Sprigs of Rosemary

Sprigs of Rosemary: Food Blogger Unplugged

2012-01-31T06:47:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago, Susan @ The Spice Garden, invited me to participate in "Food Bloggers Unplugged," where bloggers share a bit about themselves and their food (and blogging) inspiration. I've been delighted to get to know Susan and her blog. I imagine Susan's life is much like mine -- living in a rural part of the country and, after working a lifetime, having the time and freedom to do much of what you want, one of which for me is spending time exploring food and writing about it.

So, here I go . . . unplugged:

1. Who or what inspired you to start a blog?
Not a very original or epiphany-like start, I'm afraid. I read Orangette and merely said to myself: "I'd like to do something like that." And after reading a few other blogs and letting a few months lapse, Sprigs of Rosemary was born.

2. Who is your foodie inspiration?
Probably my Aunt Mary, although my sister Lynn has a lot to do with it, too. They both were very adventurous in the kitchen, not satisfied with the ordinary and always inspired to try something new. And they always seemed to do it well. I've certainly also been inspired by many a food blogger and a handful of TV cooks. I was watching Rachael Ray when she had just one show and before she became an enterprise. Back then she seemed so fresh and had a free-spirited way of cooking I admired.

3. Your greasiest, batter-splattered cook/drink book?
The first cookbook I ever bought for myself is one I still turn to often. It's Gourmet on the Run, published by Glamour magazine, edited by Jane Kirby. The spine is cracked and it has many smeared and dog-eared pages. I loved the book because more than giving you recipes, it taught a way to cook with charts that showed this could combine with that or that with this. I am a cookbook addict, though, and I'm always adding to my big, fat and still growing collection. (And to think if I didn't weed it out once in a while!)

4. Tell us about the best thing you've ever eaten in another country. Where was it and what was it?
I was lucky enough to go to London once, the only time I've been outside the country, except for Canada (which doesn't really count -- same continent and all!) and we catch our own walleye there!

The London trip was for business. (Lucky me!) We flew over on the company's private jet (one formerly owned by Arnold Schwarzenegger -- it still had a stenciled "I'll be back!" on the door!) My boss took me to a Russian restaurant where we ate really good caviar, but my most vivid memory is her taking me to Harrod's Where I gazed open-mouthed at the Food Halls. Then she took me to a sushi restaurant there and taught me to use chopsticks, although I could still use some practice. I felt so very cosmopolitan that day!

5. Another food blogger whose table you'd love to sit at is . . .
Very tough question. There really are so many! But if I really, really could only pick one, I'd pick Marie@ Proud Italian Cook because she seems to be equally creative as traditional, making a roasted vegetable tart one day, then hand-made pasta the next. She also balances rich dishes with light ones. Maybe she's a Libra, too!

6. What's one food gadget on your wish list (price is no object)?
I'm really not much of a gadget person. (When you have a small kitchen, you can't afford it!) I have my Kitchen Aid mixer (and a few attachments), got a pasta machine, a new salad spinner I love. I need a new food processor, but I think if I could splurge, I'd get a good mandoline and hope I don't cut myself. Or maybe Wusthoff knives.

7. Who taught you to cook?
My mother taught me all the basics even though she spared me the correct terminology. I learned how to braise, cream, chop, brown, make gravy, test a cake, how to season, plan a meal, etc. I still can't get her pie crust down, though. (She was one of those who didn't need a recipe for pastry!) But the rest of it is self-taught, just from reading magazines and cookbooks and experimenting.

8. I'm coming to dinner. What's your signature dish?
I love to make cannelloni! Making the crepes is a pain, but I love it. The filling I like best is a mixture of spinach, ground beef and chicken livers bound with cream (and a little nutmeg!) Then there's two sauces, a simple marinara and a bechamel, and lots of cheese Delicious, rich, a definite treat.

9. What's your guilty food pleasure?
Chocolate chip cookie dough. Nuff said. I feel guilty just thinking about it.

10. Reveal something about yourself others would be surprised to know.
I wish I could say something like I worked my way through college as a pole dancer, but I don't have very many surprises or secrets. I wish I would have been a librarian. That's it.

In addition to sharing some of your self, part of Food Bloggers Unplugged game means inviting other food bloggers who intrigue you to do the same. That's probably harder than baring your foodie soul, because there's so much inspiration out there, so many new blogs I pop in to see. I have my favorites, of course, and some just seem like old friends (who happen to be good cooks.) And I visit some of the food blogger luminati occasionally, too. But here are a handful of "new to me" bloggers I've been reading routinely lately. Please visit . . .

Melissa @ I Was Born to Cook

Emily @ Life on Food

Heather @ girlichef

Mary @ Inside a British Mum's Kitchen

Alida @ Alida's Kitchen

Thanks for reading and letting me indulge in a little storytelling! And thanks for the invitation, Susan!

Better Beer Batter Bread

2012-01-20T11:36:00.000-08:00

Although I haven't given up on making good bread -- that is, real bread, not quick bread, not bread machine bread, not no-knead bread -- I needed to shore up my confidence a bit with a couple little successes before I tackle it the real deal again. And that's where this beer bread comes in.

My stepdaughter introduced me to beer bread and, I have to admit, that although it's not traditional bread, it's very good. It's denser, heartier and heavier but it's not the brick I've manufactured in the past.

And I've successfully made it a few times. The last time our granddaughter came to stay for an overnight, she had a hankering for the beer bread and was hoping we'd have it toasted for breakfast. (We didn't. I'm sure I had something infinitely fancier planned. Had I known she would have been tickled with beer bread!)

Not too long ago, I shared this recipe with an acquaintance. Alas! It didn't turn out too swell for her! She wasn't blaming me but she did quiz me a lot about all the steps. And after I'd told her how easy it was!

So I promptly went home and made a loaf. I was afraid I'd done the unthinkable -- had the measurements written down wrong or the temperature, or even forgotten a step. I'd revisited what I'd given her, and it was all correct. So I had to prove to myself that it was all right and make it again. And it was great.

I have to emphasize -- just as the original source of this recipe did -- that sifting is very, very important, particularly in this recipe. (But my friend told me she did sift, so I'm still puzzled.)

Without further ado, here's the recipe, and baker beware!

Beer Batter Bread

Makes one loaf, six to eight slices

from Gerald Norman, food.com, October 2003

3 cups flour, sifted

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

¼ cup sugar

1 (12 ounce) can beer

½ cup melted butter (1/4 cup is enough)

Preheat oven to 375 and grease a loaf pan. Mix the dry ingredients. Be sure to sift well. Even though this is an easy recipe, youcannot skip the sifting.) Blend the beerinto the dry ingredients. Spread intothe prepared pan. Pour melted butterover the top.

Bake 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in the center of theloaf comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10minutes, then remove from pan and cool another 10 minutes before slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This produces a thick and hearty bread; it’s not a biscuitand it’s not traditional bread. Butbread it is and I’ll take it! Shredded cheese and herbs are great additions. This is a perfect companion to chili or any kind of soup.

Instant Karma Broccoli Chowder

2012-01-15T12:42:00.000-08:00

"Instant Karma" was playing on the car radio and I asked Mr. Rosemary what he thought "instant karma" meant. His first response: "Love at first sight."

Now that's not the real definition of instant karma, John Lennon's version or not, but that's what I thought of today as I made this chowder: It was meant to be, especially on a frigid day like today.

As we were headed out the door this brisk morning, layering ourselves in our barn clothes to much the horse stalls, Mr. Rosemary told me the thermometer read 10 degrees.

Pretty dang cold.

After we finished our chores (and it was indeed dang cold!), he told me that he'd misread the thermometer without his glasses on: It really had said minus 1.0. Now that's real dang cold. (Sometimes it's better not knowing actually how cold it is.)

Soup is the only cure for that many degrees of frigidity!

I'm still in the post-holiday mode of lightening up, though, and where I would ordinarily make broccoli soup with cream, or at least half-and-half, I adapted a recipe I had plastered to the fridge earlier in the week for a less rich soup from Eating Well.

This soup gets its thickening from a little flour and potatoes and the creaminess from non-fat yogurt. (The original recipe uses reduced fat sour cream. I also subbed chicken broth for vegetable. I also used whole fat cheese; just less of it.) Of course all the good effort was probably negated when I had a piece of buttered beer bread on the side -- the beer bread's for another post -- but, after all, it is my karma.

Broccoli Chowder
adapted from Eating Well
makes 6 (1 cup) servings
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large carrot, finely diced
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, peeled and diced
1 large potato, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon AP flour
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
28 ounces chicken broth
1 bunch broccoli, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion, celery and carrot and cook, stirring often until the onion and celery soften, about 5 minutes. Add the potato and garlic; cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes. Stir in flour, dry mustard and cayenne; cook, stirring often again, for another 2 minutes.

Add broth and cut up broccoli; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes. Transfer 2 cups of the chowder to a bowl and mash and then return to pan.

Stir in cheese and yogurt and cook stirring until the cheese is melted and the chowder is heated through.

Popeye Powered Green Rice

2012-01-09T08:11:00.000-08:00

I'm sure it was just subliminal brainwashing that I love spinach because of watching Popeye cartoons as a kid because it certainly wasn't because of the first way I learned to eat it. My mother used to serve very well cooked leaf spinach from a frozen block. It was sprinkled with vinegar and garnished with hard-cooked eggs. I liked it okay, but that was the only way I knew it.

"It's full of iron," she'd say. It's good for you." My first super-food, because Mom said so and because it performed miracles for Popeye. (My mom even managed to find Popeye shaped spinach noodles at the store!)

If you think Popeye is just the name for a restaurant chain, let me give you the real lowdown:

Popeye was a skinny, seemingly hapless sailor with a corn cob pipe who was in love with an also skinny girl named Olive Oyl. The object of his affection was relentlessly pursued by Bluto, a burly bully of a villain. When put into all kinds of fanciful situations, our hopeless hero becomes magnificent -- smart, strong and fast -- after downing a can of spinach! His biceps tripled in size, his chest puffed out and he sped away like a locomotive to save Olive Oyl from some traumatic fate, usually involving the conniving Bluto. Popeye could do anything, overcome any obstacle, all because he was empowered by that spinach.

Since my Popeye days, I've had spinach a hundred or more different ways. My first spinach salad, a wilted salad with bacon dressing, was a real eye opener. Then there were quiches, and lasagne filling and souffles, frittata, omelets, pizzas. That's one versatile green!

I wish I could say I had the same love for rice. Rice has to pretty well dressed up for me. Naked won't do. Rice is just a bed for something else.

But when I marry rice and spinach? Now that's something. And when you add coconut milk, well that's almost risotto! Creamy and nutty and speckled with green punches of power!

Spinach and rice sounds prettier in Spanish -- Arroz Verde -- and usually is jazzed up with cilantro and onion, among a few other additions. But I liked my coconut milk addition; I used a light version so still got the richness without too many extra calories.

I thought I was clever by not adding too much moisture to the pan as the rice cooked, thinking that the frozen spinach would add what was needed besides the milk, but it needed a little more moisture and I wrote up the recipe to reflect that.

And if you do decide to make some kind of green rice you just might join me in singing the Popeye refrain:

I'm strong to the finich,

cuz I eats me spinach,

I'm Popeye the Sailor Man!

Green Rice

makes 6 to 8 servings

1 cup basmati rice

1 (14 ounce) can light coconut milk

1/4 cup water

1 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, or 4-5 scrapes of a nutmeg with a grater

Place rice, coconut milk, water and salt in a pan with the frozen block of spinach. Bring to a boil. Break up the spinach with a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, about 25 minutes. Add the nutmeg, stir again, and serve.

It Worked! Six Pounds Lighter!

2012-01-06T05:04:00.000-08:00

It worked! I'm six pounds lighter after starting the Four-Day Wonder Diet Monday. YAY!

It's just the jump start I need; now, if I just stay mindful I can keep myself on track and feel svelte enough to don a bathing suit when I head to Florida at the end of the month.

I can see that there's plenty of encouragement out there . . . every magazine I pick up and every website I visit has tons of great recipes and tips for eating healthy and shaving calories. Foodista even had an article about these funny "Intervention" plates that just might be the reminder I need!

So today, in spite of my strong desire to have peanut butter toast for breakfast, I still had half a grapefruit and a bowl of cereal with skim milk. But plenty of coffee. For lunch there will be a pear and chicken noodle soup. For dinner, broiled fish with rice and spinach. Nothing fancy . . . yet. I just don't want to lose the momentum. But the weekend does hold a couple parties in store so I need to keep myself in check.

Best thing? I feel great!

The Four Day Wonder Diet -- Day One

2012-01-02T16:38:00.000-08:00

I know the right way to keep my weight in check, really I do. You can't read about, and write about, food as much as I do, as all food bloggers do, and not learn a thing or three about nutrition and healthy eating.

Every once in a while, though, like after the holidays or before a special event, I need a swift kick to get me back on the right track. And so I've become a big fan of the The Four Day Wonder Diet. It's exactly what I need to get me jump started back into mindful eating.

I'm headed to Florida at the end of the month to see my daughter and I'm feeling just a bit too dumpy for Florida weather. (Even Pennsylvania weather!) And my jeans firmly attest to that.

The Four Day is a crash diet but it is a pretty healthy one. (An oxymoron isn't it? Healthy crash diet!) It is strict, very strict. And I feel oh so noble when I finish the four days of this pretty spartan diet. It's cleansing. Nothing but fruits, veggies, and protein. And all foods I like. No fats, no carbs (except from the fruit). And it is very filling.

I first learned about this diet about 15 years ago. My sister-in-law slipped it to me after she saw me gasp after a gander at my behind in the three-way mirror of a dressing room! Holy moly! Where did that come from? When did that happen?

Since then, the Four-Day, as I fondly call it, has been my lifesaver. Each day begins with half a grapefruit and you're allowed all the black coffee and tea you'd like. And lots of water. Then lunch and dinner is well prescribed. Take a look here to see: Four Day Wonder Diet.(It's also printed below.)

There's no calorie counting, no weird foods. Just sticking to the planned menus. And at the end of the four days, you'll have lost at least four pounds; some people as much as 10. There's just something about the mix of foods and the order in which you eat them that really works! I have to admit that the first time I did it, I lost about seven pounds and the last time, only five. (It's that age thing and that slowing metabolism.)

The copy of the diet plan my SIL gave me was clipped from a Ladies Home Journal in 1985. My copy became very well worn. I have since bought the book from Amazon and last I looked you could still find it there pretty cheap.

And so I'm off! I'll let you know at the end of the week how it went. In the meantime, you just might want to tuck this diet away.

THE FOUR DAY WONDER DIET

MargaretDanbrot

BREAKFAST, EVERY DAY

½grapefruit

Blackcoffee or tea

DAY 1

LUNCH

Broiled steak or hamburger

Lettuce & tomato salad

No dressing

1 apple

DINNER

2 hard-boiled eggs

Green beans

½ grapefruit

DAY 2

LUNCH

1 medium-sized lamb chop

Lettuce & tomato salad

No dressing

6 ounces tomato juice

DINNER

Squash and cauliflower, steamed or raw

Green beans

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

DAY 3

LUNCH

Lettuce and celery salad,

No dressing

Hamburger patty

1 apple

DINNER

Broiled chicken

Stewed tomatoes

6 ounces prune juice

DAY 4

LUNCH

2 hard-boiled eggs

Green beans

6 ounces tomato juice

DINNER

Broiled steak or hamburger

Lettuce & tomato salad, no dressing

6 ounces pineapple juice

DAY 5 and after

After you’ve got your head start, and if you want to lose more weight, aim for a loss of 1-2 pounds a week by eating balanced protein heavy meals. You can repeat the 4-Day, but only after 4 weeks.

Tips to Be Sure the 4-Day Wonder Diet Works

Pick the right time, not when your schedule includes a string of parties.
Shop ahead. Make sure you have everything you need beforehand. Don’t get caught in a situation in which you have to eat something fattening just because there’s nothing else in the house.
Remember, do not vary, substitute or delete any of the foods, unless you’re allergic to something. In that case just replace it with a similar food; e.g., substitute an orange for a grapefruit.
Don’t eat anything between meals. There are no “free’ foods you can eat anytime. AND although you’re allowed an unlimited amount of vegetables at meals, you cannot save them for snacking later.
Don’t drink alcohol at all.
To integrate your diet into family meals, just add a starch and a dessert for the rest of your family.
Try to drink at least eight 8-ounce lasses of water a day. Try having a glass of water before a meal.
Eat vegetables raw, steamed or boiled. It’s a good idea to eat them first so you fill up on them instead of protein which is higher in calories.
Always broil all meat or chicken
Remember to remove all traces of high calories fat from meat and chicken.
You may only use pepper or lemon juice to season food. (Use salt only sparingly because it tends to increase fluid retention.
If you don’t already have one, invest in a good bathroom scale. It will give you confidence to watch the needle monitoring your rapid weight loss.
Don’t talk about it! The less you say about your diet, the better.
Keep a diet journal to record your weight and what you eat. It will help you gain insight into the circumstances and times of day when you may need to make an extra effort to stay on course.

My Fantasy New Year's Dinner Party

2012-01-01T08:49:00.000-08:00

When people are asked "Who would you most like to invite to a dinner party?" they typically answer that they'd enjoy the company and conversation of famous figures from history or politics or entertainment. I guess I might, too. I know I'd enjoy an evening enjoying the company of people like Ruth Reichl or Anthony Hopkins or Sean Connery or Helen Mirren.

But since I've been blogging, my little world has opened up to a great big one that I've learned is full of very interesting, creative and talented people with whom I have a lot in common! So were I asked that question today I know that I'd answer that I'd like to sit down with my blogging friends and those people who come to visit and read and comment on my blog. What a party I think that would be!

So on this New Year's Day, I want to wish everyone who visits here a very happy new year, full of health, happiness, prosperity and most of all good food and good company. And if we were all sitting around this table, I'd tell you so in person. Let's just imagine it. It would be wonderful!

Best wishes for a happy new year. May you get all you wish for.

Wedding Soup Fed My Christmas Soul

2011-12-27T07:20:00.000-08:00

It’s not that I didn’t want to go visit my mother-in-lawthat day. I love to visit her. She’s a delightful woman and has always beengenerous and loving to me. But when Mr.Rosemary said he wanted to go visit his mother that day, I was grateful he couldn’t see myface because I’m sure it looked pretty sour (and he can always read exactly what I’mthinking.)

And what I was thinking was this: “How can he possibly think I have time to dothat? This is the first day in a stringof ten or twelve that we didn’t have something important we had to get done, somewhere we had to go, all priorities higher than Christmas. I needed this day to get ready! Doesn’t he realize that the kids were comingthis weekend for our Christmas together and the house was a wreck and there wasso much to get done, so fast – decorating, shopping, cleaning, cooking,baking, wrapping! Has he gone bonkers?”

“Go by yourself,” I wanted to say.

But from a deep somewhere, instead of blurting anything likethat out loud, I found a little voice of calm and reason that reminded me, “Itwill all get done. You know it will.You’ll figure out a way.” And even though I know she would love a quietlittle tete a tete with him, I knew he wanted me to come along, too.

In the midst of this private conversation, I got a brilliantidea: I’d make soup for lunch, wedding soup,one of her favorites and mine. I could be in the kitchen making the soup while he and she had a nice visit in the next room. I could picture it already. I quicklydid a mental inventory, decided I had enough of what I needed and told Mr. Rosemarymy idea. He agreed. So, I packed up the stuff and off we went. Ahalf-hour later, I was in her kitchen rolling little meatballs and they were chatting away.

Then, we all sat down to lunch and had a nice visit alltogether. I cleaned up and we went backhome. On the way home, Mr. Rosemarysaid, “That was a nice day.”

And I had to agree. Yes, it was.

Now that the biggest part of the holiday hustle and bustleis over (and everything I wanted to get done did indeed get done), I can reflect and honestly say that of all the sweet moments I had sharingChristmas hospitality with friends and family that day I didn't want to happen somehow was thesweetest. Genuine, spontaneous, andwarm.

I hope you had a special Christmas moment, too.

* * * * *

I often make wedding soup. But with a lot of flexibility. I can make it without a recipe, although sometimes I get pretty elaborate. Sometimes it’s very simple. The batch I made that day was somewhere in between. I often will make up a whole bunchof meatballs, stick them on a cookie sheet to freeze, then bag them for later; this time I made them fresh. I alsousually poach the meatballs in the broth but some people prefer to bake themfirst. There’s a minor argument in thefamily about what pasta shape to use. I’ma traditionalist and prefer acini di pepe, although I did use orzo in the batchpictured. And I have used rice. Some people in the family prefer biggerditalini or even shells. The only requirementis some kind of pasta. Some people likechicken pieces, some don’t. Escarole,chard,spinach, just some green. Maybe carrots, celery and onions. Ideally you should cook the pasta separatelythen pour the soup over the warm pasta. (Otherwise the pasta absorbs all the broth.) The version I made that day was an marriageof some of all of these. And it wassmaller than usual, enough for a threesome lunch and leftovers for Gigi.

One day I’ll post about my elaborate way; in the meantime,here’s my simpler version:

A Simple Wedding Soup

Makes about 8 servings

For the Meatballs

½ pound ground beef

½ - ¾ cup seasoneddry bread crumbs, moistened with a little milk

1 egg, slightly beaten

½ small onion, grated

2 cloves finely chopped garlic

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese grated

For the Soup:

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 carrots, cleaned and finely chopped

2 stalks celery, clean and finely chopped

½ onion, finely chopped

1 46 ounce can of chicken broth

½ box frozen chopped spinach

½ cup acini di pepe

Extra Parmesan cheese, for serving

Combine all the ingredients for the meatballs. (Add more crumbs if the mix is too wet.) Shape into small balls, no more than one inchin diameter. Set aside.

