halloween - the same, but different

When I first moved to California from England I was often asked about the main differences between life here and life there. I found this a difficult question to answer because apart from the obvious difference between the weather in southern California and northern England, the differences were subtle, and now I have been here for over ten years I don't even think about it until something reminds me and I feel just like Bill Bryson in his very funny book Notes from a Small Island. Today's Halloween article in the New York Times was one of those reminders.

When I grew up in England Halloween was not a big event in the same way that it is in America. It was thought of in relationship to the old Celtic idea of the living and the dead, or the Christian tradition of Allhallows Eve, but today's New York Times reported that it is really big business and Britons now spend an estimated $228 million a year on Halloween related items. This, of course, doesn't surprise me at all because sooner or later most things American are exported around the world and I believe America's ability to export this desire to be like them is one of its biggest assets and helps maintain its position as a world leader. The thing that brought the cultural differences back to my thoughts was Britons' reaction to Halloween.

The first thing was the adults. One woman said, "all they want is sweets" (what else would they want?). She was looking for something in return - the kids were not spooky, didn't sing, or charm you, they just took the candy and ran. The next thing was the children themselves. They have figured out the part of the whole event they are interested in and abandoned the rest, plus they have added anything anti-social and exciting (to them) from another great British tradition, Guy Fawkes night. Most adults are afraid of the older kids, afraid of the tricks and mostly afraid of the vandalism. The police are putting on extra patrols to deal with attacks on fences and doors, menacing gatherings of drunken youths and yes, the theft of garden ornaments! The police have also given out no-trick-or-treating posters to homeowners to fix to their homes, and 58% of homeowners surveyed said they hide in the back of their homes with the lights off pretending they are not in on Halloween.

I often wonder how this kind of thing happens. Most of the children in America seem well behaved when they go trick or treating and many younger ones are accompanied by their parents. The pumpkin carving and general festivities seem like a lot of innocent fun. Do not fear, however, that the mothers of England will not be able to deal with this in their own inventive way. For example, one mother suggested to a popular mothers' website that she might remove the cover from her doorbell, so the trick or treaters would electrocute themselves. Nice!

The most ridiculous thing is that both British and American adults living in England are unhappy with Halloween. Britons are angry about being dragged into what they interpret as the consumerist culture of the United States and Americans in Britain are annoyed that children have failed to grasp the correct protocol for Halloween, and persist on saying Happy Halloween instead of Trick or Treat, and never raise money for anyone other than themselves. One American businessman saw children in Halloween costumes walk into a London restaurant on October 29th and wander around with a collection box asking diners for money that the diners meekly handed over. He could not visualize this scene in America.

So again I ask myself what are the differences between living here and in England, and again I can only say it's the same ... but different!

can curry cure arthritis?

I read an article today on the BBC website indicating that US research suggests an extract of a spice used in curry could help prevent rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. That spice is turmeric. Turmeric has long been used in Asian medicine to treat inflammatory disorders and its extract can be found in western dietary supplements. Research at the University of Arizona shows just how the spice's curcuminoid extracts have a therapeutic effect. Experts disagree, saying that new drugs may be found, but eating more spices is unlikely to work. The University agreed that more work would need to be done before recommending turmeric supplements for medicinal use, but earlier work with rats showed that turmeric was able to prevent joint inflammation. In their research they prepared extracts from the rhizome, or root of the turmeric plant, and compared them with the commercially available products that contain turmeric extracts. An extract containing curcumin, that was free of essential oils, was the most effective in blocking the onset of rheumatoid arthritis in rats. The University also believe that turmeric could be effective in treating other inflammatory disorders such as asthma and multiple sclerosis.

A professor at the University of Liverpool in England did not think it would be a surprise if a natural occurring compound could have a drug-like effect, however, he did point out that countries that ate a lot of turmeric did not have a lower incidence of arthritis, as far as he was aware. Of course, this started me thinking that England is, in fact, one of those countries that eats a lot of Indian food and, therefore, a fair amount of turmeric.

