On New Year’s Eve we celebrated Mini SGCC’s 18th birthday.  That’s right.  My baby is now legally an adult.

Of course, that means nothing to me. In my mind, she will always be my little curly-haired cherub.

One would think that Mr. SGCC and I can now sit back, relax and pat ourselves on the back for a job well done.  But, I have a feeling that our headaches aren’t over yet!  Mini SGCC is a good kid, but she is fiercely independent and knows her own mind.  That is how we raised her to be.  Hopefully it won’t come back to bite us in the butt, now that we can’t really tell her what to do anymore.

I find it ironic that we parents spend all those years worrying and fretting over our kids, only to worry and fret even more when they grow up!  I now understand what my parents were talking about all those times they said that “A son is a son till he takes him a wife, but a daughter is a daughter for all of her life.”

In honor of the occasion, I decided to bake Mini SGCC’s favorite cake: a Black Forest Cake. I’d never baked a Black Forest cake before, and frankly, the prospect made me a little nervous. It’s a fancy schmancy German confection consisting of several layers of chocolate cake, with whipped cream and brandied cherries between each layer. Originally called Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, the entire cake is decorated with additional whipped cream, maraschino cherries, and chocolate shavings. When made well, it is a masterpiece. When made by me – I wasn’t so sure!  

The base of a Black Forest cake is a rich chocolate cake. Most of the recipes I found used a Devil’s food cake, so that is what I decided to do.  I used the Devil’s food cake recipe from Baked Explorations, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Everything I’ve ever made from that book has turned out great, so I was confident that this cake would as well.

Although traditional Black Forest cakes are made with sour cherries, I went with sweet Bings.  The canned sour cherries I found in the market were just sad, little grayish blobs that tasted like crap.  Very unappetizing!  Besides, we like big, fat Bing cherries better.  Plus, they are easier to find around here.

Since I would be serving the cake to children, I soaked the cake in a syrup that I made by reducing the cherry liquid and Kirschwasser, a cherry liqueur, instead of just using the liqueur alone.  I think it tasted better that way.

A Black Forest cake usually has several layers.  However, in the interest of time (and my sanity), I opted to only make a two layer cake.  It was fine, though.  This cake was plenty rich just as it was.

I frosted the whole cake with freshly whipped cream and decorated it with some Maraschino cherries and shaved dark chocolate.  I think it turned out very pretty, if I do say so myself.

Mini SGCC’s boyfriend’s birthday is just a few days after hers, so the cake was kinda for him too.  Here are Mini SGCC and The Boy blowing out their candles, as Mr. SGCC looks on with a grumpy look on his face.  All together now:  AWWW!

I have to say, I don’t know what I was so worried about with this cake.  It was really quite easy to make, and it was amazing.   The cake layers were wonderfully dense and moist, and the cherry filling was absolutely to die for!  Everyone who tried it was wowed.

If you’re looking for a fancy cake for a special occasion, I highly recommend this Black Forest cake.  While it looks like it took all day to make, it actually can be pulled off in just a few hours.

For most people, Black Friday is that crazy day after Thanksgiving when hordes of otherwise reasonable people frantically swarm the malls looking to get something for practically nothing.    And unfortunately for me, from this year forward, Black Friday will always represent the agonizing day that I almost lost my baby.

What is it about this day that turns bargain hungry shoppers into deranged lunatics?  These seemingly normal people appear to lose all sense of reality as they camp outside of  Wal Marts and Best Buys for days, and then trample over each other for the honor of being one of the first inside when the doors open. The evening news reports are full of stories about innocuous soccer moms fighting like mad dogs over PS3 consoles and Let’s Rock Elmo.  Oh, and let’s not forget those silly Lalaloopsey dolls.   What is wrong with people?!?!  No, thank you – not for me!  There isn’t any material thing in this world that I want or need that badly.  It’s insane!    

At around 4:00 pm on Black Friday, I decided to stop by a local gift shop that a friend of mine owns. I spent half an hour or so visiting before I left to go home.  As I drove out of the parking lot, I noticed that there had been a car accident at the nearest intersection.  The fire department and a few police cars were already on site.  I remember looking at the crumpled cars, thinking that it looked pretty bad and that I should turn off as soon as I could so as not to get in the way.  I drove about six blocks when my cell phone rang.  I didn’t recognize the number, but I answered the call anyway.  A disembodied male voice asked me if I was Mrs. SCGG.  I started to get an uneasy feeling in my gut.  When I replied that I was, the man told me that my daughter had just been in an accident and was injured.  At that point, I think my heart stopped for a minute.  Then,  I asked the question that I suspected I already knew the answer to:  “Where is she?”   He told me that she was at the very intersection I had just passed.  My blood ran cold!   Filled with dread,  I turned around as fast as I could and raced back to the scene. I called Mr. SGCC on the way (using my hands-free Bluetooth).

