$266 Million Winning Lottery Recipes - L & L Hawaiian Barbecue Cookbook - Memorial Day

Date I made this recipe:  May 29, 2017 – Memorial Day

$266 Million Winning Lottery Recipes – L & L Hawaiian Barbecue Cookbook by Eddie Flores, Jr.

Published by L & L Franchise Inc.

ISBN: 10: 1-56647-988-6; copyright 2012

Purchased at Hilo Bay Books, Hilo, Hawaii

Recipe:  Macaroni Salad – p. 119

"On May 6, 2010, Gilbert Cisneros bought a lottery ticket at the L & L Hawaiian Barbecue Restaurant in Pico Rivera, California and won $266 million dollars, one of the largest mega million lottery jackpots in history."

What McDonald's is to the mainland, L & L Hawaiian Barbecue is to Hawaii which is to say that it is everywhere, space permitting.  Yet despite the fact that it is everywhere,  it took us until our last trip there (2016) to finally get around to trying it while we were out roaming around the Big Island.  I can't recall exactly where except I believe we were down around the southern tip which puts us somewhere around Naalehu. 

I'll just say this about that:  our bad. 

The thing about fast food places in Hawaii is that they are often customized to include local favorites.  Years ago, for example, on my first trip to Hawaii, a friend and I stopped at a local McDonald's and were amused to find sashimi on the menu.  Sashimi is raw fish or meat that is sliced into thin pieces.  That McDonald's also carried sushi long before it became all the rage.

Similarly, L & L's carry a mix of everything you could ever want to eat in Hawaii:  barbecue (Hawaiian style), saimin (similar to ramen), a loco moco (white rice, beef patty, and a egg that is topped by brown gravy – we love this), and a Hawaiian plate lunch.

A plate lunch is a somewhat hilarious platter of two scoops of rice, one scoop of macaroni salad, and a fried or grilled protein (fried fish, grilled beef, etc.).  Never ever would I have thought of putting that combo together (or the loco moco, for that matter), but it works for us.  It is said to have evolved from the Japanese bento box and that makes sense when you think about the rice and the fish or meat, but not necessarily the macaroni salad.  Still, who am I to argue with tradition!

Although I cannot recall what we had that day at L & L, what we had was surprisingly good for fast food.  When it came down to choosing a recipe from this cookbook then, it was really challenging because I was hungry for everything.  In the running was the "Hawaiian Huli Huli Chicken" (p. 31), "Kalua Pork (p. 57) and "Hawaiian Barbecue Sauce" (p. 103) until I settled on the macaroni salad.

Your table of contents is pretty extensive and let me just say right now that if you are in the mood for SPAM®, and why wouldn't you be, it's in there as SPAM® Musubi in the Pork Category.  Musubi is barbecued SPAM® served on rice that is wrapped in nori (seaweed).  Yes, I know, it may sound horrible to some of you and it's not like I tried it but Hawaiians love their SPAM® and I mean LOVE and so it should not surprise anyone that it shows up on menus and in island cookbooks.

Should you not like SPAM®, here are other categories that might interest you:

• Chicken
• Beef
• Pork
• Seafood
• Vegetables
• Healthy Plates
• Soup & Sauces
• Others (fried rice, macaroni salad)
• Desserts

Okay then, let's talk about the macaroni salad.  This recipe is likely not what you were expecting but this recipe, or one that is similar, is a staple of the plate lunch and so there it is.  It calls for very few ingredients of which shredded carrots is the main one and so it's easy to prepare and serve. As far as taste though, it leans toward being a little bland so you may want to amp things up a bit and add some other seasonings besides salt and white pepper. I rather liked it but then again, I am a sucker for a plate lunch macaroni salad.

And now, without further ado, I give you a plate lunch macaroni salad.

Macaroni Salad – serves 5 to 6 people

½ gallon of water

1 pound macaroni

½ cup of onion (diced)

½ cup of carrot (shredded)

3 cups of mayonnaise

½ teaspoon of white pepper

2 teaspoons salt

1 small can of oil based tuna (drained)

Put water into a pot and bring to a boil.  Put macaroni into the pot and boil for 12 minutes or until cooked.  (Ann's Note:  It's probably easier to follow the cooking times on the box.)

Drain water and cool macaroni thoroughly.  Combine all remaining ingredients and chill for at least one hour.

"The Weekend Cookbook" - Baked Bean Casserole - Memorial Day

Date I made this recipe:  May 29, 2017 – Memorial Day

The Weekend Cookbook by Jeanne Adams

Published by Hewitt House

© 1970

Purchased at Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks - NYC

Recipe:  Baked Bean Casserole – p. 37

Is there a better time than a long weekend to pull out The Weekend Cookbook?  Nope, don't think so! 

