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

Shakshuka

December 22, 2019 by Mary 4 Comments

Shakshuka. The name is a bit of a tongue twister, but do learn to say it and make it! This shakshuka recipe is so good, you’ll find yourself making it again and again. It is relatively easy and a perfect brunch dish – or even dinner on a busy weeknight. Paired with a good piece of toasted bread, preferably sourdough, along with some good country sausage, and you’re all set!

Shakshuka hails from North Africa, and traveled all along the middle East, now has become ever so hip and popular here.

Perfect for holiday brunches

With the holidays upon us, I thought you would enjoy this recipe especially for those of us welcoming houseguests and relatives. I’ve made this several times for “sleepovers” and here’s just a few of the comments – “thank you Mary for a most memorable brunch” – from a hard-to-please big brother, and then there was, “Gee I feel like I’m at an expensive Bed and Breakfast!” from new friends, and “delicious brunch spread” from a sister-in-law.

So please enjoy and feel free to alter ingredients – the kinds of peppers and cheeses – for example. Do use only the real San Marzano tomatoes, making sure your can says “D.O.P.” to insure they are genuine. You can use regular paprika but I prefer the sweet smoked kind from Spain. My husband never like smoky things, except for salmon and whitefish, so now at least I can use it with abandon, although I’d rather have him around. 🙁

Shakshuka in skillet with raw eggs. — Shakshuka in skillet with raw eggs

SHAKSHUKA – serves 3 – 4

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 medium onion, thinly sliced (use a hand mandoline)
1 large green pepper, stems, seeds, and ribs removed, thinly sliced
2/3 of one fresh small jalapeño chili including seeds and ribs, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons sweet smoked Spanish paprika
2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds
1 28-ounce can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by squeezing with your hands
3 – 4 oz. feta cheese, cubed in ¼” pieces or crumbled
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Large handful of chopped cilantro or parsley, or a mix
6 – 8 eggs
Crusty bread, for serving, preferably sourdough, toasted
Country sausage for serving – optional

The process

Heat olive oil in a large, deep skillet or straight-sided sauté pan over medium high heat until shimmering.

Add onion, green pepper, and jalapeño chili and spread into an even layer. Cook, without moving, until vegetables on the bottom are deeply browned and beginning to char in spots, about 6 minutes. Flip vegetables and continue to cook until vegetables are fully softened and spottily charred, about another 4 minutes.

Add garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add paprika and cumin seeds and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Immediately add tomatoes and stir to combine. Reduce heat to a bare simmer and simmer for 10 minutes, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Remember the feta is salty, so do not add too much salt.

Add the feta now and some of the parsley and/or cilantro, saving enough to garnish finished servings. Stir all to combine nicely.

Using a large spoon, make a well near the perimeter of the pan and break an egg directly into it. Spoon a little sauce over edges of egg white to partially submerge and contain it, leaving yolk exposed. Repeat with remaining 5 – 7 eggs, working around pan and into the middle as you go.

Cover, and reduce heat to lowest setting, and cook until egg whites are barely set and yolks are still runny, 6 to 8 minutes.

Serve 2 eggs with sauce in large shallow bowls as shown.

Shakshuka serving with sausage and bread. — Shakshuka serving with sausage and bread

Garnish with cilantro or parsley. Serve immediately with crusty bread and LOVE. A side of sausage is lovely to go along with this. And have your serving bottle of EVOO on the table for those who want a little more oil. Be prepared for silence and ummm’s.

Enjoy!! And Happy Holidays!

Char-grilled Broccoli with Sweet Tahini

October 27, 2019 by Mary 6 Comments

Did you know that broccoli is one of THE most nutritious vegetables? I just learned that and I LOVE broccoli. This recipe from Ottolenghi of Char-grilled Broccoli with Sweet Tahini is super delicious and really different tasting.

Make this soon while it is still warm enough to grill outside, because trying to grill it inside does produce a fair amount of smoke, so better to be outside.

