January 2022 – The Questing Feast

January 12, 2022April 24, 2022

The Origin of “Sweet Summer Child”

by D. Leilehua Yuen

Pour yourself a glass of sweet tea and have a slice of Mama’s Lemon Icebox Cake, recipe below.

Now:

Please hear this in my very best “Church Lady” voice. “Oh, my sweet summer child, Game of Thrones did NOT coin ‘sweet summer child.’ GOT may have popularized it, but GOT did NOT create it.”

“Sweet summer child” already was old when my grandmother used it in the 1960s.

The Creole

1850, Mary Scrimzeour Furman Whitaker

Blue was the summer ah—, and mild
The fragrant breeze,— sweet Summer’s child.
All rob’d in white, dead Stanley seem’d,
And radiance, from his features, beam’d;—
Meta, companion of his way,—
Yet pale as when, on earth, he lay.

The West Wind

1849, James Staunton Babcock

Thy home is all around,
Sweet summer child of light and air,
Like God’s own presence, felt, ne’er found,
A Spirit everywhere!

Poems eulogizing children are found throughout newspapers of the 1880s. This one was used for at least two different children, including “Little May Tyng” and, in this case, attributed to Frances B. M. Brotherson in the Blount County Dispatch of Blountsville, Alabama. It seems to have been common practice to use such poems as a structure and then alter specifics to match the individual child’s circumstances.

Little Mary Tyng

1879, Frances B.M. Brotherson

God took her forever,
Our sweet summer child—
She passed through the valley
With Thee, Undefiled!
So trusting, so fondly
To Thee did she cling,
Thou wert the sure refuge—
Of little May Ting

19 Mar 1879, Wed Blount County News-Dispatch (Blountsville, Alabama) Newspapers.com

In that oh-so-Victorian poetry, the “sweet summer child” can refer to anything tender and summery—from a gentle breeze to an actual child.

So, how did such a tender sweet phrase develop its stinging backhand? Well, for that, let’s turn to my Nana. Born in 1900 in St. Louis, Missouri (properly pronounced “Muzurah,” I have been informed), she moved to Hawaiʻi as a young bride. When she packed her bags for the islands, a number of colloquialisms jumped in before she could get the latches fastened.

If you know anything about the ladies of that time and place, you know that they were strong proponents of “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” Instead, they became masters of making a cut while using the nicest possible words. And, the same phrase can have many different meanings, depending on the skill with which it is deployed.

“Why, bless your heart” can mean anything from “thank you, that was so sweet of you,” to “how on earth did you come up with THAT?”

And so, “Oh, my sweet summer child” could be anything from a simple comment on the beauty and grace of a small child playing in the summer sun to a verbal head shake at unfathomable naïveté. It can refer to a very young child born in summer, a person with a summery disposition, or a person who has little to no experience of “winter:” hardship, trials, and tribulations, or just someone who is clueless as to anything that has happened before they came on the scene.

In the 60s and 70s, I frequently heard it in response to some bit of pre-teen or teen angst I expressed in my youthful confidence that in under two decades I had managed to acquire far more wisdom than had the totality of adults of my acquaintance. “You really think no one else has thought of that? Oh, my sweet summer child.”

So in honor of Summer Children everywhere, here is a recipe for Mama’s Lemon Icebox Cake. No, not my Mama’s Lemon Icebox Cake. HER Mama’s lemon Icebox Cake. It’s good. Try it. But first, make the lemon curd.

image showing lemons in a colander — A colander full of lemons waiting to be juiced. Gleaned from a friend’s yard, they are not especially pretty, but they are juicy and flavorful!

Lemon Curd

by Geraldine Duncann

What is Lemon Curd? It’s the yummy stuff in the middle of a lemon meringue pie. That’s about all Americans use it for. In England however, it is used like jam or preserves, being served with scones at tea time and eaten on toast or bread.

There are many recipes, some thickened with eggs only and others thickened with cornstarch only. The egg ones taste just too eggie for me and the cornstarch only aren’t rich enough. This recipe I feel is a perfect blend.

1 cup sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
1 ½ cups of cold water
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
Grated Zest of 1 lemon
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter

Combine the cornstarch and sugar in saucepan. Add the water and stir until smooth. Whisk in the egg yolks.Stirring constantly, bring to a boil over a medium heat and continue boiling for one minute. Remove from the heat. Whisk in the lemon juice, zest and butter. Allow to cool. This is wonderful used like any jam or jelly. It is also the base for many other elegant desserts.

