Friday 5ive- January 21, 2022

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly-ish blog post featuring five things that caught my attention this week. It's been a cold week here in NYC, and the weekend is supposed to be even colder. It's a good time to stay inside and read.

1) Last week we were in Florida, where the weather was warm and sunny. I spent one perfect day at the beach, not too hot, no breeze, just sun and sand. 

2) I've been trying to cook more now, and I pinned some recipes from The Washington Post 's Top Ten Most Popular Recipes from 2021. I made Aaron Hutcherson's Baked Chicken Thighs with Butter and Onions, and it was hit. Next up is the Leslie Brenner's Classic Ragu Bolognese. They all look really great.

I also made Katie Lee Beigel's Banana Cake after I saw an episode of The Kitchen on the Food Network. If you ever thought "You know what would make this banana bread better? Cream cheese frosting", then this recipe is for you. My husband loved it.

3) There's a new type of 15 minute grocery delivery service in New York City. They have small store fronts filled with things like diapers, water, fresh fruit and vegetables, bread, poptarts- lots of stuff. You place an order on an app, and within 15 minutes (or so), your order is delivered. I passed by Fridge No More in my neighborhood and I am curious. It's great if you're home and need something quick for a recipe or you're not feeling well and don't want to go out. There's no minimum order, and the prices seem pretty reasonable compared to the grocery stores. I haven't tried it yet, but I may just to see if it works.

4) One of my favorite books is JR Moehringer's memoir, The Tender Bar, it's always on my Staff Recommends shelf at the Book Cellar. I've been waiting for the movie based on the book to hit Amazon Prime Video, and we watched it this week. George Clooney directs the movie, with Ben Affleck playing Uncle Charlie to JR, who is played by Daniel Ranieri (as a young boy), and Tye Sheridan (as a young man) All of them are very good. JR is being raised by his single mom, played beautifully by Lily Rabe. They moved back in with her parents, brother (Affleck), and various other siblings and nieces and nephews who seem to come and go depending on circumstances. It's a lovely movie about family, and having a mom who believes in you. I adored the 70's music, I hope I can find the soundtrack. You can watch the trailer here.

5) I read a fabulous book this week.  Adriana Trigiani's upcoming novel, The Good Left Undone is an epic, sweeping story about a family of artisans in Tuscany, Italy. The Cabrelli family has been creating and selling beautiful jewelry for generations, and now Matelda, the elderly matriarch, is reflecting on her life as her 25 year-old granddaughter Anina is questioning the choices she has made in her own life. The story is told in present day and in the days leading up to WWII where Domenica is a young nurse who runs afoul of the local parish priest and is sent away from her family to Marseille, France to work with nuns in a hospital. She meets handsome Scottish sea merchant captain John McVicars there and quickly falls in love. 

As war approaches France, Domenica is sent to Scotland, and then Liverpool, England, where Italians are sent to an internment camp because the British government feels they can't be trusted, as Mussolini has aligned Italy with the Nazis. Trigiani once again gives us a fantastic generational family story, and layers in a historical lesson that many of us did not know- Italians (many whom had lived in England and Scotland for years) were rounded up and imprisoned based solely on their heritage. (Susan Elia MacNeal's The King's Justice dealt with this topic as well.) This is similar to what the United States did to people of Japanese descent after Pearl Harbor.

One of the best things about reading an Adriana Trigiani novel is that it is a treat for all of your senses.You can hear the tents snapping in the wind at Carnevale, smell apple strudel baking, taste the delicious cherry cake (I would love that recipe!), and see in your mind's eye the beautifully crafted jewelry "glistening like ribbon candy" in its case. 

As someone who grew up attending Catholic school, I appreciated the nuns in the story. The care they provided as nurses to their charges, the kindness they showed to Domenica, the strength they exhibit, these are the women I grew up knowing. One of my favorite scenes occurs when Anina and her fiancé go to their parish priest for advice. The priest is a wise man, who listens to their concerns and relates his best advice- "Forgive.Forget.Repeat."

