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

Waffles for a Sunday Brunch

April 6, 2014 by Mary 38 Comments

To have a real brunch party is great fun – a different time of day to entertain! Last Sunday was our last day with Bianca and Cesare visiting from Italy by way of South Carolina, as Cesare is learning the American way in South Carolina for the Italian company he is working for. Bianca is the daughter of the family our eldest son lived with in Arezzo, when he was doing his semester abroad in college some 8 years ago. Our two families became instant friends with visits going back and forth from the day of our meeting. This stay Bianca was with us for 10 days, Cesare came on Thursday for the weekend. They both love food and fortunately are fans of my cooking so they are a joy to cook for. For her goodbye meal, Bianca wanted pancakes or waffles. I opted for waffles for Sunday brunch,

A variety of chicken and lamb sausages.

along with some sausages and a big beautiful fruit salad. Of course, since this was a party, some of us started with mimosas (made with Prosecco) or Bloody Marys.

Luscious fruit salad garnished with torn mint leaves.

I have not made waffles in a very long time, since the boys have grown up and we are not together on Sunday mornings very often. And I am not the type to be whipping egg whites to fold into the batter, if you know what I mean. I wanted something simple and quick, knowing I’d have to make a double batch for the eight of us. I found this wonderful recipe online from In Jennie’s Kitchen blog, similar to the one in the recipe book that came with the waffle iron eons ago that I could no longer find. It was great – perfect – easy – delicious! Bianca says she wants to get married, only so she can get a waffle iron as a shower or wedding present! (I think I’ll get her one soon!)

Now the thing I was fretting about late into Saturday night, was how was I going to keep the first cooked waffles warm while continuing to make them and have the full batch ready for everyone. A little research online came up with a very low temperature in your oven and put them straight on the racks, not on a plate or cookie sheet as that would cause moisture to form and sogginess to beset them. So I did this, but the lowest my oven would go was 175 degrees and they were recommending 150. So I turned the oven off and on, afraid they would dry out. In hindsight, I should have just left it on at 175 the whole time, as they could have been a bit hotter.

Here’s the recipe with thanks to In Jennie’s Kitchen:

QUICK & EASY HOMEMADE WAFFLES – makes 5 to 6 Belgian-style waffles

1 3/4 cups flour
1 tbs.baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups milk
2 large eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, melted butter and vanilla extract. Pour the milk mixture over the dry mixture and whisk until just combined. Let sit five minutes to “develop” (just a fancy word for letting the baking powder activate).

Meanwhile, heat your waffle iron. Pour, or ladle, enough batter to cover about 2/3 of the surface (the rest will spread once you close the top). Most waffle irons have a handy light that goes on or off, signaling the waffles are ready. A sure sign of doneness is once you see all the steam has stopped shooting out.

Have a LOVEly brunch wherever you are!

In Southern Cali!!

March 9, 2014 by Mary 27 Comments

We are in California for a few days, on little Balboa Island, visiting my brother and sister-in-law, getting a little R & R and will do some business in Beverly Hills on Tuesday before heading back east. It is so darn pretty here, I have to pinch myself. We arrived last Thursday and every day is more gorgeous than the last. We reached 80 degrees yesterday, over 80 today. The lyric – “It never rains in Southern California…” keeps on going through my head. This warm sunshine is a very, very welcome relief, after the constant wearing of long underwear, rubber boots and two sweaters with at least one being a turtleneck every single day, back in NYC.

We’ve gone for local walks visiting friends, long bike rides, and hiking in a state park.

Here’s my husband “hiking”

They’ve cooked fantastic meals and we had a wonderful dinner out last night. Just to share with you, here’s our lunch from yesterday. Seared sesame crusted tuna on a salad with raw beets and sugar snap peas. And our breakfast from this morning – sunny side up eggs on a bed of frisee with bacon, finished with a tomatillo sauce. But tonight I will cook. So we went to the farmers market yesterday morning. You know you’re in California when you see the most gorgeous heads of lettuce all lined up, all perfect and so green and fresh along with the largest array of succulents I’ve ever seen. Just look at how pretty they are! We got some great local corn chips and homemade tomatillo salsa to start our evening. I also bought some burrata and buffalo mozzarella from the nicest Italian man, to serve with beautiful tomatoes and basil.

