Engaging stories of love, joy, comfort and friendship with proven scrumptious, healthy recipes, we celebrate LOVE as the secret ingredient for wonderful food!

Thanksgiving Wishes and a Giveaway!

November 23, 2016 by Mary 7 Comments

Thanksgiving is tomorrow!! I want to thank you all for your friendship and support. I love reading all of your comments on my posts. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I would like to give away 3 free year-long subscriptions to MARY’s secret ingredients as my gift to you to help you with easy cooking and healthy eating with all the products and the recipes that come with our box. Just enter below and we will randomly select 3 winners!!

LOVE’s Thanksgiving Giveaway

I wanted to share with you something I’m so proud of! Our oldest son and his wife held a Friendsgiving this past Saturday — just look at this spread!! They had 15 of their friends come for an early complete Thanksgiving dinner. He roasted his turkey on the grill and made a pork shoulder. Everyone brought a dish and his wife made my cranberry recipe. Such fun!! I wish I could have been a fly on the wall.

For last minute help, if any of you need it, here is a link to my Thanksgiving cookbook again.

Thanksgiving recipes and process in an e-book format, beautifully designed to give you a magnificent feast.

My complimentary Thanksgiving e-book of recipes and step-by-step process

Everyone have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!! Cherish your time with family and friends and don’t eat too much. 🙂

Braised Chicken Thighs with Marinated Artichokes

November 20, 2016 by Mary 12 Comments

This Braised Chicken Thighs with Marinated Artichokes is a DELICIOUS, fun recipe. So you’re saying now, how can a recipe be fun? Well I’ll tell you. I think it’s fun when it has all of these elements – you’re trying something new, It’s easy, it comes together quickly, even while entertaining, AND the dish is DELICIOUS!!

So that is exactly what happened. You know, those times where you’re just humming in the kitchen, it’s very busy but everything is working and timed correctly?

And this is what this Braised Chicken Thighs with Marinated Artichokes recipe is all about. It is a dish very roughly based on a recipe from Food and Wine magazine, but I had to change it a lot, due to my husband having a bout with acid reflux again. And interestingly enough, our good friend Wayne has had the same problem. And Margaret and Wayne were the ones we were entertaining, so all was good!!

With Steve’s acid reflux, we cannot have any onions, garlic, citrus fruit or any peppers, which actually makes dishes easier to prepare because you don’t have all the chopping and prep of those items! Easy peasy.

This recipe produces THE most tender succulent chicken thighs with a wonderful crispy skin. The cast iron pan frying of the thighs, skin side down, with a weight on top, plus the broiling at the end produces the super crispy skin and the braising in the oven creates super tender, juicy meat.

Marinated artichokes always seem like they should be so good, and then I try them and I don’t like the taste of the oil marinade they are in, do you? But this recipe FINALLY puts these babies to good use. I mean really good use so I can no longer speak disparaging about them.

Here is the recipe:

BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS WITH MARINATED ARTICHOKES – serves 4 – 6

8 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (3 3/4 pounds)
Sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
15 ounces marinated artichoke hearts, plus 1/4 cup brine from the jar
1 cup Castelvetrano olives
6 rosemary sprigs
1 cup chicken stock or low-sodium broth
1/2 cup semidry sherry, such as amontillado
1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper. In a large cast-iron skillet or black steel pan, heat the oil. Add half of the chicken skin side down and top the pieces (not the pan) with a pot lid to weigh it down and get the skin very crisp; cook over moderate heat until browned and crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the thighs skin side up to a large baking dish or a Le Creuset Dutch oven. Repeat with the remaining chicken. Scatter the artichoke hearts, olives, and rosemary in the baking dish.

Pour off the fat from the skillet. Add the artichoke brine, stock, sherry and fish sauce; bring to a boil. Stir in 1 teaspoon of salt, then pour the mixture around the chicken. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and braise in the oven for 45 minutes, until the chicken is very tender.

Uncover and increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Roast the chicken for 10 – 12 minutes longer, until the skin is crisp.

Discard the rosemary stems if you can. Transfer to plates and serve with LOVE.

Thanksgiving is THURSDAY!!!! We all have much to be grateful for and we pray that we can keep our country whole, and replace all hate with love.

I’m sure you all have been collecting your recipes for the big day. I am NOT cooking – which is a little bittersweet. It is my favorite holiday and I love to cook the meal but my brother Steve and his wife, Trish, have graciously invited all of my family, including our new daughter-in-law’s parents, to their home in Greenwich for what I know will be a very delicious feast paired with amazing wines as he is a Certified Sommelier (and here is his Wine and Food Pairings blog) and they always roll out the red carpet. Like maybe even starting with Russian Beluga Caviar. Yes! I told you we have much to be grateful for!

