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

Pecan, Olive Oil and Benedictine Coffee Cake with Magisso Cake Server

December 22, 2016 by Mary 4 Comments

The Magisso cake server, so pretty in pink, is a sleek, sexy little tool that is included in our winter MARY’s secret ingredients subscription box. Beautifully designed, made of undulating curves of plastic with the edge sharpened on one side, makes cutting and serving your cake a singular beautiful motion. Press down to cut, gently squeeze in to lift, and release your grip to place the cake piece on your plate.

It is a most harmonious motion. No sawing with a knife, no messy pieces, just giving you pure unadulterated pieces of cake with a sexy little curve to the shape of your piece.

So I made this nut cake, trying to recapture a nut cake recipe that my mother used to make. It was her favorite cake. Loaded with finely ground nuts and not too sweet, she loved it. Me, as a kid, not so much. But here I was last Sunday craving it!

Here is the recipe:

PECAN, OLIVE OIL AND BENEDICTINE COFFEE CAKE WITH MAGISSO CAKE SERVER – serves 10

Unsalted butter, for the pan
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
3 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup Benedictine
3/4 cup pecan halves, toasted and finely chopped
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Strawberries, slightly sweetened whipped cream, or ice cream (butter pecan or vanilla) for serving with the Magisso Cake Server

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toast pecans in a pan in the oven for 7 – 8 minutes. Remove nuts from the pan right away to prevent further toasting and place on a cutting board to cool. Then finely chop.

Generously butter a 9-inch round cake pan and dust with flour, set aside.

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.

Put eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on high speed until light in color, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add granulated sugar; beat until mixture is pale and thick, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low; mix in oil and liqueur. Lightly fold in flour mixture in 3 batches using a rubber spatula. Fold in toasted pecans. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake cake until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean, 20 – 24 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes. Turn out cake onto rack to cool completely. Turn cake over on a plate and dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Cut with Magisso cake server and serve with strawberries and slightly sweetened whipped cream or ice cream (butter pecan or vanilla). Let the ice cream get a little melty on the cake – pure heaven…

This cake even tastes better after a day or two – wrap it well in plastic wrap. Always serve with LOVE and enjoy!!

Still have a gift to get for that difficult person on your list? We have MARY’s secret ingredients gift cards here!! Gift cards are delivered by email and contain instructions to redeem them at checkout. Our gift cards have no additional processing fees. Easy peasy!

2016 Winter Subscription Box Revealed

December 16, 2016 by Mary 2 Comments

The holidays are here and this MARY’s secret ingredients 2016 winter subscription box is the perfect festive gift! We’ve got delicious organic green mint tea (an awesome combination), and bright red lingonberry jam to make your toast (and many other things) festive! Then, the coolest looking cake slicer and server from Finland to cut and serve your cake oh so neat, the most potent and fragrant za’atar spice mix to add zip to anything, and RayZyns made of wine grapes, that are full of antioxidants. Eat these crunchy babies and they’ll keep you healthy all season long, and the MOST DELICIOUS pasta. Ever. Handmade in Brooklyn with just organic semolina flour and water, you will want to eat this everyday!!

When you cook with love and exciting new ingredients, your food will always taste better. So gather round the table, make some memories and spread some LOVE.

Take a look at the video our awesome team of designers put together!!

FELIX

Felix jams has been bringing Swedish lingonberries to the American palate for over 50 years. As familiar as Volvo, IKEA, and Swedish meatballs, lingonberries were recommended on the Doctor Oz Show as a super fruit with antioxidant benefits. This small red berry has been picked and enjoyed since Viking times. Its piquant sweet and tart flavor makes it as unique as it is delicious.

Felix jams are made of simple ingredients: Handpicked wild Lingonberries, pure sugar and fresh water, in a time-tested recipe. Because many Swedes are accustomed to picking their own wild berries, an unusually high standard is required for jams to succeed in Sweden, and Felix is the number one choice.

HOME COOK’S PANTRY ZA’ATAR

Home Cook’s Pantry specializes in fresh, made-to-order spice blends. Each pure blend is customizable to your taste preferences, made without artificial colors, fillers, anti-caking agents or MSG. Experience a different culture at each meal with blends from around the world.

Za’atar is a mix of herbs, sumac and sesame seed. It is an intensely aromatic ancient spice blend and condiment that is used to flavor everything from grilled meats to baked bread. It is also delicious when used on roasted vegetables, sprinkled on salads, and it can also be steeped to make tea.

MAGISSO CAKE SERVER

Established in 2008 in Helsinki, Finland, Magisso has a burning passion to make meaningful design and international business. Over 20 design awards later they still thrive from that same passion. They are driven by a desire to solve problems and create beautiful designs.

With the fun and colorful Magisso Cake Server, cutting and serving your favorite cake is easier and more stylish than ever. All you need to do is press the cake server through a cake, squeeze it gently to lift the piece onto your plate. Release and get a perfect piece of cake upright on your plate.

