Bounty

See all those tomatoes. I'll be honest with you. I didn't grow 'em. The kids next door did. We have Cal Poly University here in San Luis Obispo and the house next door has "the boys" living there as we call them. They are great kids...very quiet...but they are all gone for the summer...and before they left they said "Help yourself to the tomatoes!". So this morning I took a walk over there..wow....what a bonanza...I filled this whole bowl with Early Girls.

Just before I walked over there I was looking over my Julia searching for something to do with chicken breasts...and after I hit the jackpot I knew it had to be something with tomatoes.

I found this recipe for Supremes de volaille sautees, andalouse. Whole supremes sauteed, white wine sauce with tomato fondue and tarragon. So this is supper tonight here at Farmhouse. With some pasta and a cucumber and avocado salad.... we have plenty if you'd like to come by.

Supremes de volaille sautees, andalouse

Chicken breasts, boned and skinned and pounded slightly

Salt

1/2 cup flour

Olive oil

Butter

Cognac

1 Tablespoon shallots, minced

2 cups fresh tomatoes, chopped

1 teaspoon tarragon

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup chicken stock

Parsley

Salt the chicken and dredge in flour

Add some oilve oil and butter to a skillet and heat

Brown the chicken and cook till just about done

Remove the chicken and add the cognac shaking the pan for several seconds

Pour contents of pan into a side dish

Add butter to the pan and saute the shallots for a minute

Add tomatoes and tarragon and cook 2 to 3 minutes

Pour in wine, stock and the cream

Boil hard for several minutes until liquids have reduced and sauce has thickened lightly.

Taste and correct for seasoning

Return chicken to the pan and baste with the sauce

Arrange chicken on a plate with sauce and sprinkle with parsley

Serve

I Still Have Ham

I'm still going over here on that ham. It is almost over. I am just about down to the bone. Finally. I won't be buying a ham again for a very long time. Maybe never. But, since I am trying to make the best of it and I don't want to waste food...I thought, now what. So it was pasta.

Simple. I sauteed some mushrooms, added some peas and spinach till it wilted down. Then I added some heavy cream ( I know ) and salt and pepper.Diced the HAM and added it in. Boiled up some pasta. Cooked it and added to the skillet along with a nice splash of cooking water. Then I just finished it off with some good parmesan. And it was good. But we are really tired of HAM. Wish I could mail some out.

Redemption Night

Do you see it there? That big piece of rib eye on the bone. Got to make up for last night. OMG. Those ham croquettes were a LOSER. Not good. I even made the white sauce to go with them. I think I made things worse. So this morning I am at Scolari's Market by 7 ... I went for bread..but as I passed the meat case this little beauty caught my eye. I just couldn't pass it up.

So I just went to the garden and picked some rosemary, chopped it and rubbed the meat with the rosemary , olive oil and my pink sea salt. I will roast it in the cast iron skillet, take it out when it is done and put some Yorkshire pudding batter back into the skillet to bake. Using the recipes out of my beloved and adored Mary and Vincent Price cookbook. Serving fresh spring peas on the side. Dessert is the leftover shortcakes that I made for Easter with blackberries and cream.

In the picture of the pink tulips...do you see the box on the floor? That's the box that the baby gate that I got for Teddy came in. Whiskey and Dande love it. So it's theirs for now.

Stuffed Shells For Supper

I put away the pet loss books this morning and went to the grocery store. We have been living on junk food and I was getting tired of it. Needless to say John must have been too, although he never said a word. It is cold here on the Central Coast of California for April, so I decided to make some stuffed shells for supper tonight. Super simple. I just made a light marinara sauce adding in some turkey sausage and herbs. I cooked some pasta shells and filled them with s stuffing of ricotta, eggs, grated parmesan, parsley from my garden, a little nutmeg, and some salt and pepper. That was it. I stuffed the shells, covered them with sauce and popped them in the fridge. Come suppertime I will top them off with some grated mozarella and pop them in the oven to bake for about an hour. Serve with a salad and some toasted bread. A nice change for tonight. To be sure.

Double Jackpot

So I am pushing the cart along at the grocery store...fighting the Super Bowl shopping crowds..and I am thinking.....pork chops....with I don't know....broccoli ?...That doesn't sound too good....and I am over in the meat section...have the pork chops in my cart...and then I see it. Lurking in the meat section. A beautiful rib eye steak. One and a half pounds..perfect for 2.Jackpot. So I dump the pork chops, plop the beef in the cart ,head to the produce and what do I see there? Fresh asparagus. Double jackpot.