Many visitors to England are surprised to find that Indian food is so loved by the British that it is now regarded as an essential part of their everyday diet. The British first developed a taste for curried dishes in the eighteenth century, but it was not until the 1970s that Indian food began to influence how the British ate. It soon became the norm for every neighborhood to have an Indian restaurant or take-out and many major cities have Indian shops selling lentils, basmati rice, mangoes, fragrant guavas, fenugreek and chilies, not to forget the Indian and Pakistani sweets that are sold for festivals and weddings.

Chicken Tikka Masala is a very popular dish and the recipe shown here is taken from the excellent book Williams-Sonoma London: Authentic Recipes Celebrating the Foods Of the World (Williams-Sonoma Foods of the World) which has recipes and information regarding their origin.

Ingredients - Serves 4
1/4 cup Greek or other plain whole-milk yogurt
Juice of 1 1/2 limes
2 tsp. peeled and finely chopped fresh ginger
1 tsp each ground cumin and garam masala
2 tsp paprika
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Salt
5 tbsp. sunflower oil
1 small yellow onion finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
5 green cardamom pods
1 tsp each ground cumin and ground coriander
1/2 tsp each ground turmeric and ground chile
1 lb tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced or 1 14 oz tin
1 jalapeno chile, thinly sliced
1/2 cup heavy double cream
1/4 tsp garam masala
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Warm naan or pita breads

1. In a glass bowl, stir together the yoghurt, lime juice, 2 tsp. ginger, cumin, garam masala, and paprika. Trim excess fat from chicken and cut into 1 inch cubes. Add to the marinade and stir and refrigerate from 1 to 7 hours.

2. Preheat the broiler. Remove the chicken from the marinade, shake off the excess and place on a plate. Season with salt and drizzle with 2 tablespoons sunflower oil; toss to coat. Arrange the chicken in a single layer on a foil-lined broiler pan and broil, turning once until browned, approx. 3 mins. each side. Alternatively, heat a stove top grill pan over medium-high heat, add the chicken in a single layer, and cook, turning once, until browned, 3 mins. each side. Set aside.

3. To make the masala sauce, in a saucepan over a medium heat, warm the remaining 3 tablespoons sunflower oil. Add the onion, remaining 1 tsp ginger, and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the cardamom, cumin, coriander, turmeric, and ground chile and cook, stirring constantly for 2 mins. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring frequently until the oil separates from the tomato mixture, 5-8 mins. Add the chile, cream, and 1/2 cup water, bring to boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the mixture forms a creamy sauce, 8-10 mins. Stir in the cooked chicken and the garam masala, season to taste with salt, and simmer until the chicken is heated, 8-10 mins. Stir in the lemon juice. Serve at once with warm naan or pita breads.

schmap

I recently got notified by Schmap that my flickr photo of the La Jolla Contemporary Art Museum had been selected for inclusion in their San Diego Travel Guide. I had not heard of the Schmap guides until that point, but when I looked into them I discovered that they offer an online travel guide for cities all over the world which is constantly being revised to give you up to date information. This is a really great idea because usually when you buy a guidebook for a city, it you don't visit it again for another five years or so, the book is out of date, apart from the main landmarks like the railway station and airport! The other great thing about Schmap guides are that they can be downloaded for free. If you would like to download a copy of a city guide, click on the Schmap box in the sidebar and choose your city or go to www.schmap.com.

food for peace

I read yesterday about the food festival in Turin, Italy, The Salone del Gusto which means the Exhibition of Taste. This festival is the showcase of the Slow Food movement, which was founded to counter the spread of fast food. Over the next five days Italy will celebrate fine food, biodiversity and good farming practice. But the really cool thing about this festival is that it will see talented chefs from Palestine and Israel creating a great feast together.

Although I have always felt that making a meal for a group of people to share was fun, I've not considered food featuring as an instrument of peace. However, this festival will feature chefs creating a fine meal using the best of both communities' culinary traditions. They are part of a group called Chefs for Peace which for five years has been trying to promote peaceful dialog between Israelis and Palestinians through their shared love of good food. Other events at the Turin festival include talks on the immediate impact of war on agricultural communities and the longer term devastation caused by the destruction of crops and livestock. It also aims to promote biodiversity and environmental responsibility on the part of consumers.

