Home Cooked, A Beautiful Cookbook, But Not Functional in My Southern Kitchen

I really wanted to love Home Cooked. It's a beautiful cookbook with personal stories of the author, Anya Fernald. The premise, to use fresh ingredients to produce robust dishes, fits my cooking esthetic perfectly.

The problem is the majority of the recipes are too foreign in concept to implement in my southern kitchen. Ones such as squid and beans, simple seared beef heart, grilled pork belly with anchovies and anchovies two ways.

There are some recipes I will try. Asado potatoes looks like a fun dish using russet potatoes sliced thinly, dotted with butter, salt and pepper and cooked in a hot oven in a cast-iron skillet until crispy. A blood orange salad and a few other recipes looked delightful.

It is a pleasant cookbook just to sit down and read. It transports me to other regions and ways of life. But, as a cookbook, it won't prove very useful.

I was given a copy of this book by Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.

THE EASIEST, BEST GNOCCHI EVER! Step-by-step Instructions

         

I love gnocchi!

The Italian Barrel, an authentic Italian restaurant on the corner of Chartres and Barracks in New Orleans, makes these little pillows of heaven with a parmesan Romano cream sauce.

I've tried many times to make them. They are basically potatoes and flour, right? How hard could it be?

However, after many attempts, my success ratio was bleak. Once, they were wonderful. From there, it's been a downhill slide. The last ones I made burst into tiny pieces when I put them in boiling water.

 

I recently came across a marvelous cookbook, Tasting Rome, by Katie Parla and Kristina Gill. Their recipe was foolproof and didn't take long to make. Amazing!

Here's the recipe:

1 pound dry, floury potatoes (I used russets.)
Sea salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

For a great, simple sauce

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan


Put the potatoes in cold, salted water and bring to a boil over med-high heat until fork-tender. Cool slightly and peel with a fork and knife (peelings slide off easily). Should still be steaming when you peel.

Pass through a ricer onto a floured surface.

 

Form the riced potatoes into a pile and make a well in the center.
Add flour, nutmeg and a pinch of salt. With your hands, work from the
edges to the center incorporating the ingredients into a dough.
 

Knead the dough just until incorporated. Allow to rest at room
temp about 30 minutes.

On a lightly floured surface, form a fistful of dough into a log,
roughly 3/4" in diameter.

Using a knife, cut the log crosswise into 1/2" long pieces.
Repeat with remaining dough.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add salt. Add the gnocchi
in batches.

Cook for an additional 20 seconds after it floats to the top.



This is a simple sauce that is amazing. Warm the heavy
whipping cream in a thick skillet. Grate the parmesan over it

and stir to dissolve. Add the gnocchi and gently stir.




Put the skillet under the broiler until the sauce bubbles and
browns lightly, about 2-3 minutes.

So delicious!!!

 

The recipe is from the cookbook, Tasting Rome, by Katie Parla and Kristina Gill. It is also a beautiful book with full-color pictures, suitable for a coffee-table. The recipes are do-able, yet authentic and delicious. I have a lot of cookbooks, but this is one of my favorites.
I was given a copy of this book by Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review. After reading it, it's a must-have.

CHICKEN CONFIT

You got it right. Chicken confit--not duck.

We were having our supper club over last week and I wanted to cook something a bit different. I thought of duck confit, which I adore, with it's crispy skin and melting tender meat. But it's hard to find duck leg quarters, and I was afraid some folks might not like duck anyway.

So, I came upon the idea of using the centuries old technique of confit with chicken.

 Why not, right?

It elevates the lowly leg quarters to a meal fit for, well, your best friends!

It's a very simple recipe. Even though it takes a couple of days to make, only about an hour is active cook time.

INGREDIENTS:

4 chicken leg quarters
2-3 cups duck fat or mixture of vegetable and olive oil
6 T salt
1 shallot-minced
6 garlic cloves-smashed
6 sprigs fresh thyme
Coarsely ground black pepper


Chicken Confit has crisp skin and
luscious meatthat melts in your mouth.



In a small bowl, mix the scallions,
garlic, fresh thyme and black pepper.
 

