HUNGRY GERALD

Quietly, deftly and utilizing the knife skills of a surgeon, Exquisite Maiko turns out family meals that would win her three star Michelin status in France. Her dishes vary from ethereally light and crisp fried foods (like tempura) to juicy and savory (her homemade gyoza) to screamingly fresh and raw (varieties of sashimi, sushi and pickles) to powerfully robust (stews and hotpots). All of these dishes provide visual as well as gustatory pleasure. An EM dish is always a memorable still life. Her recent Caprese salad looked like a Mondrian with its linear precision. Last night showed EM at the height of her powers. Dinner was to be centered around pork belly obtained from one of Prince Edward Island’s Heritage butchers. EM’s rich, savory pork belly in a sweet bonito flake broth takes some effort. It is marinated, then seared (caramelizing the sweet proteins) and finally subjected to a long, slow braise to bring the belly to the height of succulence. It is then refrigerated for 24 hours allowing most of the fat to be skimmed off prior to re-heating. The pork belly was served with hot mustard, soft boiled farm fresh eggs and slightly bitter, sauteed daikon radish greens that were the perfect counterpoint to the sweetness of the broth — A dish for the ages. This amazing pork belly was preceded by an EM improvisation, two varieties of mackerel sashimi, one flavored with ginger and the other with oil and garlic. Both were accompanied by thin slivers of scallion. The mackerel improvisation came about this way. HG mentioned in casual conversation with the woman clerk at the local liquor store that HG and EM are fond of fresh mackerel. Please note: Mackerel, in order to be good, has to be very fresh. Like bluefish, it is at its best a few hours after capture. The liquor store woman said she and a friend would be fishing on the weekend, would haul up a load of mackerel (regarded as a junk fish on PEI) and would be glad to give us some. Got a call last night that they were pulling into harbor with plenty of mackerel. SJ dashed down and came back with three dozen. With knife flashing, EM fileted the fish just plucked from the sea. The resulting sashimi was a revelation. Better than any tuna tartare (or any other fish tartare) HG has sampled in big ticket Paris, London and New York restaurants. As HG writes, salted mackerel filets are air drying in the sunny breeze. EM intends to grill them tomorrow night. Oh, joy!!

Nice day on the sunny and breezy Prince Edward Island beach. Appetites were well honed. In fact, La Famille HG/BSK was famished. Fortunately, SJ was in charge of cuisine. Wow. The guy really delivered. Earlier in the day SJ picked up some PEI Tamworth (a heritage breed pig) pork ribs from local butcher Lloyd’s Specialty Meats. SJ dry rubbed these racks of high quality pork ribs in brown sugar, cumin, adobo, garlic powder, all spice, thyme, chile powder and crushed chipotle peppers. He then slowly smoked them over white oak. It was the type of BBQ that reached the kind of flavor crescendo that HG had only encountered some years ago at Corky’s in Memphis. No sauce. Just fragrant, super spicy meat. Tennessee/Mississippi cooking at its best. SJ (on the previous day) had made some super chicken broth. Last night, BSK enhanced the broth with chopped kale,white beans and chunks of grilled Cajun sausage. The meal started with mozzarella bocconcini, kumatoes and basil doused in splendid olive oil. Lots of red wine and and a baguette from the talented baker at Cardigan Farmers Market. Yes. Life (if you measure it in culinary delight) can be very good.

SJ, Exquisite Maiko and the dynamic duo, six year old Haru and four month old Teru, have joined HG and BSK on Prince Edward Island. Family fun. Much frolicking on the beach and in the sea. Sand castles, sand fortresses plus ambitious water works. And, of course, when Exquisite Maiko is present there is extraordinary food. Tempura is wonderful stuff but in Exquisite Maiko’s hands it verges on the sublime. Light. Greaseless. Crispy exteriors enclosing lush interiors. Slices of fresh haddock. Scallops from the waters off Nova Scotia. Shrimp. Whole cremini mushroom caps. Cauliflower and broccoli. EM served these delights with bowls of cold soba noodles in mentsuyu broth. The soba was topped with slivers of nori and chopped scallions. Very pungent horseradish and Japanese red pepper mix added some fire. How does EM do it? Just Far East magic.

American provincialism is exemplified by attitudes toward Canada. This vast, greatly diversified country is still viewed by most Americans as an icy wasteland filled with igloos and polar bears. Only a very rare American can identify the Canadian provinces and recognize their geographic and climatic differences; on the other hand, Canadians know a great deal about the United States. However, they are puzzled by the American attitudes toward health care, abortion and gay rights. Many Canadians feel that Americans are perpetually fighting battles resolved by them years ago. Maybe so. In viewing Canadian culinary attitudes, HG is bemused by the love for poutine, a vile cheese curd and gravy substance served over french fries. Canadians also have an unusual affection for Tim Horton’s an omnipresent fast food chain specializing, as far as HG can tell, in bad coffee and stale doughnuts. HG rates it very low. HG does, however, share the Canadian passion for butter tarts. These are delicious tarts that look like mini pecan pies. No nuts but lots of raisins and not overly sweet. HG discovered these tarts at the beginning of his marriage to Canadian BSK. A parcel of butter tarts baked by BSK’s late grandmother arrived and HG became addicted. HG has devoured butter tarts all over Canada. But, the best were those prepared by grandmother Beatrice Page Kent. Curiously, you can never find butter tarts in the United States. Can it be that the crafty Canadians have forbidden their export?

