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

Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade Juicy Chicken Breasts

April 26, 2016 by Mary 22 Comments

Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade finished chicken with endive and blood orange salad.

Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade in a jar.I have a confession to make. I hate orange marmalade. I hate the bitterness of the rind and I’m really not a jelly, preserve or marmalade person. I’d just much rather have honey on my toast or nothing. That was until I met Jan and tasted her jam gems. This Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade is ridiculously good!!!

Of course you can use it on buttered toast and go straight to heaven. You see this marmalade is softer if you will, not at all bitter and not too sweet. It’s juuust right. `

Jan was in the movie business out in LA and it was well known to her friends that she made an amazing fig spread, just as gifts to her buddies. Well word got around and she ran into a food veteran who had heard of her jam. And the rest is history. She makes 11 varieties now, sweet and savory and an absolutely fantastic lemon curd. You can see the whole line here.

But my favorite was this new tangerine marmalade. Because it’s so good, I’ve been using it on everything!! Try this recipe of Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade Juicy Chicken Breasts and then move on to the sea bass fillet recipe and don’t forget to start your day with it on toast. You can make it a Just Jan’s day!

See how the marmalade glistens like jewels!

JUST JAN’S TANGERINE MARMALADE JUICY CHICKEN BREASTS – serves 5

Plan on the time to marinate. I like to do this on a Sunday afternoon. Then your dinnertime prep work is super quick!

2.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts – about 5
1 heaping Tbs. chopped fresh rosemary
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 scant Tbs. coarse sea salt
13 grinds of Szechuan peppercorns
2 Tbs. canola oil
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. butter
1 Tbs. grainy mustard
2.5 Tbs. Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade

Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade raw chicken with mustard on top.4 hours before starting to cook, wash and dry the breasts, trimming off all Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade chicken in skillet.fat. Place the breasts in a ziplock bag. Add the rosemary, buttermilk, salt, pepper and oil. Remove air from the bag and close. Mix everything around until blended and all breast meat is covered. Marinate for 1 – 3 hours in the refrigerator.

Remove the bag from the fridge about an hour before cooking.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

In a large non-stick, ovenproof skillet, heat the olive oil and butter until very hot on medium-high heat. Remove the breasts from the marinade and place on a plate to spread the 1 Tbs. grainy mustard evenly across all breasts on one side only.

When the oil and butter are very hot and the butter has stopped sizzling, carefully place the breasts in the skillet, mustard side down and brown for 3 minutes.

Flip over and spread Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade evenly across all the tops of the breasts.

Place the skillet in the oven to roast for about 7 minutes or until an instant read thermometer registers 150 – 155 degrees. Remove from skillet and let rest on a platter for 5 – 10 minutes and the temperature will gain.

Serve with LOVE and some juices from the platter and enjoy!!

You can also make this DELICIOUS, super easy sea bass recipe.

Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade glazed sea bass on a dinner plate with roasted cauliflower.JUST JAN’S TANGARINE MARMALADE GLAZED SEA BASS – serves 3 – 4

1.5 lbs. sea bass fillet
1 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade
Olive oil to slick the pan
Salt
Pepper
1 tsp. dried Greek oregano

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Slick a rimmed baking pan with olive oil. 

Wash and pat dry your fish with paper toweliJust Jan's Tangerine Marmalade on raw sea bass.ng. Salt and pepper one side of the fish, then evenly distribute the oregano over all. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add in the Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade to melt and whisk to combine. Brush on your seasoned sea bass fillet. Roast for 10 minutes per inch of thickness of your fish. I roasted mine for about 12 minutes.

Finish with a light sprinkling of Maldon salt, serve with LOVE and enjoy this totally yummy main course.

This jam with butter is outstanding, so naturally it’s great on toast!

You can still get this product in our MARY’s secret ingredients spring box for sale here. We only have a few left so hurry. Perfect gift for Mother’s Day!!

Filed Under: Dinner, Fish, Poultry, Products for sale Tagged With: easy chicken breasts, easy sea bass fillet recipe, juicy chicken breasts, Just Jan's, Tangerine Marmalade

100 Cups A Day with Gazpacho

April 22, 2016 by Mary 15 Comments

100 Cups A Day tiny beautiful handmade cup.Natalie Blake, an amazing ceramist, founded 100 Cups A Day to bring attention to the need of providing clean water for all. Clean water and food are basic human rights. We, at MARY’s secret ingredients are so very happy and grateful to partner with Natalie, bringing attention to both of these initiatives, when you add in our contributions to Feed The Children.

The hand made symbolic cup in our spring box is beautiful and should remind us that everyone on this earth should have access to clean water. After all, our bodies are made up of more than 50% water. Clean water must cycle through us for general health and well-being. If it’s dirty, of course it will only spread and promote diseases.