Nutritional benefits

More importantly, back to the nutritious benefits of broccoli, did you know that a cup (91 grams) of raw broccoli provides 116% of your daily vitamin K needs, 135% of the daily vitamin C requirement and a good amount of folate, manganese and potassium? It’s a top source of natural plant chemicals shown to help lower the risk of some cancers (though many other things also affect your cancer risk).

According to one doctor, broccoli is all you need! It’s because the green vegetable is good for healthy gut bacteria, bowel health, and improving immune health.

As an overall marker of health, gut health is quite important as it has a “profound influence not only on our digestive function but also on our mood and brain function” and may also affect our weight and potential joint pain, according to Dr Chatterjee.

This link between healthy gut bacteria and a healthy mind is relatively new, as science emerges.

According to Harvard University Medical School, a person’s stomach or intestinal distress can actually be the cause of anxiety, stress, or depression “because the brain and gastrointestinal system are intimately connected”.

So this is why we must all eat more broccoli!!

Now I am NOT a lover of tahini. In fact, I do not like it at all in hummus, but because this is sweetened a bit with honey, along with the addition of garlic and lemon, this is just different, delicious, and delectable!

Charred Broccoli with Sweet Tahini Dressing.

CHAR-GRILLED BROCCOLI WITH SWEET TAHINI – serves 4

1 head of broccoli – 1+ lbs.
1 TBS. olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
2.5 TBS. tahini – at room temperature and stirred thoroughly so all oil is incorporated
1½ tsp. honey
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, peeled and crushed
Water – at room temperature
1 tsp. each white and black sesame seeds, toasted (or just 2 tsp. toasted white sesame seeds)

Trim any big leaves off of the broccoli and cut off the woody base of the stems. Blanch for three minutes in boiling, salted water until al dente, refresh, drain and leave to dry.

Toss the broccoli in the oil, a teaspoon of salt and a large pinch of pepper, then cook on a very hot, ridged griddle pan or outdoor grill for two minutes on each side, until slightly charred and smoky. Set aside to cool.

Whisk the tahini, honey, lemon juice, garlic and a pinch of salt, and slowly start to add water, half a tablespoon at a time. At first, the sauce will look as if it has split, but it will soon come back together. Add just enough water to make the sauce the consistency of honey – around three tablespoons in total. Arrange the broccoli on a platter, drizzle with sauce and scatter the sesame seeds on top. Serve at room temperature.

Charred Broccoli with Sweet Tahini Cose-up. — Charred Broccoli with Sweet Tahini Close-up

This is a perfect accompaniment to any meal. And you can make it ahead of time – no sweat!

I hope you LOVE this Char-grilled Broccoli with Sweet Tahini recipe as much as I do.

My New Normal Dinner of Roasted Vegetables with Prosciutto

November 19, 2017 by Mary 9 Comments

As you know, I’ve moved to Italy for 3 months, trying to sort out my head, my life and yes even my dinners, after Steve’s passing. My support system of friends here is totally amazing, but my whole life has changed. I so miss Steve.

In Italy, dinner is eaten usually not any earlier than 8:30 pm, which is actually about the time we used to eat in NYC but it’s different now, not coming home from an office and with the time change, 9 am in New York is 3 pm here. It is kinda cool that I have all that time in the morning to myself but then I can work until midnight because it’s only 6 pm there, and that is not healthy, I know.

So lately, I’ve been eating bigger lunches – pasta, at that time, if I want it, – and then a salad or just vegetables for dinner. Often I’ll meet one of my friends for an aperitivo (cocktail) in town at 7 or so and then come home to make a light healthy dinner, eat, check in with the office and do some more work.

I don’t know what we have done to our food supply chain in the US. Here, everything is so darn flavorful and DELICIOUS! For example, sauteed escarole, just simple with olive oil, salt and pepper, is divine!! In the States, we used to buy our vegetables from organic farmers, but even those veggies cannot compare to the ones here. I think we’ve ruined our food system forever in the U.S.

