The Sensuous Kitchen - Exploring the Myra Breckinridge Cookbook

Gore Vidal's Myra Breckinridge was quite the phenomenon when it was released in 1968. The story of an irresistible transsexual bent on the destruction of the male sex was made into an infamous film in 1970. The same year the film came out, Vidal's partner, Howard Austen (along with writing partner, Beverly Pepper) released The Myra Breckinridge Cookbook.

In saucy, salacious passages, it presents recipes that relate to the golden era of Hollywood that so fascinate Myra - and so many of the rest of us. Accompanying the recipes are reproductions of film stills and promotional photographs of stars ranging from George Raft to Joan Collins. Here's one of Eddie Cantor looking every bit the glamor puss and "Glorifying the American Doughnut" in heels and a frock.

The photographs are such a delight because so many of them are obscure images from obscure films or otherwise unseen pictures of well known films and stars. Of course, what Myra is known for is her overtly sexual edge and that's on full display in this volume. The chapter devoted to her favorite recipes is a collection of double entendre puns that would make a sailor blush - Baked Hare Pie with Dill Dough Crust, Cod Pieces, Bearded Oysters...

The recipes are, for the most part, traditional fare with some novelty dishes thrown in for good measure. I'm especially taken with the Camembert Cheese Balls from the Cheesecake chapter (a counterpart to the previous Beefcake, chapter).

You'll need:

1/2 Camembert cheese
1 large block cream cheese
2 Tbs. creamed butter
2 1/4 Tbs. flour
1 Tbs. rice flour
1 cup milk
Salt
Cayenne pepper
1 egg, beaten
Bread crumbs

Rub cheese through a strainer. Add butter, flour, rice flour, milk, salt and cayenne pepper. Stir over low heat until thick. Pour onto a plate to cool. Form into small balls. Roll in flour. Brush with beaten egg. Roll in crumbs. Fry in deep fat until golden brown.

Doesn't that sound tasty?

The Myra Breckinridge cookbook can be found on Amazon.com and eBay. If you're lucky you'll run across a copy at a thrift shop or garage sale. It's a fun addition to your cookbook collection and a great gift for the film lover with a sense of camp. If you have it and have made any of the recipes, how did they turn out?

Simple and Oh So Tasty - Hal's Chicken Salad

My good friend Hal is a good cook. One of my favorite recipes of his is his chicken salad. It's a very simple recipe, what makes it so good is the ingredients he uses. He introduced me to this tinned chicken he buys from Cost Co. It comes in 12.5 oz cans and is sold in shrink wrapped sets of 6. It's just delicious!

Now Hal loves to travel and his wanderlust has afforded him the luxury of Micronesian pepper. This is his other secret ingredient for the chicken salad. I don't have that luxury, so I just use fresh ground pepper in mine. Here's his recipe:

You'll need:

Two cans of Kirkland chunk chicken breast
3 Tbs mayonnaise
Fresh ground pepper
Kosher salt
Salted cashews for garnish

Begin by draining two cans of chicken and putting the chunks in the bowl. Crush the chunks with a fork until they're shredded. Add the mayonnaise and mix thoroughly. Season with the fresh ground pepper and kosher salt. Serve on a plate garnished with a lettuce leaf and sprinkle the salad with salted cashew nuts.

This is a delightful light lunch dish. The cashews give the salad a sparkle and crunch that adds to the flavor nicely. Because the dish is so simple, it's important to make sure that your ingredients are top notch. You can substitute sea salt for kosher salt if you wish, and if you find a source for Micronesian pepper let me know!

Those are my linen tablecloth check napkins up there with that salad. They're great for summer entertaining.

04-14 Corn Bread with a Happy Surprise - Wiener Loaf

Hi people! For my April episode, I'm again joined by my friend Margot Potter - The Impatient Crafter. She's showing Mary Ellen and I how to make Wiener Loaf! It's remarkably easy and lots of fun. Here's how:
 
You'll need:

2 corn muffin mixes
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1 package of hot dogs
Butter or crisco

Begin by greasing your loaf pan. We used crisco, but you can use butter or cooking spray if you like. Then pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees. Make up one of the corn bread mixes as directed on the box and spread it in your greased pan. Next, place three of the wieners on top of the dough. Place them so that any slice will have part of at least one of the wieners. Then prepare the next mix and spread it on top of the first. Slice horizontal parallel lines into the surface of the last two wieners and place them on top of the batter. Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown.

#04-11 Grilled Cheese - Melt Some Memories

Hello people! It’s time for a new episode (I know, I know, it’s past time, this was the episode that almost wasn’t). This time out we’re making grilled cheese! Such fun, and so easy… We’ve chosen some delicious cheeses to feature, including Cotswold, Gruyere (our fondue sandwich) and aged farmhouse Cheddar. We’re using sourdough bread, which gives the sandwiches a nice tang. Here are a few grilled cheese tips:

- Grate your cheese: Grated cheese melts more quickly and easily than slices.

- Butter the bread, not the pan: That’s the outside of the sandwich, not the inside. Buttering the bread on the outside ensures that the sandwich will brown evenly.

