Wednesday: Rosti fries

in the first turn they look sort of like this

the second turn like this

add freshly snipped chives (thanks lisa c. for this lovely herb keeper!)

and at the end they look like this!
Sometimes it's ok to have a fried potato. Especially if you do it yourself. These are so good and really not tough to master.

First thinly slice (i use a zyliss slicer) to a "see through state" two young potatoes like Yukon Gold or fingerling. Fresh is upmost of importance here.

Heat up a nonstick frying surface and coat with a tablespoon of oil. Place the potatoes one layer thick and sprinkle with coarse salt. Heat at 4ooF and keep an eye on turning them. I usually turn them five or six times. As they brown snip some fresh chives into the mix and keep turning them. When they are brown and crispy - they are done! Good with most anything ... or alone with garlic mayo or organic ketchup!

Tuesday: Simple tea

A simple tea can be the break which saves the afternoon from total despair. Tea can be most any little nibble you can conjure up. Here is a recipe for my favorite little bits when lunch didn't happen or was never enough to begin with.

First start with the tea.

Heat a pot of filtered water to boiling. Put two tea bags of your choice into the pot which has been prewarmed by the boiling water swirled around in it. Fill the pot, put on the cosie and let steep for five minutes. Pour into special cups. Serve with lemon, sugar, honey and milk so everyone can have it the way they like!

On a plate arrange any of the following:

tiny biscuits filled with whipped cream and strawberry jam

oatmeal digestive biscuits with butter

french toast - with or without jam or syrup. it's my favorite.

assorted cookies

fruit of any sort

little sandwiches made from bread with the crusts removed and chutney and very thinly sliced cheese.

scones. of any sort

pound cake slices

lemon tarts

you get the idea!

Monday: Roasted Lamb

Once in awhile, usually around the holidays or whenever people are getting antsy for a meaty meal, I make my lamb roast. Here is an illustrated version of my simple (stolen) recipe from a nice Greek man who I met at MJ's house. He seemed to know his stuff and the recipe below was ripped right from his lips to my modifications to your plate. Enjoy!

First: Preheat the oven to 350F

Then: find someone who is really ready to tackle the de fatting of your organic boneless leg of lamb. You can get a semi boneless or bone - in as well - the bone in will be easier to keep from drying out if you must hold it for sometime before guests arrive. (note the raised eyebrow to those who were out last night learning to drive a stick whilst the lamb was waiting...)

Have said person get most of the egregious amounts of surface fat off.

In a roasting pan coat the bottom of the pan with EV olive oil and add to this:

a handful of coarse salt, much freshly ground pepper, the juice and the rinds of two lemons and 6 or more crushed cloves of garlic.

Add the lamb to this and roll it around to coat it fully in the mixture. Now it is ready for cooking. If you wish you could add four sprigs of fresh rosemary. I do this about half the time. I like to mix it up now and again and go without that extra flavor as I did yesterday.

Roast uncovered in the pan until the internal temperature of the meat is 150F which will render a beautifully slightly pink middle and perfectly browned outer edged roast. I really don't like any meat cooked to a red state *or undercooked* to that state and actually, if you go all the way to 160F it is not a travesty due to the fact the lemons and oil will have made a lovely flavor for your lamb. It's a personal thing, but I like to slice it all at once and serve on a preheated platter. Perhaps you like to do battle with the carving on the table, but I personally have never felt like dealing with that! I scrape the pan drippings add a little boiled water and pour over the top. Serve with roasted roots, or in the spring - tiny potatoes and peas, brussel sprouts and a little sprig of mint!

Sorry about the lack of the final picture. It never happened! The roast was being held for the student driver and her instructor and so when they finally hopped in (30 mins late) we just gobbled it up!

Friday: Happy Birthday Cake Mom!

Today is my mom's 85th birthday! We celebrated a little early last night with our family and friends and this cake was part of the deal. It's a very easy to make and pretty tasty without that overly sweet feeling found in so many recipes. It was a hit and I improvised (what's new?) the frosting which I am pretty pleased about. Here's the recipe below - try it try it and tell me what you think!

Simple golden cake - makes two 8 or 9 inch layers - prepare pans with shortening and a dusting of flour - preheat oven to 350F

Cream together:

6 tbsp. butter and 1 cup of sugar

Whip until fluffy. Add in slowly three egg yolks reserving the whites in another bowl, a tablespoon of vanilla and 2/3 cup of milk.

