The Beach Club Book Club Reads Jennifer Ryan's The Kitchen Front

It was time for the annual Beach Club Book Club summer book discussion. We couldn't go to the beach this year, so we discussed Jennifer Ryan's WWII novel, The Kitchen Front at the home of one of our members.

Mary Beth went all out with the theme of life in the small town outside of London during WWII. Four women compete in a cooking contest with the prize of cohosting on the BBC radio show, The Kitchen Front.

As we entered the kitchen, the island was set with the book surrounded by authentic posters from the era, and a recipe that Mary Beth made from the book- Audrey's Eggless Apple and Honey Cake (which was tasty). We were all glad that nothing with whale meat was served.

Susie made a family recipe that was handed down, potato and flour cakes fried in flour, because butter was in short supply in England in WWII.

Kerry made Victory Garden Brownies that were decorated like Audrey's garden.

Kathy put her own spin on "ration boxes", filled with wonderful appetizers. including mini wheels of brie, which made an appearance in the book. These were so cute, everyone wanted to steal the idea for their own parties.

Our discussion was insightful. We talked about the growth of the characters, particularly Lady Gwendoline, who began as a self-centered woman, but grew to become a strong, caring woman. Nell came out of her shell and showed her true accomplishments as a cook to honor Mrs. Quince, her mentor and friend. Many of us most identifed with Audrey, the widow raising her two sons, perhaps because many of us in the room have children.

We wondered if people today would be as stalwart when it came to handling the deprevations of wartime life- rationing food, growing our vegetables, raising animals (the Pig Club was interesting). The comparisons to the COVID lockdowns were commented on, and someone brought up the saying that during WWII people were asked to go to war, and during COVID we were just asked to sit on our couch and watch television,and some people found that too difficult.

Favorite scenes in the book were discussed, with the final competition scene with all the women marching into the room together receiving many comments. We liked the happy ending to the book, and hoped that perhaps the end of this book could lead into a sequel. We want to know what happens to these women once the war is over.

The Kitchen Front was big hit with the Beach Club Book Club, and if you like novels about female empowerment and friendship and the WWII British setting, you'd enjoy it too.

After a delicious and filling lunch of sandwiches, salad, quiche, and so many desserts, Kerry handed out gift bags she made for everyone. She included a bee bookmark, recipe cards, and pins and tiny ration cards. Mary Beth won the grand prize of a can of Spam. (My dad would have loved that, fried up in a pan.)

Posing with our books and aprons

The Beach Club Book Club

Grape, Olive, Pig by Matt Goulding

Grape, Pig, Olive by Matt Goulding
Published by Harper Wave ISBN 978-0-06-239413-2
Hardcover, $35, 368 pages

Grape, Olive, Pig- Deep Travels Through Spain's Food Culture begins with Matt Goulding as a high school senior traveling with his class on a trip to Spain in 1998. Goulding fell in love with Spain and on a return trip in 2010, he fell in love with a Catalan woman named Laura, a woman he was destined to marry.

Goulding takes the reader on a journey through Spain through the eyes of someone who has found his calling and his home. In addition to taking us on a culinary tour of Spain, Goulding gives the reader a historical perspective, from the Romans who built Barcelona to the flourishing of Barcelona in the early 14th century to the dark days of fascism under Francisco Franco to the desire of the Catalan province to succeed from Spain that exists today.

We start in Barcelona, home to to the now-defunct El Bulli, considered for years to be the best restaurant in the entire world. Many of world's greatest chefs passed through the kitchens of El Bulli and four of the top six restaurants on the 2015 list of the World 50 Best Restaurants are run by chefs who worked in El Bulli.

Goulding takes us through the streets of Barcelona, stopping in The Boqueria, one of Europe's best, biggest and oldest food marketplaces, where each day people shop for fresh seafood, fresh-baked loaves of bread, cheese and charcuterie.

