Cheese, a Wisconsin Love Affair

Close your eyes and imagine cheese. Cheese on a burger, on pizza, in macaroni and cheese, in sandwiches, on crackers for times when you watch the football game. Cheese is milk gone to heaven. The website for dairy products producer Organic Valley calls it “milk’s attempt at immortality.”

Cheese is ancient and modern. It is made from milk. It lasts a lot longer than milk. Today we can find many kinds of cheeses in our grocery stores, including natural, process, artisanal and artificial cheeses (I think these are called cheese foods). It gives us cheeseheads. It is a large part of Wisconsin’s economy. I have heard that Wisconsin produces more mozzarella than any other state, and that the only, or almost only, producer of limburger is a factory in Monroe, Wisconsin.

I like cheese, but my taste for it is not very broad. I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about pizza, but focus primarily on cheddar and Swiss cheese. Writers of cookbooks seem to focus on these, too.  Cookbooks for gourmets might be an exception. I use cookbooks for what I call plain cooking.

A plain cook can make many entrees and side dishes with natural cheddar cheese.  A good basic cheese sauce will dress up macaroni, potatoes, broccoli, omelets and many other foods. It’s easy to make. Simply direct your browser to cheese.about.com , where there is a video called “How to make cheddar cheese sauce.” That recipe is a bit fussier than mine, but it gives the essentials. That website also gives a lot of interesting information about cheese. Interestingly, while I was watching the video about cheese sauce, a notice appeared at the bottom of the video screen, which said, “Four heart attack signs,” compliments of ads by Google. Wonderful pairing.

Not everyone is in favor of cheese.  Some people don’t tolerate milk products, and some are vegans. Some are doctors, like Dr. Neal Barnard, who states in his writings that people should get control of their health, and that means not yielding to the seduction of cheese. Dr. Barnard wrote a book called Breaking the Food Seduction: the Hidden Reasons Behind Food Cravings—and 7 Steps to End Them Naturally (St. Martin’s Press, 2003). He devotes a chapter to cheese, called “Opiates on a Cracker.” Yes, opiates.

Dr. Barnard says that researchers found in cow’s milk traces of morphine, codeine and other opiates. That’s an eye opener. It’s just enough to create desire to go back for more (p.50-51). He suggests that cheese, among other things, is making our nation fat. “…a typical 2-ounce serving has at least 15 grams of fat and about 200 calories—before it even touches your sandwich” (P. 53). “If just one of those pounds of fat lingered on your waistline, adding an extra pound to your weight year after year, you could explain nearly the entire weight problem the country is experiencing—that is, the average American is now gaining about 1.5 pounds per year, and our collective cheese fetish may be a big part of the explanation. If you’re looking for a simple way to trim your waistline, breaking a love affair with cheese can help enormously” (p.53-54).

According to Dr. Barnard, dairy products and cheese seem to be triggers for arthritis and migraines, and   avoiding dairy products can reduce the risk of some forms of cancer. Need I say more? That’s the health story. I don’t know if it is true.

Then there is the economic story. Wisconsin is about cheese. Government boards promote cheese. I don’t know if the government pays farmers to bring their milk to the cheese factory, as it pays farmers to grow corn and soybeans without considering health ramifications.

People continue to enjoy cheese. Take a look at the dairy section of your grocery store. It has shredded, grated, sliced, chunk cheese. The freezer section has pizza and cheesecake. Cheese is big business. Cheese is delicious. Thanks, Dr. Barnard. I still respect your ideas. Have another slice of cheese. But don’t overdo it. 

Cherries Dolores

Food and family go together sometimes. It may be true that we are what we eat, but I think it also is true that we eat what we are. Cherries Dolores is a dessert that comes straight from my parents’ lives in Door County while I was growing up.

My parents liked to entertain with fish boils. Real fish boils are done outside over a wood fire. As a person transplanted from the Chicago area, my father experienced local fish boils and quickly learned to produce them himself. We had fish boils at our summer cottage at Clark’s Lake, and after we moved to our home on Bay Shore Drive where we had a large yard on the bay, we had fish boils in our yard.  My father was the fish boil chef, and my brothers and I were assistants. My mother made salad and dessert. Both parents prepared the potatoes and onions prior to the cooking event. The fish was lake trout, and after trout became unavailable, whitefish. The guests were friends or business acquaintances. Once we entertained Governor Warren Knowles and people in politics.