So one evening, I made the dish below, roasting cauliflower and yellow peppers, then throwing in tomatoes at the end, letting the warm combination sit on cool baby arugula (that still tastes peppery here), basil leaves and some avocado to add some creaminess. The prosciutto adds big flavor and protein. Serve this with a slice of bread, some great olive oil and you’ve got a fantastic dinner!!

ROASTED VEGETABLES WITH PROSCIUTTO – serves 2

2 small handfuls of arugula
12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
½ head of cauliflower, cut in small flowerets
1 yellow pepper, cut into 1/3” strips and then cut each strip in half
6 thin slices of prosciutto, trimmed of fat, cut into 1/4” strips
1.5 Tbs. olive oil
Salt
Pepper, fresh ground
12 large basil leaves
1 small avocado, halved, and each half cut into strips

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Toss cauliflower and yellow pepper with olive oil, season with salt and pepper to taste and roast for about 12 minutes on a parchment lined, rimmed baking sheet. Then add the tomatoes and toss all to combine. Roast for 10 more minutes until all is tender and wonderful. Lightly salt again now, if you wish.

Place a small handful of arugula on each plate. Tear up 4 basil leaves and scatter on top of each plate of arugula. Arrange the half of the avocado on each plate, in a circle.

Scatter ½ of the prosciutto slices on top of the avocado and mound ½ of the roasted cauliflower, yellow pepper and tomatoes on top.

Tear up the rest of the basil leaves and sprinkle around on top, leaving one or two leaves as an accent.

Serve with LOVE and bread, if you’d like. Total delish!!

Thanksgiving is coming this week (and so is my birthday) the first of many firsts without my honey, Steve. I am so, so sad. Not much to do to relieve the sadness. I just cry a lot.

But that is not for you. Here is my Thanksgiving book for any of you who need it.

I will be hosting this Thanksgiving on the Saturday after – on the 25^th – at my friends, Tiziana and Andrea’s house as they have a table big enough to seat 14 people. Our younger son, Zach and his wife, Agata, will be flying in from Poland. Our older son and his wife, Kate will spend it with my brother and sister-in-law and their family in Connecticut.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving to you all. Sending lots of LOVE and great food!!

Eggplant Tarts Make a Great Tuscan Starter Dish

October 13, 2017 by Mary 12 Comments

Franco’s dish at the cooking class at Tuscookany.

Hello again.

I am trying to be back after my husband’s passing in June. It is so very hard. Three things are helping – cooking and Tuscany, plus of course, ALL of my close friends.

I decided to move to Tuscany, San Fabiano, near Arezzo, in particular, to be in a different place all together and to be with dear friends. I will be here for nearly 3 months to test it out.

I am renting a Count’s home on their vineyard, overlooking a small lake. I’m hoping that a new view may give me a new outlook on my life going forward. It is very hard when you’ve had the same partner you’ve loved for literally 2/3’s of your life.

My friends here in Tuscany encouraged me to do it, helped to set it up and have been so incredibly warm and welcoming and what they say in Italian about me and the passing of Steve to others, I can’t hear (just yet) so I don’t cry as much.

I am going to take Italian language classes. I started with 2 lessons while still in New York with a lovely young man, Giancarlo. I know the days of the week, counting, some key phases and a few other things. It’s really very little, but it’s a start.

All of this was put into place during my last trip to Tuscany in late July, after Zachary’s wedding in Poland. And during that last trip, I had the most fortunate opportunity to cook with Franco and Paolo at Tuscookany.

Tuscookany is a most marvelous place, lined with lavender, overlooking three mountain ranges high on an mountain itself, where you can stay and learn to cook Italian classics, like pizza, tiramisu, gnocchi and some brilliantly revised dishes like Franco’s Eggplant Parmigiano, revisited, that I will share with you here. He calls it Eggplant Pudding. I prefer to call it Eggplant Tarts – I think this name is more appropriate for the sophistication of this dish.

