Jamie Oliver is my kind of guy-his recipes use affordable ingredients, he is an ambassador of “real” food, he loves his kids and his wife, his success has apparently not changed his wardrobe and he writes his recipes as if he were standing in the kitchen next to you:  “don’t worry about technique, just chop away until fine”, “if you’re ready to tuck in,  just drape the warm slices over the lettuce and serve” , “it would be lovely if everyone had a go at making things like tarts, tortes or pastries at home…..”

My prized “Food Revolution” Cookbook was a gift from my son and daughter (in law) #3.  This past Sunday dinner (mandatory) I prepared a big batch of spaghetti and then sent everybody home with left overs.  I added a couple of my own modifications and the kids had their own improvement as well.  Here is the result:

2 slices of bacon, chopped

2 medium onions, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

olive oil

2 heaped t of dried oregano

1 lb good quality beef 

28 oz. can of diced tomatoes

s&p

a small bunch of fresh basil

4 oz. Parmesan cheese

1 lb. dried spaghetti

I doubled the recipe and used a lb. of ground beef and a thinly sliced flank steak from the freezer.  I soaked both in milk before cooking (a technique I had seen in another Bolognese recipe) and then finely chopped up the flank steak.

Saute bacon with oregano and cook until golden.  Add veggies and stir every frequently until softened and lightly coloured.  Stir in the meat (drained if soaked in milk) and tomatoes.  Now Jamie adds a can of water but the kids think that this makes the sauce too soupy, so go by your own preference.  Let simmer until veggies or to your desired firmness (approx. 20 minutes).  Add S&P to taste.  Add freshly torn basil leaves.  Cook pasta to your liking and when it is el dente, drain and stir into the sauce.    Sprinkle with Parmesan.

For more beef ideas, go to www.beefinfo.org.  I am dreaming of time away at Eat, Write, Retreat www.eatwriteretreat.com.

Kath’s quote: “The strands of spaghetti were vital, almost alive in my mouth, and the olive oil was singing with flavor. It was hard to imagine that four simple ingredients [olive oil, pasta, garlic and cheese] could marry so perfectly.”-Ruth Reichl

We are hosting our monthly young families group tonight and it is COLD in Winnipeg this morning so I immediately thought about putting on a big ole pot of soup and some cheese biscuits to warm everybody up when the walk in the door.  I went and did a Food Musings search to pull up my tried and true Hamburger Soup recipe to see, in astonishment, that I have never posted it before.

When our family was young and D was in the restaurant business and I was the marketing director of a restaurant too, we had to be make decisions on the go for healthy, often “one bowl” meals that our kids would enjoy.  So our first idea was that we had designated “food” nights: Friday was pizza, Thursday was pasta, and so on.  That way our decisions were less complicated depending upon the day of the week.  The kids loved this too.

Monday was always soup night so I could whip up a batch on Sunday afternoon while I was making Sunday dinner and serve half the next day (and put the other half in the freezer for a real time emergency).

This meal freezes very well and actually becomes more and more tasty with the passing of time.  The recipe originally came from the old Best of Bridge cookbooks but I’ve modified it over and over again with the years.

Hamburger Soup

2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 medium onion finely chopped

1 28 oz. can of tomatoes

25 c of water

1 heaping T of Knorr dehydrated beef consume

1 c tomato soup

4 finely chopped carrots

3 sticks of finely chopped celery

1 c of frozen corn

1 bay leaf

a handful of chopped parsley

1 t thyme

8 T barley

Brown ground beef and then give it a quick rinse under hot water to remove any unwanted fat.  Brown onions and veggies until they start to “sweat”.  Add ground beef and all other ingredients back to the pot.  Simmer, uncovered at least one hour.

See more easy and nutritous meals for your gang on www.beefinfo.org.  I’m hoping to win a scholarship to www.eatwriterestreat.com.

Kath’s quote: “A soup like this is not the work of one man. It is the result of a constantly refined tradition. There are nearly a thousand years of history in this soup.”-Willa Cather

One might think that when you are requested to “bring something along to share during the game”, you would pick up a bag of chips or whip up some nachos.  But oh no, the guys at our house spent the afternoon making kabobs and beef sliders (more on that dish tomorrow). 

I could hear D rustling around in the freezer downstairs but was still suprized when I saw six gorgeous New York steaks thawing in the sink.  At one time D was the Food Manager at the Garry St. Keg Steakhouse and Bar, so the recipe for teriyaki sauce which was made from scratch, once a week, was firmly ingrained in his brain.  So too was the memory of the aroma of garlic, ginger and soya sauce which greeted me at the door when I returned from brunch out with my Mom and sisters.

The sauce was put together early in the afternoon so that the steaks could marinate for a couple of hours.  This ensures not only great flavour but that desired tenderness.  In truth, when you are using a steak cut like a New York, the tenderness is pretty much guaranteed.

In D’s Keg days, the meat morsels would have been skewed with white onion and green pepper but D added red and orange peppers, purple onion and huge cubes of fresh pineapple for good measure.

