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

A Wedding in Tuscany

August 8, 2016 by Mary 38 Comments

Our recent trip to Poland and Italy is one that storybooks are made of. It was full of visiting family and friends, discovering family roots, amazing food everywhere, renewing friendships and partaking as family in a Tuscan wedding.

Are you jealous?

Let me tell you about the wedding in Italy first as Poland deserves a whole other post.

Our oldest son did his university semester abroad in Arezzo, Italy some ten years ago and lived with an Italian family in a gorgeous modern house (as only the Italians can do), high on a hill overlooking Arezzo in Tuscany. Here is the view from their house.

The family, Tiziana and Andrea, have a girl and a boy, sandwiched between our two boys in ages with their boy being the youngest. While our son was there, we went to visit him with Zach and both families hit it off splendidly!! Tiziana was interested in having her family learn English better and of course our son needed to learn Italian. Now I really need to learn some Italian!

During the past ten years our boys have been back with their girlfriends to visit the family in Arezzo and their daughter has come to visit us many times, sometimes escorting a Prada bag but always with some Parmigiano and Pecorino cheeses and some olive oil from the olives that grow on the trees in their front yard.

I know. Aren’t I lucky?

Hotel pool in Tuscany overlooking Arezzo.

Our hotel view and pool! The driveway leading to the hotel was bordered with deep beds of lavender – the smell was intoxicating!

So a wedding took place and our whole family (our boys with their fiancées) met up in Italy to celebrate this joyous occasion and let me tell you, this was one big spectacular visit and wedding. Tiziana and Andrea are so very gracious hosts and they insisted our boys with their girls stay with them as Tiziana thought, “Our bride will be much more relaxed if her American brothers stayed there.” And we stayed nearby in a gorgeous hotel while they provided one of their cars for us so we could get around.

It was just so good to be back and visiting and really, it was like no one missed a beat, it certainly did not seem like 10 years had passed since our first meeting.

I got to spend the day with Tiziana on Friday catching up and shopping for cheeses, last minute vegetables and flowers for the family party that evening at their house. Here is Giancarlo Canti, who makes world renown, award-winning cheeses, with Tiziana. Look at all of the Parmigiano!!

Agata and Tiziana preparing the appetizers.

Andrea slicing the delicious porchetta.

A Tuscan spread of appetizers at sunset, overlooking Arezzo.

Part of the appetizer table at sunset.

We all helped in preparing the two pasta dishes and an amazing porchetta was delivered and carved at the table. The cheese, the wine, the prosecco, the sausages, the pasta, the prosiutto, bresaola, were all to die for. Tiziana buys all of these meats as large pieces and slices them on a meat slicer that holds a permanent and prominent space on her kitchen counter.

While here in America, rehearsal dinners are common on the Friday night before a wedding, that is not the case in Italy. It is usually just the immediate family having a quiet meal at home, getting ready for the big day. So Tiziana, in throwing this party for 50 of their closest friends and out-of-towners broke tradition in the most beautiful way as getting to know their close friends before the big day was so special.

The wedding took place in a gorgeous church, the Basilica of San Domenico especially renowned for housing a crucifix painted by Cimabue, dated 1265, which is considered an authentic masterpiece of art.

Guests waiting outside the church for the wedding to begin.

The very fashionable guests wait for the bride and groom to arrive.

Tiziana Bonechi and Steve in conversation.

My husband with Tiziana. She is holding the rings!

The groom arrived in a 1974 red-orange Porsche while the bride arrived with her Dad in a ‘70’s white Alfa Romeo. Isn’t this just so cool?

Here’s our whole family!

The reception was held at Santa Maria a Pigli which is a beautiful outdoor venue with an amazing cocktail time with various different tables featuring oysters and crayfish, sushi, tempura vegetables, cheeses, smoked meats, tripe sliders, and cocktails smoking dry ice. The dinner started with risotto, then a traditional pasta and then Florentine steaks grilled on an open flame with roasted vegetables.
All luscious and delicious and best of all, leisurely paced, which was so nice. Dinner and some dancing ended around 11:30 and then the real dance party started in another tent that lasted until about 5:30 am!! We left at around 3:30 as we were danced out, even with switching out of heels and into flip-flops. Our boys were there until the very end and then watched the sunrise back at their house.

It was an amazing, beautiful, perfect party!!

Tiziana and Christina with another pasta dish.

Tiziana with BFF Cristina!

And Sunday, was lunch at the hotel, Prada store with Cristina – here’s my husband having coffee with Cristina at the Prada café and then another great dinner at Tiziana and Andrea’s.
And here we all are, oohing and ahhing over all the pictures.