Rub the scallot/garlic mix into the
chicken, being careful to rub it under the skin.
Fit the chicken in a single layer into a gallon-size zip-lock.
Refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, wash the leg
quarters in cool water to remove the salt mixture.
 Place the leg quarters into an oven-safe dish and pour duck fat or
a mixture of duck fat and olive oil over the legs to completely cover them.
Bake uncovered in a 225 degree oven for 3-4 hours until a toothpick easily
pierces the skin and meat.

Remove from the oven and pour the fat off. Save it to season other dishes.

Heat a heavy skillet until very hot. Sear the leg quarters, skin side down until crispy.

 

SERVE AND ENJOY!

 

 

Meet our supper club. (We don't always segregate the men.) Our guests were:

Jane and Al Fandrich,

Terri and Allen Sayre,

 Janis and Bob Ducote,

Desi and Pat Cross

 Joyce and Warren Haun.

 

Baked Turkey and Swiss Sandwich

A friend shared this recipe with me and raved about it, so I gave it a try. But, instead of giving me a regular recipe with ingredients and an instruction list, she said, "Do this, then add that, then do this, etc."

I was a bit confused, so after I plowed my way through it, I decided to give you pictures to help.

 

This truly is the best baked sandwich I’ve ever eaten-buttery and rich, with hot melting cheese.

 

 

You'll love it!




  INGREDIENT LIST

     1 doz. soft dinner or slider rolls

     2 # deli sliced (shaved) turkey

     1# deli thin-sliced Swiss cheese

     1 stick butter, melted

     2T Worcestershire

    1 onion, thinly sliced.


 

 
Cut the tops off the soft rolls.
Line the bottoms in a 9" x 13" buttered pan.





Evenly spread the shaved turkey over the roll bottoms.
Then spread the cheese over the turkey.
Replace the top of the rolls over the mixture.


             


Thinly slice onion in small bowl. Add Worcestershire.



 . 

Wrap the pan tightly in saran wrap and then foil. Place another dish on top of the first pan and press down firmly. You want to compress the sandwiches. Unfortunately, I chose a clear Pyrex dish, so it doesn't show up well in the picture.  Refrigerate at least an hour and up to overnight. Bake at  375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.

 

Cut into 12 sandwiches. Serve hot or warm. ENJOY!

 

WHAT THE BIRDS TAUGHT ME ABOUT LIFE

In the midst of the Christmas season. I’ve been running around trying to get everything done, checking off my to-do list. Whew! I’m tired.  

This morning, I sat down at Starbucks, and as I sipped my cappuccino, I gazed at the steeple on the church across the street. Perched on the steeple, two little birds rested, contented, enjoying the day the Lord has given them. Resting. Not in a hurry. Not striving. Just enjoying.

What a life. Sweet. Pleasant. Didn’t the Lord say something about them?

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.

If I’m not very careful, I find myself even striving in prayer. I try to make sure God is well aware of everything that needs attention, reminding him of this and that, as if He doesn’t know, and it’s up to me to take care of the myriad of details in running the world.

Just for today, I want to be like a bird. Quiet. Peaceful.

Casting Crowns new song, Just Be Held, speaks to me.  

Hold it all together
Everybody needs you strong
But life hits you out of nowhere
And barely leaves you holding on

And when you're tired of fighting
Chained by your control
There's freedom in surrender

Lay it down and let it go

 

You're not alone, stop holding on and just be held
Your world's not falling apart, it's falling into place
I'm on the throne, stop holding on and just be held

Just be held.

What words of wisdom! Just for today, I want to enjoy this day the Lord has made. The Lord

takes pleasure in his people. Let’s bask in his love. He’s taking care of everything.

A VETERAN'S DAY I WILL NOT FORGET

When my daughter called to say my grandson’s school was putting on a Veteran’s Day program and my WWII Veteran father was to be an honored guest, I looked forward to a sweet little presentation and afterwards having lunch with my family.

I was not expecting the New Summit School in Jackson, Mississippi to have been working for months to pull off an extravaganza. It seemed all of the approximately two hundred and fifty students were involved.

When we entered the gymnasium, an entire wall held framed pictures of veterans who were family members of the students. Centerpieces of elegant red roses graced every table. The posting and retiring of the colors was done with military precision.

 Adorable kindergarteners tapped to the tune of “The Grand Ole Flag”.  School choirs sang. Poems  

were read. 

