BostonZest

Fight Unnecessary, Annoying Clamor with The Noise Score App

Our Friday Link today is to the Noise Score App from Erica Walker, recent graduate from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and founder of Noise and the City.

Penny, who is a dedicated opponent of nasty noisemakers, is already using this app to record and report when someone or something is making more noise than absolutely necessary. Her first recording was of a garbage truck parked on Beacon Street adjacent to the Public Garden with the engine idling at 75 dB for a long time, while the driver stood down the street so he could hear as he chatted on his phone. This spoiled a quiet weekend morning for everyone in that quarter of the park.

Here's what researcher Erica Walker said about the app in her announcement:

"NoiseScore is Noise and the City’s newest addition to our growing community resource toolbox. The NoiseScore smartphone application has been generously sponsored by The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study and was developed to allow residents from all over the globe to document and visualize their ever-changing environmental soundscape. With this free app, you can:

• Objectively describe your daily soundscape by recording its sound levels

• Visually document your daily sound scape by taking either a photo or video

• Subjectively describe your daily soundscape by answering a brief survey

• Track your responses via our live heat maps (www.noisescore.com), which visualizes your responses and the responses of all other users by filters including time, location, and types of noise sources.

NoiseScore can be downloaded at iTunes and Google Play"

 

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

Where Would You Find This Column and These Windows? Let's Play Attention to Detail

Let's play Attention to Detail! We give you a close-up clue and you have to figure out where you've seen it around Boston.

Here are some hints:

• This residence is located in a lesser-known historic district.
• The building has a very unusual feature that will catch your attention.
• It is surrounded by tax exempt properties.
• It is close to Kenmore Square.

Ready? Click through or scroll down past this great book about Boston for the answer.

 

 

Roasted and Smashed Potatoes for Easier Shepherd's, Cottage, or Fish Pies

A bag of small potatoes that I had planned to turn into smashed potatoes recently inspired a new look at the traditional shepherd's pie. I had a package of ground lamb that my friend Liz suggested I try instead of always grinding my own. Naturally shepherd's pie came to mind, but I still wanted those crispy delicious smashed potatoes. 

I decided to have the best of both worlds by topping my meat mixture with smashed instead of mashed potatoes.

First I scrubbed and cut slits in the potatoes, tossed those plus some carrots and sweet potatoes in olive oil, salt and pepper, and roasted them on a full sheet pan lined with parchment paper. The next time I make this, I'll also roast some onions and garlic to add to the meat when I brown it. 

As soon as the potatoes were soft enough, I smashed them with a fork, sprinkled on a bit more olive oil, and returned the tray to the oven.

For this batch I diced two slices of bacon, cooked it, removed some of the bacon fat, and then browned the lamb, onions, garlic, and herbs in that pan. After the meat was transferred to a porcelain baking dish, I scattered the roasted carrots around, topped it with the cooked (but not totally browned) potatoes, and dabbed on a few bits of butter. I put the dish into the already hot oven for about 20 minutes for the flavors to meld and for the final crisping of the smashed potatoes.

When potatoes are a daily menu item, as they were for many of my Irish ancestors, having leftover mashed potatoes to turn a bit of leftover roast into a cottage pie was easy. However making the dish from scratch the way I often do can limit the number of times you enjoy this lovely meal.

By roasting off everything on a tray in the oven, it's much quicker and you have the bonus of that caramelized, roasty-toasty flavor on all the vegetables. And remember, you can use this method to make cottage pie with beef or a fish pie. You can also turn a tray of wonderful, roasted root vegetables into a meatless version.

Related posts:

10 Tips for Shepherd's Pie

Making Food in Layers Can Be Much Easier!

 

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino 

Does Your Dog Have a Favorite Spot?

We may think we are the masters of our animal companions but, time and again, we see that they are the decision makers. We buy designer crates for our dogs and multi-level perches with hidden nests for our cats. We try to protect old joints with orthopedic pet mattresses. But our resident cats and dogs have their own ideas of the perfect resting spot.

Even on a restaurant patio, Poppy will scoot under the table.

Dog Caves

We have always had terriers – dogs designed to “go to ground.” One residual behavior for this inbred trait is the desire to be under things. Each of our dogs figured out a spot where she could happily nest away from pesky people. For Poppy it’s Ed's desk or our dining table.

