Secret Menus

Everyone who's been into an In n' Out knows about the things you can order that are not on their menu.  But there are plenty of restaurants in America that have special menus.  For example, if you go to the café upstairs from Books Inc. in MountainView you might be there on the right day to have their poppy seed cake.  I haven't had it in years but it is very very good.  You have to know to ask for it.  They won't tell you about it if you don't already know.  And there used to be a certain cheese shop in San Francisco where one could, if the right words were said and enough cash paid, leave the premises with soft, unripened raw milk cheeses.  I don't know if that store still exists.  I hope it does, even though I don't have that kind of money anymore.  One place you can go and get a truly amazing off-menu item is Harris' Restaurant:  Sweetbreads in a conac reduction. But there is that money problem again.

There is one place, more than one place, maybe, in San Jose to get your off-menu yummies and not go broke in the process: Mama Do's Kitchen.  It has all the Vietnamese clasics but there is one thing that is sooooo good that you won't find on the menu:  Chicken stewed in ginger.  I can not even begin to describe how good it is.  I could say it is better than sex, but people have said that about many things.  Usually, they are wrong when they say that.    But if someone were to say Mama Do's chicken stewed in ginger is better than sex they might be right, at least, some of the time.

Cocktail of the Week: The Stinger

It is a truism that all the best cocktails are variations of the Martini.  That classic mixture of a high-alcohol spirit and a contrasting flavor of low-alcohol spirit is mirrored in the Manhattan, the Rusty Nail, the Black Russian, and a dozen or more others.  This weeks cocktail is part of that family.   No one, to the the best of my knowledge, remembers who first mixed one, but the recipe was included in Ideal Bartender (1917) by Tom Bullock.  Every Christmas I am reminded of this drink's former popularity when I watch Cary Grant order stingers in the classic movie The Bishop's Wife.

The Stinger

1 ounce brandy (I like Christian Brothers)

1/4  white creme de menthe

Shake well with crushed ice.  Strain into a cocktail glass.  Serve.

My brother, Demitrios.

Since Sept. 24 I've been selling cars for a living.  It's fun but the hours are long, 50 -60 hours per week. I take the bus to and from work.  Late tonight I was waiting for the bus, and it zoomed right past me.  The driver did see me, though.  He stopped half a block past me.  I ran up to the bus and when I got on he yelled at me for not being more noticable.  I yelled at him for not being more attentive.  Then I saw his eyes.  There was something different.  I said, "where to you go to chuch?"  He looked shocked, but said, "St. Nicholas Church, near the Alameda".  I said, "I go to to St. Nicholas Church in Saratoga!"  We apologised to each other, and Demitrios and I had good fellowship, talking about Jesus and his Church, until I had to get off the bus.

For hot California weather: Cocktail of the Week

As everyone knows, the Oskie is the mascot of U.C. Berkley, and a bruin is the mascot of U.C.L.A.  and a bear is on the flag of the California Republic (AKA The Golden State).  So, to offer refreshment during this hot California weather, here is another cocktail invention of my own.


The Golden Bear

Incredients
11/4 cup dry white California wine (Mondavi, Almaden or Gallo preferred)
3 tbsp Potter's triple sec (It is distilled in San José, California.)
1/2 cup of crush ice
Orange slice

Directions
Put ice, wine, and and triple sec into a pint jar.
Stir.
Garnish with orange slice.
Drink through a straw.

In the Ghetto: Saturday Soundtrack

I know exactly where I was on August 16, 1977.  I was in a car on my way from Visalia to Mountain View. I was on Highway 152 leading up the east side of the the Diablo Mountains, at the San Luis Reservoir when the announcer came on the air and said that Elvis Presley was dead.  My mother and my aunt Carolyn were in the car.  I was sitting on the front seat between them.  This is the first song that was played after the announcemnt.  I don't remember if they cried, but I did.



