Cold Water

While the air was extraordinarily balmy yesterday, the water that swallowed a 10-year-old Trenton boy as he played with friends on a rope at an illegal swimming hole was frigid, probably around 40 degrees, say police. The boy, identified by police as Vashawn Crews, was pulled from a small, abandoned quarry lake and resuscitated by emergency crews, then taken to Delaware Valley Medical Center. From there, he was transferred a few hours later to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, where he was listed in critical condition last night.

Summer slipped away over a cold, rough surf along the New Jersey Shore yesterday as shivering beachgoers tossed odd mixtures of heavy clothing atop bathing suits and huddled inside shops to keep warm. An offshore storm dragged heavy clouds, cool temperatures and a less-than- pleasant wind across the Jersey seashore towns, unfolding a scene more like early autumn than end-of-summer, and leaving some beaches virtually vacant. Thousands of sunseekers in Margate, Ocean City, Avalon and Stone Harbor gave up, packed up and pulled out early in their cars and vans for the trip home to reality.

Maliyah Gregg's eyes lit up when she spied a package of bacon on the counter for cooking class in the convent kitchen at St. Martin De Porres in North Philadelphia. And then she saw the spinach. "Can I eat just the bacon? Please? Just the bacon and a boiled egg. It will be like breakfast. Please?" After four weeks of cooking lessons, I had gotten the message loud and clear from Maliyah and the other 5th and 6th grade girls: We want meat! While many people are eating less meat and trying to center meals around other proteins for health and environmental reasons, these girls are not quite buying in. I heard the same chorus from my own two boys when I tried meatless family dinners when they were growing up. For them, it just didn't feel like dinner without meat.

Michael Bell (right), 8, gets doused with cold water by his uncle Sean Golden in front of their York Street house in Burlington City. Michael had been fixing his bike in the heat before he got splashed.

Makes 6 servings 8 medium to large russet potatoes, peeled 2 tablespoons butter ¼ cup milk Salt to taste 1.    Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large pot. Cover with cold water. 2.    Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to medium, letting the potatoes continue to cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they can be easily pierced with a fork. 3.    Drain all but about 2 tablespoons of water. 4. Add butter, and with a mixer, begin to whip the potatoes, slowly drizzling in the milk a little at a time.

Makes 8 to 10 servings 1 onion, peeled and    quartered 6 ounces (approximate-    ly 11 slices) bacon or    pancetta Small handful fresh    parsley 1 clove garlic, peeled 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 cups lentils, brown or    green, rinsed 14-ounce can diced    tomatoes, plus 12/3    cups cold water to    rinse out 2 bay leaves 21/2 quarts chicken or ...

The safe way to thaw a frozen turkey is in the refrigerator, but often there isn't enough room in the refrigerator to make that a practical option. If your turkey is reasonably small, and you have a microwave oven, you can thaw it there. Thawing procedures vary by oven, however, so you will need to check the manual carefully for instructions. You should plan to thaw the turkey right before cooking. A somewhat more cumbersome method is to place the turkey in a heavy-duty freezer bag and carefully tie it closed.

Makes 6 to 8 servings For the dough: 1 stick unsalted butter,    chilled and cubed 11/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup very cold water For the crumb topping: 11/4 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 11 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cubed For the apple filling: 2 tablespoons cornstarch 1 cup cold...

Good thing my clothes can't feel anything or talk. If they could, they'd surely berate me. I used to bathe them in nice warm water. These days, they're thrashing about in cold. From my viewpoint, it's all good. Cold water means they don't shrink, they don't fade, I save money by not using hot water, and — more to the point of this column — I'm helping the environment by not using as much electricity. According to most estimates, heating the water accounts for about 80 to 85 percent of the energy consumed by a typical batch of laundry.

P OLICE YESTERDAY pulled a body from the Schuylkill near Martin Luther King Drive and Black Road. Lt. John Walker, of the Southwest Detective Division, said it was too early to determine how long the person, whose age and gender were not immediately available, had been submerged. Cops in the Marine Unit said they expect to pull more bodies from the water as the weather gets warmer, because as the water warms up, bodies that may have been submerged float. In cold water, corpses drop to the bottom, but a rise in water temperature causes gases in the bodies to expand, making them float.

