What have you cooked for me lately?

I have been cooking lately, but in spurts. Money has been tight, especially since my Cobra health care payment has gone up to a whopping $328 per month. Ah, the joys of working without benefits. A temporary situation. But I have been good, using a lot of what we have in our cupboards and picking up some inexpensive items, here and there. Thwarts a bit, my interest in buying local, but gotta do what you gotta do, when cash is tight. But I wanted to show some dishes that I've made recently.

The day before my birthday, I made this scallops dish. Pretty run of the mill saute' of scallops - 2 tbs butter for about a pound of scallops, on medium high or medium heat, brown one side of the scallops for about a minute and a half to two minutes, and then turn over - cook 3-4 minutes total. I also fried up pancetta, maybe five slices or so. I used green leaf lettuce and a lemon shallot dressing on top, from Food and Paper blog. Here are the ingredients for the dressing:

2 tablespoons shallot, finely diced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
coarse salt and fresh ground pepper

Throw in some strawberries, and whalla! An awesome, awesome dinner dish. BTW, congrats Sarah on being mentioned in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for Food and Paper!


These second and third dishes are compliments of Martha Stewart, from her daytime show. Anyone who doesn't use her site, get over there, and right quick! It is fabulous. If you customize the site, you can collect, rate and share recipes, crafts, etc.

The first is a Shepherd's pie recipe, which I knew was good, from my guy's 'mmmm, mmm, mmm' sounds he made while eating it. John is an efficient eater and eats for the sake of sustenance as much as flavor. So I knew that I hit on a good one with this. Below is the recipe.

Shepherd's Pie with Rutabaga Topping
Serves 8-10

Ingredients
* 1 rib celery, coarsely chopped
* 1 sprig fresh rosemary, plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
* 1 sprig fresh thyme
* 2 dried bay leaves
* 1 clove garlic
* 1 1/2 teaspoons unsalted butter, plus more for rutabagas and potatoes
* 2 pounds boneless beef chuck or leg of lamb for stew, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 2 medium onions, chopped
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 2 cups dry red wine
* 1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium canned beef stock
* 4 carrots, cut crosswise into 3-inch pieces
* Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 3 rutabagas (about 3 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces
* 4 russet or Yukon gold potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces
* 1/2 cup hot milk, or more if needed

Directions
1. Tie celery, rosemary sprig, thyme, bay leaves, and garlic in a small piece of cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni; set aside. Heat a wide, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat until hot. Melt butter, and brown meat in two batches, taking care not to crowd the pieces or they will steam and not brown; transfer meat to a bowl using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onions; cook until slightly softened, about 8 minutes. Return meat to pan and sprinkle flour over the meat and onions, cook about 1 minute, stirring often.
2. Add wine, and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the brown bits. Add the stock and bouquet garnish, bring to a boil, cover, and cook on low heat until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid after 1 hour; add carrots, and cook, uncovered, for the last 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Place rutabagas and potatoes in separate saucepans; cover with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, 30 to 40 minutes for the rutabagas and 25 minutes for the potatoes. Drain; return to the saucepans to dry out any moisture from the vegetables for a few minutes.
4. Put the rutabagas and potatoes through a food mill fitted with a fine disk, or ricer, or mash by hand. Add butter, as desired, and enough hot milk to make a creamy puree. Season with salt and pepper; stir in chopped rosemary.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove bouquet garni; transfer stew into a deep 2-quart baking dish. Top with puree; dot lightly with butter. Bake 1 hour, or until top is brown and crusty. Serve hot.

It was the first time I used cheese cloth to enclose aromatics - too fun!

Next, we have Chicken Cardamom Masala with Cashews. I was really taken by this segment on the Martha Stewart Show, I believe in November. The author of the book "Where Flavor was Born", Andreas Viestad tracked where spices originated from in his journeys and through his recipes. I've got to get this book! This is the first time I've bought a whole chicken and disassembled it. The one thing that I would do differently is to grind the spices more thoroughly with a mortar and pestle to bring out the flavors.