My complimentary Thanksgiving e-book of recipes and step-by-step process.

A few years ago I created a Thanksgiving cookbook with an entire day-by-day schedule to follow to achieve maximum results. You can download it here as an interactive PDF. No charge of course – I hope you enjoy it!! And here’s a simple recipe for Candied Yams that’s a terrific dish to grace your table.

And meanwhile, our holiday box of MARY’s secret ingredients is a doozy – valued at more than $47.00!! The cost is only $34.00, including shipping, and makes a great gift for all your foodie friends, even for yourself. So order several several and start making memorable meaIs you’ll be very proud of with the amazing recipes I have been working on using all of these new and interesting products. It will start shipping on December 5th, just in time for the holidays!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Quick Fish Stew

November 13, 2016 by Mary 15 Comments

With the election finally behind us, I can only think to provide more comforting recipes for you. There is much that divides us as a nation and clear communication is key. It is always the key. I say we all need to gather around the table and listen to one another while breaking bread. We all need to eat. This is a fact. Sharing a meal around the table is a great place to connect. This comforting, Quick Fish Stew is easy enough to make on a weeknight and can be just the thing you need right now.

I also have an idea to solve the terrorist problem. They hate us so much and want to kill us all, so I keep thinking, how can we change that around? My solution is to air-drop food laced with marijuana. They will eat it and just be happy! Having the energy to fight will just be the furthest thing from their mind. What do you think?

Back to the Quick Fish Stew recipe, the beautiful colors and crisp tender vegetables will delight you. The broth will soothe. I love fish simply oven roasted with just some good olive oil, French grey salt and fresh ground pepper, but that can get boring, particularly with flounder. So this Quick Fish Stew recipe is a great way to change it up.

I already had leftover roasted potatoes in the fridge, but you can use any vegetables or starches you have, even pasta or rice would be good.

To flavor the fish and the stew, I used this June Bug Rub spice mix I had on hand, which is a little sweet and a little spicy, but you could use anything you’d like – thyme, cumin, Chinese five spice or za’atar would be great as well, depending on how you’re feeling. Imagine what you want to taste and make it happen. Get creative and have fun!

To finish the stew, I threw in thinly sliced radishes, along with their chopped green tops, which added a nice little spicy interest. The fennel fronds are also a nice touch.

Here’s what I did. If you make this, please share with us your version!

QUICK FISH STEW – serves 4 – 5

8 cups of chicken or vegetable stock – boxed low sodium or homemade
1 stem of rosemary, finely chopped
1 small eggplant, cut in chunks 1/3” thick
2 Tbs. olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 flounder fillets – about 1 lb.
June Bug Rub or other herbs and spices
½ of a red pepper, cut in ½” chunks
1 stalk of celery, cut in ½” pieces
2 cups roasted potatoes – or roast fresh at 425 degrees with 1 Tbs. olive oil for 30 minutes
2 cups tiny broccoli flowerets
3 breakfast or regular radishes, sliced thin with a hand mandoline
1 bunch of radish greens, washed in a bath of water, air dried and chopped
1/3 cup fennel fronds
Maldon salt flakes

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. On a parchment paper lined rimmed baking pan, toss the eggplant chunks with 2 Tbs. olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in oven on top shelf for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour broth into a stock pot and warm on medium-high heat. Add the rosemary and potatoes.

Prepare the other vegetables.

Wash and pat dry the fish and season one side with the June Bug Rub or other herbs and spices. Cut the fish into 1” squares as shown.

Add the broccoli flowerets, red pepper and celery to the broth, which should be simmering by now. Simmer for 4 minutes. Then add the roasted eggplant and the fish, simmer for 2 – 4 minutes more, until the fish is white and done.

Toss in the radishes, radish greens and fennel fronds, stirring just to combine. Immediately ladle the stew into bowls as you just want the greens to wilt. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle crushed Maldon salt on top and serve with LOVE. Enjoy!

Easy Lamb Stew

November 8, 2016 by Mary 11 Comments

I love stew. And I love lamb. (And an easy lamb stew is the best!) I used to ask for lamb for my birthday dinner ever since I was like, 5 years old. When we lived in New Jersey, our babysitter, Jen, used to make the best lamb stew using lamb neck pieces. They get so very tender, but they are also hard to find. I never see them in the stores I shop in now. I should put in a special request to the butcher.

So I wanted to find a quick and easy way to make a delicious lamb stew, so this is what I did, remembering a trick my mother used to use on her stews. That trick is to lightly sprinkle flour on top of the meat, while you’re browning it. It works nicely to brown the flour, adding in the thickening agent without having to make a roux so you can move on quicker! Thanks Mom!