Is there a better excuse to make yet another baked bean casserole than Memorial Day?  Nope, don't think so either!

Although Andy isn't as fond of baked beans as I am, I feel compelled to make them for one of the summer holidays and he eats them without complaint.  That said, I try not to push the envelope too far and so typically substitute my favorite accompaniment, potato salad, with something else.

These baked beans were super easy and were not doctored up like most baked bean recipes I've made (including my mom's) but I liked that it was no fuss, no muss.  You simply open two cans of baked beans/pork and beans, add some sliced onion and sliced tomato and bake.  What I like is that this then leaves you open to engaging in other Memorial Day activities, assuming it doesn't rain.

Although the author doesn't list specifically recipes for various holidays, she does break out her table of contents by seasons as follows:

• Summer Weekends:  Friday Dinners; Saturday Breakfasts; Saturday Lunches; Saturday Dinners; Sunday Breakfasts; Sunday Lunches.  (Apparently nobody eats Sunday dinner?)
• Summer Picnic
• Three-Day Summer Weekend
• Four-Day Summer Weekend
• Providing for a Working Husband (Well, this is rather sexist but we can given the woman a break because she wrote this in 1970 when women were generally either absent or invisible in the workplace.)
• Fall Weekends: Friday Dinners; Saturday Breakfasts; Saturday Lunches; Saturday Dinners; Sunday Brunch; Sunday Lunches.  (Again, cooking on Sunday nights is apparently out of the question. Also notice that one has brunch on fall Sunday's, not "breakfast")
• Winter Weekends: Friday Dinners; Saturday Breakfasts; Saturday Lunches; Saturday Dinners; Saturday Night Smorgasbord; Sunday Breakfasts; Sunday Lunches.  (Saturday Night Smorgasbords?  No.  Where I grew up, smorgasbords went mostly hand in hand with a Friday Fish Fry.  Some places served them on Saturday but these would be your rogue restaurateurs.)
• Three-Day Winter Weekend
• Spring Weekends: Friday Dinners; Saturday Breakfast; Saturday Lunches; Saturday Dinners; Sunday Breakfasts; Sunday Lunches
• Hors d'Oeuvres

 I was hoping to find a recipe in the "Summer Picnic" or "Three-Day Summer Weekend" category (even though summer doesn't arrive until June 21^st, but that didn't happen but the baked beans recipe came from the "Summer Weekend" chapter so that was close enough.  I pondered a few other recipes like Ratatouille but that just didn't seem right for Memorial Day. 

For those of you who are menu-challenged, the book provides you with countless menus so you have an idea of what other items make good accompaniments to your main dishes.  The menu containing the "Baked Bean Casserole," for example, suggested you serve it with "Cold sliced Baked Ham," "Sliced Cucumbers," "Rye Bread," and Frozen Éclairs.   Of course, you are not beholden to using frozen éclairs if fresh ones are available.

My menu was very different than the one suggested in the book as I made bleu cheese hamburgers (see my National Hamburger Day post), the beans, a macaroni salad (see my post from the L&L Hawaiian Cook Book) as is usual and customary.  I even threw in a shrimp cocktail from the Martha's Got Nuthin' On Me cookbook to round out our Memorial Day observance.

One final note:  This cookbook does not list any yields but based on the ingredients, I'd say you have plenty of baked beans to serve 6-8 people

Baked Bean Casserole – serving size unknown

2 jars New England-style baked beans

1 large onion, sliced

2 large tomatoes, sliced ½ inch thick

Salt, pepper

Empty one jar of beans into a casserole.  Separate the onion slices into rings and arrange on top of the beans.  Add the other jar of beans to the casserole and cover with sliced tomatoes, overlapping if necessary.  Salt and pepper, then bake uncovered in a 375° oven for 20 minutes, or until thoroughly heated.

Ann's Notes:  The author likely intended that you use B&M Baked Beans but I was shopping at Trade Joe's and they had their own brand of baked beans and so I used theirs.  And not that I've shopped regularly for these things, but Trader Joe's price was very reasonable – about $1.30 a can – and you can't beat that!

"The Hamburger Cookbook" - Bleu Cheese Burgers - in observance of National Hamburger Day

Date I made this recipe:  May 29, 2017 – the day after National Hamburger Day

The Hamburger Cookbook (paperback) by Ethel Mayer

Published by Ventura Associates

© 1981

Purchased at BCPA (Bloomington Crime Prevention Association) Annual Sale

Recipe:  Bleu Cheese Burgers – p. 64

Well shut the front door, it's National Hamburger Day – hooray!

Once again, yet another "Who knew" food "holiday" was upon us and once again I was prepared with this tiny paperback book – The Hamburger Cookbook.