The culinary students (yes, they have a culinary class) made French pastries to rival any bakery in Paris.

The highlight of the day was to honor two WWII veterans, Hugh Grant Caradine, age 96, and Nailor Jerome Adams, age 93, my father. Their great-grandsons presented them with ‘Honorary Veteran’ sashes. Videos were made of them, telling their stories of the war.

When Pap was introduced, he stood in his WWII uniform and said, “I just didn’t know there was so many of you who still remember what we did.”

The entire crowd rose to their feet with a thunderous ovation. Pap, with tears streaming down his face, looked around and then saluted us. Forget trying to save the makeup.

I’ve thought a lot about the significance of that day. The obvious was, of course, honoring all vets. A week after the ceremony, my father still talks about that morning with shining eyes.

But, the impact goes so much further. The Scriptures exhorts us to “Teach the children.” New Summit is doing that. Among other values, the students learned:

·         Patriotism and pride in our flag. I’ll dare say, there won’t be any flag-burners in that bunch.

·         Respect for our veterans and their service. The kids were shown what our freedom cost others.

·         Respect for the elderly. Those two old vets are now frail and walk with assistance, no longer the strong, young warriors they once were. The students treated them with the utmost dignity and respect. After the ceremony, dozens of high school students stood in line to shake their hands and thank them for their service.

·         They were being taught to give back. Each student worked on the program. The first graders colored pictures of the flag, then the older kids laminated them to make placemats for the tables. The middle and high schoolers served the tables. And it goes on and on.

As I drove back to New Orleans, my heart was full. New Summit is teaching, by example, the core values that make a person and a nation strong.

If I still had school age kids, I would hope and pray for a school of the quality of New Summit, now that I know one exists.

MADE IN THE GHETTO

   Martin Luther King wasn’t the only one with a dream.

Russell Gore sat across from me in the coffee shop on the corner of Decatur and Barracks, in the

French Quarter.

He frowned and looked past me as if talking to himself. “I grew up in the projects. They’re like Spanish fly traps. You get stuck in ‘em and can’t get out. You just sit around waiting on the next check. The blight passes from one generation to the next.

“My mama would go to the grocery store on the corner and buy what she needed to feed us on credit until her food stamps came in.” His voice thickened. “It hurt me to see her struggle like that, but I couldn’t do nothing to help her.

"All of us don’t want that. We want to get out if given a chance.

"I made up my mind back then I wouldn’t go down that road."

And Russell didn’t.

He attended and graduated from Delgado Community College in New Orleans with a Fine Arts degree. Today he creates original jewelry and sells it in the French Market. He had used the same product for twenty years when he woke up one day to find it had been discontinued. He was confronted with his greatest fear, that he wouldn’t be able to feed himself.

But, according to Russell, when God closes a door, he opens another one.

He grinned. “You’ve heard ‘em say, birds of a feather flock together. Well, I think, sometimes you’ve got to leave the flock and soar with the eagles. When I couldn’t get the material I needed to make a living, I found me an eagle. A woman showed me an even better product.

Russell creates a lovely line of jewelry of unique jewelry, made by combining and firing various colored clay.

But, his jewelry is only a means to an end. His life goal is to show other people, his people, he calls them, a way up and out of poverty. One day he wants to teach others how to make jewelry.

He has principles he lives and is constantly teaching others. Some are:

·         We all make mistakes. Quit blaming others for your failure. Don’t point the finger. Own up to your own mistakes.

·         You can find a job. Don’t give up. Keep trying.

·         Work. Find something to do. Get the best job you can today and work hard. Better yourself.

·         Never forget where you came from. Once you get out, reach back and pull someone else out with you.

·         You can fall, but you have to get back up.

·         Never forget where you came from.

·         Be around positive people. Find yourself an eagle and soar.

 

Russell's jewelry line is called "Made in the Ghetto". He said he never wants to forget where he came from.

He's a delightful man. You can meet him everyday at the French Market in New Olreans, Booth 107.

Mention you saw this blog and he’ll reward you with a 25% discount off any one item.

His jewelry is not painted. It's made by combining various colors of clay, that when fired, create this exquisite jewelry.

I love it! I've never seen anything quite like it. I think you will, too.