It was an amazing, awesome trip and we are hoping that Andrea and Tiziana will be coming to our home for Thanksgiving!

I hope you enjoyed this story and photos as much as I enjoyed putting it together and sharing it. ☺

Chef’s Cut Honey Barbecue Chicken Jerky & Spinach Omelet

July 29, 2016 by Mary 6 Comments

Chef’s Cut Real Jerky in our summer MARY’s secret ingredients box was created by Chef Blair Swiler and Dennis Riedel. Blair has been smoking meats his entire life; a tradition passed along from his father. Today the vision to change the jerky world has resulted in the best tasting, highest quality jerky on the market. They use only premium cuts of steak and white breast meat and always hand-cut each piece, using only the finest real ingredients – just like you would find at your favorite steak house. Chef’s Cut Real Jerky is the jerky you’ve always wanted. It’s Jerky Done Right. Totally.

I have a confession to make.

I am not a jerky lover. I don’t snack much between meals and jerky really is a snack item. I did try biltong when we were in South Africa. I had to – it is such a tradition that they made me! The biltong (a form of dried cured meat very similar to jerky) I had was ostrich and actually I loved ostrich! When we were there we ate several ostrich burgers – delish!

But back to this jerky. I had never heard of chicken jerky! And other jerky’s I’ve had were all super dry and usually beef, but not this! This chicken is moist and flavorful. The honey barbecue flavors are perfect with just the right amount of sweet and heat.

Jerky is actually very healthy, being high in protein, low in fat and great-tasting, if you do snack, this Chef’s Cut brand should be your new ticket!

So what I did here was a way to start your day off right. Years ago, I used to just eat a big fruit salad for breakfast and then I got a doctor who was more holistic who told me that my body, and probably everyone’s, needs protein first thing in the morning. Making this change in my diet was brilliant! I can go until 2 pm or later for lunch without killing someone, whereas in the past, if I didn’t eat by 12:30, well, watch out.

Protein, first thing in the morning provides a great foundation for you to handle any situation. You see the fruit salad just converted quickly to sugar, gave me a fast spike in blood sugar with a mighty fall starting at around 11:30 – I would be starving and not a very nice person. This doctor explained to me that if we were back in caveman/tribal days, living on the land with no refrigeration, you would’ve eaten the leftovers from the night before for breakfast.

So it won’t be a surprise that for this product recipe, I made an omelet! Honey Barbecue Chicken Jerky with some fresh spinach – it was delicious!! And what a great way to start the day, tasty protein with a boost of iron from the spinach and lovely eggs to hold it all together. No need to worry about salt, pepper or hot sauce as the seasoning that comes from the jerky is just perfect.

Make this tomorrow morning and I promise you’ll have an awesome day. Who knows, you may even win the lottery!! But you gotta buy a ticket – in other words – you gotta do the work to make this. Enjoy!!

CHEF’S CUT HONEY BARBECUE CHICKEN JERKY & SPINACH OMELET – serves 2

4 eggs
1 Tbs. heavy cream (optional)
1.25 oz. Chef’s Cut Honey Barbecue Chicken Jerky, finely minced
1 cup packed baby spinach leaves, washed and air dried (I like a lot of spinach!)
½ Tbs. unsalted butter
Fresh mint or chives as a garnish

Whisk the eggs together and then whisk in the cream.

Melt the butter in a medium non-stick skillet on medium heat. Swirl it around to coat the entire pan. Pour in the eggs. Take a fork and holding it flat, quickly stir the eggs once or twice in the bottom of the pan.

Let the eggs set and when a bottom forms, gently lift the edge, tilt and pour the uncooked eggs to move underneath and cook. Continue doing this until the top is nearly cooked.

Then distribute the minced Chef’s Cut Honey Barbecue Chicken Jerky over half of the omelet and top with the spinach leaves, evenly distributed over the jerky. Fold over the unfilled half and let rest and cook a bit more for a minute or two.

When done, slide out of the pan onto a platter. Cut in half to serve with LOVE, enjoy, and you’ll have a totally awesome day when you start it off like this!!

Gustus Vitae Taste of Provence Roasted Fillet of Sole

July 27, 2016 by Mary 10 Comments

Gustus Vitae is a Californian crafter of authentic, artisan, small batch seasoning blends and gourmet finishing salts. Using locally harvested herbs and spices, their all natural, certified non-GMO ingredients are blended in small batches, before being packed by hand in their unique magnetic tins. Yes! It’s true! The bottom of this can is magnetized so you can stick it anywhere where there’s metal and it will always be within each reach! And you will want this within easy reach because the herbs are so fresh and flavorful, even thought they’re dried, you’ll want to use this on anything and everything.

