Best Quarter I Ever Spent

  A few years ago, I lived in Philadelphia, with access to its enormous and well-stocked library system.  Much as a supermarket seeds its checkout lanes with candy in order to inspire impulse buys, my local branch arranged a rack of books, recently removed from the collection right near the circulation desk.  So while you wait for the person in front of you to pay fines dating back to 1984 or argue that their adorable little cherub returned The Best of Barney DVD, at least, the nanny said she did, you would have something to browse, and hopefully purchase.  During one of these waits, I spied a copy of Sara's Secrets for Weeknight Meals for twenty-five cents.  An older edition than the one shown here, but nonetheless, a cookbook for a quarter?  That is a win, my friends.  It's been in use ever since, in fact, the falafel recipe and the Welsh rabbit recipe are both from the book.  But it had been a long time since I thumbed through it looking for something new.  Last week, spurred on by my recently neglected New Year's resolution I discovered Middle Eastern Meatball Sandwiches.  Mmmm.  They were ridiculously easy and completely delicious.

Verdict:  This cookbook is one of the MUST owns of my collection.  Also, I love Sara.

MIDDLE EASTERN MEATBALL SANDWICHES
adapted from Sara's Secrets for Weeknight Meals

INGREDIENTS:
1 recipe tzatziki  - you can use Sara's from here, I make mine up.  My edition of the cookbook is dated enough that it's called cucumber yogurt sauce.

1 lb ground turkey (or beef or lamb, but I used turkey)
1/2 C chopped onion
1 clove minced garlic
1 large egg slightly beaten
1/2 t or so oregano
salt and pepper

pita bread with pockets (warmed)
lettuce washed dried and cut into ribbons to stuff into the pita

Make it gluten-free: The pita is the only gluten containing component here, so serve these over rice or alongside a nice greek salad to enjoy the flavors without the wheat.

DIRECTIONS:
Mix the turkey, onion, garlic, egg, oregano, salt and pepper together.  Form these into oval patties, bigger than a meatball but smaller than a burger.  I divided my ground meat evenly into 8 sections and made each a patty and was quite pleased with the size.

Cook them.  Now, I found this a bit tricksy.  Sara says you can skewer, brush with olive oil and grill for 8 minutes a side, which sounds heavenly, but I am without a grill.  She also says you can broil for 8 minutes a side, which is what I tried, but perhaps my toaster oven's broiler is inferior, because after the first 8 minutes in the oven, I began to panic and the rare state of things and had to improvise.  I slid them into a hot non-stick pan for 4 minutes (with the side that had been touching the broiler pan into the pan first because it was RAW) and then flipped for 2 more minutes. They ended up with a nice little crust but still very moist.  I'd hesitate to do it all in the pan, lest they dry out.  I'll let you know if I hit upon a better method, but this was still pretty painless.

Cut each pita in half, stuff each half with some lettuce and one patty.  Generously drizzle with tzatziki.  Start planning when you're going to make them again.

In Which I Nearly Burn Down the House...

It wasn't a particularly great day yesterday, but I was really trying to turn things around.  I had made it through a phone call I was dreading and figured I could at least get dinner out of the way.  The chicken was cooked, the buns were ready to toast, the dishes were washed, the glaze was made and the red onions were caramelized.  I just needed to take Dexter for a walk before Ryan got home.  I turned off the heat under the onions and out we went.  It was a nice evening, so we made it a leisurely stroll and even ran into Ryan on the way back in.  As we got closer to the building, I could hear an alarm.  I assumed it was the neighbors burglar alarm at first, but as we walked up the stairs, I broke into a run.  When I threw open the door of our apartment, I knew.  The air was dark and cloudy with smoke.  The alarms shrieked.  On the stove, bits of charred onion smoked heavily in the bottom of a pan whose handle was on fire.

