My family enjoys cooking so much that we often have contests, and these contests began way before the food network began Iron Chef and Chopped. Why, years ago my husband, daughter and I began a monthly food contest.

My daughter Natalie returned home after having been away for awhile, and both my husband and I wanted to do something she would enjoy, so Michael suggested we begin a food contest between the three of us. My son Frank, who also enjoys cooking, was away to college or he would have joined in as well. Anyway, we typed up forms which included appearance, texture, taste, and nutritional value. Michael and Natalie always won for their plates’ appearance, yet I did win once or twice during the year for taste and nutritional value. I don’t remember if I ever won over all. We had great fun and we came up with some amazing recipes, all original.

The last few years, Natalie and I have continued a type of Iron Chef Food contest. Michael came up with the idea. He purchases the main ingredient and we have one hour to make an appetizer and main meal. One year it was chicken and last year it was shrimp. Natalie won the chicken contest, but I won the shrimp contest. We laugh a lot, we run around the kitchen, search the refrigerator and freezer, and we scour the food pantry looking for unique ingredients. Our husbands enjoy the taste tests and carefully fill out the contest forms. Of course, both Natalie and I come very close to winning, but there is always just one winner.

Following is my recipe for the shrimp appetizer.

  ½ cup    crystallized ginger – chopped
  1 tbsp. red hot pepper crushed
  1 tbsp. orange zest
  6 jumbo shrimp
    
Combine chopped ginger, pepper, and orange zest in a plastic food bag. Toss shrimp in and be sure to coat well. Bake in 375 degree oven for 8 minutes or until shrimp become pink (coral). Serve with orange slices.

My family absolutely loves macaroni and cheese, the good old fashioned one with one hundred percent sharp cheddar, whole milk, and elbow pasta. The problem is that one tiny portion will add one inch to each thigh within a blink, so we opt for an Italian version that is unbelievably delicious yet less caloric than the popular American Macaroni and cheese. 

This particular recipe was concocted, yes concocted, like many of my recipes. I don’t usually follow a recipe.  I like to create my own while considering certain particulars like how much fat is included, amount of sodium, impact of carbs, and of course appearance. Because we are a family of cooks, (every single one of us enjoys cooking) we have a comment on most traditional recipes. One would think we are restaurateurs, we are not. My son has his own business, my daughter is a resource teacher, my husband is a retired electrical contractor, and I’m an English teacher.

When I was raising my children, I was a stay at home mom, so I tended to include my children in everything I did around the house. When I cleaned, they helped me; when I had laundry to do, they assisted, and when I cooked, they participated. My daughter would sit in her high chair by the kitchen counter and I would give her something to do. My fondest memory is of her dredging an eggplant slice, so I could include it in Eggplant Parmigiano.  My children helped me make Italian biscotti when they were still toddlers, and they learned how to cook full meals before they went off to college. My husband loved cooking so much, that when he sold his electrical business, he bought a restaurant. The Arcadia Tea Room was his love and passion until it was destroyed by hurricane Charlie. 

Our home could very likely compete with any cooking show. When the four of us are together, we become instant chefs. Frank’s wife attends to the children, and Natalie’s husband often has clean up duty, but my husband, son, daughter and I cook, bake and have a blast.

The following recipe is one that was decided out of dietetic necessity. It cuts the amount of calories in half, and it tastes amazing.

1 lb. penne
 Pinch of salt
 2 c skim milk
 3 tbsp flour
 ½ c Parmigiano Regiano 
 Pepper to taste
 1 c skim milk shredded mozzarella 


Place penne in boiling water and cook for recommended time. You may add the pinch of salt in the pot. In the meantime, combine skim milk and flour in large skillet. Warm this mixture till the consistency is a little thick, stirring all the while. Then add your cooked pasta. Now, include the Parmigiano Regiano. Place the pasta into a greased baking dish, add the pepper and top with shredded mozzarella. Bake at 350 degrees till the top is lightly browned, about ten minutes or so. 
 
Serve with spring salad and a glass of Chardonnay. 

My Italian born family took our holidays very seriously. Cooking, baking, and prepping began days ahead, and in some cases weeks ahead. Thanksgiving was especially busy for us because we could not let go of our traditional dinner which began with a platter of antipasto, followed by sauce, ravioli or lasagna, platters of meat, garlic bread, and salad. No, my family insisted on cooking all that as well as the American turkey dinner. Of course, the main meal was not the only consideration. Desserts were my mother’s specialty, so she would put us to work at least one week ahead. However, what I remember most was the camaraderie between my sisters, mother and I. I remember lots of chatter and laughing. We truly enjoyed preparing for the holiday.

