Buttermilk Pie

Buttermilk is a favorite of mine; therefore, buttermilk is something I always have in the refrigerator. To keep things simple, you can just buy pie dough from the refrigerated section of your supermarket, or you can buy preformed shortbread or graham cracker crust pie shells, which come in a baking tin. I "believe" they are all 9 inch pie shells, but this amount of filling from this recipe should be fine for 9 or 10 inch diameter pies.

 

 

Ingredients (for one 9 to 10 inch pie):

 

1 cup buttermilk 

1 1/4 cups sugar 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 extra large eggs 

3 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 tablespoon orange or lemon juice

1 tablespoon orange or lemon zest   

unbaked pie dough (preformed shortbread shell)

raspberries, blackberries or strawberries for garnish 

Mix together well the buttermilk, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, flour, melted butter, orange or lemon juice and orange or lemon zest. Add the filling to the pie shell and bake at 350 F for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the middle of the pie is well set. Let the pie cool for about 15 or 20 minutes, then cover it lightly with a kitchen towel or a paper towel and let it cool a further half hour; or, refrigerate until the pie is chilled.  Serve with fresh or thawed frozen raspberries, blackberries or strawberries; OR, a mixture of these. Oh, and there is whipped cream to top the fruit, or you can simply top the pie slices with whipped cream.   

Variation #1: Chocolate Buttermilk Pie: use a preformed chocolate pie shell, use no lemon (or orange) juice, no lemon (or orange) zest, add and mix into the filling 1 heaping tablespoon cocoa.

Variation #2: Chocolate & Peppermint Buttermilk Pie: use the same mixture as for the chocolate pie  above, except, use no vanilla extract, but add 1 teaspoon peppermint extract to the filling mixture.

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Bore-This is the noun and verb form having to do with "piercing a generally solid material to make a hole." It is related to the main body of "perforation" and "perforate," both words borrowed from Latin. "Bore" goes back to Indo European "bher(h)," which meant "to pierce or cut through." This gave Old Germanic the verb "buronan," meaning "to pierce, to make a hole in a material by turning a sharp tool to drill into the material." This gave Old English the verb "borian," with the same meanings. This then became "boren," before the modern form. The English noun form "bore" either developed from the verb or there is a possibility that Old Germanic had a noun form "bur/bor," meaning "a tool for piercing," but the English noun form doesn't seem to show up until the 1300s, which adds the possibility that it came along into English via Old Norse, or that Old Norse strongly reinforced a developing native form based upon the existing English verb form. The noun also took the meaning of "the result of boring;" that is, "the bored hole in a material."   

German Blushing Virgin: Errötende Jungfrau

Very "north German" dessert with many variations as to the flavor used, like raspberry, red currant, lingonberry, and I tend to use strawberry. It is known from northern Germany in the Schleswig part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein (the part that borders on Denmark) and in the Mecklenburg and Pomerania area (since the end of World War Two reduced to Vorpommern, with the remainder a part of Poland) along the Baltic Sea.

 

Serve with vanilla sauce, whipped cream or just plain heavy cream.*

 

Ingredients:

 

32 ounces of buttermilk (half to be heated, half cold)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 box (3 ounces) red gelatine (strawberry or raspberry flavored)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 tablespoons sugar (check gelatine box instructions)

 

Heat half the buttermilk to boiling. Add the hot buttermilk to the gelatine and sugar in a bowl, stirring to dissolve the gelatine/sugar mixture and to prevent lumps. Add the cold buttermilk, lemon juice and vanilla extract, mix well. Refrigerate until set and chilled. Serve with vanilla sauce or whipped cream.    

 

*  The recipe for vanilla sauce is at this link: https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2018/11/vanilla-sauce-vanillesoe.html

 

WORD HISTORY:

Blush-This word is not well documented, but it is very likely related to "blaze" and "bleach," both words from the Germanic roots of English, and it is distantly related to "flame," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English via Anglo-French. It goes back to Indo European "bhel," which had the notion of "to shine, to glow, to be bright, to be white." This gave Old Germanic "bluskjanan" (or "bliskjanan"?), which seems to have meant "to burn, to glow with fire," and this gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "blyscan," meaning, "to glow red, to make red." This then became "blus(s)chen/blusshen," before eventually settling upon "blush." The noun form developed in the 1300s, and it also took on the meaning "(a) look," which brought about the phrase "at first blush;" that is, "at first look," or "at first glance," with the second form even replacing or becoming a substitute for the original to some extent, but why this meaning developed is unclear. The idea of "glowing, becoming red" in the verb form led to "become red in the face from embarrassment or shame," along with such a meaning for the noun form, and this seems to have happened in the second half of the 1500s, and this has become the main meaning in English, with a secondary noun meaning specifically referring to "light red or pink" wine. Because the original meaning of "burn, glow" spawned forms in the Germanic languages, the English word's Germanic relatives tend to have words closely related to "blaze," but Dutch has "blozen" and Low German has "blü­sen," both meaning "to blush," but did this meaning develop on the continent with it then passed by one or both languages to their cousin across the North Sea, or was it perhaps the other way around?      

