{"id":3317,"date":"2017-09-08T19:34:07","date_gmt":"2017-09-08T19:34:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/?p=3317"},"modified":"2017-09-08T19:34:07","modified_gmt":"2017-09-08T19:34:07","slug":"lost-and-found-in-d-c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/?p=3317","title":{"rendered":"Lost and Found in D.C."},"content":{"rendered":"

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Lucky me\u2014on my Labor Day weekend jaunt to Washington, D.C. I got a behind-the-scenes tour of the House and Senate. Back in the day either I zoned out during Social Studies or d\u00e9cor wasn\u2019t mentioned because I didn\u2019t anticipate the magnificence of the decoration throughout, especially the elaborately tiled floors and painted ceilings. \u00a0The Brumidi Corridors are particularly terrific as is the Old Senate Room which is a good bit more somber. \u00a0My experience was marvelous but I\u2019m pretty sure the public tours are also<\/p>\n

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Old Senate Room<\/p><\/div>\n

excellent.<\/p>\n

When Julia Child was televised dropping a chicken on the floor, casually picking it up and plunking it on a platter, she won my permanent adoration. Her kitchen, in the National Museum of American History, was removed from her house in Cambridge, MA and given to the Smithsonian. It\u2019s huge as is her batterie de<\/em><\/p>\n

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The one and only Julia Child<\/p><\/div>\n

cuisine<\/em>\u2014more pots and pans than several ordinary households put together. \u00a0The exhibit includes photos, recipes, kitchen tools and lots more\u2014the First Ladies\u2019 gowns pale beside it.<\/p>\n

I continued the food motif at Eastern Market at lunch with a new friend.\u00a0 The Market, completed in 1873\u00a0 had a fire in 2007 that damaged the main space but didn\u2019t stop activities.\u00a0 There are vendors inside and out depending on days of the week as well as many restaurants and the complex hosts numerous community activities.<\/p>\n

The morning of my departure I visited several of the big deal monuments exploring FDR, Martin Luther King, Vietnam and the Lincoln Memorial. \u00a0FDR\u2019s space is composed of several separate \u201crooms\u201d with the third one featuring \u00a0a statue of Roosevelt next to his dog, Fala who seems a little too big in relation to his master. The MLK memorial occupies less<\/p>\n

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Fala and FDR<\/p><\/div>\n

ground space but is, to my mind, more imposing. \u00a0Although I\u2019d been in Washington before, this was the first time I had climbed the stairs to see Abe up close and personal. The steps are a little daunting but are well worth negotiating.\u00a0 Lincoln is larger than life in every sense.<\/p>\n

Overall I found getting around DC confusing, odd considering I have no trouble in other cities worldwide.\u00a0 In Washington-speak, \u201cthree blocks away\u201d is far. The Metro is dandy but stops are spread out so a hike to the station is often in order. When people describe Washington as a \u201cwalking city\u201d they aren\u2019t kidding.<\/p>\n

In homage to the great Julia, this is–more or less–her recipe for ratatouille. It looks\u00a0 lot more difficult than it is.<\/p>\n

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Julia’s Ratatouille<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/h2>\n

Ratatouille Julia Child<\/h2>\n

1 lb. eggplant:<\/p>\n

1 lb\u00a0zucchini or summer squash<\/p>\n

4-6 Tbsp.\u00a0olive oil (love to think what Julia would have made of today\u2019s EVO shorthand)<\/p>\n

1 tsp. salt<\/p>\n

2 cloves garlic, mashed<\/p>\n

About 1 1\/2 cups yellow onions, thinly sliced<\/p>\n

Salt & pepper to taste<\/p>\n

2 green peppers (about 1 cup) sliced<\/p>\n

3 Tbls minced parsley<\/p>\n

1 lb ripe tomatoes. \u00a0Julia wants them peeled, seeded and juiced. I might forgo this. Just saying.<\/p>\n

Note: Per Julia, you can use canned tomatoes. If so it\u2019s about 1 1\/2 cups.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Peel and cut eggplant into lengthwise slices about 3 inches long and 3\/8-inches thick. Scrub summer squash and cut into pieces the same size as eggplant. Put veggies into a bowl, toss with 1 tsp salt and set aside for 30 minutes. Then drain slices and dry with a towel.<\/p>\n

Put four tablespoons olive oil in skillet.\u00a0 Saut\u00e9 summer squash and eggplant, one layer at a time, for about one minute until slightly browned. Transfer to a dish.<\/p>\n

Cook pepper and onions in the same skillet, adding a little olive oil if needed, for 10 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and season the mixture with salt and pepper.<\/p>\n

Slice tomatoes and layer them over pepper and onions, seasoning with salt and pepper. Cover skillet and let the vegetables cook for about 5 minutes on a low heat until the tomatoes start to render juice. Check the seasoning and raise the heat. Cook until juice evaporates entirely.<\/p>\n

In a deep casserole put in 1\/3 of the tomato mixture. Sprinkle minced parsley over tomatoes. Arrange half of the summer squash and eggplant on top. Layer the remaining tomatoes and parsley with remaining summer squash and eggplant trying to finish with\u00a0 tomatoes and parsley.<\/p>\n

Cover casserole and put it on a low heat. Let everything simmer for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, raise the heat a little and cook everything for 15 minutes uncovered. Cook until all the juices evaporate. Throughout, be careful with heat so vegetables at the bottom don\u2019t scorch. Serve hot or at room temperature (my preference.)<\/p>\n

Like most of Julia\u2019s recipes, this has several steps and ingredients but the end result is worth it. You can make a whole meal of ratatouille, embroider with cheese or serve as a side dish. It keeps well and seems to go on forever.\u00a0\u00a0 Bon app\u00e9tit!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lucky me\u2014on my Labor Day weekend jaunt to Washington, D.C. I got a behind-the-scenes tour of the House and Senate. Back in the day either I zoned out during Social Studies or d\u00e9cor wasn\u2019t mentioned because I didn\u2019t anticipate the … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3317"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3326,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3317\/revisions\/3326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marigoldonline.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}