Food by Jude   Eat well, live long and have more fun!

Dublin Cheese Pudding, Irish Apricot Whiskey Sauce for Ham and Real Irish Coffee

Can’t you tell I’m Irish? No, it’s not the red hair. Look closely; my eyes are smiling!

Around this time of year, when everything starts to turn green, grass, trees, beer - and blarney is the common language, everyone is Irish. And, everyone wants to celebrate.

I grew up in an Irish family (the red hair) and in a city that hosts a lot of Hibernians, San Francisco. St. Patrick’s Day was always a special event. No, we didn’t have corned beef and cabbage – that is an American idea of an Irish dinner. Cabbage is Irish, but the corned beef is not. Early immigrants to the east coast found a liking for boiled beef – beef was very scarce in Ireland. Pork and Lamb are the typical menu meats. Now, in the “old country” they do eat corn beef and cabbage, because we do.

But, I still don’t eat it because I don’t like it!

My favorite Irish foods are potatoes, ham, puddings and Irish Coffee!

In my college days, it was a treat to go the Buena Vista Restaurant and have an Irish Coffee – a beverage with a beguiling background.

New, in the culinary scheme of things, Irish Coffee was created in 1942, by Joe Sheridan, chef at the restaurant in the Foynes Airbase in Limerick. Weather had caused a “flying boat” headed for America to turn back. Knowing the passengers would be cold and tired; he quickly threw together a meal and a special hot coffee. One grateful passenger, asked, “is this Brazilian coffee”, “no” Joe replied, “It’s Irish Coffee”!

After WWII, Irish Coffee was being served at Shannon Airport where Stanton Deleplane, a columnist for the SF Chronicle, first sipped it. He loved it, and brought the idea back to the Buena Vista restaurant in 1952.

Since then, legions of locals and troops of tourists have sipped their to way to Celtic contentment, and possibly acquired a temporary brogue, all thanks to Joe Sheridan, and his Erin elixir.

And, how to prepare it? Here is the Irish way:

• Cream – rich as an Irish brogue
• Coffee – strong as a friendly hand
• Sugar – sweet as the tongue of a rogue
• Whiskey – Smooth as the wit of the land

One of the tricky things about Irish Coffee has been for many, getting the cream to float and not sink.

Jack Koeppler, then owner of the BV (as locals call it) conferred with his friend, and then mayor of San Francisco, George Christopher, who was a dairy farmer. It was determined that the cream must be aged 48 hours, and whipped just to a precise consistency. Easy for them to say!

I am not sitting around, watching cream with a stopwatch and wire whisk. Try this; it works for me. Squirt aerated whipped cream (from a can) onto a flat plate, and slide it onto the coffee.

St. Patrick’s Day is quickly approaching, invite some friends over and have some Irish food, it’s easy and fun.

I leave you with some Irish blessings. May your house always be too small to hold all of your friends. And, may you be in heaven a half hour before the devil knows you’re dead!

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Creamed Spinach with a Kick and Spicy Orange Ring Cake

We are surrounded by imposters! Creamy, yellow and smooth, these tubs and sticks of unctuous oleo are ever present. But who and what are they really?

In the beginning there was butter; indescribably delicious - and, unfortunately, artery clogging. The downside of butter was not fully recognized until the 20th century. ‘Til then, butter was merely something that, if eaten in large quantities made you fat.

Research in the area of heart disease has been in full swing since the early 1900’s. However, it wasn’t until discoveries by Ansel Keys, physiologist at the University of Minnesota, linked a diet of high saturated fats with blood cholesterol levels, that thoughts turned to eliminating excess fats from our diets.

Margarine (aka oleo) was a good place to start; it was already an established industry here in the USA and in Europe, where it originated.

In the mid to late 1800’s, there was a dearth of butter in France, and the government worried about an adequate supply of fats for the army and the working classes. A rising standard of living, and a new interest in hygiene also created a high demand for soap, an oil based product. Western Europe was quickly running low on fats and oils.

In 1870, Louis Napoleon III hosted a contest to produce a satisfactory substitute for butter. The winner was Hippolyte Mege Mouries, a research chemist. He called his creation margarine, a variation of a Greek word for pearls.

At first, margarine was produced with beef fat (oleo), but due to intermittent shortages, manufacturers switched to vegetable oil. Soon after, came hydrogenation.

Hydrogenation is the process that, by forcing hydrogen atoms into unsaturated fats, makes them saturated, or winterized and solid. Convenient, more like butter, in more ways that one.

