Italian Cold Cuts For Columbus Day

 Today is Columbus Day. In recent years the man and the day have been vilified - and with good reason. However it's also a time to celebrate the impact of Italian food has on the American palate. One of the most obvious are the cold cuts. These are pure heaven, and brighten up any lunch or dinner.

One of the all time favorites is the elegant mortadella.It is considered a sausage made of finely hashed or ground heat cured pork. It also has about fifteen per cent of pork cubes from the sinewy neck muscles. It's flavored with black pepper grains, pistachios and in some dried myrtle berries.It originated in Bologna and is the first cousin of bologna, another ground meat. The name comes from mortare or to grind. The best way to have it is on a big hung of crisp fresh Italian bread. It doesn't need any mayo.It's just supremely delicious on its' own. Sopprassata is another tasty bite that's great om bread or rolls. It's more from Liguria and Genoa. Unlike mortadella it can be sliced and added to a salad. Prosciutto is one of the most popular and eaten the most. Many know it from gracing cantaloupe slices in fancy restaurants but's it's also great layered with other cold cuts on a hero.it's made from high quality pork legs.Most prosciutto slices are crudo or cured raw. The meat is covered in salt and left to"rest" so  bacteria and blood can't touch it. after this salting period the meat is washed and left to cure for fourteen to thirty-six months. That's what gives the meat the sweet - rich flavor.

Pepperoni is also vastly popular and is used from pizza topping to salad.It's more Italian-American in origin.It's similar to salami, much loved by Southern Italians.It's usually made from a mix of pork and beef but there is now some made from turkey meat for a "healthier" lower calorie version.Pepperoni came about in 1919 ,probably to introduce Americans to Italian foods.It is loaded with nitrates to prevent botulism which gives its' signature reddish tint. Dried sausage would be a better choice. It's created from pork and fat cubes. It's seasoned with garlic, salt and spices and stuffed into a pig's intestine. A smaller version is salomino which has  a small one inch  circumference. The Emilia-Romana town of  Felino is known for it.It can also be spicy or piccante. Try it sliced in a giardeneria salad. Capocolla is another popular cold cut.It's a pork shoulder flavored with paprika and red pepper flakes. Unlike the other cold cuts which are cured. capocolla is slow roasted.Have it sliced paper thin and layered on a long roll, with tomatoes and banana peppers.

Celebrate not Columbus but other Italians and their contributions to American life. Celebrate the joy of Italian eating and Italian cold cuts. These are truly gems on the American table.

Cherry Grove Farm - The Best of Lawrenceville NJ

 New Jersey has amazing farms which have a wide variety of fresh made and organic products. Cherry Grove Farm in the quaint town of Lawrenceville right outside of Princeton. The town itself is like an American version of a Jane Austen setting.

The farm is a dairy farm , rare in New Jersey and known for their homemade mozzarella and burrata. There are several animals for petting and just nuzzling.

                             Here is an adorable baby goat. It has the softest fur and sweetest disposition.

                   This is the sheep and goat. There's also a chicken coop and fields full of cattle.

                                      Here is the sheep, possibly a ewe, along with that adorable kid.

Cherry Grove is also known for their small country store. I couldn't get over the variety and array of fresh made products.It was hard to choose  what food to buy.

                                          They have a fig almond spread and a red pepper tapanade.

These are the preserves and jams.It was hard not to pass up the bread and butter pickles and pickled green beans.

Cherry Grove Farms also has a fantastic array of bee products from honey to pollen. I want to get the pollen on my next visit.

    I decided on the Weaver's Orchard's applesauce and Oak View Acres strawberry jam, these coming from the heart of Amish country near Reading ,PA.  not  all that far from Lawrenceville. I plan on serving the apple sauce with veggie pancakes and the jam slathered on croissants.

Cherry Grove Farms is the perfect fall outing. Take a ride there to see the animals and try their amazing array of different preserves, cheeses, jams, honey, and applesauce. Enjoy  a fall day in the country

Cherry Grove Farm is located at 3200, Lawrenceville Road , Lawrenceville ,NJ. It's right off the New Jersey Turnpike and Route 206

The Most Perfect Caramel Candy Apple

 This is the season for candy apples. They are not only fun to eat, they're festive to look at. They can be easily made and made to perfection.It just takes some skill and patience.

Before you start get yourself a good candy thermometer. A perfect coat is what makes a candy apple great. If; the coating is too soft, it may slide off or becoms too hard. OXO has an excellent brand that also works for a deep fryer along with Polder which also works for cooking jellies and jams too as well as deep frying.The recipe is easy.It's three cups of sugar and half a cup of corn syrup mixed with one cup of water. Red food coloring is added when the mix hits 300 degree Farenheit or the hard crack stage. You can test this by dropping a drop of the syrup into a glass of cold water. It should form into a hard droplet not unlike hard candy. The apples are placed on lollipop or popsicle sticks and one by one swirled into the red goo. Place on  waxed paper or a butter greased cookie sheet(  doing it this way gives extra flavor).What apples should you use? I'd prefer  small Granny Smith simply because their tartness is a nice foil to the sweetness. Fuji, Jazz and Gala, all reds, also make for good candied apples. Keep in mind that some apples come with a waxy coating which will make the coating slide off. To remove it , boil six cups of water with one tablespoon white vinegar. quickly dip the apples in this for five seconds and thoroughly dry.

