EASTER 2020 AND THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC...

Our Easter celebration certainly was different from past years. No big hoo-doo dinner. No gathering with dear friends, but my husband, Jerry and I, still managed to find some joy in this special holiday. We started with a decadent pancake breakfast.

 

GOOD OLD-FASHIONED PANCAKES

These pancakes were fluffy inside and perfectly
crisp outside. Serve with lots of butter and real maple syrup.

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 1/2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 egg, slightly beaten

Preparation:
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Make a well in center of dry ingredients and add melted butter and egg. Mix thoroughly, but do not overmix the ingredients. If the mixture is too thick (It should be pourable.) add a tablespoon of water one at a time until your batter is just right. Heat heavy bottomed skillet (I like to use cast iron.) until very hot. Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in the pan and when it is very hot either pour batter or spoon out batter to form 3" sized cakes. Turn only once after the batter begins to bubble. Serve immediately.

This year's Easter menu was humble, but delicious. I made a spicy, smoky version of Osso Buco using liquid Mesquite smoke, one chipotle pepper in Adobo, and a big squeeze of Gulyaskrem-Hungarian Pepper paste.

Find a more traditional recipe for Osso Buco here: http://cookwithcindy.blogspot.com/search?q=osso+buco

Osso Buco is a slow cooked rustic dish braising meat and vegetables together making a thick and luscious sauce. I used the last of the lamb shoulder from The 47 Ranch. I omitted the wine as I only had really fancy wine from Flying Leap Vineyards and decided to drink rather than cook with it.

Flying Leap Vineyards is currently offering a free delivery
service, which I took advantage of.
The wine was delivered by none other than
President & CEO/Co-Founder, Mark Beres.
https://flyingleapvineyards.com/

I served the Spicy and Smoky Osso Buco over Risotto with caramelized leeks and parmesan. Our veg was grilled zucchini with parmesan. We ate al fresco, as we usually do Easter dinner, on our back deck.

 

 

Dessert was a simple lemon-key lime sherbet. I'd love to do a big Easter dinner this summer or fall; whenever it is safe to gather again.

I want to share another simple, rustic dish that I made this week.

MOUSSAKA

 

Moussaka is an eggplant and/or potato dish made with ground meat, often lamb, but there are many local variations. It's origins are Arabic, cum Greek, cum Baltic, cum Turkish. In other words many countries claim its origin and each country has different variations, but for sure it always contains meat and eggplant. Because I am not shopping as often as usual, I made my Moussaka with the ingredients I had on hand.

Ingredients:
2 eggplants, peeled and cut lengthwise into 3/8 inch slices
Salt for the eggplant (more salt and pepper for the dish)
1 Tbsp. plus 1/4 cup olive oil (for frying eggplant)
4 Tbsp. butter (1 for sauting the meat; 3 for mashing the potato)
1/2 pound ground beef
1 Italian sausage, out of casing
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 Tbsp. combination finely chopped fresh thyme, rosemary and parsley
1/3 cup crumbled Feta Cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan
More parsley for garnish
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
2 potatoes, peeled, cooked and mashed

I topped the Moussaka with a Béchamel sauce, which would be more like what you would find in Greece. The creaminess of the sauce melts into the mashed potato as the Moussaka bakes.

Preparation:
Peel and cook the potatoes. Mash with 2 Tbsp. butter and 1/3 cup Feta cheese and set aside.

Peel and slice the eggplant and lightly salt both sides to improve the texture and mask any bitterness. The salting draws out the moisture giving the eggplant a creamy, silky texture. Lay slices on a paper towel and let sit for about 20 to 30 minutes. After they have set, rinse, dry and set aside.

Heat skillet with 1 Tbsp. olive oil and 1 Tbsp. butter. Saute onion and garlic (do not brown) and then add the ground beef and sausage. Salt/Pepper to taste. Cook for about 7-10 minutes. Do not worry if the meat is not cooked through as it will cook again when the spices and tomato are added and again when the Moussaka is baked. Remove the meat mixture from skillet and add a bit more olive oil. Cook the eggplant in batches, adding olive oil as necessary, until very tender. Remove the cooked eggplant from the skillet.

Add the meat back into the pan and add all spices, herbs and tomato sauce. Cook for about 20 minutes to meld flavors.