We go to Salamanca, where we meet Fermin Martin who shares the secret to jamon iberico (Spanish ham)- it's the diet of acorns fed to the pigs that give the jamon its deliciousness. Martin discusses the the problems in dealing with the USDA and all its myriad rules and regulations that are keeping us in the US from enjoying this delight.

We learn how to make the perfect paella in Valencia, and how the sushi craze in Japan has caused an explosion in bluefin tuna fishing in Cadiz. We travel with world famous chef Jose Andres to the cheese caves in Asturias.

The most interesting people we meet are a trio of sisters, the Gonzalez sisters. They are percebeiras, "hunters and gatherers of the gooseneck barnacle of the Spanish Atlantic". Gathering barnacles is a difficult and dangerous job, and the fact that they are women has created conflict with the men who do the same job. Their story is fascinating.

Grape, Olive, Pig is an essential book for foodies, armchair travelers and anyone who is planning a trip to Spain. Goulding's love for his chosen home is evident in this fascinating book, filled with great stories, lots of fun facts and lists and mouth-watering photos of food and drink one must try when visiting Spain. After finishing Grape, Olive, Pig, you will be checking online flights to Spain. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to TLC Tours for putting me on Matt Goulding's tour. The rest of his stops are here:

Tour Stops

Tuesday, November 15th: No More Grumpy Bookseller

Wednesday, November 16th: I Wish I Lived in a Library

Thursday, November 17th: bookchickdi

Friday, November 18th: A Bookish Way of Life

Monday, November 21st: Broken Teepee

Tuesday, November 22nd: 5 Minutes For Books

Monday, November 28th: Read. Write. Repeat.

Tuesday, November 29th: Kahakai Kitchen

Wednesday, November 30th: Cooking with Amy

Tuesday, December 6th: BookNAround

Wednesday, December 7th: A Bookish Affair

Weekend Cooking- Mostly True by Molly O'Neill

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food.
Mostly True by Molly O'Neill
Published by Scribner ISBN 978-0-7432-3269-2
Paperback, $20.95, 288 pages

A few weeks ago I posted a review of Julia Pandl's Memoirs of the Sunday Brunch, and Sarah, a Goodreads friend, suggested I might like Molly O'Neill's Mostly True- A Memoir of Family, Food and Baseball. Since those are three of my favorite things, I searched and found the book and read it.

Sarah was right; what a fantastic memoir! Molly is the oldest O'Neill child, followed in succession by five boys in the 1950s and 1960s. They grew up in Columbus, Ohio, a close-knit crew, and much of their lives revolved around baseball (like mine growing up). Her dad loved baseball and encouraged his sons to play the game; youngest son Paul grew up to play for the legendary New York Yankees (and before that, the Cincinnati Reds, a team close enough to home for his parents to watch him play often).

Anyone from a big family will relate to Molly's memories of growing up in a big family. Molly's attitude towards food came from her parents, who had a different idea than many people at that time. Columbus was (and still is) the test-market capital for food products. Grocery stores were filled with product samplers, while ubiquitous today, were not found in may places in the Unites States  back then.

The O'Neill's, however, did not serve their children pot pies or macaroni and cheese or tuna noodle casserole or even meat loaf. Her parents "practiced a separation of food groups. We had meat. We had potato. We had vegetable. We had salad. We had dessert.. Each was distinct and none was overcooked. It was humiliating."

Molly first became interested in cooking when she was trying to lose weight. She joined a weight loss support group because her brother mercilessly teased her about having unidentifiable kneecaps. There, a woman gave her a cookbook and Molly started cooking for herself because her mother would not make a separate meal for her. Soon Molly ditched the low calorie cooking and moved on to making recipes out of Julia Child for her grateful family.

She went to college in Massachusetts, became a feminist, wrote poetry and helped to start a feminist, humanist, vegetarian restaurant. As the women who ran the restaurant began to become more and more militant about what could be served, Molly became more creative with ways to make broth without any trace of beef and ways to use tofu.