Elvis holds the record for most songs charting on the Billboard top 40 (104 sogns) and the Bilboard Top 100 (151 songs). To this day, The King of Rock and Roll makes hits.  Several of his pothumously released recording went to the top of the charts, and rereleases and remixes have have continued to reach the top ten all over the world as recently 2004.  In 2010 Cirque du Soleil released the music from their show, Viva Elvis, as an album.

Even though Elvis was a Rock and Roll and Country music star, arguably the brightest of them all, his three Grammy Awards were won in the Gospel category.  I hope I meet him someday.

Cocktail of the Week: The Dairy Farm

I thought I would start a new feature for this blog.  I have, pretty much, grown tired of the Saturday Soundtrack but I still like the structure of a regular topics.  So, without further ado, the first Cocktail of the Week.

The Dairy Farm (an original recipe)
The other night it was kind of chilly, I was feeling sad and wanting to feel the happiness of Christmas, which means eggnog.  But I didn't have all the needed ingredients.  What did I have?

Strauss Family heavy cream
Christian Brothers V.S. brandy (It is produced by the Heaven Hill company of Kentucky)
Granulated sugar
Nutmeg
Allspice

Note on spices: If you only have pre-ground nutmeg and allspice that's okay.  But if you are going to make this for guests, you really should use a little grater and a dedicated pepper mill, for the sake of presentation.  Besides, fresh is always better.

Note on brandy:  If you use Paul Mason brandy (not recommended) you will want to leave the sugar out of this recipe.  Paul Mason is already very sweet.

Note on cream:  This is the main part of the drink so it needs to be of the highest quality.  Ultra high temperature (UHT) pasteurization and homoginization ruins the God-given taste of milk and cream.  If you can't get Strauss Family cream in your area look for any non-homoginized cream pastueurized using HTST pasteurization or even un-pasteurized (trust in the alcohol and stomach acid to kill any bacteria) that is from grass-fed (NO CORN!) dairy cows.

Directions:  Put 1 tsp granulated sugar and 2 oz brndy into a large mug. Heat 6 oz of heavy cream on stovetop or in microwave.  DO NOT BOIL!  Pour hot cream into mug.  Stir gently. Grate a little nutmeg and grind a little allspice onto the cream, no more than 1/8 tsp of each.  Drink.   If you only have pre-ground nutmeg and allspice that's okay.  But if you are going to make this for guests, you really should use a little grater and a dedicated pepper mill, for the sake of presentation.  Besides, fresh is always better.

When I was a child I drank as a child, but when I became a man I put away childish drinks.

Last night, after the boys and Athanasia were in bed I felt like drinking.  So I went to the Duke of Edinburough in Cupertino.  It took me a long time to decide what to order.  I settled on my old favorite: The Martini.  This particular martini was a 4-1 made, Tanqueray, two olives.  I only had one but it was beautiful.

Sitting there, drinking that drink, I felt like my old self again.

Today, I got a job offer.  I start to work on Monday.

Now, if I can just get my wife to love me again, everything will be all right.

Letter to the Romans

Many years ago, when I was a Protestant and attending Peninsula Bible Church in Cupertino, I think it was 1997 or 1998, I taught a 51 week long course on the Letter to the Romans.  In addition to the Letter I relied, primarily, on Martin Luther's lectures on Romans, but also the writings of John Calvin, Lorainne Boettner, J. Vernon McGee, and Matthew Henry.  I very much enjoyed all the reading and writing.  I felt very proud of myself, and by the time I finished the course I felt like I was an expert on the Letter.  But, in fact, after my year teaching Romans I had become cemented in antinomianism and hypocrisy.  Only now I feel like I am beginnging to understand the Letter, but only beginning.  I am not deep, but this is what I think I know:  The Letter isn't about theologogical systems.  It isn't about election or justification or supercession or predestination.  It is about love and how I am to live in love, which means living in thanksgiving and repentence, always experienceing God's mercy and working with God to make myself into a conduit for that mercy.

