Chef In Attendance

Mamaw’s Crispy Cottage Cheese Cookies

I don’t remember ever really cooking in the kitchen with my mom growing up. She worked long and late hours in the restaurant business. She did cook, often and very well, I just don’t remember being interested enough to watch. My dad was a great cook too, often experimenting and fearless to tackle the most intimidating ingredient. As kids, we were all encouraged to play in the kitchen though and I’ve very fond memories of cooking with my sister, Pam. She was and still is a very good baker, something I don’t have much patience for. She’s the scientist with her weights and measures, I’m more the witch over the caldron, adding a drop of this, a touch of that.

When I was a student in culinary school though, there was no way to avoid baking. By the time I hit the advanced class, I was pretty cocky and full of myself, having spent the first year and a half having great success in the kitchens there. So, when the assignment was to bring in a recipe we’d like to make for the class I immediately decided to make my mom’s cottage cheese cookies. I’d never made them before but my daughter had and assured me they were “easy”.  I figured the funky ingredient would catch Chef’s eye, which it did. Needless to say, my cookies were a complete and utter failure, a true come uppence if you will.

The cookies are easy. The technique is what I was lacking. So, when mom (mamaw) said she wanted to make these cookies, I jumped at the chance and guess what, watching her made all the difference. Do you have a mom, auntie, mamaw of your own who makes something you love but have never tried? I encourage you to start picking their brain now. Get in the kitchen, don’t hesitate or wait another moment. I’ve already had mommy show me how to make her stuffed cabbage, southern fried chicken and cornbread. Now I can add these fabulous cookies to my repertoire and so can you. Send me an e-mail and I’ll send you the recipe.

Recently, I taught a class at Lorenzo’s Culinary School, in Lakeside Ohio, called “Everything Egg Roll”. We fit 20 people into a class that normally holds ten, but oh what a class it was, and these were no ordinary egg rolls. The one’s pictured above were filled with turkey, stuffing and cheese. We dipped them in a cranberry sauce. We followed them up with a Reuben egg roll and  a homemade 1000 island, a pizza egg roll with red sauce to dip in and the grand finale, banana foster’s egg roll with a homemade hot fudge sauce.  Here is a picture of the inside of one of my delicious reuben egg rolls.

If you’d like to learn how to make these elegant and delicious egg rolls, contact me and we can do a class. Just gather a few friends and I’ll come to you. I will be having one last egg roll class at Lakeside, on Thursday, July 29th if you’d like to join me there or you can wait until next year’s season. The beauty of the egg roll is that you’re limited only by your imagination, so get in that kitchen and give it a try!

There’s a rather large sticker on the back of my car that simply says READ. Next to cooking, I’d have to say that reading is a real passion of mine. I can still remember titles I read back in grade school. Summer is a great time to read. Whether you’re lying on a beach somewhere, lounging in the hammock out back or simply trying to beat the heat in the air, a good book can take you on an adventure unlike anything else. All four of us in my house are voracious readers and the house looks like it. There are books in nearly every room of this place, shelves and shelves of books with titles as varied as you can get.  There are a few that I re-visit on a regular basis, Out of Africa, Lost Horizon, Rebecca, just to name a few. I like the classics but love new literature as well. Here are 4 of my more recent reads and one’s I have especially enjoyed.

The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brian, is set in Vietnam, The Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows, is set in England just after WWII, The Good Good Pig, by Sy Montgomery, is set in New England and is a true story and the surprise of my summer reading is The Good Thief, by Hannah Tinti, the only way to describe it is Oliver Twist meets Ichabod Crane. No matter what your taste, you shouldn’t let the summer pass without having read one good book.

It’s ninety degrees here in beautiful Northeast Ohio. Too hot for me. And certainly too hot for me to stand over a smoking hot grill. So, from the comfort of my own air conditioned kitchen I took stock of what was in the fridge and came up with a few boneless, skinless chicken breasts, one pork tenderloin, some beautiful peppers, some fresh broccoli and some lovely fresh carrots. I knew I didn’t need another thing. I started with some steamed rice. I’ve talked about this before, but a rice cooker is a beautiful thing. I add long cooking rice, water, a pinch of salt and plug it in. Done! 

The next step is to cut and prep all of my meat and vegetables. This is even a step you could do the night before. I’m not big on buying pre-chopped products but you certainly could if you were in a hurry.

the next step is to cook them seperatly in a smoking hot pan. It doesn’t matter if  you’re using a wok or a large skillet, you don’t need much oil for a stir fry. And, be careful, if too much liquid comes out you need to drain that off or you’re now steaming your meat. I used a small amount of olive oil, lemon juice and soy sauce as a marinade to my meat. This meant I didn’t need to add any oil at all into my skillet. I cooked the meat through, getting rid of any excess water and then, in the same skillet, cooked my veggies. I did add about 1/4 cup of chicken stock into the pan after a few minutes. This helped cooked them through without making them limp and soggy.

