Irish Stew

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Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Of course corn beef and cabbage is the typical meal on St. Patrick's Day but really do you need a recipe for that?  Here is a great Irish Stew recipe handed down through my family.

Thanks to my mother, Julie Kane, I can bring you this.  For an Italian girl she sure can make some great Irish Stew!

This is "Grammy Kane's" recipe. She, too, was an excellent cook and she taught her Italian daughter-in-law a few of her irish recipes. She was an entrepreneur in her own right. She ran a boarding house and also had a side business serving lunches out of the boarding house to factory workers from the Smith-Corona and the Cresent Corset. I ate very well while staying with her in those days. Such fond memories for me and I'd say I definitely had and still do have the luck of the Irish!

Irish Stew

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. of chuck stew beef

2 tbsp. olive oil

4 medium potatoes - cubed
3 carrots - sliced into 1/4 in slices
1 medium onion - rough chop
6 c. beef stock
salt and peper
Wondra flour

Directions:

In a large soup pot add the olive oil and the stew beef over medium heat. Salt and pepper the beef to your taste and brown it, add the onions and the beef broth and simmer for about an hour and a half.
Add the potatoes and carrots to the pot after simmering for about an hour and continue to simmer for the remaining time. It is now time to thicken the stew with Wondra. Slowly add the Wondra while continually whisking. This must be done carefully not to over thicken the stew. If you prefer you could also use cornstarch mixed in water to thicken the stew. After the stew is thickened cook until the carrots and potatoes are completely cooked.

Serve over fresh hot biscuits. This is definitely a comfort food that warms my heart and soul!

Italian Shepherd's Pie

Italian Style Shepherd’s Pie
Denise Mironti

Although Shepherd’s Pie is an English dish I’ve been dreaming about how to put an Italian twist on it. My Italian family has turned their noses up to traditional Shepherd’s Pie as have I over the years. This recipe will turn any fussy Italian into a believer that this comfort food is fit for a cold winter’s night.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 Minutes

Total Time: 1 Hour

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Beef Layer

1 lb. ground beef – 85% lean
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
½ c. beef stock

1 medium onion

¾ c. frozen peas
¾ c chopped carrots

½ c chopped onions

1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
1 clove of minced garlic

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Pasta Layer
1 lb. of short cut pasta – I use mini cut ziti

1 28 oz can of plum tomatoes – use San Marzano

½ c. chopped onions

2 cloves of minced garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp of all spice
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

Béchamel Sauce

3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
2 c. 2% milk
Salt and Pepper
¼ tsp. garlic Powder
Freshly grated Nutmeg about 1/8 tsp.
½ c Parmigiano Cheese

Other
1 c shredded whole milk mozzarella

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Beef Layer
In a large frying pan over medium heat add 2 Tbsp of olive oil to the pan and the ground beef with approximately a tsp of salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes and then add the minced garlic, tomato paste, beef broth and the carrots. Cook for another few minutes and add the onions and cook for approximately 2 minutes and finally add the peas. Reduce on simmer and set aside.
Pasta Layer
Place a large pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and the pasta to the water and cook just shy of al dente.

In another large sauce pot over medium heat add the other 2 Tbsp of olive, the minced garlic and the onions and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and crush them with a tomato masher. Add the all spice, salt and pepper garlic powder (approx ¼ tsp of each) and bring to a bubble. Simmer and set aside

Béchamel Sauce
In another medium size sauce pan over medium heat melt the butter, whisk in the flour and cook for about a minute or so the whisk in the milk, adding slowly. After flour is dissolved in, add a generous pinch of salt, pepper, garlic powder and the nutmeg. Bring to a slow bubble and add in the Parmigiano Cheese and allow dissolving in the sauce. Gently simmer –stirring frequently.
Assembly
Drain the pasta and mix with the tomato sauce. Leave about a ½ c of sauce for the beef. Spray a lasagna baking dish with olive oil cooking spray and layer the beef mixture in the bottom of the dish. Pour the reserved sauce over the top. Layer the pasta over the beef and pour the Béchamel Sauce over the top. Layer some shredded mozzarella over the top and place in the over for about 30 minutes.
Enjoy!

Super Bowl Sunday!

We just love Super Bowl Sunday in our house.  It's like another special holiday!  I grew up loving football and I happen to think Sandro is the luckiest man in Cortland because of it.  He doesn't have to listen to a wife whining to turn the channel to Desperate Housewives on a Sunday evening.  In fact there are some Sundays that he begs me to change the channel to something else after several hours of football.
Of course James loves football too.  He's been going to SU Football games since he was three years old and he's learned that winning isn't everything :)  As an SU Football fan he has had to take it in stride.

