I have always been a Puttanesca fan, although I’ve never made it.  Over the holidays, sitting in a rental house in Vermont, I was perusing one of the house’s cook books – one which is most likely on your own shelf (as it is on mine) if you enjoy cooking at all.  In Rosso & Lukins (Silver Palate) The New Basics Cookbook was this fabulously delicious and simple puttanesca recipe.  My friend even commented that the sauce was better than the puttanesca sauce that her favorite local Italian restaurant serves.

So for those of you who don’t have this book on your shelves, here’s the recipe. (For those who do, p.133).  It’s a great wintry pasta sauce to drink with a robust red wine in front of a fire!  And it was a nice little discovery for me, as I hadn’t picked up this cookbook in at least a couple of years.

Here it is:

Puttanesca Sauce

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 can (2 ounces) anchovy fillets, undrained

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 can (35 ounces) plum tomatoes, drained

1 jar (2.5 ounces) capers, drained

1 1/2 cups pitted imported black olives, coarsely chopped

Coarsley ground black pepper, to taste

1.  Place the oil, anchovies, and garlic in a heavy medium size saucepan.  Mash thoroughly to form a paste

2.  Add the tomatoes, capers, and olives.  Stir, and heat to simmering over medium heat.  Reduce the heat to low, and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Season with pepper.

2 portions (I think you can stretch it to 4); enough for 8 ounces capellini (I think you can stretch to 16 ounces)

Enjoy!

My sister just forwarded this recipe with rave reviews.  I thought it was worth sharing, as it sounds like the perfect accompaniment to a nice Christmas roast beef or filet mignon. Of course after reading through it, my first thoughts are – ANYTHING would be good with cheese, cream and butter! Anyhow, if your heart will so allow, you may want to consider this:

1 garlic clove

2 lbs (or more) russet potatoes, peeled and very thinly sliced (I do all of the potatoes first and then put them in a large bowl with cold water.  When ready to use, drain them and dry on kitchen towels before layering into dish)

1 cup freshly grated French or Swiss Gruyere cheese

1 cup heavy cream

Salt (I used Kosher salt)

Preheat oven to 350.

Thoroughly rub a shallow 6 cup porcelain gratin dish with the garlic.  Rub about 1 T. butter in the bottom and up the sides of dish.

Layer half of the potatoes into dish.  Sprinkle with half of the cheese and then half of the cream and sprinkle with salt. (I actually did three layers, and sprinkled about ½ cup cheese and ½ cup cream with each layer) Add another layer using rest of the ingredients.

Bake, uncovered, until the gratin is crisp and golden on top, from 50 to 60 minutes.

I’m willing to give it a try!

At my 5 year old son’s Thanksgiving feast at school, one of the Moms brought in a pumpkin cake.  Parents and children alike were crazy for it – a huge hit.  I have thought about getting my hands on that recipe since last week, and low and behold – the totally on top of things Class Mom sent all the parents the link to the recipe.  (I must admit I’ll have to put my hurt feelings aside as my cranberry bread seemed to pale in comparison; better yet, maybe I’ll just go with the fact that my cranberry bread is for a more sophisticated palate!).

Anyhow, here is the recipe.  My brother-in-law, who works for McCormick Spice Company, will be happy with this plug:

Spiced Pumpkin Cake (from McCormick)

1 package yellow cake mix

1 package vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

3 eggs

1.5 tsp. McCormick ground Cinnamon

1 tsp McCormick ground Cloves

Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Directions:

1.  Preheat oen to 350.  Beat all ingredients, except Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting, in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed just until moistened, scraping side of bowl frequently.  Beat on medium speed 2 minutes or until well blended.

2. Pour into greased and floured 13 x 9 inch baking pan.

3.  Bake 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire race.  Spread with Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting.

Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting:  Beat 1 package (80z) cream cheese, softened, 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened, 1 tsp McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract, anad 1/4 tsp McCormick Ground Cloves in large bowl until well blended.  Gradually add 1 package (16oz) confectioner’s sugar (about 4 cups), beating until well blended after each addition.  NOTE:  The cake I tasted just had confectioners sugar spread on top.  Certainly cuts down on the calories!

