My Sbarro's Update

Earlier this year, I blogged about Sbarro's filing for chapter 11, and today, I read an article about "zombie" restaurant chains that just keep on pulling though (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/slicing-costs-still-serving-160802334.html). On November 29, Sbarro's exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy (http://nrn.com/article/sbarro-exits-chapter-11). With some restructuring, loans from lenders, and most likely people cutting back on healthy food during the recession, the chain has come back from the crypt. I'm personally glad that this food court staple has a second chance. Though the Sbarro's doesn't have a significant signature dish in the way that your order a Whopper from BK or a McBlank from McDonalds, I just like Sbarro's because you can never go wrong with a slice of pizza (well maybe sometimes you can, but it sure beats some mystery meat sandwich!)

Sunday's dinner

Continuing the theme of cleaning out my freezer, Sunday night, I made tortellini with peas and roasted lemon chicken with a side or Trader Joe's cauliflower and romanesco  (http://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article.asp?article_id=224) . (minus 3 1/2 from my freezer!!)

Romanesco belongs to the broccoli-cauliflower family, and if you can determine from the vegetable's name, it's from the Rome region of Italy. You can pretty much prepare it as you would broccoli or cauliflower: steamed, boiled, sautéed etc. TJ's has it in the freezer section, and it's served in a butter sauce. The bag gives directions to microwave its contents, but I think it would have been better roasted. If you see this vegetable, definitely give it a try. It's also pretty cool looking! 

As for my tortellini with peas, here's my recipe: 

- 1/2 small onion, diced

- 4 small garlic cloves, diced

- 1/2 cup green peas

- 3 tbsp olive oil

- 1 tbsp tomato paste

- 1 box tortellini

salt and pepper

  

Sauté onion and garlic for 5 mins in olive oil. Add tomato paste and combine. Add green peas and continue to cook until peas are tender. 

In the meantime, boil water to cook tortellini and follow cooking time according to package. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water. When the pasta is almost completely cooked, combine with onions and peas and add pasta water to combine ingredients. 

Serve and enjoy!

To make the chicken, I thawed two chicken breasts, and I seasoned the meat with salt, pepper, and oregano. 

Cook at 400F for 45 mins (Note, my oven temp may be different than yours, so if clear liquids come from the chicken or if you have a thermometer, then it's ready!) Add juice from one lemon. 

Here, I have it served with Trader Joe's cauliflower and romanesco. 

I add lemon last to intensify the lemon flavor, and it's a nice bright surprise on a cold night!

can you pass the salt?

Last night I kept dinner simple. I took out Trader Joe's soy-ginger glazed cod (http://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article.asp?article_id=230), steamed rice, and popped a bag edamame in the microwave  (minus 2 from the freezer!!) The cod had great flavor, and the ginger wasn't too overpowering as Brian puts it.  It was a great meal with very little effort.

After steaming the edamame, Brian sprinkled some salt onto the pods and asked,"Does all salt have iodine?" The answer is no; not all salts contain the micronutrient.  With many recipes calling for Kosher salt or sea salt, these do not contain iodine. Even basic table salt has to state whether or not it iodized.

So what's so important about iodized salt? It helps prevent iodine deficiency, which was first recognized as a public health concern in the 1920's, and shortly after, iodine was added to flour first, then to salt. It may seem that two main staples of our basic diet, flour and salt, should be sufficient in preventing iodine deficiency; however, today, flour is not iodized, and companies are not mandated to add it to salt. Compounded by the fact that we are all "trying" to use less salt, these factors are leading to a decline in the intake of iodine and a rise in the deficiency.

Iodine is needed to produce thyroid hormones, and without its intake, hyperthyroidism can cause the thyroid gland to swell resulting in a goiter. Another concern of iodine deficiency is in pregnant women. Without the intake of the element, the health of the mother and child are at risk, including potential miscarriage, stillbirth, or mental retardation.

Just before you start taking iodine supplements, too much iodine is also not a good thing! It you consume  excess iodine, you can stimulate too much thyroid hormone. If you keep to the required daily allowance of salt, which is less than one teaspoon (and remember most food we consume contain sodium), then your iodine intake should be covered, unless you're expecting, then talk to your doctor.