Papaya Smoothie

Lots of nutrients and fiber in papayas.


Ingredients (about 4 or 5 servings):

4 cups papaya chunks
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1 cup yogurt (you can use vanilla yogurt and then leave out the vanilla extract)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups low fat buttermilk

Put all ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth. It can be served as is, or over ice cubes or chilled in the refrigerator until ready for use. 

WORD HISTORY:
Orient-This word is closely related to "origin," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English. It goes back to Indo European "her(i)," which had the notion, "to move upward, to rise." This gave Latin the verb "oriri," meaning, "to rise, to come into view." The participle form of the verb was "oriens," and it came to be used as a noun to mean, "the rising sun, sunrise;" thus also, "region of the sunrise;" thus, "the east," but because of this general meaning, the word meant different "specifics" to different people, like: (what is now) the Middle East (including parts of North Africa, to some), Asia, Persia, southeastern Europe. This passed to Latin-based Old French as "orient," meaning, "east, Asia." The word was taken to England by the Normans and their descendants, but it was not borrowed by English until about 1400. The verb, originally meaning, "to have something face eastward," was borrowed from the French verb "orienter" (which was derived from the noun) in the first half of the 1700s. A secondary meaning in French, "to get a fix in one's mind about location or direction," has come to be the main meaning in English.  

Cold Buttermilk Cucumber Soup

This is a great refreshing cold soup for the hot days of summer. The chili pepper or cayenne pepper is purely optional, but these kinds of soups often developed in the American South, where hot sauce or chilies are common additions to many foods. The extra virgin olive oil adds a wonderful finish. The shredded cucumber garnish adds a little texture, but it certainly isn't necessary, if you choose not to use it.

Ingredients (about 6 servings):

3 cups buttermilk
3 cups seedless cucumbers, peeled and chopped (or regular cucumbers, seeded)
3 inch piece peeled cucumber, shredded, for garnish
2 stalks celery 
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes (or 1/2 to 1 jalapeño or serrano pepper)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon celery salt
extra virgin olive oil for serving 
  
Add all but the shredded cucumber to a blender/food processor. Blend/process until smooth. Refrigerate for a few hours, until well chilled. Garnish each serving with some shredded cucumber and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
  

WORD HISTORY:
Nebulous-This word, meaning "cloudy, hazy;" thus also, "unclear, vague," goes back to Indo European "nebhos," which meant, "mist, vapor, cloud, the heavens." This gave Latin the noun "nebula," meaning, "vapor, fog," which produced the adjective "nebulosus," meaning, "foggy, cloudy, misty." This was borrowed by English in the second half of the 1300s with the meaning, "misty, hazy, smoky." There may have been reinforcement from French "nébuleux," the French form from the Latin word "nebulosus." NOTE: The original Indo European form gave its Old Germanic offspring "nebulo," meaning, "fog, darkness." This gave Old English "nifol," meaning, "dark, gloomy." The same Germanic source gave German "Nebel" (fog, haze, smoke), Low German "Nevel" (mist), Dutch "nevel" (mist), Frisian once had "nevel" (fog, haze, mist) and Old Norse had "njola" (fog, mist, darkness) and Icelandic has (antiquated?) "nifl" (darkness). 

Yogurt Drinks of the Indian Subcontinent, Part 2 of 4

What the people of the Indian subcontinent call "buttermilk," is not exactly the same as in much of the rest of the world. It is yogurt that has much of the butterfat removed by churning or by filtering yogurt through cheesecloth or muslin, so it is low fat. About the black salt called for in the one recipe, there are a couple types of black salt you might find in large supermarkets, spice stores or, certainly, in Indian or Pakistani grocery stores: one is truly black in color, which often comes from Hawaii. The Hawaiian black salt I have is in small pieces that are about half the size of caraway seeds. I put whatever amount I want on a completely dry paper towel or napkin, then I fold the towel over and smack it with a meat mallet. I also have the type from the Indian Subcontinent, which is already in powdered form, with some larger pieces of salt mixed in. It is like a pink or light purple color. Black salt has a sulfur smell to it. Chaat masala is a blend of ground spices, including black salt, available in some supermarkets, but definitely available in Indian and Pakistani grocery stores. Ground curry leaves are not the same thing as "curry powder." They are used in South Asian cooking, especially in southern India and in Sri Lanka. The leaves are typically heated before use. They are not easily found, although areas with southern Indian or Sri Lankan communities are likely to have them. You may find the ground leaves much easier. They are used as a spice. By the way, "curry powder" is a spice blend of various and numerous spices. There is no set recipe, as the choice of spices to be included is a matter of  personal preference. 