When I got there, Mini SGCC was in the back  seat of the car.  She was obviously in  pain and I think, in shock.  She complained that she couldn’t move.  The man who had called me was with her.  He had witnessed the crash and rushed over to help.  God bless him.

Mini SGCC had been riding with her BFF and the friend’s father, who was driving.  Apparently, some stupid woman, probably high on shopping, had run a red light and plowed right into them.   Now, no one except her will ever know for sure why she ran that red light, but I’m betting it had something to do with a cell phone or some other distraction.  Drivers that are paying attention to the road do not randomly run red lights.

When the EMTs arrived, they told me that Mini SGCC might have a broken back.  I thought I might die right there and then.  They strapped her to a cold, hard spine board and lifted her into the ambulance.  At the Emergency Room, we were elated to learn that Mini SGCC “only” had a broken right clavicle, a broken left wrist, a few cracked ribs and lots of bumps and bruises.  Hah!  Imagine being elated about several broken bones?  Well, as bad as that was, I was happy to hear it because it meant that my baby would eventually be okay.

Mini SGCC is in for a long recovery.  In the meantime, her right shoulder and arm are in an immobilizer sling and her left arm is in a cast.  She had surgery on her wrist a few days ago.  They put a huge steel plate in her arm and screwed it into what was left of her wrist bones.  The prognosis is good, but she will never be whole again.   And, for the rest of her life she will have the dubious distinction of setting off metal detectors wherever she goes.  But, I’m not complaining.  It’s a small price to pay.

Hopefully, Mini SGCC will be able to go back to school soon, though she will need a full time aide for a while.  With both of her arms out of commission she can’t do anything for herself.    But it’s her senior year, and I don’t want her to miss any more of it than she has to.

I realize that this post has nothing to do with cooking or baking, but I had to get this out.  In fact, I think the Thanksgiving leftovers are still in my garage fridge waiting to be transformed.  But, I don’t have the energy or desire to worry about them right now.   As incredibly thankful that I am that Mini SGCC wasn’t hurt worse than she was, I am also angry – so very, very angry.  I’m angry at that reckless woman who wasn’t paying attention and ran the red light.  I’m angry that my child was in the wrong place at the wrong time.  I’m angry that she’s had to suffer from so much pain.  I’m angry that the memories of what should be the one of the happiest times of her life will be now marred by these events.   I’m angry for her scars.  I’m also angry that our society has become so engulfed in commercialism that Black Friday even exists.  And, I’m angry at the Wal Marts, Best Buys and other stores in this country that whip consumers into a frenzy promising “doorbusters” that can’t be passed up.  I don’t remember it being like this years ago.   Seriously, people, is a good deal on a TV really worth risking someone’s life?

I’ll let you in on a little secret.  Even though I grew up in an Italian family where more than half of my relatives, including my father and grandparents, were actually from Italy, I had never heard of mascarpone until I was an adult and discovered it for myself.  Shocking, isn’t it?  But, it’s true.  For some reason none of the cooks in my family ever used the stuff.  How could this be?  Well, the only answer that I can come up with is that none of them were big bakers, and mascarpone is more commonly used in sweet dishes.   Also, since my family came from the southern half of the boot, most of the food out of their kitchens was tomato and olive oil based.  Except for ricotta and fresh mozzarella, very little of anything creamy was ever used in cooking.

My grandmother was diabetic, so she really never served much in the way of desserts outside of fresh fruit platters and some sfogliatelle or cannoli picked up from one of the neighborhood pastry shops.   I guess she figured why make luscious desserts that she couldn’t enjoy herself, especially when there were so many excellent bakeries within walking distance.  And, because she didn’t bake or make lots of sweets, none of her four daughters ever did either.  They bought their cakes, tiramisu and pastries too.  I guess you could say that our entire family did its part to keep the local bakeries in business.   Heck, I’d probably do the same thing if I had access to all of those wonderful Italian treats!  Sadly, here in my neck of the woods that is not an option.  If I want to enjoy authentic, mouthwatering Italian delights, I have two options.  The first is to buy them at the one and decidedly “meh” Italian bakery in town.  The second is to make them myself.  Sometimes, I choose option one, but most of the time I go the DIY route. 