I thought I would post some of what's on the menu for us every Super Bowl Sunday!

Super Bowl Chili

I have learned to make chili in a crockpot - something that I rarely used in the past.  This is a quick and easy recipe and there's no standing over the stove with this one.

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef (I use 85%) lean
1 can (28 oz) of crushed tomatoes
1 green bell pepper chopped
1/2 red bell pepper chopped
1 medium onion chopped
1 can of chili beans or red kidney beans
1 can of great northern or cannillini beans
1 small can of mushroom stems and pieces
Salt and Pepper to your taste
1/4 tsp. Garlic Salt
Chili Powder to the heat you can tolerate
Olive Oil - approximately 2 to 3 tbsp.

Directions:
Preheat a frying pan with olive oil (2 turns of the pan) and add the ground beef, add salt and pepper to the beef and cook until all the meat has browned.

In the crockpot put about a tablespoon of olive oil and add the green and red peppers and add a dash of salt, pepper and  some of the garlic salt and stir.  Then add the chopped onions and the mushrooms, again adding the salt, pepper and the rest of the garlic salt.  Add both cans of beans and add another dash of salt, pepper and garlic salt. 
Finally add the crushed tomatoes and the chili powder to the heat your family can tolerate.  Start slow and add more as needed.  Mix all ingredients well and then add the cooked ground beef.
Cover and turn on low - cook for at least 4 to 6 hours.

Cheese Fries

When I was a student at Syracuse University there was a place called Hungry Charley's or I think it was nicknamed - Hungry Chuck's.  I'm sure my brother-in-law Ken remembers this place well as all the SUNY Upstate students hung out there too!  They had the best cheese fries you ever have wanted to taste or at least on a Saturday at around 2:00 in the morning they tasted great!  Right Ken?! These are really easy and in fact so easy I won't claim this as a recipe but an idea.

Ingredients
Frozen Garlic or a Spiced French Fry or if you so please you can make your own homemade fries.
Cheez Whiz

Directions:
Deep fry the fries (you really need to deep fry them as it makes the fries taste so much better - start the diet on Monday!)
Melt the cheez whiz and pour it over the top of the fries or serve the cheez whiz on the side for dipping.
Oh these are great and they bring back such fond memories of being on the SU Hill/Marshall St!
The kids will love them too!

Taco Dip - Featured Chef - Colleen Munro

This is my sister Colleen's recipe.  And for anyone who knows the story you are laughing right now, so whatever you do - DON'T put this dish in the oven like my cousin Patrick and I did.  We made that mistake one time and Colleen will never let us forget it!  I think she wanted to bop us in the head, but we've since had many laughs over it!

Ingredients:
8 oz package of cream cheese softened
8 oz of sour cream
1/2 tsp Garlic Salt and Chili Powder (amount varies according to heat you like)
1 green bell pepper - chopped
1 small onion - chopped
1 large tomato - chopped
1/2 black olives - chopped (optional)
16 oz Taco Sauce
1 pkg of shredded cheddar
Nacho Chips

Directions:
Blend the cream cheese and sour cream together and add the garlic salt and chili powder.  Layer this in the bottom of a glass baking dish.  Then layer the peppers, tomatoes, onion and black olives on top of the cream cheese and sour cream.  Pour the taco sauce over the top and sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the top and it's ready to serve.  Serve with nachos and enjoy! 

Remember don't put in the oven! :)

Chicken Wing Dip

This is also a recipe that Colleen gave me and I think she got it from one of the nurses at the hospital, but I put a little twist of my own in the recipe. Nurses are always good to trade off recipes with because we love good pot luck lunches once in awhile to feed our tummies and our souls!

Ingredients:
2 packages of cream cheese -softened
1 cup of Ranch Dressing
1/2 cup of hot sauce
1 boneless chicken breast
1 tbsp of chili oil

Directions:
Coat the chicken breast with chili oil and grill it on the stovetop.  Mix the rest of the ingredients together - set aside.  After the chicken cools chop it into small pieces and add it to the rest of the ingredients.  Serve with crackers, nachos or celery for a lighter version.

Chips and Homemade Onion Dip

Every now and then I like to make my own French Onion dip and this will be one I will be serving up on Super Bowl Sunday!

Ingredients:
8 oz of sour cream
Salt and Pepper
Garlic Salt
2 tsp of Steak or Burger Seasoning
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
1 medium onion
olive oil

Directions:
Preheat olive oil (one turn of the pan) on low.  Chop or slice the onion and add them to the frying pan, add a pinch of salt, pepper and steak seasoning.  Carmelize the onions and allow to cool.  Drain the oil from the onions and add them to the sour cream with the Worcestershire sauce and mix together.  Add salt, pepper and steak seasoning to the dip according to your taste.

