Ratatouille

This recipe is by Jacqueline Vandenabeele, St. Aygulf, France via Anne Vandenabeele

6 Servings; for 8 servings, add one more of each ingredient.

Use a large stock pot with a thick bottom and a lid

2 large white onions cut into strips

2 red bell peppers, cut into strips

1 yellow bell pepper (or another red pepper, no green!!!), cut into strips

2 eggplants cut into ½ inch cubes

2 zucchinis, in cubes

6 large or 8 medium tomatoes, peeled, in cubes

3 whole garlic cloves, peeled

2 bay leaves

thyme

salt and pepper to taste

On low heat, sauté the onions and peppers in olive oil. Onions become clear, not browned. Then add eggplant, sauté a few minutes; add zucchini, sauté a few more minutes. Add the tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Cover the pot, and turn down to simmer. Simmer covered at least a half hour, maybe longer (hour +). When cooked, uncover, simmer to reduce liquid (another half hour to hour, depending on vegetables).

Nice with rice, mashed potatoes, pasta. Excellent when reheated.

Holland Rusk Torte

My post-college roommate, Chris Uszler, is actually the person who got me into baking from scratch. This is a recipe that he made when we lived together, and recently I was in India Sweets and Spices in Atwater Village, and noticed that they had rusks and rusk cakes on the shelves. I thought I had Chris's recipe buried in among my stuff, but couldn't find it, so I went looking at cooks.com. I found a recipe, but it was so confusing that I had to rework it. This is delicious and easy to take someplace, since you serve it out of the pan it's baked in.

The cake:

6 eggs, separated
1 c sugar
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 c Holland Rusk, crushed
1 c chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350º.

Beat together the egg yolks and sugar, then add salt, vanilla and rusk crumbs. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, and gently fold into the yolk mixture. Stir in the chopped walnuts. Pour into a into an ungreased 9” x 13” pan. Bake about 35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out dry. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

The frostings:

1 c whipping cream
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
3 egg whites
1 c confectioners’ sugar

When cake is cooled, whip the cream until stiff, and spread evenly on top of the cake. Let cool in refrigerator for a half hour or so, to stabilize the whipped cream.

Melt the chocolate (in a microwave is fine), and let cool. Beat 3 egg whites until peaks form, then add the sugar and continue to beat until fully incorporated. Stir in the chocolate. Gently spread over the cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Mexican Posole

Before Ben introduced me to this stew, I had only had New Mexican Posole, which is made with green chili. This is very different, but just as delicious. It's his mother's recipe.

3 lb pork leg meat
3 lb pork spine, with meat attached
20 dried chiles guajillos (California chiles)
4 cloves garlic
1 can (6 lb 9 oz) hominy
4 cubes chicken consommé/bouillon

For garnish:

Radishes, sliced

Cilantro, chopped

Onion, chopped

Cabbage or lettuce, shredded

Mexican oregano

Rinse the pork in warm water until the water runs clear. Cut into 1-1 ½” chunks. Place meat and bones in a large (8 quart) pot, and cover with water to within 4 inches of the top. Salt generously. Bring to a boil, and cook for 30 minutes, skimming any foam that accumulates.

While the meat is cooking, remove the stems, veins, and seeds from the chiles. Place them in a saucepan filled with water, and boil until the chiles are soft and puffy, about 10 minutes. In a blender, process the chiles and their liquid, garlic and a little of the pork broth, until smooth. Strain the liquid, and set it aside.

Drain the hominy and add it to the pork. Blend chicken consommé with a little of the broth until smooth, then stir in. Cook for 20 minutes, add the chile sauce, and continue to cook for another 20 minutes, at a slow boil. Salt to taste.

Serve with tortilla chips and garnishes.

Macaroni & Cheese & Crumbs

The white sauce (preparation time 40 minutes):

3 cups milk

½ small onion, chopped

1 bay leaf

4 parsley sprigs

10 peppercorns

2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 2 pinches dried)

pinch of nutmeg

2 tablespoons soft butter

2 tablespoons flour

salt and pepper

Slowly bring the milk to a boil in a saucepan with the onion and seasonings. Strain; discard solids and return milk to pan. Mix the butter and flour together and whisk into the hot milk. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

The crumbs:

2 ½ c fresh bread crumbs

¼ c (2 oz) melted butter

Toss the bread crumbs with the melted butter.

The cheeses:

6 ounces (about 2 c) Gruyere, Fontina, or Swiss cheese, grated

2 ounces (about 2/3 c) smoked cheese such as Monterey Jack, Swiss, Gouda, or mozzarella, grated

8 oz mozzarella cheese, grated

freshly ground pepper

salt

The pasta:

1 pound pasta (penne or ziti are best)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta, leaving it slightly undercooked. Drain and rinse in cold water, and return to the pot, away from the heat.

Butter a 9” x 13” baking dish. Preheat oven to 375º.

Add the white sauce and the cheeses to the drained pasta, and stir gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Turn the pasta out into the baking dish. Cover with the buttered bread crumbs. Bake until the crumbs have browned and the cheese is hot, about 30 minutes.

If you are making this ahead of time, don't add the bread crumbs until you're ready to bake it.

--from Deborah Madison's The Savory Way

A very moist chocolate cake, for Anne

I'm sure this recipe is from the 1950's. It's very moist and very rich. It's official name is

Chocolate Crazy cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease, flour, line with waxed paper; then re-grease and flour either one 9”x13” baking pan or two 8” cake pans.

In a food processor, process until complete smooth:

1/3 c cocoa

Add, and process until thoroughly blended:

3 c flour
2 c sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda

Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Mix together, then pour over the dry ingredients and stir in:

¾ c salad oil
2 Tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla

Add:

2 c water

Process until smooth and well blended. Pour into cake pan(s), and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the middle of the layer comes out clean.

Remove from oven, and let stand 15 minutes on a rack. Remove from pan, remove waxed paper, and let stand right-side up on a rack until completely cool.

Hot Artichoke Dip

This is one of those recipes that people stand over and just nosh. You can't make too much, but doubling it is about all I'd recommend, unless you've got a really big shallow casserole.

½ c mayonnaise
½ c sour cream
1 c parmesan cheese, grated
1 can artichoke hearts (13.75 oz), drained & coarsely chopped
4 oz roasted diced chilis, drained

Preheat oven to 350 º.

Stir all ingredients together in shallow casserole. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Serve hot, with corn chips or crackers.

Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish

2 c raw cranberries
1 small onion
½ c sugar
¾ c sour cream
2 Tbsp horseradish

You can use your food processor for this.

Grind the cranberries and onion together. Add remaining ingredients and stir in. Put in a plastic container and freeze. Thanksgiving morning (or even the night before), move the container from the freezer to the refrigerator compartment to thaw (it should still have some little icy slivers left). The relish will be thick, creamy, and shocking pink. Makes 1½ pints.

My note: If you find you like this, but are counting calories, I’ve used lowfat cottage cheese in place of the sour cream. It’s not as rich, but the flavor is fine.