Ok, the secret’s out now so enjoy! It’s a little tricky to share this one because it truly is a “Secret” when you never measure ingredients! But I think this should be close enough: • 1 Large Can crushed Tomatoes • 1 Large Can chopped crushed Tomatoes (with tomato chunks) • 1 small can tomato paste • oregano (use fresh if you have it, if not dried will do) • basil (use fresh if you have it, if not dried will do) • bay leaf • ¼ cup red wine • 3 cloves of Fresh Garlic-chopped fine (use garlic zoom […]
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Sally Cevasco’s Famous Apple Crumb Pie
First Published in the King Arthur Flour’s Catalogue in 1993 see original below with photo of Sally and her daughter Jenna Crust 1 Cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour ¼ tsp. salt ½ cup solid vegetable shortening 1 – 3 TBS. ice water (depending on how much you need to get it to stick together) Preheat oven to 350º F Put the flour and salt in a bowl big enough to work in half the shortening with your pastry blender. Put the remaining shortening in and blend ‘til it looks mixed, but lumpy. It’s OK to handle and mix at […]
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The Best Corn Chowder Ever!
The combination of cold weather setting in and the last of the fresh corn on the cob inspired me to make some corn chowder. Even I was pleasantly surprised at how great this turned out! This would also be a great basic soup to add oysters to or chicken or clams. Ingredients: • 1 ½ TBS. of butter • 2 strips of bacon (replace with ½ TBS additional butter for vegetarian option) • 1 small onion diced • 2 carrots sliced • 2 celery stalks chopped • 4 or 5 ears of fresh corn on the cob, cut from cobs […]
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Sally’s Special Pineapple Coconut Carrot Cake
(This is Sally Cevasco’s original recipe that was published in the King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook’s first publication) http://atastydish.com • 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil • 4 eggs • 2 tsps. vanilla • 1 1/2 cups sugar • 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 2 tsp. baking soda 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder • 1 tsp. salt • 1 TBS. cinnamon • 1/2 tsp. nutmeg • 2 1/2 cups finely grated carrots • 1 cup shredded or flaked coconut • 1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple drained • 1/2 cup chopped nuts Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. […]
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Chicken or Veal Marsala
This is such an easy and fast dish to make but it will definitely impress your friends when you whip this one up! Ingredients: Fresh ground black pepper (I always buy the disposable grinders because they grind nice and course. Now they even have three settings on them so you can grind them finer if you like, too.) 1 cup Marsala wine (Many people don’t realize you can actually get this in grocery stores in states where they are not allowed to carry any alcohol. You’ll find it near the vinegar section.) 4 chicken cutlets sliced in half lengthwise then […]
This recipe is a rendition of a recipe that my daughter’s mother-in-law makes. Unfortunately there isn’t an Asian market anywhere near where I live so I have to improvise. It will be acceptable to improvise and still be tasty but if you can get some
the ingredients at the Asian market I’m sure it will be worth a trip.
1 1/2 pounds of the best and largest fresh shrimp you can find (try a local seafood specialty store instead of the grocery store. You’ll pay more but it’s well worth it!)
Lemongrass (if you can’t find fresh try getting the tube in the produce section)
2 fresh chili peppers (you can use dried if you can’t find fresh)
Fish sauce (optional)
Oyster sauce (optional)
Red curry paste (You can get a recipe here) or watch Endang in the video below explain how she makes it
FRESH IS ALWAYS BEST! So try to get everything you can at your Asian market!
Here is the video I shot of Endang making this wonderfully tasty dish:
Who doesn’t love corn on the cob? I have to admit that I could eat it almost every day when it is in season here.
I have very fond memories of picking fresh corn out in the fields with our Aunt and Uncle who were vegetable farmers.
I was about 9 or 10 when I learned how to drive the tracker. I’ll never forget the time that I was first learning how to drive the tractor and my sister was standing on the
back. Well, I popped the clutch so hard that she got knocked off and was sitting in the middle of the road! We didn’t realize it until we were about a quarter mile away.
Our Aunt looked back and started laughing so hard! It was a special moment.
The other thing that I remember from those days is that is was fun to be at their farm stand on a busy street corner selling what we just picked!
There are a few ways to cook corn on the cob that will ensure it comes out perfectly!! But for the love of life PLEASE, PLEASE don’t OVER cook it!
I see people doing this all the time and I just can’t
understand why they think they need to boil
it for 20 mins. or worse yet 30 mins. or more. STOP!
Here are some options for perfect corn:
1) Boil the water first then put the ears in and only cook for 5 mins. tops.
2) Put the corn in the pot, then turn it on and when it boils remove it from the heat and drain. (if you don’t drain it immediately it will continue to cook)
3) Peel off the outermost husk and leave enough husk on to keep the corn covered. Soak in cold water, then place on outdoor grill on med heat about
10 mins. per side. Or if you prefer a roasted flavor, peel entirely and place directly on grill, turning a couple of times. Remove when grilled to your liking.