At a time when we have all missed seeing our family- parents, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles- falling into this big, beautiful book about, as Matelda says, how "a family is only as strong as its stories" will encourage us to share our own family's stories with each other. And as Father Fracassi says, we must "reflect on the past, (and) make peace with it. You cannot control the evil done to you. You cannot turn back and right the good left undone." There is so much to ponder in The Good Left Undone, it's the kind of book that once you turn the last page, you want to immediately begin to reread it. I give it my highest recommendation. It publishes in April, preorder it today from your favorite bookseller.

I hope you all stay safe and healthy and warm. 

Friday 5ive- January 7, 2022

Welcome back to the Friday 5ive, a weekly(ish) blog post about five things that caught me attention this week. It's been awhile since I posted a Friday 5ive, the holidays and work kept me very busy, but now that it's 2022, it's time to get back on track.

1) Like everyone else in the world, I was saddened to hear of the death of Betty White. I know that most people associate her with The Golden Girls, but for my money her best performance was as the Happy Homemaker Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. I have been watching reruns of that show on my Echo show in my kitchen while  making dinner at night and I'm up to seasons 6 and 7, when Sue Ann had some great storylines. (Season 6, episode 15- What Do You Want To Do When You Produce?, Season 6, episode 23- Sue Ann Falls in Love, Season 7, episode 3- Sue Ann's Sister are standouts.) You can find it on Hulu. 

2) We had family visit us for Christmas, and my rusty coooking skills got a workout. Two breakfast recipes were so popular, I made the each twice. The first is Berry Croissant Bake, a recipe I found on Kara Creates on Pinterest. You make it with already baked croissants from the bakery, top with fresh or frozen berries and a cream cheese, eggs and milk mixture. It was so good, there were nearly fistfights over the leftovers. The recipe is here, and the photo is from Kara Creates webpage. 

The second recipe is for Baked Western Omelet is from The Seasoned Mom, and is one I have made in years past. It's an easy casserole with eggs, milk, cheddar cheese, diced peppers and onions and ham (I also made a smaller dish without ham for our vegetarian fans). This recipe makes a great lunch or light dinner too. The recipe is here. The photo is from The Seasoned Mom. 

3)  Last night I listened to a fascinating Zoom conversation with author John Searles in discussion with Laura Lippman celebrating 25 years as an author  (20 novels, 2 essay collections, and 2 short story collections) and her current book of short stories, Seasonal Work (which is terrific, especially the title story.) I like both of these authors and their discussion ranged from Lippman's pandemic closet remodel and her daily posting of her outfits she bought on ThredUp on Twitter (she is marvelous on Twitter!) to her channeling of the voices of her characters in Seasonal Work. Lippman has always been interested in female characters, particularly young women and girls, and that comes through in this amazing collection set mostly in her beloved Baltimore. Searles' upcoming novel, Her Last Affair, out in March, is also a great read, especially if you like creepy psychological suspense stories, and the setting of an abandoned drive-in is genius. The Ivy Bookshop in Baltimore hosted the event. 

4)  I watched the movie Being The Ricardos on Amazon Prime this week. Nicole Kidman's astonishing transformation into Lucille Ball really impressed me, especially in light of all the criticism she took on prior to the filming. Javier Bardem is great as Desi Arnaz, and although the movie focuses on one week in the life of Lucy when she was accused of being a Communist during the filming of season two of I Love Lucy, we get flashbacks to their early relationship. The rest of the cast is fantastic, including JK Simmons (as William Frawley aka Fred Mertz), Nina Arianda (as Vivian Vance aka Ethel Mertz) and Tony Hale as executive producer Jess Oppenheimer. Aaron Sorkin wrote and directed the movie, and it's a must-see for anyone (aka everyone in America) who grew up watching reruns of I Love Lucy. 

5)  After a brief hiatus from reading, I managed to get four books read over the Christmas break. Dana Spiotta's critically acclaimed novel Wayward is set in Syracuse. Spiotta is a professor at Syracuse University and her novel is centered around Sam, an upper class woman in her 50s who, after the 2016 election, has a midlife crisis and decides to leave her husband and buy a dipidated home in a troubled neighborhood in Syracuse. She has a good relationship with her mother, but her relationship with her seventeen year-old daughter is fraying at the seams. Sam is trying to connect with the people in her neighborhood, and when she witnesses a police officer shooting a young black man, she grapples with how to deal with that.  There is also a lot of architectural history about Syracuse (I grew up in nearby Auburn) in this deeply moving story that I found so interesting, it makes me want to research it more thoroughly. 