In a large pot, heat the oil. Cook the carrots, celery and onion just untilsoftened. Add the broth. Bring to a boil then add the spinach, acinidi pepe and meatballs. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until meatballs are done and pasta is tender,about 20 minutes. Sprinkle each serving with cheese.

Cook's note: I use a serrated knife and a bit of muscle to cut the box of frozen spinach in half and quickly put one half in a baggie and back in the freezer.

13-Minute Pepper Steak

2011-12-06T04:32:00.001-08:00

I didn’t start out to set a record. It was just that it was late, we had been outall day and we were hungry. This is thetime of year when the luxury of a leisurely cooked meal just isn’t alwayspossible. You need something and youneed it now. And we were both tired offrittatas.

I know some people can call for take out. But we live too deep in the boonies for thatto happen. (The closest we’ve heard thata pizza shop will deliver is to rendezvous at a general store six miles away!) And some people may plan better. But at least we were well stocked and on ourway home, I got my game plan together, slipped my shoes off when we got in the door, threw my coat on achair and had dinner ready in 13 minutes!

And it was fresh food! The ramen noodles were the only real shortcut. But boy, are they fast to get ready!

This wasn’t exactly an authentic stir fry wokked by a masterbut it was good and fast and pretty and cheap and fresh. The key was cutting everything thin and cooking over pretty high heatfast. Good enough for a repeat.

The thyme in the picture? Just for show. (And I hung up my coat after dinner.)

13 Minute Pepper Steak

1 pound thinly cut round steak

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 green pepper, thinly sliced

1 red pepper, thinly sliced

1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

Two packages ramen noodle, sans seasoning packet

Start a pot of water to get boiling for the noodles whileyou make the beef. Lightly salt andpepper the beef. Cut the beef into thinstrips, about ¼ inch wide and 2 inches long. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet. With heat on medium high, add beef and cookquickly stirring the beef constantly until beef is lightly browned. Remove from pan. Add the second tablespoon of oil. Add the sliced peppers and onions and cook untilsoftened. Turn down heat and return beefto the pan. In a cup, put the hoisinsauce and add enough water (about 1 tablespoon) to thin to the consistency youwant and add to the beef, peppers and onions. Put a lid on the pan and keep warm while you make the noodles.

Breakfast for Non-Morning People: Granola Bars

2011-12-01T04:06:00.001-08:00

There are morning people. And there are not. I am firmlyconvinced of this. And I am not amorning person.

When people say they are morning people, do they mean thatthey wake up with a spring in their step, a song in their heart, and a smile ontheir face? Nope, not me.

I can function, mind you. I might even start a load oflaundry before 6 a.m., sort through mail, make the bed, do the dishes thatdidn’t get done the night before. In fact, I really love to do all thesenon-thinking type of tasks early in the morning. Gives me a great sense ofaccomplishment. Anyhow, I can bark,“Whaddya mean, I’m not a morning person!?! I did all this, didn’t I?”

But I am notsharp. Or friendly. Don’t ask me anything but the most basic ofquestions. You won’t like the response.

It took all I had to control my morning-ness when people had to get to school and work, dressed and on time.

But now that I don’t have children at home, or a regularjob, it’s a lot easier to manage the morning. It’s now become my best computer time. With a cup of coffee (definitely coffee – tea won’t do) and maybe alittle breakfast.

That’s the trouble with us non-morning people. We reallydon’t do breakfast. And we should. Might make us more pleasant. So I’ve been giving granola bars a try. Homemade ones. And, you know? They’re very good. They’renot exactly cheap to make, but they’re very good. And they put a smile on my face, if not a spring in my step.

I didn’t have wheat germ the first time I made these. Instead I ground some Grape Nuts in the foodprocessor. Good substitution. And I didn’t have dried apricots. That’s okay. These have plenty of good stuff in them.

(By the way, I didn’t make these in the morning.)

Homemade Granola Bars

from Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics

2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed

½ cup wheat germ

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2/3 cup honey

¼ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup chopped pitted dates

½ cup dried apricots

½ cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 12-inch baking dish and linein with parchment paper.

Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheetpan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightlybrowned. Transfer this mixture to alarge mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in asmall saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour overthe toasted oatmeal mixture. Add thedates, apricots and cranberries and stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press themixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.

Makes about 12 to 16 bars.

Make Limoncello for Christmas Gifting

2011-11-25T14:54:00.001-08:00

If you got right on it this weekend, you could easily be givingaway beautiful bottles of your own homemade limoncello for Christmas. It’s really very simple and only takes about a half-hour or so hands-on time. It's just the steeping that takes time. The only hard part is planning far enough ahead to allow that steeping. And, like Isaid, if you start this weekend . . . .

I made some a few years ago in preparing for a big summerblast we hosted. (It was so big, wehaven’t had one since!) That same year, I also made mojitos. Must have been when they first came intovogue. Trouble was that both thosedrinks are really best when it’s hot and you need a really refreshing, coolbeverage. Wouldn’t you know it wasblowing rain and 45 degrees the day of our soiree? That’s probably the real reason we haven’thad a bash in a while! So . . . althoughthe mojitos still went, I had lots of limoncello left. But I didn’t complain; I like it a lot. It’s great on its own or mixed with clubsoda, or spiking up some lemonade. Ihaven’t tried it on ice cream, but I hear that’s good, too.

My sister made up this batch. It’s on its last leg of mellowing and will beready to decant into pretty bottles for holiday gifting.

After helping her finish the concocting, I figured out why minedidn’t sell so swell – and I can’t blame it on the weather. This batch was nice and clear and I recall myfirst batch was a bit cloudy. Her recipeclearly cautioned to make sure you let the simple syrup cool to roomtemperature before adding in the second step. If you add the syrup while it’s still warm, you’ll get a cloudymixture. (Now they tell me!)

The person who submitted this recipe to food.com --(McMysteryShopper) -- in 2006 said the secret to this particular version was theaddition of the zest of one lime. Thecontributor also stressed removing the zest only; if you use a peeler and anywhite pith remains, get rid of it.

So order yourself some pretty bottles online this weekendand you’ll be ready to share some very festive and warming homemade gifts. Italian or not, they'll love it.

Limoncello

from food.com

The zest of 12 lemons

The zest of 1 lime

2 (750 ml) bottles 100% proof vodka, divided

2 cups water

2 cups granulated sugar.

Place the lemon and lime zest in a large jar with ascrew-top lid and cover with one bottle of vodka. Leave mixture to mellow for 2 weeks in a darkplace.

After mixture sets, combine sugar and water in a smallsaucepan, bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thesugar has dissolved. Allow the syrup tocool to room temperature. (This is veryimportant. If the sugar syrup is stillwarm the limoncello will become cloudy instead of clear.)

Using a coffee filter or a fine sieve, strain the vodka fromthe zest and mix it with the remaining bottle of vodka and the syrup. Pour the liqueur in bottle, seal tightly andlet mellow in a dark place for at least 10 days before using – or gift giving.

For drinking straight, store the limoncello in the freezer.

To Brine or Not to Brine Thine Turkey: The Verdict

2011-11-20T10:34:00.001-08:00

If you're still undecided about what to make for Thanksgiving dinner, then shame on you! Whether you're just looking for the very best way to make your family's tried-and-true or you want a brand new dish to spice up tradition a little, there is absolutely no shortage of ideas and possibilities out there, be it from magazines, television, cookbooks or the thousands of food blogs and food sites that are tempting us! I don't think I've ever seen so many good things to choose from.as I have these past few weeks. It's overwhelming!

Pumpkin, squash, Brussels sprouts, beans, cranberries, sweet potatoes, veggies and desserts galore!

And then there are the turkey debates! Who knew there could be so many -- and varied -- opinions about the best way to cook a turkey! (Let's not even talk about turkey alternatives. (Are folks really still intrigued by tofurky?)

Roast at a high temp. No, go slow, Stuff, don't stuff. Breast up, breast down. Baste a lot, don't baste at all. Try deep frying. Put it on the grill. Yikes! Have to admit, I have tried a few experiments that veered from the good ol' fashioned way my mom taught me: "Stuff the bird, put it in a 325 F. oven for four to five hours, baste every half-hour or so, tent it with foil when it gets too brown. It's done when the leg moves easily from the body. Let it rest while you make the gravy. Don't forget the giblets."

And none of them really made a whole lot of difference until I tried brining. Soaking the bird in a salt/sugar solution for a day really does guarantee moist meat throughout. It just means planning further ahead, making sure you have either the fridge space to keep it cool, or a big enough cooler, and plenty of muscles to hoist that baby around. But it is a bit of extra effort. But Thanksgiving is just once a year after all.

I'm not hosting the big feast this year and, because I'm a bit selfish, I wanted to be sure Mr. Rosemary and I had turkey sandwiches next weekend. And, of course, I'm a cook who enjoys experimenting. So I set myself to brining. I had brined a chicken once before -- with great results. Now it was the turkey's turn.

After all the reading I did, I turned to two trusted blogs: Dara from Cookin' Canuck and Linda from Ciao Chow Linda. Both provided excellent blow-by-blow instructions. I used Linda's brine and Dara's roasting how-to.

And we had one great turkey. Moist and tender meat throughout, even all the white meat. Nice mahogany glaze. A success. It was a 22 pounder (all for Mr. Rosemary and me!) so I made several freezer packs of meat and a few containers of stock. It's comforting to know the freezer's well-stocked.

The verdict? Brine! I have to admit brining assures a moist bird. I'm not sure Mom would agree it was worth the extra work, but I bet she would have liked it.

So . . . . how are you cooking a turkey this year?

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Turkey Brine
from Ciao Chow Linda
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 gallon water
2 T. black peppercorns
1 T. allspice berries
1 onion, sliced
1 large bunch sage
6 bay leaves
ice cubes

The day before (or night before) you want to cook the turkey: Using a 5-gallon bucket, line it with a plastic bag. Put the salt, sugar, onion, herbs and spices in a pot on the range with only two cups of water taken from the one gallon of water called for in the recipe. Bring to a boil and stir everything to blend the flavors. Remove from the heat and add some ice cubes to cool it off, plus about half of the remaining water. Put the thawed turkey in the plastic bag in the bucket and add the water and herb mixture. If the bucket needs more water to cover the turkey, add it now.

Here's how Linda keeps the turkey (I kept mine in a covered cooler, well-iced in the garage): Since I can't fit the bucket into my refrigerator, I always place it outdoors on the deck, adding ice cubes to the water to make sure it stays cool. It's never been a problem here in New Jersey in late November, and sometimes it's gotten so cold that the top layer of water has frozen. I don't want to take any risks though, so I always add the ice cubes. Twist the top of the bag and secure it closed. To keep squirrels or birds from pecking into the bag during the night or before it goes into the oven, place a flat baking pan on the top and weigh it down with something heavy. Let it sit overnight and soak.

The next day, drain the turkey from the liquid before roasting. Pat dry, then place your hand between the skin and the breast meat and spread some butter inside with some sage leaves. Alternately, make an herb butter, mixing some softened butter with minced sage, rosemary or other herbs.

Roasted Turkey with Herb Butter

From the kitchen of Cookin Canuck. Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine

3/4 cup butter, softened

3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 tbsp chopped fresh sage

2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 15-to-16 pound turkey

Salt and pepper to season cavity

1 1/4 lb. shallots, peeled and cut in half through the root

1 carrot, unpeeled

1 large celery stalk, cut in half crosswise

1 medium onion, peeled and quartered

3 cups (approximately) chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.In a medium-sized bowl, mix together softened butter, sage, thyme and parsley until well combined.

Remove the neck and other innards from the turkey cavity. Season the cavity with salt and pepper. Place the carrot, celery and onion quarters into the cavity of the turkey.Tie the turkey legs together and tuck the wings underneath the turkey, using small skewers to secure, if necessary.

Starting at the neck end, slide your hands under the breast skin to loosen. Smear 3 tablespoons of the herb butter underneath the breast skin. Smear another 4 tablespoons of the herb butter over the entire topside of the turkey.

Place the turkey in the roasting pan, breast side up. Scatter the shallots around the turkey, on the bottom of the roasting pan.Cover the breasts with foil and place the turkey in the oven. Roast the turkey for 2 hours, basting it with 1/2 cup chicken broth every 30 minutes.

Remove the foil from the breast. If you find that the legs are browning too much, cover each drumstick with foil. Roast the turkey until a thermometer inserted in the deepest part of the thigh (be sure not to hit the bone) registers 170 degrees F, basting every 30 minutes with the pan drippings, about 1 hour total.

Remove the turkey from the oven, transfer it to a platter, tent with foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving. Remove the carrot, celery and onion from the cavity and discard. Remove the shallots from the pan and serve with the gravy. Use the remaining brown bits on the bottom of the pan and the remaining herb butter to make the gravy.

"Little Old Ladies" and Pigs-in-a-Blanket

2011-11-15T10:18:00.001-08:00

You can learn a lot from little old ladies; not so much from pigs in blankets. But they have a lot in common. They’re both comfortable and comforting. They’re old school with lots of staying power. No-frills but classic. And they’re retro fashionable.

"Pigs-in-a-blanket" is the name we always gave stuffed cabbage, or cabbage rolls, while I was growing up. We never had these at home, mind you. It was only at the homes of more ethnic-inspired cooks that I had what I now know are properly called halupki, if you’re Slovakian, or golubki, if you’re Polish. All I remember is the wonderfully homey aroma they dispersed and my mental picture of the mama at one end of the table, papa at the other. And us polite kids, hands washed, grace offered, who said, “Yes, please,” as the mashed potatoes were passed. And “May I please be excused?” before running off to play again, but not before taking our plates to the kitchen. (I sound like I grew up in a “Father Knows Best” TV show or a Norman Rockwell painting!)

Dishes like this -- meatloaf, lasagna, pot roast – have hundreds of variations, don’t they? But, I have to admit, while I’ve made many of my own various versions of those classics, I never made stuffed cabbage. And it’s a western Pennsylvania tradition! I was inspired to make this thanks to a review copy of Little Old Lady Recipes I received courtesy of Quirk Books. The book’s subtitle is: “Comfort Food and Kitchen Wisdom.” And it delivers on that promise.

Every single recipe is something familiar and comforting. Some are hardly recipes at all, like, “Oatmeal.” Or “Cinnamon Toast.” And then there are slightly more complex things like pierogies, goulash, chicken and dumplings, oatmeal raisin dropper, pound cake and gingerbread.

But nothing is fancy. And that’s what author and comedian Meg Favreau wants to share: “What the heck happened to food?” she queries at the start. The book is a tribute to all the simple, good and sassy women who have influenced our cooking over the years.Ms. Favreau says: “It’s time to get back to the comforting foods that made family dinners good. We should be following the advice of women who made those meals and alternated between doting mothers, and tough-as-nails disciplinarians, ladies who worked, raised families, hosted great parties and made the best out of the worst.”

It’s simply a delightful little book. Small in scale but big on kitchen wisdom. There are very few photographs of food in the book. The focus is on “the little old ladies” that Ms. Favreau found and photographer Michael Reali framed. These are real women, with real pearls to share. Take a listen:

“Never taste from the mixing bowl. Or at least, don’t let anybody catch you.”

Amelia, horse trainer, 88

“Everyone’s afraid of lard now.

But it’s not what you eat; it’s how you work after you eat it.”

Eleanor, farmer, 92

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.”Thelma, homemaker, 88

“Condiments are used to hide bad food.”Loretta, nurse, 89

There are lots more like that. And lots of good food and common sense, simple cooking. Although I didn’t follow the recipe in the book, I’m sure it would be “little old lady” approved. The recipe actually comes from Rachel Rapport’s first cookbook, Everything Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook. You may recognize Rachel as author of the blog Coconut and Lime.

Stuffed Cabbage

from Everything Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook

by Rachel Rappaport

Water, as needed

1 large head cabbage

1 teaspoon butter

½ cup sliced onions

28 ounce canned whole tomatoes in puree

½ cup minced onions

1 egg

1 ½ cups cooked long grain rice

½ tablespoon garlic powder

½ tablespoon paprika

1 pound 94% lean ground beef

Bring a large pot of water to boil, enough water to sit below a steamer basket.Prepare the cabbage: Using a long knife, make 4 or 5 cuts around the core of the cabbage and remove the core. Discard the core and 2 layers of the outer leaves.

Peel off 6-8 large whole leaves. Place the leaves in the steamer basket and allow to steam over the boiling water for about 7 minutes. Remove the leaves with tongs and allow them to cool long enough to handle. Dice the remaining cabbage.

In a non-stick skillet, melt the butter. Add sliced onions and diced cabbage and sauté until the onions are soft. Add tomatoes and break them up with the back of a spoon, Simmer about 10 to 15 minutes.

Ladle one-third of the sauce over the bottom of a 4-quart oval slow cooker.Mix the minced onions, egg, rice, spices and beef in a medium sized bowl. Stir to distribute the ingredients evenly.On a clean work area, place a cabbage leaf with the open-side up and the stem facing you. Place about ¼ cup filling on the leaf toward the stem. Fold the side together and then pull the top down to form a packet. It should look like a burrito. Do the same with the rest of the leaves.

Arrange the cabbage rolls, seam side down in a single layer in the slow cooker. Ladle about half the remaining sauce over the rolls, lay another layer and cover with the remainder of the sauce. Cover and cook on low for up to 10 hours.

Good for You Pistachio Baked Salmon

2011-11-09T12:14:00.000-08:00

I don’t think I tasted any fish until I was in mytwenties. I don’t think Friday nightseating deep fried no-name fish count. (As my friend Peg so logically asks, “Can’t you eat fish other nights,too!?!”) The frozen Mrs. Paul’s filletsdon’t count either. And as much as Ilove shellfish, and have since I was a kid, shrimp is an ineligible competitor.

But when I first tasted salmon, I was sold from theget-go. It was meaty, had texture, thiswonderful pink color and it didn’t smell – or taste -- fishy. And now I know that not only is it good, it’s really good for you. Full of those wonderful Omega-3 rich fatty acids that form a shield against heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and a host ofcancers. “Modest amounts” the expertssay, 2 to 3 times a week.

And then there are pistachios. More sturdy soldiers to protect me. Although all nuts aren’t exactly stingy onthe calorie end, they’re great disease armor, too. “A handful of pistachio nuts a day can help destroybad cholesterol, ward off heart disease and prevent cancer,” according to aPenn State study.

That’s a double whammy! The fact that they’re two of my favorite foods made this recipe easy toswallow and easy for me to tell Mr. Rosemary, “But honey, it’s healthy!!” (Well, except for the little bit of sugar.)

And it’s easy to prepare, except for the fact that I had toshell all the nuts, and broke a nail in the process. The only thing to be careful about is to notovercook the salmon. It’s easy to do,especially when you’re dealing with the thin pieces I’m able to get. Unless I make a special trip to the “bigcity” I need to rely on frozen fish here and salmon, since it’s a firm fish,holds up to freezing really well. For meit’s a workhorse and I’m glad it’s working hard for me in return, keeping mehealthy.

Pistachio Baked Salmon

slightly adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

1 cup salted dry roasted pistachio nuts, chopped

½ cup brown sugar, packed

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon dried dillweed

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

½ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

6 6-ounce (each) skinless salmon fillets

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a small bowl combine pistachio nuts, brownsugar, lemon juice, dillweed, black pepper and red pepper flakes. Set aside for a minute.

Line a baking pan with foil, spray it with vegetable andplace the salmon on it. Spoon mixtureonto salmon pieces and press lightly to form a crust.

Bake for 4 to 6 minutes, depending on how thick your piecesare.

Makes 6 servings. About 390 calories each.

At Long Last -- Chicken Tortilla Soup

2011-11-03T04:12:00.000-07:00

I may be the last person on earth to make chicken tortillasoup, let alone eat it. But it was worththe wait. (Even though I wish someonewould have told me before now just how good it is. I’ve wasted a lot of time here.)

When I announced that we were going to have chicken tortillasoup, our son-in-law said something like, “Oh, we just had that atsuch-and-such." And "Didn’t we just make thatat home last week, hon?”

And silly me thought this would be novel. For me it was atad novel because I often just build a soup with what I have on hand.This time I followed a recipe, The Pioneer Woman's. Almost to the letter! That definitely makesit novel.

The reason I made this soup – like the reason I make a lotof things – was not so much based on a grand plan or my weekly menu. Nope. It was just because I had a couple fresh jalapenos on hand. From little jalapenos, great soups grow.

I veered off the printed recipe path only twice: by using the two measly jalapenos I had inthe fridge and by using flour instead of corn tortillas. No, wait. I veered three times. I also didn't cook a chicken; I used rotisserie chicken from the supermarket. Next time I will use the corn tortillas. Moreauthentic. And . . . I'd be following the recipe!

I didn’t realize – although I certainly should have – thatthe tortillas, when cut into skinny strips, would behave just like fettuccinenoodles. Sometimes it doesn’t take much to amuse me.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

slightly adapted from The Pioneer Woman

3 cups cooked chicken, shredded

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup diced onion

¼ cup diced red pepper

¼ cup diced green pepper

2 jalapenos, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 can (10 ounce) Rotel tomatoes and green chilies

32 ounces low sodium chicken broth

3 tablespoons tomato paste

4 cups hot water

2 cans (15 ounce) black beans, drained and rinsed

3 tablespoons cornmeal

5 whole tortillas (flour or corn) cut into uniform strips,about 2 inches long

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions, red and green peppers, jalapenosand minced garlic. Stir and begincooking, then add cumin and chili powder. Stir to combine and add the shredded chicken. Stir again.

Add Rotel, chicken broth, tomato paste, water andbeans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heatto simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes,uncovered.