Chicken Cardamom Masala with Cashews
Serves 4

* 2 tablespoons garam masala
* 6 to 10 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
* 1 piece (1 inch) cinnamon stick
* 2 teaspoons red chile flakes
* 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 2/3 cup plain full-fat yogurt
* 1 4 pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, or 4 chicken thighs, halved
* 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
* Vegetable oil, for frying
* 4 onions, chopped
* 3 to 5 cloves garlic, chopped
* 4 to 6 tablespoons cashews
* 1 to 2 tablespoons tomato paste or ketchup
* 3 medium carrots, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
* 1 1/2 cups cauliflower florets
* 1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)
* Chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Directions

1. Place garam masala, cardamom, cinnamon stick, chile flakes, ginger, and salt in a mortar and lightly crush with a pestle. Place chicken, yogurt, and spice mixture in a large bowl, turning chicken to coat. Let marinate, covered and refrigerated overnight.
2. Using a rubber spatula, wipe excess marinade from chicken; reserve marinade. Pat chicken with paper towels to dry; sprinkle with turmeric.
3. Heat about 1 tablespoon oil in a Dutch-oven over high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add chicken and cook, turning occasionally, until skin is nicely browned, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove chicken from pot and set aside. Reduce heat and add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Return chicken to pot, along with reserved marinade, cashews, and tomato paste. Cover and cook, 10 to 15 minutes. Add carrots and cauliflower, cover, and continue cooking until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes more.
5. Stir in cream or yogurt, if using, and cook 2 minutes more. Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.


And finally, a tasty pea soup by Giada De Laurentis. My version has a bit less cream in it, but doesn't it look pretty?

Pea and Basil Soup
Serves 4-6

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds (about 4 1/2 cups) frozen peas
3/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 cups chicken broth, divided
2 cups cream
4 to 6 very thin slices fresh mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup diced roasted red bell peppers (jarred is fine)

Directions
Place a medium soup pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil, butter, onions, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the peas and basil, and heat until the peas are thawed.

Place the pea mixture in a blender. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and pulse until pureed, adding more broth, if necessary, to puree. Return the pureed mixture to the pot. Stir in the remaining chicken broth and cream. Return the pan to medium heat and cook until hot, but not boiling.

To serve, place the soup in bowls. Float a thin slice of fresh mozzarella cheese on top of each soup and sprinkle with the diced roasted red bell peppers. Serve immediately.

To die for

Mrs. Neale goes to the library

You might almost think Osama's minnions were expected to show up at the Marietta airport & parachute into TMI with contraband library DVD's, what with the new security measures at our local library. Yesterday, after checking out our books separately, my 11 yr old son innocently tells me we can't leave yet because he has to get his picture taken. I, ever on the alert for Big Brother (just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after me), walk over to see what is going on. The librarian, as she sets up the camera to photograph my minor son without my consent, says this is a new security measure & they are taking everyone's pictures. Well no one said anything to me about it or asked for my permission I say. "Can we opt out?" I ask. "No", the librarian replies. I said this seems a bit strange; surely I am not the only one to have refused to say 'cheese' on cue?! Apparently shee p are taking over town because, yes, I am the only one so far who is being difficult. I say next thing you know they will start tracking what we read. "Oh no, we aren't allowed to do that", cry the librarians. Right.

They ask nicely if I would like to talk to the director. Really I just want to leave & get on with my other errands but I say sure. The director, a nice lady, explains to me why this is a necessary step in the war on terror, I mean, underage game renting among other things. She implies it is a small concession to have access to such an awesome selection of free materials. It isn't really asking that much to be able to utilize this wonderful institution. 2% are ruining it for the rest of us. I nod & try to grasp her points while she assures me no one will get into the computer system & use this information for nefarious purposes. I mean, people might hack into the Pentagon but not Lancaster County Library!

