Archive for the ‘Recipes’ Category
Chicken Soup for the Cold
It is the elixir that many grandmothers over the years use to wield their most powerful mojo. My own grandmother was her own exception, and even today when my aunts get together inevitably her chicken soup, and all of their inability to recreate it, comes up as a topic of conversation. Her belief in the soup, went well beyond the cold. While my brother suffered through numerous knee surgeries throughout his late teens and early twenties, my grandmother would always arrive at the hospital with casserole of chicken soup for him.
She did nothing fancy that I knew of, except for the pinch of saffron near the end, a nod to the cooking education she received. Shortly after being married, my grandfather returned to Spain with his bride. It was there that she learned to cook. She learned to cook specifically to please my grandfather, so it was the food he was accustomed she learned. Over the years, some of the food from her heritage crept back in, such as stuffed cabbage, and her yearly perogie festival, which was more like a holiday than a food item. But the daily cooking and the holiday cooking was usually Spanish food for my grandfather.
Despite my mother’s penchant for making everything from scratch, I only ever remember chicken soup out of a can at home. I don’t fault her for this, it was just plain old survival at that point. Raising four children, canned soup was the best instant food of her time. But it was that canned soup, that really brought me to indifference about soup in general.
The Salad of Summer 2008
This salad was an inevitable collision of random events. Somehow, I got inspired to make my own ricotta cheese, realizing how easy it was. And, the first organic tomatoes appeared at the Friday Farmers Market. That afternoon, I bought the tomatoes, and that night, I made the ricotta.
On Saturday, I pondered what to do with the ricotta as a bowl, of cherry tomatoes were staring me in the face. The rest just fell into place.
When I was a kid, there was always a tomato discussion throughout the summer. Besides getting home grown ones from family and neighbors, which were most prized, there was also the discussion of which farm stand had the best ones. I didn’t particularly like any tomato as a kid, and I certainly didn’t want some gnarly and mottled misshapen thing grown in my aunt’s back yard. The only acceptable tomatoes, not that I would eat them mind you, where perfectly and evenly red unblemished abominations, that I would now consider flavorless.
I now know better, and long for the home grown variety or at least from a farm stand, and look forward to next week when my next door neighbors will be on vacation, leaving their lovely tomato plants unchaperoned.
Making your own ricotta might seem like a reach, but it is a rather simple procedure. I was inspired by a post at 101 Cookbooks. It is well worth it making your own ricotta, the flavor difference is enormous, however in a pinch, buying it will be just fine as well.
And if you haven’t checked out 101 Cookbooks, definitely do. Spend some time with the archives, there are a lot of great recipes in there.
The Salad of Summer 2008
Ingredients
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Salt
- Pepper
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Fresh Ricotta
- Fresh Herbs
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
For side salad
I used about 4-5 cherry tomatoes person. Make this salad when you are ready to serve.
- Quarter the tomatoes, place in the bowls or plates you are going to serve in
- Spinkle tomatoes with a little sea salt
- Drizzle a little bit of balsamic vinegar over the tomatoes
- Place the ricotta on top of tomatoes, a couple of tablespoon of ricotta per serving
- Drizzle extra virgin olive oil.
- Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- Sprinkle fresh herbs on top.
