Tag: recipes

Lemon, Love, and Olive Oil Cookbook New Favorite Cookbook

How many recipes do I want to make from Lemon, Love, and Olive Oil by Mina Stone?

This many!

Each sticky note represents a recipe I want to try. I've decided to cook through this excellent book, as a winter cooking project. Right now, I have one of the Boston Public Library's copies. I will add a copy to my cookbook collection. I have to decide, as I work with it, if I need the Kindle or print edition.

Do you have a winter cooking project or a cookbook you should pull out and cook your way through?

First up was this quick, easy lunch of Tuna Salad with Fennel, Apple, and Parsley. Ed and I love the flavor twist and lighter notes from the fennel and apple that offset the heavier tuna flavor.

Watch this space for more from this book!

Words: Penny Cherubino Photos: ©2021 Penny Cherubino

December 13, 2021
Breadcrumbs Are Golden

Serving a dipping dish of buttery breadcrumbs gives these quickly steamed artichoke halves the taste and crunch of our "much-more-work" favorite recipe of stuffed and baked artichokes. A quick dip in olive oil or melted butter and then the crumbs makes for a delicious leaf.

You may see “pasta aglio e olio” popping up on menus. That seductive sounding Italian phrase translates to pasta with garlic and oil. The surprise when you first meet this dish may be beautifully toasted breadcrumbs sprinkled on top where you would have expected cheese.

We recently enjoyed this dish of pasta with mushrooms and peas topped with breadcrumbs at Eastern Standard.

Evan Kleiman, chef, food writer, and host of the radio show and podcast “Good Food,” wrote an article on the topic for the L.A. Times. In praise of breadcrumbs she wrote, “Toasted with garlic and olive oil, they can lend a textural and flavorful crunch to a variety of foods. You'd never know that something as simple and ubiquitous as a handful of crumbs could be what you're looking for to amp your everyday recipes.” She calls, “… spaghetti aglio e olio (their highest use, in my opinion).”

A sprinkle of cheesy breadcrumbs are the perfect finishing touch to this bowl of pea soup.

Filling in For…

In lean times, breadcrumbs have been used to expand food. They are mixed into chopped protein sources to make everything from meatballs to crab cakes. They add body and protect foods when they are used as a batter coating. The meat in popular dishes like chicken or veal Parmesan is first pounded thin and then bulked up with a tummy-filling coating of breadcrumbs.

In times of food rationing, people were urged to save breadcrumbs and turn them into main courses. Mixed with liquids they became breakfast cereals and desserts. Recipes were created to make meatless loaves and cakes using fine crumbs in place of proteins and flour.

In the book, "Nonna's House: Cooking and Reminiscing with the Italian Grandmothers of Enoteca Maria," we learned another use. "The Nonnas come from different generations and different places, so they have many useful tricks. Simple ones, like a Sicilian Nonna throwing a handful of breadcrumbs into a pan of spaghetti with marinara. ‘What are you doing?’ I asked, as she mixed it in. ‘It thickens the sauce. This is our way,’ she said."

Butter-toasted panko breadcrumbs with a dash of Parmigiano Reggiano and Aleppo pepper add an attractive and delicious finishing touch to simple, steamed cauliflower.

With a bit of imagination, the lowly breadcrumb was turned into something elegant and delicious. England’s famous Queen of Puddings is simply a custard mixed with breadcrumbs and topped with jam and meringue. One hot menu craze these days is roasted cauliflower steaks many of which are topped with garlicky breadcrumbs.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2018 Penny & Ed Cherubino

(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns.)

November 14, 2018
Breadcrumbs Are Golden

Serving a dipping dish of buttery breadcrumbs gives these quickly steamed artichoke halves the taste and crunch of our "much-more-work" favorite recipe of stuffed and baked artichokes. A quick dip in olive oil or melted butter and then the crumbs makes for a delicious leaf.

You may see “pasta aglio e olio” popping up on menus. That seductive sounding Italian phrase translates to pasta with garlic and oil. The surprise when you first meet this dish may be beautifully toasted breadcrumbs sprinkled on top where you would have expected cheese.

We recently enjoyed this dish of pasta with mushrooms and peas topped with breadcrumbs at Eastern Standard.

Evan Kleiman, chef, food writer, and host of the radio show and podcast “Good Food,” wrote an article on the topic for the L.A. Times. In praise of breadcrumbs she wrote, “Toasted with garlic and olive oil, they can lend a textural and flavorful crunch to a variety of foods. You'd never know that something as simple and ubiquitous as a handful of crumbs could be what you're looking for to amp your everyday recipes.” She calls, “… spaghetti aglio e olio (their highest use, in my opinion).”

