"Roma- Authentic Recipes from In and Around the Eternal City" & "Eating Rome" - Lentil Soup with Sausage and Green Beans and Mortadella Salad - Commemorating the day Rome was named Italy's capital

Date I made these recipes:  March 27, 2017 – Rome declared Italy's capital on this day, 1861.

Roma – Authentic Recipes From In And Around The Eternal City by Julia Della Croce

Published by Chronicle

ISBN: 0-8118-2352-0; © 2004

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores, Richfield, MN

Recipe:  Lentil Soup with Sausage – p. 61

Eating Rome – Living The Good Life In The Eternal City by Elizabeth Minchilli

Published by St. Martin's Griffin

ISBN:  978-1-250-04768-7; © 2015

Recipe: Green Beans with Mortadella Salad – p. 105

Sometimes my ideas about what to cook come from the most interesting places, take for instance, Food Network Magazine(FNM).  Well, that's not exactly correct is it, because why wouldn't I get inspiration from a cooking magazine?

One of the features I like the most through from Food Network Magazine, is their monthly calendar of noteworthy food events and recipe suggestions that is often my inspiration for what I cook during that particular month.

On March's calendar, FNM suggested we have fish for Ash Wednesday (March 1^st), make a pie for Pi Day (3/14), celebrate St. Patrick's Day with a corned beef-and-cabbage pizza (Oh HELL no!), and then make a Roman dish (they suggested cacio e peper – pasta with cheese and pepper) on March 27^th to commemorate the same day back in 1861 that Rome was declared Italy's capital.  I decided on Roman food, final answer, and so set off to do some research so I have something to talk about here.

What I found was interesting to say the least:  some sources listed 1861 as the day that Rome was declared Italy's capital, while others said it was 1871.  Try as I might, I could not confirm (or deny) either year but do believe FNM got the actual date – March 27^th – right.  I hope.

Part of the problem, dear reader, is that Italy's history is complicated.  Once upon a time (and not that long ago), it was a kingdom, but a kingdom divided into separate principalities, then it was unified and also reunified such that I can't keep track.  Besides, my people are from Sicily whose history is a tad more straightforward with the exception, of course, of keeping track of various conquerors.

And then there's The Vatican to consider and we would consider it if we a) had the time and b) if this blog was a history lesson but we don't have time for all that, oh darn!  We can though, talk about Roman food.

Italy, like all other countries (including the U.S.), has regional food favorites but you may be surprised to learn that the focus of Roman cuisine is vegetables - artichokes (carciofi), fava beans, zucchini – you name it, you'll find it.  Meat is also very popular – steaks, pork, "bacon," (or products similar to bacon), as are pastas and pizzas tailored to the regional palate.

The cookbook Eating Rome, is intended to be more of a tour guide than a cookbook, containing a wide variety of "eating" suggestions such as how to eat pasta (don't cut it—this applies across Italy and Sicily), how to order coffee, and where to find some of Rome's culinary favorites.  Her Table of Contents includes also chapters such as "Please do not eat within ten feet of any monument," (love it!); "Mi piace la cicoria!" – the Roman passion for vegetables;" "How to eat pasta like a Roman," and "Learning to love Roman pastries."  I am keeping this book on hand should I ever get to Rome (I've been to Italy but not to Rome) as it is filled with good advice and great recipes.

Personally, I am glad to know I am not the only person of Italian (Sicilian) descent who does not make homemade pasta; Elizabeth (the author) doesn't, either.  She grew up in St. Louis in the 60's which makes her about the same age as me, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about how she enjoyed eating Spaghetti-O's growing up.  She also noted how one day, she'd be at home in the states eating that canned product, the next off to Rome eating the real deal. 

I have a similar story:  one summer when my grandmother was visiting from New Jersey, my brother and I enjoyed a lunch of Spaghetti-O's.  Spaghetti-O's were all the rage back then and since we were kids, we thought they were kind of fun to eat.  My grandmother who hailed straight from Sicily, was a good sport and so joined us in eating them.  When we finished, my mother asked her what she thought and grandma's response still makes me laugh:  "Not-a bad-a."  I have a feeling grandma was likely horrified but she would do anything to please her beloved grandchildren and that was that!

At any rate, stories like this are what made this cookbook enjoyable for me.  Well, stories and recipes!  Recipes like the one I made – Green Beans with Mortadella Salad which combined many ingredients I love:  green beans, oranges and lemons and mortadella also known as Italian bologna.

Small side story here about mortadella:  Yesterday, I was at an event that featured some locally-made foods including mortadella.  It was really good mortadella, and yet I kept looking at it wondering "what's different" about this?  I mentioned this to another event guest and we agreed:  Where are the pistachios?"   We surmised that since the mortadella was locally-made and since pistachios aren't local to this climate, they were left out; we concluded this was an acceptable option.  Anyway, more on the salad with mortadella to follow.

Other dishes from this book that had potential were "Cavatelli with Tuna and Lemon," "Cacio e Pepe" which is basically pasta, pecorino romano cheese, and pepper," and "Pasta Al Forno," a dish of eggplant, pasta, smoked scamorza cheese (you can probably substitute smoked mozzarella), basil and Parmesan.  Yum!  I decided on the salad though because I wanted something fresh and not too heavy and that dish did the trick.

And now, let's chat for a minute about the other cookbook – Roma - about Rome, or Roma, as the Italians pronounce it.  (Ann's Note:  in the Italian language, an "e" is often pronounced as an "a" – really, more of an "ah" -  and so while we pronounce "Rome" without it, Romans pronounce it "Rome-ah."  Also?  In Italy, my last name is pronounced the same way:  "Verm-ah."  This concludes our Italian pronunciation lesson.)

