Apple Butter Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 large Gala or other baking apple, peeled, cored, and finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup apple butter
• Special equipment: 2 (12-cup) muffin pans

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 muffin tins with paper liners.
Using a hand mixer or standing mixer, cream the butter and vanilla sugar together until fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time and vanilla extract, beating until smooth.
Combine the flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add half the flour mixture to the creamed butter, then add the sour cream, and then the rest of the flour. Beat until well combined, taking care not to over mix. Gently fold in the chopped apples.
Divide batter between prepared muffin tins, filling them 1/2 way full. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean and the tops spring back when pressed gently, about 20 minutes. Cool the cupcakes in the tin on a rack for 10 minutes then remove from the tin and cool completely.
Put apple butter into a small pastry bag with an open tip Squeeze a small amount into the center of each cupcake. Continue cooling completely. Then frost with icing.

For the frosting:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla paste
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• Sprinkle Cinnamon on top (optional)

Using a hand or standing mixer, beat cream cheese and butter together, at medium speed, until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in vanilla and lemon juice. On low speed, gradually add in confectioners' sugar and beat until well combined. Frost as desired.

Clam Sauce for Pasta

Adapted from Rachel Ray and Emeril Lagasse recipes!

Ingredients


1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 to 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tin flat fillet of anchovies, drained, 6 or 7 fillets
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, 4 or 5 sprigs stripped or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup clam juice
1 pound fresh chopped clams
1 lemon, zested

1 pound linguini, slightly undercooked, about 6 to 7 minutes

1/4 cup chopped parsley leaves

Lots of black pepper and some coarse salt

Crusty bread, for mopping

Directions

Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 4 turns of the pan in a slow stream, red pepper flakes, garlic and anchovies and cook until anchovies melt into the oil. Add thyme and wine. Reduce wine 1 minute. Add clam juice or stock, clam juice will give the dish a stronger clam flavor, chicken stock will give it a buttery personality. Stir in clams and lemon zest. Drain pasta. Add to skillet and toss with sauce 2 to 3 minutes, until pasta is al dente and has absorbed some of the sauce and flavor. Add parsley, pepper and salt, to your taste and serve with bread for mopping up remaining juices.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Our "Feast of the Seven Fishes" menu:
(1) Shrimp Coktail, (2) Fried Clamari, and (3) Fried Smelts (all courtesy of Joyce!).
(4)  Sardine Pate, Pierre Robert Cheese, and assorted cheeses.
(5) Charley's Chowder
Cold Lemony Asparagus-Mushroom-Red Pepper Salad
Karen, Meredith and Christians HOME MADE Spaghetti with
(6) Grandma's Tuna Sauce (resicpe forthcoming)
(7) Langostino Fra Diavalo
(8) White Clam Sauce

For Desert, Christian and Meredith's Cookie and Bar assortment, and Meredith's Famous Tiramasou

Thanks for coming, everyone!

Cold Lemony Asparagus Salad

Aasparagus, woody ends removed, green or combination of green and white.
Sliced mushroom
Red pepper, diced
Lemon vinaigrette dressing:
1/3C vegetable oil
1/4C lemon juice
1/4C sliced green onions
1 tablespoon Dijon style mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt

First blanche the asparagus. To blanche the asparagus put it in boiling water for 1 minute and then immerse in ice water to stop the cooking. - I just cooked the asparagus, didn't bother with grilling it.

In a container with a tight lid combine all vinaigrette ingredients and shake to combine, add all veggiesto large bowl, pour vinaigrette over all and toss to cover.

Chill until you are ready to serve and you can serve it cold or at room temperature.

The green, white and red make a very christmas-y color combination.

Kheema Matar Aloo (Minced lamb, peas and potatoes)

Ingredients:

Ground lamb
Oil or ghee
Cumin seeds
Garlic, minced or paste
Ginger, piece or paste
Ground coriander
Curry paste or powder or combination
Tomatoes, diced
Potatoes, small cubes
Buttermilk
Peas
Fresh cilantro

Heat oil, add onions and saute until slightly soft.
Add cumin, ginger, garlic, coriander and curry seasonings to taste - more than you think!
Add lamb and brown.
Add potatoes and simmer, if you need to, add some water.
When potatoes cooked, add some buttermilk and then peas.
Cook a few minutes longer, add cilantro and then serve over rice or with naan.
Add

Palak Paneer

Ingredients:

Fresh Spinach, chopped or processed to smallish bits
Paneer cheese, cut into 1 cm or so cubes
Oil or ghee
Onion, diced
Cumin Seeds
Fresh Ginger or paste
Fresh garlic or paste
Curry paste, powder, or combination
Canned tomatoes, diced
Buttermilk

Heat oil in large saucepan. Add chopped onions and saute until slightly soft.
Add cumin seeds, ginger and garlic to taste, saute a little longer.
Add curry paste or powder, more than you think you need.
(I like madras paste, but balti or almost anything will work.)
Add 1 or 2 cans worth of tomatoes with juice.
Add spinach, stir until all coated and wilted.
Add paneer cubes.
Add 1/2 to 1 cup buttermilk, or some cream if you don't have buttermilk.

Simmer until spinach well done, then serve over rice or naan.

Sherried Sardine Toast

From Food Network: Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2009

.Prep Time:15 minInactive Prep Time:--Cook Time:5 minLevel:

4 servings.

Ingredients

•2 (3.75-ounce 2-layer) tins brisling sardines in olive oil
•2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley leaves, divided
•1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
•1/4 teaspoon lemon zest, reserve the lemon and cut into 4 wedges
•Freshly ground black pepper
•4 (1/2-inch) thick slices crusty bread, such as sourdough, country loaf or rye
•1 ripe Hass avocado
•Coarse sea salt

Directions

Drain the oil from 1 tin of sardines into a small bowl and set aside. Drain the oil from the other tin into another small bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon of parsley, vinegar, lemon zest, and black pepper, to taste. Add the sardines, stir to combine and set aside for up to 1 hour.

After 45 minutes, put a rack 3-inches from the broiler and heat the oven to the broiler setting on high. Brush each slice of bread on 1 side with the reserved oil. Put the bread, oil side up, onto a cooling rack set inside a half sheet pan and broil 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.

Halve the avocado and remove the pit. Smash the flesh in each half with a fork.

Spread the avocado evenly onto the toasted bread. Top evenly with the sardines. Pour any remaining dressing on top and garnish with the remaining parsley.

Season lightly with sea salt and serve with lemon wedges.

Crab Alfredo

Ingredients:


4 tablespoons Butter or margarine
4 tablespoons Flour
2 cups Half-and-half (heavy cream If you REALLY feel wicked)
1/2 cup (or more to Taste) grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt and white pepper to Taste
Few grains cayenne pepper (optional)
6 (8 oz.) cooked snow crab meat, Cut into chunks

Directions:

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour, and cook briefly until the mixture looks sandy. Do NOT let it color. Wisk in the half-and-half, and stir until the mixture forms a thick sauce. Stir in the cheese, and season to taste. Simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors, and stir in the crab meat. Cook JUST until the crab is heated through. Serve over cooked linguini, with additional Parmesan cheese and hot red pepper flakes on the side.

Before some purist jumps me, I KNOW this isn't a classic Alfredo, but it is a very good dish, and remarkably easy to make.

This may be varied by substituting cooked lobster meat for the crab, or by adding 36 cooked, peeled and deveined medium shrimp, and about a quarter of a cup of chopped cooked broccoli instead of the crab meat.

This recipe from CDKitchen for Red Lobster Crab Alfredo serves/makes 6

ALTERNATIVE from AllRecipes.com

Ingredients


8 ounces dried fettucine
3 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cups half-and-half
1 (4 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 ounces crabmeat, flaked

Directions

1.Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Keep warm and covered.

2.Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook until garlic releases its aroma, about 2 minutes, being careful not to let the garlic brown. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Reduce heat, and cook, stirring constantly for about 2 minutes. Add the half-and-half and stir over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.

3.Add the cream cheese and Parmesan cheese to the sauce and stir until cheeses melt and mixture is smooth. Mix in the crabmeat and continue cooking until crabmeat is heated through, about 3 minutes.

4.Divide the fettucine between 2 plates or bowls and top with the crab sauce.

OR here is Classic Alfredo to add crab to:

2 cups whipping cream
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

1 In 1-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, heat cream to boiling (ensuring not to burn).
2 Reduce heat to medium; gradually stir in 1 cup Parmesan cheese.
3 Add butter, 1 tbsp at a time, stirring.
4 Add salt and pepper.
5 Makes 2 1/2 cups sauce or enough to serve over 1 1b cooked pasta.
6 To serve, sprinkle with some grated parmesan cheese.

Simple Chicken Saag from Patak's

Ingredients

450g chicken cut into 1" cubes

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp single cream

100g onions, finely chopped

250g canned chopped tomatoes

1 tsp cumin seeds

3 tbsp Patak's Balti Paste

75g spinach, chopped

175ml water

1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped

1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

Methods

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the cumin seeds, add the onions and saute until translucent.

Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes before adding the Patak's Balti Paste. Sprinkle in some water, stir and fry for 2-3 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and water, partially cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Boil off any excess water if you prefer your dishes less saucy.

Stir in the spinach and mint. Add the cream and coriander.

Serve with Patak's Naan Breads.