Another thing I did was add in dried apricots. They cook nicely with the meat and don’t really “read/taste” as fruit, when it’s all done – it just adds a touch a sweetness, melding deliciousness in a great, comforting way.

Comforting, that’s what a great stew is all about, right? Especially on some egg noodles.

And we all need a little comfort these days. I can’t wait for today to be over. This has been a very tough election season and I am so sick of hearing about it. Are you too?

Make this with LOVE and sink into some tasty comfort!

EASY LAMB STEW – serves 6

2.25 lbs. lamb stew meat
Kosher salt to taste
Pepper to taste
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. flour
2 tsp. cumin
½ tsp. allspice
1 cup dry red wine
3 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
1 Tbs. butter
1 medium onion, cut in half and sliced
3 – 4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1” pieces
3 stalks of celery, cut in 1” pieces (no leaves)
½ of a fennel bulb, cut in ½” wedges
5 whole garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 bay leaf
3 stems of fresh rosemary
2 medium fresh tomatoes, each cut into 6 wedges and each wedge cut in half
20 dried apricots, each cut into 3 pieces
Cilantro, chopped for garnish
Dry the meat pieces with paper toweling while you warm the oil on medium-high heat, preferable in a Le Creuset cast iron Dutch oven pot. Salt and pepper the top of the meat cubes and when oil is hot, lay seasoned side down in your pan. Brown the lamb cubes for about 3 minutes while you salt and pepper the other side of the meat in the pan and lightly sprinkle 1/3 of the 2 Tbs. flour over the top of the raw meat. Turn and brown the other side for 3 minutes, being careful and adjusting your heat to not let the oil and flour mixture burn. This will take about 3 batches to do. Remove the browned meat to a glass pie plate for meat juices to collect.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in another non-stick skillet and lightly brown the onion, carrots, celery, fennel and garlic on medium to medium-high heat, tossing often until they are lightly colored, about 10 minutes.

When all of the meat has been browned, sprinkle with the cumin and allspice and toss to coat in the pie plate.

Deglaze the Le Creuset pot with the wine, stirring up all the bits on the bottom of the pan, reducing the wine by about a third, simmering 5 minutes.

Add in the chicken or vegetable stock, the seasoned browned meat, and all the vegetables, scraping all the butter and juices left in the skillet from the vegetables. Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, apricots and rosemary stems. Toss all to combine.

Cover and roast at 350 degrees for about 1.5 – 2 hours, until meat is super tender when tested with a fork. If it looks a little dry or you want more juices, add more broth.

Serve over some egg noodles or cous cous would also be nice. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Enjoy!!

Testing New Products for our Winter MARY’s secret ingredients Subscription Box

October 30, 2016 by Mary 12 Comments

This is the really fun part for me!!! Testing new food products and brands for our Winter MARY’s secret ingredients subscription box stretches my imagination and creativity in ways I would never ordinarily go. Researching the products’ background, making sure they are all natural and good for you is imperative and then making sure it’s something that you can use to make an ordinary meal spectacular – without much effort – is another criteria. Using the products in the recipes that I create must provide you with a really tasty, worthy-of-sharing-with-friends-and-family meal, so you can create wonderful memories. This is my goal.

So while I do not want to spoil the surprise of the contents of the upcoming box, which will begin shipping on December 5^th, just in time for holiday gift giving, I can share some photos of some of the recipes I’ve been making, using box contenders. You should know that many product producers come to us, wanting to be in the box, but due to a flavor or ingredient profile that isn’t all natural and good for you, or I don’t like, they do not make it into our MARY’s secret ingredients Subscription Box.

You see, when you prepare great tasting meals, made with real food – fresh ingredients plus ours – because the flavors are so delicious, you don’t need to eat large quantities because you are satiated with a normal amount.

The same is very true with eating local, grass-fed meats. They are so flavorful, I know I take smaller bites, chew slower and really savor that bite. It’s a really good thing that you don’t need a huge portion to satisfy and it’s a much healthier way to live!

Take a look at these local pork chops I sautéed in coconut oil and a bit of butter with some fresh sage, Chinese Five Spice, onions and red wine. Delish! I could not eat a whole chop which gave me some for lunch the next day!
LOCAL PORK CHOPS WITH FRESH SAGE, ONIONS AND RED WINE – serves 3

3 pork chops, about ¾” thick, preferably local meat
1 Tbs. coconut oil
1 Tbs. butter
Salt to taste
11/2 tsp. Chinese Five Spice
1 small onion, sliced
11/2 Tbs. chopped fresh sage leaves
½ cup dry red wine
1 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Melt the butter in the coconut oil over low heat. Add the onions and cover for 8 – 10 minutes until wilted and soft.

