Snowbound in February
Happily no one is foolish enough trust in practical celebrations of Groundhog
Day in Maine. Can’t you just imagine shoveling all those feet of snow we have
just accumulated last week to even find the hole, let alone what kind of heat
lamp would be required to wake the fellow out of contented hibernation just for
an appearance? I can imagine that he might make some very choice
groundhog sounds about the apparent wisdom of human interest in his shadow when
his burrow was so comfortable!
Looking out the front window of our house I am in complete sympathy with this
mystical groundhog about not going abroad in the current weather. Some years
ago it might have been tempting to get out my cross country skis and explore
the woods in their wintertime garb, but even in the best of times my ability to
stop when skiing was marked by sitting down on my skis with a scream and a
billowing of snow. As pointed out to me by my younger son, I have the software
for such activities, but the hardware is sorely lacking.
However, time and housebound confinement often leads to other activities in the
kitchen, which tend to be much more manageable. Now is the opportunity to have
a really elegant breakfast with a baked casserole.
Dressed up bacon and eggs
Dressing up an eggs and bacon
breakfast is easy and fun with a casserole dish that takes very little time to
assemble and doubled can feed a crowd. The following recipe will feed 4-5
people, but can easily be doubled in quantity for a crowd. Cook, drain and
crumble 6 slices of bacon. Thoroughly butter an 8 inch square casserole dish.
Spread about 3 cups cubed old French bread (or lightly toasted other types of
bread) on the bottom of the casserole. Sprinkle with 1 cup grated sharp cheddar
cheese. Beat 6 eggs with 1 tsp. salt, ½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce, ½ tsp. onion
powder, 1 ½ cups milk and a dash or two of Tabasco sauce (optional). Pour
the egg mixture over the bread and cheese. Top with ½ cup sliced mushrooms, ½
cup thinly sliced tomatoes, some cut up pitted Niçoise olives (optional)
and the crumbled bacon. Press topping down lightly and bake at 325 degrees for
40 minutes. Serve hot with garnish of a small clump of grapes and enjoy
the complements to the chef.
The relaxed feeling of time is also
conducive to slow cooked dinner preparations. This time of the year brings to
mind many German recipes and what could be better than a dinner with sauerkraut
from Morses. Locally made sauerkraut, some farm sausage and
some scalloped potatoes would be the basis for a simple, but
warming meal on any blustery day.
But then I recalled a conversation with Karin Pratt from Friendship some time
ago about the fact that in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, it was ‘de rigeur’ to cook
sauerkraut in beer. In fact, it was the only way! This was intriguing. I
knew of Weinkraut, the German way to cook sauerkraut with wine, but not
beer. Of course it made perfect sense, since Milwaukee is known for its
beer and the Wisconsin wine industry is at best still emerging. The following
experiment was definitely tasty with a subtly transformed flavor.
Sauerkraut in beer
Drain about 5 lb. of sauerkraut and rinse for a few seconds to remove
excess salt. Brown ½ cup of the drained sauerkraut in 1 Tblsp. vegetable oil or
bacon drippings for about 5 minutes. Stir in the rest of the sauerkraut, 1 tsp.
sugar, 1 tsp. caraway seed and 1 bottle of lager beer. Bring to boil, cover
tightly and cook on low for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a small amount
of water, if the beer evaporates at the end.
But the meal required a desert, preferably with fruit and not too much effort.
Fortunately apples from the refrigerator adapted to an apricot upside down cake
without too much fuss. Ah, a snowbound day put to delicious use!
(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the
author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the
Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)
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