Visit both of Natalie’s sites. Her work in custom pieces for interior designers is gorgeous. While this tiny cup should act as a gentle prompt of the need for clean water for everyone, you can purchase larger cups on 100 Cups A Day and support this initiative.

!00 cups a day with toothpicks.How can you use this little cup? Fill it with toothpicks to be in your life everyday. Or use it as a shot glass/measuring tool when making drinks. Each cup is hand thrown and a different size so determine how much yours holds.
100 Cups a Day with Gazpacho.Or you could make this delicious gazpacho and serve gazpacho shots to start a party!

This is a remake of my original gazpacho recipe, where I eliminated the water. Try this recipe and be aware of the water in your life.

Visit Natalie’s site to bring more cups to your home and support this initiative of clean water for all! You won’t be just buying a vessel, you will become a vessel. Proceeds from your $22.00 paid for each cup (a much larger cup) will go to www.caminosdeagua.org. Each month, Natalie and her team will donate proceeds from selling cups to one of the 100 organizations working to support the health of water.

Natalie says, “Commit to a practice. Start right where you are to allow imperfection to teach you to pass on what you learn.”

GOLDEN GAZPACHO WITH AVOCADO – serves 4

2 pounds of mixed yellow and red Campari tomatoes
1 small garlic clove, crushed
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 of a jalapeño, minced, with seeds
Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper
1 avocado, diced

In a food processor, puree the tomatoes, crushed garlic and jalapeño. With the machine on, gradually add the olive oil until incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.

Ladle the gazpacho into bowls, top with diced avocado, and serve with LOVE.

The gazpacho can be made ahead and refrigerated overnight.

Filed Under: Dinner, First Course, Products for sale, Soups Tagged With: 100 cups a day, handmade pottery, Natalie Blake, water awareness

Savory Choice Vegetable Pho Spring Soup

April 20, 2016 by Mary 11 Comments

Savory Choice Veggie Authentic Pho.I love this concentrated Pho. This is a reprise item in our spring box just because 1.) I love it so much and 2.) it is a staple in my pantry and should be in yours too.

The other day I made this super fresh spring soup for a dinner party to absolutely rave reviews – and it’s so easy, it’s ridiculous!!

So when my husband asked me to make it again, I could say, “Sure!!” Cuz it’s easy peasy and takes no time! It’s a wonderful light first course to start a springtime meal.

This delicious broth with comforting soft rice, crisp asparagus and lovely green peas combined with the fresh dill – well it’s so fresh, pretty and tasty, how could you not LOVE it?

And since this is a reprise product, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my two other delicious recipes using this concentrated Pho.

But you can use this Pho for anything. When I was feeling very sick with the flu a while back, Steve made me a delicious quick chicken soup with this broth, some shredded leftover roasted chicken and a little bit of this and that in vegetables from the fridge. Perfect and just what the doctor ordered.

Keep some always on your shelf! Cook like a pro as many top chefs use these Savory Choice products in their famous restaurants. Enjoy!!

Savory Choice Vegetable Pho spring soup with asparagus, peas and dill.

SAVORY CHOICE VEGETABLE PHO SPRING SOUP – serves 4

3 packs of Savory Choice Vegetable Pho
6 cups of water 
1/2 cup long grain white rice, rinsed very well and drained
8 spears of asparagus, tough ends broken off, cut on an angle into 1″ pieces
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
Fine sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped dill

Dissolve Pho stock concentrate in 6 cups of hot tap water. Whisk together in a medium pot to combine and bring stock to a boil. Add well rinsed rice and simmer for 2 minutes less than the package instructs.

Add asparagus and peas and simmer 2 minutes. Test to make sure the rice is tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir in dill.

Ladle soup into bowls and serve with LOVE!

Filed Under: Dinner, First Course, Soups, Vegetables Tagged With: asparagus in soup, easy springtime soup, light springtime soup, vegetarian soup

Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise Crusted Catfish & on Veggies

April 17, 2016 by Mary 3 Comments

Sir Kensington's Dijonnaise.Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise is a wonderful new product from the people who brought us the great ketchup. They are changing the condiment space with all natural, non-GMO products made with real ingredients, like egg yolks in this one, just like you would use to make homemade mayonnaise. Definitely refrigerate this after opening, although it’s so good with so many uses, it won’t last long.

This combination of mayo and Dijon mustard with some mustard seeds thrown in is super delicious!! The consistency is not goopy but rather thick and sauce-like which means you don’t put too much of it on your sandwich and you really can use it as a yummy, luscious sauce.

It is terrific on any steamed vegetable. I’ve used it on steamed Brussels sprouts, sugar snap peas and green beans. And then there’s this roasted catfish recipe that is just divine. I’m sure you’ll find a myriad of uses for this stuff – it’s that good!!

