Strawberry Hair Bow

April 21, 2015April 25, 2015

Little girls love hair bows! I wish fun things like this were around when I was a kid! Handmade hair bows are all the rage right now. This is something really fun to do with your daughter, granddaughter, niece or any little girl you have in your life this spring break or summer vacation!

Here’s how I did it:

Gather your supplies. You will need two plain clips, one length of polka-dotted pink ribbon, one length of green ribbon with a white stitch accent and one length of black sparkly ribbon.

Clips. I ordered these in bulk on-line… But any craft store will have them or something similar. I use these specifically because my daughter is a year and a half old and her hair is still baby fine and these hold great!

Next, measure your black ribbon. To do this open the clip and place the ribbon along the full length of the inside of the ribbon and allow for enough ribbon to run along both the top and the bottom of your clip and be sure it is able to come right around to the squeezy part of the clip.

You’ll want to run glue along the inside of the clip first. Then pop the ribbon in being sure not to close the clip until you have the ribbon in place or you will glue everything together, not fun. Then continue along the top and the bottom and finally at the end where the squeezy part is. Your entire clip should be encapsulated with ribbon at this point both inside and out.

Next, you will want to build your leaves and your berry. Here is the shape you should make your leaves into. Place a dot of glue to secure.

For your berry. Cut a small piece of ribbon to cover about 1/2 the size of your clip when folded in this shape.

Now, fold over and place a dot of glue forming this shape. Then, up with the other side and place a dot of glue there.

Your clip should have a piece that lifts up higher than the rest. (where the squeezy thing is) glue your leaves on like so.

Add glue to secure the berry like so.

Now, secure your berry.

Next, cut into your green ribbon as shown here. Then, place a dot of glue at the top in order to fold down the green ribbon.

This is what you should have now.

Add a rhinestone to the center of your green, and you’re done!

Materials:

(makes 2)

2 clips

1 green ribbon with white stitching

1 pink polka-dotted ribbon

1 black glitter ribbon

2 rhinestones

hot glue

scissors

ribbon fraying stuff, optional

Hotdog Griller

April 20, 2015April 20, 2015

My love for cooking began when I was a kid. I think I made my first batch of brownies by myself when I was about 8 years old. I made all manner of things from grilled cheese to pancakes from scratch… mac and cheese from the box and PB&J on Ritz crackers! And by the time I was 11, I made a full pot of Portuguese soup for my Vavó on a trip to Portugal. I was always curious. Always wanting to learn. I don’t quite remember how I came upon this recipe. It could have been on T.V. or in a kid’s magazine or a cookbook somewhere. But, I vividly remember this concoction on a summer vacation when I was a kid. And I loved it!

If you want to get your kid’s started on learning to be self-sufficient in the kitchen, the best place to start is with things they love. Then you can work up from there. Then you get a little more adventurous asking them to pick out veggies at the market and make creations. So, to start them off, this is a no brainer. What kid doesn’t love hotdogs? What kid doesn’t love grilled cheese? And what kid doesn’t love being creative? And so the Hot Dog Griller was born.

Start off with these simple ingredients. A non-stick skillet, spatula and some patience.

The first thing you are going to want to do is warm up your bread if it’s not fresh from the bakery. 5-10 seconds in the microwave should do it. Then butter one side.

Next, cook your hotdog in which ever method you like best. Here, I am steaming it in the same skillet I will use for the grilling. There is about 1/8 c. water. The same amount can be used for two hot dogs. I would add a bit more for any more than that.

Once your water is just about gone, your hotdog should be ready. If kid’s are doing this with you, let it cool for a minute before working with it.

Cut your hotdog in half lengthwise.

Place one piece of sliced American cheese on the unbuttered side of your bread. (American cheese bends best, but if you prefer something else, go for it)

Now, place one half the hotdog in the center of the bread and cheese. Fold diagonally and grill like a grilled cheese.

And here is what you get. The hotdog is cooked, so really you just need the cheese to melt and the bread to brown. Hotdog Griller!

Recipe for Hot Dog Griller:

(serves 2)

2 slices whole wheat bread (any square sliced bread will work fine)

1 hotdog (regular size, any brand)

1 T. margarine

2 slices American cheese (or whatever you like best)

1/8 cup water (if steaming hot dog)

Directions:

Steam hot dog in 1/8 cup water. When water fully evaporates, the hot dog should be done. Cut in half lengthwise. Set aside.

Spread margarine on one side of each of the slices of bread. Turn over, place cheese and half a hot dog. Fold in half forming a triangle. Grill as you would a grilled cheese until both sides are golden brown. Cut in half making two smaller triangles or leave as one large triangle. (If your child loves mustard either use as a dipping sauce or place on hot dog when building sandwich, my suggesting would be to try as a dipping sauce first to ensure they still like mustard with the cheese.

Enjoy!