Came home and got out the cast iron skillet. That's what I am cooking the roast in.

After the roast comes out of the oven I will let it rest while I whirl up some yorkshire pudding batter...I'll heat the cooking fat (sorry, my new diet) and add the batter. Let it bake till it puffs way up and turns golden brown and serve it with au jus. I also got fresh horseradish and sour cream to go along side. Hello Mr. Toast...I think I am in your territory with this meal...being english and all..am I right , my friend?

As far as the asparagus goes I am just roasting it in the oven with olive oil and some of my precious pink sea salt.

I have been making yorkshire pudding and roast beef since I was in high school and still living at home. And I ALWAYS used the recipe from my FAVORITE cookbook. "The Treasury Of Great Recipes" by Mary and Vincent Price. You can see how soiled the pages are...well worn and well loved....indeed.


The drawing for the sprig tea cup is Monday and your response has overwhelmed me.
I saw some cute Valentine cookies today and a tin of Spring Cherry tea so I'll sweeten the pot with those goodies too..A little bit of Spring Cheer. I think we could all use some of that right about now.

Thank you all for your kind comments. It makes me feel good knowing that there are so many wonderful people out in this world. I am so lucky to have met each and every one of you. You're THE BEST !

Nothing Fancy

So yesterday afternoon I am watching Ellen and she has on her chef. This man named Tal and he has out a new cookbook called The Conscious Chef. All vegan. Ellen's vegan. And I am thinking maybe I could just try the vegetarian thing that I failed at twice last year...again. Not vegan..cause of my pizza love...just no meat.

Now the weatherman comes on for his update and he says RAIN. What? Rain? Are you kidding me? Does he really mean it? We have been bbqing out in the garden for weeks.You mean I could get my crockpot out? At last. Winter? Here? For me?

And what do I want to put in that crockpot? POT ROAST. How can I do a vegetarian pot roast. I can't. Why do I even consider it? I am thinking gravy and mashed potatoes.

So off I go to Scolaris and there it is. A beautiful pot roast. So I put it in my cart and head to the soup isle. I want the Lipton Onion Soup mix to make the pot roast like my mom made.And YES. You are seeing that right. Canned corn and gravy from a jar. Someone sometimes gives me a hard time about my Heinz gravy love.... (you know who you are.)

So this morning out came the crockpot....I browned the roast first, then put it in the crockpot with the soup mix, some water and a couple of splashes of red wine.

And it already smells good. So tonight, no Julia Child.No Alice Waters. Just old fashion and farmy.

And for dessert....did you see it...isn't it cute? We will each get two bites of that tiny berry pie...

Getting Close

I feel like I'm getting a cold so this will be short,but I couldn't NOT say something as we are so close to Halloween and all.

I am in one of those Gooseberry Patch moods....I am downing Vitamin C and drinking juice and water like to crazy to try an knock this thing out before Halloween....haven't been sick all year..and here we are at the doorstep of the greatest day of the year...geezzz.

So I got up and being that the weather FINALLY changed I felt like making chili. Nothing fancy..nothing with 25 ingredients..just plain old fashion Halloween on the horizon chili.

Smells good. I'll make cornbread later as we get closer to supper. Last night we watched The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. We're 53. Oh well.

So tonight it's chili and cornbread. I just hope the cold fall winds stay..at least till Halloween. Please.

Feeling Cozy

Got into the recipe box and was looking for something that I could make ahead and just put into the oven and not be rushing around making dinner last minute. So I got into Red Plaid and pulled the Meatball Recipe. These aren't the pasta and meatball kind of meatballs. These are the cooking in Campbell's Onion Soup kind of meatballs. This recipe is from my aunt Rose who lives in Santa Cruz. As kids we called her Gog or Goggy. I still don't know what that means or where it came from. She is from Genoa, Italy. Maybe the name came with her all the way from there. I have mentioned her and my uncle Emillio before. We call him Mill. They live on acres and acres in Santa Cruz and are a hard working family in the produce business. If you are up in the bay area and are in a market, mostly likely the twist tie around the carrots will say Maggiolo. That's their last name.

The meatball recipe is hers. And it never fails to please. It is Fall Comfort Food.I usually serve it with white rice tossed in butter and salt.


Meatballs
Recipe of Rose Maggiolo

1 pound ground beef
2 slices bread
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teasppon salt
Pepper
1/2 cup milk
1 can Campbell's Onion Soup

Remove the crust from the bread, break bread up into small pieces. Add ground beef. Add salt and pepper and baking powder. Add milk and let set a few minutes. Shape into 12 balls, roll in flour and place in casserole. ( I love to use my cast iron skillet )Add onion soup and 1 can water. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 to 50 minutes.

