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Cranberry Sauce…Finally!

I have never posted a cranberry sauce recipe before because frankly every time I tried I ended up with a lip-puckering nasty gloopy mess and we’ve just used lingonberry jam from IKEA instead.

A happy surprise for the table

So this year, I did not even tell my family I’d bought cranberries! I told no one that I was going to attempt it again. I just put it together surreptitiously on the day, figuring that if I failed yet again, no one would be the wiser. And wouldn’t you know, it came out deliciously — just the right tartness and sweetness, beautiful color and rich texture. It was great on the turkey and the ham, and even on bread! I have visions of using it on duck or venison one day…(Mad Dog? Are you there?)

I used a recipe from Simply Recipes (one of my go-to spots for solid fundamentals clearly presented) and then played with proportions and seasonings. And it’s a good thing I went for it. Unbeknownst to me, there was no lingonberry jam in the house, so we would have had to do without. Some things are just meant to be, and this was one of those things!

I will absolutely do this again next year for Thanksgiving, and will very likely not wait that long to try it again.

The blueberries were left over from the summer. Had them in my freezer: serendipity!!!

Cranberry Sauce

¾ Cup sugar

¾ Cup water

7 oz package fresh cranberries

1 Cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Orange/Clementine zest (barely 1/4 tsp)

¼ tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. In the meantime, wash and pick over cranberries. Add cranberries, bring to a boil again and then lower heat and simmer until the cranberries are mostly popped (about 10 minutes).

Stir in blueberries, spices and just a tiny bit of zest (use only the colored part of the peel. The pith –white part – will make things bitter). Cook for a bare minute, then remove from heat and cool enough to pour into your serving container. Then cool to room temperature and refrigerate. The sauce will set as it cools.

Tags: cooking, cranberry sauce, food, jam, jelly, recipes, thanksgiving

Comments 7 Comments
Categories CSA, Food, Recipes, Side Dishes, Thanksgiving, Vegan, Vegetarian

Amazing Escarole and White Bean Soup (with tiny meatball option)

5 Nov

My friend Marianne and I cook together most Sundays, putting together at least one big dish that we can pack for lunch a few days of the following week. My lentil soup is a regular feature of Sunday night cooking, as are roasted vegetables, But a glorious head of escarole at a recent end-of-season Restoration Farm pick-up proved inspiring and nostalgic.

The veggie version

For Marianne it was all about her Italian nana who Marianne swears made this soup out of a handful of leaves, a pinch of ground beef and water. Grandmothers from those days were like that…they somehow conjured the most memorable, intoxicating flavors out of thin air like fairy godmothers.

Me, I need a good stock to help me out. Especially because my own abuela never made anything like this that I can remember, so I don’t know where I first had escarole soup, or why it provokes such sighs of nostalgia in me, or how I knew that mine has to have white beans, even though Nana Manone doesn’t seem to have included them in hers. And I wasn’t planning on meatballs, but since Nana used them….(which might explain the water instead of stock) Marianne’s big brother Peter will have to shed some light on this one, if he remembers.

The meatball version…with a handful of pasta in my lunch

In the meantime, I defrosted my prize homemade chicken stock in the fridge and softened the beans and grudgingly defrosted some raw but seasoned ground beef and prepared myself for battle. Continue reading →

Tags: cannelini beans, cooking, easy soup, escarole soup, food, Italian food, nostalgia, recipes

Comments 10 Comments
Categories CSA, Food, Italian, lunch, Recipes, soup, Vegetarian

Almost Instant Bruschetta (Quickie tomato spread)

18 Oct

Got a tomato and some day-old bread?

Swirl around to soften and Bob’s your uncle!

Use it up deliciously and look fab doing it.