This desire to have a hiding spot is said to have come from their ancestors who, as wild animals, would rest or hide in a den. It’s the reason crate training can work so well for dogs. If not overused, the time spent in a crate can be restful and calming. A crate can be a dog’s place of safety and security.

 

And, for the human side of the equation, today’s crates have come a long way from the wire cages that you see at dog shows, animal hospitals, and grooming shops. Some are designed to blend into your living room. You can have a wooden crate that looks like an end table in a mahogany finish; a Mid-Century modern oval fiberglass crate; or a sleek, shiny, steel circular one that can double as a cocktail table.

But, even if you succeed in training your dog to love his crate, don’t be surprised if he finds another spot around the house that he claims as the best and most wonderful place in the world.

Poppy also loves to snuggle into the corner of our sofa.

Cozy or Cool

For other animals, it is the lure of warmth or cold that directs their instincts to a favorite place. One friend has a cat who loves the bathroom sink. In the hot weather, she’ll find him sprawled in and about that marble surface.

And we all know both cats and dogs who will follow a sunbeam across the floor basking in the warmth coming through a window.

If it's cold at the beach, Poppy loves to share a chair and a sleeping bag with Penny.

Home Away From Home

That bathroom sink cat also loves to lounge in his cat carrier. That’s fortunate because it makes him more comfortable in it, when the carrier is used to transport him somewhere.

We’ve always used a crate in the car and in hotel rooms when traveling with dogs. In the car, a sturdy crate keeps my dog safer and more secure if we’re involved in an accident. It also keeps the dog from distracting the driver.

In hotel rooms, a crate will protect your dog from escaping if a staff member should enter the room for some reason. And, if the crate is used at home and contains a favorite blanket or pillow, it will also lend a sense of security and hominess for your pal.

Yes, many companion animals would rather be on the sofa with you most of the time. But, if you think about the dogs and cats who have shared your life, I’ll bet you’ll smile as you name a favorite spot that each of them chose as their own.

 

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino 

(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our City Paws newspaper columns.)

Super Quick, Super Easy, Delicious Tomato Soup

Even those of you who only use a microwave to heat things up can transform a box of tomato soup into a stunning bowl of delicious with just two added ingredients.

You buy a box of tomato soup. This one was the Organic Creamy Tomato Soup from Trader Joe's and we look for one with the fewest ingredients. 

The secret ingredient to take this soup to a new level is a bit of Boursin Cheese with Garlic & Fine Herbs. We were making this one bowl at a time, so we added a tablespoon to each bowl of hot soup. You can swirl it around, mash it against the side of the bowl, and stir until the cheese dissolves. 

A sprinkle of fresh, ground, black pepper added a bit more zip. 

While we are sharing the recipe, we cannot take credit for it. Years ago we invited two of our favorite restaurateurs on a fall sail with us. They arrived at the boat with thermoses of soup. When we stopped for lunch, everyone on board raved about the soup, asked for seconds, then asked for the recipe. It was at that point the friends told us their chef had not made the soup, they had.

What's more, making soup was a last minute decision after they realized how chilly the sail was going to be. They ran out and bought the ingredients then heated, mixed, and packed the soup in vacuum jugs, and brought it to us. When they told us how to make it, we all stared in disbelief.

The doubting only lasted until one of the gang, then another and another, made it at their own home and discovered how easy it could be to raise the bar on a bowl of tomato soup. 

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino 

Eventide Fenway, Our First Look

Last week we made our first visit to the new Eventide location in the Fenway.

First and foremost let us say that the food was fabulous. We had the brown butter lobster roll, the burger, and the lobster stew along with some well-matched wine. 

The brown butter lobster roll on a steamed bun is the dish that had the most pre-opening excitement. It adds one more option to our Boston lobster roll scene. It's smaller than some local options and doesn't include any sides, but that's fine because we knew it was a serving that would enable us to taste some other items like ...

... the fabulous Maine lobster stew with coconut, carrots, curry, maitake mushrooms, and of course lobster! This was the absolute hit of the day. Penny says she can see herself walking over there just to get a bowl of this flavor bomb. It was served with some pieces of crisp, crunchy flatbread which we used as a palate cleanser to keep our taste buds ready for the next sip of that delicious broth.

Ed's order of the burger was a surprise. He's a fussy burger eater and seldom orders one in all but his favorite spots around town. Let's say he took one for the team! That said, he ate every bite and was impressed that, like many thin patties, it was not cooked to death. It had good beef flavor and he liked the roll. He might not order it again, but if we have a friend who is not a fish lover, we're very happy that this option is available. 

