An endless and flooded
dreamland, lying low,
cross- and wheel-studded
like a tick-tack-toe.

At the right, ancillary,
"Mary" 's close and blue,
Which Mary? Aunt Mary?
Tall Mary Stearns I knew?

The old kitchen knife box,
full of rusty nails,
is at the left. A high vox
humana somewhere wails:

The gray horse needs shoeing!
It's always the same!
What are you doing,
there beyond the frame?

If you're the donor,
you might do too much!
Turn on the light. Turn over.
On the bed a smutch -

black-and-gold gesso
on the altered cloth.
The cat jumps to the window;
in his mouth's a moth.

Dream dream confronting,
now the cupboard's bare.
The cat's gone-a-hunting.
The brook feels for the stair.

The world seldom changes,
but the wet foot dangles
until a bird arranges
two notes at right angles.

- Elizabeth Bishop
 

This is a simple dish to prepare, but the plentitude of seafood used makes it very impressive (and a bit expensive.) It's been a hit at a few Christmas parties (where I double or triple the recipe.)

Seafood Gumbo

8 ounces kielbasa or Cajun sausage, cut into 1-inch slices
1/3 cup olive oil
1 pound okra, stems removed
2 cups diced onions
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 cup coarsely chopped red bell pepper
5 cups chicken stock
1 cup coarsely chopped green bell pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups chopped plum tomatoes,
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper slightly crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
12 ounces sea scallops
12 ounces Maine cooked lobster meat
8 ounces lump U.S. crabmeat, cartilage removed
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

In a large pot or Dutch oven, saute the sausage over medium heat until brown, about 15 minutes. Remove it from the pot and set aside.

Add half the oil to the pot. Then add the okra and cook over medium heat until slightly soft, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining oil, onions, bell peppers, and garlic. Stir, and cook another 10 minutes.

Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, cumin, cayenne, salt, black pepper and bay leaf. Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Add the shrimp and scallops to the gumbo and simmer another 5 minutes. Then add the lobster, crabmeat, and parsley, adjust the seasonings, and heat through, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

System of a Down

This is a metal group that both of my sons (Josh and Sam) have been enjoying. They stand out from a lot of the metal that my son, Sam, is into - maybe it's the humor of their lyrics, or the fact that everyone in this Southern California based band is ethnically Armenian - and that certainly flavors their sound.

Don't get me wrong - while there's some alternative sounding moments, this is contemporary metal which is a lot harder than the metal of the 80's. (Some of the other metal bands Sam is listening to - Fear Factory, Disturbed, Stone Sour and Stratovarius.)

For more on System of a Down, here are links to iTunes, Amazon, and AllMusicGuide.

I've cooked this one a few times now, twice for large dinner parties - always gets a great reaction. I can never find the pasilla chiles locally (I substituted some dried 'california' chiles) and the only chipotles I can find are the canned ones. But it still tasted great!

Short Ribs With Coffee and Chilies

Published: February 13, 2008 (original recipe here)

Time: At least 3 hours

1 tablespoon oil
4 large or 8 small short ribs
Salt and pepper
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 dried pasilla chili, stemmed, seeded and minced
1 dried chipotle chili, stemmed, seeded and minced
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup strong coffee.

1. In a heavy pot that can later be covered, drizzle oil. Over medium
heat, brown ribs well, adjusting heat as necessary to get a dark
crust. Take your time, and season with salt and pepper as they cook.
Remove them to a plate and turn heat to low.

2. In same pot, cook onions, garlic and chilies, stirring
occasionally, until onions are soft, about 15 minutes. Add wine and
coffee and reduce over high heat by about half. Return ribs to pot,
cover, and cook over low heat (or in a 300-degree oven) for 2 to 3
hours. Cook until very tender — beyond when meat falls off the bone —
turning every hour or so. Taste and adjust seasoning and serve.

Yield: 4 to 8 servings.