Meat

Pork Chops with Pan Sauce

April 30, 2021 robiulo Leave a comment

Pork Chops with Pan Sauce

Here’s a simple method for making an elegant sauce. It’s perfect for pork chops but you should also try it with other types of meat.

Ingredients:

Salt and black pepper
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 pork chops
1/3 cup meat stock or broth
2 tbsp. Dijon or any brown mustard
1/3 cup half & half
2 pats of butter

Bring the chops to room temperature and season with salt and black pepper. Heat the olive oil in a pan and cook the pork chops until done to your liking.

Remove them to a warm dish, add the stock to the pan and deglaze. Add the mustard, half & half, and butter, and whisk for a few minutes. until the sauce is creamy. Pour it over the pork chops and serve.

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Poultry

Cajun Drumsticks

April 16, 2021 robiulo Leave a comment

Cajun Drumsticks

This is a great way to eat chicken. It’s a nice combination of spicy and sweet.

Ingredients:

6 chicken drumsticks
6 tbsp. Cajun spice mix
6 tbsp. maple syrup

Pre-heat the oven to 375^o.

Start by Frenching the drumsticks. Cut through the skin and tendons about 1 ½ inch from the bottom. I use a serrated steak knife for this. Remove the skin from the lower end and scrape the meat upward with the edge of the knife

.

Wrap the bone end in aluminum foil and thoroughly coat the meat with Cajun spice mix. Place them on an oiled rack in a roasting pan.

Roast for 40 minutes, turning the drumsticks after 20 minutes. Remove and brush the drumsticks with maple syrup and roast for another 10 minutes. Let them cool a bit and serve.

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Desserts

Raspberry Corn Muffins

April 11, 2021 robiulo Leave a comment

Raspberry Corn Muffins

I got this recipe from our neighbor Kate’s Still Life with Menu cookbook. It’s a simple recipe, doesn’t take very long and makes a great breakfast.

Ingredients:

1 cup corn meal
1 cup unbleached white flour
½ tsp. salt
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
1 large egg
4 tbsp. melted butter
½ cup plain yogurt
½ cup orange juice
½ tsp. orange zest
1 cup raspberries

Preheat the oven to 400^o. Grease 12 muffin cups with butter.

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl making sure to blend the baking powder and soda thoroughly.

Add the egg, butter, yogurt, and juice in another bowl and beat well.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients and after they are mixed add that orange zest and raspberries. Mix gently.

Distribute the batter in 12 muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes before removing.

P.S. Be sure to check the ‘sell-by’ date on the baking powder and soda. If it’s expired you’ll make bricks instead of muffins.

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Lunch/Snacks, Sides, Vegetarian

Basilicata Frittata

April 9, 2021 robiulo Leave a comment

Basilicata Frittata

I had some leftover fresh horse radish from the Basilicata Style Pasta, so I used it for a frittata.

Ingredients:

About 12 oz./2 cups of potatoes, peeled, boiled and mashed
8 eggs
3 oz. grated Parmigiana cheese
3 oz. grated fresh horseradish or more to taste
¼ cup chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Enough olive oil for frying

Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the cheese, horse radish, parsley, and seasoning. Mix in the mashed potatoes and blend until you have a fairly smooth mixture. Don’t worry about a few little lumps. If you made the mashed potatoes fresh, make sure they cool off before you mix them so they don’t cook the eggs.

Heat the oil in an oven proof 10 inch pan, pour in the egg mixture and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Once the eggs begin to set, place the pan under your broiler for another 5 minutes to cook and brown the top of the frittata.

Slice and serve either hot or at room temperature.

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Basilicata Style Pasta

April 2, 2021 robiulo Leave a comment

Basilicata Style Pasta

If you’ve been following my blog you’ll know that I encourage you to not limit yourself to using just grated Parmigiana or Loccatelli type cheese on your pasta. For this recipe it’s grated fresh horse radish. The use of ground walnuts and breadcrumbs in the sauce and a good sprinkle of grated horse radish is typical of Basilicata, where my paternal grandparents are from. Fresh horse radish is common in Basilicata but not so much in New York expect around Passover. It’s the bitter herb in the Seder meal that represents the bitterness of slavery.

Ingredients:

¼ cup olive oil
1 finely chopped onion
Salt, black pepper & red pepper to taste
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 28oz. can of crushed tomatoes
½ cup finely chopped walnuts
½ cup toasted breadcrumbs
1 lb. short pasta – fusilli, gameli, rotini, cavatappi,
Fresh horse radish

Start a pot of salted water for the pasta and lay out your ingredients.

Heat the oil in a large pot and cook the onions on medium low. Add one tablespoon of tomato paste, salt, black, and red pepper. Cook low and slow until the onions are soft and translucent – don’t brown. The onions add a little sweetness to the sauce which is a nice counterpoint to the horse radish.

Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning. If you want a meat sauce, now is the time to add some nicely browned sausage or braciole.

Cook the pasta until almost done, drain it and add it to the sauce where it will finish cooking. Add a few tablespoons of the pasta water if the sauce is too dry. Pour in the walnuts and breadcrumbs, stir to thoroughly combine and serve. This is still a very good sauce even if you don’t have fresh horse radish.