Even though the cooks in my family leaned towards the savory side of food, there were some notable exceptions.  There were always homemade cookies and struffoli at Christmas time,  and Pizza Rustica and Pastiera di Grano for Easter.  There was also this Italian Ricotta Cheesecake that made an appearance every so often.  I remember my mother poring over her Polly-O cookbook while churning out her version of cheesecake – Italian-style.  This cheesecake bears little resemblance to the super rich and dense variety that most of us are familiar (and maybe a little obsessed) with.   Instead of cream cheese, the primary ingredient in this cheesecake is ricotta cheese.  Using ricotta makes for a much lighter and fluffier cake, but also one that has a significantly less smooth and creamy texture.   Honestly, I was never the biggest fan of my mother’s ricotta cheesecake, but my father loved it.  He wasn’t a big dessert guy, and this cake was one of the few he truly enjoyed.   So, when I think of  it, I think of him.  That’s why I wanted to share it with you.  And, that’s also where the mascarpone comes in.

As I mentioned, I am not overly fond of the traditional ricotta cheesecake.  I mean I like it, but it doesn’t send me to the moon.   The flavors are lovely, but there’s just a slight graininess and wetness about it that puts me off.   When I conceived the recipe for this cheesecake, one of the things I wanted to achieve was smoother, creamier consistency – more like its New York-style cousin.  Adding cream cheese didn’t work because I felt it gave the cake too much of a sharp edge.  The flavor profile of an Italian cheesecake should be subtle, mellow and a little lazy, reminiscent of sunny afternoons enjoying la dolce vita in the Italian countryside with the scent of Sicilian orange blossoms wafting by on a breeze.   Nope.  Cream cheese wasn’t the answer.  But, mascarpone was another story.  Its silky, luxurious quality with the barest hint of sweet cream was exactly what my cheesecake needed!  So, in this recipe I have swapped out a pound of the regularly used ricotta for mascarpone.

Besides the ricotta, another signature ingredient found in an Italian ricotta cheesecake is orange flower water.  Orange flower water is a clear, perfumed distillation of fresh bitter orange blossoms that is widely used in Mediterranean dessert dishes.   It is incredibly fragrant and its flavor is quite distinctive.  It is more floral than citrusy.   You can try using orange extract instead of orange flower water, but there really is no substitute.  It’s available at most Italian and Middle Eastern markets, as well as online.

Oh, how I wish you could have been in my kitchen while my cheesecake was baking!  I’m pretty sure that the heady aroma of vanilla and orange blossoms would have made you swoon.  I did.  And, if you had been there, you would have also gotten to taste this dreamy confection.  It was marvelously smooth and rich, and yet lighter in texture than I expected it to be.  The mascarpone didn’t weigh it down.  It pulled the rest of the ingredients together and enhanced them.  This will definitely be my “go to” ricotta cheesecake recipe, now and forever.  I only wish that I could have shared a slice with my father.  I know he would have loved this version just as much as Mom’s.

When I was a little girl, my grandfather worked as a longshoreman for the New York Port Authority.   For most of his career, he worked the night shift.  This meant that from Monday through Friday, he was rarely ever around at dinner time.  As a result, my Nonna  usually kept weeknight meals simple, since it was only her – and sometimes me – dining in.  Nonna was a big fan of bean dishes and she made them often. They were easy, nutritious and cheap.  And my Nonna was nothing if not frugal, as most World War 2 wives were.  Cucina povera was her specialty.

I’ve already shared Nonna’s recipe for Pasta e Fagioli, or “Pasta Fazool”, as we affectionately call it.  But another pasta and beans dish that we ate a lot of back then, was Pasta e Lenticchie, or pasta with lentils.  Although a lot of recipes portray both dishes as soups, neither dish is intended to be one, but rather a thick, wet, sloppy stew, with just enough liquid in them to sop up with a hunk of crusty Italian bread. 

Lentils are members of the legume family and come in many different varieties, from black and yellow to red and green.  They have a mild, earthy and sometimes nutty flavor, depending on what kind you use.   Like other legumes, lentils are low in fat and high in protein and fiber.  Because of their small size, they also cook quite a bit quicker than other types of beans, and they don’t need to be soaked first.   For some tips on cooking lentils, take a look at this article from About.com.

In Italian culture, the lentil’s biggest claim to fame is that it is one of the traditional “must eat” foods on New Year’s Eve. Eating lentils on New Year’s Eve is believed to bring good luck and prosperity throughout the following year.  Their small, round shape resembles coins that swell when cooked, so they are looked upon as a symbol of wealth. Italians are absolutely militant about this.  In fact, my grandmother wouldn’t even think of serving a meal on December 31 that didn’t include lentils in some form.