After college, she settled in Provincetown, working at many restaurants. I loved reading about how Molly got her hands-on education, how she fought for her place in the male-dominated kitchens. Surely growing up with male siblings helped her here.

Molly gained a reputation, and a following, and soon two of her brothers followed her into the business. She got them jobs and they all cooked together.

Eventually Molly went to Paris to learn how to make desserts, she became friends with her neighbor Julia Child, she moved to New York and ended up a New York Times restaurant critic and a famous cookbook author.

Paul was playing for the Yankees while Molly was living in New York, so she spent many games sitting in the stands watching him and her father, who was so thrilled to have a son playing Major League baseball. Molly's mom was thrilled to be able to shop in New York.

This is a book for anyone who is fascinated by food, family and yes, baseball. But it is much more. It is the story of a woman finding her way through her passion and I absolutely loved it. I know I will read this one again and again. Thanks to Sarah for the suggestion!

rating 5 of 5

You can find some of Molly recipes on Cookstr here. 
My review of Julia Pandl's Memoir of the Sunday Brunch is here.

Weekend Cooking- Memoir of the Sunday Brunch by Julia Pandl

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food.

Memoir of the Sunday Brunch by Julia Pandl
Published by Algonquin Books ISBN 9781616201722
Trade paperback, $13.95, 256 pages

Julia Pandl is the youngest of nine children born to George and Teresa Pandl. Her dad owned a restaurant in Milwaukee, and every Sunday each child was expected to work the famous Sunday brunch. She recounts this life in Memoir of the Sunday Brunch.

I have to tell you how much I loved this book! You not only get an insider's look at what a tough life the restaurant business is, you also get a wonderful, honest look at life in a big Catholic Midwestern family, and Julia's relationship with her tough, loving father is so beautifully written it will make you want to give your own dad a hug.

George not only loved food, family and the church, he was a voracious reader. He even read during mass, though they were always books with a religious theme, to be fair. He was a huge presence in his family's life, and Julia loved him very much, even though he was always trying to feed food to his family that was leftover from the restaurant- as in leftover from months and years ago.

When she was fourteen, she asked if she could drive them to the restaurant, and George let her drive a little bit further each week, until soon she was driving them all the way. These rides cemented their close, loving relationship.

Working the brunch was not easy. Julia's first job was picking up trash in the parking lot. Next she moved onto peeling shrimp, and soon her job was making the pancakes for the line. As someone who owned a fast food restaurant, this section of the book had a special appeal for me.

As a Catholic, I also enjoyed reading about how the Pandl's faith informed their life. Terry had religious statues, rosaries and funeral cards all over the house. Terry is not a big part of the book until she loses a foot to diabetes. Julia's relationship with her mother seems to deepen as she helps to care for her aging parents.

The end of the book is very moving. Julia and her siblings must deal with her parents' serious illnesses, and these last few chapters are something that will make everyone reflect upon their own parents, as this is something that most of us will face at some point in our lives.

There is so much to love here in Memoir of the Sunday Brunch. Julia Pandl writes from the heart; with all the fun, the joy, the fighting, the hard work, the love, and the sorrow that living in a big family brings. This is one of my favorite book of this year, and it makes me appreciate my family even more.

rating 5 of 5

Julia Pandl's website is here.

Hungry by Darlene Barnes

Hungry by Darlene Barnes
Published by Hyperion ISBN 978-1-4013-2477-3
Hardcover, $24.99, 272 pages

What drew me to Darlene Barnes' memoir Hungry: What Eighty Ravenous Guys Taught Me About Life, Love and The Power of Good Food was that we had some things in common: she had two sons and was getting ready for 'empty nest syndrome' as she sent her last son off to college, and she liked to cook.

Barnes married a man in the Canadian military, so they moved from base to base. He eventually ended up as an engineer and they lived in Texas. She found a job working as a personal chef for a very wealthy (and a wee bit crazy and self-involved) family. What she liked best about the job was getting to taste the lunches that the Korean maids brought in- Korean vegetable pancakes and chili pastes- and the  fresh corn tortilla tacos the gardeners ate. Her wealthy clients insisted on Kraft cheese singles and fat-free yogurts, not exactly healthy or tasty.

