SPLISH-SPLASH
Tom Caruso of Smithtown captured this scene at Frank Melville Memorial Park in Setauket on Aug. 7. He writes, ‘I was walking around the Setauket Millpond when I heard a lot of splashing. I found several Canada Geese flapping their wings on the water and caught this one spraying water everywhere. It was quite a sight.
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By Elof Axel Carlson
It is rare for me to learn a new word as I approach my 90th year. The ones I encounter are usually scientific because I look through science journals and e-science news. Even less frequently do I learn new words from popular culture.
The word I just learned is “pareidolia.” It refers to the capacity most humans have of seeing images where they don’t belong like seeing a man in the moon or faces and bodies in the clouds. Optical illusions also provide such constructions from ambiguous drawings.
Some people have heightened imaginations and I recall my mother, who was schizophrenic, often imagining people staring at her, whispering about her, or saying to me that the sitter I hired to look after my bed-ridden father when my wife Nedra and I went out, was a Nazi disguised in woman’s clothing. I also remember the great pleasure I had as a youth in the 1940s reading Crockett Johnson’s comic strip Barnaby, a boy who had an imaginary fairy godfather who used his cigar as a magic wand.
There are boundary lines between illusion and delusion. That includes religious apparitions, conversations with God or saints, revelations dictated to a scribe that become religious scripture. It includes the oral tradition of polytheistic religions like the Greek and Roman Gods. For the most part these are tolerated or admired in our cultures.
What is less convincing are the mental constructions used to justify racial prejudice, assigning hereditary fixed traits to people based on caste or social class. At one time it was assumed an upper-class person (often with a title) would not lie and his testimony would be sufficient in court. In politics there is a tendency to define an opponent by looking for flaws in character or errors of judgment that get amplified if not invented.
I wonder if all creativity in the arts involve a similar ability to see patterns and images that come out of difficult to pin down experiences in the preceding days or weeks. Clearly there is a spectrum of such images with outcomes that can be inspiring, beneficial, of even hateful in their consequences. Fortunately, reason and science offer ways to prevent or limit such bad outcomes.
Elof Axel Carlson is a distinguished teaching professor emeritus in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Stony Brook University.
By Daniel Dunaief
Researchers at Stony Brook University, the University of Arizona and Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina may have found an enzyme that drives the worst COVID-19 symptoms. Secreted phospholipase A2 group IIA, or sPLA2-IIA may lead to severe symptoms and death, making this enzyme a potential therapeutic target.
In an examination of plasma samples from 127 patients hospitalized at Stony Brook University Medical Center between January and July 2020 and a mix of 154 patient samples from Stony Brook and Banner University Medical Center in Tucson between January and November 2020, scientists including Distinguished Professor Maurizio Del Poeta of the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University found that 63 percent of people with concentrations of the enzyme that were over 10 nanograms/ milliliter generally died. Most healthy people have circulating levels of the enzyme around 0.5 nanograms/ milliliter.
“It is possible that sPLA2 levels represent a tipping point and when it reaches a certain level, it is a point of no return,” said Del Poeta.
The collaborators involved in the study, which was published this week in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, were encouraged by the finding.
“This is exciting as it is leading to really novel connections for COVID-19,” Yusuf Hannun, Director of the Cancer Center at Stony Brook and a contributor to the research who participated in the discussion and data analysis, explained in an email. “It may lead to both diagnostics (for risk prediction) and therapeutics.”
Looking closely at the levels of sPLA2-IIA together with blood urea nitrogen, or BUN, which is a measure of the performance of the kidney, the researchers in this study found that the combination of the two measures predicted mortality with 78 percent accuracy.
“That is an opportunity to stratify patients to those where an inhibitor” to sPLA2-IIA could help patients, said Floyd Chilton, director of the University of Arizona Precision Nutrition and Wellness Initiative and senior author on the paper, said.
While they found a difference in the amount of the enzyme between healthier and sicker patients, the scientists recognize that this could reflect a correlation rather than a causation. The progression of the disease and the threat to people’s lives may come from other contributing factors that also intensify the severity of the illness.
“These studies do not establish causality at the moment, but the strength of the correlation and the known functions of this enzyme raise the possibility of participating in the pathology of the disease,” Del Poeta explained.
Indeed, Chilton has studied sPLA2-IIA for over three decades and has described some patterns in other diseases, including sepsis.