Pasta e Lenticchie, like Pasta e Fagioli, is a simple, rustic dish prepared with just a handful of basic ingredients.  Garlic and onions are sautéed in olive oil to which lentils, tomatoes, water and pasta are added and simmered to tenderness.  There isn’t much more to it than that.  I use chicken broth instead of water as my simmering liquid for extra flavor, but I’m pretty sure that my grandmother made do with plain, old H2O from the tap.

Dishes like this Pasta e Lenticchie are pure comfort food for me.  Cooking, and of course, eating them always transports me back to being six years-old in my grandmother’s homey, little kitchen.  Those were golden times for me.

My Nonna passed away over thirty years ago – just a few years after we moved to Florida.  I was fourteen and the memory of it still stings.  She was much too young and went much too soon.  I hardly had a chance to really get to know her beyond her infectious laugh, twinkling brown eyes and the heady scent of Cashmere Bouquet and Noxema that trailed her as she entered a room.  And it’s such a shame, because I have a feeling that as the years went on, we would have had a whole lot more in common than just DNA.

What are your favorite comfort foods?  Is there any one dish above all others that makes you think of “home”?  Does your family have any New Year’s Eve food traditions?  “Enquiring minds” want to know.

Buon Appetito!

My Uncle Vinnie was one of the coolest guys I ever knew.  He worked for the New York City Department of Sanitation.  He was a “garbage man”, and when I was a little girl, I wanted to be just like him.  He got to ride up and down the streets all day, hanging onto the outside of a big truck. He got to wear a nifty uniform that didn’t involve plaid jumpers or navy blue oxfords.  He got to get as dirty as he wanted, and didn’t have to wash his hands every five minutes.  And, he got to cart home all kinds of loot that he’d found on his route.

And, don’t you even think for a minute that because my uncle was a sanitation worker he didn’t have a keen mind and a sharp wit – because he did.  He was more well-read and up on current events than almost any other adult I knew.  You could talk to him about anything, from politics to opera, and he would always come up with some nugget of information that no one had ever known before.

Uncle Vinnie and my Aunt Yolanda didn’t have any children back then. When my cousins and I were kids, we would all take turns spending the weekends over at their house.  It was great for our parents, because they got to get us out of their hair for a few days.  It was great for us kids, because Uncle Vinnie and Aunt Yolanda were a fun young couple.  They were groovy.  They were hip.  They played bossa nova records on their old Zenith console.

Spending time at my aunt and uncle’s house was a little like Christmas.  There were always some brand new, still in the box toys, games, books, records and other assorted “treasures” to sift through.  Seriously, I’m talking about merchandise still sealed with the store tags on!  I can remember asking Uncle Vinnie why people would buy perfectly good things and then throw them away without even opening them.  I mean, even if they were unwanted gifts, you could still give them away or donate them to charity.  He would smile and say “People are funny. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

I was reminded of that phrase as I was preparing this Pasta con le Regaglie.  At first glance, it looks like a lovely bowl of pasta dressed with a rich, chunky, meaty sauce.  And, that is exactly what it is. Except, that the meats in question are chicken livers, gizzards and hearts.  That’s right – livers, gizzards and hearts- better known as offal and more delicately referred to as giblets.  And, do you know what?  They are delicious!  Now, before you click away in horror, hear me out.

People didn’t always buy their meat in plastic containers covered with shrink wrap.  Once upon a time, people actually raised their own chickens, cows and pigs. And, those who didn’t probably bought their meat from those who did.  Back then, it was unthinkable to waste any part of an animal that was edible. Most people couldn’t afford to!  So a lot of diligent home cooks came up with creative and tasty ways to use offal or giblets or whatever you want to call them. Even today, in many cultures, these foods are commonly eaten, and enjoyed with gusto.

In Italy, this concept of cooking and eating is called “cucina povera” or “cooking of the poor”. Cucina povera was a natural progression resulting from the devastation of two world wars and the shortage of food they created in their aftermath.  It was born of necessity and relied on the use of every bit of every ingredient from the garden, barnyard, woods and sea, with as little waste as possible.