This cookbook is pretty much a straight-up cookbook which is to say it gives you recipes with a little dialog and some photos showing you what your food should look like. The Table of Contents is also pretty straightforward:  "Appetizers, Snacks, and Fried Specialties;" "First Courses of Soups, Pastas, Polenta, and Risotto;" "Second Courses of Meat and Poultry;" "Second Courses of Fish and Shellfish;" Side Dishes," and "Sweets."    There are a few pages in the back detailing "Eating and Sleeping Places," "Festivals," and "Cooking Schools and Wine Courses," but the information here isn't as extensive as the other book.

High up on my list of possible dishes to serve up was "Stewed Baby Back Ribs and Sausages with Polenta" but making it was just too involved and was also very meat-heavy, consisting of a lot of poundage of baby back ribs and sausages, all of which are slow cooked to make a ragu.  And then polenta is served on the side making it one, hearty dish.  I wasn't exactly in the mood for "hearty," plus, after my meatball experience from last week, I was not going to go willingly into the night to make something that would take hours of my life I would never get back.  Also out because I just made it, was a pork loin braised in milk.  "Beef Stew with Cloves" sounded really good but I finally passed on that and decided on the Lentil Soup with Sausage recipe.  I love Lentil Soup and have a really good recipe for one but I like experimenting with other recipes just to see what's out there.

Of course this blog would not be complete without suggestions from me about tweaks I'd make to the recipes but overall, these were winners.  In fact, Andy kept saying "This is really good soup" over and over again which tickled me pink.  And I loved the green bean salad although as you'll read, I have a few suggestions to improve it.

And so reader, we now bid "arrivederci" (goodbye) to Roma – for now.  I wish I could say instead "arrivederla" (see you soon) but I don't think we'll be going there any time soon, darn it!  No matter – we'll just console ourselves in the meantime with the food.

Lentil Soup with Sausage (Minestra di lenticchie con salsiccia) – for 6 people

1 ½ cups brown lentils

10 cups water

1 tablespoon sea salt, or to taste

One 8-inch sprig fresh sage, or 2 bay leaves

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

5 links sweet Italian sausage, removed from casings and crumbled

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 teaspoons fresh marjoram, or 1 teaspoon crumbed dried marjoram

1 cup tomato puree or tomato sauce

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Pick over and rinse the lentils.  Transfer them to a large pot and add the water, 1 tablespoon salt, and sage.  Bring to a boil.  Immediately reduce the heat and cook gently for 15 minutes.  (Ann's Notes:  the lentils needed more time and so I kept them cooking for another 10 minutes or so. Also, I used bay leaves instead of sage.)

In the meantime, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat.  Add the sausage and sauté until it is browned on the outside and still pink inside, about 8 minutes.  Reduce the heat to low and stir in the garlic, onion, parsley, and marjoram.  Sauté until the onion is translucent, about 4 minutes.  Stir in the tomato puree. Add the sausage mixture to the lentils and mix well.  Simmer for an additional 5 minutes to marry the flavors.  Remove the sage (or bay leaves), taste for salt, and season with pepper.  Serve hot.

Ann's Notes:

1. I was out of marjoram so I substituted oregano.
2. If I were you, once you've cooked the sausage for 8 minutes (or so), remove the sausage from the pan, then cook the onions, etc. and then add it back to the pan.  I followed the directions and the sausage was fine but I felt it was almost a tad overcooked.
3. I've made variations of this dish before and felt that the dish could have used some carrots for color and flavor.  Without it, this dish is very brown.  Very tasty, but very brown.
4. My favorite lentil soup recipe calls for orzo pasta to be added at the very end. You could probably get away with that in this recipe.
5. I like a little Parmesan or Pecorino cheese on top of my lentil soup.

Green Beans with Mortadella Salad – Serves 4-5

1 pound green beans, cleaned (Ann's Note:  I hope by "cleaned" she meant "trimmed" because that's what I did to the beans!)

1 slice mortadella (about ½ cup chopped in small pieces) (Ann's Note:  Pre-packaged mortadella is often sliced thin which is fine but probably not what the author intended.  If you can, ask for a deli for one slice of mortadella, about ¼-inch thick.)

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

Zest of 1 lemon, peeled with a potato peeler and finely chopped*

Zest of 1 small orange, peeled with a potato peeler and finely chopped*

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup chopped, roasted onions (for garnish)

*Ann's Notes:  Next time around, I'm not going to peel then finely chop the lemon and orange peel as the pieces were too big and they also tended to overpower the dish.  You might try grating it instead and also grating a little at a time until you are satisfied with the taste.

Steam the green beans until tender.

Meanwhile place the mortadella shallot, garlic, olive oil, tarragon, chopped citrus zests, and citrus juices in a large bowl and stir to mix well.

When the beans are tender, drain them and then add them, still steaming hot, to the mixture in the bowl.  Toss well and season with salt and pepper to taste. (Ann's Note: The author suggests you "add the beans to the dressing while they are piping hot, so that they sort of cook the shallots and garlic, and coax the fat nodules out of the mortadella.")

Let cool, toss again, and top with the almonds.  Serve at room temperature.

"Delia Smith''s Summer Collection" - Roasted Vegetable Cous-Cous Salad with Harissa-style Dressing - Farewell, Summer!

Date I made this recipe:  September 25, 2016 – in honor of the passing of summer and the start of fall (Thursday, September 22, 2016)

Delia Smith's Summer Collection – 140 recipes for summer by Delia Smith

Published by BBC Books

ISBN: 0-563-36476-9; © 1993

Purchased at Barnes and Noble (Used Books), Roseville, MN

Recipe:  Roasted Vegetable Cous-cous Salad with Harissa-style Dressing – p. 108

Well this is hilarious:  I've cooked from two of Delia Smith's Books – Winter Collection and now Summer Collection as a nod toward seasonal beginnings and endings.