While this was in our spring MARY’s secret ingredients spring box and there are a few left so you can still purchase one, you may be able to find this product in some stores but it is not yet up on their site shop.

Dijonnaise catfish with steamed broccoli on a white plate.

SIR KENSINGTON’S DIJONNAISE CRUSTED CATFISH – serves 3

1½ lbs. catfish fillets
½ tsp. coconut oil
French Grey salt, finely ground, or sea salt
Fresh ground pepper
6 tsp. Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise
2/3 cup panko
1 Tbs. unsalted melted butter

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Slick the coconut oil on a rimmed baking sheet.

Wash and dry the fish with paper toweling. On bottom side of fillet, salt and pepper to taste. Spread 1 tsp. of Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise on top of each fillet with a knife. Sprinkle some panko all over the top to cover.

Turn the fish over and do the same thing on the other side. Drizzle the melted butter over the top of all 3 fillets.

Roast in the oven on the top shelf for about 12 minutes, until fish is completely white and flakes but is still very moist.

Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!

Sir Kensington's Dijonnaise on sugar snap peas in a Simon Pearce bowl.

SIR KENSINGTON’S DIJONNAISE ON VEGGIES – serves 3

½ lb. sugar snap peas or Brussels sprouts
2 Tbs. Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise

Wash and clean your vegetables. Cut the Brussels sprouts in half. Steam until crisp tender and bright green. For the sugar snap peas, steam about 2 minutes and longer for the Brussels sprouts – 5 -10 minutes, depending on their size.

Remove steamer from the pan for a minute or two to let the vegetables air dry. and toss with Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise. Total yum!!

For the sugar snap peas, it’s best to lay them out on a linen towel, cover and dry, before tossing with Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise.

All easy peasy and SO good – and good for you!

Filed Under: Dinner, Fish, Products for sale, Sides, Vegetables Tagged With: Dijonnaise crusted catfish, Sir Kensington's Dijonnaise, steamed sugar snap peas with Dijonnaise sauce, upgrade any steamed vegetable

MARY’s secret ingredients spring 2016 subscription box

April 16, 2016 by Mary 5 Comments

Our MARY’s secret ingredients spring 2016 subscription box shipped early last week to amazing RAVE reviews!!! This box is so very special with fantastic products supporting terrific causes. As you know, with the box we support Feed The Children, the global organization dedicated to providing aid to children and fighting the hunger epidemic. 

And also included in this great seasonal box are two other items supporting important causes. 100 Cups A Day supports clean water solutions starting with the state of Guanajuato, Mexico and The Tea Spot donates ten percent of its sales in-kind to cancer and community wellness programs.

Here is our unboxing video!

Read about all of these products in more detail below. As always, I created some scrumptious new recipes using each one, which will be posted on this site over the next two weeksMARY's secret ingredients spring 2016 box.

 

This box is so special, as we are not only inspiring you with healthy new products to help you make awesome LOVE inspired food but you are also supporting all of these great initiatives when you buy a box.

As a special offering, we have made up more of these subscription boxes so you can still go to maryssecretingredients.com and buy a box for $34.00. That price includes shipping anywhere in the continental US. This is quite a good deal since the box is worth over $55.00!

Mother’s Day is coming – this makes a great gift!

100 Cups A Day tiny beautiful handmade cup.100 Cups A Day

100 Cups A Day is an organization dedicated to the physical and spiritual well-being of water, founded by sculptor and ceramic artist Natalie Blake. Natalie is awesome!! Each cup is hand-thrown in porcelain by Natalie and her assistant Kyle in her studio in Brattleboro, Vermont, with all proceeds going to Caminos de Agua – an organization working to innovate and implement open source solutions to sustainable, safe, clean drinking water in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico and globally.

100 Cups

For this spring box, Natalie has crafted a special edition symbolic cup. “The simplest vessel gifting the simplest need. Drink 100 cups of water and become aware of water in your life.”

Joseph Joseph

Founded in 2003 by twin brothers Anthony and Richard, Joseph Joseph specialises 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 Joseph Joseph stainless steel gorgeous garlic rocker. its multi-award-winning designs.

Rocker 100 – Stainless Steel Garlic Crusher

By using downward pressure and a ‘rocking’ motion, this stylish, stainless steel tool crushes garlic cloves quickly and easily by forcing the pieces up through its mesh holes, leaving your hands free of garlic odour. Simply use the Rocker™ 100 to crush your garlic, then spoon or scrape it from the curved press with ease to add to your cooking. Rocker™ 100 is easy to clean under running water but is also dishwasher safe. A game-changing kitchen gadget that will revolutionise your garlic crushing!

