Smithwick's Ale

We have a new ale on tap at the restaurant. Smithwick's-pronounced smitticks-no h or w sound. The English language can so annoying sometimes-if you don't say the h or w, why put them in the word? Smithwick's is the oldest operating brewery in Ireland. Founded in 1710 by John Smithwick on the original Franciscan abbey, where monks made ale since the 1400's. Now it is owned by the same company that also owns Guinness and they are the two biggest sellers in Ireland-Guinness is first.

It is called a red ale, and it has a sort of red mahogany color to it. Irish red ales are made from roasted barley and hops. The roasting tints the color, which is not the case in American red beers which are tinted by adding color-like Coors Red Irish a poseur. It has a much mellower flavor than English Ale, which is too aggressive on the palate for me. Slightly creamy with a stable but not too big head.

Smithwick's has been available in the Missouri market for a long time, but it has only been licensed in Illinois (or at least in Monroe county) just recently. Smithwick's has a devoted following, and many have asked for it, and now we can serve it. Perfect with our house made chips.

Thai Green Curry Chicken Soup

Chicken soup is a culinary universal. It seems every culture has a chicken soup-its appeal is endless. With on-line shopping even hard to find ingredients are available to everyone. Here is a Thai inspired version.

2 T canola oil

2 T Green curry paste

1 T fresh Ginger Root-finely minced

1 t powdered Galangal (Galangal is similar to Ginger, some recipes call for one or the other)

1 clove of Garlic-finely minced

1 cup Japanese Eggplant-cut into 1 inch pieces

2-3 carrots-sliced into oblong slices

1 onion-diced

1 stalk Lemon Grass-cut into large pieces-Lemon Grass is for flavoring only, not eating

1 12 ounce can unsweetened coconut milk

1 T sugar

1 T Fish sauce

1 T hot Chinese chili paste-or to taste, I like a little burn

3 cups rick chicken broth

1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken

Fresh cilantro

Lime wedges

1 package glass noodles-soaked, any pasta including cooked spaghetti could work

Saute the green curry paste in the oil, add the ginger, galangal, and garlic, saute briefly at medium heat.

Add the onion, carrot, and egg plant, saute over low heat until the vegetables are softened.

Add the coconut milk, sugar, fish sauce, chili paste, and chicken broth, simmer 1/2 hour to marry all the flavors, taste and adjust flavoring if needed. Add the cooked chichen when the soup tastes balanced to you.

To plate, mound the glass noodles in the center of a large soup plate and ladle the soup over them (some people remove the lemon grass-I prefer to just eat around it). Garnish with fresh Cilantro and lime wedges.

Valentine's Day '07

One of the biggest nights in the restaurant business. It has been called the most comercial of holidays, but in the doldrums of winter the chocolatiers, florists, and restaurateurs need this influx of cash. No one gets rich from this day, but it helps keep the bills paid and the key employees paid. We served about 180 guests, which was the most we could, all three floors were opened as well as the third floor bar. We sold a prix fixe menu rather than the regular menu-we have so many regulars that we wanted to give them something a little different from the regular menu choices.

The appetizers consisted of a trio of chilled shrimp "shooters"-we served chilled shrimp in shot glasses with three different cocktail sauces:traditional tomato horseradish, chipotle mayonaise, and wasabi. And stuffed mushrooms with peppercorn cognac sauce.

The salad consisted of field greens topped with grilled pears, candied walnuts and vinaigrette made with pear puree, white wine vinegar and olive oil.

For the entree there was a choice of hickory smoked beef tenderloin (smoked in-house) with 7 mustard sauce or a crumbed chicken breast toped with crab meat, provolone, and lemon sauce and red pepper coulis. Both entrees were accompanied by Haricot Verts and carrot ribbon bundles and Potatoes Dauphinoise. Both sides were time consuming to create. The little beans and carrot ribbons were all hand tied together in little bundles using chives. The Potatoes Dauphinoise consits of thinly sliced potatoes baked in parmesan custard, weighted and cooled, then cut into diamond shapes, and quickly reheated for service.

The dessert was Cherries Jubilee, flamed tableside served over both chocolate and vanilla ice cream.

Amuse Bouche;Amuse-Guele

"French derivative for appetizer, typically referring to a small one- or two-bite portion to tickle the taste buds."-as defined by the "Food Lover's Companion". To that I would also add that it has evolved to mean something that the chef sends out complimentary. Paul Prudhomme in his book "Louisiana Kitchen" calls them Lagniappe-a little something extra. It is a Spanish derivative (la napa meaning a gift) that the Creoles and Cajuns Frenchified.

