Do you pick it up or pass it by?

I was brought up to believe in the value of every coin....and we collect over $100 in coins every year just along our walks...sometimes it puzzles me how many coins we find as though someone just emptied out their pockets at the mere annoyance of coins.


Curious....if you see a coin on the ground...be it a penny, nickel, dime or quarter....do you pick it up or pass it by?

Today, as we returned home from our walk with the dogs, I found $60 today wrapped up in an ATM slip that someone obviously dropped walking up my street... some would say...keep it....but I feel it necessary to go to the bank to return it to the rightful owner seeing as their bank balance wasn't too high..that could be a day's pay....

What would you do?

PUGLIA in October

I'm meeting up with Jami Cakes (and possibly my sis and bro) for 10 days in Puglia... so I've made a tentative list of where we're going....a bit ambitious...but never hurts to do my initial research and then experience it as we go....

Foggia

Lucera

Campobasso

San Severo

San Giovanni Rotondo

Vieste

Mattinata

Monte Sant'angelo

Manfredonia

Trani

Molfetta

Modugno

Giovinazzo

Bari

Polignano

Monopoii

Fasano

Ostuni

Cisterno

Alberobello

Locorotondo

Martina Franca

Ceglie

Torre Canne

Brindisi

San PIetro

Lecce

Acaya

Vernole

Otranto

Casarano

Castro Marina

Santa Maria di Leuca

Gallipoli

Castromediano

Pulsano

Nardo

Manduria

Sava

Oria

Taranto

Massafra

Matera

Gioa del Colle

Aquaviva

Gravina in Puglia

Venosa

Canosa di Puglia

Basilicata: Venosa

©2011 Rebecca Dru All Rights Reserved

Roasted Boneless Leg of Lamb

I'm not a huge fan of lamb...Jerry and Jami are. My favorite part is the bone from the lamb chops with the little bit of meat and carmelized fat lining the edge of the bone.... but...if the lamb is exceptionally made, I could actually start to like it....

Before Jami Cakes left for Tanzania, I picked up a boneless leg of lamb as requested by the boss of our kitchen....except that there was no time left to make her creation. Yesterday, Jerry had a hankering for lamb and I remembered it was in the deep freezer chest...so he fished it out and defrosted it. I'm not about to wait 5 months to use it. We can pick up another one upon her return.

Sorry people....can you believe I forgot to take pix...ME...forget the cam? OY....so we'll have to go by description only.

I fired up the oven to 500˚ for about 20 minutes. While that was happening, the 4 lb lamb roast was close to room temp, tied up and ready to go. Yeah..I know what they say for food safety...out of the fridge and into the oven..but not me...Meat just does NOT cook optimally this way. Timing for me is everything and when that pan enters the oven....I know exactly when it's going to come out by the temp of the meat when it went in...and we're all healthy here.... Personally, I think it's from where you get your food. Mine is from a local butcher and they know the animal.

While the oven is heating... I make a Proveçal paste. One of my "tricks" is I buy a big bag of dried Porcini mushrooms once a year and in a coffee bean grinder, I grind them up into dust, pack them in tupperware containers for the freezer. This way, when I need mushrooms for sauces, rubs or pesto, I use the dust...it's fantastic....and yeah...I know I should make my own herbes de Provence..and I will when I'm out, but a friend brought me back a couple of excellent bags from France and it's convenient. OH...and for you foodies, yeah..I know this is more of a winter dish...but so what....on a cool summer night as it was tonight..it works out beautifully!

Provençal Rub

1 TBSN Porcini mushroom dust

9 minced garlic cloves

1 TBSN herbes de Provence

Rosemary from 3 stalks, chopped finely

1 TBSN ground black pepper

1 TBSN hot red pepper flakes

1 TBSN kosher salt

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine the above ingredients in a small bowl and mix with a fork.

Place the 4lb lamb in a dutch oven or a pan..make sure the pan is about the size of the lamb. You don't want it much bigger so the juices and the wine baste it. Cover the lamb entirely with the rub.

Poor in 1/2 bottle of a tasty bottle of dry red wine...and make sure it's tasty. It really is important that the flavor of the wine is happening because otherwise, you'll make a sub par dish!

Pop it into the oven and turn the heat down to 200˚. Check it in 2 hours to turn it over and pour in the rest of the wine.