When her husband took a job with Microsoft in Seattle, Barnes applied for a job as a cook at a fraternity house at the University of Washington. Her prickly personality and penchant for cursing earned her a reputation as someone not to be messed with, a definite plus with the frat members and the vendors, who were not accustomed to a frat cook who questioned what they were selling.

Barnes thought the job as a cook for a fraternity to be a "puzzling occupation, like circus clown or spy." But she was told she would have the ability to create her own menus, within the budget restraints given, and to make the job whatever she thought it should be.

She knew how to deal with young men, as she had two of her own, but there were moments that gave her pause. Stepping over broken glass on the way to basement storage and having to install a childproof device on the freezer after finding it unplugged three times made her apoplectic. But the respect and kindness the young men showed her convinced her she had done the right thing in taking the job.

Barnes was appalled at the kind of food that the men were used to; they had grown up on Pop-Tarts and Kraft mac and cheese. Still, they were willing to give her food a try. Instead of the frozen meatballs and fajitas the last cook served, Barnes made hers fresh. Her goal was to get them to eat healthier, to try new things, like kiwi fruit.

She decided that it was easy to make salad dressing from scratch, so she stopped buying bottled. This simple decision led her to question what else she could make from scratch, like soups, salsa and sauces. From there, she began a quest to use as much locally produced foods as possible. From fruits and vegetables to beef and chicken, Barnes questioned her vendors and sought out the best food she could buy for the guys.

The food service company sales reps were not as receptive as the frat guys. They often found Barnes to be argumentative and a general pain compared to the other fraternity and sorority cooks who just served packaged or frozen foods, but some grew to respect her way of thinking.

Barnes takes us inside the fraternity and introduces us to some of the guys. She talks about the ones she likes, and the few she felt were lazy. She watched as they pulled together during a few tragedies and answered their frequent text messages with cooking questions, even as she was on vacation in Istanbul with her husband. Her relationship with the guys is touching and sweet, even though she plans to quit every single summer.

I enjoyed Hungry immensely; Barnes' cranky, honest personality shines through. Her decision to make frat food tastier and healthier inspired me to be more mindful of what I'm buying and preparing for my family. I felt like I was right there in the frat kitchen with her, and if the Food Network is smart, they will snap her up and give her a show. I'd watch in a heartbeat.

I also like that there are many recipes throughout the book, and I'm going to try most of them, starting with Blueberry Cornbread now that blueberries are in season. (See, I learned something already!)

Blueberry Cornbread
4 T. butter
1 1/2 cups medium or coarse-grain cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
6 T. sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups whole milk
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Place butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet and place in a 375 degree oven until butter is melted. Stir together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and stir in milk. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients, stir in blueberries, and pour mixture into the hot skillet. Bake 30 minutes and serve with butter and honey.

rating 5 of 5

Darlene Barnes' blog is here.

Thanks to TLC Tours for putting me on this tour. The rest of the tour stops are below.

Darlene Barnes’ TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, August 5th:  Life, Love & Books

Wednesday, August 7th:  ::steph chows::

Thursday, August 8th:  Peppermint Ph.D.

Friday, August 9th:  Lit and Life

Monday, August 12th:  A Lovely Bookshelf on the Wall

Thursday, August 15th:  Peeking Between the Pages

Monday, August 19th:  Book Club Classics!

Wednesday, August 21st:  Guiltless Reading

Thursday, August 22nd:  Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Monday, August 26th:  Bookchickdi

Wednesday, August 28th:  The Well Read Redhead

Tuesday, September 3rd:  Kahakai Kitchen

Thursday, September 5th:  BookNAround

Monday, September 9th:  girlichef

Saturday, September 14th:  Joyfully Retired

Weekend Cooking- Chef Alex Guarnaschelli at Random House Open House

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food.

