Recipe For A Friend....

Sher, here's a special treat which has just you in mind. In fact, I ate it for for you since you couldn't be here.

I know you have a fondness....er....ah....weakness for meatballs, and you've been needing a little extra iron in your diet -- spinach seems to be a favored ingredient with that qualification.

Let's start with a salad, which is always nice.

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A plate comes in handy. Alas, it's empty.

I spy something round. Could it be...?

It's a small plate, so it's not really a giant meatball. This means you can have 3 or 4, if you like.

The base is ground turkey, and has all the routine goodies: diced Vidalia onion, fresh crushed garlic, an egg or two, a splash of cream, some fresh breadcrumbs, fresh chopped oregano from the garden, salt and pepper, scads of coarsely chopped Italian parsley, a heaping spoonful or two of grated Pecorino Romano cheese, and your choice of lots and lots of spinach. I was crunched for time, the store's "fresh" looked anything but, so I used the frozen, chopped leaf spinach, which I then defrosted in the microwave, then squeezed out the liquid. [I suppose you could drink it, or save it for soup.]

You know the rest of this, I'm sure. Brown them in EVOO, remove to plate [not fully cooked yet so resist the temptation to taste. Use the drippings to make the sauce of your dreams, mine has buckets of chopped garlic and mushrooms [optional] lightly sauteed, crushed tomatoes [fresh or canned], salt and pepper, cover and letter simmer for about 1 hour stirring frequently.

Return the meatballs to finish cooking for the last twenty minutes covered at a gently bubbling simmer. Start pasta now, and when you put it in the water, stir in coarsely chopped, fresh basil -- about two handfuls or MORE -- into your sauce to wilt and finish off this simple treasure of tomatoes, garlic and basil. Does it get any better?

More cheese on top when you serve, and now....you get to taste.

Healthy eating, my friend. Feel better sooner than soon.

PS: I miss Upsie and Taboo, don't you?

Greek Kitty Camping In....

I am sleeping in yur tent after eating yur chizburger, chizburger, chizburger. Let's see if I make it to the dock on time!

Uh-oh, is the Friday Ark sailing without her?

She hopes not, but there's still plenty of partying at this Weekend's Cat Blogging, deliciously hosted by Paulchen's FoodBlog!

Let's hope they have chizburger, chizburger, chizburger, and pepsi, pepsi, pepsi!

Friday Cat Spelunking...

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Here, we find a cave kitty having lunch in her lair.
She's hoping there will be
room service like this
on Friday's Ark.
Also this weekend, dash on over to
hang out with Puddy at
A Byootaful Life,
where there are some pretty yummy-sounding
links, like pizza & mice!
Oops, I think the mice might be friends,
they have names and a place to stay, so don't eat them.

Good Enough To Eat...

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Hats off to Martha Stewart's Shrimp and Ginger Stir-Fry for the inspiration.

I added celery [3 large stalks, cut into bite-size pieces at an angle] to the vegetables [1 yellow pepper, 1 orange pepper, 2 red pepper and 2 bunches scallions], and a handful of shredded carrots and about 4 cups of dry baby spinach for the final minute. Instead of the sugar, I substituted 1 packet of Splenda®.

Get Tagged...

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Welcome to Sher's cookbook tag party.

I had fun photographing the favored few I have pared down to and included my 40-year collection of precious-to-me recipes [the red folder, which resides permanently in a hurricane evacuation box].

Several I have hung on to for the pictures alone, so inspirational when it comes to pretty presentations [Sher, you shine in that!] and ideas for when the well runs dry.

Lo & behold, I discovered the original Jelly Pizza recipe, typed out, with a scribbled note in pencil for a pretty decent cream cheese, pound cake recipe [do they still make Presto cake flour?].

Last but not least, for those of you unfamiliar with my Friday cat blogs, I have an old kitty, Taboo, who has a favorite nesting "cave" in a closet. I was thinking that this week I should at least try, for a change, to photograph her when she's up and about, wandering the house looking for her human family, plaintively crying, "is anybody home?"