Manhattan Clam Chowder

When we were in Cape May, we ordered softshell crabs to-go from the famous Lobster House. With the remaining legs and shell, I made a crab stock. I had seen that recipes call for fish stock, and I after a few google searches (http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Lobster-Broth),  I assumed that if you seeped the shells, it would yield a broth outcome, and it did. I just never knew what I wanted to do with fish broth. 

Until last week, my fish stock tupperware inhabited my freezer!  I decided to make Manhattan Clam Chowder. I even tried to replicate the Lobster House recipe, since I kept the lid and the ingredients were listed, so I decided to give it a whirl!

In my clam chowder (made 4 servings), I used the following
- 2 celery stalks
- 1 large carrot
- 1/2 medium onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 hand fulls of fingerling potatoes
- 2 cans of minced clams
- 4 cups of crab stock
- 1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 slices of Bacon diced

First, dice the bacon and cook until the fat is rendered. Use a medium heat, but if the bacon starts to burn, lower the heat.

As the bacon is cooking, dice the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic. 

Next, remove the bacon from the pot, and keep it aside. Sauté the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic in the bacon fat. Add spices. Cook for 5-7 mins at medium heat. 

Add potatoes and continue to cook for additional 5-7 mins. 

Add fish broth, water, and diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 20 mins. Add the clams and bacon. Continue to cook for 15 mins.

Serve and enjoy!!! 

cleaning out my freezer!

So being that I've had this thought for sometime now, I've been in the process of cleaning out my freezer, and boy did I have some winners - like Christmas cookies from last year!

Here's a picture of my freezer about two weeks ago.

Stuff to capacity! Here is the door...

Now, many of you might be wondering about the dreaded freezer burn. As long as you store your food in airtight packages, your food should be safe. The problem with freezer burn is that if you do not store your food in airtight containers, the moisture within the food will freeze, leaving ice crystals behind and your food (especially meats) becoming dehydrated and "burned", thus freezer burned. Also, because water leaves your food, then it is possible for oxygen to seep in, and by doing so, the flavor and/or color of your food can change. Food that has freezer burn is safe to eat, but it might have a different taste or flavor than a normally fresh piece of food (like a steak) would have.


I've made several attempts to remove items to have a clean fridge by the new years. My first recipe: Manhattan Clam Chowder.

Sbarro's declared bankruptcy

I referenced this as a Facebook link, but the pizza chain, Sbarro’s, declared bankruptcy earlier this month.  I was a little taken aback - a food like pizza, so affordable, but a company seeking bankruptcy? Because of the economy, many families have decided to sustain from eating out, so restaurants have taken a hit over the past few years.  Also with a product like pizza, where its ingredients are cheese and flour, it is more costly to produce. This family-started company, whose founders immigrated here in the 1950s, expanded their business into one of the “great” American food chains is now restructuring.   I hope for Sbarro’s Inc that this process helps them rebuild, and the company can continue to be a food icon in America. 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-04/sbarro-files-for-bankruptcy-protection-after-restaurant-chain-s-sales-slid.html

The Brian Special

It’s a rare sight when I prepare an American-Italian meal – pasta and chicken parmigiana – but it’s Brian’s favorite, so at least once a month, I’ll make something he’ll definitely enjoy.  I was curious of the origins of the dish.  Yes, it’s typically found at most chain restaurants and delis, and I had assumed it somehow came from the north with a name like “Parma-“; was I wrong! It is thought that the dish comes from southern Italy (Sicily and Campania take claims to being the originator region of the meal), where it started as eggplant parmesan.  The eggplant is a staple in southern Italian cuisine, thus  as the dish evolved, layers became chicken and then veal.  Today, it’s a more common American dish than Italian, but it is still a beloved favorite by many (especially Brian!)

One of the reason why I don’t cook this meal as much is because there are so many healthier alternatives, but with some tweaking, you can make it a little better (it’s like how diet coke is to coke, sort of).  I use whole wheat bread crumbs from my stale bread pile, part-skim mozzarella cheese, and bake the chicken instead of frying.  Also, I usually don’t have sauce on hand, so if it’s made and frozen, there’s usually a chance that I’ll make this dish. 

