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One of the things we like to do for July 4th is to head over to Castle Island (05,07,09) to watch the turning of the USS Constitution. This year, the weather was so hot that fighting the crowd for a spot on Castle Island was not all that appealing. Instead, we decided to invite a few I-am-not-driving-to-the-Cape-in-this-traffic folks and a couple of There-is-no-way-I'm-going-to-try-and-get-a-place-on-the-Charles-for-the-fireworks people over for an impromptu cookout.

We had everything we needed for a nice meal except dessert. The RainyDayKitchen folks came to the rescue by coming up with up a refreshing Stars and Stripes Pie for the occassion! The pie was not only delicious, gluten-free, and vegan, but required only minimal baking (to keep the heat down in the kitchen). Here is the recipe, should you need a last minute Lasagna-size pan dessert:

Ingredients for the crust, filling, and topping:

• 1 c Bob's Red Gluten Free Biscuit & Baking Mix
• 1 c Almond Flour/Ground Almonds
• ½ c Earth Balance Buttery Spread, melted
• 1 Tbsp Sugar (optional)

• 1 tub Tru-Whip
• 1 tub Fage 2% Greek Yogurt (pour off any accumulated liquid on the top)

• Blueberries and strawberries

Making the crust:

1. Heat oven to 350.
2. Mix the flours and sugar (if using) to combine.
3. Add melted spread, use pastry cutter to mix. Should be the consistency of small crumbs.
4. Turn mixture into lasagna pan, and gently pat out to fill bottom (the mixture is a little dry, so it doesn't spread, you need to pat).
5. Cook in oven for 20 minutes. This crust does not get very dark, so don't rely on what it looks like.
6. Cool completely before filling

Making the filling:

1. Gently mix Tru-Whip and Greek Yogurt in a bowl.
2. Pour into completely cooled crust, and spread to cover.

Topping the pie:

1. Slice strawberries in half.
2. Make as many long "stripes" with the strawberries as desired (this will depend on the size of the strawberries).
3. In upper left-hand corner, place blueberries in a neat pattern to replicate the stars on the flag.
4. Add as many strawberry stripes to the right of the blueberry "stars" as desired.

NOTES: Tru-whip is a healthy alternative to Cool Whip. No gluten, no trans-fat, no wax, no...other things that you might not want to actually ingest. It is found in the freezer in the health foods section of most supermarkets. It is less than four dollars a tub. The Biscuit & Baking Mix has baking powder and sea salt in it, giving it a slightly salty taste. The sugar is to counteract that. If you are using just a GF flour mix, you will not need the added sugar.

Stay cool and have a happy 4th of July holiday. BTW, the dessert is pretty tasty the next day as well. [Permalink] -Flag Pie

Sometimes a piece of equipment takes a little getting used to before it works itself into the flow, other times it starts pulling its weight from the get go. Our new Cuisinart Griddler is one of the latter. We brought it out to cook the veggie burgers and tofu hotdogs for FirstGrill. However, we quickly realized that this Griddler could do so much more. The flat griddle was perfect for frying eggs and sausages/bacon for breakfast, the ridged side for grilling burgers for lunch, and in combination for searing vegetables/steaks for dinner.

The Cuisinart Griddler is exceptionally well suited for making panini and grilled sandwiches and it is this feature which we want to highlight in the FirstUse review. We had one piece of Morgan Wagyu (Kobe) Bavette steak left over from the FirstGrill. OK..."somebody" put one aside and hid it in the freezer. That same someone "found" it the other day and "sacrificed" it for this Griddler FirstUse article. We whipped up a quick marinade (soy sauce, fresh ground pepper, and salt), let the steak sit in it for a few hours, and cut it up into nice thick slices for grilling.

Grilling the kobe beef on both sides at once seared in the juices. The meat was ready in less than thirty seconds. To get a nicely toasted crust on the French bread, we liberally brushed on some olive oil prior to grilling. There was no need to clean the grilling plates because we wanted the bread to pick up the marinade and juices left from grilling the beef. As one can see, the prepared-but-not-paninied-yet sandwich was quite thick. Most grills would not be able to accommodate the thicker stack, but it was not a problem for the Cuisinart Griddler.

Thanks to the Griddler's cantilever design, the top plate was able to lay perfectly flat on top of the curved crust, enabling us to easily press down and flatten the sandwich. There was no sliding or squeezing out of the sandwich filling, so common with hinged grills. The high temperature grill made short work of toasting the outside of the bread without over-cooking anything on the inside.