At Gallagher's we call them "Palate Pleasers"-I think Richard Perry coined that phrase. Often you hear the waiters asking the assistant waiters "Have you pleased that table yet?" Meaning is the freebie appetizer at the table. In a perfect world the "pleasers" arrive with the cocktails-in the imperfect world known as the "dinner rush" sometimes they never arrive-which is not pleasing to the chef.

Our Palate Pleasers are a spread of mayonaise, parmesan cheese, chopped onion, and parsley topping a thin slice of baguette slightly browned and toasted. Simple and easy and tasty, tables sometimes ask to buy a platter of them. But they can't, because they are complimentary.

Huevos Rancheros with Mole Coloradito

Here is my personal take on Huevos Rancheros-English translation is Eggs Ranch Style. The Spanish language is so much more poetic. I referenced (meaning :sorta followed) a couple recipes in Rick Bayless's first cookbook "Authentic Mexican-Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico" published in 1987 with his wife Deann Groen Bayless.

I used store bought white corn tortillas, which I toasted in a skillet. I followed two of Rick's recipes for the beans "Brothy Beans" and "Frijoles Refritos" combining them for an outstanding bean mixture that I spread over the toasted tortillas. I fried the eggs on the bottom only and placed them on top of the bean mixture. Boiling hot mole coloradito is ladled over the top of the eggs which cooks the top and finishes the dish.

The Mole was not the sauce reccomended by Rick, he reccomended a Tomato Chile sauce. The Mole Coloradito has all the components of the tomato Chile sauce but more. Toasted garlic, toasted bread, chicken stock, charred tomatoes, and Guajillo chiles-dried and reconstituted in chicken stock. Place all the ingredients in the blender and pulverize. Strain the mixture through a medium sieve into a hot skillet with a little lard and sautee the sauce for a few minutes, thinning with more stock to get the consistency you like. Assemble the tortillas and ladle the hot mole over the top.

This was a pretty simple Mole compared to the dark chocolatey ones. I have never tried to make one of those dark moles-the list of ingredients is daunting. This was a remarkably delicious breakfast with deep flavors.

Braised Pork shanks with Blueberry Demi-glace

These were quite tasty. I have braised a lot of lamb shanks-not so many pork. It was well received and sold out of 18 orders in two hours last Friday. It was a straightforward braise to which I added some blueberries. To the demi-glace I added some port wine to slightly sweeten and deepen the sauce. For presentation I added more blueberries for garnish. Sweet potatoes are a no brainer accompaniment to pork for me. I made twice baked sweet potatoes to accampany this entre.

There is an emerging Latino neighborhood in St Louis. Along Cherokee Street several restaurants, bakeries, groceries, and one butcher shop have opened. I am writing a story to be published in April about the foods to be found, so I have made a couple trips gathering information. Today I ate at a Honduran restaurant. While it was similar to more mainstream Mexican food, there were nuances which make it a singular cuisine on its own. They make an unique slaw that is a bright magenta color (the chef told me it comes from a brick colored powder that he disolves in vinegar to make the slaw dressing-he gave me a sample to try at home) , some things were garnished with a tangy mustard sauce as well as sparkling fresh pico de gallo, fried plantains accompanied many dishes-the way french fries are used in this country-and of course lots of fresh lime juice and cilantro.

I sampled some empanadas, tostados, burritos, and a beef stew. The poor waitress had to get the chef because I was asking so many questions and she did not have a terrific command of the Queen's English-so to speak-nor I a command of the Queen's Spanish. I found the food to be bright and appealing. Unfortunately none of the tamales-and there were 3 or 4 to choose from-were available. The chef explained he only makes them on Wednesdays and often they sell out before the next wednesday. The food all had excellent flavors, the only disappointment was that the beef stew was a bit fatty, so as long as you don't mind "eating around" some fat it was delicious.

I came away with a new obsession with Latin sodas. I had a banana soda (tastes like Vess Creme soda) and orange soda with lunch, and later went to "Torito's Supermercado", located in an old Woolworth's store to purchase pineapple, lime, orange, and banana. They are very sweet, sort of like drinking fizzy Kool-Aid. Chalk it up to getting in touch with my "inner child".