I used Delia Smith's Winter Collection cookbook in 2015 to celebrate the beginning of spring, a season I am not especially fond of but it's better than fall or winter.  Since winter officially ended on March 20^th that year, I thought I'd sneak in one more winter recipe before calling it a day.  I am humored by the fact that it snowed in Minneapolis on March 22^nd that year showing us once again that Mother Nature has her own timetable.  (PS—I made a "Black Bean Chili with Avocado Salsa" from that cookbook and wrote the blog on March 24, 2016.  Hopefully, I posted it shortly thereafter as I sometimes fall behind:  www.collecdtiblecooking.blogpsot.com – Label:  Delia Smith)

Apparently, I was thinking on the same lines this year as I made a dish from Delia Smith's Summer Collection a few days after summer officially ended (September 22, 2016) and autumn began.

I do not like autumn, or "fall," or whatever you want to call it.  I do not like it at all.  And I am already sick and tired of pumpkin "everything."  And when the leaves start to turn, so does my mood as I experience – annually – what I call my Fall Funk.

But summer, dear, sweet, warm summer, is my favorite season and if I could bottle up all the hot summer days for use later, I would.  I would also be very rich. 

This summer was not especially hot or humid, nor was it a miserable summer – in fact, it was okay.  Actually, let's call it "satisfactory," shall we?  It was generally sunny so that was good, with temperatures that pleased most of the residents of this state but not necessarily me as the warmer, the better.  If I had a dime for every person who said "Oh, I love this weather.  It's 75 degrees, not too hot, and there's a breeze," I'd be as rich as if I bottled up sunshine.

Look, summer in Minnesota is short. Sure, it runs you classic three months, but those three  months go by in a flash and then the minute Labor Day is upon us, we head into what I consider "chilly" temperatures – 60's and 70's.  I'm greedy.  I want "plenty of  sunshine coming my way, Zip-ah-de-doo-dah, zip-a-de-ay." (From the song, Zip-ah-de-doo-dah, featured in the 1964 Disney movie, Song of the South.)  But plenty of sunshine has been replaced by plenty of rain as we are now being treated to rain deluges on almost a daily basis.  I am tired of being under a raincloud all day long.

And so I am pretending that summer has not ended and so decided to make a summer dish from Delia's cookbook.  But hilariously – or maybe cosmically – today's recipe includes roasted vegetables, something I associate with fall.  I guess I'm straddling both worlds with this one.

Many of Delia's recipes though, contain roasted "something" and I came very close to making her "Roasted Mediterranean Vegetable Lasagna" (she spells it "lasagne"—what is with the Brits and their pronunciation and spelling?) but came screeching to a halt when I realized the sauce was a white sauce instead of tomato sauce. 

As a general rule my people (my Sicilian family) do not "do" white sauce. Do not.  And so I didn't.

Other recipes that got bounced were a "Strawberry Granita" that is best reserved for hot summer days when a cooling refreshment is needed, nor did I make any of the ice cream recipes even though they sounded delicious.

I might have made one of her main dishes had they not included curry paste and chilies, (Yes, I am a wuss when it comes to heat) or fish which I generally do not like but I know others who do, so please feel free to roam about the cabin of this cookbook.  And if you want to stay loyal and true to the book's titled "Summer Collection" and want to wait until next summer to do so, who am I to tell you no?

But if you are like me and are hanging on to summer with all fingernails, then give this book and this recipe a whirl.  It sounds more complicated than it is and you will need to roast the vegetables, the recipe for which is included on page 110 of the book with the lasagna recipe, but which I will break down for you.  After the vegetables are done, the next steps are really easy.

A word though, about the salad dressing:  if you don't tone it down like I did, it will be super hot.  Scorching, in fact.  This dressing is used in North African cooking and is made with chili peppers, paprika and olive oil.  This recipe uses a few other ingredients but then I tweaked them some more.  One can never be too careful.

I also decided to add some protein and poach a chicken breast and it was a delicious addition although you don't have to follow suit if you don't want to. 

So that's it for summer and I am counting the days already until we meet again.  Although summer does not start until June, I'm hoping we see signs of spring/summer (our spring here is incredibly brief) around May 1^st.  And so with high hopes, I have marked off my calendar and will have you know that as of today, September 26, we have 217 days to go until May 1.  Works for me.

Roasted Vegetable Cous-Cous Salad with Harissa-style Dressing  - serves 4 as a main course or 8 as a starter

For the roasted vegetables (full recipe)

1 lb cherry tomatoes, skinned (Ann's Note:  I peeled one tomato before calling it a day.  Too much work, folks, too much work!)

1 small aubergine (eggplant) (Ann's Note:  I substituted a very small Japanese eggplant for this recipe and it worked great.)

2 medium courgettes (zucchini) (Ann's Note:  the author is British thus the "aubergine" and "courgettes.")

1 small red pepper, de-seeded and cut into 1-inch squares

1 small bulb fennel, cut into 1-inch squares

1 large onion, sliced and cut into 1-inch squares

2 fat cloves garlic, crushed

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

For the Cous-cous

10 oz medium cous-cous (Ann's Note:  I used "regular" cous-cous.  I hope that was okay.)

18 fl oz vegetable stock (Ann's Note:  I don't keep vegetable stock on hand but did have chicken broth so I used that instead.)

