My Dad still lovingly cuts out newpaper articles and mails them (with a postage stamp, not email) to me if he thinks they may be of interest. Earlier in the week I saw an evelope in the mail in his handwriting and inside was a brief article featuring services that are out there to help solve the “What’s for dinner?” problem that so many families face nightly. The Newsday article features two personal chefs (on Long Island), highlighting each of their services. Articles like these help dispell the myth that personal chefs are strictly for the rich and famous. To locate a personal chef in your area, try hire a chef, which has a zip code finder and can help you find the chef that is a great fit for your family, tastes and budget.
Archive for Uncategorized
Simple Easter Eggs
I admit that for the past two years we’ve not colored Easter eggs in our home. I think I’ve always been so busy running around to shop for egg fillers, basket stuffers and Easter outfits that the egg coloring gets lost in our pre-Easter shuffle.
Just when I though I had egg coloring ready for ‘09, I could not find the Star Wars-themed egg coloring kit I had bought (for last year’s eggs, actually). I found it when I was unpacking in March put it somewhere safe and then promptly forgot where that safe spot was. I hope to find it for next year…
Well, my pantry to the rescue again and the simple use of food color for this year’s eggs and hand-written names in crayon. No Star Wars stickers but they had fun just the same.
Color combos we loved: 5 yellow + 1 red yields Orange Sunset
6 red + 4 blue yields Purple
24 red + 2 blue yields Watermelon Red
3 blue + 2 green yields Teal
I didn’t prep for it this year but next year I plan to use ingredients from my garden and/or the vegetable bins in my refrigerator to create natural dyes. I think my kids will find it intriguing (like a science experiement).
My Top 5 “Go To” Dinners
Here’s what I’m thinking about right now: What are the dinners that are in my monthly rotation and that my family looks forward to (the small humans too)? These are the “go to” dishes that I can make with my eyes closed, not too much thinking and turn out perfectly every time. In other words, not even interruptions of “Mom, can I have another snack, please?” will slow me down!
Here they are:
Pasta with Tomato-Basil or Marinara Sauce (the favorite by far)
Meatloaf (turkey or the triple threat: beef, pork and veal)
Breaded Chicken Tenders and sauces for dipping
An Egg Dish (scrambled, fritatta, or fried and placed atop a potato hash)
Pork Tenderloin or Pot Roast
Worthy runner up: fresh veggie soup with macaroni or tiny meatballs
Tomato-Basil Sauce: Simple to Prepare
Going off of the theme of saving time (see my last post on grocery shopping/meal planning) and yes, unpacking just a few more moving boxes, I was thinking of what would be a simple dish to prepare, is relatively inexpensive, something the kids will eat (this is key) and is freezable: I came up with tomato-basil sauce.
Now, I am half sicilian and I definatley don’t want to get any “nasty-grams” from full Italians on this one, but I am going to call my sauce tomato-basil because of the addition of fresh basil leaves. Typically, if I make it’s close relative “marinara sauce,” I leave out the fresh basil and just focus on the tomatoes, garlic, parsley and salt/pepper. I also add in a battuto, which is Italian meaning “to beat,” however, for sauce purposes it translates into mincing the ingredients. The battuto for my marinara is minced celery, carrot and onion.
Tonight I also threw together parmesan cheese toasts. These are perfect for using up left-over French bread from a day or two ago. Just heat your oven to 350 degrees. Slice French bread 1-inch thick. Slather softened unsalted butter onto each slice. Sprinkle with fresh grated Parmagiano-Reggiano cheese. Toast on baking sheet in oven until edges of bread are light, golden brown. You could choose to make these into garlic-cheese toasts with a sprinkle of garlic powder from your spice cabinet.
Recipe for Tomato-Basil Sauce follows below the photos.
Tomato-Basil Sauce
Ingredients
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp sugar (you can certainly leave this out)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 basil leaves, chopped
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped
Method
Heat a olive oil in large saute pan over medium heat. When oil is ready add onions and stir until they are soft (about 3-4 minutes). Add garlic and stir constantly until soft (about 1-2 minutes), being careful not to burn or it will become bitter. Add crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper and sugar (if using) and stir. Lower heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Stir in chopped basil and parsley. Taste sauce again. Adjust seasonings if needed.