Notice the aroma....your nose will lead you to the oven when something is ready.... and in this case....about another 2 hours later....you'll have a tender delicious succulent lamb roast ready for the table...if it makes it there! In our case....that's a lot of meat for 2 people...so...I'll be putting mine in a salad or having it with rice and lentils and Jer will be making some sandwiches.

Try it...you might like it! I did and I'm hooked!

In MY LIVING ROOM™ Private Salon #4

Our next IN MY LIVING ROOM™ salon #4 is tonight, Friday, May 6th, 2011....Jami Cakes will be here!!!

Quite an evening...Argentinian, Brasilian, Spanish, Classical, R&B, Pop Musicians, Composers, Writers, Story Tellers, Comedians, Artists, Actors, Triangle Players, people who want to eat, drink and be merry..people who like to cook...people who just want to chat, listen, sing along and have fun!

More to come!

A Day at the Beach....

It was a glorious day at the beach today. I'm so enjoying our warm sunny Southern CA weather hoping it will last a little longer.

Upon our arrivial, I noticed a (about 9 year old) kid take off and run from his parents to the Lifeguard Tower while the parents weren't looking.....panicked parents calling for him...becoming more panicked that he was in the water drowning....father getting angrier and angrier, yelling louder and louder, not asking if anyone had seen him, not thinking about how his voice is affecting anyone...not thinking that had the kid been in the water...the lifeguards would have noticed....kid comes running back...the father with a mouth on him screams after the kid...and the nervously laughing kid runs from his father, knowing full well what his father will do...and it's not hug him. He slams the child's body into the ground...flattens him out like a pancakes and with his 300 lb torso, presses his knees into the boy's back while taking his long arm 3' up in the air...slamming it down on his son's rear end 3 times as the boy's two young siblings (about 2 years and 4 years of age) watch. He then rips him off the ground and the crying child gets no sympathy from his mother who continues the process, screaming at him, grounding him from every possible thing in his life...telling him what could've happened to him. Now I understand their being upset....but never once....did they put their arms around that boy and tell him they were glad he was okay....never once....did they take responsibility for not watching him.....all they did was to show him anger, hatred and instill fear.... and instill a lot of negative attention.... and tell the two young children that their brother is fine. Where was the love?

In the next moment....I see a young hispanic father with his two 18 month old children....and 8 of his friends playing on the beach. The father lovingly walks hand in hand with his children to the shoreline....and as the water washes over their feet, the children squeal with delight and a big smile breaks out on the father's face. Next to them, the 8 men sit in the water as though they were young children, awaiting the wave, laughing every time it sweeps over them; pure joy.

What a pleasure it was to leave the beach today with that picture in my head instead of the first.....I wanted to thank them for that gift.

©2011 Rebecca Dru All Rights Reserved

Stair Climbing on Your Ass for Seniors

Just had a conversation with my dad; he had been asking about Jerry's recovery from recent knee surgery. I playfully told him that Jerry has now graduated from climbing the stairs on his ass to walking them with great agility. My Pops' response, "well, he should keep on doing them on his rear...you know, as we men age, we lose our rear ends and we need to do things to keep it shaped. If you don't use it, you lose it!" . I jokingly told my dad that the next exercise video I shoot of him (we've done "Mr. Wilson's Calesthenics; the YMCA exercises" and "Boxing for Seniors starring Mr. Wilson and Tiger") will be "Stair Climbing on Your Ass for Seniors". I said I see so many men his age installing the seat that rides up the stairs, I wonder if those people actually sat down on the step and pushed themselves up, one step at a time, if it wouldn't be better for them. They'd have to work those muscles with each step. He heartily agreed. So...be ready...next time I see my Pops....expect a new exercise video!

IN MY LIVING ROOM™

Our next IN MY LIVING ROOM™ salon is being combined with our annual DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING party.....Jami will be home...she'll be the boss of the kitchen and it will be truly time to celebrate!!!

Quite an evening...Argentinian, Brasilian, Spanish, Barbershop Quartet, Classical, R&B, Pop Musicians, Composers, Writers, Story Tellers, Comedians, Artists, Actors, Triangle Players, people who want to eat, drink and be merry..people who like to cook...people who just want to chat, listen, sing along and have fun! In My Living Room Friday, November 26th, 4:00PM address given 2 weeks prior to event providing you RSVP

If you'd like to perform, please make sure it's LIVE unless you're singing to track.