4 oz firm goat's cheese

Salt and freshly milled black pepper

For the salad

1 large bag of mixed salad leaves.  Ann's Note:  the author suggests a salad mix of lettuce, coriander leaves, flat-leaf parsley and rocket.  I used mix greens that had none of the above—and lived to tell about it!)

For the Dressing 

4 fl oz extra virgin olive oil

1 rounded teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons ground cumin

2 heaped tablespoons tomato puree (Ann's Note:  I put a few of the roasted tomatoes in a Cuisinart – ta da!)

1 tablespoon lime juice (approximately 2 limes)

To garnish

1 tablespoon black onion seeds

Ann's Note:  I made half of the salad dressing recipe but even then, ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper was too much.  To offset the heat, I added some brown sugar.  I also cut down on the cumin and then added lemon juice which I had on hand, rather than the lime juice which I did not.

Okay, so to pull this thing together, first roast your vegetables.  The author set her oven to 425, I made mine 400.  The only difference was that I had to cook them a little longer at the slightly lower temperature.  I also kept an eye on things as the last thing I wanted was for my half-batch of vegetables to become charcoal briquettes!  My total cooking time was about 60 minutes.  Let the vegetables cool a bit before making the salad.

To make your cous-cous, boil the stock (microwaves are great for this) and pour over the cous-cous.  Add some salt and pepper, stir with a fork, and then let it sit for about 5 minutes or so until all the stock is absorbed and the cous-cous softened.

Next, cut your firm coat cheese into sugar-cube-sized pieces and then make the dressing by whisking all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Ann's Note:  the author's method of assembling is as follows:  cous-cous, followed by cheese and roasted vegetables, salad leaves on top, then drizzle the dressing and then sprinkle some onion seeds on top.  My method was to place the salad leaves at the bottom, then cous-cous, then vegetables and cheese cubes and then dressing.  Go with whatever makes you happy!

Olympic Food Part 1 - "The Kraft Official U.S. Training Table Cookbook (1992)" & "The Best Traditional Recipes of Greek Cooking" - summer salads

Date I made these recipes:  August 14, 2016

Kraft Official U.S. Olympic Training Table Cookbook (1992 Olympics) by Kraft Creative Kitchens

Published by Kraft General Foods

© 1992

Purchased at BCPA (Bloomington [MN] Crime Prevention Association) annual sale

Recipe:  Decathlon Macaroni Salad – p. 35

The Best Traditional Recipes of Greek Cooking  (New Edition) by Dimitri Haitalis

Publisher unknown (self-published?)

© 2000

Purchased at an estate sale

Recipe:  Country Greek Salad (Salta Horiatiki) – p. 48

"When my baby.  When my baby smiles at me I go to Rio.  De Janeiro.  My oh me oh..."

(from the song, I Go To Rio)

Folks, here are two words that always warm my heart: "Summer" and "Olympics. "   Even though our summer is running short on time, I do love warm weather and love sports so this is the best of both worlds.

Except that technically, it's winter in Brazil, this year's host country.  I think we need to redefine "winter" though because apparently, those poor souls are freezing to death down there right now in 86 degree temperatures.  Life is so cruel. 

And so with the onset of the Olympics, my mind turns once again to what food(s) to make to celebrate these "thrill of victory, the agony of defeat" moments (apologies to ABC's Wide World of Sports for stealing their line.)

But first, of course, let's talk about the sporting events.  I'll start!

Gymnastics:  In many ways, watching gymnastics is a little like watching a horror movie i.e. "I. can't. watch."  These men and women are just flying through the air ("with the greatest of ease...") and I fear for them every time they land back on planet earth. 

And the balance beam?  Well that's just insane.  In junior high, our PE teacher brought out a balance beam that was all of two inches (maybe) off the floor for us to try out and right then and there, I knew gymnastics was not for me as moving on that thing is harder then it looks.  That mini beam (the gymnastic equivalent of a Shetland pony) was as close as we all got to experiencing gymnastics and that is just fine by me.  No need for the parents to stock up on leotards or shore up my life insurance/disability policies.

But speaking of gymnastics, I'll have you know I did a mean dismount from my couch to the living room floor several times during our Olympic viewing.  Per my husband:  "Nailed it!"

Track and Field:  in 6^th grade, my school participated in track and field exercises and there went another event to scratch off my "To Do" list.

Look, I can run (barely) but I cannot run a decent Olympic time, nor a world record time, nor any time really.  And when you look at the times posted by the men and women in the track portion of our program, it's best that I stick to my regularly-scheduled laziness and leave it up to the Olympic professionals.  That said, I do excel in walking.

As to other Olympic track and events, oh please:  I would likely stab myself with my own javelin, break the pole in the pole vault, and cause serious injury to myself and others in the shot put.  I tried hurdles a couple of times and ended up wearing a hurdle like I would wear a cowl neck so that was the end of that.

Equestrian:  Although I've ridden smaller ponies and quarter horses in my day, I have never been on a full-size horse nor do I intend to (they scare me).  And so being on a horse and jumping over things like water hazards and poles and cement mixers (wait—I was mixing that up with monster truck rallies) and whatnot (it's like being on a golf course, only not), is out.  But my gosh, the sight of those beautiful horses clearing the hazards in the jumping event is outstanding. 

 I watched a lot of volleyball and basketball during the Olympics but again, these are not the sports for me.  I would no doubt sustain a permanent crick in my neck from volleyball and as to basketball, let's say  that while in gym class, I "traveled" more miles on the court than I probably did on any of my family road trips.  And I am really, really bad at shooting hoops.  Really.  And so, we must scratch those.

Which brings us to the one sport I do well and that has the smallest probability for injury: swimming. 