Unlike the gas stoves I've always cooked on, electric stoves have knobs that can be turned either way.  So in flicking it off, I must have over flicked and ended up on temperature 9, maximum heat.  I blew on the handle which sort of shockingly stopped the fire and then rushed the pan outside.  Ryan threw open the windows.  Dexter barked desperately thinking we were idiots for staying anywhere that was bleeping so loudly.  When the smoke cleared out enough the alarms finally stopped, the dog quieted down and I started making another batch of (highly supervised) onions.

The sandwich was delicious.  The apartment still smells of smoke.  I still feel like an idiot.  I blame the stove.

I give you the recipe in good faith that you will watch your onions, but also that you will share with me, in the comments, any tips you may have about un-smoke-smelling my apartment.  Please.

CHICKEN SANDWICHES WITH BALSAMIC GLAZE AND NOT BURNT RED ONIONS
adapted from Cooking Light
Warning:  This recipe requires multi-tasking.  If you cannot multi-task, you should adapt the recipe so that you will not set anything on fire.


INGREDIENTS:
for two sandwiches

1 boneless skinless chicken breast
2 rolls (I used buns because it's what I had, but you might like a real roll)
1/2 a small red onion
goat cheese
lettuce (you can use anything, fancy mixed greens, spicy arugula.  I used half  of a large romaine leaf)
tomato (a thin slice for each sandwich)
olive oil
salt and pepper

for the glaze:
1/4 C + 1/8 C balsamic vinegar
1 t worcestershire sauce
2 T brown sugar

DIRECTIONS:
You need two pans and a pot.  A small pot for the glaze, a small pan for the onions and a large pan for the chicken.  Set them all on the stove.  In the small pot, combine the balsamic, worcestershire and brown sugar.  Turn this on medium low and stir periodically (you may want to whisk it a bit to make sure the sugar all incorporates properly).  You want the glaze thick enough that it will coat a spoon (or you know, your chicken breasts) and not just pour all over your plate.  Slice your red onion nice and thin.  Add a bit of olive oil to the small pan.  Again, your heat should be medium low to low.  Put the onion in the pan and add a small sprinkle of salt.  You'll want to watch your onions.  You want them to cook to caramelized, so while you want them to cook down, you are not looking for crispy.  Any sizzling noises are to be carefully monitored.  This will take the longest time, between 15-20 minutes.  Then prepare your chicken breast (you only need 1 breast for 2 sandwiches).  Trim the breast of any fat or icky bits and salt and pepper both sides.  Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the large pan and turn the heat to high.  You want the oil to sizzle a bit if you add a drop of water.  Once the pan is hot, add the chicken.  It will take about 4 minutes a side, a bit less for thin breasts, a bit more for super fat ones.  Because you'll be slicing the chicken eventually this is a great recipe for beginners. You can cut into the breast to check for doneness, a nice slice through the fattest part.  Chicken should be white and sort of opaque, not pink.  You still want it too be moist.  When your chicken is done, you can cover it with foil and let it rest while you finish up anything you may not have timed correctly.  When you are ready to serve, slice the chicken breast on an angle.  Assemble your sandwiches.  I toasted the buns, and smeared goat cheese liberally on the top bun.  Then on the bottom I placed my lettuce leaf, then my tomato.  Then on top of the tomato I layered the chicken, drizzled the glaze on top and added the caramelized onions.

Thai Beef Salad

There are not a lot of things that my mom makes that I can't also make. Plenty of things that I don't make, but not so many that I can't make. This is one of the ones I can't. True confession of the day: I have never in my entire life cooked a steak. Not once. In my early days of cooking I was a bit broke for steak , and then by the time I could afford steak (thanks to Ryan), I could never make steak (thanks to Ryan's long list of things he does not eat for health reasons). So while I bet I could follow my mother's recipe here and come up with a delicious thai beef salad, it's something that I'll admit, straight up, I've never done. Also, I don't know how to grill. Well, I can grill corn in foil packets, but other than that I don't know how to grill. This will happen to a person after 11 years of living in city apartments. I've never poured lighter fluid over charcoals, never turned the knobs of the gas grill, none of it. My extent of grill knowledge is this: if you're sure there's gas in the tank (I mean really, really sure), make sure a squirrel hasn't eaten the gas line, because that will get you every time. Anyway, you'll just need to trust me, this is absolutely delicious, and refreshing in the summer, and if you can't cook steak or work a grill, feel free to come over to my mom's, because she's got it down.