If you're not on the invitation list, please ask if there's a space for you. This fills up very quickly.

©2010 Rebecca Dru All Rights Reserved

Check out my guest blog contribution on FIVE SCRIBE: TAKE BACK YOUR POWER

I say it every day....”Take back your power!”. As artists, we give it up so easily. We bow down to authority. We think we’re not worthy and we allow others to disrespect us. So I’ll say it again....shouting it louder...”Take back your power”....find your sense of self....set boundaries and TELL people what you want.

It seems to me as artists, we have two different arenas in which to take back our power… the creative and the market place.

In terms of the creative arena, your instincts are your talent...they’re all you’ve got. Trust them.

As far as the business.... you can’t take things personally. Remember everyone’s brain is wired differently...people don’t necessarily think like you do. We have expectations that one can read our mind (or our novel or our screenplay) and that we all do things the same way. We don’t. It’s not just about men and women being from different planets....everyone is. You can say something 1000 different ways before the other person gets it...but eventually, if you stick with it, they will.

Find the humor... .don’t take things so seriously...take responsibility for that which is yours and put the rest back on the other person. Remember that when an editor or publisher doesn’t shower attention on you or show you respect, it may have nothing to do with you..and usually doesn’t...you just happened to be with them in an inopportune moment.

Think about the people on your creative and professional team. Do they enrich your creative process.... what is your purpose for pursuing them?

Why do you get upset when they’re not available to you...who are they to you? If they’re really someone worth keeping on your team, then start developing communication skills. It’s vital for a successful business partnership that you tell them what you want and expect from them. If they’re not someone that gives depth and meaning to your life; to your career; to your creative process - if the feeling isn’t mutual...let them go...clean house.

Speak up! Find a way to talk to your agent, manager, publisher or editor about what is okay and what is not. Don’t go in there and squirm....Take notes...create bullet points, take a deep breath and get oxygen into your brain, stand up strong and say what you need to say in an intelligent articulate emotionless manner. The people who take risks in life are the ones who get what they want.

Take Back Your Power.

Bucket List?

Today...I had a private lesson with the lovely and brilliant Wendy Hammers. As an opening exercise...she asked me to write a "bucket list". That was going to be a tough one for me.... I don’t have a bucket list...I don’t know that I believe in them....because I like to live my life that if today were my last day here on earth I am complete. Is there anything I feel missing in my life.... anything I haven't accomplished to make my life full? I love my life...I have everything I could ever want and should I leave....the only thing I can think of missing would be my heart....would be the people I carry in it... I would miss being able to wrap my arms around love....

I’ve traveled to the places in the world I wanted to see.....sure there are always more...but how many beaches.... how many cities... buildings... cultures ... food... can one experience before you realize you have everything that you want inside of you.

I used to dream of singing with a full orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl... I've stood on that stage over a dozen times and looked out at the audience..during one of my husband's rehearsals or before one of his concerts...and now....I don’t care anymore. There isn’t too much more that I want...because truthfully...what I wanted most in my life was love...and I have that...my heart is full.

SAND IN MY SHOES Lyrics: Susan Santiago Music: Rebecca Dru

Rebecca Dru...Back after 24 years Live at The Santa Monica Playhouse

On Thurs, May 13...celebrating the launch of Dennis Danziger's novel, A Short History of a Tall Jew at Village Books in Pacific Palisades.....great read....I'll be multi-tasking....baking (since Jami is out of town) and singing some tunes..

An Instrumental A Week: Night Soliloquy

Musical Guest, Rebecca Dru in: Leftist Ladies and THEE Christian Wright

Ann Oldenberg of USA TODAY said...Anyone who listens will fall under the spell of Rebecca Dru's rich vocals and dreamy lyrics... She's back, after 24 years.... Rebecca Dru at The Santa Monica Playhouse ☆•*¨*•.¸¸❤❤¸.•*¨*•☆☆•*¨*•.¸¸❤❤

Please join us on Thursday, April 8th at 8:00 PM for this eclectic evening of talented artists as they present original works of story and song.