Mama’s Lemon Icebox Cake

by Geraldine Duncann

Make 1, 8 to 9 Inch Round Cake

We had a lemon tree on the farm that seemed to have a plethora of lemons on it all year round. In our Southern California summers when the temperature inside the kitchen could be well over 100 degrees, Mama would stay up late at night after the kitchen had cooled and make this delectable and refreshing lemon cake for us to enjoy the next day. It was a lot easier for her to make once we got an electric refrigerator to replace the old ice box. You may use my Basic Lemon Cake (below) as the base, or a commercial cake mix. Make the various components in the early morning before it gets hot or in the evening after things cool down.

1, 2 layer lemon cake
Juice of one or 2 lemons
1 cup lemon curd
½ pint whipping cream
Thinly slivered curls of candied lemon peel if available
Sprigs of fresh mint

Split the two layers of cake in half. Sprinkle the cut sides with lemon juice and set aside. Whip the cream to hold stiff peaks. Save about a cup of the whipped cream for garnish. Temper the lemon curd by gently folding about half a cup of whipping cream into it. Then, gently fold this lightened lemon curd back into the remaining whipped cream, (minus what will be used for garnish.) Place one of the split layers on a cake plate. Spread with the lemon curd, whipping cream mixture. Top with another split layer. Spread with cream. Continue until all the layers have been coated with the lemon cream. Do not frost the sides. Just let the cream ooze out between the layers. Refrigerate until ready to use. Just before serving, garnish with dollops of whipped cream, candied peel and sprigs of fresh mint. This is a delectable and refreshing dessert for those hot, hot summer days.

Basic Lemon Cake

by Geraldine Duncann

Makes 1, 8 to 9 inch 2 Layer Cake

This basic lemon cake is delicious on its own or as the beginning of many other desserts.

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter (2 sticks or ½ pound)
4 eggs
¼ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 cup cold water

Pre heat the oven to 350°. Prepare 2 8 or 9 inch cake pans with non stick spray or by lining with bakers’ parchment. Sift flour and baking powder together and set aside. Blend the sugar and butter together until soft and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beat in well after each addition. Add the lemon juice and zest and mix well. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the water and mix well. Divide between the prepared cake pans and bake in the center of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a slim skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on cake racks before removing from the pans.

Other phrases my Nana used:

Well, bless your heart

This useful phrase fills in for everything from a warm “thank you” to a frustrated hope to never have to deal with you and your willful incompetence again.

Well, bless your little punkin’ head

This is similar to “Well, bless your heart,” but you had to do something a several degrees more stupid to earn it.

It don’t/doesn’t amount to a hill of beans

Beans were cheap and abundant food in my Nana’s day, so if something did not amount to a hill of beans, it did not amount to much at all.

She’s blowin’ up a storm

The wind rises before a storm blows in, bringing with it a unique smell.

Got more of _______ than Dr. Carter’s got little liver pills

Dr. Carter was the inventor of his own brand of liver regulating pills. They were tiny round things, the size of the head of a quilting pin, and a whole bunch of them fit into a tiny little glass bottle.

Madder than a wet hen

Personally, I never noticed my hens any more mad when they were wet than when they were dry, but I grew up in Hawaiʻi and it rains a lot here. Maybe chickens in MO are less amenable to rain. I did know that when Nana said I was making her madder than a wet hen I should hush my mouth and head over yonder.

Hush your mouth

Be quiet.

Over yonder

A distant place, usually indicated by pointing with the chin and/or eyebrows.

ʻTil the cows come home

All day, or a very long time. The cows come home in the evening at feeding time.

Pretty as a peach

Fresh and plump, appealing looking.

Full as a tick / Swoll as a tick

Ate so much you can’t eat any more. “Swoll as a tick” is the same, but not as polite, and might also refer to constipation.

Good Lord willing and the creek/river don’t rise

As long as no disasters happen. Also, the small body of flowing water is pronounced “krik.”

Hold your horses

Back in the days when horses were the only things providing horsepower, if you did not hold your horses (either by having someone stand at their heads and hold the bridle, or tie them to a hitching rail), they might wander off while you were loading your wagon. So, “hold your horses” means to slow down and make sure things don’t get away from you while you are getting things together for a project.

__________ as all get-out

“Funny as all get-out,” “frightened as all get-out,” “shocked as all get-out…” the phrase adds a level to whatever emotion you are experiencing.

Too big for your britches

You have an elevated sense of self-worth.

Gumption / Moxie

A sense of drive and purpose, “sticktoitiveness,” being really on the ball.

Cattywampus

Crooked

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Jack London

Jack London, one of America’s greatest novelists, a social advocate and a true renaissance man, was born on January 12, 1876. What better way to celebrate than with some of his favorite foods.

Along with pioneer vintner, Agoston Haraszthy and botanist, Luther Burbank, author Jack London is one of my favorite California folk heroes. This may in part be due to my family’s close connection with him. As a boy, my father knew Jack London and often spent summers at the ranch in Glen Ellen.

