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I can't believe that Easter has come and gone already. I haven't really cooked this week as there were enough leftovers to carry us a few days.

I recommend that you try Lidia's Penne alla Vodka recipe. As I mentioned in my previous blog, I prepared the sauce, but asked my son to make the pasta for me. He did a great job and it came out delicious. It was creamy and just a hit of heat from the red pepper flakes that the recipe called for. Why buy it when you can make it better at home. 
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I've been working just about every day this week leading up to the Easter holiday. I planned a menu that could be done with minimal prep or can be done ahead of time. It's also helpful to have family willing to pitch in a bring a dish to dinner.

A special thank you to my friend, Colleen, for her beautiful flowers for my Easter table. 

​So what am I serving? My daughter and her husband are bringing tomatoes with fresh mozzarella. My son ordered two loaves of bread, three Parmesan rolls and three chocolate rolls from Medusa Stone Fired Kitchen in Asbury. Our salad will be Mandarin Salad, which has a sweet and sour dressing, topped with mandarin oranges and sugar glazed almonds. Since we're Italian, you have to have pasta. This year, I decided to serve Penne alla Vodka. I found the recipe on epicurious.com; it's a recipe from Lidia Bastianich's Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen. 
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As we approach the end of Lent, I'm running out of ideas for meatless meals. I went back to my Lidia's Italy cookbook to come up with something different that could be done in a reasonable amout of time. Lo and behold, I a found a wonderful springtime recipe for risotto with spinach. 

The ingredients can be found in your local grocery store, just about all of the local ones now carry Arborio rice, a little more challenging may be Carnaroli rice. Spinach leaves, onions, white wine and either Grana Padao or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese are needed. Do not purchase cheese in a cardboard container. Purchase a wedge of what you'll need and grate it yourself. The cheese will last about a week or two. Wrap it tightly in parchment paper or foil and store in your vegetable draw as exposure to air will dry out the cheese.
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With today's weather being foggy, misty and damp, I wanted a hearty meal for tonight. The bonus is I'm not working today. My late mother-in-law gave me her copy of Jean Anderson's book The Grass Roots Cookbook. I found a recipe for mushroom-smothered Swiss steak. As you know, we don't eat much meat in our house, but this recipe sounded delicious. So this morning, I headed off to Delicious Orchards and Whole Foods to get the ingredients for this dish.
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Well, I finally made it to Local130 Seafood located at 1300 Memorial Drive in Asbury Park. It's not your typical fish market. While there was some fish on display, I assume most of it is kept in the  back on ice. I purchased a bag of PEI mussels brought in from Confederation Cove Mussel Co. Ltd. in Canada. I  must say, the mussels seemed to be a bit larger than the ones I purchase at Wegmans and tasted a bit sweeter too.
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This past Saturday, a business associate of my husband gave us tickets to the Metropolitan Opera House's production of Fidelio. We had fabulous seats, six rows from the stage. As a further treat, our benefactor gave us a pass to the Belmont Room, which is just for Guild Members at the donor level or for Met patrons. It was a small room where you can get some light refreshments during intermission.

However, we had decided to have brunch before the show. It's difficult to find a nice, affordable dining spot in the Lincoln Square area. Previously, we had eaten at Nick and Toni's on West 67th Street,  however, they closed in early January. 
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This past week I had the  closing shift three times, and for the second time in two weeks, back to back nights. It may not be that awful if our dog, Daisy, slept past 4 a.m. My husband takes the 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. wake ups and I get up with her after 4 a.m. She's usually settles down after a trip outside, some water and her breakfast. Afterwards she proceeds to spend rest of the day napping. 

On Thursday,  I dragged myself to the gym to get the body and mind going. Then the nagging question, what's for supper? Back in March 2007, Wegmans published a recipe for Gingered Beef with Broccoli and Stir-Fry sauce. The active time is 20 minutes, so you gotta love that!
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My daughter has friend from high school whose family owns Alexian Pate and Specialty Meats, in Neptune, NJ. A while ago, she gave me several pates. I love pate, perhaps it's because my mother use to eat Mother Goose liverwurst and I too acquired a taste for it. Pate's texture is reminiscent of  those days, but now is in a whole other world texture and flavor.

I'm the only one in the family that would eat meat pates. Alexian also makes vegetable terrines that my family will eat. However, what do with delicious duck liver mousse with cognac? I offered to bring it a party at my brother's house this weekend, but he said they're more the "PB&J" crowd. Instead, I purchased some won-ton wrappers and made a quick ravioli out of the pate. Not knowing what would happen to the filling when boiled, I used about a teaspoon. In hindsight, I could have filled them more or used my ravioli cutter to have less dough surrounding the filled.
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 I have to work three nights this week, so again it becomes a cooking challenge. Once again, I sifted through my  recipes and I came across yet another one from the old Cooking Live show, one of the original Food Network shows hosted by Sara Moulton. 

Coq au vin ("rooster in wine") with shiitake mushrooms is chicken cooked in wine. While some recipes may call for the dish to be cooked on the stove top or oven, this recipe was done in a slower cooker. Instead of fresh pearl onions, I went the frozen route, which worked just as well. In lieu of fresh shiitakes, I used my dried Williams-Sonoma dried wild mushrooms (blend of shiitake, portobello, oyster and chanterelle mushrooms), that I resuscitated in some hot water for approximately 5 minutes, drained and added water to the slower cooker. In checking some other recipes on line, I noticed the use of burgundy wine. This recipe called for white wine
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I was off today and was able to make a great supper for my husband and I. I stopped off at Whole Foods on my way home from the gym. I found on sale Bell and Evans whole chicken for $1.99/lb., what a deal! I've had in my possession a recipe from the TV show Cook's Country for Skillet-Roasted Chicken and Stuffing (February/March 2013) that I was dying to make.


​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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