I may have mentioned before that I was on my high school swim team for the two short years it was in existence, but it's worth another looksee, is it not?  Besides, I'll only be talking about it every four years or so.

So.  After Title IX was enacted, my school formed a bunch of women's sports teams of which swimming was one.  By the way, the purpose of Title IX was to guarantee an equal opportunity to participate in college sports.  But many schools, high school and college, decided to go whole hog and set up women's sports teams.  Not that they funded them, mind you, they just created them.  Like a lot of teams, we got next to zero money, zero uniforms and with my tennis team, carpooled to meets.  We've come a long way, baby, yet not far enough.

 Anyway, since our school was old, our pool was also old and non-regulation which made for interesting swim practices as we had to swim at least twice the laps to ensure we could swim the regulation length of other school's pools.  And since our pool had a shallow end, we could not practice flip turns and so got permission to do a modified turn during meets.  I actually learned how to do a flip turn in, of all places, a pool at a motel (not hotel) in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where my family and I stayed if we went down for the weekend.

For two years during my sophomore and junior years, we managed to cobble together a group of swimmers and somehow managed to do respectfully well against bigger schools (Class A or B to our "barely" C) and against bigger athletes.  But then the school decided to close the pool and so we became "the swim team that wasn't" and that ended that.  (Happily, women's sports is now thriving at my old alma mater.)

Since everybody and their mother on a swim team normally prefers the freestyle events, our coach had to divvy us up between the other swim strokes and so I was assigned the backstroke.  I didn't mind it and was actually not half bad at it, but I was always happy to be a part of the 4 x 100 freestyle relay, swum toward the end of our swim meets. 

And so fast forward to this Olympics when I found myself at the edge of my seat instead of the edge of the pool, cheering on American swimmers to the finish line.  Their winning times put mine to shame as they normally did in two or more laps what I did in one but let me remind you that was eons ago and "times" have actually changed!

Also, and this is not necessarily a bragging point, swimming in a green pool or a green dive tank may have been new to most Rio Olympians but not new to me.  Our pool was so old it often had filter problems causing (green) algae blooms, and no amount of complaining to our PE teachers got us out of the swimming portion of our PE class.  Ew.  Double ew.  But hey, I am still standing today, no worse for the wear (I think???)

And so to the recipes!  Since the weather has been on the warmish side, I decided to make up a few salads, one from the Kraft Official U.S. Olympic Training Table Cookbook, and the other, a Greek salad, from a Greek cookbook as a nod to the country that held the very first Olympics – Opa!

The Kraft cookbook (really, more of a booklet) is interesting because it was printed in 1992 when the summer and the winter Olympics were held in the same year and so it featured athletes and recipes from both winter and summer sports.  In 1994 though, the winter Olympics were held separately, starting the trend we now see of summer and winter games alternating every two years.  The last winter Olympics were held in 2014 and in 2018 will be held in Korea and then in China in 2022. (Wow—that number gave me pause!)  The next summer Olympics then, will be in 2020 in Tokyo.  So there you have it, and please mark your calendars accordingly.

Although the Kraft Olympic cookbook features summer and winter sports, it seems slightly skewed to summer sports (again—who doesn't love summer?).  Marathon runner, Joan Benoit, is featured on the cover, and track and field star, Valerie Brisco (now Valerie Brisco-Hooks) (200 and 400-meter run), is pictured inside as is U.S. diver, Ellen McGrath Owen. Featured winter sports athletes were  ice skating star, Kristi Yamaguchi, skier Bill Hudson, and speed skater, Bonnie Blair.  And recipes in this book were often given the name of one of the Olympic events, such as "Pole Vault Pepper Steak" or my featured recipe, "Decathlon Macaroni Salad."

This cookbook was fun.  A little outdated, of course, but fun.   And of course, all recipes are heavy on Kraft products usage:  Velveeta lives on! And they are also on the healthy side (Velveeta excepted) as you would expect but that's okay.  My sport – couch-sitting -  (the least-talked about Olympic sport ever) still requires me to keep an eye toward healthy meals as I get in shape for my every-four-years (two with the winter rotation) Olympic trials.  I do so hope I make the team next time – finger's crossed!

The recipes in the Greek cookbook were also medal-worthy even though I only selected one.  In hot contention for a while was "Macaroni with Leeks in the Oven" (p. 99) but that "in the oven" part disqualified it.  Just before I made these recipes, I returned from a very fun but very hot and humid family wedding in Galveston, Texas and I was in no mood to bake anything.  This, of course, left out a lot more recipes in this book but this Greek Salad was refreshing as all get out and paired well with the Decathlon Macaroni Salad.

So here you go, part 1 of 3 of my celebration of the Rio Olympics.

Decathlon Macaroni Salad – makes 8 servings

1 package (14 ounces) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

½ cup finely chopped celery

½ cup chopped green bell pepper

1/3 cup KRAFT Real Mayonnaise

¼ cup sliced green onions

2 tablespoons CLAUSSEN Fresh Pickle Relish, drained (Ann's Note:  the recipe doesn't say whether to use dill pickle relish or sweet pickle relish.  I used dill this time around.)

2 tablespoons chopped red bell pepper

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Dash salt

Prepare Dinner as directed on package.  Add remaining ingredients; mix lightly.  Refrigerate.

Ann's Note:  This dish was almost too crunchy for me!  I liked all the chopped ingredients but it was hard to pick up the other flavors like the mac and cheese.

