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The Sunday New York Times of February 20, 2022 included the supplement “Brilliant Baking.” After leafing through it, I found some marvelous recipes that I wanted to try. The first of these was Chewy Earl Grey Sugar Cookies by Yossy Arefi. Ms. Arefi is a contributor to The New York Times Cooking section. She is also photographer and baker with a website called Apt. 2B Baking Co. As luck would have it I happened to have some loose Earl Grey tea in the house. This recipe came at the perfect time as I need a small hostess gift to bring to a friend’s house for dinner.
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​Recently, I was in a very veggie mood. My husband and I both came across a wonderful soup recipe in “Charleston Magazine” (January 2022) for Broccoli and Arugula Soup. This vegetarian soup was so easy to make and despite the fact there was no cream in the recipe, it was a rich and creamy soup.
 
For the recipe you’ll need extra virgin olive oil, one sweet onion, fresh garlic, broccoli florets, sea salt, fresh ground black pepper, vegetable stock, arugula leaves and a lemon.
 
The onions are diced and the garlic minced as they are set in a large pot with olive oil to cook until translucent. The florets are added and seasoned with salt and pepper. The broccoli is cooked until bright green and then the vegetable stock is added. The mixture is brought to a boil and then reduced to a simmer until the broccoli is tender. 
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​Although I am not of Irish decent, I do have special recipes that are perfect to be enjoyed during the month of March. I’ve have made these recipes many times and never tire of them.
 
The first is Irish Soda bread, a recipe that I shared with my readers last year. The recipe uses pantry staples, plus the addition of seedless raisins, caraway seeds and buttermilk. Another recipe that I enjoy making is from America’s Test Kitchen and their version of British-Style Currant Scones. This recipe, too, uses pantry staples, the only thing you need to source are currants.  However, I’m sure if all you had were raisins, they would be an adequate substitute. 
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Does the prospect of dining out for Valentine’s Day sound unappealing? Do you prefer to make dinner or a special dessert at home? I have some ideas for you.​

Starting with breakfast, I recommend red velvet pancakes; I’m craving these right now. This recipe appeared in Southern Living Magazine’s issue of December 2012. The pancakes are delectable, right down to the cream cheese butter that accompanies them. If you want to make them this weekend, I suggest you purchase your cream cheese as soon as possible. My local Wegmans did not have any this past Sunday. Also in lieu of red food coloring, I use Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion made by LorAnn Oils. This item is available at Michael Stores or Shore Cake Supply. I suggest calling before going to make sure it’s in stock. You can also purchase the oil from Amazon. You’ll also need all-purpose flour, powdered sugar, unsweetened cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, buttermilk, eggs, granulated sugar and the red liquid food coloring or the LorAnn oil.
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Last week my local ShopRite had USA wild caught, never frozen shrimp on sale. Despite the fact sale meant $12.99/lb., I splurged and purchased some for dinner. I recently found a wonderful one pan meal on the NYT Cooking app for Shrimp in Purgatory. This recipe by Sarah Digregorio is a riff on the southern Italian dish, Eggs in Purgatory where eggs are poached in a spicy tomato sauce that you can sop up with crusty Italian bread, my preference, or serve over pasta or polenta. ​
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​Last weekend I offered to make my husband a Dutch Baby pancake for breakfast. He doesn’t like to eat anything heavy for breakfast, but I knew he would like this. Initially, he dismissed my offer, as he didn’t really know what it was. However, after I described it to him, he decided to give it a try.
 
The Dutch Baby originated at a Seattle Café called “Manca’s” by the owner Victor Manca during the early 1900’s to mid-50’s.  It’s said, that Mr. Manca’s daughter could not pronounce “Deutch” (means German) and instead said Dutch. The café served three small German pancakes, but when the regular size was created it was renamed “Big Dutch Baby.” This pancake is an American take on the German dish Apfelpfannukuchen or German apple pancake.
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Our neighbor, Jeff, just retired and my husband wanted to have he and his wife over for dinner. This couple has been our neighbor for more than 30 years. What was on the menu you ask? For hors d’oeuvres I made my late cousin’s stuffed mushrooms, crab spread from Mr. Shrimp (Belmar) and Alexian’s Pâté’s Wild Forest Mushroom Pâté served with cornichons. A Stilton and Pear salad was our first course. For dinner,  Dijon and Cognac Beef Stew, a recipe from the New York Times, served atop garlic mashed potatoes along with popovers. Dessert was the Financiers that I recently blogged about.
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​Last winter The New York Times Cooking published a “Sheet-Pan Everything,” supplement. I found these recipes exceptional and have prepared at least a half dozen of them. Last night, I made Gochujang Chicken and Roasted Vegetables. Gochujang (available at Wegmans) is a spicy paste made from red chili peppers, fermented soybeans, glutinous rice and salt. This traditional Korean sauce is both sweet and spicy while also adding a layer of umami. 
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​A few weeks ago, I was watching “America’s Test Kitchen at Home.” One of their co-hosts, Bridget Lancaster was preparing Financiers. Financiers are small almond cakes that uses six ingredients to make the most wonderful two-bite petite cakes. They are perfect for entertaining as they can be prepared ahead of time (mine are being stored in an area of my unfinished attic where its cold and humidity free). You can dress these gems up with slivered almonds, pieces of chocolate or fresh fruit. For my dinner party, I topped mine with chocolate and almonds. 
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I started following @sarah_keiffer on Instagram and her "Vanilla Bean Blog." I searched her website for a recipe for chocolate sugar cookies and was able to find one that truly is outstanding. 

Sarah suggest measuring them out as 2 tablespoonfuls, but they come out quite large. A tablespoon yielded a more desirable size for me.

Chocolate Sugar Cookies
By Sarah Kieffer
from her blog, The Vanilla Bean Blog, September 10, 2020
 


​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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