SFOGLINI PASTA

In 2012, Sfoglini (Sfo-lee-nee) opened its doors in Brooklyn, NY with one clear mission: to bring classic Italian style pasta back to New York City. They are dedicated to sourcing top quality American organic grains and using traditional Italian methods to bring you the same pasta served at some of New York’s most revered restaurants. Spaccatelli, also sometimes referred to as Strozzapreti “priest’s collars”, resembles a rolled-up scroll or towel, smooth and tight. It is superb with a chunky meat sauce that wraps into the curved folds.

STASH TEA

Since 1972, Stash has been dedicated to providing premium quality teas. They begin with tea leaves from the world’s premier tea gardens and the finest herbs and spices gathered from around the globe. Their master blenders combine these botanical ingredients to create unique and delicious teas that are natural and free of artificial flavors and colors.

Organic Merry Mint Green Tea – A festive blend of organic green tea and lively spearmint and peppermint.

THE WINE RAYZYNS Co.

Wine RayZyns are premium, specially dried Cabernet, Chardonnay, and Merlot wine grapes that are high in fiber and have more antioxidants than wine. Packed with nutrition, these dried wine grapes are deliciously sweet with a unique taste and texture that are true to each varietal.

The box contains two of the following flavors:

CabernayZyn™ – Dried Cabernet Wine Grapes – With this RayZyn product, enjoy bold, complex flavors like blackberry, fig, and currant.

ChardonayZyn™ – Dried Chardonnay Wine Grapes – Savor the crisp, rich taste with touches of apricot and toasted caramel with this delightful RayZyn snack.

MerlayZyn™ – Dried Merlot Wine Grapes – Experience this RayZyn product and enjoy velvety flavors with hints of raspberry and plum.

Start the New Year right. Eat healthy. Live Joyfully.

There are a few boxes left and you can buy a winter subscription box here and receive all of these great products! Look out for all of my recipes using these products in the coming days. Better pantries make better meals!

The Joys of Entertaining and of Being Entertained

December 4, 2016 by Mary 11 Comments

So many people wrote to me that they were making my pecan pie recipe or my cranberry sauce or dressing for Thanksgiving! It’s so nice they let me know and it gives me such great joy to know that people are making my food all over the country and loving it! Actually, all over the world as our son, Zach and his fiancée, Agata, were in touch with me often from Warsaw, (thank goodness for Facetime!), as they made my whole Thanksgiving dinner from my book and entertained 11 people for dinner with only one guest being an American.

Zach, Agata and I chatted at length last Saturday, on my birthday, and they told me how much joy it gave them to see all their friends truly relishing every bite. Everyone just loved every part of their dinner, with even one of their guests getting up and sneaking the crumbs left in the pecan pie plate! How very happy it made them to see all of that!

That, to me, is the joy of entertaining and feeding people. That is what gives me so much pleasure.

Here are pictures of their table in Poland and their turkey.

Zach and Agata also said they didn’t know how I cooked Thanksgiving dinner every year, that it was SO much work. They remarked that the two of them were working together and that I did it pretty much by myself. Isn’t that so sweet? I do get help from my husband and honestly, I haven’t made it the last two years.

I wanted to share with you my big birthday celebration. Our oldest son, his wife, and my husband made a beautiful dinner and our friends, Anne and Frank, joined us. But before dinner, they sat me down on the sofa in front of the fire and played a video that they had made of my friends and family from all over the world, singing or wishing me a happy birthday!!! It was incredible and literally brought me to tears. Such an amazing, fun and super sweet gift!

For the dinner, they made homemade pici pasta with a parsley, sage, Parmagiano pesto, a beautiful half-leg of lamb on the grill with Julia Child’s mustard, garlic, soy marinade, and a delicious chocolate cake. That recipe was from Home Cooking with Jean-Georges cookbook, which I will share with you later.

Woman carving a medium rare half-leg of lamb.

Here I am, carving the lamb.

Awedge of chocolate cake with strawberries, a dallop of whipped cream and a dusting of cocoa powder.

A beautiful birthday cake!

I know I am so lucky!!

As you get ready for the holidays, you may want to check out and download my holiday cookbook of small plates, savory and sweet. It’s free and yours for the taking.

Enjoy!!

Our holiday winter MARY’s secret ingredients box starts shipping tomorrow – Monday! Makes a great gift that will arrive in time for the holidays. And every purchase contributes to our partnership with Feed The Children. Maybe this can be the year we eradicate hunger. Wouldn’t that be nice?

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

October 30, 2016 by Mary 12 Comments

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Tangy Sorrel & Potato Soup with Bacon, topped with MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds

October 16, 2016 by Mary 16 Comments

When I first heard about MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds, somehow I didn’t think they could possibly be popped seeds from the lotus flower, but that’s exactly what they are!

The seeds are underneath the lotus flower and one has to remove a brown casing, then pop them like popcorn while seasoning them at the same time. These MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds are flavored with butter and sea salt and they are DELICIOUS!!! Better yet, they’re low in calories and high in protein. It’s a snack that’s actually ok for you! I’m taking these to the movies – way better than that chemical laden popcorn they sell.