Lest you think that I can find easily these books when I need them, let me tell you that all my books are catalogued in an Excel and so all I need to do (in theory) is search for some key words like – in this case – "Hamburger" and then I can see what I have.  I think this book with "hamburger" in the title, may have been the only one I have not cooked from yet.  Time to restock!

Although I'm pretty sure that National Hamburger Day is all about burgers in buns, it is not against the law to cook something else with hamburger in it and this book gives us a wide range of options in these categories:

• Loaves for Loafers – includes meatloaf recipes
• Case That Casserole – includes hamburger casserole recipes
• Serve It In One Dish – includes dishes containing hamburger that aren't necessarily casseroles e.g. stuffed tomatoes
• Shades of the Lord of Sandwich! – includes traditional burgers as well as a couple Sloppy Joe recipes
• You're in the Dough – includes things like pasties and meat dumplings
• Department of Interior Surprises – includes recipes for things stuffed with burgers and burgers stuffed with things!
• Soup's On – includes soups that contain hamburger
• Meat Balls Galore – includes meatball recipes
• Lamburgers – apparently, lamb rates its own chapter!

 I must say that I chuckled at the inclusion of lamburgers because lamb isn't exactly ground hamburger, now is it?

After considering, briefly, going all rogue and making something other than a hamburger, I stuck to the script and made these yummy Bleu Cheese Burgers.  We love blue cheese in this house and so it seemed pretty fitting.

This turned out to be a great choice for National Hamburger Day but I must say that once again, the cooking instructions gave us pause because we weren't sure if we were to stuff this burger with the cheese or not; you'll see why below.  Andy decided on "or not" and so he broiled as directed and they were very yummy.   We also cut the recipe in half as is usual and customary and ended up with 4 good-sized burgers instead of 6; a full recipe makes 12.

This then, concludes our observance of National Hamburger Day with one confession and that is that we made them the day after National Hamburger Day.  I know, right?  The thing is though, the next day was Memorial Day and so why not make a picnic out of it?  So we did and so check my blog for two side dish posts, one for baked beans and the other for a macaroni salad.

Enjoy!

Bleu Cheese Burgers – yield 12 half buns, or 2 portions per person

1 pound ground chuck

1 medium onion, chopped very fine

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon Accent

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

¼ cup tomato sauce or ¼ cup chili sauce

6 hamburger buns

6 tablespoons soft butter or margarine

½ cup Bleu cheese mixed in ½ cup mayonnaise

Mix the ground meat, onion, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, Accent, mustard and tomato/chili sauce very thoroughly.  Set aside to allow the flavors to blend.  This meat mixture can be made several hours before serving, or even the day before.

Butter the hamburger bun halves and place under the broiler until they are toasted a golden brown.

Place 1 heaping tablespoon of the cheese and mayonnaise mixture in the center of each bun half.  Form the meat into ½" thick patties the size of the buns; place the meat patty over the Bleu cheese mixture.  Press the edges of each patty so that the cheese mixture is completely sealed inside.  Put under the broiler for 15 minutes, or until the meat is completely browned.  Serve piping hot.  Ann's Note:  What you're basically making here is an open-face sandwich.  The burgers are not stuffed but rather, the burger patty is stretched to the edge of the bun so as to seal in the bleu cheese and mayo mixture.  It took us a minute to figure this out during which time, I ranted once again about confusing cooking instructions!  I also questioned the 15 minute broiling time but when you think of it, stuffed burgers, like Minnesota's famous Jucy Lucy[1], are cooked longer so that you don't end up with raw burger surrounding the napalm melted cheese inside.

This will yield 12 half buns, or 2 portions per person.

---

[1] A Jucy Lucy is a burger that is stuffed with cheese.  Depending on who you ask, it originated at either Matt's Bar or the 5-8 Club, both located in Minneapolis.  It is an awesome thing to eat but do be careful because the cheese is really, really hot, such that you are warned to let it cool or suffer the consequences!

"Race Day Grub - Recipes from the NASCAR Family" - Martha Nemechek's Sloppy Joes - for Memorial Day

Date I made this recipe:  May 25^th, 2014 – for Memorial Day

Race Day Grub – Recipes from the NASCAR Family by Angela Skinner; foreword by Mike Skinner

Published by:  Wiley (as part of the NASCAR Library Collection)

ISBN:  0-470-09858-9

Purchased at Strand (bookstore), NYC

Recipe:  Martha Nemechek's Sloppy Joes

We are now one day away from Memorial Day, the official start of the "summer" season (technically, it starts on June 21^st), and while I celebrate the start of my favorite time of year, I also dread it.  You see, I suffer from a seasonal affective disorder called "grilling anxiety."

