EASIEST TOASTED CHEESE

Sometimes you get lucky.  At my mom and pop market/liquor store, I spied a 6-ounce package of cheddar cheese, labeled, All Natural, 100% Amish Farm Milk, Artificial Growth Hormone free, BGH being bad for the eater, not to mention the cows.

Heini’s (heinis.com) cheddar cheese is special. Check it out. The family owned store sells 50 varieties. 

The recipe is a good one for the single chef.  Use an 8-inch skillet for one sandwich. Two    will fit into a 10-inch skillet. 

For one sandwich

2 slices bread (I used Oroweat, a national brand made with unbleached flour)

2 slices cheese *

1 and ½ tablespoons unsalted butter (BHH free)

1.      Melt the butter over medium heat until it is foaming, and a drop of water sizzles in the pan.  Add the sandwich.  This is a stay-at-the-stove thing because the heat needs to be adjusted to avoid over-browning. 

2.      Grill for 2 minutes on the first side. Turn with a spatula (pancake turner) Grill for 2 minutes on the second side.  You shouldn’t have to add more butter.  If  the cheese had not totally melted, turn off the heat and put a lid on the skillet for  15 seconds.

* If you use chunk style, it looks like this. 

 

and turns into this

Photos by Carol Guilford

Cg note:  For a more substantial repast, especially in winter, I buy and heat up an organic tomato soup.

EASIEST LEMON CHICKEN

Photo by Carol Guilford        Note the meat thermometer.

I have made lemon chicken with fresh garlic (chopped, pressed, whole) and fresh lemon juice, but the ingredients in this version, to me, work better. To make sure, I cooked it for dinner last night.  The chicken needs to be marinated  overnight or at least for 12 hours, before baking.  

Best utensil: 8X8 baking pan

4-6 chicken thighs

    Thighs stay moist and don’t need turning

½ cup bottled pure lemon juice

     Santa Cruz organic.  If you can’t find it, vitacost.com ships. At Amazon, you must order a case.  Lemonade for 50, anyone?  

1 tablespoon garlic powder

kosher salt

low-sodium soy sauce

    I’m a fan of San-J  organic tamari sauce

1.      Rinse the chicken in cool, running water, pat dry.

2.      Mix together the lemon juice and the garlic powder.

3.      Arrange the chicken in the dish, and pour over the marinade, coating the chicken well. Cover with foil. Refrigerate. If you remember, turn the chicken over once or twice as it marinates. 

4.      Bring the chicken to room temperature before baking, about 30 minutes.

5.      Lightly salt both sides of the chicken, then, put it back in the marinade, skin side up.  With a basting brush, paint on just a little soy to aid in browning.

6.      Bake in a preheated 350 degree

oven for 1-hour, basting with the marinade in the dish after ½ hour.

  

Cg note: A medium-sized baking potato (russet, by name) should cook in an hour in the 350 ̊ oven.  For new cooks, here is a short version of how to bake potatoes, from The New Cook’s Cookbook.

Scrub potatoes with a vegetable brush.  Dry. Prick potatoes with the tines of a fork. (One or two stabs will do, allowing the steam to escape.) Put a  piece of foil under the potatoes, or just put them on the rack. When done, a fork will easily pierce them. Slit open, lengthwise from one end of the potato to the other. Press the sides with the fingers (you may need potholders) to fluff up the flesh.  Add butter or crème fraiche. Have salt and pepper available at the table.

 

EASIEST ACORN SQUASH

Photo by Carol Guilford

French impressionist, Henri Matisse (1869-1984) painted an oil of a squash, titled, “The Green Pumpkin.”

It’s the season for winter squash and I saw this pretty acorn squash at Trader Joe’s, for 99 cents.

I hadn’t thought about acorn squash for years, much less cooked it.

  

 A “winter” squash (a pumpkin is one) has a tough skin, as opposed to a “summer” squash such as zucchini with its soft skin.

Peruvian mummies, more than 7,000 years old, were found interred with the squash shell, flesh and seeds still intact.

