As our old pal Sylvester the Cat would so often say, “Sufferin’ succotash!” It’s one of those expressions I heard on Saturday mornings growing up thanks to cartoons, and never questioned its meaning. It was understood as the utterance of frustration, a polite “Jesus Christ” that conveyed a level of discontent without the need to take the Lord’s name in vain. While I can remember hearing the expression from cartoon characters, I don’t recall ever hearing it from the lips of actual people.

So just what is succotash and is it suffering? Succotash is a relish of sorts primarily consists of a blend of sweet corn, Lima Beans and other garden delights. Since home gardens were more common, and because the ingredients for succotash were relatively inexpensive, this dish was popular throughout the United Stated during the Great Depression. As a depression era dish, it might explain Sylvester’s claim of…

A little while back, I made up a big pot of my Creamy Potato and Bacon Soup to simmer all day in a crock pot. My guys had worked their tails off, and a rich, creamy bowl of soup seemed the right choice. Kiddo surprised me by not only having seconds, but darn near climbing into the pot to lap up every last drop. He really liked that soup.

Today is the seventeenth day of the Lenten Season. For Hubby and I observing Lent isn’t difficult. We both adore fish and seafood. However; Kiddo isn’t much of a fish-fan. For him, it’s much more of a struggle to remain faithful to his Catholic Roots. If he were my mother’s son, he’d be eating warm chocolate cake right about now. But he’s not. Yet I wanted to prepare something that was in keeping with Lent while hitting all the right notes…

What I’m going to show today is one of the most iconic recipes of Sorrento Coast/Capri island.

If I say “pasta with zucchini” it might sound easy and simple (and for sure there are older “recipes” than this one, considering the simplicity of the ingredients), but in this case it’s not really like that 🙂 a good “pasta alla Nerano” must be creamy, and to obtain that texture there is to take care to some details (creamy but not like glue, that’s the crucial thing and the difference between a well executed recipe and a not well executed recipe).

As for many other famous/well known Italian recipes there is a story behind, and in this case it’s very interesting and somehow it keeps fueling legends about the original recipe and its alleged secrets, but as we say in Italy it’s probably “a Pulcinella’s secret” 🙂

This recipe…

After the previous recipe “Pasta with ‘Nduja“, here it is another recipe with this unique ingredient typical of Calabria region. And this is really a scrumptious recipe, with some stingy cheese too 🙂

The basic recipe is about the same of the famous Neapolitan “Pasta e patate“, and I simply added the nduja, that of course changes the final taste quite a lot.

Personally I really like this dish. Let’s see  what we need.

INGREDIENTS (2 people):

• 180 g pasta
• 360 g potatoes (peeled)
• 40-50 g ‘nduja
• 100 g provola cheese (or provolone)
• 1 small purple onion
• extra virgin olive oil
• fresh basil leaves
• salt

1. First take a cocotte/high pot and heat a good amount of extra virgin olive oil, 2-3 tablespoons. Next to it boil also some water (about 500-600 ml we will need).
2. Cut the onion and add it to the oil, and let…

I just love this vegetarian style stuffed pepper recipe.  I was able to find a gluten-free orzo available here:  http://www.delallo.com/catalog/gluten-free-pasta.  Peppers are surprisingly nutritious:  green bell peppers contain twice the vitamin C of citrus and red bell peppers contain three times the vitamin C of citrus and over ten times the amount of beta carotene found in a green pepper.

Orzo & Cheese-Stuffed Bell Peppers

2 tbs. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 c. sliced mushrooms
1/2 c. shredded summer squash
1/2 c. shredded carrots
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 (15 oz.) container part-skim ricotta cheese
1 c. orzo or rice (I have found gluten free orzo-DeLallo brand
1 egg, beaten
2 tbs. minced fresh parsley
1 tbs. thinly sliced fresh basil leaves or 1/4 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper
4 large bell peppers (color, your choice)
1 1/2 c. tomato…

1 bottom pie crust
1 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. peanut butter
1 lg. instant vanilla pudding mix
2 c. milk
8 oz. Cool Whip

Thanks to Cindy DeJong for this yummy recipe.  We make this quite a bit!  I plan on using
gluten free cookie crumb crust for Rick and serve in parfait form so he can enjoy this also.

Have a delicious day,

Cooking and baking gluten free has been such a challenge for me.  I so want to do a better job, for my husband’s sake, at preparing meals for him that he can enjoy.  I have decided to find one new gluten-free recipe each week and give it a try.

In the past I have purchased GF pie crusts in the freezer case, but after baking they are very hard and almost inedible, not to mention they are pretty pricy.  So I thought I might try this one.

I had planned on making a Turkey Pot Pie for dinner this week and wanted to try making a Gluten-Free Pie Crust.  It was perfect!  My husband said it was flavorful and flaky!  YES!  A big thank you to Robin at “Make It and Love It” for this great recipe.  You can find her step by step instructions here.  Thankfully, I did…

This has been one of my favorite gluten free breads, and it is so easily made in the bread machine.  My friend, Dori Yacko, gave me this recipe years ago when we lived in New York.  She would graciously gift us with a freshly baked loaf of this yummy bread occasionally.  I just love it toasted with jam.