 We baked dozens of cookies as well as cassata (a specialty cake filled and topped with sweet ricotta), and a variety of pastries. Chicken soup was cooked on Monday; sauce with meatballs, sausage, veal neck bones, and bracciole was cooked on Tuesday night.  Homemade ravioli were completed on Wednesday. The tray of antipasto was taken care of Wednesday night, and finally the turkey as well as the stuffing, broccoli rabi, mashed potatoes (combination of rustic and yams), stuffed mushrooms, corn, and cranberry sauce were prepared on Thanksgiving.  

That was then, many years ago before we knew better (it’s not healthy eating all that food), and before we women had full time jobs. Now, we bake one cake, have cream of something soup, which I make with broth not heavy cream, and turkey with all the fixings. Though our Thanksgivings are lighter, we maintain the tradition of family gatherings, and the essential four course meal: primo (soup); second (turkey and all the fixings); terzo (fruit and nuts), and quarto (cassata and espresso). It still may sound like a lot but trust me this is cutting it down considerably.

I hope your Thanksgiving is blessed with happiness, health, and lots of delicious food. I have included two recipes which I believe are the two most important for this holiday. God Bless!

15 lb. Turkey
Defrost in refrigerator at least 24 hours before.
Clean outside of turkey with sea salt and lemon.
 Remove all gizzards from inside (these may be used for gravy) and then wash with salt and lemon as well.
 Rinse entire bird in ice cold water, drain, and return to refrigerator.
 
Turkey Rub: 
 2 tspns.  Garlic powder
 2 tspns. Pepper
 1 tspn.  Salt
 1 tspn. Oregano
 2 tspns. Rosemary – chopped 
 ½ tspn.  Paprika
 Combine well.

Stuffing
2 cups rice
1 12 oz. pkg.  mushrooms – chopped
1 8 oz. pkg. frozen baby peas
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 stalks celery – chopped fine
1 lg. onion – chopped
3 cloves garlic – chopped
4 sprigs of fresh parsley – chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 loaf of Italian Bread (3 days old) cube and moisten in water before squeezing all water out – should be somewhat crunchy – not soppy wet.
1 small onion – chopped
3 cloves garlic – chopped
2 sprigs of parsley – chopped
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

In pot, cook the two cups of rice till tender. When cooked, drain, and set in a large bowl.  In a large skillet, warm two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil then add chopped celery and slowly cook till soft; then, add chopped onion, garlic, mushrooms, parsley, salt and pepper. Add these ingredients to cooked rice and then include grated cheese.  Now, in the same skillet, add 4 tblspns of butter; then, add chopped onion, garlic, and when soft and translucent add softened bread and grated cheese.  Combine all stuffing. Take your turkey out of refrigerator and stuff with rice and bread stuffing. Now, liberally butter your entire turkey. Then, spread your herbs on both sides of turkey. 

Many years ago, I was teaching at a local high school in Bayville, Long Island. Many teachers brought in their own lunch, and I was no different.  This particular cool autumn day, I brought in a thermos of homemade chicken soup.   As soon as I unscrewed the top, Angela, one of my colleagues, said, “That smells delicious. How did you make your chicken soup?”
I enjoy being complimented on my cooking, so I replied, “This is my mother’s recipe, so I can’t take full credit, but it’s made from scratch.” 
“What exactly does that mean?” she asked.

“That means everything you place in the pot is fresh; for instance, the chicken is not out of a can or box but from the meat department; the fruit is not frozen but picked from the produce aisles; the liquid is water not chicken bullions (way too salty), and the parsley is home grown,” I said.
“Do you know?” she said, “I’ve never made authentic chicken soup.”
I asked, “How do you make your chicken soup?”
“Oh,” she said, “I use Lipton Chicken Soup mix, add some water, and then include extra noodles when the soup boils.”
“Oh my gosh,” I thought, “she can’t be serious?” 

I’ve since learned that most people do not make chicken soup from scratch because it does take a long time to prepare the chicken and to clean and cut the vegetables. Once all the ingredients are in the pot, the soup itself takes at least one hour to cook.  However, she was serious and I apologized for my look of dismay.  My recipe wasn’t the original recipe.  My mother always made chicken soup using fresh chicken from our own chickens and the vegetables were home grown vegetables from our many acres of farm land where we also grew almond trees, olive trees, oranges, lemons and much more.  When we moved to the United States, my mother shopped at a local farm stand for her vegetables and bought our chickens from the neighborhood poultry store that had live chicken coups in the back. My mother would choose the chicken and the owner would prepare it for us to take home. 