Crack-a-lackin’ Cracker Jacks

April 17, 2015April 30, 2015

“Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks… I don’t care if I never get back!”

Ahhh… The sweet sounds of spring (and the 7th inning stretch). Have you ever wondered why the kid needs Cracker Jacks AND peanuts? I mean there are peanuts right in the Cracker Jacks. Anyway, I digress. I thought it would be nice to round off my week of celebrating the great game of baseball with everyone’s favorite… the CrackerJack! The ingredients are simple, the method is easier than you might think; just takes a little bit of patience. And as usual, I will give you the recipe and provide little short cut tips along the way in case you aren’t a purist like me!

Here we go:

Start with popping corn! Remember this stuff? It actually exists outside of a microwaveable bag! Growing up I used to watch the commercials for Jiffy Pop popcorn (and it seemed they sponsored half the TV shows in the 80’s) and I always wanted them. My Mom loved to make her own popcorn though, so alas we never got the Jiffy Pop. When I got older, I realized Jiffy Pop wasn’t all it was cracked (or popped) up to be anyway. Again, I digress… If you aren’t a fan of making your own pop corn or feel more comfortable with an air popper or your microwave, have at it. Just be sure it’s plain and you have enough for about 10 cups when done (like three bags)

If you are coming along with me on the old fashioned popping train… Just follow your package directions. I’m just adding a few tablespoons of oil to a large dutch oven.

Then add in the kernels over high heat. Put the lid on the pan. When you hear your first few pops, start vigorously shaking the pan until you hear no more pops.

And here is your final product… a lovely pot of fresh popped pop corn. No matter how you achieve this… Just be sure it is plain, fresh, and about 10 cups when all is said and done. Add peanuts in at this point.

Continue prepping. Set your oven to 250°F.

Line a couple of sheet pans with parchment. You can use baking dishes, or whatever you have handy. Just be sure whatever you have has a rim, otherwise you may have popcorn slipping off into your oven… not fun. If you only have one, that will do, it will just mean more mixing during the process, but I’ll explain that later. Oh, and the parchment is kind of a must, unless you have some other type of non stick surface like a Silpat or something. Remember, we are essentially making candy here, so you want to be able to work with it without it sticking to everything. Which brings me to my next step.

You’re gonna want to spray both a very large bowl (I use my Vavo’s massa bowl) and your rubber spatula (or whatever you have on hand) with cooking spray. We don’t want sticking!

Now, gather up some ingredients. You have no time once you start on the stove to gather these ingredients. So, be sure you are prepped ahead of time. In addition to these already measured out ingredients, be sure to have both your vanilla and baking soda at the ready.

Start with a medium sauce pan. I like my non-stick. It doesn’t have to be non-stick, just my preference. Melt your butter and then add in your sugar.

Once that is in and starting to dissolve, add in your corn syrup and salt. DO NOT LEAVE THE STOVE. I repeat, DO NOT LEAVE THE STOVE. This is not the time to get distracted, answer the door, check your text messages or discipline the children. You need 5-10 minutes of uninterrupted time here. You need to stir constantly.

Keep stirring.

Once you get to right around 250°F on a candy thermometer or in my case a meat thermometer. Try to keep it at that temp. for around 3-4 minutes. This will likely include lowering the heat. You want to keep checking back. Don’t freak if it gets a little higher, just do your best.

Once you make it through that 3-4 minutes, breathe. Then remove from heat and add in the vanilla. This is not the time to skimp out on the vanilla. Please please please use your very best PURE vanilla extract here. This one I am using is Madagascar bourbon vanilla, it’s my preference. But, you aren’t allowed to make this with that imitation stuff! (kidding, but really, don’t)

Now, add in the baking soda. I use a heaping half teaspoon. I like the fluffiness and lightness it brings. Careful not to overdo it though, baking soda can backfire in flavor if you go overboard.

Now stir to combine your new ingredients and it should look something like this.

OK… quickly pour this over your popcorn and start stirring. Again, not a time to take a break. You need to work briskly here.

Keep stirring. Try to work all that caramel in throughout the popcorn as best you can. This process will take some time, assume a good 5 minutes for this step. Be fast but gentle, you don’t want a bunch of pop corn crumbles at the end.

This is what you should have… I don’t like to overdo it with the caramel coverage. If you like more caramel coverage, just use 8 cups of popcorn. I wouldn’t go less than that though unless you are an experienced candy maker, because the caramel may clump up on you quite a bit.

Spread your mixture onto your prepared sheet trays. Pop them in the oven for an hour. But be sure to stir the mixture 3-4 times throughout their time in there. I set my timer to every 15 mins. This helps to further distribute the caramel and ensure you don’t have one big clumped mess when through.

And there you have it folks. Crack-a-lakin’ Cracker Jacks! Enjoy!

Recipe for Crack-a-lakin’ Cracker Jacks:

(serves 4-6) (or one, shhh!)