The Taste of Provence is an amazing blend of fragrant, fresh herbal flavors. Use this on chicken, meat, vegetables or fish to create a bright, perky, delicious dish.

Besides the tin being magnetized, I love the entire package, particularly the lid that swivels so you can just sprinkle out the right amount, either through 3 small holes or large long one. It’s very nifty!

The recipe I made here is so stupid easy – it’s perfect for a quick weeknight meal that is really special tasting, all because of this Gustas Vitae Taste of Provence.

I wanted you to taste the herbs pure, so the dish is really simple. I mentioned before that I have really been getting into finishing a protein with an acid, mainly a citrus, lemon or lime or even orange. But the difference is that in some cases, I have been roasting that citrus before using it on the dish and that obviously produces a different flavor, less bold and sweeter with still a little acid.

So here I roasted the lemon and squeezed it on to finish. I also did one version where I placed the fish on top of peeled sliced oranges and that produced a delicious result too, but I neglected to take pictures. Either way, give this a go! You will LOVE it.

I served this with some sautéed Chinese cabbage and garnished both with cilantro or you can use any green herb. I really should have added a tomato for color to this picture but actually I kind of like this duotone plate. Sometimes you just need things simple. Truth be told, it was so good and gobbled up so fast, it didn’t matter.

GUSTUS VITAE TASTE OF PROVENCE ROASTED FILLET OF SOLE – serves 2

2 fillets of sole
Olive oil
Salt – preferably French Grey
Fresh ground pepper
Gustus Vitae Taste of Provence seasoning
½ of a lemon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash your fish and pat dry with paper toweling.

Slick a rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Lay the fish on the pan and drizzle a little olive oil on top of the fillet, spreading it around evenly with your fingers.

Season the fillets with salt, pepper and Gustus Vitae Taste of Provence seasoning.

Place the lemon cut side down on the pan and roast the fish for 10 – 12 minutes, until done and white throughout.

Remove the fillets to your dinner plates, squeeze on the roasted lemon and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy!

Joseph Joseph Rotary Peeler & Grilled Eggplant, Prosciutto, Tomato & Arugula Sandwiches

July 25, 2016 by Mary 20 Comments

My husband has a thing about peelers. He wants the sharpest one so he can get the thinnest peel – no pith – for his twist for his perfect Manhattan. Yes! These are the important things in life.

Me? I like raw julienned vegetables.

I love eggplant and butternut squash but hate to peel it. They’re so large, it’s uncomfortable and clumsy trying to peel that big thing with a little itty bitty peeler and then you get frustrated so you peel quicker so it’s over with faster and then you slip and cut yourself.

Sound familiar?

Well the twin boys over at Joseph Joseph have done it again with this very neatly designed tool! Because it’s round and large in your hand, you can get a firm grip on it, stand your squash or eggplant upright (cut a flat bottom first) and peel big wide slices off.

There.

Isn’t that better?

This tool has three different blades – a regular peeler, a serrated edge and my favorite, the julienne side. Just think of how quickly I’ll be able to make this chicken dish now. Yippee!!

Take a look at the luscious Grilled Eggplant, Prosciutto, Tomato & Arugula Sandwiches I made for lunch last Saturday. Here, eggplant is the star, along with the peeler, and just one slice of prosciutto gives you the hit of flavor you need. You don’t need a ton of meat, just enough to make it work!

The eggplant had plenty of fresh garlic bringing heat, while grilling it gave it smoky goodness. The just-picked arugula from the farmer’s market along with the juicy tomato – total yumminess!!

My husband was not excited about this sandwich to start. He wanted more meat but then, he loved it. It wasn’t necessary.

Make this and enjoy!

GRILLED EGGPLANT, PROSCIUTTO, TOMATO & ARUGULA SANDWICH – serves 2

1 medium eggplant
4 large cloves of garlic, minced
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1 tomato – on the vine variety
1 handful arugula, washed and air dried
2 large thin slices of prosciutto
One long loaf of Italian bread or a baguette, cut into sandwich size and in half

Cut a flat bottom to the eggplant and trim off the top. Hold eggplant upright and peel a large swath off of two opposing sides. Slice the eggplant in 1/4″ – 1/3″ slices.

