Winshecommin Home?

When we lived in Auckland (1986 - 2004) one member of the family always seemed to be traveling back to the US to visit family or whatever. When Molly traveled it was a big deal because those of us left behind had to cook our own meals. (Yikes!)

As a consequence we developed a whole bunch of Mollygoneandleftus and Winshecommin home receipes. Here’s one below. There are a lot more in my mess of a cookbook, “My Food”, which you can download at my website:

http://www.robinrileyarchitect.com/

Go to the “More” page and look for “My Food” pdf on the far right...........

Regards,

Robin

WINSHECOMMIN HOME REDSAUCE EGGPLANT PASTA

12/11/09

Five peeled garlics

Olive oil

One can Cento anchovies

One half eggplant (skin on) chopped into one half inch pieces

One can Cento peeled Italian tomatoes (including all juice)

Oregano, ground black pepper

Eight minced black olives

Two handfuls minced parsley

Fry garlics in oil, add anchovies, and egg plant. Mix and cook. Eggplant will absorb all oil so be careful not to burn anchovies

Add tomatoes, spices and cook way down. You want mushy eggplant and a thick sauce

Add olives and parsley, stir to heat and serve over angle hair pasta w/ grated pecorino romano cheese,spinach salad and French bread. Red wine

Condiment Cooking

I decided to do a bit of "condiment cooking" on Friday night. With TS Bonnie lurking in the Gulf, I could think of no better time to clean out the refrigerator. The idea of throwing away rancid food after a storm makes me livid, so I hit the frig big time. I discovered a head of broccoli, a red pepper, a red onion, a package of button mushrooms, 2 key limes, leftover cooked rice, a nub of ginger and loads of Asian condiments. Are you thinking what I'm thinking...STIR FRY!

So, here goes!

In a hot oiled wok, (I used a combo of Sesame and Canola) add:

Red Onion, thinly sliced

Broccoli, small florets

Red Pepper, thinly sliced

Mushrooms, sliced

Ginger, grated

Stir fry for 1-2 minutes. Now it's time for the magic, so pull out your Asian condiments and start adding them to the veggies. I used a combination of:

Sweet Chili Sauce

Soy Sauce

Rice Wine Vinegar

Chili Garlic Sauce, aka Rooster Sauce with Garlic.

Juice of 1 lime

Continue to stir fry another minute and then add your cooked rice. Stir fry until veggies are al dente. Serve in festive bowls, if possible.

I normally garnish a stir fry with chopped cilantro and peanuts, but I was out of both. So, I raced out to the front yard and snagged a few leaves of basil from my plant. I gave them a quick chop and scattered it over the stir fry. Wow, what a great addition!

Win loved it. Life is good. :)

Maiden Voyage

I've been getting a lot of guff from a certain Riley about my lack of recipe postings. The idea of a family food blog is right up my alley, but what can I say, I'm a bit of a slacker. :) Actually, I haven't produced any noteworthy culinary delights in at least 10 days. It's been leftover pasta and scrambled eggs mostly. How sad is that?! The main culprit behind the recent downturn is the "Sanity", Win's 26ft Pearson Sailboat. My dinners have been no match against the lure of cool evening breezes, amazing sunsets, and spending time with family on the boat. I guess I can't blame him. :)

So, I have decided to post a recipe that received a lot of great feedback when I first made it a few weeks ago. It was one of those meals that inspired bad table manners, i.e. licking the plate. What can I say, it was that good.

Fried Green Tomato Salad with Shrimp Remoulade

Now, here comes the scary part. I'm the worst when it comes to writing down a recipe. For any of you that have been in the kitchen with me, you know that I'm an intuitive cook. I love the idea of following a recipe, but within 1-2 minutes, I'm over it. The measuring gets me every time! The crazy part of this story is that I am an avid cookbook reader. I love nothing more than to read one from cover to cover, but I can't remember the last time I cracked open of my beloved books for a recipe. So, with that said, take this "recipe" and play with it. Make it your own. Lick your plate clean. :)

Shrimp Remoulade

1 lb of boiled shrimp, shells removed and deveined

2 green onions finely chopped

Combine:

2-3 tbs mayonnaise

1-2 squirts ketchup

1-2 tbs spicy mustard

1-2 tbs horseradish

Juice of a lemon

2-3 shakes of hot sauce

Salt and black pepper to taste (We like a lot of cracked pepper!)

Combine shrimp, onion and sauce. Put in the fridge until the tomatoes are ready.

Fried Green Tomatoes

Thick slices of green tomato ( I was lucky enough to pull them from my own garden!)

Batter the tomatoes in milk and breadcrumbs. Place in hot skillet (with a thin covering of oil). Brown tomato slices on both sides until done- 3-4 minutes total. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

Salad

Sliced Avocado

Salad Greens of your choice. I used Arugula.

Olive Oil ( I used one infused with truffles. Thanks, Kacey!)

Prepare salad greens and avocado. Drizzle with a little oil. Top with Tomatoes and Shrimp Remoulade.

I served it with a thick slice of grilled bread, but that is not a requirement. :) If you are unable to find green tomatoes, just use eggplant. It will go down a treat!

Until next time,

Heather

Welcome!

I thought I'd kick us off with a summer cookout that Kevin and I had with our friends Andy and Pepper during a visit to their new house in Oxford, OH last weekend. There was no way dinner was going to be bad, considering the location--their beautiful deck looking out over towering black walnut trees and the creek behind their house. And the weather was perfect for grilling.

After a false start (we let the fire die out because we were bumpin' our gums too much), we got down to business. Simple but delicious--the barbecue chicken my dad made when I was growing up (marinated for several hours in Newman's Own Olive Oil and Vinegar salad dressing, then grilled until delicious), corn on the cob with butter and cayenne, and a tomato-and-onion salad with basil from Pepper's herb garden. And we had s'mores for dessert. It turns out there are few things tastier than charred marshmallows.