Kimberly Belle's My Darling Husband would make a terrific Lifetime movie. The story centers around Jade, a woman married to Cam, a celebrated chef and restauranteur in Atlanta. They live in a McMansion with their two young children and all is well until a man follows Jade home and holds her and the two children hostage. He demands that Cam bring him a very specific large sum of money by 7pm or he will kill the family. Cam has been hiding things from Jade, and she must use all her skills to figure out who this intruder really is and how to keep her children safe. My full review posts January 10th. It's a pulse pounding read. 

If you remember watching the sitcom Roseanne, Jenny Pentland's memoir This Will be Funny Later is one you will want to read. Pentland is Roseanne Barr's daughter, and she, her older sister Jessica, and younger brother Jake were youngsters when their mother rocketed to fame as a standup comic and then sitcom superstar. The family lived in Denver and eventually moved to Los Angeles when the sitcom took off.  The family came apart when Roseanne divorced their father Bill and became involved with Tom Arnold. Jessica and Jenny were both sent away to various facilities over the years to deal with their behavorial, psychological and drug problems, and Jenny's descriptions of the places she lived in are harrowing at times. The price of fame for the Pentland family was way too much, and if you ever dreamed of what it would be like to be rich and famous, this book will disabuse of any notion you have. 

And finally, as mentioned above, I read Laura Lippman's brilliant short story crime fiction collection Seasonal Work. Lippman excels in creating full-bodied characters in these short stories that many novelists would not be able to do in a full novel. The first story, Seasonal Work, is the strongest one about a down-on-their-luck family whose car is broken into on Christmas Eve and all their presents are stolen. Tess Monaghan, the star of many of Lippman's twenty novels, makes a welcome appearance in this story and another for true Lippman fans. The other stories, including the hilarious Snowflake Time, with its Bill O'Reilly-type main character, draw the reader in immediately. Many of these stories have been seen in other collections, but the new one, Just One More, combines Lippman's love of the TV show Columbo with a bored couple during the pandemic. If your attention span suffered during the pandemic, Seasonal Work is a great cure. 

I hope you all had a happy holiday season, and that you stayed safe and healthy. Until next time.

Friday 5ive- January 29, 2021

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly blog post featuring five things that caught my attention this week. This week we went back to Tuscany, even if only virtually.

1)  I saw Bobby Flay on the Today Show, talking about his trip to Italy. He cooked a Ragu of Beef and Red Wine with Fresh Fettucine, and  I decided to make it for dinner that night.  It reminded me of the delicious cingale (wild boar) pasta dinner we had in Montelpuciano at a favorite little restaurant of our friends and traveling companions, Osteria di Porta Al Cassero. Luckily our neighborhood Italian grocery store has fresh fettucine, and all of the other ingredients I needed. It turned out really well, but it would have been better if we had cingale instead of beef and pork.

My Ragu of Beef and Red Wine with Fresh Fettucine

2) Continuing our Tuscan theme, we did a virtual wine tasting on Thursday night with Alberto from Cortona Wine Tours. We met Alberto through AT Escapes, a NYC company who arranged our wonderful  trips to Italy in 2018 and 2019. We tasted two Brunello wines, and Alberto gave us an overview on the wineries. It was good to see him again, and we are enjoying our virtual wine tastings with family and friends. If you enjoy a good wine, a virtual wine tasting is a fun activity you can share with friends. You can find Cortona Wine Tours on Facebook, Instagram and here. 

Prepping for our wine tasting

Our wine tasting zoom with Cortona Wine Tours

3)  Following our wine Zoom, I jumped on a Zoom hosted by the New York Public Library. Amber Ruffin, a writer/performer on Late Night With Seth Meyers on NBC and host of the Peacock show, The Amber Ruffin Show, and her sister Lacey Lamar were in conversation with Alison Stewart about their book, You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories About Racism.  Amber and Lacey grew up in Omaha, where Lacey still resides. The book is filled with true stories of things that people have said to Lacey. The one story that Amber likes best is when Lacey was cashing one of her checks that feature  different photos of historical Black figures on them. The clerk looked at the check and said to Lacey- "How great is that- you have your own picture on the check. How did you do that?" The picture was of Harriet Tubman, and Amber told us, that yes, it is that famous photo of Harriet Tubman that was on the check. 

