Friday, August 16, 2024

Traditional Christmas Eve Hors d’oeuvres

Christmas Eve was always a special time for our family in Delmar, NY in the 80s. I would make a bouillabaisse served with crusty bread for dinner. After we opened our gifts, we would feast on a selection of hors d’oeuvres. I cooked for two weeks. Always included:

Hot

Swedish meatballs, artichoke dip, Reuben dip, stuffed mushrooms, shrimp del ray, crab-stuffed shrimp, hot clam dip, spanakopita, buffalo wings, steamed clams, chipped beef in bread bowl, hot crab dip, crab toasts, shrimp bread, hot broccoli dip, stuffed clams, sausage and cheese balls, meatballs with grape jelly, angels and devils on horseback                                       

Cold

7-layer dip, antipasto, chicken liver pâté, cheddar cheese wheel, onion dip, whipped bleu cheese dip, assorted olives and relishes, variety of crackers, pita chips, bagel chips, and  breads


Thursday, March 23, 2017

2017 Easter Menu


2017 Easter Dinner: This menu accommodates the tastes of my 
                                    daughter Erin, grandson Reed, and granddaughter
                                    Claudia Paige, and some of my favorites are here 
                                    too! All recipes can be found on my Pinterest account 
                                    in the listed boards.



                                                       Reed, Age 18



                                                  Claudia Paige, Age 15

Soup: Thai Coconut with Shrimp



Relish Tray: Cottage cheese, monterey jack, olive assortment, celery, 
                      carrots, deviled eggs, hummus, marinated mushrooms, 
                      cracker assortment

Fruit Tray: Strawberries, blackberries, red grapes, starfruit, papaya, 
                    mango, kiwi, cherries, figs, and dates

Appetizer: Pan-Seared Sea Scallops on Creamed Spinach Bed





Bread: Soft Dinner Rolls



Salad: Caesar



Roast: Standing Prime 7-Rib Roast


Potato: Milled Duchess



Vegetable: Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce and Lemon



                   Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Butter Sauce



Dessert: Triple Chocolate Cheesecake with Oreo Crust



                Old Fashioned Banana Cream Pie



                Easter Yogurt Pops



Beverage: Saratoga Spring Water with lemon and lime


                   Battenkill Valley Creamery Milk



                   Assortment of Coffees and Teas and Liqueurs 

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Irish Potato, Bacon, And Cheese Pie

Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.


    [Image courtesy of cakeduchess.com until I make this again and replace with my photo]

This pie is typical Irish fare: comfort food at its best. It can be served for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I make this with only a bottom crust. I find a top crust too starchy with the potato being the main filling. There are many variations of the dish. This particular recipe is my version after reading and tasting some of these potato pie recipes. I hope you enjoy this perhaps on a cold, wintery evening. I serve it with a Caesar salad for an easy but delicious meal. Reheat for breakfast. I had a very similar version of this pie in Navan, County Meath, very near where I lived in Trim. Friends would take me a couple times a month to a larger grocery store in Navan so I could get large quantities of food. During the week when I ran out, I would walk downtown to the smaller shops and bag drag the items home. I learned to be very organized, or I would send Erin or Eli to buy something I needed right then. I never had a car except for one month when we toured so stayed thin because we walked so much.

Interesting note: though born in Drogheda, the Irish actor Pierce Brosnan was raised in Navan, lived there for 12 years, and considers it his hometown. The first time I saw him was in  the popular mini series Manions of America in 1981. I thought he was so cute though not a great actor. I loved him in Remington Steele and Mamma Mia! especially.