I have never watch Food Network's Chopped (I know, don't yell at me), but I have seen chef Alex Guarnaschelli on TV talking about her new cookbook, Old-School Comfort Food- The Way I Learned to Cook, and found her very interesting.

She made an appearance at Random House Open House last week, and her conversation with Huffington Post Food Editor Carey Polis was so enjoyable. Guarnaschelli has a deadpan, low key sense of humor and she had us all laughing with her funny asides. I liked her cool, biker-chick wardrobe too.

She wanted to write a book "that readers could cook from", using ingredients we all can find. Poking fun at crazy recipes that call for ".7 grams of leather extract", she asks "Where do I find that? Do I melt down a coat? Scrape a shoe?".  She said "you don't have to buy eye of newt to make my food".

Comfort food to her is food that you grow up eating. Her mom, a cookbook editor, made classic French recipes, and so Guarnaschelli says that she found it "interesting to redefine comfort food in my own way" in this book. She says she feels she "let down the mac and cheese set" as that recipe will not be found here. Some of her favorite recipes are for coffee cake, melon soup, arugula and strawberry salad.

One of her biggest take-aways is that "being a spectator to cooking before you cook is highly underrated." She learned a lot watching her mother cook, and says that much like learning how to play basketball, you first have to watch how it is done and practice before you start. I never thought about cooking that way, but it makes sense.

She talked a little bit about her process for appearing on Iron Chef. Before her appearances on the competition show, she practices "between 9- 23 recipes" in her head. She said everyone should have a repertoire of dishes you can make "no matter what." These should include "a cake, salad dressing and a basic sauce", things you can build upon. Her goal is to win Iron Chef, something that has eluded her thus far.

The discussion ended with a recitation of Guarnaschelli's favorite foods- "Oreos, Twizzlers, Bugles, Funyuns, Cool Ranch Doritos, Munchos, frozen yogurt with lots of fruit and chocolate, cinnamon donuts from the box with three kinds of donuts, unfrosted strawberry Pop-Tarts, Dr. Brown Black Cherry soda and Dr. Pepper, and bologna." No one saw that coming!

If Guarnaschelli decides to leave the chef world, she would make a terrific stand-up comic. She had a lot to say about her mother (whom she lovingly and laughingly compared to Darth Vader at one point) her dad ("the greatest guy in the world"), and her curious 5 1/2 year-old daughter. I picked up a copy of her cookbook and she graciously signed it for me. I'll have a review in a future post.

Me and Alex Guarnaschelli at Random House Open House

Alex Guarnaschelli's website is here.

Sunday Gravy and Macaroni

When we lived in Auburn, I used to make a big pot of this homemade sauce with meatballs and sausage; my husband and sons loved it, and it was perfect for a big Sunday family dinner. (I told my younger son I was making tonight and he said "oh, I love that" wistfully; poor guy is  2 1/2 hours away at college.)

As I am not Italian, my mother did not teach me how to make 'gravy', or sauce, as we non-Italians called it. This recipe came from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Get-togethers cookbook, and it is truly easy and tasty. Once you've made your own homemade sauce, oops gravy, you'll never go back to store-bought.

Now I pair it with fresh made penne pasta from Agata & Valentina, and that ups the taste level too.
Since it's supposed to be cold and snowy tomorrow, I'm hoping there will be leftovers for meatball subs for dinner the next day.