THAI BEEF SALAD
This is also fabulous as a sandwich, cut up the steak a bit smaller at the end and put on good thick slices of crusty bread.

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE SALAD:
1 lb grilled rare (sirloin- can also use flank, but it's tougher)
1 red onion, sliced thin
1/2 cucumber, sliced thin (I use English cukes- fewer seeds)
1 tomato chopped
the recipe calls for a bunch of watercress, but there are a lot of anti watercress folks out there, so you may want to use Boston lettuce or spring greens, but it is nice to use at least some of a green that's a bit spicy.
1/4 C thinly sliced scallion tops (green only)
1 carrot, shredded

FOR THE DRESSING
1t sugar
1T lime juice
1T coriander
1/2 clove garlic, smashed and minced well
1T soy sauce
3T fish sauce

gluten-free note: You will need to find gluten free soy sauce and fish sauce. Thai Kitchen makes a gluten free fish sauce.

DIRECTIONS:
Mix together the dressing ingredients and set aside. Grill the steak and the onion. Rub the steak with olive oil, sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Use thick slices of onion and use a skewer or turkey basting pin to hold rings together. Heat the grill to medium high, closer to high. Oil the grill, by taking a paper towel and pouring some oil on it (you can use a cheap oil for this) and hold the towel with tongs and wipe the grill surface quickly so that it's oiled. Put the steak and onion on. After a minute, lower the grill medium from medium high. For a rare steak it should be about 4 minutes a side. Use a meat thermometer, the temp should be about 115-118 F when you take it off for a rare steak. When you take it off, cover it and let it sit for 5 minutes it should get to 120 F. The onion should take about the same as for a rare steak. Toss the greens with the dressing reserving 1 T for the veggies. Toss the veggies (the grilled onion, cucumber and tomato) with the final tablespoon of dressing. Then create a bed of greens and arrange the beef, onion and vegetables on top.

Fig Jam

Not so very long ago, I had a delicious sandwich at a local restaurant, which I refuse to link to for many reasons, but mainly because they keep removing things I love from their menu and then charging more for the crap they still serve that I don't want. They've already done away with nachos and mac and cheese, so I shouldn't have been shocked when I realized they also scrapped my new favorite sandwich ever. Yes, I know I have a new favorite sandwich ever each month. Let's move on. Anyway. I'm loathe to give those people my money anyway, so it's just as well. My latest greatest sandwich is so very good, and its star ingredient is fig jam. It's also very versatile, I've had it three different ways, all heavenly. The only bad news, is there's not so much a recipe as a set of instructions. You need fig jam (obviously), crusty french bread (although not a baguette, the kind that gives you sandwich size slices), fresh mozzarella (yes, it must be fresh), balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Those are the key ingredients. The ones you can rotate in and out include cooked slices of chicken, prosciutto, spinach and arugula. The bread will absorb the delicious butter from your pan, the mozzarella will be creamy, the fig jam will be sweet and the balsamic will balance that sweetness with a hint of acid. You can choose to add other ingredients, or omit them depending on what you have in the house, or what you're in the mood for.


So here's my not-actually-a-recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
bread (2 slices crusty bread per person)
fresh mozzarella cheese - this is paler in color than regular mozzarella, you'll need a fist sized ball for two sandwiches.
1 T balsamic vinegar (per 2 sandwiches)
1-2 t olive oil (per 2 sandwiches)
salt and pepper
enough fig jam to cover one side of each sandwich (maybe a tablespoon or two per sandwich?)
one or more of the following:
leftover pieces of chicken
spinach or arugula
prosciutto