Just Jan's Tangerine Marmalade in a jar.Just Jan’s

It was December 2011; a decades long career in the film industry was coming to an end and Jan was looking for a new endeavor. One day while delivering a batch of fig spread to a friend, Jan had a chance encounter with a food industry veteran. Word had gotten out about this film producer’s fig spread, and he wanted to know if it was as good as he had heard. Jan ran home, got what was left of the spread, and met him at a coffee shop so he could taste it. After tasting it, he said “This is better than anything on the market. Would you consider doing this for a living?” The rest is history. Today, Just Jan’s can be found in the Four Seasons San Francisco & Westlake, and at select gourmet retailers across the country.

Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade

Just Jan’s Tangerine Marmalade, is a unique twist on traditional Orange Marmalade. Our Tangerine Marmalade is all natural and lower in sugar, allowing the bright citrus flavor of tangerine to shine through. Brighten up your morning toast, or try it in your evening cocktail.

Savory Creations Veggie Authentic Pho.Savory Choice

Located in Northern California, Savory Choice offers a full range of premium broth concentrates. They have been making news around the country because they deliver broths that taste good enough for chefs to call their own. Their clean label products contain no MSG, or HVP, and they’re naturally gluten free with zero trans fats.

Veggie Authentic Pho:

Made with traditional flavors and aromatics, infused in a rich broth, this Pho contains no artificial flavors or coloring added and is made with natural ingredients. Add your choice of protein or veggies, cooked rice noodles and garnish with your choice of condiments to create the perfect pho dish in minutes. Each stick pouch of liquid broth concentrate is reconstituted with 2 cups (16 oz) of hot water. Savor the homemade flavor!

Sir Kensington's Dijonnaise.Sir Kensington’s

Launched by Scott Norton and Mark Ramadan in 2010, Sir Kensington’s offers award-winning lines of ketchup, mayonnaise, and mustard. I met Scott just last week – super nice guy!!

Sir Kensington’s strives to create products recognized as both healthy and uncompromisingly delicious by using only-the-best ingredients such as Certified Humane eggs and whole tomatoes.

Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise

Sir Kensington’s Dijonnaise is the perfect blend of mayonnaise and mustard. With slightly spicy notes of their propriety mustard mix, paired with smooth and tangy Classic Mayonnaise, this is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. Enjoy with your favorite sandwich, or as a crust on seared fish.

The Tea Spot

The Tea Spot Meditative Mind tea sachets package.

The Tea Spot is a leading producer of handcrafted whole leaf teas and the creator of Steepware®—innovative tools that make the premium tea experience effortless and accessible. The company was founded in 2004 by Maria Uspenski, a cancer survivor drawn to the health benefits of leaf tea during her recovery. Her message is simple and powerful: tea in its freshest form renders premium flavor, unmatched health benefits, and is eco-friendly. Through their 10% Pledge, the company donates ten percent of sales in-kind to cancer and community wellness programs

Meditative Mind Sachets

These premium sachets contain a soothing white tea blend to sharpen the mind and arouse the senses. Rosebuds are known to ease nervous tension and have a calming effect. The exotic floral scent of night–blooming jasmine is used as an anti-depressant in herbal medicine. This combination works together to enhance the light, subtle flavor of the white peony tea leaf base – creating the perfect remedy for a stressful day.

Filed Under: Cookware and tools, Products for sale Tagged With: condiments, Gifts, healthy new condiments, healthy new food products, hostess gifts, Mother's Day gifts, subscription boxes, subscription food boxes

Kale & Farro Salad with Spicy Butternut Squash, Broccoli, Radishes & Cashews

April 10, 2016 by Mary 10 Comments

Kale and farro salad with spicy butternut squash, broccoli, radishes and cashews in two white bowls.There are so many snack boxes out there — Graze, Love With Food, Snack Nation and Nature Box to name a few. I went to a food conference last Saturday called Founder Made, where numerous new food product founders participated. A lot of discussion was had about how millennials eat, much of it revolving around snacking. And Graze was there touting their “healthy” snacks. 

Well I’m here to tell you that while their snacks may not be fried potato chips – they are “healthier” than that – but they are high in calories and sugar just the same. And if you eat three well-balanced meals, you should have no need to snack at all. Come on – one of their snacks was pecan pie pecans – that’s full of sugar and super fattening! That is not a healthy snack.  

So the millennials will be overweight and even more detrimental, not understand the value of eating right, balanced meals in the first place. This is like the “low fat” craze of the 80’s – total hogwash!