Leftist Ladies and Christian Wright is an evening of solo works in progress featuring musical guest: Rebecca Dru, Essayist: Barbara Friedman, Solo Artists: Mara Shapshay, PJ Dwan, Erin Brown, and Jody Vaclav and of course, the one and only Mr. Christian Wright

Produced by Wendy Hammers

Thursday,April 8th at 8:00PM

Santa Monica Playhouse

1211 4th Street

(a few feet south of Wilshire)

Santa Monica CA 90401

Tickets are 10 dollars cash at door. No reservation required

Join Our Mailing List! wendy@wendyhammers.com

CHICKS WHO ROCK at The Hollywood Fringe Festival!!!!

theatre

Chicks Who Rock & Roll

produced by allison cameron gray, rebecca dru & p. j. dwan, 90 minutes, ages 16+

a world premiere.

PJ Dwan and Allison Cameron Gray and Rebecca Dru wil be performing at the Fringe Festival in Chicks Who Rock & Roll on Sunday June 20, 10pm at the Hudson Theater. A world premier event. Ticket prices tbd. It's going be a fun festival, thank you Hollywood.

Sicilian Candied Grapefruit Peels and Grapefruit Infused Caramel with Creamy Pine Nuts

Sicilian Candied Grapefruit Peels

Grapefruit Infused Caramel with Creamy Pine Nuts

I finally caught up with all the peels I had and candied 4 gallons worth of citrus peels. It's interesting to see the variations that arise because, perhaps I got busy doing something else and wasn't paying attention or the peel was a different variety of that particular citrus. In the case of the grapefruit, these peels were slightly thicker than the last batch and took longer to reach the point of translucency. My trick is I slow cook them for HOURS in the simple syrup over a very low heat after initially bringing it to a boil. In this case, the simple syrup became very thick and caramel like and gave a lovely coating to the tangy grapefruit peels. You’ll notice the color is much darker, more orangey than my previous batches, which stayed the color of the yellow fruit. While the flavor is generally intense, so much that it’s hard to eat more than 2-3 strips in one sitting, these are even more so, plus they’re chewy like caramel. I rolled them in sugar and left them overnight on the drying racks, but because of the thicker coating, I had to toss them in sugar again the next morning to lightly coat them.

Usually I save the left over simple syrup and add it to the juice I previously squeezed of that juice. I call it my “Rock Candy Lemonade or Grapefruit Juice” because it gives it that candy type flavor with the acidity of the juice. It really pops in your mouth and is quite refreshing. This time, because the sugar had cooked down, what remained was caramel..it just needed a little butter and cream, but this time I decided against it. I wanted that creamy flavor so I added pine nuts. I decided against toasting them because I was going for the texture of them with the flavor of the grapefruit. I tried it out before actually following through. It was creamy goodness in my mouth...a taste of heaven. In went the pine nuts...I poured it out on silpat and the next morning, cut them in squares, tossed them in sugar so they wouldn’t stick to the jar and filled it up.

The idea is no waste. Every part but the pith of the fruit is used as well as all the sugar. What’s left over from rolling...goes into the pot for the next batch of simple syrup. It becomes a system that works..and draws me into a zen like trance as I go through the process of creating the peels.

I will say, it’s nice to be done....before we go gleaning again...it’s time for a break and to focus on other creative vices.... but the results are delicious.

Rebecca Dru opens Bitter and Sweet Chocolates, The Annual TASTY WORDS™ Valentine's Inspired stories

Thursday was a HUGE day for me as it was the first time in 24 years I sang live. I was invited by Wendy Hammers, the creator of TASTY WORDS™, to participate in her show as the musical guest.

Wendy had been "encouraging" me for MONTHS to sing and I finally took her up on the offer. This show was filled with stories about love and the pursuit of it, just in time for Valentine's Day; a great collection of bitter, bad date stories and romantic tales of joyful and requited love.

She had a terrific line up of writers:

Romie Angelich - Being Mrs Peter Moor

Ken Bank - Velcro Boys
Barra Grant - An Irish Hebraic Love Story
Judith Allen - The Captain (A Love Story)

Dave Kessler - True Stories of Dave Kessler, The Dating Daredevil

Wendy Hammers - Jewish Girl Eats Bacon and Finds God
Dylan Brody - True Romance
with musical guest Rebecca Dru

I loaded my gear in the morning. I'm so glad I bought a new mic. I had picked up a HEIL PR 30 at WLA Music and I love it...it's really responsive to my voice. I just didn't want to start back with a Shure SM 58....it's too abrupt. Once set up, I did the sound check with Marjorie Lewis who stopped by to listen...and dance...had a bite with her...relaxed at home with my dogs until it was time to go. I passed by my husband with a big kiss on my way out as he had just returned from an LA PHIL rehearsal...and on my way I went.