Be sure to buy the freshest shrimp you can find. We have a seafood
store locally that brings in really fresh fish and seafood. The shrimp is
always much better quality and fresher when purchased there!
1 lb. of shrimp (you can double this if needed)
Fresh cilantro chopped
White wine
Fresh garlic (about 1 to 2 medium cloves to taste) sliced, chopped or minced (I use the garlic zoom featured here)
Olive oil
Fresh cracked pepper
Remove shells and clean the shrimp.
Heat a couple of TBS. of olive oil in a skillet. (we use the side burner on the grill when cooking seafood sometimes to keep the house from getting all stinky!)
Saute the shrimp for a few minutes then add the cracked pepper & garlic. Saute for another couple of minutes then pour in the white wine
and simmer for another few minutes.
I love this recipe served over nice hot fluffy Jasmine rice!
And as shown in the photo it goes very well with fresh cooked brussel sprouts!
Bona petit!
Please leave comments below and also feel free to share!
I LOVE this Lady Finger German Sweet Chocolate Cake because it is so easy to make but VERY impressive!
You can make your own lady fingers or purchase them pre-made.
Here’s a video on how to make them yourself:
These are the pre-made ones available in most stores near me that I use:
Specialty Bakers Lady Fingers
Ingredients:
3 pkgs. Lady Fingers
3 pkgs. 8 oz. German Sweet Chocolate for baking
7 & 1/2 TBS. Water
1 tsp. instant coffee (I sometimes combine this with some Kalua)
1 & 1/2 pints whipping cream
1 & 1/2 tsp. vanilla
(Click on the image to get more recipes from the Specialty Bakers site)
Step 1: Melt 2 & 1/2 pkgs. of chocolate & instant coffee with 7 & 1/2 water over double boiler (you can use a smaller saucepan inside a larger one with water in the bottom one if you don’t have a double boiler) (reserving last half of pkg. of chocolate for shaving garnish for top)
Step 2: Stir until smooth.
Step 3: Cool it.
Step 4: Whip 1 & 1/2 pints of whipping cream until stiff peaks form and add vanilla and cooled chocolate. (reserve remaining whipped cream for the topping)
Step 5: Line a springform pan with lady fingers standing upright around the edge.
Step 6: Line the bottom of the pan with lady fingers.
Step 7: Layer filling then lady fingers in pan and end with chocolate filling.
Step 8: Top with reserved whipped cream and sprinkle shaved chocolate over top. Refrigerate to chill completely.
We had the wonderful opportunity to spend some time in Maine this year when my son got married to a gal that is from Maine.
The wedding was at Pleasant Point Inn right on Kezar lake in Lovell, Maine. Very lovely location.
Jesse and Sarah’s wedding
We decided to take several days vacation after the wedding and spend time on the coast of Maine in the same area I used to take
Many do not realize that lobsters come in two shell forms:
Soft shell and hard shell
Soft shell is much easier to get into and you can usually eat the entire lobster without heavy machinery.
Hard shell are great but you definitely need some heavy duty tools to access the meat.
I used to take my kids to Maine every summer for a few days or a week every year when we lived in Vermont. It was a magical and wonderful time
being right on the water and eating lobster every day while we were there!
It’s funny I’ve actually had people in the grocery store ask me how to cook lobsters when I’ve bought them live.
It’s really very easy but some are squeamish when putting the into to the pot live.
You just need a large pot and I actually use an insert into that pot that has holes in it to let the steam through.
Steaming is best because they don’t take on as much water. Once they are done cooking it’s not fun to have the water
drain all over when you break them apart! Timing depends on how many lobsters and the size of them. If they are average 1 1/2 pounds
and you only have a couple, you could cook them about 25 to 30 mins. and it will be fine.
We stayed right next door to a place where we could order the lobsters of any size and have them cooked. Then we brought them back to where we stayed and ate them.
The first night we were there we had a crowd of family join us and we ordered and ate 13 lobsters for dinner!!!
It was great because it would have been 3 times the price to eat them at the restaurant!
Maine Lobsters
Maine Lobster
How to eat a Maine lobster:
There are many ways to eat a lobster, just like eating Maryland crabs. I prefer to remove the tail
by turning it upside down and grabbing the tail and pulling it backwards until it snaps off the body.
Then I squeeze the tail inward toward itself until it cracks all the way down. Then use both hands to
pull it apart away from you by pushing it backwards on both sides and then grab the meat and pull it out.
Twist the claws off and break them apart. Use tools or utensils to push the meat through the claws
and legs. Lots of meat can be found in the body right where the legs attach so don’t forget to
attack that part as well! The legs are more work and many leave them behind but the bigger the lobster the
more meat you will find and the legs should not be ignored.
Dip in drawn butter and you are in HEAVEN!
After the wedding we spent several days on the coast of Maine and it was just heavenly!