Take a look at this squash. I’ve never seen anything like them before. I’m going to make a mustard coated chicken and I’m going to grill these little babies with some radishes tossed with some olive oil and salt and pepper. Aren’t they just too cute?!! Some fingerling potatoes will be roasted and we’re going to have a rockin’ good time tonight as my brother Steve has, as usual, picked out some stellar wines to serve with all. Stop in to his wine pairing blog to know what you should serve with your meals.

Newport Beach

May warm weather shine upon you soon, wherever you are!!

Healthy breakfasts

February 17, 2014 by Mary 36 Comments

On Sunday mornings, we like to have a big breakfast/brunch type of deal – eggs, turkey or chicken sausage, toast (with maybe a little of Ethel’s delicious honey on that), fruit salad and tea.

Yesterday, I made an omelet. I used to make them all the time when the kids were home – a big one with, like, 8 eggs. They loved it – with all kinds of fillings – and making them a lot keeps you in practice. Flipping practice. Well, it appears I am seriously out of practice. Just check out this photo – not a pretty sight. But, it tasted good! I filled it with provolone and cheddar cheeses, some finely chopped raw red pepper, fresh grape tomatoes and a chiffonade of basil. It was tasty, but time consuming. And, it makes a mess! (Although pictured here, the garlic was NOT in our omelet.)

Now if you want a healthy breakfast in a flash, check out these good folks at Mix My Own Healthy Breakfast. It’s a husband and wife team with a neat concept. You literally choose what you want to go into your custom mix of cereal, with tons of healthy, organic options to choose from. They asked me to mix my own cereal and review their product. I chose oats, goji berries, raw almonds, walnuts, wheat germ, bran, spelt and barley flour flakes along with quinoa, acai powder, blueberries and a whole host of healthy things. I don’t really eat cereal with milk anymore, mainly because the kids are gone and we don’t have milk around. But, I do love to put cereal on my plain low fat Greek yogurt and then drizzle a little honey on top. That’s a real energizer in the morning!

Mix My Own has tons of things to choose from (it can be dizzying) and they keep track of your combination so you can easily order it again, because who could remember? Fortunately, if you are overwhelmed and find making decisions tough, you can also order pre-mixed versions such as gluten-free or antioxidant varieties. The end resulting product is delicious, although depending on your ingredient choices, it can be pricey. They ship nationwide and my one-pound bag, with shipping, was just under $20. If you love cereal or granola-type things, visit their website and create your own combo. It’s a good thing!

Happy mistakes

May 6, 2013 by Mary Frances 16 Comments

Yesterday morning, while I was making our Sunday breakfast, I was doing too many things at once and kept on messing up. No matter how many people tell you that multi-tasking is good, it is not! I was rushing, trying to get a load of laundry in, thinking about planting my tomatoes and how I could con my husband into digging a new garden and listening to the Sunday morning TV political talk shows on the radio, while I was making sausage patties, eggs, fruit salad and warming bread.

After my sausage patties were all done, I realized I had forgotten to put in the half of the minced shallot that I wanted to. Ah, no matter, I thought, I’ll put them in the eggs! So I put some butter in the pan and the minced shallots with the heat on low. Then I went to spray Shout on the laundry, went to the bathroom, and went upstairs to make up the bed, totally forgetting about the shallots in the pan. I came back and they were nearly burnt. So as I was about to throw them out, I thought, wait, these could be crispy minced shallots on TOP of the scrambled eggs and voila – it was really good!

The sausage patties were really good too! Here’s the recipe:

BREAKFAST SAUSAGE PATTIES
– makes 10 – 12 patties

2 tbs. of a combo of herbs – minced sage, rosemary and mint leaves
1/2 large shallot, minced
1 small egg (or beat an egg and use 2/3 of it – the rest can go in your scrambled eggs)
1 lb. ground pork – I use a local grocery store’s bulk ground pork breakfast sausage that is seasoned with salt, pepper and a little dried sage. So if you start with plain ground pork, add salt, pepper and 1/4 tsp. dried sage leaves crumbled
1/4 cup of panko
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper (skip this if your ground pork is already “seasoned” for sausage patties)

Mix all ingredients together with your hands. Shape into small patties. This should give you 10 – 12 patties. Sauté in a non-stick skillet on the stove, medium high heat, about 5 minutes per side, with the pan covered. Pork should be at 155 – 160 degrees. Enjoy!