Country Greek Salad – 5 to 6 servings

3-4 tomatoes

2 medium-sized cucumbers

1 onion, sliced (Ann's Note:  I used white onion that I had on hand)

150 grams (5 oz) black olives

2 medium-sized green peppers, finely chopped

2-3 tablespoons vinegar

3-4 tablespoons olive oil

200 grams (7 oz) Feta cheese

Salt

Oregano

Wash and slice the tomatoes in quarters and place them in a bowl.  Add the cucumber, sliced, the peppers and the black olives.  Dress the salad with the vinegar, the olive oil, salt and oregano.  Add the Feta cheese, cut into chunks and serve.

"A Taste of Australian Food and Wine" and "A Taste of the Past - Early Australian Cooking" - a soup and salad dinner for a late friend's birthday observation

Date I made these recipes:  April 24, 2016 for my late friend, Carol

A Taste of Australian Food and Wine by Sally Marden. Photos by Ian Baker

Published by:  Chanel Publishers LTD  Chanel Publishers LTD

ISBN: 0-958208-44-1; © 2001

Purchased at Arc's Value Village, Richfield, MN

Recipe:  Warm King Prawn, Baby Beetroot, Roast Carrot and Rocket Salad (with Cardamom and Orange Dressing) – p. 134

A Taste of the Past – Early Australian Cooking by Joyce Allen & Valerie McKenzie

Published by: Reed

© 1977

Purchased at Arc's Value Village, Richfield, MN

Recipe:  Meat Ball Soup – p. 80

Well, today, April 24, would have been my late friend, Carol's, 58^th birthday and it's always a sad day for me as it's hard to believe she's gone.

And so every year, I try to make something to pay tribute to my fine friend, normally one the day she died – St. Patrick's Day – but this year came and went and so I was on the search for birthday food and/or a birthday dinner theme.

Then quite by happenstance, I was inspired by a trip that a mutual friend, Bonnie, took to Australia.

Carol was always a world traveler and often hit the trail with family and friends on a "course for adventure...(your mind for a new romance."  Theme from The Love Boat.)  She visited Russia twice, Hong Kong once, much of Europe including a trip to Scandinavia, and good chunks of the U.S.  She was inspired, in part, by the need to get out and explore, especially since her family trips growing up were only to Florida and back from her home state of Michigan. 

Toward the end of her life, she and another friend took a trip to Alaska (after cancelling once when she wasn't feeling well—she had cancer) and even after that successful trip, was practically planning her next one to Australia.  Alas, she never made it there but another mutual friend, Bonnie, did and no doubt thought about our friend while visiting Australian woolen mills; Carol and Bonnie shared a love of knitting.  I did not!

So Australia never happened but then lo and behold, all of a sudden Bonnie started posting marvelous photos from Australia on her Facebook page.  I missed the details of the how and the why she went except it looked like she was travelling with friends and enjoying every minute of it.  And I'm so glad she went even though she did so without our friend.

And so that is how I came to decide to make something from a couple of Australian cookbooks I had laying around.  Let's discuss!

Book number one, A Taste of  Australian Food and Wine is a beautiful book with lots of photos by Ian Barker.  This book provides a broad-brush view of Australian food that encompasses a lot more ethnic groups than just the Brits who founded the place (as a penal colony) and thank the lord for that!  As I wrote in my last blog for the Queen's birthday, British food is somewhat suspect to me and the rest of the non-British world.

But these recipes folks – these – are pretty awesome, making great use of all the lovely seafood that's available to all the coastal areas as well as fresh vegetables and of course, Australian wines.  Recipes are divided by region and so you will be treated to dishes from:  Tasmania; Victoria; New South Wales; Queensland; South Australia; Northern Territory and Western Australia.  The map in the front of the book shows the whole of Australia and it is one large continent such that when my parents visited it years ago, they decided to take a tour so as to experience as much of the terraine as possible.  My parents are not tour people but they loved their visit.

It is also important to note that there was a decided absence of "rude food," stuff that I wouldn't eat for any reason, even fear of impending loss of life!  I think you'll be quite pleased with this cookbook for the variety and modernity of the recipes.

And then there's book number two – A Taste of the Past – Early Australian Cooking – written in 1977 and let me just say that yes, this was a "taste" of the past and this past reflects more of Australia's British heritage than the newer A Taste of Australian Food and Wine which is to say we sort of revert back to rude food:  "Kangaroo Jugged."  I almost couldn't finish typing this as it just sounds so very, very, very awful.  Very.

Happily (?) the above recipe (I cannot type it again.  I cannot) appears to be the one and only awful-sounding thing before we revert back to British staples:  "Bubble and Squeak" (p. 90-91); "Scottish Oat Cakes" (p. 58) and "Welsh Rabbit" (p. 32) to name a few.

This is likely the only time I will ever be relieved to see British food in a cookbook (with apologies to the Queen.)

Since Carol loved salads and grew a small garden every year, I made Baby Beetroot, Roast Carrot and Rocket Salad (with Cardamom and Orange Dressing) to go with the Meat Ball Soup (courtesy of the  Australian Meat Board).  Both recipes were easy to make although I much preferred the salad over the meat ball soup; the salad had great flavor but the soup was somewhat bland and could have used more spices to offset the sherry (which I loved but was almost overpowering). 

The Meat Ball Soup recipe is accompanied by a little story as are all the recipes in the book.  If I had more time, I'd love to read through it as I'm sure I would learn a lot more about Australia the "right" way.  Right now,  my limited knowledge has been gained from watching cooking shows featuring Australian, Curtis Stone and House Hunters International!  Okay, slight exaggeration:  I actually know more about Australia than just the information provided by TV shows. That said, one of my favorite Australian movies is A Town Like Alice that takes place in Australia during WWII.  Fabulous movie, that, and I need to go on a hunt for the DVD to replace my VHS.  You can also read the book by Nevil Shute if you fancy a reading rather than viewing.  And if you want to read a humorous read about Australia (A Town Like Alice is decidedly not humorous), check out Bill Bryson's In a Sunburned Country where he points out that practically everything in that country is venomous and therefore deadly.  That said, he survived his trip and lived to write a book about it and for this we thank him.

