I'm a Little Italian: Grammie Teresa's Meatballs

Our next door neighbor's growing up, Aunt Rose and her daughter Lori, likely hosted more of my waking hours than my own family.  Aunt Rose was the best next door Grandmother ever!   There wasn't a single day that we wouldn't draw, sing songs (in Italian too), play cards and enjoy juice and cookies at her kitchen table.

Aunt Rose introduced me to red gravy and all of the pasta dishes that go along with it, pastina with butter, and zeppole's at the Italian carnival.  (The current tradition of fried dough doesn't hold a candle to confectioner sugar covered zeppole in a greasy paper bag!)  She once bought me a t-shirt that said, "I'm a little Italian" that was even more tongue and cheek than the author could have possibly intended. 

Imagine Aunt Rose's joy when I fell in love with and married an Italian!  Having her, Lori and her husband Ron at our wedding almost 10 years ago was such an honor.

The matriarch of my husband's family was Grammie Teresa, my father-in-laws mother.  Sadly, I only met her once before she had a severe stroke.  Imagine all of the food we could have made together! 

The recipe that follows in an homage to Aunt Rose and Grammie Teresa.  Since the best family recipes contain a little of this and a little of that, this is my brother-in-law's delicious adaptation.  It is a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner with homemade garlic bread and a salad followed by Christmas cookies!  Perhaps Santa will have a couple of meatballs in addition to his cookies.  That is, if there are any left.

Grammie Teresa's Meatballs and Sauce (Red Gravy)

Sauce (Red Gravy)

• 2 26oz jars of tomato sauce
• 3 26oz boxes of crushed tomatoes
• 1 t. pepper
• 1 t. onion powder
• 1 t. garlic powder
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• salt to taste
• 1 T sugar

Mix all ingredients in a large, heavy bottomed pot. Simmer for several hours with the meatballs to combine flavors. 

Note: I substitute 28oz canned tomatoes with 26oz boxed tomatoes (such as Pomi) to reduce BPA exposure.  The acidic tomatoes causes a high rate of absorption of BPA from the cans.  Yes, there is BPA in jar lids however I believe this is the lesser of two evils.  My brother-in-law's recipe also calls for 1 can of tomato puree.  Since I have yet to find this boxed, I substitute with a third box of crushed tomatoes.

Meatballs:

• 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2/3 cup breadcrumbs
• 2lb ground beef
• 1 t. pepper
• salt to taste
• 2 t minced garlic
• 1 T Italian seasoning
• 2 large eggs

Mix the above ingredients and form into 1 inch balls.  Add the meatballs to the cold sauce to simmer.  (This method may require skimming fat from the top of the sauce as the meatballs cook.)

Alternatively, bake the meatballs at 350 for about 20 minutes to render some of the fat from the meat.  Then add the hot meatballs to the simmering sauce.

The Coffeecake that isn't

Exhibit A in The Coffeecake argument - the recipe titled Danish Pastry Wreath.  Case closed.  The Coffeecake is definitely not a coffeecake. 

Despite the name conundrum, my mom tore the recipe from McCall's magazine in 1974 and made it yearly until her death in 2000.  She would choose a December weekend for the recipe ritual - the tell tale sign of which was the yard stick laying across the counter top.  She used it to measure the dough while she rolled and folded the buttery layers into the famous Christmas morning concoction.  The Coffeecake is a braided pastry with flaky layers of sweet dough and almond filling and butter - lots and lots of butter.   If asked why she changed the name all those years ago I suspect she would shrug her shoulders and crack sheepish a smile having no idea herself.   What I do know is that this confection become known not just as a coffeecake but The Coffeecake and the official first breakfast of Christmas morning.

One thing to note about my mom's recipe box is that the most famous family recipes often contain brand name products.  Some examples include:

• The Coffeecake (Zweiback Toasts)
• Hungry Jack Casserole (Campbell's Pork n Beans, Hungry Jack biscuits)
• Cherry Jello Salad (Coke, Jello)
• BBQ Hot Dogs (Kraft BBQ sauce)
• Roadside Potatoes - (Ore Ida Hash Browns)

While my own grocery list avoids brand name products in favor of homemade alternatives, seeing these recipes and tasting their flavors brings me back to her kitchen and our table (and my grandmother's and great grandmother's and Auntie Lowell's).  They are some of the best and most vivid memories I have of growing up.  Hopefully my boys will look back fondly at memories of my kitchen and our table - which happens to be the one my mom set her meals on too.  

