbeater. A firewall protected email exchange took place. I could tell about the event but give no details about where exactly pies would be dropped off and judged.

The exact response to my question was this:
“In general, the committee does not mind, and perhaps even supports, online discussion of Pie Off, Pie Off International and Pie Off, The Movie. We would only ask that any blog mention of this Sunday's event does not amount to an open invitation. This "eggbeater" village intimidates us more than a little, quite frankly; and our humble gathering wishes only to craft pie with the tools and notions that our mamas gave us.

In short, the answer is yes.
you dig?”

The clincher? No spectators. You had to bring a pie to get in the door. But you could bake a pie with one other person.

One would think with so many rules, regulations and verbiage, one might feel constrained. But many pies came, were eaten, judged and enjoyed. In fact, before pies were eaten, someone set up a serious pot of oil in a back yard and made whole fried pie snackettes.

In total 38 pies were made in 5 categories.
1. stone fruit (peach, nectarine, cherry, plum, apricot)
2. Tree fruit (apple, pear)
3. berry (strawberry, blueberry, cranberry)
4. Caneberry (raspberry, blackberry, boysenberry, marionberry)
5. citrus/tropical (lemon, key lime, banana, mango, etc.)

My Pielebrity status translated into being the overall judge and I, along with another pie discerning individual, chose 1st, 2nd & 3rd place after judges picked a #1 pie in each of their categories. Pie bakers could also cast a Baker’s Choice ballot and a fellow who had never, in all of his life, made a pie before, won with basil-blackberry.

At the end of the day, after tasting 38 pies, I had a better understanding of just how awful bad pie could be and how inventive one could become with a pie plate, something called homemade pie dough and “filling” could be interpreted.

I also saw the power of Pie. Pie binds us. Pie tells a story. Pie is simple, and very very hard. Pie explains hospitality in edible form. Pie is summer. Pie is conviviality. And Pie competitions are fierce.

And, as said best by the Aligator,
Revenge is a dish best served Pie.

My original recipe for this, passed down from my mom on a handwritten 3x5 card, is named "Ice Box Pickles" for the days when large blocks of ice were cut during the winter, buried in straw through the summer, and delivered house to house on a horse-drawn wagon. A modern-day, electric-powered freezer works just as well, though, for one my favorite ways of highlighting the season's crisp cucumbers.

I used to make these in college, when canning was out of the question. Even my little refrigerator cube, hidden away from the dorm inspectors inside my closet and sporting only a tiny "freezer" shelf, could finish decent pickles. It's an easy, low-maintenance recipe that's perfect for lazy weekends.

Fresh seeds collected from the ripened heads of dill plants were a recent garnish for my latest batch of these crisp, cold pickles. But I also love fresh or dried dills leaves, whole mustard seeds, tiny celery seeds, or even a hint of gorgeous sumac.

Freezer pickles are perfect for accompanying sandwiches or, if you tend towards a sour palate like me, a refreshing snack spooned straight from the jar.

They're super easy to make, so be sure to make a couple of extra jars that you can share with a neighbor or friend, bring to a potluck or picnic, or enjoy all the way through the waning days of August.

Freezer Pickles

Makes: 3 half-pint jars.

Ingredients:
4 cups thinly sliced pickling, Japanese, or Armenian cucumbers
1 small, thinly sliced red onion
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1-2 cups sugar (depending on your taste for sweetness)
1 cup white, distilled vinegar
2 tablespoons dill, celery, or mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon dried chile flakes or 1 fresh chile, sliced thinly (optional)

Preparation:
1. Toss together the cucumber slices, red onion, and salt. Refrigerate this mixture overnight. Rinse well, then squeeze dry in a clean cloth or press well against a colander to remove as much moisture as possible.

2. In a glass, plastic or ceramic bowl, stir together vinegar, sugar, and spices. Add the cucumber and stir well with a wooden spoon or your hands.

3. Pack into glass jars, leaving 1/2-inch of headspace, and freeze at least 24 hours. Thaw pickles in serving bowl for at least 10 minutes just before serving.

Nothing says summer quite like an outside party. Whether you’re in a backyard, on a crowded deck, or in a park, gathering with friends and family to sip chilled beverages while you chat and nosh are what summer is all about. Whatever your outdoor area, it’s great if your party occurs on a hot day, but in the Bay Area, sweaters may also be in order. The one element that is essential, however, is good food. So if you decide to throw a full barbecue or just serve appetizers, food is a crucial element to any successful bash.

I recently threw a backyard party to celebrate the upcoming nuptials of two of our closest friends. It was technically dubbed a “wine shower,” but we were lucky enough to also have a keg of freshly brewed ale, courtesy of the bride’s generous brother. With almost 50 people attending, I decided to serve a variety of small plates along with lots of cheese and charcuterie. A full dinner for that many people would have been overwhelming and too expensive, so we went with a nice selection of appetizers.

I wanted to take advantage of fruits and vegetables that are in season right now, while also providing foods that accented each other nicely. Just as important, however, was providing a selection of plates that would be easy to eat in a backyard setting. Following are some of the dishes I made. All were easy to prepare and went well with the wine and beer we served.

So whatever the occasion -- from a wedding shower or Labor Day party to just finding an excuse to hang out with family and friends -- I hope you enjoy your own outdoor summer party soon.

Grilled Zucchini, Fennel, Onion and Pepper Salad
In separate batches, either grill or broil sliced zucchini, fennel, red onion and red or orange peppers in some olive oil. Once the vegetables are barely browned and still al dente, place in a bowl and season with kosher or sea salt and a sprinkling of balsamic vinegar. You don’t want the vegetables to be too vinegary, so just add enough to flavor the dish.