Lotus seeds are commonly used in Chinese medications for their healing benefits. They also contain an enzyme with powerful anti-aging properties so I’m going to eat them by the handful!

The company making MOM’S Popped Lotus Seeds is a small family owned business based in Boulder, Colorado. Their founder was first introduced to the deliciousness of popped lotus seeds as a child when his mother gave them to him as an afternoon snack. In his late 20’s, he found himself fed up with foods that were either chock full of calories or healthy but barely edible. He was determined to find a balance between good-for-you snacks and addicting junk food. That journey led him right back to his childhood.

Lotus seeds are known to be effective in alleviating restlessness, due to the natural sedative and calming effects of the seeds. Having raised two boys myself, I think the founder’s mother was one smart cookie, serving these as snack to a young energetic boy, right?

Besides being a delicious snack, I found them great to replace croutons – and better for you with all of these benefits!! My garden was loaded with sorrel last weekend so I made this quick and easy Tangy Sorrel & Potato Soup with Bacon, topped with MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds and it was soooo good!! And, the popped lotus seeds are gluten free as an added bonus.

Try this, if you haven’t already eaten them all.
TANGY SORREL & POTATO SOUP WITH BACON, TOPPED WITH MOM’s POPPED LOTUS SEEDS – serves 4 – 5

1Tbs. unsalted butter
2 oz. nitrate-free smoky bacon, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
1/2 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 Tbs. heavy cream
1/2 lb. sorrel, stems discarded, leaves coarsely chopped.
1 cup of MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds, Sea Salt flavor

Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the bacon and cook over moderately low heat until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until almost evaporated, about 4 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a simmer. Add the potatoes, season with salt and pepper and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the sorrel. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve topped with Mom’s Popped Lotus Seeds Sea Salt flavor.
Pass a bowl of more MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds at the table.

The soup can be made without the sorrel and refrigerated overnight. Bring to a simmer and add the coarsely chopped sorrel just before serving.
MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds can also be ground in a mini grinder, combined with a little freshly grated Parmigiano cheese and used to coat zucchini slices for a great gluten free “breading”. Saute in olive oil, drain on paper toweling. Serve with LOVE and some Roquefort cheese during your next cocktail hour.

There are just a few fall boxes left where you can
get your own bag of gluten free MOM’s Popped Lotus Seeds!

And your purchase helps us support Feed The Children.

POURfect Measuring Beaker with Roquefort Dressing for Baked Crispy Wings

October 11, 2016 by Mary 7 Comments

POURfect products are simply perfect – in the words of my good friend, Margaret! She calls this a handy-dandy measuring cup, because it is easier to see the point on the cup where the surface of the liquid lies.

Due to the fact that this little pitcher is narrow, there is no sloping of the liquid in the center, which is caused by surface tension, so your eye can more easily see the measurement and it will be very accurate, quite unlike what happens in a typical wide mouthed Pyrex two cup measure. So you might think that this is just a measuring beaker, which it is, but it is perfectly designed for the most accurate liquid measuring!

Additionally the handle is uniquely shaped for an easy grip while the spout to pour is flawless, not leaving any drips behind. I’m thinking of using this for maple syrup the next time I make pancakes or waffles! I really dislike those sticky little drips that appear all over the table from a regular little pitcher.

So I made this DELICIOUS Roquefort dipping sauce for wings or salad dressing, in this little pitcher. I used walnut oil instead of olive oil that added a distinctly rich, nutty flavor. Of course you can use this on a salad which I did last night, of finely sliced lacinato or Tuscan kale, farmer’s market Romaine and bacon. Total yum.

But football season is here and we all love wings! Frying is messy and not a great thing for you. I marinated these in buttermilk and hot sauce, coated in panko and “oven-fried” them on a rack at 450 degrees. Much easier in making and clean up and so much better for you.

Happy cooking and measuring!!

BAKED CRISPY WINGS – serves 4 – 5 as an appetizer

7 whole wings, cut into pieces
½ cup buttermilk
2 Tbs. Sriracha Sauce
¾ cup of panko

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Wash and dry wings with paper toweling. Cut into pieces at the joint, discarding the end tip – freeze and save for making stock. Whisk together the buttermilk and sriracha sauce in a small bowl and marinate wings in it for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Drain wings and coat with panko. Place on a rack on a rimmed baking pan and roast in the oven for 12 – 15 minutes, until done and golden. Serve with LOVE, celery, Roquefort dressing and enjoy!!

ROQUEFORT DRESSING

1 Tbs. mayonnaise
11/2 Tbs. buttermilk
2 ¼ tsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
Salt to taste
Cayenne pepper – dash
2 oz. Roquerfort cheese
¼ cup walnut oil

Whisk the mayonnaise, buttermilk, vinegar and mustard together in the POURfect measuring beaker. Gradually whisk in the 1/4 cup of walnut oil and season with salt and cayenne. Stir in the Roquefort cheese.

There are a few fall boxes left where you can
get your own POURfect beaker.