At any rate, turning our attention to the recipes and these cookbooks, you'll need to carve out a bit of time to roast the veggies, but otherwise these dishes are quick to make and in the case of the salad, healthy to eat.  Carol would have liked that.

Warm King Prawn (shrimp), Baby Beetroot, Roast Carrot and Rocket Salad With Cardamom and Orange Dressing – serves 4 – from A Taste of Australian Food and Wine

Vegetables

20 baby beetroot

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 carrots

1 tablespoon brown sugar

½ tablespoon balsamic vinegar

100g (1/2 pound) rocket [lettuce] Ann's Note:  you can substitute arugula for rocket but I don't recommend it as it is tough to chew and too peppery.  Just use mixed greens and you'll be fine.

12 cherry tomatoes

Dressing

3 oranges

6 cardamom pods, lightly crushed

1 tablespoon caster sugar (a/k/a "Baker's sugar;" "Superfine sugar" or Quick-Dissolve/Fast-melting" sugar)

1 tablespoon white vinegar

300ml 10 ounces) olive oil

Salt and pepper

Prawns/Shrimp

20 green prawns (shrimp), peeled and de-veined

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon each ground cumin and paprika

1 ¼ teaspoons ground black pepper

1 tablespoon flour

2 tablespoons vegetable oil for cooking

Ann's Note:  This seasoning was great and I think you could use it on all kinds of fish and seafood (like scallops).

For the vegetables:  Roast baby beetroot in their skins with the olive oil until tender.  Peel the carrots and cut into four.  Dust carrots with brown sugar and roast at 400F until just tender. (Ann's Note:  about 20-30 minutes) Deglaze the pan with balsamic vinegar.

To make the dressing:  Combine zest of 1 orange and the juice of 3 oranges with cardamom, sugar and vinegar.  Bring to the boil then simmer until the liquid is reduced by half.  Strain and while warm whisk in the oil and season.

To make the prawns/shrimp:  Mix dry ingredients and lightly dust over prawns.  In a heavy-based pan, heat vegetable oil until nearly smoking.  Add prawns and cook until just firm.  Remove from the pan.

To assemble:  lightly dress the rocket and arrange on plates with beetroot, cherry tomatoes and carrots on top.  Then add prawns and drizzle the dressing around the outside of the stack.

Ann's Note:  my attempt at stacking the salad ingredients was abysmal and not at all like the photo – wonder why?!

Meat Ball Soup – serves 4 to 6 – from A Taste of the Past – Early Australian Cooking

Soup Stock

3 T butter or margarine

1 medium onion chopped fine

1 C chopped carrots

3 T flour

5 C water

3 beef stock cubes

Pinch cayenne pepper

Salt to taste

1 C cooked peas

2 T dry sherry (Ann's Note:  I would call this an optional ingredient)

Meat Balls

500 g finely minced beef (Ann's Note:  I used a pound of ground beef)

3 T finely chopped parsley

2 tsp seasoned salt

Large pinch pepper

¼ C dried breadcrumbs

1 egg beaten

1 T sherry

Melt 2 tablespoons (out of 3) butter or margarine in a saucepan.  Sauté onion and carrot until golden.  Cook 1 minute.  Add beef stock, stirring constantly until thick.  (Ann's Note:  it does not say anywhere to add the beef stock cubes to the water but that is what you apparently must do to achieve beef stock! You've been warned.)  Add salt and cayenne and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. 

Mix meatball ingredients.  Shape in walnut size balls.  In pan, fry meat balls in the remaining 1 T butter until brown, adding more oil if necessary.  Drain and add meat balls to soup with peas and sherry.  (Ann's Note:  I decided to poach the meatballs in the simmering broth, just like I do for the meatballs for my Italian wedding soup.) 

Simmer the mixture for 10 minutes.  Garnish with chopped parsley.

Ann's Note:  I think you can play with the spice profile in these meatballs as the "seasoned salt" just didn't do much for me and my palate.  And know too, that seasoned salt + beef bouillon and salt to taste = a lot of salt so for those of you who have to watch the salt intake, try to use reduced salt broth and skip the seasoned salt in favor of something else.  

"Mama D's Italian Cookbook" & "Mama D's Old-Fashioned Italian Cooking" - Paesano Pie (meat pie with pasta filling) and Salada Mixte

Date I made these recipes:  October 18, 2015

Mama D's Old-Fashioned Italian Cooking by Giovanna D'Agostino

Published by:  Prentice Hall Press

ISBN:  0-13-548132-5

Purchased at Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores

Recipe:  Paesano Pie – p. 46-47; Tomato Sauce recipe – p. 79

Mama D's Italian Cookbook by Giovanna D'Agostino

Published by:  Ideals Publishing Corp.

ISBN:  0-89542-623-4; ©1980

Recipe:  Salada Miste – p. 9

It doesn't take much for me to get in the mood for Italian food but given the number of Italian cookbooks I have, it can be a challenge for me to select one(s) from which to cook.  And for whatever reason, I decided to make a couple of dishes by a local legend – Mama D.

Mama D – Giovanna D'Agostino – died in 2009 at age 94 and the Twin Cities' mourned the loss of this local personality as well as her down-to-earth Italian food. The obituary in the Pioneer Press (St. Paul newspaper) summed it up thusly:  "Giovanna D'Agostino – better known as Mama D – fed a generation of University of Minnesota students, Tony Bennett's band and the poor and homeless." 