- Cover your sandwich for the first few minutes: This will conserve the heat and melt the cheese more quickly. Flip the sandwich after about 4 minutes and then leave it uncovered.

Grilled cheese sandwiches are ripe for experimentation. Why not explore with cheeses and breads you find in your local gourmet store? How about a bleu cheese sandwich? Gouda or Fontina would be delicious melted up. As for breads, brioche would make a very tasty nibble! So would a rich hearty 7 grain with plenty of nuts and crunchy bits.

Just in time for the holidays, we have a new Brini Maxwell store! If you click on the “Shop” link at BriniMaxwell.com you’ll be directed to our new store featuring fun Brini Maxwell products, some you may be familiar with, some that are brand new! One of the new products is the Brini poster. It’s a fun, inexpensive way to bring me into your home. Have a look!

#01-14 Wakie, Wakie, Eggs and Bakie - Start Your Day with Hobo Kuchen

Hi people! Brini here, back with a new episode. Now I know it’s been a while, but we’ve been busy working on some exciting new projects. More about that later.

This week we’re featuring the lost episode from the first season. This episode was planned for, but never aired during the first season of my podcast. It’s all about making the most of your mornings. I’m demonstrating a family recipe for coffee cake that I like to call Hobokuchen! It’s very simple, here’s how.

You’ll need:

2 ½ cup flour
4 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 cup sugar
½ cup butter
1 tsp grated lemon rind
1 egg
2/3 cup milk
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9” by 12” pan. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and sugar and place in a bowl. Add butter and blend well with a fork until the mixture is crumbly. Reserve 2/3 of a cup of dry mixture for the streusel for the top. Add grated lemon rind to the remaining mixture. To the reserved streusel add the walnuts and cinnamon and blend well. Combine milk and egg and mix by hand, then add the milk mixture to the dry mixture and blend thoroughly. Pour into baking pan, spread with the streusel and bake for 30 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

Now making your morning more pleasant isn’t difficult if you apply these tips:

Do everything you can the night before – lay out your wardrobe for the following day, set up your breakfast, you can even take your shower the night before. Having everything prepared will make getting out the door that much easier.

Do you wakeup with the news? It’s a rather jarring start to your day. Try waking up to a jazz or classical station, or buy an alarm clock that will connect to your MP3 player or one you can use a CD with. It’s so much nicer to program your mornings for serenity than it is to greet the day with angst.

02-07 The Joy of Bridge

Hello people, it’s all about cards today! On the show I’m showing you how to make delightful card themed sandwiches. I put them together for a bridge luncheon we had on my original cable access show. They’re ever so simple. Here’s how:

You’ll need:

Suit shaped cookie cutters
Thin sliced sandwich bread
Deli meat
Thin sliced cheese
Leaf lettuce
Sliced olives
Toothpicks

Start by stacking your sandwich, then place your cookie cutters on top and press down very firmly until you’ve separated the shape from the rest of the sandwich. Open top tin type cookie cutters work best for this because they’re sharp enough to cut through all layers. Remove the sandwich from the cutter and trim off any stragglers with a scissors. The bottom of what you’ve just cut will be the top of the sandwich. Finish by garnishing with a sliced olive speared with a toothpick. These can be made with all different types of cookie cutters for all different occasions. Keep in mind, however, the more elaborate the shape the more difficult it will be to cut the sandwich – the club is the most complicated of the suits to cut.

Hint: If you want to add condiments to your sandwich, do it after they’re cut. The layers slip around too much if you’ve dressed it before you attempt to cut them.

01-10 Toasty Tasty Chedder Cheese Wafers

Cheese. It’s one of nature’s wonders, and one of my favorite foods. This week on the show we’re making toasted sesame cheese wafers. It’s a very tasty recipe that was originally featured in an episode devoted to the wonders of this delightful food.

For the wafers you’ll need:

5 oz processed cheese spread
3 Tbs. butter
¾ cup flour
¼ tsp paprika
2 Tbs. toasted sesame seeds

Preheat the oven to 400. Sift the flour and paprika together, and then blend in the sesame seeds. Combine the cheese and butter in a bowl and cream together. Add the flour mixture and stir until well blended. The dough will be stiff. On a sheet of wax paper work the dough into a log about 6 and one half inches long and an inch and a half in diameter and wrap in the wax paper. Chill the dough in the fridge for at least an hour and up to one week. When chilled, unwrap the dough, slice thinly and bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly brown around the edges.

Cheese, milk’s leap to immortality, is one of the most versatile foods in any cook’s arsenal. It can be used in savory or sweet dishes and has such varied flavors, as to confuse even the most devoted epicurean. Some of my favorites are:

Cotswald: This is a cheddar variation from England. It’s rich and robust with a delightful tang. I love it on hearty sourdough bread.

Saga Bleu and Cambazola: These are brie/bleu combinations – both delicious with French bread or fruit.

Gruyere: This is the prince of Swiss cheese. Its rich and nutty flavor are delightful in fondue or on crackers.

I love having people over for cheese tastings. Putting out several cheeses on a board and letting my friends become intimate with them is my idea of a delightful Sunday afternoon. Try it yourself and see how much fun it can be!