Wash and dry the chops with paper toweling. Season each side of the chops with salt, 1/4 tsp. Chinese Five Spice and the fresh sage leaves evenly distributed on both sides, pressing them in with your fingers so they adhere to the chops. Turn heat to medium, medium-high and brown the chops on one side for 4 minutes. Turn over and brown the other side for 3 – 5 minutes, piling the onions on top so they no longer brown and burn, and add in the wine. Your meat should feel firm to the touch and then your chops should be done.

Remove the chops to a platter to rest for 5 minutes, while you stir the bubbling wine still in the pan until it has thickened a bit. Drizzle the wine sauce on top of the chops and garnish with fresh parsley.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy! That’s some okra with our chops, sauteed in coconut oil with just a little salt. So good – and good for you!

With the holidays coming, don’t forget that our MARY’s secret ingredients Subscription Box makes a spectacular gift for everyone on your list, and with a full year subscription, you’ll be in front of them 4 times a year – every season. Makes a great corporate gift for plenty of referrals the whole year long!

Use the code: TREAT16 at checkout to get the full year subscription for only $99.00 starting with our gluten-free fall box!! It’s only good until midnight tomorrow as my Happy Halloween gift to you!

Spaghetti Squash with Roasted Eggplant, Fresh Zucchini, Capers & Italian Tuna

October 24, 2016 by Mary 24 Comments

With an over abundance of vegetables in my fridge, and being banned from using acids, peppers and garlic, due to my husband having a bout with acid reflux again, take a look at this Spaghetti Squash with Roasted Eggplant, Fresh Zucchini, Capers & Italian Tuna dish that I created. My husband was smirking while I was making it. “Whaaat are you doing?” he asked.

No matter – I pressed on with my roasting, chopping and draining.

Well he had seconds, the last little bit for lunch the next day and woke up the next morning saying how good it was.

So there!

It is always so satisfying if they’re still talking about your dinner from the night before as the first words out of their mouth in the morning. My good friend Linda agrees. She is a self-proclaimed “ok cook”. Then she made a coconut shrimp dish with Blue Apron and experienced that type of compliment. She loved it!

It gives me such pleasure to make people happy. To know that know that my guests really enjoy my cooking – that is what I aim for and it is so appreciated when they tell me.

I’ll admit I often do something that drives my boys nuts and that is, after everyone is sitting down, has their plates full and has taken a few bites, I say, “Ok, are we happy?”

I recognize now that they hate it, so I have refrained, but I really just want to know if they’re happy and like the food!

For instance, a few weeks ago, I made a huge dish of paella – for the first time, and I did not do a good job of getting the rice crispy. And then I noticed that our new daughter-in-law, was not digging in with her usual gusto, so I asked what was wrong and she said she really didn’t like paella. Ahhh!

Had I known, I never would have made it, because my husband is not a fan either!

So there you go – I did a lot of work to create a mediocre dish that didn’t make people happy…

However, if you make this dish, you will make people happy!

Cook with love and enjoy!!

SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH ROASTED EGGPLANT, FRESH ZUCCHINI, CAPERS & ITALIAN TUNA – serves 2 – 3

3 Tbs. olive oil plus more for drizzling
1 smallish spaghetti squash
1 smallish eggplant
2 heaping Tbs. of drained capers, chopped
½ of a zucchini, julienned
1 jar of Italian tuna, drained of olive oil
2 cups of mixed greens – baby kale, arugula and radicchio, washed, air dried and coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut eggplant into good-sized chunks and toss with 2 Tbs. olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Roast for about 30 – 40 minutes until lightly browned and fork tender.

At the same time, cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scrap out seeds and pulp and discard. Take 1 Tbs. of olive oil and coat the edges and inside of each squash half, spreading it around with your fingers. Put 1/4” of water in a baking pan and place squash cut side down in the pan of water. Roast for 40 minutes in this position, then turn the squash over and roast for 10 – 15 minutes more, until squash is very tender, testing with a fork.

While eggplant and squash are roasting, drain and chop the capers. Drain the tuna and flake. Wash, air dry and coarsely chop the greens.

When squash is done, remove from the shell, using a fork to create the “spaghetti” and toss with the eggplant, the zucchini, capers, tuna and greens. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle olive oil on top and sprinkle on some drops of sherry vinegar.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!

I liked the contrast of the crunch of the raw zucchini and raw sturdy greens with the warm squash and eggplant. This is a very nice combination and the sherry vinegar drops at the end add the necessary acid to make it all “work” so nicely. I thought it might need a grating of Parmigiano cheese, which is why you see it in the photos, but no, it did not need it.