Lacey said that the book's stories came from a binder she kept of things that people said to her. She has enough for a binder. Alison asked her if people's attitudes changed when Obama was elected, and Lacey said yes, that some white people she worked with were angry when that happened. They said that America was going to hell. When Trump was elected, it became worse. She said overnight it changed, people told her that their leader was elected, and their behavior became egregious. I just received my signed copy of their book from Oblong Books in Rhinebeck, and my review will publish in the next few weeks.

4)  We watched Da 5 Bloods movie on Netflix this week. Spike Lee directed this critically acclaimed story of four Black Vietnam Vets who return to Vietnam to find the remains of their buddy who died in battle- and to find the gold bars they found and buried there. It's an astonishing film, the cinematography is stunning, and the performances by Delroy Lindo, Norm Lewis, Isaiah Whitlock Jr., and Clark Peters as the four returning vets and Chadwick Boseman as their dead friend, are fantastic. The film just won the National Board of Review Award for best film, Lee won for best director and it is well deserved and Delroy Lindo is a front runner for an Oscar nomination as best actor. I highly recommend this film. You can watch the trailer here. 

5) I read three books this week. I read two books in a new WWI spy series by Kelly Oliver. We meet Fiona Figg, a file clerk for Room 40, the British spy agency. Fiona is plucked to get information on a South African big game hunter and newspaper reporter to discover if he is a German spy. While undercover as a male doctor, Fiona deals with agents, double agents, and a dead countess in Betrayal at Ravenswick. In the second book, High Treason at the Grand Hotel, Fiona is sent to Paris to continue her mission. Here she gets involved with real-life people like Mata Hari and and infamous serial killer. Both books are good reads for those who enjoy the Maisie Dobbs and Maggie Hope historical mystery series. My review of both books are here. 

I'm almost finished with Melanie Chartoff's memoir Odd Woman Out- Exposure in Essays and Stories.  I remember Melanie Chartoff from her days on ABC's late night answer to Staurday Night Live, Fridays. She was beautiful and hilarious, and she has such distinctive voice. While this memoir has a little backstage Hollywood gossip, it's her story of a life trying to hone her craft and find her authentic self. I found her stories about her family, especially her mother's heartbreaking life, most moving. She's a good writer, drawing the reader into her life, from Off-Broadway to Broadway to TV to ending up on Rugrats cartoons, where most people recognize her voice. I'll have a full review on Monday. 

Stay safe and socially distant, wear a mask, wash your hands and get a vaccine when it's your turn.

This post was shared at The Intrepid Reader.  You can more food related posts there.

Friday 5ive- March 27, 2020

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly blog post about five things that caught my attention during the week. Well, it's been another week that seemed to last about a year. Everyone in NYC has been staying inside, and grocery stores now have taped lines on the floor at checkout to keep people socially distanced. Some checkouts have plexiglass between the cashiers and customers as well. Some stores have been limiting the number of people they let in the store at one time. Everyday, a new procedure has been put in place.


1) Our doggie picture of the week is of my son and his girlfriend's dog Otto. While his humans have been staying inside working from home, Otto's dog walker took him and his friends to the nearby ocean for a nice run. Otto is living his best life, as you can see from this Instagram post by his dog walker. Otto is in first place in the race.

2) My husband's family had a Virtual Happy Hour last week on the Zoom app. We had 13 homes, and it was alot of fun, if somewhat chaotic at times with everyone talking at once. It was just like Thanksgiving. It was really good to see everyone's smiling faces and catch up on how everyone is coping working from home.

3) Today I spent 4 hours reorganizing my extensive book collection. My husband had beautiful  custom built bookshelves put in for my Christmas present a few years back, and today I finally got around to reorganizing them- I have my Favorites Shelf, Autographed Books Shelf, and several fiction sub-categories. I have a Memoir Shelf, plus sub-categories there as well. The photo below is just 1/3 of the bookshelf. The apartment isn't big enough for me to empty all the books on the floor. Hi, my name is Diane and I am a biblioholic.