When I was a boy, I asked my Dad how to understand some passage in the Bible.  He didn't answer my question.  Instead, he asked me me a question: "What is the nature of God?"  Of course, I knew the answer to that question: Love.  So, here I am, a maiddle-aged Orthodox Christian, only learning now what my Dad tried to teach me when I was a boy.

Pie Crust

It is the beginning of autumn pie season; when pumpkin, cranberry-walnut, apple, onion, and chicken pies are lovingly put on tables.  But the foundation of every pie is the crust.

Here is my pie crust recipe

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour.  I like King Arthur brand.

2 cups fresh unsalted butter.  

1 cup COLD water.

1/2 tsp non-iodized salt. (I like Diamond Crystal.  Yes, I know most bakers like fine salt but I like this.)

(2 tsp granulated sugar is only for sweet pies.  I like C&H Baker's Sugar.  The quaity is consistent.)

Directions

Combine flour, salt (and sugar) into large mixing bowl. Stir it up with your fingers so the salt (and sugar) is evenly distributed throughout the flour.  Cut the butter into the flour with your fingers (I've never tried a pastry blender, so I don't know if that is a better method.)  When the butter and flour form pea sized balls (in about 5 minutes) start slowy adding the cold water; just a little at a time.  You do not want to add too much water.  Only add enough water so all those peas sized bits come together into one big ball.   Divide the dough in 1/2 and form it into disks.  Set in on parchment paper and put it the fridge for 1 hour.  Take out of the fridge and roll it out to fit your pie pan.  

Cold Enough For Socks

Today has been pretty cool.  I haven't actually put sock on, and the windows are still open, but I have thought about putting on socks and closing windows.  And that means Christmas is comming. So, today I learned this song on my ukulele.

CHRISTMAS TIME'S A-COMIN'

[D] Holly's in the window
[A7] Home where the wind blows
[D] Can't walk for runnin'
[A7] Christmas Time's A-[D] Comin'.

[D] Can't you hear them bells ringin', ringin'
[G] Joy, don'tcha hear them singin'
When [D] it's snowin', I'll be goin'
[A7] Back to my country [D] home.

[D] Christmas Time's A-Comin'
[A7] Christmas Time's A-Comin'
[D] Christmas Time's A-Comin'
And I [A7] know I'm goin' [D] home.

White candle's burnin'
My old heart's a-yearnin'
For the folks at home when
Christmas Time's A-Comin'.

Snow flake's a-fallin'
My old home's a-callin'
Tall pine's a-hummin'
Christmas Time's A-Comin'.

But it sounds a lot better with a fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and bass.

Coffee

I walk into the kitchen. Put the Mellita cone on my mug, insert a filter, add two tablespoons of ground coffee - dark roasted arabica beans from Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Quatemala. I pour water into the kettle and set it on the stove. Then I wake up my boys by singing to them. By the time they are out of bed the kettle is singing with me, so I return to the kitchen and slowly pour the water over the coffee. It is a cool morning, and I enjoy the warmth of the steam on my arm as I pour. Usually, but not today because it is Wednesday and the Beheading of St. John, when the cup is full, and the kitchen smells beautiful I add a little milk.  No sugar. I drink it while my sons get ready for school, while the squirrels play in the orange tree outside my window. 

Physician, Cure They Self

So, I'm being put through a divorce.  But a funny thing is that I got a letter from a friend the other day asking for advice on how to save her marriage.  The friend is a woman I have not seen since 1986, when I was 16 and she was 15.  I gave her the best advice I could think of, and yesterday she thanked me and said it had worked.  I wish I could do the same for my marriage.

Three Miracles I Have Seen

I was 6 years old.  My mother and I were driving home from somewhere.  The gasoline light came on.  We were just about out of gas.  My mother said, "Let's pray". We prayed.  I saw the gasoline guage go from empty to 1/4.  Enough to get home.

