Happy birthday, part 2: Nosh on!

For my father, there was a very fine line between 'poignant' and 'snivelly.' A few weeks after Lauren, Maddie, and I got back from Europe, I was looking for some culinary inspiration and ran across this gem:

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After he retired, Dad discovered he quite liked taking charge of the cooking and was adept at improvising in the kitchen. One Christmas, he decided he needed to pass on the culinary knowledge he'd accumulated over the years. His 'Guide to Good Nosh' was born.

Thumbing through it, I could practically hear him. Sprinkled throughout the recipes were Dad's unique pearls of parental wisdom.

A few examples:

• His cooking instructions for Salmon Dijon Eh!: "Stick in oven. Pour glass of wine and sip while waiting 25 mins."
• Marinade for kebabs: "Mix and mash, simmer for as long as you like. This also removes odors from most bathrooms."
• Louisiana Crab Cakes: "Serve with remoulade sauce or store-bought tartar sauce if you are planning to prepare the spare bedroom."
• Oven-Roasted Lamb Shanks (notes about the red wine in the recipe): "Any red plonque will do, but I prefer port wine ... The raisins plump up into little port pills!"
• On the red wine called for in his Coq Au Vin recipe: "If you are cooking a lot you can use half wine and half chicken stock -- you miserable cheapskate."
• Serving suggestion for his Rubbishy Lemon Chicken recipe (which shares a page with his Classic Lemon Chicken recipe): "Serve with any old rubbish your laziness deserves!"
• Bashed In Chicken (the first step to making stuffed chicken breasts): "Take a meat mallet, baseball bat, chopper blade or rolling pin and pound the hell out of the chicken. I find it easier if you pick a chicken named Hillary."
• In the tapas section: "Give one to each guest and keep the rest for yourself."

I can almost hear him saying Buenos noshes!

Happy birthday, Dad

Today, my father would have turned 70. I am (naturally) behind on posting the summer travel pictures. In Dad's honor, I am skipping to the middle of the trip, to the day we dedicated to him. 

As the plans evolved for my summer trip to Europe with Lauren and Maddie, we added an important day to our itinerary. My mom decided it was time to bring Dad home to England. He was cremated; the plan was to scatter some of his ashes in significant places. We spent a Saturday morning leaving pieces of him at four important places.

Our first stop was the final furlong at Ascot racecourse. My father grew up in nearby Sunninghill. His father was a frequent visitor to the track here. There was no racing that day, so we were able to access the grounds and walk right up to the rails.  

The grandstand was redone in '06, and many, including Dad, were unhappy with the views from the grandstand after that. Nonetheless, Ascot was one of Dad's favorite places for most of his life.

The new grandstand.

The final furlong.

After a beautiful walk, and more than a few tears, we went on to a spot along the Thames River, in Runnymede. We chose the Thames because Dad always loved the water.

He would have enjoyed the boat docked across the way, too.

Our third stop was the churchyard where his parents are buried. Bringing part of him back to his parents felt right.

The church.

I still can't look at this picture without tearing up a bit.

We went on to the Nags Head, meeting up with old friends from our time in England, including Dad's best mate, Reg. The best part about the group from the Nags has always been that it doesn't matter whether it's been 10 hours or 10 years since our last visit -- the welcome is warm and the conversation is easy. We left a bit of Dad in the garden there.

Site of many midday pints back in the day. Now that Heather is an adult, she found her luck with the fruit machine wasn't quite the same.

It was the perfect end to our tribute to him. And it truly felt like we'd brought him home.