Excellent hot weather drink, but good any time of year.

Salted Buttermilk/Chaas-This drink is more common in the north. You can do this in either of two ways: use 1 cup of low fat buttermilk, then add a scant tablespoon of thick yogurt. OR, you can use 1/4 cup thick yogurt mixed with 3/4 cup cold water. You can adjust the measurements somewhat to make the drink to the thickness you wish. The people of the Indian subcontinent "tend" to drink this more on the thinner side.

Ingredients, besides the liquid component:

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon powered black salt or regular salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin + small pinch for garnishing
1/2 teaspoon chaat masala
small ice cubes or crushed ice
1 to 2 mint leaves, torn

Put the liquid component into a blender. Add the black salt, the 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin and the chaat masala. Blend briefly until the drink is a bit foamy/frothy. Pour over some ice cubes in a glass, sprinkle a pinch of ground cumin on top, as well as the torn mint leaves.

Buttermilk of Southern India/Neer Mor-As with the first recipe, choose your liquid component. Then, for the other ingredients:

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 serrano chili, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon chaat masala
1/2 teaspoon ground curry leaves 

Put liquid component, ginger, lemon juice chili pepper, salt, cilantro, and chaat masala into a blender. Heat oil and then add mustard seeds until they begin to "pop." Add mustard seed/oil to blender. Blend about 30 seconds.

WORD HISTORY:
Carp-This is the noun for the fish (the verb is from a different source). "Carp" is from the Goths, whose Gothic language is classified as East Germanic, the last elements of which died out in the 1700s in the Crimea. Gothic had "karpa" for the name of the fish. Latin borrowed the word as "carpa" which it passed on to Latin-based Old French as "carpe." English borrowed the word in the second half of the 1300s, with the Latin form seemingly gaining a foothold, but then heavily reinforced by French.

Yogurt Drinks of the Indian Subcontinent, Part 1 of 4

A "lassi" * is a yogurt based drink of the Indian Subcontinent, seemingly developed in the Punjab region, a region of northern India and eastern Pakistan, but the drink spread to other parts of the subcontinent. The hot climate is ideal for these refreshing drinks, which often have ice cubes added to chill them well. There are several varieties, with the most basic being "Salted Lassi." The lassi goes well back in history, as long ago as 500 to 1000 BC, or perhaps even longer. Today, blenders or stick blenders are often used to give a lassi some froth. I'm going to do this as a multi-part article, with a couple of different recipes in each part. Besides being good, and being good for you, lassis are easy to make. There is also the use of yogurt based buttermilk on the Indian subcontinent, with "neer mor" being a spiced buttermilk drink of southern India, with "Chaas" being the term used more in the north, including in Pakistan and as "ghol" in the Bengali region of India and Bangladesh.

Salt(ed) Lassi-3/4 cup plain thick yogurt (Indian or Greek), 1/4 cup cold water, 1/3 teaspoon salt, a good pinch of ground cumin. Ice cubes for serving. Put the yogurt, the water, the salt and the cumin into a blender. Blend for about 30 seconds. There should be a nice foam topping. Pour over ice cubes in a glass.

* Usually pronounced in English like the name of the famous dog, "Lassie," but in Hindi and Urdu, it has a short "a," as in "father," and emphasis is on the second part of the word, as if, "lah-SEE." Hindi and Urdu are Indo European languages from the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo European. They are related to English, but further down the family tree. 

Saffron Lassi: This is a much richer drink: 3/4 cup plain thick yogurt (Indian or Greek style), 1/4 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom, a good pinch of saffron strands soaked in two tablespoons of warm milk, a pinch of salt, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 or 2 tablespoons heavy cream, tablespoon crushed pistachios, 3 or 4 raisins, couple of ice cubes. Add the yogurt, milk, cardamom, saffron milk, honey and salt to a blender. Blend for about 30 seconds. Pour over a couple of ice cubes in a glass. Add a tablespoon or two of heavy cream on top, then sprinkle on the pistachios and raisins. 

WORD HISTORY: 
Pistachio-The ultimate origin of this word is unknown, but it goes back to transliterated Persian "pisteh," which was the name for the nut and for the tree. This was borrowed by Greek as transliterated "pistakion" ("pistake" for the tree), which was borrowed by Latin as "pistacium" ("pistachio nut"), which was passed onto Italian as "pistacchio," which was borrowed by French from Italian as "pistace," in the 1300s. English borrowed the word from French circa 1500, but then about one hundred years later English borrowed the Italian form, with the minor spelling adjustment to "pistachio," and this form prevailed.