Okra flower

Okra flower.  Come on bees, work your magic. 

 I have only harvested 2 okra and need at least a dozen to use in my favorite Gumbo recipe.  

Okra plant

Italian Candy Dish a real treaure

The Treasured Candy Dish

Italian Candy Dish with a story

I am going to share another story from my youth.  My Great Nonni and Nonnu lived in the same house as Nonni and Nonnu Prati.  This living arrangement was not uncommon.  It wasn't an apartment building, just a two story home.  Great Nonni and Nonnu G, as they were referred to, resided on the second floor in a modest space consisting of a bedroom, living room, bath and kitchen.  As a youngster, when visiting, I would sneak up the carpeted stairs into the living room.  More often than not, they were watching the Ed Sullivan or Merv Griffin show on the black and white double antenna television.  It was so loud.  I would sneak behind, what seemed to me then, their two very large over-stuffed easy chairs and crawl on hands and knees to the small two tiered wood  table, that sat directly behind their chairs.  My mission: to steal a wrapped hard candy from the covered candy dish.  So  I lifted the lid so not to make a clinging sound and reach in to take a candy, just one.  Not only did I have to be quiet but heaven forbid I break the ornate Italian candy dish.  I'd carefully replace the lid, in hopes not to be caught in the act.  Never was I caught or at least they didn't let me know they were aware of my silent sticky hands.  After they died the dish made its way downstairs had a special place on the bottom shelf of a wood bookcase. Always within reach of curious hands.  Before Nonna Prati died she gave the dish to my mother where it was placed in a glass cabinet.  Recently Mom gave it to me. I keep hard wrapped candy inside.  It makes me happy..  

Grilled Polenta with Rosemary Butter

Grilled Polenta with Rosemary Butter

Bob's Red Mill medium grind organic corn meal
 http://www.bobsredmill.com
garden grown fresh rosemary

• 4 cups water
• 1 cup medium or coarse yellow corn meal
• 4 tablespoons butter melted
• 1 spring of fresh rosemary

Rosemary butter - Heat butter in small saucepan or microwave. Add 1 tablespoon of finely chopped rosemary to melted butter and let sit to combine flavors

• 1/4 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Pouring corn meal into boiling water

In medium saucepan boil water. Add polenta from high in a steady stream, whisking to avoid clumps. Bring back to a boil, stirring. Reduce heat and continue stirring with flat wooden spoon.  The corn meal will sputter, so be careful not to burn yourself. This may take 15 minutes or more. Polenta is done when it comes away from the sides of the pot.

Polenta  spread on flat surface to cool before cutting

Pour polenta onto a clean board, cookie sheet, tray or directly onto the counter.  Spread to about 1/4-1/2 inch thickness.  Any thinner and it will be difficult to handle from board to grill. Allow to cool Cut into 3" squares. Approx. 12 squares.


Lightly oil grill. Place polenta on grill and brush top with rosemary butter, close lid and cook for 5 minutes, open lid, turn over polenta and repeat with butter on top.  Close lid and grill for 5 minutes.

Remove from grill to serving platter and sprinkle with grated cheese, garnish with sprig of rosemary.

Grilled Polenta with Rosemary Butter

For those of you that want to read a bit further about polenta, please do.
My grandmother, Nonni Bianca Apino was born in Torino, Italy. Throughout her life polenta was served as a main meal, sometimes twice a day.  Maize, a crop grown in abundance in the north, makes it a staple item in the kitchen cupboard of northern Italian homes. Families own a special copper pot reserved solely for cooking polenta, along with a long wooden stirring stick.

A story that dates back with my relatives, Nonni Pasqualina Biodini Cicogna goes like this:  Nonni would spread the polenta on a wooden pastry board, cutting out a hole in the center and then filling the hole with some of the leftover meat tidbits and tomato sauce.  This was the set up for a game.  The first one to make his way from the outer edges of the polenta to the sauce would get lots of "yea's" and a pat on the back plus the bonus of eating the meat.  Making a game of eating polenta was her way of getting 6 children to eat another meal of polenta when variety in food was a luxury they could not afford.
From its humble roots, it's now featured on fine dining menus.