This past Wednesday, the day that the article about collecting recipes came out in the Arizona Republic, I received a call from an elderly gentleman in Mesa. He left me a message saying he’d read the article and thought I might like to have his deceased wife’s collection of cookbooks.

Image via Pinterest

With the hundreds of cookbooks I already own, it may not seem as though I am picky about what cookbooks I have, but honestly, I am quite selective.

I called back and after I listened to the man’s story of losing his beloved wife and the bookshelves of cookbooks that he wanted to empty and be rid of – I said, “Yes, I will be happy and honored to come over and take the books off your hands.”

Connor, my dad, and I, drove to his home in Mesa and piled all the books into the back of my car. Once we got home I went through them, hoping to find a treasure or two.

Guess what? I found my treasure – the kind of gift that just keeps on giving.

It’s called “How to Entertain at Home” by Sylvia K. Mager with the editors of Today’s Woman. Published in 1952 by Fawcett Book. Its 142 glorious pages sold for a mere 75¢.

And yes, that bottom photo on the cover is of children trying to bite at hot dogs dangling on strings from the ceiling!

Please allow me to share some of the important requirements for entertaining in 1952.

[Read more →]

There is no recipe today. Sorry to disappoint, Sloane! But there are several links throughout this post to recipes that have previously appeared here…

This past Thursday I received some exciting news… one of my blog recipes will be featured in an upcoming cookbook! If you were one of the people who voted for my Martini Puffs to be included in the “Cocktails & Appetizers” section of the book… Thank You!

After I submitted the recipe, more than six months ago, I forgot about it. So this is a happy surprise. 

The book will be available on October 19, 2010. If you would like to pre-order a copy of the Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook from Amazon you can do so by clicking THIS LINK. And no, sadly I do not get any $$ from the sales… it may be time to do a book of my own!

[Read more →]

I developed this recipe about a dozen years ago. It’s been featured in two cookbooks, FamilyFun Cooking with Kids and Reflections Under the Sun, and I will be making it on Channel 12 NBC Valley Dish with Tram Mai next month (4:30 PM, Wednesday, June 3rd). The thing I love about it is how quickly it comes together and how, with just an itty bitty bit of planning, you can get it on the table in about 10 minutes. How is that possible? Make the marinade in the morning before you head out the door, (it literally takes less than 5 minutes to do) throw in the chicken, cover, and refrigerate. When you come home, get the water for the pasta boiling while you drain the peppers and sun-dried tomatoes and stem/string the peas (or purchase them already strung in the bagged lettuce area of your supermarket), steam or blanch the peas in the “pasta water” – before you add the pasta to it. Once you throw the pasta in the salted water, you get busy browning the chicken – and by the time you’re done reducing the sauce and heating it all through, the pasta will be ready – hopefully, you’ve gotten one of the kids to set the table, because dinner is ready!

[Read more →]

So here are my feelings about Thanksgiving leftovers – I love having mass amounts of white meat leftover for turkey sandwiches, and it wouldn’t feel like Thanksgiving without all the fabulous turkey stock I make from the carcasses, but the rest of it… not so much!  To that end, I always make two turkeys, one is roasted the traditional way, and the second is always grilled or smoked. This year I wound up with 36 cups of a stock, happy day!

To use up all that dark turkey meat, I just make our family favorites and add in the turkey.  Our all-time favorite salad is another of Barbara Pool Fenzl’s recipes.  It comes from her 1994 Southwest The Beautiful Cookbook. I’ve made very few changes to the recipe over the years… instead of whisking by hand, I use a food processor for the dressing.

Since the original recipe makes about 1 1/3 cups of dressing, I double all the other fixings so that all that amazing dressing can be utilized, it would be shameful to waste even one drop!  Also in the original, the tortilla strips are dusted with chili powder prior to frying. Instead, I salt and dust them immediately after removing them from the hot oil so the seasoning really sticks to the strips. And with all this turkey on hand, it quickly becomes a perfect main course salad for a busy weeknight family dinner.
[Read more →]

Ingredients for Green Chile Macaroni

Connor is coming home for the Labor Day weekend this afternoon. I texted him earlier this morning and asked what he would like for dinner… strangely enough, he said, “rotisserie chicken and good mac and cheese.”  The reason I say “strange” is because one of his most basic “college foods” is Easy Mac – so it is the last thing I’d ever guess he would want. But of course, he did say “Good” mac and cheese and that means one thing – Robert McGrath’s Green Chile Macaroni. This is the best mac and cheese you can imagine! Robert is one of my favorite chefs and honestly one of my favorite people. His cookbook, American Western Cooking has this and so many other amazingly delicious recipes.  I’m writing the recipe just as it appears in the book, but I generally use only 1/4 cup heavy cream plus 1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half.  And Connor really likes to have breadcrumbs on top of his mac and cheese. If you do too, just melt 1 tablespoon butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet, add 1 peeled and minced garlic clove and 1/2 cup dried bread crumbs or panko and sauté until crumbs are browned. Sprinkle on top just before serving.

Robert McGrath’s Green Chile Macaroni

1 tablespoon corn oil
1/4 cup diced poblano chile
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced red onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup sweet corn kernels
2 cups cooked elbow macaroni (about 1 cup dried before cooking)
1/2 cup roasted, peeled, and pureed poblano chile (see note below)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated hot pepper Jack cheese
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Heat the corn oil in a heavy pan over high heat and sauté the diced poblano chile, red bell pepper, red onion, and garlic until just tender. Add the corn kernels and sauté quickly.

Add the cooked macaroni, poblano puree, cream, and pepper Jack cheese. Stir until all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Season to taste and serve.

Serves 4

[Read more →]

I am saddened by the news of the passing of Sheila Lukins on Sunday, August 30, 2009. The last time I saw Shelia was when she came to teach at Les Gourmettes Cooking School and promote her newest cookbook, Ten, in December 2008.  She was a dynamo and she will be sadly missed.  Shelia’s most famous cookbook and still one of the best cookbooks 25 years later is The Silver Palate Cookbook she co-wrote with Julee Rosso.  It came out in 1979, the same year I graduated from high school, and it was one of the first cookbooks I owned.  A couple of my favorite recipes from it were, and still, are, Strawberry Chocolate Tart and Tarragon Chicken Salad (recipe below).  I love that book to this day and it reminds me that I wanted to put up my list of cookbooks you should own… please post comments about cookbooks that are on your “must-have” list!
[Read more →]