brunosdream

Bruno wanted this posted during
the holidays but scheduling
prevented  it.
“D”

My mom died 2 years ago December 13th and my dad on April 25th, 1998. I miss them both very much, especially during the holidays. In their honor, here is a special blog entry.

My mom was like a Swiss Julia Child/Martha Stewart combo! She was a great chef(she trained in her home country of Switzerland and in Paris, France) and would decorate the house so nicely for the holidays w/ beautiful touches that made it festive. I know my dad loved this about her in addition to her excellent cooking skills. Two desserts that stand out in my mind around Christmas are leckerli and Buche de Noel. The leckerli were sent by my Swiss relatives. They are a popular Swiss cookie and there are 2 versions - one is made w/ honey, the other w/ ground almonds. Both are chewy and delicious.

 

My mom would make a Buche de Noel to celebrate Christmas. In her honor I will attempt to recreate the dessert from her recipe and eat it in my dad's honor. The chef notes and recipe will be in an upcoming entry, but in the mean time here are some photos of my mom's creation (the photos from a Dec. 24th, 1961 article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch of my mom preparing the Buche de Noel).

Happy Holidays,

Bruno "The Mayor"

Chef Ivy & “The Mayor”

Kris, “The Mayor” & Sandra Jean

Rich Friendships

Sandra Jean © 2005

Rich,
like chocolate bread pudding
so good
you’ve got to
slow down
between bites
and savor the flavor
that’s taken up residence
in your mouth. Rich friendships
made like
intricate
cut-glass
window ornaments
that become
conduits
for sunshine
and the smiles of
rich friendships
that sit around a table where
the laughter pours more freely
than the wine.
A place where
new friendships
sprout
from old friendships
like trails of ivy
in a kitchen window.
Where my plate
is our plate
and your plate
is our plate
and we share bites
and giggles
and stories of
old friendships
first tied together with
I knew her,
knew him,
knew them
when
rich friendships
were just
new friendships.

Back when good knees
and better eyesight
were taken for granted.
Back when we
were going to conquer
the world
and before
the aging,
like good wine,
of our rich friendship.Thanks for a great time!

   Hi and thanks for taking the time to view this ode to all things food, wine and spirits. The name may say zinfully but I can assure  you that it will be filled with so much more. This blog is co-authored by C.C.A. trained chef “Mayor Mc Tuna” and Myself and will include guest bloogers from far wide. If you’re interested in blogging about anything that fits into this subject matter, just drop an email to zinfully_delicious@yahoo.com . Incidentally, (since I’ve been asked 100 times) the “mayor” received his nickname by virtue of being known in every corner of the city and the Tuna half of the moniker was due to his ordering the stuff just about every time we all gathered to eat. Or, was it because he has cats? I forget… The point is, NO, he’s not really the “Mayor” of any municipality except maybe some strange, twisted one in the dark recesses of his mind.

Thanks for reading,

“D”