A lovely way to start a meal (or grate some cheese over and call it a movie snack)

Ingredients:

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil (plus more for drizzling)

A few ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 or two cloves garlic minced

Day-old bread, sliced and lightly toasted

Salt to taste

Directions:

Heat oil in a skillet. Toss in tomatoes and garlic and stir around at medium until skins begin to separate. Spread on toasts. Sprinkle with salt. Serve.

Glow!

Tags: appetizers, bruschetta, cooking, food, party snacks, recipes, starters, tomatoes

Comments 5 Comments
Categories Entertaining, Food, gardening, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Summer Tomato Recipe (or just chop fresh tomatoes over warm pasta and you’re done!)

16 Oct

We won’t be eating this light and fresh summer way much longer.

The little man and I pulled out the tomato plants today. They could have stayed in a bit longer and we might have had a few more vine-ripened tomatoes, but he took off all the little greenies (“39, Mom! I picked 39 tomatoes!”), holding up his shirt hem to make an impromptu bag for them, while I folded the netting (okay, attempted to fold the netting and then just balled it all up because it was making me crazy) and then he pulled out all the plants (about ten) I threw them in the leaf compost and we called it an afternoon. After a summer of garden disasters, the pounds and pounds of tomatoes we got from our ten plants was a true joy. And I have several quarts of sauce and puree in the freezer for later!

Light and beautiful, any kind of tomatoes will do, as long as they are garden fresh!

My dad (he of the crazy-ass mostly vegan diet) just had surgery for bladder cancer last week, so we’ve been very, very busy with other things, not least of which is preparing food for everyone so that we all continue to eat well and keep up our strength while we work on his recuperation and everything else (like work — fullltime and freelance — and school and soccer and violin — and on and on). So yes, the healing and kitchen are going great guns, but the writing is not.

So this is not even a recipe, but a solution. Boil pasta in generously salted water and drain, reserving 1/4 Cup of pasta water.. Chop up fresh tomatoes and toss them into the pasta with a splash of olive oil, a splash of pasta water, a couple of basil leaves if you’ve got and maybe some finely minced garlic. Serve with grated cheese/a sprinkle of salt, Or not. Eat. Move on to the next thing and try not to mourn the end of the summer tomatoes. Save your seeds and plant more next year!

From my garden. I love this moment of the harvest season, when you realize it’s almost over and therefore appreciate these flavors that much more.

Tags: cooking, food, no-cook pasta sauce, pasta ideas, recipes, summer recipes, tomatoes

Comments 4 Comments
Categories Food, gardening, Italian, lunch, Pasta, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

And another award-winner: My Banana Bread (with Chocolate Chips)!

3 Oct

I shared with you the great news of Leandro’s first place win for Oatmeal Walnut Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies at the Long Island Fair. Now I will share my more modest triumph…my banana bread took second place in the adult class!

Chocolate chips give it that extra prize-winning appeal….

My banana bread is very moist and banana-y, because I take any bananas that have gone too ripe for pleasant eating (as in the peel is black and the flesh is mushy and getting brown), peel and freeze them in a resealable bag until I have enough for banana bread. So the sugars are really present and there is quite a bit of juice.

I have been terribly busy — too busy to sit down and write something more substantive — so I’ll keep it short and give you the recipe, which is sure to become a go-to for you!

Slice and freeze for great lunchbox stuffers

Banana Chocolate Chip Quick Bread

6 overripe bananas

1 Cup sugar (1/2 light brown and ½ white)

2 eggs, beaten

½ Cup vegetable oil

2 Cups flour (1/2 whole wheat, ½ white all purpose)

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 Cup bittersweet chocolate morsels

Preheat oven to 350°. Mash bananas in mixing bowl. Add sugar, eggs and oil, one at a time, mixing well with each addition. Sift dry ingredients together and add to banana mixture. Fold in chocolate morsels. Pour in four greased mini- loaf pans and bake 55-60 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Second place for me

Tags: banana bread, cooking, food, Long Island Fair, prize-winning recipe, recipe, sweets

Comments 2 Comments
Categories baking, Food, Vegetarian

Award-Winning! YES, Leandro’s Oatmeal Cookies Take First Prize!

