A Snowy Superbowl Weekend In

 The East Coast is supposed to get six inches of snow this Super Bowl weekend. It's just a good two days to stay in and just nibble snacks and foods. It's a good weekend for baking and cooking.

It is not a good time for baking  tracookies and cakes thanks to the egg shortage. Yet you can bake buttery shortbread cookies and even turn them into sandwich cookies by creating a ganache filling. Shortbread only requires flour butter and sugar. They're an easy bake and you can have fun making them in the true Scottish fashion by pricking the dough with a fork to create fanciful designs. Keep in mind that there are recipes for eggless chocolate chip and sugar cookies.A nice bake is a pizza. Pizza dough  is relatively simpler o make.Its a combo of bread flour . olive oil, sugar and yeast. it can be made into calzones too for a perfect Super Bowl  meal. remember to have pizza sauce , mozzarella and whatever toppings or fillings you want. Have cans of olives, banana peppers, and mushrooms on the read along with pepperoni and ham. If you don;t want all the fuss then think French bread or English muffin pizzas.This is also a good weekend for baking a sourdough loaf. Use the bread for game day sandwiches too.

A good snowy day meal is also a good chili day.  Lidl' has an excellent chili starter than you can customize with all sorts of tasty ingredients. You can also make your own too. Chili is one of the simplest crockpot recipes out there.Its cooking tomato sauce, tomato paste and ground beef or vegan crumbles with a variety of spices. You can added sliced onions and garlic or use their powdered forms for a less intense taste. KIdney beans are a must along with red pinto beans Add a pinch of chili powder for a mild taste or more for a three or four alarm fire.. To make the dish  even more exciting bake or buy cornbread.This can be eaten on the side or have the chili poured over it.There is still room for barbecue treats like hot dogs and hamburgers. Just cook them in the air fryer for an all over crispness. Their buns ca be also air fried - usually for four minutes at 320 degrees Farenheit. Go wild with the fixings. Add cheese , chili and relishes. You could also use the air fryer for the accompanying fries and Tater   Tots. It's sort of like being in the stands but in the comfort of a warm house.Pretzel bites with cheese sauce are another fun snack . The pretzel bites can also be warmed in the air fryer while the cheese can be microwaved.

This is a good weekend to stay in and party. It's also a good weekend to stay in and indulge in fun foods. Enjoy a snowy Superbowl Sunday  with tasty food.

A Summery Blast Of Fruit

 Winter baking can be boring. You're tired of the tried and true flavors of chocolate, vanilla and some kind of spice. You long for something summery and fruity. That taste of summer baking can be had even on a wintry day.It;s just adding fruit into the mix.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark wrote bout this in her  A Good Appetite  column  in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section.She is a jam enthiusiast from her earliest days , going for just the jelly i na jelly doughnut. As an adult, like many cooks, she appreciates a good jam. Any fruity concoction is a welcome relief during cold snowy days.Its brings back sun kissed orchards during July and August. She does recommend using only jams because they don't melt under high temps like jellies do. There''s also the plus of having real fruit bits laced among the crumb.she gives two recipes, ones for a light and airy lemon pudding along with a one bowl jam doughnut cake. Ms. Clark recommends using thick, dark hued jams such as blueberry,blackberry and raspberry to give a nice contrast to the pale yellowness of the cake. What about marmalade?It has a tendency to be like jelly, meaning the jelly itself will disappear once itsbake and will leave only the flavor and orange bits. 

The baked lemon pudding is a contrast in colors and flavors.Even though it is a pudding there is a quarter of a cup  of flour added  to give it body.  Two large lemons go into it. They have to be juiced and zested.Use three large eggs and separate ten. (Unfortunately egg substitute doesn't;t seem to work here.) the whites have to be beaten into a meringue almost and added to the batter. Again for the jam, you can use any flavor but the blueberry goes well with the lemon.Pour one half cup into a bowl to loosen it. Spread dollops of it over the batter once the batter is poured into a shallow buttered baking dish. It's baked in a 350 degree Farenheit oven for thirty to thirty -five minutes. Once cooled, then dust some confectioners sugar on top. Ms. Clark's cake recipe is more of a Bundt cake with a buttery glaze drizzled on top. The batter is a rich one producing a dense crumb thanks tot he three eggs, half a cup of melted butter and a quarter of a cup whole milk. There is   that cakey doughnut look and feel thanks to dusting the buttered pan with a cinnamon sugar before baking.The batter is poured in in two parts. After halfway filling up the ring create an indentation and then dollop in a quarter cup of blackberry jam, spreading it evenly thought out the trench circle.Bake at 350 degrees Farenheit for forty to fifty minutes. Brush with more melted butter and then a generous dusting of more cinnamon sugar.