Combine the olive oil and minced garlic and brush on both side of the eggplant and salt and pepper both sides. Grill on high heat until softened and you have some nice grill marks.

Lightly brush cut sides of the bread with olive oil and toast on the grill.

Assemble the sandwiches with two slices of eggplant first, then the prosciutto, arugula and tomato. Close the sandwich and cut in half.

A little bit of heaven!!

And so easy to peel that eggplant with the Joseph Joseph Rotary Peeler!

You can still get your very own peeler in our summer box. We have a few left – but hurry before they’re all gone!

Steamed Broccoli with a Dijon Butter Sauce & Carrie Mae’s Kitchen Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips

July 23, 2016 by Mary 6 Comments

Inspired by her grandmother, Carrie Mae started making Crunchy Strips in her kitchen with all natural ingredients. While she makes several flavors, we chose the Chia Seeds to include in our MARY’s secret ingredients summer box. Chia seeds are so darn good for you! They are a “whole grain” food, and are among the most nutritious foods on the planet. Loaded with fiber, protein, Omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and various micronutrients, these crackers are a delightful little crunch of goodness.

All crackers are handmade with tender loving care; hence the company’s slogan – Made from the heart to feed your soul. I know that Carrie Mae herself hand made each one of these crunchy strips with a lot of LOVE and then actually drove them up from North Carolina to our warehouse in NJ, to make the delivery date for the box. This woman is determined and dedicated to her delicious and healthy craft, she’s bound to become a huge success.

I love using these crunchy strips as a topping to soups, salads and to this yummy steamed broccoli dish I made up. Think of them as croutons, but better because they’s light and thin. Using the strips on top adds another layer of texture, that crunch we all crave.

For those of you with little ones, I’ll bet this could be a great way to get your kids to eat their vegetables. Crush and sprinkle these little crackers on top to add a chia seed nutritious delight to anything.

Additionally, broccoli has huge health benefits. Check out this link http://www.well-beingsecrets.com/health-benefits-of-broccoli/ Broccoli is rich in vitamins, minerals, nutrients and compounds, promoting good heart health and known even to prevent cancer. So eat your broccoli and it’s even better this way, with our Carrie Mae’s Kitchen Chia Seed Crunchy strips!

STEAMED BROCCOLI WITH A DIJON BUTTER SAUCE & CARRIE MAE’S KITCHEN CHIA SEEDS CRUNCHY STRIPS – serves 4

One large head of broccoli, washed, trimmed, stems peeled and stalks cut in half or quartered
3 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. lemon juice
1.25 oz. Carrie Mae’s Kitchen Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips

Steam the broccoli until crisp tender.

Melt the butter and whisk in the mustard and lemon juice.

Remove the broccoli from the steamer, pat dry with a clean linen towel and lay out on a platter. Drizzle the sauce all over the broccoli. Top with crushed Carrie Mae’s Kitchen Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!

Carrie Mae's Kitchen Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips on a salad.

Use Carrie Mae’s Kitchen Chia Seed Crunchy Strips to top a salad!

Carrie Mae's Kitchen Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips on chicken noodle soup.

Or garnish a soup!

Sabatino Tartufi Truffle Zested Flatbeans

July 21, 2016 by Mary 4 Comments

THIS Sabatino Tartufi Truffle Zest is one of Oprah’s favorite things!!! Yes!

I simply remember my favorite things and then I don’t feel sooooo baaad. Remember Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music? Of course you do.

Well I can assure you that if you like truffles, one of the most expensive foods in the world, you will LOVE this truffle zest in our MARY’s secret ingredients summer box. We were able to include three little packets, so you can try it out on a variety of dishes.

I love the truffle zest on scrambled eggs. Total delish!! And also great on a baked potato.

And lately I see a lot of truffle salt around, but this zest is so much better. It is much more potent and rich – it’s wonderful!!

I used it on these green flatbeans cooked in butter and water and I’m telling you, this is amazing!! It is simple to cook and quite frankly my favorite way to cook fresh beans. If you can’t find flat beans, just use regular fresh green or yellow beans. Finishing off this simple recipe with the Sabatino Tartufi Truffle Zest moves ordinary green beans into the spectacular, memorable area. And all you have to do is open up this little packet of goodness and sprinkle it on.

Of course you could also sprinkle this on a little buttered pasta or even buttered corn this time of year. Experiment and have yourself some tasty fun!!