I remember my father telling me how, as a boy in occupied Italy during World War 2, one of his most vivid memories was that of being hungry.  He lived on a farm in the countryside about halfway between Anzio and Monte Cassino.  As the Nazis infiltrated the area, they took over all of the crops and livestock, using them to feed their troops.  The families who lived there were turned out and basically lived in the woods for the duration.  Dad recounted how they would forage for food, often rooting through the garbage in the dead of night, looking for things that could still be used to fill their bellies.  They would often take corn cobs, grind them up and cook them down with water to make a kind of gruel.  Can you imagine?  What a compelling example of how one man’s trash is indeed another man’s treasure!  Even fifty years later, whenever he would talk about it, the look of pain and sadness in my father’s eyes spoke volumes more than any words ever could.

Pasta con le Regaglie is a dish that my grandmother used to make, just as I’m sure her grandmother did before her. It is common to the area that my family comes from as many of the families there raise chickens. It was also a dish that my father always enjoyed.  Pasta con le Regaglie, or Pasta with Giblets, is a very hearty and rustic “povera” dish packed with lots of great flavors. In addition to the giblets, it also contains all of the other ingredients that make up a great pasta sauce- tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, garlic, herbs and spices.  If you didn’t know that the giblets were in there too, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell. And, even if you could, the dish is so good, you wouldn’t care.

The most challenging part of preparing the regaglie sauce is cleaning and trimming the giblets, especially the gizzards.  I won’t lie. Cleaning the gizzards is a pain in the a$$! You need to trim off all of the tough outer membranes and peel off any silver skin before cutting them into small chunks.  It’s tedious, but you can do it.   I have confidence in you.

Once your giblets are ready to go, you can begin cooking.  I’ve used pancetta in my version of the sauce, because I wanted to fancy it up a little.  You don’t have to.  I’m pretty sure that my ancestors prepared this dish without it.

First, sauté the pancetta. Then make a battuto with the onions, carrots and celery. A battuto is the Italian version of a mirepoix, and is the base for many, if not most Italian dishes.  Add the giblets and cook for a while.  Sauté in some mushrooms, garlic and fresh herbs, splash in some red wine and cook it down until the wine has reduced.

Next, thin some tomato paste with more red wine and add it to the pot with chicken stock and crushed tomatoes.  Finally, simmer the sauce for a good, long time until it is thick and rich.

You can serve this robust regaglie sauce over pasta, rice or polenta – or just with a crusty loaf of Italian bread.  I used a nice spinach fettuccine. Doesn’t it look wonderful?  I can assure you – it is!

So please, please, please don’t be put off by offal.  At least try it before you decide it’s “trash”   You might be pleasantly surprised to find that Pasta con le Regaglie is actually quite a “treasure”!  I think so. My dad thought so. And, my Uncle Vinnie did too.  I wish I could have shared some with them.

Pasta con le Regaglie (Pasta with Giblets)

4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra if needed
1/2 cup diced pancetta
1 large sweet onion, finely diced
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced.
1 stalk celery, finely diced
2 pounds chicken hearts, gizzards and livers, rinsed and trimmed of tough tissue and silver skin, and cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tablespoons  minced flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
1 bay leaf
3-4 fresh sage leaves
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 cups red wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups chicken stock
1 28 ounce can crushed Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese

Preparation:

Heat the oil in a heavy 6-quart pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute for a few minutes until the fat begins to render.  Add the onions, carrots and celery and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8-10 minutes, or until they begin to brown.  Add the hearts, gizzards and liver and sauté them for about 10 minutes, also stirring occasionally.  Add a little more oil if the pot gets too dry.

Stir the mushrooms, garlic, parsley, bay leaf and sage into the pot and sauté another 2 to 3 minutes.

Add 1 cup of the wine to the pot. Deglaze by scraping  up any brown bits on the bottom.  Raise heat and bring wine to a boil. Continue to boil until wine is reduced by half.

Whisk the rest of the wine and tomato paste together in a small bowl.  Add to the pot along with the stock and crushed tomatoes. Bring up to a boil and then reduce down to medium heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 1 hour, until the sauce has reduced and is nice and thick.

Add salt, pepper and grated cheese to taste.

Serve either with a loaf of crusty Italian bread, or over pasta, rice or polenta.

Enjoy!

First of all, I’d like to wish all the Dads out there a very Happy Father’s Day!  Then, I’d like to remind all the daughters out there who still have their Dads with them how lucky they are.  I lost my father three and a half years ago and I’d give anything to have just one more day with him.  He was a wonderful man and I miss him terribly. Cherish each moment with your loved ones. Time flies by so quickly and there are no “do overs”.