Rainbow Trout with Pancetta, Rosemary, and Fingerling potatoes

This is such an easy preparation for trout and has so much flavor from the pancetta and Rosemary. I dredged the fillets in panko for a bit of crunch to the bite, sauteed them in olive oil, topped it with a slice of pancetta and some Rosemary leaves and ran it under the broiler to slightly curl the pancetta. Pancetta is a non-smoked Italian bacon with a whimsical round form.
Squeezing fresh lemon juice over the dish brightens all the flavors.

I blanched the Fingerlings and then sauteed them with a bit of garlic, Rosemary and lemon juice.

A Winter's Salad, Stilton, and Bogle Petit Sirah

It has been so cold and dreary, and we were expecting a snow day on Sunday which never really happened, we just holed up with lots of food and wine. I made one of my favorite salads with fennel, blood oranges, radish, and cilantro, dressed with just lemon juice and olive oil. Sort of makes you forget there is no sunshine or honest tomatoes to be had.

I don't usually make porterhouse steaks because they have two different muscles connected by the same bone, and the two muscles cook differently. Having said that, steaks with the bone attached are tastier, and this was the only bone-in steak at the grocery (I should have thought ahead and brought something from the restaurant) and it ended up being pretty decent. Of course being smeared with real Stilton didn't hurt. Stilton has one of those in-your-face personalities you either love or hate. There are few people in the middle with Stilton. Stilton is such a good winter cheese and it invites a wine with an equally sturdy personality. I found this Bogle Petite Sirah on sale so I thought I would give it a try.

The color was gorgeous deep garnet red, it had some fruit but was far from jammy, maybe some faint black licorice lingering in the finish. It was a very pleasant wine-not too complicated or complex but more than able to stand up to Stilton's sass.

Tomato Wars Kings Mahi Mahi for the Weekend

War might be an overstatement, but the restaurant GM is looking for ways to cut expenses, without compromising quality. Here's the dilemma for our red sauce we use an imported Italian San Marzano canned tomato. It is mostly used for a cavatelli side dish-not an entree-which is an option for most entrees so it's not a revenue generator. It is a quickly cooked sauce with olive oil, garlic slices, and fresh basil it is a light and delicious red sauce compared to the glop you usually get. But can it be made with a cheaper domestic canned tomato?

So in America's Test Kitchen style, we made two batches one with the San Marzano, one with a lesser canned tomato. We presented both dishes to the owner who is the ultimate "Decider" and he picked the San Marzano immeadiatly-so the quality product wins out. But the fact remains that it is only a side dish-how do you justifuy the expense? I don't want you to think I'm a spendthrift chef-last year's food cost averaged 30% for the entire year-but I do buy really expensive cheeses, meats, and fish-and canned tomatoes. I just don't think you can compromise in some areas.

So in restored respect for our humble red, I sauced the Mahi Mahi with it for a beautiful weekend special. The Mahi is in season right now and was actually very reasonable. I simply sauteed the Mahi fillet and swished some pesto across the top to punch it up a bit. I should have saved some of the Basil for garnish, but it all went into the pesto. The Mahi was fantastic, but in retrospect I would have preferred to grill it, but our grill man is hit so hard on Saturdays I try to throw specials to saute.

Spare Ribs and Kraut or Choucroute Garnie-German or French?

I don't know if this is German or French, but who really cares anyway? It is a marvelous cold weather meal and so easy. I just rinsed a bag of kraut, then mixed it with a sliced onion, a couple quartered red potatoes, one large apple, 1 cup chicken stock, and 1 cup white wine.

I layed a slab of ribs across the kraut mixture, sprinkled the top with some sea salt and freshly ground pepper, and popped it into the oven at 300 degrees for 2 hours. I increased the temperature to 375 degrees, removed the lid (to let the ribs brown on top and some of the liquid evaporate), and returned it to the oven for about 20 minutes more roasting, it was ready to serve. I guess it is really just a casserole.

1 slab of pork spare ribs (about 2 pounds) brined in salt water for two hours
1 pound bag of kraut-rinsed
1 large onion sliced
1 large apple sliced
3 or four red "B" potatoes, quartered
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup white wine
1 bay leaf

Dutch Baby

Reading some of my favorite blogs last week I found two of them baking Dutch Babies and one making a soup from one of the "Dairy Hollow Inn" cookbooks. I stayed at the Dairy Hollow Inn one weekend. It is located in enchanting Eureka Springs Arkansas. The charms of Eureka Springs are many. It is home to several artists and writers, it is almost as hilly as SanFrancisco, the architecture of the cottages is whimsical and delightful, it has a small opera company, and it has Thorn Crown Chapel-a much studied example of last century's modern architecture. It has been over 20 years since I last visited Eureka Springs, but it has a haunting quality that keeps it fresh in my memories.