A sprinkle of cheesy breadcrumbs are the perfect finishing touch to this bowl of pea soup.

Filling in For…

In lean times, breadcrumbs have been used to expand food. They are mixed into chopped protein sources to make everything from meatballs to crab cakes. They add body and protect foods when they are used as a batter coating. The meat in popular dishes like chicken or veal Parmesan is first pounded thin and then bulked up with a tummy-filling coating of breadcrumbs.

In times of food rationing, people were urged to save breadcrumbs and turn them into main courses. Mixed with liquids they became breakfast cereals and desserts. Recipes were created to make meatless loaves and cakes using fine crumbs in place of proteins and flour.

In the book, "Nonna's House: Cooking and Reminiscing with the Italian Grandmothers of Enoteca Maria," we learned another use. "The Nonnas come from different generations and different places, so they have many useful tricks. Simple ones, like a Sicilian Nonna throwing a handful of breadcrumbs into a pan of spaghetti with marinara. ‘What are you doing?’ I asked, as she mixed it in. ‘It thickens the sauce. This is our way,’ she said."

Butter-toasted panko breadcrumbs with a dash of Parmigiano Reggiano and Aleppo pepper add an attractive and delicious finishing touch to simple, steamed cauliflower.

With a bit of imagination, the lowly breadcrumb was turned into something elegant and delicious. England’s famous Queen of Puddings is simply a custard mixed with breadcrumbs and topped with jam and meringue. One hot menu craze these days is roasted cauliflower steaks many of which are topped with garlicky breadcrumbs.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2018 Penny & Ed Cherubino

(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns.)

November 14, 2018
Food Waste Feast Is Our Friday Link

Today we want to encourage all our food loving readers to click over to Food Waste Feast, the website that helps you, "Cook more creatively, and stop throwing away perfectly good food."

This site comes from Mei and Irene from the Mei Mei food truck, restaurant, and catering company. We have deep admiration for all the wise, generous, and sustainable decisions this family has made as they've found a place for themselves in the competitive food world.

Now they have found a way to help you become more sustainable by using the food you might be tossing out. Earlier this week, we published a post that explained that "Your Most Expensive Food Is the Food You Waste."

The next step is to buy just what you will use and use what you buy.

Recipes by Ingredient!

The Food Waste Feast team is building valuable resources for those of us who no longer feel that wasting food is acceptable. You can find recipes by ingredient for what you have on hand. For example, the photo above is a recipe they call, "Pasta with Wrinkled Cherry Tomatoes."

They say,

"Because sometimes you get super excited about tomato season, and you purchase three large local containers of cherry tomatoes, and then some of them inevitably linger a bit longer than you wanted them to and get all wrinkly and forlorn on the countertop….anyone else ever find themselves in that position? Just me?"

We say,

Irene and Mei you are not alone. We've done that too. But, from now on when that happens, we'll click over to the recipes by ingredient section of Food Waste Feast and find inspiration for a dish to use them.

More Resources!

Food Waste Feast also gives you information about the issues surrounding food waste and tips on how to buy, store, and use up the things you do purchase and, sadly, when to toss them. For example here is the section on "Veggies that are actually fruits" like those tomatoes we're all overbuying right now.

This is a deep treasure trove of useful information. We suggest you make an initial visit and click around to find the areas you need right now. Then bookmark Food Waste Feast on your phone and make that your reading for times when you have to sit around waiting. Penny has been doing that for the past few weeks and has picked up useful information and been inspired to make new dishes by reviewing the recipes.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos and screenshots: courtesy of Food Waste Feast

August 24, 2018
Food Waste Feast Is Our Friday Link

Today we want to encourage all our food loving readers to click over to Food Waste Feast, the website that helps you, "Cook more creatively, and stop throwing away perfectly good food."

This site comes from Mei and Irene from the Mei Mei food truck, restaurant, and catering company. We have deep admiration for all the wise, generous, and sustainable decisions this family has made as they've found a place for themselves in the competitive food world.

Now they have found a way to help you become more sustainable by using the food you might be tossing out. Earlier this week, we published a post that explained that "Your Most Expensive Food Is the Food You Waste."

The next step is to buy just what you will use and use what you buy.

Recipes by Ingredient!

The Food Waste Feast team is building valuable resources for those of us who no longer feel that wasting food is acceptable. You can find recipes by ingredient for what you have on hand. For example, the photo above is a recipe they call, "Pasta with Wrinkled Cherry Tomatoes."

