Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen

This is from Cook's Country. It is quite good and makes a nice change from the regular idea of meatballs derived from Italian or Swedish roots. They say it serves 4-6 but we were able to put half of it in the freezer for another meal later. So I'd say it serves 8 ... and with two pounds of hamburger, that makes sense. Also, we're going to halve the amount of broth called for when we make it again. There was no way that was cooking down enough to be the texture of cream. Even brothy it was good though. Cajun Meatball Fricasee Step 1 — Meatballs 22 saltines, crushed finely 1 cup milk 2 tablespoons Worcestershire 2 pounds ground chuck 2 ounces Parmesan 1 tablespoon creole seasoning 1-1/2 teaspoons thyme 1 teaspoon pepper Preheat oven to 425°. Line jellyroll pan with foil, set wire rack in pan and spray with cooking spray. Whisk saltines, milk and Worcestershire together. Let sit for 5 minutes to soften crackers. Whisk until smooth paste forms. Add remaining

These are from the Good Housekeeping grilling cookbook. Simple, delicious, and even my mom who doesn't like hamburgers (which is still hard for me to fathom) liked them. I made French Onion Dip in the time honored fashion using sour cream and Lipton's Onion Soup Mix. So we had Onion Dip for the rest of the week. A nice bonus! Crunchy Onion Burger 1 pound hamburger 4 buns 1/4 cup onion dip 1 cup French's canned fried onions Shape beef into 4 burgers, grill, and put on buns. Top with fried onions. Spread onion dip on buns.

These are from Taste of the South magazine which we've found to be a great source for simple, tasty recipes. Rose says these remind her of Fruit Loops. They are just plain good. Lime Crinkle Cookies Step 1 1 cup sugar 1/2  cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled for 10 minutes 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk, room temperature 2 tablespoons lime zest 2 tablespoons lime juice Whisk together sugar, butter, and vanilla until well combined. Whisk in egg and yolk. Beat in zest and lime juice. (May look slightly curdled; it’s ok.) Step 2 2 cups flour 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon ginger Sift all together and add to sugar mixture in two additions, folding until well combined. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Step 3 1/3 granulated sugar 1/2 cup powdered sugar Preheat oven to 325° and line jelly roll pans with parchment paper. Put sugars in separate bowls. Shape dough into 1” balls. Roll in granulat

My mother got this from somewhere on the internet but I can't track it down. However, I share it here as a good, different summer salad. Summer Corn Salad Step 1 6 ears of corn, cooked as Corn Off the Cob Drain and cool. Step 2 1/2 cup finely diced red onion 1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1/2 cup julienned fresh basil leaves Toss the kernels in a medium bowl with the red onions, tomatoes, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Just before serving, toss in the fresh basil. Add additional salt and pepper to taste, if desired. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Hannah asked for Chocolate Mousse for her birthday and I automatically pulled down The Silver Palate Cookbook which has a whole section of them. I've made the Lime Mousse many times but never tried this (which is actually in the chocolate section - so these ladies are all about mousse and put them everywhere). It was the deepest, darkest, most luscious mousse ever. Also rather solid, not ethereal like some you might think of. The recipe says it serves 8, but I'd say 10-12. It was really easy, worked like a charm, and, as I said above, delicious. INGREDIENTS 1-1/2 pounds semisweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup prepared espresso coffee 1/2 cup Grand Marnier 4 egg yolks 2 cups heavy cream, chilled 1/4 cup sugar 8 egg whites Pinch of salt 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract METHOD Melt the chocolate chips in a heavy saucepan over very low heat, stirring; add the espresso coffee, then stir in the Grand Marnier. Let cool to room temperature. Add the egg yolks, one at a time,

