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I graduated high school in 1974 and began working for a Swedish steel company in my hometown. It was a diverse group of people working there. One person who I became friendly with was a woman named Paddy, who was from Northern Ireland. One fall day, she invited a group of us to her house in White Meadow Lake, NJ for afternoon tea. She served endless pots of black tea along with Irish apple pie, chocolate haystacks and Napoleons filled with whipped cream and raspberry jam to name a few. Over the years we became a small core group. The group of seven would take turns over the years hosting. Bernice, who was Jewish, cooked brisket and potatoes latkes, Marlene was known for her Italian cooking, Jane was our health-conscious cook and Nancy and I would peruse cook books to prepare slightly involved meals. ​

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​In all things fall, it’s time to enjoy the bounty that the fall harvest brings. In the November 2021 issue of “Southern Living Magazine” a recipe for Sausage-Stuffed Squash caught my eye. Had I prepared my shopping list better i.e., title of the recipe, followed by the list of ingredients, I would have purchased the correct type of squash for this dish, but I didn’t.  For the recipe you’ll need delicata squash, olive oil, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, hot Italian pork sausage, red onion, fresh garlic, fresh oregano leaves, rainbow chard, water or chicken stock, day old cornbread, toasted and chopped pecans and pecorino Romano cheese.
 
As this was my dinner plan, for that evening, I decided to use the spaghetti squash I purchased for another recipe. The delicata squash is a much smaller vegetable than the spaghetti squash, sweeter and you can eat its skin. Despite my error, I plunged ahead and roasted the squash until it was tender.
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​The days are growing shorter, the nights cooler and we begin to change how we eat.  This is reflected in the meals I am now preparing.
 
My son-in-law likes to surf the web and send me interesting recipes. One of those was Creamy Tuscan Chicken, by Lena Abraham, a recipe he found on the website Delish. This dish is a great transition to slightly heartier meals, yet takes advantage of summer tomatoes. For the recipe you’ll need extra-virgin olive oil, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, kosher salt, freshly ground pepper, dried oregano, butter, fresh garlic, cherry tomatoes, baby spinach, heavy cream, freshly grated Parmesan and lemon wedges.
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It was a busy summer for me this year. I babysat my grandson one day a week for a few hours and my daughter and granddaughters came down on Friday’s so we could enjoy the beach. We, the grandparents, are now relaxing after beach season.

One of the recent recipes I’ve made is Turkey-Zucchini Meatballs with Green Yogurt and Saffron Rice. I found this recipe last year in the weekend edition of The Wall Street Journal. The recipe is from Mona Talbott and her shop, Talbott & Arding Cheese Provisions in Hudson, New York.
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​Earlier this year, I found in The New York Times “Here to Help” column a recipe for Flourless Chocolate Cake by Genevieve Ko. As it’s just my husband and I, I couldn’t justify baking an 8-inch chocolate cake just to try and write about, but we were was having company over the Labor Day weekend and this gave me the perfect opportunity. My daughter suggested purchasing a dessert to save time, but I had all the ingredients on hand which made it easier just to whip this 
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While this recipe calls for using a slow-cooker, I used my pressure cooker aka InstaPot. I used split chicken breasts 1/2 cup of homemade chicken stock along and cooked under high pressure for 8 minutes. 
​Slow-Cooker Hot-Honey Chicken Sandwiches
By Sarah Digregorio
From The New York Times|”Here to Help” column July 19, 2022
 
 
Time: 4 to 5 hours and 20 minutes
Servings: 4
 
Ingredients
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons red-pepper flakes, plus more to taste
1½ teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon ground smoked paprika
Kosher salt and black pepper
¼ cup honey
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This week my local ShopRite food store has fresh, all natural, dry local sea scallops on special for $19.99/lb. Fresh Seafood Department All Natural, Dry Local Sea Scallops. While you're at it, live wild caught lobsters (1 to 1.25 lbs.) are $8.99/lb. with your PricePlus card. It's the perfect time to make your own lobster rolls. 

​Seared Scallops with Lemon-Herb Rice
By Karen Schroeder-Rankin
Southern Living Magazine, April 2021
 
Active Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 4
 
5 scallions
6 tablespoons butter, divided
1-1/2 cups uncooked long-grain white rice
¼ cup dry white wine
2-3/4 cup lower-sodium chicken broth
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
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Growing up in north Jersey, there was a local bakery, on Stephens Avenue in Little Falls, whose name I can’t recall, that had the most delicious baked goods. Offerings included marble loaf cake with walnuts, lemon filled coconut buns, honey buns and crumb buns.

Over the years I had come to like a particular type of crumb cake. I don’t like an overly moist or soft cake, but prefer one that’s chewy, yet tender, and a crumb topping that isn’t overly sweet. Also, there has to be a higher ratio of crumb topping to cake.
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Recently, I came across a tasty sounding recipe that was in The New York Times newspaper. The recipe, Grilled Chicken with Tomatoes and Corn, is from Ali Slagle. If you enjoy Jersey tomatoes, this recipe utilizes them along with fresh corn, boneless chicken thighs, extra-virgin olive oil, chili powder, kosher salt, red onion and fresh oregano leaves. The recipe comes together in 30 minutes.
 
This recipe calls for uncooked corn kernels. After reading other readers comments, I decided to blanch my corn for a mere minute. I also used boneless, skinless, chicken breasts in lieu of thighs and seasoned them about an hour ahead of cooking. One suggestion from the comments I decided to follow was to do a quick pickle of the sliced red onions. ​
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​I love zucchini for its adaptiveness to both sweet and savory recipes. Last summer I made Ali Slagle’s recipe for Chicken-Zucchini Meatballs with Feta. You can’t go wrong with Lidia Bastianich’s recipe for Lemony Shrimp Over Zucchini either. For sweet recipes, Gourmet Magazine’s Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cake or Jerrelle Guy’s yummy Zucchini Muffins with Cinnamon Crunch Topping are wonderful.
 
Recently my daughter sent me a recipe for Creamy Zucchini Pasta, a recipe she found on the website The Proper Modern.  This delightful recipe takes a handful of ingredients and turns them into a luscious cream sauce that doesn’t rely on an overabundance of butter or cream. The addition of pasta cooking water helps extend the richness of the sauce. Besides the zucchini you’ll need shallots, fresh garlic, Parmesan cheese, fresh basil leaves, heavy cream and pasta cooking water. The recipe calls for a ½ cup of pasta water. I suggest reserving two cups as additional water made be needed to adjust the sauce to the consistency you prefer. Also, I like to use the pasta water when reheating leftovers in the microwave.


​meet donna

A former teacher, shop-a-holic, empty-nester redefining quick, family approved dinners.

​If you have questions or comments, click on the envelope icon above to contact me directly. 

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