Now that I’ve thoroughly cheered you up, let me tell you about the special Father’s Day dinner I made for Mr. SGCC.  There’s a little Mexican place in town we like to go to called Mi Pueblo.  They have good, fresh food at reasonable prices. Plus, they have a cute old guy that walks around with his guitar, serenading the diners at each table.  It isn’t the Frontera Grill, but we like it.  Our favorite dish at Mi Pueblo is their chiles rellenos.  They make then with these humongous poblano peppers that are stuffed with lots of well-seasoned meat and cheese.  Mr. SGCC absolutely loves them!  I don’t do a lot of Mexican at home, but I decided to try to recreate them for him.

Since I had never made chiles rellenos before, I turned to the guru of Mexican cuisine, Rick Bayless of the Frontera Grill, for guidance.  His chile rellenos are so popular that people line up outside the restaurant an hour before the doors open just to make sure they can get some.  In fact, the restaurant regularly sells out of them within the first twenty minutes!  I figured if Frontera Grill’s chiles rellenos were that hot, they must be good. So, that’s the recipe I decided to go with.  Little did I know at the time what I was in for!

First of all, the recipe is good – very good, in fact.  It is also, however, very long and time consuming as well.  There are four different components in this dish and each requires several steps.   None of the individual steps are particularly difficult, but there are a lot of them.  And be forewarned, you will probably need to hose down your kitchen after you’re finished! 

The first component you need to make is the tomato sauce which is used in both the meat filling and the serving sauce.  It’s an aromatic sauce flavored with onion, Serrano chiles, cinnamon and cloves.  If I had it to do over again, I would probably make this sauce a day or two ahead.  It keeps just fine in the fridge and doing do will cut a good an hour off of your prep time.

The next thing you have to do is make a tomato broth, which is served tableside with the finished chiles rellenos.  All this involves is simmering some of the previously made tomato sauce with some chicken or beef broth.  This is the easiest step in the recipe, but it does require at least forty-five minutes of cooking time.

After that, you need to make the meat filling for the rellenos.  Bayless calls it picadillo.  It’s made with ground pork shoulder, simmered with more of the tomato sauce, vinegar, raisins and almonds.  Very, very tasty!  Both the picadillo and the tomato broth can also be made ahead.

Then, it’s time to prepare the peppers, themselves.  Here is where things get tricky.  Bayless says to roast the poblanos until their skins get blistered and blackened.  Then he says to cut a slit down the side of each, rinsing and removing the seeds as you go, taking care not to tear the peppers.  Have any of you ever tried this?  I’m sorry, but it’s impossible!

My peppers looked perfect when they came out of the oven.  But, the minute I cut into them to remove the seeds, they started to disintegrate! As I tried to stuff them, they just fell apart. I felt like Dr. Kildare as I frantically tried to plug up the rips and holes by shoving in toothpicks everywhere!  By the time I got the peppers all stuffed, there were shreds of pepper skin, pepper seeds and blobs of picadillo smeared all over the place!  I just prayed that battering and frying them would hold them together at least enough so that we could eat them.  I had already given up any hope of getting a decent picture!

Oh, and that was the really fun part –  the battering and frying.  Bayless advises to freeze the stuffed peppers before attempting this step.  I did and it didn’t help me at all.  Plus, I lost another whole hour while my stuffed poblanos sat in the deep freeze!

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’m scared of deep frying.  Boiling hot oil and I do not get along – and I have the scars to prove it!  I’m not ashamed of this. It is what it is. So, I really have to have a good reason to attempt it.  I guessed that Father’s Day was as good a reason as any, so I sucked it up and kept going.

I prepared the batter without any trouble. It was a nice, light and fluffy batter, by the way. Bayless says to hold the peppers by their stems, dip them into the batter and quickly pull them straight out  and into the hot oil. Is he kidding?!?! The moment I tried to dip the first pepper in by its stem, the stem broke off and the pepper sank straight to the bottom of the batter bowl.  I tried to fish it out using a fork, and that beautiful picadillo filling came squishing out of every orifice!  I finally just dug my hands in the bowl, grabbed the pepper and plopped it into the oil.   And, you know what?  The batter immediately started to puff up and turn a lovely shade of golden brown.  After a few minutes, instead of looking like a mutilated lump of mush, that pepper actually started to resemble a chile relleno!  That batter was like the Spanx of Mexican cooking! It smoothed out and covered almost every flaw.