29 Sep

We shouted! We hooted! We jumped up and down! (Mommy even got a little misty)

The winner! Note blue ribbon in the background!

Leandro’s Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Chocolate Chip Drop Cookies took first prize in the Junior culinary class at the Long Island Fair!

We were completely surprised, because we had made a solemn decision that we didn’t care whether our submissions won. We just wanted our admission tickets (one per submission) and we wanted to be a part of it. We like our own baked goods and we like baking together and winning or losing wouldn’t change that.And then he won!

The calm before the storm. The gorgeous Fair building

We are, of course, very excited, and we are, of course, sharing the recipe. And of course, we had a marvellous day at the fair with Lori, Brendan, Kate, Abu, Padushi, Madrina, and Betsy. It is always a wonderful time and there is one more day left if you haven’t made it yet!

Makes big batches!

Leandro’s Prize-Winning Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip, Cranberry, Walnut Cookies

½ Cup plus 6 Tbs butter, softened

¾ firmly packed brown sugar (I like to mix dark and light brown, but use whatever is on hand)

½ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 ½ Cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

3 Cups quick or old-fashioned oats

½ Cup bittersweet chocolate morsels

½ Cup dried cranberries

¾ Cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars until blended and kind of creamy (I don’t have an electric mixer – yet—so I just use a big fork). Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Then add the oats and the fruit and nuts and mix well until all the oats are damp.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough on ungreased cookie sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes or until light brown. After a minute cooling on the baking sheets, move the cookies to wire cooling racks and cool completely. Store in tightly covered containers.

The right way to celebrate at a fall county fair!

You may also like: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tags: bittersweet chocolate, chocolate morsels, Long Island Fair, oatmeal chocolate chip, oatmeal cookies, prize-winning cookies, walnut cookies

Comments 26 Comments
Categories cookies, desserts, Food, Party Snacks, Recipes, Vegetarian

French Toast-ed Croissant and Apple Sandwiches

21 Sep

After our last very successful French toast adventure, my friend Pam suggested we try French toast croissants.

How pretty are these local eggs (from Makinajian Poultry Farm in East Northport area)

As I had mini-croissants in the fridge, I thought that was a fine idea! She also mentioned that she uses any leftovers for lunchbox sandwiches and that got me to thinking…how can I pump up the nutrition and texture…and maybe convince my son to eat sandwiches (which would be an easier lunch solution for me!).

French toast croissants are pretty good without the apple too!

So, I split the croissants and gave them tth French toast treatment, drizzled with maple syrup and cinnamon and stuffed with thinly-sliced apple. The result was like an apple turnover, without the extra sugar and with a lot more crunch. I am sure if you are a peanut butter family, a good schmear would be tasty, as would cream cheese!

A delicious autumn breakfast

French Toast Croissant and Apple Sandwiches

1-2 Tbs butter

3 eggs

¼ Cup milk

12 mini-croissants (or 4-6 standard size), split

Maple syrup

Cinnamon

1 apple, cored and sliced thin (peeled or unpeeled is up to you)

Melt the butter in a skillet at medium to medium high.

Beat the eggs and milk together on plate or bowl that is wide enough to accommodate a split croissant, but won’t spill over.

Dip each croissant in the egg mixture on both sides just before placing in the skillet (do not soak the bread). Cook about two minutes on each side. Drizzle with maple syrup and sprinkle with cinnamon. Place a thin layer of apple on one side, close up the sandwich and eat!

Tags: apples, breakfast, cooking, food, French toast, kid-friendly, recipes

Comments 12 Comments
Categories eggs, Food, Recipes, Sandwich, Vegetarian

How to Blanch, Blend and Freeze Paste Tomatoes for Raw Sauce

14 Sep

Yay! Home-grown paste tomatoes!