Adult beverages here are wine and beer. The wine selection is well matched to the food and shows that some serious thought was put into it. Penny ordered a Manzanilla Sherry that we both agreed paired well with both the lobster roll and the lobster stew. Ed had a rosé with his burger. And while the servingware was not glass, these Govino flutes were interesting enough for us to look them up and consider buying them in quantity for an upcoming Irish whiskey tasting. 

Oddly we never took a single photo of the place, probably because it didn't appeal to us at all. This food is so good it deserves a much warmer and more hospitable atmosphere. Our hope is that should this team decide to open a second Boston location, it'll be designed for those who would like to enjoy a comfortable sit down meal with friends.

We don't mind the counter service set up. If we had a comfortable table where our group could sit and spend time savoring the flavors that this food offers, we'd be back often. We would gladly go to the counter for second or third rounds of oysters, drinks, more lobster stew, or to add dessert, but we'd like to feel we're in a restaurant, not a cold, hard, clamorous, unwelcoming, fast food joint.

Our plan for a second visit is to order the food to go, (if they do take out) and walk down Jersey Street to the Fens and enjoy it as a picnic.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino 

Keep it to Yourself, Don't Spread Canine Diseases

Last summer as we approached Howie, one of our neighborhood’s sweetest, best-behaved dogs, his guardian stopped us from allowing our dog to get close to his. The gentleman told us he was keeping Howie away from others because the pup was being treated for kennel cough.

Naturally, we thanked him for being so proactive, considerate, and helpful. He is exactly the kind of person we all hope to have as part of our dog community. He has raised a dog to be a good citizen, he follows the rules that govern being out and about with a dog, and he is as careful with our dog as he is with his.

Happily, Howie made a quick recovery and our Poppy was able to have a sniff fest with him again.

It helped that Howie pays attention to his person when asked and we were able to slip by without contact.

Know What Is Contagious

You should not only know what is contagious among dogs, but also how the disease is spread and what you can do to prevent your dog from becoming sick. For example, Mary Fuller, DVM, writing about Kennel Cough for Vet Street wrote, “This extremely contagious respiratory disease, also known as canine infectious tracheobronchitis, isn’t always caused by a single organism.” Your dog can get it from inhaling the virus or bacteria left behind by a sick dog at places where dogs congregate.

Other highly contagious canine diseases include: distemper, adenovirus [hepatitis], parainfluenza, and parvovirus. These all have vaccines that your dog may have been given by your veterinarian. Once initial immunity is established, you can do titer testing for all but rabies to be sure your pup is protected from one year to the next.

Our cat friends should also be protected from contagious diseases. (photo courtesy of American Veterinary Medical Association)

You may be offered vaccinations for other contagious diseases including coronavirus, leptospirosis, bordetella, lyme disease, and canine influenza.

There are also parasites that one dog can pass to another. We know that fleas and ticks love to ride on one dog and jump over to another like subway riders switching from the Red Line to the Green.

Other unwanted guests like roundworms, hookworms, sarcoptic mange, and giardia can be transmitted via feces, on soil, or in standing water including shared bowls.

Puppies like this one plus elderly and frail dogs need special protection from contagious diseases.

Doing Your Part in Prevention

In general, it’s a good idea to keep your dog away from other dogs when he is not feeling well and ask your friends to return the favor when their dogs are a bit under the weather. Something that a very healthy pup can shake off could be a death sentence for a frail or elderly dog.

We are often alerted when some sort of canine gastrointestinal issue that may be contagious is going around the area. You just have to observe the smears on the sidewalk where people with the best intentions try to pick up after a sick dog.

While our little Poppy has been a very healthy girl, we did face more health issues with our last dog Maggie Mae. Because of this, we know how difficult it can be to clean-up after your dog if they are suffering from an upset tummy or diarrhea.

We found that slipping a newspaper or a couple of paper towels under her would often catch most of the what she released. We’d then deposit the mess in a plastic bag and take it to the trash.

 

Today we still carry small absorbent puppy pads to do this sort of job just in case we ever need one. We have used these at home and in rental places to keep from soiling furniture and carpets, just as when Maggie was ill.

Thanks to all who do their best to alert us to sick dogs and clean-up as best they can when out and about. 

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

Thanks to everyone who Hops over to Amazon from here to do their shopping. We appreciate your support.

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino 

(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our City Paws newspaper columns.)