IRISH POTATO, BACON, AND CHEESE PIE [Serves 6]

Ingredients:

Crust for bottom layer
4 large potatoes, peeled and sliced very thinly
16 pieces of crisp bacon, broken into pieces
16 ounces of extra sharp cheese, grated
½ cup of Romano cheese, grated
½ stick of butter plus a few pats for topping
¼ cup of flour
2½ cups of milk
1½ T. of Provençal herbs [Blend of lavender, thyme, savory, basil, and fennel]
Salt and pepper


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375º. Prepare pie plate. I use a 10-inch for this recipe. It makes a large pie. If you want to make a 9-inch pie, just reduce the ingredients a bit or it will spill over into the oven when baking. [If you are in a hurry, use the refrigerated crust already rolled, but do not bring the crust to the top of the pie plate as it might overbrown in the oven since they are for 9-inch pies. Again, if you are making a 9-inch, this crust will fit perfectly.] Place the crust onto the plate. Make the cream sauce by melting the butter, adding the flour to make a light roux. Add the milk and gently bring to a boil. Reduce heat and stir in the Provençal herbs continuing to stir until thickened. Place ⅓ of the potatoes in a swirl formation on the bottom of the plate adding ⅓ of the bacon, ⅓ of the sharp cheese, and ⅓ of the cream sauce. Lightly salt and pepper each layer. Layer the rest of the ingredients in order. Top with a few pats of butter and the Romano cheese.  Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until golden brown, potatoes are tender, and fork comes out clean.

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Irish Nachos Appetizer

Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.


Photo from thedailymeal.com until I make this & photograph it.

We had these in a pub in Dublin on one of our weekend jaunts to the city. Every other weekend for a few months Erin, Eli, and I would take the early morning bus into Dublin to explore for the day and do all the "touristy" things: the shops, the pubs, the restaurants, museums, cathedrals, parks, zoo, etc.--all the tourist sights. It was great fun. We got to know the city very well. I can say my favorite parts of the city were St. Stephen's Green, Phoenix Park, and Powerscourt. I loved to visit Bewley's and The Shrimp Wine Bar.


Me at Murphy's, a popular pub in the 80s

We had these "nachos" for lack of a better word, and they were delicious. Instead of corn chips, the basket was filled with french fries smothered in all things Irish. Today they are standard fare in most Irish pubs. And I must say they are one of my favorite pub offerings. Most include potato waffle fries as the base. 

Irish Nachos Appetizer

Ingredients:

1 large package of waffle fries cooked
1 lb. of corned beef brisket, chopped
1 lb. of pepper jack or Irish cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 lb. of crispy bacon, broken into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large tomato, seeded and diced
2 scallions, chopped
Sour cream
Salsa
Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Cook waffle fries according to package. Top with corned beef, cheese, bacon, tomato, and scallion. Combine sour cream, salsa, salt, and pepper. Stream over the top. 

Variations:

Avocado, chopped
Mayonnaise
Ranch dressing

Enjoy!

Irish Journal Part Five

Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.


Irish Journal Part Five:


By the next morning the rain had stopped, and I had yet to know it would rain 6 times a day on many days during our stay in Ireland. Miriam made us a breakfast of tea, juice [or what the Irish passed off as juice, more on this later,] cereal, sausage, and apples. The agenda for the day was to enroll Erin and Eli into school which was starting the new year that very day and go to the auctioneer [real estate agent] to find us a home. We first went to the Christian Brothers school St. Michael's and were directed to the principal who also taught fourth year which is grade 4 in the States.  He spoke with us in the hall outside his classroom and said Eli could start right then and that he would be in his class. I was a little surprised by this and was not yet willing to let go of my nine-year-old son, so I said that tomorrow would be fine. The door to the classroom had glass on the upper portion giving us a clear view of what was taking place inside. It reminded me of a stereotypical scene in a movie about an English boys' school: sheer bedlam. I could barely hear Brother Brehaney above the roar of the students. They were all up out of their seats, running around, throwing things, standing on radiators, etc. I had to laugh, but when I looked at Eli I saw that he was terrified. His eyes were like saucers just staring at this chaos he would soon be entering. I really did not want to surrender my precious son to this insanity.


