Hail and well met my friends. Welcome to another edition of the Depression Kitchen where I try my best to feed a family of four on $100 a week employing my collection of old cookbooks dating as far back as 1916, and of course Grandma Kettle, a bona fide child of the Great Depression.
There has been much discussion these past few days about Arlen Specter, torture, and the loss of cramdown in the latest housing bill. Strange goings on that is for sure. What is also sure is we have not heard the last on any of those topics. So come on in to the Kettle kitchen, have a bit to eat and some tea, and discuss all of this falderal with me.
Wow, what can we say about Senator Specter? Well, plenty of people have had their say about him actually. I feel bad for the guy. He reminds me of Scarlett O'Hara, you know, do whatever it takes to hang on. Secretly I kinda admire that. I myself have felt that way quite a bit in the last year and a half. What's more, he had the balls to just come out and say it. He could not get elected as a Republican. That was a burning indictment of the party at least, and it sure made some folks squirm, hee hee. It was worth it just to see the discomfort of Boenher's face. I know he will be a lot like Lieberman, but hey, I admire his huevos at least.
Speaking of huevos, I had some requests last time for some vegetarian meals. Quite honestly we are meat eaters here at the Kettle house. I do try to get at least one meal a week to be meat free, because it does save money. One of my favorite meat free meals has to be pasta.
Kettle Puttanesca
Your favorite pasta cooked al dente
1 can diced tomatoes
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1tsp oregano
1tsp basil
1/4tsp chili flakes
1tsp minced garlic (at least)
1/2 cup red wine
one bay leaf
2tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup sliced olives (a mix is nice, but whatever you have)
1 tsp capers (optional)
1 small can/jar anchovies (optional)
Put everything but the pasta, and the last 3 ingredients in a pan and let simmer for an hour. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Put the anchovies in and simmer another 20 minutes. Add the olives and capers, heat through and serve over pasta. This will put hair on your chest, or huevos. Fresh bread and more red wine can only make it better.
The debate over torture has become incredibly heated. As a scholar I must say that what we have done in the name of the United States we ourselves have hanged others for doing. Torture used to be anathema to what the US stood for. I am disgusted that we have done this, that we have accepted that we have done this, and that we have rationalized doing this. There is no rational reason to torture. Those who argue that there is, as well as arguing legal justification, are fools who have forgotten their history. We cannot heal as a nation until this is investigated and people are prosecuted. You can use the flamethrower on me because I think they ALL should be prosecuted. At Nuremburg we decided that "just following orders" was no excuse for war crimes. That's right, I mean from the former president down to the individual agents in the field. EVERYBODY. Until we do this we cannot recover. The citizenry have lost faith in the federal enforcement arm of the country. How can we trust them in the future if they will do this to our own citizens with no consequences? This is an infected wound full of puss, we must clean it out no matter how much it hurts.
Whew, now that I got that off my chest lets have some chicken.
Chicken and Bacon
4 chicken breasts pounded thin
as much bacon as you can spare
1/4 lb mushrooms
1/2 cup frozen pearl onions
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1 tbs corn starch
Fry the bacon until crisp and remove. In the same pan fry the chicken breasts in the bacon drippings. Remove when golden on both sides, this should not take long since you squashed them. Remove and add the mushrooms. When the mushrooms are done, remove them and deglaze the pan with the wine scraping up all of the yummy bits. Put the chicken, mushrooms and onions in the pan with the seasonings. Mix the broth with the cornstarch and add that too. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes until the sauce thickens nicely. Serve with the bacon sprinkled over the top.
Boy was I pissed when I heard that the new housing bill did not have a cramdown clause. Great heavenly day, I thought we wanted to stop families from being thrown out of their homes. I was told by various media that the housing crisis is what caused this whole financial melt down in the first place. Did you guys hear what Dick Durbin said about the banks owning Congress? At least he had the guts to say it out loud. I do truly admire that quality. Those who voted against this should have to live with a homeless family for a week. Blue dog sob's. I do believe in karma though, and this will come back to bite them in the ass somehow. I hope it is sooner rather than later. As a teacher in CA I see what this crap does to families first hand. I have some high school students living out of cars, and some who had to quit school and go to work full time so their families could make the mortgage, not to mention my own sorry state.
I need something sweet. This recipe comes from a 1934 Clabber Girl cookbook, I give you a topping not included in the original recipe. This would be good with the tea.
Peanut Butter Bread
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup peanut butter
Sift dry ingredients together. Mix wet ingredients and gradually add to the dry ingredients. Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake at 350 for one hour. Before putting this in the oven I would top with a mix of 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/2 cup choppend peanuts as a struesel.
So, I have gotten this weeks big news off my chest and feel much better for it. We, as a society, should be talking about this stuff, and I do not care for the media's performance in our discourse so far. It's the non-debate that scares me. But before you leave the kitchen I would like to entice yo with one more dish. How about some soup?
Taco Soup
4 quarts chicken or vegetable broth
1 can kidney or garbanzo beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can of fire roasted chilis
1 small can of mild salsa
1 tbs taco seaonings
1 bay leaf
1 cup of soy meat crumbles
1/2 cup leftover spanish rice
1 tbs minced garlic
1 diced zuchini
1 sliced onion
1 tbs olive oil
Saute the onion in the olive oil. Add everything else except the zuchini. Simmer for 1 hour. Taste and adjust for seasonings or add salt and pepper. Add the zuchini and simmer another 10 minutes or so. Serve with a cheese quesadilla and salsa, sourcream, and/or guacamole.
Alright friends, it was a nice visit this week. Send some good cheap recipes my way. May the week keep you safely, and may your buds bloom.