So what we aim to do with MARY’s secret ingredients is to introduce you to new healthy products that will easily turn a ho-hum ordinary meal into a special gourmet “company” meal. We want to show you how to create fantastic dishes, super easily, with the new healthy products we have curated for you. It might be a new flavored natural jam or a condiment that can be used on steamed vegetables to create a sauce that gives it a wow factor, or creating a unique marinade with tea or how to make a spectacular sauce for grilled fish. Suddenly, “ordinary” moves to “extraordinary” with a few simple moves utilizing our new natural products. And you will know EXACTLY that what you’re putting into your body is good for you, wholesome and will make you feel terrific!!! And we want to eradicate hunger with our partnership with Feed The Children.

All good things!

The spring box shipped last week and I’m excited to share with you the recipes for those new products starting later this week.

I found this today on The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation site – one of my faves:

The first wealth is health. – RALPH WALDO EMERSON

When you regard your life as a trust, you realize that the first resource you have to take care of is your own body. This can be startling. Even your body is not really your own. It belongs to life, and it is your responsibility to take care of it. You cannot afford to do anything that injures your body, because the body is the instrument you need for selfless action. That is the fine print of the trust agreement: when we smoke, when we overeat, when we don’t get enough exercise, we are violating the terms of the trust.

If you want to live life at its fullest, you will want to do everything possible to keep your body in vibrant health in order to give back to life a little of what it has given you.

So on to my recipe of this Kale & Farro Salad with Spicy Butternut Squash, Broccoli, Radishes & Cashews, which was super delicious!

I always think of butternut squash as a winter vegetable so I want to tell you about this dish I made up the other night before spring really gets here, even though it should be here already. All of us on the East coast are still wearing scarves and winter coats. It’s crazy!

This was totally yummy with a lot of ying and yang – cool and hot, spicy and not, crispy and soft textures – a beautiful symphony of flavors and a very satisfying vegetarian dish. Make it tonight – with LOVE – and all will be right in the world.

Promise.

Kale and farro salad with spicy butternut squash, broccoli, radishes and cashews in one white bowl.KALE & FARRO SALAD WITH SPICY BUTTERNUT SQUASH, BROCCOLI, RADISHES & CASHEWS – serves 4

4 oz. chopped kale leaves
1 cup farro, cooked
1 small butternut squash, cut in generous ½” squares
1 large onion, cut in ½” squares
2 Tbs. coconut oil
3 Tbs. spice rub* (recipe below – also great for pulled pork)
1 bunch of organic broccoli
1/3 cup chopped roasted, salted cashews
4 thinly sliced radishes
Olive oil for drizzling
2 wedges of lemon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

*SPICE RUB RECIPE:

1½ Tbs. sweet paprika
½ Tbs. garlic powder
½ Tbs. brown sugar
½ Tbs. dry mustard (Coleman’s)
1½ Tbs. coarse sea salt

Mix the paprika, garlic power, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt together in a small bowl. 

This makes more than you need and is also great to rub on a pork butt to make pulled pork. Double it if you’d like to have some extra on hand. Keep in a tightly closed container

Combine the squash and onions with the coconut oil and spice mix on a rimmed baking sheet. Toss all to combine and roast in the oven for 35 – 40 minutes until tender. Toss at the halfway point, at about the 20 minute mark.

Meanwhile, cover the farro with about 3 inches of cold water. Salt with a little coarse sea salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30 – 40 minutes. Taste test with a fork for tenderness. It should be a bit chewy. Strain in a fine mesh colander when done.

Wash all the kale in a lettuce spinner, removing any large stems. Spread on a clean counter to air dry, then chill in a paper towel lined plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Wash and peel stems of the broccoli. Cut each stem into 4 or 5 smaller stems and steam for about 10 minutes, until bright green and crisp tender. When done, remove the steamer of broccoli from the pot so it can air dry a bit.

Wash and trim the radishes. Using a hand mandolin, slice into very thin slices.

Coarsely chop the cashews.

Everything should be done all around the same time, so now you’re ready to assemble!

Line low flat bowls with the kale leaves. Place ¼ of the cooked farro in the middle, with the kale forming a ridge around the edge. Place a scoop of the butternut squash on top of the farro.

Chop the steamed broccoli into 2” lengths, leaving the flowerets intact and place them around the edge of the farro. Tuck in sliced radishes in four places around the bowl as shown.

Place chopped cashews on top of the squash. Drizzle some olive oil on the kale edge of the bowl, and follow that with a squeeze of lemon juice around that same kale edge.

Serve with LOVE, a Vouvray and enjoy!!!

Filed Under: Dinner, Salads, Vegetables Tagged With: butternut squash, farro, kale, vegetarian, warm salads

Flounder Fillets with Garam Masala, Avocado & Mayo

April 3, 2016 by Mary 12 Comments

Fillet of flounder roasted with Garam Masala topped with avocado and homemade mayo with lemon roasted asparagus and baked ziti.