The white rice was a special brand that she used, and I found Erawan Rice Flour available at Lee Lee International Supermarkets in Chandler, AZ., or you can also find it online.

DORI’S RICE BREAD

Wet Ingredients:
2 large eggs, (at room temperature) slightly beaten
1 c. + 2 tbs. warm water
3 tbs. melted shortening (I use Spectrum Naturals Organic Vegetable Shortening.)

Dry Ingredients:
1 pkg. gluten free dry yeast (Red Star)
1 1/3 c. Erawan White Rice Flour
2/3 c. brown rice flour
2 1/4 tsp. xanthum gum ( or guar gar)
3 tbs. sugar…

Cheesy ground beef topped with fries that are smothered in even more cheese! It doesn’t get any more American than this! This one is kid and adult friendly and very easy to make. My four year old grandson asked to take the leftovers home! My husband and I loved it as well.

Adapted from All Recipes.com

Ingredients – The onion is optional.

Most kids don’t like onion, like my

grandkids, so I always leave it out.

However, I do put dehydrated onions

in and the kids never know the

difference and we still get the flavor.

Place the fries on a large baking sheet

trying to get them all flat on the pan.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and bake the

fries for 10 minutes. Remove the pan

from the oven and set aside.

Turn the oven temperature to 375 degrees.

In a large frying pan over medium heat

cook the…

I found some avocados on sale at the Indian grocery store in Austin.  This is the first time that I ever saw avocados at the Indian grocery store, so I was very surprised to see them.  What surprised me even more was the low, low price.  Only 38 cents a piece!!!

When I got home, my neighbor had delivered some fresh cucumbers and tomatoes from his garden.  I already had the mint and cilantro growing in my sun room.  I feel very lucky to have such wonderful ingredients.  All these fresh ingredients inspired me to make this delightful Avocado Mediterranean Salad.

Ingredients:

• 6 avocados
• 4 Persian cucumbers
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 1 small red onion
• 1 Serrano chile
• 1 large lime
• 1 bunch of large mint leaves
• 1 bunch of cilantro (some people really don’t like cilantro.  If you are one of these people, use flat leaf parsley instead.)
• Sea…

I first got the idea to make this dish when I was with my dad at a farmer’s market in Chicago.  I found these beautiful sunburst squash and I just had to use them.  I told dad that I would make scallops and squash for our dinner.  Dad told me that he doesn’t like scallops, but he was excited about the squash because it was so fresh and reminded him of an Indian squash called Tinda.  Tinda is also called “Indian Baby Pumpkin.”  I told him that I would season the scallops with Indian spices and cook them just right so that he would like them.

Dad was willing to try it, so here is the recipe.  He loved it, by the way, and now has become a scallops fan.

INGREDIENTS:

• a dozen large scallops
• 6 small squash (you can used any small squash that is just a bit bigger…

My neighbor, Billy, brought me the first greens of the season from his garden this morning.  These fresh greens inspired me to make a version of my dad’s favorite Dal.  The traditional version of this dish is made with spinach or mustard greens.  

Ingredients:  Serves 6

• 1 cup of dried split mung beans
• 8 large Tuscan kale leave
• 8 large curly kale leaves
• 1 medium onion, diced (1 cup in volume)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 small chilies, minced
• 3 inches of ginger, minced
• juice and zest of 1 lime
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons grape seed oil
• 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
• 4 cups water
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 bay leaf (optional)

Prep:

Prep the kale by cutting out the stems with a paring knife.  Then roll up the…

What is Golumpki Soup you ask? Golumpki Soup is a cabbage roll soup that is so easy to prepare! You don’t have to make the actual cabbage rolls because everything from the cabbage rolls is in here. All that wonderful taste with very little effort!

Click on the link below to see the step by step directions with pictures and a printable recipe card.

http://indianeskitchen.com/2018/03/11/golumpki-soup

This is the best tasting Chicken Gizzards & Hearts I have ever had! I have never made them in the slow cooker before and it is the only way I will ever make them again. The process was very easy but it takes most of the day. I put mine in the slow cooker around 8:30 am and I ate them at 6:30 pm. They couldn’t have been more tender and flavorful! Chicken Gizzards and Hearts are so cheap to buy and very low in calories. The broth that was left over was such a beautiful color and delicious so I will be using it for something else!

Ingredients

Rinse the gizzards and hearts.

If the gizzards have not been cut up

at the store, slice each one in half.

Mine was already cut up.

Place the carrots and onions into

the bottom of the slow cooker.

Place the gizzards…

I realized that I didn’t write any post yet about that amazing ingredient which is the ‘Nduja! 🙂

I’m not using it often because I don’t always find it, but when I see it I usually never miss it. The ‘nduja it’s a spreadable meat product typical of Calabria region, especially the area of Spilinga. It is made with pork meat, pork fat, a high amount of hot peppers (25-30% usually) and it is smoked 🙂 so it’s really spicy! And because of such a high content of hot pepper, no preservatives are used.

Traditionally all the “poor” cuts of the animal were used: spleen, stomach, lungs, intestine, heart, trachea, esophagus, pharynx, head, etc. while nowadays many modern recipes don’t use all these things. In the more artisanal ‘nduja the mix is left for a few hours in wooden kneading toughs, then stuffed in guts and smoked with…