Health-wise, margarine was just as bad as butter. But, the risks had not yet caught on with the public.

The big concern was the color. Originally margarine was white – that is why it looked like pearls to its inventor. But, it was not particularly appetizing. Later, packages were designed with beads of color within, so the customer could massage the color into the lard-like white glob. (Oh yum).

Margarine, as you would imagine did not set well with dairy farmers, and their voices and objections were heard far and wide.

“Artificial butter” was subject to strict rules and laws requiring its Identification. New Jersey and New York prohibited sale of yellow colored margarine. Hefty taxes were imposed on margarine in 1902, (less on uncolored). Bootlegging of margarine thrived! To this day, Wisconsin prohibits the serving of margarine to convicts, unless it is required for health reasons.

This oleo obsession finally came to a halt, when after a push by the National Association of Margarine Manufacturers; President Truman signed the margarine act on March 23rd, 1950. Federal taxes finally came to an end, and state laws were repealed soon after.

By the 60’s, margarine began to catch up with the times. In 1964, margarine rich in polyunsaturated fat and low in saturated fat was introduced; followed a few years later by low fat margarine.

The wheels of commerce were greased and a rush of variations ensued. Lite, lower fat, reduced fat, diet and fat-free were but a few of the choices offered the confused consumer.

Now, here it is - everything you wanted to know about margarine, but were afraid to ask!

• For baking margarine must be 60% or more oil
• For sautéing or browning, you can use 50-59% oil

The 49% oil or less is solely for spread or topping. You can mix it with other ingredients, but don’t try to cook with it.

If you are still confused with all the data on the container ( and I don’t blame you), margarine that is ok for baking should be 100 calories per tablespoon.

Many newer margarines, or spreads as they are fashionably called, have additives for good health. Check out the brands that state “no-trans fats” and add vitamins and omega oils.

American ingenuity has come along way from the days of yellow colored beef fat. Now, you can have your cake, or sauce, or popcorn and eat it too!

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Roasted Asparagus, Gremolata (Lemon Garlic Sauce) & Jazzy Potato Salad

When we hear about chestnuts roasting on an open fire, we know it is winter – even though the heat source could be a campfire in August. Chestnuts are winter, and that’s that!

Think of watermelons, and we are reminded of long hot summer days and sweet, sticky fingers.

The vivid orange of a pumpkin farm turns our mental calendar to fall, and thoughts of crisp cool air and Trick or Treat.

And, asparagus, that lean and lanky vegetable, appearing now in your local markets, is the quintessential Paul Revere of spring. One look at those splendid spears, and you can almost hear him cry, “the blossoms are coming, the blossoms are coming”.

My favorite season of the year, I must admit is fall, but there is something quite magical and unique about spring.

Spring is a season with a promise. A promise of green pastures and rushing streams; of longer, sunnier days and steamed asparagus with gremolata!

Asparagus is one of those ancient foods that were enjoyed by the Greeks and the Romans. Somewhere in the annuals of mythology, someone probably upset one of the gods and was turned into an asparagus spear, but I haven’t yet found the reference. Personification or not, asparagus has a lot to offer us mere mortals.

Fat free, cholesterol free and packed with fiber, vitamin B6, thiamin and potassium, asparagus also contains rutin, a drug which strengthens capillary walls, making it a good bet for cardiac health.

A 5.3-ounce serving (approximately 4 spears) provides 60% of the recommended daily allowance of folacin, necessary for blood cell formation and growth and prevention of liver disease. Folacin also plays an important role in the prevention of neural tube birth defects such as spina bifida, making it an excellent menu choice for expectant mothers.

This springtime spear is a virtual WMD against chemicals that can cause cell transformation and cell death. Asparagus contains glutathione (GSH) an extremely powerful anticarcinogen and antioxidant.

Used by the ancients for medicinal purposes (and aphrodisiacs by those sexy Romans) asparagus continues to be used by Chinese herbalists who prescribe it for arthritic pain and inflammation.

With all these attributes, it is no wonder it is the 5th most popular vegetable in the USA. It was a great favorite of Thomas Jefferson, who grew the versital vegetable in greenhouses at Monticello.

France’s Francois I and Louis XIV both had a thing for asparagus, and their demand for it year ‘round gave birth to the nickname, food of kings.

Frozen or canned, asparagus is available anytime. But, nothing can compare with it when it is fresh from the garden. Carpe Diem!

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