Mix cornmeal with a small amount of water to make a pasteand add to the soup. Simmer for another30 minutes. Check seasoning, adding more chili powder if needed. Turn off heat and allow to sit for 15 to 20minutes. Five minutes before servinggently stir in the tortilla strips.

Garnish with any or all of the following: sour cream, shredded cheese, diced red onion,chopped scallions, cilantro, avocado.

Meet Kelly Hunt of "Eat Yourself Skinny"

2011-11-01T04:45:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard of Kelly Hunt yet, you soon will. Although she just started her blog, Eat Yourself Skinny, in March 2011, she has already garnered herself well over a thousand Google followers, hundreds of Foodbuzz friends, nearly 5000 Facebook "likes" and about 1500 Twitter followers. That's a lot of networking!

And it's paid off . . . her blog has been nominated for not just one, but two, awards at the upcoming 2011 Foodbuzz Festival. (Winners will be announced the weekend of November 5-6.) Kelly's up for "Best New Blog" and "Best Healthy Blog." She's also been mentioned In Cooking Light, Glamour, NYC Resident Magazine, Honest Cooking, Taste and Tell and ROS: Your Culinary Network. Her photographs have appeared on just about every photo site you can name!

Kelly is a fun-loving and vivacious food blogger who has a passion for cooking and eating well and right. She's determined to show us all that cooking healthy can not only be easy but fun. She throws herself heart and soul into all she does, from loving her Yorkie (named Ollie,just like my daughter's!) to cheering the Caps. And her enthusiasm is contagious. It's also totally ingenuous and sincere. Take a listen . . . .

You've come a long way in a very short time, Kelly. What do you think you've done "right?" Well, one of the most important things I think any blogger should do is first connect with other bloggers. I love to spend any free time I have during the day to comments on other blogs, find new blogs and "friend" them , as well as really getting to know people personally. Twitter is the perfect outlet, and if you don't have a Twitter account already, you should definitely get one! I've made such amazing bloggy friends and it makes networking so much more fun! Also, practicing your photography and having your blog designed professionally helps a lot, too :)

Tell us a little about your day job.
Oh, if only it was cooking and photography, right?? Nope, I'm currently a full-time paralegal at a law form outside DC and I absolutely love my job! It keeps me really busy, but it also gives me access to a computer all day, so in my spare time I'm able to find recipes, check out fantastic blogs and maybe even do a post of my own.
What do you do for lunch?
I typically bring my own lunch to work since we have a nice kitchen with a fridge and microwave so it makes trying to eat healthy pretty easy :) I always have fruit and/or carrot sticks in the fridge for a ready snack when I'm hungry as well as plenty of diet coke to give me my daily sugar fix. {Terrible, I know.} I usually make a salad with cranberries and walnuts with a vinaigrette or else I bring in some leftovers from the night before. My favorite leftovers would have to be my Skinny Chicken Enchiladas. Just sayin' . . . .
How do you fit in exercise?
This is where I've had to tweak and have had trouble with since I started food blogging -- not gonna lie! I don't know about you, but since I have a full-time job and I live in a little one-bedroom apartment with few windows, finding time to cook and photograph my food is hard! I used to exercise about 5:30 every day after work until about 6:30 or 7. Now, I've had to switch it to finding time in the morning before work in order to get a good workout in so that I can run home and cook before the sun goes down so I can get a good picture! {Sigh.} It's quite the change but my body has grown accustomed to waking up at early every day and heading to the gym. Makes me feel better, too.
How do you calculate the nutrition content and the Weight Watchers points for the recipes you share?
If any of y'all know of a quicker way PLEASE let me know! Actually, I just to it the old fashioned way by writing down the nutrition facts for each item I'm using, calculating the entire dish including all the ingredients and then dividing that by the number of servings. And, yep, . . . I just use my nifty, thrifty calculator to do all this. I don;t have a special program or anything. To calculate the Weight Watchers Points for each recipe I do use this little site that calculates both the old and new points, which is really helpful to me.
Most of us food bloggers love to watch cooking shows. Do you have a favorite show?
YES! I sure do. I'm completely addicted to the Food Network and my absolute favorite show is Giada at Home. Her cooking style and the way she carries herself is so fun to watch and I love learning from her! Also (believe it or not) I LOVE Paula Deen! I know she's in no way considered a "healthy" cook, but her recipes are always fabulous and I love taking them and trying to find ways to make them healthier:) It gives me a challenge and, well, she's just super fun to watch!
One of my favorite recipes from your blog is your Strawberry Bruschetta. Name a favorite -- or two -- of yours.
Aw, thank you so much! My favorite recipe to make {and EAT!} is my Lemon and Rosemary Chicken. Your entire meal in ONE skillet, takes little to no effort to whip up and is so healthy and delicious! I found this recipe through the Food Network and everyone who has tried it loves it:) I also love my Minty Mango Salsa which tastes great on its own or even with pork chops.

Have you ever attended a food blogging conference?
Unfortunately, no, I haven't :( I had wanted to attend this year's Foodbuzz Festival in San Francisco, but being on the East Coast in Virginia made it difficult to try and make plans ahead of time for. I'm hoping to go to one next year, though!
How did you first learn of blogging?
Well, I've always LOVED cooking and anytime I wanted a recipes I'd just type something into Google and would come across a few food blogs here and there. It wasn't until I found For the Love of Cooking that I became fascinated with the idea. I couldn't stop reading all her recipes and ultimately she inspired me to do my own, just for my friends and family. Then I stumbled upon Foodbuzz and decided to go all out and see what happens!
What's one piece of advice you'd give someone considering starting a food blog?
Network, network, NETWORK! Making friends through food blogging is not only fun, but I feel is really essential to bringing traffic to your blog. The more you comment on other blogs, the more people want to come and check out yours. I also try and respond back to each and every comment I receive; that way, I get to know the people who are commenting and find new blogs to be inspired by. I also like to practice my photography as much as possible :) The more attractive your photos, the more acceptance you get on sites like Foodgawker and Tastespotting, which allows even more exposure to your blog. See? Easy peasy!

* * * * * * *

She sure makes it sound easy! And she just got herself a spanky new camera, so she's planning to dial up her picture-taking a notch or two. So, watch out, world! Kelly's coming!

Too Many Green Tomatoes? Make Chutney

2011-10-27T03:56:00.000-07:00

There’s something about the very word “chutney” that I’vealways thought exotic. I suppose that’sbecause it was something foreign to me as a child. We had Welch’s grape jelly (in Flintstone glasses or maybe Tom and Jerry) or we had pickle relish. Chutney kind of mixes those together.

I do vaguely recall Christmas gift packages my parents wouldreceive, filled with cheese, meat, crackers and a jar of something with “MajorGrey” emblazoned on it. Since then I’veseen jars of all kinds of chutney, including the Major, in gourmet food shops.But still I kept my distance. It wasunfamiliar.

So why make chutney? Why now?

I’ll eat anything. (Just ask Mr. Rosemary.)
I love to experiment. (Ditto.)
I had a whole bunch of green tomatoes still sitting on the vine. With a heavy frost sure to hit any day now, I needed to do something.

Enter Martha. I oftenturn to one of my big bible-type cookbooks when I have a need tomake an indefinable something with a particular something. I found this Green Tomato Chutney recipe in the huge The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook, The Original Classics. That’s the orange one. I have the blue one, too; that’s the New Classicsversion. And I do consult them often.

So I had all the ingredients, I knew the chutney would keepa long time and I had visions of, not sugarplums, but pretty jars of myhomemade chutney as charming Christmas gifts.

This particular recipe was pretty time-consuming,though. And I found that paring greentomatoes is a whole lot harder than with ripe tomatoes.

My verdict? It’spretty good. And I didn't waste the tomatoes. I’ve been eating it on mymorning toast, on top of a smear of mascarpone cheese. My neighbor Dick stopped by soon after Ifinished making the chutney and I made him taste it. He’s a great guinea pig. He just took the cracker I offered without even asking what it was andimmediately declared, “Tastes like mincemeat.” A spot on description.

Chutneys are just a condiment, and as varied as any salsa orrelish. Usually, it’s a sweet-sour mixof fruit and vegetable combinations with vinegar and sugar, cooked well down.Next time, I’d use apple instead of raisins. (Mr. Rosemary's comment: "I relish relish; I don't 'chutney' chutney.")

But my visions of Christmas presents of chutney? Sorry, but not gonna happen.

Green Tomato Chutney

from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook, The OriginalClassics

1 large bunch fresh mint, roughly chopped

4 pounds green tomatoes

2 yellow onion (1 pound), finely diced

1 ½ cup white vinegar

1 ½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup golden raisins

1. Cover and bring a large stock pot of water to a boil. Tiemint in a piece of cheesecloth. Setaside. Prepare an ice water bath. Setaside

2. Using a paring knife, remove the core and score the endof each tomato with a shallow “x”. Blanch the tomatoes in the boiling water for 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoesto the ice bath. Using a paring knife,peel off the skin and discard. Cut the tomatoes into ¾ inch chunks and setaside.

3. Combine theonions, vinegar, mint bundle, sugar, salt, raisins and 1 cup water in alow-sided 6-quart saucepan. Cover andbring to a boil over medium high heat.

4. Add the tomatoesand reduce to a simmer. Cook, stirringfrequently until the tomatoes are tender, about 1 hour.

5. Increase the heatto high and continue cooking stirring frequently until almost all the liquid isabsorbed, about 5 minutes. Remove thepan from the heat and discard the mint bundle.

6. Transfer thechutney immediately to a large bowl over the ice bath to chill. Chutney can bestored, refrigerated in an airtight container up to 4 weeks.

Makes 6 half-pint jars.

Tomato Soup Comfort and the Fairy Hobmother

2011-10-20T12:14:00.000-07:00

When you’re under the weather, there’s nothing like afriendly visit from neighbors to cheer you up. When they’re bearing gifts, even better.

When they’re bearing food gifts, well, that’s off-the-charts better.

Last week, the day after I returned home after an overnightstay in the hospital – it was a scheduled trip and everything’s okay -- I answered the door and there were myneighbors bearing a whole box of homemade goodies. Chicken noodle soup, vegetable soup, tomato soup, pickles and afreshly baked loaf of wheat bread, wrappedin a linen tea towel, still warm from the oven. (That has to be one of the world’s best aromas! No wonder real estateagents recommend baking bread before a buying prospects visit.)

The week before, my sisters had armed me with a week’s worthof freezer meals, too – a sausage barley stew, a chicken and bean stew, chili,and spaghetti sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes. All delectable.

I was all set for a no-cooking recuperation! At least nocooking out of necessity . . . there was that pumpkin cheesecake!

Great comfort food from wonderful cooks and wonderfullygenerous people can’t be beat. I’m luckyto have such wonderful people in my life. And Mr. Rosemary has attentivelynursed me back to good spirits. (And hedidn’t have to cook!)

A visit from the Fairy Hobmother was another recent surprise. After I made a comment on Sam’s blog at My CarolinaKitchen, I received a visit from The Fairy Hobmother. The Fairy Hobmother, who representsAppliances Online, granted me a wish with a nice gift card to Amazon.com. Thanks, Fairy Hobmother. The good news is that the same thing can happento you. All you have to do is leave acomment here and the Fairy Hobmother could visit you, too.

A surprise visitor bearing gifts! Pretty comforting.

No recipe today . . . just comfort. (And just one more fall picture, I promise.)

P.S. I have to add that my neighbor's tomato soup was simple and delicious! Nothing at all like the stuff we got at the school cafeteria!

Pumpkin Cheesecake and Compromise

2011-10-13T13:58:00.000-07:00

“It should either be a pumpkin pie or a cheesecake. Just not together!

That was Mr. Rosemary’s response when I told him what I wasmaking for his sister’s birthday.

“You made this before, didn’t you?” he asked.

I nodded demurely.

“And I didn’t like it then, did I?”

“Well,” said I. “Youdidn’t rave about it. But you ate it,” Iquietly reasoned. And, after all, itwasn’t his birthday. (I didn’t say that last part out loud.)

“Hmmph.” he said. I took that as a concession and proceeded on my merry way inthe kitchen.

The next day as he saw me unmolding the cheesecake from itsspringform confines, he wanted to know if I was happy with the way it turnedout.

I wasn’t sure how to answer because I didn’t know yet. Idaringly mixed up two different recipes, because I liked pieces of each. The cheesecake looked good, but you (or atleast, I, unconfident baker that I am) never know until you cut into acake, even a cheesecake. I feared it wasgoing to be a bit dry. Over baking (or is itunder baking?) is my biggest baking sin.

So, just for insurance, I was ready with my secret weapon –a jar of caramel ice cream topping in the pantry. I’d drizzle that on top of the cake in aspider web fashion and it would look moist and pretty and the eye would fool the discerning tasters.

I needn’t have worried. It wasn’t dry. It was very good. Very,very good. So, next time, I’ll make myown caramel sauce.

As for Mr. Rosemary’s verdict? Since there were two cakes for the crowd thatcelebrated Liz’s birthday, he opted for the chocolate-mint cake. When he heard other people comment on mycheesecake, though, he said, “Okay, I’ll try a piece.”

“Hmmm,” he said, as his face crinkled in that way I knowmeans he likes it. “This is really good.”-- like he didn’t believe everyone elseuntil he tasted it himself.

I’d call that a win, wouldn’t you?

Blending two recipes – plus winging it a little – workssometimes. And sometimes itdoesn’t, I got lucky and have me akeeper.

My marriage of the recipes was a compromise, just like any marriage. One called for an 8-inch pan; I only have a10-inch springform pan. One said bakelonger at 350. The other said to bake at325 lower but keep in the turned off oven. One asked for 3 eggs, one for 4. I wrote down what I did as I was doingit so, here it is . . . . .

Pumpkin Cheesecake

An adaptation based oncombining recipes from Joy of Bakingand Peter Christian’s Recipes

Serves 10-16 people, depending on how fat you cut yourslices!

Crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

½ cup crushed ginger snapcookies (about 10)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

5 tablespoons melted butter

For Filling:

! ½ pounds cream cheese (38-ounce bricks), softened

½ cup brown sugar

¼ cup maple syrup

1 ½ teaspoon vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cloves

1/ teaspoon allspice

¼ teaspoon ginger

4 eggs, room temperature

¼ cup melted and cooledbutter

For Topping:

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ cup white sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degreesFahrenheit. Prepare graham cracker crustand pat into a 10 inch springform pan. Bake in oven 8 to 10 minutes. Cool while getting the filling ready.

In mixing bowl cream well andmix on high speed the cream cheese brown sugar maple syrup and vanilla on highspeed. Then add and mix well thepumpkin, flour and spices, scraping often and incorporating all lumps.

Then add eggs, one at a time,blending well after each addition.

Finally add the butter. Spread filling in pan. Place an empty cake pan half filled withwater on the bottom rack of oven. (Thishelps add moisture to the baking process.)

Bake for 40 minutes. Meanwhile make topping by blending the sourcream, vanilla and sugar. Remove cake from oven and spread with the sourcream mixture. Return to oven and turnthe oven off. Leave cake there with doorclosed for another 40 minutes. Remove fromoven to rack and cool. When cooledcompletely, refrigerate overnight or at least 4 to 6 hours.

Indian Summer Roasted Corn and Pepper Salad

2011-10-10T13:22:00.000-07:00

What an absolutely gorgeous Indian summer weekend we justhad here in western Pennsylvania! Sunny skies. A kaleidoscope of color. I wish I could have just freeze framed it.

We almost felt we were cheated out of this all too shortseason by some premature chilly weather last week. (We cleared slush off the car one morning.) “Isn’t this still September?” I asked. But then we were blessed with four straightdays of this glorious weather. Can’tcomplain.

And it called for the perfect Indian summer treat, one thatstill celebrated the bounty of fresh harvest. The colors just mimic all thebright colors of the weekend.

I'd frozen leftover roasted corn from a Labor Day picnic and had just roasted some peppers. All the makings of a great pairing. This was apretty mild salad and I’d spice it up more next time -- jalapeno, maybe, or cumin, or just a dash ofsriracha or Tabasco.

Roasted Corn and Pepper Salad

3 cups roasted corn, cut from cob

2 cups roasted red pepper, diced

½ cup scallion, sliced

½ red onion, diced

¼ cup parsley

For dressing:

½ cup sour cream

½ cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1 ½ teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon pepper

Combine vegetables and parsley in bowl. Whisk remaining ingredients, pour overvegetables and toss lightly to combine. Serve chilled.

And here was the big finish. I took this picture Sunday evening from our hilltop. It was breathtaking in real life.

Tomato Granita

2011-09-30T04:09:00.000-07:00

I don’t want to complain abut the tremendous tomato season I’veenjoyed, especially after I’ve been cursed with some pretty meager harvests inrecent years, but I’ve been running out of things to do with this bounty. I’ve canned sauce, frozen sauce,roasted tomatoes, made soup, tomato pies, caprese salads, panzanella., eaten plentyof tomato sandwiches. Need I go on?

But they’re still coming! And me, out of ideas – not to mention time and space. And I hateto waste all this good stuff. My sistertold me about a tomato bacon jam that sounds too irresistible to pass up and I’vebeen tempted by some very interesting drink recipes but thefirst thing that intrigued me as I searched for something new was this TomatoGranita. Only three ingredients and abit of time and attention. Imagine! Frozen tomato slush!

The recipe comes from a book called The Essential Mediterranean, by Nancy Harmon Jenkins, who wrote the Mediterranean DietCookbook.

This book has off and on been great bedside reading because it’s not justrecipes (although I can read recipes just like fiction) but great descriptionsof the intimate connection of food andculture that have so colored the countries that surround the Mediterranean– howthe same ingredients take on new forms and taste as they make their way aroundthe sea.

The name of this dish sounds so pretty in Italian – Granita diPomodoro. (Much better than tomatoslush.)

The author says that this dish "makes an elegant entremet for a dinner party . . . or a startling but delicious dessert." I had to run straight to Wikipedia to look up entremet. It just means something served between courses, what I grew up calling "palate cleanser," which was usually some kind of sherbet.

For me, the granita was just a pretty tasty treat. And it was just for me. Mr. Rosemary loves tomato sauce and will eat cooked tomatoes, but not fresh. Me? I can eat them like apples. And have.

Because it has both chili pepper and corn syrup in it, it's a mix of spicy and sweet. And the chunky cold texture of the granita somehow enhances both the spiciness and sweetness.

And when you have pretty much just tomatoes in a recipe, they have to be nearly perfect and very ripe tomatoes. The recipe specified romas -- and I had plenty -- but says any fresh red ripe tomato will do nicely. My trouble was finding a substitute for chili pepper.

Nancy Harmon Jenkins advises that you want the flavor of a chili but not the mouth burning qualities of some Mexican or Caribbean types. So I had some dried peppers I'd ground myself and used them but they weren't well-labeled so I can't tell you for sure what they were.

My bottom line? A great experiment but probably not something I'll likely make again. If I ever host a really fancy dinner party and need an entremet, however, this is the one I would make.

Tomato Granita
from The Essential Mediterranean, by Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Makes 8-10 servings as an entremet, 6 as a dessert

1 1/2 pounds very red ripe tomatoes, peeled
1 tablespoon fragrant ground chili pepper
1/4 cup light corn syrup

The day before making, halve the tomatoes and gently squeeze out the seeds and excess liquid. Coarsely chop and store, covered in the fridge overnight.

The next day, combine the tomatoes and the chili pepper in a food processor and process in brief spurts, adding the corn syrup as you do. Don't make a puree; you want a chunky mixture.

If you have an ice cream maker, follow the manufacturer's instructions for sorbets and granitas. Or turn the mixture into a stainless steel bowl, cover well, and freeze. Every 20 minutes or so, stir the mixture with a fork. Within an hour or two, you'll have the granular ice chucks typical of a granita. (I used this second method.)

Hula Hoop the Chocolate Chip Cupcakes Away!

2011-09-20T13:29:00.000-07:00

Like any self-respecting home cook (especially one who keeps a blog!), I watch the The Food Network and The Cooking Channel when I can. You always need new inspiration. That’s in addition, of course, to thehalf-dozen magazines I get, the 100 + cookbooks that grace my shelves, the myriadclippings I collect (some quite yellowed), the yet-to-be-organized print-outsfrom the internet, as well as the 50-odd food blogs and websites I try to visitregularly. That’s a lot of inspiration!

Trouble is, I have trouble working in some kind of routineexercise into that food absorption. Often, I will watch food shows while I hula hoop. A half-hour show is perfect for this kind ofmulti-tasking: I do my hula hoop fortwenty minutes and then concentrate on the show for ten minutes (or maybe foldlaundry).

The irony of exercising while slobbering over foodpossibilities is not lost on me.

A couple weeks ago I was going doing my hula hoop whilewatching Giada De Laurentiis. Can’tremember which show. (Which made findingthe recipe just a little bit of a search.) But she made these chocolate chipcupcakes look so irresistible, I was drooling over my hula hoop.

And I had a couple of real good excuses: my friend’s birthday was coming up, thegrandsons were camping with their parents nearby, and my college girlfriendswere coming for a visit, too! So . . . Imade them. Twice. And they were doubly delicious.

When Giada said the recipe started with a brownie mix from abox, she only half-apologized and said they were that good. I believedher. And it's true. I only made a couple changes fromher original recipe:

I subbed coffee for the water she used.
I used regular sized chocolate chips instead of themini-chips she recommended.
And I added peanut butter to the mascarpone-cream cheesefrosting.

A word on the hula hoop: It really works. It’s a weightedhula hoop – 4 pounds.

This is not me.

When I first usedit, I had a tough time keeping it going for more than a minute at a time, but Ido 20 minutes at a time and although I’m don’t do it all the time, I surenotice when I don’t! Makes a bigdifference and really works whittling away my midriff. Which is a very good thing if you like to eatbrownie cupcakes like these. And I do.

