Winter Doldrums

As these long gray days of winter go on and on, I share with you some splashes of summer colors to brighten your spirits.

Hungarian Chicken Paprika

Here is a recipe of an old favorite I hadn't made in some time.  It is from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham.  This is one of the cookbooks I refer to often and its recipes never fail me.  Many good old American standards plus a variety of recipes from other countries such as this one.

I did vary the recipe somewhat this time by using chicken tenders I had in the freezer instead of using whole pieces of chicken.  I must say that not only did it save immensely on cooking time, but the flavor was not compromised one bit.  I had this meal cooked in about 30 minutes as opposed to the 50-60 minutes called for, and it was a most satisfying Sunday dinner.

Of course, partaking in a crisp, dry vodka martini on the rocks while I worked certainly didn't hurt!

Hungarian Chicken Paprika

3 pound chicken, cut in quarters

4 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika

1 tomato, chopped

1/2-1 cup chicken broth

3 Tbsp flour

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup sour cream

Rinse the chicken and pat it dry. melt the butter in a heavy pan. Cook the onion until lightly browned, then add the chicken and sprinkle with the salt.  When the chicken pieces are browned, remove them from the pan and set aside.  Mix in the paprika and cook for 1 minute; add the tomato and 1/2 cup chicken broth, lower the heat, and simmer for 7 minutes.  Return the chicken to the pan, cover, and cook 30-40 minutes.  Remove the chicken to a warm platter.  Sprinkle the flour over the pan drippings, whisking briskly to smoth and blend, and cook for 3 minutes.  Gradually add enough chicken broth to make 1 cup of liquid, then sitr in the heavy cream.  When it is heated through, turn off the heat and whisk in the sour cream until well combined.  Spoon over the chicken pieces and serve over wide egg noodles.  (Serves 4).

Artichoke Cheese Bread

Here is a terribly (and by terribly I mean terrific) indulgent recipe for Artichoke Cheese Bread.  Think of that Artichoke Cheese dip served in restaurants as an appetizer and then think of it stuffed into crispy French bread and baked.  So, so good.  It's amazingly rich and creamy and quite honestly, could be a meal on its' own. In fact it was at our house.

The recipe calls for canned artichokes which I didn't happen to have so I used a jar of marinated artichokes and just rinsed them well before chopping them up. It worked just fine.  I have also seen frozen artichokes which would be another good option. I also cut back on the amount of sour cream so it wouldn't be so gloppy and I added a dash of onion powder to mine.  Experiment away with cheeses, perhaps mozzarella or Gruyere might be good. The end result will be fantastic any way you slice it!


Artichoke Cheese Bread
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
½ cup + 2 Tablespoons sharp cheddar, shredded, divided
1/4 cup Romano cheese grated
Loaf  of French or Italian bread, sliced in half lengthwise

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all of the ingredients except for the bread, and mix well. Slice the bread in half lengthwise. I used half of a loaf, so each piece should be about 1 foot long. Remove about half of the inside of the bread. Spread the artichoke filling over the bread. Sprinkle with the extra cheese. Place in the oven for 20 minutes. Check after 15 minutes. If it is getting too brown, but the cheese is not melted, then cover with foil. Allow to cool for about 5-10 minutes. Slice and serve.

Happy New Year

The Husband in the Redwoods

Where will our paths take us as we start 2013?  As each new year begins it's as if we start with a clean slate.  When you think of it, isn't that true for each and every new day?

For all of my family and friends I wish you a most wonderful and amazing New Year.  Make the most of every day and remember to really love those who mean the most to you. And laugh!!

Merry Chistmas

Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!

Holiday Traditions

My brothers and sisters and I, Christmas circa 1959

Most family have traditions around the holidays that they carry on year after year and even generation after generation.  In my family growing up we had quite a number of them.  I don't know how many, if any, were passed on from my grandparents to my parents though. 