10 c. plain popped pop corn (instructions above)

3/4 c. peanuts

1 stick unsalted butter

1 1/4 c. light brown sugar

1/3 c. light corn syrup

1/2 t. kosher salt

2 t. pure vanilla extract

1/2 t. heaping, baking soda

Directions:

Prepare all ingredients along with all equipment. You will need a medium saucepan, preferably non-stick. Two sheet trays with rims, lined with parchment. And an extra-large bowl and rubber spatula sprayed with cooking spray. A thermometer with capability to go to 250°F. Also, pre-heat your oven to 250°F.

Place popped corn in the extra-large bowl with the popcorn.

On the stove over medium/high heat, melt butter. Add in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Continuously stir until it comes to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, check the temp. until it comes to 250°F. Keep it at that temperature for 3-4 minutes, checking frequently and adjusting heat.

Remove from heat. Add in vanilla and baking soda. Stir.

Pour over popcorn and peanuts. Quickly, but gently stir to combine. This process takes patience.

Pour out onto prepared sheet trays. Bake at 250°F for 1 hour. Stir mixture 3-4 times throughout baking.

Cool. Enjoy!

Chicken Mozambique Sandwich (Sanduíche de frango Moçambique)

April 15, 2015August 25, 20152 Comments

If you are looking for something fun and exciting with a Portuguese twist for those Spring baseball games or just to enjoy with your family tonight for dinner. Try this super easy and quick recipe for Chicken Mozambique Sandwiches! While hot dogs and hamburgers definitely have their place all summer long, it won’t be long before they can become less than desirable. Throw this in the mix and keep um guessing.

A good Mozambique sauce is a staple all year long. Traditionally, Mozambique sauce is paired with shrimp, but it has proven to have great results with chicken. Check it out and try it with whatever protein you would like.

Start by slicing up a large onion. Traditionally, onions are minced for Mozambique, but since we are making a sandwich, I thought it would be extra yummy to have some nice onions on top of our sandwich. (If you are not a fan of onions, try not to leave them out, instead ether do it this way and remove later or mince and they will melt right in. You need the onion flavoring though.)

Saute the onions on medium in olive oil until they soften. Then add half a stick of butter.

Once the butter melts in, add minced garlic.

After about a minute or so, add in a packet of saffron seasoning. (If you don’t have saffron seasoning in your neck of the woods, just add in 6-8 tendrils of actual saffron and about a teaspoon of salt)

This is what you should have.

Slice two chicken breasts about 1/4″ – 1/2″ thick.

Add in the chicken… You want to coat all that yummy saffron seasoning directly on the chicken for just about a minute. (It’s a crazy color, right?)

Next, add in a glass of dry white wine. (about a cup… beer can be substituted here)

Add in your favorite hot sauce, or whatever you have on hand, to taste… if you aren’t into spice, leave it out, no biggy, there is still a ton of flavor going on.

If you have some fresh parsley around, add some in… it’s not totally necessary, but I like it. Simmer for 5-8 mins and your done with the chicken part of this sandwich. If you want to serve this over rice, it’s super good!

I like to make a kind of aoli sauce to top my sandwich, here’s how I do it:

Measure about a half cup of mayo. (If you prefer a healthier option, you can use Greek yogurt here, gives if a bit of a tang)

Add in about half a cup of broth and wisk to combine

Now we want to intensify some of the flavors we used. So add in about 1/2 t. garlic powder and some hot sauce. Wisk.

Lastly, add in some paprika. This is Hungarian paprika, its got a spicy kick, whatever you have on hand works too. And you’re done… If you have extra after the sandwich… Keep it! This would be really yummy over some fish or shrimp.

Now just a couple of preparations to build your sandwiches:

Find some sub rolls.

Cut down the middle using a serated knife.

Toast up your sub roll with some butter.

Slice up some Swiss cheese.

Build your sandwiches by first placing in the cheese. Then add the piping hot chicken, don’t forget to grab some of those onions to place on top and then top with the sauce. And wala, you’re done!

Recipe for Chicken Mozambique Sandwich:

(Serves 4)

For the chicken:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced thinly

2 T. olive oil

1/2 stick butter

1 large onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup dry white wine

1 packet saffron seasoning

hot sauce to taste

For the sub sauce:

1/2 c. prepared mayonnaise (or Greek yogurt)

hot sauce to taste

1/2 t. garlic powder

pinch of paprika

For the Sandwich:

4 torpedo rolls or sub roll of your choice

1 t. butter

8 slices swiss cheese

Directions:

Chicken:

Saute onions until soft in olive oil over medium heat. Melt in butter. Add in garlic, continue to saute one minute. Add in saffron seasoning. Add in chicken to coat with spices. Add in remaining ingredients. Cook for about 5-8 minutes until chicken is cooked through. (Wine should come to a boil)

Sub Sauce:

In a medium bowl add in 1/2 c. Mozambique broth with mayo, garlic powder, hot sauce and paprika. Wisk. Set aside.

