Polenta, American Elections, Bowling

Having written about polenta yesterday, we bought a ready made tube of it from the store - it has sun dried tomatoes in it - and then sliced it, put a little seasoning, a smear of olive oil and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on each slice and grilled it for supper. Delicious. I also bought the ingredients for the Pissaladière I published the other day (I'm glad I have the book as I couldn't find which day, guess I need to label my recipes too) which I thought I would make as a starter on Saturday. We have some friends coming to dinner. Main course detemined, haven't decided on dessert yet. With only 5 days to go before their elections, the Americans TV personalities and candidates are running around like a disturbed hive of bees. Good Morning America is visiting the swing states for the rest of the week and probably Monday too, and doing political interviews as well. Now it's down to the wire we are seeing ads for all the different positions such as District Attorney which is included in the ballot. I used to think that the main presidential candidates must be included on the local ballots, but they aren't so you have to vote for John Doe or Joe Blow depending on your preference for Democrat or Republican. I am so dumb about politics, I don't even know which is which. No, don't bother to enlighten me, I will forget immediately. My personal delight about the elections taking place next Tuesday, we will finally get rid of all the campaign ads. Someone told me I could always turn off the ads, but then I wouldn't be able to watch those few programmes I like. I don't have one of those TVs which can do that for you, just turn off the advertising. Meanwhile, it is the day for our Travel League bowling. Sadly this is now divided between two bowling alleys, everyone else having dropped out because their 55+ members are not prepared to travel. Today we are going to Riverside Lanes in New Hamburg, next month it will be in Waterloo Lanes which is our "home" base. The Travel League is just a bunch of bowlers visiting another house. In fact we field a team from a non-existent house, the one where we used to bowl but where the house is now closed. That way we get three teams. First of all, our bunch meet for lunch and then go bowling. That's always fun. There's nothing competitive about it, we do it because we enjoy it and its great meeting other people. I love leeks and use them a lot for soups. This is a recipe from my Three and Four Ingredient Cookbook, very similar to one I have from Two Fat Ladies, but not quite as complicated. Diet food this ain't. Cheesy Creamy Leeks This is quite a rich accompaniment that could easily be served as a meal in itself with brown rice or couscous. Cheddar cheese has been used here for a slightly stronger flavour but you could use a milder Swiss cheese such as Gruyère if you like. Serves 4 4 large leeks or 12 baby leeks, trimmed and washed 2/3 cup double (heavy) cream 3 oz mature cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese grated from the store cupboard 1 tbs olive oil salt and ground black pepper Preheat the grill (broiler) to high. If using large leeks, slice them lengthways. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the leeks. Season with salt and pepper and cook for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until starting to turn golden. Pour the cream into the pan and stir until well combines. Allow to bubble gently for a few minutes. Transfer the creamy leeks to a shallow overnproof dish and sprinkle with the cheese. Grill for 4-5 minute, or until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling. Serve immediately. Have a great day.