Chocolate Pecan Pie Recipe : Paula Deen : Food Network

Chocolate Pecan Pie Recipe : Paula Deen : Food Network

Never thought I'd put up a Paula Deen Recipe, but CAH made this for Thanksgiving and it is great!

Ingredients
1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell OR 2 graham cracker crusts
2 cups pecan halves
3 large eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons good-quality bourbon
3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (we used closer to 6oz)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Cover bottom of pie crust with pecans.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and melted butter. Add the corn syrup, sugar, bourbon and the chopped chocolate. Stir until all ingredients are combined. Pour mixture into the pie shell over the pecans and place on a heavy-duty cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for an additional 25 minutes or until pie is set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Spanish Tortilla (potato fritata?) from America's Test Kitchen

Serves 4 as light entrée; 6 as an appetizer




Spanish tortillas are often served warm or at room temperature with olives, pickles, and Garlic Mayonnaise (see related recipe) as an appetizer. They may also be served with a salad as a light entrée. For the most traditional tortilla, omit the roasted red peppers and peas. We recommend using our winning brand of extra-virgin olive oil, Columela.



Ingredients

6 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes (3 to 4 medium), peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices

1 small onion , halved and sliced thin

1 teaspoon table salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

8 large eggs

1/2 cup jarred roasted red peppers , rinsed, dried, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup frozen peas , thawed

Garlic Mayonnaise (see note) (optional)

Instructions

1. Toss 4 tablespoons oil, potatoes, onion, ½ teaspoon salt, and pepper in large bowl until potato slices are thoroughly separated and coated in oil. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Reduce heat to medium-low, add potato mixture to skillet, and set bowl aside without washing. Cover and cook, stirring with rubber spatula every 5 minutes, until potatoes offer no resistance when poked with tip of paring knife, 22 to 28 minutes (it’s OK if some potato slices break into smaller pieces).

2. Meanwhile, whisk eggs and remaining ½ teaspoon salt in reserved bowl until just combined. Using rubber spatula, fold hot potato mixture, red peppers, and peas into eggs until combined, making sure to scrape all potato mixture out of skillet. Return skillet to medium-high heat, add remaining teaspoon oil, and heat until just beginning to smoke. Add egg-potato mixture and cook, shaking pan and folding mixture constantly for 15 seconds. Smooth top of mixture with rubber spatula. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook, gently shaking pan every 30 seconds until bottom is golden brown and top is lightly set, about 2 minutes.

3. Using rubber spatula, loosen tortilla from pan, shaking back and forth until tortilla slides around freely in pan. Following photos below, slide tortilla onto large plate. Invert tortilla onto second large plate and slide it browned-side up back into skillet. Tuck edges of tortilla into skillet with rubber spatula. Return pan to medium heat and continue to cook, gently shaking pan every 30 seconds, until second side is golden brown, about 2 minutes longer. Slide tortilla onto cutting board or serving plate and allow to cool at least 15 minutes. Cut tortilla into cubes or wedges and serve with Garlic Mayonnaise, if desired.

Spaghetti Squash from Allrecipes

Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 onion,
chopped 1 clove garlic,
minced 1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
3 tablespoons sliced black olives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.
Place spaghetti squash cut sides down on the prepared baking sheet, and bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a sharp knife can be inserted with only a little resistance. Remove squash from oven, and set aside to cool enough to be easily handled.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion in oil until tender. Add garlic, and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook only until tomatoes are warm.

Use a large spoon to scoop the stringy pulp from the squash, and place in a medium bowl. Toss with the sauteed vegetables, feta cheese, olives, and basil. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 147 | Total Fat: 9.8g | Cholesterol: 17mg

Nutritional Information
Spaghetti Squash I
Servings Per Recipe: 6

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 147

Total Fat: 9.8g
Cholesterol: 17mg
Sodium: 269mg
Total Carbs: 12.8g
Dietary Fiber: 1g
Protein: 4.1g
VIEW DETAILED NUTRITION

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Elaine's Zucchini Cakes and a Bon Appetite alternative

2 cups shredded zucchini
salt
pepper
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup flour, I use whole wheat
1 - 2 tsp. seasoning mix of choice (optional, I used an Italian tomato-basil blend)

Mix all together, and saute in oil on medium heat as smallish cakes (burger/bun size).

If it sits around, will become watery.

I might try shredding, salting zucchini and letting some liquid sweat off next time.

Might try smoked paprika, too.

An alternative from Bon Appetit!
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/zucchini-lentil-fritters-with-lemony-yogurt

Rolf's Bloody Marys

V-8 Spicy Vegetable Juice
Worcestershire sauce
Horseradish
Vodka
Veggie garnish of choice (i.e., celery stalk)

Granville Moore's Blue Cheese Moules

Teddy Folkman's Moules Fromage Bleu (From Washingtonian.com )

Serves one as a meal; two to four as an appetizer

1 1/4 pound rope-grown P.E.I. mussels
4 tablespoons blended oil (40 percent extra-virgin olive oil, 60 percent canola oil)
1/3 cup diced applewood-smoked bacon
1/3 cup thinly sliced shallots
1/4 cup Hook's Blue Cheese, or a similar mild, creamy blue
1/3 cup white wine, preferably a dry Chardonnay
Juice of 1 lemon
1/3 cup baby spinach, cleaned and destemmed
Sea salt, as needed
Black pepper, as needed

Heat the oil in a pan over high heat. Cook the bacon until the fat is rendered and it is slightly browned. Add the shallots and mussels and toss together. Add the white wine and lemon juice and toss together.

When the mussels start to open, add half of blue cheese, melting it into the broth. As soon as all mussels are open, toss in the spinach. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.

Plate the mussels and top them with the remainder of the blue cheese. Serve with a French baguette and frites.

Cioppino from Food Network

Ingredients
STEW BASE
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups sliced onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 pounds vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 red bell pepper, trimmed, seeded, and diced
2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
3 cups fish stock or 1 cup bottled clam broth mixed with 2 cups chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium canned
1/4 cup julienned fresh basil leaves
SEAFOOD
12 little neck clams
1 cooked Dungeness crab, chopped into large pieces, or 2 Alaskan king crab claws, cracked and quartered
12 mussels
1 pound large shrimp, butterflied in the shell, and deveined
1/2 pound cleaned squid, cut into rings, and tentacles halved
1/2 pound sea scallops, trimmed, or firm fleshed fish, like halibut, cut into 1-inch cubes
Serving suggestion: hot crusty sourdough bread
Directions
Make the stew base. Heat a large stew pot or Dutch oven over medium heat with the olive oil. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, season with salt and pepper to taste, and cook 2 minutes more. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the wine, and use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits in the pot. Simmer the wine until reduced by about half. Add the tomatoes, peppers, parsley, thyme, and bay leaf and cook for 5 minutes. Add the stock or broths; bring to a boil, then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook the base, with a cover slightly ajar, for 30 minutes. (The base may be prepared ahead up to this point, refrigerated for 1 day or frozen for 1 month).

Finish the Cioppino. Bring the base to a simmer. Add the basil and the clams, and cook covered, over high heat, for 5 minutes, or just until the clams open. Add the crab and cook for 1 minute. Add the mussels, shrimp, squid, and scallops. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mussels open, the shrimp curl, and squid and scallops are just firm, about 3 minutes. Serve in large heated bowls with plenty of crusty bread.


Copyright 2001 Television Food Network, G.P. All rights reserved

Featured Zucchini Bread from ZucchiniBread.org

Ingredients:


One and a half cup of walnuts (chopped)

Zest(rind) of two medium sized lemons

Half a cup of brown sugar

1/3 cup of poppy seeds

Two teaspoons of vanilla extract

Three fresh eggs

Two sticks butter ( 8 oz.)

Three cups of whole wheat pastry flour or all purpose flour

One and a half teaspoons of cinnamon

Half a teaspoon of baking powder

One teaspoon of salt

One cup of sugar

One and a half teaspoon of baking soda

Three cups of zucchini, finely grated (should be about 3 medium sized ones). Also make sure to wring out the moisture from the grated zucchini and then fluff it again.

Two 1 pound loaf pans (measuring 5 inches by 9 inches preferably)

A sheet of parchment



Preparation:
Here is how you make this delicious zucchini bread,



1. You first need to power your oven and preheat it to 350 F. Next take the two loaf pans and grease the sides and bottom of the pans with butter.



2. Take a sheet of parchment and line the greased pans with it. Make sure to leave a bit of the parchment spilling out of the pan as it would make it easier to take out the zucchini bread once it is baked.



3. Take the chopped walnuts, lemon rind(zest) and poppy seeds and mix them together. Keep this aside. Next, take the butter and beat it in a mixer until it is creamy and fluffy. Add in the sugar and brown sugar and beat the mixture once again until it comes together and doesn't crumble.



4. Take the three eggs and add them into the mixture one at a time and mix it well. Then add in the vanilla extract and the grated zucchini and mix it all together at a slow speed.



5. Now take a seperate bowl and mix together the whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Take this mixture and add it into the zucchini mixture in two batches, stirring the mixture after each addition. Next, fold in the chopped walnuts, poppy seeds



6. Now take the batter and split it between the two loaf pans and see that it is at a uniform level. Place the loaf pans in the preheated oven and bake it for about 40 to 45 minutes. After the bread is baked take it out and let it cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Then transfer the bread onto a wire rack to complete the cooling. Don't leave the bread cooling in the pan for more than 10 o 15 minutes as it can then become quite moist.



Your zucchini bread is now baked and ready to eat.