Red Plaid Recipe Box ...Recipe 1.

We're getting close to Halloween and it got me to thinking about Holiday Cooking. So I got out my mom's red plaid recipe box. I think I have mentioned it before. It's one of those"if the house was on fire what would you grab" kinda things. I treasure it. So as I was going through the box...I am thinking...all these recipes look so good..and what I really liked about them was that each recipe seemed to have a history behind it and told a story. Who's recipe was it? Where did it come from? A relative? A neighbor? An old friend? I love old recipe boxes . Each one so different...each one someone's own private treasure box.

Alot of the recipes were from Bessie. The lady that introduced me to "The Treasury Of Great recipes" by Mary and Vincent Price. My other "house is burning" grab. Bessie came every afternoon when my little brother was a baby and got supper started. Alot of the recipes are from relatives too. Since we are getting into the Holidays and winter, I thought it would be fun to work my way through the box and share the recipes with you...my friends.

The other day I wanted to make a lasagna. Not one of those all day make your own pasta affairs... I just wanted something simple and easy. So I tried the recipe for spaghetti sauce from the recipe file of Enide Allison. What a way to start. I don't know Enide.I have never heard of her. Ever. She must have been a real person..her recipe card has her name engraved right next to the little pot bellied stove.She must have taken her cooking pretty seriously to have her name engraved on the card.

So I made the the spaghetti sauce. And it was good. I just layered it with lasagna pasta and cheese. That was it. Simple.


from the recipe file of --- Enide Allison

1 onion, diced
1 large can whole peeled tomatoes (I'm on a San Marzano kick)
1 teaspoon oregano
Chopped italian flat leaf parsely (I used about 1/2 cup)
Salt and pepper

Saute the onion in olive oil till soft
Add tomatoes
Add oregano and parsley
Salt and pepper to taste. (to be perfectly honest, I just add salt, it's just a personal thing I have going on)
Simmer for about 40 to 50 minutes

Layer in a casserole dish lasagna and cheese with the sauce

Baker 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes till bubbly and hot

Two Time Loser

I'm going to keep this short cause I'd rather forget it. I went to Morro Bay. That part was good. Made it to the fish market. But after that it was all downhill. They didn't have any Dover Sole or Petrale Sole, which is what I really wanted. So I got some calamari. The baby clams looked good, the sign said they were from Washington. The guy even said they were good. So I got calamari and clams. Both were losers. I made the worst dinner. The clams were weird. They tasted sweet. Almost like candy. We were both like, Huh? Has anybody ever had clams like that? And I don't even want to talk about the calamari. I have made this recipe before and it was always good. I pounded it out. Sauteed it in olive oil and butter. Added some lemon, parsley and capers. I mean, really, what could go wrong? It's simple. It was bad. I cut it up and put it out for a stray cat or racoon. Figured if we couldn't eat it...at least some wild creature would have a nice supper. Came downstairs this morning. 3 hungry stray cats staring at me. And a bowl full of calamari.

Waiting And Watching

Out here in on the Central Coast of Califoria we are waiting for our first BIG STORM of the season. And we are ready. It has been one long hot dry summer. We need some rain. So in anticipation of the big event, I decided to make my Julia Child French Onion Soup. I go back and forth between Julia Child's and Vincent Price's recipe. And back and forth on the beef stock or chicken stock thing too. I can never decide which I like better. Truth be told, I like them both the same. Cause when you get right down to it...for me anyway, it is all about the cheese..Went to Scolaris this morning praying they would have Gruyere cheese. It is a small neighborhood market and I was worried that anything beyond swiss and cheddar might be out of their reach. But I got lucky. I scored. They had some gruyere. It is really the only one that will do here. And I needed the vermouth too. I have used white wine before, but I don't know if it's in my head or what, I just like it better with the vermouth. Maybe it makes me feel like I am really doing it Julia's way. And at the very end...right before you serve it..it has got to have a wave of cognac. It's got to. I was watching PBS on Saturday...they had on those vintage shows of Jacques and Julia from like the 70's. And it made me remember how much I love her. So tonight when that big storm slams in from the Pacific...we will be all cozy inside with our bowls of soup and to go with it...grilled prosciutto and cheese sandwhiches. A cozy autumn night, by the fire.Soup and grilled cheese night. Julia-style.And YES..that is scotch tape holding that beloved book together.....