I think this a great idea and it started me thinking about my own cooking and entertaining. I usually end up preparing an eclectic mix of food and recipes which I have picked up from growing up in England, traveling in Europe and living in southern California. Below is one my favorite Italian recipes for Lobster Fra Diavolo from the book The Italian Cuisine I Love by Bond. Living in California it is easy to get local lobsters at certain times of year like the one shown in the photograph, or Maine lobster which unlike the California lobster has claws, or sometimes I just use frozen Australian lobster tails. This dish is usually served with pasta, but I often serve it with saffron rice for added flavor and color.

Ingredients (this serves 3 using 1 lobster per person, but often half a lobster per person is sufficient)
3 lobsters
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic
3 tbsp. onion minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups tinned Italian tomatoes
1 tbsp. vinegar
1 tbsp. chopped fresh basil (or 1 tsp. dry)
1/4 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (or to taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1 small bottle clam juice

1. Prepare the lobster: Have the lobsters split, the tails cut into two or three pieces and the carcass in half again, and the claws cracked. Remove the sack near the eyes and reserve the liver and coral if any. Often the fish store where you buy the lobster will prepare the lobster for you.

2. Heat olive oil in a saucepan, add lobster pieces, season with salt and pepper and saute, stirring frequently until all pieces are bright red.

3. Sprinkle with onion and garlic, add wine, stir and cook until most of the wine has evaporated.

4. Add all the other ingredients, stir well, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Add more clam juice if lobster looks dry.


To make the saffron rice
Ingredients

A good pinch of dried saffron threads
Cup boiling water
1 tbsp. olive oil
Approx. 2 oz long grain rice per person (I prefer long grain) - do not use quick cook rice
Bay Leaf
Cup of dry white wine
Small bottle clam juice


1. Steep a good pinch of saffron in a cup boiling water for about 10 - 15 minutes. This ensures that the fullest flavor and color of the saffron is distributed in the rice.

2. Heat the olive oil in a pan and when hot add the dried rice. Allow the oil to coat the rice completely and stir for about 1 minute.

3. Add the saffron liquid to the rice, followed by the white wine and half the clam juice and bring to the boil.

4. Add the bay leaf, cover with lid and lower temperature to a simmer.

5. Cook for approx. 20 minutes until rice is tender, checking regularly to make sure liquid has not dried out. If it has, add more clam juice.

Serve lobster sauce over rice with a green side salad and glass of white wine ...mmmm.

drought tolerant plants

I came across an article on eco-friendly garden designs when I was browsing the BBC News website today. The BBC is running a Planet Under Pressure series which looks at some of the world's biggest environmental problems and one of the steps stated towards solving these issues is to begin at home, and readers were asked to design a garden which was a relaxing green space, used natural resources in a sustainable way and encourages a wide range of plants and wildlife. Now you could tell this competition was organized in the UK because of the prize. If we had done this in the US the prize would have been a Prius, or something of that value, but what do the contestants in this competition win? After producing what looked like very elaborate, well considered schemes and plans, the grand prize of a Henry Doubleday Research Foundation's Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening was awarded to the winner, and the runners up all received nothing from what I could tell! Nevertheless, it did prompt many people all over the world to think about eco-friendly gardens which after some research I discovered meant gardens that were good for wildlife, sustainable and organic, and that has to be a good thing.

One of the many issues covered was a scarcity of water, and living here in southern California water is always considered a precious commodity that many gardeners take very seriously when planning their gardens and often try to seek out drought-friendly drought-friendly plants. When planting my own garden I found this really helpful list of the top ten most colorful, water-wise plants suggested by the Southern California Metropolitan Water District at the Union Tribune's website, signonsandiego.com.

This is just a short list of easy plants to grow in this area, but if you need further reference, many more can be found in the great book, California Native Plants for the Garden.

1. California Fuchsia (Zauschneria) – Grows 1 to 2 feet tall. Orange-red flowers in late summer and fall; grayish leaves. Partial shade to sun; little water.

2. Cape Honeysuckle (Tecoma capensis) – An evergreen shrub that grows to 8 feet tall with pruning, or a vine that reaches 20 feet with support. Leaflets are shiny green; fall-winter flowers are orange and tubular shaped. Tolerates sun or part shade, heat, wind and salt air. Drought tolerant and attracts hummingbirds.

