Air Fryer Potato Puffs

 What do you do with leftover  mashed potatoes? Turn them into crusty   puffs. These are tasty bites that can be  meal , snacks side or party appetizer. Any way you hav ethem they're just soooo good.

It starts with the mashed potatoes, Just Egg egg substitute, flour and bread crumbs. It's just a matter of rolling them into balls, then dunking them into the egg, followed by the flour and then the breadcrumbs. I added some dried parsley for color and flavor to the mash. (altohugh they were already flavored with butter and garlic).

                            I used about five to six tablespoons of parsley

Keep in mind  this is a messy process and twice I had to add the rest of the Just Egg and some flour. The potatoes were a bit dry to begin with so I had to moistnen them. Then they got too runny. That's when I added about half a cup fo flour and thouroughly mixed it in with them.

Here was the tough part. Trying to find the right temp and time in the air fryer. I read several recipes online and just came up with what I thought was the best. I set the first fry at 400 degrees Farenheit  for six minutes. Thoroughly spray them with cooking spray before air frying. I used Stop & Shop's olive oil flavor.

Here' they are half fried, They sort of look like big coconut macaroons.

                                                   They're much more golden and crunchy after five minutes of more frying.

I thought I would have these with kethcup or barbecue sauce but they really don't need anyything. They were crispy on the outside , soft and tender on the inside. I couldn;t stop eating them. You could vary the recipe by adding powdered ranch dressing or hot pepper. Some add shredded cheese and bacon. I just liek them plain,

Don't fret if you have leftover mashed potatoes. Turn them into crunchy , yummy air fried puffs. These are a treat to eat.

Barcelona's A True Classic Revisited

 Very few restaurants make it to their ninetieth birthday but Barcelona' sin Garfield, New Jersey  has. This is a throwback to eateries from decades ago. friends and family gather around tables or the bar for good old fashioned Italian and American dishes. You can get everythign form a thin crust pizza to a hamburger.

You can pass by it if you're driving quickly. It;s in a working class neighborhood in a town that was a suburb of Passaic.The atmosphere alone is worth the visit. Friends and family gather there, especially on a Friday nioght to share a communal bowl of salad and drink martinis as they play along with "Jeopardy". The food though is phenomenal and there's so much to choose from. There are the Southern Italian classics , from pizza to spaghetti to just meatball  dishes.Ravioli and lasagna lovers will go wild for the vast array of sauce  choices You can order hot or cold subs along with a variety of soups. There's also American food too. Their open steak sandwich is served with fries and a salad along with a hamburger and mushroom.

 I ordered the small onion pizza with a side of anchovies. (My dinner mates didn not want an anchovy pie). Every inch of the pie was covered with think strings of onion. Add the anchovies and I was in heaven. The crust is crispy and thin, The cheese and sauce were not overpowering as with some pies.

We  also ordered classic spaghetti with a grapefruit sized meatball on top. This is what pasta lovers dream of . The sauce was a tasty blend of tomato and tomato paste, rich with garlic and oregano. Their spaghetti with mushrooms  sounds just as tasty and will be tried on thei next trip. The prices are pretty good with $9 for a small plain pizza  while the spaghetti was $8.50. All meat  dishes are under fifteen dollars. There is even a dessert menu of Italian and American favorites.

If you're in Garfield for either lunch ro dinner come to Barcelona's It's good old fashioned food at good, old fashioned prices. It's like going to a family dinner.

Barcelona's is located at 38 Harrison Ave ,Garfield New Jersey, a block south of the Garfield Walmart. Go to www.Barcelonasnj.com for more info

Fun Fish Dishes

 Lenten fridays mean no meat. It does give home chefs a chance to experiment with seafood dishes. There are so many to choose from along with different kinds of fish. The recipes will make you forget steak and poultry for sure.

Melissa Clark's A Good Appetite columnin wednesday's New York Times Food section inspired me to think of other fish dishes. Her take on trout almondine was inspiring and easy to create. It's an easy cook with any white fish filet.The sauce is just a blend of lemon and butter with chives added in . serve ith wth smashed potatoes and white wine for a sophisticated intro to the weekend, The little ones may not like this so ther'es always fish and chips. You can easily buy already made filets along with Ore-Ida crinkle fries. However you  cna also make them in your air fryer. It's just creating a tasty batter out of breadcrumbs egg and flour. They could even help out in dredging the filets. . The fries cna be home made and air fried too. Use russet potatoes and give them an hout long cold water bath. This is to remove the starch and get them nice and crispy. They're then tossed in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper.The kids will love these with ketchup but the folks can have it with a garlicky aioli sauce.