Now, my boys love to go to the library. They check out alot of books but also DVD's, CD's and Xbox games. I don't really understand why libraries now loan games for Game Boys, the Xbox & the Wii. But that is another rant for another day. I do know that they would be very disappointed if they could not use the library anymore just because their mother refused to drink the kool aid & let them be photographed. But what about all those unsupervised kids in the library who are being photographed without their parents even knowing? I was led to believe these same parents don't know their kids are stealing their library cards, impersonating them & using the library computers for forbidden purposes. And renting 'T' rated video games. The horror! I thought the library stood up for Banned Books, celebrated them no less, yet they are now in the business of monitoring what someone else's children are trying to borrow. In a free country. When did that responsibility make it into the public library manifesto?

Meanwhile I am thinking this photographing of all library patrons seems like an extreme reaction to a few thefts & unsupervised children. But that's just me, thinking for myself. If you stop drinking the kool aid automatically, you start questioning everything. My kids have taught me this while unschooling me over the years. The most radical act today is to educate your children yourself and along the way, you begin to see the world anew. This is not good news for Big Brother or the Nanny State. But it is great for the Republic.

"Those who would trade liberty for security deserve neither."

Catching up

I recently spent a handful of days back home in Pittsburgh. It was odd, because I had a very different reaction to being there than I thought I would. I got into town and thought to myself, 'It's too hot, it's too polluted, there's too much traffic!'. It is not a reaction that I expected. But I think, ultimately, it is a good thing. It shows that I'm adapting to my new life in New Hampshire and that I really like small town living and a more rural area. The pace of life is a bit slower here too, and that became really evident to me while I was back home.

But despite the hassles, there were good things too. Being with family, for one. It was my niece, little Fiona's third birthday. Looking at the picture, does it really get any better than that? It was quite a party, with my parents and her dad's parents, with Aunts and Uncles from both side, and three cousins. She received some great dress up clothes from her mom and you can see her new clip on earrings in the picture if your look hard enough, which she wore almost all night, despite the pain. I was able to capture this picture of her blowing out the candles, which is the best.


But somehow, the dress up clothes were off and she was in her favorite outfit of all - nothing. I'm surprised the panties remained on. Her Aunt Amy got her a pair of great new crocs, that are lined for the winter, which she is modeling here. Seriously, it doesn't get any better than this.

Another hi-light of the trip home was seeing my best bud Katcha and her new home in Elizabethtown. I saw the mill once before, before the auction that determined her and her family's new fate, but I got a much better sense this time. On the way to Pittsburgh, I stopped off in central PA for the night.

Here the entrepreneur is, walking back from putting out her two goats. The goats act as natural lawn mowers and seem pretty easy to keep. They were finishing up the second house, for her sister to move in, which was looking really good. Now the focus is shifting to the main house, with a goal of being finished by their annual New Year's party. Here are some other shots of the place.

I can't wait to see the place as it comes along. On about 40 acres, the land has a stream that goes through and what sounds like many beautiful features. Too cool.

New friends and old friends

Having good friends is so important. I feel really lucky that I have my best friend, Katcha, around to talk to on the phone and visit from time to time. In knowing my thirst for justice and detail, she bought this pocket constitution for me to be able to carry around to refer to. For one thing, who doesn't absolutely love getting packages in the mail? So when it arrived, I was ecstatic. I will use it for years to come.

But I'm also grateful for new friends that I am making here in my new New Hampshire hometown. I've met a woman named Delilah at Intermezzo and we work together most days. She has boundless energy and has a magical knack of being able to find the best things for free. I went to work recently and she made me close my eyes, telling me that she had a gift for me. She pulls out this John Travolta album, which made me totally crack up. Peterborough has one of the most progressive recycling centers that I've ever seen, complete with a 'free store' where Peterborough residents can donate and shop. Delilah picked up these two albums for me, not long after hanging out one night listening to records at my place. She affectionately calls the recycling center and free store 'the dump', as in, 'I'm taking the kids shopping at the dump today'. Too funny. This album cracked me up, threw me back to the late 70's/early 80's and made me feel all fuzzy inside, having people think about me in the off times. What's more important than good friends?

It's gonna take a lotta love...