The enzyme performs an important role in fighting off bacterial infection by destroying microbial cell membranes. When the concentration of sPLA2-IIA rises high enough, however, it can threaten the health of the patient, as it can attack and destroy cells in organs including the kidney.
The enzyme “plays a critical role in host defense,” said Chilton. “These same systems can really turn on the host.”
In order to determine a causative link between sPLA2-IIA and the progression of the disease, Chilton, Del Poeta and others will need to increase their sample size.
“We’ve been very fortunate at getting individuals at some of the top global organizations… who have connected me with medical centers” that have a larger patient population, Chilton said. These executives may be able to expedite the process of expanding this study.
In the 1990’s, scientists studied an inhibitor that had the ability to act on the enzyme.
That effort had mixed results in phase 2 clinical trials.
“In 2005, the first phase of the phase 2 clinical trials were highly encouraging,” Chilton said. “It really inhibited mortality at 18 hours” by reducing severe sepsis. The second part of those tests, which used a slightly different protocol, failed.
While he’s not a clinical trials expert, Chilton is hopeful that researchers might find success with this same drug to treat COVID-19.
Only clinical trials would reveal whether inhibitors would work with COVID-19, scientists said.
As with many drugs, inhibitors of sPLA2-IIA have side effects.
By blocking the activity of these enzymes, “we do also decrease the production of arachidonic acid, which is a precursor of prostaglandins,” said Del Poeta. “In condition of hyperinflammation, this is a good thing, but prostaglandins are also important in a variety of cellular functions” including blood clots and starting labor.
Chilton pointed out that sPLA2-IIA is similar to the active enzyme in rattlesnake venom. It can bind to receptors at neuromuscular junctions and disable the function of these muscles, he explained.
In nature, some animals have co-evolved with snakes and are no longer susceptible to these toxins. Researchers don’t yet understand those processes.
While copying such evolutionary solutions is intriguing, Chilton said he and his collaborators are “much more interested in the inhibitors” that were taken through clinical trials in 2005 because that might present a quicker solution.
The research collaboration started with Chilton, who partnered with Arizona Assistant Research Professor Justin Snider. The first author on the paper, Snider earned his PhD at Stony Brook, where he knew Del Poeta well.
Snider “knew what a great researcher [Del Poeta] was. I also knew [Hannun] in a former life. We were both working on similar biochemistry 20 to 25 years ago,” Chilton said.
Chilton called the efforts of his Stony Brook collaborators, including Research Assistant Karen You, Research Associate Professor Chiara Luberto and Associate Professor Richard Kew, “heroic” and explained that he and his colleagues recognize the urgency of this work.
“I’ve been continuously funded by the [National Institute of Health] for 35 years, and I’m very grateful for that,” Chilton said. “There is nothing in my life that has felt this important,” which is why he often works 18 hour days, including on weekends.
After studying the effects of variants on the population, Chilton recognized that building a firewall against COVID-19 through vaccinations may not be enough, especially with the combination of lack of access to the vaccine for some and an unwillingness to take the vaccine from others.
“We may have to go to the other side of the equation,” HE said. “We’ve got to move to specific therapeutics that are agnostic to the variant.”
By John L. Turner
Beginning on Friday, August 27th, the Four Harbors Audubon Society will kick off its fifth season of the “Stone Bridge Nighthawk Watch” at Frank Melville Park in Setauket. Each night participants will meet on the north sidewalk of the Stone Bridge (where Main Street crosses the water) and count Common Nighthawks as they pass overhead during their fall migration.
The Watch begins at 5:30 p.m. and concludes at dusk each night, when observers typically see bats emerge to forage for insects over the ponds. Sometimes participants are rewarded with a dozen or so nighthawks feeding on aerial insects low over the ponds before it gets too dark.
Nighthawks, related to whip-poor-wills, are highly migratory birds that leave the Northern hemisphere in the autumn as their insect prey wanes, ending up a few weeks later in the Amazon River basin where they overwinter. Unfortunately, as with so many bird species the Common Nighthawk is declining and the Nighthawk Watch was established by the Four Harbors Audubon Society as an effort to gather more specific long-term data about its numbers and population trends.
Participants often see other birds species such as Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Great Blue and Green Herons, Belted Kingfisher, many types of songbirds and mute swans. The Watch runs through to October 6. Please join us. The only items recommended for you to bring along are binoculars and a healthy curiosity about the natural world!