Putting the sandwich together:

Toast the sub roll with butter. Cut down the middle to allow for stuffing. Layer cheese, chicken, onions (from the chicken recipe) and top with sub sauce.

Boston Baked Beans

April 13, 2015April 13, 2015

It’s opening day at Fenway Park for the Boston Red Sox! Spring is officially here and America’s great pass time is in full swing! After the rough winter Boston has had, this is definitely cause to celebrate. Growing up, my family would make it to Fenway Park once a season. It was always a big event being one of four children. Through the years we got to see some of the greats, Mo Vaughn, Wade Boggs, Roger Clemens and Dwight Evans. And then later with Nomar Garciaparra, Big Papi (David Ortiz), Manny Ramirez, Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez. On any given spring/summer (and hopefully fall) day, you could always find a baseball game on either in the forefront or on in the background at my house. My parents were both staunch Boston Red Sox fans and of course passed that love down to us.

Snacks were abundant at our favorite ball park, usually hot dogs, soft pretzels, cotton candy and peanuts. So today, for opening day, I decided to try my hand at a classic side for my Ball Park Franks, Boston Baked Beans. Here’s how I did it.

This is the Navy bean. It is a small white bean. A lot of people like to make their baked beans with pinto beans and if you prefer the larger pinto, that’s fine too. This is just my preference.

The first step is to rinse and pick through the beans… Here are a few of the little guys who didn’t make the cut for me today.

This next step is pretty easy all be it time consuming… Making baked beans is definitely not something you can do in a rush, at least not when you are making them from dry beans. So take one pound of your favorite light colored bean and soak in 2 quarts of water. You need a lot of water here so that the beans can soak it all in and expand. 6-8 hours. A lot of people say to do this over night. I like to do this after lunch because it is just part one of the soaking for this recipe.

Now through the magic of the internet. 8 hours has gone by and look how our beans have filled up our bowl. Stage one of bean soaking is complete, onto stage two. I do this next stage just before bed because this is an easy recipe, but it has a bunch of ingredients and who has time to throw things together when you are rushing around in the morning? Also, I like that stage two of the bean soaking lets the beans start to soak up the flavors of everything you are throwing in the pot.

Start with chopping up two medium onions.

From here on in you are literally just dumping ingredients into your crock pot.

Measure out half a cup of brown sugar. I used light brown, but if you only have dark brown, that’s fine, it just means there is a bit more molasses in it.

Then measure out a half cup of ketchup.

Dump those in to you crock pot.

Mince 1 garlic clove.

Add in 32 oz. of beer and 2 cups of water. Also, add in that garlic and all the preceding ingredients.

Roughly chop up three slices of thick cut bacon. You could also use salt pork here, but I kind of like the extra layer of flavor bacon brings.

Add in Worcestershire Sauce.

Add in molasses.

Add in Sriracha.

Add in Dijon Mustard.

And here is my little secret ingredient, Espresso powder. This is instant, not just ground… it will melt right into the dish.

Fresh bay leaf… if you don’t have fresh, go ahead and use dry.

Keep adding everything in folks. We’re almost there!

OK… Now a few more ingredients and then you can go to bed! Add in some white wine vinegar (this is what I had, you can use apple cider vinegar), little salt (don’t over do it on the salt, it tends to stop dry beans from plumping and some fresh cracked black pepper. Set your slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours.

When you wake up in the morning, your beans will still look like this… that’s OK… you now set it on high for 8 hours.

And this is what you will see when you get home from work. If for some reason, its not quite like this, just transfer to a dutch oven and boil off any excess liquid with the lid off.

Recipe for Boston Baked Beans:

(serves 6-8)

1 lb. dry Navy beans, soaked 6-8

32 oz. beer

2 cups water

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. ketchup

1/3 c. molasses

2 medium onions, diced

1 clove garlic, chopped

3 T. Dijon mustard

2 T. white wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 T. pure maple syrup

3 slices center cut bacon, cut up into 6 segments

1 Bay leaf

1 t. sriracha sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)

1 t. kosher salt

1/2 t. fresh cracked black pepper

1/2 t. instant espresso powder

Directions:

1st soak: Rinse and pick through beans. Soak beans for 6-8 hours in 2 quarts of water. Drain and rinse again.

2nd soak: Add all ingredients into crock pot. set on low over night 6-8 hrs.

Cook: Stir. Set crock pot on high for 8 hours.

Enjoy!

Planting Peas – Part 1

April 11, 2015May 21, 2015

My kids love peas! They especially love Sugar Snap Peas. For a regular week night dinner, I am not opposed to popping a frozen bag of steamed veggi’s in the microwave. We probably have steam in the bag veggi’s 3x per week in the winter. But, when spring comes, I can’t help but get the gardening bug! I am so tired of the dreary weather that winter brings and living in the Northeast, this year is a prime example of how nasty winter weather can be. But, I digress.