I love fish. But, it can get boring. I mean, it’s delicious roasted with a little olive oil, French Grey salt and fresh ground pepper but you know, after so much of that, it becomes ho hum. So, I am always on the lookout for something different, something new and not fattening. (Ok, so the mayo’s a little fattening.)

So the other day on the way home from work I was reading the dining section of The Times. They had an article about making your own masalas – Indian spice mixes. Sounded great but I didn’t happen to have any fresh curry leaves in the house. That, I’ll definitely have to go hunt for or order online. But then I read the shrimp recipe where they said you could also use Garam Masala and that I had, along with my flounder fillets. Success!

Then, I also remembered this dish my friend Margaret makes – I think it’s a Bittman recipe – of salmon with an avocado topping.

And then, I’ve been reading about coconut oil and how it’s supposedly so good for your brain. I’m for that!

Additionally, I had made the Sauerkraut Salad and had some leftover mayo from that recipe.

So here’s what I did. This was SO good – like a restaurant meal!!

Flounder roasted with Garam masala & topped with avocado and homemade mayo.

FLOUNDER FILLETS WITH GARAM MASALA, AVOCADO AND MAYO – serves 2

2 tsp. coconut oil
2 flounder fillets
French Grey salt
Fresh ground pepper
Garam masala
1 avocado, cut into chunks
2 schmears of homemade mayo

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Slick a rimmed baking sheet with 1 tsp. coconut oil. 

Wash and pat dry your fish fillets. Lay on the oiled baking sheet and rub 1/2 tsp. of oil on the top of each fillet. Salt and pepper to your taste, then sprinkle with Garam masala. 

Roast in the preheated oven 10 – 12 minutes, until it flakes and is white in the thickest part.

Place on warm plates. Top with the avocado cubes and the smear of mayo as shown. Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!!

I served this with simple roasted asparagus topped with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a spoonful of leftover baked ziti. You can roast the asparagus at the same time as you’re roasting the fish and voila! This is an easy delicious 30 minute meal!!! (you don’t really need the ziti – I was just trying to clean out the fridge.)

Filed Under: Dinner, Fish Tagged With: fish with Indian spices, flounder, roasted flounder, roasted flounder with Garam masala

Our spring box is awesome!! Last week to order.

March 27, 2016 by Mary 10 Comments

First of all, Happy Easter! May you be blessed with new beginnings, all good things, sunshine on rainy days and flowers of all colors!!

I want to tell you that for our spring MARY’s secret ingredients box, we are waiting for a very special item so we are set to ship on April 5th. This is a remarkable box.Sauteed chicken with sugar snap peas.

To give you an idea, with the products in this box, you can make a meal like this, in just 20 minutes. Seriously. And it’s seriously delicious!

Dijon Mayonaise sauce on steamed sugar snap peas.

This incredible product sauces up any vegetable – takes it from “every day” to a company meal!

You know, food is the new medicine. Actually food and herbs are the old medicine, new again, in vogue again. I got sick with a flu this past week on Tuesday night and got rid of it in a day by drinking green and turmeric tea, very hot, with lots of honey, vegetable broth soup with lots of vegetables, bowls of fresh fruit and lots of sleep – did the trick! I was back on my feet on Thursday. But I think that’s also because I eat healthy all the time so I don’t often get as sick in the first place and can rebound quicker. And I take a lot of Vitamin D-3.

My husband was sick with the flu first, but for three whole days! He does not take the vitamin D-3.

Back to the box. This box is so incredible, if you haven’t ordered it, you must. You really must because it is so good and it is doing so much good. First off, it’s got incredible things – the box is worth over $56.00! And with the code 25OFF, you can buy the box for only $25.50. And all of the products in the box, as always, are all natural, good for you, kind of things. They all enable you to turn ordinary meals into extraordinary!

So not only are you getting a “steal”, you‘ll be doing a great deal because this box, as every one of our boxes gives back to Feed The Children, and through 100 Cups A Day, fights for clean water and through another partner, gives back to cancer research. It’s a total win-win all around!

Little yellow cups on a log at the water's edge.

Here’s a peak at these beautiful little handmade cups – great for sake or tea – reminding you of the importance of clean water for everyone.

Heck, you should buy two boxes – one for you and one as a gift. It makes a great hostess gift.

So order one today. You only have this week left before they ship. Remember, I email you custom recipes using each ingredient after you receive the box so you never have to worry about how to use a certain product. You’ll be able to make great meals like this super easily.

joseph joseph serrated knifeAnd if you buy a year’s subscription, only $108.00, you’re also eligible for the golden ticket item, this amazing 4” really sharp serrated knife that has this cool elevated rest, so the blade never has to touch the counter. There are only 10 of these and you must be a full year M club member to be eligible as only 10 random M club members will be chosen to receive this awesome knife by Joseph Joseph.