 I don’t remember a fish boil without cherries Dolores. My mother’s name is Dolores; it is named after her for lack of another name for it. She gave the recipe to the world in her 1989 cookbook, Door County Recipes Old and New : and a Little Local Lore, by Dolores Allen, illustrated by Kathleen Whitt.

This dessert is easy to make. It is good anytime, and when served at a fish boil, it ends a mostly white main course (fish, potatoes and onions topped with lots of melted butter) with a tart, colorful burst of flavor.  

Cherries Dolores

Crust:

1 stick soft butter

1 ¼ cups flour

2 tablespoons sugar

Mix well and press firmly in the bottom of a 9-inch square cake pan. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees until a delicate golden color. Cool well before adding next layer.

Middle Layer:

1 package vanilla pudding and pie filling mix (not instant).

Prepare according to package directions. Cool well. Spoon onto the cooled crust.

Top Layer:

1-lb. can tart cherries (2 cups)(unsweetened)

2 tablespoons cornstarch

½ to ¾ cup sugar

Combine in a saucepan and cook until thickened and clear. Chill before spooning over the pudding later. (One can of cherry pie filling may be used instead, if you wish.)

Top with 2 cups of whipped cream or whipped topping. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

My comments:

In order for this to work, I think we need to either double the middle and top layer ingredients, or halve the crust and make it in a small baking dish, about 6 x 8 inches or 7 x 7 inches. I say this because when I follow my mother’s recipe, the middle and top layers barely cover the layers below. More dessert is needed to fill the space. If we make half a batch of crust and use the smaller dish, it works quite well, but it serves four to six people rather than a large gathering of people. I loved my mother, but I think she didn’t remember what she had been doing all those years correctly when she put it on paper.

Also, I prefer real food over manufactured mixes, so for many years I have made the middle layer out of vanilla cornstarch pudding rather than packaged pudding mix. I don’t know if packaged pudding mix is still available in the grocery stores. Recipes for vanilla pudding can be found in many cookbooks. Be sure to make it thick enough to hold its shape after chilling or the layers will collapse.

The cookbook is out of print, but it is available at some public libraries in Wisconsin, the Door County Maritime Museum in Sturgeon Bay until they run out, or (used) from Amazon.com. Our family has run out of copies. Needless to say, my opinion is that this is the best cookbook in the world.

Thanksgiving--Our National Holiday

Thanksgiving is almost here.  It is one of our two major national holidays, the other being Independence Day, July 4. We have more, but these seem to be the two primary ones.

I think of Thanksgiving Day as part of an interesting progression of secular to religious holidays in American culture. July 4 is political without religious overtones. Thanksgiving is technically national, with thanks given, to God, for the blessings of being Americans in the most wonderful nation on earth. Christmas is technically a religious holiday, with celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, and much secular activity.

I see something going on here.  Our national constitution long ago set the stage for separation of church and state. The first amendment clearly states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”  Today we have two religious/secular holidays that celebrate the Christianity of our nation, while celebrating secular issues such as turkeys, Santa Claus, home decoration, gift giving and much enhancement of our economic system.

Thanksgiving Day is a big day of patriotism. Schools are closed. People travel to be with their families. Big dinners are prepared and eaten. Sometimes we think about what Thanksgiving is about and why our nation celebrates it. The national mythology tells us that it is about the European settlers sitting down in peace with the Native Americans, to have dinner in friendship. Friendship prevails.

Well, maybe. The Europeans came to our continent with the assumption that they “discovered” it and it was theirs. Yes, but they discovered that people were already here. Here is a quote from a history book by James W. Loewen, in Lies My Teacher Told Me:  “Thanksgiving celebrates our ethnocentrism. We have seen, for example, how King James and the early Pilgrim leaders gave thanks for the plague, which proved to them that God was on their side. The archetypes associated with Thanksgiving—God on our side, civilization wrested from wilderness, order from disorder, through hard work and good Pilgrim character traits—continue to radiate from our history textbooks.” (pp. 95-96, paperback edition)

Thanksgiving is about giving thanks. Thanks for making us white, for our land takeover from the original owners (native tribes), for our immense wealth, and for our being the greatest people on earth (empire). It’s about a huge dinner, usually turkey. It’s also about shopping. The day after the holiday is the biggest shopping day of the year, the inauguration of the Christmas shopping season.