Serve in a bowl with your favorite chips!

That is probably about enough snacks for Super Bowl Sunday for the Mironti bunch.  Oh boy, serve up the Pepcid or Zantac after these goodies.  I'm glad I'm going to be off on Super Bowl Monday!

Corn Chowder

What about this cold snap that is pretty much taking a hold on up and down the east coast.  Even my family down in Miami is experiencing 30 degree temperatures and that's not even funny!  I thought that my corn chowder recipe would be perfect for these cold days.  It's perfect as a meal by itself or along side your favorite panini!

I made some croutons to top ours off.

Corn Chowder

Ingredients:

1 - 1# bag of frozen corn (I use about half to 3/4)
1 stick of butter

1 TBSP of olive oil

1 small onion - diced

2 carrots - peeled and diced

2 celery stalks - diced

2 Idaho potatoes - diced

6 cups of chicken stock

2 cups of half and half
1/4 cup of flour

1 clove of garlic - minced

6 sprigs of fresh thyme - leaves only
salt and pepper
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

Directions:

Melt the butter in the bottom of a soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the olive oil and the garlic and saute for a couple of minutes, add the carrots and celery for about 5 minutes and then add the onions and salt and pepper all the veggies (few shakes of each).  Cook until vegetables are soft.  Sprinkle vegetables with flour and stir coating all very well.  Add in the fresh thyme and the chicken stock and bring to a boil.

Add the half and half and the potatoes and boil hard for approximately 10 minutes until the potatoes break down and soften.  This will help thicken the soup.  Add the corn and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add more salt and pepper to your taste and grate in a pinch of nutmeg.

Croutons

Use day old Italian bread (about a half loaf) - cut into cubes.  Heat olive oil (a couple turns of the pan) in a large frying pan, add the bread and Italian seasoning, parmesan cheese, garlic powder.  Cook until toasted and serve atop the chowder!

Enjoy!

Lentil Soup

Featured Chef - Joseph Mironti

Cousin Joseph Mironti sent me this recipe.  It's for a large group of people because he shares it with co-workers!  Way to spread the weatlh and luck Joseph!  Joseph is another Mironti Boy who loves to cook.  Boy, we were lucky when we married these Italian boys.  Nothing like a husband who not only loves to cook but is good at it.  Joe owned a popular pizzeria up in Syracuse at one time but opted to sell it because it took too many hours away from his family once the boys came along.  Joe has a lovely wife Sharon and two handsome sons - Michael and Brandon. 

My mother makes her soup very similar to this - the recipe handed down from my grandmother.  We used to call it "Good Luck Soup."  My grandmother would make us eat it every New Year's Day.  Boy is it good especially with a piece of Italian bread in your other hand!

As Joseph stated to me it is very hard for us to write recipes.  Italian women in our families just talked about a pinch of this or that and that is how we learned.  I think it will be fine because really it's all about how you like your food to taste.    If you don't want this much soup just cut it in half.

Lentil Soup Ala Giuseppe

Ingredients

3 Gallons of water
1 tsp kosher salt
5 lbs of Dried Lentil Beans rinsed
2-3 lbs Kielbasa type meat chopped ( be creative ie : summer sausage, cheriso)
6 stalks of celery chopped
4 cups Carrots chopped
2 large Spanish Onions chopped
8 med size white potatoes peeled and chopped
2 cloves of fresh German garlic chopped fine
1/2 cup fresh Italian Parsley coarsely chopped
16 oz can of Tomatoes Puree
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Bring water to a boil in a very big pot. Add lentils and cook stirring occasionally for 45 minutes. While lentils are cooking fry chopped kielbasa in a separate pan about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except puree and cook for 30 minutes. Add puree and salt and pepper to taste cook until the lentils crack open and it gets all nice and creamy.

Enjoy!
Thanks Joseph - we can't wait to try some!

New Year's Day SideKicks!

Featured Chef - Cindy Syracuse

Other than being my sister-in-law as we both married a Mironti Boy..... Cindy is married to Neno and has two handsome young Mironti boys of her own, Dylan and Tyler!  Cindy is an accomplished marketing executive for Burger King Corporation and has earned great accolades over the years with many successful projects and promotions.  Cindy travels not only the country but the world through her work for Burger King Promotions.  Cindy has a real knack for entertaining and can create great tablescapes too! 

Cindy sent me these two great sidekicks that would go great with ham or any entree on New Year's Day. 