4) Since I'm home, I have been cooking dinner every night. We have had Spanish Rice, Pork Roast with Stuffing and Mashed Potatoes, and with the leftover pork we had pulled pork barbeque with John Legend Macaroni and Cheese and ambrosia salad. I also tried a new recipe, Pizza Pot Pie, that was very tasty and I will be making it again. The link to it is here, it's from TasteMade.

Photo from TasteMade

5) I'm about a quarter of the way through a new book, The Office- the Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s by Andy Greene. If you are a fan of the show, as most people I know are, this is a fantastic book. He interviews actors, writers, producers, casting director, pretty much anyone who had anything to do with the show. I'll post a full review soon. And if you like The Office, Jenna Fisher (Pam Beesley Halpert) and Angela Kinsley (Angela), host a podcast,  Office Ladies, about the show, that is good too.

Add caption

Stay safe and healthy everyone and stay home.

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.

Weekend Cooking- It's Too Hot to Turn on the Oven

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.

The weather in New York City and across a large swath of the country has turned oppressively hot, with the temperatures soaring into the 90s. It's just too hot to cook dinner, so I turned to Pinterest to find some recipes that I can make without turning on the oven.

My husband loves Sloppy Joes, and I found a twist on that with Big Mac Sloppy Joes from This Is Not Diet Foods. The recipe is simple, browning ground beef, then adding a little mayo mixed with Thousand Island dressing, salt and pepper to replicate the Big Mac sauce. Toss in chopped pickles and onions, add some shredded cheddar cheese and heat in a skillet. Brown hamburg rolls (which I did in a toaster oven), top with shredded lettuce and you are all set. It really did taste like a Big Mac, which, depending on your opinion of the Big Mac, is a good or bad thing. I'm wondering what it would taste like if I swapped out ground turkey for the ground beef. The recipe can be found here.

Photo from thisisnotdietfoods.com

I was looking for a salad to pair with the Big Mac Sloppy Joes, and I found a recipe for Columbia Restaurant's famous 1905 Salad. We love going to the Columbia Restaurant in St. Armand's Circle in Sarasota, Florida, and frequently we go to share the salad and their scrumptious Cuban bread for a nice lunch. This recipe took us right back to sitting at a table at Columbia, all we were missing was the red sangria. Can't Stay Out of the Kitchen had the recipe posted here.

You start with iceberg lettuce (which my husband loves), add chopped tomatoes, julienned ham and swiss cheese, and green olives. The dressing is a simple olive oil, white wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper blend, then you add some grated Romano cheese, a squeeze of lemon and the secret ingredient- Worchestershire sauce. Toss well and you have a tasty side or main dish salad. 

You can find bottled Columbia salad dressing in the Publix in Florida, but it's so easy to make yourself, why would you?

Photo from cantstayoutofthekitchen.com

It's probably hot where you are too, what do you make for dinner when the temperature hits 90 degrees?

Weekend Cooking- Sometimes It's The Simple Things

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.

Sometimes I dread thinking about what to make for dinner, especially when I know I have to work and won't be home until after 6:30pm. I could get something at the grocery store the day before that's a 30 minute recipe, but then I have to rush home, have no down time, and get right down to cooking.

Or I could turn to my InstaPot, figuring that I will throw something in the slow cooker, turn it on and head out to work. That still requires a grcoery store run the day before, but at least when I get home from work I have the main entree part done. Then it's just figure out a side, vegetable and salad, and it's done.

A few weeks ago, I decided to go the slow cooker route and pulled out a cookbook I haven't yet used- Phyllis Good's Stock the Crock- 100 Must-Have Slow-Cooker Recipes, 200 Variations for Every Appetite. I picked it up at the Book Expo a few years ago, but never used a recipe from it.

Not being in any mood for something with mulitple steps, I found a Basic Chicken and Salsa recipe by Sara P. The book is filled with recipes from "a community of cooks". Well, OK, Sara P., let's see if this works.

You need 2- 3 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs and a 16 jar of salsa. I happened to have jar of Frontera salsa sitting in my cupboard, so that was easy. Spray your slower cooker with nonstick cooking spray, put the thighs in and top with the salsa. Cook on low for 4 to 4 1/2 hours, then shred the chicken in the salsa and put over rice. That is it.