I notice that we have a group of candidates who want to be our next President. I see that religious credentials seem necessary for a President, and in particular, “acceptable” Christian credentials. Some people made much over the myth that President Obama might be a Muslim; he isn’t. Some people are worried about Mitt Romney being a Mormon.  People like to believe that our founding fathers were all members of established churches. I ask, why is faith being dragged through a country that has separation of church and state? Might some people rather want to see our national leaders acting on Christian principles rather than giving lip service to church membership while advocating violence such as two needless wars?  Is this what Thanksgiving is about?

Individually we have much to be thankful for. I am thankful for my family, my deceased parents and husband, and my children and grandchildren. I am thankful that we have enough to eat and a roof under our heads. I am thankful that I have enough money to sustain my life. I am thankful that we live in a society that doesn’t oppress me, although it oppresses some other people. Many Americans are not this well situated.

Bring on our next religious/secular holiday: Christmas.

Frittata For One Or Two

Frittata for One or Two

I like frittata. Frittata is an Italian omelet, according to Joy of Cooking (1997). I hope it is. I was glad to learn that pizza is an Italian pie, so maybe it is true. I give Joy of Cooking credit for telling me what frittata is. Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook didn’t bother. They just went ahead with telling us how to make it, whether we know what it is or not. What we have here are two ways to deal with life: learn what it is or just go ahead and live it.

Frittata has many good qualities. It is easy to make. It tastes good.  It requires no exotic ingredients unless you choose to use some. It is a good way to use up leftover meat and vegetables. Preparation takes little time, although it requires some vegetable chopping and cheese grating. There are two ways to make it: broiling or baking. Frittata is a good example of culinary flexibility. When we are cooking for one or two, we find that we can make a smaller version than the cookbooks offer.

On the other hand, if we don’t have an oven-proof skillet, we won’t be making frittata.

Here is commentary from Joy of Cooking, in its recipe for zucchini frittata, which is not the only frittata in the world. “Frittatas are cooked in a heavy skillet over low heat until they are firm—not runny like a French omelet—and they are left open-faced, not folded….we recommend popping it into the oven or under the broiler to cook the top side. Served in wedges, frittatas are delicious hot, warm, or at room temperature.”

My version of frittata is based on, but not identical to, the one in Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook, 1989 paperback. It requires a medium size oven-proof skillet such as an old fashioned cast iron one.

3 eggs

About 1 cup chopped vegetables (I used celery, green pepper and onion today) (whatever you have in the refrigerator);
Meat (optional); I used one leftover bratwurst, cut in small pieces
1-2 tablespoons fat such as butter or bacon drippings (cholesterol isn’t an issue here)
About 1 cup grated cheddar cheese (I know, more cholesterol)

In an oven-proof skillet, saute the vegetables and meat in the fat over medium heat.

Beat the eggs and pour them into the skillet. Distribute the cheese over the top. Bake at 350 degrees about 15 minutes, or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

That’s the easy way to do it. For cooks who like to do it with other cooking methods, Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook gives directions (paraphrased):

1.        After putting the eggs into the skillet, over medium heat, cook it and run a spatula around the edge, lifting the mixture to let uncooked eggs flow underneath. Do this until the mixture is almost set and then put it under the broiler, 4 or 5 inches under the heat. Broil it until the top is just set, about 1 to 2 minutes.

2.       You can microwave it. I do not recommend doing this and have not tried it; I prefer real cooking. Cook the veggies in a pie plate in the microwave oven until they are tender. Pour the beaten eggs over the vegetables/meat mixture. Cook on high for 3 to 5 minutes, lifting cooked eggs every minute and letting uncooked portions flow underneath. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Packer Fandom

It’s football season. Wisconsinites are crazy about the Packers. The Packers are the religion of Wisconsin. I like the Packers, even though I think professional football is ritualized violence. Our Super Bowl champion gladiators are very popular.