As Christmas approaches I have been thinking about some of those uniquely ours traditions.  On Christmas Eve we always had tuna noodle casserole.  Now some might think "How mundane."  But we all loved it. Particularly because my mother served it in chafing dish with a small candle lit underneath to keep the food warm. It seemed so elegant and to the best of my knowledge that chafing dish was only used on that one night a year.

Posing for a Christmas Card, circa 1965ish

Christmas dinner was a very traditional English dinner including roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, roasted potatoes, the ubiquitous trifle and Christmas pudding to be lit afire and brought to the table flaming away.  It rarely flamed and no one ever ate it but my mother, but we went through the ritual anyway.  We also always had English Christmas crackers we would open, share the riddles, and then wear the goofy hats included in the cracker throughout our meal.  Inevitably getting through this process meant the meal would be nearly cold but it never mattered.

My father's favorite cookie, the Snowball

Another tradition was cookies.  Lots and lots of cookies. We would start baking Christmas cookies the weekend after Thanksgiving and they would go into the freezer to be pulled out by the plateful during the holiday season. My 80 year old mother is still baking lots and lots of cookies to share with her ever growing family.  And the most special cookies of them all were the angel cutouts for each of us. Always decorated in a light blue frosting dresses, blonde hair, food color drawn faces, and our names written down the cookie.  Of course there were many other holiday shaped cut out cookies but the angels always tasted the best.  Then there were a large variety of other cookies, some tried and true favorites with  few new recipes each year, some hits, some misses.

Another always present cookie at Christmas, Orange Slice Bars

The Christmas trees in our home had ever-changing decorations.  Early on as seen in photos, my parents had the traditional green fir tree with lots of colored ornaments and copious amounts of tinsel hanging from the boughs.  As we grew older they experimented with flocked trees decorated with different shaped gold ornaments or a green tree with red velvet ornaments and ornate red velvet birds.  When we were young we would also have a tree in our basement "rumpus" room that was left to the whim of my sibs and myself to decorate. As my younger sister and I got older we often had our own little tree and decorated our bedroom as festively as we could.

Christmas decorations also always included a nativity scene set up on top of the big stereo which was usually playing Christmas carol records (any one remember Sing Along With Mitch?), a mistletoe ball hanging between the dining room and living room, the tree topper angel I made when I was a Campfire girl, and all the stockings hung on the mantle.  There were lights hung on the outside of the house and wonderful smelling candles and fir boughs on the fireplace mantle top and Christmas china and the good silverware was brought out for our holiday feasting. 

I think back on all of this with great fondness and appreciation for all the work it must have been for my parents. I recall no complaining from either of them as they made Christmas a magical time of year for all of us.  For that I am forever grateful.

Grandma's Pie Crust

As promised on my Thanksgiving blog, I said I would post my grandma's delicious pie crust recipe.  When I made my pumpkin pie, it was in a deep dish pie pan so I doubled the recipe and there wasn't much left as far as scraps go.  The recipe card says this makes an 8" pie crust.  It also makes approximately 16 muffin pan size crusts for tarts.

Grandma's Pie Crust

3 Tbsp cold butter, cut into small cubes
2 Tbsp cold Crisco shortening, cut into small cubes
1 cup all purpose flour
1 pinch of salt
2-3 Tbsp ice water

Cut the butter and Crisco into the flour and salt.  Add the water, one tablespoon at a time and combine until a ball forms, but not sticky.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 30 min before rolling out.

I do this in my food processor and with just a few pulses, it's done. Very simple.  Happy Pie Baking!

A Change of Season

Fall has never been my favorite time of year, but after the most wonderful walk recently, I've had a change of heart. 

I started off early on a Sunday morning walk and I turned right instead of left.  Being a creature of habit, I always turn left on my neighborhood walks. That morning something pulled me to the right and what a delightful change of pace and walk of discovery it turned out to be.

