Literary Madeleines from Martha

Planning a writers conference in one's back yard is like embracing a large bunch of mint in your hands and taking a deep breath inward to allow your mind to bask in the invigorating essence of bliss. (I bought fresh mint at the farmer's market yesterday just for this purpose). As I read the bios of the individuals possibly slated to attend the event next year I'm in awe of the great number of people who write for a living, edit for a living, and/or represent writing for a living. Actually I do not have to look beyond my back yard to find contemporaries living here in the Lowcountry...there's Margaret Shinn Evans editor at the Lowcountry Weekly, there's Teresa Bruce an author/screenwriter, and then there's Kami Kinard a young adult novelist (not to mention some nationally known authors like Pat Conroy, Cassandra King who enjoy the salt marsh as much as the rest of us). Up until last year writing was simply something I did well and it always was connected to my occupation. Now it is what I must breathe to live a literary life. I found a recipe in a 1988 edition of Martha Stewart's Quick Cook Menu: 52 meals you can make in under an hour to align the literary journey with the kitchen...Coconut Madeleines & Persimmons with Tequila and Mint. (Scroll through the link I've provided to page 221 for the recipe...love it when cookbooks are online for the blog). There's a caption to a photo of this dish in Martha's text indicating that Madeleines have literary glory and cites that they play a memorable role in Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. "But when from a long-distant past nothing subsists, after the people are dead, after the things are broken and scattered, taste and smell alone, more fragile but more enduring, more unsubstantial, more persistent, more faithful, remain poised a long time, like souls, remembering, waiting, hoping, amid the ruins of all the rest; and bear unflinchingly, in the tiny and almost impalpable drop of their essence, the vast structure of recollection." Indeed, life through taste and smell serves to recollect, but it also creates.

Sultry, Dry and Chilled 3 Ways

Sultry summer heat has arrived early in the Lowcountry. It's drier than dry here and locally we have moved to the first stage of drought conditions. My lawn, even in good years, strives to thrive in the midst of neighbors who manicure and water their lawns to obsessive plushness. I casually refer to the "saltiness" of my lot as a character trait, but truly it's an attempt to explain my simplicity and inability to join the ranks of those that procure a carpet of lush green around their homes. This week the concept of creating a bocce court in one particular area seemed like a grand idea that could shift the pendulum in my favor. That is, if one considers shifting dry sandy dirt randomly situated into a competitive game of sport in your personal outdoor space. In some ways the theme of shifting a state of existence fits the weekend agenda in the kitchen. A recent purchase of a couple pounds of carrots turned into a marathon of recipe searches to find ways to recreate raw product into several new and interesting dishes. Back in January we introduced the Ginger Miso recipe that accompanied our infusion of pureed carrot to the dog's diet. In June we're ready to venture a little further with carrots as consuming foods prepared for consumption on the cooler side of things is far more attractive than the alternative (though grilling has not been eliminated as it lends to the outdoor experience). So here we go chilled three ways and each uniquely flavorful and fitting for the climate upon us 1) Chilled Carrot Honey Soup ; 2) Carrot Salad with Harissa, Feta and Mint ; 3) Raw Carrot & Parsnip Salad

Herbaceous L'il Jig and Green Tea Press

Live from the start of St Patrick's Day celebrations in the Lowcountry we plan the experience from start to finish. It's not about an affair to remember, it's about the occasions to record in memory that bring you back year after year. From the beverage in the to-go-cup to the green beaded necklaces to the parade down the street it's the people, places, and what's consumed to celebrate Irish heritage that keeps us all in the green. Our little band of revelers make it an annual tradition to create parade route beverages, one nonalcoholic and one a bit saucier. Each year the challenge remains the same...to do something different and always with a little green.

Green Tea Press (inspired by Stonehill Tavern)
2 ounces chilled brewed green tea, 1 ounce Ginger syrup, 2 ounces chilled club soda, 1 lime wedge and 1 mint sprig
Fill pint glass with ice, add green tea, syrup, and soda and stir well. Garnish with lime and mint

L'il Jig (inspired by Pegu Club)
3 Thai basil leaves, 3/4 ounce fresh lime juice, 1/2 ounce simple syrup, ice, 1 1/2 ounce silver tequila, 1/2 ounce Chartreuse
Muddle the basil leaves with lime juice and syrup, add ice, tequila, and Chartreuse. Shake well and strain.

Start Celebrating the Irish on Hilton Head Island: http://www.stpatricksdayhhi.com/
Finish in Traditional Fashion in Savannah: http://www.savannahsaintpatricksday.com