To assemble the  dish: Add meat in the bottom of a square casserole. Top the meat with half the parmesan cheese. Next, layer the eggplant and top with the rest of the Parmesan. Spread the mashed potatoes on top of the eggplant and then, if using, top the entire dish with the Béchamel sauce. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes until the Moussaka is bubbling and lightly browned. Garnish with fresh parsley.

In this time of Coronavirus I've been cooking and baking more than ever. Every other day I make some kind of sweet, which is my husband's favorite...sweets, that is, of any kind. This recipe is so simple and kind-of, sort-of good for you because of the oats.

BLACKBERRY JAM OATMEAL BARS

This is a Ree Drummond recipe-The Pioneer Woman. She uses Strawberry Jam.

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter (That is 1 cup.), cut into pieces, plus more for greasing the pan
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups oats
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
12 oz. your favorite jam. I used Blackberry, but strawberry, apricot preserves, blueberry, or any other jam would work well.

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9x13 inch pan. Mix together the butter, flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. I used 2 knives to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it is the size of small peas. Press half the oat mixture into the buttered pan. Spread the jam over the oats. Sprinkle the other half of oat mixture over the jam and gently press down the oat mixture. Bake until light brown-about 30-40 minutes. Let cool completely and then cut into squares. This is a fairly rich dessert because of all the butter so I cut small squares.

THAT CONCLUDES TODAYS COOKING OBSESSION...

 

PLEASE STAY HEALTHY AND ENJOY THE LOVE OF FRIENDS AND FAMILY FROM AFAR.

 

UNTIL NEXT TIME...

SOMETIMES I LIKE TO CONCLUDE WITH

SOMETHING APPROPOS TO NOTHING...

THIS MAGAZINE MOCK-UP WAS MADE BY MY GOOD FRIEND JO JO HAMMOND AT CHRISTMAS. I AM DRESSED IN MY MERMAID BLANKET, WHICH I RECEIVED FROM MY SOON TO BE DAUGHTER-IN-LAW, ALISON GRAHAM WHILE I WAS RECOVERING FROM CANCER. THE MERMAID SYMBOLIZES MANY DIFFERENT THINGS IN DIFFERENT CULTURES. I BELIEVE SHE REPRESENTS STRENGTH, LOVE, AND MYSTICAL HEALING. APPARENTLY IT WORKED!

www.cookwithcindy.com

"BONE WITH A HOLE' aka OSSO BUCO

I love braised meat and one of my favorites is Osso Buco. Originally considered a peasant dish, Osso Buco has risen in reputation and is now highly regarded as elegant fare fancy enough for a dinner party. Osso Buco is Italian for Bone with a Hole. The reason for slow cooking meat is to allow the bone marrow and juices to richly flavor your broth and the slow cooking to break down the toughness of the cut. This is what makes Osso Buco and other braised meats so delicious. I like to cook this dish the day before serving as it gets even better by sitting overnight. It then also falls into my 'do-ahead' category perfect for a party.

On the bottom left is a bouquet garni. I put fresh rosemary, parsley, thyme, and sage
in a little cheesecloth and tied it before adding to the stock.

This northern Italian dish, Milan to be precise, is traditionally made with veal shanks which are cut crosswise on the bone making the marrow readily available to scoop out with a little spoon. I like veal, but can't bring myself to eat it because of how inhumanly the cows are treated. It's just not right. (If you are using veal you will want to tie them in kitchen string so the meat stays intact around the bone.) Instead I use lamb shanks or pork. These shanks, which are cut from the animals' shin, are not cut crosswise on the bone so you lose the benefit of eating the marrow, but it still seeps into the broth giving it a heavenly flavor. Shanks are a tough cut, but once cooked slowly in broth over very low heat become tender as butter. Here's my recipe which varies slightly every time I make it, but incudes these basic ingredients.
Ingredients:
4 lamb (pork or veal) shanks
2 sprigs fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp. dried)
2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 tsp. dried)
1 dry bay leaf
About 1/2 cup flour for dredging the shanks
1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus 1 Tbsp. butter
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, smashed and rough chopped
4 Tbsp. tomato paste (or 1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes juice and all)
1 cup dry white wine (or red if you don't have any white)
2-3 cups chicken stock (homemade is great, but store bought broth works well, too. I used beef broth the last time I made it as I didn't have any chicken on hand.)
Salt/Pepper
3 Tbsp. flat-leaf parsley
1 Tbsp. lemon zest

Lamb shanks dredged in flour.