I dipped (with my bare hands) and fried the rest of the peppers as fast as I could while I was still on a roll.  I didn’t dare stop for a second to take a picture. Then, I lined them up in a baking dish, doused them with sauce, smothered them with cheese and tossed them in the oven to bake. Both my kitchen and I were covered in picadillo guts, foamy batter and tomato sauce!  Bayless’s recipe doesn’t say to do all this, but I did it anyway. It was all about camouflage, baby!

Take a look.

Not bad, huh?  You have to admit that with all of that zesty tomato sauce and gooey, melted cheese on top, those chiles rellenos look pretty darn appetizing!  You’d never know what a mangled mess they were underneath!

And, OMG, were they delicious!  I hadn’t tasted Mexican food this good since…well… practically ever!  Not even when I was actually in Mexico last week.  Seriously. These chiles rellenos made Mi Pueblo’s version look like they came from Taco Bell!  Mr. SGCC was in chiles rellenos heaven!  He thinks I’m a goddess!  And, after having him heap mountains of praise on me for preparing such a fabulous feast for him, I stupidly replied with a shy smile, “Oh, it was nothing!”.  He believed me and is already bugging me to make them again.  Sigh….. The things we do for love.

Enjoy!

Nope, I don’t have any Chocablock Cookies for you today. And, I don’t have any steamed puddings either. I’m really sorry about that, but life has kind of smacked me in the head this past week and I just never found the time to make them.  My work schedule has been kind of crazy and Mr. SGCC has been out of town A LOT, so I’ve been pulling double duty both at home and at the office.  Plus, I’ve got a brand new project over here that is taking up a ton of my time and attention!  Allow me to introduce you all to our new little addition.

Meet Bella:

Okay, all together now:  AWWW!!!

Isn’t she a little cutie pie? I took this shot right after we got her home. She looks pretty pooped, doesn’t she. After a three hour car ride, I wasn’t surprised.  We picked Bella up last weekend from a wonderful breeder near Mt. Dora.  This is the same breeder that we got our dear, departed Sophie from.  I had to wait for more than a year for a puppy from her, but it was worth it.  Sophie was such a special member of our family and I wanted our new baby to come from the same nurturing place.  I’m so thrilled to have Bella in our family, but taking care of an eight week old puppy is a lot of work!  It’s almost like having a new baby, except that the puppy can already run around on her own!  And no, that is not a splotch of blood or poop on her flank. Lol!  It’s nail polish. The breeder uses it to identify all of the puppies in her litters.  It will eventually wear off.

So, back to the food, or lack thereof.  I had all the best intentions to make both this week’s TWD recipe and this month’s Daring Bakers challenge.  It just wasn’t in the cards.  However, I’d never let you leave here empty-handed.  This Lemon Linguine with Basil Pesto Shrimp was on the menu of my cooking class last week.  It’s a lovely, springtime pasta dish that highlights the bright, fresh flavors of lemon and basil.  Plus, it’s super simple to make.  My students loved it!  You can even make this recipe ahead and serve it chilled as a pasta salad.  It doesn’t get much better than that!

So, enjoy!  I’ve got to run and take Bella out for another potty break before she notices my Oriental rugs!

Most of you probably already know that this past Tuesday was Cinco de Mayo, a day observed around the world as a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage. What you may not know is that it was also Mr. SGCC’s birthday. As luck would have it, Mr. SGCC is a huge fan of Mexican food. So, I was able to kill two birds with one stone that night by preparing him a delicious Mexican-style birthday dinner.

Since Mr. SGCC is also a carnivorous caveman, I decided to make something with beef – skirt steak to be exact. The most obvious choice was Fajitas. “Fajita” is actually a generic term used in Tex-Mex cuisine, referring to grilled meat rolled in a flour or corn tortilla. Originally, traditional fajitas were made using skirt steak, but these days one can find them made with all kinds of different proteins, including chicken, pork, shrimp and even beans. I decided to go the traditional route and used skirt steak.

Skirt steak is a cut of beef from the plate, or belly, of the cow. It is actually the diaphragm muscle. It’s a long, flat, and fibrous cut that is very flavorful, but can be tougher than many other steak cuts. For this reason, it is usually marinated and grilled. When sliced thinly against the grain, the result is some intensely beefy, juicy and tender steak.

I marinated my skirt steak for several hours in a mixture of orange and lime juices, olive oil, garlic, jalapeno and cumin. I believe that the acid in the citrus helps to break down the fibres in the meat, thus making it more tender.

I also sauteed a heap of red onions, red bell pepper and mushrooms to serve along with the meat. And, I made a big batch of cool and creamy guacamole to finish off the dish. To round out the meal, I paired my fajitas with a zippy little Black Bean and Corn Salad.

