In This Issue:

Seasonal Bits:

Summer is all but over yet autumn hasn't quite arrived yet. Make good use of vegetables fresh from the garden with this tasty morsel:

Corn Chowder

4 large ears corn, husks & silks removed

1 large onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 TBS butter

1-1/2 C potatoes, peeled & diced

1 C water

2 tsp. chicken bouillon granules

1/4 tsp. thyme

1/4 tsp. black pepper

6 TBS flour

3 C milk

Scrape corn off the cob; set aside. In a large saucepan, sauté chopped onion and celery in butter until tender. Add diced potatoes, water, bouillon, thyme, pepper and corn. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for about fifteen minutes or until potatoes are tender. In a bowl, combine flour and milk until smooth; gradually stir into soup. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for about two minutes, or until thickened. Serve in individual soup bowls. Recipe makes about six servings.

More Vegetables >

Food Games:

Are you an epicurean who fancies food-related computer diversions? Check our links to time management games that can be downloaded and played at home, some of which include printable recipes.

Readers Mail:

Food Fare often receives e-mail from reader's who have something to say about our web site, recipes, cookbooks, food articles and e-books in the Culinary Collection.

Readers Mail >

GREETINGS FROM FOOD FARE...

It's hard to believe that summer is all but over, but as many regular visitors to Food Fare know, I'm glad the hot season is behind us. Without a doubt, autumn is my favorite time of year. I'm looking forward to cooler temperatures and the onslaught of fall colors with great anticipation.

By now, produce from most vegetable patches have been harvested and put to good culinary use. Back in the day when I worked in a corporate setting, I was one of those people who hauled surplus from my garden to the office in order to share the bounty with my fellow employees. It seemed as if corn, tomatoes and zucchini were never in short supply.

But how many ways can corn, tomatoes and zucchini be prepared? In this issue of Food Notes, we offer several suggestions for making good use of garden harvests with dishes such as Corn & Avocado Salsa, Corn Chowder, Corn Custard with Tomatoes, Corn Fritters, Fried Green Tomatoes, Tomato-Basil Zucchini, Zucchini Griddle Cakes and Zucchini, Carrot & Potato Pancakes.

Summer was also a busy artistic time for Food Fare, with the release of our Culinary Collection and a revamp of our official web site. The Ambrosia Cookbook is also due from Club Lighthouse Publishing in October, so keep your eyes peeled.

Now on with the latest...

CULINARY COLLECTION

Food Fare's new and exclusive Culinary Collection offers a selection of our food articles in e-book format, including Kindle, Nook and Adobe Digital Editions.

The books feature information about the food and culture of different countries, time periods and events. They also contain bits of history, food traditions, lifestyle and dishes native to the specific country, as well as authentic recipes. In most cases, there is also a section of words and phrases in the native tongue of the subject.

Food Fare Culinary Collection >

SPOTLIGHT: FRENCH NOURRITURE

French Nourriture is volume #15 in Food Fare's exclusive Culinary Collection.

One of the most oft-requested titles in the Culinary Collection is French Nourriture, which contains a brief history of the country, food traditions, lifestyle and dishes native to France, cheese, wine, common food terms and language, as well as authentic recipes. The article also includes common French words and links for further study. Food Fare also offers a variety of authentic French Recipes.

Did You Know? The term "Nourriture" is the French word for "food." Also defined as nurture, entree, nourishment, sustenance, feeding and eating.

Culinary masterpieces emanating from France include the omelet, soufflés, quiche, pate, mousse, croissants, crepes, French bread ("baguette"), French fries and French toast. Two cooking terms that originated from France - and are still used worldwide - are "puree" (to liquefy food by forcing it through a strainer or a blender) and "sauté" (to fry lightly).

Learn more in French Nourriture >

OLIVE GOODNESS

Olive Oil is the newest addition to Food Fare's collection of Food Articles.

Olive Oil contains information about the olive tree, planting, harvesting and pressing olives, different grades of olive oil, terminology, infusions, health benefits, recipes using olive oil and links for further study.

New recipes added with the article include Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes, Olive Oil Mayonnaise, Olive Oil-Orange Cake, Olive Oil Shrimp with Lemon, Olive Patties and Olive Sauce.

Olive Sauce

1 C green olives (without pits)

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

1 medium onion, sliced

1 tsp. garlic, crushed

1/2 C white wine

1/4 C lemon juice

4 TBS extra-virgin olive oil

3/4 C water

 

In a blender, puree the olives, tomatoes, onion, garlic, wine and lemon juice. With blender on low speed, gradually add olive oil. Place mixture in a sauce pan; add water. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate before serving. Suggestions: Use on grilled meats or fish.

Did You Know? The olive tree is one of the oldest known cultivated trees in the world. From its harvest comes olives and thus olive oil, perhaps the most oft-used cooking accompaniment and flavor enhancer in savory dishes of any origin.

Health benefits of using olive oil seem to be increasing year after year as research progresses. Reportedly, olive oil consumption helps people with high cholesterol, obesity, poor metabolism and breast cancer. It has also been proven to combat liver problems, and is a natural aid for gall bladder ailments.

Learn more about Olive Oil >

FOOD FARE'S FACELIFT

Food Fare's "facelift" was completed at the end of July. The new layout was designed by Webs Divine, who also created elegant "header" banners, sub-buttons, navigational images and topic-specific buttons and clipart. For more about technical specs of the site, click here.

New features include Food Fare's selection of Cookbooks, the e-book Culinary Collection and various tweaks such as a newsletter Mailing List, Contact Form and the opportunity to become a Recipe Contributor at Food Fare. In addition, a new article dubbed St. Patrick's Day is ready for online reading pleasure.

Several new recipes were also added with the "facelift." They include: Angel Hair Chili, Beef & Guinness Stew, Bisquick Baking Mix, Braciole (Beef Rolls), Breakfast Bread, Brownie-Mousse Cake, Corn & Avocado Salsa, Corn Bread, Corn Chowder, Corn Fritters, Cream of Tomato Soup, Cucumbers in Vinegar, Grand Marnier Chocolate Cake, Guinness Cod Filets, Guinness Stout Ice Cream, Lemon Avocado, Niagara Coleslaw, Orange-Chocolate Pudding Cups, Pumpkin French Toast, Ramen Seasoning, Tempura, Teriyaki Sauce, Tichenilles (Pepper Cookies), Tiramisu, Salmon & Shish Kabob, Weihnachtsstollen (Dresden Loaf) and Zabaglone (Wine Custard).

I'd like to thank the people around me for their support during the "facelift" process. You know who you are! From start-to-finish, it took just under a month to re-create the Food Fare web site with the new design. Considering the site now contains more than 850 web pages, it was quite an accomplishment indeed.

All of that in between multiple-formatting twelve books in the Culinary Collection. Whew!

Needless to say, I'm amazed every deadline was met with room to spare. Fourteen-hour days notwithstanding (including weekends and July 4th), I'm very happy with the end result of Food Fare's new web site.

UNTIL NEXT TIME

The Ambrosia Cookbook is scheduled for release in late-September or early October. Food Fare and Club Lighthouse Publishing are currently editing content and finalizing the book cover design.

Food Fare has plans for a fourth cookbook in 2012. We are in the early stages of culinary theme and design layout, and will likely announce more details near the end of 2011.

Check back for updates and other news as winter approaches, or come by our pages at Facebook and Twitter to leave a comment.

You might be surprised by what you find...

Happy Cooking from Food Fare,