HUNGRY GERALD

Yes, irony rules. On the day Der Trumperer made his misguided and dangerous announcement concerning Jerusalem, BSK made a traditional Middle Eastern dinner. (No, BSK hadn’t planned it. Just worked out that way). BSK formed nine kefta. These are mainstays of Middle East street food. Ground lamb is mixed with chopped garlic, onions, parsley and mint. Then formed into cigar shaped burgers and grilled. (BSK adds to the flavor mix by adding browned pignolia nuts). Side dishes were Israeli couscous and chopped baby spinach prepared Moroccan style (enlivened with bits of preserved lemon). HG prepared an HG specialty: Greek yogurt and sour cream mixed with olive oil, lemon juice, sumac, cumin, zaatar, sea salt and black pepper. Dessert was Lebanese pistachio halvah. Peace and culinary joy in the HG/BSK home. Wish the same for the Middle East.

Palestinian women demonstration against the Israeli occupation one day before the international women day, in front of Qalandiya military checkpoint, West Bank, March 7, 2015. The annual march was repressed by the Israeli army.

“Comfort Food” is often used as a description by restaurant critics, food writers, cookbook authors, television personalities and food bloggers. Very little of what they describe as “comfort food” — Mac & Cheese, Chicken & Dumplings, Meatloaf — actually conveys comfort to HG. Someone who knows a great deal about true comfort food is BSK. The creative woman explores the freezer, the refrigerator and the pantry. Comes up with wonderful, warming creations that delight HG and wrap the old guy in a warm cocoon that can only be described as “comfort”. Here are some of BSK’s creations: Linguine in a sauce of tomatoes, jarred Spanish tuna, olive oil, garlic, capers, Aleppo pepper. A kiss from the sea. Ottogi instant congee with frozen sea scallops, garlic, mushroom boullion and sprinkles of peanuts. Shakshuka, that Middle East culinary dream of sautéed onions, peppers, tomatoes and zucchini topped with soft poached eggs. HG contributes a sauce of Greek yogurt and sour cream mixed with a melange of spices including cumin, sumac, garlic powder, Berbere pepper, zaatar, sea salt, olive oil and lemon juice. Nights in New Mexico are getting chilly. Jack Frost waits in the wings. But, in Casa HG/BSK, comfort reigns.

SJ has discovered the pleasures of lunch. That’s what he reports in his enlightening blog, OishiGevalt.com. (The blog is a must read for anyone interested in food, sharp writing, Tokyo and life). SJ lives in Tokyo after years in New Jersey, Chicago, Manhattan and Brooklyn. SJ finds lunching in Tokyo a wonderland of treats. Every variation of fresh fish, meat, noodles. Best of all, these quality lunches are cheap. In SJ’s lunch post on Oishi Gevalt (“The $5 Lunch Special”, SJ mentions HG’s breakfasts of long ago consisting of black coffee and numerous Marlboro cigarettes and HG’s four-martini lunches (Those were the days when HG was a New York/New Jersey public relations biggie). No, SJ, four-martini lunches are suicidal. HG had modest two-martini lunches (plus wine or beer and post meal brandy). And where did HG lunch with alcohol loving journalists? Three places near the Times, Herald-Tribune, Newsweek and Business Week: Blue Ribbon (German food and world’s best steak tartare); Artists & Writers (German food with a specialty of konigsberger klops, a savory dish of meat balls in a cream and dill sauce); Sardi’s (lamb chops with a grilled kidney). Lunch with clients was at the Bar Room of the Four Seasons (Pool Room was for tourists). Other client lunch spot was Christ Cella, the great steak house (This was also convenient for lunching with journalists from the News, Mirror, Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine and Barron’s). These days HG has a lusty breakfast, a spartan lunch and a lavish dinner. BSK, interested in keeping HG healthy and reasonably sober, has prevailed upon HG to substitute white wine for pre-dinner vodka martinis.