By the time I married and began cooking my own meals, the farm stand was gone and the poultry store had been replaced by Bohack, a local supermarket. Yet, I have tried to maintain the integrity of the chicken soup, so it tastes very much like hers.  I gave Angela the recipe for the soup, hoping she and her family would enjoy it as much as my family did.  I saw Angela in the faculty lounge during lunch the next day. She did not have chicken soup for lunch; instead, she was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  
“Hey,” I began eagerly, “how was the soup?”
“That was the worst chicken soup I have ever tasted,” she replied.
“Oh no. What happened?” I answered, feeling guilty that my chicken soup did not pass the taste test.
“Well all this brown stuff came to the top, and it tasted awful,” she said, disgusted by what she had seen and eaten.  

I realized I’d forgotten to tell her to clean the chicken.  I thought everyone would know to take off the skin to ensure the soup would not become too oily.  I didn’t mention to halve the chicken in order to remove the liver, kidneys, and heart, known as the gizzards.  I also did not mention that one should wash the chicken with lemon and salt to eliminate the bacteria or gamey taste. 
Once I told her what had gone wrong, she promised to try it again. The next time, she came back with a big smile, “My family absolutely loved the soup, and the recipe made so much we can have it again toward the end of the week.”
“You can freeze it, you know.” I said.
“Really?” she asked, “That’s what I’ll do next time. I don’t think my kids will allow me to freeze it this time.”


Yeah, success!

1 – 2 lb. chicken (whole)
4 carrot sticks – cleaned and chopped
4 celery stalks – cleaned, deveined, and chopped
1 sweet onion – chopped or whole (easier to remove)
12 pepper corns left whole
1 tsp.  Salt (I do not like salty food, so add more salt if you like).
2 tbsp. Parsley (chopped)
4 cups water
4 cups chicken stock

Be sure to clean chicken first. I prefer to remove almost all the skin, and I thoroughly clean the inside. Wash chicken through, and place in pot with water and chicken stock.  Begin the cooking time. In the meantime, chop carrots, celery, and onion.  Add to chicken soup.   Finally, add parsley, pepper corns and salt. Let soup simmer for at least one hour.

You may serve with cooked rice, tortellini, acini di pepe, or any other pasta you like, as long as it is small. My grandchildren enjoy the small bows or the alphabet pasta while my husband and I break long spaghetti into small pieces, boil half way, and then let them cook through in the soup (be sure to drain spaghetti before you add to soup).

You may also serve it with croutons on top as well as some grated Parmigiano Reggiano. 

Yummy good.

Italians will never starve. Italy may be on the brink of bankruptcy, but Italian people will continue to eat well and eat healthy. The following meal, yes it is a meal, can actually feed a family of four, all you have to do is add another ½ half pound of pasta, a few more cloves of garlic, maybe another fried zucchini and you’re good to go. 

My father used to say, “I can eat rocks as long as you fix them with garlic, basil, and a little bit of olive oil.” That’s how I was brought up. Pasta con aglio e olio, simply stated is pasta with garlic and oil. It is one of the most traditional dishes in Sicily, and let me tell you, it is one of the most delicious meals you will ever taste. What makes it so good? Well, maybe it’s the garlic or the extra virgin olive oil, or maybe the toasted breadcrumb and zucchini on top; whatever the topping or ingredient, you will marvel at this mouth watering dish. 

Buon gusto e felicita!

½   lb. regular spaghetti 
3     tbs. extra virgin olive oil
2     cloves of garlic, chopped
1.    zucchini, sliced and fried – set aside
2.   strips of anchovy
1     cup of warm water from pasta pot
Salt and red pepper to taste
1     cup toasted bread crumbs
Grated cheese (pecorino romano) – individual preference as to how much
Basil or parsley, how much and which one is up to you.

In a medium size frying pan, place olive oil and garlic.  Braise garlic lightly and then add anchovy till it melts.  Add the warm water, salt and pepper.  If you have added salt to the pasta, do not add to broth.  Remove cooked pasta from stove, drain and place back in pot.  Add the broth and toss with cheese.  Place fried zucchini on a separate plate.  
Each person can fix his/her dish.  
Pasta, zucchini, parsley or basil, bread crumb and cheese, in that order.