Category: recipes

Posted on

SEVEN BENEFITS OF A RAINY HOLIDAY

A rainy holiday is a real bummer.  You have to cancel your plans for picnics, boating, golf and just about everything fun about Labor Day. Some people forge ahead with their outdoor plans, hoping some miracle will make the sun come out. But often, it doesn’t.  Many of us are facing gloomy skies today.  So why not make the best of it?  Here are seven benefits of a rainy holiday.

1, It’s a perfect excuse to be lazy. You don’t have to jog, hike, bike, or water your lawn.

2,   You needn’t dress up, put on make up, or fix your hair, because you’re not going anywhere. .  You might even  stay in your pajamas, because it’s not likely anyone will stop by.

3.  There’s finally  enough time to try a new recipe.   It so easy to fall back on the same old dishes when you’re busy.  Now is the time to surprise yourself or your family with a new entrée.  One  rainy day, I tried spinach stuffed chicken breasts for the first time.  Luckily,  I had the ingredients on hand. And when we sat down to dinner, it felt like we were at a gourmet restaurant.

4.    Binge on Netflix.  Only dummies watch movies all day—right?  But now, you can justify it, no matter how well educated you are.  After all, it’s raining too hard to drive  to the library.

5. Savor a cup of hot tea.  Dress it up with honey and lemon.  Sit back, dream,  and watch the raindrops falling.

Seven benefits of a rainy holiday.
Seven benefits of a rainy holiday. Savor a cup of hot tea and enjoy the rain.

6.  Let pure rainwater wash your dusty car . If the sun comes out, you don’t even have to towel it dry.

7. Rain relieves late summer allergies because it washes away those nasty pollens like ragweed.  Just for a little while, your nose stops dripping and you don’t have to dope yourself up with antihistamines.

Rainy holidays don’t have to be depressing.  Put on some romantic music, call someone you love, and have a peaceful, relaxing Labor Day.

Posted on

THE TIME IS NIGH FOR TOMATO PIE

If you love tomatoes the way I do, this is the season you’ve been dreaming of.    I buy “hothouse” tomatoes most of the year, but they don’t come close to fresh, homegrown.     After a few months of winter, I try to recall how summer tomatoes taste, but they’re only a distant memory.  But now, after a long  rainy season,  Indiana tomatoes are about as good as they ever get.  Tomatoes are available at stands scattered round town, and friendly gardeners are sharing their bounty with everyone they know.  The time is nigh for tomato pie.

The time is nigh for tomato pie
The time is nigh for tomato pie. Homegrown tomatoes are plentiful now.

I’ve shared my tomato pie recipe before, but this year I want to emphasize the most important part of the directions.  After you bake the pie for 30 or 40 minutes, take it out of the oven and let it set for 20 minutes.  I know, that sounds like a long time.  But tomatoes get very hot in the oven, and also  a bit watery.  If you serve the pie straight from the oven, it’s liable to burn your mouth, and it’s going to be too runny.  Be sure you let it set up, so that it’s nice and firm when served.

Various recipes call for different sizes and arrangements of tomatoes.  I’ve found that  slicing three big tomatoes about half an inch thick, then arranging them in pinwheel fashion works best.  And it makes  a prettier pie if you mix yellow and red tomatoes.  However, some people don’t like yellow tomatoes, and they aren’t always  available.

Unless you make pie crust from scratch, this is a pretty easy recipe, and doesn’t take a whole lot of time to make.   I prefer using prepared,  packaged pastry from the supermarket. .  Most recipes call for ½ teaspoon of  salt, but I leave that out because the cheeses are fairly salty, and I prefer  low sodium foods.

 

Fresh Tomato Pie

Ingredients:

1 9-inch pie shell, unbaked.

3 large, ripe tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, or one teaspoon dried

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup grated Cheddar cheese

¼ cup cracker or bread crumbs.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400  degrees. Line a 9 inch pie pan with one  pie crust. Prick the side and bottom with a fork, and bake about 10 minutes. Remove to a rack. (you can do this earlier in the day if you like)  Crust will be partially baked but not too brown.

Slice the tomatoes and place in a pinwheel fashion to fill the pie shell. Sprinkle with basil. Combine the garlic powder,  mayonnaise, Parmesan and Cheddar together in a small bowl.  Use a spatula to spread the mixture evenly over the tomatoes. It won’t completely cover them. Sprinkle with bread or cracker crumbs.

Bake the pie at 375 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown.  Allow pie to cool 20 minutes before serving.

Makes 6 servings.  About 300 calories per serving.

The time is nigh for tomato pie!

Posted on

WOULD YOU LIKE SOME ZUCCHINI?

Zucchini squash  this year are big as footballs, thanks to so much rainfall in Indiana.    If you’re an apartment dweller in a metropolitan area, you’re not going to have a problem.  But for those of us who live near farming communities, you can bet your bottom dollar that someone is going to proudly offer you a free zucchini, fresh from their garden. You have a choice.  You can either reject the bounty, or gracefully accept it.  Would you like some zucchini?  Not really, but it’s hard to resist such a kindly offering.