Relationships are hard. Even the best ones. I feel lucky because I haven't had one moment of regret about moving to New Hampshire to be with John - we are both opinionated, stubborn and come at things from the opposite direction on just about every issue. But even despite the three hour, heated discussions about our issues and times of real frustration, I have such genuine feeling for him - there's no place that I would rather be than here in Peterborough, living in his house and sleeping in his bed.

But even despite the rocky times, especially after just moving in together three months ago, we have a lot of fun and sweet times together as well. On a rare weekend off for me from the restaurant Intermezzo, I made toad-in-a-holes for both of us out of multi-grain bread from the The Good Loaf, which I bought at the P-borough farmers market. If you can tell, I used a heart shaped cookie cutter to make the hole and dropped the egg in. I then adorned with both roasted red peppers on one and sundried tomatatoes on the other. Coupled with champagne with a shot of cran-grape, it was a perfect late breakfast.

An ode to Winfrey...

Winfrey is a good good friend from Pittsburgh. She's a complete individual. She's lived in Montana, Africa and China, embraces new experiences and talks so straight, that sometimes it can be mistaken for criticism. But I know she has every one's best interests at heart and is just trying to make her way in the world and create a life that is interesting and satisfying to herself. Winfrey is 31 years old and has a young daughter and teacher husband. She lives in a hip little business district of point breeze, in Pittsburgh, and is a stay-at-home mom. She taught her daughter Isa how to sign before she could talk and is a big proponent of elimination communication (pottying from infancy), baby wearing (no strollers!) and vegetarianism (if not vegan or raw). Like I said, she's an individual. And Winfrey's my girl, she knows how to have a good time.

Plus, she's an avid cook. She's one of the first people I knew who really experimented with her cooking. She shops at the East End Food Co-op and really tries to buy what's best for her family.

These two dishes are Winfrey specials. I'm not sure that she will even remember the exact recipes, but I did, and now they are documented. The first is her mexican mix over rice and the second is peanut butter sauce over rice with kale and feta. Soooooo good.

So the first is her mexican mix over rice. Basically, it involves a bit of olive oil in a frying pan, and one large onion, diced, pan fried until soft. At the same time, start 2 cups of water in a sauce pan and boil. Then add a cup of brown rice, and then simmer on low for 40 minutes. Meanwhile add 1 - 2 cloves of chopped garlic to the fry pan. After another minute or so, I add about a 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper and a few dashes of red pepper flakes and a hint of hot sauce. Stir that up and then add a can of your favorite beans, drained. I usually use either chick peas, black beans or kidney beans. Add a can of diced tomatoes to the mixture, then salt and pepper. Not long before getting ready to serve, add a generous portion of fresh cilantro. Once the sauce has had time to combine and the rice is done, place some rice in a bowl and add the mixture over top. Grate a healthy portion of cheddar cheese and sprinkle over the top of the sauce. Add 1/2 an avocado and some sour cream and you are good to go. Again, soooo good. And look at the color!

Another favorite of mine from Winfrey is her peanut butter sauce over rice, with kale and feta.

Peanut Butter Sauce with kale and feta over brown rice.

1 cup natural peanut butter
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 medium sized onion
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp hot sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp fresh lemon
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 cup H2O

Again, bring to a boil 2 cups of water for 1 cup of brown rice. When boiling, add rice, then bring to a simmer on low, about 40 minutes.

Saute' onions and then garlic in sesame oil. Add cumin, cayenne and hot sauce (I even add a dash or two of red pepper flakes). Then add soy sauce, peanut butter, maple syrup, lemon juice and water. Keep over medium heat until the mixture begins to combine and become smooth. Lower heat and stir until the mixture thickens.

Separately, take a generous handful of kale (a couple of cups at least) and add the juice of a 1/4 - 1/2 a lemon and some olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix with hands. Add cilantro to PB sauce right before serving. Place rice in a bowls and then spoon generous portions of the PB sauce overtop. Add a handful of kale and then throw some diced feta on top. The flavors are amazing!