Karen's Potato Zucchini Casserole

2 TBL Olive oil
1 cup cubed yellow zucchini
1 cup cubed green zucchini
6-8 smallish redskin potatoes, cubed
4 scallions, chopped
chopped broccoli stems, optional
1/2 cup fresh green peas, optional
1/3 cup couscous, dry
salt, pepper, Mrs. dash to taste
1/2 cup shredded romano or parmesan cheese

Toss all together except cheese, and place in 9 x 13 pan
Sprinkle with chesse.
Cover with foil, place in preheated oven at 375 for 30 minutes.
Remove foil and check potatoes for doneness.
Place under broiler, if desired, or just cook a few more minutes at 425 until top browned.

Serve immediately.

Quick Crab Cakes

1 pound canned crab meat
2 slices fresh bread* processed into crumbs
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
Black pepper to taste
Crushed garlic (optional)

Thoroughly combine all ingredients in a bowl.

Shape into patties and pan grill on lightly oiled skillet until nicely browned on both sides and firmed up to touch.

*I use low carb bread at 2 net carbs per slice making the whole batch only 4 grams carbs!

Also found this recipe from Fog City Diner for crab cakes
Crab meat
Red onion
Basil
Capers
Mayo

Blue Cheese Dressing

1/2 cup Helmann's mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
3 - 5 oz blue cheese, crumbled or chopped
2 tsp (or more) vinegar*
2 tblsp (at least) hot sauce**

Mix everything together in a bowl, add extra vinegar or hot sauce if too thick. Chill for an hour or so and serve.

**The hot sauce is my replication of the dressing at Mad Mex's.

Mom's Slow Cooker Lentil Soup

1 cup lentils, french ones, preferably
4 cups liquid, preferably vegetable broth
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 carrot, chopped
Black Pepper to taste
Dash cumin, whole or ground

Place all in slow cooker, cook at low for 10 hours.

Recipe: No-Knead Bread - New York Times

Recipe: No-Knead Bread - New York Times

I have not tried this, but will very soon...

Recipe: No-Knead Bread

Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Meredith's Recipe

Cream together:
2 sticks of salted butter
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar

Beat in:
1 & 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs, one at a time

In a separate bowl, mix together:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup rolled/instant oats
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

Incorporate dry ingredients into butter/sugar mix 1/2 cup at a time. Fold in 1 & 1/2 cups chocolate chips. (And one cup of chopped pecans if your dad asks nicely.) Drop cookies (about the size of a tablespoon) onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F for 7-9 minutes, or until the bottom is golden brown.

Guacamole

Meredith's Recipe

Mash with a fork or pastry masher:
2 ripe avocados (they should give a little when you press the skin with your finger, but not too much)
juice of half a lime
1 tsp salt

Stir in:
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 small fresh tomato, chopped
1 can mild roasted green chilies, drained

You can add a little bit of garlic powder, chopped jalapenos, or a dash of cayenne pepper, but it's best to keep it simple. It's really all about how good the avocados are. Also, you can add more or less salt or lime juice to taste.

Coconut Rice (Indian)

1 cup brown basmati rice
1 - 2 cups chopped onion*
1- 3 cloves minced garlic*
1/2 to 1 tsp crushed ginger*
2 - 3 tablespoons Oil, preferably coconut
2 - 3 tablespoons curry paste (madras or other)
1/4 to 1/2 cup (or more) shredded or desiccated coconut (unsweetened)
2 cups water (or broth) (!.5 cups in pressure cooker)
Salt to taste

Heat oil in pan, add onion and saute until soft or carmelizing.
Add garlic and ginger, saute another minute.
Add curry paste and rice and saute 1-2 minutes.

Add liquid and coconut and cook by preferred method (rice cooker, microwave or in loaf pan in oven)

For Instant pot, 20 minutes on high and release for about ten minutes should do it.

The onion, garlic and ginger area all optional, but really make it taste much better.

Bombay Potatoes

Potatoes
Curry paste (mild, madras or byrani are good)
Chopped onion
Oil

Parboil potatoes, then cut into large chunks.

Saute onions in oil briefly, then add curry paste and potatoes.

Stir and cook over medium heat, like home fries.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Ingredients

1 lb Boneless chicken (1/2 kg approx, cut into cubes)

4 tsp Store bought tikka masala paste

2 large Onions, chopped fine.

2 cans diced tomatoes

2 T Oil (more if needed to saute onions)

Ciantro leaves (for garnishing)


Instructions

Saute onions in oil until soft. Add tikka paste and the chicken and saute briefly.

Add tomatoes and simmer 20 -30 minutes.

Serve with rice or naan.

Butterballs (from The Silver Palate Cookbook)

1 Stick butter, room temp
3 T. honey (64 g)
1 Cup flour(120 g)
1/2 t. salt
1 T. vanilla extract
1 Cup pecans, chopped somewhat fine
3/4 Cup confectioners sugar (94 g)

Preheat oven to 300 300 300! degrees, grease cookie sheets.

Cream butter, beat in honey. Gradually mix in flour and salt, then vanilla...add pecans. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour.

Form balls by hand, the size of a quarter. Place 2" apart on prepared cookie sheet. Bake 30 minutes.

Remove from oven, as soon as cool to the touch, roll in conf. sugar. Cool completely and roll in conf. sugar again.

Toffee Bars (Silver Palate)

½ pound (2 sticks) sweet butter
1 cup light brown sugar (200 g)
1 egg yolk
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour(240 g)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup shelled walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped


Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 12 inch baking pan.

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolk; beat well.

Sift in flour, mixing well, then stir in vanilla. Spread batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes.

Cover cake layer with chocolate chips and return to oven for 3 to 4 minutes.

Remove pan from oven and spread melted chocolate evenly. Sprinkle with nuts. Cool completely in pan before cutting.

About 30 bars.

Meredith's Chicken

[I found this handwritten note from Meredith with her chicken recipe.]

You need Montréal steak seasoning, garlic powder, lemon pepper, seasoning salt, and Cajun seasoning.

(Besides chicken breast.)

Cook breasts on stove, medium
Season with above.
Don't skimp on anything.
(You may skimp on garlic powder if you want) (add it)

I don't know how old she was when she did this...

Chicken Liver Pate (Silver Palate)

Ingredients:
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely minced yellow onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 cup celery tops
10 black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
6 cups water
1 lb. chicken livers
2 Tbsp. cognac (can substitute brandy)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
5 tsp. water-packed green peppercorns, drained
1/4 cup heavy cream

Method:

Melt butter in a small skillet. Add onions, garlic and thyme. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, place celery tops, black peppercorns, bay leaves and water in a medium-large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
Add chicken livers to water mixture in saucepan and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Liver should be slightly pink inside when done.

Drain chicken livers, discarding water and other ingredients in saucepan.

Place livers in a food processor with butter and onion mixture. Pulse several times to chop the liver. Add cognac, salt, allspice, and 4 tsp. green peppercorns. Process until smooth.

Add cream to liver mixture in food processor; process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl; stir in remaining teaspoon of green peppercorns.

Transfer pate into one 2-cup terrine (or two 1-cup crocks). Cover and refrigerate 4 hours. Let stand 30 minutes before serving.

From the Silver Palate Cookbook (1982)

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Pie

Pecan Crust:
1 1/2 cups toasted and finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix and press into 9 in. pan.
Freeze or chill.

Filling:
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/8 cup powdered sugar
1 c. powdered sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla
2 tbsp. melted butter
8 oz. cream cheese softened
1 c. peanut butter

Beat Cream and 1/8 Cup Sugar until Stiff.
Put aside HALF of the whipped cream to use as topping.
Beat remaining 1 c. sugar, vanilla, cream cheese, peanut butter, and butter in another large bowl until fluffy. Fold in half of whipped cream and spoon into crust.

Refrigerate two hours.
Optional: Spread with fudge topping of your choice. Or shave chocolate over top. Or cocoa powder.  Refrigerate another hour to chill fudge if using.

Top with second half of whipped cream and serve!

Pommes Anna (Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

2 3/4 pounds russet potatoes (about 6), peeled
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Using a mandoline, slice potatoes, 1/4 inch thick, or thinner. (Do not place potatoes in water at this point; the starch is needed to bind the layers.)

Brush bottom of a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie plate with 1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter. Starting in center of pan, arrange potato slices in a circular pattern, overlapping the edges. Evenly brush with 1 1/2 tablespoons butter; season with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining potatoes and butter, creating 2 more layers. Finish with a final layer of butter, salt, and pepper. When arranging potatoes, be sure to fill in all the spaces.

Place over medium-high heat until the edges of the potatoes begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. If you are not using a cast-iron skillet, this step is not necessary.
Place in oven, and bake until potatoes are fork tender, 45 to 55 minutes for the cast-iron skillet and 1 to 1 1/2 hours for the pie plate. Remove from oven, and let rest 5 to 10 minutes. Using a small spatula, separate potato edges from sides of pan. Shake pan and slide a spatula along bottom to loosen potatoes. Carefully invert onto a flat serving platter. Slice and serve.

Vegetable Pilaf

Recipe taking from little recipe booklet for Ashoka curry pastes.

2 teaspoons Biryani paste
500 g diced assorted vegetables: cauliflower, carrots, beans, peas, potatoes, whatever.
150 g chopped onion
300 g less money race
200 g sugar
10 g fresh mint
10 g fresh coriander
50 mL oil

Boil the rice and set aside. Heat oil in saucepan, add onions, biryani paste and sauté. Add vegetables and stir fry for two minutes. Add beaten natural yogurt and 50 mL water and bring to boil.

