Easy Apps

Rachel here: Ok, so I know I fried pickles for our Friday post, but bear with me because fried olives are truly amazing. The first time I had them was at a restaurant in Berkeley that's now closed with a friend who I had a lot of fun with. Though much has changed in the years since then, I have never forgotten how truly awesome fried olives are. After making the pickles last week, I couldn't stop thinking about these fried olives from yore and decided I'd try my hand at them. The recipe I concocted was pretty simple and, though not as hearty a coating of fried stuff as I'd attained on my goat cheese medallions from a month or so ago or as I got to stick to my pickles last week, John and I concurred that they were not only edible, but delicious. I will definitely be whipping these up again in the not too distant future (I'd say "near future" but I'm pretty sure I should stop frying things for a little while...this penchant for frying can't be good for my arteries). When combined with the recipe my mom's sharing below, I feel like we could host a sort of retro dinner party. What appetizers do you whip up in a jiffy?



Ingredients
2 dozen olives of your choice (I used a medley of jalapeno stuffed, kalamata and sweet italian)
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1 tspn. salt
1 tspn. paprika
1 tspn. chili powder
2 T. cornstarch
1 egg
3/4 c. milk

Method
In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs, salt, paprika, chili powder and cornstrach. Mix well. In a second bowl, beat your egg and stir in the milk. Dipping the olives first in the bowl of wet ingredients and then in the bowl of dry ingredients, add to your hot vegetable oil (you know your oil is hot enough when you drip water over it and it sizzles). Fry until golden brown, drain and serve with lemon wedges. Sooo good!



Janet here: My mom used to make this recipe, which is, inexplicably, called Empire Pate. A New York State reference? Something from Olde England? Who knows. At any rate, it is ridiculously easy to make and always a hit. I hope you enjoy it.

Empire Pate

Ingredients
6 oz cream cheese--whipped if you're lazy or in a hurry; brick if you've remembered to put it out ahead of time to soften to room temperature
4 oz grated cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons or to taste, curry powder
1/4 cup chutney
2 scallions, diced

Method
Mix the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, sherry and curry powder. Form into a brick or whatever other clever shape you want and put it in the fridge. When you're ready to serve, spread 1/4 cup chutney on top and the scallions.

tomato sauce

Rachel here: For those who've been following, you know I've been meaning to get around to making a big batch of pasta sauce to freeze. I have this idea that somehow between now and when the baby comes (at the end of June) I will not only baby-fy my house, get straight As in school, spend lots of quality time with John and make sure to do some stuff just for myself, but that I will also somehow prepare and freeze months worth of food so that we can be well-fed during those early sleepless months. It's a great idea, sure, but I am increasingly aware that there is no way this entire dream to-do list is going to get done. I'm trying, instead, to focus on the little victories, to incorporate a little of each of these things into the coming days and weeks and to figure that, though the baby isn't here yet, this is just a glimpse of the impending upheaval in our home. But anyway, I now have two large jars of frozen pasta sauce that, some summer evening, I am sure I'll be glad I took the time to make last night.

I should say that I love making pasta sauce. I've only done it twice, but there's something so liberating about cooking without a recipe. Pasta sauce is up there with making soups for me, both leisurely and informal with lots of stirring (I think stirring calms my brain down). Plus, the end result is a hearty and simple meal that is virtually guaranteed to put a smile on the faces I'm feeding, along with my own. What do you like in your pasta sauce?

Mushroom and Olive Pasta Sauce
makes approximately 12 cups

Ingredients
1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
1/2 lg. white onion, diced
1 c. brown mushrooms, sliced
2 lg. cloves garlic, minced
56 oz. whole peeled tomatoes (nope, I didn't mill my own...someday)
15 oz. crushed tomatoes
1 c. olives, chopped (I used kalamata and green italian)
4-6 basil leaves, torn into small pieces
fresh thyme, stripped from stems and to taste
3/4 c. red wine
salt and pepper

Method
In a pan, reduce the balsamic vinegar until thick and sweet. In a large pot, saute the onion. Add the mushrooms once the onion has started to brown, and then add the garlic. Add all of your tomatoes. Add olives, basil and thyme. Add the balsamic reduction a few tablespoons at a time, to taste. If you use up all of the balsamic reduction and you want a sweeter sauce, feel free to add a bit of brown sugar. Add salt and paper to taste before pouring in the wine and bringing sauce to a simmer. Simmer until sauce thickens, around 1 hour, checking periodically. Adjust seasonings as needed. Yum!


Janet here: So, yeah, I used to do homemade tomato sauce back in the day when I was childless and an afternoon puttering around the kitchen making up a huge batch of tomato sauce for freezing was something I had the time and inclination to do. And then the children arrived, and between that and the full-time job, something, as they say, had to give. So my tomato sauce looks like this:



And it is still pretty damn tasty.