Potato and Artichoke Frittata
Spread some cooked potatoes and fresh artichoke slivers sautéed in olive oil in an oiled oven-proof pan. Fresh artichokes work well here. Just pare some small ones so only the choke remains and then thinly slice. Top with a mixture of 6 large eggs, a 1/4 cup of milk, some salt and pepper, adding a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese at the end. Cook on low, with a lid on the pan, until mostly done. Place pan under a broiler to finish off the frittata and then remove it from the pan to cool.

Egg Salad in Endive Cups Made with Homemade Mayonnaise
Make egg salad from about a dozen hard-boiled eggs. If you’d like, add chopped celery or other accompaniments, although I usually don’t as the endive adds enough crispness for my liking. Place scoops of the egg salad into washed endive leaves (I like to use both red and white) and refrigerate until ready to serve. This recipe is particularly good with homemade mayonnaise, which has a much better texture and flavor than the store bought variety. Just be sure to keep the egg salad cups refrigerated until you serve them to reduce the risk of spoilage. Also, please note anything made with raw eggs has a risk of carrying salmonella.

Smoked Salmon and Dill Cream Cheese Rolls
Just place some cream cheese mixed with fresh dill and some salt into 1- to 2-inch slices of smoked salmon and then them roll up. I like to put the cream cheese in a baggie and then cut the corner so I make an impromptu pastry bag. You can then insert a toothpick into each one so they’re easy for people to pick up.

Figs Wrapped in Prosciutto
Kim Laidlaw wrote about figs and prosciutto a couple of weeks ago, but I’ll repeat it here as this is a very easy and delicious dish to serve to guests. Cut very ripe figs in half lengthwise and drape with thin slices of prosciutto. The prosciutto-fruit pairing also works exceedingly well with sliced nectarines, peaches, and cantalope.

Stone Fruit Salad
Cut a variety of stone fruits into slices. If the fruits aren’t as sweet as you’d like, add a little sugar or honey and stir. This can easily be turned into a dessert if you just add some whipped cream. Even better, serve it with a slice of cake or a dish of ice cream.

Chilled Lentil, Red Pepper and Red Onion Salad
In a bowl, mix 2 cups of cooked small lentils (if you don’t want to boil them yourself, you can buy them precooked at Trader Joe’s), a 1/2 cup of diced red pepper, and a 1/2 cup of diced red onion. Mix in about a 1/4 cup each of extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and freshly chopped Italian parsley. The oil and vinegar amounts will vary depending on how dry the lentils are. Season to taste. You can make this up to a day before serving (keeping it in the refrigerator) so the dressing becomes incorporated into the beans and vegetables.

A couple of summers ago, I called to check in on a friend of mine in New Jersey, who was taking a more-or-less enforced summer off of work. He'd spent his time traveling to Greece with his family, organizing his life, playing with his kids, but the novelty of so much free time was wearing thin. His boredom was as clear as he sighed over the phone when I asked him what he'd been up to.

"Oh...nothing. Just making butter today..."

Making butter? I pictured him sitting on an Amish stool churning away in the shade of his porch. And since I've always thought of butter-making as the sole province of women, I pictured him in a dairy maid's bonnet that matched both his eyes and his rugby shirt. I was a bit jealous of both his crushing amount of free time and the fact that he had thought of making butter before I did. I asked him where he picked up the churn.

"I don't have a churn, Michael. I'm doing it in my Kitchen Aid."

There went my fantasy. Use of a stand mixer was cheating in my book. Especially on the East Coast, where my urban, California sensibilities allowed me to imagine butter churns by the truckload were to be had yard-saling on any given weekend.

My fantasy deflated, I cast the thought of butter-making out of my head. Until last week, when I picked up my dog-eared copy of Much Depends on Dinner by Margaret Visser. Her chapter “Butter– and Something ‘Just as Good’” made me think entirely too much about the stuff. I wanted to know how to make it on my own, so I did a little research. And I do mean little.

It’s alarmingly easy to do, as you’ll soon see. For an excellent and very informative post on butter and butter-making, visit Cooking for Engineers -- a site filled with all the cooking Geekdom to which I aspire.

Butter

Makes: 1 cup

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy whipping cream (at a temperature between 60 and 68°F)
A pinch of salt (optional)
Finely diced herbs (also optional)

Preparation:

1. Place cream in the clean, cool bowl of your stand mixer, assuming you have one. Mix on medium speed.

2. Basically, you begin by making whipped cream. Once the cream has reached stiff-peak stage, slow the mixing down a little. The cream will now start to clump in the bowl.

3. What you have in the bowl will quickly turn from creamy white to, not surprisingly given the subject matter of this post, buttery yellow.

4. After a short while, the buttermilk will begin to separate from the butter solids.

5. Pour off the buttermilk. You may save it as the appropriate beverage for a late night, heart-to-heart conversation about women with your teen-aged son around your antique farm house table, cook with it, or throw it away. The choice is yours.

6. At this point, it’s a good idea to rinse the remaining buttermilk from the solid bits, since the buttermilk will cause your butter to turn rancid much sooner than one would like. Pour cold water over the butter, then squeeze and knead. Repeat until water runs clear.

7. Congratulations, you now have your butter.

8. You may now add a little salt, if that is your preference. Or fold in some fresh herbs. Whatever the hell you want, really-- it’s your butter.

Makes approximately one cup of useable butter excellent for lashing on one’s toast or experimenting à la Maria Schneider. Have a jolly time with it.