3. California Lilac (Ceanothus) – Many kinds, from ground covers to small trees. 'Concha' grows 6-8 feet tall and wide. Small narrow leaves with intense dark blue flower clusters in spring. Tolerant of coastal and inland conditions.

4. Cleveland Sage (Salvia clevelandii) – Perennial shrub that grows 4 feet tall and wide. Fragrant gray foliage and blue flowers between May and August. Needs full sun and prefers well-drained soil. Native to California and drought tolerant.

5. Kangaroo Paw (Anigozanthos) – Evergreen perennial with fuzzy rich red, yellow or orange flowers that look like claws. Flower stalks rise high above the iris-like foliage from spring through fall (nearly year-round along coast). Grows 4-6 feet tall and 2-3 feet wide.

6. Sticky Monkey Flower (Mimulus aurantiacus) – This group of perennials has funnel-shaped flowers that some say resemble a grinning monkey's face. They grow to 4½ feet tall and 1 foot wide. Small, glossy green leaves. Hybrids come in a variety of flower colors – red, orange, white, salmon, white, cream and yellow. Blooms spring and summer.

7. Beard Tongue (Penstemon) – Shrubby perennials with spectacular bright red or blue tubular flowers on spikes. Quite attractive to hummingbirds. Best planted in the fall. Spring to summer bloomer.

8. Pride of Madeira (Echium candicans) – Mature specimens of this evergreen shrub can grow 6-8 feet tall and 8-10 feet wide. In the spring, spikes of rosy violet to blue purple flowers appear. Sun to part shade, with little or no summer watering when established.

9. Woolly Blue Curls (Trichostema lanatum) – Evergreen California native. Grows 3 to 5 feet tall. Blue flowers on long stalks appear in spring to early fall. Little or no water.

10. Victoria Zoysia Grass – A warm season grass that makes an excellent water-efficient turf.

running with scissors - augusten burroughs

I read a lot of books and go to the movies fairly frequently, and am always interested to see what a movieis like when it has first been a bestseller, such as the Da Vinci Code and Freedomland, which turned out to be long, slow-paced, yawn-inducing films. This week, on October 27th, Running with Scissors is released at the cinema and I can't wait to see it. I have been an Augusten Burroughs fan, ever since I read Magical Thinking, in which Augusten told some very funny tales of people and places he had encountered while working for an advertising agency.

I read the book Running with Scissors, and was not disappointed with the humor and wildly outrageous situations Augusten once again encountered. The thing that is bizarre about this book is that it is a memoir and these things actually happened to him. Many people claim that they are from a dysfunctional family and that their childhood was not the norm, but I think everything about Augusten's daily life was exceptional in more ways than one! He is an amazing storyteller and manages to make this journal of his life both entertaining and funny, even when it is sometimes sad and you turn the pages just willing something good to happen to him. Like the time when he and his adopted sister, Natalie, walk round the town looking for work - you get the impression they are not really employable, and can understand why people are turning them away, but hey give these kids a chance, you can't help thinking, it's not their fault their families are weird.

It is also a tale of survival, and I think that is what makes it more memorable. Augusten is amazingly resilient among this oddball set of characters he finds himself living with, and even though he just wants a normal life, you can't help admire his ability to move past his initial horror and shock at the strange situations he is confronted with, and then you just laugh as he starts to have some fun with it. It is also truly inspiring, as he manages to overcome this less than helpful upbringing, and move on to become one of the most successful, modern authors in America who was recently named one of the fifteen funniest people in America by Entertainment Weekly.

