The Catskill Chronicle

By Jude Waterston

Driving the winding roads of the Catskills in search of that singularly unique and coveted yard sale find is a joyful mission to my sister, Janet. I often accompany her on her forays, though admittedly, with less enthusiasm. More often than not, we find ourselves on a wild goose chase, trying to follow vague, battered signs twisting in the wind, offering promises of a yard sale ahead. And ahead. And ahead. “We’ll try for five more minutes,” Janet suggests hopefully, after a half hour of searching. “Three more miles and we’re turning back,” she promises fifteen minutes later.

Worse still is when we finally come upon a much-advertised garage sale, which,  after a quick assessment, finds me proclaiming, “I think they meant garbage sale, not garage.” “How can they even have the nerve to display this drek?” Janet will whisper, using the Yiddish word for trash or rubbish, as we gingerly pick at tangled piles of silver Christmas tinsel, dirty juice glasses, or a baby doll with one eye gouged out. And, I ask you, does anyone really cover a roll of toilet paper in a crocheted sheath?

When Janet and I throw a yard sale, well, it is something special to behold. For many years we have accumulated what are now considered “collectibles.” Some of the finds we have hoarded have been Bakelite jewelry and silverware, ceramics from Italy and Portugal, fine and costume jewelry, vintage handbags, box collections, foreign dolls, cookbooks, hand-blown paper weights, antique teapots and cups, dishware from the thirties and forties, and on and on.

We have really good quality crap, as I like to say, and when we plan and throw a yard sale, we don’t take the situation lightly, which is why we pretty much dread doing them. First, there is the cleaning and pricing of every item we are going to sell. A week or two prior to the yard sale, Janet makes huge day-glow signs indicating, with bold arrows and mileage, exactly where our house is located, and at the crack of dawn on the day of the grand event, she can be found driving around three neighboring towns, hammering or duct taping those posters to telephone poles and trees. At the close of the day, dog-tired, she retrieves every one and discards them.

The day before the sale, weather permitting, we carry box after neatly packed box of goods downstairs from Janet’s bedroom and start the process of laying our wares out on a mess of folding tables we’ve bought and borrowed. We drape everything with plastic tarps and tape them down securely. Then, we go to sleep hoping it won’t pour during the night, and more important, the following day.

Past yard sales have been successful, with us pulling in quite a nice sum of money, but it’s a long, tiring road to travel before we count those sawbucks. We have had our share of early birds arriving on the lawn while I was roaming the house buck-naked, having just emerged from the shower; lonely folks in need of human contact, who could talk the ear off a brass monkey (if only we had one to sell them), but do so to ours instead; die-hard bargain hunters squabbling over a dime; and even a bleached blonde stiletto-heeled shoplifter whom we decided to ignore, rather than make a citizen’s arrest, just so our load would be lighter at closing time, when we repack whatever hasn’t sold.

Janet’s better at engaging perspective buyers than I am. She has more patience, offers special deals, and sometimes magnanimously throws things in for free (much to my chagrin). I’m mostly relegated to preparing the vittles for the day. There is breakfast, lunch, and sometimes a little snack to prepare. Friends and neighbors stop by, and naturally they must be fed too. Whereas Janet’s forte is selling, mine is in providing nourishment.

Previously, I have served curried chicken salad with green grapes and toasted walnuts; myriad frittatas; fresh fruit salad; assorted types of quiche; homemade muffins, tea breads, and cookies; chicken (variously barbequed, fried, or baked); grilled Portobello mushroom, arugula, and Fontina cheese sandwiches; and turkey burgers.

This year, as last, we decided it would be much easier to join forces with the Callicoon Youth Center and participate in their well-attended group yard sale (Sunday, August 29^th, 2010) than to throw our own. No sign making, posting, or retrieval of said posters for Janet, and a better chance to gather together a crowd of eager shoppers.

Naturally, we’ll need to nibble something during the long day and I am contemplating the possibilities. For breakfast a fresh fruit salad garnished with mint and perhaps some flaky grated coconut sounds refreshing, and I’ll make some sort of quiche that will be fine to eat at room temperature. Lunch will probably be Asian-inspired chicken wings that I’ll bake the night before and that can also be eaten right out of the cooler bag. A crunchy cucumber salad will be the perfect accompaniment to the wings and Janet’s apricot iced tea will round things off.

I know that sounds like a lot of food to buy and prepare for one day, but I’m just not a cheese Danish and egg-on-a-roll kind of gal. With the rising costs of food and the rental fees for the youth center’s tables and tents I sure hope we do well this year. And with some restraint, hopefully I won’t buy more yard sale goodies than I sell.

Glazed Sesame Winglets

Serves 4 as an appetizer

8 large chicken wings, wing-tips removed and discarded, then halved at the joint

3 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons Asian hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon whole-grain Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon Asian toasted sesame oil

2 tablespoons apricot (or peach) preserves

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

3 – 4 tablespoons sesame seeds, lightly toasted in a dry pan until pale gold

In a large bowl combine all ingredients except chicken wings and sesame seeds. Add chicken wings and stir to coat each piece well with the sauce. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a large jellyroll or shallow dish with foil and coat lightly with vegetable or peanut oil. Cook the wings, turning once, for 25 – 30 minutes. Place under the broiler for about 3 minutes to crisp skin. Remove wings to a serving platter and scatter the sesame seeds evenly over them. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Flavors of Greece Quiche

Serves 4

9” homemade or store-bought pie shell

1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoons thinly sliced scallions, white and light green part only

1 tablespoon mince fresh dill

Large pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

4 large eggs

1 ½ cups half & half

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick pie shell all over bottom and sides and slide directly onto rack in oven. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and lower heat to 375 degrees. Cover bottom of pie shell with spinach. Season spinach with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Sprinkle feta evenly over spinach. Sprinkle dill and scallions evenly over cheese. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the eggs and half & half. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Ladle egg mixture into pie shell and place pie shell on a baking sheet. Bake until set and slightly puffed, 34- 40 minutes. Let cool about 5 minutes before cutting and serving.