Frank Melville Memorial Park is located at 1 Old Field Road, Setauket. For more information, visit www.4has.org.
By Barbara Anne Kirshner
The mighty Yankees and the AL Central first place White Sox magically emerge from a voluminous cornfield to take their places on a well-manicured baseball diamond and the game begins.
This scene played as if right out of a movie, except this wasn’t a movie, it was an actual baseball game. But it wasn’t being played in a grand stadium, instead it was played in a regulation ball field in rural Dyersville, Iowa, surrounded by acres of tall corn only feet away from the original baseball field and house featured in the iconic Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams.
The regular-season baseball game, which had been delayed for one year due to the COVID pandemic, finally played Thursday evening August 12. It was exciting as if scripted by Hollywood with a surprising edge of your seat twist at the end.
The Yankees fought their way back from a 7-4 deficit at the top of the ninth when they rallied with a two-run homer from Aaron Judge, then another two-run homer by Giancarlo Stanton off the Sox closer Liam Hendriks, to make the score 8-7 in the Yankees’ favor.
But the Yankees’ dreams of victory in Iowa were suddenly dashed when at the bottom of the ninth inning Tim Anderson hit the first pitch from Zack Britton to land a walk-off home run right in the middle of those corn fields giving the win to the White Sox.
Though the Yankees left in defeat, just being a part of this spectacular event was thrilling for the players and their fans. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said, “That was as special and breathtaking a setting for a baseball game as I’ve ever been part of.” Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge said, “It was pretty cool driving in and seeing everybody standing on the side of the road, with signs, cheering us on as we’re coming in.”
This newly built 8,000 seat ballpark sits right next to the original built for the 1989 movie starring Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, Ray Liotta and James Earl Jones. Before the game, Costner ambled onto the outfield like his character Ray Kinsella and watched as the White Sox and Yankees walked out of the cornrows to take their places.
Baseball in hand, Costner headed to the microphone while the original musical score from the movie accompanied him. The actor looked at the crowd and uttered, “It’s perfect. We’ve kept our promise. The dream is still alive. There’s probably just one question to answer. Is this heaven? Yes, it is.” And it was perfect; it was heaven. The dramatic introductory festivities were a prelude to this exciting game.
Throughout the evening there were clips from the movie featuring some of the classic quotes, adding to the enchantment of it all. One pivotal quote from James Earl Jones’ character Terrance Mann was “Ray, people will come Ray. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom.”
And that’s exactly what happened Thursday, August 12, 2021. People came to Iowa to that magnetic cornfield to be part of the tradition of baseball, but more than that, they came to be part of a unique event. In addition to those in attendance were the 5.9 million total viewers on FOX Television, the largest audience for a regular season game on any network since 2005.
At the end of the movie, the ghost players were on the field with Ray Kinsella looking on. Suddenly, the catcher takes off his mask revealing he is Kinsella’s deceased dad and after a few words, the father and son play catch leaving all of us to ponder what if we could have just a few minutes to play catch with a loved one.
Playing catch is such a singularly inviting activity for two people. The ball and the throw unite the pair. If only I could have one more moment with my mom, the person who introduced me to baseball and her beloved Yankees. If we could play catch like we did when I was a kid, what I would give for the chance to relive that moment with her.
Fans and players lingered after the game, then finally started their pilgrimage back home with the wish for one more moment.
Thankfully, Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announced that the Field of Dreams game will return to Dyersville, Iowa next August 2022. The teams taking part are undecided as of this writing.
Miller Place resident Barbara Anne Kirshner is a freelance journalist, playwright and author of “Madison Weatherbee —The Different Dachshund.”
MEET BETTY BOOP!
Betty Boop is a nine to ten year-old Female Pit Bull Terrier Mix at the Smithtown Animal Shelter who is a total sweetheart! She is a very calm and low-key couch potato who absolutely loves people and attaches to them very easily. She would love nothing more than to spend her golden years snuggled up with her favorite person, lulling them to sleep with her adorable snore. Betty has significant arthritis in her hips and knees, and will need a home that can help her manage this issue by giving her medications twice a day. Her ideal home will be an adult-only home without any other dogs or cats.
If you are interested in meeting Betty Boop, please call ahead to schedule an hour to properly interact with her in a domestic setting, which includes the shelter’s Meet and Greet Room, the dog runs, and Dog Walk trail. Family Pet Meet and Greets and at home interactions are also welcome and an integral part of the adoption process.