Spring is a happy time. A time of green! This year, I decided to get my kids involved. My son is loving this gardening project. We planted a whole garden full of veggi’s in our front bay window. (Our dog’s favorite spot to lounge out… Sorry Rocky!)

Peas are a GREAT starter vegetable if you’ve never planted a garden before. And an especially great one if you’re getting your kids involved. They germinate quickly and give you lots and lots of yummy veggi goodness in not such a long time. And if you are in the northern part of the country, they are one of the first plantable plants outside. They are actually considered a spring veggi as they don’t do so well in the extreme heat of summer. Peas are a wonderful source of Vitamin K, fiber, manganese, B-1 (all the B’s really) and Vitamin C to name a few!

Today, I will show you a little of how we have started our garden. Disclaimer… Peas normally get planted right outside, but we wanted to start early and inside when it was much too cold, so I’ll show you how we will remedy that at the end.

We started with some ‘starter soil’ that is good for seeding your own vegetation. Placed that in a recyclable paper pot.

Sugar Snap Peas

We put two little peas in the dirt. My son loved this part!

It took about a week before we saw a little green coming up through the dirt. And about 5 weeks later we saw this.

A week later we saw this! Peas are vine growers, and these are ready to start grabbing on to something!

My son reminds me every day that we need to water the plants. (No, that is not actual spring water he is watering with… we recycled the bottle and it gives him a lot of control over where the water ends up)

Our next step, is to bring the plants outside each day this week and plant them next week sometime… Stay tuned!

Pasta alla Carbonara

April 10, 2015April 10, 2015

My husband and I were lucky enough to spend some time in Italy on our honeymoon. We got to see the Colosseum in Rome, stayed in a 16th century private villa with an olive grove in Florence, toured Pompeii, rode on a Gondola with a singing Gondolier in Venice and even got a glimpse of that leaning tower as we passed through Pisa on a train ride. We loved every moment of it… Did some shopping, site seeing and I even got in some cooking in that villa! But, the food. The food in Italy was amazing.

Each region offered up something new and delicious. Pizza in Naples, Lasagna in Florence, Salami in Genoa. I even made a red sauce that I paired with some fresh pasta, yum. All of which was paired with a red wine… it had no name, just red, which was perfect. My husband, however, ordered the same dish everywhere we went… Spaghetti alla Carbonara. Sure, he would always try a bite of whatever I ordered, but he just couldn’t get enough of the Carbonara.

So, when we returned stateside, I had to learn how to make it. I discovered there are lots of variations to the famed Italian dish… But, the basics are all the same. There is cheese, egg, fresh herbs and bacon. I will try to explain some of the variations throughout the recipe guide below, but if you see something you like more or less, then add more or less of it! Make it your own or follow my recipe, either way it will be a quick, delicious and satisfying meal your family is sure to ask for again and again!

This dish is all about the preparation. It is very quick and easy to put together, but can be screwed up royally if your ingredients are not prepped and ready to go when they need to be. Timing is everything! Follow these steps and you will be eating this delectable plate of pasta in under 20 minutes!

First start off with bacon or pancetta. (Pancetta is uncured Italian bacon.) Today, I had bacon on hand, so that’s what I used. The important thing to remember is that the bacon should not have any sort of flavoring. Try to avoid ‘applewood smoked’ or ‘maple’. A nice smoked or uncured bacon is fine here. Fry it up to the style you like your bacon. We like crispy, but not burned in my family.

Drain bacon. I like to set aside about 2 pieces per person to be served. I hide the bacon at this point so it is not confiscated by passers-by! Reserved the rendered bacon fat in the pan.

Next, you will want to set a pot of water to boil. While the water is coming to a boil, you should have enough time to prepare the rest of your ingredients. Once the water comes to a boil you can add in the pasta (we will get to which variety of pasta in a minute). Cook to the package instructions or a minute less if you like it aldente.

Crack a couple of eggs in a bowl large enough to include not only the eggs, but the parmesan cheese.

Scramble the eggs. Set aside.

Shred up the parmesan. Some people like to use Parmigiano-Reggiano, and hey, if you have it, use it… I happened to have Parmesan at my disposal. The two are similar although the Parmesano Regiano is a higher grade and more traditional. Also, some like to use Pecorino cheese here as well… I say, use whatever you have on hand and whichever you like. Any hard, salty, italian cheese will do just fine.

Add the parmesan into the scrambled egg you have set aside.

Now onto the parsley. This is Italian Flat Leaf Parsley. It is not the same as the curly variety you may see garnishing buffet tables across the country. This parsley has a distinct flavor and adds a great pop of freshness to the dish, please don’t skip this, It’s like a buck at the grocery store fresh. note: Do not confuse this with Cilantro although they are similar in appearance, they have two totally different flavors.

Chop up about a cup of parsley, set aside.

Now chop up your bacon. Set aside.