Wishing you the best day! Celebrate spring and cook with LOVE!

Filed Under: Products for sale Tagged With: Mary's Secret Ingredients, new food products, subscription boxes

Pear & Brown Sugar Upside-Down Cake

March 20, 2016 by Mary 16 Comments

Pear and brown sugar upside down cake on a white platter.

I realize that I don’t often post dessert recipes. That’s because I don’t often make them, unless we’re having company for dinner. Personally, I would much rather have something salty and crunchy as a treat, as I rarely crave sweets, unless it’s a piece of chocolate after dinner. How about you? Are you a sweet or savory kind of person?

So last Saturday, when we had our early St. Patrick’s Day dinner with our dear friends Margaret and Wayne, I made this Pear & Brown Sugar Upside-Down Cake. I love pears. I used to make poached pears a lot when our kids were young. I remember our oldest son loved them and even tried making them himself when he was about 12, for his church youth group friends, with totally under-ripe pears – didn’t work out so well – not a good thing. He just thought he could cook them longer, but we all know that won’t work.

This recipe is from Dana Cowin’s new cookbook, Mastering My Mistakes in the Kitchen. She is the former editor of Food & Wine magazine. I had the opportunity to meet her last fall and she’s lovely!

With this book, Dana says, “I’m hoping, though, to encourage people who think they are incompetent in the kitchen to give it another shot, to realize they can do better and it will be fun. I’m trying to erase the embarrassment that sometimes comes with kitchen mistakes and embrace the power of practice and learning.”

MARY's secret ingredients 2015 winter box.

This was our 2015 winter box.

I am trying to do that with this blog and our MARY’s secret ingredients surprise subscription box too! We are running a special on our spring box to spread the word even more, which is set to mail after March 25th. It’s Get One & Give One. Buy one spring box for yourself (for $34.00 including shipping) and tell us who to give the other one to by emailing me directly at mary@maryssecretingredients.com with your friend’s address.

We want everyone to be happy, healthy people walking this earth. Our surprise box of new, natural products you’ve probably never heard of but you need to know about enables you to transform your meals from ordinary into extraordinary! Each purchase helps us in our partnership with the global organization, Feed The Children, as we are donating a portion of our profits to them to combat hunger. And remember, good cooks never lack friends.

This latest spring box is awesome with a value of over $54.00!

Meanwhile, back to the Pear & Brown Sugar Upside-Down Cake. It is easy enough to make but it got really dark with the dark brown sugar and honestly, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it could have been a tad sweeter. I might try to remake this using regular brown sugar and less butter. Some of you, I know, are real experts on desserts. What do you think, if I did that? Would it still work – as the amount of butter – 2 sticks is a LOT! I would think you could do this with at least 2 – 4 Tbs. less. Let me know what you think.

I remember my mother used to make a pineapple upside down cake often on Sundays. Popular in the 60’s and 70’s BUT, she had to use canned pineapple rings and she’d put a half of a maraschino cherry in the middle of each ring – yuck! Remember that? I don’t think fresh pineapples were even available in St. Louis in those days.

I always tell my kids, look at the author or chef of the recipe. Are they overweight? Then watch out, their recipes are likely to be fattening. This is not true with Dana, but this is still a lot of butter.

Pear and brown sugar upside down cake showing pears in pan.Other than that, this is fairly simple and quick to make. You don’t have to use your stand mixer, and it makes a pretty impressive presentation with the beautifully fanned out pears.

Here you go with the exact recipe from Dana’s book, and I did follow it to a T, something I rarely do. Enjoy!!

PEAR & BROWN SUGAR UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE – from Dana Cowin’s Mastering My Mistakes in the Kitchen – serves 8 – 10

Making caramel–heating water and sugar until you have a golden amber syrup–is a fundamental element of many desserts that I love, none of which I’m predisposed to replicate. I have made mistakes over and over again when I have tried to tackle caramel: I’ve overcooked it, I’ve undercooked it and I’ve ended up with gritty crystallized cooked sugar. Grace Parisi, Food & Wine’s longtime recipe goddess, solved the problem with a brilliant shortcut in her recipe for an upside-down apple cake. She got the flavor without actually making caramel by laying the fruit on top of a brown sugar and butter mixture; then she poured over the simple batter. I’ve adapted her method here with pears instead of apples. Sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to work around it.

1⁄2 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature, for the pan

FOR THE PEARS
4 Tbs. (1⁄2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1⁄2 cup packed dark brown sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
2 ripe but firm pears, such as Bosc or Bartlett, peeled, cored and cut into thin wedges (about 1⁄3 inch thick)

FOR THE CAKE
2 large eggs
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1⁄3 cup whole milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
12 Tbs. (11⁄2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
11⁄2 tsp. baking powder
1⁄2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
11⁄2 cups all-purpose flour

FOR THE GLAZE
1⁄4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 Tbs. whole milk
1⁄4 tsp. almond extract

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round cake pan with the 1⁄2 tablespoon butter and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper.

