Daily menu

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Pasta Salad with Sausage and Sun Dried Tomatoes

Not only was it much too hot to cook, I really didn’t know what to make for dinner! My brilliant son, Max, reminded me that it’s pasta night so I forced myself to think up something to make out of the dish of unappealing, cold, leftover, plain bow tie pasta. Combining the bow ties with a few other leftovers led to tonight’s main course, Pasta Salad with Sausage and Sun Dried Tomatoes.

To the bow tie pasta, I stirred in some thinly sliced, browned chicken sausage (okay, a little stove-top cooking was necessary), tossed in some chopped parsley and chopped sun dried tomatoes, and seasoned with some salt and lots of ground pepper. We’ll have this, served cold, with a side of cantaloupe and some cold green beans with raspberry vinaigrette.

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Three summer salads: Chicken salad, Fish salad, Egg salad

Trying something new with traditional favorites such as egg salad, chicken salad and tuna salad takes a little courage; a willingness to experiment with spices, herbs and textures. Wanting to please all the palates in our family, Molly and I concocted these tonight:

Curried Egg Salad

Mix together chopped hard boiled eggs, mayonnaise, chopped parsley and curry powder. Use more or less mayo and curry, plus salt, to taste.

Chicken Salad

Combine shredded chicken with mayonnaise, cilantro, toasted pecans or almonds, sliced tart apple, and sliced celery. Season with seasoned salt, to taste.

Fish Salad

Combine equal parts canned or fresh flaked salmon with canned tuna. Add in mayonnaise, chopped green onions or a small quantity of chopped sweet onion, dill weed, and salt, to taste.

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Welcoming summer weather with a platter full of Chef’s Salad

Ninety degree weather descended upon us today, forcing me to quickly dust off our favorite hot weather, no-cook supper ideas. A chef’s salad, served up beautifully on our Thanksgiving turkey platter, made a great presentation and a fun dinner with something for everyone. Start with a bed of mixed organic greens and top with your family’s favorite deli meats, cheeses, hard boiled eggs, cold cooked shrimp, and plenty of raw vegetables. (Sorry, but this is so not Kosher.)

We had ours with Macey’s favorite Thousand Island dressing, and a bowl of fresh, sliced cantaloupe.

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Chicken Parmesan served on a bed of Garlic Linguini

This was exceptionally delicious, and quick and simple to prepare.

Chicken Parmesan

  • 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • bread crumbs or Panko crumbs, Italian style
  • 1 jar marinara sauce
  • 6 slices mozzarella cheese
  • 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
  • Fresh basil leaves or parsley (optional)

Dip the chicken in the egg, coat in the bread crumbs and saute in olive oil until brown, then turn and brown the other side. Pour about 1 cup of sauce to cover the bottom of a 13″ x 9″ pan. Place the chicken on top of the sauce. Top each breast with 1 slice of cheese. Spoon on the remainder of the sauce, and garnish with fresh basil and/or parsley, if you like. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

Garlic Linguine

  • 1 pound linguine
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbs. butter, or a combination of butter and olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
  • a little chopped parsley

Cook the linguine al dente. Drain. Add butter and/or oil to pan, add garlic, then toss in the drained pasta and finally the parsley. Serve in a heated bowl.

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Soaking beans

You know all of those plastic bags, each with just a little bit of beans in them, tucked into a corner of your pantry? Today I decided to mix them all together, put them up to soak, and invite them for dinner.

I used the quick-soak method: boil for 5 minutes, let rest for 1 hour, drain, refill with water and then cook for a couple more hours. After I refill the pot with water (covering the beans with about three inches), I’ll add a couple of cloves of garlic, a bay leaf and some salt. When the beans are cooked just right, and not overly soft, I’ll add a can of chopped tomatoes, a little oregano, a dash or two of cayenne, and some more garlic. We’ll eat this with some rice, some fresh tortillas, and some stir-fried vegetables.

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Lamb Kabobs and Carrot-Rice Pilaf

I’m still working on the box of lamb that I bought with Dorothy, and have been searching for something different to do with the ground lamb. Tonight I tried a recipe from Aromas of Aleppo, a book that Isabel Baker gave me. Isabel runs a fine children’s book catalog company and she knows good books. This gorgeous cookbook describes the cuisine of Aleppian Jews, who migrated from Syria to the U.S. in the early twentieth century. The lamb is exotic, yet so easy to prepare, combining finely chopped onion, allspice and cinnamon.

To make the rice pilaf I sauteed 1/2 cup chopped onion, a finely chopped large carrot, a teaspoon of cumin seeds and about 4 whole cloves in a little olive oil. I started brown rice in half water and half chicken stock, stirred in the sauteed vegetables, and then cooked the rice as usual.

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Sister dinner: Chicken Jubilee and Fresh Garden Asparagus

Dori, Richard, Aaron and Maralee. Glencoe, Illinois, 1962.