The movie opens this week and has a star-studded cast. The brilliant Annette Bening is his crazy mom, and I think this could be a role to equal her American Beauty performance. Alec Baldwin as his drunken father looks hysterical, and Gwyneth Paltrow and Evan Rachel Wood are his adopted sisters, Hope and Natalie. Brian Cox is the unprofessional, crazy Dr. Finch, and his far too old boyfriend Neil Bookman is played by Joseph Fiennes. Definitely worth checking out.

eat pasta and lose weight

Like most people I watch my weight, but never really have the time to buy food for special diets, and so over the years I have always tried to eat healthily without it becoming a major task. There are many myths about losing weight, but the main key to a healthy, sustainable diet is to have variety, balance and moderation. By selecting a variety of low-calorie, nutrient based foods in the appropriate amounts, you can make every calorie worthwhile, and you don't have to give up all your favorite foods and eat lettuce leaves and grapefruit for every meal! If you want to lose a large amount of weight you should always check with your doctor first, to determine what is a safe goal to set and over what period of time, but if you just want to shed some unwanted pounds before a vacation, or (like now) to look good before the party season begins, there are many recipes with foods you would eat every day that can help you to lose weight, if you follow a few very simple principles.

One of the things I learned a long time ago was that I misjudged the amount of food required for each person. Everything before cooking looks small and it is difficult to envisage how much each person is going to eat, so the best thing to do before cooking foods such a pasta and rice is to weigh them for the correct serving size per person. At one time, I think I was cooking almost a whole box of dried pasta for two people - the problem with this is that once it is cooked, it's hard to resist, so you tend to eat until you've reached the couch potato stage and then sit back with the remote control until bedtime. Not good! The scale shown here from Williams-Sonoma is relatively inexpensive and easy to use.

Also be sure to include plenty of water and fiber (from foods such as fresh fruit). Water is necessary for normal body functioning and fiber aids digestion.

Calories are what dieting is all about. Calories measure energy - both the energy the body uses and energy in food. The body needs calories for bodily processes, such as breathing and heartbeat, for physical activity and for digestion. Body weight is maintained when you eat the same number of calories that you burn on a given day. When you take in more calories than the body needs for basic body functions and activity, you gain weight. Conversely, when you eat less than your body needs you lose weight.

There are many books available to help you lose weight, but choose one that is easy to follow, includes recipes that you and your family would normally eat, or don't mind trying, and that does not mean you will be running all over town to buy special ingredients. Below is one of my favorite recipes from the New Dieter's Cookbook.

Mediterranean-Style Chicken - (312 calories per person - serves 4 people)
Preparation time 20 min; Cooking time 40 min; Low fat; Low cholesterol


Ingredients
1 1/2 to 2 pounds meaty chicken pieces (breasts, thighs, drumsticks), skinned
Nonstick spray coating
1 14.5 oz can tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup red dry wine
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 small tin tomato paste
4 oz spaghetti, cooked
1/4 cup sliced pimiento-stuffed olives (optional)

Recipe
1. Rinse chicken, pat dry.
2. Spray a 10-inch skillet with nonstick spray coating. Preheat over medium heat. Add chicken and brown for 10 to 15 minutes, turning to brown evenly.
3. Add undrained tomatoes, wine, sugar, basil, garlic, and bay leaf. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 35 minutes or until chicken is tender. Remove chicken from skillet; keep warm.
4. In the meantime, bring water to boiled for pasta. Add pasta and cook for approx. 12 mins (follow directions on packet).
5. Add half tin of the tomato sauce to the tomato mixture and stir. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more.
6. Drain the pasta.
7. Serve the chicken and sauce over cooked spaghetti. Garnish with olives, if desired.

Serve with a mixed green salad.

what is fashion?

I sometimes wonder why some things are in fashion and others are not. You can look at something and think that it's sure to be a winner, and then it isn't. It's a great design, it looks good, but only you think so. Maybe that doesn't matter. I've started to think fashion is a bit like the stock market - once a few people seem interested in it, it attracts a few more, and before you know it everyone's bought one (sound like Ipod?). So maybe instead of being slaves to fashion trends all the time, we should break out now and again and try something different, just because we like it. I love wearing flat flip flop sandals, much to one of my friend's dismay (although we do live in a beach town) and when we went out to dinner the other night she took one look at me and said "you're not wearing flats are you?". In a town where the only prerequisite in most restaurants is that you wear shirt and shoes to get in, I didn't think this was a big problem.

