City Food
Gut instincts
In the kitchen with Ginger and Dick
“Ginger’s trying on a new hearing aid,” Ginger Howell says
of herself. “It’s been a year-long process,” husband Dick rejoins. As RNews
cook Dan Eaton says, “Ginger and Dick kind of have a little act.”
Ginger started offering cooking classes out of her home 30
years ago. Dick joined her when he retired from Kodak 10 years later. Their
act, The Seasonal Kitchen, has been running ever since, currently with four
classes a week and frequent guest chefs. Eaton, Mark Cupolo of Max Chophouse,
Four City Diner’s Jerry Manley, and Ziad Wehbe from Oasis are a few local
luminaries who’ve appeared in their cozy kitchen.
Today, they start with a Meyer lemon, buttermilk pie. “Meyer
lemons are seasonal, and they’re not in season now,” Dick explains, “but to
approximate the flavor, you can add a dash of lime juice.” Ginger’s behind him
making the topping, warmed honey and lime juice over mixed berries. It’s all
smellin’ real nice.
Pies in the oven, Dick and Ginger move on
to the Cajun maque choux. One
student wants to know what it means. “It has nothing to do with cabbage,”
Ginger answers, “but it always has corn and bacon.” Dick, chopping, opines,
“These people take me for granted, but this is an art. I practice every day…
every day.” Then he yells, “OW!”. Nobody blinks,
proving his point.
Class at The Seasonal Kitchen is a very social affair. Many in my group seem to come together often.
Sometimes, Ginger rings a bell to get their attention.
But now she’s out of the room and the cacophony swells. “Uh,
oh,” Dick frets, “she’s left me.” One of the students says, “Dick, she said to
watch the bacon.” Ginger returns to add what Dick has chopped: potatoes, onion,
sweet red pepper. A few minutes later, she adds
chicken broth and sugar, then covers to cook the potatoes through. Ginger
thickens with cream, then stirs in corn and
seasonings. Them Cajuns do know aroma.
Dick and Ginger raised two boys and a girl. A student asks about Holly, their daughter, a
licensed sommelier who writes the wine column for another local paper. The
Howells tell of her latest travails in the world of
wine aficionados with obvious pride.
Ginger asks the students to tell us about themselves. There
are pairs of old friends, a mother and daughter, one man besides myself. Most seem wealthy, but not ostentatiously so. A class costs
$40-$45, and besides the instruction and The Act, you get recipes, a meal, and
a complimentary drink. I’ve paid more for considerably less.
The maque choux was the most labor-intensive dish, but while it cooked, Dick prepped for a
variety of sides: summer relish, a chopped salad of cherry tomatoes, corn, and
red onion; wasabi dip for vegetables; grilled basil-parmesan baguettes; and
minty mojitos. It meant piles of chopping, and Dick is accomplished at this undervalued art. The Howells are remarkably efficient when you consider what they can
created in 90 minutes while maintaining the snappy banter.
Dick checks the pies and questions their jiggle. But Ginger
says they’re done, so out they come. She’s the boss.
Finally, Dick grills the main course, flatiron (top blade)
steaks prepped with a Montreal
steak seasoning. To serve, Dick slices them thinly, and has the majority a
perfect medium rare (touch of red at the center), with a few overdone for the
unwashed. These are excellent steaks, flavorful, tender (if not overcooked),
and relatively inexpensive.
“Well, Ginger,” Dick blurts out, “we’ve done it again!” My
mind free-associates: Ginger/Howell, Backus, Magoo, “Oh, Magoo!
You’ve done it again!” And they do it four times a week, not counting guests.
Coming up? Mark Cupolo, 11/6; Barry Kucher of Fare Game, 11/7; and Ziad Wehbe
of Oasis, 11/20. That’s a short list.
It was a first rate meal. I’ll make that maque choux soon,
and the whole meal had balance (I might have left corn out of the relish since
it’s in the Cajun dish). And Ginger was right: the pie was done to perfection,
and with the topping merited seconds. It was a capital way to spend the
morning, learning, being entertained, and eating damn well to boot. Yes, Dick
and Ginger, you’ve done it again.
The Seasonal Kitchen, 610 W Bloomfield Road, Pittsford,
624-3242.
Food tip
Allison DeMarco and chef-husband Andrew Penner recently
opened The Rabbit Room in the historic 1827 flour mill in HoneoyeFalls
(61 N. Main St.,
formerly Juniper Beans). Dinner is served to live music only on Thursdays, but
lunch is available Tuesday-Saturday. (582-1830, www.TheLowerMill.com.)
Michael Warren Thomas of www.SavorLife.com
This article appears in Oct 11-17, 2006.