Being a grown up now I make slight modifications to The Coffeecake recipe.  I never felt like she added enough of the sugary glaze.  Let me tell you - I add plenty now!  Zweiback Toasts are not easily found so I substitute with Melba Toast.  I'm sure you could use plain bread crumbs among other things but it feels sacrilegious not to use one brand name product for another.  I also substitute whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour in lieu of all purpose. 

As kids The Coffeecake made Christmas rounds with us and was shared with relatives along the way.  The volume of people it fed dictated the serving size - I always recall it being a sliver as so many enjoyed it during our travels. 

On this Christmas (and everyone since she died) I break out my yard stick and spend a weekend making The Coffeecake.  On Christmas morning we cut everyone a big, warm piece and have a toast to Naunie.

The original recipe

The dough after resting for 30 minutes.

The dough with butter layer rolled in.

Before

After
Yes, that is the butter soaking through the brown paper bag.
Frosting will be poured on once it's cooled.

Christmas 2011: Homemade and made in the USA - with a Wii

Inspired by the World News series of Made in America, I set out to make our holiday as made in America as possible.  What I quickly realized was that it is very much possible but requires a lot more time and effort.  And forget running out to Target or Walmart as made in the USA does not live on their shelves.

A good amount of shopping for the boys came from www.fatbraintoys.com.  The site allows you to search by gender, age and even country of origin which was a huge help. 

In addition to the bought toys I found a great blog tutorial on making a super hero cape out of a large men's t-shirt.  It looked pretty easy so I gave it a try!  I made a couple of modifications including using heat n' bond to adhere a second layer of fabric to help it stand up more.  I also found super hero t-shirts which allowed me to use the emblem from the front of the shirt as a decal on the back of the cape.  Score!

Wyatt's is Batman and Patrick's is Superman.

A close up of the Velcro closure neck.

Another blogger idea was homemade play doh.  I saved peanut butter jars for the last couple of months and made red, green and "white" play doh.  I embellished a bit by scenting it with peppermint essential oil and dressed up the uncolored doh by folding in glitter after it had cooled.  Add a couple of cookie cutters and voila!  Instant Christmas gift that the boys will love.  Here is a picture and the recipe:

Homemade Play Doh

2 T oil

Food coloring
1 Cup Flour
1/2 cup salt
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 cup water
Essential oil (optional)

Add all ingredients to a saucepan. Cook over low heat until mixture is firm, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat, and set clay mixture on wax paper to cool.
Store in an airtight container.

A couple of surprises - pleasant and otherwise:

• PEZ is made in Connecticut.
• Hershey's giant solid kiss is made in MEXICO.  Hershey, PA?  Anyone?
• Shrinky Dinks are made in the USA and purchased at a Concord, NH small business toy store. 
• Piece Time Puzzles in Nottingham, NH makes their puzzles and will also make a custom photo puzzle with a little notice.  We uploaded a picture from our Cape vacation. 
• Wilson brags about their football line being made in OHIO.  From my research it appears that only the official NFL football is made in Ohio.  The Wilson football line in Walmart were all stamped as made in China.  (I've emailed the company directly as their website indicates that their products are all made in the USA.  I beg to differ.)
• Etsy.com is a wonderful resource!  The boys' 2011 Christmas ornaments are handmade by a woman in Oregon.
• Crayola paint is made in the USA.

And yes, the Wii is NOT made in the USA.  But that's OK... just about everything else I found is.  :-)

A Sunday Morning Snapshot

One of my favorite things to do on Sunday morning (and afternoon and evening) is to cook.  Sunday provides the best time to make Slow Food.  Things like soup, bread, stews, chili, etc.  I'm hungry just thinking about it and boy does my kitchen smell good!  Here's a snapshot of my kitchen at the moment:

Turkey stock coming to a boil:

We received part of a GIANT squash from the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) this week and with all of the other vegetables we got there is no way we'll manage to eat it.  The challenge of using all of the items we get in the CSA is one I accept readily!  The solution to this massive piece of squash was to roast, mash and freeze it to use in lieu of canned pumpkin or squash.  The best part is what it doesn't contain - BPA.  Pictured is the amount of squash we received which is about 1/8th of the entire thing.