1 egg beaten with a tbsp olive oil

½ cup bread crumbs with oregano, salt, pepper, garlic powder

1 cup tomato sauce

½ cup part skim mozzarella cheese

2 chicken breasts

Dip chicken in egg mixture and bread.  Bake at 400F for 25 mins.  Heat tomato sauce.  Remove chicken from oven and spread tomato and cheese on top, and place back into the oven to melt cheese.  Enjoy! 

French Onion Soup

Probably, you have noticed a trend with my blog entries; I’m backlogged with food, from my pantry to my freezer, and I don’t like throwing anything away. I’ve made a roast twice this year, and I’ve freeze the cooking liquid with the thought that I’d use it as beef broth.

With the weather changing, comfort food recipes will be put away, but with a cool day like today, I decided to make French Onion Soup.  It's a great soup that's usually in everyone's "top five" soups.  Here's my recipe:

1 large yellow onion

4 sprigs of thyme

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp unsalted butter

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp flour

½ cup red wine

2 cups beef stocks

2 cups water

sliced Italian bread, toasted

1 cup grated Gruyère cheese

½ cup mozzarella cheese

Cut onion in half, and then with each half, slice onion thin.  Melt butter and add sliced onions, thyme, bay leaf and salt and pepper to taste.

Cook over low heat for 25 mins, occasionally stirring.  Add 1 tsp flour and cook for 2 mins. Add wine to deglaze the pan and cook for 2 mins. 

 

Add beef stock and water and cook for ½ hour until favors meld together. 

Pour into ovenproof casserole pot. Place toasted bread on top and add cheese. 

Place in broiler for 3 mins until cheese melts. 

This made soup for four. This was a great recipe for my first time making onion soup, and though a little time consuming, the soup was worth it. Note, the original stock I made had carrots and mushrooms, but your stock doesn't need to have these ingredients. Also, I used red wine because that's what I had opened, but white is good to use too. 

new favorite candy

I had a candy graving the other night, and living next to a CVS, I can get my fix. So walking down the candy aisle, I found Hershey's ode to their competitor's M&Ms, their new "Pieces" line. Yes, Reese's Pieces have been around for years, but they've combined our favorite Hershey's candies into bite-size, candied-shelled delights! I picked up the Hershey's Special Dark Pieces - SO GOOD and much better than the dark chocolate M&M's.  Go out and pick these up! Hershey's also has York Pieces and Almond Joy Pieces.

How to kill your lunch??

The Huffington Posts has a video series (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-klein/how-to-kill-your-lunch_b_849501.html) exploring the life of smaller farmers.  In particular, the video series examines the sustaining food movement, and in essences, how farmers only butcher the animals that they need for food.

It got me thinking that not only farmers grow and kill their own food.  Growing up in my Italian-American family, though by trade we did not have any “farmers,” we definitely had our backyard garden (today, which is barricaded by twine and cinderblocks to impede any invading predators- ground hogs!)  and seasonal animal to be slaughtered.  During the Easter season, my uncle would have a lamb waiting for slaughter in his backyard.  As children, we’d watch and pet the lamb, not realizing that it would soon be on our dinner table. Today, we often purchase lamb from a local farmer. Another memory is that at times, we would have rabbits boxed up in our backyard, only to be stewed for dinner a few nights later.  A more common hunting-for-food meal is deer.  My uncle would often go hunting and come home with several deer, all which hung in his garage, waiting to be butchered and served.  

These are a few memories, I had from when I was a child.  It’s so easy to think that meat comes from a supermarket, but to remember it is a luxury we all have today, when not too long ago or even in different parts of the world, people still need to survive by killing for lunch.

Alessi: Ethical and Radical

A few weeks ago, I went to the PMA to see the Alessi exhibit: Ethical and Radical.  Alessi is a family-own company known for unique household appliances, which their design has said to  “blurs the boundaries between industry and art.” 

The exhibit showed a progression and style of the company’s work.  Mostly serving trays and coffee servers, the work was presented as if it were in the kitchen area of a department store, but untouchable.  A lot of the pieces are actually purchasable (not at the gift store), but in the way they were displayed, you would not have guessed it! 

