Week 32 : Hello Sailor!

Combine the grandeur (and romance) of tall ships, curious boy-crazy teenage girls, and handsome foreign sailors and I’d say you have the makings of a very good story! But, only if one those boy-crazy teenage girls (me) had a better memory and took a great deal of creative license, which I’ve not done, but it’s an amusing tale nonetheless.

It was the summer of 1976—the bicentennial year—and most towns in New England were dressed in red, white, and blue, bedazzled with stars and stripes, and donning 1776 flags from every street post. It couldn’t be clearer that this was a summer to celebrate!

My mother, being a historian, was swept up by the patriotism of this time period and ensured that I fully grasped the importance of it as well. She gave me books to read, we watched movies together, and she read articles on the forming of our nation. That summer I truly understood the impact of the words “we the people” and experienced patriotism on a more mature level.

My hometown, Narragansett, and nearby historic Newport were truly in the spirit

Being a historian, my mother was swept up by the patriotism of this time period and ensured that I fully grasped the importance of it as well. She gave me books to read, we watched movies together, and she read articles on the forming of our nation. That summer I truly understood the impact of the words “we the people” and experienced patriotism on a more mature level.

My hometown, Narragansett, and nearby historic Newport were truly in the spirit with music events, festivals, and firework spectacles. But the big news was the arrival of a fleet of tall ships to Narragansett Bay, which, because of the route and location, we’d be able to see not only in Newport, but also from the beaches and coastlines.

 At the time, my mother was working for a small, private college based in Newport, which is likely why she caught “tall ship fever” and enlisted to be

At the time, my mother was working for a small, private college based in Newport, which is likely why she caught “tall ship fever” and enlisted to be host family for a few of the sailors. Did she think it would be educational? Perhaps she was hoping that guests who spoke a foreign language would open our minds and give us a better world view? I don’t recall her intentions, but I thought it was just about the coolest, most exotic thing ever! And both my reaction and excitement were in no way based on patriotism ;-)

If at 13-years-old I had those thoughts, I can’t imagine what my 17 and 19-year-old sisters thought of these men. As I mentioned before, my memory is blurry, but I think they were Greek and spoke very little English.

If at 13-years-old I had those thoughts, I can’t imagine what my 17 and 19-year-old sisters thought of these men. As I mentioned before, my memory is blurry, but I think they were Greek and spoke very little English.

We fed these hungry and fit sailors a typical American meal of hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, corn on the cob, watermelon, and strawberry shortcake for dessert. Side note: I find it odd that I remember those details!

The table conversation was boisterous with a lot of laughter as we stumbled through the language barrier. Honestly, I was too shy to say a word to these handsome strangers, and, in fact, I think I was blushing the entire time. But I watched intently at the flirtatious dance between my sisters (both of them were gorgeous) and these young men. I was fascinated by the eye contact, coy grins, and the suggestion of their body language, but not yet mature enough to truly understand the chemistry and raging pheromones.

Our guests were gracious, charming, and luckily true gentlemen, because who knows what could’ve occurred had they not been. Seriously Mom, what were you thinking inviting sailors into a house filled with young girls?

So, 1976 became the summer of sailors, tall ships, and celebrations, as well as the year my mom bought a gas grill. Because, if she was going to serve these young men traditional American burgers, she was going to do it right by purchasing a grill (and simply, a gas grill was the easiest for a novice like her).

She then proceeded to spend at least one month testing burger concoctions…we ate burgers topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, grilled onion, teriyaki sauce, mushrooms, avocado, blue cheese, pineapple, and a few more ingredients that I don’t recall. But one of the burgers that really fascinated me was topped with an ice cube encased green olive that went on the coals. My mom claimed that the ice cube would keep the burger moist, and from what I’ve since read online that is accurate information. I couldn’t find that recipe card, but she definitely was fascinated with hamburgers for quite some time and I ate a lot of beef that summer.

Original Recipe: Pesto Burgers

The Process:

When you make a burger and add stuff to it, is that really considered a recipe? I’m not sure, but regardless of semantics I revamped this recipe to make it healthier.

I don’t eat a lot of red meat, but when I do it’s organic, grass-fed beef from what I call “happy cows” which means that they’re freely frolicking (at least in my mind) before they are slaughtered. I’m on a tight budget this week and wanted to avoid buying pine nuts for fresh pesto, so I opted for walnuts, which provide the nutty flavor at half the cost. Organic, fresh basil is in every market this time of year, and while it was a little expensive to purchase organic herbs, the flavor, aroma, and health benefits are worth it. I decided to remove the cheese from this recipe, because I was serving it to a friend who eats dairy-free.

True pesto, as you may or may not know, is packed with oil and cheese, which is why it tastes so delicious. I wanted to achieve the pesto topping flavor without adding the calories and dairy, so instead, I infused the beef with fresh basil when shaping the burgers before cooking. The result was a lean, fresh basil flavor-packed burger. I’m not sure the walnuts were necessary, but they added a sweet, nutty flavor. This recipe revamp got two thumbs up from my friends.

Thank you Blair and Aaron for providing me with the grill for cooking, because, unlike my mother, I’m a little scared of my currently wonky gas grill. Aaron and I both felt more salt was needed, and the next time I make these burgers I will top them with a small amount of freshly grated hard Italian cheese.

Cooking tip: use hard cheeses when you want to add flavor, because a small amount gives you more bang for your caloric buck.

Basil Burgers



Ingredients:
1 pound grass-fed organic beef, or bison
2 to 3 cups fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup toasted walnuts
1 small clove of garlic
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Toast the walnuts in a dry pan until warm… be careful not to burn them, because that burnt flavor will permeate.

Place walnuts, basil, garlic clove, and salt and pepper in a food processor or blender. Pulse until finely chopped.

Combine the basil mixture with the beef and shape into patties.

Cook on a hot grill, as you would any other burger.
Serve with salad or on a bun. (We felt they were delicious on their own, without traditional burger condiments, but some hearty Italian bread or a bun would be a great addition.)

 

Saturday 32 Recipe Pick

My mother’s  birthday is this week so let’s celebrate with ice cream!
I’ll have fun playing with this one 🙂

 

Tags: basil, burgers, childhood story, fresh, funny