Mamma can cook

So truth be told... My mother and I hate Stew type foods. Neither of us enjoy a cooked carrot, or the meat in a gooey lump, ack, but my Daddy on the other hand LOVES Stew. The other day Derek took out a package of Beef Cubes and as I looked at the package I thought OH NO Stew?? Well, the good thing was my parents were coming over that night so Derek and I can go to dinner, so I got out of eating it, but I felt bad that my mother was going to be left with the meal. I decided to really find a new recipe that I thought she would enjoy. I went to the Italian GODDESS Marcella Hazan to see which direction she will lead me.... and this was it, and she changed my opinion on Stew. Let me just add.... I am not a fan of pickles in my food, nor am I a fan of capers AT ALL, but the medley was simply perfect. My mother who had brought her own dinner to my house once she found out we were eating stew, tasted the stew was pleasantly surprised and saved her dinner for the next days lunch!!! 2 Tablespo...

I am only a fan of Banana Bread when it is not all wet and soggy and sometimes this is hard to achieve since well Banana's don't really COOK, but if you use THIS recipe you will have perfect Banana Bread or Cake and what IS the difference between Banana bread and cake? I don't know what this would be classified as but who cares call it what you want it is an easy and great recipe!! You can of course add walnuts or whatever you please but I love chocolate with my banana bread. The BEST part of this cake....... ONLY 2 TBLSP of BUTTER!!!!!!!!!! OH YEAH no guilt. Go ahead now. Take those nasty bananas that you would not dream of eating because of the black spots that are covering them and make them into something divine!!! 1½ cups flour ( I used 1 cup White Flour and 1/2 cup Wheat Flour) 1 teaspoon baking powder (I always use Rumford ) ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ¾ cup sugar 2 tablespoons melted butter (salted or unsalted) 1 large egg wh...

Ever since I can remember my brother Richard has been obsessed with finding THE Orange Julius recipe. We would buy the powdered Orange smoothie mix in hopes it would satisfy his fix, but it never did. The other day he came over so excited that FINALLY after about 14 years he has found THE perfect Orange Julius copy recipe. He was right it was fantastic!!! Especially with some alcohol in the evening, mmmm. The kids LOVED it, minus the vodka of course. Anyway, just a warning... The recipe calls for 6oz of OJ concentrate but we bought the 12oz and used that, it came out pretty gross then we realized we used twice as much so we doubled the whole recipe it then was PERFECT. Here you go.... Richards 14 year quest of finding the perfect Orange Julius has come to an end and all the work was done now you can just enjoy: 6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate 1 cup milk 1 cup water 1/4 cup sugar 1 tsp. vanilla extract 10 or so ice cubes 1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in blender. 2...

Yes that is right NO BUTTER. I have been making a batch of these a week now for the kids because they LOVE them. I hate them due to the tiny sprinkles that they shed all over my counters and floors and the obsession I have with bending down to a birds eye view to see how many of them I missed after the million times I tried to clean them up. ANYway.... These use olive oil insted of Butter. I use Extra Virgin just because it does have health benefits and you can't tell at all what oil is used. Now this is a very flexible recipe.... Sometimes I use Almond extract in the dough and icing or lemon extract just depends on what I feel like. Try whatever you like. 4 cups flour 4 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons salt 6 beaten eggs 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup oil 1 1/2 teaspoon extract (almond, vanilla, anise) *** Icing: *** 2 Cups confectioner's sugar 1/4 cup milk 1 1/2 teaspoons extract Blend beaten eggs into dry ingredients, following with all other ingredients. Knead until smooth. Roll...

I have been making these for a long time, and recently made them for a Passover dinner at my mom's house. I think this is definitely one of my most requested recipes. They are SOOOO easy. I really believe the key to these is to FOLLOW the recipe. The eggs at room temperature should be as directed at room temperature!! I usually just put them in a warm water bath if I have forgotten to take them out. 14 ounces sweetened shredded coconut 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 2 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Combine the coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Whip the egg whites and salt on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until they make medium-firm peaks. Carefully fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture. Drop the batter onto sheet pans lined with parchment paper using either a 1 3/4-inch diameter ice cream scoop, or ...