These jam rich gems are perfect for brinigng back the taste of summer. Bake these cakes to enjoy them on a cold wintry day. A slice will liven up an afternoon with hot tea.

Giving Prison Food Clemency

 It a nasty comparison when people say a bad meal t astes "like prison food". This is true in most US incarceration centers where most are  basically owned by large  corporations. However that's changing in one famous prison - Riker's Island. Inmates are getting a chance to eat relatively decent food.

Regular contributor and chef Priya Krishna wrote this interesting piece in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Riker's Island has always had a bad reputation. It's essentially a jail  - not a prison - that holds local criminals.There has been all kinds of abuse there in recent years, from sexual to physical. If it can be called lucky, there is a small bright spot. Thanks to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a fervent vegetarian, the jail's menu is having an upgrade. Now inmates get two plant based meals a week and it will be upped to four a week in the near future.The loyal cooks there are excited about this overhaul.Much of their time is defrosting frozen food like pizza pockets and burritos - two meals they know detainees don't like.Janelle Anderson a Riker's cook for ten years claims that most of the food comeback uneaten. There is more waste than consumption.New dishes will include a baked macaroni and cheese with the addition of butternut squash  and a cheese and vegan sanocho, a beloved Puerto Rican stew. The last is being made by Hot Bread Kitchens , a non profit managing Rikers' kitchen.

Any jail time can be rough.However the RIkers cooks are devoted to their charges as they are to this new style of cooking.One,Luis Reina, who has been with the jail for twenty-nine years adds a bit of soy sauce occasionally to the meals to liven them up. (Mayor Mike Bloomberg mandated that there should be no salt in the dishes in back in 2012. He was striving for a healthier diet for all those associated with the city government).Mr. Reina also has detainees working for him. He doesn't delve into their pasts or the reason they're there. He just accept them for who they are ,After all these cooks provide the inmates with a rare shred of humanity - a meal. His co worker ,Tamara, Craddock agrees. This is their only connection to staying sane.It also isn't just humanizing she states but stabilizing. Shortages could be the fodder for prison riots.She cheers them up and even improvises a barbecue sauce bu blending ketchup with jelly for a makeshift barbecue sauce. Some like Kay Fraser, a pastry cook is tougher with them,Her attitude is gruff to them, ironic given her former position was making sweets for little girls at The American Girl Cafe.

Riker's Island has never really had a good reputation. It is hell for those who stay there. Yet eating decent and tastier  food is one way to alleviate the dismal situation. 

Your Party Rib Guide

 Ribs and Super Bowl parties go hand in hand. Yet many don't know what kinds of ribs to get fir a gathering. What works , What doesn't? How do you cook them. Don;t worry .There is a guide to help.

There are fifteen (!) kinds of ribs to choose from. For  a hearty mix you can serve three or four different types. Most home chefs buy baby back ribs. These are what smokehouses serve and try seem to be the least fattiest. They're also the most popular thanks to chains like Chilis promoting them. Why are they called baby backs./They don;t come from pigletss but it's because of the size of the ribs.They're located further up on the rib cage and are shorter and smaller than their longer neighbors.They have more loin meat which makes them perfect for hungry party goers. You can use a dry or wet rub before you cook them low and slow. They should be the first dish that's cooking.Another popular cut is St. Louis ribs. They come from the same part of the rib cage as spare ribs,There is more marbling here which , although they're half fat, makes for a tastier bite.If you are firing up the grill for the big game then consider country style pork ribs.They come from the upper shoulder part of the loin so they 're not really ribs. They're mostly boneless so they should be eaten with a knife and fork. These are the most decadent.

If you want a beef cut then think of short ribs.They get the name because they're  a few inches shorter than regular ribs.Depending upon the cut these can be cooked quickly or slowly.Use these for an elegant rib dish. Try simmering them in red wine based sauce and serve with a side of mashed potatoes. You could also quick cook them for a tangy and sweet Korean barbecue style ribs.Another good beef choice are the beef back ribs. They're located behind the shoulders from the same fatty part as prime rib roast and ribeye steaks.They can be cooked as a whole rack or cut into individual pieces for faster cooking.They can benefit from both a dry or wet rub along with sauces. (although they probably taste the best with just salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon on them. For something entirely different think lamb riblets. Lamb is very flavorful and would be a different dish to serve.mThey do have a layer of unctuous fat but also are delicious.You can make them with Asian dishes or better yet Middle Eastern.Think a rub of cumin, coriander, ,turmeric and allspice, Serve with pita to stop up the juices.

