Country music is such an interesting genre, polticially, to me, not just because it's dominated by the Reba McEntires and Toby Keiths right now, but because the whole thing is much more complicated, for many country musicians, than it appears on the surface. It's not just Toby Keith vs. the Dixie Chicks. There were/are people like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard, who get lumped in with the conservatives, but if you look more closely at their politics, they adopt a very Christian-influenced approach.

Before you get your hackles raised, let me clarify that I don't mean "Christian" in the sense of an organized religion (and certainly not Christian as in conservative Republican). I mean it in the sense of following true Christian ideals: a dedication to the common man and a fight for the dignity of that person. I know, you're thinking Merle is still the same guy who wrote "Okie from Muskogee." But look at that song: in addition to the anti-hippie theme, the lyrics are also about dignity and pride in one's heritage. And, he recently told Acoustic Guitar magazine that his political beliefs have changed.

Merle Haggard, liberal icon?

Haggard realizes that it's complex. He grew up poor. He did time. He doesn't have time for the pie-in-the-sky idealism from folks who never really had to worry about how to put the next meal on the table (i.e., people like me). It's easy to be idealistic when you have a safety net. And hey, we need those idealists. They're an important part of the whole process because they show us what we can aspire to. But for the populists, it's a fight for what's right with an understanding of what can be achieved with hard work.

Take, for example, the energy crisis. Some folks put bumper stickers on their cars and try to conserve and go out and protest the war. That's great. They're getting their message across in a succinct way, and it's an important message, AND they're taking measures to help fix the problem. But Willie Nelson says, "Hey, I'm going to start a business and get truckers using biodiesel, which will save the American family farm, get us out from under OPEC's thumb, AND help the environment." Win-win. Hag's on the green energy thing, too.

Personally, I like that kind of politics. I like it when people don't dwell on the problem but instead are focused on constructive, mutually beneficial solutions. Go Willie and Hag.

Here's more on country music and politics from NPR. I'm sad that a Loretta song was on a Nixon record. But after having just watched Nashville, maybe I understand better how that happened?

Judging by the, um, word of mouth reviews, Word of Mouth is the big highlight of the Collingswood renaissance. My parents have eaten there several times (and love it), and it's the favorite restaurant of my friend Jayne's sister and her fiance. My high school friends and I met there last night for our annual reunion.

Kerry and I arrived, and saw Jayne looking out the gigantic front shop window forlorning, slouching in her padded covered dining room chair, waiting for us all to arrive. As we entered, I noticed the well-thought-out partial wall that prevents the cold winter air from blasting any of the diners as people come in and out (such a good idea).

Combined with the dim dining room, the blue wine glasses obscure the color of the wine, which I suppose isn't such a big deal for the restaurant since Collingswood is a dry town and all the liquor is BYOB (what do they care if you can't admire the rich burgundy color of your pinot noir?). Our waitress had Jayne's bottle of white chilling when we arrived and opened that and one of our bottles of red (no corkage fee, either) soon after all five of us were seated.

We started off with a crab and brie fondue, served with sesame crackers, that was an early indication of the slightly decandent food. I felt the brie somewhat overpowered the crab, but we all enjoyed it. Kerry ordered a Caprese-type salad with yummy fresh mozzarella and a potent Balsamic dressing. Jayne ordered the crab bisque (I think it was their soup du jour), which she couldn't finish because it was so rich, but the flavors were perfect. I love crab, and they use it on everything.

Including my tilapia, served over lemon risotto that was perfectly creamy and refreshing tasting. The crab beurre blanc sauce on it was basically beurre blanc with huge chunks of crab. Fine by me.

Kerry ordered the crab cakes over angel hair pasta, and the cakes, big and round, looked like meatballs. I think it had a roasted tomato sauce and it was a great pairing--very simple (I might try it myself!) but tasty.

Jen ordered the filet mignon, one of the few items on the menu without seafood, Alyse ordered the fusilli with shrimp, and Jayne ordered the Chilean sea bass with lobster mashed potatoes. I liked how even something as simple as mashed potatoes was interpreted in a really decadent, indulgent way.

But the topper of the evening was dessert. By this time, our waitress was politely trying to usher us through our meal (I only knew that was her goal by the emptying dining room, not by her manner), and she mentioned that the house specialty was chocolate chip bread pudding. So of course that's what we ordered. And it was delicious. So moist and the vanilla sauce was a great, thinnish consistency that was perfect for sopping up with a biteful of the pudding. And the chocolate chips provided just enough indulgence for the end of a satisfyingly rich meal.