We made this amazingly delicious grilled sandwich in less than 10 minutes. Thanks to the removable non-stick grilling plates, clean up took practically no time at all. If you are looking for a versatile countertop grill for your kitchen, this Cuisinart Griddler should be at the top of your list. [Permalink] -Cuisinart Griddler FirstUse

We had a couple of really hot days in May, which we thought might be too much for our new plantlings out in the garden, but the amount of May rain kept the plants happy and thriving (with just a few additional waterings from the hose). Currently, all the early tulips have bloomed, as have the Japonica, Forcythia, and most of the irises. The day lilies and lamb's ears have started sending up their flowering stalks. They should start to flower in another week or so. The peonies popped a week ago, but were battered around a bit by a thunderstorm. We harvested as many as we could and brought them inside to enjoy.

The new raised-bed vegetable garden really took off last month. The tomatillos and tomatoes flowered in mid-May and have started to fruit. The early peas were true to their name. The pods formed and we have already had our first harvest (ie, standing in the garden and eating them right out of the pod). The zucchinis have flowered but the fruit has yet to form. We have learned that zucchinis, while often thought of as a vegetable, is actually an immature fruit.

We acquired some winter melon seedlings when we were last in NY. They have been planted and are getting acclimated to their new home. Hopefully, they will establish themselves and provide us with a few good size gourds. If they do take, we'll try to grow them every year as Winter melons are great for use in soups and curry dishes.

The herb section has really done well. The basil and parsley we started from seed are doing great. We also added a few other (rosemary, oregano, lavender) plants to fill out the area. At the far left end of the bed, we dug up a rogue strawberry plant from another part of the garden and dropped it in to see how it would do. To our amazement, it took immediately and have already fruited.

We did notice that our neighbor's large maple tree does shade most of our grow bed in the late afternoon. Next year we'll move the grow bed forward a few feet to give it a few more hours of direct sunlight. All in all, we are really happy with the progress of the container garden. This is definitely the best vegetable garden we've had ever. If we had known it was so easy, we would started a container garden years ago. [Permalink] -Container Garden Update

The weather in Boston was all over the place at the beginning of May, but it has finally settled down. Everything we planted in mid-April survived the frost-warnings and 30º temperature gyrations in day/night temperatures. We also got some nice stretches of rain. The precipitation really helped get everything nice and green.

The tulips and the other early bloomers have mostly faded. Their blooms were replaced by the clematis, azaleas, and alliums. Many of the plants have started to fill out, but some of them are not quite ready to flower. It will be another week or two before the warmer temperature hangs around for keeps. That is when the day lilies and the peonies will kick into gear.

Our new raised-bed vegetable garden is in full swing. Most of the 1'x1' squares have been filled. Everything we planted took. The tomatillos have already started to flower. The herb section is coming along quite well. When we were last in NY, we got some winter melon seedlings. Half of them were planted last week, but the seedlings hadn't been sufficiently acclimated to the sun and got a little burnt. We hardened the rest and planted them this weekend. Hopefully, they will fare better.

Maintaining a garden in the city is really very easy. We only plant perennials, propagate what we have, and don't bother with the grass. We love tending (pruning, weeding, etc.) the garden, but don't believe in watering the plants or the lawn. These simple rules minimize the amount of work needed while giving us plenty of time to enjoy the greenery. We are going to look into some rain barrels for catching storm run-offs that we'll use in watering the vegetable garden, but that will probably be a project for next year. [Permalink] -RainyDayGarden Update

This weekend's FirstGrill event was a lot of fun. The weather was perfect, the food was fantastic, and the guests all appeared to have enjoyed themselves. In honor of the 136th Kentucky Derby, Kathy and Dave arrived early and started making mint juleps for everybody. It was amazing we didn't all fall down before things came off the grill!

We had four grills going this year (3 outside, 1 inside). The two gas grills were used for the pork, chicken, and burgers. The charcoal grill had the hottest fire so it was reserved for grilling the steaks from Morgan Ranch. the The new Cuisinart Electric grill was dedicated for grilling the vegetarian burgers and other none-meat items. Having all the different grills going at once made it a lot easier to get everything ready at the same time.

Grilled food and new kitchen gadgets were not the only things entertaining our guests. The Apple iPad also made the rounds for those who have not had first hand experience with the device. When was the last time anyone made a computer with an interface that was understandable by both an 80-year old grandmother and a 4-yr old pre-schooler?

