Heat and Food

     The "HEAT" arrived in Central Oregon the second week of July and simply has not departed!  For someone like me that loves to cook, you long for that one "Thunderstorm" that arrives in the middle of summer and cools everything off. When that happens the next day I just want to be in my kitchen cooking!

I learned to cook from both of my parents. My father taught a 4-H "Bread Baking Class" when I was growing up and my Mother taught us "Food Preparation". 

Flash forward to today....I treat my kitchen just like my art studio. I pay close attention to the combination of colors and the details of the food. I try and select food that interrelates with one another both with color and texture, similar to paint on a canvas. I experiment with a variety of herbs I grow and collect. I follow recipes to a point but quickly  find myself redesigning the recipe. The years with my parents direction taught me to experiment.

I was so thrilled when the "Thunderstorm" finally arrived! I pulled out one of my favorite cookbooks titled "Cooking Under Wraps" by Nicole Routhier. I find the concept of wrapped foods and the history behind them fascinating. Cooking foods wrapped in leaves,phyllo,puff pastry,short-dough, pasta and other vegetable products is one of the most ancient styles of food preparation. 

I chose the category of short-dough recipes.

        The many combinations of foods using short-dough crusts is endless. A short dough is an uncomplicated easily prepared dough that is sturdy enough to stand up to any filling.

   

 I chose the "Chicken Pot Pie with Herbed Crust" recipe. Yes,I have cooked Pot Pies many times,however not with so many   procedures. It takes almost three hours to cook and bake. I was   shocked with the amount of thyme needed for the recipe 4   tablespoons!  I thought it would over power the dish.  I was wrong! The "Pie" turned out to be wonderful and I even learned a few new things. Most of all my wonderful friends came over for dinner and shared my "Pie"!

 A Great Day in the Kitchen, Great Friends and Great Wine.

 What more do you need?

Just possibly....another "Thunderstorm"!

If you are interested in the recipe e-mail me with your address and I will send you a copy. It is three pages long!