Chocolate Chip Walnut Cupcakes

only slightly adapted from Giada Di Laurentiis

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, plus ¼ cup for garnish

1 (21 ounce) box brownie mix (Giada recommended Duncan HinesChewy Fudge)

2 eggs, room temperature

½ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup brewed coffee

Frosting

4 ounces mascarpone cheese, room temperature

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter

3 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Place than oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheatthe oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cupmuffin pan with paper liners.

In small bowl, combine the walnuts, 1 cup chocolate chipsand 1 tablespoon of the brownie mix. Toss until the nuts and chips are well coated and set aside. (Doing this helps keep the chips and nuts from sinking to the bottom.)

In large, bowl, mix together the remaining brownie mix,eggs, vegetable oil and coffee. Stir for30 seconds until blended. Fold in thenuts and chips. Spoon the mixture intothe prepare pan. (Cupcakes will be full.)

Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center comes out withmoist fudgy crumbs. Cool the cupcakes inthe pan for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely beforefrosting, about 30 minutes.

For the frosting, using an electric hand mixer, beat the twocheese together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Then gradually beat in the powdered sugaruntil smooth and spreadable. Then mix in 2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter. Refrigeratefrosting until ready to use. Spread thefrosting on top of the cupcakes and garnish with chocolate chips. Refrigerate until ready to serve, but serveat room temperature.

The Last Roast of Summer: Island Pork Tenderloin Salad

2011-09-14T04:48:00.000-07:00

If you want to savor summer one last time, make this porkroast salad. It looks like a lot ofingredients – and there are – but, remember, it’s a whole meal.

Actually, you could make it anytime this winter, wheneveryou want to be reminded that there is a sun and there are warm places outthere, because it’s all cooked indoors. A little stove top searing of the meat, a little roasting and then thesalad assembly.

This meal combines the warmth of the pork (and its spicyseasonings) and the cool freshness of the citrus pieces and the creaminess ofthe avocado. All just plain yummy.

I love fall; it’s my favorite season. And I love Septemberbest of all. (Did you know that whenpeople are asked what their favorite month is 9 out of 10 people will picktheir birthday month? I feel sorry forJanuary birthday people.)

Still, I don’t like what’s ahead. It seems like winter lasts six months aroundhere. I’m glad to know I have mydaughter in Tampato visit!

Remember this dish when you want a taste of a wintergetaway. It just may transport you.

Island Pork Tenderloin Salad

Gourmet May 2003

For pork:

2 teaspoons salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 pork tenderloins (2 ¼ to 2 ½ pounds total)

2 tablespoons olive oil

For glaze:

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic

1 tablespoon Tabasco

For vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon Dijonmustard

1 teaspoon curry powder, toasted

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

½ cup olive oil

For salad:

3 navel oranges

5 ounces baby spinach, trimmed (6 cups leaves)

4 cups thinly sliced Napacabbage (from 1 medium head)

1 red bell pepper, cut lengthwise into thin strips

½ cup golden raisins

2 firm-ripe avocados

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Stir together salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder andcinnamon, then coat pork with spice rub.

Heat oil in an ovenproof 12-inch heavy skillet overmoderately high heat until just beginning to smoke, then brown pork, turning,about 4 minutes total. Remove pan fromheat but leave pork in skillet.

Stir together brown sugar, garlic and Tabasco and pat on top of eachtenderloin. Roast in the middle of theoven until thermometer inserted diagonally in center of each tenderloinregisters 140 degrees F, about 20 minutes. Let pork stand at room temperature 10 minutes. (Temperature will rise to about 155 degrees Fwhile resting.)

Make vinaigrette while pork roasts. Whisk together juices, mustard curry powder,salt and pepper, then add oil in a stream, whisking until emulsified.

Prepare salad ingredients while pork stands. Cut peel, including white pith, from orangeswith a sharp knife, then cut oranges crosswise into ¼ inch thick slices. Toss spinach, cabbage, bell pepper andraisins in a large bowl with about ¼ cup vinaigrette. Halve, pit and peel avocados, then cutdiagonally into ¼ inch slices.

Cut pork at a 45-degree angle into ½ inch slices. Line a large platter with dressed salad andarrange pork, oranges and avocados in rows on top. Drizzle some vinaigrette over avocados andoranges. Pour any juices over pork.

B is for Blondie Brownies with Brown Butter from "The Cookiepedia"

2011-09-07T08:35:00.000-07:00

Now that’s a tongue twister, isn’t it? But a darn good taste tempter, too! The recipe for these brownies came from a newcookbook, The Cookiepedia, by Stacy Adimando. The subtitle of the book is “Mixing, Baking and Reinventing theClassics” and the book delivers on the promise.

The book also has a stylish, light-hearted design, a hardcover spiral bound book, with clever pencil drawings, lively writing and lovely photographs,too. Every cookie is pictured. Baker’s tips are sprinkled throughout thebook, along with suggestions for making personalized versions.

This blondie is just one example: A simple change from a traditional blondie by using brown butter adds a nutty flavor to the brownies that takes it up a notch.

(A few years ago when one sister’s only son was graduatinghigh school, many if not all stops were pulled out to fete the young manproperly, including replicating his favorite dessert: the blondies from Applebee’s where he workedat the time. My sister found the recipeall right; he was pleased, they were delicious, but you ought to try these onhim, too, Jiggy.)

I used to think, non-baker that I am, that brown butter wasreserved for savory dishes, like a simple sauce for steamed vegetables, or withsage, a great topping for squash ravioli.

But I’ve opened myself up to the possibilities of baking with brownbutter – or beurre noisette, as the French call it.

The book is cleverly organized, too, dividing the cookiesinto the major categories of buttery, chocolaty, fancy, fruity, spicy and nuttyand seedy cookies. You’ll find all theclassics – snickerdoodles, pignoli cookies, macarons, Florentines, pecansandies, shortbreads, linzers, chocolate chip – along with some newbies, likegreen tea, cornmeal, sesame crisps, salt-and-pepper cookies, andeverything-but-the-kitchen-sink cookies (which suggests adding potato chips,among other things).

The book is both a primer, because there are lots of term descriptions and ideas for decorating, and an advanced course, because it offerslots of suggestions for taking the original recipes on slightly different tastetrails. Along with suggested options,there are lots of tips for successful baking, much needed for hard cases likemyself. If I were to make every one of the 50 recipesin the book, I’d be one cookie queen.

The addition of brown butter to the blondies did add awonderfully nuttiness to the brownies. Such a simple change can make a big difference! But the cookie I really want to try are alfajores,little buttery, sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche. Although Stacy suggests purchasing the dulcede leche, I think, come Christmas, I’d like to make it myself.

Or maybe it’s the cornmeal cookies with rosemary I’ll bemaking next. Or the sables with lemonzest. Hard to say.

The author is the deputy lifestyle editor for Every Day withRachel Ray and a contributor to Serious Eats. She knows her cookies and has put together a pretty complete cookiebook. It went on sale September 6. Some great early Christmas shopping!

Couple cautions with these blondies, though: Do not multi-task when browning thebutter. It doesn’t take long. Elise at Simply Recipes offers a greattutorial. And do err on the underside ofbake times.

Blondie Brownies with Brown Butter

From The Cookiepedia, by Stacy Adimando
Makes 2 dozen bars

1 cup unsalted butter

2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 ½ cups light brown sugar

½ cup sugar

2 eggs

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

2/3 cup chocolate chips

2/3 cups toasted pecans, chopped

Coarse salt (sea salt or kosher) for sprinkling

(Optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Start by browning the butter. Melt it in a saucepan on medium heat. When the foaming subsides, start swirling thepan to keep the butter moving. Continueto cook until it changes from a light yellow to a deep golden, stopping justwhen you see the color change happen. Take it off the heat and pour into a bowl to cool.

Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder and salt into abowl and set aside.

Beat the melted butte and sugars together. Add eggs and vanilla and beat for severalminutes or until the mixture looks thick and silky. Add the dry ingredients one third at a timeand mix until combined. Stir in the chocolatechips and mix until combined. Stir inthe chocolate chips and pecans.

Grease a 9 X 13 inch baking pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchmentpaper, then grease the parchment paper.

Pour the dough onto the parchment paper and spread it evenlywith a spatula or slightly wet hand. Bake30 to 35 minutes (err on the shorter side for doughier brownies) until atoothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Sprinkle lightly with the coarse salt. Let cool completely before removing from thepan. Cut into squares.

* * * *

Thanks to Quirk Books for sending me a copy of Stacy Adimando's The Cookiepedia.

Olives, Anyone? Everyman's Olive Cheese Bread

2011-08-29T05:20:00.000-07:00

When it comes to olives, I’ve learned, there are two camps of people: They either love ‘em or they hate ‘em. Then there are some who say that they like the green ones, but not the black ones (or vicey versey.) It matters not with this cheesy bread. Even avowed olive haters have converted when they taste a bite of this bread . . . and they’ll be back for more.

I do believe, though, that all the heart-healthy benefits of the good fat in olives are totally eclipsed by the butter, cheese and mayo that go into the making of this artery clogging treat. But want to be a hit at the Labor Day picnic this weekend? Take this bread.

The recipe comes from The Pioneer Woman*. When she writes about it in her first cook book (and on the website) she labels it “chick food” because she served it an all-woman dinner she hosted and was besieged with requests for the recipe, more so than for all the other dishes on the menu, which included beef. (She also notes that her meat-loving Marlboro Man wouldn’t touch it with a ten-foot cattle prod.)

But after serving this bread several times, I’ve found there is no sexual bias. Man and woman both enjoy drooling over the melty cheese. The olives seem to merely add a saltiness and definite color to the bread topping. It’s very simple, very tasty and pretty much a crowd pleaser. Even if it is just a once-in-a-blue-moon-because-I-want-to stay-healthy-treat. Hate olives? Give it a try. And don’t bother getting deli olives; the ones in the can will do just fine.

There are only two slight changes I have made with this bread. I use a Monterey Jack cheese that has jalapeno peppers in it and I’ve extended the original cooking time by 15 minutes; could just be my oven, or my taste. I want a little browned toastiness to the edges of the bread and cheesy topping.

* I forgot to set the DVR to catch The Pioneer Woman’s new show on The Food Network last Saturday morning. Did anyone catch it?

Olive Cheese Bread
only slightly adapted from The Pioneer Woman
Serves 12

1 loaf French bread
1 14.5 ounce can black olives, drained
1 6 ounce jar pimiento stuffed green olives, drained
2 stalks of green onions
¼ pound (1 stick) butter
½ cup real mayonnaise
1 pound Monterey Jack cheese grated

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Roughly chop both olives and green onions. In a large bowl, mix olives and onions with softened butter, mayonnaise and cheese

Cut bread in half lengthwise. Divide mixture in half and spread over each half. It looks like a lot, but it will work.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Slice and serve.

A Dilly of a Potato Salad

2011-08-24T05:14:00.000-07:00

There’s really nothing terribly remarkable about this potato salad, pretty standard fare. Except for the fact that it is now my own, perfected after years of experimenting and tinkering and fine tuning. And except for the fact that most of the ingredients come from, if not my own garden, my neighbor’s down the road. The satisfaction factor goes way up when your own produce stars in your food. My own dill, my own onions, and my neighbor’s spuds and eggs. Makes for one fine (and dilly of a) potato salad.

I’ve had so much dill this summer that I took to bringing flowering stalks of it and putting it in the kitchen window. What a refreshing fragrance! And so pretty, too. Plus cutting the flowers saved me from seeing those flowers spreading their seed all over the garden. And although dried dill weed also works in this salad, there’s nothing like fresh.

It’s the pureeing of the onion that really makes this salad, though. If you’re not a big dill fan, the dressing works well without it; you may have to add more seasoning, though. (And definitely some chopped Italian parsley.) Enough onion juice helps to thin the mayo and sour cream a little and the onions are so fine, you’re never really biting into raw onion, but the flavor is definitely there.

The onion secret is one I learned from my mom. She was a fan of grating a small amount of onion into things -- casseroles, soups, salads. (“They won’t taste the onion, honey. They’ll just know it tastes good.”) My 12 year-old self crying at the box grater wasn’t so sure!

Toes’* Dilled Potato Salad

3 pounds red potatoes
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 small white onion
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
¼ cup fresh dill, chopped
3 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the potatoes in a large pot covered with water. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add 2 tablespoons kosher salt, lower the heat to a simmer and cook about 15 minutes, until a fork pierces about a third of the way into the potato. Drain the potatoes in a colander and then place the colander back over the now dry pot. Cover with a clean, dry kitchen towel and let steam for about 15 to 20 minutes. (I learned this tip from Ina Garten.)

Meanwhile, make the dressing. In a food processor, place the onion, cut up into manageable pieces and nearly make a puree out of it. Add the mayo and sour cream and the dill and whirl until blended.

When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut up into about ¾ inch pieces. Add the dressing, eggs and celery and gently mix together. Taste and add as much salt and freshly ground pepper as you like.
Chill for several hours before serving.

* I guess I should explain the “Toes” thing – it’s just a family nickname. Growing up I was always called Rosie. And somehow Rosie-Posie morphed into Rose-Toes, eventually dropping the Rose half. I thought about my family nickname for my blog, but somehow “toes” and “food” together just didn’t make it.

For the Love of Mikey -- Peanut Butter Pie

2011-08-15T14:31:00.000-07:00

I don't know Jennie. I just know Jennie's blog. She is a delightful writer, a woman now so heartbreakingly saddened by the sudden death of her too young husband -- Mikey. After an inevitable outpouring of sympathy and prayers, particularly from food bloggers and writers, she suggested that those who wanted to do something should make this peanut butter pie and share it with someone you love. Hundreds of peanut butter pies were made last Friday. I learned of about this from the meaning of pie. And I immediately checked the pantry and made the pie.
Last Thursday, a dear friend of ours complained about heartburn. A few hours later, he was in the hospital, with, as you might guess, a heart attack. He's okay, but shaken. As are we. And sensitized to how precious life is. And how complacent we can become.
Mr. Rosemary likes no dessert better than anything with nuts and chocolate. Making this pie was an act of love. And after he ate a piece of pie, he got the world's biggest hug.

Creamy Peanut Butter Pie
Serves 10 to 12
from In Jennie's Kitchen

8 ounces chocolate cookies
4 tablespoons butter, melted
4 ounces finely chopped chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup creamy-style peanut butter
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1 – 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Add the cookies to the bowl of a food processor and pulse into fine crumbs. Combine melted butter and cookie crumbs in a small bowl, and stir with a fork to mix well. Press mixture into the bottom and 1-inch up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave. Pour over bottom of cookie crust and spread to the edges using an off-set spatula. Sprinkle chopped peanuts over the melted chocolate. Place pan in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.
Pour the heavy cream into a bowl and beat using a stand mixer or hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Transfer to a small bowl and store in refrigerator until ready to use. Place the cream cheese and peanut butter in a deep bowl. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and gradually beat in the confectioner's sugar. Add the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract and lemon juice. Increase speed to medium and beat until all the ingredients are combined and filling is smooth.
Stir in 1/3 of the whipped cream into the filling mixture (helps lighten the batter, making it easier to fold in the remaining whipped cream). Fold in the remaining whipped cream. Pour the filling into the prepared springform pan. Drizzle the melted chocolate on top, if using, and refrigerate for three hours or overnight before serving.

Chard & Cannellini Crustless Quiche and (No) Regrets

2011-08-12T04:17:00.000-07:00

I really don’t have any regrets about my life’s choices. There have been mistakes, sure, but it’s comforting to think that this grasshopper learned some good lessons along the way. The only thing I sometimes wish I’d done differently is having the chance to live completely on my own. I’ve never really done that. (And if I had, I would have made dishes like this more often.)

When I went away several hundred miles to college (and what seems like several hundred years ago), I was assigned to live in dormitory with all single rooms. What was initially lonely turned out to be a terrific way to make new friends. We were all in the same boat. By sophomore year, my three new BFF’s and I were using the lowest lottery number among us to pick the best “quad” room we could – a huge renovated classroom that was our home for the school year. What a blast we had there!

The following year, one of us took a break from school, and then there were three. This time, our number was even better and we “won” a beautiful suite, two bedrooms, bath, beautiful view. Then mid-year, one of us got the marriage bug and abandoned us. Now we were two and Michele and I reveled in our luxurious little apartment.

LeMans Hall at St. Mary's Collge, Notre Dame Indiana

By senior year, though, Michele was ready to move off campus and rent a house with several other friends. Although I was welcome, I really didn’t want to go. I liked campus life. So I stayed behind and this time chose another single! Most of the rooms on the same floor were also singles, so we were enjoying the ebb and flow of wanting privacy and then company. We were mostly English majors, it so happened, so I had another sense of community.

It wasn’t until several years later when I was having an intimate chat with my mother that she shared with me how much she enjoyed living a few years on her own after she graduated college. It wasn’t because Mom was a party animal. Au contraire! The experience taught her real independence and responsibility. She worked all day as a teacher, was involved with school activities, might go skating, grade her papers and fall into bed. And she said she wished that I had been able to do the same at that tender age, instead of taking the long way like I have. I hadn’t really thought about it until she mentioned it. I had pretty much jumped from home to college to marriage to working to motherhood, to making that all work together.

But it’s just a minor regret. I can see myself as a young woman decorating a little studio apartment, cooking in a teeny tiny “kitchenette,” entertaining friends with great dinners on a card table graced with candles. (Actually, I had my eye on a great looking carriage house.) But if I had taken that turn, maybe I wouldn’t have ended up here and I wouldn’t trade this life for anything.

Back to cooking – I often fall back on egg dishes. Eggs, especially Dude’s eggs, are a great way to make a motley collection of stuff come together. This dish came together because I had a lot of Swiss chard growing in the garden. This “crustless” quiche is a great way to cut back on the carbs a bit. And the reason I call it a crustless quiche instead of a frittata is because everything just goes straight to the oven – no stove top cooking of the eggs to start. I wish I would have taken a picture of this as soon as it came out of the oven. It looked so pretty then, all puffy and golden brown, looked like a soufflé. Whatever it’s called, it was delicious, especially with the addition of the curry powder. I only regret not adding something red - like peppers or tomatoes for a little color kick

Chard & Cannellini Crustless Quiche
About 4 cups fresh Swiss chard leaves (a big bowful)
2 tablespoons butter, divided
½ cup chopped onions
1 cup cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
4 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon curry powder

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly film a 9 inch pie pan with vegetable spray. Melt the butter in a high-sided frying pan and cook the Swiss chard leaves until wilted. Remove from pan to a cutting board and roughly chop. Wipe out the pan and add another tablespoon of butter and sauté the onion until transparent, not browned. Place the chard, onion, beans, and Swiss cheese evenly in the pie pan. Then whisk the eggs and half-and-half together. Add the curry powder and pour the custard over the veggies. Carefully place in oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Visit My Farm, Have a Great Cookie -- and an Award!

2011-08-01T04:24:00.000-07:00

When my stepdaughter posted these pretty pictures on her blog,
b e h i n d t h e m o o n, I quickly glanced at the photos and thought to myself, "Isn't that pretty? I could live there." Then I quickly realized, "I do!"
Krista's camera and artist's eye really made our farm come alive. She saw beauty in even the most humble of farm equipment. (Our horses always look great.)
Take a look at what I mean:

The grandsons seem to love everything about the farm!

even the equipment looks pretty!

My favorite view.

And after their last visit, we roasted good ol' hot dogs and marshmallows at the fire and had some of these cookies, which the boys devoured. Hope you like them, too.

White Chocolate Chip Cookies

From Pat at church who can’t remember where she got it

¾ cup sugar
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup shortening
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut
½ cup rolled oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 12-ounce package white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In large bowl, combine the sugars and shortening and beat well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well each time. Add vanilla; blend well.

Add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Than add coconut, oats and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until lightly golden brown. Cool 1 minute on sheet, then remove to rack to cool completely before storing in airtight container. Makes 5 dozen cookies.

* * * * * * *

I hope you'll visit Krista's blog. She's a young mother who has a sunny outlook on life and writes beautifully about her family and friends. She also has an etsy shop where she sells her handmade jewelry. Beautiful stuff!

And now for the awards . . . . I was a lucky recipient of the award below, thanks to the very kind and generous Elisabeth at food and thrift finds. And so now it's my turn to pass it on. I decided to go exploring and find some bloggers new to me, since I seem to share a lot of my readers with Elisabeth. It was definitely easy to find blogs that were appealing. There's so much great talent out there!

So here's a great bunch of bloggers to check out, if you haven't already. A lovely variety. Congratulations to:

Marsha at The Better Baker
Si at A Bountiful Kitchen
Heather at Basil Momma
Melissa at I Was Born to Cook
Domenica at Sunday's Kitchen
Christine at Christine's Pantry
Rebecca at A Dash of Thyme
Raven at Ravie Nom Noms
Theresa at The Food Hunter

A Study in Green – Arugula and Endamame Crostini

2011-07-20T08:55:00.000-07:00

I think it was subconscious when my sister arranged these verdant appetizer toasts on a minty green platter. She tends to go monochromatic. (I tend towards alliteration. Similarities?)

But what a feast for the eyes! And an even better treat for the taste buds. It was a pesto, all right, but the peppery tang of the arugula blended with the creaminess of the endamame, all binded by freshly-grated Parmgiano-Reggiano made it unique and irresistible. The touch of fresh mint added one more layer of flavor . . . and one more shade of green.

If I hadn’t seen . . . and smelled . . . the pork tenderloin being readied for the main course, I could have easily made of meal of these crostini. They were that good.