Rachael Ray's Sunday Gravy and Macaroni- from Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, for both meats and sauce
• 3 thin cut pork loin chops, 1/2-inch thick, cut in 1/2
• Salt and pepper
• 2 each sweet and hot Italian sausage links
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, for moderate to spicy marinara
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped, 3 for sauce, 2 for meatballs
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, a couple of handfuls of leaves
• Several leaves fresh basil, torn or chopped, a handful
• 1 pound meat loaf mix, ground beef, pork and veal combined, from butcher counter
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, 2 handfuls, plus extra for tossing pasta and to pass at table
• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs, 3 handfuls
• 1 loaf crusty Italian bread, for serving

Directions

Heat water for pasta to boil. Salt and cook pasta 7 to 8 minutes, to al dente.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat a deep skillet or medium heavy bottomed sauce pot over medium high heat. Season pork chops with salt and pepper. Halve sausages. Add 1 tablespoon, 1 turn of the pan, extra-virgin olive oil to pan or pot. Place chops in pan or pot and brown 2 minutes on each side, remove. Add another tablespoon oil, 1 turn of the pan, and sausages. Brown sausages 2 minutes on each side and transfer to plate with pork. Add pepper flakes, 3 cloves chopped garlic and onion to the pot and saute 1 minute. Add broth to the pan and scrape up drippings. Add tomatoes and herbs and bring sauce to a bubble. Add meats back to the pot and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer sauce until ready to serve, 12 to 15 minutes.

Combine ground meat, egg, remaining 2 cloves chopped garlic, 1/3 cup cheese, and bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper and roll into balls, 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. Place balls on nonstick cookie sheet. Roast meatballs 10 minutes, then slide into Sunday sauce and turn off oven. Add bread to oven to crisp crust.

To serve, place pork, sausages and meatballs on serving dish. Pour 1/2 of the sauce into a serving dish to ladle over pasta and meats at the table. Toss cooked spaghetti with remaining sauce in sauce pot, adding a few handfuls of grated cheese to the pot as you toss it. Transfer pasta to a serving dish.

Manga!

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!

Superbowl Snacks

We spent New Year's in New York City this year, and I went all-out on the cooking. Our college aged-sons cook for themselves, so I thought I'd make some some great snacks for New Year's Day. But these snacks would be perfect for Superbowl Sunday.

I saw Jamie Oliver make Sausage Rolls on Live With Kelly, and so I made them. They turned out great, perfect with a nice mustard dipping sauce. The link to the recipe is here.

I also made an old favorite, Hot Reuben Dip. One of my sons is a big corned beef fan, and this really hits all those flavor notes. I got it from a woman who brought it to a holiday party, where it was a big hit.
Hot Reuben Dip
1 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
3/4 cup sauerkraut
1/2 cup Thousand Island Dressing
4 oz. cream cheese
 5 oz. corned beef, chopped
Mix all ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low for 1 1/2 hours. Serve on top of crackers or on rye or pumpernickel cocktail bread.

I had leftover ingredients, so a few days later, I made
Mini Reubens
Preheat broiler. Place cocktail rye or pumpernickel slices on baking sheet. Top each with 2 teaspoons Thousand Island dressing, a slice of folded corned beef, a bit of well-drained sauerkraut, and some shredded or 1/4 slice Swiss cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese is melted.

My sister-in-law makes Mary Alice's Hoagie Dip, which tastes just like a Wegman's Joey Sub, and came from Food Network Magazine. I also made this for a neighborhood party, and it was big hit there
1 med. onion
2 pickled pepperoncini peppers
1/2 head iceberg lettuce
 1 large tomato, halved and seeded
1/4 lb each- deli-sliced genoa salami, deli-sliced ham, deli-sliced prosciutto, deli-sliced turkey, deli-sliced provolone cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 ts. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 round loaf Italian bread
hoagie rolls for dipping
Chop onion, pepperoncini, lettuce, tomato into bit-sized pieces. Dice meats and cheese.
Combine chopped vegetables, meats and cheese in large bowl. Add mayo, olive oil, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes and stir til everything is well mixed. Refrigerate til ready to serve.
Cut center of round loaf out to make a bowl, cut scraps of bread into bit-sized pieces. Serve dip in bread bowl, with bread and hoagie rolls on side.