Jack taught my father to ride and fish and much to my grandmothers mortification, also to cuss, tell risqué stories and to drink. My dad always reminisced with great fondness of the lavish meals served in the rustic setting of the Glen Ellen camp where Jack and his second wife, Charmian spent much of their time during the construction of the ill fated Wolf House.

Socialist London’s political views were ahead of his time. Dying in 1916, he was not to see the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, giving woman the vote in the United States. He had long been a supporter of a woman’s right to vote and contributed some of his favorite recipes to Mrs. L.O. Kleber, author of “The Suffragette Cookbook,” a book published in 1915 to raise money for the suffragette movement.

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Among the recipes he contributed was a dish he called Hawaiian Salad, (Lomi-Lomi Salmon), which he had become fond of while in Hawaii. Other recipes include Savory Rice with Tomatoes, Roquefort Stuffed Celery and several recipes for oysters including: Oyster Savories, Anchor Steam Steamed Oysters and Oysters Barbecued with Steam Beer. It is likely that he developed his fondness for oysters during his early years as an Oyster Pirate in San Francisco Bay.

Unfortunately Jack fondness for life led to his early death at the age of 40. In his own words:

“I would rather be ashes than dust. I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than that it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.”

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Oysters Barbecued with Steam Beer

This is another method of serving oysters that my father learned from Jack London. It also uses Anchor Steam Beer as well as a lot of finely chopped garlic.

Fresh live oysters in the shell
Finely minced garlic
Anchor Steam beer
Salt and pepper and favorite hot sauce

Scrub the shells of the oysters with a stiff brush under cold running water. Discard any that are open and do not close when you tap the shell. Place the oysters, on a rack over the glowing coals of a barbecue. Leave until they just begin to open. Using tongues, remove them and with an oyster knife, pry the shells the rest of the way open. Place the oyster in the deep half of the shell. Add a pinch of minced garlic and a bit of beer. Add salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste and return to the barbecue and continue cooking to desired degree of doneness. SPECTACULAR!

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Horseradish

If you are a true horseradish fan and want a ready supply of truly fresh, you need to grow your own. It is relatively easy to grow, however, like any root vegetable, it develops best if you have loamy soil. I have a hard time growing it in my adobe. It grows, but the roots that develop are rather stunted and pathetic looking.

You may not be able to find horseradish plants at your nursery. If so, find one at your produce department. Buy a large one. Cut it into large chunks and put them in zip-loc bag in your crisper drawer. Leave for several weeks and they will eventually develop sprouts. Plant them in the spring or early summer in soil that you have spade well and amended with a lot of organic material. Like any root vegetable, horseradish needs loose soil in order to develop nice fat roots that are good for culinary use.

It will develop a large ragged plant above ground that will die back with the first frost, and then come back every spring. Once it is well established, the roots may be dug at any time of year to use, however, some people feel it develops a better favor after a frost. Dig only as much of the root as you need at any one time, leaving the rest to remain in the ground and continue to grow.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Jack London’s Steam Beer Steamed Oysters

It wouldn’t be Christmas Eve at our house without oysters steamed with Anchor Steam Beer and fresh California Bay Leaves. This method was taught to my father by Jack London during one of my dad’s visits to Jack’s Beauty Ranch in Glen Ellen. My father remained an adamant and dedicated advocate of San Francisco’s own Anchor Steam Beer all of his life.

Fresh Live Oysters in the Shell
1 bottle Anchor Steam Beer
Water
1 or 2 fresh California Bay Laurel leaves

Scrub the shells of the oysters with a stiff brush under cold running water. Discard any that are open and do not close when you tap the shell. Place them in a large pot with a tight fitting lid or a steamer. (if you happen to have a tamale steamer, or set of Chinese steamer baskets, that would work just fine too). Add enough water to make the total amount of liquid come to about two inches deep. Add 1 or 2 fresh bay leaves. Cover with the lid and over a high heat, steam until the shells begin to pop open. Remove from the steamer with tongues and pile into a serving bowl. Accompany with melted butter, fresh horseradish, Tabasco and of course, Anchor Steam Beer. Each diner will need an oyster knife and a large cloth napkin or tea towel moistened at one end.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Oyster Savories

Oysters were always a favorite food for Jack London. He most likely learned to enjoy them during his time as an oyster pirate in his youth.