Even the idea of taking photos felt weird of these everyday objects but are they “everyday” objects? Would you serve coffee out of these?

Or would you have fruit in this bowl?

Though some pieces seem impractical, the detail in the design is what makes these objects "art," and these peaces are beautiful. 

French Fries!!

French Fries are an amazing snack food– I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like a good French Fry.  My favorite fries are pomme frites - just the double-fried, crispy goodness everything a potato has to offer, you can find in an order of Belgium fries.  One of my first foodie tours was to the Pomme Frites: Authentic Belgium Fries in the East Village, http://www.pommesfrites.ws/ . This was an awaking experience to how good French Fries could be.  You can have them served with traditional frites sauce, which is a mayo-ketchup mix or on their menu, you can try anything from peanut satay sauce to rosemary-garlic mayo.

When thinking about this post, I questioned, “How many types of fries are out there??” This is my list so far: steak fries, curly fries, shoestring fries, waffle fries, butterfly fries, crinkle fries, fast food fries – I feel the character Bubba in Forrest Gump, but you get the picture; there are a lot of fries out there! I’m excluding on how you can order fries, because a quick Google search has shown me that I’ve been missing out! Have you heard of Patatje Oorlog? Check out this site to see that there’s more than disco fries and cheese fries: http://finefries.com/types-of-french-fries.html .

Because I don’t have fryer, I tend to usually order fries when I go out, but a good alternative I’ve found is to julienne either russet or sweet potatoes, and coat them with some olive oil, and bake on high heat in the oven.  They come out super crispy, and to serve, I coat my non-fried fries with some coarse salt and cayenne pepper.  They’ve been given the “Brian Stamp of Approval,” so any palette would enjoy these “fries.”  

lighter than air, soufflé!

The soufflé.  In Chapter 10 of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the Great Julia Child wrote that the soufflé is “the epitome and triumph of the art of French cookery, a glorious and exciting finish to a great meal.” (p.613).  I’d have to agree.  Soufflés sucrés – sweet soufflés- are my favorite dessert, preferably chocolate.  Whenever on a menu, no doubt, that will be my dessert.  I always thought about making them at home, but with the preface that Mrs. Child gave, I felt that this was a daunting task. 

Over Valentine’s Day this year, I decided, “Yes, I’ll make soufflé!” I got courage to prepare a recipe I found in the February issue of Bon Appétit magazine.

I cut the recipe in half, but it’s called Bittersweet Cocoa Soufflés with Orange Blossom Cream

½ cup plus 3 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp flour

1/8 tsp salt

1/3 plus 1 tbsp milk

¼ cup natural unsweeten cocoa powder

1 large egg yolk

½ tsp vanilla extract

2 large egg whites

1/16 tsp cream of Tartar

1.5 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely

Orange Blossom Cream

½ cup chilled whipping cream

¾ tbsp sugar

½ tsp grated orange peel

The recipe was quite easy, considering I had been so afraid to even think about making this dessert, but it does take some time.  First, butter 4 ramekins and dust them with sugar, coating to the edge.  This helps the soufflé rise.

Whisk sugar, flour, salt with some of the milk in a saucepan to form a paste; basically, you are preparing a sweet béchamel sauce. Once it bubbles, add and whisk the remaining milk.  Stir over low heat until it bubbles again and it thickens (about 4 mins). Transfer to a large bowl and add cocoa, egg yolks, and vanilla and stirl til smooth. 

With an electric mixer, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until soft peaks form.  Fold egg whites into mixture.

Divide batter in ramekins, and let chill (can be stored overnight, which I did).

To make the orange whip cream, whip heavy cream, sugar, and orange peel until heavy peaks form and store until survey.

When you are ready to bake your soufflés, preheat your oven to 375°F.  Bake until puffy for 15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Voilà! Soufflé!

For my first soufflés, I think they came out pretty good, and they tasted amazing! If you’re afraid they’re not going to rise, just relax! And if they become too light, follow the advice from the Swedish Chef!

http://youtu.be/Zmr4dKlXR_o

Cleaning out my closet (and fridge!)