Franco and his partner, Paola (they said they are not married but nearly, as they have a mortgage together) run the amazing cooking school. If you recall, when we all visited Tuscany last year for Bianca’s wedding, Cristina had given me this book that I had talked to you about where I made the most marvelous pasta bean soup. Well, Franco was one of the authors of that cookbook!!

In this recent class, we cooked from about 3 pm until 6:30 or 7, then had time to freshen up or have a glass of wine and enjoy the view (me) and eat the dinner we all made starting at 8 and lasting until 11 or so with wine flowing throughout and the after-dinner drinks – oh my word – so many of them!! And of course I had to sample a few and arrived home to Tiziana very drunk. She was sweet and said I was “just a bit tipsy.”

This eggplant dish is not difficult to make at all, a real surprise to serve your guests, light, flavorful and so, so delicious. But, it does take time. However you can make the tarts and the sauce the day before and warm both up in the microwave, assemble, and serve, so that makes it super easy.

I have taken numerous cooking classes but only Franco’s and another one I’ll tell you about later, in Spain, really taught me new tricks and methods. Franco is quite knowledgeable and also down to earth. He teaches you things you can easily use as a home cook to pump up your skills. You can put his techniques to use right away, as I made these just as soon as I got home in August.

For instance, if your tomato sauce is a bit too acidic, instead of adding sugar, add a tiny bit of baking soda, watch it bubble, just like in chemistry class, and voila! The acidity will be gone through and through, not just in your mouth but in your tummy too!

Another great tip from Chef Franco – leave hard eggplants out with your fruit for 2 days to soften and ripen and they will be much more flavorful.

My version of this dish!

Here are the recipes:

EGGPLANT TARTS – adapted from Chef Franco Palandra – serves 12

3 large eggplants
3 eggs
8 large basil leaves, chopped
Mint leaves from 4 stems, chopped
1 3/4oz. of capers, drained and finely chopped
3 anchovy fillets, patted dry of oil and chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely minced
Olive oil in spray format
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Mozzarella cheese or Buffalo Mozzarella cheese, sliced in ¼” thick slices while cold.
Tomato sauce – recipe follows

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Wash and dry the eggplants. Pierce the eggplants in several places with a fork, place on a parchment paper-lined, rimmed baking sheet and roast for 45 – 55 minutes. When the eggplants are soft and the skin looks wrinkled, remove from the oven and let them cool down.

Cut each eggplant in half, lengthwise, and scrape the insides out, leaving the skin intact as much as you can. Chop the inside membranes of the eggplants and place in a fine mesh colander to drain. Squeeze as much liquid out of the eggplant membrane as you can, before adding the rest of the ingredients below.

Combine the capers, anchovies, garlic, basil and mint and add to the drained eggplant. Lightly beat the eggs separately and add to the eggplant mixture along with salt and pepper to taste. Combine everything in the mixture thoroughly.

Eggplant tarts ready to go into the oven.

The Eggplant Tarts before going into the oven.

Spray the insides of the cups of a 12 cup muffin pan with olive oil spray. Line each cup with some skin from the eggplant, so that the cooked purple side will be on the outside when the cup is turned over. Fill the eggplant skinned lined cups with the eggplant mixture and place the muffin tray on a rimmed baking sheet and bake the eggplant tarts for 20 – 27 minutes in a 350 degree F oven. The tarts should be firm and not wet looking when done.

Allow the tarts to cool slightly, then invert the muffin tin pan on a large flat cutting board. Tarts should be served warm and they can be easily microwaved to a warm temperature before serving.

TOMATO SAUCE – serves 12

2 lbs. of whole plum tomatoes, washed, cored and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
5 Tbs. olive oil
1 bunch of fresh basil
Salt
Pepper

Warm the oil in a stainless steel or enameled Le Creuset pot. Add the onions and garlic, cover and cook on low heat to sweat and sweeten the onions, for 12 – 15 minutes, stirring often. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for 45 – 60 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft and lovely. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Pass the mixture through a fine sieve or food mill to remove all skin and seeds.

If the sauce is too sour, add ¼ tsp. baking soda.