Super Bowl parties need ribs. Pick any of these for a delicious dish. Everyone will enjoy whatever you'll be serving.

Tamilitoz A Fun Zesty Taste Roller Coaster

 If you want candy with zing then try the roller coaster that is Tamalitoz a new Mexico City company. Their candie s are an exciting marriage of sweet, salty, tart and fiery. They're a fun treat with so  much flavor.

The company was started in Mexico City by couple Jack who is Mexican and Dec who is British. These follow the Britsih tradition of hard candy while going wild with flavors and hot peppers. They created a mouth watering popcorn too - Palomitaz that comes in such yummy flavors as chocolate and churros

It;'s caramel corn but much better. I fell for the sweet pineapple syrup over them and then the heat of chili pepper.It;'s a wonderfully zingy blend of sweet and heat. I also went mad for their Tamalitoz  Lip smacking mango flavor. This is a crazy blend of  sweet mango with a salty chili lime filling. 

Think a mango margarita in a hard candy. This makes all the other  one flavor  hard candies huge yawns. 

I also discovered their Chili Pops Chamoy.Whoa!

This is a play on Mexican shaved ice chamoyada where sweet and spicy zing such unusual flavors as cucumber and tamarind >Coconut gives it an undertone of sweetness. I love that the lollipops are studded to the core with tiny pepper flakes. These are fiery and fun to the last lick.

regular caramel corn and hard candies are boring compared to these Mexico City made treats. Try them for a fun zingy, flavor ride. They 're a different kind of snack.

SuperBowl Super Fun

 Next week it's the Super Bowl!!!  This means fun foods that are tasty and filling. This is an event that doesn't have a set menu.Anything you make or bake is good.

Salads usually don;t figure greatly in any Super Bowl party yet suppose it has pepperoni in it. A pepperoni salad is a fun way to bring veggies into the party.  Use a Spring mix along with banana peppers and cherry tomatoes Add diced cucumbers and chopped mozzarella cheese for more oomph. What about the dressing? A simple vinaigrette works  here. Keep the extra pepperoni for a massive charcuterie board. Charcuterie works well at any Super Bowl party. Also have slices of ham, salame and mortadella. Cheese could be anything from Swiss to cheddar. Yes you should have bread, a good Italian or French bread. Salty nuts like cashews and peanuts round it out. Bowls of olives are also good on a charcuterie board. Have both green and black out. A sea-cuterie board is also delicious if you want to splurge. This could could be tins of anchovies and sardines along with salmon and tuna. You can also buy a shrimp cocktail ring from your local grocery too. A lobster or crab salad works better than having whole lobster and whole crab legs. These can get a bit costly, especially if you're hosting a large crowd.

Dips are a must. One of the most famous and favorite is  artichoke dip.It's not just the artichoke hearts that give it the flavor,There are a variety of cheeses also. Add Parmesan, Romano and mozzarella for flavor and creaminess. The dip has to have mayonnaise to give it that famed silkiness. Of course there's spinach for color and more flavor. Use frozen or fresh.It;s up to you. Basil and garlic are also added as well as sea salt and pepper. The dip is famously served in a hollowed out bread bowl but a regular bowl can do too.Serve with bread chunks or even pita chips. Guacamole is another must make dip for any Super Bowl party. This is a super easy dish of mashed avocados, lemon juice and tomatoes. A drizzle of olive oil can be added to give the dip silkiness. Make a lot.This is one of the most popular dips out there and people go crazy for it. Queso is another Mexican dip perfect for any party. It can even be drizzled over tacos and burritos for extra flavor.It;'s made from a mix for shredded cheddar, evaporated and regular milk along with garlic, a small chopped white onion and chopped green chiles. Cornstarch or corn flour is used to thicken it. Serve warm for maximum flavor.

Happiness is a Super Bowl Party with good food being served. Try a;; sorts of dishes from seafood to meat for a tasty variety. Your guests and you will appreciated it.

A FEast For February

 February is the time for feasting - from Valentine's Day or the Super Bowl to finishing up celebrating the Lunar New Year. It's the month for Presidents Day - and cherry pie to honor George Washington (Although cherry tarts will do nicely)  Ir's the month of chocolate hearts and chocolate mousse, of yummy dumpling and spicy wings.

Here's the question of the week  - what are you looking most forward to in this upcoming month? A romantic Valentine's Day dinner? Ginger pork dumplings? A Super Bowl buffet? Cherry pie with cherry ice cream? Let us know.For me, maybe just some fun chocolates and those Necco candy hearts