They say,

"Because sometimes you get super excited about tomato season, and you purchase three large local containers of cherry tomatoes, and then some of them inevitably linger a bit longer than you wanted them to and get all wrinkly and forlorn on the countertop….anyone else ever find themselves in that position? Just me?"

We say,

Irene and Mei you are not alone. We've done that too. But, from now on when that happens, we'll click over to the recipes by ingredient section of Food Waste Feast and find inspiration for a dish to use them.

More Resources!

Food Waste Feast also gives you information about the issues surrounding food waste and tips on how to buy, store, and use up the things you do purchase and, sadly, when to toss them. For example here is the section on "Veggies that are actually fruits" like those tomatoes we're all overbuying right now.

This is a deep treasure trove of useful information. We suggest you make an initial visit and click around to find the areas you need right now. Then bookmark Food Waste Feast on your phone and make that your reading for times when you have to sit around waiting. Penny has been doing that for the past few weeks and has picked up useful information and been inspired to make new dishes by reviewing the recipes.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos and screenshots: courtesy of Food Waste Feast

August 24, 2018
Acid Is a Good Food Word! Learn More from Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking

Since the publication of “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking” by Samin Nosrat, more attention is being paid to acid as an essential aspect of the cooking arts. It’s a tool that most chefs and many good cooks use to bring into focus the final flavor of a dish.

You already know that you like acid in connection to food if you add a squeeze of lemon to your fish or your favorite BBQ sauce is a North Carolina style with a vinegar base. You may have a preference for wines with a good acidity or feel pickles are essential when you have a sandwich piled high with pastrami.

Around here we had an ongoing editing duel over the word acid. Penny would use the word in a draft of an article and Ed would try to replace it with a “friendlier” word, e.g. tartness. To him the word acid was unappealing.

To Penny it was exactly what she meant to say. It represented the range of flavor balancing agents she used including citrus juices, vinegars, wines, beers, fermented vegetables, and dairy products like yogurt and crème fraiche to create our favorite dishes. Our duel ended as we explored the acid chapter in “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat” and we both gained a greater acceptance of the word acid as a positive part of cooking.

Exploring Acidity

The illustrations are an important part of this book. Penny thinks they should be sold as framed posters to add to kitchen decor and serve as references for cooks as they work. For example, as you can see above, acid is presented in a series of circles that lets you quickly explore the world of acid. The instructions say, “Use this wheel to help you choose which cooking acids (inner circle) and garnishing acids (outer circle) to use as you cook food from around the world.”

To add Vietnamese zest to your meal, you would cook with lime, rice wine vinegar, rice wine or beer, and garnish with fish sauce, hoisin sauce, or pickled shallots. The salad above took that Vietnamese route.

In Greece they cook with beer, wine, vinegar, or lemon, and finish with tomato, olive, yogurt, feta, or halloumi. Just knowing these selections for culture-after-culture can add excellent variation to something as simple as grilled chicken. The salad above took on that Greek character.

Recipes and Tips

In the “How Acid Works” section, you will learn how the chemistry of acid impacts things like color and texture along with tips for avoiding acid missteps. Next comes a recipe for Pasta Alle Vongole (spaghetti with clams) that demonstrates how acid works in a dish. That is followed by tips for using acid both within a dish and within a meal.

In addition to all of this, you are offered many variations. The recipe for Chicken and Garlic Soup has instructions for turning it into one of our favorite meals. Pho Ga or Vietnamese chicken noodle soup.

Remember, this is only one of four basic aspects of cooking that are explained in this book by the woman who taught Michael Pollan, New York Times bestselling author of The Omnivore's Dilemma, to cook.

In his foreword to the book Pollan wrote, “… I honestly can’t remember the last time I read a book on cooking that was this useful or unusual. I suspect that’s because reading SALT FAT ACID HEAT feels less like being in the pages of a cookbook than at a really good cooking school …" We highly recommend this book to both experienced cooks and those who are just beginning to explore the culinary arts.

SALT FAT ACID HEAT is available as an ebook, hardcover, or audiobook.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino cover artwork courtesy of Salt-Fat-Acid-Heat

January 17, 2018
Acid Is a Good Food Word! Learn More from Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking

Since the publication of “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking” by Samin Nosrat, more attention is being paid to acid as an essential aspect of the cooking arts. It’s a tool that most chefs and many good cooks use to bring into focus the final flavor of a dish.

You already know that you like acid in connection to food if you add a squeeze of lemon to your fish or your favorite BBQ sauce is a North Carolina style with a vinegar base. You may have a preference for wines with a good acidity or feel pickles are essential when you have a sandwich piled high with pastrami.