Calories per serving:  379

Growing up in Plymouth, Mass., my fellow classmates and I were groomed to be mini-historians when it came to Thanksgiving. In elementary school, the entire month of November was dedicated to everything-Pilgrim: every class, every activity and every reading assignment related to our hometown heritage and that first feast.

Thus, it’s a bit ironic that, when I think of the First Thanksgiving, my mind goes to the first Thanksgiving dinner I prepared all by myself. For most women, the first time we are responsible for the guest of honor – the turkey – and the delivery of hot and timely side dishes to the dinner table  is an important milestone, evidence of our crossing the threshold into “real” adulthood.

My First Thanksgiving occurred when I was 25 and cooked for my husband’s family at their home while my mother-in-law recuperated from gall bladder surgery. Although the meal turned out fine, I learned that Thanksgiving is a very tradition-bound celebration and families vary greatly in their traditions.

In my zeal to impress, I prepared homemade stuffing with lots of yummy ingredients. Their family tradition was Stove Top stuffing, and they looked suspiciously at the unusual-looking stuffing sitting on their plates. I put out cranberry sauce, a must for a girl who grew up around cranberry bogs. They didn’t know how (or why) anyone would eat it.  The veggies served in assorted bowls were fresh and steamed; they were used to soft (i.e., over-cooked) veggies cooked in the microwave.

Now, don’t get me wrong – they were all very appreciative of the meal and my efforts. They, particularly my mother-in-law, thanked me up and down. Yet, we all knew something was missing that year – the comfort of familiar food, tradition, and long-established roles.

Do you remember preparing your first Thanksgiving feast? Ever have the experience of introducing something “new?” How did that go over? Share the good, the bad, and the ugly and help distract us as we frantically prepare for Thursday.

Ahhh, it’s Friday morning (a cold, blustery, rainy 36 degrees on this Autumn day – I might add, but I won’t let that get me down).  Child #1 left at 6:30.  Child #2 left at 7:30.  Child #3 and Child #4 left at 7:40.  And me, I don’t have to leave as Friday is my day off from work. Now I get to sit and decide what I want to do for the next 7 hours.  Which pile should I attack first? Should I get my flu shot today?  Should I finish putting away the summer clothes?  Yes – I know you’re jealous – all such stimulating things to do! But the best is that it’s quiet, and I get to decide when to tackle each of these wonderfully fun projects.

But first, it’s a morning for a pancake treat.  My neighbor at the bus stop always raves about the South Beach pancakes made with oatmeal.  I did finally make them.  For those of you who love pancakes but don’t want all the carbs, this is a great alternative.  The vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg flavors really dominate – so if you like those flavors, I’m sure you’ll like this recipe.  The recipe calls for egg whites (4) , so I ended up using Liquid Egg Whites.  The first time I made it – I believe I used too many egg whites.  Following the equivalency directions on the side of the carton – I followed the rule that 3T equals one whole egg.  Problem was, I didn’t take into account that I probably should have cut this in half – since I was only  supposed to be using the white part of the egg.

Anyhow, it made for very thin pancakes (similar to Swedish pancakes).  But I really thought they were delicious – and I loved the thinness of them – so thin that using a small frying pan with edges is probably best.  This morning my husband made the pancakes – more true to the original recipe – and turned out thicker, more normal looking pancakes.  Because he used less egg whites than I did, the spice flavors were more prominent as well.  Honestly, I think next time I will stick to making it the way I did – more egg whites and very thin pancakes.

Bottomline, give these a try.  With some fresh strawberries and a light maple syrup drizzle, they really are delicious:

South Beach Oatmeal Pancakes

1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal

1/4 cup low fat cottage cheese (I used no fat)

4 egg whites

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Process all ingredients in a blender until smooth.  Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add the batter and cook over medium heat until both sides are lightly browned.

Note:  The first time I made this – which produced the VERY THIN pancakes – I used 3/4 cup plus 3 T of egg whites.  This is the equivalency of using 4 whole eggs – so more than the recipe called for – but I did like the thinness.  I think next time I would stick to doing the recipe this way.  Of course, maybe some day I’ll also try using real egg whites (when I’m overloaded with eggs from my chickens!)

