Cathy Burnham Martin's Blog, page 58

National Croissant Day

 

I was first introduced to croissants while on a college internship in Copenhagen, Denmark. Each morning, as I traversed the walking street near my destination, I learned to stop in at a pastry shop.

 

 

 

 

What started as one croissant in the morning, turned into two. I mean, that light crispy wonderful exterior and whispery flakiness inside required a double! Often it became one topped with sliced almonds and a dusting of confectioners’ sugar and filled with a delightful almond filling.

 

 

 

And it became increasingly difficult to resist a plain one… filled with melty chocolate bits.

 

 

 

 

If I was choosing a breakfast sandwich, that deserved a plain croissant, which was stuffed with a BLT and sometimes cheese or even a fried egg. Ahhhh… enjoy National Croissant Day.

Things that make us say, “Hmmmm.”

 

This aphorism would be seven words long if it were six words shorter.

Ahhh… to Seek Wisdom

“The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts.”

— Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)
British philosopher, mathematician, author, Nobel laureate

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

 

January 27 is the day established by the United Nations in 2005 for all nations to remember the Holocaust committed by the Nazis.

 

 

 

From 1933 and 1945 they eliminated 6-million Jews, two-thirds of Europe’s Jewish population and countless others. Just as the Ottomans chose to settle their “Armenian question” in 1915, the Nazis attempted to implement their “final solution” to their “Jewish question.”

 

 

 

 

 

January 27 was chosen as the International Holocaust Remembrance Day as this was the date on which the Red Army liberated the concentration camp at Auschwitz in 1945.

 

 

 

 

 

And yet, chaos continues throughout the world. We humans are dreadfully slow to evolve.

 

Good for YOU!

 

“Aim above morality.  Be not simply good, be good for something.”

— Henry David Thoreau (1817 – 1862)
American naturalist, philosopher, and writer

National Florida Day

The Sunshine State became a US Territory in 1921, after falling under colonial rule by France, Spain, and Great Britain during the 18th and 19th centuries. Florida became our nation’s 27th state in 1845. Of course, Native Americans were living there for at least 12,000 years prior being named “La Florida” (meaning “land of flowers”) by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. Florida is home to the oldest continuously inhabited European settlement in the country, since St. Augustine was settled by Spaniards in 1565.

Averaging 300 days of sunshine each year, Florida is famous for warm, sunny weather and beautiful landscapes, average temperatures range from 65-70°F in the northern region and 74-77°F in the southern region. With its 825 miles of publicly accessible beaches, Florida also has the longest coastline in the continental US and is the only state bordering the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. When you are in Florida, you are never more than 60 miles from the ocean, and there are more than 7,700 lakes.

 

Florida has 47,300 commercial farms and ranches, totaling 9.5 million acres. The state ranks #1 for fresh market tomatoes, cucumbers, snap beans, watermelon, grapefruit, sugar cane, and oranges.  Producing 75% of the nation’s oranges, Florida also produces 40% of the world’s orange juice supply.

 

Only Texas and California have larger populations, and approximately 1,218 people move to Florida every day, adding to the 22-million people already living there. Florida is a melting pot with Native American, Hispanic, African, and European influences among those represented in the State’s architecture, cuisine, and culture.

 

 

 

A number of “firsts” can be claimed by Florida. For example, on January 1, 1914, the world’s first scheduled passenger flight occurred, as the plane flew from St. Petersburg to Tampa. NASA also launched its first communications satellite from Florida as Echo 1 launched from Cape Canaveral on August 12, 1960. Benjamin Green, a Miami pharmacist, invented the first suntan lotion.

Key West is the southernmost point in the continental US. Protesting the traffic jams caused by a US Border Patrol checkpoint on the only road to the mainland, the mayor of Key West and a number of businessmen declared the Florida Keys independent in 1982, under the name “The Conch Republic.” (You can still get a Conch Republic passport to the tongue-in-cheek micro-nation, and the Conch Republic flag still flies throughout Key West.)

 

Thanks to Walt Disney’s early vision, Orlando has become the country’s amusement park capital. No other amusement park destination gets as many visitors. In fact, Disney’s Magic Kingdom is the 8th most popular tourist destination in the world, right behind New York’s Times Square, the Las Vegas Strip, and Niagara Falls.

 

 

Greater Miami is the nation’s only metropolitan area with two national parks… Biscayne National Park and Everglades National Park. The Florida Everglades mark the only place on the planet where crocodiles and alligators co-exist.

 

Funky Florida facts:

No dinosaur fossils have ever been found in Florida.Florida is the 29th most obese state.Florida is the flattest state.At 345 feet, Florida’s highest point (Britton Hills) is the lowest highest point of any US state, lower than many of Miami’s skyscrapers.Florida hosts more golf courses than anywhere else in the US… more than 1300.Gatorade was named after the University of Florida’s Gators football team, for which the drink was first developed.The Florida driving test no longer requires parallel parking, but you must demonstrate that you can park your car straight and centered in a parking spot… and show that you can use your turn signal 100’ before you turn… and demonstrate the ability to fully stop at a stop sign before safely proceeding into an intersection… and be able to turn your car around in a 30 to 40-foot space.Among the peculiar laws you will find that it is illegal to skateboard in Florida without a license, illegal to sing while wearing a swimsuit in public, and illegal for an unmarried woman to skydive on Sundays. Of course, oral sex is also illegal in Florida, and it’s illegal in Miami Beach to bring a pig with them to the beach. You can also face up to 30 days in jail for selling oranges on the sidewalk.And last, but not least… The famed honky-tonk Flora-Bama Beach Bar, which sits on the state line between Florida and Alabama, hosts thousands of Floridians once a year for its annual Mullet Toss, during which thousands of Floridians stand at the state line and toss dead fish into Alabama. (Hmmm… I am sure there is no beer drinking involved.)

And the Sun Rises on a New Day

 

“There won’t be a better tomorrow if you can’t move on from today.”

— Unknown

Rah! Rah! Rhubarb!

Though this is National Rhubarb Pie Day, we’ll have to use frozen rhubarb, because Spring is still way off in most parts of the country. But rhubarb is a great addition to our diets if we have health concerns. Rich in antioxidants, rhubarb has anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. This means that rhubarb is one of the veggies that protects us from many health issues, from heart disease and diabetes to cancer. It also lowers blood pressure and aids digestion.

 

Rhubarb stalks are also being hailed as “the next fruit superfood.” That’s great, even though it is technically a vegetable… a member of the buckwheat family. However, it was labeled a fruit in 1947 to avoid the higher tariffs that were placed on vegetables. That’s okay, especially when we remember that a tomato is technically fruit.

 

 

 

If you like tartness, rhubarb is most tart when eaten raw. It sweetens when cooked, much like onions. Oh, but never eat the leaves. Very toxic.

 

Thanks to Mom teaching me to cook and bake when I was a child, I have been making pies for decades. Rhubarb is a favorite, since I enjoy tart flavors, such as cranberries. But most folks prefer pies to be a little (or a lot) sweeter. So, I now always add strawberries. They sweeten the rhubarb.

 

 

Cathy’s Strawberry Rhubarb Pie  
4 c rhubarb, thick stalks cut in half lengthwise; all sliced in ½”-pieces
2 c strawberry slices (thick or thin, your preference)
¼ c sugar
¼ c light brown sugar
2 (3-oz) or 1 (6-oz) sugar-free strawberry Jell-O
1 T cornstarch
1/3 c flour
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp orange zest
¼ tsp salt
¼ – ½ tsp almond extract, optional
Pastry for 2-crust (9 or 10” pie), fresh or frozen
2 T cold butter, cut in tiny pieces
For glazing the crust:
Either 2 T milk & 2 T sugar Or 1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tsp water

In large bowl, combine sugars, cornstarch, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, zest & salt. Toss with rhubarb, berries (& almond extract, if using), till coated. Pour into prepared pastry shell. Dot with butter. Cut 2nd pastry into ½ –  ¾” strips and weave a lattice top for pie.  Fold ends under at edges; press to seal; crimp edges. Brush lattice with milk; sprinkle with sugar OR brush with egg yolk wash. Bake at 400°F for 20 min.  Reduce heat to 350°F and bake additional 25-35 min till crust is golden and filling is thickened & bubbly. Cool on wire rack to desired temperature. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

KISS Tips: You may want to protect crust edges with foil for last 10 min to prevent from getting too dark. Cooling to room temperature allows the juices time to thicken. To absorb some of the liquid that naturally is created by cooking the rhubarb, add 2-3 T instant tapioca in place of the 1 T cornstarch.  Let filling stand 5-10 min before putting in pastry shell. For a Super Simple shortcut version, skip the nutmeg, cinnamon, orange zest & almond extract. You don’t even have to dot the filling with butter.  To add a flavor zip, switch to 1 box Strawberry and 1 box Raspberry Jell-O. You can also top with a full crust, rather than creating lattice, but do cut slits in top for steam to escape.

For the Love of Brownies!

 

This is National Blonde Brownie Day! Oooooh, I have such fond memories of Mom regularly making these for us in the 1950s and 60s. Then I started making them, too. Nothing has changed. They are still merely mahhhhvelous!

 

Blonde Brownies
Mom made these for us constantly in the 1950’s & 60’s.  Nothing has changed.  We still love ‘em! 

2½ c flour
3 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
¾ c (1½ sticks) butter, softened
1¾ c packed light brown sugar
3 lg or ex-lg egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 c (12-oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ c (or more) chopped pecans or walnuts

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder & salt.  In a large bowl, cream brown sugar into the butter till smooth; beat in eggs and vanilla.  Gradually stir in flour mixture till well combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Spread batter in well-buttered 9×13 or 10×15” pan. Bake 20-25 min at 350°F till golden.  Cool in pan on a wire rack before cutting.

KISS Tip:  These are just as chewy & great when made nut-free. And they freeze splendidly.

National Squirrel Appreciation Day

Whether you think squirrels are pests or fascinations, they are playful and agile rodents. Indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa, they are indeed rodents, in the same family as chipmunks, woodchucks, prairie dogs, rats, mice, and beavers. However, they also play an important role in the environment. In one season, a single squirrel can bury up to 10,000 nuts, but a good 25% of those never get dug up again by that squirrel or any other. Thus, squirrels are powerhouses in forest regeneration.

 

Their favorite foods are nuts, insects, and berries. Squirrels are hoarders, but they are also acrobats and bandits. They can run up to 20 mph and jump up to 20 feet in length.

 

We all have likely seen their antics as they fashion ways to access even the trickiest bird feeders. They can also be annoying, as when they gnaw on our home’s wooden siding. I get it. Their front teeth never stop growing, so they must gnaw. But I fear they’ll be in the house one day. We’ve tried a variety of scents they allegedly do not like… from peppermint oil, coffee grounds, and white vinegar to cinnamon, garlic, and rosemary.

Here are a couple of nutty facts about squirrels. A male squirrel is called a boar. The female is a sow. She selects her mates, and mates with several males. She will give birth to an average of 2 to 8 offspring, all of which are born blind. At just 1” long, a baby squirrel is called a kitten.

 

Squirrels run in a zig-zag pattern when trying to escape hawks and other predators. (Yeaaaah, that technique doesn’t work so well with cars.)

 

 

The Native American symbol for preparation, trust, and thriftiness is the squirrel.

 

 

 

And we humans can learn something from squirrels. When it’s cold outside, eat more and bulk up. (Okay, I think we’ve got that covered.) When it’s hot outside, lying down and sprawling out on a cool surface is the squirrel’s answer. It’s called splooting.

 

Have a gleefully squirrelly day!