Since I will be in Italy the week after next, I wonder if I’ll be eating some truffle garnished pasta…
SABATINO TARTUFI TRUFFLE ZESTED FLATBEANS – serves 3 – 4

3/4 lb. green flatbeans
3 – 4 Tbs. water
Butter
Salt
Pepper
1 packet of Sabatino Tartufi Truffle Zest

Trim the ends of the beans, removing any strings, and wash thoroughly.

Fill your skillet with about ¼” of water to cover the bottom and turn heat to high. Throw in beans and then top with pats of unsalted butter. SEE PHOTO.

Now let sit them a little to brown and then toss over the high heat. You want the beans to get a little brown and they will as the water evaporates. So toss to your liking – taste one for a tenderness check. The butter will start to brown and almost taste sweet. Finish with salt and pepper and place in a wide serving bowl with all the juices.

Sprinkle on the Sabatino Tartufi Truffle Zest. Total time should be 10 -15 minutes. This takes ordinary beans and makes them extraordinarily rich and special to make a memorable meal.

If you like what is in this box, you can still order it here as we have just a few left.

Additionally, our fall box ships on September 25^th! We are a proud supporter of Feed The Children.

English Provender Caramelized Red Onion Chutney Pork Chops with Apples and Sweet Peppers & Luxury Lemon Curd Chiffon Pie with Strawberries

July 19, 2016 by Mary 8 Comments

Across the pond, the English Provender Company makes excellent chutneys, jams and spreads. They use only the finest premium ingredients to make each one of the products in their line. That’s why when they approached MARY’s secret ingredients to be in the box, after our testing and trial, we said a resounding “YES!” We’ve got two of their products in the box, which makes it twice as nice!

This caramelized red onion chutney is insanely good and you’ll want to put it on everything as I have been! I have used the chutney to finish off a fresh Bing cherry sauce for duck, it’s terrific as is served on the side of a broiled or grilled steak and it even goes great with scrambled eggs! You can tell I really love this stuff! But then I buckled down and made these Caramelized Red Onion Chutney Pork Chops with Apples and Sweet Peppers that you will LOVE. They are super easy to make, gorgeous to look at and taste out of this world. All good things.

Finishing the chops with a squeeze of lime and the sprinkling of chopped parsley adds the right amount of acid and really wakes up everything. I’ve been playing with limes a lot lately. A squeeze of lime is softer than lemon and not so distinct on a dish. It’s nice. Try it!

And then you can serve this super easy dessert to finish your meal that is light, delicious, refreshing, pretty and screams summer. Lemons and strawberries are a wonderful combination. A perfect way to end a meal is with this Luxury Lemon Curd Chiffon Pie with Strawberries. Enjoy!!

ENGLISH PROVENDER CARAMELIZED RED ONION CHUTNEY PORK CHOPS WITH APPLES AND SWEET PEPPERS – serves 2

2 ½” thick heritage pork chops
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 Tbs. olive oil
Salt
Pepper, fresh ground
1 Fuji apple, cored and cut into 16 slices
5 small red, yellow or orange small sweet peppers
2 heaping Tbs. of English Provender Caramelized Red Onion Chutney
3 springs of Italian parsley, chopped for garnish
1/4 of a lime in a wedge

Wash and dry your pork chops with paper toweling. Season the top side with salt and fresh ground pepper.

Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet on medium high heat until foaming mostly subsides. Lay pork chops in, seasoned side down. Add in apples and peppers around the chops and salt and pepper the top side of the chops and sauté for 4 – 5 minutes.

Turn chops and put on 1 heaping Tbs. of English Provender Caramelized Red Onion Chutney on each chop and spread around on the top of the chop. Turn apples and peppers and place them on top of the chops. Sauté for 5 – 6 minutes on this side.

Remove chops carefully to a platter, keeping all the toppings in place. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Squeeze on the lime wedge all over and sprinkle with parsley.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!

ENGLISH PROVENDER LUXURY LEMON CURD CHIFFON PIE WITH STRAWBERRIES – serves 6 – 8

10 – 12 oz. heavy cream
4 oz. English Provender Luxury Lemon Curd
1 qt. strawberries, washed, air dried, stems removed and sliced in half
1 9” baked pie shell

Make the pie crust from the recipe here, (or buy a ready made one). Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake the pie shell for 8 minutes with parchment paper and dried peas, beans or pie weights in the center to weigh it down. Remove the parchment paper and weights at the 8-minute mark and return the crust to the oven for 4 – 8 minutes more until pastry is light brown, crisp and dry. Let the crust cool completely on a rack before filling.

Whip the heavy cream until nearly stiff peaks form. Gently fold in all of the lemon curd evenly throughout.

Spread the filling in the pie shell and chill for at least 4 hours.