You can make this sauce ahead of time, refrigerate and warm in the microwave to serve.

TO PLATE EACH DISH:

Slice the mozzarella cheese in ¼” thick slices while still cold, then cover with plastic wrap and leave to attain room temperature and more flavor.

Cover the bottom of each small serving plate with a thin layer of warm tomato sauce. Cut each slice of mozzarella into quarter pieces to open up the serving circle a bit and place in the center of your pool of tomato sauce. Or alternatively, grate the buffalo mozzarella in a circle in the center of the tomato sauce. Place a warm eggplant tart on top of the cheese. Garnish the plate with 2 – 3 basil leaves and serve with a smile and LOVE!

Your guests will LOVE you for this!!

Get Dressed Sesame Sensation Roasted Eggplant Noodles

April 10, 2017 by Mary 13 Comments

Don’t you wish you had a go-to recipe for a cool meal you could make ahead and serve either hot or cold to your guests? Well, let me tell you about my Get Dressed Sesame Sensation Roasted Eggplant Noodles recipe with the wonderful Get Dressed Sesame Sensation Dressing & Marinade. This dressing & marinade is so rich and flavorful, it is so much more than a salad dressing! I was able to make this amazing main course dish in practically no time, because “dresser”/owner/creator Vanessa Miller has done all the work for you. Full of garlic, sesame and red chili spice, this is a dream to work with and makes a delicious spicy vegan meal!

Vanessa was a NYC school teacher who loved to entertain large groups of friends and family in her Manhattan apartment, much like her Tunisian mother did when she was growing up here. At those gatherings, Vanessa would fill a buffet table with tons of food and many different salad dressings. Her friends raved and encouraged her to go public with them. So she quit her teaching job, pooled all her resources and started Get Dressed Salads!! Now, she has five flavors and is working on expanding her distribution.

Her husband, a commercial real estate broker, happened to bring one of his clients to our space, as we were moving out of our offices and noticed our boxes – and that’s how we met! He’s a sweetheart, always on the lookout for placement of his wife’s products.

This recipe of Get Dressed Sesame Sensation Roasted Eggplant Noodles is just perfect for a complete meatless meal. Buy smaller eggplants that are super fresh and firm and chop into the 1/2” cubes and roast for only the 15 minutes as you don’t want them to be mushy. I only added the red pepper to roast for 5 minutes because I wanted that to be a bit crisp. You could also add matchsticks of seedless cucumbers as a topping if you’d like, along with the chopped peanuts, scallions and cilantro.

I served this warm when I first made it, but eating the leftovers cold is just as yummy, maybe even better, so you could make this a day ahead and relax the day you’re serving.

Make this soon, with LOVE! It’s so easy!

GET DRESSED SESAME SENSATION ROASTED EGGPLANT NOODLES – serves 6

1 lb. eggplant – 2 small ones are better than 1 large, chopped into 1/2” cubes
1 red pepper, cut into ½” squares
1 cup of Get Dressed Sesame Sensation, divided
1 Tbs. low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbs. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
3 scallions, thinly sliced
½ cup roasted peanuts, chopped
¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro
1 lime, cut into wedges
1 lb. spaghettini
Coarse sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Put a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta.

Cut the eggplant into ½” cubes and toss with ½ cup of Get Dressed Sesame Sensation salad dressing in a bowl. Let marinate at room temperature for 20 – 30 minutes while you prepare the red pepper squares, shell and chop the peanuts, wash and chop the cilantro and slice the scallions.

Turn the marinated eggplant out onto a parchment covered rimmed baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10 minutes. At the 10-minute mark, add the red pepper squares to the eggplant, tossing to mix and coat with the dressing and then roast both for 5 more minutes. The eggplant should be crisp tender and the red pepper should be slightly crisp.

While the vegetables are still roasting, salt the boiling pasta water, generously with coarse sea salt to taste like the ocean. Cook the pasta. Start testing at 2 minutes less than the least amount of time stated on the package.