Simmer until vegetables are cooked and the sauce is fairly thick. Sprinkle with the mint and coriander leaves.

Add the boiled rice and gently mix together.

Sausage Bread

(from Better Homes and Gardens All-Time Favorite Bread Recipes, Courtesy of Uncle Bob's Recipe Book)

1/2 pound bulk sausage
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
one package active dry east
1/4 cups warm water
1/2 teaspoon salt

There are actually lots of instructions for this. But it looks like it could all be tossed into a bread maker fairly easily and so I will try that and update this entry sometime soon.

Butterscotch Brownies (Grandma Hughes)

(To double for 9 x 13 inch pan)

3/4 cup brown sugar (1.5 cups)
1/2 cup butter (1 cup)
2 eggs (4 eggs)
7/8 cup flour (1 3/4 cups)
3/8 teaspoons salt (3/4 tsp)
1 cup walnuts (2 cups walnuts)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (1 tsp vanilla)
1/4 teaspoon baking powder (1/2 tsp)

Cream butter and sugar and blend thoroughly. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Sift together flour baking soda and salt. Stir into butter mixture and fold in walnuts. Spread batter into greased 11 x 7" or 8 inch square pan. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes.

Ice with never fail icing.

Never Fail Icing:

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup cream
2 tablespoons light Cairo

Cooked ingredients to soft ball stage. Cool to lukewarm. Beat until spreadable. If frosting gets too thick thin with cream or milk.

Quiche Lorraine

This is James Beard recipe from "The Cartoonist's Cook Book."

1/2 pound bacon: cook, drain, and crumble

In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon butter, 1/2 cup finely chopped onion and sauté.

Grate 1/2 pound Swiss cheese.

Mix: three slightly beaten eggs, 1 1/2 cups light cream, and 1 teaspoon salt. Then add nutmeg, cayenne pepper, or black pepper to taste.

(We used 4 eggs and it was very good)

Add in bacon and cheese.

Pour into pie crust. (We used a 9 inch round cake pan, and sprayed it with baker's secret and the quiche just plopped right out!)

Bake 10 minutes at 450  on lowest rack of oven, then lower to 325 for about 20 minutes.

Chocolate/tobacco cookies

Bring to a boil:
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar

Take off heat and add:
3 cups oats
1 cup coconut
5 tablespoons cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla.

You can add 1/2 to 1 cup peanut butter as well.

1/2 cup = 135g

3/4 cup =  180 g

1 cup = 270 g

Drop by teaspoons onto greased cookie sheet or wax paper.

Grandma Lucille's homemade Gnocchi

4 cups instant mashed potatoes (3 cups prepared)
3 to 4 cups flour
2 egg yolks

turn hot potatoes onto board. Work in flour and eggs with hands. Roll into ropes as thick as Thumbs. Cut into 1 inch pieces and press with floured fork tines. Drop into boiling salted water to cook.

Quick Cream Cheese Dips

Cream Cheese

Place in blender and add
Roasted Peppers and/or
Marinated Artichokes and/or
Sun Dried Tomatoes (you mighht want to process these first and then add the cream cheese) and/or
Dry Seasoning Mix

Process or blend and chill in fridge a little while before serving.

Hummus bi Tahini

Ingredients:
1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans
1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas
3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste)
1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
2 cloves garlic, crushed, more or less to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin, more or less to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in blender or food processor. Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas. Blend for 3-5 minutes on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Place in serving bowl, and create a shallow well in the center of the hummus.

Add a small amount (1-2 tablespoons) of olive oil in the well. Garnish with parsley (optional).

Serve immediately with fresh, warm or toasted pita bread, or cover and refrigerate.

Steak au Poivre (James Beard)

Recipe by the late James Beard
For: Omaha Steaks Strip Sirloins

Ingredients:
2 Boneless Strip Sirloins or filets, thawed
1 Tbsp. coarsely ground pepper
Oil
1/3 cup Armagnac, Cognac or Burbon, warmed
Cream or half and half or butter or some combination

The pepper for steak au poivre must be crushed in a mortar, cracked with a rolling pin or whirled in a blender to make rather course pieces. Do not be afraid to use a generous amount. Freshly crushed pepper is not hot.

Procedures:
About 30 minutes before cooking, press the crushed peppercorns into both sides of the steaks, using the heel of your hand. Gauge about ½ Tbsp per steak.

In a heavy skillet, heat 1 tsp. oil.

Sear steaks on both sides very quickly over high heat.

Reduce heat and cook to desired doneness.

Quickly flame steaks with the warm liquor.

Remove steaks to a hot platter, rinse pan with 1 tsp. of the same liquor.

Blend in cream or butter into sauce and thicken a bit.

Serve and pour over steaks.

Kelly's Asian Chicken (Gilroy Award Winner)

Ingredients

3 1/2 lb Frying chicken cut (Pick of the Chix works well)
3/4 c Distilled white vinegar
1 Garlic bulb, peeled
2 sm Red peppers, dried
1/4 c Soy sauce
3 tb Peanut oil
3 tb Honey

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet and brown chicken on all sides (5-10 minutes). Use medium-high heat. Add garlic and peppers about 1 minute before the end of the browning process. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until chicken is done and sauce has reduced somewhat. This takes about 10 minutes. If you are cooking white and dark meat together, remove the white meat first or it will dry out. Watch that sauce does not burn or boil away. Serve with rice, Chinese noodles or pasta.

NOTES: * Chicken with garlic and hot peppers

Another winner from "The Garlic Lovers Cookbook." Dont let the amount of garlic scare you. * When you look in the skillet to see how everything is going and to get a whiff of the lovely aroma, do not take a big whiff. The vinegar will knock you out! * This recipe won first place at a recent Garlic Cook-off at the Gilroy Garlic Festival. : Difficulty: easy. : Time: preparation: 5 minutes, cooking: 20 minutes. :

Thai Basil Fried Rice with Chicken

Ingredients

3 tablespoons oyster sauce*
2 5 tablespoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 cup peanut oil for frying
4 cups cooked jasmine rice, chilled
6 large cloves garlic clove, crushed
2 serrano peppers, crushed
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin strips
1 red pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 cups sweet Thai basil
1 cucumber, sliced (optional)
1/2 cup cilantro sprigs (optional)

Directions

You can always do this without the chicken.

Whisk together the oyster sauce, fish sauce, and sugar in a bowl.

Heat the oil in a wok over medium-high heat until the oil begins to smoke. Add the garlic and serrano peppers, stirring quickly. Stir in the chicken, bell pepper, onion and oyster sauce mixture; cook until the chicken is no longer pink. Raise heat to high and stir in the chilled rice; stir quickly until the sauce is blended with the rice. Use the back of a spoon to break up any rice sticking together.

Remove from heat and mix in the basil leaves. Garnish with sliced cucumber and cilantro as desired.

*Oyster sauce added bad smell, but not much additional flavor. Maybe I had a bad bottle?

Blackened Fish

Paul Prudhomme's Blackened Redfish


1 teaspoons salt (he calls for 3, I use 1 tsp)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons paprika

8 skinless, boneless fillets of fish, preferably redfish, pompano or tilefish, about 1/4 pound each (see note)
1/2 cup melted butter


1. Combine the salt, red pepper, white pepper, black pepper, thyme, basil, oregano and paprika in a small bowl.

2. Dip the fish pieces on both sides in butter. Sprinkle on both sides with the seasoned mixture.

3. Heat a black iron skillet over high heat about five minutes or longer until it is beyond the smoking stage and starts to lighten in color on the bottom.

4. Add two or more fish pieces and pour about a teaspoon of butter on top of each piece. The butter may flame up. Cook over high heat about a minute and a half. Turn the fish and pour another teaspoon of butter over each piece.

Cook about a minute and a half. Serve immediately. Continue until all the fillets are cooked.

YIELD 4 servings

I make the seasoning mix in large quantities and store it in the fridge.
Ratio is
4 salt (or less)
2 cayenne pepper
2 white pepper
2 garlic powder
2 onion powder
1 black pepper
1 dried thyme
1 dried basil
1 dried oregano
8 paprika

NOTE: Redfish and pompano are ideal for this dish. If tilefish is used, you
have to split the fillets in half. Place the fillet on a flat surface, hold
the knife parallel to the surface and split in half through the center from
one end to the other. The weight of the fish may vary from a pound to a
pound and a half, depending on your skillet, but they must not be more than
about an inch and a half thick.

Basic Vinaigrette

Basic Vinaigrette
Yield About 3/4 cup

Time 5 minutes

Mark Bittman

Ingredients
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons or more good vinegar -- wine, sherry, rice, balsamic, etc.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 large shallot (about 1 ounce), peeled and cut into chunks

Method
1. Combine all ingredients but the shallot in a blender and turn the machine on; a creamy emulsion will form within 30 seconds. Taste and add more vinegar a teaspoon or two at a time, until the balance tastes right.

2. Add the shallot, and turn the machine on and off a few times until the shallot is minced within the dressing. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve. This is best made fresh but will keep a few days refrigerated; bring back to room temperature and whisk briefly before using.