Right before serving, place all the halved strawberries on top of the filling evenly. Cut in wedges to serve. Enjoy!!

Summer 2016 MARY’s secret ingredients box revealed

July 17, 2016 by Mary 3 Comments

Summer breeze – makes me feel fine…

Summer is BBQ’s and frosty cocktails and salads with crunchy things on top. New seasonings to spice up your grill to add to the fun!

We’ve got it all here in the 2016 MARY’s secret ingredients summer box!! So if you didn’t get yours, here’s what you missed. (And you can still get one here as we have just a few left.) All products are taste tested, with recipes created and specially crafted by yours truly using each product. (This is my favorite part of the job!) The products span the pond as you can see here in this adorable video our talented team of designers put together. Please take a minute and watch.

And now for more in-depth descriptions:

CARRIE MAE’S KITCHEN

Carrie Mae’s Kitchen specializes in uniquely flavored gourmet crackers called Crunchy Strips, which are made with all natural ingredients. All crackers are handmade with tender loving care; hence the company’s slogan – Made from the heart to feed your soul.

Carrie Mae herself hand made each one of these crunchy strips and then drove them up from North Carolina to our warehouse in NJ to make the due date for the box. This woman is determined and dedicated to her delicious and healthy craft, she’s bound to become a huge success.

Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips
Chia Seeds Crunchy Strips are not only delicious, but these tiny chia seeds pack on some good health benefits as well. Chia seeds are a “whole grain” food, and are among the most nutritious foods on the planet. They are loaded with fiber, protein, Omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and various micronutrients. These crackers are a delightful little crunch of goodness combined with just the right amount of sweet.

CHEF’S CUT

Chef’s Cut Real Jerky was created by Chef Blair Swiler and Dennis Riedel. Blair has been smoking meats his entire life; a tradition passed along from his father. Today the vision to change the jerky world has resulted in the best tasting, highest quality jerky on the market. They use only premium cuts of steak and white breast meat and always hand-cut each piece, using only the finest real ingredients – just like you would find at your favorite steak house. Chef’s Cut Real Jerky is the jerky you’ve always wanted. It’s Jerky Done Right. Dig In.

Honey Barbecue Chicken Jerky
What’s the result of combining a blend of spices, honey granules, and a touch of molasses? The best tasting chicken jerky on the market – barbecue grill not included. Chef’s Cut is healthy, high in protein, low in fat and great-tasting, making it the perfect alternative to the standard high-fat, high-calorie snacking fare.

ENGLISH PROVENDER

At The English Provender Company they have a real passion for food, that is evident in the quality and flavor of every product they create. They believe in keeping it simple. Their products have clean, all-natural, premium ingredients and are packaged in attractive glass jars to retain optimum quality and taste.

Caramelized Red Onion Chutney
Elevates burgers, sandwiches, sausages, and meatloaf. Delicious with cheese and crackers and cold cuts. Adds richness to sauces. The secret ingredient in moist, savory cheese muffins.
Luxury Lemon Curd Spread
Delicious spread on warm toast, pancakes, scones and muffins. Dessert topping for ice-cream and cake. Helpful consumer serving suggestions on lid. A soft creamy spread with a yummy bright sweet flavor.

GUSTUS VITAE

Gustus Vitae is a Californian crafter of authentic, artisan seasoning blends and gourmet finishing salts. Using locally harvested California sea salt and herbs and spices, their all natural, certified non-GMO ingredients are blended in small batches, before being packed by hand in their unique magnetic tins. They started in Venice Beach Farmer’s Market and remain driven by the same value:Quality Above All.

Taste of Provence
An exquisite blend of fragrant, fresh, and herbal flavors, the Taste of Provence brings the flavors of the French countryside to your kitchen. Crumble onto olives, goat cheeses, roasted vegetables, or sprinkle on seared seafood or grilled poultry. Add a couple of pinches of the Taste of Provence to a bowl of tomato or pumpkin soup for a wonderfully warm
and minty flavor with beautiful color contrast throughout the dish.

JOSEPH JOSEPH

Founded in 2003 by twin brothers Anthony and Richard, Joseph Joseph specializes in creating design-led products for the kitchen and home with a strong emphasis on form, functionality and quality. As one of the fastest growing companies in the worldwide homewares market, the brand has earned global recognition for its multi-award winning designs.

