Jon Crispin's Notebook

When I started this site, I vowed I would never take photos of food that I had cooked.  Since I lived alone in Ithaca in the “80s, I have taken pictures of my dinners from time to time, but lately with the whole food on tv thing, it seems kind of  self indulgent.  But, as Emerson said, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds”.  So, I will write about love and friendship while posting a picture of something I cooked.  John Wilson sent me a cookbook by Raymond Blanc a while back, and around holiday time, I use it alot.  My son Peter loves it when we have big meals planned, and so it is lots of fun to put energy into producing something really good.  Last night was French onion soup.   Tonight was coq au vin, potatoes Dauphinoise, and for dessert, a lemon tart, all from the Blanc book.  This picture of the lemon tart features the crust, of which I am particularly proud. /  Yesterday as 2010 was winding down, I spoke to three amazing people on the phone.  Alex Ross and I speak 4 or 5 days a week, Peter Carroll and I about the same, and John Wilson in the UK and I skype regularly. After our chats I just felt so blessed to have them as friends.  Later in the day Cris and I ran some errands and went to a movie, then she, Pete and I had a quiet New Year’s Eve. /  I was at my sister Karen’s just after Thanksgiving and got to see her entire family.  At Christmas, we went to Maine to see my brother Bob and his family and had a great time. And this past Wednesday, Brad Edmondson and Tania Werbizky spent the night while on their way to the White Mountains. /  As we were eating dinner tonight, after a long day of cooking, I fantasized about a huge long farmhouse table with all the people who give me so much love and support sitting around me.  What a meal that would be. / We take Peter back to Union tomorrow, and I always get a bit melancholy when he leaves.  In his words, I am “waxing a bit poetic” here, but if you can’t say how much your friends and family mean to you, something isn’t quite right. /  So, to all of you dear people in my life, best wishes for the new year.