Summary
Vary this however you like: with herbs, with garlic (roasted is very nice), with a tiny bit of soy sauce and sesame oil, with lemon juice in place of the vinegar, with hazelnut oil, with spices . . . you name it, in moderation it will work. You can also just beat the ingredients in a bowl with a fork, or shake them in a jar; it won't be as creamy, but it will still taste delicious.

Source: The New York Times

You can obviously do this without the shallot, usng an onion or red onion or garlic or nothing. You can add whatever spices or spice blend you have handy (Mrs. Dash).

Spaghetti Carbonara

(Bittman)
Serves 4

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup minced bacon
1 pound linguini/spaghetti
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. In a small saucepan, combine the oil and the bacon and turn the heat to medium. Cook until the bacon is nicely browned about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Cook the pasta in the boiling water until tender, per package directions. Reserve about a cup of the pasta water before draining.

In a warmed large bowl (I just sat mine by the pasta pot) beat 3 eggs. Add the Parmesan cheese and the bacon and it's juices. Toss the still hot, drained pasta and toss with the egg mixture. Add a little of the reserved cooking water if the pasta seems too dry.

Serve with freshly ground black pepper and a little extra Parmesan cheese.

Pan Roasted Salmon (Bittman)

25 minutes
Roasting pan or baking dish that just holds the fish
475-degree oven

1 pound salmon filet, skin left on
2 T. butter
Salt and pepper
A small handful chopped parsley

1) Heat the oven to 475 degrees.

2) When the oven's up to speed, melt the butter in the roasting pan (you can do this in the oven while it's heating up).

3) Rinse and pat the salmon dry with paper towels. Lay the filet in the pan, skin up, and bake for 5 minutes. Then turn the fish and bake another 5 minutes, or until the fish is done.*

4) While the fish cooks, chop a small handful of parsley. To serve, put the filet on a serving platter, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and parsley, and pour the melted butter over the fish. If you're fast, the parsley will sizzle a bit from the hot butter.

*Done—Timing will vary depending on how thick the filet is, but make sure your oven is 475 degrees before putting the fish in.

Now ultimately, the only way to tell when fish is done is to get in there and look. Press on the fish, if it flakes apart, it's definitely done. But if it doesn't quite fall apart, look between the flakes at the thickest point. A thin streak of raw at this point is perfect--the fish will continue to cook itself.

With salmon, "done" is really a matter of taste. If the fish is really fresh, medium-rare can be delicious. But if you have any doubts about a fish's absolute freshness (supermarket fish counters), be conservative and cook the fish until it's done, that is, until you see the hairline of raw in the middle.

Potato Leek Soup

Olive oil and/or butter
3 leeks
3 medium potatoes
Chicken or Vegetable stock
Salt and pepper

Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Wash the leeks very well (be sure to check inside the outer layers for the sand that you will inevitably find there) and slice the whites and the light green parts into thin slices. Saute the leeks and potatoes in olive oil for five minutes, then cover with vegetable broth and cook until potatoes are very tender, about five minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

You can puree it, and if you like, toss in some cream to make vichyssoises.

Chicken Paprikash

Chicken, either pieces or boneless skinless breasts or thighs or any combination

1/4 c. oil or butter or combination
1 1/2 c. chopped onion (or more)
Salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup Hungarian paprika
2 c. water
1 1/2 c. sour cream
2 Tblsp flour

Biscuit mix, preferably whole wheat
Water for dumplings per recipe on biscuit mix box

You can throw in some smoked paprika or hungarian hot paprika or some combination to make up your 1/4 cup paprika, but basic paprikash uses just sweet paprika)

Skin chicken and cut into pieces (or use boneless/skinless).

Put oil/butter in large cast iron skillet and saute onions (do not brown).

Add salt, pepper and paprika; mix well.

Add chicken and saute briefly (5 to 10 minutes).

Add water and cover. simmer until chicken tender.

Mix 2 tblsp flour into sour cream. Add some of hot broth back into sour cream mix, stir and then start adding sour cream mixture into paprikash until well blended. Cook a few minutes longer until thicker.

Make dumpling dough and drop onto paprikash in tablespoons.

Cover and cook until dumplings cooked.

Serve.

Lidia's Marinara Sauce

Marinara Sauce
- makes about 1 quart, enough to dress 6 servings of pasta -

The difference between marinara sauce and tomato sauce is this: Marinara is a quick sauce, seasoned only with garlic, pepper, and, if you like, basil or oregano. The pieces of tomato are left chunky and the texture of the finished sauce is fairly loose. Tomato sauce, on the other hand, is a more complex affair, starting with puréed tomatoes and seasoned with onion, carrot, celery, and bay leaf, and left to simmer until thickened and rich in flavor.

Make this sauce with fresh tomatoes only when the juiciest, most flavorful ripe tomatoes are available. (Increase the amount of olive oil a little if you make the sauce with fresh tomatoes.) Otherwise, canned plum tomatoes make a delicious marinara sauce.

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

8 garlic cloves, peeled

3 pounds ripe fresh plum tomatoes, peeled and seeded, or one 35 ounce can Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), seeded and lightly crushed, with their liquid

Salt

Crushed red pepper

10 fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces

Procedure
1. Heat the oil in a 2- to 3-quart nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Whack the garlic with the flat side of a knife, add it to the oil, and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes.

2. Carefully slide tomatoes and their liquid into the oil. Bring to a boil, and season lightly with salt and crushed red pepper. Lower the heat so sauce is at a lively simmer, and cook, breaking up tomatoes with a whisk or spoon, until sauce is chunky and thick, about 20 minutes.

3. Stir in the basil about 5 minutes before sauce is finished. Taste sauce, and season with salt and red pepper if necessary.

Recipe adapted from Lidia Bastianich's Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen.

Mario Batali's Pizza Sauce

Basic Pizza Sauce:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Spanish onion, chopped in 1/4 inch dice
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves, or 1 tablespoon dried
1/2 medium carrot, finely shredded
2 (28-ounce) cans peeled whole tomatoes, crushed by hand and juices reserved
Salt

In a 3 quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the thyme and carrot and cook 5 minutes more, until the carrot is quite soft. Add the tomatoes and juice and bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until as thick as hot cereal. Season with salt and serve. This sauce holds 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer

Lentil Sausage Soup

Ingredients
1 pound French green lentils (recommended: du Puy)
1/4 cup olive oil, plus extra for serving
4 cups diced yellow onions (3 large)
4 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts only (2 leeks)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (2 large cloves)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups medium diced celery (8 stalks)
3 cups medium diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)
3 quarts Homemade Chicken Stock, recipe follows, or canned broth
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 pound kielbasa, cut in 1/2 lengthwise and sliced 1/3-inch thick
2 tablespoons dry red wine or red wine vinegar
Freshly grated Parmesan, for serving
Directions
In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.

In a large stockpot over medium heat, heat the olive oil and saute the onions, leeks, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are translucent and tender. Add the celery and carrots and saute for another 10 minutes. Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and drained lentils, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, or until the lentils are cooked through and tender. Check the seasonings. Add the kielbasa and red wine and simmer until the kielbasa is hot. Serve drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan.

Spinach Gratin

Ingredients
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
4 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
3 pounds frozen chopped spinach, defrosted (5 (10-ounce) packages)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 15 minutes. Add the flour and nutmeg and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Add the cream and milk and cook until thickened. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the spinach and add the spinach to the sauce. Add 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese and mix well. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Transfer the spinach to a baking dish and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan and the Gruyere on top. Bake for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve hot.

Giadia's Braised Spinach

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large red onions, sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 large bunches fresh spinach, washed with water still clinging to leaves, stems trimmed and leaves coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and saute until tender, about 8 minutes. Add 1/3 of the spinach and saute until it begins to wilt, about 1 to 2 minutes. Continue adding the spinach 1 handful at a time, sauteing just until it begins to wilt before adding more. Add the soy sauce and crushed red pepper. Saute over high heat until spinach wilts. Season the mixture, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and serve.

Risoto, Basic, Mushroom, or Spinach

Arborio rice
Twice as much chicken broth as rice, boiling, in separate sauce pan.

Onions or shallots, finely chopped
Pine nuts (optional)
Olive Oil or butter or combination
Fresh Mushrooms, any kind, sliced.
Spinach, fresh is better, but frozen and drained OK.
Parmesan or shredded gruyere or both

Saute onions/shallots in oil/butter in large pan/saucier until soft or carmelized even. Add pine nuts if you wish.

Add dry rice and stir until all coated with oil.

Start adding broth about a cup at a time, stirring to keep from sticking to pan.

When nearly all broth incorporated and rice nearly cooked (should be slightly al dente), add mushrooms or spinach and continue adding broth until all cooked.

Add parmesan and/or gruyere.

SERVE IMMEDIATELY OR SOONER!

Cajun Meat Loaf (Prudhomme)

Serving Size : 6

(Use tomato paste, cream and low carb bread crumbs for low carb recipe.)

-----SEASONING MIX-----

2 Whole bay leaves
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon Black pepper
1/2 teaspoon White pepper
1/2 teaspoon Ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon Ground nutmeg

-----MAIN INGREDIENTS-----

4 tablespoons Unsalted butter
3/4  1.5 cup Finely chopped onions
1/2 1 cup Green bell peppers -- chopped (poblanos to add some heat)
1/2 1 cup Celery - chopped
1/4 1/2 cup Green onions -- finely chopped
2 teaspoons Minced garlic
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup Evaporated milk (Alternative cream or half & half)
1/2 cup Catsup (Alternative 3 - 4 oz tomato paste)
1 1/2 pounds Ground beef
1/2 pound Ground pork
2 Eggs -- lightly beaten
1 cup Very fine bread crumbs (low carb bread)

Combine the seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Melt the butter in a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, bell peppers, green onions, garlic, tabasco, Worcestershire and seasoning mix. Saute until mixture starts sticking excessively, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the pan bottom well. Stir in the milk and catsup. Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to room temperature.