I didn't used to be this way, perhaps because my dad took care of all the grilling growing up, mostly on our little hibachi grill.  I loved that thing, mostly because it was so portable.  And it's not like I'm afraid of fire because I was a Girl Scout and we had to build fires all the time.  (I have merit badges to prove it!).

No, the problem is with our household grill.  It's gas – not that there's anything wrong with that because our stove is gas – but it's a bit finicky and it's filthy.  Filthy as in "sat in the garage unused for a couple of years now because we haven't had time to grill" filthy.

Now my husband was not brought up with my mother's exacting sanitation standards so he wanted to haul out the grill, give it a quick scrub, and fire it up.  I told him that unless and until he sanitized it within an inch of its life by pouring scalding hot water over it – several times – I would not eat anything that came off it.  He looked at me funny and sighed.  I looked back with my "I am not kidding" visage.  He blinked first.

And so, the win goes to Ann!  And I won because at the end of the day, we did what we always do and that is ignore the problem rather than just clean the thing and just let the grill sit in the garage.  Clearly, we are not enamored with this "sport."  This decision then freed me up from the second component of my "grilling anxiety" – selecting the grill recipe.  Since we use gas, I flip past all the pages that require us to use coals or wood chips and those recipes that require long-time marinades.  And although hamburgers and hot dogs are not exactly off the table, grilling them always seems like a cop-out.  Within minutes, I was exhausted and had exhausted all brilliant grilling ideas. And so...Sloppy Joes.  (By the way, the third component of my "grilling anxiety" is the overabundance of mosquitoes, which, in this state are required to file a flight plan with the FAA.)

Now, these are not just any Sloppy Joes, these Sloppy Joes are from a NASCAR cookbook.  And that's because Memorial Day weekend is also race day weekend as Indy 500 and NSACAR drives get behind the wheel to hurtle themselves around a track at speeds in excess of 200mph.  And trust me, this is far more enjoyable to watch than standing outside, swatting at mosquitoes, tending to a grill.  That said, Andy and I were busy all day and so we missed both races. (But we caught the recaps later on so...half points awarded).

I'm not sure I have an Indiana cookbook in this house ( by the way, "Indy" stands for Indianapolis) but wouldn't you know I have two – count 'em – two NASCAR cookbooks in my house, purchased last year at Strand Bookstore in NYC.  I always like to be prepared for any occasion and see, didn't I just call that right?  You need a race car cookbook, you see me.

When it comes to car racing, while Indy Racing is the Big Daddy of them all, with the Indy 500 (500 miles) taking place every Memorial Day weekend for the past 103 years, NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) should never be dismissed like a fly on your arm during a BBQ.  NASCAR's following is absolutely huge compared to Indy.  And although there are more Indy races than just the famous 500, it is a rare moment when you cannot find a NASCAR race on TV. 

And although Indy drives tend to just drive that circuit and no other, over the years, a couple of NASCAR racers ran Indy.  As my husband can spend endless hours telling you, everything about those races are different – cars, driving, driving style, etc.  But we both kind of liked the "mix and match" that took place.

My absolute favorite thing about watching NASCAR is listening to the announcer call the race.  The minute I hear commentator Larry McReynold's southern accent and Darrell Waltrip's (former champion) "boogity, boggity, boogity" catch phrase, I know that Andy has switched the TV to a NASCAR race and we are in for a fun and entertaining time. 

There was also something about this recipe that made me select it, mainly that you added two cans of Campbell's Vegetable Soup with Alphabets.  Well this is new!  (I'm not sure the soup added anything one way or the other but Andy liked it.) The other thing that sealed the deal is that this recipe was submitted by Martha Nemechek, mom to race driver Joe Nemechek, and both Martha and her husband, "Big Joe," are huge supporters of soldiers in the U.S. Army.  Martha is even pictured in the book wearing Army fatigues.  And so a non-grilled item + NASCAR + Memorial Day + Army aficionados = a great way to celebrate the first weekend of summer.  Inside.  Without bugs.  Love.it.

PS—Congratulations to this year's Indy 500 winner, Ryan Hunter-Reay who managed to hold off challenger (as in "hot on his tail"), Helio Castroneves by 0.060 seconds.  And Congratulations to four-time NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 winner (a/k/a "Charlotte 600"), Jimmie Johnson. Johnson took a page from the Indy race, beating out second place finished, Kevin Harvick, by 1.272 seconds.

And here I get all nervous when someone comes within 5 feet of my bumper!

Martha Nemechek's Sloppy Joes – makes 2 to 4 servings

1 pound ground beef

½ small onion, chopped

Garlic powder

Salt

Pepper

½ cup ketchup

½ cup water

Two 10 ½-ounce cans Campbell's ABC vegetable soup

One 1.4-ounce packet Sloppy Joe seasoning

2-4 hamburger buns

Mix the ground beef and chopped onions in a skillet over medium heat.  Sprinkle in the garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until the meat is brown and drain off the liquid.