Mary Alice's Hoagie Dip

For our main entree on New Year's Day, I made Food Network chef Robert Irvine's
BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches
4 lbs. pork shoulder roeat
5 whole cloves
3 Tbsp. BBQ rub (I used Penzey's Galena Street Chicken & Pork Rub- a gift from sister-in-law- but you can use any dry BBQ rub you like)
2 red onions, thinly sliced
2 cups water
16 oz. BBQ sauce (I used Dinosaur BBQ, a family favorite, but again, you can use any BBQ sauce you like)
Stud the roast with cloves and rub with BBQ rub. Put roast in crockpot and top with onions. Cover roast with water and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours. Remove pork, discard cloves and layer of fat as well as any water and grease left in crockpot. When pork has cooled, shred it with two forks. Return meat to crockpot and top with BBQ sauce. Heat for 1 to 2 hours. Serve on rolls.


Do you have any favorite Superbowl Snacks you'd like to share? Share them in comments below!


This post is part of Beth Fish Reads Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!

Meatball and Macaroni Soup

My husband decided that for lunch today he wanted Meatball and Macaroni Soup, or as most people call it, Italian Wedding Soup.

I made a batch a few weeks ago and it was delicious, and I had enough leftovers for lunch for the next few days. I've made this for a few years, since I found the recipe in Rachael Ray's book, Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals 2.  My copy of the book is filled with sticky notes and food stains, so you know I've used it frequently.

Other recipes in it that my family has enjoyed include Marinated Beef, Chicken, Pork or Portobello Mushrooms, which is a simple marinade with a basic pan gravy that anyone can whip up quickly, Cheesy Orzo, a versatile side dish, and Sausage Calzones.


The recipe is below:
 Rachael Ray's Meatball & Macaroni Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan in a slow stream
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 bay leaves, fresh or dried
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound ground beef, pork and veal combined
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Romano, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
• 6 cups chicken stock or broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups dried pasta, rings, broken fettuccini or ditalini
• 1 pound triple washed fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
• 
  

Directions

In a deep pot over medium heat add oil, chopped carrots, celery and onions and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cover pot and cook veggies 5 or 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the veggies cook, combine meat, egg, garlic, grated cheese, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg.

Uncover your soup pot and add broth and water to the pot. Increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil. When soup boils, reduce heat a bit and start to roll meat mixture into small balls, dropping them straight into the pot. You are making meat dumplings that will cook in the broth. When you are done rolling the meat, add pasta to the soup and stir. Cover and simmer soup 10 minutes. When pasta is tender, stir in chopped spinach in batches. When spinach has wilted into the soup, the soup is done and ready to serve. Adjust your seasonings. Serve soup with crusty bread or grilled 4 cheese sandwiches.

I use Whole Foods Organic Chicken Broth, it really has the best flavor. I also add the spinach to each bowl individually. If you add directly the soup pot, the wilted spinach gets too stringy in the leftover soup.

Soup's on!

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Still eating turkey? Try this recipe

If you still have turkey leftover from Thanksgiving, try using it in this recipe from Giada De Laurentiis.
I made it using rotisserie chicken a few weeks ago, but it would taste just as good with turkey.
This recipe came from the Food Network website: 

Chicken & Orzo Fritatta:

Ingredients:

3/4 cup orzo pasta

6 eggs

1/3 cup whole milk ricotta

1/4 cup creme fraiche

2 cooked chicken breasts, cubed (about 2 cups) or use leftover turkey

4 scallions, chopped

1/4 cup chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley

1/3 cup diced roasted red bell peppers

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the orzo and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.

In a large bowl combine the eggs, ricotta, and creme fraiche and stir until the eggs are beaten and the ingredients are combined. Add the cooked orzo, chicken, scallions, parsley, red bell peppers, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.

Pour the mixture into a 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake for 25 minutes. Turn on the broiler. Place the pan under the broiler until golden on top, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and let set for 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve with a side salad.

I would add a little more sea salt and pepper, I felt it lacked a little seasoning. I baked a loaf of Trader Joe's Pumpkin Bread (from a mix- so good!), added a salad and dinner was ready. My husband pronounced it a keeper.