Yield: 3 cups
Note: Most personal chefs are experts at freezing the items they prepare for their clients. Sauces, especially those that are tomato-based are easy to freeze at home. Simply cool the sauce using an ice-water bath (stirring constantly will help to speed the process) . Transfer the sauce into freezer safe containers and label with the contents and date. I generally recommend using a frozen sauce within three months of preparation. You can divide this sauce into 3 containers with 1 cup each. To defrost, place container into refrigerator and defrost overnight.
Time-Saving Note: Tomato-Basil Sauce is terrific over pasta of course, but you can use it to top chicken breasts, mix in sauteed vegetables for a variation, or add some of the sauce into broth to flavor soups.
Rye-Breaded Pork Chops (so easy)
rye-breaded pork chops
Who can resist “buy one get one free?” OK, most of us can’t especially in the grocery store. This leads me to a shopping trip to my local Lowes Foods store where I got to browse through a Vogue magazine at the check-out stand since I was by myself. A treat!
In the bakery section they had the “buy one get one free” offer for fresh loaves of Rye bread. We don’t usually stock Rye bread in our household, but I though I’d take advantage of the offer. Why not?
Tonight’s dinner will feature pan-fried center cut pork chops with freshly made rye bread crumbs. I’ll serve them alongside some good quality mustard, which will go over pretty well with my husband. This is a super simple recipe – just a few ingredients and a quick meal is on the table in no time.
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs center cut pork chops (I used thin sliced)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg, beaten
1 1/2 cups fresh rye bread crumbs (I used 4 slices)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Method
Tear rye bread into large pieces and pulse inside food processor until reduced to crumbs. Place into shallow bowl.
Season chops with salt and pepper on both sides.
Set up your assembly line of the seasoned chops, beaten egg and then the bread crumbs. Working one chop at a time, dip into beaten egg and then into rye bread crumbs (pressing gently to adhere). Set aside onto a plate or platter.
Heat a tbsp of oil over medium heat in a 12-inch skillet. When oil is hot, cook 3-4 of the chops at a time for 3 minutes each side. Transfer to a clean platter.
Use paper towel to clean skillet of any crumbs. Add remaining 1 tbsp oil to skillet and fry remaining chops.
Serves 4
Note: My kids are not super-fans of mustard (like their Mom) so they dipped their pork chops into apple sauce.
4 Steps to Clean Your Wooden Cutting Board
Most cutting boards are a significant investment at places like Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table, so why not take care of them? There are actually a few things the home cook should be doing to clean and care for a wooden cutting board that will help prevent foodborne illness and prolong the life of the cutting board.
Wooden boards can be made out of acacia, walnut, maple and bamboo – to name a few. For a good understanding of how bamboo boards are put together you can check out The Cutting Board Company which primarily serves the restaurant industry and wholesale distributors, but also the home cook.
Cleaning Your Wooden Cutting Board
- Thoroughly clean board with hot, soapy water.
- Pat dry with a clean paper towel.
- Store clean, dry board upright when not in use.
- Apply a USP-grade mineral oil (tasteless & odorless) once per month with a soft, dry cloth in the direction of the grain. Allow to soak in for 2-3 minutes. Remove excess with a clean, dry cloth.
And, to prevent your wooden cutting board from warping, cracking or splitting:
- Do not immerse in water or any period of time.
- Do not place in the diswasher.
Just Updated…
Beach memories
my “About” page. A little about me, my business, USPCA and my interests.
Roasted Potatoes with Onion and Parsley
Ready to go into the oven.
Here’s a super quick side dish to make to go alongside tonight’s dinner. It takes literally minutes to put together and once it’s in the oven you’re free to finish up your main dish, get little hands washed for dinner or even set the table.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs red-skinned potatoes (try to purchase potatoes that are the same size so you’ll get uniform roasting)
1 medium red onion, cut into large chunks
2tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp chopped, flat leaf parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
Quarter potatoes and place into medium-sized mixing bowl. Add onions into bowl and toss with extra-virgin olive oil. Add parsley, salt and pepper and mix again. Spread potato-onion mixture onto a baking sheet. Roast in 400 degree oven for 30-40 minutes until the edges turn golden . You can use the tines of a fork to test for doneness on the inside.