We like ours with fresh pineapple or citrus fruit and cashews. Sadly, I only had the nuts but it was still great. I finished mine off with a few cashews and some soy sauce. The long cook rice was the perfect compliment to a healthy and filling dinner.

Don’t get me wrong, being at Lakeside is fantastic! I have met and cooked with or for some of the nicest folks. My hosts up there are the most gracious and kind people and I’ve enjoyed the events up there too. Cooking at the Farmer’s Market is a blast and along with my Lakeside bff, Nancy, I’ve seen the Gregg Rolie Band, strolled the beautiful shores of Lake Erie and shared some great laughs. The tennis racquets are packed for this next week. Yet no matter where I am or how beautiful the setting, it’s home that I love the best. Whom ever coined the phrase “be it ever so humble there’s no place like home” must’ve had a home like mine.  When I told Joe I was coming home for longer than usual for the 4th, he was thrilled. “I can’t wait to see you” he said before sheepishly adding “and get some good food again”. Ah, the real reason he misses me. Of course, by the time I got home yesterday he was already at work so our touching reunion would have to wait a few hours. I wasn’t going to waste any of them. I set to work right away. I started by sauteing two boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a small amount of olive oil, both sides seasoned well with salt and pepper. I had my oven pre-heated to 400 and working with a heat proof pan, flipped the chicken once and placed it in the oven. After about 20 minutes, I added some sliced prosciutto and a few slices of Gruyere cheese. I shut the oven off and let the residual heat do it’s thing. I placed a shallow amount of water in a pot and steamed my broccoli and corn for just a few minutes and here is the end result.

If you’d like a more detailed recipe, send me an e-mail and I’ll be happy to send it to you. Enjoy your home this summer and time spent with your loved ones, because as Dorothy so aptly put it, “there’s no place like home”.

This is the kitchen and dining area at Lorenzo’s Culinary School in Lakeside, Ohio, between Marblehead and Put In Bay. Right on the shore of Lake Erie, it is a beautiful and calm setting offering picturesque views, quaint cottages, Inns and hotels. There is a Farmer’s Market twice a week, and shops galore! From Lakeside, you’re literally moments a way from the Ferry boats to Put In Bay, Kelly’s Island and Cedar Point.

It’s an easy and picturesque drive with something to offer to everyone who comes. They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I think I’ll just let these images of Lakeside and the surrounding lake shore say it for me.

Hope to see you there this summer!

    Anyone who knows me, knows that I’m all about trying to find the freshest food, from the freshest and most local source possible. It’s a no brainer that it’s obviously going to taste better the fresher it is, right? And, there’s something about shopping at your local farmer’s market that beats the heck out of wandering the sterile aisle of the nearest Giant Eagle or Kroger store.  Joe and I are blessed. We have good jobs and can afford to purchase and eat this fresh food whenever we like. Our kids are both living away from home at the moment and, let’s face it, that’s stimulated our own economy, particularly where food in concerned. Yet, for millions of Americans, fresh food isn’t an option. It’s too expensive, whereas the processed foods are cheap and readily available.

     Well there is one town that’s doing something about it. Tucked in between Dayton and Cincinnati, Ohio, is a little town called Wilmington. I happened to know about it because our son just graduated from Wilmington College and our daughter just finished her freshman year. This town lost it’s biggest employer when DHL pulled out, leaving many families facing some severe hardships. In a lot of cases, both parents were employed by DHL. I shudder at the thought of both Joe and I losing our jobs. It would be a nightmare for sure. Yet everywhere I’ve been in Wilmington, I’ve seen signs of hope. I see happy, hard working folks who are willing to step up and do what needs to be done. I’ve seen a town that refuses to feel sorry for itself and I’ve seen many people quietly working to make things better for their friends and neighbors by being part of projects designed to help.

One of these projects is the Grow Food, Grow Hope garden initiative for Clinton County. (Check out their web page at www.growfoodgrowhope.com)  Utilizing students from the AmeriCorp program, GFGH is helping to teach people how to grow their own food and to make healthy choices. Teaching folks how to plant, grow and harvest their own gardens is only the beginning.  Cooking classes, classes for kids and a fresh farmers market are spreading the good word about the health benefits of buying fresh and buying local (something this cook is passionate about!)

     Below are a few pictures I took on a recent visit. Our daughter is one of the AmeriCorp students. We were thrilled when she chose to do this, shocked, but thrilled. Her enthusiasm and pride when she showed us the children’s gardens she works in made her dad and I so proud. Not only is she awakening her inner gardener, she’s tasting foods her mother has been begging her to taste forever. And guess what? She’s loving them. So here’s a toast to the good and kind folks of Wilmington, Ohio and Clinton County. May your hope grow in abundance, along with your gardens.

I had intended to post this on the fourteenth, my first official day off from school. News in the early morning hours though of my Father-In-Laws passing has made me think that now is the right time to post. Steve Kloscak was a larger than life, big Marine from WWII, who raised his family on an auto workers salary and with an abundance of humor and love. His love of good food was one of the many things we shared and he kept his appetite right to the end. So I’m dedicating this post to dad and raise the parting glass in his honor.