Place the ground beef and pork in an ungreased 13x9-inch baking pan. Add the eggs, the cooked vegetable mixture and the bread crumbs, remove the bay leaves. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. In the center of the pan, shape the mixture into a loaf that is about 1-1/2 inches high, 6 inches wide and 12 inches long. Bake uncovered at 350F for 25 minutes, then raise heat to 400F and continue cooking until done, about 35 minutes longer.

Serve immediately as is or with Very Hot Cajun Sauce for Beef. This is best using both ground pork and ground beef, as the pork gives more flavor diversity. However, you can make it with ground beef only. From Paul Prudhomme's "Louisiana Kitchen"

Prudhomme's Chicken Etouffee

I do not fry the chicken as he does, and use boneless breasts. I sometimes slice the breasts into slivers for easier serving at the table.

 I just use "Better Than Boullion" chicken soup base instead of his stock recipe.

Chicken Stock for Etouffee -1/2 lb chicken back or chicken neck
3 cups cold water
1/2 medium onion, unpeeled
1 garlic clove, unpeeled and cut in thirds
1 stalk celery, with top
1 bay leaf

Flour Coating  [I use this seasoning without the flour, skillet fry the chicken and proceed.]

10 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper

Fried Chicken
3 lbs chicken pieces
salt
garlic powder
ground red pepper (preferably cayenne)
vegetable oil (for deep frying)

So, with the chicken pan fried with cayenne, garlic powder and salt, I go from here:
Seasoning Mix
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (preferably cayenne)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper

Roux and Gravy
6 tablespoons flour, using reserved extra flour coating
1 3/4 cups chicken stock, for etouffee

Finish
4-6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided, to your taste
6 tablespoons very finely chopped green onions
chicken stock, as needed
2 cups hot cooked rice

Directions

1 Chicken Stock for Etouffee: [Make chicken stock with Better than Boullion] Put chicken in water and bring to boil; add vegetables and bay leaf; simmer on low heat for 1-2 hours; replenish water as needed to keep 2 3/4 cups of liquid in the pot; strain and use immediately or refrigerate.
2 Flour Coating: [...or not] Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag.
3 Fried Chicken: Generously rub all the chicken pieces with the seasonings; set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes; heat 1 1/2" oil to 375°F in a cast iron skillet; add chicken to flour coating and shake to coat thoroughly; reserve any excess flour.
[Or just coat the chicken pieces with seasoning, and grill or stir fry in cast iron skillet.]
4 Fry chicken (or just saute lightly in cast iron skillet if using boneless chicken breasts.) until browned and cooked through, about 8 minutes per side; drain on paper towels and set aside; pour oil from skillet, retaining, and scraping loose, any browned bits, and 1/4 cup of the oil in the skillet.
5 Seasoning Mix: In a small bowl thoroughly combine all dry ingredients; set aside; combine chopped vegetables in separate bowl and set aside.
6 Roux: Heat the oil over high heat in a large, heavy skillet until it begins to smoke, about 5 minutes; remove from heat; use a LONG handled whisk and gradually mix in flour; reduce heat to medium-high; return skillet to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until roux is dark red-brown, 3-5 minutes; don't let roux scorch and DON'T get it on your skin!
7 Remove from heat and stir in HALF the combined vegetables; stir for 3 minutes while the roux cools down; set aside.
8 Gravy: Bring the stock to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan; gradually whisk in roux and stir until incorporated; bring mixture to a rolling boil; reduce heat to low; continue stirring and simmer another 15 minutes; gravy should be very thick; set aside.
9 Finish: In a large skillet, melt 2-3 T butter over very low heat; stir in remaining chopped vegetables and sauté 10-12 minutes, until completely wilted stirring occasionally; add the reserved gravy and the dry Seasoning Mix; simmer another 15 minutes and stir often.
10 In a 4-quart saucepan, melt the remaining 2-3 T butter; sauté the green onions 2 minutes; add the chicken and gravy and bring to a boil over medium heat; remove from heat and set aside for 15 minutes.
11 Skim oil off surface of etouffee; reheat, adding more stock if needed to thin the gravy; for each plate place 1/2 cup rice, pour on 1/3 cup sauce, and top with 2 pieces of chicken; serve immediately.

Prudhomme's Jambalaya

Ingredients

Seasoning Mix
4 small bay leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground red pepper (preferably cayenne)
1 teaspoon gumbo file (file powder) (optional)
1/2 1 teaspoon ground cumin*
1/2 1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves*
*I think cumin and thyme add the most flavor, so consider increasing both.

Jambalaya
4 tablespoons margarine butter or ghee
6 - 10 ounces tasso (about 1 1/2 cups) or other smoked ham, diced
6 - 10 ounces smoked andouille sausages (about 1 heaping cup) or kielbasa, diced
12 -24 ounces chicken (breasts, tenders, thighs) cut into pieces (optional) (I used Costco rotisserie last time, worked great!)
1 1/2  3 cups onions, chopped (All veg can be doubled, but cut back on stock if you do.)
1 1/2  3 cups celery, chopped
1 2 - 3 cups bell pepper, chopped - you can use poblanos for part of these to kick it up a bit!
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 cups uncooked rice (preferably brown)
4  3 cups chicken stock (if not salt-free, adjust salt)

Directions

1 Seasoning Mix: Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
2 Jambalaya: Use a large, heavy skillet, enamel cast iron is best as it can go in the oven; over high heat melt margarine; add tasso and andouille, or ham and sausage, (and chicken, if adding) and cook 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3 Add onions, celery, bell pepper, seasoning mix and garlic; stir and cook 10-12 minutes until well browned, scraping the bottom of the pan well.
4 Stir in rice and cook 5 minutes, again scraping the pan bottom often; add stock.
5 Bring mixture to boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, about 20 minutes, until rice is tender but still a bit crunchy; stir a bit towards the end of the cooking time; remove bay leaves and serve.

If using brown rice, consider doing the "simmer" in the oven with lid on, at 350 for about 70 minutes or more until rice done. You may need to add a bit more stock/water if it gets too dry.

To do this quickly in the pressure cooker, use brown rice and only 3 cups liquid instead of 4. Cook on high for 15 minutes then slow release for 10.

Basic cooked Rice

2 cup uncooked brown rice
2 1/2 cup basic stock or water

In a 5x9x2-1/2-inch loaf pan.
Seal pan snuggly with aluminum foil.
Bake at 350F until rice is tender, about 1 hour, 10 minutes.
Serve immediately.
However, you can count on the rice staying hot for 45 minutes and warm for 2 hours.
To reheat leftover rice, either use a double boiler or warm the rice in a skillet with unsalted butter

Chili Verde

Recipe courtesy Karen Ray 2001 Chili Verde Champion

1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons green chile powder
1 (19-ounce) can green enchilada sauce
32 ounces canned tomatillos with their liquid
1 (7-ounce) can hot salsa verde
3 1/2 pounds pork sirloin, cubed
Lard or oil, as needed, to brown
2 cups finely minced onions
1 1/2 tablespoons pressed fresh garlic
2 pounds diced green chiles, fresh or frozen
2 cups very finely minced mixed fresh green peppers
1 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro leaves
Salt

In a small bowl, combine oregano, cumin, and chile powder. In a chili pot, combine enchilada sauce, tomatillos, and salsa verde. Press tomatillos against the side of the pot to crush. Add the oregano mixture to the liquids. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently.

Brown the meat in lard or oil in batches with onions and pressed garlic. Drain meat and add to chili pot. Add diced green chiles. Return pot to simmer.

After 2 hours, add half of finely minced green peppers. Add salt, as desired. Taste and adjust, adding additional minced peppers as desired. After 2 1/2 hours thicken or thin, as needed. After 2 3/4 hours, adjust salt and other seasonings as needed. Just before serving, add lime juice and cilantro.

And a dollop or three of sour cream! And maybe an extra squeeze of lime!

OR do this in your Instant-Pot or pressure cooker.

Brown meat as above in Instant Pot on Saute setting.

Add everything else (except cilantro) and pressure cook on HIGH for 20 minutes with natural pressure release or 30 minutes and rapid release. ( I confess I haven't done it this way, as I usually do it stove top in enamel cast iron on a weekend, so these times are guesses on my part!)

Zuppa Toscano

This is the recipe Todd Wilbur, the author came up with.

2 3/4 C chicken stock
1/4 C heavy cream
1 medium potato
2 C kale, chopped
1/2 pound spicy italian sausage
1/4 teapoon salt
1/4 teaspoon
red pepper flakes

Grill or saute the sausage. When cooked and cooled, cut the sausage at an angle into slices about 1/2 inch thick.

Meanwhile, combine the stock and cream in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the sausage to the soup.

Slice the unpeeled potato into 1/4 inch slices then quarter the slices and add to the soup. Add the kale.

Add the spices and let the soup simmer for about 2 hours. Stir occasionally.

Turn off heat and then add cream or half and half.