Cut about an inch of the end of the horse radish and remove some of the bark with a potato peeler. Pass the horse radish and a grater at the table and top each dish with a good amount of horse radish. Sometimes when the horseradish hits the hot steamy pasta it can make your eyes tear. Don’t let it bother you.

Cover the cut end of the horse radish with some foil and refrigerate.

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REVERIES & RECIPES

Monthly Archives: April 2021

Pork Chops with Pan Sauce

Pork Chops with Pan Sauce

Here’s a simple method for making an elegant sauce. It’s perfect for pork chops but you should also try it with other types of meat.

Ingredients:

Bring the chops to room temperature and season with salt and black pepper. Heat the olive oil in a pan and cook the pork chops until done to your liking.

Remove them to a warm dish, add the stock to the pan and deglaze. Add the mustard, half & half, and butter, and whisk for a few minutes. until the sauce is creamy. Pour it over the pork chops and serve.

Cajun Drumsticks

Cajun Drumsticks

This is a great way to eat chicken. It’s a nice combination of spicy and sweet.

Ingredients:

Pre-heat the oven to 375^o.

Start by Frenching the drumsticks. Cut through the skin and tendons about 1 ½ inch from the bottom. I use a serrated steak knife for this. Remove the skin from the lower end and scrape the meat upward with the edge of the knife

.

Wrap the bone end in aluminum foil and thoroughly coat the meat with Cajun spice mix. Place them on an oiled rack in a roasting pan.

Roast for 40 minutes, turning the drumsticks after 20 minutes. Remove and brush the drumsticks with maple syrup and roast for another 10 minutes. Let them cool a bit and serve.

Raspberry Corn Muffins

Raspberry Corn Muffins

I got this recipe from our neighbor Kate’s Still Life with Menu cookbook. It’s a simple recipe, doesn’t take very long and makes a great breakfast.

Ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 400^o. Grease 12 muffin cups with butter.

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl making sure to blend the baking powder and soda thoroughly.

Add the egg, butter, yogurt, and juice in another bowl and beat well.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients and after they are mixed add that orange zest and raspberries. Mix gently.

Distribute the batter in 12 muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes before removing.

Basilicata Frittata

Basilicata Frittata

I had some leftover fresh horse radish from the Basilicata Style Pasta, so I used it for a frittata.

Ingredients:

Heat the oil in an oven proof 10 inch pan, pour in the egg mixture and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Once the eggs begin to set, place the pan under your broiler for another 5 minutes to cook and brown the top of the frittata.

Slice and serve either hot or at room temperature.

Basilicata Style Pasta

Basilicata Style Pasta

Ingredients:

Start a pot of salted water for the pasta and lay out your ingredients.

Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning. If you want a meat sauce, now is the time to add some nicely browned sausage or braciole.

Reveries and Recipes

Pork Chops with Pan Sauce

Here’s a simple method for making an elegant sauce. It’s perfect for pork chops but you should also try it with other types of meat.

Ingredients:

Bring the chops to room temperature and season with salt and black pepper. Heat the olive oil in a pan and cook the pork chops until done to your liking.

Remove them to a warm dish, add the stock to the pan and deglaze. Add the mustard, half & half, and butter, and whisk for a few minutes. until the sauce is creamy. Pour it over the pork chops and serve.

Cajun Drumsticks

This is a great way to eat chicken. It’s a nice combination of spicy and sweet.

Ingredients:

Pre-heat the oven to 375o.

Start by Frenching the drumsticks. Cut through the skin and tendons about 1 ½ inch from the bottom. I use a serrated steak knife for this. Remove the skin from the lower end and scrape the meat upward with the edge of the knife

.

Wrap the bone end in aluminum foil and thoroughly coat the meat with Cajun spice mix. Place them on an oiled rack in a roasting pan.

Roast for 40 minutes, turning the drumsticks after 20 minutes. Remove and brush the drumsticks with maple syrup and roast for another 10 minutes. Let them cool a bit and serve.

Raspberry Corn Muffins

I got this recipe from our neighbor Kate’s Still Life with Menu cookbook. It’s a simple recipe, doesn’t take very long and makes a great breakfast.

Ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 400o. Grease 12 muffin cups with butter.

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl making sure to blend the baking powder and soda thoroughly.

Add the egg, butter, yogurt, and juice in another bowl and beat well.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients and after they are mixed add that orange zest and raspberries. Mix gently.

Distribute the batter in 12 muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes before removing.

Basilicata Frittata

I had some leftover fresh horse radish from the Basilicata Style Pasta, so I used it for a frittata.

Ingredients:

Heat the oil in an oven proof 10 inch pan, pour in the egg mixture and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Once the eggs begin to set, place the pan under your broiler for another 5 minutes to cook and brown the top of the frittata.

Slice and serve either hot or at room temperature.

Basilicata Style Pasta

Ingredients:

Start a pot of salted water for the pasta and lay out your ingredients.

Add the tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning. If you want a meat sauce, now is the time to add some nicely browned sausage or braciole.

Reveries and Recipes

Pre-heat the oven to 375^o.

Preheat the oven to 400^o. Grease 12 muffin cups with butter.