Foster Opportunity:
If you have no other pets or young children at home, and are looking for a way to serve your community, please consider signing up to be a foster. Foster parents provide temporary care for cats, kittens, and dogs in their own homes. Some animals need as little as two weeks of care, while others may need care for extended periods of time.
Download the Foster Application at:
https://www.smithtownny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/4325/Foster-Application
Thinking About Adoption:
The Smithtown Animal Shelter’s primary concern is finding the perfect home for each animal that finds his/her way to us. The Animal Control Officers and Kennel Attendants at the Smithtown Animal Shelter will go out of their way to ensure both the rescued and rescuer are made for one another.
Residents who have other pets can arrange to bring your four-legged family member to the shelter or set up an at home meet & greet to see how your prospective family member does with other family, pets and the household itself. Please allow yourself an hour minimum to meet with your potential new family member.
Hours at the Smithtown Animal Shelter are currently Monday – Saturday 10AM – 3PM. (Sundays and Wednesday evenings: by appointment only).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the shelter is open to the public, however, they continue to practice social distancing in their facility and indoor mask guidelines. To inquire about the Pet of the Week or to meet your potential soulmate, please call the Smithtown Animal Shelter at 631-360-7575.
Photos courtesy of the Smithtown Animal Shelter
Nineteen states have never had a female governor and, up until this week, neither did New York. That’s progress.
When former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) resigned amongst nearly a dozen sexual harassment allegations, and after a thorough, months-long investigation, his lieutenant governor, Kathy Hochul (D), was given the opportunity to make history. The mother of two from Buffalo has had a long career in politics and advocacy. She even sat in Congress.
New York now joins eight other states — Oregon, Alabama, Kansas, New Mexico, South Dako-ta, Iowa, Michigan and Maine — who have lady leaders as heads of their state.
And practically minutes after she took her oath early Tuesday morning, she said during a short press conference that she wants her constituents to “believe in their government again.”
But that’s going to be hard for many New Yorkers — especially the ones who lost their faith in government throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately for Hochul, she had barely been in office for even a full day when commenters online began to bash her for her mask-mandating policy.
As of Tuesday afternoon, she said all school districts in the state of New York must require masks for their students, faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated or tested weekly.
People are furious, according to the online comment threads. They’re not necessarily mad about the mandate — although that’s become a debate within itself. They are mad she hasn’t addressed all the other issues that are impacting New Yorkers — homelessness, food insecurity, the nursing home deaths during COVID and high taxes.
When reading through the comments on a story that was published by The New York Times, New York Post and locally, Newsday, readers are finding issues already with our new leader.
Can we just give her a second to settle in? It was barely 24 hours before she even set foot in the governor’s mansion in Albany, and people were already assuming she’s failing us.
People might be upset by the mask mandate, but we’ve been through this before. Remember, the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting its year-and-a-half mark. That means we have been wearing masks, social distancing, hand sanitizing and Zooming for almost two years. We’re used to these policies.
No one wants to wear masks, especially if they’ve been vaccinated. But right now, with the Delta variant — and whatever other mutations are out there coming soon — we need to be safe.
This summer, we had a taste of freedom again. We were allowed to see friends and families, weddings were back on and kids were able to attend their graduations in person — and that’s all because we wore masks for practically a year before that. When the vaccine came out, that helped us all, too.
Let’s just listen to Hochul. Let’s not complain.
The sooner we tackle this problem, the sooner we can get back to whatever normal is the new normal.
Don’t judge her policies just yet — she’s had a lot of experience and whoever jumped into Cuomo’s seat was in for it.
She was handed a pile of dirt and now needs to make it beautiful.
Trust her actions, give her a chance. Embrace the fact that someone new is in office and remember: A mother always knows best.
By Daniel Dunaief
We packed our bags full of dreams, hopes, clothing and cliches and took our son to college. We pondered the journey, which is really what’s it’s all about, and not the destination.
My wife and I were bursting with pride, thinking about the shining light that is our son.
We wondered what advice we could offer before we returned to a house that would feel so empty without him. We thought a good rule of thumb might be to avoid harebrained ideas, although we knew we could do better at preparing him for future dark and stormy nights.
As he took his first steps onto his new campus, we encouraged him to discover the world and himself at the same time.