Rotary Peeler
Made from high-quality stainless steel, Rotary Peeler™’s three blades are razor-sharp and are housed in a tough case that takes up very little space in your drawer. Simply select the desired blade – standard, serrated or julienne – by rotating the unit’s brushed metal hub. The Rotary Peeler™ makes short work of even the toughest fruit or vegetable skin and the design also includes a potato-eye remover. The case can be opened for easy cleaning.

SABATINO TARTUFI

Sabatino Tartufi is the world’s largest truffle manufacturer. For over 100 years, they have been cultivating and distributing the highest quality Italian truffles. They offer a range of truffle products, such as truffle honey, truffle salt, and truffle oils. The blend of their modern technologies and traditional recipes create the ultimate truffle experience.

Truffle Zest
Truffles are one of the most expensive foods in the world. We bring you this highly praised ingredient into our revolutionary truffle seasoning. This truffle powder is packed with flavor, and can be added to everything, such as pasta, pizza, rice, potatoes, salads, and anything else that needs a dash of zest! It is gluten free, non GMO, allergen free and contains no MSG.

Please remember, always cook with LOVE and your food will taste better!

Our fall box ships on September 25th. Order one now before we sell out.

Makes a great gift! 🙂

Super Quick Broccoli Rabe and Pasta Recipe

July 10, 2016 by Mary 7 Comments

We all have our little tricks in the kitchen, right? And many of us have our secret ingredients we always turn to.

Mine, of course, is LOVE. Cooking with the intention of LOVE – loving the dish you’re making or knowing that when you serve the food, your family and friends will LOVE it and you will make them happy, that’s what turns me on. And that’s why I always cook with LOVE. I just want to make people happy. Nothing makes me happier than to hear little murmurs of delight from folks while eating my food.

Our youngest son, Zachary, whose birthday is today, said he knew my food always tasted so good because of the LOVE I put into it while cooking. One sister-in-law of mine told me years ago that I was good at picking recipes. But then she asked, why did my food always taste so good. She had made some of the same recipes. I guess Zachary had the answer.

So I was talking to a new colleague about our MARY’s secret ingredients culinary subscription box and he told me his “secret ingredient” was capers.

I also love capers and caperberries even more! Roasted, they become that crunchy burst of saltiness that I just love. Anchovies are another – throw them into a dish and they melt and add that wonderful umami flavor. Pancetta is also another good one.

Back to the box, our summer box is hitting mailboxes right now and as usual, it has a great curated collection of new products, some are ready to eat and with all of them, I’ve created a delicious recipe to make meals special for you and your family. There are still a few summer boxes left and you can pick one up here. If you use the code SAVE20 you can save 20% on a full year subscription – that’s 4 seasonal boxes for about $87.00! And remember, we are a proud supporter of the worldwide organization combatting hunger, Feed The Children, so a portion of your box purchase goes to support them.

Back to this Super Quick Broccoli Rabe and Pasta Recipe, this is a great dish for a meatless night. Meatless Monday is tomorrow! My proportion of broccoli rabe to the pasta is great – a lot more broccoli rabe and depending on how big your eaters are, this can serve 2 or 3 with just 8 oz. of pasta. This comes together so quickly, using the already near boiling water from the broccoli rabe to cook the pasta in. Bringing the broccoli rabe to almost boiling removes the bitterness and starts to work on tenderizing those stems.

Super Quick Broccoli Rabe and Pasta Recipe in 2 bowls.

I was debating if it needed cheese and it didn’t!

Make this tomorrow night to start your week quick. Make it with LOVE and enjoy!!

SUPER QUICK BROCCOLI RABE AND PASTA RECIPE – serves 2 – 3

I bunch of broccoli rabe, ends trimmed, cut into 2” pieces, and washed in a bath of water to remove all grit. Never
buy broccoli rabe that has blooming yellow flowers – that’s a message that it will be very bitter
1/2 lb. spaghetti or other dry pasta
3 Tbs. olive oil
7 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
5 anchovies, blotted dry of oil
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Coarse sea salt – for cooking pasta and broccoli rabe
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

In a large pasta pot, place the washed broccoli rabe. Fill the pot with water to be at least 2 inches above the broccoli rabe. Add in the salt and stir to combine. Place the pot on high heat.

Meanwhile, warm the 3 Tbs. olive oil in a large skillet on low heat, (large enough to hold the broccoli rabe and pasta too), add the garlic and stir. Do not let it brown.

When small bubbles appear around the edges of the pot with the broccoli rabe, remove the rabe with a slotted spoon into a colander over a bowl and let drain. Let the water in the pot come back to a full boil. When that happens, add the pasta and cook for 2 minutes less than the lower number on the package directions.