The notion that they looked like a school of fish swimming in a green pool just added to my amused enjoyment.

The original recipe calls for fava beans. But they aren’t too easy to find. If I ever do, I’m going to scarf them up as faster than you can say Jack Robinson. Fortunately, the recipe creator, in a 2009 issue of Gourmet, suggests endamame as a great substitute. But they don’t have those too often at the general store down the road, so I’ll be putting that on my next “go to town” shopping list. Just like Mrs. Ingalls.

These crostini were just one of the appetizers we had when my sister hosted the family for our indoor (wishing we had the rain now that threatened that day!) alfresco dinner party, the one that the semifreddo topped off. The main course, that terrific tenderloin, is next. Obviously, I’m not doing a whole lot of cooking during this heat wave.

Off to do the rain dance!

Arugula and Fava-Bean Crostini
Gourmet, May 2009
by Kay Chun
Makes 8 servings (not if I'm around)

1 cup shelled fresh fava beans (1 1/4 pounds in pods) or shelled fresh or frozen edamame (soybeans; 3/4 pounds in pods)
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus additional for drizzling
1 1/2 cups packed baby arugula (1 1/2 ounces), divided
3 tablespoons grated Pecorino Toscano or Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 baguette
1 garlic clove, halved crosswise
16 mint leaves

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Cook fava beans in boiling water, uncovered, until tender, 3 to 4 minutes, then drain and transfer to an ice bath to stop cooking. Gently peel off skins (if using edamame, don't peel).

Pulse fava beans in a food processor until very coarsely chopped, then transfer half of mixture to a large bowl. Add 1/4 cup oil, 1/2 cup arugula, cheese, lemon zest and juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to favas in processor and purée until smooth. Add to bowl. Coarsely chop remaining cup arugula and gently fold into fava-bean mixture.

Cut 16 diagonal slices (1/3 inch thick) from baguette and put in a 4-sided sheet pan. Drizzle with remaining tablespoon oil. Bake until pale golden and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Rub with cut side of garlic.

Spoon fava-bean mixture onto baguette toasts, then drizzle with oil and top with mint.

Cooks' notes:
•Topping, without chopped arugula, can be made 8 hours ahead and chilled. Fold in arugula before using.
•Toasts can be made 1 day ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

The cheese platter was pretty tasty, too. I went for the Dubliner first, then the brie, then back to the crostini.

Shrimp "On a Stick!" -- from Matt Armendariz

2011-07-13T05:10:00.000-07:00

There really is something that’s just plain ol’ fun about eating food on a stick. I just loved eating cotton candy and caramel apples as kid when we went to the county fair. But now that I’m (very) grown-up, I can enjoy the adult treats that Matt Armendariz shares in his book “On a Stick!” The sub-title of the book is “80 Party-Perfect Recipes.” He’s right: This recipe collection just screams party.

I often take a cookbook to bed with me to read, and that’s what I did with my review copy. I was hard pressed to pick the first one wanted to try for my party for two with Mr. Rosemary. Was it going to be the Lamb Souvlaki? The Coconut Shrimp? Fish Balls? Deep Fried Ravioli? Molotes? Crispy Orange Beef Skewers? Tough choice. And tougher to get to sleep that night thinking about which one I’d make.

My first pick was Pinchos de Gambas, sweetly spicy grilled shrimp. And the main reason I chose it was because I did have all the ingredients on hand, even the smoked paprika. Do not substitute; the smoked paprika is a necessity. And I’d just been to the store and had a bag of fresh limes, too. So I was ready.

A lot of paprika and cumin gives the shrimp a smoky, spicy flavor and a rich mahogany color. Although the recipe calls for a lot of spice, it’s not overpowering. I love shrimp, always have, and usually like it plain and simply grilled. (So does Mr. Rosemary.) But this spicy version just may become the favored alternate here. It was scrumptious. I served it with coconut rice and steamed broccoli. A great party for two. Matt suggests, appropriately, having a glass of Spanish red with the shrimp. but I had to stick with the New York white we had.

The book is a treat to read and look at. The photographs are superb and make you salivate. And make up a guest list.

The recipes range from savory to sweet, and from the more traditional, like Chicken Satay and Caprese Sticks and Corn Dogs to the unusual like Spaghetti and Meatballs (yes, on a stick) and Son-in-Law Eggs and Pizza Skewers. There’s breakfast on a stick – pancake batter dipped sausages, deep fried, and dipped in syrup, and Cake Pops, and Deep Fried Candy Bars and the dessert I’m going to have at my next party – Chocolate Dipped Cheesecake.

What I really want to make is Suppli, deep-fried balls of rice wrapped around mozzarella. Next.

The book is a showcase for Matt’s creativity. He also includes recipes for a variety of dips and sauces for your stick food. It’s a delightful book and party-inspiring. There are a lot of deep fried recipes, so I might just choose one of them if I was hosting a party for more than two, and some of the ingredients might be a little difficult for someone who lives in the sticks (bad pun, I know) to find, but when you’re having a party you make the effort.

These shrimps, though were pretty effortless . . . and highly recommended.

Pinchos de Gambas
From On a Stick! by Matt Armendariz
Photo and Recipe used with permission
Serves 4

8 bamboo skewers
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
½ tablespoon cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound tiger shrimp, cleaned and peeled, with tails intact

Soak skewers in water 30 minutes.

Whisk smoked paprika, sweet paprika, cumin, garlic, salt, pepper, lime juice, and 1/3 cup olive oil in a medium bowl. Add shrimp and gently toss. Refrigerate 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Heat grill or grill pan to medium high and brush with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Thread 3 shrimp per skewer and grill 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or just until shrimp has cooked through. (Be careful not to overcook.) Serve hot.

Here’s One Unusual Appetizer: Turtle Balls!

2011-07-08T03:54:00.000-07:00

“Hey, Rosie, honey, sweetie pie. You’re the best cook I know, except for my wife, of course.”

Our neighbor Mike was laying it on pretty thick. He must really want something.

“D’ya think you could work your magic on this turtle meat?”

“I thought you were going to make turtle soup,” I said.

“It’s going to be 88 degrees on Saturday. No one will want to eat soup,” he reasoned. Correctly, I’m guessing.

But since he had been talking since winter about trapping a turtle at my brother-in-law’s pond, I was a little surprised at this turn of events. Mike’s plan was to make turtle soup, which he has done before, and taking it to our brother-in-law’s (same one with the pond) annual 4th of July picnic bash. I knew he’d made several trips to the pond, set his traps, tried different hooks, different bait, stronger line, had several misses. And, finally, success! He’d worked hard for this darn turtle! Why was he chickening out, I wondered.

“Anyhow,” he continued, “the wife’s away and . . . . . “

Say no more, Mike.

I love a challenge, especially a cooking challenge, but turtle meat? Really . . . what else do you do with turtle besides make soup?

Mike himself suggested breading and frying the meat. Good idea, Mike. Turtle tenders. Could be a market trend setter.

But one look at the bowl of meat he’d carefully cleaned from the turtle and I could see there really weren’t that many “tender” size pieces. There were some, but there were also lots of shreds, too. I thought about patties, like salmon patties, or crab cakes. But what if even the more adventurous only wanted a taste of turtle? I needed something bite-size.

After nosing around a little on the internet -- none of my cook books had anything about turtle -- I learned that people do indeed bread and fry turtle meat. Some folks make kind of a chicken a la king, meat in a creamy sauce over rice or noodles. Not exactly picnic fare.

Eventually, I landed on sauerkraut balls. Usually sauerkraut balls are deep fried, but I didn’t want to mess with that either on a hazy, hot humid day, even in air conditioning. So I meshed the method I once used for baking egg rolls with a couple different appetizer recipes and gave it a go. I have to say they turned out pretty well.

I’m sure you want to know what turtle tastes like. Well, it doesn’t taste like chicken. People usually say that when describing a different meat, like frog legs, even snake, or groundhog. “Tastes like chicken.” Well, no, it doesn’t.

First of all the meat is a mix of light and dark and has lots of different textures, too. And in the bowl, before I did any doctoring, it had a faint seafood aroma. I thought it tasted more like veal. Except for the rubbery texture. Some pieces were tough to chew. Like some calamari.

Before I made the sauerkraut balls, I decided to marinate the turtle. (Actually, that was Mr. Rosemary. “I’d marinate the heck out of that if I were you,” said he.) I just used a bottle of Italian salad dressing, saved in the pantry for just such emergency occasions.

After marinating a day, I fried up the meat, which Mike had already cleaned well and boiled. I added a chopped onion and then whirled the whole mess in the food processor, pulsing several times, until it looked like tuna salad. Then I added the drained and finely chopped sauerkraut and mixed in a softened block of cream cheese.

Then into the fridge for a couple hours to make rolling into balls a little easier, since it is a pretty monotonous task. Then dipping in egg and rolling in bread crumbs. Pop into the oven for 15 minutes and you have turtle balls. I made two batches. The first didn’t brown real well, so I sprayed the second sheet of balls with vegetable spray and that helped give a richer color.

I made a simple tartar sauce to go with – mayonnaise, drained sweet relish, couple dashes of sriracha hot sauce.

It might have been just the novelty of the things, or the fact that were made from a turtle that came from that pond right over there, but the turtle balls went over much better than I expected. The really outdoorsy, macho men really liked them – including Mr. Rosemary, who claims he ate a dozen. And most of the women, some of the kids, tried them and at least smiled indulgently. “Really? Turtle? Not bad.”

But if Mike ever comes to the door again with anything he wants me to cook, oh, something like a bear, please tell him I’m not home.

Here’s the recipe for sauerkraut balls, sans turtle meat. I suggest you just use sausage.

Sauerkraut Balls
1 pound hot ground pork sausage
1 onion finely chopped
1 16-ounce can sauerkraut, rinsed, drained well and finely chopped
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 cups seasoned bread crumbs

Cook the sausage and onion in a large deep skillet until sausage is evenly browned and the onion is soft, about 10 minutes.Drain and transfer to a large bowl.

Mix sauerkraut and cream cheese with the sausage mixture.Cover and chill in the fridge about 2 hours.

When ready to bake, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place beaten egg in a shallow bowl and seasoned bread crumbs in another shallow bowl or pie plate.Roll the chilled sausage mixture into about one inch balls. Place the balls one at a time in the egg, then the bread crumbs.

Place on parchment lined cookie sheet and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Spraying with vegetable oil spray helps the little balls to brown and mimics deep frying, the more common way to make sauerkraut balls.

photo from canstock

A Striped Delight: Pistachio, Strawberry and Vanilla Semifreddo

2011-06-22T12:21:00.000-07:00

I can’t take credit for this luscious layered semifreddo. I can definitely vouch for its sinful deliciousness, though. And it was so very, very good that I just might decide to make it myself, despite the fact that this is definitely not a spur of the moment undertaking. I can picture one day in the dog days of August when it’s so stifling hot that I’ll dream up any excuse to stay inside the air conditioning and take several hours to make this delightfully refreshing frozen concoction.

My sister Lynn, a wonderful cook, the best in the family, hands down, hosted a little dinner for her four siblings and spouses. The semifreddo was the piece de resistance that capped a wonderful array of light and fresh dishes that included an endamame and arugula pesto appetizer and spicy sweet pork tenderloin served over greens with citrus and avocado. (Don’t worry; you’ll hear about those soon.)

This semifreddo is featured on the cover of June’s Bon Appetit and its pastel prettiness captured Lynn’s fancy on sight. I’m happy for the rest of us that the recipe’s detail did not scare her off. Actually, it’s not that hard, really, just time consuming and one of those recipes that requires you dirty half your bowls and utensils.I loved the fact that the recipe uses the real vanilla bean. And ground pistachios and fresh strawberries.

But combine pistachios and vanilla and strawberries, with cream and eggs and sugar, I’m one easy mark for near gluttony. Although I really don’t have a great sweet tooth, I’m a sucker for any kind of ice cream. But my all-time favorite is pistachio. As a child, our family traveled three hours each way once a month to Grandma’s and a pit stop at a Howard Johnson’s on the way meant coffee for the driver and ice cream for the kids. And pistachio was my perennial request.

So if you ever want to spend a day in a cool house, make this. Trust me; you’ll be rewarded with kudos like you would not believe.

Pistachio, Strawberry and Vanilla Semifreddo
Serves 10
Bon Appetit June 2011

1 cup shelled unsalted pistachios
4 T sugar, divided, plus ½ cup
1 c whole milk, divided
¼ t almond extract
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
1 C fresh strawberries (about 4 oz.), hulled, halved
1 t vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¼ t kosher salt
1 1/3 C chilled whipping cream

Line a metal loaf pan (approximately 9x5x3”) with two layers of plastic wrap, leaving generous overhang on all sides.

Grind pistachios and 2 T sugar in a food processor until very finely chopped. Transfer pistachio mixture to a small saucepan. Add ½ C milk; bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover and let steep 20 minutes. Set a fine mesh strainer over a medium bowl; strain, discarding solids. Stir in almond extract; set pistachio mixture aside.

Place remaining ½ cup milk in a separate small saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 15 minutes. Set a strainer over another small bowl; strain, discarding solids, and chill vanilla mixture.

Puree strawberries and 2 T sugar in food processor until smooth. Set a fine mesh strainer over another medium bowl; strain, pressing on solids to extract as much juice as possible. Stir in vanilla extract and set strawberry mixture aside

Whisk eggs, salt and remaining ½ cup sugar in a medium metal bowl. Set bowl over a medium saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Beat egg mixture at high speed until it triples in volume and an instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 170 degrees Fahrenheit, about 3 minutes. Remove bowl from over water and continue beating until thick and cool, about 3 minutes. Add one-third egg mixture to each of the pistachio, strawberry and vanilla mixtures; fold each just to blend.

Beat cream in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Add one third of cream to each of the pistachio, strawberry and vanilla mixtures; fold each just to blend. Cover vanilla and strawberry mixtures separately; chill.

Pour pistachio mixture into pan; smooth top. Cover; freeze until firm, about 45 minutes. Gently pour strawberry mixture over pistachio layer; smooth top. Cover; freeze until firm, about 45 minutes. Gently fold vanilla mixture to blend and pour over and smooth top. Freeze until firm about 4 hours.

DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Fold plastic wrap over. Seal tightly and keep frozen.

When ready to serve, uncover semifreddo and using plastic wrap as an aid invert onto a chilled platter. Peel off plastic. Slice cross wise. You can freeze any leftovers, but I doubt there would be any.

Bon Appetit also suggests that if you want to bypass the layered look, you can choose just one of the flavors and just triple the measurements.

“Go To” Sausage Pasta Toss for a Down in the Dumps Day

2011-06-13T04:14:00.000-07:00

Everyone has a dependable dish you can always go to when things seem like they’re just not going your way, when everything seems to be piling up against you, when there’s no time to play in the kitchen and all you want is something tasty and comforting and that you can eat with a fork, not your hand. (I'm not against sandwiches at all, but when I'm feeling frumpy, I want fork food.)

This is mine.

A simple sausage and pasta dish, made fresher with a bag of baby spinach and a little fresh basil, fun shaped pasta, a couple scrapes of fresh nutmeg and a great handful of freshly grated cheese. Twenty minutes go by and the world looks better.

It’s been a helluva week. We just got back from a week long fishing trip. Great fun, great food, horrible bugs. And as lovely as it is to get away, it’s even better to come home. But in addition to the usual unpacking and laundry stuff, fate had thrown a few extras our way. My petunias were dying. Some critter trampled trough the freshly planted vegetable garden (and apparently hastily eschewed the onions,) the barn bridge is starting to collapse, begging for repair, the nine acres of yard needs to be mowed (and the lawn tractor has become testy) and it’s time to make hay.

So making this go-to meal, as simple as it is, as warm as it is outside, was still just what I needed to assure me that all's right with the world. Oh, did I mention that my computer is on the fritz? That’s what really has me bummed because how am I going to blog about all the ways we cooked our walleye? How am I going to share with you the absolutely delightful dinner my sister hosted this past weekend? How am I going to share all the new things I’m going to do with my blog, my reading list, my description of my family, my favorite cookbooks? It will all just have to wait a bit.

In the meantime, I cooked up this favorite dish and relaxed a bit. A glass of wine helps a lot, too. Tomorrow's another day and I'll be ready to tackle the world -- and plant my begonias.
Sausage Pasta Toss
1/2 pound small-sized pasta (like shells, mini-penne rigate, bow ties)
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
1 can (15 ouncer) diced tomatoes with juice
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 bag fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, or couple scrapes of a fresh nutmeg
1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh Parmesan, depending on how bad your day/week was

Get the pasta going and while it's cooking, crumble and brown the sausage in a big skillet. When it's browned, add the undrained can of tomatoes. Add the Italian seasoing -- or a mixture of dried basil, oregano and thyme. Drain the pasta and add it to the pan. Add the spinach and stir until just wilted. Add the nutmeg. Add the cheese. Mange.

A Toast of Chocolate to Uncle Jim -- German Chocolate Cheesecake

2011-05-27T16:24:00.000-07:00

It had been much longer than I cared to admit since I’d visited my Uncle Jim who’ll be 95 years old this year. He’s my uncle by marriage; he was married to my father’s only sister, my Aunt Mary, whose sensational cooking inspired me to want to be a good cook.

I was grateful when one of my sisters suggested a day trip to his nursing home in Pittsburgh, punctuated by lunch (Church Brew Works) and shopping (Trader Joe’s and McGinnis Sisters.) Grateful and just a little apprehensive.

Like many people, I suppose, I was afraid that he wouldn’t be as I’d remembered him. Of course he wouldn’t!!! Another niece who lives close by and who has been his primary family contact for the last ten years had prepared us for the fact that he was frail and confined to a wheelchair and losing his memory more but was still usually in good spirits.

All my fears were allayed when we found him in a TV room and after we finally approached him and I said, “Hey, Uncle Jim! It’s Rosie!” and gave him a kiss.

I could see in his pale eyes that he did indeed recognize me and he grinned with his typical little chuckle and said “Rosie, kiddo! How are you?” Anyone in their fifties loves to hear themselves called “kiddo.”

We caught him on a pretty good day. We could see that he wanted to be the same gracious man he’d always been. He apologized that he couldn’t stand up to greet his company. He wanted to participate in lively conversation, just as he always had. Well-read and opinionated, with a wry sense of humor, he loved conversation and was a great raconteur himself. But he was always interested in what you thought and what you had to say, too.

He tried to keep up with conversation, he tried to remember all the people and events in the pictures we shared, but became a little frustrated and would drift off and shake his head with a smile that so reminded me of what my mother did as she aged, too.

As I recounted to him how my husband still talks about the lovely evening the three of us once had when he took us out to dinner at his club and dawdled over too many Manhattans and ate the best turtle soup, his eyes sparkled with a little memory and he started breaking apart the Cadbury chocolate bar my sister had given him. He needed a little help and gestured that each of us should have a piece. He then raised his piece in a toast gesture and we followed his lead and raised our pieces of chocolate,too, a toast to the memories of family and to the connections that should never fade.

I’m sure that Uncle Jim would have liked this cake. Or at least he would have said so. He was the beneficiary of my aunt’s very best baking and cooking. And he always seemed to swoon over what she made. Her biggest fan. She probably wouldn’t have made this cake because it starts with a mix and she loved baking from scratch. But I didn’t get her baking genes, so this jazzed up cake mix that my sister-in-law Liz first made is something I can do. (This will be my birthday cake, won't it, Liz?)

For you, Uncle Jim.

German Chocolate Cheesecake
This really isn’t a cheesecake; it’s a cake with cheese, but delightfully chocolatey and rich all the same!
from Taste of Home, submitted by Kathy Johnson, Lake City, SD

1 package German chocolate cake mix
2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese
1 ½ cups sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
For frosting:
1 cup sugar
1 cup evaporated (not sweetened condensed) milk
½ cup butter, cubed
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Prepare cake batter according to package directions. Set aside. In small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs; beat at low speed until just combined.

Pour half of cake batter into a greased 9 x 13 x 2 pan. Gently pour cream cheese mixture over and smooth with spatula. Then gently spoon remaining cake batter on top and spread to the edge of the pan.

Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 70 to75 minutes, until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on rack for at least one hour before frosting.
For Frosting:
Combine sugar, milk, butter and egg yolks in heavy saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and a thermometer reads 160 degrees. Stir in vanilla, coconut and pecans. Cool until frosting is spreadable.

Makes 16 servings

Chicken Tetrazzini -- Scaled Down

2011-05-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

If the title of this post has led you to believe that this is a low calorie version of said tetrazzini, I apologize. It’s scaled down in size only, so that Mr. Rosemary and I wouldn’t completely gorge ourselves on one of our all-time favorite meals. As it was, I still had to freeze a couple portions, which will probably end up as the base for a frittata one night next week, as we’re scrambling to get ready for the annual walleye fishing trip to Ontario. (Or maybe that’s something I’ll look forward to after seven nights of cooking fish!)

The first time I made tetrazzini was years ago after one Thanksgiving, to use leftover turkey. Since then, I’ve looked forward to post-Thanksgiving meals more than the real deal, just for this casserole. And although it is a great way to use leftover turkey, I find I like it better with chicken. I have that around much more often. This time, though, I used rotisserie chicken from the supermarket. I like to mix both white and dark meat, too. I probably make this just a couple times a year, it’s that rich. But for some reason, it beckoned the other evening. Perfect to go with the roasted asparagus.

(I know it doesn’t look like asparagus in the picture. Your eyes are not deceiving you. That is indeed broccoli. The asparagus was completely consumed, the whole pound, by two people. That’s what roasting does to asparagus. Forces one to substitute another vegetable for blog picture taking the day after.)