I had my doubts- it seemed too easy. I was fully prepared to order out that night if this didn't work.
Boy, was I surprised. I came home to a wonderful smell, and my son's girlfriend had kindly shredded the chicken before I got home, so I didn't even have to do that!

It. Was. Delicious. My husband and I loved it, the chicken was so tender and the salsa was flavorful. (Using thighs instead of boneless breast is key.) When my son and his girlfriend came home much later, they had some of the leftovers and asked for the recipe. My husband even took some for lunch the next day
.

They do suggest some variations to spice it up- add a drained can of black beans and one cup of fresh corn before pouring the salsa over the chicken in the slow cooker. You can also top the chicken with cheese, avocado slices, halved cherry tomatoes, chopped red onion and bell peppers.

Sometimes it's the simple things.

Weekend Cooking- I'm On A Roll

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.

After my Easter dinner extravaganza, I seem to be back on track in the kitchen. I went to social media  and found two new recipes to try. Each one was a winner according to my husband, who seemed happy to have homecooking back on the menu. (He even ate leftovers!)

The first recipe I tried was French Onion Chicken Meatballs. I saw this on Delish's Facebook page, and it looked like an easy weeknight dinner. If you like French Onion Soup, you'll get a similar taste profile here. They recommend baking the chicken meatballs, and I think I overcooked them just a tiny bit.  Next time I may try ground chicken thighs instead of ground chicken breast to see if that helps. I did like the taste that the gruyere cheese added to the ground chicken.

While the meatballs are baking, you carmelize the thinly sliced onions and add the beef broth. Boil it until it thickens, then add the meatballs and top with more gruyere cheese. My sauce didn't thicken enough, so I added cornstarch and water for leftovers the next night and it was much better. My husband loved it over egg noodles. The link to the recipe is here.

The second recipe is Spinach Artichoke Chicken Casserole from Keto Cooking Christian that I found while perusing Pinterest. I was looking for a good casserole that I could reheat on day two after I got home from work.

From Keto Cooking Christian

It starts by mixing cream cheese, sour cream, heavy cream, parmesan cheese and mayo (I know, I know), then adding a box of thawed and drained frozen spinach, chopped chicken (bonus for me, I could use my frozen rotisserie chicken breast meat from Costco), and chopped artichokes. You top it with mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minutes and you have dinner.

We're not eating Keto per se, but this recipe looked good, and I have to say it turned out really well. (It has a lot of fat, so I guess that's why.) If you like spinach artichoke dip, this casserole is for you, and if you are following the Keto diet, give this recipe a try.

Did you try any new recipes this week? Let me know in comments below.

Weekend Cooking- Easter dinner

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.

We had an early Easter dinner this year, celebrating on Saturday night. The entire gang was here, so I wanted to make everybody's favorites. It took an entire day of shopping (in NYC, you walk to multiple places to get all your supplies), and I broke the cooking down into two days.

On Friday, I made the Strawberry Jello Salad because, you absolutely have to have a Jello salad on Easter. I believe it may be constitutionally required. I also made Pistachio bread, (from Better Than Burgers) which I usually make on St. Patrick's Day, but since we weren't all together then, it found a place on the Easter table.

My mom always makes deviled eggs, and my sons have come to expect them at Easter. Mine aren't as good as my mom's, but she couldn't send them through the mail, so they had to make do with mine.

I also made Barefoot Contessa's Tarragon Potato Salad which is kind of my go-to dish. Everyone I have ever made it for absolutely loves it.

On Saturday, I made Simple Scalloped Potatoes, which my husband requested. I underestimated how many people would eat that (the potato salad is more of a fan-favorite), and we barely had enough.

John Legend's Macaroni and Cheese was on the table for our vegetarian fans. It is another recipe we have often at family gatherings as well as Broccoli Salad, another popular request that made the cut.

The star of the show was Barefoot Contessa's Herb Roasted Lamb. I get a six-pound boneless leg of lamb at Ottomanelli's butcher, and they never disappoint. My husband makes a mean gravy from the drippings, and everybody was loving the lamb.