I don’t especially  like zucchini.  It’s bland, watery and has very little nutritional value. Maybe some vitamin C which you can get from a zillion sources. But now I’m stuck with it.  Brought it home from the office, church, senior center, or wherever they give this stuff away. So I’m going to make the best of it.

I like it  raw, sliced up in a salad to give it some crunchiness.  It also makes a fairly decent substitute for potato chips with dip.  No, not as tasty,  but you can feel good, knowing that instead of 100 calories in 10 potato chips, you’re consuming almost nothing with  zucchini slices.

If you’d like to serve it as a side vegetable, you can jazz it up with fresh corn.  Just scrape two or three ears of corn, combine  with zucchini slices, cover  with water, and simmer for about 15 minutes.  Drain, add salt, pepper and butter as desired.   It easy, fresh, and summery.

Would You Like Some Zucchini? It's plentiful this year..
Would you like some zucchini? It can be served in various ways.

Let’s say you  want to use it  for a family meal..  Just to make sure they will enjoy it, you can prepare a cheesy zucchini casserole.  (Cheese makes everything better).  Serve it as a main dish for vegans, or as a side dish.   If the zucchini is a normal size, you can simply slice it.  But if it’s very large, you’ll want to cut it into one or two inch pieces.

Cheesy Zucchini Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

6 cups sliced zucchini, sliced about 1/4 inch thick.

½ cup chopped onion

¼ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup heavy cream

3 eggs

¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1 ½  cups shredded cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a  9 inch baking dish.

Add sliced zucchini to baking dish’; sprinkle with salt. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl whisk together the heavy cream, eggs, parmesan cheese, garlic, basil, and  nutmeg.

Layer 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese over the zucchini. Pour the cream sauce over the zucchini.  Bake for 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Bake for about 10 minutes, or until bubbly and browned. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy your garden fresh zucchini!

Posted on

INDULGE IN CREAMED ASPARAGUS

Back when almost everyone either lived on a farm, or knew someone who did, creamed vegetables were very popular.  That was before anyone had made the connection between animal fat and heart disease.  In the springtime, asparagus was plentiful and cheap.  It grew all over the place, even along the railroad tracks! Any good  cook would serve bowls of creamed asparagus in April and May.  Never mind the calories. Every once in a while, we’ll give into temptation and indulge in creamed asparagus, just for old times sake.

Asparagus is a nutritional power house. First of all, it is  high in fiber–especially insoluble fiber that adds bulk to the stool and supports regular bowel movements. It also contains soluble fiber which is good for the digestive tract by feeding friendly bacteria in the gut. It’s  low in calories and packed with at least 10 essential  vitamins and minerals.

Asparagus can be eaten in many different ways.  For just plain, low calorie asparagus, I simply cover it with water and microwave it for 7 minutes.  You can add butter and salt for extra flavor. Or, you can line the spears up on a lettuce leaf to make a marvelous salad. Another favorite is asparagus bacon quiche—there are many recipes on the internet.

Indulge in Creamed Asparagus. It's a nutritional powerhouse.
Indulge in creamed asparagus. Make it with either cream or milk.

Yesterday was Easter Sunday, and we decided to forget about our diets for the day.  I don’t know how many calories we consumed,  but we certainly enjoyed a fine meal which included creamed asparagus.

When preparing asparagus, be sure to separate the edible part from the tough woody ends.  Hold each stalk in the middle and at the bottom. Bend the stalk, and the woody end will snap off. Discard the bottom.

CREAMED ASPARAGUS

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups (about 1 pound)  trimmed asparagus, cut in 2 inch pieces

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons flour

1  1/2 cups Half n Half cream or milk

Directions:

Cover asparagus with water. Either boil for 3 minutes in sauce pan, or cook in microwave for 3 min , just until tender.  Drain asparagus and set aside.

In saucepan, melt butter. Add flour to make a roux and cook for one minute.  Stir in milk. Bring to a boil and add asparagus.  Salt to taste.

Serve as a side dish, or over toast.

If you love asparagus as much as we do, this is as good as it gets.

Posted on

SNOWED-IN PASTA e FAGIOLI SOUP

Getting snowed in often results in some pitiful meals.  Scrambled eggs. Canned soup. Maybe just a bowl of cereal.  But if you open your cupboard, you may find the makings of a  low calorie, tummy-warming  soup.  It’s likely you have some type of canned beans, tomatoes, and chicken broth on the shelf.  You probably have onion and garlic, and pasta shells.   Look in the freezer for a stray chicken drumstick or thigh. Or maybe some sausage or ground beef.  You might have greens in your vegetable bin, too.  Throw them all together with  basil, bay leaf and white wine, and you’ll end up with  snowed-in Pasta e Fagioli Soup

Here’s one  recipe to use as a guide.  But you can substitute , white, black, or kidney  beans.  As for pasta, use small shells, macaroni, tortellini, or whatever you have on hand.  If you have some sausage or ground beef, you can start by cooking half a pound of that along with the onions.   But I prefer chicken.   Greens can be collard, mustard, or spinach .