There’s a 100 Ways to Plan a Weekly Menu
- Simple, homemade pizza.
And, here’s mine. No, I’m not talking about pizza every night. Although that does remind me of my college years (along with ramen noodles & three rolled tacos with guacamole)…talk about the “freshman 15!”
There are some amazing ways to plan your menus each week including free services, those through magazines, paid services which can help with calorie counting or even utilizing Google Calendar. Since even working on this blog can be complicated for me, I use the paper and pen method and plan my menus using a bound, blank book or journal. I confess that someday I’d like to switch to menu planning for the 2000’s but for now this works just fine.
Here’s how I do it:
Pantry
I primarily rely on what’s in my pantry or freezer. I keep a well-stocked pantry with dried and canned beans, canned tomatoes, various oils and vinegars, a multitude of dried pasta including angel hair, penne, orichiette and couscous. Don’t forget about brown and long grain rice and arborio. I also like to have on hand tuna packed in water and olive oil, sundried tomatoes, capers, artichoke hearts, different types of olives and anchovies.
Freezer
My freezer operates much the same way my pantry does in that not only do I store meat, poultry and fish there but also fresh pasta that I’ve made and then frozen, fresh tomato sauce and various herbs and pestos.
Previous Menus
Let’s face it, when you have young children you may try something that you and your spouse love, but doesn’t fare so well with the pre-school set. I put an asterisk (obviously this can be done on your computer too) by those newer recipes that I introduce (with a thumbs up from the family) and then toss those into rotation. I do take requests though, such as baked macaroni and cheese, build-your-own panini, and spagetti and meaballs. Usually I put one request into that week’s menu. Although I am a personal chef, I don’t operate my kitchen like a restaurant. What I make for dinner everyone eats.
Grocer’s Weekly Specials
I confess that I am less driven by coupons and online specials than what I really want to make in the kitchen. My nearest grocery stores are Lowes and Harris Teeter. Before I head to the market on Monday morning (shopping day for me), I’ll check their store websites for specials on items like boneless, skinless chicken breast, pork chops, steak, fish and fresh produce. I may alter my menu for that week based on what I see at those two stores. I’ve found that waiting until I get to the actual store and then making a change is more or less made confusing especially with young children in tow.
Here’s what’s planned for this week:
Thin Crust Pizza Two ways: recipe #1- zucchini, prosciutto, & red onions and recipe #2- the classic margherita style along with an arugula salad with lemon vinaigrette and shaved Parmesan
Marinated Roast Loin of Pork with Rice Pilaf
Marinated Flank Steak with Roasted Red Potatoes
Soy-Ginger Chicken Thighs with Steamed Broccoli and Lo Mein Noodles
And, my personal favorite: leftover night!
Homemade Chicken Soup with Tortellini
Friday afternoon I put a whole, roasting chicken into the oven for our dinner that evening. The finished roast chicken is always greeted by hungry tummies (even the pre-schooler enjoys it) and rave reviews by my husband. After waking up to a 26 degree morning (we’re not in San Diego anymore, folks) I decided to use the remaining chicken carcass to make stock and then chicken soup for tonight’s dinner.
You can refer to an earlier post on making homemade chicken stock for the method I used today.
Ingredients
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 carrots, peeled, cut in half length wise & then cut into 1/4-inch slices
3 ribs of celery, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 bay leaf
2 quarts homemade chicken stock or best stock from your grocer
1 9-ounce package, fresh tortellini (I used www.buitoni.com)
1 1/2-2 Cups shredded chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to tasted
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped
The finished chicken soup - ready for tonight's dinner.
Method
Place a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add two tablespoons oil to heated stockpot and then add onions, carrots and celery. Stirrng for 6 minutes or until veggies are translucent (careful not to brown) and then add garlic. Stirring for two minutes longer, again being careful not to brown garlic.
Add stock and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, adding tortellini and cooking for 7 minutes. Carefully add in chicken and stir. Cook for 2 additional minutes. Add parsley and stir. Season to taste with salt and ground pepper .