Soaking beans for chili:

More cooking to come - the turkey soup will be finished, the chili will simmer away and cornbread and wheat rolls will be added to the mix.  All before our friends come over to watch the Eagles take on the Patriots.  There is nothing better on a Sunday than a house full of people, laughter and Slow Food.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

My bottle of store bought Watkins Vanilla extract contains water, alcohol (35%), vanilla extract and glucose.  One ounce costs something like $4.99.  I use a lot of vanilla, especially at this time of the year and having seen an idea to make my own vanilla I jumped at the chance.  It's amazingly easy and I found many variations on blogs everywhere.  The supplies you need can be purchased online and at the liquor store:

• Glass bottles and tops
• Madagascar Vanilla beans
• Vodka

The ratio of beans to vodka I settled on was 3 beans to 1 cup of vodka.  My bottles are 16 ounces so I used 6 beans for each bottle.  Sterilize your bottles in boiling water and wash the caps well (don't boil if they are plastic).  On a cutting board cut off the tip of each bean and split it down the center.  Add the beans to the bottles and cover with vodka. 

Tighten the lid on the bottle and store in a cool, dry place for 3-6 months.  Shake the bottle occasionally. 

Here's a comparison picture of the day I made the vanilla and 7 days later - it darkens quickly and smells wonderful!

I'll probably add a label (with a "don't use until" date) and ribbon and make them prettier though they do look pretty wonderful now!  I've already given one away so I'm glad I have extra bottles and beans. 

Specialty bottle sells various sizes of bottles - the smaller size bottles would make wonderful stocking presents or Yankee swap gifts.  Enjoy as vanilla extract or vanilla cocktail - you decide!

What do you mean it's going to snow? - The 2011 turkey story

The plan this year involved a day off for me on 11/23.  That way I could pick up the turkey, get some food prepped see a good friend and hopefully have a few hours to do whatever I felt like.  It was probably a very ambitious list but a girl can dream!  Mother Nature decided to throw a snow storm at us resulting in an evening trip to New Boston on 11/22.

With the boys in tow we headed out after work and daycare.  Where we typically eat around 5:30 I knew we'd have to stop along the way for dinner.  Where did we eat? McDonald's!  Ugh, I know!  Sometimes we've got to do what we've got to do, right?  After dinner our journey continued with happy meal boxes and toys in hand.  Patrick asked to bring his box inside when we picked up the turkey.  I chuckled and suggested that he leave it in the car so as not to lose it.  (Could you imagine arriving at an organic farm with a McDonald's box in hand?  HA!  In hindsight the farmer was wonderful and it surely wouldn't have been a problem.)

I hadn't anticipated the dark but only made one wrong turn prior to reaching the farm road.  After turning into three long driveways that were NOT the farm we found it.  Let me tell you, K turns on dirt driveways are not fun!  At least I only heard the boys each say, "I'm scared" once!  We finally found the right driveway but then couldn't find the right door.  The 1700's farm house has many doors including an attached barn with even more doors.  After several attempts up dark paths the boys and I went back to the car and called Roger from the driveway and he met us outside.  We discussed his CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program as we're going to switch farms for next year.  The boys kept themselves busy by weighing each other and potatoes on a huge antique scale and off we went.

Now with the snow coming and the turkey in the fridge I still have a day off tomorrow.  Fingers crossed for light work shoveling and an open daycare and school.  Looking forward to brining this bad boy for a great meal on Thursday.

Bobbing for Turkey - the Thanksgiving that started it all...

A little more than four years ago I joined an online book club through meetup.com.  The book that month happened to be Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year in the Life of Food by Barbara Kingsolver (the novelist).  I never would have read this book on my own but for me this began an education that truly rocked my world.

The book follows the Kingsolver family as they move from the Southwest back to their summer homestead in Virginia.  Their goal is to eat entirely from from their farm or locate their food sources from within 100 miles of their home.  They raise livestock, grow fields of vegetables, forage for mushrooms, can, freeze, etc.  The author peppered in stories of heirloom seeds, homemade mozzarella (which I've made!), selling chicken eggs, etc.  Her stories of the turkey that we all think of gracing our dinner table on Thanksgiving were shocking.  She spoke of the big breasted birds that have been modified so much that they can't even have sex to procreate their species.  We have bred the most natural instinct out of the animals while stuffing them full of corn feed to ensure we have big breasted $0.49 birds. 