We paired the lamb with two bottles of Benovia Winery's 2017 Liberation Pinot Noir, which was delightful. It was bottled to commerate the upcoming 75th anniversary of D-Day, and there is an interesting story about it on Benovia's website here.

Benovia Winery's Liberation 

We finished up with Irish Bread Pudding, an old Cooking Light recipe that we normally have on St. Patrick's Day. We've been eating that for probably fifteen years and it's always an annual treat.

On Sunday, we had a simple brunch before our travelers left. I made Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake (from Alexandra Cooks) and a new recipe- Baked Western Omelet Casserole - (from the Seasoned Mom) that was such a hit, four of us ate almost the entire dish.

My family surprised me with a beautiful Easter basket, which you'll see below. It was filled with my favorite things and made with love. All-in-all, it was an Easter to remember.

My Easter basket

I hope you and yours had a blessed Easter and Passover as well. Did you make any family favorites? Let me know in the Comments section below.

Tasting Italy- A Culinary Journey

Tasting Italy- A Culinary Journey by National Geographic & America's Test Kitchen
 Published by National Geographic ISBN 9781426219740
Hardcover, $40, 383 pages

National Geographic and America's Test Kitchen have teamed up for a beautiful coffee table book, Tasting Italy- A Culinary Journey. Combining what they both do best, they take the reader on a journey through Italy, using the food of Italy as the basis.

America's Test Kitchen's Chief Culinary Officer Jack Bishop explains in his introduction how the differing climates of Northern and Southern Italy influenced the way that people in these regions ate. Traditionally pasta is a staple in the south, whereas corn polenta is the staple in the north. Olive oil is used more in the south, butter and cream more in the north.

The book is divided into three main regions- Northern, Central and Southern. The North is bordered by Switzerland, France and Austria and so their food is heavily influenced by those countries. It is surrounded by mountains, and therefore has a cooler climate. Fontina cheese and Nutella are among the most famous products made here.

The book is filled with gorgeous photographs of the region, as well as 100 recipes that the reader can try at home. Savoy Cabbage Soup with Ham, Rye Bread and Fontina and Spaghettini with Shrimp are two recipes from Northern Italy calling to me.

Central Italy, home to Florence, Rome and the Tuscany wine region, is probably what most people think of when they think of Italy. We took a trip to Florence this past summer, so I was most familiar with this section of the book, and I enjoyed reliving some of the best meals we have we have ever had by reading this.

Proscuitto wrapped in melon, figs, bistecca (steak), porchetta (pork) and the luscious Chianti wines can be found here in glorious abundance. The Hunter's Chicken recipe will find a place on my table soon.

Southern Italy has the hottest temperatures in all of Italy. The pace of life is a little slower here and  you'll find tomatoes, eggplants and lots of fish (anchovies, sardines, cuttlefish and octopuses) and not as much meat. The recipe for Eggplant Parmesan looks incredible.

Tasting Italy- A Culinary Journey is a wonderful book to give as a gift to anyone who has traveled to Italy, and with the holidays coming up it's the perfect time. National Geographic covers the fascinating history of the different regions, and America's Test Kitchen perfectly pairs their best authentic Italian recipes with the history. Even armchair travelers will be entranced by this beautiful book.

Thanks to TLC Tours for putting me on Tasting Italy's tour.  The rest of the stops can be found here:

Tour Stops

Wednesday, October 31st: Bryanna Plog

Thursday, November 1st: I Wish I Lived in a Library

Sunday, November 4th: Instagram: @lavieestbooks

Monday, November 5th: Always and Forever (Journeys through widowhood and beyond)

Tuesday, November 6th: Kahakai Kitchen

Tuesday, November 6th: Wining Wife

Wednesday, November 7th: Getting On Travel

Thursday, November 8th: Staircase Wit

Monday, November 12th: bookchickdi

Tuesday, November 13th: Thoughts From a Highly Caffeinated Mind

Tuesday, November 13th: Traveling Between

Wednesday, November 14th: Man of La Book

Thursday, November 15th: A Chick Who Reads

Friday, November 16th: Broken Teepee

Weekend Cooking- Trying To Eat Healthier

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.