The New York Times had a couple of articles today that made me think that being different now and again isn't such a problem, in fact you may be able to turn it to your advantage. One report about menswear designer Thom Browne, showed photos of his suits which sell for $3,500 each. They appear to have nothing going for them. They are too expensive for most people, made of old-man fabrics, and the style looks pretty odd - they have pants which are just a bit too short, and he recommends wearing business shoes and no socks with them. Five years ago the look he created was said to be sweet but goofy - just the image every businessman is striving for! So what happened? He has just won the Council of Fashion Designers of America award as menswear designer of the year! He's also been signed up by Brooks Brothers for a special collection, DKNY, Zegna and Nom de Guerre. Now instead of being labeled Pee-wee Herman with his short, skinny suits, Thom Browne is labeled as a pioneer in men's fashion who has taken the same old suit that men put on every morning and made it into something different which is an amazing feat.

The other article, also in the New York Times was about Dan Ho
(not Tiny Bubbles Don Ho) who, despite being viewed as eccentric and odd by friends and family, decided to sell off many of his personal possessions, including houses, sofas, and ceramics and unburden himself of the trappings which are seen as essential to getting by in life. He believes that our constant preoccupation with building and rebuilding, never being happy with the houses we buy, and the idea that you should always be ready for drop-in guests, are all enslaving myths. In fact, his views are the total opposite to those of Martha Stewart, who is undeniably very successful. So could this concept work?

After several unsuccessful attempts at self-funded magazines, Mr. Ho still persevered with his belief that his views of a simpler, healthier way of life were shared by others, and his perseverance paid off when his book, "Rescue from Domestic Perfection" was published by Bullfinch, and he was signed up for a television program on the Discovery Health Channel, "The Dan Ho Show" which makes its debut this week, and will begin appearing regularly in January.

My thoughts on this led me to the conclusion that if you have an idea that you think is great, or want to wear something that makes you feel good, or you feel like dyeing your hair green, go ahead and do it. Don't listen to the opinions of the masses who need you to be like them to validate their choices. Who knows, you may just start the next great fashion.

exporting traditions

This morning I read several articles on the BBC's news website. They have a slightly different perspective on the latest news compared to MSN and Yahoo, and being British, they also have some fairly obscure topics which are worth a read.

The first article I read was about China's new wealth and old failings. It talked about China's new found status as a vibrant, economic superpower and this threw a fairly positive spin on things, but the article went on to talk about some very negative aspects of life in the new China which have remainded due to the Chinese Communist Party's refusal to introduce any form of political liberalisation. I also saw a program on the Discovery Channel recently about changes in China which talked about its rapid change from an ancient culture to a modern society and the loss of old traditions, beliefs and skills, many of which were banned under the Communist regime, and there is now a movement to try to reintroduce some of these lost traditions.

The second, very different article was about the new Tongan king, and the funeral of his father, who was actually listed in the Guiness Book of Records as the world's heaviest monarch, weighing in at 31 stones (434 lbs)! His funeral was a mix of Polynesian pageantry and British imperial pomp, as Tonga was a British protectorate until 1970. His son, the new king, is apparently a staunch Anglophile, who was educated at Sandhurst and Oxford University, and his official car is actually a London taxi cab!

This started me thinking about cultures and traditions and why after a long period of time, some skills and customs which were once commonplace in a society, simply disappear, and others stand the test of time. Having lived in England most of my life and now living in California, I am constantly amazed at how much of Britain's influence remains in other parts of the world, even after the British were kicked out!

At the turn of the century, Britain was a place steeped in the class system, and at any point in time, the lower classes were striving to step up to the middle class, and the middle classes would aspire to becoming one of the gentry, and it wasn't just a case of having money. You needed to know what was appropriate behavior in different situations, and this is how your true "breeding" could be ascertained. So how did one obtain this illusive status? Well, I guess they had money, so they could be seen at the right places such as Ascot, Henley, the Opera at Covent Garden, and extravagant house parties, and then they could freely mingle with the aristocracy, the old landed families or 'country set'. These people became known as the beautiful people, who were always in style and seen in the right places with the right people. They watched, copied, listened and read until they were 99.99 percent assimilated into the group.