You have to understand...I was never going to sing live again...outside my home..so this was a big moment for me...either I was going to love it or not....and baby..I am BACK!! I took those 24 years...and enjoyed my life...my family..and filled it with love...and it made a difference. I'm not doing this for any other reason then for the pure pleasure of it...and let me tell you I had a blast! I did two songs....ANOTHER ONE OF YOU , I wrote with Susan Santiago, which is about meeting someone who's already in a relationship and wishing he/she had a clone. The other was a love song I wrote for my husband. It's the first song in the 25 years we've been together that I've written for him. I started working on a list of why I loved him and realized...I don't need it...I love him JUST BECAUSE. I collaborated on it with a wonderful lyricist out of New York, Carole Blake. Just to side track...I met Carole via my cousin Susan on Facebook. I haven't seen her since I was 3 (and I'm 51 now). I had never worked with someone I didn't know before...but Carole is fantastic! She connected with me on the sentiment of the song. I already had the chorus and the bridge and the line in the verse, " I love the way you...." and she finished it. Now the fun part is she just got married tonight and had been looking for a love song for her wedding.... THIS was her love song that she used for the first dance!

I'm thrilled....I'm relishing in this first performance...I was pleased.... and now I'm getting ready for the next one at The Santa Monica Playhouse on April 8th...where I"ll be doing more songs...new songs...songs that are pertinent to my life now. I'm excited!

Sicilian Candied Meyer Lemon Peels

After juicing, zesting 100 of the 170 lemons, bagging, labeling and freezing, and of the remaining 70 Meyer Lemons, removing the pith, blanching, cooling, blanching, cooling, blanching, cooling, draining and then candying them in a bath of sugar for 65 minutes (yeah..I know it's 20 minutes more than I say so in my recipe)....then carefully hand rolling each slice in granulated sugar and then placing on drying racks and allowing to cool for at least 5 hours...I prefer overnight and into the next afternoon and then packing in glass jars.... I am DONE with the Meyer Lemon Peels. Now don't get me wrong..I am NOT complaining here. They are a time consuming labor of love and the end result is this spectacular burst of intensity in your mouth. I just hadn't planned on that many.

My sister-in-law, Kathy, is a gleaner. She goes to the Valley with a friend of hers and picks buckets and buckets of citrus from the abundance of lonely fruit laden trees. Some they give to shelters, some they give to friends and some they keep. This week, Kathy made my eyes pop out with her tremendous generosity of citrus gifts; Oranges, Meyer Lemons and Grapefruit; bags and bags and BAGS of fruit. How could I say NO....though I knew the work that was in store. I just can NOT throw out the peels... even if it meant that I were to zest at least 1/2 of them, which I did.There's so much juice that I pour it into labeled quart sized bags and stored them in our new freezer chest that we just purchased for the side of beef we bought from a friend in Durango, CO. Just before my friend, Harriet died, she asked us to come over and pick as many tangerines from her tree as we could, knowing it would our last time in all these years of enjoying this monthly invitation from her...and so in a combination of joy and sadness we did. Now we have tangerine juice to last the winter, peels to candy, which I prepped and then froze as well as enough zest for the months to come.

Tonight...I'm working on the grapefruit. Removing the pith is time consuming. I see recipes where people leave the pith on and some of the fruit or they take the fruit off and live some of the pith..but the true Sicilian way is to remove it all and then blanch and cool it 3 times to remove the bitterness. The beauty comes in as you're candying it and it's close to completion; when you see the transparency of the peel with the glaze of the simmering sugar, truly looks like a stained glass window. It's at that moment when I remember why all the other work was worth it; it's a work of art, the color of the peel so vibrant..truly beautiful to experience. I was hoping to get it done sooner so as to ship some off to a friend's mom who likes grapefruit...but you can't rush the peels... and so they will be candied on Tuesday and ready to ship out the day after Christmas...a lip smackin' way to start the new year!

