Time on my hands...

Well, what’s a food blogger to do to while away the endless hours while quarantined?  

According to The Thane of Cawdor:

"There would have been a time for such a word.

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

To the last syllable of recorded time…"

(Did I ever mention that I played him in our Senior Play in High school? I loved that…)

Maybe the Feeder will resort to more frequent and shorter tales.

Like this: Julia

A loyal reader sent me a note a day or so ago alerting me that on Friday (the third) our PBS (Channel Three) was going to carry “The French Chef” her original cooking show wherein she throws around flounders, chickens, etc.  They were fantastic… So, we managed to stay awake until after ten last night (more on that in a moment) to watch.  Well, guess what? PBS had to polish the diamond.  Basically, it was turned into a talk show featuring Jose Andres and Éric Ripert, two Michelin starred chefs.  Well, they were in a little TV panel inset up in the right hand corner of the screen, showing them at a table; while Julia was relegated to a similar panel in the lower left.  She would bone a flounder, and both gents had to comment on that with gratuitous quips and clever remarks etc., Interesting, but certainly not what I expected.  I would have thought at least Jose would have more respect, and Julia frequented Eric's famous restaurant. the program was certainly not what I expected.  Probably won’t be watching any more episodes!

Technical note:  The Feeder thought “the hell with this, I’ll just watch the real thing!” and cycled over to NETFLIX (and ultimately Amazon Prime).  After a long and frustrating search I finally found “The French Chef” all right and could watch it for a mere $2.99.  I did notice yesterday that PBS also carries “In Julia’s Kitchen” sporadically, with no fee.

Unexpected Gem

But the real reward of the night was the second edition of the program we stumbled on while waiting for the First Julia circus. It is called “Somewhere South” and hosted by Vivian Howard an award winning author of “Deep Run Roots - Stories and Recipes from my Corner of the South” which won among other awards: Cookbook of the Year, Julia Child First Book Award, Outstanding Restaurant Cookbook, and Outstanding Cookbook in the General Category.  PBS (accurately) describes it as “Each episode of “Somewhere South” explores the connectivity of a single dish, and the ways people of different backgrounds interpret that dish while expressing the complex values, identities, and histories that make up the American South.” When we began with episode one (Hand Pies) last week we thought, “oh yeah another cutesy TV chef” WRONG!  Vivian makes it not all about her, but successfully brings out the real character of Southern Cooks (maybe as opposed to “chefs”) mostly African Americans who have inconspicuously cooked in small establishments for years.  Although taking place in eastern South Carolina, Charleston and its glitterati are generally brushed over.  Friday night’s episode (number two) was dubbed “Porridge for the Soul” mostly about grits and the varied way they are used and prepared.  She also explores the differences between Southern and soul food, and features the Geeche Gullah culture, centered locally in the Georgia Sea Islands.  Fascinating stuff.  The Feeder HIGHLY recommends watching this instead of the sleazy exploitation of Julia. 

To Market, to market

With the coming of Spring, ‘tis time for the local Farm Markets to open for people to obtain locally grown, organic, sustainable food products.  And since spring apparently is paying no attention to the Calendar, many things are already becoming available.  However, comma, COVID-19 is interfering with (and highly disrupting) our normal enjoyment and celebration of the annual renewal of life.  Ever resourceful, they have joined the “take away” scheme and have opened on that basis, apparently long awaited and well received.

Local Farms

offering lovely food stuff, both “fresh”

As well as preserved (for the long haul – hopefully not to the last syllable of recorded time)

Photos courtesy of SMC department of Economic Development

And for the time being, we’ll modify our normal closing to:

DFTV (The Virus) which means, dear people: WEAR YOUR DAMN MASK AND GLOVES WHEN YOU GO OUT AND HONOR SPACE BETWEEN PEOPLE!!

When so attired during her trip to Giant the other day, MFO reported NOBODY else did.  No wonder the death rate is rising exponentially.