I guess this marketing concept has been transported from England to other parts of the world and wherever you travel you will find beautiful people aspiring to become part of another illusive set. They take on board whatever is trendy and stylish about their new-found group, and reject anything to do with their old lifestyle. Eventually what was their normal, everyday behavior becomes unfashionable and finally obsolete. Hopefully, China will be able to establish its own new identity by retaining enough of its traditions and mixing them with the new, instead of becoming a reflection of America or Britain's best and worst aspects.

old english apple pie

Now that fall is here, everyone's thoughts are turning to the coming holidays, cozy days spent lazing in front of a fireplace, spending time with family and friends and trying to keep out of the cold! Even here in southern California, you can feel the difference.

Growing up in England in the sixties, as I did, meant that you generally ate whatever was in season, and right about now were the "late" fruits such as as damsons, plums, gooseberries and, of course, apples. Cooking apples were bought at the market as they were cheap and nearly always available and with them you could make apple pie, apple crumble, apple upside-down pudding or just plain old baked apples! So it's not surprising that as soon as fall arrives, my thoughts turn to baking apple pie. There are few more delicious desserts than the recipe below for Old English apple pie, with its filling of apple, dried fruit and spices. This recipe makes the pastry "from scratch" which is more usual in England, but you can substitute your favorite pie crust mix if you prefer.

Ingredients for the Pastry
8 oz (2 cups) all purpose flour
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons caster sugar
4 oz (1/2 cup) butter
2-3 tablespoons cold water

Ingredients for the Filling
1 1/2 lbs cooking apples, peeled cored and sliced (firm apples such as Pippin, Rome Beauty and Granny Smith)
4 tablespoons dried sultanas or raisins
6 oz (2/3 cup) light brown sugar
Finely grated rind and juice of half a lemon

To Finish
milk
caster sugar

Recipe
1. To prepare the pastry, sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl, then stir in the sugar. Add the butter in pieces and rub into the flour with the fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (you can use a food processor for this, if you prefer). Stir in enough cold water to hold the mixture together, then form into a smooth ball. Wrap in foil or greaseproof paper and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

2. Divide the dough in two and roll out one half on a floured board to a circle to fit the base of an 8-inch pie dish.

3. Put the apples in a mixing bowl, then stir in the remaining filling ingredients. Spoon into the dough-lined pie dish. Roll out the remaining dough to a circle for the lid. Lay over the filling, pressing down and sealing the edge with water. Flute the edge with your fingers or crimp with the prongs of a fork. Brush with a little milk and dredge with caster sugar. Make a slit in the center of the pie for the steam to escape.

4. Bake on a baking sheet in the center of a fairly hot oven (400 degF) for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to moderate (350 degF) and continue baking for 20 minutes.

5. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

In England apple pie is usually served with custard sauce, or sweetened whipped cream. I have never seen the custard sauce in America, but it is usually made with a vanilla flavored powder (Bird's Custard Powder) to which hot milk and sugar are added and it makes a thick, yellow sauce which is delicious! If you want to be really authentic and try this it can be purchased online at either www.ukgoods.com. A tangy cheddar cheese is also good with apple pie. Enjoy!

Seashells

One of the great things about living in a beach city is that you can dress in a less formal manner than other cities most of the time, and San Diego is well known for its relaxed attitude towards business dress. The beach and the ocean have a great influence on what to wear and the mild climate makes it ideal for beach related clothing most of the year. If it is a little cooler, then we normally put on a thicker sweatshirt, and flip flops are a year round thing. Anything to do with the beach is "in" whether you are shopping, going to a restaurant or going to the beach, and you rarely have to "dress up".

One of my favorite stores in La Jolla is Blondstone, a store which sells unique handmade jewelry made of interesting materials and semi-precious stones. They introduced a series called "The Wave", shown here, which is a seashell which has been cut and polished and formed into necklaces, bracelets and earrings. I bought this necklace a year ago and I don't think I've received as many compliments about any other jewelry I've owned. People stop me in the street and ask where I bought it. I love it, but it really is an unusual idea. Check out their store at www.Blondstone.com.

Seashells are often used as a design on clothing and pictures in this area, and we did at one time have The Shell Shop in La Jolla, but that is now the Cave Store which is not quite as cute.

The seashell design shown here is in my new store, Urban Market, which sells unique gifts and clothing with a beach theme and can be found at www.cafepress.com/urbanmarket.

Why not check out some seashells today?