The Kasbah Chronicles/Kitty Morse/Free edition: Easter/Passover 2024
The Kasbah Chronicles: Cruising California 101 from San Diego to San Francisco; musings, book signings, recipes, and a visit to Alcatraz!
THE KASBAH CHRONICLES welcomes new subscribers...merci and remerci for subscribing to the free version of my Kasbah Chronicles. Paid subscribers get more information on my culinary discoveries and recipes in a separate newsletter.
-Musings
-Travels
-Kitty in the media
-Upcoming presentations
-Links of interest in English and en français
-Recipes for a Rainy Day
Kitty is selling: Ebay listings
Musings:
Just a short note about my travels to San Francisco. A friend and I headed up the CA coast, on 101 (parallel to famed Highway 1 that gets washed out in the winter) to Big Sur. The heavy amount of rain in Southern California painted the hills in tones of emerald, highlighted here and there with bright orange California poppies. This state is magnificent after the rains. I would be remiss in not mentioning Mission San Antonio de Padua located at the very back of Fort Hunter Liggett military base, off Highway 101. Not only is this a gorgeous working mission but it shelters the oldest olive tree in the state and my friend, Franki, the manager, stocks a gift store to outdo all others. This is the place to stop in to purchase locally made items. www.missionsanantonio.net
I was headed to San Francisco for a signing at a haven for cooks, Omnivore Books (www.omnivorebooks.com) on Castro street. And another at Books Inc in Palo Alto, (booksinc.net) a short distance from Stanford. Those two outstanding bookstores have carried my books for over a decade, and I thank them from the bottom of my cook’s heart.
Books Inc Palo Alto
The icing on my cake was a visit to the De Young Museum and its exhibit of wealthy San Francisco women’s fashions in the 1950s, and a day spent in ALCATRAZ. The boat ride to the ominous rock is in itself worth the price of admission, with the Golden Gate Bridge and Sausalito in the distance, what better defines the BAY AREA?
Kitty’s Upcoming presentations
::March 26, 2024 : Private Book Club: CA Retired Teachers Association
April 5, 2024: Shabbat Table, Friday, April 5, 2024 | 7:30 pm. Our Shabbat Table with Kitty Morse
Lawrence Family JCC, www.lfjcc.org www.lfjcc.org › about › upcoming_events
Our Shabbat Table with Kitty Morse. Friday, April 5, 2024 | 7:30 pm. The Bean Lawrence Family JCC, LaJolla, CA. Join us for an author talk and Shabbat dinner with Kitty ...call: 858-457-3030
“Join us for an author talk and Shabbat dinner with Kitty Morse, author of Bittersweet. Morse was inspired for her cookbook when she discovered a notebook belonging to her great-grandmother, Blanche listing 160 heirloom recipes. This event will feature Morse’s retelling of how she adapted Blanche's recipes for the American kitchen and will include a dinner highlighting Blanche’s recipes.
Ticket including a copy of Bitter Sweet: $84 | JCC Members $73
Ticket not including a copy of Bitter Sweet: $54 | JCC Members $43
April 15, 2024: North County Lecture Series, 10:30am-12pm. Free and open to the public
Carlsbad Dove Library
Ruby G. Shulman Auditorium
1775 Dove Ln, Carlsbad, CA 92011-4048. Info: JCC:
Info: Makenna Saward makennas@lfjcc.org
https://my.lfjcc.org/13997/13998
April 20, 2024: 10:30AM. San Diego Culinary Historians. https://chsandiego.org
San Diego Culinary Historians, San Diego Public Library, Neil Morgan Auditorium, 300 Park Boulevard, SD.
Bitter Sweet: a presentation (and sampling). Free and open to the public. Cooks! Chefs! Foodies! Amateurs and professionals! If you haven’t joined this group, you should. Speakers are food experts and authors from all over the US.
BOOK A PRESENTATION FOR YOUR BOOK CLUB OR ORGANIZATION! Bitter Sweet is more than a cookbook: it is a personal account of the Nazi invasion of Alsace in the 1940s, using my great grandfather’ war journal and my great Alsatian great-grandmother’s recipes (she died in the Holocaust.)I talk in person around San Diego County and Los Angeles. I also host ZOOM talks.