We shared the butterflies that fluttered among our four stomachs. Like a good soldier in our family’s mission, his sister joined us for this momentous occasion, prepared to offer her version of older sibling advice and to help find whatever item he might need in a college dorm he is sharing with a stranger he’d chosen from a grab bag of potential roommates.
As we followed the move-in directions to a tee, we could feel the electricity in the air. We drove up to an official behind a desk, who was all ears listening to him spell a last name chock full of vowels.
With bated breath and sweaty palms, we waited with every fiber of our beings until she found him on the list. We breathed a sigh of relief when she found his name and handed him a key that would open his dorm room to a new world of possibilities. As a freshman, he knew he was no longer the big man on campus he had been during his pandemic-altered senior year.
Once inside his dorm, we got down to the business of unpacking. We debated where to put his shoes even as he stared out the window, considering where he might plant his feet.
Recognizing that time was of the essence, we spring to life while unpacking his room. Standing apart in a small room full of wonders, we drew strength from our collective mission.
Slowly but surely, we removed the contents of his boxes, creating order from the chaos despite a few moments when we felt like we were all thumbs. We lined all his ducks in a row, creating neat rows of pencils, pens and notebooks on his desk and boxers, shorts, tee shirts and socks in his drawers.
After we prepared his room, we wiped the sweat from our brow, reminding him that this effort was but a drop in the bucket of the work he’d need to do in college.
We assured him he could bet his bottom dollar he wouldn’t feel like a babe in the woods or a fish out of water for long.
We could almost hear the angelic chords as the sun set in the west, where it always sets because that’s the way the cookie crumbles, or, rather, the earth rotates.
Before we left him in his new home away from home, we exchanged embraces and urged him to dance to the beat of his own drum.
We also suggested he find a healthy way to blow off steam, to recognize that a rising tide lifts all boats, to swim when it was time to sink or swim, and to play his cards right.
By Leah S. Dunaief
Another birthday has come and gone. It was a memorable day, first, because it began with an overflowing toilet bowl, and it ended with the imminent arrival of Hurricane Henri. The latter caused my children and grandchildren, who were happily visiting, to depart abruptly for their homes before sunset. In between, we enjoyed a terrific party, with lots of laughter, board games and food, lingering over each meal long enough to plan the next one.
We on Long Island were lucky to have escaped the worst of the storm after the dire predictions. Lots of rain fell, some of it torrentially, but the electricity stayed on and the flooding wasn’t too bad. What could have been a disaster for us made me consider more carefully an article I recently read in the Spring/Summer edition of Columbia University’s magazine.
Titled, “How to Prepare for a ‘Megadisaster,’” by Kevin Krajick and David J. Craig, it is an interview with Columbia’s National Center for Disaster Preparedness Director Jeffrey Schlegelmilch. The center conducts research to help “prevent, prepare for and respond to natural and human-driven disasters on behalf of the United States.” Megadisasters are events that would have “society-altering potential,” like the Black Death in the Middle Ages or the Irish Potato Famine.
In our century, we are seeing more large-scale disasters, both because of human activity and our vulnerability to them. We are polluting our atmosphere, which is thought to cause more extreme weather, and we are building in flood zones and forested areas susceptible to wildfires. We are also “encroaching into wildlife areas and coming into closer contact with animals harboring exotic pathogens” that then, as we travel, spread across the globe.
Schlegelmilch names five categories of mega risk: climate change, biological perils, infrastructure failures, cyberthreats and nuclear conflict. COVID-19 could have been a megadisaster had we not responded, albeit too slowly, to the extent that we have so far. While we lacked the medical supplies needed to handle a pandemic, we did rapidly develop vaccines, which certainly are helping to control the long-term impact. Climate change, with its prolonged droughts, can cause widespread food and water shortages and their catastrophic consequences. The American Society of Civil Engineers has given the nation a C- grade on the most recent Infrastructure Report Card. Our electric grid might be the biggest problem in this category, since it is “aging, overloaded and quite susceptible to breakdown,” or to terrorist attacks. Remember that millions of people lost electricity in Texas last winter due to a couple of severe storms. More than 2,300 of our dams are structurally worrisome, as are 46,000 of our bridges.
The long-term human toll of disasters needs also to be considered and planned for, especially for children. Those whose lives are severely impacted “are much likelier to suffer anxiety and depression, to display behavioral problems and to struggle in school for years.”
So what can we do to ready our nation for disasters?