Caramel apples are another yummy treat right now. The question is to use Kraft caramels or take it an extra step to heaven with home made caramel. The Kraft way has always been the easiest. It's just cutting up the caramel, putting them in a microwavable bowl with two tablespoons of water. The apples are then dipped into the caramel , then swirled and finally placed on parchment paper. They can be hardened in the fridge for one hour or until firm. Homemade caramel is much more labor intensive but worth it. It's more chewy and buttery, think a rich taffy that won't pool at the bottom. You will need heavy cream or heavy whipping cream which is the backbone. You cannot use milk or milk substitutes. Corn syrup is also required because that's what makes the caramel stick to the apple. Brown sugar is used instead of white.It's softer and better tasting than the granulated for this. Butter gives caramel that creaminess and extra flavor as does vanilla extract. All the ingredients except the vanilla are cooked until the caramel reaches the soft ball stage about 235 degrees Farenheit. The vanilla extract is added a few minutes later. Let it cool before dipping the apples in. Keep in mind that caramel burns the sides of the pan so use a wet pastry brush to clean it. You can dip both kinds of apples in coconut flakes or chopped peanuts for added flavor.

Happiness right now is a candy or caramel apple. Make these homemade candy and caramel ones for a perfect fall treat. They're fun, festive and delicious!!

Remembering Black Chefs

African-American chefs have long contributed to the American table. Now a new book imprint showcases not only traditional recipes but new chefs  that highlight their recipes and histories. It's a time to savor and celebrate.

Korsha Wilson, food writer and podcaster wrote this informative piece in yesterday's New York Times Food section. The person charged with the new imprint 4 Color Books from Ten Speed Books is chef and cookbook author, Bryant Terry. Chef Terry , who has won the James Beard and the NAACP Image Awards is dedicated to not only preserving and cooking traditional recipes but also promoting new African-American chefs such as seventeen year old Rahanna Bissenet-Martinez , the San Francisco born finalist of "Top Chef Junior" Her new cookbook Flavorous will be released next year by 4 Color. Chef Terry is known for his vegetarian recipes and has written five cookbooks revolving around them. His are Afro-Vegan, Vegan Soul Kitchen and Vegetable Kitchen  along with ones inspired by the African diaspora. Cooking during the enslaved people varied from the Carolina to Louisiana to the Caribbean.It was shaped by a number of variants from location to financial status and disposition of plantation owners. There are nuances and it is really Black food , bringing to the American table, sweet potatoes, dark leafy greens and pole beans, or Black Superfoods as Chef Terry calls them.

He does include two recipe from his cooking lab, (namely his shed that also is a home office).He offers traditional corn muffins.made with fine white cornmeal like Dixie LIly or White Lily. The batter is fragrant with coriander, not usually put in corn muffins, There is also vegetable oil and brown sugar along with buttermilk. He also has a vegetarian grits with mushrooms and rainbow chard. The mushrooms  can be either cremini or maitake are made into a sauce with jalapeno and garlic. Onions are also added and are charred. The chard is cooked and pickled , as it's cut into matchstick pieces and then quickly pickled in a sauce of jalepeno, garlic, onion sugar and vinegar. The leaves are also used. Chef Terry also includes a pilipili oil that combines olive oil and bird's eye or Thai chilis. These are cooked with thyme and smoked paprika and used on many South African dishes.

Bryant Terry and 4 Color Books will make sure that African American cuisine and its' history will come into its' own. The writers and their recipes along with tradition will come to the front of the American table. It's about time.

Eat Like Your Favorite CHaracters

 Since childhood we've always wanted to be like our favorite characters. We still do it even as adults, Now we can eat like them too thanks to all sorts of cookbooks. You can dine like Spock or feast like a Stark.

Priya Krishna, a regular contributor to the New York Times Food section wrote about this in today;s issue. Cookbooks based on TV show shave been around for a while. There was The Dark Shadows (!) Cookbook as well as one based on the Partridge Family. There was even A LIttle House On The Prairie one. Now it's more intense thanks to streaming platforms and amusement parks that cater to fans.It also took The Sopranos Family Cookbook that came out in 2002 which sold more than 142,000 copies and The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook in 2010 which sold more than a million copies!!! These showed major publishers that these can be considered a lucrative genre. Some books are centered around food shows and movies like "Bob's Burger" and the fun movie "Ratatouille". Others are eye brow raising as in the "Walking Dead Cookbook" and "Hannibel". Really???

