Braised Veal Roast

One whiff of something good cooking in someone’s oven can be an inspiration. The other day I picked up some slacks that a dressmaker had hemmed for me and the aroma of roasting meat was so powerfully wonderful in her house that I commented a few times and she kept asking if I wanted a taste. I wasn’t up for a bite but I did ask what it was she was making. She told me it was a pork loin. She put it into a baking pan, seasoned it with garlic and oregano, added “some white wine and a little lemon juice” and baked it, cover on, then browned it at the end.

I decided to copy her dish with a veal roast. My house smelled just as wonderful as hers had and although I didn’t taste hers, I’m sure it was good, because mine was wonderful. I added a sliced fennel bulb. Have to tell her that next time I see her. Here’s the recipe.

Braised Veal Roast

1 large bulb fennel

1 boneless veal shoulder roast, about 3-1/2-4 pounds (or use a pork roast)

2 teaspoons olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 large clove garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup white wine

juice of one medium lemon, about 3 tablespoons

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Remove the fennel fronds, rinse the bulbs and cut the bulbs into thick slices. Place the slices inside a deep casserole dish. Place the veal on top. Brush the olive oil on top and sprinkle to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the garlic and oregano. Pour the wine and lemon juice around the meat. Cover the pan and roast for one hour. Raise the oven temperature to 350 degrees, remove the casserole cover and continue to roast the meat until the top is lightly browned and a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the meat reads 150-155 degrees. Remove the meat to a carving board and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with the fennel and pan juices. Makes 4 servings

Orange Marmalade Baked Pears

Still can’t figure out what I want for breakfast. I know a decent breakfast can make or break your day. I’m not talking about the food pyramid. Or anything approaching scientific. I mean, if I start the day eating junk I’ll be a pig for the rest of the day. I know me. Breakfast is like a trigger meal, and so I usually have yogurt and fruit but honestly, one can get really tired of that.

Yesterday I made baked pear because somehow the thought of just eating a piece of fruit didn’t seem interesting enough to satisfy. It was good and I’m leaving the recipe (which you can use for dessert too I suppose). But I’m looking for something else for today. I’ll let you know what I come up with. I got some good suggestions from people but would appreciate more ideas from anybody.

orange Marmalade Baked Pears

  • 2 ripe pears
  • 2 teaspoons bitter orange marmalade
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar, optional
  • cinnamon
  • freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the pears in half lengthwise. Remove the core and seeds. Place the pears cut side up in a baking pan. Brush the marmalade over the cut surfaces. Sprinkle with the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour the juice around the pears in the pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, basting once or twice. Let cool slightly.

Makes 2 servings

Mom’s Macaroni and Cheese

I’m cooked out. Done. Finished. The snow kept me in for days and I’ve cooked and put away enough food for the rest of the winter. I feel like a squirrel.

So, instead of cooking again I cleaned my fridge. Which reminded me of my mother because in my fridge was some old American cheese, a little darker in color around the edges and somewhat hardened.

Why does this remind me of my mother?

Because I remember my mother cleaning out the fridge and finding crusty American cheese, which she then used (with lots of other cheese) to make macaroni and cheese and it was the best macaroni and cheese you could ever want.

I once wrote about this for one my newspaper articles. My mom was still alive then and she was terribly embarrassed by what I said. Embarrassed that she would use crusty old cheese for cooking.

But I assured her that I was saying good things about her. Admittedly she wasn’t the thriftiest person I ever knew, but she did have a knack for leftovers and macaroni and cheese was one of her best. No need to be embarrassed to use perfectly good stuff even if it is not perfectly new. After all, cheese is supposed to age right? The cheese she found (and that I found) wasn’t moldy or rotten or smelly. Just a little dry. And when you put dried up old cheese in a hot liquid it melts into velvety sauce. So good.

And I guess I am not cooked out after all because I am about to make some Macaroni and Cheese. Here’s my mom’s recipe:

Mom’s Macaroni and Cheese

8 ounces elbow macaroni

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste

4 ounces American cheese

2 ounces blue-veined cheese

2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese, approximately, optional

bread crumbs, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the macaroni until it is al dente, drain and set aside. In a saucepan melt the butter over low-medium heat. When it looks foamy, add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, without letting the mixture become brown. Gradually add the milk and stir constantly using a whisk until the sauce is smooth and thickened. Stir in the salt, American cheese, blue-veined cheese and 2 ounces of cheddar cheese and whisk the sauce until the cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth. Stir the sauce into the cooked macaroni. Spoon into a baking dish and top with grated cheddar cheese or bread crumbs. Bake for a few minutes until the grated cheese is hot and melty or the bread crumbs are golden brown. OR serve without the cheese or bread crumb topping. Makes 4 servings

The Snow Covered the Grill: Grilled Skirt Steak Sandwich

Last summer when we put up the big lights for the backyard I thought we’d be able to use our grill during the winter, when it gets dark at dinner. I forgot that there might be 12 inches of snow followed by another 9 inches of snow followed by anot…

Last summer when we put up the big lights for the backyard I thought we’d be able to use our grill during the winter, when it gets dark at dinner.

I forgot that there might be 12 inches of snow followed by another 9 inches of snow followed by another 12 inches of snow. My grill looks like some kind of prehistoric animal preserved for eternity in a chunk of white. Besides, I can’t even get to it. I can’t open the door to the terrace. 

Yes I love winter’s warming foods. Yesterday we had beef stew and I’ve also made thick soups and put away osso buco and chicken fricassees and pot roast to unfreeze and have for dinner on busy days. 

But sometimes I want something simple and grilled. Like a boneless chicken breast. Or grilled Italian bread sandwich with grilled, marinated skirt steak, tomatoes and mayonnaise.