The Weight On My Back

In the past few months I've dropped 35 lbs simply by changing a few things.. namely, all the women in my family have thyroid issues... and through research, Jami's doc and a friend with a similar problem... I discovered some very simple things. A problem thyroid likes protein, not carbs...and eliminate soy completely as isoflavones destroy the thyroid. I always have been a water drinker and very active, no matter what my size is at present. Basically, it comes down to understanding your body type and the type of foods it needs and doesn't need. Some people thrive on carbs... I don't. I don't eat bread....gave that up after I learned how to make it well. I stopped the rice (my fav) and potatoes (roasted...oh how I love them!)...and pasta.... I have a wheat/gluten intolerance...and that's it. I simply keep lots of protein around...and we're not talking dry fish or skinless boneless white meat that's been broiled dry...we're talking, pork butt, pork belly, steak...dark meat chicken, eggs and of course, fish...some cheese, nonfat organic milk....and then there's plenty of veggies and a little fruit. My rule of thumb...I only eat when I'm hungry...and if I want to use my Sicilian EV Olive Oil...I do! I don't measure out my food... I keep my eyes SMALLER than my stomach...and if I find I need more, I take some. The truth is my appetite has shrunk as a result of what I'm doing. I do have 2 cravings....I like the crunchy baked cheese puffs from Trader Joes and I crave chocolate around my period; those I measure. I'm not going to deny the cravings..but I don't go overboard. I can't believe the level of energy I have and how much better I feel just from that small change. I actually had some roasted potatoes two weeks ago and as great as they tasted...I felt sick...I can't eat them..plain and simple. My walks have gotten longer and harder..I'm doing more hills...and the weight keeps coming off....slowly and steadily...FINALLY.

So here's the last thing I do.... Every week...I fill my backpack with the amount of weight that I have lost and I walk for 2 miles with that weight on my back....so I can remember what it felt like when I was at my starting weight and I never forget what I never ever want to go back to. It's a killer... my knees and feet feel like they're going to give out.... makes me wonder how I lived that way.

Diets don't work..in fact I despise that word used in the context in which most of us know it. Figure out what changes you need to make in the way you eat, work for you...how you want to incorporate exercise into your life....drink that water (10 glasses plus 1 for every 10 lbs overweight you are), keep yourself mentally up...and if you fall...take a look at why...don't play the vicitim...get off your ass and do something as you're the only one who can fix it...and then make sure you try the weight on your back... I even fill it with groceries....

Have fuN!!

4 days to San Miguel De Allende in July 2010

Next July I'm doing a 4 day road trip with my dear friend, Susan Santiago and her Basset Hound, Nico, to her new home in San Miguel De Allende from LA. Susan's already begun planning this trip with great excitement...and my homework so far... is to check out where we'll be stopping in Texas: Big Bend National Park and

Marfa. Marfa is a cultural little town in the middle of NOWHERE!!!! That's cool..she just better be prepared for my camera and FLIP video. I can't wait to put this visual together!!!!

PS..If she gives me a hard time...she'll just have to swim across the Rio Grande while I wave from the car!

New Instrumentals...One a week for the next year

Hi!
Over the next year..I'm working on a series of instrumentals to use as soundtracks....I'l be loading rough and finished tracks on my blog..here's tonights...not quite finished...but curious what you think....
Click HERE to hear the music

Bec's New England Clam Chowdah

One of our favorite meals in the summer is a bowl of New England Clam Chowdah (Chowder for you non-New Englanders) and some warm crusty bread.
Here's my version:

INGREDIENTS:
2 TBSN Butter
3 pieces celery, diced 1/4"
3 large potatoes, diced 1/2"
1 lb fresh clams or 4 bottles whole clams
4 - 8oz bottles of clam juice
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 tsp white pepper
Kosher salt to taste
red pepper flakes to taste (optional)
1.5 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream (can use light cream if you prefer)

Roux:
10 TBSN Butter
5 oz All purpose Flour

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large pot, melt the butter and sauté the onions on medium heat until they are translucent (don't brown).
2. Add celery
3. Add potatoes, clams, juice, wine,white pepper and salt (and optional red pepper flakes)
4. Turn up heat to high and bring to a boil.
5. In a heated saucier (sauce pan), melt the butter completely and with a wire whisk, stir in the flour until well blended. Reduce heat to low and cook while other pot is coming to a boil.
6. When the soup pot is boiling and the potatoes are done, stir in the roux. Bring it back to a boil and remove it from the heat to cool.
(note: when using a roux, whatever it is added to must return to a boil or go rancid).
7. In a separate pan, pour in the milk and cream. Now slowly add some of the stock from the soup to temper it, bringing it up to equal temperature and then add it back to the soup.
8. EAT!!!!
9. Make sure the soup is cooled properly on a cooling rack until it is ready to be refrigerated if there's any left.