Preparation:
Pat the shanks dry with a paper towel (All meats brown better if they are dry to start.) Liberally salt and pepper the shanks. Dredge in flour. Shake off excess. In a large Dutch oven or roasting pan, heat vegetable oil and 1 Tbsp. butter until bubbling hot. Brown all sides of the shanks, about 3 minutes per side. Brown 2 shanks at a time so the oil temperature stays nice and hot. Remove browned shanks and reserve.

Browned lamb shanks.

In the same pan, add the onion, carrot, and celery. Season with a little more salt to draw out moisture from the veg. Saute until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste (or can of tomatoes) and mix well. Return the browned shanks to the pan and add wine and reduce by half simmering about 5 minutes. Add the herbs (either loose or tied bouquet garni), and 2 cups of the chicken (or beef) stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover pan and simmer for about 2 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Depending on the size and cut of your shank this may take longer. The important thing is that the meat be VERY tender. Check every 20 minutes or so to make sure the liquid has not reduced too much. Add more stock if necessary to keep shanks about 3/4 deep in sauce. When the shanks are done, carefully remove from the pan and place on a decorative platter. Pour all the juices and sauce from the pan over the shanks. Garnish with chopped parsley and a little lemon zest. Or in Milan they would garnish with a classic gremolata (chopped parsley, lemon zest and finely diced garlic) and serve over risotto-Ossobuco ala Milanese.

Osso Buco has this affect on people.
Here is my husband Jerry (in foreground) with his dear friend Lee about to dig in!

I usually serve with a mushroom risotto and lightly steamed asparagus. Above I also included roasted butternut squash which made the meal even heartier! It's equally great served over spaghetti, polenta or even creamy mashed potato! Experiment! Enjoy! Remember, this is an old-world, old-fashioned stew...you can't make a mistake!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I must admit my husband and I have been overindulging since his birthday back in November! It's so much easier to put on weight then it is to take off so lately we've been eating big salads for dinner. Salads do not have to be dull dishes of lettuce. Here are a few ideas...

GRILLED PORK MAKES A SALAD SPECIAL!

This salad is served with barely blanched broccoli, crispy snow peas and grilled eggplant over a bed of finely chopped romaine, diced cucumber, cherry tomatoes; topped with a sliced pork chop which I took off the bone and marinated most of the afternoon in soy sauce, a few drops sesame oil, 5 cloves of roasted garlic, and fresh chopped ginger-root. The chop cooks very quickly on a hot gas grill. Slice and serve with your favorite dressing. I used rosemary/garlic vinaigrette.

I LOVE THE BITE OF ARUGALA!

Baby arugala with goat cheese, dried sweetened cranberry and whole raw almonds. A little salt, pepper and dressed lightly with a citrus vinaigrette (see previous blog posting for vinaigrette recipe. Go to search box at top left of homepage and search for citrus vinaigrette) and you have a light a delicious dinner!

SHRIMP MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER!

I roasted a whole tray of cauliflower, zucchini, onion, garlic, and baby bell peppers at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes. Lightly sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper before roasting. It's good to make extra so you can put in your omelet in the morning and add to another salad for lunch next day. I tossed the shrimp, still frozen, onto the roasting tray still in their shells for the last 15 minutes of roasting. When they are cool enough to touch, peel them, top your salad, and enjoy your healthy dinner!

That's it for today, but before I go I want to tell you about a local rancher I recently met who raises beautiful cows in the Argentine tradition, right here in southern Arizona. No pesticides, additives, hormones...all natural out on the range. Duncan and his wife Susan Blair of Rico Santa Cruz Ranch finish their beef with what he refers to as a salad of grasses-both annual and perennial. I sampled a leaf of alfalfa from the rich gorgeous soil and it was delicious so I know these cows are enjoying it, too. I just bought a 40 lb. family-pack of his beef which includes lots of different cuts so get ready for some new and exciting recipes! The first roast I am going to make is an Arm Roast which I will braise in wild mushroom and red wine gravy. Can't wait to try it and share with you!

UNTIL NEXT TIME...REMEMBER THAT LOTS OF COOKING HELPS KEEP YOUR FUEL BILLS DOWN IN WINTER MONTHS SO KEEP THAT OVEN BURNING!

www.cookwithcindy.com

This is the view Duncan and Susan's cows enjoy as they grow into fine,
healthy, and happy critters on the Rio Santa Cruz Ranch.
http://www.riosantacruzgrassfedbeef.com/