Now let’s talk about your pasta. After all that chopping, your water is probably boiling, so it’s time to drop the pasta. (Don’t forget to salt the water! – Like the sea… I typically use about 3T. kosher salt for 6 qts of water) But, I digress… you can really use any type of pasta you like. This dish is traditionally made with spaghetti. I have here Fetuccini Rigata. The Rigata is denoting the ridges that are on this pasta. I normally like to get Spaghetti Rigata or Rigati… But the grocery store didn’t have it, so I got the Fetuccini Rigata this time. I like the ridges because it holds on to the sauce better, but if you just have plain ole spaghetti, use it! (My kids like this with Angel Hair, so sometimes I do that for them too)

OK… So, after reading that last paragraph on the pasta, your pasta is probably almost ready to come out of the water. Let’s make sure you have everything you need because once the pasta comes out, it’s go time! So, in addition to the scrambled eggs with parmesan, chopped bacon and chopped parsley, you will need some kosher salt, fresh cracked black pepper and about a cup of frozen peas.

Once the pasta is done… Be sure your reserved bacon fat is still warm, if not turn it on medium. Then, drain the pasta and coat all the noodles in fat. Just wiggle it around a bit and stir.

Now, this is important. While the pasta is piping hot, pour the egg and parmesan mixture over it and have a pasta tool at the ready to very quickly stir it in. Your goal here is not to end up with scrambled eggs… you want to coat the pasta with the egg mixture just like you did with the rendered bacon fat. This must be done quickly.

Again, while it is all still hot, quickly add in the peas and the parsley and stir. The heat from the pasta will be enough to cook the frozen peas.

Add in the bacon and stir again… Now drizzle with some olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Please taste this before plating it.

Shred some additional parmesan atop the pasta and add just a touch more of the fresh parsley and enjoy!

Pasta Carbonara Recipe:

(serves 6-8)

1 lb. dry pasta, spaghetti, fettuccine, Angel Hair etc.

6 qts. water with 3 T. kosher salt

1/2 lb. bacon or pancetta, fried, chopped, rendered fat reserved

3 eggs, scrambled

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/2 cup shredded parmesan

1 cup frozen peas

salt and pepper to taste

Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Prepare all ingredients in recipe. Boil pasta. Add drained pasta to the rendered bacon fat, coating pasta. Add parmesan to the scrambled eggs, quickly stir into hot pasta. Add in parsley and peas. Add in bacon. Drizzle with olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Shred additional parmesan over the top with some additional chopped parsley. Enjoy!

Chouriço & Peas (Ervilhas com Chouriço)

April 8, 2015May 19, 20156 Comments

My father migrated to the United States from St. Michael, Portugal in 1966 when he was just 11 years old. His family, two parents, 7 sisters and a brother couldn’t all come together at the time, although they eventually all made it through. He has told me time and time again the story of the long journey that took them first to family who lived in Canada before settling in their final destination of Fall River, Massachusetts. His most vivid memory of that trip is the first meal he ate with his Portuguese-Canadian family as they arrived and it was “Ervilhas com Chouriço” – Chourico and Peas.

I have often tried to imagine what it must have been like for my adolescent father and the thousands of other children to include my mother (age 9) who emigrated here in the 1960’s from Portugal. They came to America, with their families, in search of a new life – a better life for their children. They left behind family and friends and everything they knew. I try to imagine, at the tender age of 11, trying to learn a new language. I imagine entering a school where everyone including all my teachers can not communicate with me. To learn a new culture and a new way of doing just about everything. What becomes vivid to me is being scared, excited, confused and very dependent on anything familiar I might come upon. So, nearly 50 years later, my father recalls his family in Canada serving him and his siblings and parents “Ervilhas com Chouriço” a Portuguese comfort food. Funny how food has a way of comforting and connecting people.

Here is my version of “Ervilhas com Chouriço”:

Start out by chopping onions. For this recipe, I like to quarter and then slice.

Add onions to a pot with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat, saute.

This is Portuguese Chouriço. It is a bit different from its cousins, Spanish and Mexican Chorizo. It comes in two varieties, hot and mild. (If you only have chorizo available in your area, that is a fine substitute)

Slice chouriço fairly thinly. I like to go about 1/8″, if you like it thicker, be my guest. But, this recipe calls for one link of chouriço, so slicing thinly ensures everyone gets plenty in their portion.

Mince up about a clove or two of garlic.

Add garlic and chouriço to your pot and continue to saute over medium heat.

Add 2 lbs. frozen peas. I use frozen peas because we are not quite in the season for fresh peas and I find frozen peas to be far superior to canned. If you have fresh peas available, by all means use them.

Add in one can of beer. (An ale is best for this recipe, whatever you have in the fridge or left over from your last party) If you prefer not to use alcohol or are on a gluten-free diet, just add in about 16 oz of chicken stock.