Anyhow, stay warm and have a great weekend!

We’ve all been reading with interest this week about Elaine’s dilemma with the humongous tree in her neighbor’s yard that is about to fall on her house,and how she was able to successfully resolve the issue with her neighbors.  Now that she and her husband are fast friends with Bob and Sally, I thought I would provide a recipe for the next time she and Mike get together with Bob and Sally for coffee.  And for the rest of you who have end of the season blueberries in your fridge, try this.  The kids love it!

Blueberry Muffin Cake Recipe

1 pkg plain yellow or white cake mix (I used yellow)
1 pkg (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding mix 
1 cup low fat vanilla yogurt (I used Dannon light)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
4 large eggs 
1 cup fresh blueberries, rinsed & drained 
2 teaspoons confectioners sugar, for dusting, optional 

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 10″ tube pan with solid vegetable shortening, then dust with flour. 

2. Measure out 2 tablespoons of the cake mix & reserve it. Place the remaining cake mix, pudding mix, yogurt, oil, water, cinnamon and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more, scraping the sides down again if needed. The batter should look thick and well blended. 

3. Toss the blueberries with the reserved cake mix. 

4. Pour two thirds of the batter into the prepared pan. Scatter the blueberries over the batter. Spread the remaining batter over the blueberries so that it covers the fruit. Place the pan in the oven. 

5. Bake the cake until it is golden brown on top and just starts to pull away from the sides of the pan, 45-50 min. Remove the pan from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes. Run a long, sharp knife around the edge of the cake and invert it on a rack, then onto another rack so that the cake is right side up. Allow it to cool completely 30 minutes more. 

6. Place the cake on a serving platter & sust with confectioners sugar, if desired.

Source:  The Cake Doctor

For those of you who ventured into “garlic farming” with me last fall, attached is a link that provides guidance on when and how to harvest your garlic, and what to do with it once it is harvested (click here). I pulled up about 75% of what I planted this past weekend.  I had some really nice sized heads, but some were a little on the small side and probably could have stayed in the ground a little bit longer.  The person who originally told me about planting garlic, someone at the local Nature Center, told me he typically harvested in mid June.  Most of what I’ve been reading recommends late July through mid August – which I think is more on target.  (Of course, the crazy non-ending rain this summer probably did delay the crop).

I must admit I am proud of what I have.  We braided it up, and it’s hanging in our kitchen now. When harvesting, pull gently.  I did break a few of the greens off  and had to go digging with a trowel to find the head.  After I pulled them up, I dipped them gently in a bucket of water to clean the dirt off of the bulb and the roots.  I then put them in the sun to dry.  I later read that I should have not put them in the sun, but a dry place out of direct sunlight.

Depending on the rate at which I use garlic, this should last me at least through the winter.  So time to find some good garlic recipes.  This one for pan-fried garlic shrimp looks like it’s worth a try (and it’s a video!).

My son Jackson picked up the book Eat This, Not That! by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding. As I drive, he sits in the backseat recounting alarming nutritional information about the various food stuffs we consume.

“Did you know that P.F. Chang’s Pork Lo Mein is considered the worst Chinese entree? It has more than 1,800 calories and 127 grams of fat. Or, Chipotle’s chicken burrito? It has 1,107 calories, 113 carb grams and 2,656 milligrams of sodium,” says Jackson with a mixture of awe, disgust and worry in his voice.

“Hmmm,” I think. “Better come up with a different plan for dinner.” (Yes, we eat out WAY too much at our house.)

While I applaud Jackson’s burgeoning interest in healthy eating, tonight he crossed the line: He started to recite the nutritional facts about ice cream. At the next stop light, I turned around in the driver’s seat and glared.

“Jackson, there are certain things I DO NOT want to know. Like how bad ice cream is. Especially at the start of summer.”

Of course, my pronouncement was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. He immediately began to rattle off the depressing stats:

Ben & Jerry’s Chunky Money (in a waffle cone) has 659 calories and 24 grams of fat (19 grams saturated)

A strawberry shake at Baskin-Robbins weighs in at 650 calories and 98 grams of sugar

Dairy Queen’s chocolate chip cookie dough Blizzard (the SMALL size, for goodness sakes!) contains 720 calories and 28 grams of fat

Not surprisingly, sorbet and frozen yogurt generally got good marks from Zinczenko and Goulding. But, somehow, the cry of “I scream. You scream. We all scream for … sorbet!” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.