One of our guests Eric was explaining the benefits of the iPad's oleophic touchscreen to his son Raj while our intern Sarah demonstrated. This was Sarah's first time with the iPad. Apparently she got sucked in by the shiny gadget and completely forgot that she was at a social function. Fortunately, Sarah's friend Chase took her aside and snapped her out of her trance.

There was a wide mix of folks at the event this year. Some were intrigued by the new above-ground vegetable garden, others were more interested in the Soda Stream and Cuisinart equipment. A few of the younger ones (Raj and Ray) just want a quiet spot to relax after they had their fill.

When Ray got his second wind, he decided to break out his new puzzle. We thought it would keep him occupied for a while, but apparently he is some kind of a puzzle-solving genius and the thing was solved in short order. We really should not have been all that surprised since it was rumored, although never indpendently verified, that Ray had cracked the BluRay DVD DRM encryption because he felt strongly about making copies for "personal use." Of course, we came in at the tail end of the conversation and it may actually be that Ray had just cracked the DVD...

The one cooking-related problems we ran into was with the new Cuisinart ice cream makers. The lemon basil sherbet we tried to make never got frozen. We are still analysizing what went wrong. It is starting to look like user error as the ingredients may have been added too quickly into the bowl. The mint juleps may have had something to do with that. In any case, we are going to repeat the FirstUse test for the ice cream maker at a later date and under more "controlled" conditions. [Permalink] -FirstGrill Event

We mentioned yesterday that there will be some new gear making an appearance at this weekend's FirstGrill event. Both items are from Cuisinart. The first is a 5-in-1 electric panini machine with both grilling and griddle capabilities. The second item is an improved ice cream maker which can make frozen treats in less than 30 minutes. We thought we would take a quick FirstLook at both today and put them through their paces this weekend...sort of a trial by FirstGrill fire :-)

The Griddler packs a lot of grilling into a very compact size. We have lots of room in the RainyDayKitchen, but we wanted to check out the Griddler because of its versatility. With five separate cooking options (contact grill, panini press, full grill, full griddle, half grill/half griddle), the Cuisinart Griddler can handle breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The floating cover and reversible plates makes setting up the exact Griddler configuration fast and simple. The front-mounted dual temperature controls allow precise adjustments and ensure everything is perfectly cooked.

The floating hinged cover and panini-style handle automatically adjusts to the thickness of the items being cooked. The integrated drip tray collects grease from the drainage at the rear of the grill. The tray is located underneath, slides out from the side, and is easily accessed for cleaning. Note the cord-wrap notches built into the stand...nice touch.

The cooking plates are non-stick and reversible, dishwasher-safe, and removable for easy storage. The unit measures 13" x 11-1/4" x 6-1/2" and carries a limited three-year warranty. The housing is brushed stainless steel and it will look great in the RainyDayKitchen.

FirstGrill desserts will be an assortment of yummy concoctions created using the Cuisinart ICE-21 ice cream maker. This device is deceptively simple to use. Just put the bowl in the freezer to chill, add the ingredients, turn it on, and in 30 minutes, the ice cream will be ready.

The double-insulated freezer bowl holds up to 1 1⁄2 quarts of frozen dessert. There is a large spout for adding ingredients. The Easy-lock transparent lid makes assembling the unit for use practically fool-proof. The integrated "catch" in the lid automatically aligns with the mixing blade when the motor is activated. Everything comes apart for easy cleaning.

The heat from the motor vents from the bottom and side. For those new to making frozen desserts, Cuisinart has included a book with a nice collection of recipes of frozen yogurt, ice cream, sherbet, sorbet or frozen drinks designed specifically for the ICE-21.

We'll have a full write-up on the event next week with comments from our guests on the ice cream maker, the electric grill, and other gear in the RainyDayKitchen. It is going to be beautiful weekend. Enjoy it and we'll see you next week. [Permalink] -FirstGrill gear

This weekend is the 5th annual FirstGrill event. The folks here are looking forward to hosting our various guests from Providence, NYC, and Los Angeles (and of course, Boston). As with all RainyDayMagazine events, it is the perfect opportunity for our guests to get a first-hand look at some new gadgets in the RainyDayKitchen. On hand will be the new ZeroWater filtration pitcher, Soda Stream Penguin soda maker, and a couple of items from Cuisinart: Frozen Yogurt-Ice cream-Sorbet Maker(ICE-21), Electric Griddle (GR-4N). We'll have a more detailed FirstLook at both Cuisinart items after FirstGrill, but thought we would give them a quick mention today.