Put the meat back in the pan and add the ketchup, water, soup and seasoning packet.  Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Serve on your favorite buns and enjoy!

Ann's Note:  I had to chuckle at the instruction to "salt and pepper to taste" because the soup contained a lot of sodium as did the seasoning packet.  So I peppered only and perhaps you should, too!

"Cheater BBQ" - (Crockpot) Ultimate Cheater Pulled Pork with Cheater BBQ Slaw (for Memorial Day)

Date I made this recipe:  May 27, 2013 (Memorial Day)

Cheater BBQ – Barbecue Anytime, Anywhere, In Any Weather by Mindy Merrell and R. B. Quinn

Published by:  Broadway Books

ISBN:  978-0-7679-2768-0

Recipes:  Ultimate Cheater Pulled Pork – p. 54-55 and Cheater BBQ Slaw – p. 151

I just posted on Facebook that dealing with this spring’s weather is like listening to a James Taylor record that keeps skipping:  “Oh, I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain…and rain...and rain…and rain….”  If memory serves, Memorial Days are often rainy and overcast but yesterday took the cake – dark cloud cover all day and then rain…and rain…and rain.

Given the crappy spring weather we’ve been having, I didn’t even bother to actually find a recipe for grilling out, resorting instead to a book called Cheater BBQ that, just like the title says, allows you to barbecue anytime, anywhere in any (in climate) weather.  And so I dusted off the crock pot, added the ingredients and walked away and in 6 hours (or less), you have yourself a tasty barbecue without fighting raindrops and/or mosquitoes (with all this water, we are in for some kind of mosquito season in these parts).  Add an easy coleslaw recipe to the mix and aloha, we have dinner!

This recipe calls for liquid smoke and while I’ve seen in it various and sundry recipes, I’ve never used it before and have to say I don’t know where I come down on this item.  On the one hand, it sure smelled like barbecue in the house but not necessarily in a good way although perhaps I’m picky:  I want barbecue to smell more like the sauce, less like a smoky fire.  And then there’s the spice rub issue and again, I am torn.  Our pork butt was 2.5 pounds instead of the 5-6 pounds required and so I adjusted the seasonings accordingly but still tasted too much salt for my palate.  (You can insert the phrase “high maintenance” at any time during the course of this blog.) That said I have to tell you that cooking this sucker in a crock pot made the meat unbelievably tender and it “pulled” apart like nobody’s business.  So that was good and yet…I failed, and failed miserably, to see the attraction of pulling apart meat and fat and this is why I will never be even an honorary Southerner because I just don’t see the joy in it.  Hold the vitriol, but please pass the BBQ sauce!

Now in my book, you can’t have BBQ without a side and so I made the cole slaw.  It was quick and easy and what’s not to love about modern-day directions that tell you to basically buy and open a bag of premade anything?  I have quite the fondness for celery seed and this recipe contains a teaspoon of it so there it is – mix, stir, add – cheat!

And so on this Memorial Day, we did chores around the house, got in an indoor walk at a local mall, came home to some delicious vittles and reflected a moment or two on our veterans like my late father, who served oh-so-proudly in the Marine Corp in WWII.  And, of course, cursed the weather.  Dad would have because it would have interfered with planting his garden.  I just do it because well, why not?

“…and rain… and rain…and rain…and rain….”

Ultimate Cheater Pulled Pork – makes 12 to 14 servings

One 5- to 6-pound boneless Boston butt pork roast or same weight of boneless country-style pork ribs (We bought a 2.5 pound butt pork roast)

¼ cup Cheater Basic Dry Rub (p. 45 or see below)

½ cup bottled liquid smoke

Barbeque sauce of your choice (for their recipes see pages 38 to 43 or just use what you have on hand)

Cheater Basic Dry Rub (makes about 2/3 cup)

¼ cup paprika

2 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon dry mustard

If using a larger pork roast, cut the pork butt into medium (2- to 3-inch) chunks.  (The ribs do not need to be cut up.)

Put the pieces in a large slow cooker (at least 5 quarts).  Sprinkle the meat with the rub, turning the pieces to coat evenly.  Add the bottled smoke.

Cover and cook on high for 5 to 6 hours or on low for 10 to 12 hours, until the meat is pull-apart tender and reaches an internal temperature of 190F.

Using tongs and a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a rimmed platter or baking.  Let rest until cool enough to handle.

Cheater BBQ Slaw – makes 6 servings

½ cup white or cider vinegar

½ cup sugar

¼ cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon celery seed

1 teaspoon kosher salt

One 16-ounce bag slaw mix (about 8 cups lightly packed)

Combine the vinegar, sugar, mayonnaise, celery seed, and salt in a large mixing bowl.  Blend well with a whisk or fork.  Add the slaw mix and toss to blend.  Chill before serving.