We need forward-looking strategies from governmental agencies and the many non-profit organizations to deal with these possibilities. We must demand those. Disaster response, like insurance, which we hope never to need, must be in place. Woe to those who try to catch up with a disaster after it happens. Chaos ensues even with planning. It does to a much more horrific extent without some degree of readiness.
According to Schlegelmilch, disaster preparedness really began in the US in the early 2000s, after 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. He believes a lot of progress has been made since then. The strength of social bonds among neighbors and within a community makes the biggest difference in how well areas recover after a catastrophe. Also coordinating relief efforts is helped by artificial intelligence, software specifically designed for sifting through a great deal of information, then picking out the critical data for making life and death decisions. Preparedness for biothreats. however, needs attention.
Meanwhile, what can we do to prepare ourselves?
Whatever the disaster, we will either have to stay at home for long periods or leave immediately, says Schlegelmilch. We should hope neither happens yet prepare for both.
By Barbara Beltrami
Whether it’s on the village green or in a local park, at a band shell or the beach, reggae or rock, classical or country, an outdoor concert accompanied by an elegant picnic is as good as it gets. One especially savory main dish cooked ahead, then served at room temperature or chilled, accompanied by a salad, some crusty bread and a bottle of good wine works well, and bringing along some nice dishes, table linens and even some candles makes it really special. Dessert can be cheese and fruit to nibble while you’re listening or something incredibly sinful if you prefer. A paella is especially good as is a tomato and goat cheese tart or poached salmon with dill mayonnaise.
Paella
YIELD: Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut up into large pieces
1 Vidalia onion, chopped
1 large bell pepper, (any color) diced
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 cups long grain rice, (not instant)
Pinch saffron, dissolved in a little hot broth
3 1/2 to 4 cups broth, white wine, water or a combination
1 pound seafood (mussels, clams, shrimp, lobster, squid)
1 pound cut up fresh tomatoes
DIRECTIONS:
In a large skillet heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, onion, bell pepper, salt and pepper and cook, turning chicken until nicely browned on both sides (about 3 to 4 minutes each side) and stirring onion and pepper until a little soft, about 5 minutes. Add rice and saffron, stir, then add liquid and stir again; add seafood and stir once more. Cook over medium heat, but do not stir any more because a good paella forms a nice crust on the bottom. Continue to cook, adding a little more liquid if the rice still seems hard after all the liquid has been absorbed. Ten minutes before serving sprinkle tomatoes on top. Serve warm or at room temperature in pan with a sangria or chilled fruity white wine.
Herb-Poached Salmon with Dill Mayonnaise
YIELD: Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
Poached Salmon
3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh dill
2 sprigs fresh flat leaf parsley
1 large shallot, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon black or white peppercorns
2 pounds fresh salmon, cut into 6 even pieces
Dill Mayonnaise
3/4 cup good quality mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons cream
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh dill
1/3 cup snipped fresh chives
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon prepared Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
6 fresh dill sprigs
6 fresh lemon slices
DIRECTIONS:
In a wide deep skillet combine the broth, wine, thyme, dill, parsley, shallot, lemon juice, salt and peppercorns. Bring to a simmer; gently add salmon (if liquid doesn’t completely cover fish, add boiling water just to cover); partially cover skillet and simmer until salmon is cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. With a slotted spatula, gently remove salmon to platter, let sit 10 minutes, then cover with plastic wrap and chill. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, cream, chopped dill, chives, lemon juice, mustard, salt and pepper. Cover and chill. Serve cold or at room temperature; garnish with dill sprigs and lemon slices and serve with dill mayonnaise and sliced cucumbers.
Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart
YIELD: Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
Nonstick olive oil cooking spray
One 10-inch pastry crust
3 level tablespoons prepared mustard
1 1/2 pounds garden tomatoes, sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
2 large eggs
5 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a tart pan with nonstick cooking spray, then line bottom and sides with pastry crust; run a rolling pin over the top edges to even out the crust; refrigerate for 30 minutes. Spread mustard evenly over bottom of crust, then arrange tomatoes in overlapping pattern over mustard; sprinkle with salt, pepper and herbs. While crust is chilling, in a medium bowl whisk or beat together the eggs and goat cheese, pour over tomatoes and drizzle with olive oil. Place in oven and bake 30 to 40 minutes until top is dark golden. Remove from oven, let cool 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with a crisp arugula and Belgian endive salad.
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