Creative. Fusion. Molecular. Sous vide. Foam. These are some of the techniques and buzzwords used in creating and describing much of today’s cutting edge cuisine. “Piffle and folderol,” snorts HG. Line up all these scientist/five star chefs from Grant Achatz to Ferran Adria with their finest creations and HG, the gourmand will still state, unequivically: The key to good cooking is simple preparations using fresh, locally raised produce (organic, of course), local seafood and local meat and fowl.

Witness last night’s dinner at HG and BSK’s home by the sea on Prince Edward Island. A few little neck clams (harvested that day) steamed in a bit of white wine. A filet of hake (caught 70 miles away) gently sauteed with ginger and garlic. A stir fry of local snow pea pods (picked that morning). Some tiny PEI potatoes from a neighbor’s farm with butter and dill. Finished with a wedge of gouda cheese flavored with fenugreek (a specialy of a magical local woman known as “The Gouda Lady”). This was accompanied by a glass of red wine (sadly not a PEI product) and another local specialty, Theresa’s Pumpkin and Orange Preserves. Were folks eating better in El Bulli or Alinea? HG doubts it.

There’s a dish that HG and BSK often enjoy but never serve to guests. Too ominous. Too scary. HG refers to linguini with sauteed squid in squid ink sauce. Very black. HG and BSK first encountered the dish in Venice many years ago. The Venetians used seppie (tender little cuttlefish plentiful in the Venetian lagoon) and seppie ink. Love at first bite. Here’s the way HG and BSK do it. Saute garlic and shallots in olive oil. Add some cumin, oregano and cayenne plus a bottle of clam broth. Simmer. Add some crushed canned tomatoes and a jolt of tomato paste. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly. You’ve got a nice, seafood based red sauce. Add a packet of squid ink (available online through Amazon.com ). Stir. Magic. You’ve got a jet black sauce. Add to it a pound of cleaned and cut up squid (tubes and tentacles) that you’ve sauteed over high heat for just a few minutes. Toss your cooked linguini in the pan. Mix it all up. Have plenty of napkins available.

HG is a man of iron will: Satan, get thee behind me!! That is the HG motto when temptation tempts. But, when HG is confronted with Entenmann’s Chocolate Donuts in the super market, HG may shake his fist, HG may call upon the gods, but resistance to the Entenmann’s temptation is for naught. Get the point? Yes, HG loves those donuts and in HG’s younger years HG would knock off a box (accompanied by glasses of cold milk) as a bedtime treat. We are in the midst of National Donut Week and Freeman Public Relations (successor to HG’s old firm, now headed by the brilliant Bruce Maguire) is making sure that Entenmann’s is getting the attention it deserves.

For many years the Good Humor ice cream truck was omnipresent in the United States; the jingle of its bells the un-official sign that Summer had begun (no matter if it were only April!). The trucks dispensed super ice cream bars (Burnt Almond and Coconut were HG’s favorites) and their appearance on hot city streets was an occasion for joy. In New York, Bungalow Bar was a competitor. The Bungalow Bar truck played a cheery tune to announce its appearance. However, their bars were inferior. During the Great Depression of the 30’s Good Humor trucks operated six months of the year and created employment opportunities. Working for a commission on what they sold, some Good Humor drivers made as much as $100 a week (a huge sum in those days). For some reason Ice cream bars were known in the industry as “novelties.” HG enjoyed a good number of “novelties” in his youth. In particular, HG loved the Creamsicle — orange ice enclosing creamy vanilla. Other faves: the classic Popsicle, the Chocolate Fudgesicle and the delicious Eskimo Pie. Simple summer pleasures that still exist today. One does not however. And it was the greatest, the king of all ice cream novelties. HG is speaking of the extinct Melorol — an ice cream shaped like a pipe that fitted into a special cone….Perhaps, when HG passes and heads to Heaven (where else would he go?), Melorols will still be served along with all the other treats of a disappeared and delicious past.

When HG utters the word “tripe’, A certain high percentage of HG’s listeners respond to HG with a grimace of disgust and a collective: “Ech-h-h!!”. Unfair. But, understandable. Years ago, HG was in the glorious Italian city of Firenze. HG went to the wicker market where at lunch every day a truck pulled up and a grizzled old guy dispensed tripe sandwiches. These were famous throughout the city and there was a long line waiting for the delicacy. HG took one bite of his sandwich. Spat. Threw the sandwich to the ground. The Florentine tripe lovers turned to HG with anger. HG heard the word “Americano” whispered and everyone quickly calmed down. Of course, the crowd reasoned, HG was an American. This excused HG’s behavior since all Americans are crazy and know nothing about food.

HG overcame his anti-tripe prejudice three years ago when HG and BSK moved to New Mexico. HG became an obsessive lover of New Mexican tripe — menudo — as it is prepared at El Parasol in Pojauque. HG limits himself to one bowl a week since menudo is mega-rich in cholesterol. HG remembers a mournful essay by M.F.K. Fisher, the late, great food writer. Living in a small California town, Fisher could find no one who would share a tripe meal with her and cooking tripe for a solitary meal seemed too arduous and too sad.

HG was shopping at Whole Foods a few days ago when hunger pangs struck. Big time. Since HG was at the fish counter he rummaged about the adjacent soup bar. HG inspected the New England Clam Chowder. Thought the amount of potatoes overwhelmed the clams. Lobster Bisque. Too much cream. Cioppino. Tired fish in tomato soup. Shrimp and Crab Etouffee. Hmm…This looks promising. Green. Herbaceous. Lots of shredded crab and chunks of shrimp. Evidence of a blond roux and creole spice. Worth a try. HG was blown away. Just a big, tasty portion of N’Awlins right there in the wholly homogenized Whole Foods. If you fancy making some etouffee at home check Paula Deen’s recipe. Buttery Southern soul.