DIRECTIONS:
Cut 2 slices of bread per person. Smear one side of each sandwich with fig jam. Slice the mozzarella thin and layer on the sandwiches. Mix together the balsamic, olive oil and salt and pepper. If using leftover chicken (such as off a roast chicken), warm them slightly and toss with the balsamic mixture. If you're using the spinach or arugula, toss the greens in a pan with the mixtures for just about 30 seconds to a minute, just enough to warm very slightly. To the fig jam and mozzarella add either the chicken, or the chicken and greens or just greens or greens and prosciutto. Then cook as you would a grilled cheese. I suppose if you had a fancy panini press you could use that, but I'm not so fancy. I toss it in a pan with some butter and put a heavier pot on top to smoosh it down so it all gets cooked and melty and wonderful and then when the first side is golden brown, I flip adding a bit more butter until the other side is also golden and delicious.

Obsession

"I could cry salty tears;
Where have I been all these years?
Little wow, tell me now:
How long has this been going on?...

Oh I feel I could melt;
Into Heaven I'm hurled!
I know how Columbus felt,
finding another world."
-George Gershwin

If you've spoken to me anytime in the past month, it's probable that you've heard me waxing rhapsodic about the monte cristo sandwich. Maybe I haven't actually quoted Gershwin to you, but yes, I am enraptured.

I think about this monte cristo all the time. How is it possible, that I have never before had one? I was practically raised on grilled cheese. I have more than a passing fancy for croque monsieur (even croque madame, which seriously, if you're ever in New York, you must go to Pastis and order because it is completely sensational.) So why has the monte cristo eluded me so? I do not know, but I will not allow others to suffer. Behold:

MONTE CRISTO SANDWICH
makes 2, from epicurious
traditionally monte cristos involve either turkey or ham deli meat. This has neither and does not suffer a bit for the loss.

INGREDIENTS:
4 slices good crusty bread (slightly stale is okay)
Swiss cheese (regular swiss, or emmentaler, or gruyere would all be delightful)
approximately 2 large eggs or equivalent in eggbeaters (depending on how thick and stale your bread, you may need more)
1 T water
1.5 t mustard PER Sandwich
1 large tomato - sliced
salt and pepper
2-4 T butter

DIRECTIONS:
Whisk together your egg with the water and some salt and pepper. Carefully dip each slice of bread in the egg mixture until it absorbs the egg. Place on a plate. Smear mustard on one side of each sandwich. Layer on the swiss cheese and tomato and top with other slice of bread. In a large pan, melt the butter on medium high heat. When you flip a drop of water in the pan and it sizzles, it's ready. Place the sandwiches in the pan, and weight the top down with a flat lid, plate or bottom of another pan. Cook for 4 minutes, reduce heat if it starts to smoke. Flip carefully, and cook for more minutes (weight the top of the sandwiches again) then remove, cut in half and serve.

Simple Pleasures

A fried egg sandwich on wheat toast. Even if you truly believe you can't cook, you can make a fried egg sandwich. It's one of the first things I learned to make all on my own and in college I ate them late night, for breakfast and many times in between. Here I've written out the recipe to be as basic as possible, so that even those who are afraid to cook will feel like it's possible.


FRIED EGG SANDWICH

YOU NEED:
a toaster or toaster oven
any size non-stick pan and a lid you could put over it (they do not need to match)
a spatula

INGREDIENTS:
2 eggs
2 slice wheat toast
1 T butter
cheese (any kind really, but I like cheddar or American)
salt and pepper
water