Of course a hot brothy chowder is a great Friday  night dinner. Clam chowder comes in three variations., Manhattan, New England and Rhode Island. This is the red chowder , livened up with tomato paste. A Spanish onion is added as are chopped celery stalks. Yet ti's the melange of spices that give this soup its' distinctive flavor.There are seven cloves of galric , a pinch of red pepper and the all important thyme. This last is what imparts an earthy herby flavor to the chowder.Bay leaf can be added as well. The New England variety still has the minced clams but the chowder is It has onions too but potatoes are added (some Manhattan clam chowders also have these ) along with bacon for extra flavor ,there is also celery and butter added as well. It's usually also made with chicken broth but you can sub in vegetable broth for a truly meatless soup. The Rhode Island variety is not a blend of the Manhattan and New England but rather its' own rich mxiture of quahog clams , celery , onion and bacon cooked with a splash of Worcester sauce and white pepper for zing.

A friday night fish dinner cna be just as exciting as a weeknight meat dinner. Try any of these for a great way to bring in the weekend. They're tasty and flavorful for a great supper in,

A Fancy Take On Fish

 One of the most glorious dishes anyone could eat is trout almondine. It's a delicate melange of fish , slivered almionds and butter.Once the dish to have atr fancy restaurants it can easily be replicated at home.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark wrote about this amazingly retro fancy dish in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section.She puts her spin on this offshoot of sole meuniere. This was another fancy dish, that made Julia Child fall in lovewith French cuisine.It's just a simple lemon butter sauce but it quikly covered such veggies as cucumbers , radishes and beets to even grapes. It's no wonder that the great gastronome book, La Rousse Gastronomique considered these gauche 'declaring that this kind of ornament is quite useless and not at all keeping with the recipe. Yet the fish version can be varied. Ms. Clark roasts the fish instead of sauteing them. This lets you skip the dusting the filets in flour . roasting also is more forgiving. As for the fish, you could use trout for the tradtional route. Try cod or tilapia if you're into them. Flounder and halibut are also good choices along with snapper catifish haddock and grouper.she also adds zest .It makes the flavor brighter and amps up the citrus flavor.

It starts with pan roasting the filets  after seasoning them with just salt and pepper. Cut a tablespoon of butter into small pieces and place on top of each fish>Roast for eleven minutes in a 450 degree Farenheit oven. Keep in mind that thin filets cook faster than thicker ones. while the fish roasts , melt six tablespoons fo butter over a medium heat.Cook, swirling th e pan until the foam subsides and the butter turns nut brown. Add the almonds and turn off the heat. The nuts will brown right away.Toss them in the butter until they turn golden brown about two minutes. Turn the heat back on low. It's time to squeeze in the lemon juice and add the finely grated zest. Add a tabelspoon of minced chives , saving some for plating later. Pour the sauce over the filets and serve. You can add more chives along with t he lemon and the zest if you want a tarter flavor. What to serve with a dish this simply ruch? Ms. Clark recommends roasted or boiled potatoes  next to a mound of steamed broccoli or green beans. Their simplicity  will work well with the nutty sauce.

This is the dish to try. It's rich  and fancy but without any fuss. It's a great way to enjoy any white fish , especially during Lent.

Beef Stew Different Ways

One of the most comforting and delicious late winter dishes is beef stew.It's a bowl of rich goodness with a heady mix of a variety of parts, veggies and spices. What's great about it is that there isn't just one recipe,. There are ones from all over the world.

Regular contributor Julia Moskin wrote about this classic and its' variations in today's New York Times Food section.This is a great article for novice chefs because Ms/ Moskin include basics musts. Yes you have to use beef stock, The meat won't make its' own. The stew should always be covered when simmering,There's also a question of is any stew the same as soup, a braise or a pot roast? Not meaningfully. They're more or less all the same. What about the cuts? Start with a leaner meat . Look with cuts that feature cartilige, tendons and even a few bones.You can pick up beef labeled stew beef. Most grocery stores sell these in two inch chunks and smaller. Keep in mind that beef goes with all alliums, These are onions, leeks, garlic and scallions.Of course you can be brave and add potatoes for thickening and carrots for color and sweetness.The writer Laurie Colwin throws in bright green peppers while Manhattan cookbook store owner Nach Waxman did the outrageous  and tossedSin tomato paste. As far as other add in,s try red wine for an Italian spin or brown sugar for a south Asian or Caribbean vibe.Pork can be added too for more flavor . This is a staple in Mexican stews.