Makes 6 servings 8 medium to large russet potatoes, peeled 2 tablespoons butter ¼ cup milk Salt to taste 1.    Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large pot. Cover with cold water. 2.    Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to medium, letting the potatoes continue to cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they can be easily pierced with a fork. 3.    Drain all but about 2 tablespoons of water. 4. Add butter, and with a mixer, begin to whip the potatoes, slowly drizzling in the milk a little at a time.

Maliyah Gregg's eyes lit up when she spied a package of bacon on the counter for cooking class in the convent kitchen at St. Martin De Porres in North Philadelphia. And then she saw the spinach. "Can I eat just the bacon? Please? Just the bacon and a boiled egg. It will be like breakfast. Please?" After four weeks of cooking lessons, I had gotten the message loud and clear from Maliyah and the other 5th and 6th grade girls: We want meat! While many people are eating less meat and trying to center meals around other proteins for health and environmental reasons, these girls are not quite buying in. I heard the same chorus from my own two boys when I tried meatless family dinners when they were growing up. For them, it just didn't feel like dinner without meat.

Makes 8 to 10 servings 1 onion, peeled and    quartered 6 ounces (approximate-    ly 11 slices) bacon or    pancetta Small handful fresh    parsley 1 clove garlic, peeled 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 cups lentils, brown or    green, rinsed 14-ounce can diced    tomatoes, plus 12/3    cups cold water to    rinse out 2 bay leaves 21/2 quarts chicken or ...

1. Slow cookers vary in size, and every unit has a small variability in cooking times. Allow extra cooking time while you learn the particulars of your device. 2. A Crock-Pot's ceramic insert is hardy, but it can crack. Always thaw frozen food before adding to the pot. And allow the insert to cool before washing, especially if you're using cold water. 3. Kidney beans should be brought to a boil before slow cooking to destroy a toxin that low-temperature cooking won't. The toxin, with the unpronounceable name of phytohaemagglutinin, causes digestive distress.

START 2013 RIGHT with food that symbolizes good luck. These easy appetizers are perfect for New Year's Eve or New Year's Day entertaining, too. "Long noodles are associated with long life and good health," said Hiroko Shimbo, author of Hiroko's American Kitchen (Andrews McMeel, $24.99). Here she turns soba noodles into sushi rolls. Pair with your favorite cold dipping sauce. Slice 1 medium mango, half an avocado and 1 peeled Kirby or pickling cucumber into 1/2-by-3 1/2-inch sticks.

NAOMI WATTS is deservedly getting Oscar buzz for her role as a mom trying to save her family during the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, but Tom Holland, who plays her teenage son in the movie, matches her step for soggy step. Not bad for a 16-year-old in his first film. And talk about versatility, Holland's previous role was in London's West End, as a ballet dancing miner's son in "Billy Elliot. " "I did 'Billy Elliott' and I enjoyed it thoroughly," Holland said in September during the Toronto International Film Festival.

Here are my five favorite beverages: Green Tea The Chinese have known the benefits of drinking green tea since ancient times. Many experts believe that drinking green tea may inhibit cancer cells, lower cholesterol, and decrease belly fat. Beet Ginger Cocktail (excellent cleanser) 1 cucumber 1-2 beets 1 handful of parsley 1 large honey crisp apple 1 lemon peeled 1-2 1 inch ginger (peeled) Put ingredients in juicer, stir and drink. Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice 3 juice oranges Juice oranges with old-fashioned hand juicer.

Makes 6 to 8 servings For the dough: 1 stick unsalted butter,    chilled and cubed 11/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup very cold water For the crumb topping: 11/4 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 11 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cubed For the apple filling: 2 tablespoons cornstarch 1 cup cold...

RESCUE missions continued yesterday and power was restored to some of the millions who lost it during what was, according to several measures, an unprecedented storm. It was the kind of weather event, with its combination of rain, snow and wind, that isn't supposed to happen, according to scientists. October tropical-storm systems typically weaken as they move north over cold water and then bend out to sea. This storm was different, in part because the Atlantic Ocean is five degrees warmer than usual for this time of year, meaning that it got farther north than hurricanes usually do. While hurricanes per se aren't caused by global warming, the way Sandy blasted the Northeast and Midwest certainly could have been.

The Philadelphia Water Department reported Monday the appearance of rusty water in University City and urged customers to limit the use of the water while the utility cleans the system. The department said the rusty water is not a health hazard, but it is a nuisance. Once the system is cleared, customers should run cold water through their pipes to remove any accumulated rust. Customers with questions can call the department's hotline at 215-685-6300.    - Robert Moran