bruit

I have just discovered the remedy for high heating bills.


It is a finger of Bourbon. Ten times harder to notice the cold. Its good for your heart, right? And who can’t help but want to drink out the news that provides a soundtrack to this sudden bitter cold. We're slated to slash our "beloved" social programs, give away more tax cuts to the wealthy, pass a MORE restrictive PATRIOT Act and they will probably drill the wildlife reserve as the year ends, just as an insult. Ouuch. Merry Christmas to you, too. Write Reps here, Senators here.

And speaking of religion, here is my favorite news item of the week so far: Rainbow family hippies and fundamentalists working together to feed a hurricane-ravaged town. Really!

Steve has been making beef stew on Thursdays, sometimes resulting in leftovers, which do not reheat well in the microwave. My favorite solution to leftover stew (or even curry) is the pastie, which I christened the “Piedegger” last year in the throes of U of C dementia (it is ready-to-hand).

Make a pie crust by cutting 1/2 cup of shortening into 2 1/2 cups of flour that has been mixed with about 1 tsp. of salt. Cut the fat in with two knives until the pieces are about pea-sized. Then sprinkle on a little ice water at a time, incorporating gently until the mix will bind together when pressed. Preheat oven to 350 (you can do this earlier if you house is cold). Press dough into a ball, adding a water as needed to get the last bits, then stick that in the freezer while you heat the leftovers gently on the stove.

For each meat pie, tear off a square of aluminum foil and throw a little flour on it. Take a good-sized handful of dough and press it out with floured hands into a circle. If you are feeling fancy roll it out, but it can be pretty thick. When it is about the same surface area as your hands placed side by side, put a scoop of well-drained stew a little off-center on the dough and crimp into a little half-moon, or fold into any little shape you desire--careful not to let juicy stews boil over open tops. Crimp the foil around the pie to a manageable size, then put the pie on a cookie sheet. Bake it until it is golden brown. Tonight I made this with a“ketchup” made from a clove of garlic browned in 1 tsp. butter, 4 canned plum tomatoes (crushed), 1 heaping tbsp. of tomato paste, 1 tbsp. brown sugar, a generous tbsp. (or more) of canned chipotle adobo and a very generous grind of pepper. Mmmm.