Giada makes a great chicken tetrazzini dish, but this one is different from hers – she uses peas, no Swiss cheese, adds onions, cooks the mushrooms -- and for the life of me, I can’t recall exactly where I first got this recipe. I copied it onto an index card, gave no credit to its originator and keep it in a little box, where I keep all the old stand-bys. It’s actually one of like sixteen places where I store recipes. Organization and I have a love-hate relationship.

And I’ve tweaked the original recipe many times over, as my little notes and scratch outs and other hieroglyphics on the well-used card will attest, so maybe it’s morphed into my own after all. Actually, I don’t need the card anymore. I can make this blindfolded.

Did you know that tetrazzini is someone’s name? I didn’t. It’s the last name of Luisa Tetrazzini, a famous early twentieth century Italian opera singer. Apparently, the dish was created by a chef to honor her, a common practice back then. Like Eggs Benedict. Tetrazzini has come to mean any cream sauce, cheesed-up or not, over chicken and pasta.
But enough rambling. Here’s the recipe. Tweaked and re-tweaked. Buon appetito.

Chicken Tetrazzini

½ pound angel hair pasta
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
½ cup chicken broth
½ cup half-and-half
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1 tablespoon Marsala
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, or 3-4 scrapes of a fresh nutmeg
2 cups cooked chicken, or turkey, broken into bite size chunks
1 cup sliced mushrooms
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup seasoned, bread crumbs
1 tablespoon melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Start boiling water for the pasta. Cook pasta al dente – won’t take long – and drain. (It will keep okay in the colander until you mix it with everything else.) Melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Blend in the flour. Add the broth and the half-and-half, increase the heat and cook stirring constantly until thickened. Lower heat. Add the cheese and stir until melted. Add the nutmeg and the sherry and blend. Remove from heat. Add the cooked pasta, chicken and mushrooms. Fold together until well mixed and then turn into a casserole that’s been buttered or sprayed with vegetable spray. Mix together the Parmesan and bread crumbs with the melted butter and sprinkle over the casserole top. Bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes. Makes about six generous servings.

A little post script: The gorgeous red plate was part of my Mother's Day goodies from Amy. There's more to come! Thanks, honey!

Kumato and Chevre Pie and Trader Joe’s

2011-05-14T04:09:00.000-07:00

My bags were bulging with delectable goodies after my first in-person trip to Trader Joe’s a couple of weeks ago. I got quinoa, wasabi peas (love’ em!), kumatos, avocados, teeny, tiny new potatoes, mascarpone, fresh herbs, several cheeses, flavored vinegars, fish sauce: you get the idea. I had a ball! If I would have brought freezer packs, I would have bought some of the fish --oh, the scallops! -- and the meat --lamb! -- I was drooling over. But I was still a couple hours away from home and a little wary of what traveling might do to my precious cargo.
I love my life in the country and I can pretty much get all the things I really want to cook with, if I plan ahead, if I rely on friends and family to get some things for me, if I order stuff via the internet sometimes. (Pretty big ifs.) I have to admit even to myself that I have collected a pretty odd variety of pantry fare that gives Mr. Rosemary an opportunity to pretend he’s a comedian just rummaging through sometimes.

But that kind of shopping doesn’t satisfy my desire to do some cooking spontaneously. And every once in a while, there ain’t nothing like the real thing! Like picking up a magazine as opposed to just reading the on-line version. Seeing, touching, smelling. So inspiring! I felt just a little bit like a wide-eyed country bumpkin and I got a few sidelong glances as I’d pick something up and go, “Wow!”

I loved my trip to Trader Joe’s because of the variety and the value. Nothing seemed outrageously priced, even to the frugal me.

But now I had to do something with all the stuff I bought without a plan!

The kumatos ($1 for a box of eight!) were pretty ripe and had to be used first. A tomato pie has always been on my “wannamake” list and after looking around a bit, I was inspired a tomato and cheese tart from The Meaning of Pie. Kelly’s tart was elegant looking, with homemade pastry using lard. My pie (sans tart pan) was more rustic looking and lacked the pretty touch and sensuous taste of basil. (At the store I told myself that was one thing I could get at home often enough, and anyhow, I’d be growing it soon.) But it sure tasted good and was head and shoulders above what I imagined some of the other mayo-ed recipes I’d looked at would be.

So here’s my “Kumato and Chevre Pie.” (I’m calling it chevre instead of just goat cheese, so maybe my mother-in-law won’t wince at the word. I doubt she’ll cozy up to the quinoa.) Shame on me for not making my own pastry, but I still had some dough in the freezer, so this is a Sandra Lee version.

Kumato and Chevre Pie
Inspired by The Meaning of Pie

One sheet of refrigerated pie crust
6 ounces of goat cheese
3 to 4 kumatos (or use tomatoes)
extra virgin olive oil
salt and cracked black pepper
fresh basil leaves, if you are lucky

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Slice the tomatoes, core them if needed, and lay them out on paper towels. Lay paper towels on top of them and press down very gently. Leave the tomatoes this way for a few minutes. The paper towels will absorb a lot of moisture and seeds.

Place the pastry in a pie pan and finish edges as you like.

Take the goat cheese and crumble it into the bottom of the tart pan. Place the tomatoes on top of the goat cheese in a slightly overlapping pattern. Lightly drizzle olive oil on top of the tomatoes, and season them with sea salt or kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper.

Bake until the edges of the pie are golden, about 45 minutes. Place on a wire rack and allow it to cool a bit. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Spiced Nuts and the Road Not Taken

2011-05-06T05:00:00.000-07:00

I was supposed to be making these spiced nuts to take on a trip this weekend, but I’m going empty handed. Seems I have a horrible tendency to underestimate the amount of stuff I can get done in a given amount of time. Am I stuck in this rut? Is it too late to change my ways? Why do I try to cram too much into a day (or week, or month, even years)?

Thoughts to ponder as I do not munch on nuts during the five hour car ride (ten both ways, of course.)

Renae got me turned onto spiced nuts at Christmas time when she shared a sampling of three different ways she’d spiced the nuts. I was planning to make the rosemary-ornage version for this trip. And when we visited Renae, Dan and Emma a couple weeks ago, a tray of spiced nuts had just come out of the oven. Heavenly aromas! And irresistible to taste, even (especially?) warm.

This recipe, though, comes from The Teacher Cooks, who was inspired by Shutterbean.

Spicy Maple Glazed Walnuts
from Shutterbean and The Teacher Cooks

Makes 2 cups

1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 cups walnuts

In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, salt, black pepper, cayenne, ginger and cinnamon with the maple syrup.

In a large nonstick skillet, toast the walnuts over medium-high heat, stirring or shaking the pan constantly, until they are hot, about 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn. Immediately add the nuts to the maple syrup and toss to coat. Stir in the spice mixture until the nuts are evenly coated. Spread the walnuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Let cool completely before serving about 20 minutes.

"Elvis" for Lunch: Peanut Butter, Banana and Bacon

2011-04-29T06:36:00.000-07:00

I knew that Elvis had a penchant for peanut butter. And I knew Elvis's tastes ran more to the gourmand than gourmet. But I never knew about his favorite sandwich: a grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich with bacon. (Did I just hear you say “Wow!”?)

It’s been rumored that Elvis could eat up to 15 of these at a time, and the sandwich was grilled in bacon fat, but even in the interest of science, I couldn’t bring myself to do that.

I learned about “The Elvis” from reading my review copy of Susan Russo’s new book The Encyclopedia of Sandwiches (Quirk Books, 2011). It is a simply charming book that alphabetically details well over a hundred different sandwiches: their origins, history, trivia, variations and, of course, the recipes, where need be.

It has everything from the familiar – hot dogs and sloppy joes – to the funky – spaghetti sandwiches and the potato chip sandwich. And all kinds of regional faves, like po’ boys and lobster rolls. Even dessert-like sandwiches, like the pound cake sandwich and the fluffernutter.

I was hard pressed to choose just one to post about here, so you may be seeing more, and soon. And the photographs, by Matt Armendariz, are magnificent, nearly edible. Susan’s writing is, as usual, just delightful to read.

Sandwiches are ubiquitous and can be as everyday normal as the Isaly’s chipped chopped ham sandwich on white bread I took with me in my school lunch bag to the sumptuous sophistication of a Monte Cristo.

Growing up, we had a family favorite that I think it was my brother Bob who christened as “The PeaLeTom”: A peanut butter, lettuce and tomato sandwich on toast. We thought it was the poor man’s version of the BLT and it’s still a favorite of mine. Elvis had nothing on us!

When I was making this for lunch the other day, Mr. Rosemary walked by:

“Who’s that for?”

“Me.”

“Looks better than mine. What’s in it?”

After I told him, he said, “Never mind.”

The Elvis
from Susan Russo’s Encyclopedia of Sandwiches

2 tablespoons peanut butter
2 slices white bread (I used rye)
1 ripe banana, mashed (I just sliced mine)
2 slices bacon (just 1 for me)
2 tablespoons butter

Spread peanut butter on one slice of bread, banana on the other. Add bacon slices and close sandwich.

Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Cook sandwich two minutes per side, or until golden. Eat it while it’s hot. Keep all the ingredients close at hand – you’ll likely be making another.

A Non-Easter Easter Ham and Broccoli Quiche

2011-04-23T10:45:00.000-07:00

It doesn’t look like Easter. It doesn’t feel like Easter. It’s gray, rainy, and 40 degrees, and I'm crabby about it. I just got back from a Florida vacation where it was sunny and in the 80’s all the time and my daughter gave me a cold down there. So, yes, I’m more than a little crabby, not to mention un-ambitious, and in no mood to cook up a festive, spring meal.

When it gets to really be rug-cutting time, I know I’ll pull my socks up and get on with it, and this is what I’ll whip up for an Easter brunch – a ham and broccoli quiche. It’s traditional, it’s classic and it just might be the ticket to put me in a spring-like mood.

I love quiche. It’s a lot like a pizza to me. It can easily handle a lot of variations, lots of different combinations. And if you take the cheater’s way out (as I often do) and use refrigerated pie dough, it’s a snap to make. (Although I have gotten much better at making pastry, I’m proud to say.) And since you can serve it warm or at room temperature, it’s a perfect company dish.

Once I hosted a baby shower for a friend and the menu was quiche, fruit salad and cheesecake. My daughter (the same one who gave me the $^#&*# cold) helped me with the quiche assembly line. We made eight quiches, four different kinds: Ham and broccoli, bacon and onion, spinach and shrimp, asparagus and ham, all with a healthy helping of cheese. First we placed a layer of shredded cheese in the pastry–lined pans, then the meat and vegetable filling, then more cheese, then poured the custard up to the edge of the pie. (Baking eight pies at once was something I’d never done before and convinced me that catering was not for me.) Everything went off without a hitch and everyone wanted to sample every quiche. Only crumbs left in the pans.

I follow the basic formula for quiche I started using years ago from a cookbook I bought from a New Hampshire restaurant called Peter Christian’s that is now defunct. I liked it because it was just a formula rather than a follow-by-the-letter recipe. I also liked the addition of sherry to the custard. The only things that are constant are the eggs, half-and-half, cheese and onions. And even those are variable to a degree. You can enrich the quiche with cream or using a variety of cheeses.

So this as Easter-y as I’m getting this year. I really had the best intentions of making an Easter Pie. If the spirit moves me later this evening, maybe . . . just maybe . . . . .

In the meantime, I hope you're in a sunnier place -- or at least a sunnier mood -- and have a blessed Easter with family and friends.

Basic Recipe for a Quiche
Serves 8

Pastry for one-crust pie
4 eggs
1 ½ cups half and half
½ cup sherry
Dashes each of freshly ground black pepper and freshly grated nutmeg and dash of cayenne pepper
4 cups grated cheese, any variety
½ cup chopped scallions
1 cup cooked and cooled vegetable of choice
1 cup cooked and cooled meat of choice
(or use 2 cups of a veggie variety)

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Place pastry in pie pan and flute edges any pretty way you like.

• Sprinkle 1 cup of cheese and the scallions in the bottom of the crust. Cover the cheese and onions evenly with the veggies and/or meat of your choice. Then sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the veggie-meat mixture.

• To make custard, combine the eggs, half-and-half, sherry and seasonings in a bowl with a whisk and blend well.

• Pour the custard over the cheese-veggie-meat mixture to within ¼ inch of the top of the crust.

• Bake at 425 for ten minutes, then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake another 45 to 50 minutes until the top is golden brown and is slightly puffed.

• Let cool at least 15 minutes before cutting. Serve either warm or at room temperature; refrigerate any leftovers if you have them.

Lemon Pasta with Shrimp – No Lenten Dissent

2011-04-07T09:32:00.000-07:00

Growing up Catholic, we were subjected to a rather meager menu of Friday Lenten meals. There was tuna fish salad, my mom’s tomato-ed version of mac 'n cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, and fish fry at the local Knights of Columbus Hall. Very little variety. I never really knew that real fish was ever cooked at home. That wasn’t my mother’s fault: That was just growing up in a small town in the sixties, where there just wasn’t much variety available. (Of course, sacrifice is supposed to be the name of the game, isn’t it.)

Occasionally we did have blocks of frozen some-kind-of-fish but that did little to stir any craving in me. But when I got to out (aside from the K of C) I immediately gravitated towards shrimp, Lent or not, and that’s one childhood love I’ve held onto to tightly. Shrimp in any form.

I made this lemon sauced pasta last week and it was so darn lip-smacking good, I think I’ll make it again this Friday. (So much for variety, huh?) I was inspired by Indigo’s Sugar Spectrum, who was inspired by Smitten Kitchen. I adapted the recipe, though. I used half and half instead of cream, fresh spinach instead of basil or arugula or chives and I added shrimp. The pasta was delectable on its own, but the addition of shrimp was a perfect complement. The lemony sauce is nicely tart but sweetened by the half-and-half.

I just steamed the shrimp but next time (that will be this Friday) I’m going to roast the shrimp first. Can’t believe that as much as I love roasted vegetables I didn’t think of this myself.

Before taking a look at the recipe, a very simple one, read this delightful little poem. I found this a couple weeks ago on my daily newsletter The Writers Almanac and the author was kind enough to give me permission to use it here. Get a chuckle.

Lenten Dissent

by Cherie Lashway

There once was a logger, named Paddy O'Connell,
Who at lunch during Lent, found himself at McDonalds,
And had just settled down to his Big Mac and fries,
When along came his priest, much to both their surprise.

The priest said to Paddy, "Just what are you eating?
In this season of Lent, I sure hope you're not cheating."
Paddy said to the Father, "I'll tell you no lies.
I'm enjoying a Big Mac, along with some fries."

The priest said to Paddy, "I see no repentance.
Because of this sin, you will have to do penance.

"By Friday or sooner, I say that you should,
For our fireplace, deliver a cord of chopped wood."

Now our timberman, Paddy, an overworked man,
Did think to himself, "I don't think that I can."

But early on Friday, our priest, he heard shoveling,
And looked out the window at Paddy not groveling.
And saw with confusion, dismay and disgust,
That the wood bin was now almost filled with saw dust.

He called down below, barely hiding his ire:
"Hey Paddy, your penance was wood for the fire!"

To which Paddy said, rising up from his work,
While wiping his brow and concealing a smirk:

"I've brought you a cord, like you said that I should,
But if burger be meat, well then sawdust be wood!"

"Lenten Dissent" by Cherie Lashway, used with permission of the author

Now for the recipe . . .

Lemon and Spinach Pasta with Shrimp
Adapted from Indigo’s Sugar Spectrum and Smitten Kitchen

1 pound spaghetti or linguine
3 lemons
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup half and half
½ cup of Parmesan, plus more for serving
4 cups baby spinach
1 pound steamed shrimp

Zest and juice the lemons – you’ll need a good tablespoon of zest and 1/2 cup of juice. Cook and drain pasta, reserving 1-1/2 cups of pasta cooking water. Dry out your pot, then boil the olive oil, half and half, zest and 1 cup of the reserved pasta water together for two minutes over high heat. Return pasta to pot and stir until coated. Add the cheese and 1/4 cup lemon juice and toss everything together. Add more pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, until the noodles are nice and loose. Add remaining lemon juice, then toss in spinach leaves until wilted. Add the shrimp and toss again.

Have more cheese on hand to sprinkle on the served plates.

One Sexy Vegetable: Broccoli Rabe

2011-03-30T11:03:00.000-07:00

Maybe “sexy” is too strong to describe any vegetable, but I loved the way Aida Mollenkamp described broccoli rabe: “ . . . think of it as a sexier alternative to broccoli – darker and a little bitter.” Really, though, all that broccoli and broccoli rabe have in common is the name.

Broccoli is a crucifer and broccoli rabe is one of those leafy greens that we get so many healthy brownie points for eating. And the rabe has a lot of different names; the most common nom de plum is rapini. Call it what you like, it’s great. It does take a bit of minor effort to prepare well: It is bitter, like most greens, and a quick blanching is all it needs to take that pungency away.

I was introduced to broccoli rabe by my sister who cooked it for my daughter and me one girls’ night in at my daughter’s home in Florida. Lynn also taught me how to make ravioli using won- ton wrappers. I love ravioli but don’t have a pasta maker (hint-hint) and this shortcut worked just fine. Our filling was butternut squash. A quick sauté in herbed browned butter and we were done.

I have to admit, though, that when she picked up the last of what looked like a pretty wilted bunch of rabe at the supermarket, I was suspicious. But after a dunk in ice water, it was brought back to life.

So when the same thing happened to me, I didn’t panic and grabbed the all-too-rare appearance of rabe at my local market. I made a quick apology to my usual broccoli, said I’d be back next week, and took my prize home. (It was on sale, too!)

I tossed my blanched and sautéed broccoli rabe with feta cheese, chickpeas and a little bit of leftover angel hair pasta, but the adornments are endless. Next time, I think I’ll use crushed red pepper and fontina.

Simple Broccoli Rabe

1 pound broccoli rabe
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced

Place broccoli rabe in large pot of boiling water 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to over cook; it should be slightly hard. Drain the broccoli rabe then place it in a bowl with ice and water. Let it stand in the ice water while you heat the oil.

In a large skillet, heat the oil and garlic for 1 minute. Drain broccoli rabe really well and add to pan. Sauté for approximately about five minutes or until it’s as soft as you’d like it.

Then dress it up as you’d like, too: red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, chickpeas, feta, cooked pasta.

Winter Vegetables and Bulgur: The Last Soup of Winter (I hope, I hope, I hope!)

2011-03-24T14:16:00.000-07:00

Punxsutawney Phil has come and gone, March 21st has been crossed off the calendar, my daffodils are desperately trying to poke through, the geese have come to the pond. Spring is teasing us all over the place. But we woke up to snow-covered ground this morning! What’s wrong with this picture? Even the robins look confused. Calls for another day of soup!

I want spring to come as badly as anyone. It’s been a long, gray, cold winter. Again. And the only thing I’ll miss about winter is that I won’t feel like making wonderful soups like this. I’m itching to get outside, wash the windows (!), clean up the perennial flower bed, getting the vegetable garden ready. (Although, I have to be admit, if there’s a kinda cool, little rainy, pretty gray summer day, I can be found making soup.)

In the meantime, I’m enjoying this hearty, warming and filling soup. My sister recommended this soup after another guest brought it to her new condo group’s monthly potluck. She loved it and I was anxious to try it, too. I had more than enough bulgur in the pantry and plenty of vegetables on hand. I even had the herbs de Provence the recipe called for; didn’t have to substitute my own mixture.

But I decided to make it the day I also decided it was high time I saw my three-week old new nephew. I called his mother and announced I was bringing lunch, too. She told me her husband had the day off and would be extra delighted that Mr. Rosemary might be along, too. Hmmm, I got to thinking, two big men just might not think this vegetarian soup would be hearty enough. So, without making a trip to the store, what could I do?

Since this isn’t my first rodeo, I have gotten in the habit of stashing a few freezer packets for just such moments. I decide to add about ¼ cup of chopped bacon and abut ½ cup of cooked chicken. That was all the soup needed to make it “manly.” Pretty quick to make and easy to tote.

In the end, Mr. Rosemary couldn’t make it, but the proud new daddy did – and I’m pretty sure the little bit of bacon did it.

Winter Vegetables and Bulgur
adapted from Bon Appetit 2006

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups ¾ inch pieces of root vegetables, peeled and chopped (like carrots, turnips, celery root, parsnips – I used carrots, parsnips, and turnips; wish I could have found golden beets)
2 cups chopped onions
4 cups vegetable broth
1 rounded teaspoon herbes de Provence
1 ½ cup bulgur (about 8 ounces)
1 6-ounce package baby spinach leaves
¼ cup cooked bacon pieces
½ cup cooked and chopped chicken pieces

Heat oil in a heavy large pot over high heat. Add root vegetables and onions. Sauté until beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add vegetable broth and herbes de Provence’ bring to boil. Add bulgur, bacon and chicken pieces; cover pot and reduce heat to low. Simmer until bulgur is almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add spinach; stir until wilted, about 1 minute. Taste and add salt and/or pepper if you want.

Let's Hear It for St. Joseph! And Zeppole!

2011-03-18T14:02:00.000-07:00

Poor St. Joseph! His feast day gets totally eclipsed by St. Patrick. Two days after green beer and corned beef and people still must need to recover!

St. Joseph’s feast day is March 19 and I have such fond childhood memories of commemorating the day that this year I was inspired to make the traditionally symbolic treat that marks the Italian Feast of San Guiseppe – zeppole, the St. Joseph Day doughnut. The way my family made them they’re not really doughnuts, more like doughnut holes. They look like deep fried fritters -- pretty much dough balls! -- coated with confectioner’s sugar and served warm.