I was 15 years old my parents and I where out in the middle of nowhere Forida, near Horsehoe Beach. There was nothing but forest for miles.  We ran out of gas.  A big white truck pulled up behind us.  A giant black man with the most beautiful face and dressed in spotless white got out of the truck and walked up to my dad's window and said, "Hi, I have three gallons of gasoline for you.  It will get you to the next gas station."  My dad tried to pay him but he said, "No, God has been very good to me."  Then the man got in his truck pulled in front of us and at a certain point -  and I cannot explain it for there were no intersections, no driveways, no place for the truck to go - the truck and the man were gone.  We did not see another soul until we got to the gas station.

Just a few years ago I entered a church near here.  I was early and there was no one in the building but me and an old great schema monk, leaning on a cane.  He frightened me.  When he looked at me I knew every sin I had ever commtted.  Then he floated through the air to me. There were about two inches of air between the monk and the floor.  

Meteor Shower

Anselm, Basil, and I went out and watched part of the meteor shower tonight.  Right after supper (pasta with mushrooms and zuchini) we set out for the San Antonio Valley.  To get there from San Jose one drives on California State Highway 130 over the peak of Mt. Hamilton and the Lick Observatory, where the state highway becomes San Antonio Valley Road.

On the eastern slope of the mountain the grade was so steep and the turns so sharp and so frequent that even in first gear my brakes started to over heat.  It is merely an 50 minute drive from where I live but could be another planet.  Granite boulders, scrub oak, gnarly pine, deer, owls, bats, jack rabbits, bobcats.  I think it is named appropriately.  St. Anthony would feel at home there.  It is a beautiful piece of land.  Looks like a good place for cattle, but I think the Nature Conservancy has bought up a lot of it.

 We sat out there for three hours and only 1 pick up UC-owned truck heading to the observatory and three Hells Angels went by. We saw some amazing meteors.  Most of them were just short whit lines flashing in the sky.  Five of them had tails 20 degrees or more in length (Yes, I measured.) and traveled half way across the vault before they burnt into nothingness.  One meteor burned brightly enough to light up the sky, not like the sun, of course, but close to the brightness of the full Moon.  I was astounded.  Anselm and Basil both yelled "WOW!"

I was way past the boys bed time by the time we saw the first meteor.  And they were so tired from a long day of play and swimming at the YMCA that a few minutes before 11 I decided to drive them home.  It was fun.  And this outing helps Basil earn the Cub Scout astronomy pin. (Anselm already has his astronomy pin.)

Athanasia Wants a Divorce

She says that for 10 years she has not loved me and wants out of our marriage.  I beg God to kill me and he doesn't answer.

Cub Scout Skits

I have applied for many jobs over the last few weeks and have had a few interviews.  I still don't have a job.  However, I have been keeping busy by volunteering at Cub Scout camps.  I taught knots and leather work one week.  Another week I was the archery range master.  Next week I'll be range master again.  All the camps in out council have a safari theme this year.  So, for next weeks camp I wrote or modified some skits to fit the theme.  Here they are.

Berry Pie

On Saturday morning I went to the farmers market and bought 3 pints of black berries.   By the time I opened the bag that evening they were beginning to be moldy.  But I'd already made my crust and needed a filling.  So, last night I went to the grocery store and bought frozen black berries.  Today I made the pie.  Here is my recipe.

Ingredients
2 pints black berries (fresh or frozen)
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 bottom pie crust (I use a basic 321 pastry recipe with a little sugar added)
1 top pie crust
2 tablespoons milk
Juice of 1/4 lemon

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 425
Mix 1/2 cup sugar with 1/2 cup flour and 3 1/2 cups of berries.  This is the filing.  Put the filling in the bottom pie crust.  Add the remainder of the berries.  Sprinkle with lemon juice.  Put top crust on and pinch closed around the edge. Cut some vents in the top crust to let the steam out.  Brush the top with milk.  Sprinkle with sugar.  Bake in the 425 F oven for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 375 F and bake until the filling bubbles and the top crust is light brown, about 20 minutes.  Cool on wire rack before eating.