My recent goal is to get rid of (eat) all the pasta I have stored in my pantry (closet).  Whenever I visit home, my mom sends me back to Philly with at least one box of pasta, and I’ve finally had to say, “Enough!” 

You can see it’s exploding out the door.  I really don’t prepare pasta as much as I’d like.  Not that it’s difficult to make, but I never really think of cooking pasta, and then surprise, a billion boxes that never leave the pantry. 

A quick dish I made for myself is pasta with roasted vegetables.  On Thursday, I roasted 1 eggplant, 1 ½ cups of cherry tomatoes, and two handfuls of string beans diced with some olive oil (to coat the pan) and 2 garlic cloves for a side dish.  Because I knew I wouldn’t have time to prep the food over the weekend, and I didn’t want the veggies to spoil, I cooked them and stored them away. Now Monday, my side dish has become part of my main dish for tonight’s dinner plans.

I really like spaghetti, but for a long time I never knew how much to make for myself or even for two.  I heard on TV that the diameter a quarter is a good indicator of how much pasta to make for one serving size, and since then, it has been so much easier.  I boiled pasta until it was al dente (check your box for approximate times) and heated up my veggies.  I took out the pasta and sauted it with the vegetables, so the pasta could pick up the flavors.   Last, grated some Parmigiano-Reggiano, and there’s dinner for one!

changing tides

Growing up, I was exposed to all sorts of traditional Italian foods.  From creepy-crawling snails in tomato sauce to baccala, I tried it.  I’ve taken this attitude even into adult food. Though I may not be as ambitious as Andrew Zimmerman, I still have my share of exotic foods. If it wasn't for my mom, I wouldn't hold the same love for food exploration that I have today.

Recently, I had made a trip home and had gone for Japanese with my mom and sister.  To my surprise, my mother ordered sushi! Granted it was cooked, I would never have imagined the day when my mom ordered something wrapped in seaweed!

When trying new foods, my mom has always had a traditional sense of taste, but to have her order sushi was a great surprise. She's expanding her food horizons.  It goes to show that everyone, at any age, can try something new!  

GIANT PANCAKE!!

So when I made this, it was sans pan, but still it was awesome.  Kathy donated this recipe to my blog- thanks Kat, loved this breakfast.  This was a great Sunday morning treat that's sure to impress anyone.  I made it for my sister, and we ate all of it in seconds!

The recipe’s as follows:

3 tablespoons butter
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup flour
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Garnish with powder sugar and juice from 1 lemon

1.     Preheat over to 425.

2.      Put the butter in a 10 inch pie plate and place in oven; remove once butter is melted. (If you have an ovenproof skillet use this, so you will have a PANcake.  Since I don’t have an ovenproof skillet I used a pie plate like Kat recommended).

3.     Mix remaining ingredients together with a whisk and pour into the hot skillet/plate. Immediately return it to the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes.

4.     Remove from oven.

5.     Sprinkle with lemon juice and powdered sugar.

6.     Slice, serve, and enjoy this wonderfully fluffy breakfast immediately! 

Can you tell the difference??

Below are two beers.  Both appear to be microbrews; one an India Pale Ale the other a Hopped Red Ale.  Can you tell the difference?

The secret behind the Hopped Red Ale is that Brian brewed and labeled the Hopped Red Ale!

Home brewing is a fun way to produce the beer flavor profiles that you enjoy.  The Huffington Post even listed Home Brewing as one of the 7 DYI Drinking projects.  Home brewing is a safe process.  The likelihood of making “bad beer” is low.  As long as you keep your apparatus sterile, your beer should turn out fine.  Also, the conditions in your fermenter make it difficult for microbes to survive; the pH and alcohol content create a hostile environment for microorganisms, so you will not get food poisoning!

In the 70’s many people turned to home brewing because the lack of variety, and today, you can find microbrews and craft beers at your local liquor or supermarket.  Just examine the labels; the big three beer companies have moved in on the craft beer market, so though it can look like a craft beer, it could be in Budweiser in disguise!

my new favorite drink

Because I frequent gastropubs, I tend to lean towards the microbrews and the hefeweissens, and for a while, I thought mix drinks are for the ungrads and the days at the Continental.  But old fashion drinks are coming back en vogue.  I recently visited my sisters’ in Hoboken, and we went to The Turtle Club.  The menu had an assortment of classic drinks, with clever names, and I couldn’t just get a beer.  I ordered a “Terrapin Station” – vodka, ginger beer, and muddle oranges and limes - otherwise known as a Moscow Mule. This is definitely my new favorite drink, and I’ve been thinking about it for weeks, since the visit three weeks ago!