For years, Mama D ran a sandwich shop near the University of Minnesota's campus  in the Dinkytown neighborhood called Sammy D's, in honor of one of her sons who died.  She later renamed the restaurant Mama D's and continued to feed college students for many, many years, adding more Italian food to her repertoire. 

In a "it's a small world moment," Mama D's son, John, opened Caffe Biaggio in St. Paul, not far from my house, where he continues to serve Mama's favorites.  I need to get back there for their ravioli one of these days, not to mention the "shrine" to Mama D i.e. all the photos and paintings that adorn the walls.

In addition to all her cooking, Mama found time to write two cookbooks – the two I used here – plus a memoir titled – hilariously I'm Mama D – Shut Up and Listen...I Want to Tell You Something.  Sounds just like my grandma!

As to her food, these recipes were hearty but delicious.  Some recipes are repeated between the two cookbooks but you should not having any trouble finding something among the following:  Appetizers and Soups; Salads; Vegetables; Main Dishes; Eggs and Rice; Pasta; Sauces and Fillings; Bread and Pizza and Desserts.

For our own Sunday night repast, I decided on "Paesano Pie" ("Paesano" means countryman—at least that's how we used it in my family), which is really a big meatball made in a pie plate, topped with a pasta mixture.  It was fabulous!  And then I was in a salad mood so I made her "Salada Miste" (mixed salad) with green beans, cubed mozzarella cheese and Genoa salami (substituted for pepperoni) tossed in a vinaigrette which was also fantastic.  That Mama – she knows how to cook!

So just a couple of things:  Mama said to make the "Paesano Pie" in a 10" pie plate and so okay, I put the meat mixture down in the pie plate as directed and that left almost no room for the filling.  And the filling recipe made quite a lot and so what to do?  I didn't want the pie filling to overflow so I decided to put the meat mixture in a 3-quart glass casserole bowl and then put the filling on top leaving plenty of room.  I hate when things spill over in my oven as cleaning that out falls under "least favorite things to do."  I am happy to report that everything cooked perfectly.

Also, Mama loves oregano as it's in the pie, the pie filling and the salad and I must say that my kitchen still smells like an Italian pizzeria!  I suppose you could mix it up and use just basil or even an Italian spice mix if you wanted.

In addition to oregano, the salad recipe called for thinly sliced pepperoni but neither Andy or I are big fans so we opted to use diced Genoa Salami instead.  I asked the deli counter person to cut me just one big, thick slice that I then cubed to match the mozzarella.  And by the way, I normally love cooking with fresh mozzarella but this time around, got a ball that was a little more firm as it tastes better and is less messy in salads.

Finally, I debated about whether to spend the time to make Mama D's sauce or to use jarred (or to make my own family's recipe) as time was running short, but in the end, I decided to stay true to the whole recipe and made Mama's.  And as my grandma would have said, it was "Not-a bad-a!"  She uses basil in hers (as do I) but then also thyme which I quite liked.  The sauce takes about 1 ½ -2 hours to make so plan on leaving time for that.

And that concludes my Italian meal made for no reason at all except I had a hankering for it.  Thanks, "Mama!"

Paesano Pie – serves 4 to 6

For the Tomato Sauce (used in the pie filling)

½ cup oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes

1 6-ounce can tomato paste

6 ounces water (using the tomato paste can as a measure)

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

For the Paesano Pie (base)

½ cup Tomato Sauce (see above)

1 pound ground beef

2 eggs ½ cup bread crumbs

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 small green pepper, seeded and finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon dried oregano

½ cup freshly shredded mozzarella cheese (for topping)

For the Paesano Filling

½ pound orzo or other small pasta, cooked, rinsed and drained

2 cups Tomato Sauce

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon minced garlic

½ cup freshly grated Romano cheese

Since you will need the sauce for the pie and the pie filling, start with that first and allow 1.5 to 2 hours for it to simmer.

First, heat the oil in a heavy 10- to 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic; sauté until the onion is transparent.  Add the tomatoes, crushing them in your hand as you add them, and the liquid from the can.  Add the remaining ingredients and stir to mix.  Raise the heat and bring the sauce to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 ½ to 2 hours.  Stir occasionally to avoid burning.

Ann's Note:  The recipe says "makes about 4 cups" but I had just enough – 2.5 cups – to complete this recipe.

Next, make the filling.  Start by boiling the pasta as directed on the box.  Combine the pasta with 2 cups of the sauce, then the rest of the ingredients:  salt, pepper, oregano, garlic and Romano cheese.  Stir well and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients for the pie base except for the cheese (used as a topping) and the pie filling:  ½ cup sauce, the ground beef (raw), eggs, bread crumbs, onion, green pepper, garlic, and spices.

Pat the mixture into a greased 10-inch pie plate, covering the bottom and sides evenly.  (Ann's Note:  I feared the filling would not fit as the base took up the entire pie plate so I switched it up and used a glass round casserole instead.)

Place the filling on top of the meat mixture.  Sprinkle with the mozzarella and cover the pie tightly with aluminum foil.  Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue baking for 15 minutes more.  Serve hot.

Salada Miste – serves 4

2 cups cooked string beans

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 cup cubed mozzarella cheese

½ cup thinly sliced pepperoni (Ann's Note:  we substituted Genoa Salami)

2 clves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

¼ teaspoon oregano

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 ½ tablespoons wine vinegar

¼ cup grated Romano cheese (for topping)

Place first five ingredients in a salad bowl.  Season with salt, pepper and oregano.  Toss lightly.  Combine oil and vinegar.  Pour over all ingredients.  Sprinkle Romano cheese on top.