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

Makes one 8-inch pie; from Paul Prudhomme

Dough: [I use Pillsbury frozen crust -sorry!
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
½ of a whole egg, vigorously beaten until frothy (reserve the other half for the sweet potato filling)
2 tablespoons cold milk
1 cup all purpose flour

Sweet-Potato Filling:
2 to 3 sweet potatoes (or enough to yield 1 cup cooked pulp), baked
¼ cup, packed, light brown sugar
2 tablespoons sugar
½ egg, vigorously beaten until frothy (reserved above)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Pecan Pie syrup:
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark corn syrup
2 small eggs
1½ tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Pinch of ground cinnamon
3/4 cup pecan pieces or halves


For the dough: Place the softened butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer; beat on high speed until the mixture is creamy. Add the 1/2 egg and beat 30 seconds. Add the milk and beat on high speed 2 minutes. Add the flour and beat on medium speed 5 seconds, then on high speed just until blended, about 5 seconds more (overmixing will produce a tough dough). Remove the dough ~ the bowl and shape into a 5-inch patty about 1/2 inch thick. Lightly dust the patty with flour and wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 1 hour, preferably overnight. (The dough will last up to one week refrigerated.)
On a lightly floured surface roll out dough to a thickness of 1/8 to ¼ inch. Very lightly flour the top of the dough arid fold it into quarters. Carefully place dough in a greased and floured 8 inch round cake pan (1½ inches deep) so that the corner of the folded dough is centered in the pan. Unfold the dough and arrange it to fit the sides and bottom of pan; press firmly in place. Trim edges. Refrigerate 15 minutes.
For the sweet-potato filling: Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed of electric mixer until the batter is smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes. Do not overbeat. Set aside.
For the pecan pie syrup: Combine all the ingredients except the pecans in a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly on slow speed of electric mixer until the syrup is opaque, about 1 minute; stir in pecans and set aside.
To assemble: Spoon the sweet-potato filling evenly into the dough-?lined cake pan. Pour the pecan syrup on top. Bake in a 325 oven until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1¾ hours. Note:The pecans will rise to the top of the pie during baking.)
Cool and serve with Chantilly Cream. Store pie at room temperature for the first 24 hours, then (in the unlikely event there is any left) refrigerate.

Hearty Italian Meat Sauce (Sunday Gravy)

[This is from Cook's Illustrated - with my edits/notes.]
I think the pork ribs are unneccessary here. If you want lots of meat, I'd increase the sauage and make the meatballs. Otherwise, just doing this with the sausage is plenty of meat and flavor. I also find the beef broth optional, though some extra liquid (water, veggie broth) helps.

Sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
[1 rack baby back ribs (about 2 1/4 pounds), cut into 2-rib sections.]
Table salt and ground black pepper
1 pound hot Italian sausage links
2 medium onions , chopped fine (about 2 cups)
1 1/4 teaspoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons tomato paste
4 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 4 teaspoons)
2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes (see note)
2/3 cup beef broth
¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Meatballs
2 slices hearty white sandwich bread , crusts removed and bread cut into [I used fresh whole wheat bread with crust, chopped in blender or food processor]
1/2-inch cubes
½ cup buttermilk (see note)
¼ cup fresh parsley leaves , chopped
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 large egg yolk
½ teaspoon table salt
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 pound meatloaf mix (see note)
2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped fine [I don't bother with this.]
1 ounce Pecorino Romano cheese , grated (about 1/2 cup)
½ cup olive oil

Pasta
1 ½ pounds spaghetti or linguine
2 tablespoons table salt
Grated Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions
1. FOR THE SAUCE: Adjust oven rack to lower- middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Pat ribs dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Add half of ribs to pot and brown on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes total. Transfer ribs to large plate and brown remaining ribs. After transferring second batch of ribs to plate, brown sausages on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes total. Transfer sausages to plate with ribs.
2. Reduce heat to medium, add onions and oregano; cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until very dark, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add crushed tomatoes and broth, scraping up any browned bits. Return ribs and sausage to pot; bring to simmer, cover, and transfer to oven. Cook until ribs are tender, about 2½ hours.
3. FOR THE MEATBALLS: Meanwhile, combine bread cubes, buttermilk, parsley, garlic, egg yolk, salt, and red pepper flakes in medium bowl and mash with fork until no bread chunks remain. Add meatloaf mix, prosciutto, and cheese to bread mixture; mix with hands until thoroughly combined. Divide mixture into 12 pieces; roll into balls, transfer to plate, cover with plastic, and refrigerate until ready to use.
4. When sauce is 30 minutes from being done, heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add meatballs and cook until well browned all over, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer meatballs to paper towel-lined plate to drain briefly. Remove sauce from oven and skim fat from top with large spoon. Transfer browned meatballs to sauce and gently submerge. Cover, return pot to oven, and continue cooking until meatballs are just cooked through, about 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, bring 6 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and salt and cook until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water; drain pasta and transfer back to cooking pot.
6. TO SERVE: Using tongs, transfer meatballs, ribs, and sausage to serving platter and cut sausages in half. Stir basil into sauce and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Toss pasta with 1 cup sauce and reserved pasta cooking water so that sauce lightly coats pasta. Serve pasta, passing remaining sauce and meat platter separately.

Technique

Cooking the tomato paste until nearly blackened concentrates its sweetness and adds complexity to the sauce.
Recipe Testing

Serves 8 to 10. Published September 1, 2009. From Cook's Illustrated. Sunday Gravy

We prefer meatloaf mix (a combination of ground beef, pork, and veal) for the meatballs in this recipe. Ground beef may be substituted, but the meatballs won’t be as flavorful. Six tablespoons of plain yogurt thinned with 2 tablespoons of milk can be substituted for the buttermilk. This recipe makes enough to sauce 1½ pounds of pasta. Our preferred brands of crushed tomatoes are Tuttorosso and Muir Glen. The sauce can be prepared through step 4 and then cooled and refrigerated in the Dutch oven for up to 2 days. To reheat, drizzle ½ cup of water over the sauce (do not stir in) and warm on the lower-middle rack of a preheated 325-degree oven for 1 hour before proceeding with the recipe.

Sicilian Stuffed Loin of Pork

(Sicilian Stuffed Loin of Pork at Grotta Azzurra is $28. Cook at home cost: $4.55.)

1 center-cut of pork loin (about 8 ounces) ($2.25)
1 link sweet Italian sausage ($0.88)
1 teaspoon olive oil ($0.08)
2/3 cup chopped cooked spinach ($0.37)
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs ($0.04)
2 tablespoons raisins ($0.08)
2 tablespoons pine nuts ($0.41)
1/4 cup diced mozzarella ($0.32)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinaigrette ($0.12)

Use a sharp knife to slice the pork loin in half lengthwise, without cutting all the way in half. Once the pork has been split, cover with plastic wrap and pound with a mallet to make a uniform thickness. Salt and pepper both sides of the loin. Begin stuffing preparation by removing sausage from its casing and crumbling into a sauté pan with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Sauté on high heat until sausage is browned. Drain the grease and set aside to cool. In a separate bowl, combine sausage with remaining ingredients, then salt and pepper to taste. Place a line of the stuffing down the length of the loin, then fold loin over to cover the line of stuffing. Tie the loin with kitchen string and cook for one hour in a 350 degree oven. Baste loin with drippings several times during cooking. Remove loin from the oven, and cut off the string. Allow to rest 5 to 10 minutes before slicing.

Grotta Azzurra177 Mulberry StreetNew York, NY 10013www.grottaazzurrany.com

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Rao’s Shrimp Fra Diavolo Serves 4
Ingredients
2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and de-veined, butterflied, tails removed, patted dry
 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
1/2 cup fine-quality olive oil
6 small garlic cloves, peeled
1 cup dry white wine
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
Dried red-pepper flakes to taste
Salt & pepper to taste 
4 cups hand-crushed, canned imported San Marzano Italian plum tomatoes
8 fresh basil leaves, torn
1 lb. linguine or other pasta (optional)
Method:   Dredge shrimp in flour, patting to make sure that all sides are well coated. Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. When oil is very hot, but not smoking, add shrimp and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and saute for an additional minute or until shrimp are just beginning to brown. (Do not crowd pan; prepare shrimp in batches, if necessary.) Remove from heat and drain off all excess oil. Set shrimp aside and keep warm. All of this is unnecessary and made for clumps of flour and overcooked shrimp. Just add the shrimp a few minutes before serving to cook through.
Using heavy pan add olive oil and garlic to medium-high heat.
Stir in wine, oregano, pepper flakes, and salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.
Stir in tomatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until sauce has thickened slightly.
Stir in basil and shrimp and cook for 3 minutes, remove garlic cloves.
Serve with or without linguine pasta (optional). 
Also make a chili pepper oil with good EVOO and let it marinate while cooking all of this. Serve with the chili oil at the table.

