Ken Golberg, Master Chef

Until five years ago, I did not cook; no if, and or buts: I did not cook. There was no reason for me to cook inasmuch as there were seven children and a wife in the home who cooked and who, I believe, liked to cook. But some five years ago, Momma (Grandma) fell and became a semi-invalid. If I wanted to eat, I had to cook. And Golbergs must eat and eat well; it is in their genes. For Golbergs, every occasion is an excuse to eat.

Cooking is not difficult; in fact, I find it easy. Other than the ingredients, the three elements of cooking are seasonings, heat and imagination. I do not awaken in the morning and decide that I will have fish for dinner and then go out and purchase the various foods needed for dinner. I look in the refrigerator, freezer and pantry and find what I will cook. And what I find, I have previously purchased on sale or with a coupon. That’s the law in Florida; on sale or with a coupon.

On this morning, I have found some tilapia fillets, some potatoes, frozen okra, celery, onions and a can of diced tomatoes. I can do many things with these ingredients by varying the spices used. I can put a small amount of olive oil in a ceramic dish, add a pat of butter and some dill weed and parsley flakes. Shmoosh the fish around in the mixture until coated on both sides and bake for about ten minutes. Done and delicious! Or instead of dill weed and parsley flakes, I can use Chinese mustard. Same shmooshing, same results, different taste. Or I can sautee some onion and celery, add the diced tomatoes and Italian seasoning, shmooshing the fish around in it and bake for ten minutes. Want to kick it up a notch? Add a dash of cayenne pepper. Imagine how many different ways the fish can be seasoned! And if you find boneless chicken breasts instead of fish, just vary the seasonings (perhaps poultry seasoning) and heat.

I have decided on mashed potatoes. I can bake two potatoes, take off the skin, (it comes right off) and mash them. Or I can peel them and boil them in water until done and then mash them. And when I mash them, I can fold in some sour cream and/or garlic, parsley flakes or any of a dozen different spices. I could even use the stuff that the fish cooked in and add it to the mashed potatoes.

I do not like peas or string beans, but I do love okra so I add some to a can of diced tomatoes, add some spices like rosemary and thyme, heat and I have my vegetable.

There is no end to the variety simply by varying the spices and developing a healthy imagination. And think how much you will save on cookbooks. I must give credit to Emeril and Rachael Ray. They gave me the basics.

Snowballs

Snowballs are uniquely Baltimorean. I have never seen them in any part of the United States. Along with the arrival of warm weather came hundreds of snowball stands, many of them in the basements of row houses.

Basements had windows which opened up to the sidewalk about two or three feet above the sidewalk level and voila, there was a business location. The capital requirements were minimal; for less than $25.00 you were in business.

A metal box about 3x3x6 with a hinged lid on the top and a blade in the bottom was the device used to shave the ice. The bottom was scraped across a block of ice and the shaved ice was deposited in the device. The hinged lid was opened and the shaved ice was deposited into a paper boat. Flavored syrup was shaken into the shaved ice, a flat wooden paddle-like spoon was added and a five cent snowball was ready.

Syrup was made by mixing a five pound bag of granulated sugar with five gallons of hot water. This made twenty quarts of simple syrup. A tablespoon of concentrated flavor extract was added to each quart to complete the process. A tablespoon of concentrated citric acid was added to the fruit flavor. Chocolate flavor was made with half chocolate syrup and half simple syrup.

Sugar cost about fifty cents for a five pound bag and flavor extract was thirty-five cents for an eight ounce bottle. I don’t remember what the paper boats and spoons cost, but it was minimal. The total cost of the snowball was less than two cents.

We began selling snowballs in the store about 1965. I bought a snowball machine for $250.00. This was basically a large blender about three feet tall with a circumference of about a foot with an electric motor to turn the blades. Ice chunks were deposited into the top and a six ounce cup was held under the spout. A lever started the motor and shave ice was deposited into the cup. Flavor and the flat spoon were added and the five cent snowball was ready. Chocolate flavor, ice cream, and marshmallow were each five cents extra. The snowball machine paid for itself in about two months.

We doubled the amount of sugar and flavor extract used which made for a much better snowball. The profit was still there. One summer, David ran the snowball business. He purchased the supplies, kept records, sold the snowballs and retained the profits. As I recall, he ended up with six or seven hundred dollars at the end of the summer; and that was 1965 dollars.

Today there are very few snowball outlets, all with a minimum price of a dollar for a ten ounce cup of shaved ice and a sprinkle of flavor. My, my!