Great with a loaf of warm crusty bread....

Yield 8 cups

ARROSSEJAT DE FIDEUS AMB LLAGOSTA (sautéed pasta with lobster)

ARROSSEJAT DE FIDEUS AMB LLAGOSTA is one of my husband's all time favorite dishes. It is a fantastic dish...almost orgasmically delicious! It's Catalan in origin. The base of this intensely flavored dish is a sofregit - slow-cooked onions with tomatoes, garlic and herbs - the foundation for almost every sauce and stewed dish in this region’s cooking.

We usually make it over two days. The first day, we prepare the lobster, the stock and sofregit..and then put everything together the next day. It makes it a much more pleasurable experience...but it's easily done in a day if you so choose. Just figure it's going to take you at least 3 hours.... and it's going to make between 4-6 portions (about 3 quarts).
I'm not a big fan of killing living creatures....so on the day I have to bid the lobsters farewell....I prefer to have the next day to be creative.
This is a great dish to do with my husband....he removes all the lobster meat from the tail and then claws and then he gets to eat all the little bits and pieces remaining in the body and the legs....usually enough for his dinner that night..and he's in heaven!!! Plus, we have great fun together.

When my daughter, Jami, is home..she helps me with the sofregit and the stock...well..let's face it, for those who know her....she takes over the kitchen and I become her line cook slaving to her every command. But..since she's off traveling the world..I get to cook again... with Jerry as my helper.

There will be plenty of stock left over at the end which can be used for any number of things....soups, bisques and sauces...use your imagination. It is freezible for up to 3 months...but why bother....it's fresh and ready for some creation, so in a day or two, after you've finished the lobster pasta....use the stock!
INGREDIENTS:
6 lbs of live lobsters - I get 5 lobsters ranging from 1-1.5 lbs
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp crumbled saffron
6 TBSN Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Large Sweet Onion - Thinly Sliced
2 bay leaf
2 lbs vine-ripened tomatoes - peeled, seeded and chopped coarsely (about 3 LARGE or 6 medium)
3 cloves garlic - minced or chopped (whatever is your preference)
1 lb angel’s hair pasta nests or fideos coils (Fideus in Catalan), I hold each nest in my hand and make a fist...then release it into the hot oil.
2 TBSN fresh Italian Parsley (flat-leaf) - chopped
PREPARE LOBSTERS:
I usually let my lobsters run around for their last hurrah. I hate killing things, but it's inevitable for this dish..and crazy as I may seem...it just seems to bring a little peace. I never hear the lobsters clicking in the pan...or the so called scream people talk about with the following method:

Fill a large stockpot 3/4 full with salted water and bring to a boil. Plunge 2 lobsters headfirst (one at a time) into the boiling water water and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from pot to cool (I usually put them in a bowl in the sink) Repeat with remaining lobsters.

When the lobster is cool enough to handle, remove meat from shells

and place in a separate container,

catching juices and the shells in another bowl.

Cut meat into 1-inch pieces and chill lobster, covered.

MAKE STOCK:

Stir together wine and saffron and let mixture steep for 10 minutes. Bring wine mixture, 16 cups water and lobster shells with juices to a boil in large stock pot. Boil until liquid is reduced to about 8 cups, about 2 hours. Use a chinois or a fine mesh sieve and set over a bowl or a 2 qt pyrex measuring cup. Pour stock through sieve and discard solids.....well...not quite...save the legs, the body...even the little tiny tail pieces if you want to pick out or suck out all that meat.

MAKE SOFREGIT:
While stock reduces, heat 2 TBSN of Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a heavy skillet over low heat until hot. Cook onions with bay leaf, a little kosher salt and some hot red pepper flakes until onion is very soft and browned, about 45 minutes.
Add tomatoes and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until sofregit is very thick...about 15 minutes. Discard bay leaves.