"The Zuni Cafe Cookbook" - Coppa (or Salami) & Warm Parslied Potato Salad with Roasted Pepper

 Date I made this recipe:  May 27, 2012

The Zuni Café Cookbook – a compendium of recipes & cooking lessons from San Francisco’s Beloved Restaurant by Judy Rodgers

Published by:  W. W. Norton

ISBN:  0393020436

Recipe:  Coppa (or Salami) & Warm Parslied Potato Salad with Roasted Peppers – p. 90-91

People, summer isn’t even here yet and here I am “wearing” my summer sloth suit as it has taken me days to get my act together to post this recipe.  I sure don’t have outstanding weather as an excuse as it rained more than it was sunny over Memorial Day weekend.  I don’t know—maybe overall ennui is the cause?  Maybe I’m practicing being listless in the summer heat?  I’m not sure.

At any rate, this didn’t start out to be a Memorial Day recipe post but that’s how it ended up.  In actuality, I looked through this cookbook intending to make something for my 21^st wedding anniversary on May 18^th.  But the 18^th was the day before a major bike ride for my husband and so I made a pasta dish with a beef sauce for him from another cookbook instead so that (hopefully) the protein and carb combination would help with the ride.

Still, The Zuni Café (cookbook) is important to us because when we celebrated our 10^th wedding anniversary in 2001, we went to San Francisco, and as luck would have it, stayed in a hotel next door to The Zuni Café.  At the time, the restaurant hadn’t yet made a name for itself and that was a good thing because I hate it when a place gets popular and turns into a three-ring circus.

I remember two things about the Zuni:  one, that Andy and I have this great photo of us at the bar, raising martini glasses, lit up like Christmas trees after an arduous flight from Minneapolis to SF and two, I had a dish involving sausages and peas (and possibly, or possibly not, seafood). I recall it being divine but sadly, that recipe is not in the cookbook.  No matter as I found many yummy substitutes instead.

Getting back to the flight and subsequent cocktails, we had the unfortunate displeasure to sit in front of a family with maybe three or four little kids, mom and dad and grandma.  One of said children kept kicking my husband’s seats all through the flight.  We finally gave up and moved a few seats over (we were in the dreaded middle row) and were horrified to see the seat being treated like a punching bag after he vacated it.  Little cretin!  And that goes for grandma too, who kept using my seat as a means to get in and out of hers the entire trip.  Let’s say grandma got up quite often and every single time my seat went back and then banged me on the head after she let go of it.  So you can see why a cocktail was in order.

Now, The Zuni Café prides itself on “farm fresh” food and the cookbook includes a lot of homemade recipes for things like (soup) stocks and that is fine if you have the time but I don’t.  I didn’t end up making anything that included those stocks but just so you know they are in there.

What I did make was a non-mayonnaise potato salad that my husband enjoyed; he is not a big fan of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip salads.  (Good thing he didn’t grow up in my house where we used Miracle Whip all the time as Hellman’s was hard for us to find.)  I also loved the fact that it was not all “goopy” with mayonnaise, “goopy” being a term my late friend, Carol, like to toss around when it came to salads or casseroles that were heavy on cheese or mayo.  And in a weird way, this salad tied into our wedding anniversary because when we got married, we went to France and Italy for our honeymoon.  I am also half-Italian.  So you see, don’t you, that this recipe was meant to happen?  Of course you do!

On Sunday (not Monday, Memorial Day), we shopped for the ingredients and then we bought two pre-made onion and gorgonzola burgers from Whole Foods to grill (sticking with the theme!).  All was well when Andy fired up the grill but all was not well when he finished as a major thunderstorm rolled through Minneapolis at warp speed and it was raining cats and dogs by the time he got inside, burgers intact – whew!

So we sat down, had dinner, and just as we were finishing, the power went off and damn it all, it stayed off for hours, causing us to miss Mad Men.  I hate when that happens!  Thankfully, Comcast On Demand had it available when power was restored the next morning! 

On a side note, I told Andy that I am totally enamored with charring peppers on our gas stove top.  Not that I’m going to turn into a pyro, but there is something about watching a pepper almost go up in flames that is fascinating to me!  Oh, and the result is great as well.

So here you go!  This recipe should work well with any number of entrees and is pretty easy to put together. 

PS—This is yet another book I purchased at Arc’s Value Village Thift Store for something like $6.99.