One thing I really like about the whole BYOB phenomenon is that you're paying for the food. Sure, the upcharge on a bottle of wine probably subsidizes other costs of running a restaurant, but with all that food, we only paid $45/person and ate really well. With wine, we would have added another $20 each, probably.

I think bread pudding might be my dessert goal of 2007. Stay tuned.

Main course
Maple-glazed turkey (Everyday Food, Nov. 2006)
Apple-chestnut stuffing (Everyday Food, Nov. 2006)
Squash stuffed with brown rice (Erika)
Sweet potatoes (Liz)

Wines
Pierre Dupond 2006 Beaujolais Nouveau
Bonny Doon Pacific Rim Dry Reisling (N.V.)

Dessert
Maple pumpkin pots de creme (Epicurious.com)
Trader Joe's 2004 Late Harvest Moscato (Paso Robles)

Everything went pretty smoothly today. I didn't have the completely leisurely day I was semi-expecting, but that's OK. The stuffing went together pretty quickly, the gravy is coming together now, and all in all, I prepared everything pretty much right on schedule. Of course, my guests are running late, but that's OK. It gives me a chance to sing my own praises (i.e., blog), watch the Epicurious video on carving a turkey, and finish up the gravy, which looks good but will need to be strained (there were some burnt bits of drippings on the bottom of the roasting pan).

Those are my pots de creme, not even halfway through the required cooking time.

Our top oven (thank God for the double oven today!) has been giving this F2 error message pretty much every time I cook in it. The first two times it happened, I was using an old cookie sheet that had all sorts of stuff caked onto it (yes, I had foil overtop). It started smoking and set off the F2 thing. Then it's happened every time I've used the oven since then. (Which is why I'm using the lower over for the turkey.)

I just looked it up online and apparently, F2 means that the oven is reaching crazy high temperatures. Great. Another batch of pots de creme ruined.

They're actually not ruined (just being melodramatic!). I scraped off the burnt top and put them in the fridge. I tried one not too long ago and they're a little too cooked on the top half and a little undercooked on the bottom half. But they taste good and all the eggs are cooked, which is the important thing. I don't want to poison my guests.

Here's a photo of the scraped-off top.

Yes, you read that right. Step 1 of 400 in the making of Thanksgiving dinner and I set off the fire alarm. I was drying the bread in the oven, the timer told me I was supposed to switch the pans on the racks, I turned off the timer, and then the alarm went off telling me I should have switched the pans.

So that made me think that I would blog about cooking my first Thanksgiving dinner. I'm so excited about it!

So next on the order of operations is to finish the stuffing (I'm about halfway done), clean out the turkey, stuff the turkey, and make the giblet broth for the gravy. Then put the turkey in the oven, make the pots de creme, and ta-da! All I'll have to do is baste and finish the gravy when the turkey's done.

Anyway, here are the first photos:

And now I'm gearing up for my first-ever Thanksgiving dinner. I'm using the Everyday Food menu:
- Maple-glazed turkey
- Apple-chestnut stuffing
- sides provided by the guests
- maple-pumpkin pots de creme (take 2) for dessert

Should be good. I will, of course, post a report afterwards. The Chronicle Food and Wine newsletter recommended riesling to pair with turkey, but MSL recommended beaujoulais nouveau. I'm going to stop at BevMo on the way home tomorrow to try to pick up a bottle of that.

I made two batches, with errors in each. The first batch, I ran out of maple syrup (THAT's what I need to get at Trader Joe's today...), so I added some sugar. I wanted to use brown sugar for the flavor, but we were out, so I used regular white sugar. I started mixing the eggs into the cream, and was thinking, "I thought I was supposed to heat up the cream." Well, I was. That's what happens when you have to run between the computer and the kitchen while cooking.

Fortunately, I had only whisked in a little bit of the egg mixture. So I brought it slowly to a simmer, added in the rest of the egg, and strained it pretty thoroughly before I poured it into the ramekins. No one wants scrambled eggs in their pots de creme.