Around here we had an ongoing editing duel over the word acid. Penny would use the word in a draft of an article and Ed would try to replace it with a “friendlier” word, e.g. tartness. To him the word acid was unappealing.

To Penny it was exactly what she meant to say. It represented the range of flavor balancing agents she used including citrus juices, vinegars, wines, beers, fermented vegetables, and dairy products like yogurt and crème fraiche to create our favorite dishes. Our duel ended as we explored the acid chapter in “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat” and we both gained a greater acceptance of the word acid as a positive part of cooking.

Exploring Acidity

The illustrations are an important part of this book. Penny thinks they should be sold as framed posters to add to kitchen decor and serve as references for cooks as they work. For example, as you can see above, acid is presented in a series of circles that lets you quickly explore the world of acid. The instructions say, “Use this wheel to help you choose which cooking acids (inner circle) and garnishing acids (outer circle) to use as you cook food from around the world.”

To add Vietnamese zest to your meal, you would cook with lime, rice wine vinegar, rice wine or beer, and garnish with fish sauce, hoisin sauce, or pickled shallots. The salad above took that Vietnamese route.

In Greece they cook with beer, wine, vinegar, or lemon, and finish with tomato, olive, yogurt, feta, or halloumi. Just knowing these selections for culture-after-culture can add excellent variation to something as simple as grilled chicken. The salad above took on that Greek character.

Recipes and Tips

In the “How Acid Works” section, you will learn how the chemistry of acid impacts things like color and texture along with tips for avoiding acid missteps. Next comes a recipe for Pasta Alle Vongole (spaghetti with clams) that demonstrates how acid works in a dish. That is followed by tips for using acid both within a dish and within a meal.

In addition to all of this, you are offered many variations. The recipe for Chicken and Garlic Soup has instructions for turning it into one of our favorite meals. Pho Ga or Vietnamese chicken noodle soup.

Remember, this is only one of four basic aspects of cooking that are explained in this book by the woman who taught Michael Pollan, New York Times bestselling author of The Omnivore's Dilemma, to cook.

In his foreword to the book Pollan wrote, “… I honestly can’t remember the last time I read a book on cooking that was this useful or unusual. I suspect that’s because reading SALT FAT ACID HEAT feels less like being in the pages of a cookbook than at a really good cooking school …" We highly recommend this book to both experienced cooks and those who are just beginning to explore the culinary arts.

SALT FAT ACID HEAT is available as an ebook, hardcover, or audiobook.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino cover artwork courtesy of Salt-Fat-Acid-Heat

January 17, 2018
Go on a Good Food Hunt with Edible Boston’s Spring 2017 Issue

Forget the Easter Eggs that are already on store shelves! Hunt down this edition of Edible Boston. It's full of the people, places, flavors, recipes, and products that you will want to add to your shopping list or make for dinner.

In her Letter from the Editor, managing editor Sarah Blackburn hits a welcome note when she writes, "Put your feet up, turn off the news and read about ice cream, bagels, a beer-making farm and a lesson in historical cooking at a living museum."

She continues to encourage us not only to "Eat Local," but also to join the Edible team and use the hashtag #EatLocalMA on social media.

We have Post-It notes marking pages with articles on making cheese at home, celebrating spring with a picnic, and recipes for using those wonderful first greens of spring.

Read with Shopping List in Hand

As much as we think we may know about the local food scene, our preview copy is already dog-eared to return to articles and advertisements for local food suppliers. We've learned to read this publication with my shopping list in hand.

Support the Talented Edible Boston Team

First, pick up a copy of Edible Boston at one of these locations. In fact, pick up two copies and share one with a food-loving friend or leave it where someone might discover it among lesser publications and become a new fan.

May we suggest that you let their sponsors know you saw them in the magazine and grab an extra copy and get it to someone else who cares about supporting the local food movement. Also, if you have a blog, twitter account, or facebook page, write about them, link to them, follow them, retweet their tweets, like them on facebook and, in general, spread the word about this great asset to our community.

And, to be sure you never miss an issue, you can subscribe over on their website!

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Covershot & photos: Courtesy of Edible Boston

Related articles

Sunday Cat Sophia Says, "Let me in Whee-ooh …"

Thanks to Friends Who Make Marmalade and Share!

Get Ready for Your First Visit to the Boston Public Market

Boston Fireworks from Another Time …

March 24, 2017
Go on a Good Food Hunt with Edible Boston’s Spring 2017 Issue

Forget the Easter Eggs that are already on store shelves! Hunt down this edition of Edible Boston. It's full of the people, places, flavors, recipes, and products that you will want to add to your shopping list or make for dinner.