It was cool and there was a light fog shrouding the tree tops. The sidewalks were covered with the last of the falling leaves still holding on to their vibrant colors.  The air was filled with the earthy, musty smells of decaying vegetation and wood smoke from house chimneys.  Overhead flock after flock of honking geese flew by, making their amazing annual migration south to warmer climes.

I found myself walking down one of my favorite streets in town.  It is in a well-established neighborhood and nearly every home is unique and charming. The flower gardens were put away until Spring, and all of the yards were neat and tidy.

On my way home I meandered through a city park which is one of my favorites.  It is called Englewood Park and it's the last of what was known as the Englewood Forest.  In our back yard we have a huge, beautiful cedar tree that is part of this old forest.  The park has paths covered with fallen pine needles and the scent of the pine trees lining the path was intoxicating. The grey squirrels appeared to be on hyperdrive as they scampered up and down the trees getting ready for the cold weather ahead.

As I came home and walked in my front door, I felt relaxed and peaceful with a new found awareness of the beauty that is Fall.

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful that my pie crust turned out beautifully on this Thanksgiving Eve.  I have fooled around with many, many recipes for the perfect pie crust and tonight I had an epiphany.  There is no better pie crust than my grandma's.  I use it for tarts, I use it for pies, and it is perfect.  The search has ended as of tonight.  I will never try a new pie crust recipe again.

As I had to work all day today and then come home and bake a pie, I don't have the energy to post a recipe.  But I will post this wonderful pie crust recipe very soon.  My pumpkin pie filling was courtesy of the back of the Libby's pumpkin can.  My mother always made her pumpkin pies using this recipe and it was always a hit growing up.  Tried and True.  That's the motto of the day. 

P.S.  I hate pumpkin pie.   Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

A Tale of Two Pianos

I have two pianos in my home. The first one, pictured above, is an antique inherited from my two English great aunties who resided in Vancouver, B.C. This piano was made in England by a London company, Chappell and Company. Amazingly the company is still in existence today and located at the same address as is listed on my piano. Using the serial numbers found inside the piano, I was able to e-mail the company and found that the piano was built between 1880-1890. 

My sister Linda at the piano at the great aunties house

It is not playable due to stuck keys and grossly out of tune strings but I love it nonetheless.  I love that it has been a part of our family for many, many years. I love that it came from England, a country for which I feel such an affinity. And lastly, I love how it looks in my living room.

The second piano I obtained as a total impulse on an Easter Sunday, eight or nine years ago. I attended an estate sale in the neighborhood late in the afternoon when the sellers were anxious to close up the house.  There was this perfect Howard spinet and its matching bench with a charming embroidered seat cover, marked from $600 to $350.  On a whim I said "Would you take $300?" They said yes and it was mine, much to The Husband's chagrin.  For it was he, with the help of our friends, who had to transport said piano from that house into our house. He claims it is the heaviest piano in the world, a claim I quesion.  His efforts are still appreciated to this day.

The piano is my first musical love.  Though I spent many more years playing the flute, I first learned to appreciate and play music on the piano. As a very young girl, I would listen to my mother playing magnificently moving pieces by Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and Chopin. I was in awe of her talent.  Her music books were a mystery to me, with page after page filled with lines of black notes I didn't understand.

I soon began taking piano lessons given by Sister Amy, a quiet, serious nun at the church we attended.  She gently taught me to read music and play songs and I have fond memories of her. These memories come to a screeching halt with recollections of the recitals that were inevitable.  Being a shy, introverted child, it was more than I could cope with, so the piano lessons came to an end. A year later in the fourth grade I started playing the flute and never looked back at the piano. Until I brought home the estate sale find. 

I immediately went to a music store and purchased some books and started playing again. It is one of the most relaxing and enjoyable pastimes I now have.  I practiced one piece enough that I even felt confident enough to play it for a group of friends one evening when we had "An Evening of Enlightenment" where we all had to bring something cultural to share with each other.

I know I will never play the piano like my mother, but I have returned to my first musical love and hope to continue tickling the ivories for years to come.