Soooo, I made this as one of the Appies at Owen's 1st birthday and I got a few requests for it then, but I also brought it to Karen's house for Terentieff Tuesday and Stacey hasn't forgotten about this lusciously delicious fellow. So this is for Stacy and anyone else who needs an easy and tasty little appetizer. The Cast of Characters : French bread 6 oz green olives 6 oz black olives 2green onions 1 stick butter softened 1/2 cup real or low fat ( not fat-free) mayonnaise 3/4 pound Monterey Jack Cheese. 1. Place one regular-sized can of black olives on a cutting board. (Mine said "6 oz. Dry Wt."), Do the same with a 6-oz jar of pimiento-stuffed green olives Give them a rough chop. 2. Slice 2 green onions into thin pieces then give them a nice rough chop all over 3. Place 1 stick softenend butter into a mixing bowl. 4. Add 1/2 cup mayonnaise. Please do NOT hurl if you don’t like mayonnaise; I promise, you won’t even know it’s there. 5. Take 3/4 pound grated Montere...

Well yes I love crumb cake who doesn't? I have had a recipe that is just Fantastic!! I thought the perfect time to share it was today. I made a little Birthday dinner for Heather's 30th and she is a lover of Crumb Cake too, so here it is!!! 1 Box Yellow Cake Mix (plus ingredients on back of box) 2 Sticks cold salted butter 2 1/4 Cups flour 1 1/2 Tablespoons cinnamon 1 ¾ Cups sugar 1 1/2 Tablespoons vanilla Powdered sugar (for dusting) PREHEAT oven to 350. PREPARE cake mixe in large bowl according to directions on box. Spray 9X13 pan with non-stick spray. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until center is just barely set. WHILE cakes are baking, prepare crumb topping. In large bowl of electric mixer combine, butter, flour, cinnamon, sugar and vanilla until all crumbly. IMMEDIATELY after cake is removed from oven, break crumb topping into marble size pieces with fingers, sprinkling over top. Put back in oven and bake an additional 10-15 minutes (topping wi...

I LOVE me some Mushorooms!! Love Love Love!! and so when I saw gorgeous Shiitake mushrooms at Trader Joes... I said Oh Yeah Funghi Pasta for us. I know people either love em or hate em. I am in a crowd split in the middle with both lovers and haters, BUT the family loved this especially Owen who made me so proud because he too will be a Funghi lover. There is nothing like Olive Oil for bringing out the woody accents from mushrooms, and that is how this recipe begins. Mind you this is SO very easy. 3/4 pound fresh white mushrooms 1/2 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1/2 cup chopped onion 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped garlic 2 tablespoons chopped Italian flat leaf parsley Salt 1/2 cup heavy cream 2 Tablespoons butter Black Pepper ground Fresh 3/4 cup Freshly grated Parm-Reg cheese 1 pound of Pasta ( I use Whole Wheat Penne) 1. Rinse all mushrooms quickly, Cut white mushrooms if they are not sliced from cap to stem into thin lengthwise slices. Discard and de...

Hummus & Shawarma ? Richard just got back from Israel and one would assume that the first thing he would talk about were the historical sites he saw or the amazing experience of a friday evening at the Kotel ? NOOO , he came back talking about the amazing Hummus, Shawarma's and the hot girls. He also came back with pictures of the hummus? That is my family though we are all too consumed with food I guess. SO tonight is the Final Four and he was psyched to watch it, what can be better than homemade hummus and a twist on the Shawarma, (I do not have that cone that rotates and chars meat lets be serious here) I made my own version. This is so not typical game with a beer food, but it did go down well with a nice cold one. Rich was happy. He said both of these were fantastic, woohoo!! HUMMUS 1 15oz can chickpea 1/2 cup tahini (sesame paste that you can find in organic section of supermarket or ethnic grocery stores) juice from 1 squeezed lemon 1-2 garlic cloves 1/2 teaspoon cumin...