So after reading about the soup from Dairy Hollow Inn, I remembered the breakfast they served, and it was Dutch Baby with blueberries. So that 's the connection. I decided to make my own for a late Sunday breakfast, with sauteed pears. They are simple to make and they look delicious.

3 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tablespoons melted butter

Whip the eggs with salt and milki

Gradulally stir in the flour

Add the melted butter

Pour into a 9" cast iron skillet and bake in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes

Reduce the oven temperature to 350, dock the bottom of the pancake and continu to bake for 10 minutes longer.

When the pancake is finished baking sift powdered sugar over it and spritz it with fresh lemon juice.

I topped mine with fresh pear slices sauteed with some butter, sugar, cinnamon, and a splash of champagne.

Yesterday the photographer from the St Louis Post Dispatch was at the restaurant photographing our Strawberry Applesauce Bread. She arrived at 3 PM and because it was in the middle of the lunch and dinner I was able to spend quite a lot of time with her. She took lots and lots of pictures. Some of whole loaves, some of slices, some with whole loaves and slices, some with slices buttered, some with slices stacked, some with slices fanned. Some photographed from the top-looking down, some from across to get a side view. Some with a tablescape, but mostly she kept a tight focus on the bread. There were some roses, a coffee cup, a bread basket, some whole strawberries and cinnamon sticks that she played with as props.

I am not a very good photographer-as you can tell from some of my pictures. I think I learned alot from the photographer. Whether or not I am ever able to take beautiful pictures remains to be seen. She was an interesting young lady Her name is Katherine Bish. She photographs alot for the Post Dispatch as well as St Louis magazine-which has alot of beautiful glossy pictures. She just finished potographing a cookbook based on the Greek and German cuisines of Chicago and Milwaukee. You can visit her web site to view her work by clicking www.bishculinaire.com

Richard, if you're reading this, there is a picture of you shaking Wolfgang Puck's hand. Katherine did a big photo spread for L'Ecole Culinaire when Chef Puck paid a visit. Puck operates the catering operations for the art museum, the science center, and the new modern art gallery in St Louis. I think it's kind of embarrassing that St Louis feels it needs an out of town chef celebrity to fill its high profile catering needs. There are several excellent top tier caterers here who handled the job before he blew into town-but that is another topic.

Katherine's photos and the recipe for our Strawberry Applesauce Bread will run in the February 14th edition of the paper in the "Let's Eat" section. This bread recipe has been around a long time. I first made it at Richard Perry Restaurant in the 1980's. It probably showed up at Orchids and the DeLuxe in Cincinatti. I know it was also served at Lindel Terrace, and probably for a while at the WS Hotel. And now I make it at Gallagher's in Waterloo. I have to admit it is not one of my favorite recipes because it can be fickle to work with. There is alot of sugar, so it will burn easily, and the crumb structure is delicate so that if it is disturbed in the oven before it sets it will collapse in the center, but people love this bread. Often people ask to buy a whole loaf to take home.

6 cups applesauce

2 cups strawberry preserves

10 eggs

8 cups sugar

10 3/4 cups cake flour

3 1/2 cups raisins

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

1/2 cup melted butter

3 tablespoons baking powder

3 tablespoons baking soda

3 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground cloves

Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl and stir with the paddle until all ingredients are combined-do not overmix.

Spray bread pans with release spray, line with parchment paper. Spray again and flour lightly.

Fill the pans to a little over half full and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until the bread tests done.

Makes eight 9 by 3 inch loaves

Chicken and Noodles for "Waiter there's something in my stew"

I have been wanting to write down our family's favorite "granny dish" and it is chicken and noodles. So in honor of my grandmother, who just celebrated her 93rd birthday on January 2, and to participate in Andrew's "Waiter There's Something in my Soup", I will write about her chicken and noodles and make a pot of them. Her chicken and noodles and her cream (banana, coconut, and chocolate) pies were her best dishes. She also made beef and noodles, but the chicken were always my favorite. While she is still with us, she no longer cooks. To view all the blogger's stews from around the world visit the round-up at www.spittoonextra.biz

I started with 1 large stewing hen, it was a bit over 6 pounds. I added 1 onion, 2 carrots, 2 stalks of celery, a bay leaf, and covered them with water. Simmer the hen about 1 1/2 hours and let it cool. Pick the chicken meat from the bones, and reserve. Return the bones back to the stock and continue to simmer for a couple of hours to further enrich and strengthen the stock. Pull the chicken into large shreds, this is better than cutting the chicken into chunks with a knife, and reserve.