I looked up the history of this drink.  To think that the star of this drink – vodka – was once a faux pas on the drinking scene amazes me.  In the 1930’s “white whiskey” was too overpowering for most Americans, and it was often shelved away.  It wasn’t until John Martin began a clever marketing campaign for Smirnoff with the founder of Morgan’s Ginger Beer, who was also having problems selling his homemade brew.  Together, they concocted a mixture with vodka, ginger beer and a twist of lime – calling it the Moscow Mule.  It was served over ice in a copper mug that displayed the Moscow Mule brand (just like the mug I had!)  

By the 1950’s vodka was all the rage.  To differentiate their drink from the rest (and to sell more Smirnoff) Martin photographed bartenders with a bottle of Smirnoff aside their signature copper mugged drink.  He would leave a copy of the Polaroid at the bar, and then he would take a copy with him to the next bar ask for the “secret cocktail.”  Coast to coast, everyone was asking for the “secret cocktail.”  So although the vodka martini was initially the most popular vodka drink, the Moscow Mule brought vodka to mainstream acceptance in America. 

Zucchini, I missed you!

I love all vegetables, and I like having variety; however, my better half sustains from eating anything green except broccoli, asparagus, and string beans.  I’ve broaden his horizons to eating salads and cauliflower as well as a peppers and beans, but for the most part squashes are out of the question.

I’ve experiment many ways from gratin to soups, but the “slimy” consistency gets to him.  I still don’t understand this.  Because of Brian’s abhorrence for squashes and the other “yucky” vegetable alike, I tend to lean towards food that we can both enjoy, and so I don't have to make separate meals. BUT you can only eat broccoli, asparagus , and string beans so much!

Last night, I tried out a zucchini salad recipe from Sauveur magazine: http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Zucchini-Salad . It was simply and refreshing spin on a vegetable that I’ve ignore way too long!  The recipe calls for garlic, cinnamon, sweet paprika, and lemon juice to make a vinaigrette with white vinegar and olive oil. 

I wish I could say this recipe converted Brian; however, I didn’t even finish the sentence, “Would you like to trrryy?” before he jumped to say, “No, thank you!”

So I guess I broke Lent

I was having writer's block last week, and I have a few ideas for entries now.  I'm just super tired right now.  But please stay tuned!

food prep and the subconscious

Not that I was a picky eater as a child, but mom always made food fun.  Today at brunch, I was reminded about my favorite weekend breakfast, egg ‘n dip; simply a sunny side up egg with toast sliced in four, perfectly rectangular pieces.  It got me thinking how mom would cut food in all geometric shapes.  Even a basic Ellio’s frozen pizza became a puzzle of squares and rectangles, and not just a “boring” slice.  This food preparation was essential.  That being said, I can never forget the time when Nonna cut my pizza.  The horror that was in my sisters’ eyes, as she crisscrossed my Ellio’s the “wrong” way! The slice sat cold on my plate, and I would not eat it. 

Looking back, I know the pizza would have been fine, but my mother’s meticulous food preparation is almost a reflection on her parental motto; be precise with everything you do.  I think this mantra has been good (and bad) in my own conscious development.  Who knew that cutting a pizza would lead to my Type A personality!  

beans, beans and more beans!

So tonight I was catching up on Huffington Post Food section. They have a great article about beans, and I thought it would help supplement my "pasta fazoole" post.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-goldwyn/the-zen-of-beans_b_836472.html

enjoy!!

Nutella, I got your back!

As a kid, I always had the “weird” lunch.  Whether being random cured meat on funny bread to the infamous Nutella sandwiches (“Why are you eating chocolate for lunch?!).  I’m reminded of these wonderful food memories, because this being Lent, Friday school lunches usually consisted of Nutella sandwiches (or “fish-thing” – this one’s for KA and TA!).  I grew up with Nutella, instead of the more American peanut butter and jelly.   My mom didn’t even realize what type of “jelly” in said sandwiches had until a play date requested grape, and all we had was strawberry!  Nonetheless, I was and I’m still a fan of Nutella sandwiches over pb&j any day! 

