Baking is my passion, and showstopping cakes my specialty. I have never found a more perfectly moist, rich chocolate cake like this old recipe from McCalls. When I want to make a chocolate cake, this is my favorite recipe. I use it for cupcakes, sheet cakes, and layer cakes. If you are looking for an easy cake recipe, this is the one.
For birthday celebrations my mother made her chocolate cake with rich fudge frosting and a chocolate filling. I believe she found this recipe in McCalls Cooking School publications, a series of cooking magazines with detailed instructions. When I married she shared with me her prize recipe and I’ve made this moist flavorful cake for birthday’s ever since.
When the leaves start to change to a kaleidoscope of brilliant hues, and gracefully float to the cool earth I begin cooking and freezing fabulous dinners or starters for dinners. I begin with a large batch of tomato sauce and freeze in small containers. So many meals can be made with tomato sauce or I just use the sauce alone over pasta.
Growing up in an Italian-American family my relatives had strong opinions on making tomato sauce and many different methods. My Aunts would spend hours debating and comparing different sauce styles. I prefer the slow-roasting recipe that was used by my grandmother and mother. Roasting Marina Sauce creates a flavorful that is not acidic or bitter.
I love San Manzano tomatoes, and I use certified tomatoes. San Manzano tomatoes, named after a region in Italy, are less acidic because of the soil in that region. There are many brands and I prefer Cento certified San Manzano tomatoes. Just a suggestion, you can use any brand that works for you.
The recipe calls for the whole garlic bulb and roasting releases the garlic flavor without being bitter. Don’t shy away from the large quantity of garlic.
I use this sauce over pasta and with any recipe that calls for Marina Sauce. And an added benefit is that the sauce freezes beautifully for future use.
Classic Roasted Marinara Sauce
¼ cup olive oil
1 head of garlic, cloves chopped
1 large red onion, chopped
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
¼ cup dry white wine
2 28-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes, Cento certified San Manzano
¼ cup torn basil leaves
½ teaspoon dried oregano
Kosher salt
Preheat oven to 350°. Heat oil in a large heavy ovenproof pot over medium. Cook garlic, stirring often, until golden, about 4 minutes.
Add onion, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring often until onion is translucent about 5 minutes.
Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring often, until slightly darkened, about 2 minutes.
Add wine, bring to a boil, and cook until almost completely evaporated about 1 minute. Add tomatoes, breaking up with your hands, and their juices; add basil and oregano and stir to combine. Swirl 1½ cups water into one tomato can, then the other, to rinse, and add to the pot. We don’t want to waist any delicious tomato juice: Season with salt.
Transfer pot to oven; roast sauce, stirring halfway through, until thick and tomatoes are browned on top and around edges of the pot, 2–2½ hours. Let the sauce cool slightly. Pass through the large holes of a food mill or process in a food processor until mostly smooth. I like my sauce a little chunky. Taste and season with salt.
In New England, we are love to celebrate the fall season. Cool morning with warm sunny days, jewel-tone leaves, farm roadside stands bursting with the last of summer’s bounty all signal the change in the seasons. Nature’s premier show on display for all to enjoy. Fall baking is one of my favorite past times and I especially love to make apple desserts. Going through all my post I realized I’m kind of obsessed with apples, cakes, pies, cupcakes and more. When I’m creating a new cake or pie the fall just inspires me like nature to give it my all and go wild! Here are a few of my fall favorites that I have posted over the years.
I was in the mood for egg salad one day but not an ordinary egg salad so I just started mixing some of my favorite ingredients. If I do say so this turned out delicious. I will caution that this egg salad is very rich so just eat a smaller portion with a wonderful salad of fresh vegetables. My philosophy has always been that you can eat well-staying thin and fit if you use portion control of rich foods. I like to balance my meals with more greens and fresh vegetables less high caloric foods. If I make and eat a rich dish I watch my portion. Also, exercise is essential for staying fit and healthy. Find a physical activity that you enjoy to incorporate into the fabric of your day then you will always have time for exercise! Back to food I do believe that presentation is so important even if you are eating alone, make it look good! I made a colorful salad placing a small amount of egg salad in the center, drizzled some balsamic vinegar for a beautiful and wonderfully tasting dish. Did I mention so easy too!