We look for the resurrection of the dead and life of the age to come.

We are all traveling in the footsteps of those who come before.
And we'll all be reunited on that new sun-lit shore

Oh, when the Saints go marching in
Oh, when the saints go marcing in
O Lord, I want to be in that number when the Saints go marching in

And when the sun refuses to shine
When the sun refuses to shine
O Lord, how I want to be in that number when the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the saints go marching in

O Lord, I want to be there on that morning when the Saints go marching in

When the trumpet sounds its call

When the trumpet sounds its call

Oh, I want to be in that number when the trumpet souds its call

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the saints go marching in

Lord, oh, I want to be in that number

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

Now some say 

some say this world of trouble 

is the only world we'll ever see

But I wait for that morning when the new world is revealed

Oh, when the new world is revealed

Oh, when the new world is revealed

Lord, How I want to be there on that morning when the new world is reveald

When the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

Lord, how I want to be in that number

When the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

Oh, when the saints go marching in

Lord, oh, I want to be in that number

Oh, when the Saints go marching in

12 Movies

Since I've been diagnosed with depression I have, on doctor's orders, been watching a lot of movies.  Here are 12 movies I have enjoyed and recommend to you.  In no particular order they are:

1. Howards End
2. Eat Drink Man Woman
3. Enchanted April
4. Big Night
5. Like Water For Chocolate
6. Much Ado About Nothing
7. My Dinner with Andre
8. Zelig
9. The Quiet Man
10. Out of Africa
11.  The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill but Came Down a Mountain
12. Sweet Land

Mammy

My father's mother was named Minnie.  I called her Mammy. She did not see a car until she was 7 years old.  She told me it terrified her.  She thought it was some kind of animal that had gotten hold of her uncle.

My earliest memory of her is from the summer before I started Kindergarten.  My father and mother and I drove from California to Missouri to move her out west.  She was thrice widowed and living alone in a mobile home near Springfield.  I remember she had pretty flowers, and a manual water pump in the front yard.  My dad showed me how to prime the pump and get water to flow.  I remember enjoying playing with that pump.  I don't remember anything about the drive to Missouri and back to California.

When I was nine years old Mammy and I rode the Greyhound bus back to St. Louis to visit her sisters.  I bought a comic book at every depot.  I remember the Flagstaff depot was enormous and very clean.  I remember the soldiers on the bus getting off near Ft. Leonard Wood.  I remember a couple kissing, and really going at it, on the seat across from us.  Mammy told me not to look at them.  I looked anyway.

We didn't spend anytime in St. Louis.  One of her sisters, I forget which, picked us up at the bus station and drove us accross the river into Illinois.  I remember seeing the arch.  And on the way to that sister's house we ran over a snake in the road.  Actually, we skidded the tires on it to kill it.  The women in my family bear no sympathy for snakes.

At my Great Aunt Goldie's house I had a lot of fun.  We played aggravation (the board had been carved out of a piece of plywood) every night.  They let me use the blue marbles. We ate radishes from her garden at every meal.  They were big white radishes.

My Great Aunt Virgie took us fishing when we visted her.  That was a lot of fun except for the water moccasin which was scarry.  They told me about their uncle who died from a water moccasin bite.

At my Great Aunt Mable's house I had the most fun.  Her house was built out of stones her husband had pulled out of the field.  It was a beautiful house.  In the field was a garden where I pulled weeds, and picked strawberries and green beans.  We made strawberry jam, and when we were finished we bleached the strawberry stains from our fingers with lemon juice.

When I was twelve my parents moved to Florida, and Mammy moved with us.  She lived in a little house behind our house, and she made breakfast for me almost every day: Two hamburgers with mayonaise and mustard.  When she was in her eighties and I was a soldier at Ft. Campbell she died of cancer.