The kids love plain ol' sugar cookies and so I was on a mission to find an easy recipe with an icing that dries hard so they aren't covered in a goopy mess, because I clean enough other goopy messes I didn't need to add to it. They were a HIT with the kids and adults on Easter. These were fun to do especially because Vladdy was over my shoulder directing my every artistic move. He had the color for the tulips, hahaha. I love my Pa!!! COOKIES: 1 1/2 cups butter, softened 2 cups white sugar 4 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt DIRECTIONS In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight). Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cook...

Pie Crust: MAKES 2 PIES CRUSTS 3 cups all-purpose flour ½ cup sugar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking powder 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter (chilled) 3 large eggs Filling: This will make enough filling for one 9-inch pie. Simply double the recipe if you'd like to make two pies. 1 pound ricotta cheese (drained) 1 cup heavy cream ¾ cup sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 3 large eggs 1/2 of a 20-ounce can of crushed pineapple (drained) Ground cinnamon (dusted on top of pie) For the dough, combine the dry ingredients in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse several times to mix. Add the butter and pulse about 10 times to mix the butter in finely Add the eggs and pulse repeatedly until the dough forms a ball. Invert the dough to a floured work surface and carefully remove the blade. Wrap it in plastic, and refrigerate it while preparing the filling. You may keep the dough in the refrigerator for up to 2 days before continuing. If you don’t ha...

As I dug around the freezer looking for what meat to take out for dinner. I notice What the hell?? there are only Chicken Drumsticks?? Ugh. It is not that I don't like them, but it is one of the last resort meats I tend to make. I needed a new way to make the Mighty Ol' Drumstick, and I found one!! EASY EASY EASY...CRUNCHY....TASTY Drumstick. Oh yeah I see you eyeing up those mashed potatoes...NO I don't usually pipe beautiful mashed potatoes on our plate, what am I crazy?? The thing is Ethan is not a fan of mashed potatoes but he IS a fan of cupcakes, SOOO I thought maybe if I make the mashed potatoes LOOK like vanilla frosting that I make on cupcakes he would eat them???? Well.....at least he tried them. Ingredients: 3 TBLSP butter, melted 2TBLSP oil 1/2 cup crushed saltine crackers 2 tablespoons dry onion soup mix 8 chicken legs, skin off Directions: Heat oven to 350º. Stir together crackers and onion soup mix. Dip Chicken legs into melted butter/oil mix then coat w...

There is no pretty way to take a picture of this meal, but it is such a comfort food and so delicious, mmmmm. Easily frozen and to reheat next day!! I think it may even taste better the next day. Try it and then come back and thank me!! I did try to make this meal less fattening by changing some of the ingredients, you can find the improvisations under recipe 9 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons olive oil 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 2 1/4 teaspoons salt 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 1 pound white mushrooms, sliced 1 large onion, finely chopped 5 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 4 cups whole milk, room temperature 1 cup heavy cream room temperature 1 cup chicken broth 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 12 ounces linguine 3/4 cup frozen peas 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves 1 cup grated Parmesan 1/4 cup dried Italian-style breadcrumbs Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. MY IMPROVISATION...

Mamma Choppin away 1 lb carrots, peeled 1 lb parsnips , peeled 1 large sweet potatoes , peeled 1 small butternut squash, peeled and seeded(about 2 pounds) 3 tablespoo ns olive oil 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper 2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash in 1 to 1 1/4-inch cubes. All the vegetables will shrink while baking, so don't cut them too small. Place all the cut vegetables in a single layer on 2 baking sheets. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula. Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste, and serve hot.

Ok well these are pretty easy to make except for the fact that Ethan was having red poop which almost made me rush him to the hospital for intestinal bleeding, but then I realized Ah-Hah it's the cookies. I know that is nasty but I had to spare anyone else the ER visit. Otherwise they are a hit :) 3 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup sugar 1 egg, beaten 1 tablespoon milk 1tsp red food coloring (gel) Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add the red food coloring egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered...