DIRECTIONS:
1. Get a your non-stick pan and put it on the stove. Add 1 tablespoon of water - if you don't have measuring spoons, use the one of the big spoons that comes with your forks, knives and spoons. If you only have little spoons, put 3 little spoonfuls in. Add 1 tablespoon of butter - your butter wrapper has lines for this, so look at the wrapper and slice accordingly. Turn the heat on under your pan. Make it pretty high, but not at the highest setting.
2. Pop your toasts in your toaster oven or toaster. My toasts take 4 minutes to cook, if yours are much faster, you can do this later, but it should be okay to start them now.
3. Check your pan. When the water boils (starts bubbling and bouncing around, instead of just sitting there) add the two eggs. If you're good at cracking eggs, you can crack them right in the pan. If you're no good at cracking eggs, break them in a bowl first, fish out any stray eggshells and then add to the pan. Picking eggshells out of a hot pan is no fun. If your pan was hot enough, the whites of the egg should turn white almost immediately after the eggs are added to the pan. If they didn't, no worries, but remember for next time. Add your salt and pepper.
4. Lower the heat so it's not on the lowest setting, but maybe second lowest. Cover the eggs. Cook for about 2 and a half minutes and then check the eggs. I don't like runny eggs, so rather than keep my fried eggs as pure sunny side up eggs, I do them over "medium" which just means, that I very gently flip them in the pan and cook for long enough that the eggs yolks aren't completely liquid. If you don't want to flip yours you should probably cook them another minute right side up. If you want those yolks less liquid, flip the eggs and then add the cheese. Cover again and cook another thirty seconds to a minute.
5. When the cheese is melted and the eggs are cooked enough for you, use the spatula to slide the eggs onto the toast.

What's in a name? that which we call a hoagie By any other name would taste as delicious

Where I currently live, this is called a meatball hoagie. I've personally never liked the sound of hoagie. It's one of those words that just icks me out. Thankfully, the word sub is in such common usage nationwide that I can order a meatball sub and people will know what I mean. They may figure that I'm not from here, but they'd be able to fill my order just fine. In Connecticut, they call them grinders, which is my personal favorite name for this kind of sandwich. Depending on where you live, they might be called any of these things, a hero, or something else I'm not even aware of (in which case, tell me in the comments, enlighten me!) But no matter what you call it, a meatball sub is a whole lot of tasty on a roll (an Amoroso roll if you're in hoagie territory).

TURKEY MEATBALL GRINDER/SUB/HERO/HOAGIE
meatball recipe adapted from Giata De Laurentiis
should make 2-4 sandwiches depending on your roll size, we used 6" rolls and should have been able to make 4

Ingredients:
1 lb ground turkey (make sure you get 94% lean, 97% lean tastes like cardboard)
1/2 c grated parmesan
1/4 c bread crumbs
2 eggs (or equivalent using egg beaters)
salt and pepper
1/4 c flat leaf parsley (I omit this, we're not big parsley folk)
olive oil
2 cups tomato sauce
long rolls
2 slices provolone cheese per sandwich

Directions:
Mix the turkey, parm, bread crumbs, eggs, salt and pepper and parsley together gently. When thoroughly incorporated, form into 2" balls. Mine flattened quite a bit while cooking, so they ended up looking kinda more like sliders than meatballs, but they tasted great. Anyway, heat the oil (you're going to need a lot, around a 1/4 c maybe, I try to get away with a bit less). The oil should be almost smoking when you add the meatballs. Cook for 5 minutes, then rotate to continue browning. Cook for 8 more minutes. Then add the tomato sauce and cover. Cook for 5 more minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through all the way. Slide two meatballs on a roll. Cover with two slices of provolone and put under the broiler for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is nice and melty. Enjoy.

Hold the Mayo

My husband's fear of mayonnaise has been documented elsewhere on this blog, but for those who missed that post, let's recap. Ryan hates mayonnaise. In any form. Don't try to trick him by offering him any aioli, oh no. He'll eye it suspiciously, and if truly pressed, he'll taste it with all the suspicion of a picky toddler and finally state with conviction, "that's definitely some kind of mayonnaise." I am honestly shocked he can even place an order at a deli counter when he's faced with all those tubs of coleslaw and macaroni salad, foods rendered inedible by their thick pools of whitish goop.

I strongly believe that the BLT is one of life's great pleasures. But if you're anything like me, you figure that a BLT is really a BLTM. Mayonnaise is what makes the whole sandwich work! The nice creamy goodness pulls it all together.

Fortunately, I have a trick up my sleeve that will prevent this delicious sandwich from being banned from our house. Avocado. Sweet, ripe avocado. I hate to admit it, but it's really much better than mayonnaise.