What are called zeppoles seems to differ depending on what part of Italy your version originates. In certain parts of Italy, more southern regions, the doughnuts are pretty fancy pastries, piped circles of dough, deep fried filled with cream and decorated with candied fruits and jimmies. Some are more like what I remember but they’re rolled in cinnamon sugar or take a quick dip in honey. It seems the only common denominator in the recipes I explored was deep frying!

I just remember the way my father made them.

But try as I might, I couldn’t find the original recipe and my internet search provided too many options. Some recipes called for ricotta, some included lemon or orange zest, and none of my sisters remembered those ingredients. We all do remember the final step of zeppole-making: shaking the warm little dough balls in paper bags of confectioner’s sugar. And we all remember how my mother would wince when my father announced he was going to make something in the kitchen. She would mildly complain that he knew how to dirty every *%^($# dish and utensil in the kitchen when he wanted to cook! It was quite the event!

The first recipe I tried was cooked on the stove for a little bit and had ricotta in the zeppole. The dough was like thick pancake batter. They tasted pretty good, but they weren’t too pretty. Picture gnarled ginger root rolled in powdered sugar.

The second recipe didn’t have ricotta but had lemon zest and juice. Its pastry was more like pie dough and I needed to use my hands to form balls of dough to fry. They looked good, but instead of being light and fluffy as I imagined – and recalled – they should be, they were pretty dense and too lemony.

And Goldilocks pronounced the third batch just right. The last recipe I tried came from Giada De Laurnetiis. And they were pretty good. The dough was batter-like, like my first batch. but I smartened up (actually, it was Mr. Rosemary’s suggestion) and this time used my small ice-cream scoop I use for cookies to form the dough balls and drop them into the hot oil. These zeppole were just right, although one of my sisters said that she remembered they were bigger.

I first found this recipe from Giada but then I found a blogger who also used it and described great success, so I followed Spoonful’s as well, but included the confectioner's sugar dusting after frying instead of cinnamon sugar.
There was one more reason I liked St. Joseph Day when I was a child: Since we had St. Joseph nuns as teachers, we had the day off from school!

Zeppole
adapted from Giada De Laurentiis and Spoonful
(yield: 4-6 servings)

1 stick butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1 cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
Optional: 3/4 tablespoon vanilla extract
Optional: 1/2+ teaspoon grated lemon zest
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting
Olive oil, for frying
In a medium saucepan combine the butter, salt, 3 tablespoons of sugar, and water over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Take pan off the heat and stir in the flour. Return pan to the heat and stir continuously until mixture forms a ball, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the flour mixture to a medium bowl. Add vanilla extract and / or lemon zest if using. Using an electric hand mixer on low speed, add eggs, 1 at a time, incorporating each egg completely before adding the next. Beat until smooth. If not frying immediately, cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the refrigerator.

Meanwhile, pour enough oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of two inches. (I used my cast iron Dutch oven.) Heat the oil over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees Fahrenheit. (Watch the temperature as you fry and adjust heat accordingly to maintain 375 degrees Fahrenheit).

Using a small ice-cream scooper or 2 small spoons, carefully drop about a tablespoon of the dough into the hot olive oil, frying in batches. Be careful not to make the zepploe too big or the insides will be doughy. The zeppole will immediately float to the top and puff up. Turn the zeppole once or twice with the side of a slotted spoon, cooking until golden and puffed up, about 5 minutes. (Watch carefully as cooking time might also be quite a bit shorter). Drain on paper towels or paper bags. Then transfer a few at a time while still warm to paper bags with about ½ confectioner’s sugar. Replenish the sugar once in a while. Eat them while they’re warm – and they don’t keep well!

Is It Real Irish Soda Bread?

2011-03-16T11:57:00.000-07:00

Here’s a myth buster for you: The Irish didn’t invent Irish soda bread. They pretty much own it now, but it was more than likely created by native Americans and made its way across the Atlantic. It appealed to the Irish because it was inexpensive to make and didn’t require a stove; it could be cooked in a kettle over a fire. Hence the usually round shape.

I learned all this from a website devoted to the Preservation of Irish Soda Bread. (Can you believe it?) The site includes information that authentic Irish soda bread uses wheat flour, not white, and never has anything like raisins, currants or caraway seeds added. Me? I didn’t know that Irish soda bread didn’t have raisins in it! If the bread has raisins in it, it's a treat, and called "spotted dog."

I did wonder, though, about the typical cross. Epicurious.com interviewed Rory O’Connell, an Irish chef and cooking school teacher and asked him about the cross. He said that the cross has a scientific basis, because it allows the heat to penetrate into the thickest part of the bread, aiding even cooking.

And since the cross resembles a crucifix, in a Catholic country, it has a symbolic meaning of crossing the breads and giving thanks. There was also the expression "to let the devil out of the bread," so it was slightly superstitious. Another benefit is that the cross shape makes the bread easy to break when it comes out of the oven. So there’s the blessing of the bread by putting the cross on it and then the symbolic breaking of the bread.

I just love that kind of food lore. Whatever the origin and whatever the “traditional” way to make it is, it’s a hearty, tasty bread.

My sister Lynn made soda bread over the weekend and gave me a loaf. Although she made this batch with white bread, she prefers the brown bread, using whole wheat flour. “And it’s just great toasted,” she added. “And spread with orange marmalade.” And lucky me, I just happen to have some in the pantry.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Irish Soda Bread
From Taste of Home, submitted by Gloria Warczak

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
2/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup raisins

In a large bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly. In a small bowl, whisk 1 egg and buttermilk. Stir in flour mixture just until moistened. Fold in raisins.

Knead on a floured surface for one minute. Shape into a round loaf; place on a greased baking sheet. Cut a ¼ inch cross in the top of the loaf. Beat remaining egg and brush over loaf.

Bake at 375 degrees or until golden brown. Yield: 6-8 servings

Red or White? Depends on the Chili

2011-03-09T18:42:00.000-08:00

I get along well with all kinds of chili. Beans, no beans, four kinds of beans. Ground meat, chunks of beef. Mild peppers, hot peppers. Spicy hot, little sweet. Onions or not. Bright red or musky maroon. All variations on a theme, a familiar theme, as comforting as your mom’s meatloaf. I thought I was less than persnickety about chili – until I met up with this white chili. And now I’m a convert.

A couple years ago, we went to a chili contest, a fund raiser for a local charity. Our friend Susie was competing, and her chili was, as usual, great. (She won the People’s Choice Award.) But there were a hundred pots of chili there, and they were all good. I know because I sampled them all.

Some were a little weirder than others. One guy’s secret ingredient was orange juice. Another’s was balsamic vinegar. Some were pretty sweet. Many were fire-breathers. But there wasn’t one white chili among them and I was anxious to taste one before I tried to make some at home.

Even though the occasion never presented itself, I was determined to try white chili. It became a minor challenge. So I assigned myself the mission of finding a recipe that might match my fantasy. Instead of going straight to the internet, I went to my ample cookbook library. You’d think there would have been one recipe that would have struck the right chord. But, no!

So I resorted to Googling and after several disappointing finds, I landed on The Pioneer Woman’s recipe and I was hooked. (I’ve decided Ree Drummond is the Oprah of the food blogging world.) Her recipe sounded just right: took some effort but was not overly time-consuming. If I was going to do this, it wasn’t going to be a mere unzipping of cans!

While I didn’t have everything on hand she’d specified, I had most of it and made a few changes. I didn’t roast a chicken; I bought one at the supermarket. I used cornmeal, not masa. And I added salsa verde and canned pickled jalapenos – because they were in the pantry. And sweet peppers, mostly because I wanted the extra bit of color.

Because I'm a fan of white pizza and linguine without a red clam sauce, I was sure I would like it but I was surprised at how much. It was sublime.

This is no wimpy chili. It’s full of chunky chicken and beans and peppers. But it’s not overwhelming. It’s creamy and hot at the same time. It gets its fire from the jalapenos and the chilies. No chili powder. Just a lot of cumin and some cayenne

It smelled heavenly while it was cooking and I wasn’t sure I could wait a whole hour to taste it. Well worth the wait, though.

I first made this version of the white chili a few weeks ago when the grandsons (oh, their parents came along, too) visited. We spared the little boys the heat (they loved their applesauce) but the biggie people thoroughly enjoyed the chili, a first for all of us veteran eaters.

We had the chili with a new cornbread cracker I found at Aldi’s, a perfect accompaniment.

The next time I made it, it was a smaller batch, for a girls’ night in. (We watched the movie “Red,” a pure delight for the 50+ set.) I was also in a bit of hurry and used canned cannellini, and – because I can’t seem to make something exactly the same way twice in a row – I added a can of creamed corn. It did add a different dimension. Mr. Rosemary (see, Mary?) pronounced his leftover helping better than the first batch. Arguable.

White Chili
(slightly)adapted from The Pioneer Woman

1 pound dried Great Northern beans, soaked overnight and rinsed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 whole medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chopped sweet peppers, red, yellow and/or green
8 cups chicken broth
1 4.5 ounce can chopped chilies, undrained
1 4.5 ounce can salsa verde
1 4.5 ounce can whole pickled jalapenos, chopped with juices
1 whole fresh jalapeno, sliced, ribs, seeds and all
1 ½ tablespoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cups cooked chicken
Salt and white pepper to taste
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons corn meal

Soak the beans in 6-8 cups cold water the night before cooking, or use the quick soak method described on the bag of beans. When ready to cook, heat olive oil in Dutch oven on medium high heat and cook onions, sweet peppers and garlic for about two minutes. Add the chilies, salsa, and chopped pickled jalapenos. Add the rinsed beans. Pour chicken broth into pan. Add the fresh sliced jalapeno, seeds, ribs and all. Reduce heat to low and place lid on pot.

Cook for one hour before adding the cooked chicken. Then cook another hour or so more, until beans are tender. When they’re tender, mix the cornmeal and milk and add to the chili. Cook an additional 10 minutes, until thickened Check the seasoning and adjust to you preferences of heat, adding more cayenne if you like.

Garnishing? Up to you. Monterey Jack cheese, green onion, cilantro, sour cream, all great options.

Broccoli Grape Salad -- A New Waldorf

2011-03-02T10:45:00.000-08:00

Broccoli has to be the chameleon of vegetables. It can change as much as Anne Hathaway’s dresses did at the Oscars this week! It can be raw or cooked, chopped or whole, sweet or spicy, in everything from soups to salads to casseroles and main dishes. I really can’t think of a bona fide dessert with broccoli in it, but this sweet Broccoli Grape salad, a riff on the traditional Waldorf Salad, just might make the cut.

It’s a lighter version of the classic Waldorf Salad, the traditional mix of apples, celery and walnuts in a mayonnaise dressing, with broccoli standing in for the apple. Waldorf Salad was mandatory on my mother’s Thanksgiving Day menu. My job was to make the salad dressing. No mixer, no food processor, not even a whisk. Just me stirring and stirring and stirring with a fork, getting the sugar well blended into the mayonnaise.

“Is this good, Mom?” I’d ask.

“Stir a little longer, honey.”

And after a little while, I’d ask again, and she might send me back sighing to my task again. But sooner or later I got it. And I got how much lemon juice to add. If it was too soupy, I’d have to add more mayo. It was a cooking lesson I really didn’t want just then; I wanted to eat the hors d’oeuvres in the living room with the grown-ups and slurp on my Shirley Temple!

Maybe that memory is why I decided to use honey in this dressing instead of the sugar it called for. The original recipe also added sunflower seeds for crunch. But I used dry roasted peanuts instead. I also cooked the broccoli just a little to take some of the raw crispness out of them. Just the right crispness. A nice twist on the Waldorf. I think Mom would approve.

Broccoli Grape Salad
Slightly adapted from Light & Tasty, September 2006

4 cups fresh broccoli florets, cut in small pieces
1-1/2 cups seedless red or green grapes, sliced
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped celery
1/3 cup reduced fat mayonnaise
¼ cup fat-free plain yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts

Cook the cut up broccoli in a covered dish with ¼ cup water for 3 minutes on high in the microwave. Drain in a colander and run cold water over the broccoli. Toss the broccoil with the grapes and raisins. Mix the mayonnaise, yogurt and honey for the dressing. Pour over the broccoli mixture and toss till everything is evenly covered. Add the peanuts just before serving. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
Makes about 8 3/4 cup servings, about 150 calories each.

Getting Your Eggs in a Pickle, Mustard, That Is

2011-02-23T08:16:00.000-08:00

Something funny happens to the chickens in winter. They just don’t want to lay eggs as often, as much. Neighbor Dude is lucky to squeeze (no pun intended) a dozen eggs a week from his chickens. I’m thinking maybe they’re just into basketball, maybe hockey, this time of year.

Dude just says, “You’ll have this with chickens.” Like the rest of us in a much-too-long Pennsylvania winter, they don’t like the lack of sunlight. To make up for it, most folks who raise chickens will provide artificial light. Chickens aren’t the brightest crayons in the box; they can be easily fooled.

Dude gives them extra light, too, but there are still fewer eggs. They wander the barn yard free, but they’re still wasn’t enough to scratch at. So he started supplementing their feed a bit -- judiciously – with table scraps. It worked! By the end of the week, I had enough extra eggs to indulge my urge for mustard pickled eggs.

And it was Dude who turned me on to them. My husband is a big fan of pickled eggs but his favorite use pickled beet juice as the brine. Dude had shared with me a recipe he brought back from the Pennsylvania Farm Show and I loved these yellow guys. They’re pickled, all right, but they also have a piquant spiciness, thanks to the mustard and seasonings, that I like.

My husband still prefers the more traditional pickled eggs with beets. Together, they make a pretty picture. (Just like us. Right, hon?)

Mustard Pickled Eggs
from the Pennsylvania Farm Show 2008

1 ½ cups white vinegar
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
½ tablespoon salt
½ teaspoon yellow food coloring (optional)
8 hard-boiled eggs

Mix all ingredients, except eggs, and pour over eggs. Let sit, refrigerated for 3 to 4 days to reach full flavor.
You can speed up the process by heating the pickling mixture before pouring over the eggs.

I did add yellow food coloring this last time I made them. They were a little pale the first time. I got to wondering, though, would a little turmeric yellow them up nicely and add an extra li’l kick, too?

A Good Recipe Travels Far: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

2011-02-20T10:38:00.000-08:00

Just like it’s great to have breakfast for dinner once in a while -- or leftover pizza for breakfast -- muffins, especially jazzed-up versions like these Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins, can be a great dessert. Of course, since they’re “muffins” you’re welcome to have them for breakfast, too.

I learned about these muffins from Elly Says Opa!, who learned them from Annie’s Eats. Who knows where it will go next? Ain’t blogging grand! Elly made a few tweaks from Annie’s recipe, then I changed the topping. Not that the original crumb topping wasn’t good. It’s delectable. But I really was planning these for a dessert, so I made a glaze instead.

Apparently, these are a knock-off of a Starbuck’s muffin. I couldn’t fact-check that one, because the closest Starbuck’s is more than a few miles from here (not that we don’t have some great coffee houses!). But I can tell you they’re scrumptious! If you like pumpkin. (I do.) And warm cinnamony and clovey spices. (I do.) And cream cheese. (I do, I do, I do!)

These aren’t a spontaneous undertaking because you need two hours ahead of baking to cool your sweetened cream cheese logs in the freezer before baking – but it’s worth it.

I first made these for a Christmas brunch and we scarfed them up along with our Naked Fruit Salad, ham and broccoli quiche and mimosas. The muffins were so good I bet we could have just eaten more of them and skipped the quiche – but not the mimosas.

The next time I made them was for a friend’s birthday. Our friend Susie was baking her husband Dick’s favorite cake for his birthday but since there was going to be a crowd, we thought maybe some extra something might be good. So I volunteered to make these. It’s not like me to volunteer to bake, I’m that intimidated by baking. But I was so sure of these babies, I didn’t hesitate a minute – and even got so brave as to change the topping!

Elly added a little vanilla to the cream cheese filling, and changed the spice combination some. Annie’s Eats recipe included pumpkin pie spice, but Elly chose to increase the cinnamon and nutmeg and add ground ginger. She also used canola oil instead of vegetable oil. Since I had a bunch of pumpkin pie spice that won’t get used for anything but this, I followed the first recipe more closely.

Since they were supposed to be a dessert, I thought I’d frost them, but since there was already cream cheese in the middle, a real icing might be too much, so I made a glaze by blending softened cream cheese with confectioner's sugar and thinning it with apple butter and spreading it on the warm muffins.

So here’s my amalgamation of two recipes. I wonder what the next change will be?

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
from Elly Says Opa! and from Annie’s Eats

For the filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the glaze:

1 cup confectioners' sugar
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
½ cup apple butter

To make the filling, mix together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract until combined. Shape the mixture into a log (about 1.5″ in diameter), with the aid of plastic wrap, and wrap the log tightly. Reinforce with tin foil or place in a plastic freezer bag and freeze for 2 hours or longer, until firm.

To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. While the muffins bake, make the glaze by blending the crea cheese, confectioners' sugar and apple butter until smooth. Whn muffins are done, transfer to a wire rack. Spread apple butter glaze on muffin tops while still warm. Let cool completely before serving.

"Goat's Beard" Soup

2011-02-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

As I was making this luscious, velvety smooth and just-rich-enough Cream of Leek and Potato Soup, I was struck at what a pretty color it was: a lovely pastel green with a hint of yellow. It looked familiar and comforting. And it didn’t take me long to figure out why: it’s the color of my kitchen walls!

The paint chip was labeled “Goat’s Beard,” and I never really gave the name a second thought. It was the light shade of green I wanted to blend with the deeper sage green (called “Washed Khaki’) in the adjoining dining room and office/den, and coordinated perfectly with the golden orange (called “Himalayan Paw”) that accented the bulkhead all around. That Martha Stewart can get pretty creative even with paint names.

I merely thought these were unique names. Now I had to look up “goat’s beard.” It’s a perennial plant (aruncus dioicus) and the color of the flower does indeed look like my kitchen walls. (I learned this from my favorite perennial supplier, Bluestone Perennials, who happily shared this picture with me. Bluestone, based in Madison, Ohio, incidentally, ships anywhere at the right time for growing. Great greenhouse.)

I can figure out what Washed Khaki describes, but Himalayan Paw? Has to be a strange big cat, right? Kinda. It’s a popular Persian cat, although not big, but the colors of the pads, or paws, can vary widely. The closest thing I found to the color of my bulkhead was cinnamon-pink. Close enough.

Back to the soup.

I was inspired to make this soup thanks to The Splendid Table, the National Public Radio program hosted by Lynn Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift. I subscribe to the weekly e-newsletter that never fails to offer something unique, but doable, for a weeknight. Highly recommend it. They were inspired by Julia Child. Imagine! All these great cooks right alongside me as I whipped up this soup and awed at my own walls!

As you can see, the recipe is not really a recipe, more like a framework, arming one with the right proportions to embellish to one’s heart content. I didn’t get carried away. Chopped chives was it. Next time, who knows.

I’m loving my new immersion blender. Making pureed soups like this is a piece of cake now. No transferring from pot to processor, in portions, and back again to the pot. No chance for spillage. It’s the best little appliance I ever introduced to my little kitchen, which can’t stand one more thing on the counter, or to store in the cupboard. A little rearranging was all it took to keep the new blender handy but hidden.

Master Recipe for Leek and Potato Soup
Adapted by The Splendid Table from Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom: Essential Techniques and Recipes from a Lifetime of Cooking, By Julia Child

Makes about 2 quarts, serving 6

3 cups sliced leeks, white and tender green parts
3 cups peeled and roughly chopped “baking” potatoes
6 cups water
11/2 teaspoons salt
½ cup sour cream or crème fraiche, optional

Bring ingredients to the boil in a 3 quart saucepan. Cover partially and simmer, until vegetables are tender. Correct seasoning. Serve as is, or puree and/or top each portion with a dollop of the cream.

Cream of Leek and Potato Soup: After simmering the soup, puree it and whisk in ½ cup heavy cream. Reheat to the simmer again before serving.

Other variations:

Substitute onions for leeks
Add a bunch of watercress to the base soup for the last few minutes of cooking before pureeing.
Add anything else you have on hand, such as cauliflower, broccoli, green peas, spinach, raw or cooked, making it your house soupe du jour. (Actually, I did this, adding broccoli stalks, asparagus stalks, spinach leaves not pretty enough for a salad, etc., and, frankly, the color just couldn’t match my goat’s beard, so I’m sticking with leeks and potatoes!)

Here's my favorite picture hanging on my Goat's Beard kitchen wall. Thanks, Amy!

Chocolate and Peanut Butter Cheesecake

2011-02-04T04:52:00.000-08:00

There are few things that go together as naturally as peanut butter and chocolate. (Okay, maybe peanut butter and jelly.) When I Googled the words peanut butter and chocolate I got 5.3 million results in less than 22 seconds. That’s simply amazing!

And at the top of the search list? Even more amazing – a blog dedicated to nothing but peanut butter and chocolate recipes!! Kristina from Hoboken, NJ, has been writing about peanut butter and chocolate for over two years and hasn’t run out of steam. (Can you imagine chili with peanut butter? Must try it.)

So when a friend requested “something peanut butter and chocolate” for her birthday celebration, I was secretly delighted because that meant if I was making the treat I got to lick the bowl. And the spoon. And the beaters. And my fingers.

I made a cheesecake, but it’s not a classic cheesecake at all. In fact the texture was more like a soft candy bar. Dense with rich chocolate and creamy peanut butter. I confess I didn’t get the recipe from the cpb gallery. (It was from Better Homes and Gardens.) But I’m definitely going back for the chili recipe!

You won’t be tempted to cut this into any sizes much bigger. The recipe says 16 slices and that’s exactly what it means. To make it easier to slice use a serrated knife dipped in water.