We're trying to eat healthier in our household, something that has been hit or miss. My husband is out to business dinners two to three nights a week and I don't cook on those nights for just myself. I'll eat leftovers or cereal.

I did come across two recipes recently that worked well. One is Chicken Cacciatore with Peppers, Onions and Mushrooms that I saw on the Today Show, made by Anthony Scotto of Fresco by Scotto, a restaurant here in NYC. My husband loves peppers and onions (me, not so much), but I'll eat them in a dish like this.

The recipe calls for using a entire cut-up chicken, but I substituted chicken thighs and drumsticks because my husband prefers those. It also called for using 1/2 cup of olive oil to saute the chicken in, and I cut that back.

It takes about 45 minutes to cook on the stovetop, so this is a recipe that can be made on a weeknight. It was full of flavor, and adding red wine to deglaze the pan added a nice touch to this dish. I will be making this one again now that cooler is (supposed to?) be on the way. I served it over angel hair pasta with a salad on the side.

You can find the recipe for Chicken Cacciatore with Peppers, Onions and Mushrooms here.

I also made an Apple, White Cheddar and Spinach Salad with Honey-Apple Cider Vinaigrette one night, a recipe I found on Pinterest.  It's a simple salad, and the honey-apple cider vinaigrette was a huge hit, one I will make for other salads.

Apple White Cheddar Spinach Salad with Honey Apple Cider Vinagrette
For the salad:
6 cups of spinach (a package of fresh spinach that you find in the produce section works perfectly)
1 large apple, thinly sliced (I used a Fuji)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (I had Havarti on hand so I used that)
1/2 dried cranberries
1/2 cup sliced almonds (we omitted this)

For the dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Layer the salad in a large bowl. For the dressing, in a small glass jar with a lid add all the ingredients and shake well. Pour the dressing on the salad, toss and place the salad on a platter immediately.

You can find the recipe on Averie Cooks.

Have you made any healthy recipes that you'd like to share? Tell me about them in comments.

Weekend Cooking- Cooking Light Recipe

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.

Flipping through the January/February edition of Cooking Light, I bookmarked several recipes that looked tempting to me.

The first one is a Pumpkin Soup with Almonds and Sage that looks similar to Rachael Ray's Pumpkin Soup recipe that I made for Thanksgiving; it was a big fan favorite. I may try this one to see which we prefer. The recipe is here.

Next is a Turkey and Swiss Sloppy Joe Sandwich that I may pair with the Pumpkin Soup for a Sunday lunch. The recipe is here.

My husband wants to eat more vegetables this year, so we decided that soups would be a good way to accomplish this as he is not a big vegetable fan overall. There is an Immunity Soup recipe with onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms, kale, chickpeas and chicken that looks like it will fit the bill. The recipe is here.

I tried brussel sprouts for the first time on our Florida vacation (I know, I know) and liked them, and the Broiled Flat Iron Steak with Brussel Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes is a recipe I might have avoided but now will try. The recipe is here.

Pork tenderloin is a good weeknight meal because it is a quick cooking meat, and that makes the Pork Tenderloin with Mushrooms and Onions recipe that takes 23 minutes one I will be making on a workday. The recipe is here.

My husband loves beef stroganoff, so to mix it up, I will try the Chicken Stroganoff recipe. That recipe is here. He likes Chicken Cacciatore and I like slow cookers (another good weeknight meal), so the Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore is also going to get a look. The video for that dish is here.

I did manage to make one recipe from the magazine this week- BBQ Beef-Stuffed Potatoes. It was pretty easy, but I did have an issue. You make a brown sugar/tomato paste rub for the boneless chuck roast and place baking potatoes wrapped in parchment paper on top and cook for 8 hours.

BBQ Stuffed Potatoes- from Cooking Light 

I have never cooked baking potatoes in the slow cooker and I think my potatoes may have been too large because they were not cooked enough after 8 hours. Next time I may cook the potatoes in the microwave.

The dish was tasty, full of flavor and at only 385 calories, it's a terrific lower-calorie dinner. You top the potatoes with the beef that you shred, shredded cheese, sour cream, and green onions. It's similar to the Taco Potato we used to sell at our Taco Maker restaurant. We'll have it again. The recipe is here.

Did you try any new recipes this week? Let me know in comments.