My sister Maralee was on my mind today. At Joe’s piano lesson, I was sure I smelled Chicken Jubilee coming from Mrs. Todd’s kitchen. Our mother prepared the legendary Chicken Jubilee for Maralee’s Bat Mitzvah dinner, cooking and freezing chickens weeks ahead of the event, so as to feed the congregation and invited guests. I was only three at the time and I don’t remember the chickens. My earliest memory of my older siblings was sitting (kneeling, actually, on a piano bench in our living room) for this photograph, which was taken the following year. I remember how ridiculous it was to pose with my hands on my brother’s shoulder.

Everyone should be lucky enough to have a big sister like mine. Maralee is generous and thoughtful. She brings me gifts like my very own box of See’s chocolates, big red mixing bowls for my little red kitchen, silver earrings from Israel, a colorful lizard-shaped door bell, and fresh asparagus from her garden. She is selfless, and loves me more than anything. And this week, when I was sick with a chest cold and didn’t want to think about food, Maralee made enough soup and lasagna to feed our family for three days. I so appreciate the loving gift of a meal, of a soup over-flowing with vegetables and a lasagna thick with spinach and cheese. Perhaps that’s why, today, my head imagined the aroma of her Bat Mitzvah dinner, which I then made for our dinner.

The last time I made this dish for my kids, they turned up their noses at chicken with cherries in the name. So tonight I called it barbecued chicken and it became delicious to them. It’s all in the advertising. But I was sure to tell them, “this was the chicken that Grandma made for Aunt Maralee’s Bat Mitzvah dinner.”

Chicken Jubilee, topped with cherries, raisins and onions, hot out of the oven.

We enjoyed asparagus fresh from Maralee’s garden.

Chicken Jubilee

  • 2 Chickens, cut up
  • 1 c. water
  • 2 med. onions, sliced
  • 1/2 c. raisins
  • 1 12-oz. jar chili sauce
  • 1/2 c. brown sugar
  • 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 c. sherry
  • 1 can bing cherries

Season the chicken, brown in a little oil. Combine all ingredients except for sherry and cherries, pour over chicken, and bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. Pour sherry and cherries over wine, bake an additional 15 minutes. Serve hot over rice.

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Don’t throw out your back!

It's not haute cuisine, but there is no finer comfort than homemade chicken soup.

While my chicken was baking tonight I made this gorgeous little pot of chicken noodle soup, with enough for every one to have a bowl full. For a quick batch of soup, put the back of the chicken into a medium-sized pot, add an onion, a chopped carrot and celery stalk, a clove of garlic, salt and pepper, cover with water and let it simmer for a couple of hours. And if you’re not sick of rosemary yet, you can add a sprig, along with a handful of chopped parsley or some frozen peas if you have them. Right before you’re ready to eat pour in some tiny egg noodles.

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Mom’s Baked Chicken (with Matzo Meal), and Rosemary Potatoes

Mom’s baked chicken, served with rosemary potatoes, broccoli and strawberries.

Chicken and potatoes ready for the oven. Bake them together.

I just put this chicken and potatoes in the oven. It only took 5 minutes to prepare this crisp, flavorful and succulent chicken, and now I can sit back and wait for dinner. I’ll add some fresh steamed broccoli, and will enjoy a superb meal with less than 10 minutes of total prep time—does it get any easier than this?

If you’d enjoy the recipe, please visit the Apple iTunes store to download my app, iNosh. Here’s the link for that:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/inosh/id777362589?ls=1&mt=8

I’m donating half of the proceeds to Mazon, A Jewish Response to Hunger.

And here’s a preview of some of the content on the app. For now, it’s only available for iPad users.

iNosh blog ad v2

 

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Birthday dinner by the book—a gift that keeps on giving

Red Beans and Rice, and Corn Bread.

Dorothy, my mother-in-law, is an inspiration to me in many different ways. She respects her son and his household, she is an amazing guest who claims to love ironing and laundry, and she is a doting and beloved grandmother who puts cat faces on every card she sends to the kids. Dorothy raised her three children alone, after losing her husband at a young age. She lived frugally on a military survivor’s pension, but spared nothing when it came to her kids’ welfare, education and health. She put her energy into her family, knitting them sweaters, being their den mother, and preparing them delicious food, made from scratch.

When my husband went away to college he asked for, and received, copies of favorite recipes. Hand written, and now laminated and placed in a notebook, we have Dorothy’s recipes for most all of Doug’s favorite childhood meals. Many of them have the name of a town (Quantico or Florissant or Hannibal) where she first tried the dish, along with that date (1962, 1950, 1973), and sometimes with a comment like, “Doug’s Birthday 1975, Very Good!”

This is the book that I go to when it’s Doug’s birthday, to get out the recipes for Red Beans and Rice, and Waldorf Red Cake (Louisiana, Mo, Aunt Margaret, 1961).

Happy Birthday, Doug!

Dorothy’s Red Beans and Rice (as copied from recipe book, below)

  • 1 lb. red beans

Bring to boil in 1-1/2 qts. water, set aside for hour or over nite is OK.

Add:

  • Ham hock — or bone — or several slices bacon
  • large onion, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 t. salt
  • 1/4 t. red pepper (or less taste)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 t. oregano
  • 1 can tomatoes (2 cups)

Bring all to boil and simmer for 2-3 hours.