For those that are still undecided , there are four recipes to try out. You can try the absolute classic by The former Times food critic Mimi Sheraton. Generations of home chefs have used her recipes with great success. sShe uses brisket but you can use bomeless chuck or short ribs. Cheeks cna be used too. She adds tomato paste and paprika along with onions and carrots. It's served over potatoes or egg noodles. A different spin is braised short ribs with anchovies and peanuts adapted from the late Indian chef and entrpreneur Floyd Cardoz.It's not the usual mix but's still packed with  flavor. there are onions and short ribs along with Savoy cabbage and fresh ginger.It would be a nice chage up on a weekend night.Another Indian stew is Nihari taken from "Masala :Recipes from India _The Land of Spices  (Tenspeed Press) by Anita Jaisingham. GHee is used in this along with chickpea flour and garam masala. There is also turmeric for kick and color . Patti JInich gives it a Mexican twist by adding ancho and pasila chiles. There are also tomatillos cooked with Roma tomatoes . The veggies serve with reflect it's heritage. There is zucchini , corn, green beans and chayote squash(if you can find it right now.) Squeezes of lime are added for some zing and brightness.

Beef stew on a cold night is always the best. Try any of these whether a classic , Mexican or Indian one. The're all rib sticking good .

Tastes Like Homemade

 Sometimes it's hard to make meals from scratch.That's where packaged ,boxed and jarred foods come in handy. Yet there's always something lacking in their flavors. what to do? Add some home made touches and flourishes.

One of the easiest foods to amend is tomato sauce. Some are good and don't need any extras. Yet once in a while there is one that nneds a pinch of this or a dash of that. Adding a tablespoon of olive oil helps to create a smoother sauce.I did this with Shop Rite's Bowl an d Basket brand sauce. This is a little better than other in house brands because it's made in Italy.

A small can of mushrooms were also added for a more heartier taste. You could add oragano or pepper for more flavoring (don;t add salt, there's enough sodium in these processed foods)

It was served with this fusilli but it can be used for any kind of pastas from gnocchi to even ravioli. The same is true with certain baked mac packages too. You could easily add in some crumbled bacon or even minced ham to accentuate the cheese flavor. Any plain pizza can be upped a notch with a smattering of fresh veggies on top or a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.Even ramen soup can be jazzed up Korean style with a fried egg or some chopped scallions. Add a packet of soy sauce  for more flavor. 

Yes, it's easier to use packaged foods but they need just a dash of something. Give them that homemade flavor by adding a dash of something. It'll make for a quick yet flavorful meal.

Pasta Thick And Thin

 There are so many different kinds of pasta out there. What do you choose from?A delicate  angel hair or a robust bucatini? What holds sauce better Strads or pasta or the chunky , twisty kind? There are so many to choose from - yet which is the right one?

Keep in mind that not all pastas work with sauces or even as sides.Long strands or twiny ones like spaghetti which means twine and angel hair are perfect for those sauces that don't have chunks of tomatoes in them. Creamy sauces such as  carbonara or an Alfredo sauce work well with these too. These also make the perfect side pasta , especially with chicken or seafood. Definitely use the thinner and flat shaped linguine for any of the clam sauces or to accompany lobster Fra Diavolo.As for salads  - no. There;s a reason you rarely see any of these "long" pastas with mayo at a backyard barbecue. You could use the spaghetti or angel hair if you do want to make Thai peanut salad but that's about it. What about these pastas in soups? There is a trend now to make spaghetti soup which is a kid pleaser. Normally , however smaller  chunkier pastas are used for different kinds of soups. Think smaller orrichete or orzo along with pastina and wagon wheels for this. These are easier to manage on a spoon than slippery strands of angel hair or fettuccine.

What are the thicker pastas? Fusilli is one and it can be short corkscrews or long resembling thick coily  hair. The first is good with a thick  sauce rich with tomato chunks and mushrooms. I also think this kind makes for the perfect salad too.Mayo, even the vegan kind sticks to it as does a vinaigrette. It also is a great foil for celery and tomatoes as well as torn broccoli and cauliflower bits. Rotelli  is one of those rare chunky pastas that also works well in soup too. It's perfect with a hearty beef based minestrone. A thick and fun pasta to make is bucatini. Meaning little mouth in Italian it's as thick as a drinking straw and is perfect with a Bolognese sauce. You can use a ground beef sauce like that or be a bit more creative and try it with leftover London Broil cubes added to the sauce.Thicker pastas would also be great with vodka sauces as well.This a a creamy blend of whole cream cooked with tomato paste and a splash of vodka. The sauce can also work with calamarata , which look like short dense tubes. Try this kind too with a sauce brimming with veggies like broccoli,  and whole tomatoes.

Nothing beats a good pasta dish. It can be made with thin stands like angel air or thick like bucatini. Serve it with the right sauce and enjoy a delicious dish.