I made noodles using 5 large eggs with 2 1/2 cups flour, and a teaspoon of salt. I placed all the flour in a large mixing bowl and made a well in the center. I cracked the 5 eggs into the well and added the salt to the eggs. With a wooden spoon, I began stirring the eggs, gradually incorporating the flour until a soft ball forms. Knead slightly and let the dough rest under a tea towel for a couple of minutes to relax the gluten. Divide the dough into two or threee easily managed pieces and roll them out into sheets. Dust the sheets with flour and roll up each sheet jelly-roll style and slice into noodles. Let the noodles dry for a couple of hours while the stock continues to cook.

When the stock has simmered a couple of hours, strain it, discarding the vegetables and bones, return the stock back to the pot. Bring the liquid back to the boil and add the noodles, stirring once so they don't stick together. The excess flour dusting the noodles will thicken the broth as the noodles cook. Stir in the reserved chicken, add salt and pepper, and serve over mashed potatoes.

I know that must seem like starch overload, but that is always the way we ate them. I sometimes add some mushrooms, minced parsly, and thyme to liven up the dish, but Grandma never did. They were so delicious, mine are so inadequate by comparison.

Chicken Huli Huli

This is just Hawaiian style Bbq. I would prefer to do chicken thighs still on the bone for this dish, but compared to boneless skinless chicken breasts, they don't sell all that well. The problem being with boneless skinless chicken breast is there is no flavor-they over cook in an instant and become dry-they ae boring and insipid. So why do we cook boneless skinless chicken breasts so often? Because alot of people like them for some reason. The only two reasons I can think to eat them is that they are low fat and easy to eat-no embarrassing and messy eating maneuvers required for the clumsy and socially insecure. On the plus side they are cheap and easy to produce and they are adaptable to alot of simple sauces.

I first marinated these breasts in pineapple juice flavored with garlic, scallion, and soy. For the bbq sauce I used pineapple, garlic, scallion, soy, honey, rice wine vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and hot chinese chili paste. It becomes delicious because of the sauce, but otherwise it just tastes like boneless, skinless chicken.

New Year's Day

It has been so busy that I pretty much gave up on trying to keep this blog current. The restaurant was literally non-stop the last couple of weeks before Christmas. It has been lovely. We sold a boatload of seafood (please forgive the pun), lots of steaks and Prime Rib Roasts, over the top sauces, glazes, and garnishes, spreads, dips, and appetizers-ENOUGH ALREADY! And still today I could not control myself and made just a couple of things to nosh on while I tried in vain to connect my new Sirius Satelite Radio.

Black Eyed peas of course. I pickle them like Helen Corbett recommends. Helen Corbett was an influential foodie in the 1950's. She was cooking at a country club in Houston and was faced with the Southern tradition of serving the peas on New Year's day, when she did not care for them at all. She came up with the idea of pickling them and making a salad of them and I think I prefer them prepared this way as well. She went on to even greater fame as the creator of the Zodiac Room and menus for the Neiman Marcus Corporation.

Oysters with two toppings one bacon, leek, and hot sauce, and a second of my nephew's Mother-in-law's home preserved green tomato relish. We call them Oysters Lalette after the lady herself. It is also delicious as part of a cheese tray.

And last I made a lobster curry. I think I'll experiment with alot of Indian food in the new year. I got an antique apothecary mortar and pestle as a gift and it is perfect for grinding the spices and herbs to make curry pastes. I just split the tails and threw everything in the wok with some coconut milk, some vegetables, and diced pears. It was fantastic, but difficult to eat. Even with the shells split, the lobster meat was difficult to extract.

Oxtails braised with pear cider

I have been using alot of pears lately. They seem so festive for the holidays. Their shape is interesting-so much more elegant than apple. I like the Bosc best, mostly because of the shape, they are so uniformly plump at the blossom end, and skinny at the stem. The seckels are also attractive, but with their diminutive size they are alot of work peeling to get enough for the recipe.

I've also been drinking some marvelous Woodchuck Pear Cider. Refreshing and different, it is a draft cider and does have a small (4%) alchahol content. It has a pale straw coloring with a few bubbles-it almost looks like a champagne. It has a little sweetness to it, but not as much as you might expect-sort of like a dry champagne, and would be great with stews and chilis. I think it would make a great addition to your holiday bar.