Pepper! This has to be my favorite Portuguese ingredient. Ground Portuguese red pepper… My family grinds our own pepper each year and preserve it to use all year long. Our pepper is not terribly spicy because we remove most of the seeds and inner flesh before grinding, so be careful, know what you are using.

Portugese all spice. Please don’t be confused by the allspice you put in your pies at Thanksgiving… This is not that. This is paprika based and has a bit of turmeric some orange peel and some mystery spice. If you don’t have this available, just use a run of the mill paprika. (Adding a smoked paprika will change the flavor of the dish, if you like that, go for it, but be aware, this all spice is not smokey)

1/2 cup of plain tomato sauce.

Add in the sauce, pepper and spice along with a pinch of salt, stir. Continue cooking over medium heat.

Turn down heat to a medium/low. Stir periodically and allow to cook for about 15-20 mins.

Last step… gently add in whole cracked eggs one at a time and nestle them in their own little spots in the pot. I like to give everyone an egg. So I put as many eggs as people I plan to feed.

And here is your completed Chouriço & Peas dish. Enjoy!

Chouriço & Peas recipe:

(serves 4-6)

1/2 lb. Hot Chouriço, sliced

2 lbs. frozen (or fresh) peas

1 medium yellow onion, quartered and sliced

1 T. ground red pepper

1/2 cup tomato sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can beer

2-3 T. olive oil

1/2 t. Portuguese all spice

4-6 eggs

kosher salt to taste

Directions:

In a large pot saute onions in olive oil over medium heat. Add in chouriço and garlic, saute. Add in fresh or frozen peas, mix and then immediately add in beer, tomato sauce, pepper, all spice and salt. Bring to a boil and turn down heat to medium low. Cook for 15-20 mins. Add in eggs one at a time. Cook 5-6 mins. Enjoy!

note: For gluten-free preparation, substitute beer with chicken stock or a gluten-free beer.

Split Pea Soup

April 6, 2015March 28, 2016

I don’t know about you, but I always have a ton of left over ham after Easter or any holiday really. But, I don’t mind because I love me some Spit Pea Soup and there is nothing like a homemade ham roast to make a great Split Pea Soup with! Spring is beautiful and it’s nice to see all the winter snow melting away, but there can still be some pretty brisk and chilly weather. What better to combat that than a nice steaming bowl of soup? Yum!

For this recipe, I used my Pineapple Honey Glazed ham and turned it into this creamy deliciousness. If you didn’t make ham or don’t have any left overs, you can always make this recipe with some deli ham, just ask the deli to cut you some thick ham or you can grab a ham steak too. Here’s how I did it:

I start off with one bag of split peas, any brand is fine. Wash them and set them aside.

Dice some onions. I like a lot of onions, so I use two medium onions and give them a medium chop (maybe the size of a dime).

I trim my carrots next (sometimes I don’t peel them, but this time I did, so its up to you).

Then chop them to about the same dimensions you did your onions… so for me they are about the size of a dime.

Now add the onions and carrots into a large pot and sautee with some olive oil on medium heat.

Take a couple of cloves of garlic and mince (or use a garlic press). Add to your onions and carrots after they are tender. You want to make sure your garlic doesn’t burn, so add it in toward the end of the sauteeing phase.

Now it’s time to trim up the ham hock. Add this to your vegies. Admittedly, this is not the pretties thing ever, but it is super tasty and adds a hearty dimension to your soup you can’t get with anything else… still if it freaks you out, or if you already threw out your hock, just leave it out.

Add in chicken stock, here I have homemade stock that I made earlier in the week. (If you don’t have homemade stock, just add in an extra large can of low sodium stock.) Also, add in about the same amount of hot water. And one chicken bullion or one packet of bullion powder.

Dice up about a cup of ham… if you have more or less, then use more or less to your taste. I chop this about the size of a quarter, I like chunky ham, if you like more delicate, then give it a smaller chop.

Add in one bay leaf. If you have fresh, that’s great… I only had dry on hand.

Chop up about a teaspoon of fresh thyme and add to the pot. (If you only have dry that’s o.k., just reduce by half and add it in when you are sauteeing your onions and carrots)

Now add in a few cracks of black pepper and a good pinch of kosher salt. Also, add in a dash of white pepper if you have it on hand.

Add in your split peas now and stir. Bring the liquid to a boil on high and then reduce to a simmer and let cook for about 1 hour stiring periodically. When the soup starts to thicken and you can no longer see the shape of your split peas, then you know you are ready for the next and final step. (this could take up to one additonal hour… so keep your eye on it!