At this point....I pour the stock into containers, setting aside 4.5 cups, the rest in pint sized containers for future use...unless I'm going to freeze it and then I put it into labeled quart size freezer bags, laying them flat until they freeze. I put the lobster meat in a quart sized container..and put the sofregit into a pint size container and refrigerate until about an hour before dinner the following night.
Day 2:
COOK PASTA:
Arrossejat is Catalan for “golden” and refers to the technique of sautéing noodles in oil until golden brown before simmering them in fish stock. The pasta is cooked like a rice dish. The dish is usually prepared in a glazed earthenware casserole known as a cassola, but I use an ovenproof straight edged sauté pan with fantastic results.

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F
2. Heat 1 TBSN oil in a cassola or an 11" oven proof straight sided pan over medium high heat until hot, then cook pasta in 4 batches, scrunching in your hand as you release it into the pot, stirring, until golden brown.
Transfer pasta to a bowl as browned and add an additional TBSN of oil for each batch.
When all of the pasta is browned, return to pan and stir in sofregit and 4.5 cups stock; If you use a fry pan with curved sides...you’ll need less liquid

Bring pasta mixture to a simmer, then continue to simmer, covered for 5 minutes.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Stir in reserved lobster.
5. Transfer pan, uncovered, to the middle of the oven and bake for 12 minutes until liquid is completely absorbed and the top of the pasta is crisp.
6. Stir in parsley and serve....
7. Be careful of that handle...remember its been in the oven and it's HOT. For your own protection..place a towel or pot holder over it until it has cooled off....

Asian Fusion play on Kung Tom Yam (Prawn Soup)

My husband LOVES Kung Tom Yam but he loves it even more when I prepare it in an Asian fusion manner....a stock with more flavor...using noodles....more like a hot pot than just a soup. His favorite noodles are udon...and easily incorporated. He prefers the shrimp when I sauté it first as opposed to tossing it in raw to boil in the soup. The carmelization from the skillet gives the shrimp a little more umph! I usually take about 12lbs of shrimp shells and cook them for a couple of hours in a huge pot of water...reducing it to 6 cups of stock so the flavor is intense. In this recipe, I'm using lobster stock from a Catalan recipe I made a few days ago....so there's a little saffron in the lobster stock but fantastically delicious.

As I always say....use your imagination...use your senses..there is no right or wrong (unless you are arguing with a French Chef!!). Food should give you pleasure...and it's up to you to experiment to YOUR liking.

In my case...I've spoiled my husband...to the point that when we go out...invariably, he wishes I was cooking for him at home....usually a much better meal than what he ordered. It's an easy way to show him how much I appreciate him.

The main thing..have fun while you're cooking. I now have my husband cook with me so we spend even more time together...appreciate what we've created together and... steal a few kisses in between!

Ingredients:
6 cups lobster stock
1 tsp salt
2 stalks lemon grass
4 kafir lime leaves
3 fresh chilis
1 TBSN Fish Sauce
2 TBSN Lemon juice - Fresh Squeezed
2 lbs colossal shrimp - 8-12 size
1 TBSN olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 fresh red chili - seeded and thinly sliced
2 TBSN fresh Cilantro, chopped
4 Scallions, chopped

2-3 servings udon noodles or rice noodles

Directions:
1. Shell and de-vein shrimp/prawns. Since I'm using the lobster stock, I'll save all the shells in the freezer for a later date when I want to make a shrimp stock.
2. Combine the lobster stock, salt, lemon grass, kafir lime leaves and whole chilis in a pot. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 20. minutes.
3. Strain stock and return liquid to the pot. Add fish sauce and lemon juice.
4. Pat the raw shrimp dry with a towel and season with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet, add a TBSN of olive oil and when hot, place the shrimp in the pan. After a minute or 2, flip over to carmelize the other side for 2 minutes.
5. Toss shrimp into the soup stock and let sit for 2-3 minutes.
6. For an individual serving: I take a package of udon noodles (refrigerated section of your asian grocer) and place it at the bottom of a japanese soup bowl....pour the stock on top...add 6 pieces of shrimp...scatter some scallions and hot chili pepper and serve.
For a table: I do the same thing, but use a hotpot or a small dutch oven..or whatever you have...instead of the bowl.