This is from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. My mother loves this soup. She says that she feels as if she is in an elegant restaurant whenever she has it. So, in some cases, it literally carries you away from your hum drum life! It is easy, delicious and ... elegant. Shrimp Soup with Cumin Yield - 4 bowls INGREDIENTS 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 4 cloves garlic, peeled 4 thick slices French or Italian bread 1 tsp ground cumin Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 5 cups shrimp stock, chicken stock, water or a combination 1 to 1-1/2 pounds shrimp, peeled PREPARATION Combine olive oil and garlic in a large, deep saucepan or casserole and turn heat to medium. Add the garlic cloves and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are a very deep golden, almost brown, about 10 minutes. Remove them with a slotted spoon and set aside. Turn heat to low and brown the bread in the oil on both sides, in batches if necessary; it will take about 5 minutes. Remove the

I was making fried chicken the other day (yes, I felt very Southern, farm family-ish). We were going to have corn on the cob (substituted at the last minute at the store when all the green beans had brown spots). At the last minute I realized that my one big pot was going to be used for the chicken so I had nothing big enough for corn on the cob. However, I also knew all those frozen niblets were once on the cob. I'd read enough cookbooks to have a vague idea of how to cook that corn deliciously when it was off the cob. More than anything this tells me of my dependence on frozen corn, which I've found very unsatisfactory as of late. I may switch to this until the corn on the cob is out of season. The New Doubleday Cookbook (1985 - not so new now but a wonderfully dependable overall cookbook) had this dandy recipe which we all loved. They called it Boiled Fresh Whole Kernel Corn but that name just doesn't cut it. Corn Off the Cob 6-8 ears sweet corn, shucked 1

My parents made a version of this sandwich from the Time Life Foods of the World cookbook series. We loved it. Loaded with different ingredients, bathed in a vinaigrette (the title means "bathed bread"), weighted down and left for all the flavors to meld — it was the perfect summer meal. So I was intrigued when Cooks Illustrated had their own version and tried it out last weekend. Theirs is more like a Salade Niçoise than the one I grew up with, but I love Salade Niçoise so that was no bad thing! It was truly delicious, simple to assemble (though requiring about an hour), and perfect for hot weather. Note: We had extra pieces of this in the fridge for up to a week as we slowly consumed them for lunch (or breakfast!). It held perfectly well and could be made well ahead of time for a party or picnic if you let it come up to room temperature. PAN BAGNAT STEP 1 1 vine-ripened tomato, cored and sliced thin 1 small red onion, sliced thin 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Couronne means "crown" and this is obviously named for the shape. However, it is also fit for royalty. An enriched brioche dough is filled with ham, mozzarella and basil to make a wonderful meal. This is from Paul Hollywood's book Bread and it looks a lot harder than it is. On one hand it does take a fair amount of time for several dough risings. On the other hand, it is really impressive and really delicious and really basic to put together if you are used to making bread. If you aren't, then Paul Hollywood's description will lead you through it without a problem. Mom said it was better than pizza. Tom didn't want to make rash statements but he agreed it was at least equal to a very, very good pizza. Savoury Brioche Couronne Ingredients 500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting 10g salt 10g instant yeast 170ml tepid whole milk 4 medium eggs (we used 3 large eggs) 250g unsalted butter, in small pieces, at room temperature 1 pound bu

The Wall Street Journal ran a story yesterday tellingly titled " No Lucky Charms, Plenty of Okra — What's Left at the Grocery Store ." That is one of the boxes I checked when I was caught up in last week's grocery panic . The most deserted place in the store was the produce section, where I had wandered in search of lemons. (Hey, you need those for cocktails and I was fairly sure cocktails were on our family's emergency list.) I gravitated to the fully stocked eggplant — some of the most beautiful I'd seen lately — remembering this recipe, which I'd planned to make so the ingredients were fairly top of mind. To be sure it doesn't take many ingredients and is easy, so it's perfect just for an easy meal or for a food panic day when everyone else ignored those gorgeous eggplants. This is a wonderfully easy and delicious pasta dish from Pasta: Every Way for Every Day. It's also perfect for meatless meals and Fridays in Lent. I doubled the e