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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!

Zakuska!

March 3, 2013 by Mary Frances 15 Comments

Okay, so here is a question:

What is a zakuska? (zuh-KOOS-kuh)

Tick tock tick tock tick tock….

HMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!

an hors d’oeuvre!

This Russian word for a snack, zakuska, entered the lexicon in the mid 1880’s as a derivative of kusát meaning “to bite.”

So you can invite all your guests for a little zakuska and drinks, the next time they come over.

(Now why is it that both words for something to eat with a drink are from a different language?)

Bean dip in a red bowl with vegetables and crackers.
Here’s a quick pic my friend Judy snapped of the bean dip she made recently for a birthday celebration. A great zakuska!

Please share with me your pictures of dishes you make from the recipes here – I’d be delighted to publish!

Filed Under: Appetizers Tagged With: bean dip, crackers, crudites, hors d'oeuvre, vegetable strips, zakuska

Great Valentine’s Day and Super Bowl recipes

February 3, 2013 by Mary Frances 7 Comments

Our latest newsletter went out this past Thursday with two very special recipes, never before seen here and perfect for a Valentine’s Day dinner. If you haven’t signed up for it, you won’t receive it. But, you can sign up now, in the upper right hand column of this blog, and I will personally make sure you get one pronto.
LOVE_enewsletter_jan_2013-cropped

Also, don’t forget, our LOVE the secret ingredient aprons make a great gift for any time of the year, reminding you to always cook with LOVE. When you do, everything will always taste better! If you order by February 5th, you can still receive it in time for V-day!

And for the Super Bowl tonight, check out these recipes – Super Easy Nachos, Nacho Burgers, Artichoke dip, and my Bean Dip!

Enjoy!!Nachos-Full plate– Nachos made fresh and easy

Filed Under: Appetizers, Dinner Tagged With: artichoke dip, bean dip, great dips, LOVE aprons, Nacho burgers, nachos, newsletter, Super Bowl recipes, Valentine's Day gifts, Valentine's Day recipes

A great bean dip

December 31, 2012 by Mary Frances 21 Comments

We all need something to eat during cocktail hour, whether your cocktail is wine or a martini. I don’t want it to be fattening or filling, but it needs to be something. I am also a big protein fan. My body, as I was told by one doctor, needs a lot of protein, so I made up this clean tasting, protein-laden dip, with vegetables as the dipping device. This is great for any party, particularly New Year’s Eve!

MARY’S BEAN DIP

One 16 oz can of cannellini beans, drained, rinsed and drained
2 – 3 rounded tbs. hot horseradish, with juice drained, let your taste decide amount
3 tbs. olive oil
1/2 head of roasted garlic
1/2 of a lemon squeezed – add gradually and taste
1 tsp. ground cumin
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
3 tbs. chopped fresh parsley
Olive oil to drizzle on top
Cumin powder to sprinkle on top

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Take one head of garlic and slice the whole thing in half, horizontally. Place on aluminum foil, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Close up the two halves on top of one another and make a tight closed packet with the foil. Roast for 45 minutes to one hour until the garlic is soft and brown. (You can use the other half for many things – add to mashed potatoes, vegetables, anything!)

Place beans, horseradish, olive oil and squeeze 1/2 head of the garlic cloves into the bowl of a food processor and process until chunky. Add half of lemon juice, salt, pepper, and cumin and process again and taste. Add more lemon if you like and process until a nice smooth consistency. Use more olive oil if you need to, to make it smooth. Add the parsley at the very end and pulse just once or twice. You just want the parsley distributed throughout the dip. Alternatively, you can fold it in by hand.

Place in a bowl to serve, drizzle on more olive oil and sprinkle some more cumin on top.

Serve with fresh fennel, celery, red pepper, endive spears or any other fresh dipping vegetables you like.
Bean dip in a MOMA hand bowlYou can’t have a more LOVING presentation than this! This hand bowl was a gift from our friends Carl and Roger – from the MoMA Design Store – isn’t it great?!!

Filed Under: Appetizers Tagged With: bean dip, celery, cumin, endive, fennel spears, horseradish, New Year's Eve dip, parlsey, protein dip, red pepper, roasted garlic

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Mary Frances

Mary Frances

Spread love through cooking.

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