Don’t they look lovely? My paste tomatoes (from seeds saved from Restoration Farm)

Boo! Not enough time or energy to make paste!

Pull them out of the water as soon as they split

Yay! Shortcut!

We’ve finally got some joy out of our backyard garden. Three raised beds (the fourth strawberry one doesn’t count because it is not expected to produce in the first year) and all we got was garlic, decent peas, decent lettuce, some kale, ONE zucchini…and a lot of failed everything else.

Live action! Padushi uses hi immersion blender to finish the job

Live action! Padushi uses his immersion blender to finish the job

Therefore I am inordinately happy about the fact that I have harvested a couple of pounds of paste tomatoes, with more greenies getting pink on the vine.

So…here’s the easy way to deal with the ones we’ve picked on a Thursday night, near collapse from the workweek and doing a million other things at the same time. Didn’t bother cooking them down. The raw fresh taste will still be there in the winter!

FREEZE! or use immediately….

Raw Pureed Paste Tomatoes for Freezing

1) Get a big pot of water on the boil.

2) Get a bowl of ice water ready.

3) rinse the tomatoes (if you must).

4) drop tomatoes in the boiling water.

5) as they split, pluck them out and plunge (I love the word plunge) them into the ice water,

6) when they cool, pull the peels off.

7) chop, dice, or run through a mill or processor.

8) use or store or freeze.

DONE!

Tags: cooking, food, preserving, saving tomatoes, summer recipes

Comments 11 Comments
Categories CSA, Food, gardening, Preserving, Vegan, Vegetarian

The Easiest Watermelon Snack Ever!

10 Sep

Thanks to my beloved, handy-dandy, double-sided melon baller from Pampered Chef (the other end hulls strawberries and cores tomatoes) my big first-grader now has a new favorite way to snack. He just pulls a quartered watermelon out of the fridge, sets it down in front of himself on a napkin and starts cutting in. He sometimes makes many at a time and puts them in a bowl and sometimes just pops them directly as he scoops them. Independence never tasted better, nor made a mother happier….

Little hands can easily manage this task.

Ah! Summer fruits!

Tags: healthy snacks, kid-friendly food, watermelon

Comments 3 Comments
Categories Food, Vegan, Vegetarian

Easy and Delicious French Toast

6 Sep

French toast was a special treat when my brother and I were small. The very name seemed elegant and the stacks of golden bread looked so beautiful and the maple syrup was so heady and rich. Who knew it was as basic as bread dipped in egg and fried?

French toast is happy food!

So, much to the delight of a certain six-year-old, I took advantage of my first day off of the semester (L’shana tovah to all of those celebrating the new year this week) and made some for breakfast yesterday, with (shock,horror) white sliced bread that I had in the freezer simply because they were giving it away at the Stop & Shop and I couldn’t bear to let it go to waste!

I cut off the crusts in a familial reflex (that’s what my parents used to do) but I realized that I didn’t have to! At any rate, the crusts became the bread crumbs for my meatballs later, so no matter.

So, basic French toast. An easy treat! Would love to hear how you dress up yours (click here for an cool story on Burning Man French toast).

The sliced apples were a big hit with the French toast, dipped judiciously in the maple syrup and cinnamon.

French Toast

1-2 Tbs butter

3 eggs

¼ Cup milk

8 Slices of bread

Maple syrup

Cinnamon

Melt the butter in a skillet at medium to medium high.

Beat the eggs and milk together on plate or bowl that is wide enough to accommodate a slice of bread, but won’t spill over.

Dip each slice of bread in the egg mixture just before placing in the skillet (do not soak the bread). Cook about two minutes on each side. Serve with maple syrup and a sprinkle of cinnamon or your favorite topping.

Tags: bread, breakfast dishes, cooking, eggs, food, French toast, kid-friendly foods, recipes

Comments 12 Comments
Categories Food, Recipes, Vegetarian

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