Then we went to Scoil Mhuire, the Convent of Mercy School to enroll Erin. It was hectic there as well since the new term was just beginning. We met with Sister Michael, the head Sister of Mercy, and she asked us to come back the next day. So we went and purchased Eli's uniform: grey slacks, powder blue long-sleeved, button down shirts, navy ties--his first real tie--and navy V-neck sweaters. He looked like Dapper Dan. Now keep in mind Erin and Eli had always gone to public schools in Delmar, Bethlehem Central School District, and they were not raised in a fromal religion. So enrolling them in religious schools was something of a daunting experience for them. Miriam showed us where the post office was, and I purchased my first stash of postage. I spent a fortune on postage during our stay as mail was my lifeline to my former life and former self. 


Next stop was to find a house to rent. We went to two auctioneers and were told they would have places for us to view the next day, but there was one we could see that afternoon. We went to Griffin Park and saw the most disgusting rental--ugly, dingy, dirty, moldy. I was looking at furnished places, and when I turned the bedding down, there were bugs crawling all over. We got out of there fast. I suppressed depression and forced myself to believe something wonderful would be found the next day. We went back to the B & B, and Miriam made us grilled cheese for lunch. I can still see the huge chunks of raw onion inside the sandwich.  I thought I might possibly vomit.  I thought for sure Erin or Eli would, but they rose to the occasion and just took out the onions. I was proud of them. Miriam was none too pleased with us as I recall. I thought it was the Irish way of preparing a grilled cheese sandwich but later discovered it was simply Miriam's way. We went on a brisk walk, and Miriam showed us some of Trim. It was a charming town with the River Boyne slowly ambling its way through it creating many bridges and many opportunities for swan sightings. I would take many wonderful, leisure, peaceful walks along its banks over the many months of our stay. I always felt rested and renewed after these walks.
Miriam made Irish stew for dinner, and her husband Con [short for Cornelius] asked if I ate the skin on the potatoes. We were informed he was a local garda or policeman. I said that I did explaining the peel contained many nutrients, and his response was one of amazement. I found out why when I ate a potato and discovered the peel was filthy. I guess Miriam never developed  the habit of washing the potatoes before baking them. Eli watched some telly--we were beginning our vocabulary transformation, and Erin talked to Miriam's daughter Grainne who was her age and went to Scoil Mhuire. Eli went to bed at 9 to be well-rested for his new school adventure the next day. Erin and I stayed up until 10 and drifted off trying to envision what the next day would bring.



Eli proudly displaying his new school uniform/September 1984



Eli and Erin at Murphy's in Dublin
 
Next: Part 6 of our Irish adventure--Eli's first day of school, the fiasco of enrolling Erin into Scoil Mhuire, and starting the arduous task of finding a house to rent.

Irish Paella

Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.


[Image courtesy of I AM FOOD BLOG.COM until I make this again and replace with my own image.]

The best paella I ever tasted was in the Canary Islands.  In another post [Irish Seafood Pot Pie] I wrote about the islands as a popular European vacation destination.  Seafood was plentiful and fresh so this dish was often served in the many restaurants along the beaches and in the cities.  This is the best recipe I have found for paella with some alteration to match the entrée served so many years ago while I was on holiday with my children Erin and Eli off the coast of Africa near Morocco.

 
My son Eli Zachary and I in the Canary Islands on holiday during the Christmas season of 1985.  We were on our way to dinner on a beautiful warm evening.  I still remember the light warm breeze and the feel, look, and smell of the night.  Some memories stay with one a lifetime.  I guess that is of what life is made. [Note the "big hair" of the 80s!]



Eli and Erin near the orange grove in the Canary Islands.

Before the recipe, I want to include an article on paella--and more specifically--what it is not by Erica Marcus.


"In the pantheon of great international party dishes, you'd be hard-pressed to find one more misunderstood than paella.

Here's what paella is not: It is not a yellow rice casserole. It is not a repository for all manner of meats and vegetables. It is not the Spanish national dish.

What paella is is a method of cooking rice, native to Valencia on Spain's eastern coast, that involves sautéing ingredients in olive oil in a wide, shallow pan, adding rice and liquid and then cooking, uncovered and with a minimum of stirring, until the rice is just tender.