Ferrero campaigned State-side that Nutella was a nutritious breakfast sandwich.  I was so pleased to watch these commercials! For years, I’ve told my friends how great Nutella was, and yes, I had some converts, mostly those who traveled to Europe for some extended period, but I still had some naysayers.  In Italy and most of Europe, combining chocolate with breakfast is normal.  Then came along a mom in California who decided to throw a lawsuit at Nutella, and she’s arguing how a company could portray Nutella as “nutritious and healthy.” To her, I say, look at back of the peanut butter and jelly jars; the calorie count, fat, and protein are no different than a Nutella sandwich.  So lady, if you’re throwing Nutella under the bus, make sure that pb&j follow too!

Pasta Fazoole!

It’s a standard on every American-Italian dinner.  Tonight, I made Pasta e Fagioli, a traditional dish that historically was a peasant dish.  It’s becoming in fashion to have “meat-less” dish during the week, so this is a great, hearty recipe to try out. 

The star of this dish is the cranberry bean, also known as borlotti bean.  These beans are red, tan, and brown speckled.  When cooked, they turn a dark brown color, but are pale yellow in the center.  They have a creamy consistency and are a great substitute for meat because they are so high in iron.  In the summer, you can find these beans fresh, and you need to shell them from their pods, but in the winter months, you can have find these beans dried. 

Recipe

½ lb dried beans (boil in 2 qts water for 5 minutes and then soak for about 2 hrs to rehydrate and then removed excess water)

¼ lb green beans, cut

2 medium size potatoes diced

3 large carrots diced

2 large celery stalks diced

½ onion

3 large garlic cloves

1 bullion cube

¼ tsp red pepper or

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

3 bay leaves

4 tbsp olive oil

2 qts water or enough to cover all ingredients

½ cup dried Ditalini pasta, boil and cook 

Saute carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in oil with salt and pepper, until onions begin to become translucent.  Add green beans, potatoes, and cranberry beans.  Add water and bay leaves and bring to a boil.  Once at a boil, bring down to a simmer and cook for 11/2 hrs.

Cook the Ditalini pasta, and add it to your soup, stir and serve! 

Note: I cook the pasta separate, because I want to ensure that it cooks evenly and that the beans are fully cooked. 

It’s all about the meat and potatoes!

Isn’t it wonderful when someone cooks you a meal? Tonight, Brian made me a terrific and complete dinner: steak, spiced Yukon Gold potatoes, and steamed peapods with a glass of his homemade honey-coriander wheat beer! Ahhh!

But having a meal with someone, which is made by another, is essentially saying, "I trust you that you're feeding me good food, and I will not become sick after this!" I started to think about the phrase, “meat and potatoes.” An expression that isn’t really used much lately but holds a lot of weight.  The phrase was first written in 1949 in SJ Perelman novel, Listen to the Mocking Bird (“It’s the meat-and-potatoes appeal—the old pull at the heartstrings—that’ll put us over at the box office”). 

Perelman was best known for his short, humorous pieces in The New Yorker, and apparently, this work is very different than the somber song with the same title.  Nonetheless, this idiomatic phrase has become part of our vernacular to mean the essential or fundamental. So, the essential part of any relationship is trust, and my meal of meat and potatoes is a symbol of trust.

Our language is full of food phrase. Like sometimes you have to take things with a grain of salt and avoid walking on eggshells.  Then, you won’t worry about crying over spilled milk! For a full list check out these links: http://www.learn4good.com/languages/evrd_idioms/id-f.php3 and http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/home/Words-and-Their-Stories-Food-Expressions-Part-Three-116811763.html

potato-broccoli rabe pizza review

Friday night, I made the potato-broccoli rabe pizza featured on food52. I’ve recently discovered this food blog.  It’s chock full of really unique recipes.  Check out the link for this pizza: http://www.food52.com/recipes/2611_broccoli_rabe_potato_and_rosemary_pizza. 