And oh – I burnt myself too. I had warmed a casserole dish in the oven, to put the finished scrambled eggs in. I forgot that it was hot and picked it up with bare hands!

TIP: Always have Tea Tree oil around as that is the best for burns! (but, the smell is strong and not very good around food)

P.S. Seriously, due to the tea tree oil, I am fine today!

French toast!

February 11, 2013 by Mary Frances 13 Comments

This is one of my favorites. I made French toast for our Sunday breakfast. I’m sharing it with you now so you can use it for next Sunday and keep Valentine’s Day going with all the LOVE you have!

For me, French toast only works with powdered sugar and no syrup. My husband likes syrup, but only the pure maple syrup from Vermont is allowed in our house. For that reason my family hardly orders this at a restaurant because most places try to pass off the fake stuff (Mrs. Butterworth’s or Aunt Jemima) and the difference is palpable. Since many restaurants do not have powdered sugar, I never order it out either. I need the touch of powdered sugar to make my toast work!
FRENCH TOAST
– serves 4

4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup of whole or 2% milk
1 generous tsp. pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Ground cinnamon
8 slices of 1/2” thick sliced bread or Challah
Unsalted butter
Pure maple syrup or powdered sugar

Lightly beat the eggs and use a fork to whisk them together with the milk, vanilla and salt in a glass pie plate. (Use this flat dish so you can soak 3 slices at a time.) Sprinkle ground cinnamon on the mixture and then whisk in. Melt 1/2 tbs. of butter in a large flat-bottomed skillet or griddle pan, using medium – medium high heat. Dip bread slices in the egg mixture on both sides to soak up the liquid. Place in hot pan and check in 4 minutes. Turn when nicely browned and cook on the other side. Add the remaining 1/2 tbs of butter and swirl while the toast is in the pan, if you think you need it. Serve warm with pure maple syrup or powdered sugar.

A breakfast of turkey sausage, French toast and sliced apples on a white Wedgewood plate.

Our breakfast – before the powdered sugar sprinkling!

The paczki recipe

December 21, 2012 by Mary Frances 16 Comments

Many of you have asked for the paczki recipe. Now you’ll see what a labor of LOVE it is. These would sure taste great on Christmas morning! The dough is similar to the Polish bread I make for Christmas breakfast. (Agata makes that too.) She was so sweet to take the time to share this recipe, as she is in graduate school, cramming on final papers now.
So a big THANK YOU to Agata!!!

PACZKI (pronounced poonchki)

-2 packs of dry yeast (it’s like 14 grams…I hope I am right, the conversions were annoying. But yes, I used those two small packs you left me in the fridge)
—> put it into a bowl, add a tablespoon of sugar, a pinch of flour and add a bit of warm (important! not cold, not hot) milk. Let’s say, half a cup.

Let it sit to rise a bit. (30 min?)

Then add 8 yokes, 6-7 tablespoons of sugar, 1.5 cup of warm milk again and the tricky part – flour. I don’t have an exact measurement because I always judge for myself if the dough needs more flour. Let’s say, it is important to add gradually and see how the dough looks like. Somewhere between 4 and 5 cups. I also melt 3.5 ounces (almost an entire stick) of butter. I add it when it’s warm, not too hot but again, cannot be cold. And then I use my hands to knead the dough. In case the dough is too watery and sticky – it needs more flour, and if it’s too heavy, it means that there is too much flour but it can be fixed by melting and adding the rest (0.5 oz) of the butter.

Then I let it sit again, wait until rises high (could be up to 2 hours even) and form small doughnuts (it is important to remember that they will puff up when they are waiting to be fried and then when they are fried. So if somebody wants them small, they should be made pretty tiny to begin with).

And then we need, I think, half of the bottle of corn oil, heat it up in a pot. In order to check it if it is hot enough and if we can fry the doughnuts, we can throw in a tiny little piece of dough. When it sizzles – we can start frying them. We fry one side and then turn it. They should not be too dark but also not too light. In order to figure out the right timing, it helps to cut open the first ones up to see if they are done.

When they are done – we put them on a plate lined with paper towel. At the end, we mix cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and turn the doughnuts in it.