It was an awesome Cinco de Mayo/Happy Birthday dinner! Mr. SGCC was very happy. And, when he’s happy, I’m happy! ¡Olé!

Here are some more recipes from the SGCC archives to satisfy the caveman at your house!

Ribeye Steaks with a Spicy, Smoky, Cacao Nibs Rub

Bistec a lo Pobre

Churrasco with Chimichurri Sauce

Pan Roasted Veal Chops with Chipotle-Lime Butter

It is with great sadness that I tell you that Uncle Sal passed away on Tuesday night. While he valiantly held on as long as he could, his injuries were just too numerous and catastrophic. He was a beautiful and wonderful man, and we will miss him terribly.

I want to thank you all for your continued prayers and good wishes during this ordeal. You kindness has touched my family and me more than you can know.

When I started this blog over a year ago, I never imagined that I would come to know so many thoughtful, caring and giving people from all around the world. I am truly blessed to have found you.

I’d like to believe that Uncle Sal is up in paradise right now, hanging out with my Dad again. They’re probably roaming around Heaven together, searching for the perfect place to plant a new garden and arguing over whose tomatoes are sweeter! I think that some things will never change.

Before I get to the good stuff, I want to take a moment to thank all of you who sent my family so many prayers, kind words and good wishes this week. I am truly touched by the vast generosity of spirit possessed by all of you. I cannot express how much it meant to me. The food blog community, both bloggers and readers alike, are the most wonderful and caring group of people I’ve ever known. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Uncle Sal is still hanging on, but things are not looking good. He has had surgery to set most of his broken bones and the doctors are keeping him in an induced coma so that he doesn’t move around while they are mending. The good news is that he can move his arms and legs.

He also had one surgery for the burns on his hands because he was losing so much blood and fluid and his vital signs were getting too weak. It didn’t go too well and they were supposed to do another surgery yesterday to do some skin grafts, but he was too unstable for them to proceed with that. He has apparently also developed an infection in his blood, which weakens him even further.

I don’t know how this will end. I know that Uncle Sal is in good and very capable hands and that all the rest of us can do is continue to pray. I will keep you posted.

Now, on to some brighter news. My good friends from Pillsbury contacted me a few weeks ago to let me know how pleased they were with the posts I wrote in October about their new products. In fact, they very graciously sent me this lovely gift basket filled with some pie baking essentials. The package includes two 9-inch glass pie pans, a pie server, pie-top cut-outs and a CD-ROM with photos and recipes of Pillsbury pie favorites! And, the CD-ROM allows you to easily upload the photos and recipes to your blog.

Since it’s been a while since there’s been a good giveaway on this blog, I’ve decided to gift this goodie basket to one of you. To sweeten the deal a little, (and in case you need a few good pie recipes), I am also throwing in a copy of Patty Pinner’s “Sweety Pies: An Uncommon Collection Of Womanish Observations, With Pie”. More than just a cookbook, it is a collection of warm and cozy memoirs all wrapped up in between luscious recipes and scrumptious photos of – you guessed it – pies!

According to Pinner, “What a woman cooks is a window into her personality – what she thinks, how she behaves, how she feels about herself and the people she cooks for.”

Each recipe in Sweety Pies tells the story of the woman behind it. It speaks to the importance of family, friends and community. Oh yeah, and you get some great pie too! It is a lovely book that would be a welcome addition to anyone’s cookbook collection.

All you have to do to be eligible to win this great giveaway is leave a comment on this post between now and midnight EST on Monday, December 15. I know that’s not a whole lot of time, but I want the lucky winner to have this gift in time to whip up some Holiday pies! I’m also adding a little twist. Most of you know that I am also a musician. So, to be eligible, in your comment you must state your favorite song of the season. It can be a Christmas carol, Hanukkah song, a song about peace…..whatever your fave is. At midnight, I’ll have one of my trusty elves pick a name out of Santa’s hat.

Now, in case all of this talk about pie has made you a little hungry, here is a pie from Sweety Pies for you that I whipped up. She calls it My Grandmother’s Handmade Apple Pie. It is a traditional apple pie that is easy to put together and delicious to eat. I did add a cup of dried cranberries to my apple filling, because I like the bit of tartness they bring. Also, as a nod to Pillsbury, I used their Refrigerated Pie Crust. It is a real timesaver and always turns out nice and flaky. It’s a great alternative when you don’t want to make your own.

If you’d like to try making this pie and you don’t have access to the book, you can find the recipe here.

Enjoy, and don’t forget to leave your comments!

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