Coppa (or Salami) & Warm Parslied Potato Salad with Roasted Peppers – about 4 servings

Generous 1 pound peeled yellow-fleshed potatoes cut into irregular 1-inch chunks or a little smaller

Salt

About 1 tablespoon tightly packed, coarsely chopped, fresh flat-leaf parsley

About 4-5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

About 2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar

Freshly cracked black pepper

About 4 ounces coppa, sliced 1/16 inch thick or salami

1 large or 2 small red or green peppers (about 12 ounces total), roasted or charred, peeled, and cut or torn into wide strips

12 oil-cured meaty black olives, such as Nyons

Ann’s Notes:  Salami was easier to find so I used that instead of coppa.  But know that all salamis are not alike and so if you have the chance to taste test first, go with one that is a little milder in taste so that it doesn’t overpower the rest of the ingredients.  I also used about 1.5 tablespoons of white wine vinegar and came close to almost having a taste that was just a tad too tart on my hands.  I suggest adding 1 tablespoon first and then seeing if it is to your liking.  And I only needed one gargantuan red pepper (do they grow anything smaller?) for this recipe.

Place the potatoes in a 2- to 4-quart saucepan and add cold water to cover.  Salt the water very liberally, stir to dissolve, and taste – the water should taste a little too salty. (The author uses a generous 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt per quart of water.)  Bring to a simmer, uncovered.  Cook at a bare simmer, stirring once or twice, until the potatoes are tender and the edges are starting to soften, usually about 6 minutes.  Drain well.

As soon as they have stopped steaming, transfer the potatoes to a wide bowl.  Using a rubber spatula, fold in the parsley and enough olive oil to coat well.  The edges will break down a little, shedding potato into the oil.  Cover with plastic wrap and leave for a few minutes so the parsley perfumes the oil and softens.

Fold in the vinegar and black pepper, both to taste.

Arrange the slices of coppa (or salami) and the strips of roasted pepper on plates or a platter, and mound the juicy potatoes and the olives to one side.  (Or, if you are Ann, combine everything into one bowl and serve.  With just me and Andy at home, we are less concerned with presentation and more concerned with eating, already!)

"Cook it Outdoors" by James Beard and "KCMR Casseroles and Salad" - Pig Hamburgers and Lentil Confetti Salad

Date I made these recipes: May 31, 2010 (Memorial Day)

Cook it Outdoors by James Beard
Published by: M. Barrows and Company
Copyright: 1941
Recipe: Pig (Pork) Hamburgers – p. 88

KCMR Casseroles and Salads by KCMR Radio, Mason City, Iowa; recipe submitted by Sylvia Duenow
Published by KCMR
Copyright: 1992
Recipe: Lentil Confetti Salad – p. 37

Oh, the pressure.

Memorial Day usually signals the start of the grilling season but for the past two years, our grill has been down and out.

Now, we had the replacement part all ready to go, having purchased it two years ago in, of all places, Pamida (a modern day five and dime store) in my hometown in Michigan. But did we get it installed? No, reader, we did not. Given that half the year is cold and wintery, where was the pressure?

But now it’s fixed and off my husband’s “honey do” list and we have achieved grill and so the only thing left to decide was what to make.

This wasn’t easy because I’ve already cooked from most of my grilling or barbecue cookbooks but then I spied my James Beard Cook it Outdoors cookbook and we were set.

Or were we? James Beard was more of a gourmet (or is it gourmand) than just a chef or a cook and so finding just a basic burger was a challenge. Lucky for us there was the pig burgers recipe (although seriously—can we talk about how unappetizing that name is?); easy to make and fun to eat!

All that was left was to find a salad recipe and for that, I turned to my stash of community cookbooks. Nobody knows how to put together a picnic salad recipe like a hometown cook.

Although the taste flavors of this salad – Italian – clashed a bit with the Asian-oriented pig burgers, I made it anyway as it seemed more heart healthy than some of the others and it took less time (can we talk about the inordinate number of recipes that required overnight chilling?). And on a sunny holiday weekend, I am all about time.

Hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend!

Pig Hamburgers – no quantity listed but it made about 12 burgers
3 pounds lean pork, ground
½ teaspoon sweet basil (Italian)
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon grated garlic
½ teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper

Mix the pork and the herbs and spices thoroughly, using gingers to blend it all. Shape into think cakes about three inches in diameter and grill over the coals. Serve with buns and barbecue sauce.

Lentil Confetti Salad – makes 5 small servings
½ cup Lentils (1/4 lb)
1 ½ cups water
1 cup cooked rice
½ cup Italian dressing (Can we talk about how many choices there are? Sheesh)
½ cup tomatoes, seeded and diced
¼ cup chopped green pepper
3 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons pimento
2 tablespoons stuffed green olives
2 tablespoons parsley (garnish)

Wash and drain lentils. (Lentils require no soaking). Place in heavy saucepan, add water and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 20 minutes. Do not overcook! Lentils should be tender with skin intact. Drain immediately. Combine with rice, pour dressing over mixture and refrigerate until cool. Add remaining ingredients, except parsley. Mix well. Garnish with parsley.

