Tinfoil Chef

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I’ll start this entry by saying that this category, “Kitchen Talk”, is one where I’ll talk about things that aren’t related to food, cooking and the kitchen in general. I know that some will say that to talk about off topic things somehow makes a blog less “pure” but I say that Cooks, like everybody else have opinions and thoughts about all sorts of things. Just because somebody is a cook doesn’t mean that they can’t talk about other things too. In THIS kitchen, we’re all just folks, we talk about anything that comes to mind and it doesn’t take away from the on-topic entries.

Now about those debates. I have to say that before last night’s back to back debates I haven’t ever known as much about as many candidates this far ahead of the general election. I think that they also helped me refine somewhat my choice of who I will want to vote for.

In fact, I have only made ONE final decision so far… and that is that Hillary Clinton should NEVER be president. And before anybody starts saying I’m against her because she’s a woman. NO. That’s not the reason. I’m against her because of her attitude, her overbearing manner and the fact that she managed to lead the way in ducking direct questions by simply talking about something else instead. I mean, they’re not asking for something complicated like auto insurance quotes, They were asked several very simple direct questions. Her response to several questions was to talk about her record, her 35 years, blah blah blah…. all without answering the question.

I think that all of the rest of them, on both sides mind you, did some of this. On the Democrat side I think that Edwards is the one person that made the most sense. Obama evaded almost as much as Clinton and I honestly have never heard of Richardson before last night so I can’t say much about him except that I was ready to reach into the picture tube to strangle him if he didn’t stop banging on the desk while he talked.

On the Republican side, I think Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are dangerous and that if either of them is elected a lot of people won’t live to regret it because of their attitudes about terrorism and foreign policy in general. Fred Thompson has always struck me as more of the “down home folks” type and frankly he isn’t using nearly as much doubletalk as many others in Washington do. Huckabee is looking better every time I see him talk. McCain is also a stronger possibility than I previously thought. As for Giuliani… I think he made a great mayor of New York, but I doubt I’d vote for him for president. There’s just too many things out of place there.

No doubt, there will be more later about this.. Election day is a LONG way off.

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Cream of Mushroom soup. It’s a basic kind of thing that’s been around for quite a while. It’s used in a lot of recipes to add flavor and thicken things up a little bit. Yet sometimes all my wife will want is just a basic cpm of mushroom soup. The thing is, most of the brands of canned Cream of Mushroom soup don’t actually have a whole lot of mushrooms in them.

Fortunately, it’s easy to fix this. Just take some mushrooms, I prefer fresh but you can use the canned variety if you drain them. Saute them in just enough butter to keep them from sticking to the pan. It only takes about a minute or so. You can also put the mushrooms in a microwave safe bowl with a very little bit of butter and heat that for 30 seconds or so. Then add them to the soup before heating it.

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Basil is one of those herbs that’s kinda like office furniture… There are a lot of varieties of it. Sweet Basil is one of the most popular. It has a sweet, clovelike aroma and a flavor that reminds you of anise, clove and mint. When fresh the flavor is mild enough that you can use a lot of it. The dried herb loses a lot of it’s sweetness and has a spicier, clove-mint taste that works best in sauces, soups and such that cook for a long time.

When I said there are a lot of varieties I wasn’t kidding. There’s actually over 50 species of basil with variations in appearance and flavor. The most commonly used is the large leafed Sweet Basil.

It’s best in summer months. Field grown Basil can be sandy so it should be washed. It can also become bitter in hot weather, especially after flowering.

It’s a tender, perishable herb. To store it trim the stems and remove leaves on the lower side and stand the bunch in a jar of cool water just deep enough to cover the base of the stems. for up to two to three days at room temperature. You can also wrap it in paper towels and store in a plastic bag in the warmest part of the refrigerator for 1 or 2 days.

It also blackens easily when bruised or cut so it’s best to use a sharp, stainless steel blade for cutting it.

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