The ice cream maker has a large capacity (1.5 quarts) double-insulated bowl lined with a cooling liquid that eliminates the need for ice, and a unique paddle that mixes and aerates at the same time. Cuisinart's claim is that the combination of these two features enables the unit to crank out frozen desserts in less than 20 minutes. We plan on giving it the FirstUse test at the 2010 FirstGrill event. This new addition to Cuisinart's ice cream maker line is not available yet, but will be in stores by June 2010.

We will also be adding a new grill to our standard lineup (Weber, Coleman, Thermos). The grill is the Cuisinart Griddler, a unique 5-in-1 design that handles many of the common grilling and griddle tasks like pancakes and sausages, grilled cheeses, steaks, and hamburgers. The Griddler is definitely not your father's George Foreman grill.

We served Wagyu Beef from Morgan Ranch at our 2006 FirstGrill event and the reaction was incredible. This year's guests will be happy to know that the amazingly delicious beef from Morgan Ranch will once again be on the grills!  Located in Burwell, Nebraska, the Morgan Ranch sits in the heart of the Sandhills. With its abundant grasses, perfect climate, and plentiful spring-fed streams, the region is widely recognized as among the best cattle-producing areas in the world. In 1992, at the urging of many of Morgan Ranch's Japanese customers wanting ever finer quality meat, they introduced its first Wagyu herd to their operation.

Kobe beef refers to cuts of beef from the black Tajima-ushi breed of Wagyu cattle, raised according to strict tradition in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. Kobe beef is world-renown for its exceptional marbling, smooth texture, and rich taste. We will be serving ribeye, striploin, sirloin (filet, bavettes, tri tips), and burgers. The meat arrived yesterday via FedEx. it is being slowly defrosted (48 hrs) now and should be perfect when it is time for FirstGrill.

Even though it was 40º yesterday in Boston, the forecast is for 75º this weekend. We are looking forward to hosting our guests, testing out the new gear, and a delicious kickoff to the 2010 grilling season. [Permalink] -FirstGrill 2010

April 13th was another above-65º day. We didn't have much on our schedule and thought it would be a good time to make a Home Depot run. Fortunately for us, it was also the day of their first delivery of vegetable plants from their supplier. We had "first pick" of plants as they were being unloaded from the truck onto the shelf. Home Depot's supplier is Bonnie Plants of Union Springs Al. All of the seedlings looked vigorous and were shipped in biodegradable pots. We purchased two indeterminate and one determinate variety of tomatoes. We used zinc garden markers to label everything once we got them planted. The metal markers are helpful because we mark the date of planting as well as the type of plant. Unlike the short plastic labels, the metal markers have long stems so they stay put in the garden.

The nice thing about biodegradable pots is that they are better for the environment and the plant. Being able to plant the tomatoes without having to take them out of the pots meant no "root shock" or accidental damage to the main stem. All that was needed was to give the pots a good soaking, dig a hole, and put in the plant. The two indeterminate ones (Husky Cherry Red, Beefmaster) will get the taller cages and the determinate (Celebrity) one will be planted in front and supported by the short cage.

All the photos above were from at least a week ago. The photos below were taken on April 22nd. The irises in the back of the GrowBed have started to bloom. The average daytime temperature last week was around 65º, but some nights still went below 50º. The rule of thumb for planting tomatoes is to do it when the ground stays above 50º. We were able to "violate" this rule because the GrowBed's soil temperature is warmed by the sun during the day and dissipates slowly at night. This has enabled our tomato plants to get almost a three-week head start compared to last year.

The rest of the RainyDayGarden has also started to fill in nicely. The tulips have been popping up for weeks and many of the early bloomers have already dropped their petals. The hostas, alliums, and daylilies are all coming along well. They should be starting to bud in another couple of weeks.

We have been slowly spreading the violets and japonicas around the garden. This year was the first year where we really notice a nice healthy growth of both in several spots around the grounds. The japonicas have these wonderful yellow flowers which bloom the length of the branch. They are easy to get established, are very hardy, and make a great separator between properties. They are an especially good plant to use if your neighbor's property is not all that well kept, as they enhance the view very nicely.

While many of the early bloomers have started to fade, the next in the sequence are beginning to unfurl. The best part of planting a perennial garden is seeing the plants come and go each year. They are much like friends who come to visit year after year. They bring a smile, help us mark the seasons, but never overstay their welcome. [Permalink] -Planting tomatoes in April