Owen was all involved as you can see What the hell is is a Meyer Lemon?? Well it is pretty much a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange and therefore they make for great dressings, desserts, etc.. and Yes there is a special season when these amazing lemons come out, and when they do I make the most fantastic lemon bars. I found them at Trader Joes. Yeah I know it looks like Owen is squeezing an orange, but it's not it is a MEYER LEMON , ok!!! Meyer Lemon Bars (makes one 8-inch square pan) Crust: 1 cup all purpose flour 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar 1/8 tsp salt 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2 inch pieces Filling: 2 large eggs 1 cup superfine or bakers' sugar 2 tbsp all purpose flour 1/8 tsp salt 2 tsp finely grated meyer lemon zest* 1/4 cup freshly squeezed meyer lemon juice* Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper. To make crust: Combine flour, confect...

Oh Looord. Thi is not a good picture, but those of you who have asked for this recipe know that this is just FANTASTIC!!! Here goes: 2 tablespoons olive oil 8 ounces hot Italian sausage, casings removed 1 teaspoon minced garlic 2 (12-ounce) bunches fresh spinach, stemmed, coarsely chopped (about 12 cups), or 1 (10-ounce) package frozen cut-leaf spinach, thawed and drained 1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta 12 ounces mozzarella cheese , shredded 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan 4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped 4 large egg yolks, beaten to blend Pastry Dough , recipe follows 1 large egg, beaten to blend Position the rack on the bottom of the oven, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium heat. Add the sausages and saute until golden brown, breaking the sausage into pieces, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minut...

How I love thy snowman cupcake These are Ethan's FAVORITE. I make my Vanilla cupckake batter as follows: Makes about 30 cupcakes 1 3/4 cups cake flour, not self-rising 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 2 cups sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes 4 large eggs 1 cup whole milk 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1. Preheat oven to 325°. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix on low speed until combined. Add butter, mixing until just coated with flour. 2. In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. With mixer on medium speed, add wet ingredients in 3 parts, scraping down sides of bowl before each addition; beat until ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat. 3. Divide batter e...

Ingredients For pastry: ========== 2 eggs 1 cup sour cream (regular or light) 2 sticks unsalted butter 1/4 tsp salt 1/3 tsp baking soda 1 tbsp white vinegar All-purpose flour enough to make soft dough For cream: ========== 1 1/2 quarts of whole milk 1 cup of milk (this is not a mistake) 1 1/2 cups white sugar 4 egg yolks 4 very full tbsp flour Pinch of salt 1 shot of vodka, brandy, or rum (Amaretto or Bailey's are also good) 1 lemon (zest only) Vanilla essence or vanilla powder to taste Pinch of nutmeg 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter Directions Pastry: ------- Mix eggs, soft butter and sour cream together till they blend well. Add salt. In a table spoon, dissolve baking soda in vinegar - you will see "bubbles". When bubbling stops, add soda+vinegar to your mixture. Stir well. Start adding flour, cup-by-cup, make soft smooth dough. Don't knead it too much, just enough to make it smooth and "un-sticky". Split dough into 16 pieces, form little balls. ...

Like Pasta e Fagioli which is one of my favorite dishes, but obviously this has chickpeas, and it is blended, and well maybe not EXACTLY like Pasta e Fagioli, but let's say in the same Family, alright? I am not a big fan of the chickpea, BUT in this dish it is so damn good. Anytime I serve this, it is always well received. The kids, my father, even Karen was a fan and yes that is supposed to mean if she likes it most people will. Pasta e Ceci (Pasta with Chickpeas) serve 4. 2 to 3 tbsp. olive oil 1 onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 carrot, finely chopped 1 celery stalk, finely chopped 1 tsp. hot pepper flakes 1 sprig rosemary or 1 tbsp. dried rosemary 1-1/2 cups chickpeans (use canned chickpeas that have been drained and rinsed) 2-1/2 cups chicken stock or water 1 cup dried pasta (I like to use tubetti which is a tiny tubular pasta) 3 tbsp. parsley, finely chopped salt and pepper to taste Parmigiano Reggiano to taste In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil with the...