Overall, I thought the pizza was good.  Still, for a Friday night meal, it was a lot of work, and by the end of preparing the toppings, baking, and cleaning I would have been easily pleased with a pie from Allegro’s Pizza!  

If you’re crunched for time, there’s always pre-made dough you can purchases.  I usually have Pillsbury Pizza Crust on hand.  It’s a great staple, because it keeps for a few weeks, and if you have tomato sauce, you’ll have pizza within a ½ hr!  The pizza crust is sold like Pillsbury’s crescent rolls in that recognizable blue cylinder.  Simply, crack the tube and unwind the dough.  Just be warned, since the dough is already rolled out in a rectangle, be careful not to break the shape.  I also hear Trader Joe’s pizza dough is good too.  Either way, next time I make this recipe, I might reach for the pre-made dough.  This will at least save me from cleaning a billion bowls and my food processor! 

Food Documentaries

I’ve caught up on a lot of food documentaries, and this entry will be devoted to those I recommend. 

Botany of Desire (2009). I really enjoyed this documentary.  It’s based on Michael Pollan’s novel with the same name.  He narrates the evolution, history and future of four plants/crops: apples, tulips, marijuana, and potatoes.  With the help of biologists and historians, he dives into how these plants have evolved with humans.  He also probes into the problem of monocultures, only growing one variety of a particular plant.  With the advent of GMO, genetically modified organism, he highlights the problem of these plants, and how they can affect our future.  

To further delve into GMOs, check out The Future of Food (2004).  A few years older, this film explains what GMOs are and the problems they can create.   It’s a documentary of the little guy (the farmers) versus the machine (our government and biotech companies).  I was quite angry to see how our government is in bed with these companies, and the choices that we make can change the future of our food. 

On the flip side of GMOs, there are several documentaries that highlight our nation’s farmer’s markets.  To Market to Buy a Fat Pig (2007) is a PBS film that travels coast to coast showcasing local farmers and their communities.  I’m particularly partial, because one of the markets is Lancaster, PA’s Central Market, and this is a must go to stop when in Lancaster County.  The narrators try to find a “fat pig” to purchase, it’s a running joke that’s somewhat lost in the film, but it’s still a decent documentary, and it also gave me a few ideas for future road trips!

A different type of documentary is Pressure Cooker (2008).  Unlike most of the reality TV shows that film in high schools, this features the lives of several Philadelphia high school students that participate in a culinary arts class their senior year.  With the help of their teacher, these students participate in a citywide cooking competition in hopes to gain college scholarships.  It’s an aspiring movie, and I highly recommend it.

So now that you have a few movies to put on your queue, let me know what you think about my picks!

Kale is more than a garnish!

One of my current fav TV shows, Modern Family, had a character argue that kale was totally a garnish and shouldn’t be use as food; I beg to differ.  Kale is a great vegetable.  Like other cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage), kale contains several antioxidants (ex. Lutein).  It’s rich in vitamin A (eye health), K (important in cellular metabolism) and C (cell growth and repair).  It’s also rich in calcium.  So essentially, kale is a super food, and if you’ve thrown it to the side of your plate, reconsider it’s vast potential as an excellent vegetable to add to your diet.

The other night, I made lentil and kale soup.  Lentils are great soup beans, and compared to other beans, they don’t take very long to cook.  They’re packed with so much nutritional value in one small bean!  Like most beans, they have a fiber, but unique to lentils is that they have a significant amount of folate and magnesium, which are important in heart health.

To start this recipe, I chopped up my mirepoix (3 large carrots, 3 celery stalks, ½ onion) and added ¼ tsp of salt and pepper, which I sautéed in 3 tbsp of olive oil until the onion became translucent.  Then, I added a chorizo-like sausage (1/4 lb) and cooked the sausage through.  If you would like to keep this soup vegetarian, you can skip this step.  

Next, add your lentil beans (1/2 lb, rinsed), 4 cups of water, a bullion cube, and two bayleaves.  I cooked the beans for 15 minutes before I added the kale, because they do take longer to cook.  Rinse, clean, and chop a bushel of kale and add to the soup.  Cook for another 15 minutes.  Serve!