In her Letter from the Editor, managing editor Sarah Blackburn hits a welcome note when she writes, "Put your feet up, turn off the news and read about ice cream, bagels, a beer-making farm and a lesson in historical cooking at a living museum."

She continues to encourage us not only to "Eat Local," but also to join the Edible team and use the hashtag #EatLocalMA on social media.

We have Post-It notes marking pages with articles on making cheese at home, celebrating spring with a picnic, and recipes for using those wonderful first greens of spring.

Read with Shopping List in Hand

As much as we think we may know about the local food scene, our preview copy is already dog-eared to return to articles and advertisements for local food suppliers. We've learned to read this publication with my shopping list in hand.

Support the Talented Edible Boston Team

First, pick up a copy of Edible Boston at one of these locations. In fact, pick up two copies and share one with a food-loving friend or leave it where someone might discover it among lesser publications and become a new fan.

May we suggest that you let their sponsors know you saw them in the magazine and grab an extra copy and get it to someone else who cares about supporting the local food movement. Also, if you have a blog, twitter account, or facebook page, write about them, link to them, follow them, retweet their tweets, like them on facebook and, in general, spread the word about this great asset to our community.

And, to be sure you never miss an issue, you can subscribe over on their website!

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Covershot & photos: Courtesy of Edible Boston

Related articles

Sunday Cat Sophia Says, "Let me in Whee-ooh …"

Thanks to Friends Who Make Marmalade and Share!

Get Ready for Your First Visit to the Boston Public Market

Boston Fireworks from Another Time …

March 24, 2017
A Food History Reading List for Black History Month

Food Writer Toni Tipton-Martin came to my attention when she won a 2016 James Beard award for her book The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks.

In writing about this book for the James Beard Foundation, Maggie Borden praised it as a, “… masterful exploration of the contributions of African-American women to our nation's culinary landscape. Pages after pages of reproduced archival materials and recipes upend the historical stereotype of black women in the kitchen as illiterate ‘Aunt Jemimas,’ proving how instrumental these oft-ignored chefs were to our dinners and diets.”

Toni Tipton-Martin said about her research, "I eventually owned nearly 300 African American cookbooks …" dating back to 1827. Her work set me on my own search for food writing and cookbooks that would help me better understand the African American contribution to our shared food culture.

Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs

Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs by Psyche A. Williams-Forson examines the roles that chicken, both as the bird and the food, has played in the lives of black women from the past to the present. For some women, chicken led to economic freedom and independence.

This one is not a cookbook but is a fascinating read and, in some ways, connects the others on this list with one food, chicken. This connection with the food lore of the past came to my attention in a contemporary cookbook, Red Rooster by Marcus Samuelsson.

The Red Rooster Cookbook: The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem

Samuelsson’s cookbook is about far more than recipes, just as his Harlem restaurant Red Rooster is as much about community as it is about food. Each section begins with an essay about some aspect of the multi-dimensional mission that Red Rooster represents to him and his team.

Chicken plays a starring role in his restaurant and his book as he tells of his two year obsession with creating the perfect fried chicken dish that would be worthy of the Harlem chicken tradition.

In an interesting connection to the The Jemima Code, the basement supper club is named Ginny’s after a woman from Harlem who worked for his partner’s family. He wants it to be a place where all the Ginnys would feel welcome.

Jessica Harris

My first education on foods and foodways of the African Diaspora came from a class that I took with Doctor Jessica Harris. She has authored twelve books on the topic. For the purpose of this list, I would suggest you read two of her books. “Iron Pots and Wooden Spoons: Africa's Gifts to New World Cooking" and “The Welcome Table: African American Heritage Cooking” comprise a well-researched collection of recipes.

Edna Lewis

No list on this topic would be complete without a book by chef and food writer Edna Lewis. Her New York Times obituary recalled an earlier interview in which she said, "As a child in Virginia, I thought all food tasted delicious. After growing up, I didn't think food tasted the same, so it has been my lifelong effort to try and recapture those good flavors of the past." With this in mind, I suggest you read her book, “The Taste of Country Cooking.”

While this column was introduced as a reading list, it is also a cooking list, and I hope you will try some of the recipes and/or menus you come across. All of these books are available from the Boston Public Library.

As a bonus for this online version of this Fresh & Local newspaper column, we have not only linked to the books on Amazon, but also to each author's page, making this a more extensive reading list in case you already know the specific books we selected to feature here.

What's on your Food Lover's shopping list?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino adapted for BostonZest from one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Related articles

Back When Harvard's Weld Boathouse Was Drafted as a Navy Training Facility…

Welcome Luke's Lobster to Boston

February 22, 2017