HUNGRY GERALD

Dr. Esther Freeman, husband Adam, Mother-in-law Susan Young, Sister-in-law Heidi Young (plus Esther and Adam’s enchanting children, Amos and Emilen) arrived for a brief visit. They were camping throughout the Bay of Fundy area in New Brunswick and at various sites on Prince Edward Island. A life enhancing and super helpful group. Among other things that demonstrated Adam’s mastery of household chores, he proved to be a champion oyster shucker (comparable to Maiko Sakamoto Freeman and HG). The Youngs brought a jug of pure maple syrup harvested from their Vermont farm. Very distinctive taste. Different from the Canadian maple syrup HG consumes daily. Dr. Esther is a noted dermatologist (practices in Boston). Graciously, she examined various sun spots and sores on HG and BSK. Recommended medical attention (HG and BSK made dermatology appointments in PEI and Santa Fe). Very helpful to have a Doc in the family. There was happy dining during the visit on sweet corn, fried fish, shucked oysters and other good things. Toby, The Wonder Dog, was sad at the group’s departure. Enjoyed all of the affectionate attention and belly rubs.

Noel and Yossi M. (BSK’s sister and brother-in-law) are dynamos of energy and creativity. They have made their Ocean Mist Farm near Panmure Island on the south shore of Prince Edward Island a model of self sufficiency. There are grape and kiwi vines; pear, cherry and apple trees; blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and strawberry bushes; black and red currants as well as gooseberries. Vegetables galore, including the best mineral rich PEI potatoes. And, yes, there’s horseradish. There are pigs, goats, lambs and a sprightly horse (for riding, not eating, of course). Last night, HG/BSK, SJ, Exquisite Maiko and Adorable Teru supped on a wondrous Ocean Mist Farm leg of lamb. In a curious example of butchery, the leg had a piece of the hip as well the thigh — a strange configuration that made it impossible to broil whole. EM was not concerned. With the aid of a Youtube video (which partially helped) EM used her extraordinary knife skills to trim every bit of fat from the meat before deboning the entire thing. The result was some nice cutlets of varying widths. SJ coated them with a paste of garlic, olive oil, salt, white pepper, rosemary and other herbs. They went into the broiler and meat emerged medium rare, tender and flavorful — some of the best lamb HG has ever encountered. As a side-dish, SJ cooked a variety of vegetables with middle eastern spices and mixed them with Israeli couscous. A flavor bomb. Drank lots of red wine as the sun set over the sea. Good eating. Good living.

HG’s daughter, Victoria, has bad Prince Edward Island travel luck — both coming and going. After her joyous PEI family reunion visit (too brief), Victoria arrived at Charlottetown Airport to find all flights to New York canceled (thunderstorms?). Back to HG/BSK’s oceanfront home to watch dramatic rain and rolling whitecaps on the sea. Finally, Victoria (after a few hours sleep) managed to leave on a 6:30 AM flight. But, there was a delicious consolation. Exquisite Maiko created a tempura feast. Fried food that was light as a feather dancing in a gentle breeze and crackling crisp. Squares of haddock, mushrooms, onion slices and rectangles of sweet corn got the inimitable EM treatment. All was splendid but the corn was a surprising revelation. This was served with soba noodles in mentsuyu (soy based soup). Delectable. Dashes of wasabi made it all tingle. Okay, back to Victoria travel. EM awoke at 4:30AM and drove Victoria to the airport. EM looks delicate but has vast reserves of physical strength and endurance (plus wondrous knife skills). Meanwhile, SJ, in New York on a brief business trip, dined with friends at Shuka, one of Victoria’s (and husband/chef Marc Meyer’s) four Manhattan restaurants (others are Cookshop, Vic’s and Rosie’s), Shuka serves inventive Middle Eastern food and am sure that SJ dined well. However, nothing can top an EM tempura extravaganza.