I braised some oxtails with it last night and they were delicious. I browned the tails, added some onions, carrots, and flour, to slightly thicken it. I added some beef stock and a bottle of the cider and braised them for about 1 1/2 hours.

As a side dish I made a puree of potato, celery root, and pears. Quite tasty with the brasising liquid. I added some brussels sprouts which I sauteed with some chestnuts. I like chestnuts, but they can be too starchy for me sometimes. I like them best sliced into dressing, or as an addition to a vegetable side dish like the brussels sprouts. They also make an interesting soup that I have made in years past.

Grilled Sea Scallops and Pears

Sea scallops are a sweet meat that always works well with fruit. Citrus, of course, but they are also delicious with pears. I peeled, halved and cored the pears and roasted them with a little honey, white wine, and butter. I grilled the scallops and finished them in a saute pan with the roasted pear liquid, some shallot, and reduced cream. For plating I fanned (sooo 1980's)
the pear. Quite tasty, but epensive, I costed them out at a little over $2 each.

Pot Roast

Braised Beef or Beef en Daub would probably be a more elegant title for this technique, but it all boils (please pardon that lame pun) down to the same basic dish. A rather tough, fatty piece of beef is browned and then simmered in liquid for several hours until tender. Cuts like arm roasts, briskets, short ribs, and shanks are best for this dish. I used a 7 bone roast. It is a shoulder roast that contains a bone shaped like the number seven, hence the name. To me, the bone is also an important aspect. Most chain groceries don't even carry roasts with bones anymore they are all boneless-maybe some ribs and shanks if you're lucky.

One of the 'butchers" at the Schnucks-our local chain of Grocery stores-explained that most of the meat is already butchered when it arrives at the store and the bones are expensive to ship (heavy) and difficult to pack. So why do they call them butchers if they mostly weigh out meat and wrap things? I think your best bet for meat is a butcher shop, one of the grocery stores with an honest-to-god butcher like Ladue Market or Straubs, or ordering on line from someone like Niman Ranch or Harris Ranch.

I also recommend wrapping the roast in a dry tea towel for a couple of days to eliminate some extra moisture and concentrate the beefy flavors. Thoroughly sear the outside of the roast and place it in a large roasting pan. Cover with sliced onions, a couple of garlic cloves, thyme leaves, bay leaf, a couple of whole cloves, and salt and pepper. Place a split pig's trotter on the side of the roast and add one cup of port wine and then an entire bottle of red wine-this can be cheap red but it must taste good, I used a $7 bottle of Smoking Loon Merlot-add stock to cover the meat and vegetables, and roast at 325 for three hours. Then add the vegetables to the roasting pan-I used cabbage wedges, portobella mushrooms, potatoes, turnips, carrots, celery, and onion wedges. Return the pan to the oven, lower the temperature to 300 degrees and roast until the vegetables are tender and slightly browned, basting the vegetables with the pan juices.

The natural gelatin in the roast's bone and the pig's trotters make an especially luscious pan juice. Defat and thicken the juice if you like, but not really necessary for a really staisfying winter's dinner.

Mrs. Goldberg's Russian Borscht

I got this recipe from a lovely Jewish lady, of Russian descent, when I lived in Chicago. Mrs. Goldberg's family had once owned a small chain of clothing stores, but through financial reversals had lost their businesses and grand lifestyle. The Goldberg family was always plotting ways to recapture their footing in retailing. They were so optimistic and creative that I am sure good things returned to them eventually, but I have lost touch with them for several years now.

I have not lost touch with this delicious soup, written down in Mrs. Goldberg's longhand, with a friendly little note at the end "any problems just give Mrs. G a call".

1 Small head cabbage, thinly sliced
1 Medium onion, diced
2 Quarts of tomatoes (I used my mom's home canned)
Tomato juice to cover cabbage, if required
1 marrow bone (optional-it tastes very good as a vegetarian soup as well)
Juice of 2 lemons
1/2 Cup sugar
2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
Salt and pepper to your liking

Add cabbage, onion, tomatoes, juice (if needed), and marrow bone (if using) to soup pot and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 1 hour.

Add the potato cubes and continue simmering until the potatoes are tender, about another 1/2 hour.

Add the sugar and lemon juice, taste, and adjust to make a perfect balance of sweet and sour by using more lemon juice or sugar.

Add the salt and pepper.