Penelope Casas, an authority on Spanish food (and the author of many cookbooks), explained that the name refers to the pan in which paella is cooked. "The paella--the pan--is wide and shallow," she said. "It is made from carbon steel, it heats up quickly, and over time it discolors and gets ugly-looking." (In other words, don't spend your money on a $200 paella pan; you can get the real thing for about $40.)

In Valencia, Casas said, there are restaurants devoted to making paella. Some make the dish in their kitchens, others use a specially-made propane burner-on-a-tripod, still others cook paella in the most traditional way: over an open wood fire.

In her definitive book Paella! Spectacular Rice Dishes From Spain (Henry Holt), Casas adapts traditional recipes for the American home cook. And she is bullish that a true paella requires nothing that can't be easily obtained in most supermarkets. "The only indispensable ingredients are rice, water and olive oil," she writes. "Everything else is the subject of endless debates and discussions by Spaniards."

When Casas published Paella in 1999, short-grain Spanish rice was hard to find on U.S. shores. But the recent push by Spain to introduce its foods to Americans has brought many more imported products into specialty stores. Optimally, Casas would have us use the highest-quality Spanish short-grain rice, called Bomba, for paella. But she has also made entirely creditable--if unusually creamy--paellas with Italian Arborio rice; she particularly likes Beretta's Superfino brand.

The yellow color of some paellas comes from saffron, but Casas said that it is really a supporting player most of the time. Still, it's worth seeking out high-quality, authentic Spanish "thread" saffron that hasn't been pulverized into an orange powder. Ditto Spanish paprika--pimenton--which has a haunting, smoky quality all its own.

Casas labors mightily to combat the notion, widely held by Americans, that "paella is a random assortment of seafood, meat and vegetables." Even in Valencia, she said, restaurants now serve such " mixed" paellas "because the tourists want them," but the Valencians don't really approve of them. "By mixing, you detract from the integrity of the main ingredients," she said.

On the other hand, Valencia boasts an almost infinite variety of paellas, more than 60 of which Casas presents in her book. "Of course, there's a tremendous variety," she says. "Where paella comes from, they eat it every day."

 
Now that we know what paella is and what it is not--can you tell I was an English instructor?--I want to add my two cents or really just my personal preferences.  I like the saffron, and I like seafood and sausage.  So the recipe I have included here contains that and, of course, the baby octopus that we had in Gran Canaria. I never told Erin she was eating octopus almost daily for two weeks until months later.
 
This is a basic recipe of Tyler Florence that I have tweaked quite a bit to make it more like the paella of years ago.  It really is not difficult to make.  And it is really so good.  Is it really paella in the traditional sense? No, but in the modern American menu, it is. Don't tell your friends from Spain.  Many paella recipes call for peas.  Many traditional recipes are cooked over wood fires. You also can substitute what you like: oysters, mussels, etc.

 
Irish Paella 
 
Ingredients:
 
Spice mix for chicken [recipe included] 
3 pounds of boneless chicken breasts or thighs 
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 Spanish chorizo sausages, thickly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 Spanish onion, diced
1 large green pepper, diced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
Bunch flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped, reserve some for garnish
1 (15-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained and hand-crushed
4 cups short grain Spanish rice
6 cups water or chicken broth, warm
Generous pinch saffron threads
1 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and de-veined
2 lobster tails 
1 pound of baby octopus, cut into rings
12 sea scallops
Lemon wedges
 
Special equipment:

Large paella pan or wide shallow skillet

Preparation:

Rub the spice mix all over the chicken and marinate chicken for 1 hour in the refrigerator.  Heat oil in a paella pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the chorizo until browned, remove, and reserve. Add chicken and brown on all sides, turning with tongs. Add salt and freshly ground pepper. Remove from pan and reserve.

In the same pan, make a sofrito by sautéing the onions, garlic, green pepper, and parsley. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes on a medium heat. Then, add tomatoes and cook until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld. Fold in the rice and stir-fry to coat the grains. Pour in water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Add chicken, chorizo, and saffron. Add the clams and shrimp, tucking them into the rice. The shrimp will take about 8 minutes to cook. Give the paella a good shake and let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, for about 15 minutes. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, when the rice is filling the pan, add the lobster tails and octopus. When the paella is cooked, and the rice looks fluffy and moist, turn the heat up for 40 seconds until you can smell the rice toast at the bottom. Then it's perfect. The ideal paella has this toasted rice bottom called socarrat. 