Dinner began with freshly picked and shucked sweet corn. Cooked to peak of perfection by BSK. So good that HG ate it without benefit of butter or salt. Then, the family proceeded to a an epic seafood meal prepared by Exquisite Maiko. EM picked up just caught mackerel — given away gratis by the fishermen — at the nearby Prince Edward Island port of Naufrage and hake filets at By the Bay Fish Mart in the village of St. Peters. After filleting the fish, EM deep fried the mackerel skeletons into a salty crisp that was dipped in Kewpie Mayonnaise (Japanese brand) sprinkled with cayenne. EM called this “a snack” and it went beautifully with HG’s Bloody Mary. This was followed by two raw mackerel dishes: A tataki of mackerel mixed with ginger, scallions, soy sauce and nori. Marinated mackerel served with a salty, preserved plum sauce. This is better than any variant of pickled herring. Main dish was pan fried hake and mackerel served room temperature over a colorful julienne of vegetables including onions, cabbage, carrots, zucchini and more. Masterful. This was accompanied by a bowl of pickled watercress topped with bonito flakes. The meal featured local ingredients that shone when encountering EM’s skills. (The watercress came from the base of a fresh water stream that empties into the ocean near HG’s home). Superlatives don’t do EM’s cuisine justice. Sublime might be the best descriptive. Beautiful to look at. A delight to eat.

Joy. HG’s daughter Victoria arrived in Prince Edward Island following flight cancellations, mishaps, frustration, etc.. Looks svelte and lovely. Getting to Prince Edward Island is never fun by air. That’s why HG/BSK do the lengthy auto trip from New Mexico (the auto route means Toby, The Wonder Dog, can accompany HG/BSK). Indomitable Victoria refused to be discouraged. New Yorkers are famed for overcoming obstacles. Victoria and husband/chef Marc Meyer own and run four New York restaurants (Cookshop, Vic’s, Rosie’s, Shuka). They know how to deal wth challenges. Victoria arrived with a bag of good things from an Italian shop in Toronto (there was a layover). Weather has been warm and sunny. Lots of beach fun. Much feasting. Some highlights: Exquisite Maiko’s dumplings; Lesley R.’s lush pappardelle in mushroom sauce (plenty of chanterelles, etc.); BSK’s halibut poached in Greek avoglemono sauce. BSK’s sister, Noel, and husband Yossi M., invited everyone to Ocean Mist Farm for a spectacular lunch featuring Blum’s sweet corn and lamb and pork kefta harvested from their own animals. This was served outdoors on tables sheltered by apple trees and kiwi vines. After lunch, BSK, Handsome Haru , EM, Adorable Teru went off to St. Mary’s Bay for paddle boarding and swimming. Harvested six dozen clams (quahogs). Is there a Linguine con vongole or clams posillipo in HG’s future?

During this wonderful Prince Edward Island family reunion, the adults (except for eater and appreciator HG) are cooking their specialties. All noteworthy. One night, Exquisite Maiko pan grilled miso-marinated pork chops. Lesley R. made accompaniments: Moroccan carrot salad and crisped broccoli florets. SJ cooked black beans (they had soaked overnight) served over rice. This beans and rice combo is known as Moros & Cristianos (Moors and Christians) in New York Cuban restaurants. BSK picked leaves of lettuce from BSK’s kitchen garden (the garden is adjacent to BSK’s newly built studio and contains cherry tomatoes, zucchini, radishes, peppers and herbs). The greens were dressed with BSK’s vinaigrette. Pecorino cheese was a nice companion. On a following evening, Lesley R. baked a sumptuous pot of haddock, clams (plucked from St. Mary’s Bay by EM and SJ), onions, garlic, thinly sliced PEI potatoes, white wine, clam broth and herbs. Climax of the meal was a truffle-flavored cheese Ufficiale/Dottore/Profesore Massimo R. brought back from Bologna. The cheese was covered with slices of black truffle. Culinary luxury.