Baby You're A Character

Zoe and Bella (though not named after Bella Swan.)

Baby, You’re A Character!

The love of reading started for me really early, probably by the second grade. Until now I hadn’t realized the effect all this reading had on my life even, if possibly, some of it was subliminal. After close evaluation it would appear that all of my children have names from characters in some of my favorite books. This realization came to me with the recent death of J.D. Salinger. I knew from the beginning that my daughter, Zoë was named from his book Franny and Zooey. Although not my favorite Salinger book, I liked the name Zooey from the first time I read the title. I preferred the spelling Zoë though as I thought Zooey would be accidently pronounce Zoo-ie (Like a zoo.) and I thought the simpler spelling with oomlouts (two dots over the “e”) looked nicer. My favorite Salinger book really is his most famous “The Catcher In The Rye”. (Zoë was this close to being named Phoebe until my mother objected.) I had not heard of this book until I was about 13, visiting my grandparents in Washington State. While riding on a ferry boat on our way to visit the Puget Sound a girl was laying on the deck laughing hysterically at the book she was reading. I thought…I have got to read that book so I took a peek at the title. I too laughed out loud when I read the story. It’s a good book to re-read every few years because I think the story changes with your age and point of view.
My very favorite books at Birch Grove Elementary School were written by Gertrude Chandler Warner. I wanted to BE a boxcar child. I wanted to live in the woods and make scrambled eggs over an open fire and solve mysteries with my clever mind. These books are the best and not until a few days ago did I remember that one of the boys was named “Benny”. Could this have led to the naming of my youngest son Ben??? It’s certainly possible. The adventures of Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny gave me hours and hours of entertainment as a child. I own the copies of all these books from the elementary library. Some of the books still have the original library cards in them. My name Sandy A. is scrawled on the checked out by line from way back in 1973.
So now I bet you’re wondering which books inspired the name for my fun loving son, named Jack??? For this I really had to think….I knew there was a character named Jack somewhere, somehow in all of the hundreds of books I read as a child. Then it came to me…Laura Ingalls Wilder! The Little House Books! These were really fun to read. I especially liked Little House In The Big woods because they made maple syrup just like we did when I was young. Cooking the sap over an open wood fire outside in the yard. Trust me there is nothing better than homemade maple syrup. Did you know it takes over 40 gallons of maple tree sap to make ONE gallon of syrup??? That’s a whole lot of sap. Anyway, can you place the character Jack in the Little House books? He was their beloved dog! Great names have to come from somewhere and I guess I must love dogs as we now have five. Peace, a good book and delicious cooking to you! Sandy

Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man
far better than through mortal friends.
~ Dawn Adams ~

SWEDISH “CATCHER IN THE RYE” COOKIES

1 cup rye flour
1 cup all purpose flour
One half teaspoon salt
One half cup cream cheese, room temperature
One half cup butter, room temperature
One half cup sugar
large grain sugar (for sprinkling)
powdered sugar (for snow)
Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium-sized bowl combine the flours and salt. Set aside. In an electric mixer (or by hand) beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy, add the butter and do the same, mixing until the two are well combined. Beat in the sugar and mix until well incorporated. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir only long enough to combine the two. The dough should no longer be dusty looking. Turn the dough out onto the counter, knead once or twice to bring it together, shape into a ball, flatten, wrap in plastic and chill it in a refrigerator.
Heat your oven to 350F degrees, and arrange the racks in the top and bottom thirds. When you are ready to roll out your cookies do so on a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thickness, and cut into shapes with the cookie cutter of your choice. Place on the prepared baking sheets an inch apart, and sprinkle each cookie with a bit of large-grain sugar. Bake for six or seven minutes, just until cookies are fragrant, and getting a bit golden at the edges - avoid over-baking or they will come out on the dry side. Allow to cool, and dust cookies with a bit of powdered sugar.

PERFECT “BOXCAR” SCRAMBLED EGGS

Making the perfect scrambled eggs isn't difficult. The key is whisking the eggs thoroughly and vigorously before cooking them. And fluffier is better!

Overcooking is a common problem with scrambled eggs. The perfect scrambled eggs should be soft and just a little bit moist. Eggs should be cooked in a nonstick sauté pan. Use a heat-resistant rubber spatula.
Ingredients:
• 8 eggs
• One half cup whole milk
• 2 Tbsp whole butter
• Salt and pepper, to taste
Preparation:
1. Crack the eggs into a glass mixing bowl and beat them until they turn a pale yellow color.
2. Heat a heavy-bottomed nonstick sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the butter and let it melt.
3. Add the milk to the eggs and season to taste with salt and pepper. Then, grab your whisk and whisk like crazy. You're going to want to work up a sweat here. If you're not up for that, you can use an electric beater or stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Whatever device you use, you're trying to beat as much air as possible into the eggs.
4. When the butter in the pan is hot enough to make a drop of water hiss, pour in the eggs. Don't stir! Let the eggs cook for up to a minute or until the bottom starts to set.
5. With a heat-resistant rubber spatula, gently push one edge of the egg into the center of the pan, while tilting the pan to allow the still liquid egg to flow in underneath. Repeat with the other edges, until there's no liquid left.
6. Turn off the heat and continue gently stirring and turning the egg until all the uncooked parts become firm. Don't break up the egg, though. Try to keep the curds as large as possible.
7. Transfer to a plate when the eggs are set but still moist and soft. Eggs are delicate, so they'll continue to cook for a few moments after they're on the plate.
Serves 4.

“LITTLE HOUSE” MAPLE SYRUP CANDY

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups real maple syrup
DIRECTIONS:
1. Using a candy thermometer, in a sturdy saucepan with high sides, bring the maple syrup to a boil.
2. Turn the heat to very low and allow the syrup to continue boiling without stirring until the thermometer reads 233F. Be careful that the syrup doesn’t boil over - once maple syrup finally decides to boil, it really boils. The boiling action is mesmerizing; the syrup’s dark earthy color in such constant motion reminds us that the earth itself is constantly moving and changing, even when it appears to remain the same.
3. When the reduced syrup has reached 233F, remove it from the heat and allow to cool, still without stirring it, until the thermometer reads 110F.
4. Now it’s time to beat the reduced syrup with a wooden spoon. Beat vigorously for several minutes. (It can help to sing when you do this.) You are making a transformation take place: As you beat, the syrup gradually turns a pale caramel color and it becomes stiff enough to hold a shape.
5. Form into patties on a baking sheet and allow to cool completely.