When your soup is just about done… You can remove the ham hock and add in about a cup of dilatini pasta (or whatever your favorite soup pasta is ie. elbows, stars, orzo etc)

And you’re done! Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup

(serves 8- 10)

1 package split peas, washed

1 ham hock, trimmed

1 cup diced ham

2 medium onions, chopped

4 medium carrots, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 t. fresh thyme, chopped

1 bay leaf

14-16 cups of liquid, chicken stock and water

1 chicken bullion or bullion powder packet

kosher salt to taste

fresh cracked black pepper to taste

dash of white pepper

2-3 T. olive oil

Directions:

Pepare all ingredients. Sautee onions and carrots in olive oil until tender over medium heat in a large pot. Add in garlic. Add in ham hock and liquid. Add in all other ingredients except the pasta. Cook on high until boiling. Turn down to a medium/low boil or simmer on medium/low heat for about an hour, stirring periodically. Check for dissapearing of peas in soup and thickening of liquid. This could take up to an additional hour. When liquid is thickened, add in pasta, cook an additional 20 minutes or so until pasta is done. Taste for seasonings. Enjoy!

note: This can very easily be made gluten free by omitting the pasta or using gluten-free pasta.

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham

April 4, 2015March 13, 2016

Baked ham… an Easter tradition in my house growing up. I’m part of a big Portuguese family, so of course that wasn’t the only thing on the table, there would usually be some sort of roast or stew as well… but, my favorite was always the ham. My mother always put sliced pineapples on her ham. So, what I’ve done is incorporate that into my pineapple honey glazed ham. It’s simple and delicious.

A lot of people like spiral hams, and they are yummy, but they can also be quite pricy. I’ll be using a 10 lb. ham here and with Easter sales at my grocery store, I paid under $10 for this one, score! Spiral hams usually come with a nice little packet, usually brown sugar based that can be used to glaze the ham with, but regular run of the mill hams don’t. So, I’ve included a simple pineapple honey glaze with this recipe that is almost as simple as opening up that packet.

You’ll want to start with figuring out what size pan you’ll use. It’s a good idea for it to have room enough for the drippings, but not be so overwhelmingly big that the glaze doesn’t hang out near the meat. For this 10lb ham, I am using a 9×12″ baking dish.

You will want to prepare your ham to accept the glaze. This can be done by placing the ham cut side down in your baking dish and scoring in a lattice style, criss crossing over the entire skin.

Here are all the ingredient’s you will need for the glaze: honey, 1 20 oz . can of sliced pineapples, with the juice reserved, 1 T. butter, salt and whole pepper corns.

Take your ingredients and add them in all together to a small sauce pan over medium heat and stir. 1 T butter, 1 t. pepper corns, 2 T. honey, 1/2 t. salt and reserved juice (don’t add the actual pineapples to this mix) The goal here is not to cook it down, but just to get them all mixed in the warmth helps the butter and honey to incorporate. 2-3 minutes should do it.

Next, just pour the glaze over the ham.

Place the pineapples on the ham.

If you have a tough time getting the pineapples to stay put, you can secure them with toothpicks… I didn’t have any trouble due to the shape of my ham.

I like to add a bit more honey to the top for fun… this is about a tablespoon’s worth.

You should cover the ham for cooking, but first what I like to do is spray some cooking spray on the foil so it doesn’t stick to the pineapples.

Next, loosely cover with foil, sprayed side down.

Bake at 325°F for 15 minutes per lb.

It’s a good idea to baste the ham a few times… after your calculated cooking time is through, i like to uncover the ham and put into a 375°F oven for another 20 minutes or so to get some color on your pineapples and crisp up the skin of the ham a bit.

And that’s it… Check to see that the internal temperature is up to 140°F (because ham is fully cooked before you put it in the oven), put it on a platter as seen here with my Rockstar Potatoes. (Be sure to remove toothpicks at this point if you used them)

Baked ham, Rockstar Potatoes and peas! A perfect Easter dinner!

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham

plan on 1/2 lb. per person for a bone in ham

Ingredients:

1 cured ham, bone in

1 20 oz. can sliced pineapple, juice reserved

2-3 T. honey

1 T. butter

1 t. black pepper corns

1/2 t. kosher salt

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 325°F.

For the glaze: In a small sauce pan over medium heat combine juice, honey, butter, pepper corns and salt. Warm through mixing.

Score the ham in a cross hatch fashion.

Pour warmed glaze over ham. Place pineapples on ham. Add extra honey if desired over top. Cover with foil. Bake 15 minutes per lb. Baste 2-3 time throughout cooking time. Remove foil after cooking time and baste again. Bake for an additional 20 minutes uncovered at 375°F. Check to see that ham is hot throughout and the skin has started to crisp up, internal temp should be 140°F.

***Gluten-free

the portuguese american mom

stay awhile… have a cup of tea, let's get creative!

Strawberry Hair Bow

Hotdog Griller

Crack-a-lackin’ Cracker Jacks

Chicken Mozambique Sandwich (Sanduíche de frango Moçambique)

Boston Baked Beans

Planting Peas – Part 1

Pasta alla Carbonara

Chouriço & Peas (Ervilhas com Chouriço)

Split Pea Soup

Split Pea Soup

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham