Almost Famous

Christmas has arrived early to household Brown at a time when I have yet to even begin cooking for tomorrow's sit down Thanksgiving dinner for sixteen. Yesterday, two days before Thanksgiving (which in itself is very early this year), I hauled out my Christmas decorations for an interview and photo shoot about traditional American Christmas foods and decorations.  Living Magazine (an Albanian publication not to be confused with Martha Stewart Living) is writing an article profiling ex-pats in Albania on their Christmas traditions.  By sheer luck little old me is representing America in this article.

When I was first approached to do this I immediately began wondering what a traditional American Christmas looks like. After all, America is a very diverse country where a large percentage of its citizens don't even celebrate the holiday.  Is traditional American reminiscent of a Norman Rockwell scene?  Are palm tree Christmas trees and hula dancing Santa Clauses considered to be traditional (they are after all, uniquely American)?  Since the focus of the article was to be traditional foods I queried my foodie friends.  Their suggestions were as varied as the people themselves but left me no closer to an answer.  Growing up in a Polish-American household where our Christmas Eve celebration was a traditional Polish Wigilia followed by an American style dinner the next day my options were diverse.  Given my limited food resources here in Albania and the fact I haven't cooked a traditional Polish dish in years, I opted for what I know best:  pies.  After all, what is more American than pie? 

I dipped into my sacred stash of pureed pumpkin and make a pumpkin pie and a maple-walnut pie.  The former is such a traditional holiday dessert and the later was a unique dish in my own family since we lived in New England (the maple influence) and my mother was not a fan of pecans (the traditional American nut).  The night before the interview I made two "practice" pies and staged the ingredients. After all, no one wants to see me running back and forth between the kitchen and the pantry as I try to put together a dish.  I also dug out some of my most cherished Christmas decorations and all of our family's (including the dog) stockings to share with the the reporter.

I was a bit nervous when the reporter and his photographer arrived.  Not only do I not like to have my picture taken but I also dislike anyone being in the kitchen with me when I cook.  Fortunately, the reporter immediately put me at ease and it turned out that there was very little actual cooking involved.  (Thank goodness I had actually taken the time to make pies ahead of time).  Instead we spent close to two hours talking about my family's Christmas food and decorating traditions.  We started in the kitchen when I mimed preparing then eating the pies while talking about the ingredients and why these foods are traditional to me.  If it wasn't for the occasional flash of the camera and cued instructions I would have forgotten that the photographer was even there as I reminisced about the foods I grew up on.  When we moved onto the decorations and the stories behind each ornament I became even more sentimental.  Sharing the story behind my angel ornament, the significance of a hand crocheted snowflake, and what the U.S. Navy nutcracker signified reminded me why these holiday seasons are so important to me. 

In one respect the two hours flew by. At the same time I was exhausted when it was over.  With my pearls, matching twin set, Williams-Sonoma kitchen gadgets and disturbingly coordinated holiday decorations, I suspect the results are an Albanian combination of Town & Country meets Better Homes and Gardens with a little Martha Stewart thrown in for good measure.  We will see how this all turns out when the December issue of the magazine hits newsstands next month.  Of course since the magazine is only published in Albanian and (thankfully) the interview was in English, I wonder how my thoughts will get translated.  In the meantime, we have plenty of  pies to eat and while missing my stateside family, I am already in the Christmas spirit.

Happy Birthday Julia!

Today is Julia Child's birthday.  Had she still been alive, she would have celebrated her centennial birthday today.

When I look back on it, Julia Child was instrumental in inspiring me to get into the kitchen and cook.  My earliest memories of Julia revolve around watching her on our old black and white rabbit eared television creating dishes I couldn't even begin to understand.  Despite my young age, I was mesmerized by her distinctively haughty voice as she instructed us on the finer intricacies of cooking. (This was in the days before the advent of cable television so WGBH was one the four channels our television was capable of receiving).  There was something about watching The French Chef on the fuzzy screen that made me want to cook.  At my young age, none of my dishes would have passed muster with Julia; a particularly memorable pan of taffy like candy comes to mind when I think of my earliest culinary disasters......

Although I didn't know it at the time, Julia was so much more than a cook or a public television personality.  She received a degree from Smith College (which, as a Mount Holyoke College alum, I must say, is nothing to sneeze at).  After graduation she joined the OSS where she met her husband Paul.  Together they travelled the world; he worked for the United States Information Agency and she was an early "trailing spouse."  Her desire to break out of the monotony of her life as a foreign service spouse and find her own identity drove her to enroll in cooking school at the Cordon Bleu during a Paris posting and eventually go on to write her first cookbook.  Settling back in Cambridge, Massachusetts after Paul's retirement, it was then Julia's turn to shine as her culinary career took off with Paul supporting her aspirations and efforts.

In time, Julia Child became an unlikely American icon.  Within the first week of it's opening, I visited the Julia Child Kitchen exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington, DC.  During that initial visit there were so many people crowding into the display area that it was virtually impossible to take in the eclectic tools that lined the kitchen's walls.  Visitors included people old enough to remember her show during its original broadcasts and those who only knew of the Julia legend.  I've made several subsequent visits to the exhibit- after all I lived three short Metro stops away from the museum for over a year.  Each time I returned I noticed new details about the kitchen and gadgets that I hadn't remembered from previous trips.  Some items were kitchen classics- her Kitchen Aid stand mixer that inspired generations of brides to add the item to their registries (I did but I also use mine on a weekly basis) while others were obscure- to this day I don't know the purpose of several of the items hanging from those pegged walls.  Simple wire whisks and wooden spoons reiterate the idea that fancy gadgets and appliances while nice, are not necessary for creating memorable cooking.

My interest in Julia never quite matched that of the "other" Julie who became famous for blogging about Julia Child and her voluminous Mastering The Art of French Cooking. Julie and Julia was one of the few movies I ran out to see when it was released in theaters.  I saw it again when it was released on Netflix.  As it seems to be staple on the AFN movie channel, I have seen reruns more times than I can count.  The story of both Julie Powell the author and Julia Child the chef give me hope that I too, will someday take the plunge and turn my hobby into something that I am passionate about (and pays the bills).

As I have grown older, my love of food and cooking has only increased.  Over time my repertoire has moved far beyond that disastrous taffy incident.  Whether it be pastries, entrees, or appetizers, I love to tweak recipes and make them my own.  I spend hours thinking about the perfect dishes to serve at dinners and receptions.  Experimental dishes are a staple on our weekly dinner menus.  The only limit is the ingredients I can find on the store shelves (which in Albania, is indeed limiting at times).  I find myself subscribing to  numerous cooking magazines and my cookbook shelf has turned into a full bookcase and outgrown its dedicated space in the kitchen.  I love the early Food Network shows, where cooks actually cooked without the competitiveness and drama that dominates today's reality t.v. cooking.  I've spent hours browsing through Williams Sonoma and Sur La Table catalogs, websites, and when accessible, stores, dreaming about the culinary masterpieces I could create.  We may not know what our dream house looks like but I know for sure what the design and layout of the kitchen will be.

Yes, Julia Child inspired me, and millions of others, to go into the kitchen and just cook.  But her inspiration runs much deeper than the pounds of butter she is famous for.  Despite the obstacles placed in her way, she followed her dream.  She fought stereotypes and refused to fit into the mold that was prescribed by the time and her social class.  While finding her own way she supported her husband who in turn, supported her efforts.   And that is truly inspirational.  Thank you and Happy Birthday Julia!

I've Got Cravings

I love food. Eating it, preparing it, reading about it- you name it and I'm all over it.  Back in the U.S. I could spend hours browsing through Williams Sonoma, Sur La Table, and La Cuisine thinking about the perfect meal prepared and presented in just the right dish.  Now I satisfy these urges by browsing on line.  Its not the same but its the best I can do at the moment.  I subscribe to an obscene number of cooking magazines-as of late favorites include Fine Cooking, Cuisine at Home, and Saveur and attempt to cook at least one new recipe a week.  Sometimes it happens and other times it doesn't but I try my best.

I show my love for friends and family through my cooking and I must admit I'm a pretty good cook.  Food tends to play a central role in my life. No matter how busy we may be, we try to we sit down to a real, home cooked meal each evening.  If Glenn and I are going to be out, I make sure Sidney has a freshly cooked plate on the table.  Back in Norfolk we were a part of our neighborhood cooking club and regularly invited friends and co-workers to join us for dinners.  To me, the more people around the dinner table, the merrier it is.  Here in Tirana I bake batches of banana bread on a weekly basis to distribute to co-workers at the Embassy.  For Thanksgiving we had 23 people join us around three tables.  We are required to entertain in our home and I spend hours planning just the right menu.  Sit down dinners, working lunches, and larger scale receptions are all a culinary challenge that excites me.

When I am cooking I am in my element.  Our house in Norfolk had a gourmet kitchen complete with three ovens.  In D.C. we were regulated to a galley style kitchen that made cooking a challenge. Here in Tirana we have two separate kitchens that combined are merely adequate.  To me the space isn't what is important, its the planning, execution, and consumption of the meal that matters.

One of the things I love the most about traveling is the opportunity to try new foods.  When we first arrived in Albania I quickly set out to cook using the local ingredients  and eagerly tried all of the local specialities that were presented to me.  Food here is different than what I was used to and while most of it is good, after nine months, it is all beginning to taste the same to me.  Dinners out, whether in "fine dining" or more informal restaurants, are all beginning to taste the same.  Restaurant menus read like novels but three quarters of what is listed is never available and what is, is always the same. Everything seems to have a distinctive "Albanian" taste.  This isn't necessarily bad, but it just doesn't excite my palate.

Outside of Italian, ethnic foods are essentially non-existant in Albania. The new Carrefour stocks a small section of speciality foods that includes Old El Paso taco mix but without jalapenos to accompany the meal it just doesn't feel like Mexican food to me.  A local restaurant lays claim to having an Albanian-Mexican menu but everything I've eaten there tastes more Albanian than Mexican.  Chinese food is equally uninspiring- a qofta in a sweet red sauce is not the same as a true sweet and sour dish.

For the past fews days all I've been thinking about is the foods and flavors I just can't find here.  Last night I even dreamed that I was back in the States eating my way through my favorite foods-  a honey habanero burger from Kelly's, the Orchard Sandwich at Tailgate Picnic, and cider donuts from Atkins Farms.  A CNN clip on cupcakes has me thinking about lemon blossom and chocolate hazelnut cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcake.

I try to introduce familiar flavors through my own cooking but it isn't always met with success.  A good Thai curry is always a hit in the Brown household and mine has been known to rival that of Thaiphoon but my inability to find fresh lemongrass here leaves the dish lacking.  Even a basic grilled hotdog is not the same and all of the seasoning in the world leaves it lacking the special flavor of a hotdog from Wasses'.  I did make a semi-successful Chinese sweet and sour pork dish a few weeks ago but after two hours of cooking it didn't even come close to a dish you would find at Peking Gourmet Inn.  My crab and artichoke dip- copying  Old Ebbitt Grill's  very own recipe- did not even begin to compare to what I could make with fresh crab from the Chesapeake Bay.  All of the love in the world cannot make up for the lack of key ingredients.

Alas, I now find myself thinking about food all the time.  I think it is the mere fact that I can't access these tasty culinary delights that has me thinking about them all the more.  What is a girl to do? I don't have the answer but I'm off to go make a cheesecake.  I'll follow my trusty old recipe substituting an Austrian brand of cream cheese for good old Philadelphia and hope the results will be the same as they were back home.