While the pasta is cooking, (be sure to stir every once in a while), put the broccoli rabe in the skillet with the garlic and raise heat to medium – medium-high. Cook a bit more, and toss. Add in the anchovies and keep tossing and cooking.

When the pasta is near the end of cooking, take a large coffee mug and scoop out some pasta water. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet with the broccoli rabe, stirring with tongs to combine. Add about ¼ cup of pasta water, the crushed red pepper flakes and toss to finish cooking the pasta just to al dente and be sure the broccoli rabe stems are crisp tender. Taste to your liking with more salt and some fresh ground black pepper.

Serve in warm bowls with LOVE!

EXCITING TRAVEL NEWS!

I want to tell you, I’m so excited, we’re heading to Poland and Italy in 11/2 weeks!!! We will celebrate Zach’s birthday in Warsaw with his fiancée, Agata. They have big plans to take us all over including visiting local farmer’s markets and a day trip to Krakow. Then we will fly to Milano, 2 days there, then train to Arezzo in Tuscany for Bianca’s wedding. Bianca is sort of my surrogate daughter. She is the daughter of the family our oldest son lived with for his semester abroad during his university years. She and her fiancé have visited us in NYC often. But, it has been 10 years since both families have been together and Tiziana, the mother, has asked me to help her cook the Friday night family dinner before the wedding on Saturday! I am SO excited and honored!!! We have been emailing. I will shop with her in the morning for her cheeses and she has asked me to come up with ideas for dessert. I’m thinking of big pans of rhubarb and strawberry crisps. What do you think?

So get ready for some great fun stories and photography from Poland and Italy!!! Is there anything specific you’d like to see? Let me know…

Chilled Curried Zucchini Soup with Apple Garnish

July 3, 2016 by Mary 22 Comments

I love to start a meal with a soup. Somehow it feels more elegant to me. But in summer, you certainly don’t want something hot, and for cold soups, the repertoire seems more limited. Gazpacho is one, and then there’s watermelon, cucumber, and vichyssoise (I am not a fan) but not much else comes to mind. So I was particularly excited to find this Chilled Curried Zucchini Soup with Apple Garnish recipe from Pierre Franey in The New York Times Country Weekend Cookbook.

I made this to start a dinner party just this past Thursday night and it was a hit, called out by several folks in their thank-you emails.

Remember that cold soups must be really cold. You don’t want to be iffy here. Make it cold. I made this soup on Tuesday evening with everything but the yogurt and chopped apples. At the start of the party on Thursday, I whisked in the yogurt, peeled and chopped the apple and added it all in and seasoned the soup with salt and pepper. Then I let the pot sit on the counter for a bit but luckily realized I should put it back in the fridge until just before serving. That was a good move.

The next day, I had a bowl of leftover soup right out of the fridge and it was even better colder! And I found out that I really could have combined everything, including the yogurt and apple, as all the flavors melded better and the apple did not lose any crispness.

This is rich tasting and elegant, different and delicious. It tastes creamy but without a drop of cream. The healthy yogurt makes it work. I made this with Ethel’s farmer’s market zucchini, homemade chicken stock made from roasted chicken wing tips and mint from my garden. But I’m sure this recipe will work fine with good supermarket bought ingredients as well. But don’t forget to add your LOVE when making, the most important ingredient.

CHILLED CURRIED ZUCCHINI SOUP WITH APPLE GARNISH – serves 4 – adapted from Pierre Franey

1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 medium white onion, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tsp. curry powder
Salt
2 medium zucchini, trimmed and cut into 1/8” rounds
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup of plain yogurt (I used whole milk yogurt but not Greek)
1 Golden Delicious apple
2 – 3 stems of mint leaves for garnish

Melt butter in a large pot on medium heat. Add onions. Cook stirring until onions are wilted, 2 – 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook stirring for one minute. Add curry powder and salt to taste. Stir for one minute. Add zucchini and chicken stock.

Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Puree the soup in a blender, food processer or use an immersion wand blender. I like to use the immersion blender best. It has been the best investment – quicker, easier and less mess. Just stick it in the soup and whir!

Refrigerate the soup, until very cold, preferably overnight.

When it is cold, whisk in the yogurt, reserving a little for garnish. Peel and core the apple, then cut into small cubes and stir it into the soup. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with a dollop of yogurt and some mint leaves.

Hope you all are having a wonderful Fourth of July weekend!! We are enjoying glorious weather here on the east coast. And last night we were fortunate enough to be invited to our friends home on a lake with a spectacular fireworks show!

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