"The Complete Barbecue Cookbook" & "A Salute To American Cooking" - Burgers in Bacon Skirts and Sunset-Baked Beans

Date I made these recipes: May 25, 2009 (Memorial Day)

The Complete Barbecue Book by John and Marie Roberson (Authors of The Chafing Dish Cookbook!)
Published by: Prentice-Hall, Inc.
© 1951; third printing August 1965
Recipe: Hamburgers in Bacon Skirts – p. 175

A Salute to American Cooking by Stephen and Ethel Longstreet
Published by: Hawthorn Books, Inc.
© 1968
Recipe: Sunset-Baked Beans – p. 24

I tell you what the National Cattleman’s Beef Association owes me big time as we had beef, beef and more beef this past weekend. I’d say we are now “beefed out” and are starting to turn a romantic eye to vegetables…or chicken…or even fruit.

On Saturday night we went and got burgers from a new place (chain) in town, Smashburger. They was pretty good although rather messy but we’ll likely go back.

Then on Sunday night, I made the Tarragon-Flavored Beef recipe and we had ourselves another moo-cow experience.

I was all set to go another route on Monday when my husband said he wanted burgers for Memorial Day (and he didn’t mean Smashburger) and so I dutifully pulled out the BBQ books and away we went.

These burgers were good although due to gusting winds beyond our control, they were cooked on the broiler instead of over charcoal. Move over, Chicago-we’re working our way up to bragging rights about being the newest Windy City!

I would be remiss if I didn’t say a word about the name given to the burger recipe: Hamburgers in Bacon Skirts. Did anyone else besides me think of the children’s book Amelia Bedelia?

In this book, Amelia Bedelia is hired as a housekeeper for a wealthy couple but is rather clueless as to how things are done. When the instructions say “Dust the house,” she finds “madam’s” scented dusting powder and sprinkles it all over the furniture. When the instructions say “Draw the curtains when the sun comes in,” she takes out a drawing pad.

But the best instructions are for the food: “Trim the beef” and “Dress the chicken.” Sure enough, Amelia Bedelia gets out a sewing kit and trims the beef with some beautiful lace and makes a small suit for the entire chicken.

I absolutely adored this book as a kid and now have my original copy of it (all battered and worn) in my own home. So you can imagine what a hoot I had when I saw “Hamburgers in Bacon Skirts.” I’m thinking a nice floral printed fabric might be nice for summer….

The beans were quite tasty as well although I should have made half the recipe as we now have beans coming out of our...ears. When I asked my husband how he felt about baked beans and he said “What’s a burger without baked beans?” I should not have taken him at his words because it turns out that beans are okay with him but only in small quantities. Live and learn.

I hope you all had a great Memorial Day. Aside from the mighty wind gusts, we actually had sunshine…you know, that rare thing we here in the north see from time to time!

Hamburgers in Bacon Skirts – serves 6
2 pounds lean beef
¼ cup heavy cream or condensed milk
1 tablespoons grated onion
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 egg, beaten
½ teaspoon thyme
½ teaspoon marjoram
¼ teaspoon pepper
12 strips bacon
2 tablespoons soya sauce
6 hamburger buns

Form the meat, cream, onion, Worcestershire sauce, egg, pepper, and herbs into 5-inch patties. Bind them with bacon (2 strips each) and secure bacon with toothpicks. Sprinkle with soya sauce.

Place the hamburgers in a hand grill (or on a broiler pan). Sear the burgers on each side and cook, until done-about 5 to 7 minutes. Served on toasted buns with chili sauce.

Sunset Baked Beans – 4 (enormous) servings (Note: this recipe requires 3 hours of cooking time plus 2 hours of bean soaking)
3 cups navy beans
1 onion, sliced
4 ounces salt pork, diced
1-pound can tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon dry mustard
Dash of ginger
½ cup molasses
1/3 cup chili sauce

Place beans in saucepan, cover with water, bring to boil, boil 3 minutes. Cover. Remove from heat and let stand 2 hours. Drain liquid and reserve.

Put two cups of the bean liquid in a saucepan, add 2 cups water, onion, salt pork, tomatoes, salt, mustard, ginger and the beans. Stir. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer covered 1 hour. Turn mixture into baking dish. Combine molasses and chili sauce and pour over beans. Arrange salt pork over top. Cover and bake at 325 F for 1 hour. Remove cover. Bake 1 hour longer, or until beans are very tender (in my case, about 1.5 hours). If beans should become dry during baking, add more liquid. Remove pork before serving. (Why?! Wasn’t that the best part of a can of pork and beans growing up?)