Scrambled Eggs and Ham and Peppers, Some of them Green

Here, in a distant nod to Dr. Seuss, is a delicious grown-up version of scrambled eggs and ham.

The terrain, straddling the Spanish-French border, extends from the mountainous interior of both countries to the Atlantic Ocean. Bayonne and Biarritz are the most significant cities on the French side and, Bilbao, a Spanish coastal town, is considered the southern border of Basque territory. (There are an astonishing 40 restaurants with Michelin stars in the Basque region of Spain.)

The Basque region shares national characteristics from both France and Spain. …

. . . Or the lighter-than-air parallels between a Nobel Laureate and A United States Air Force Spouse

It was the recent passing of Robert Mundell, the 1999 Nobel Prize winner in economics, often identified as the “Father of the Euro” that jogged my memory about our parallel paths.

Reading the moving tribute to the great economist on the occasion of his death, April 4, 2021, Seth Lipsky, the New York Sun editor, (https:/www.nysun.com/editorials/Robert-mundell/91468/) recounted a true story from the late 1980s that reminded me of my own motor cop escort experience.

An experience that occurred twenty years before that…

Pennsylvania Dutch Goodness; A Childhood Culinary Memory

One of the joys of “maturing” is the ability to find goodness in the simplest of pleasures. It can be discovered with books, films, history lessons, etc. In my case, savoring the foods I’ve known from the past gives me the best of memories.

Chicken corn soup falls into this group.

A bit of history.

I grew up in rural Lancaster County in the fifties. This part of the county in southeastern Pennsylvania touched the Maryland border, making it the northern boundary of the Mason-Dixon line. …

Homemade Chicken Stock

I’m going to make a believer* out of you . . . on the overwhelming value of homemade/handmade chicken stock. Creating your own chicken stock (fonds de cuisine, or the “heart of cooking” will take time, but once you taste your homemade stock, then sip a spoonful of heated stock from a box, can, or even a frozen version, I am prepared to say that you will know instantly that your version is much, much better.

It’s not difficult to prepare homemade stock and from that homemade soup. It’s not even expensive; it just takes time.

I’m…

. . . because it’s so much better than the boxed stuff.

There you are; faced with an hour long zoom meeting. It’s still covid and you’re still working from home.

What to do? Make some stock. From scratch stock has not completely disappeared in this era of boxed, long-life commercial varieties. I don’t care if it is organic. It’s still an industrial product.

This is one of those recipes that can be made ahead, measured into specific amounts (most recipes call for 1–2 cups or 1–2 quarts stock so I measure these amounts, freeze in containers and if…

Ok, that’s a stretch, but I got your attention. Let’s face it; if you had just seen the title “Rice Salad” without the qualifier, you would have scrolled past, not even tossing a second glance to see the recipe.

This is simple to assemble and a great use for leftover rice. It’s been one of my go-to dishes since I first tasted it at the home of Nadine Heidsieck, a French friend. …

Here’s a wintertime treat.

A trip down memory lane. After six days of a self-imposed home stay because of the harsh ice and snow conditions throughout Texas, I and many of my fellow citizens ventured outside. Patches of ice remained, the sun beamed, and apart from driving extraordinarily dirty cars, everyone seemed in a good mood. Kind of like the last day of school before vacation.

For me, a reprieve always includes food and if I want an interesting and varied selection, my car self-drives to HEB’s Central Market, part of a Texas grocery store chain. …