So it is a little personal spoof on myself to display my books in her cave, peeking out much like she does. No kitties were harmed to take the cookbook photos, though she did get a little frustrated when she couldn't go to bed on time. She's there now, racked out until her next meal.

Here's a list of my cookbooks:

The Dinner Party Cook Book [for the pictures!], edited by Hilaire Walden
Not Afraid of Flavor, Recipes from Magnolia Grill, by Ben & Karen Barker
Salad, by Amy Nathan
The Martha Stewart Cookbook
Williams-Sonoma Vegetarian [a Goat Cheese & Leek Tart to die for!]
Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts [was there ever a prettier display of fruit in pastry?]
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, by Child, Bertholle & Beck [sigh, soupe à l'oignon, gilding the lily with both wine AND Cognac]
The Food of Greece, by Vilma Liacouris Chantiles
The Complete Book of Home Baking, by Ann Seranne [published in 1950, surely impossible to replace, it too should be stored in the hurricane box]. I've had a paperback version since the early 70s. I used it tonight to make the sweet potato biscuits. In fact, I use it all the time like you would a dictionary or Google even -- as a valuable tool to look everything up.

Thanks, Sher. That was a great idea you had, though I'm sorry to have to confess there's nary a Mexican recipe in my whole collection -- not an intended cultural slight, just lack of exposure.

This Looks Good Enough To Eat...

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The next generation in a long line of great cooks
takes center stage with an end of summer classic,
a fruit and custard tart.

Why the Planet is Worth Saving...

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As I began to clean up after making yesterday's lunch sandwich, I was reminded of that eternal question asked by Isaac Davis, in
Woody Allen's masterpiece Manhattan:
"Why is life worth living?"

I looked at the leftovers & nearly sobbed at their simple beauty, wondering how it's come to this sped-up destruction of life by the living. Is there truly not enough to go around fairly?

Turn off cable news' war porn, make a tomato sandwich and watch Manhattan. Care about making the planet safe again
for kittens and other living things.

Peas and berry much love.
Potere tutti i raccolti sono abbondantementi!
[If you already had your tomato sandwich for the day, feel free to ignore this message.]

Bread & Roses...

Papaya ~ Raspberries

&
Gardenias

When Life Gives You Blueberries...

Make Blueberry Cornbread

Blueberries [ 1½ cups] need no preparation, fresh [make sure they're dry] or frozen [don't thaw before adding to prepared batter]. Bake cornbread recipe of your choice [Jiffy, using buttermilk, in a pinch] until it's nicely browned [400 F] and pulling away slightly from the pan ~ about 25-30 minutes.
[Inspired by Mahanandi's Exquisite Food Blog ~ see the Cranberry Upside-Down Cornbread]

The Jelly Pizza

Take a few simple ingredients carefully combined, and there you have it...
your signature dish, requested by some who will always remember that morning in your kitchen.

©Jelly Pizza
Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2 large eggs
½ cup milk
½ cup flour

Whisk ingredients together until smooth; allow to rest for 10 minutes, otherwise the texture will be rubbery.

On medium-high burner, melt ½ stick butter until foamy [do not allow to brown], in large skillet with oven proof handle; quickly add the beaten mixture all at once to the center of the skillet, and leave for about a minute or two until the edges start to ruffle [you’ll know what I mean when you see it].

At this point, slide it gently into the hot oven for approximately 12-15 minutes until dramatically puffed into golden brown hills and valleys.

Remove from oven and place on wooden board. The handle will remain VERY HOT for a long time, and I have burned myself enough times that I slide an oven mitt over the handle and leave it there.

Immediately squeeze ½ lemon over the entire surface [hopefully you’ll have popped out the visible seeds, or just use a lime]. This will cause the whole thing to collapse. Too bad, but that’s life.

Next take no more than 1-2 tablespoons seedless red raspberry preserves and lightly spread it around the top, which will be juicy from the lemon and the butter. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve immediately.

Serves 2 for dessert, or 1 delighted guest for breakfast.

Someday when there’s time, I’ll post the story of its creation and naming.