Betty Rosbottom - The Big Book of Backyard Cooking: 250 Favorite Recipes for Enjoying the Great Outdoors

TEXT COPYRIGHT 2004 BY

BETTY ROSBOTTOM.

COVER PHOTOGRAPH COPYRIGHT 2004 BY

RITA MAAS.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NO PART OF THIS BOOK MAY BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM THE PUBLISHER.

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ISBN 0-8118-3604-5

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Boursin cheese is a registered trademark of Societ de la Fromagerie Boursin, Callebaut chocolate is a registered trademark of S.A. Jacobs Suchard - Cote DOr N.V., Coco Lopez sweetened coconut syrup/base is a registered trademark of Empresas La Famos, Inc., Cointreau liqueur is a registered trademark of Cointreau Corp., Colemans mustard is a registered trademark of Unilever N.V., E-Z-Rol non-electric peeler is a registered trademark of Benjamin Omessi, Ghirardelli Chocolate is a registered trademark of Ghirardelli Chocolate Co., Grand Marnier liqueur is a registered trademark of the Societ des Produits Marnier-Lapostolle, Heath candy is a registered trademark of Leaf, Inc., Hersheys Skor candy is a registered trademark of the Hershey Foods Corporation, Ka-Me hot chili sauce is a registered trademark of Tree of Life, Inc., Kahla is a registered trademark of The Kahla Co., McIlhennys Tabasco Brand Habanero Sauce is a registered trademark of McIlhenny Co., Microplane grater is a registered trademark of Grace Manufacturing, Inc., Mister Mustard prepared mustard is a registered trademark of SCM Corporation, Mrs. Richardsons butterscotch caramel sauce is a registered trademark of Richardson Foods Corp., Pepperidge Farm white bread is a registered trademark of PF Brands, Inc., Perrier sparkling mineral water is a registered trademark of Nestl Sources International S.A., Pyrex glass baking ware is a registered trademark of Corning, Inc., Robertsons lemon curd is a registered trademark of RHM Foods Limited, Scharffen Berger chocolate is a registered trademark of SVS Chocolate LLC, Tabasco Sauce is a registered trademark of McIlhenny Co., Valrhona chocolate and cocoa powder are registered trademarks of Valrhona S.A., Walkers shortbread is a registered trademark of Walkers Shortbread Ltd.

This book, which is designed to bring family and friends together, is dedicated to my own family:

To Ronny, my husband and my best recipe-tester, who samples both my successes and disasters with equal enthusiasm, and who is the most efficient dish-washer I could ever hope for;

To Michael, my son, who has turned into a talented cook himself, both to my surprise and his, and some of whose ideas can be found on the following pages;

To Heidi, my daughter-in-law, who married into a family of serious eaters and loves good food and entertaining as much as we do;

And, finally, and with great expectations, to Edie, my granddaughter, who now dines on baby food, but whose DNA is primed for her to have an adventurous palate, too!

No cookbook, especially one like this with 250 recipes, is ever the effort of a single person. Students, assistants, professional colleagues, neighbors, friends, and family all helped me in various ways to bring this book to fruition.

My longtime cooking associates, Emily Bell and Sheri Lisak, came on board early in the planning stages and offered creative and practical advice every step of the way. Deb Brown, Jane Giat, and Ellen Wilkins Ellis helped create and test recipes in my kitchen for months on end. Lesley Abrams-Schwartz traveled from Boston to my home in western Massachusetts weekly to cook with me. And more than a dozen generous friends and cooking students all over the country volunteered to make and critique the finished recipes. Thank you Marilyn Dougherty, Ann Ryan-Small, Jackie Murrill, Cindy Pizzanelli, Sara Evans, Suzanne Goldberg, Marilyn Cozad, Cheryl Brooks, Mark Zacek, Brenda McDowell, Barbara Morse, and Gerry and Gavin Spence.

Elinor Lipman and Ellen Wilkins Ellis offered invaluable suggestions when it came time to write the text for this book.

The inspiration for some of the recipes in this collection came from my weekly column, Thats Entertaining, published by The Los Angeles Times Syndicate, and from articles I authored in Bon Apptit magazine. I would like to thank my editors, Connie Pollack at the Syndicate and Kristine Kidd, and Barbara Fairchild at Bon Apptit , for giving me the opportunity to write about food.

My longtime agent, Judith Weber, found a perfect home for this book at Chronicle Books, where Bill LeBlond, editor extraordinaire , welcomed it. Thanks also to book designer Aisha Burnes.

And, although Ive come a long way in tapping out the pages of a manuscript on my laptop, this project never would have been completed without the help of computer whiz Nicholas Dahlman.

Last I would like to thank my family, especially my husband, for all their love and support.

Americans began their love affair with backyard cooking over fifty years ago, after World War II. Across the country during the late 1940s and early 1950s, there was a burst of suburban development in the United States. It was the era when ranch homes surrounded by grassy yards were sprouting up outside the countrys metropolises. The economy was flourishing, and many growing families moved from cities to these outlying areas. Gradually, Americas suburban landscape became defined by quiet streets lined with neat rows of houses, each with its own patch of green.

Two things influenced these new suburbanites to start cooking outdoors. Leisure time was one of them. Many had 9-to-5 jobs with weekends free. Individuals could finally relax after the manic war years, and slowed their pace. The second influence was their new habitat. A huge number of Americans now lived in houses surrounded by a yarda public one in the front and a more private one in the back. It didnt take long for people to discover that the backyard, sheltered from the street, was an inviting setting for friends and family to gather. The welcoming breezes on warm days and nights were an enticement as well, because most homes, post World War II, were not air-conditioned.

Gradually, the yard evolved into another rooman outdoor dining roomand eating there was a natural but exciting development. Eventually, cooking began to take place outside, too. The appearance of the famous Weber kettle grill, invented in 1951 and first sold in 1952, made cooking over an open fire an easy enterprise. The rest is history. Backyard cooking quickly became a national trend, one that has not waned over the years. Decades later, cooking and eating outdoors are both firmly ensconced as a defining part of American culture.

Through the decades many foods have become mainstays of backyard menus. Of course, theres that trio of grill favoritessteaks, burgers, and hot dogsas popular today as in the early days of backyard cooking. But, now we cook all manner of meats, fish, and fowl, as well as vegetables, over searing flames. Then there are the backyard classicsdishes that are not grilled but still beloved outdoor fare: boiled lobsters, steamed mussels, fried chicken, or baked ham served cool, and sandwiches. Slaws and salads, and soothing drinks to quench a warm days thirst, are other perennials. No alfresco meal would be complete without a sweet conclusion. An A-list of desserts would include fruit and icebox pies; pound, layer, or short cakes; crisps and crumbles; brownies; cookies; and ice creams.