Guess it’s the broiler or the grill pan. Good seconds, but not the real thing.

Grilled Skirt Steak Sandwich

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cloves garlic, mashed

chopped fresh thyme (or dried) or chopped fresh oregano, to taste

12-16 ounces skirt steak

2 club rolls or hunks of Italian bread, sliced for sandwiches

1/4 cup mayonnaise

tomato slices

red onion slices 

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Put the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic and thyme or oregano in a dish and mix to combine them using a fork. Put the meat on the dish and dredge it in the marinade to coat both sides. Let the meat marinate for at least one hour. Preheat the broiler or grill pan (or an outdoor grill). Cook the meat 2-3 minutes per side, then  cut into 2 equal pieces. Grill the cut side of the bread for a minute to toast the surface lightly. Slather the bread with the mayonnaise. Top with the meat, onion and tomato slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper if needed. Makes 2 sandwiches

Pasta Fagiole

DSC02027.jpg

More snow! Will I ever be able to get out of the house? I mean, it’s blown up to the middle of the door!

I remember days like this when I was in high school. They didn’t call school off in those days. We had to walk to the bus stop, knee deep in white fluff.

We were strong and courageous, full of the pioneer spirit that made America great! No coddling for us!

Okay I remember it happened once. So much snow, it seemed so bizarre that school might be open, which is why I remember it so vividly. And actually, the bus never came because the roads hadn’t been plowed yet, so I walked back home, as did all my friends on the block. We hadn’t listened to the radio before venturing out to prove our pioneering spirits.

Not many people are going out today because it’s ferocious here in Connecticut. It snowed all night. We got at least one foot of new snow and it’s still going on. I see my neighbor’s driveway has been plowed. They’re both doctors, so I guess it’s essential they get out. 

My job? Not so essential! This is one of those times I can really enjoy not being too important. 

It’s a perfect day for homemade soup. Here’s one of my favorite recipes, it’s from my book Hip Kosher. Serve it with a hunk of crusty bread and you don’t need anything else for dinner.

Pasta Fagiole

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 medium onion, chopped

  • 1 large clove garlic, chopped

  • 2 carrots, sliced 1/2-inch thick

  • 2 stalks celery, sliced 1/2-inch thick

  • 28-ounce can tomatoes, with liquid

  • 1 quart vegetable stock

  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

  • salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

  • 1/2 cup ditalini or other small tubular pasta

  • 2 15-ounce cans red kidney beans, with liquid

  • freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, carrots and celery and cook for 2 minutes or until softened slightly. Add the tomatoes, stock, basil, parsley and some salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes. Add the pasta and cook for 5 minutes. Add the beans and cook for another 8-10 minutes or until the pasta is tender. Serve the soup sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Makes 6 servings

Oatmeal Buttermilk Bread

I always get into a rut for breakfast. When I was a kid I would eat Cheerios every morning until I got sick of them and switched bagel with American cheese until I got sick of that. It’s been yogurt for several weeks now — I go in and out of my yogurt phases. I love Chobani plain 0% yogurt which I mix with exactly 4 cut up dried apricot halves. But I need a break. I feel an oatmealy period coming on. But I am not in the mood for oatmeal in a dish because I hear this little satanic voice calling for me to have sugar and half and half cream on top (oh YUMMMMMM).

But I won’t because that’s just too indulgent for January, when I need to shed the 3 pounds gained over the holiday season.

I’m going to have some oatmeal bread. Just a slice (with a little butter or cream cheese) and a pear, for breakfast.

That’s healthy isn’t it?

Anyway, it is really delicious. Here’s the recipe:

Oatmeal Buttermilk Bread

  • 1/4 cup butter

  • 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

  • 3/4 teaspoon salt

  • 2/3 cup brown sugar

  • 2 tablespoons honey or molasses

  • 1 large egg

  • 1 cup plain yogurt (or use buttermilk)

  • 3/4 cup quick cooking oats

  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans or raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8-1/2-inch x 4-1/2-inch loaf pan. Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl and set aside. Mix the brown sugar and honey together. Stir in the melted butter and egg, blending them in thoroughly. Stir in the flour mixture and blend in thoroughly. Stir in the yogurt, alternating with the oats until all has been incorporated. Stir in the nuts or raisins. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Invert the bread on a cake rack to cool completely. Or serve warm.

Makes one loaf

Scottish Lemon Currant Scones

I just got a call to be “the entertainment” at a bridal shower cooking demonstration in a couple of months. That got me to thinking about suggesting a Tea. And that got me to thinking about spring.

Not that tea has anything to do with spring. In fact, one of the best “teas” I remember was when I was in London during the winter, on business there with my husband, and we went for tea at The Ritz. So glamorous. Everyone was cold, the weather was brisk. The tea was hot and comfy.

Still, the food at tea is light. More springlike. Cucumber sandwiches, smoked salmon sandwiches. Little cakes. And scones (I am sure I asked for extra clotted cream). And that got me to thinking about this recipe:

Scottish Lemon Currant Scones

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2-1/2 tablespoons sugar

2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon grated fresh lemon peel

1/2 cup currants

6 tablespoons butter

1 large egg

1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon peel. Stir in the currants. Add the butter in chunks and work into the dry ingredients with your fingers or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix the egg and buttermilk together. Pour into the dry ingredients. Mix until a soft dough has formed. Cut the dough in half and roll each half on a floured surface into a circle 1/2-inch thick. Cut each circle into 6 wedges. Place the wedges on the cookie sheet. Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Makes 12

Serve with butter, clotted cream or strawberry jam

Search My Kosher Recipes