Snowed-In pasta e fagoli soup is easy and tummy warming.
Snowed in Pasta e Fagioli Soup. You can make this  with ingredients on hand.

 

Snowed-In Pasta e Fagioli Soup

Ingredients:

1 garlic clove, minced

½ onion, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1( 16 oz). can cannellini beans

1 teaspoon dried basil or thyme

1 bay leaf

½ cup white wine

3 cups chicken broth

1 (15 oz)  can diced tomatoes

1 chicken drumstick or thigh

1  cup dried pasta (small shells, macaroni)  or tortellini

1 cup fresh spinach

Directions:

In large pot, saute onion and garlic in oil. Add chicken drumstick,  chicken broth, tomatoes, basil, bay leaf, white wine and cannellini beans.   Cover and simmer for about  40 minutes. Uncover. Remove bay leaf and chicken drumstick. Trim bone and put the meat back in the soup.   Add pasta, and cook until tender.   If the broth gets too thick, add a little water.   Stir in spinach and cook 10 minutes.

Garnish with parmesan cheese, if you have it. .

You may like this recipe so much that you’ll make it again this spring.

Posted on

QUICK FIX CRUNCHY APPLE SALAD

If you’re like a lot of folks during this pandemic, you took your family to an Apple Festival.  Enjoying the outdoors and munching on fresh, crisp apples sounded like a great escape back into normalcy.  You may have gotten so excited that you went overboard, and bought a whole bushel of apples.  Now, you’re wondering what to do with all of them.  Aside from everyone eating an apple a day, there are tons of yummy recipes.   Here one of my favorites:  Quick Fix Crunchy Apple Salad

Your Grandma used to call it Waldorf Salad.  It was a big favorite during  the holidays, because it went so well with turkey and dressing.  It was first introduced in 1893 at the famous  Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.  Consequently, it sounded very sophisticated.  However,  it’s one of the easiest salads you will ever make.

This traditional favorite is great for holidays. Quick Fix Crunchy Apple Salad.
Quick Fix Crunchy Apple Salad was called Waldorf Salad back in 1893.

 

Often, I make just  one serving  for my husband because he doesn’t like tossed salad very much.  Instead of following a recipe, I core and slice an apple, dice  half a stalk of celery, throw in 5 or six red grapes(cut in half), and  a handful of chopped walnuts. Then I  bind it all together with a couple tablespoons of  mayonnaise.  I don’t include salt, and he doesn’t seem to miss it.  But if you’re more comfortable following an actual recipe, here goes:

 

 

APPLE SALAD

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup  mayonnaise (or plain yogurt)

2  tbsp.  lemon juice

¼ teaspoon salt (optional)

2 crunchy apples, cored and chopped.

1/2 cup red seedless grapes, sliced in half

1/2 cup diced celery

1/2  cup chopped walnuts.

Lettuce (optional)

  DIRECTIONS:

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise (or yogurt), lemon juice, and salt. Stir in the apple, celery, grapes, and walnuts. Serve in a small bowl, or on a lettuce leaf.

Serves 4

It’s important to use the right variety.  You don’t want to use softer, mushier apples.  Personally, I prefer tart apples like McIntosh and Jonathans.     When I can’t find those, Pink Lady is a good substitute.

Quick Fix Crunchy Apple Salad is easy and delicious.  I like it with mayonnaise, but if you’re calorie conscious, yogurt will work.

 

Posted on

DON’T FORGET ABOUT SQUASH

Have you gotten tired of cooking during this pandemic?  After awhile, you’re racking your brain, trying to come up with something other than mashed potatoes, pasta, or rice as a side dish to  accompany meat.  But now you’re in luck, because we’re seeing squash of all kinds at farmer’s markets and in the grocery stores. If you’ve never cared much for squash, maybe you haven’t experimented with different ways to cook it. Baked acorn squash halves are  great, but  take an hour to bake in the oven.  A quicker, easier way is to cube it, and roast it in the oven.   When planning your meals, don’t forget about squash.

Here’s what’s great about squash as a meat accompaniment.  If has only about one third the calories of potatoes.  Not only that, it is filling and nutritious.  Low in cholesterol, and a good source of vitamins. And it brightens the plate—adding color to stimulate the appetite.

If you are cooking more during this pandemic don't forget about squash.
Squash is a low calorie, nutritious substitute for potatoes and pasta. Don’t forget about squash.

I’ve played around with different methods, and combined certain flavors to come up with my very own recipe. .  After peeling and cubing the squash,, I sprinkle it with nutmeg, garlic powder, and a little brown sugar.  You may want to add salt, but I don’t, because we try to stay on low sodium diets.

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

Ingredients:

1 medium  butternut squash , peeled,  seeded and cut in 1-inch chunks

2 tablespoons  olive oil

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1  teaspoon brown sugar

Sprinkle of garlic powder, if desired

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place squash on baking sheet, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with nutmeg, brown sugar, and garlic powder.  Toss it all together.  Spread the squash in one layer and roast for 25 to 30 minutes until tender.

Makes 2 to 4 servings, depending on your appetite.

Don’t forget about squash!  Your vegan friends will love it, too.