Kitty in the media:
CBS 8 you tube channel. Did you catch me on the Zevely Zone? It is posted on cbs8/zevely zone
HELP PLEASE!
If you have read Bitter Sweet, would you consider leaving a review on Amazon.com . Reviews and help sell books they tell me. Merci!
https://www.amazon.com/Bitter-Sweet-Wartime-Heirloom-Occupied/ #customerReviews
Links of interest: for francophiles and francophones:
Drake LeBlanc, the Francophone CowboyDrake LeBlanc, the Francophone Cowboy. https://france-amerique.com/drake-leblanc-the-francophone-cowboy/
...they all share the same passion for zydeco music, horses, and a little-known culture unique to Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas: Creole trail rides.”
“ He’s as comfortable on horseback as he is behind the camera. For his documentary Footwork, which recently premiered at the French Film Festival in New Orleans, the director, bilingual activist, and co-founder of Télé-Louisiane chose to shine a light on a world he knows well, that of the Black, French- and Creole-speaking cowboys in his state. > Read more
Albert Camus, Rebuilding France from America: https://france-amerique.com/author/ben-libman/
In a new English-language edition of his posthumously published travel diaries, Albert Camus – famed writer, philosopher, journalist, and hero of the French Resistance […]
NOTE: I have in my possession a letter from Albert Camus to my grandmother...She found an error in the English translation of L’Homme Révolté. (It was a appraised informally in Paris a few years ago). She wrote to Camus, and Camus wrote back, thanking her. The letter is original and I would like to sell it. Please let me know of anyone who might be interested in purchasing it..
I have to agree with this assessment in the Frenchly newsletter:
https://frenchly.us/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Frenchly%20Wednesday,%20March
“In general, I think it’s silly when American or British shows have English-speaking actors using French accents to imply that they would be speaking in French. After all, it doesn’t make any sense! Either have them speak in French, or let them use their original accents. Because in real life, they simply wouldn’t be speaking accented English in a period drama set in France.”... which pushed me to find out what the meaning of a non-rhotic language:
“The dead giveaway, in my opinion, is when non-French people attempt to mimic the French “R.” French is a non-rhotic language, which means it doesn’t use the hard “R” sound we use in American English. (Rhotic=hard "R," non-rhotic=no hard "R."
RECIPES:
It rained so much last month that I was forced to remain indoors... and for me, rain usually=making soup. This time, however, I happened to find a can of Boston baked beans on the shelf, and that led to a flashback: Granny’s Baked beans on toast! My mother was from Alsace Lorraine and raised us on classic French food; we lived in Morocco, the land of couscous and tagines; thus, baked beans on toast were a reminder of my English father’s parents. While clafoutis and gratin dauphinois often appeared at our Casablanca table, my English granny introduced us to LYON’S sickeningly sweet treacle, sliced bread and butter oozing with Heinz’s sandwich spread, and BAKED BEANS ON TOAST! She sometimes served SPAGHETTI on Toast to her exotic little grand-kids from North Africa!! Can the recipe be any simpler?
A can of Boston baked beans
A thick slice of bread and butter
NO need to explain. You know what to do!
Now, another flashback to one of my recipes in 365 Ways to Cook Vegetarian.
Mushroom Ravioli Divan
Serves 2
I gleaned broccoli florets and frozen ravioli from the depths of my freezer.
3 cups fresh or frozen broccoli florets coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound sliced button mushrooms
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (12-ounce) package ravioli, cooked according to directions and drained
1 cup milk
2 cups diced cooked chicken breast
1 (12-ounce) container Alfredo sauce
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Preheat oven to 375°F. In a large pan filled with lightly boiling water, blanch broccoli florets, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold running water: drain well, and coarsely chop.
In a medium frying pan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook mushrooms and garlic, stirring occasionally until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms and any liquid to broccoli. Set aside.
In a large pot, cook ravioli according to directions.
Lightly grease a 7x12-inch baking dish. Place one layer of cooked ravioli on bottom of dish. Top with all the broccoli mixture. Cover with second layer of ravioli. Pour in milk. Spoon Alfredo sauce evenly over the top. Sprinkle with shredded cheese. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake until topping turns bubbly and brown, 5 minutes longer.