My favorite indulgence is a Friendly’s black raspberry ice cream cone with chocolate jimmies (aka sprinkles, for those of you who grew up outside of New England). What kind of ice cream do you crave during the summer?

Well it’s a light Friday, but I need to share a heavy, but utterly delicious recipe.  When I first read it, I immediately dismissed it. Too rich.  But then I thought, if I make it for company, and we all share a little taste – well then I could justify it.  As I read more of the article and recipe I ironically realized it was from a restaurant that my husband and I had eaten at on our one and only trip to Maui several years ago.  That restaurant is called Hali’imaile General Store – a lovely, quaint restaurant that sits in sugarcane fields.

A number of higher end restaurants feature similar recipes – I’ve sampled this at the Capital Grille for instance.  For my 21st anniversary recently, I was at a restaurant that also featured this on their menu as an almost $30 entree.

Any guesses?  I’m talking about the ultimate mac n’ cheese – Truffle Macaroni and Cheese with Lobster.  

Here’s the recipe:

6 T Butter

1/4 cup sliced onion

1 T Coarsely chopped shallot

1 Clove garlic, smashed

1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns

3.5 cups heavy cream

3 cups half and half

2 T Flour

1.5 cups grated sharp white cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated fontina cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1.5 pounds of penne pasta

1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

1 T chopped fresh chives

1 T chopped fresh parsely

3 T truffle oil

2.5 cups cubed lobster meat, if desired

In saucepan over medium heat, melt 1 T butter.  Add onion, shallot, garlic; cook for 2 minutes or until onion wilts.  Add peppercorns, heavy cream, half and half.  Decrease heat to low; simmer 10 minutes. Remove cream mixture from heat (it will smell scrumptious, by the way); carefully strain mixture through fine strainer into bowl with pouring spout.  Discard vegetables.  In same saucepan over medium high heat, melt 3 T butter.  Add flour, whisk into buter. Continue to stir, cooking mixture for 2 minutes or until flour changes color from white to beige.  Slowly add cream mixture, whisking constantly.  Continue to cook and stir until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add all cheeses and stir, blending cheeses into sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease oven proof casserole dish.  In large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta about 8 to 10  minutes until al dente.  While pasta is cooking, in saute pan over medium high heat, melt remaining 2 T butter.  Add panko and saute until panko is golden brown, about 3 minutes.  Remove pan from heat; add parsley and chives and mix together.  When pasta is cooked to just al dente, drain it and save 1/2 cup pasta water.  Transfer pasta into large bowl; pour sauce over pasta.  With wooden spoon, incorporate sauce into pasta, making sure sauce gets into tubes of pasta.  If sauce is too thick, add a few tbsp pasta water to thin.  Add lobster at this point, if desired.

Pour pasta into casserole dish.  Top with panko mixture.  Place casserole in oven 12- 15 minutes, or until heated through. (I made earlier in the day and refrigerated, so it probably needs a good 45 minutes in the oven to heat through if you do that). Remove from oven; with a knife, poke holes all over casserole from top to bottom.  Drizzle truffle oil over top through holes. Let sit for 2 minutes and serve.  Serves 8.

Literally to die for ….

OK…let me explain.  This blog will probably not be as exciting as you’re anticipating. But if WILL BE refreshingly delicious. After listening to the Editor of Prevention Magazine one day, I got lured in to the talk about the Flat Belly Diet.  But I must admit, the talk about Sassy Water grabbed me more than anything else (alright, being given permission to eat waffles with bing cherries and dark chocolate melted over top certainly  helped as well).  Given that I do consume quite a bit of water on any given day, I liked this recipe of sassy water – a cleansing potion to drink every day – and something that maybe can help stiffle at least a glass of wine ….sometimes.

So just mix up a pitcher of sassy water (8 or so cups) – throw in a sliced cucumber, a sliced lemon, 10-12 mint leaves, and a teaspoon of grated ginger.  Enjoy throughout the day and feel refreshed.