Goat Cheese Egg Salad with Red Beets
4 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise with olive oil
1/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon scallions, minced, just the white part
1/4 cup celery, finely chopped
1/4 cup red beets, chopped
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
In a medium bowl, mix eggs and mayonnaise. Add goat cheese and mix until combined. Add remaining ingredients. Makes 4 small servings Serve on lettuce with your favorite raw veggies and beets.
Luscious end of the season ripe fruit makes the most delectable pies. Who can resist a delicious piece of pie with vanilla ice cream simple but oh so good! I especially love the combination of nectarine and blueberries. I made my own pie crust and the recipe follows. But for a quick and easy pie, you can buy the refrigerated pie crust. I like the Pillsbury brand. Don’t be intimidated by a homemade pie crust, as I’ve always said, the more you practice the better you become. If time is an issue you can make the pie crust the day before and refrigerate overnight, then just roll out the dough the next day, add the filling, bake and in no time you have a wonderful homemade pie.
A wonderful light white cake that is filled with whipped cream and strawberries! Need I say more. This cake is my sister’s favorite and when I lived near her I made this cake for her birthday. I don’t know why I haven’t made this cake for such a long time but this year I brought it back for my twins birthday. Everyone just loved my version of strawberry short cake!
Cake:
6 eggs, separated
1 13/4 cup shifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
2 pints strawberries, washed and hulled
Cream Frosting:
2 cups heavy cream, chilled
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup currant jelly, melted
In a large electric mixer bowl let egg whites warm at room temperature for 1 hour. Sift four with salt. With mixer at high speed beat…
Blueberries my favorite fruit! If I can stop eating all the fresh blueberries long enough I love to make blueberry pies. There are so many wonderful blueberry pie recipes that I love but this one is perfect for the 4th of July! Perfect for a backyard barbecue or to take along to a family reunion, just so wonderfully delicious! If you are short for time or just don’t want to make your own crust, use store-bought refrigerated pie crust which you can find in the dairy section of your grocery store. I have used Pillsbury when I am short on time which is very good.
Our family loves to celebrate July 4th! We gather on the idealic Martha’s Vineyard to celebrate our country’s birthday. A barbecue is a must as we make a traditional New England summer dinner, lobstahs, clams, corn on the cobb, potatoes, grilled vegetables and baked beans.
The clams are from our claiming expedition on Lake Tashmoo. Fresh caught and we cooked them on the grill in white wine, garlic and sea salt.
This years my helper with the baked beans was my granddaughter, Maddi. We make easy vegetarian beans by using canned beans to cut down the preparation time.
Ingredients
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into small dice
1/2 medium red pepper, cut into small dice
3 large cans (28 ounces each) vegetarian baked beans
3/4 c. barbecue sauce. I used 1/2 cup Stubbs Orignal BQ sauce and 1/4 cup Stubbs Spicy BQ sauce
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. distilled or cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Directions
Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan.
Add onions and peppers and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes.
Add beans and remaining ingredients bring to a simmer.
Pour flavored beans into a greased 13-by 9-inch (or similar size) ovenproof pan. Bake until beans are bubbly and sauce is the consistency of pancake syrup, about 2 hours. Let stand to thicken slightly and serve.
When I first thought about getting an Air Fryer*, I’m not a gadget person, I was a little I was skeptical if it were something I would use very often. Now that I’ve owned an air fryer for a year, I love to experiment, especially with veggies.
Usually, I roast Brussels Sprouts in the oven, which I find brings out the nutty flavor. When I cooked Brussels Sprouts in the Air Fryer, they turned out beautifully charred on the outside with a soft center. I added olive oil, spices, olives, and capers with a flavor-packed side dish. So easy and delicious!
2 lbs Brussels Sprouts, cleaned and whole
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup sliced Mezzetta Castervetrano Italian Olives, pitted
I have many go-to cake recipes depending on the size and type of cake I want to make. This recipe, one of my favorites, is a tender, moist cake perfect for birthdays and special occasions, yet simple enough to use for everyday cupcakes. In this recipe, I used, my favorite, King Arthur Unbleached Cake Flour Blend, which results in a high rising cake with a moist, tender crumb.
2 3/4 cups King Arthur Cake Flour Blend
1 2/3 cups sugar; superfine sugar is best
1 Tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
4 large eggs whites plus 1 whole large egg*
1 cup full-fat vanilla yogurt or 1 cup whole milk*
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups fresh raspberries for decoration
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare two 9″ x 2″ heart-shaped pans. Trace the bottom of the pan…
Ingredients