The author raised all heritage breeds and encouraged the reader to seek out a heritage breed turkey for their own Thanksgiving table.  This fell at the right time of year for me as we were reading the book in October... perfect time to start my search.

My first search via the almighty Google didn't help much.  The last 4 years has shown increased demand for local food making a current Google search much more productive!

Several searches and phone calls led to a farm north of Concord.  They didn't have a web site but they did have turkey's!  Our Thanksgiving bird was on order and it would be ready for pick up the Sunday before Thanksgiving. 

The morning of pick up we packed the kids in the car and headed out to the farm.  The boys both fell asleep on the not too far ride so Matt stayed in the car with them while I got the turkey.  I followed the spray painted signs that led to what amounted to a huge tarp tent heated by a pot belly stove.  There wasn't a door, just another tarp that could be moved aside to enter. 

I didn't know what I was doing...  I was wearing nice jeans, Mary Jane's with a heel and my sassy purse slung over my shoulder.  Feeling a little foolish and way overdressed for a tarp tent, I pulled back the door and said in a big (trying to overcome my shyness) voice, "Hi there!!!"  Heads of several people turned immediately to the crazy woman who just walked in.  Their teeth, if counted together, likely equaled my own.   What caught my eye next were two large pools full of turkey's bobbing in water.  Yes, they were dead, featherless, gutless, etc. but that many turkey's in a pool was a bit surprising to this city girl! 

I told the woman behind the folding table my name and she said, "Ahh, yes!"  as she remembered me from her conversation with said City Girl.  Her husband bobbed a turkey of the weight I ordered from the pool, double checked the weight on an old fashioned hook scale and then wrapped it in a garbage bag.  While I wrote my check (don't you people take debit?) her husband asked if I was a Williamson from the Chichester Williamson's.  I smiled and politely said no believing that to get out of their quickly it was better not to tell him that I grew up in a suburb of NYC!  I handed off my check, picked up my garbage bag, wished everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and got the hell out of there! 

It was a decent walk back to the car and I giggled the whole way.  By the time I got into the car I couldn't stifle my laughter any more! Tears rolled down my face while I laughed through the story to Matt.  He looked at me in disbelief and was glad I went and not him.  What a gentleman!  When we got home the bird found a home in the fridge until Thanksgiving morning - and boy was he tasty.

The turkey adventures have continued since then.  Three years ago I met the farmer halfway at the library in Candia.  We had a turkey exchange in the parking lot.  Last year had a more traditional pick up with the bird waiting for us already wrapped in a cold garage.  This year is yet another different farm - this one happens to offer a CSA for both veggies and meat.  This will be a trial run for perhaps signing up in late winter. 

The current year's bird story is often a topic at the Thanksgiving table which I do enjoy.  I'll never buy another frozen bird again as the antics and the people are just too memorable to skip.  Besides, the turkey is just awesome and cannot be missed.

I have a blog! Now... what to do with it.

Despite the fact that I write this with no followers to yet read it, I'm excited about future prospects!  I work in the insurance industry which is about as fun as a paper cut.  My real passion is food.  Real, actual, grown in the dirt, or grazes in a pasture, whole food.     My joy is creating food for my family, feeding us well with whole and local ingredients.  One of the highlights of my week is when my husband Matt brings home our "mystery box" of veggies from our CSA (community supported agriculture) membership.  I'm always on the hunt for new recipes and food ideas... ways to make food fun for my kids and something they would want to eat without making "kid food" every night.  This blog will be a place to store those ideas and keep my creativity flowing. 

My passion also extends to living simply.  I teach my children how to be mindful of what we buy and throw away (that magical place where we can pretend stuff doesn't exist anymore).  We reduce what we purchase when possible.  We reuse what we can in projects with the kiddos or re purpose them around the house.  Last but not least recycle what's left.  Since we moved over the summer I haven't gotten my compost bin back up and running but hopefully that will be a future blog post!

Time to Feed My Passion.