For the pears, using a rubber spatula, mash the butter with the dark brown sugar and salt in a large bowl until combined. Using your fingers, spread the mixture evenly in the prepared cake pan. Arrange the pear wedges in the pan in concentric circles (filling in any gaps as necessary with smaller pear wedges)

For the cake, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, milk and extracts in the bowl you used for the butter mixture; whisk in the melted butter. Whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl, then whisk into the wet ingredients until the batter is just smooth. Scrape the batter over the pears and spread it in an even layer, without disturbing the pears.

Bake the cake until it is golden and springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool on a rack for 30 minutes.

Run a dinner knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake. Place a serving plate over the pan, carefully invert the cake onto the plate and remove the pan. Peel off the parchment paper. Let the cake cool completely.

For the glaze, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and almond extract in a small bowl.

Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. Cut into wedges and serve.

Pear & Brown Sugar Upside down cake - a slice with creme fraiche.

Serve with crème fraîche and LOVE.

MAKE AHEAD
The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Filed Under: Brunch, Desserts, Products for sale Tagged With: Dana Cowin, fruit desserts, Mastering My Mistakes in the Kitchen, Pear and Brown Sugar Upside-down cake

Best Corned Beef Dinner

March 15, 2016 by Mary 8 Comments

Corned beef and cabbage dinner for St. Patrick's Day dinner.

My mother was funny about St.Patrick’s Day. She’d always make a corned beef and cabbage dinner (all about the food!) yet she wouldn’t let us wear green. She’d say. “You are not Irish. You’re Polish – wear red.” Yes, she was very proud of her Polish heritage and wanted us to be too. Many of my girlfriends were Irish so boy did I look like an outsider.

This past Saturday, I made this pretty awesome dinner if I may say so myself. It was an early St Patrick’s Day celebration with our friends, Margaret and Wayne. My corned beef didn’t come with a spice packet so I did some reading on what those spices might be and threw in my own and then some.
Irish soda bread fresh from the oven.Margaret has a bit of Irish blood in her and she made the most beautiful and deliciously light Irish soda bread.

Spring chicken soup with asparagus, peas, rice and dill.

We served it with this new super fresh simple soup that I’ll tell you about later, because I will make it again and again.

Here you go on THE BEST CORNED BEEF!

BEST CORNED BEEF – serves 8 or 4 plus corned beef hash for 4 plus a lunch!

4.25 lbs. corned beef
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
1/2 tsp yellow mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. allspice seeds
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
1/2 tsp. coriander seeds
1/2 tsp. caraway seeds
10 juniper berries
1/4 tsp. whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
2 dried bay leaves.
10-12 small red skinned potatoes
10 carrots, peeled and cut into 3 – 4″ lengths.
One head of cabbage, cut into 6 or 8 wedges.
Grainy mustard for serving
Horseradish for serving

Cover the meat completely with water, throw in the spices and bring to a boil in a very large soup pot, covered. Skim any dirty foam and reduce heat so that it just simmers for about 3 hours or until fork tender. 

During the last 30 minutes of cooking add the potatoes and carrots.

Remove the meat, let rest on a board and add the cabbage wedges to the pot to cook for about 15 minutes.

Slice the beef in thin slices against the grain. Arrange in the center of a warm platter. Place the potatoes, carrots and cabbage artfully around the meat. Spoon a little warm cooking liquid over everything. 

Serve with the mustard and horseradish 

This corned beef was so flavorful and delicious! My piece was a little over 4 pounds as I wanted leftovers, because on Sunday morning, I made homemade corned beef hash with most of the leftover meat and potatoes!! Brilliant, right? Corned beef hash and over easy eggs with toasted Irish soda bread.While I need another go around at this before I share, this was a good beginning. It was flavorful but I didn’t achieve the crispy crust I was looking for and I think it would have been better if I had used a griddle pan, rather than a skillet. Just as soon as I perfect this recipe, I will share. It’s just not quite ready for prime time yet. Corned beef hash with and over easy egg breaking the yolk over it.

But isn’t this just luscious!?!

Our oldest son appeared at our apartment tonight for dinner and while he was waiting for us to come home, he had some of the leftover corned beef hash and said, “Mommm, when did you make this? It’s really great – just like a diner!”

Oh the luck of the Irish – two meals in one! Happy St. Patrick’s Day to EVERYONE!!! Spread LOVE through a great corned beef meal!

Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: corned beef and cabbage, corned beef hash, St. Patrick's Day dinner

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