The debt crisis is heading for a showdown, and the legislators coming up for re-election in the Fall will need to explain their actions (or inaction). I listened to our President last night, and wonder if those intransigent (add your own expletive) did. One summer during college the Bride interned in DC at the Children’s Defense Fund, which is notoriously bi-partisan. We framed this CDF poster and gave it to her Grandmother; I’d like to change a few words and deliver it to the Speaker.
But it’s Tuesday so I’m back to squabbling about squash. Farmer Bob’s garden is producing squash by the truckload. In the past, I would just cook spaghetti squash and toss it with oil or butter and cheese. But tried something new this time:
First chop it in half and scoop out as much of the seeds as possible. Turn face down in a pan of about 2 inches of water and bake at 375 for about a half hour or forty five minutes.
Then while it was baking, I sauteed sliced mushrooms with 2 shallots in 2T butter and 2T olive oil. I added some white wine and lemon zest and whatever fresh herbs you have on hand – tarragon works well, but parsley is good too. When the squash was done I scraped out the meaty spaghetti-like strands into a casserole dish 
and mixed in the mushroom sauce with some very fresh from the market asparagus. Drizzle some EVOO on top with some grated cheese and bake for about 20-25 minutes and voila! You have one delicious dish masquerading as pasta.
One of my favorite phrases from Hurston’s book is describing her protagonist as having to “…starch and iron her face,” in order to appear at her abusive husband’s funeral. The masks of some congress members are slipping; it’s tough to hide behind the facts and the polls.
MountainMornings 