Packer fans are loyal. It’s impossible to get a season ticket for home games. Lambeau Field is always filled, and the fans stay until the end even when the team loses. The traffic jams in and on highways leading to Green Bay on game day are enormous, except during the game when no one is to be seen on the roads. I have heard that area churches rent parking spaces to handle the stadium’s overflow crowds. People without tickets sit at home and in the bars, huddled in front of their television sets and radios.

At this time of the year,  stores abound with Packer merchandise; a few days ago I had no trouble finding a team keychain. Even the babies are decked out in Packer clothes. People of all ages go about their business wearing shirts with their favorite players’ numbers; quarterback numbers are best sellers.  I’m still waiting for merchandisers to bring forth a Packer toilet seat; they haven’t done it yet as far as I know, even or especially during losing seasons. I have seen Packer crying towels.

Broadcasters love the Packers, and I think the Packers love sportscasters. When Rick was in radio broadcasting, the team gave him a free spot in the press box with plenty of food, a seat for me where everyone else sat, a golf outing, other public relations events, and plenty of interviews. Vince Lombardi kicked Rick out of the dressing room, which meant he was one of them. I still have Rick’s press credentials for the Ice Bowl. He went; I didn’t have a seat for that one. I have heard that broadcasters no longer receive free seats for their loved ones, but I am sure that the Packers continue to romance the media. In return, we hear about the Packers 365 days a year in Green Bay, and almost as often in Madison, on our local television stations. (We have the Badgers in Madison to talk about, too.)

Bret Favre took the team to the Super Bowl; everyone loved him until he decided to retire, which became an annual event for him. When he unretired and became a Minnesota Viking, Wisconsin’s ire overflowed. He became another Benedict Arnold. (Read your history book to learn about Benedict Arnold; he wasn’t a football player.) The formerly beloved Favre took some much publicized sexual missteps, and his popularity among fans disappeared. No more annual retirements for him.

How soon we almost forget. Now Aaron Rodgers is the hero, along with the long haired Clay Matthews. News media reported recently that some people want to name a Green Bay street for coach McCarthy.

We’ll have another game in our winning season Sunday. Be sure to tune in.

Autumn Haiku

Brown red gold gray green;
Ice Age Trail, late autumn day;
Wondrous tapestry.

Happy birthday, Dede

Forty-seven years ago yesterday, October 2, 1964, my life changed forever. On that day I became a mother for the first time. My beautiful first daughter, Dolores, entered the world. Everyone was happy.

I brought that new life into the house in the woods on Bay Shore Drive on that beautiful fall day, with my mother to help, and I thought, What do I do now? I knew almost nothing about parenting. Rick knew even less. I asked Mother how to change a diaper. She said she didn’t remember. The small amount of teenage babysitting I had done had been with children, not infants. What a beginning.

I had asked my doctor some basic questions, and he had said to ask my mother. Those were the days when new mothers didn’t have books to consult or classes to help prepare. I didn’t have friends nearby to scare me with their new mother advice. I barely knew how to hold a baby. At the hospital the nurses had shown me how to breastfeed. They also had told me that if I ate vegetables in the cabbage family, it would make the milk taste bad. Really super instructions.

Somehow, Dede, (her nickname then), Rick and I made it as a family. Dede had some interesting times in her first year. She got her first tooth at four months. Sometime later she got her head stuck between the slats of her crib, an old crib with widely spaced slats. Rick was at work, so we were home alone. I held her head and wondered if we would have to stay that way for the rest of the day; it was morning. Miraculously, her head slipped back into the baby side of the crib. We replaced that crib with a better one.

Dede was a beautiful, bright child, interested in everything. She walked at one year and never looked back. When she started walking, she kept going. After her brother John was born, she regarded him as a new toy. When Mary came along, she was competition. Dede was more neutral about the arrivals of Libby and Sarah. School came easy, although she never studied and seldom did her assignments. She wrote perfect tests and said she didn’t need to do all that homework; she knew the material. She showed musical talent, singing around the house as a toddler and later playing piano, trumpet (briefly) and French horn. She didn’t date much as a teenager. She dated more as a student at UW-Eau Claire.

Dede married, gave birth to two wonderful daughters, Katie and Dana, got divorced, and lost daughter Katie to type one diabetes when Katie was sixteen. She gave higher education another try after having given it up sometime before she married Bill. She took up library work.

She still is interested in everything. She has long term friends. She stays connected to her family.

Happy birthday, Dede. I love you.