 
Remove from heat and rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Two More Kid-Friendly Nile Hors d'Oeuvres: Cucumber Cups with Blue Cheese Mousse and Trout Mousse

Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.


The base of these hors d'oeuvres is cucumber. Kids love to cut out the cucumber rounds and top them by themselves. I will include the toppings as presented in the appetizer book I like, but you could top them with all your children's favorites: peanut butter, marshmallow, fruits, jams, cheese, Nutella®, hard boiled eggs, egg salad, chicken, olive, nuts, etc. The possibilities are as limitless as your children's imaginations. Have some fun in the kitchen this weekend with your kids or grandkids.

 
Carla Mooney and I sitting in the traffic circle in the center of Trim during the Tidy Town Awards in October of 1984

 
Erin, my father and mother, and Eli at the same traffic circle in April of 1985

Again let me credit Eric Treuille and Victoria Blashford-Snell for these wonderful recipes found in their Hors D'Oeuvres cookbook.

 
Cucumber Cups with Blue Cheese Mousse and Crispy Bacon

CUCUMBER CUPS WITH BLUE CHEESE MOUSSE AND CRISPY BACON    [Makes 20]

Ingredients:


6 slices of bacon
4 oz. of Roquefort cheese
4 oz. of cream cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1 scallion, cut into strips for garnish
1 cucumber made into 20 cucumber cups


Essential Equipment:


Piping bag with large star nozzle, 1 3/8-inch fluted pastry cutter, melon baller

Preparation:


Place bacon on a foil-lined baking sheet. Cook until golden and crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain on paper towels and cut into small triangular pieces as shown in photo. Cut the cucumber into 20 ¾-inch slices. Cut each slice with the pastry cutter. Using the melon baller, scoop out centers to make cups, leaving a ¼-inch layer as a base. Beat the cheeses until smoothly blended. Add the salt and pepper. Fill the piping bag with mousse and pipe into cucumber cups. [As shown on all cooking shows, you can substitute a plastic bag with the corner cut off for the piping bag.] Top with crispy bacon pieces and garnish with scallion strips.


Tips:


Prepare the mousse up to 3 days in advance. Cover and refrigerate. Cook bacon up to one day in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Crisp in preheated 350° oven for two minutes.  Make the cups up to 2 days in advance, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Fill cups up to one hour before serving.

 
Cucumber Cups with Trout Mousse, Lemon, and Dill

CUCUMBER CUPS WITH SMOKED TROUT MOUSSE, LEMON, AND DILL         [Makes 20]

Ingredients:


5 oz. of smoked trout
4 oz. of cream cheese
½ tsp. of grated lemon peel
1 tbsp. of lemon juice
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 cucumber made into 20 cucumber cups
1 tsp. of paprika for dusting
20 dill sprigs for garnish


Essential Equipment:


Piping bag with large star nozzle, 1 3/8-inch fluted pastry cutter, melon baller 


Preparation:


Place the smoked trout, cream cheese, lemon peel and juice in a food processor or blender; pulse to a smooth paste. Add cayenne pepper to taste. Cut the cucumber into 20 ¾-inch slices. Cut each slice with the pastry cutter. Using the melon baller, scoop out centers to make cups, leaving a ¼-inch layer as a base. Fill the piping bag with mousse and pipe into cucumber cups. [As shown on all cooking shows, you can substitute a plastic bag with the corner cut off for the piping bag.] Dust with paprika, and garnish with dill sprigs.

Tips:


Prepare the mousse up to 1 day in advance. Cover and refrigerate. Make the cups up to 2 days in advance, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Fill cups up to one hour before serving.

Illustration of how to make cucumber cups:




Next up: more kid-friendly hors d'oeuvres.