And a more contemporary yet timeless favorite from The California Farm Cookbook
Whole Roasted Garlic with Rosemary Feta Sauce
Serves 6
I was excited to stop by Christopher Ranch outside Gilroy when I drove up to San Francisco last February 2024. Christopher Ranch is still going strong, albeit under different management. They directed us to the Gilroy Garlic surper store where all things garlic are gathered under one roof. This recipe is excerpted from The California Cookbook... and from the owners themselves. Roasted garlic can turn addictive. Whole bulbs are slowly roasted in the oven until they attain the consistency of soft butter. Squeezing the fragrant puree onto a slice of fresh baguette bread caps the experience, so don't forget the fingerbowls for rinsing off garlic-scented fingers!
4 whole bulbs of fresh California garlic (Elephant Garlic is best)
Water
Olive oil
1/3 cup sour cream
2/3 cup Feta cheese
1 tbsp. fresh rosemary
Fresh spinach or lettuce leaves for lining the plate
Sun-dried tomatoes, cut in strips
Baguette or crusty bread
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel off most of the outer casing from the garlic bulbs (bulbs must not separate.) In small pan, place four garlic bulbs in 1/4 inch water. Drizzle with olive oil, and wrap in foil. Bake for 1 hour, or until bulbs are soft to the touch. Set aside.
In small bowl, combine the sour cream, Feta cheese, and rosemary.
To serve, place each bulb of garlic on a bed of leaves, and top with strips of sun-dried tomatoes. Squeeze the garlic bulb onto fresh bread, top with the Feta cheese blend, and a piece of sun-dried tomato.
NOTE: Garlic experts in Gilroy recommend getting rid of the lingering aroma of garlic on your hands with this method: Immediately after handling the bulb, rub your fingers with the bowl of a stainless steel spoon held under running water, then wash your hands with soap. The metal will neutralize the garlic smell.
HELP PLEASE!
Would you consider leaving a review on Amazon.com (LINK)if you have read my book. Reviews are appreciated.. and help sell books they tell me. Merci!
And finally:
I will be in Lima, Peru, for a few days in May. Do you have suggestions as to what I should not miss? Restaurants? Markets Special culinary activities? Do share!
A heart warming note from a reader:
Chere Kitty,
Je viens de finir de lire Bitter Sweet. Quel livre magnifique qui m'a beaucoup touchée. J'ai apprecie le témoignage personnel de ta chère famille pendant la guerre, ainsi que les recettes de plats délicieux et les photos appétissantes des plats et desserts alsaciens. Ils me donnent l'eau a la bouche. J'ai eu l'occasion d'en gouter plusieurs lors d'un voyage en Alsace où j'ai passé une bonne periode, en faisant partie d'une série de conférences de professeurs venant du monde entier. Un grand merci d'avoir écrit ce livre merveilleux.
D'autre part, j'ai aussi tant apprécie tous tes livres que j'ai tes livres a donner comme cadeaux a mon fils et ma fille et leur famille pour Paques et leurs anniversaires.
Toutes mes felicitations pour ton travail excellent.
bien amicalement,
Irene
Dear Kitty, I just finished reading Bitter Sweet. What a magnificent book. It touched my heart. In it, I appreciated so much the personal testimony of your dear family's experience during the war, as well as your Alsatian family's recipes for delicious dishes, and appetizing pictures of typical Alsatian dishes and desserts. They make my mouth water. I had a chance to taste many of them during a trip I took to Alsace, where I spent much time. There, as University of Wisconsin faculty, I participated in a series of conferences for teachers, coming from all over the world. Thank you so much for writing this great book.
In addition, I appreciated all your books so much that I have purchased your books to give as presents to my son and my daughter and their families for Easter, Passover, and birthdays.
All my congratulations for your excellent work.
Happy Easter
and
Happy Passover
What an eventful time you've had! Thank you for sharing your travels, your recipes, and your wonderful story in the cookbook, Bittersweet. Have fun in Peru! I will write a review on Amazon. Much love from Alaska.