For the second batch, I used pure cane sugar to sweeten it, which was a mistake. The larger bits didn't dissolve, even in the simmering cream, and I think it contributed to the mottled texture. Also, I used the last 7 eggs in our kitchen for the egg yolks, and sadly, lost an egg yolk. I scooped up half of it in the sink before the rest escaped down the drain. I did add some ginger to the cinnamon and nutmeg used as flavoring (which was added to the yolks, not the cream).

The flavor of the first batch was good--nicely spiced and moderately rich. The pumpkin wasn't overwhelming; it was just a nice, solid flavor. But the consistency just wasn't what I'm used to in my chocolate pots de creme (the recipe I use is from Martha Stewart's February issue from a few years back). Those are so nice and dense.

The flavor of the second batch was a bit off--neither sweet nor complex enough without the maple syrup, and Aaron's roommate Dan mentioned that he crunched into a couple chunks of sugar. And the consistency was terrible--more like custard than a pot de creme. It also took longer to cook (about 45 minutes compared to 40).

Here are the elements I'm going to put to the test in my next batches:
1) Follow the recipe exactly. This is the control sample.
2) Check the MSL recipe to see how many eggs. I wonder if an egg white or two might help with the consistency issue.
3) Reduce the amount of cream/milk.
4) Put the spices in with the cream.

Next project: mango sticky rice for the next stitch 'n' bitch. I ate it for the first time this weekend, and I gagged on the mango. I think it might have been the coconut milk on the mango. I guess that means I already have a problem to solve!

In my quest to perfect my needle holder pattern, I've been taking notes and photos on the various stages. Quick digression: my digital camera is one of the best purchases I've made. I use it so much more than I thought I would.

I sewed on the ribbon ties this morning and hemmed the edges. I rolled in the edges and did a modified (read "cheater") mitered corner. I think it turned out pretty well! And I'm only about three months late for Alix's birthday!

I'm thinking of making some more of these to get through my fabric stash (which is sizable), then maybe selling the finished products and the pattern on Etsy.com.

But then I saw the Kitsch'n'Glam aprons at a car wash gift store (yes, really) and had to buy one for my friend Kerry's birthday. They're reversable AND many styles come with matching oven mitts.

And in the Nov. 2006 issue of Lucky, they talk about Jessie Steele aprons. She has some that look like beautiful 50s day dresses, in pretty florals. And of course, one in a skull pattern.

I've had this sewing pattern for a vintagey apron, with rows and rows of colored rick-rack. Someday I'll sew it up.

Monday
- Grilled salmon. Grill a 5-6 oz. steak for about 5 mins. on an electric or outdoors grill.
- Mixed green salad. Mix half a 5 oz. bag of mixed greens with the other salad veggies of your choice (bell peppers, avocado, tomatoes, etc.). Toss with 1 tbsp. olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar, and a dash of salt and pepper.

Tuesday
- Sausage, pepper, and onion hoagies. From Rachael Ray's 30-Minute Meals on the Food Network.
- Serve with sweet potato or regular potato oven fries. Cut two potatotes in 1/4" sticks, toss with 1 tbsp. olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper. Bake at 500 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Wednesday
- Sesame-ginger chicken with steamed veggies and brown rice. Coat a skinless chicken thigh with a mixture of 1 1/2 tsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp sesame oil and 1 tsp minced fresh ginger. Sprinkle with 1 tsp sesame seeds. Wrap in aluminum foil and bake at 400° for 20 minutes. Unwrap and bake 25 minutes more. Serve with 1 cup brown rice tossed with 1 tbsp toasted pine nuts, and 2 cups steamed broccoli or cauliflower flowerets (or a mix) tossed in 1 tsp fresh lemon juice and a dash of soy sauce.
(Recipe from Self magazine's Reach Your Goals meal plan.

Thursday
- Veggie stir-fry and soba noodles. Heat up a wok or fry pan, then add 1 tbsp. of cooking oil. Toss in half a chopped onion and cook until it starts to soften. Add one or two chopped garlic cloves, cook for 1 minute. Add in the veggies of your choice in order of softness: harder vegetables like broccoli go in first, soft foods like tomatoes go in last. Let each veggie cook for a few minutes (about 2) before adding the next one. Serve with buckwheat soba (cooks much faster than rice!) and soy sauce.

Friday
- Top a premade pizza crust with a thick tomato sauce, grated mozzarella, and the veggie and meat toppings of your choice. Pop into the oven, following the directions on the crust. Serve with an easy mixed-greens salad.