Corn Casserole

Serves 8
Ingredients:
1- 16 oz. can creamed corn
1 -16 oz can of whole corn
8 oz. sour cream
1 egg
1 stick of butter - room temp
1 box of Jiffy corn mix
Directions:
Drain whole corn.
Mix softened butter and cream corn with sour cream and egg.
Beat in the corn and jiffy mix
Pour into pyrex dish
Bake covered - 45 minutes at 375 degrees, uncovered 15 minutes until brown.


Pineapple Souffle
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 can pineapple- not drained. (Cindy indicates when she makes the single recipe she uses
crushed, when she doubles the recipe, she uses crushed and whole
pineapple)
4 cups cut-up bread into cubes(1 loaf of bread)- with or without
crusts. You can substitute whole wheat bread for white
1 stick of butter room temp
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup of sugar
Directions:
Cream the butter and sugar in mix master, then add the eggs. Add
remaining ingredients. Will look syrupy.
Pour into greased 6x6 pan.
Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees

Thank you Cindy!  I can't wait to try these!

Retro Side #2

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

I know - you are all saying oh yuck!  Don't turn your noses up yet.  Try this retro side with a plus that is a combo from an idea I got from my brother-in-law Neno Mironti and a little something I came up with.

Ingredients
Brussel Sprouts - fresh from the produce department - about 1 to 2 dozen
Red Onion - 1/2 medium onion
3 pieces of Bacon
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
A dash of Garlic Powder

Directions
Preheat oven on 375 degrees
Clean the brussel sprouts - cut off core, peel any loose or damaged leaves, wash and let dry
Cut the sprouts in half
Chop the onion
Cook bacon and set aside
In a baking dish cover the bottom with the olive oil - 2 or 3 turns of the dish
Add brussel sprouts and onion, a pinch of salt, pepper and garlic powder to the baking dish and bake until carmelized and becoming soft. (Approximately 20-25 minutes).
Remove brussel sprouts from the oven, crumble the bacon over the top for the last few minutes of baking.
Enjoy!

Retro Sides

In conducting a poll about the main event for Christmas Dinner it looks like beef and ham are very popular at Christmas time.  Those are both popular in my family as well, but ham is our favorite entree and over the years my mother has orchestrated wonderful side dishes to go along with the main event.

Here is a retro side dish that has been around a long time.  Give it a try!

Sweet potato puff
Ingredients
4 medium sized sweet potatoes
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup light cream or milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter 
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 bag mini marshmallows
Directions
Bake or boil the sweet potatoes
Drain or remove from skin
Place the potatoes in a bowl and mix in the 3 TBSP butter, light cream or milk, orange juice, vanilla, sugar and cinnamon.  Mix with an electric beater until smooth.
Melt the remaining butter in a bowl and mix in brown sugar.  Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potatoes and bake on 350 degrees for about 30-35 minutes.  Take the potatoes out of the oven and place mini-marshmallows on top and cook until marshmallows are slightly browned.


Later this week - retro dish #2 on the way!

Mom's Turkey Soup

It may be too late for the Thanksgiving bird but many of you also eat turkey on Christmas Day so there's nothing better on a cold winter's day but to have some turkey soup!  So on the day after Christmas when you open the frig and the turkey carcass is staring at you pull him out and follow the recipe below:

Tear some of the turkey off the carcass and set aside.
In a large soup pot add about 32 oz of water and about 32 oz of chicken stock.
Place the carcass in the soup pot and make sure he is totally submerged (poor little guy)
Place a whole carrot, a few celery stalks and a half of an onion in the water also.
Boil for about an hour and a half.
Remove the carcass, strain the broth into a bowl and remove the celery, onion and carrot
Add salt and pepper to your liking if needed.
Put the broth back into the soup pot with the turkey you set aside.
Dice a couple of new carrots, celery stalks and a small onion and put in the broth and boil until they become slightly soft - do not overcook as there's nothing worse than soggy veggies.
If you want to flavor it up a little more Mom also like to put a couple tablespoons of tomato sauce.
In another pot boil some short cut pasta.  Mom likes to use Orzo but any short cut pasta of your liking will do such as Pastina or Ditalini or Elbows.  Use only about a quarter to a third of the box.  If you do not the pasta will take over the soup.  Believe me this has happened to me.  It grows and grows.  Cook the pasta until it starts to become slightly cooked.  Do NOT cook too long because again it will get too soft.
Add pasta into the soup and presto - a comforting soup on a chilly day!
Enjoy!

NYC Food and Wine Festival

As you can see we are all Foodies in my family.  Here is my son James with Tyler Florence.
It is tradition that my husband, son, mother and I go to the NYC Food and Wine Festival every year!