Meanwhile, pour the remaining ½ cup of dressing in a wide pasta bowl. Add in the soy sauce and two vinegars and whisk together.

Drain the cooked al dente pasta and add to the sauce in the bowl along with the roasted eggplant and red pepper, scraping all the juices off of the parchment, tossing with tongs to coat thoroughly.

Serve in wide soup bowls, topped with the chopped scallions, peanuts and cilantro, with a squeeze of fresh lime over all. The lime is so great! Just the right spark of acid.

Enjoy!!

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Onion Dip with Home Cook’s Pantry Za’atar

December 20, 2016 by Mary 7 Comments

Open this little packet of Home Cook’s Pantry Za’atar and get ready for a huge fragrant explosion of deliciousness! Sumac, sesame seeds and other herbs make this a terrific combination to use on ANYTHING.

Really.

Combine it with some olive oil and dip a piece of good bread into it and I guarantee, you’ll be hooked.

For the most part, I like to use fresh herbs in my cooking. But some flavors you just can’t get fresh, like sumac. And when you can get a dried spice mix that’s carefully blended and super fresh, well, let me tell you, it’s nothing like the McCormick supermarket dried spices.

Use this za’atar on vegetables, meats, chicken or fish. I particularly loved it in this warm butternut squash dip – both in the dip and sprinkled on top to finish it. This is a great dip to serve for holiday entertaining. It’s different, totally delicious and even healthy!

There are different spice blends that fall under the name za’atar, a typical Middle Eastern staple in cooking. They can be predominantly green or red in color. Recipes for such spice mixtures were often kept secret, and not even shared with daughters and other relatives. Can you imagine? This za’atar contains pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, sesame seeds, ground sumac and thyme.

Home Cook’s Pantry buys fresh whole spices and grinds them when you order. They stock over 90 unique spices to make their blends. Each mix has a shelf life of one year and they never use MSG, artificial coloring, or anti-caking agents in any of their seasoning blends.

They can also customize your blend – more heat, less sweet, omit for allergens – whatever your needs, they can accommodate. They are really special!

On to the recipe:
ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND RED ONION DIP WITH HOME COOK’S PANTRY ZA’ATAR – serves 8 – 10

1 large butternut squash (2 1/4 lb. in total), cut in half lengthwise with seeds scraped out
2 medium red onions, cut into 1 1/4-inch wedges
4 Tbs. olive oil, divided
3 1/2 Tbs. light tahini paste
1 1/2 Tbs. lemon juice
2 Tbs. water
1 small clove garlic, crushed
Maldon sea salt or Kosher salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 Tbs. Home Cook’s Pantry za’atar, plus more to sprinkle on top
3 1/2 Tbs. walnuts
1 Tbs. coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Rub the cut sides of the squash with ½ Tbs. of olive oil and fill a baking dish with ¼” of water. Place squash cut side down in the water. Meanwhile in another baking dish, toss the red onion with 2 Tbs. of olive oil, salt and pepper. Place both pans in the oven and roast for 25 – 30 minutes, until the onions have taken on some color and are tender. Remove the onions and leave to cool. Turn the squash right side up and roast for 10 – 15 more minutes until it is very tender when pierced with a fork.
When squash is done, remove from the oven to cool. When squash is cool enough to handle, scrap the squash from the skin and place in a food processor along with the onions and all of the juices from the onion pan. Add 1 Tbs. of olive oil and the other ingredients, except for the walnuts and parsley.

Process this mixture into a smooth puree.

Pour the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil into a small frying pan and place over medium-low heat. Add the walnuts along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, until the nuts are golden brown. Remove from the heat and transfer the nuts and oil to a small bowl to stop the cooking.

To serve, spread the warm dip out in a low shallow bowl. Sprinkle the walnuts and their oil on top, followed by more za’atar and parsley.

Serve with baked pita chips and a variety of dipping vegetables – celery, carrot and fennel strips are nice along with breakfast radishes.

This is a super healthy appetizer recipe to have on hand in the midst of all of the rich food of the season. Make and serve with LOVE!