Decadent Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cheesecake
from www.bhg.com

18 chocolate covered graham crackers
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
2 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
¼ cup sugar
3 eggs
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate pieces
2 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Optional peanuts for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine crackers, melted butter and 2 tablespoons sugar. Press into bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan; set aside. In bowl beat 1 package cream cheese with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in peanut butter and ¼ cup sugar until combined. Fold in 1 lightly beaten egg. Set aside.

In saucepan, stir chocolate over low heat until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Cube remaining cheese and add to chocolate. Stir to combine. Stir in milk and vanilla until smooth. Fold in two lightly beaten eggs. Spread half the chocolate mixture into the pan. Carefully spread all the peanut butter mixture over the chocolate layer. Then evenly spread the rest of the chocolate over the peanut butter layer.

Bake 45 minutes until top is set when slightly shaken. The outer two inches of the top will be slightly puffed and dry-looking; center will look darker and wet. Cool in pan on rack 15 minutes. Gently loosen the crust from sides and cool completely on rack. Cover and chill at least 4 hours. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes before serving, to ease cutting. Sprinkle with peanuts if you want. Makes 16 servings. (About 400 calories each, but worth it!)

This is how beautiful the ice we had this week looked!

A Simple Bayou Stew, with a Side of Jewelry

2011-02-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

I used to work with a graphic artist who did the same thing every time we were discussing a project: He’d draw a triangle -- wherever, on a board, on a piece of paper, a napkin -- and he’d label the corners Good, Fast and Cheap. Then he’d say, “You can have two of these, but you can’t have all three!”

Didn't believe it then, and I don't believe it now, especially when it comes to cooking.

It is possible -- quite possible – to make good food and make it well and quickly. It does take a little planning, a few things in the pantry, some effort, a bit of imagination.

But none of that means a whole lot of money or time. It might take a modicum of skill, but only a modicum. And with a little practice, a little repetition, that skill feeds itself along with the growing knowledge of what complements what. Fresh ingredients are a big plus, but often, armed simple staples – rice, onion, a pepper, an egg or two, garlic and soy sauce -- one pan and twenty minutes, you can make a great dish like fried rice. And something as simple as keeping a jar of capers or chipotle in adobo sauce on hand can transform simple into exotic.

My step-daughter Krista and her husband Dan are like a lot of young parents who, after a full day of work, would rather spend time with their two pre-school (and lively!) boys or working on a home improvement project than cooking. (Can't blame them; those boys are pretty darn adorable!)

But they still want to eat well – healthily, inexpensively, and without a lot of time in the kitchen, something that everyone (even a sometimes finicky four year-old) -- will eat, and without getting stuck in a rut. Got to hand it to them, they’ve honed some pretty good habits to do that: shopping in bulk, stocking the freezer and pantry, keeping shopping lists, and planning weekly menus they actually post!

On a visit to their house several weeks ago, while Grandpa and I were busy playing with the boys, Krista and Dan slipped into the kitchen and whipped up this simple and very good soup/stew. They served it with some great bread and it was a wonderful lunch!

They told me the recipe came from a cookbook I’d given them some time ago: Cheap, Fast, Good! The authors, Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross, have assembled hundreds of dishes to make great food cheaply, along a whole lot of good advice about getting the most for your dollar. (I hear inflation’s coming!) The recipes are very family friendly, too. You can further healthy-up this recipe by using turkey kielbasa and low-sodium beef broth.

One of the reasons Krista needs all her spare time is so she can work on her hand-made jewelry, available on her etsy.com site. Classy and elegant stuff. She’s talented and imaginative with her designs. I love her stuff! Before taking a look at the recipe, take a look at this sampling; and be sure to visit her Behind the Moon etsy shop and her blog.

Bayou Stew
from Cheap, Fast, Good!

1 cup long grain rice
2/3 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
2 large onions
8 ounces kielbasa sausage
1 medium sized green pepper (about 1 cup chopped)
2 cans (14 oz each) beef broth
2 teaspoons Cajun blend seasoning
2 tablespoons flour

For Rice: Bring 2 cups lightly salted water to boil in a covered saucepan. Add the rice. Stir and reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 20 minutes.
Melt butter in 4 ½ qt Dutch oven over medium heat. Peel onion and finely chop them, adding to the pot as you chop. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces adding them to the pot as you chop. When all the chicken has been added, raise the heat to medium high. Cook stirring until the chicken is almost cooked through, about 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile cut the sausage in half lengthwise, the slice both halves into roughly ¼ in pieces.
Add broth to the pot, raise the heat to high and add the bell pepper, cover the pot and bring the soup to a boil. Add Cajun seasoning and cook at a moderate boil until the green pepper is tender, about 3 minutes. (Uncover the pot partially if pot begins to boil over.)

In small jar with lid, mix flour with 3 tablespoons cold tap water. Cover jar and shake well until the mixture is combined and the lumps have disappeared. Gradually add the flour mixture to the soup stirring constantly until the soup has thickened slightly. Remove the pan from the heat. Divide the hot cooked rice among four large soup bowls and ladle soup over the rice and serve at once. Four generous servings.

Great Steak, Dr. Salisbury!

2011-01-27T13:15:00.000-08:00

It really is just ground meat, after all. Not really “steak” as we know it. And, usually, you’ll only find the humble Salisbury Steak (pretty high fallutin’ name for something so modest) in diners and homestyle restaurants. Right alongside the meatloaf. Or chicken and biscuits.

But the name comes from Doctor Salisbury! I imagined it was just named after a place – Salisbury Hill? Apparently James Henry Salisbury, a 19th century British physician was a big advocate of lots of meat -- red meat, no less -- in the diet, contrary to everything we read today. He believed that vegetables and starchy foods could produce substances that poison and paralyze the body’s tissues and cause everything from heart disease to tuberculosis to gout.

He claimed our teeth are "meat teeth" and our digestive systems designed to digest lean meat, and that vegetables, fats, starches and fruit should only be 1/3 of our diet. Starch is digested slowly, so it ferments in the stomach and produces vinegar, acid, alcohol and yeast, all of which were poisonous to our systems, he claimed.

His “meat cure” was a special diet that included Salisbury Steak, which should be eaten three times a day (!), with plenty of water to flush the body’s system.

All pretty interesting and certainly a signal that I was to try Salisbury Steak at home. I'm a great guinea pig. I don’t think I’ve ever had it. I’m always looking for different ways to use ground meat because we have a freezer full of beef/venison mix. (Talk about local! Some of beef is from Dude who lives down the road, and some of the venison, from our own woods.)

My husband could live – happily – on hamburgers three days a week. Probably pizza at least two of the others. I like just a little more variety. So when a sample of Cuisine At Home arrived with a recipe for French Onion Salisbury Steak in it, I earmarked it. Then, I saw a blog I follow, Casa en la Cocina, * posted another version. Karma strikes again. The photo in the Cuisine at Home made the glorified hamburger look very much like a steak. What really makes it special is the sauce, a little in the cooking method, and definitely the shape. It’s shaped into a nice oval, not round like a regular hamburger. I suppose that nurtures the notion of “steak.” I know we thought it was great comfort food for this winter that doesn’t seem to want to take a break.

Salisbury Steak
from Cuisine at Home

1 ¼ pounds lean ground beef
¼ cup minced parsley
¼ cup finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons shallot-pepper seasoning (from Penzey's)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
For the sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup sliced onions
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
¼ dry red wine
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon dried thyme

Combine the ground meat, parsley, shallot-pepper seasoning (or substitute freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt and increase the amount of chopped onions to ½ cup.)
Divide the mixture evenly into four patties and shape into ¾ inch to 1 inch thick oval patties. Place the flour in a shallow dish and dredge each patty in the flour. (Reserve 1 teaspoon flour for the sauce.)
Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add patties and cook about three minute on each side or until browned and remove from pan.
Add the onion and sugar to the pan and cook about 3 to four minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook another two minutes longer. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste. Cook until the paste begins to turn brown in color, about 1 minute.
Sprinkle the reserved flour over and cook 1 minute. Then add the broth and wine, salt and thyme.
Return the meat to the pan; bring sauce to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle a little fresh parsley and grated Parmesan if you’d like. I served the steaks on top of lightly buttered noodles with peas and spooned the sauce over all.
Makes 4 steaks.

*What I did differently from Cuisine at Home was to use sweet onions instead of scallions in the meat mixture as well as use the Penzey's shallot-pepper seasoning instead of shallots and pepper. I also added mushrooms to the sauce mixture. The magazine's recipe also suggests serving the steaks atop cheese toasts.

* Mary's, Casa en la Cocina, birthday is Friday, January 28. Stop by and wish her a happy! *

My Mom’s Best Cookie: Sour Cream Twists

2011-01-23T13:02:00.000-08:00

In memory of my mother, who died six years ago today, I made her favorite cookie, which has been the family’s signature cookie for well over 40 years. And I have to say, Mom, they’re the best batch I’ve ever made! They turned out just the way they’re supposed to – a crunchy, caramelized sugar coating on the outside, a delicately flaky pastry-like cookie on the inside. Just the right golden color. Perfect!

My mother found this recipe when her first daughter got married many more years ago than I’m sure my sister Anne wants to remember! It was a simple wedding with a reception on the lawn of our parents’ home. I was all of five or six at the time, but I do remember the flurry of activity and I sure remember those cookies.

My older sisters tell me that Mom found this recipe when she was searching for something special for the reception. We thought it must have come from her favorite cookbook– Woman’s Home Companion – but maybe it was another (because I looked there.) Mom herself told us that it was an “old German recipe.” We thought that was a little unusual since she had an Irish Scot heritage and Dad was 100% Italian!

Every woman in the family learned to make Sour Cream Twists. Over the years, we’ve all contributed the recipe to many a benefit cookbook of any organization we’ve belonged to. I’ve taken them to book club, church potlucks, parties, card club, women’s meetings. We’ve all often been asked for the recipe. Once I happily shared the recipe with a woman I admired as a great cook (who moaned so appreciatively as she ate a cookie in front of me.) She came back to me later and told me I must have left something out because hers weren’t quite the same as mine.

“Ahhh!” I thought, “It must all be in the technique of the twist!”

It did take me a while to get the hang of twisting the raw dough just right, and judging just how much vanilla sugar to roll into the dough. I do remember well my younger sister and I learning how to make the cookies with Mom. And how much raw dough we’d sneak in while she wasn’t looking.

We’ve all thought it was a unique cookie and not your standard fare. But if you do a quick Google search today, you’ll find hundreds of versions. And imagine the family’s dismay when our Sour Cream Twist, our family’s signature cookie, was featured in a 2005 Good Housekeeping magazine cookie contest! Not so unique after all! The Massachusetts woman who submitted the recipe said that a co-worker gave her the recipe. “She gave me the recipe for these twists, which are delicious – like puff pastry. That was 40 years ago and I still make them every year.”

So do I. And they are delicious. Mom made them for just about every occasion, no matter how special or ordinary. Someone coming home from college for a weekend? Sour Cream Twists. Great report card? Sour Cream Twists. Home on leave from the service? Sour Cream Twists. And certainly every Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Simply a family tradition we can’t -- won’t -- let go of.

The recipes I’ve looked at all have slight variations. More or less eggs or varying amounts of sour cream. But none of them have any sweetness in the dough; the sugar is added in the rolling later. They all have sour cream, yeast, flour, butter and vanilla extract in the dough. Mom always insisted on Fleischmann’s margarine and she used cake yeast. I think she would have easily latched on to using parchment paper or a silicon mat. Cleaning up those &*^$# pans of caramelized sugar was always tough.

I’ve messed around with the recipe from time to time – adding orange zest or crushed almonds or almond extract. But I always come back to the original.

Because they remind me of you, Mom. Especially today.

I miss you very much. Always will.

Sour Cream Twists

1 package active dry yeast
¼ cup lukewarm water
3 ½ cups flour
2 sticks butter
2 eggs
½ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For rolling:
1 ½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Dissolve yeast in water. Mix flour in butter in bowl with pastry blender until mixture is well blended. Beat eggs until foamy, then add yeast mixture and sour cream until well blended. Add the flour and butter mixture and mix well. Gather into ball and wrap in clear wrap and refrigerate at least two hours. (It will keep in fridge a couple days.)

When ready to bake, preheat over to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line rimmed baking pans with parchment paper.

Combine a mixture of 1 ½ cups sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla and blend well. Sprinkle rolling surface with some of this mixture. Using half the dough, roll it to a rectangle about 4 by 12 inches. Cut in half lengthwise, then each half into 12 even pieces. Roll the piece in the vanilla sugar, then twist it two or three times and roll it again in the sugar and place two inches apart on baking sheet. Follow same procedure with second half of dough. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until lightly golden brown on bottom. Remove immediately from pan and cool on baking rack. Store in tightly covered container about a week. If cookies lose their outside crispness, reheat in 350 degree oven for about five minutes.

Makes 4 dozen cookies.

Maple-y Apple-y Chicken Sausage Apps for Game Day

2011-01-22T13:28:00.000-08:00

As I was straining my brain for ideas for a different snack to take to a football party, I finally remembered these simple sausage appetizers that we had at a family holiday party. Not only are they easy and tasty, they’re fun to eat. Using pretzel sticks as edible toothpicks is ingenious, don't you think?

Tiny meatballs or sausage in a grape jelly and BBQ sauce are always a popular item at parties like this, and these sausage bites are a unique twist on that favorite. The pre-cooked chicken sausages aren’t always easy for me to find (they sure do make them easy to make!) but next time I do find them again, I’m going to stick a few in the freezer so these are always ready to be made.

We’re headed to watch the Steelers and Jets play tomorrow evening. At least I think we’ll be watching. My husband – a Steelers fan, for sure – may or may not watch. At a game a couple weeks ago, he turned up missing out of a roomful of friends because, almost like me watching a scary movie, he was afraid to watch the next play. I found him clipping his nails in the garage. Maybe if I’d had these ready, he wouldn’t have left at all!

Maple-Glazed Apple Chicken Sausage Bites
from Better Homes & Gardens

1 12-16 ounce package cooked apple-flavored chicken sausage links
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon stone ground mustard
2 teaspoons snipped fresh sage (or ½ teaspoon dried)
16 -20 pretzel sticks

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut sausages into 1-inch slices. Place on rimmed baking pan (covered with parchment paper to save on clean-up). For glaze, in small bowl combine syrup, mustard and sage.

Bake sausage – unglazed -- for 8 minutes. Then, brush generously with the glaze. Bake for 8 minutes more until sausage pieces are well-glazed and heated through. Use pretzel sticks as edible toothpicks and serve on a pretty platter.

Let Them Eat Spinach Cakes

2011-01-19T06:49:00.000-08:00

Spinach soufflé, frozen from Stouffer’s, is one of my secret pleasures. Does that make it an indulgence? I can eat a whole box by myself, and believe me, I have. If I knew that I’d be alone for an evening – “Oh, you have a meeting tonight? Won’t be home for dinner? That's too bad.” – I’d be smiling on the inside knowing I’d be digging into the freezer later for one of those orange boxes and baking one right up, just for me. I think the box says it has “about 3 servings.” Nope. I would eat the whole thing, happily, joyfully, no regrets.

Other people, alone for an evening, might dig into a carton of ice cream with a spoon, or open a cold can of baked beans, but I'd go for that smooth and creamy Stouffer's spinach souffle every time.

I love spinach any ol' which way – fresh in a salad or on a sandwich, added to soups or pasta dishes, creamed alongside a steak. Growing up, spinach was a staple at the dinner table, but my mother always served it the same way – topped with hard-boiled egg and drizzled with vinegar. Although I still like it that way, I love creamed spinach.

My husband (he wants me to come up with a special name for him when I talk about him here; I’m thinking about it) doesn’t like the creamed or soufflé versions as much as I do, so I began to make mini soufflés in muffin cups and freezing them so I could easily have one for breakfast or lunch. When I go teach a day at school, they’re great for a quick reheat in the microwave.

I started making these after reading a South Beach Diet cookbook and then began fooling around with them a bit to suit me a little better (not just to make them more fattening!)

So here’s my new secret pleasure . . . Spinach Cakes. But it's not a secret anymore.

Spinach Cakes
adapted from South Beach Diet
12 ounces fresh spinach
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup Greek yogurt, plain*
2 large eggs, beaten
1 clove garlic minced
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg (or about 5 scrapes of a whole nutmeg on a grater)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook the spinach in a non-stick skillet until wilted; cool slightly and chop finely. (Or use ½ 10-ounce block of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry. Or use a whole block and double the rest of the ingredients.)

Blend all together in a bowl and fill 8 paper-lined muffin cup (or grease them well.) Bake 20 minutes. Let stand a few minutes before eating.

Makes 4 servings, 2 spinach cakes a serving (about 140 calories a serving)

*Sometimes, I can't find Greek-style yogurt and it is more expensive. So I've been buying non-fat plain yogurt and letting it sit in a strainer in the refrigerator for a few hours, or overnight, and I have thicker yogurt.)

(I just added the mushrooms in the picture to make the spinach cups a little prettier, ready for their close-up, Mr. DeMille.)

The Proof’s in the Bread Pudding

2011-01-16T04:03:00.000-08:00

I never had bread pudding when I was growing up. That’s probably because in a busy family with two parents working and four kids at home, stale bread was one rare commodity. It was a whole lot more likely for us to be out of bread completely!

Today, though, in an empty nest household, stale bread happens a lot more than I’d like, no matter how carefully I think I plan. I often freeze extra bread, sometimes make crumbs with the older stuff, but this time, I decided to make bread pudding. Just the name conjures up all kinds of cozy images and good cinnamon-y smells. I think I can smell a fresh cup of coffee along with it.

Many of the bread pudding recipes I’ve looked at asked for “stale Italian bread” or offered “ciabatta is best,” but they all said any stale bread will do. I think freezer burn is close to stale so I dug out a package of hot dogs buns that have been sitting in the freezer since Labor Day “just in case.” Here's my case.

A recipe from a beautiful blog, The Meaning of Pie, was my inspiration. The only things I did differently than Kelly was to sprinkle the dried cranberries and chopped walnuts (Christmas baking leftovers) over the milk soaked bread cubes before pouring the eggs over the mixture. I did let my hot dog buns sit on the counter naked so they would be drier. And I added a luscious and gooey vanilla sauce, so good I could have eaten it alone with a spoon. (Just a couple.) Eating the warm bread pudding, topped with the warm vanilla sauce and that hot cup of coffee almost makes winter worthwhile. Next time, though, I'm thinking some brandy-soaked raisins would be nice. And a little brandied-coffee, too. That sounds like a real warmer-upper.

Bread Pudding
from The Meaning of Pie

About 4 cups (or more) torn bread, any leftover dried out bread you may have
2 cups milk
1 cup half and half
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Dash of salt
½ stick butter
3 eggs
Topping: ¼ cup granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a casserole dish and fill it with torn bread. In a small saucepan, heat the milk, half-and-half, sugar, cinnamon, salt and butter until just melted and combined. Pour the milk over the torn bread and let it sit for about five minutes, being sure to submerge any bread pieces. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and then pour over the bread. Carefully fold the eggs into the bread mixture until they’re well incorporated.

For the topping, mix the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle over the top of the filled casserole.

To bake, use a water bath. Place the bread pudding dish in a pan large enough to hold it and place them together in the preheated oven. Very carefully, pour boiling water into the larger dish so it comes halfway up the sides of the bread pudding dish. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out (pretty) clean.

Vanilla Sauce

½ cup butter
½ cup granulated white sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon vanilla

Bring all the ingredients except the vanilla to a boil in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Curried Sweet Potato Soup -- A Warmer Upper

2011-01-13T07:49:00.000-08:00

Yet another (beautiful?) snow day here yesterday in Pennsylvania. Single digits. More than six inches of new snow. It really is beautiful, but after a couple hours of taking care of the horses, cleaning off the cars, shoveling, and a bit of a walk, I was more than ready to curl up by the fire with some comfort food. For me that has to be soup.

Here’s the serendipitous sequence of events – more like a stream of consciousness – that inspired this sweet potato soup:

I opened a new carton of non-fat yogurt to strain -- great way to imitate Greek yogurt, cheaply.
The foil lid liner had a recipe for creamy sweet potato soup.
That reminded me that I had some sweet potatoes in the pantry that were probably past their prime, or as my daughter would say, “Pretty sketchy, Mom.”
Soup was on my brain.
And I have yet another reason to use the new immersion blender I got for Christmas.

Almost karma, wouldn’t you say?

The result was exactly what I needed to warm me up and keep me content. The original recipe used canola oil and cumin. I used olive oil, added garlic and switched from cumin to curry – and increased the spice from a teaspoon to a whole tablespoon. I decreased the amount of broth from 1 ½ quarts to just 1 because I like a thicker soup, even if it’s pureed. I also had some fresh chives on hand, so I used that instead of cilantro. And I slipped in a couple tablespoons of sherry at the end, too. All in all, just a nice smooth and creamy soup, mellow with a bit of sweet heat. A perfect soother. Pretty color, too and not bad on the calorie front to boot.

By the way, it’s supposed to snow again tomorrow.

Curried Sweet Potato Soup
adapted from Dannon

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large sweet onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed, about 3 cups
1 quart (32 ounces) chicken broth
1 ½ cup plain non-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons sherry (I used Madeira)
Extra yogurt and chopped chives for garnish

Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion, curry powder and garlic and cook over medium heat until the onion softens, three to five minutes. Add the broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are very tender. Remove from heat and add yogurt and use immersion blender till pureed. (Or put in a blender, in batches if you need to; then return pureed soup to pot.) Return to stove to warm and add sherry if you want. Top with a dollop of yogurt and chopped chives just for a touch of pretty. Makes 8 servings -- unless you're really cold.