Shucked fresh small oysters
Salt and fresh coarse ground black pepper
Lean bacon
Softened butter
Minced garlic cloves
Toast triangles or rounds
Fresh lemon

Season the oysters with salt and pepper. Wrap each in a strip of bacon and secure with a wooden toothpick. Blend minced garlic to taste with the softened butter and spread on the toast triangles. Place a bacon wrapped oyster on each toast triangle. Set the savories on a baking sheet and place in a preheated 350°F – (180°C or Gas mark 4) until the bacon is crisp, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a warmed serving dish. Squeeze a bit of fresh lemon juice over each. Garnish with sprigs of fresh parsley or dill weed and wedges of lemon. Serve hot.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Roquefort Stuffed Celery Boats

This is a simple appetizer or side dish that Jack London enjoyed serving with roast duck.

2 ounces of Roquefort cheese, softened
2 tablespoons butter, softened
Cream Sherry
1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
Celery boats

Cream the Roquefort and butter together. Moisten with just enough Sherry to make into a spreadable consistency. Use to fill small celery boats. Serve chilled.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Savory Rice with Tomatoes

Serves 4 to 6

Jack London enjoyed good food and he often took a turn in the kitchen as a way of relaxing. This is one of the recipes he contributed to The Suffragette Cookbook. I have altered it slightly to accommodate modern tastes and available ingredients.

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3 or 4 strips of bacon, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 to 4 cloves of garlic, chopped small
2 green peppers, seeded and diced
3 cups of steamed long grained white rice
2 ripe tomatoes, diced
1 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and fresh coarse ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Gently sauté the bacon over a medium heat until it is crisp. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside. Sauté the onion, garlic and green pepper in the bacon fat until soft. Add the rice, tomatoes and tomato sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until hot through. Return the bacon to the pan, add the cilantro toss gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Place in a casserole dish. Toss the cheese and bread crumbs together and scatter over the top. Bake in a 350°F – (180°C or Gas mark 4) oven until the cheese has melted and the top lightly browned. Serve hot as a side dish, or accompanied by a salad it makes a light entrée.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Lomi Lomi Salmon

Serves 6 to 8

Lomi lomi salmon is a dish that did not come to the islands until after contact with Haole, (whites or Europeans). Salmon is not a Hawaiian fish. Hawaiians did not begin using it until traders brought salted salmon from Alaska to trade for Hawaiian goods. Lomi lomi means to knead or massage. It was necessary to “lomi lomi” the salmon in water to remove some of the salt, and that is how this recipe was developed. Actually, most of the ingredients used in lomi lomi salmon were unknown in Hawaii until after contact with haole people.

About 1 pound salt salmon
1 smallish white onion, diced very fine
2 to 3 green onions, chopped fine
2 to 3 tomatoes, seeded and diced small

Dice the salmon into about 1/4 inch pieces, removing any bones and bits of fat or sinew as you do. Place in a colander and rinse under cold running water to remove excess salt. Add the remaining ingredients and lomi lomi until well mixed. Place in a serving dish and set the dish on a larger dish filled with crushed ice. It should always be served very cold.

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022

Cock-a-Leeky Soup

Serves 4 to 6

Cock a Leekie takes many forms in Scotland and is as much a part of the culture as single malt whisky, haggis, bagpipes and shortbread. I found this recipe in the records of the crofters village of Auchachenna, on the shores of Lock Gynn in Argylshire. In it’s original form this recipe probably dates from the 17th century since it mentions that if you could get them you might find the “New Virginia Patata,” preferable to neeps, (turnips). The original recipe calls for “…a venerable old cock who had outlived his usefulness in the barnyard and was too old for roasting…” Since you most likely don’t have a “…venerable old cock…” handy, you may of course use any chicken you find in your market.

2 or 2 strips of bacon, diced
1 large onion, diced
a small sprig each of thyme, rosemary, sage, and savory
1 chicken, cut up
1 large or 2 to 3 small, (depending on size) Leeks, chopped and well washed, including about 4 to 6 inches of the green tops
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
Stock, broth or bouillon, – (or canned commercial) *
1 cup cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and fresh coarse ground black pepper to taste

Place the bacon in a large heavy pot and gently sauté the bacon until it begins to release its fat. Do not allow to brown. Add the diced onion and herbs and continue to sauté until the onions are soft, pinkish and translucent. Add the chicken parts and lightly brown on all sides. Add the leeks and potatoes and cover all with water of stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a rapid simmer. Cover with a tight fitting lid and continue to cook until the meat is falling off the bone. Remove from the heat and leave sit until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones and dice. Set aside. Skim as much fat as possible from the broth. Return the chicken meat to the pot and stir in the cream. Cook only until all is hot through. Stir in the fresh parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot with Fresh Crusty Bread.

* Since most likely the only chicken you will be able to find will not be a “venerable old cock,” chances are it will not produce quite as favorable a stock as the old bird would have, therefore you may wish to give your stock a bit of help.