D fired up the barbie and got out his “good” tongs to turn them over the flame before they left for the game.  I enjoyed mine with a quiet glass of Merlot as I watched the Superbowl solo and got caught up on some writing.  The sweetness of the pineapple and the brown sugar of the marinade was the perfect offset to the saltiness of the soya sauce and the tartness of the veggies.  The beef itself was perfectly cooked-medium rare inside with a crispness on the surface where the natural sugars had met the flame.

I don’t know if it was these skewers that boosted our son’s energy and enthusiasm, when he ran down the middle of his quiet street in celebration when his Giants won!

For less expensive beef cuts that are perfect for marinating, check out www.beefinfo.org.  I am dreaming of a food bloggers scholarship to Eat, Write, Retreat www.eatwriteretreat.com as I write this…

Kath’s quote: “Beef is the soul of cooking.”Marie-Antoine Carême (1784-1833)

Here I am still writing about Christmas festivities, when it is already half way into January.  This is my last Christmas blog post before I start recounting our fabulous food adventure in Isla Mujeres.

Since most of the family were leaving for Mexico very early Christmas morning, we actually faked the morning and celebrated on the 24th.  The kids all decided to sleep overnight and even though we could have slept them in comfortable spaces, the youngest one organized that they would watch “A Christmas Story” and then all bunk in together in the downstairs family room.   

It really did feel like Christmas morning to have them all assemble to open their stockings and exchange our gifts.  We drank champagne and orange juice and listened to Florence +the Machine (as it is our tradition to immediately put on music that was gifted that morning). 

I thought that I was really clever by assembling brunch the night before.  I made the “wife-saver” that I renamed “domestic-partner saver” and had posted the recipe for in a previous blog entry, a cranberry cheese ball was contributed and I dug up this recipe for “Land of Nod” (I didn’t name that one!) Cinnamon Buns.  I’m included it here:

20 frozen dough balls (I made a batch of dough in the bread machine, then formed into balls and froze)

1 c brown sugar

1/4 cup vanilla instant pudding (I omitted)

1-2 T cinnamon

3/4 c raisins (optional)

1/4-12 c melted butter (I used a 1/2 c to replace the moisture lost by omitting the pudding)

In the evening: Grease a 10″ bundt pan and add the frozen roll,s.  Sprinkle with brown sugar, pudding powder, cinnamon and raisins.  Pour melted butter over all.  Cover with a clean damp cloth and then leave on the counter at room temperature.

In the morning, bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  Let sit for 5 minutes and then turn over on a serving plate.

We put leftovers away for part of the family to enjoy again on the real Christmas morning and I wrapped up the squares of “domestic partner” saver and we ate in the early morning hours at the airport on our way south.

Kath’s quote: “There is a vast difference between the savage and the civilised man, but it is never apparent to their wives until after breakfast.” Helen Rowland (1876-1950) ‘A Guide to Men’

Last night my kindergarten teacher called me for my candied yam recipe.  So I got to thinking, if I am recognized for one dish, it would likely be my sweet potatoes.  This recipe was given to me by D’s Mom and heralds back to their American roots where you never had Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter for that matter without this satisfying dish.  I can’t imagine a bite of roasted ham without a slice of sweet potato on my fork.  The absolute perfect combination of sweet, salty and savoury that you will ever taste.

The basic proceedure is simple.  Cut and par-boil the spuds until their skins are visibly seperating from the vegetable.  Drain, cool and peel. 

The skins literally “pop” off at this point.  Cut into smaller pieces-this will vary depending upon the age of your guests and the other textures of your menu.  Loosely arrange in a shallow baking dish and add just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan.  Now dab with dots of butter and sprinkle with brown sugar.  Both of the latter are also according to your preference.  Now cover in foil and bake until the potatoes are fork tender.  How long depends upon what else is in the oven.

I have made a variety of toppings over the years including baby marshmallows when the kids were young.  More recently the most requested version is a crust of more butter, brown sugar and chopped pecans.  These get added to the last half hour of baking time.  But this year I am honouring the Frenchman and another family member who is nut allergic, and topping them with pure maple syrup.  I intend to drizzle it on just before we serve.  D made these recently for a Christmas dinner that he catered and they were a huge hit.  And the leftovers (if there are any) can be pureed for a post-Christmas soup!

This will be my last post before the holidays.  I am indebted to you my readers and encouragers.  I want to particularily thank Lori, Laura, Michael, Sisters #2 & 3, my Mom, all my kids and my precious D.  You make my life an adventure-in tasting and in love.

To my big brother Tom who will not be with us this Christmas…I love you so and miss you every day.  Go easy on the shrimp at that banquet table in heaven.

Muah!

Kath’s quote:  “Said Aristotle unto Plato,
‘Have another sweet potato?’
Said Plato unto Aristotle,
‘Thank you, I prefer the bottle.’”-Owen Wister

Huh?