Squash (cucurbitas) was eaten in ancient Rome. I have an English translation of what is purported to be the first (hand-written) manuscript of collected recipes, by Apicius—De Re Coquinaria (On Cooking)-- the fanatic foodie who when he could no longer entertain lavish feasts of flamingo’s tongues, lobster, wild boar, snails and hare—poisoned himself.  

In 1 AD, the Romans boiled the squash, squeezed it to remove the liquid, added pepper, cumin and a now extinct herb, silphium.  Butter was unknown to the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Dashing down millennia, Columbus, in the account of his first voyage, wrote about a village in Cuba where vast fields were planted with calabazzas, meaning gourds, but it is practically certain they were squashes.

In the United States squash was a staple (along with corn and beans) of Native Americans.

For one acorn squash (serves 2)

     2 tablespoons butter

     pinch (1/8 teaspoon)  cinnamon

1. Wash the skin. Slice in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds.

2. Put a tablespoon of butter and a pinch (1/8 teaspoon) of cinnamon in the squash’s cavity.

3. Wrap each half in foil, and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes to an hour or until the flesh is tender. The butter and cinnamon moisten and perfume.  Salt at the table, if you want.

     

Goes with fish, fowl and meat.       

 A most beautiful squash is the Turban.  The check-out clerk in the market asked if I were going to cook it or use it for decoration.  I don’t know, I told her. So far, I haven’t tried it. 

Photo by Carol Guilford

EASIEST HOMEMADE PICKLES

Photo by Carol Guilford

I learned how to make pickles from a deli owner in the Catskill mountains where we escaped on weekends to escape New York City summer heat. He made them in a big barrel.

The jar is a 1-pint Mason, originally bottled with organic marinara sauce.

You may diddle around with the ingredients. I like mine slightly sour, garlicky and with a kick.

4-6 smallish Persian cucumbers

1 tablespoon pickling spice

     a combination of cinnamon, bay leaves, mustard seed, dill seed,  ginger, fenugreek, allspice, chilies, cloves and mace. Look for it in the spice aisle.

½ cup vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced lengthwise in half

2 small, hot, dried red peppers (optional)

1. Wash and dry the cukes. Slice lengthwise.
2. Put the pickling spice, vinegar, salt, garlic and peppers into jar. Arrange the cucumbers If there is extra space, slice one of the cukes, horizontally and put them on top. 
3. Screw the lid of the jar on tightly.
4. Leave the soon-to-be pickles at room temperature for 12 hours. If you remember, turn the jar upside down after about 6 hours. When upside-down, put a paper towel under the jar to avoid pickle juice leakage. Refrigerate. Will stay crisp for 3 weeks.

EASIEST GUACAMOLE

Photo by Carol Guilford

I flirted momentarily about attending the annual avocado festival, in Carpenteria, CA., but from LA, it is two hours up, two hours back. Aha! On-line, I checked out last years celebration to see what I was missing. 

The guacamole contest for the best guacamole confirmed my belief that the KISS rule applies.  “Keep it simple, stupid.”  With my “virtual” trip, no crowds, I didn’t have to try the avocado ice cream or personally witness the “largest” vat of avocado. Here is my avocado joke.  The party was so dull, the guests stood around watching the avocado dip turn brown.   

Hass avocados are good; the best is slightly nutty in flavor.  A ripe avocado gives way to gentle pressure. To hasten ripening, put in a brown paper bag, then refrigerate when ripe. Use soon. I have ruined many a lovely avocado by not using it at its peak.

1 medium avocado

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

pinch of salt

3-6 drops of Tabasco sauce (optional)

1.      Cut the avocado in half. Remove the pit. The skin should peel off easily or the flesh may be scooped out with a spoon.

2.      Mash the avocado in a bowl, with a large fork.  Don’t overdo it, there should be visible chunks.

3.      Add the lemon, salt and Tabasco, if you are using it.  Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice over the top, to keep it from turning brown. If you are making it for company, make it as close to eating as you can.  Recipe may be multiplied.

Serve with tortilla chips. Potato chips work too.

Photo by Carol Guilford

 El Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead is a Mexican celebration, a day to celebrate, remember and prepare special foods in honor of those who have departed. I appreciate the sentiment. Here is  a picture of two muertos eating guacamole.

Photo by Carol Guilford