Of course "Game of Thrones" was a big part of everyone across the globe's lives. It's no wonder that there's a cookbook.Ms.Krishna has even included a lemon cake recipe from a cookbook based on the show. Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer A Feast Of Ice and Fire : The Official Game Of Thrones Companion Cookbook which was written almost ten years ago. Most of the recipes are taken from medieval and Elizabethan cookbooks. They can work at a Christmas or holiday party, especially if there's wassailing.There's also the Avatar The Last Airbender Official  Cookbook which has dishes from the Four Kingdoms.Now there is a brand new cookbook based on Wakanda called The Official Wakanda Cookbook written by NYanyika Banda. Ms, Banda had to up her game with the recipes thanks to the rabid fandom surrounding "Black Panther. She includes chambo, a traditional fish dish from Malawi which speaks to Wakanda's varying locations throughout the continent. It's what they want and know. Fifteen years ago they wouldn't be this passionate. Now they are.

You can eat like your favorite characters. Get the cookbook that features your favorite show or comics. Then you can feast like the Starks or enjoy ravioli like The Many Saints of Newark.

LIttle Bits Of Pasta

Pasta goes well in soup.It gives any from tomato to minestrone texture and taste. The only problem is it'

s too big. That's where the smaller sort comes in handy.It's easy to cook and easy to eat.

For those who like spaghetti or thinner noodles in their soup try Barilla fideo cut spaghetti. The known pasta company has created spaghetti strands or bits, that are perfect in any soup or even broth. Add it to chicken , beef or vegetable broth for those sick day lunches or dinner. It gives the broth more nutrients  which is better for the patient.It would also be good in a thick homemade tomato and basil soup too.The cut spaghetti would also be a fun change up in a classic minestrone where shells are used.There is also orzo which you probably used all summer in salads.It is also great in plain broths, perfect for a sick day meal. However it works just as well in minestrones and Italian wedding soups. Keep in mind that orzo is good served with just butter and cheese.It makes for a good Saturday night or Sunday supper where you just don't want to cook something fancy or elaborate.

Most people , especially those who grew up in Italian households know about pastina. These were a standard ingredient in chicken soups.Again, like orzo it's good on it's own cooked in broth and topped with butter and Parmesan. Ditalini or little fingers are bead like pieces of pasta. Many home chefs use it in a variety of different soups.It sometimes is the backbone for minestrone, meshing nicely with chopped tomatoes and onions along with kidney and cannelini beans.It add texture and more nutrients to a simple vegetable soup, rich with zucchini, cabbage , carrots and celery.Ditalini is also perfect for a simple cheese sauce. Just cook cheddar and whole cream into a sauce and pour over the pasta for a quick, satisfying bite. Other pastas that are good in soups and broth are the tiny wagon wheels called ruote and trofie , short twisted spaghetti like strands. Can you combine potatoes and pasta in the same soup. You can but go easy on the potatoes.There's enough starch from both. Besides the kids would probably prefer more pasta over the spuds anyway. 

Smaller sized pasta is a great addition to any soup or broth. It adds texture and taste, elevating the bowl to another level. Try it in your favorite.

Fall Picnics

 The weather is glorious right now. The summer heat has gone away and that makes it wonderful to take hikes or spend a cook day at the beach. It's the perfect time for a picnic basket.

Of course every picnic has to have sandwiches. Think heartier ones with a variety of meats and cheeses. You can even use leftovers from a week day roast for them. Autumn is the time for cheddar. A roast beef and cheddar sandwich on crusty sour dough bread.If you have leftover chicken or turkey shred the meat and layer it on think on a hero roll. You can add cheese , what's left over from your tomato harvest and kale or spinach. You could also make an ultra sophisticated  one with Brie spread on split croissants. What to have for sides? Since it's apple season try a slaw loaded with the Gala kind along with dried cranberries and shredded cabbage. To give it some color and crunch , add in scallions, matchstick carrots and almond slivers. You can sub in walnuts for the almonds for a different spin on flavor.Pears are also in season right now. A pear salad is unusual, easy to carry, and tasty. Think of one with arugula and goat cheese. Keep the dressing simple with a vinaigrette made with olive oil and apple cider vinegar.

Should you bring soup on a picnic? You could if it's two or three people or just yourself. Get yourself a large mouthed thermos which makes pouring easy. A great one is the classic tomato soup , a perfect companion for a cheddar cheese sandwich. You could also bring chicken soup or a potato soup. Pack a packet of oyster crackers along too. What to drink? If it's a bit chilly then think a hot tea or coffee , again brought in a thermos.If the weather is warmer , you could go for cider. It's always a great drink that works with any type of food. If not sparkling water is great as is cold brewed iced tea which can be brewed on the ride over. Picnics should end with some kind of sweet treat. Homemade shortbread is perfect. It travels well and won't get sticky or melty in the afternoon sun. Oatmeal raisin is another great bring. You could bake a double batch, one for the picnic and one for school and office lunch bags. A simple apple cake , easily cut into manageable squares is a good picnic cake. You could also make a spiced or nut snack cake too. Skip the frosting  though because it can get messy if wrapped in Saran wrap.

The weather calls for a picnic. Pack a lunch grab a blanket and set out to enjoy the beautiful season and sunny blue skies. Then enjoy a tasty meal in the cool fresh air,.