To this mixture add in three parts and beat vigorously for 5 minutes

1 and 3/4 cups of sifted cake flour and 2 tsp of baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt

Beat the egg whites in another bowl until they are peaked, but not dry

Fold them into the mixture and pour into the pans!

Bake until golden colored - about 25 mins. but keep an eye on em.

Frosting:

1 stick of butter whipped to a fluffy consistency

add in 1/2 cup of whipped cream cheese and a tablespoon of vanilla

when completely mixed add in powdered sugar 1/3 of a cup at a time up to 1 cup or until the mixture holds peaks nicely.

Cut the cakes in half if you want four layers and on the layers spread 1/2 cup of raspberry jam and part of the frosting. Put the layers together and spread the remainder on top. Add single raspberries for decoration!

Thursday: Leftover Chili?

ok, not a pretty photo but it is still yummy!
This is no April Fool! It's one of the best loved make ahead meals here at our home. It is Tamale pie and the best thing leftover chili has ever met. It's so good you can make more chili just to make this  So, if you have enough leftover (or ready to make more)  - grease a baking pan with olive oil - 8x8 or 9x13 depending on how much chili you have. It should be about half filled.

On top of the chili put

1 cup of salsa - spread over the entire chili surface. Add 1 cup of shredded cheese - sharp cheddar is great, but anything works. Then mix up some cornbread:

1 cup of flour

1 cup of cornmeal

1 tsp baking powder

3 tablespooons of sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup of milk

1/4 cup of oil

you can add to this to jazz it up a bit:

1/2 cup of whole kernel corn

and/or

2 chopped jalepeno peppers for some additional zip!

Mix up and pour over the top of the mixture. Bake in a 375F oven for 20 -25 minutes.

Serve with avacado, sourcream, additional salsa or just as it is. It's a good one.

Wednesday: Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

Sometimes the occasion calls for cookies. Nothing will do but homemade. Here is my adoptive recipe from The New Basics cookbook. We love these so much. Super easy, rave reviews! Let March go out "sweetly" ...

Take out:

1 cup of all purpose flour

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/2 tsp baking powder

dash of salt

1 stick of sweet butter plus two tablespoons of Spectrum vegetable shortening

6 tablespoons of brown sugar

6 tablespoons of white sugar

tsp. of vanilla

1 large egg

1 cup chopped lindt dark chocolate bar (your choice of flavor but make it dark!)

Heat up the oven to 375F. Grease the baking sheets

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.

Cream the sugar and butter and egg in another. Slowly add this to the flour mixture.

Stir in the chopped chocolate. You can add nuts, but make sure they are chopped well.

Drop onto the sheets 3 inches apart. They spread. Bake for 5 minutes then take out of the oven and rap them on the counter twice and then return to the oven. Bake until they are done. The rapping makes them flatten and cook better. These are pretty yummy. I like to make them small and tea sized so you can eat a bunch and feel less guilty. Crazy huh? Makes about 2 dozen regular sized cookies. You can double this recipe easily.

Tuesday: (Vegan) Chili today, hot tamale!

OK so I am being a little silly, but this might be the last of the cold weather here for a while... it's meant to be warmer as the week goes on, so now is the time to get your CHILI on.

In a large pot on top of your stove put:

1/4 cup olive oil

3 chopped sweet onions

1 chopped green pepper

1 chopped red sweet pepper

2 jalepenos sliced

4 cloves of minced garlic

Saute these veggies until they are soft. To this mixture add:

1 can of drained organic black beans

1 can of drained organic white kidney beans

1 can of drained organic red kidney beans

1 can of drained organic pinto beans

3 large cans of diced organic tomatoes or Cento if you can't get the organic ones.

2 tablespoons of chili powder

1 tsp seasalt and ground black pepper

1 tsp sugar

Stir these additions and then simmer them for three hours. This can be done in a crockpot if you have to leave the kitchen. Just make sure that you do the first step in a pan on the stove!

After the cooking is done, adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve in a nice bowl with corn chips and avocado slices. Pass the sour cream if you are so inclined and have some extra salsa and hot sauce on hand for those who like to "spice it up" more! A nice IPA goes well with this dish.