BACON, LETTUCE, TOMATO AND AVOCADO SANDWICH
makes 2 sandwiches

Ingredients:
1 avocado
4 slices good bread - I like french country
8 slices bacon (or turkey bacon)
1 ripe tomato
2 leaves of lettuce

Directions:
Put the bacon on to cook in a large pan. Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn. Bacon only takes a few minutes on each side, but how long exactly depends on whether you are a crispy or chewy person. We like ours pretty crispy. Stick your bread in the toaster. While you're waiting for it to toast up, you can take your cooked bacon out of the pan and put it on a paper towel covered plate. Blot the top of the bacon too to soak up some of that grease. Wash and dry your lettuce and tear into nice sandwich size pieces. Slice up the tomato. Halve the avocado, scoop out the insides and mash up with a pinch of salt. When the toasts pop up, spread half the avocado on one slice of bread and then place the tomatoes on top. On the other side of the bread, put down one of the leaves of lettuce and four strips of bacon. Then place the bacon and lettuce side on top of the tomato and avocado side. Repeat to make another sandwich.

Airplane Picnic

I can recall exactly two times when I was actually pleased with the food offered on an airplane. Once, when I was eight, we flew to London on the 4th of July and they served hot dogs and hamburgers in honor of the holiday. Two years ago, I flew Swiss Air and they had actual hot croissants at breakfast. I mean, they weren't bakery quality or anything, more like Pillsbury Crescent rolls, but still, hot croissants! On an airplane! Other than that, I pretty much don't have anything nice to say. The food is crap, and nowadays, they even want you to pay for it. Or else someone has a peanut allergy on the flight and they won't even let you have the tablespoon's worth of peanuts they probably should have replaced with pretzels years ago, back when they found out what a big deal peanut allergies are.

So for our flight to Florida, I decided to pack us a picnic. There used to be a little shop in Boston where we would get these. They were great sandwiches, but for whatever reason the store was always out of a least one ingredient. Fortunately when you make them yourself you can avoid that.

FANCY TURKEY SANDWICHES

INGREDIENTS:

Deli turkey slices

cucumber

hummus

dijon mustard

bread (wheat or multigrain works great)

lettuce

havarti cheese

DIRECTIONS:

To make a sandwich, take two pieces of bread. I like wheat or multigrain regular sandwich bread for this. The texture is right, it's not supposed to be a chewy type sandwich and the flavor is more complex than white. Smear one side with a thick layer of hummus. It shouldn't be too thin. On the other side, spread a thin layer of dijon. I use about a teaspoon for a regular size sandwich. Then on the hummus side, add a layer of thin cucumber slices. I slice little rounds, and about 6 slices cover a regular sandwich. On top of the cucumber, add slices of havarti. Then add the turkey. I use 3 slices for my sandwiches, and four if I'm making it for Ryan. Finally add lettuce. Top with the dijon coated bread and enjoy.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

This year we finally broke down and ordered the MLB Extra Innings package through our cable provider. This means we can watch the Red Sox almost every night. We are very happy people. It also means that I need to extend my "game food" repetoire beyond hot dogs and baked beans.

Here is my very first hot dog alternative.


BUFFALO CHICKEN SANDWICHES
adapted from Rachael Ray's recipe
(serves about 2)

INGREDIENTS:
2 chicken breasts (I usually cut them into large chunks to speed cooking time)
salt & pepper
2 T butter
3 T hot sauce
rolls
1/4 C sour cream
.08 lb blue cheese (so I had a .25 block and used about a third does that work out right?)
lettuce

DIRECTIONS:
Chop chicken into managable chunks and salt and pepper. Cook in a small amount of butter or olive oil. While they are cooking, melt 2 T butter in a large microwavable container. Add the 3 T of hot sauce to the butter and mix well. When the chicken is done, use a fork to shred it. Toss the shredded chicken in the butter and hot sauce mixture. Mix the blue cheese with the sour cream until blended. Spread the blue cheese mixture on rolls, and then add the chicken and lettuce.