Blender pesto

BLENDER PESTO

2 cups fresh basil leaves*
1/2 cup olive oil
2 T. pine nuts
2 cloves garlic, lightly crushed with a heavy knife, and peeled
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 T. freshly grated Romano pecorino cheese
3 T. butter, softened to room temperature

Put the basil, olive oil, pine nuts, garlic cloves, and salt in the blender and mhigh speed. Stop from time to time, scrape the ingredients down toward bottom of the blender cup with a rubber spatula. When the ingredients are evenly blended, pour into a bowl and beat it by hand. (This is
more work, and it results in a moreinteresting texture and better flavor than when you mix in the cheeses
Add a spoon or so of the hot water in which pasta has boiled.
*Fresh basil must be used

Dr. George Dietz

My Pasta bake

Pasta Bake

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 medium onion -- peeled and julienned
2 tablespoons garlic -- chopped
4 links Italian sausage, hot -- sliced 1/4" thick
1 pound chicken breast, no skin, no bone, R-T-C -- sliced 1/4" thick
1 tablespoon Durkee's 6 Pepper blend
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup basil, fresh
3 cans tomatoes, diced, canned
8 ounces peppers, fresh or frozen -- sliced 1/4-inch thick
16 ounces whole wheat penne -- Cooked half the time directed
1/2 cup parmesan cheese -- or as needed

heat large sauce pan or dutch oven to medium high heat; preheat oven to
325 F

add olive oil then onions and saute until wilted

add garlic, sausage, and dried seasonings

Saute and blend, then add chicken and saute 5-10 minutes

Add basil, tomatoes, and peppers and simmer 20 minutes.

Add semi-cooked pasta, parmesan, and blend.

Place in oven proof casserole and bake at 325 for 30 minutes

Remove from oven. Dish should be moist but not soupy. If needed, more
parmesan can be added or baking can be extended.

Description:
"Whole Wheat Pasta, Sausage, chicken tomatoes, etc."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per serving: 193 Calories (kcal); 9g Total Fat; (40% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 8g Carbohydrate; 51mg Cholesterol; 167mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates


Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

CHARLEY'S CHOWDER

CHARLEY'S CHOWDER
Recipe by Chef Larry
(Yield: 8 servings)

1/4 cup olive oil
3 medium garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 cup onion, finely diced
1/2 cup celery, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon oregano Pinch of thyme
8 to 10 whole plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
(or 2 cups stewed tomatoes, finely chopped, without the juice)
1 cup tomato sauce
6 cups clam juice
1 pound boneless pollack, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Salt to taste

1. In a 4-quart soup pot, heat olive oil. Add garlic. When the garlic turns brown,
remove it quickly with a slotted spoon and discard. Reduce the heat.
2. Add celery, onions and spices to oil. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes.
3. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce; simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add clam juice and pollack. Cover and bring to a boil.
5. Remove cover and boil for 10 minutes longer. With a wire whisk, whip soup to break up fish into pea-sized flakes.
6. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
7. Add parsley and salt to taste.

©1998-2003 C.A. Muer Corporation

KENTUCKY BOURBON BUNDT CAKE

18 1/2 oz Yellow Cake Mix With Pudding
1-3 3/4 oz box instant vanilla pudding
1/2 tsp allspice seasoning
4 oz orange juice
4 oz oil
8 oz bourbon
4 eggs
4 oz package chopped pecans
Grease and flour 12 cup Bundt® pan In a large bowl stir together cake mix pudding and allspice With electric beater, mix orange juice oil and bourbon into dry ingredients Slowly add eggs Mix on high speed for 2 minutes Stir in chopped pecans bake in a 325° oven for 1 hour or until done.

For a 6 cup Bourbon Bundt Cake

Follow recipe above, prepare cake by using 1/2 of the batter, reserve remaining batter and prepare a second cake Bake in a 325' oven for 40-45 minutes or unlit done Eat one cake and freeze the ether.
KENTUCKY BOURBON GLAZE
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/4 cup water
2 Tablespoons bourbon
1/4 cup bourbon
In a saucepan slowly melt butter, add sugar, water and 2 Tablespoons bourbon Bring to slow boil for 10 minutes, stir?ring occasionally Remove from burner and cool for 5 minutes Stir in 1/4 cup bourbon Slowly pour over warm inverted 12 cup Kentucky Bourbon Bundt° Cake

For a 6 cup Bourbon Bundt Coat
Prepare recipe Divide glaze between two 6 cup Bundt° Cakes,
KENTUCKY TOPPING
1 pint heavy cream
2 oz JIM BEAM° KENTUCKY BOURBON
2 oz powdered sugar
Pour heavy cream into chilled mixing bowl, gradually add small amounts of JIM BEAM KENTUCKY BOURBON and sugar and beat until mixture is stiff. Decorate the entire JIM BEAM CAKE with mounds of topping or dab topping on individual slices-add some sweet pecans for final touch







Jim Beam
Bourbon Cake

Best Ever Buckeyes Recipe

40 -50 balls
1 1/2 cups peanut butter (400 g)
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1 lb powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

(I added 1.5 cups chopped Trader Joe blister peanuts, could've added more. 7/24/23)

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
Crisco - or. learn how to temper chocolate!

1. Mix peanut butter, margarine or butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla in bowl (It helps to soften the margarine).2. Shape into 1" balls.3. Refrigerate balls.4. Meanwhile, melt chocolate with a bit of Crisco (so the chocolate will harden. Without Crisco, chocolate will remain soft.) in double boiler.5. Insert toothpick into refrigerated balls and dip into chocolate, leaving small area resembling a buckeye.6. Cool on wax paper and store in refrigerator or freezer

Cincinnati Chili

Cincinnati Chili

3 pounds lean ground beef
3 quarts water
3 cups chopped onion
2 T minced garlic
12 oz can tomato paste
3 T salt
2 T cinnamon
1½ T whole allspice
1 T cayenne pepper
1 T celery seed
1-2 tsp. in total black and/or white ground pepper
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. whole cloves
½ tsp. oregano
½ tsp. crushed red pepper (italian style)
¼ tsp. marjoram
½ tsp. dried mustard
5 bay leaves
2 oz unsweetened chocolate

Boil (yes, boil) the beef in the water in a large heavy pot and start adding everything else you see here and simmer on low heat (it will scorch if you’re not careful) at least 2 hours, but the longer the better. The final product should be thick and deep red, the beef should be in very fine pieces.
Tips.
You can use whole or ground spices but you will need to adjust the quantity based on freshness, etc. The whole spices get more interesting reactions around the table. White pepper is hotter than black so adjust the proportions and quantity of black and white pepper accordingly. Heat can be adjusted primarily by increasing or decreasing any of the peppers but the cayenne pepper provides the most bang for the buck—er, quid. If you have trouble finding some ingredients, try “chili powder” which (over here, anyway) is a combination of cayenne pepper, salt cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, and sometimes oregano. Check the label and you can get by with this instead of some of the other constituents.

Serving Cincinnati Chili:
One-Way: Serve over steaming spaghetti or other pasta
Two-Way: Spaghetti, grated cheddar and chili
Three-Way: Spaghetti, cheese, chopped onions and chili
Four-Way: Spaghetti, cheese, onion, canned red kidney beans and chili

Also good on burgers (chili-burgers) and hot dogs (chili dogs)

Gorgonzola Pasta

Ziti with Creamy Gorgonzola Sauce, from "How to Cook Everything," by Mark Bittmann.

2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
1/2 cup milk, half-and-half, or cream
1 pound ziti, penne, or other cut pasta
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus more to taste
salt to taste

1. Boil water.

2. Melt the butter in a the saucepan over low heat. While it is melting, put the Gorgonzola in a small bowl and mash it with a fork or potato masher, gradually adding the milk. Don't worry about making it smooth, just make sure it is well combined. When the butter is melted, add the cheese-milk mixture and continue to cook, stirring and mashing occasionally.

3. Meanwhile, salt the boiling water and cook until it is tender but firm. When it is done, drain it and mix with the sauce in a large, warm bowl. Stir in the Parmesan, then taste for salt and add some if necessary. Serve, passing additional Parmesan at the table if you like.

We had this for Christian's Graduation Party.

Mulligatawney - Short Version

Uber quick Mulligatawney.

Use veggies of your choice, use regular Mulligatawney recipe for a guide.
Clear out the pantry:
Potatoes, onion, canned tomatoes, roasted red/yellow peppers, pistachios, cashews, etc

Clear out the freezer:
Green Beans, corn, peas, etc.

Clear out the veggie drawer:
Carrots, celery, parsnips, eggplant

Add chicken broth, veggie broth or water, and place into a pot or pressure cooker.

Add
1-3 TBSP Butter
1-3 TBSP Tikka Masala Paste
Chopped parsley if you have it.
Juice of a lemon if you have it.

Simmer or cook under pressure.

Mulligatawney -Long version

This is from Top Secret recipes with a few modifications (no sugar, canned tomatoes instead of sauce, less water).

Modifications for a pressure cooker. With a pressure cooker, this becomes an after work recipe. Cutting the veggies up while the pressure cooker is heating up and cooking for just 15 minutes on high is a quick dinner. Don't add the extra water!

6 cups chicken stock (or water, for vegetarians, or veggie boullion)
Extra water, depending upon how long you simmer - may take a few pints.
2 potatoes, peeled & sliced (or parsnips for lower carb dish)
2 carrots, peeled & sliced
2 stalks celery, with tops
2 cups peeled & diced eggplant (about 1/2 of an eggplant)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup frozen yellow corn
2/3 cup canned roasted red pepper, diced
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1/2 cup roasted cashews
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon curry powder (hot or sweet)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
dash marjoram
dash nutmeg

1. Combine all ingredients in a large pot over high heat.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 4-5 hours or until soup has reduced by more than half, and is thick and brownish in color. It should have the consistency of chili. Stir occasionally for the first few hours, but stir often in the last hour. The edges of the potatoes should become more rounded, and the nuts will soften. Serve hot.

h/t to Top Secret Recipes

4-6 servings.