            Food memories abound in our lives. There is that thrill we all get to see the Thanksgiving turkey, in all its glory, Christmas cookies that send some folks in to a month long baking frenzy, or Easter ham with scalloped potatoes. Memorial Day and Labor Day conjure up an image of the picnic basket, hot dogs, hamburgers and fried chicken. Well, for me, that first day off for summer break from school brings memories of donuts. Not just any donuts though, Jack Frost donuts; a cake like concoction, dipped in maple glaze and rolled in chopped peanuts, my favorite! It’s been 5 summers now since I’ve had one of those lovely creations but the memory of them is still near and dear to my heart.

            It was five years ago that we lost our dear neighbor Vera to a long fight with cancer. She was 88 years old. Vera was an amazing person. She was a nurse on a troop ship during WWII, making many crossings from England to America in some scary times. She was a world traveler, a great reader, a neighborhood historian and a person who acted as our mother, grandmother, neighbor, friend all in one feisty little package. Every year, for 15 years, I’d make a point on that first glorious Monday of my summer off, to start a pot of coffee, tell Vera I was leaving, drive the 15 minutes to Jack Frost on the corner of Fulton and Pearl, pick up a dozen donuts and scurry back.

            By the time I made it home, the coffee was done. I’d grab the pot and carry it out to my front porch where Ms. Vera would be with her cup in hand, choosing her donut. Tradition dictated that she got hers first. We’d sit on the glider under the eaves of my house, rain or shine and contemplate the upcoming weeks of summer and how we’d be spending them. We’d talk of the future, the past, current events, neighbors, whatever came to mind. Sometimes, if we were feeling crazy, we’d have a second donut. Sometimes we would just sit and listen to the birds, their morning song the only conversation we needed.

            Five years ago, on Valentines Day, Vera took her last journey from this world to her greater life in Heaven. When that June came along, it just didn’t seem right to go for donuts. The glider out front was too lonely without her, so Joe and I moved it to the back porch where it is to this day. I can’t go past Jack Frost or eat one of their fabulous donuts without thinking of my dear friend Vera. Food memories can be such powerful things.

The other day my husband and daughter had one of their traditional father/daughter outings to see the Indians (her team) play the White Sox, (his team).
Although I was invited to attend, I jumped at the opportunity to come home to a quiet house and an evening of blissful solitude. I had one simple request of my husband, to stop at our favorite little market and pick me up a small filet mignon. They were perfectly content to leave me with my steak and head out for dollar dog night. It was a fabulous night for baseball in Cleveland; blue sky, puffy white clouds and a nice breeze.
Cooking for one can be a daunting task but I had formulated a plan somewhere around my lunchtime that day at work. (I did tell you I spend a lot of time thinking about food). I knew exactly what I wanted and exactly what I was going to put into it; things that no one else in my family were crazy about. I got to work as soon as they pulled out of the drive.
I did my mise en place first, that is prepared all of my vegetables, cut and seasoned my meat well with salt and pepper. This is an important step, to season the meat ahead of time. I also like to have it at room temperature for a more even cooking. When I stir fry I adhere to two important rules of thumb, the first being a hot wok and cold oil, the second, have everything ready (including the rice) because this is going to go fast! If you don’t own a rice steamer, I highly suggest you make the investment, then throw away that quick cooking instant crap and learn how easy and tasty real rice can be. My cooker cost all of $12 at the local DrugMart store and I use it for lots of different things.
I cooked the vegetables first adding each one at a time, cooking and removing to a bowl, then the meat for just a few minutes. (good steak doesn’t need much) Here’s the end result. I even had enough to take for lunch the next day, what a treat! The next time you find yourself cooking for one, I hope you’ll take the time to use fabulous ingredients and take your time with the preparation. Do no less for yourself than you’d do for a houseful of guests. I was fast asleep by the time my two fans came in and Joe said I was smiling.

As a cook, there is no better feeling than to watch people enjoying what you’ve prepared for them. Even to stand in the kitchen and hear their response for me, at least, is what it’s all about. When I create a meal, no matter if it’s for my family or a client, I like to take my time and really think the menu through. In fact, I probably spend more time thinking about food than actually preparing it. I love to re-think old favorites, trying to improve on them. I like the wow factor of a new combination of flavors. I love to take a recipe and, after tasting it, see what I can do to put my own spin on it. This is the essence of cooking.

I plan on using this space to share these recipes with you, to encourage you to step into the kitchen and try something new. And, if in doing so I get you to try something you haven’t had before, well then I’ll consider my job done. There is a world of flavor out there yet so many of us are just stuck in the same boring routine, day after day, week after week. My aim is to post a blog a minimum of once a month so I hope you’ll visit often. And, if you find you just can’t do it for yourself the first time, give us a call. We’ll be happy to give you a lesson in person or prepare that special meal for you to create a lasting memory.