HOME SWEET HOME COOKED MEALS
I happen to live in the county of Williams with the highest unemployment rate in Ohio. And yet at mealtime, I still see long lines of cars at our fast food restaurants. Some of them, I am sure, are workers on a lunch break but not all of them. Forty percent of meals in America are eaten outside the home. Many people are too tired to cook after work. I understand that because I, too, was a working mother but one reason daughter Mary Ann is a gourmet cook, probably more so than her mother, is because when she was in high school, I would set a recipe out on the counter, have the ingredients available and she would either make it or get it started for me. It was not only helpful but it taught her responsibility.
Don't get me wrong, eating out is a pleasurable experience, but it costs more than fixing meals at home and when money is tight, cooking is a viable option. A lot of my widow friends eat in restaurants more often than I do. It's true; I have more reason to do it because I have recipes to test for the memo. But even if I wasn't testing recipes, I would still be eating more meals at home because it saves money for something more important to me.
Eating alone is a bummer. But I recall what my home management professor at Purdue, Dr. Fitzsimmons, said about the subject. A single lady, she didn't hesitate to use her best tableware everyday and the older I get the more inclined I am to do the same. After all, I can't take the pretty things with me, can I? An attractive presentation lifts my spirits. Since there's no one here but my dog and me, I watch the evening news or read a newspaper or book but I do it sitting at the dinner table. These diversions also keep one from eating too fast, something loners have a tendency to do.
SAY IT WITH FRESH VEGETABLES
I have two recipes made with fresh vegetables this week. One is Fresh Corn Pancakes and the other one is White Bean, Tomato and Green Bean Salad.
Starting with Fresh Corn Pancakes, they can be eaten with salsa and a dab of sour cream or with maple syrup. I tried both ways and prefer them as a breakfast treat. When I make changes in recipes it may be to simplify a step and that was one of the changes I made. I didn't think you'd want to scrape pulp from the cobs and then after blending with milk and 1/2 cup corn, strain the mixture and press out and discard the solids. Instead, I just blended the corn and milk together. In my opinion, for the pancakes having only 1 cup of flour, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil wasn't necessary when recipe also included a stick of butter (1/2 cup). Instead of whole milk I used what I normally have in the refrigerator (1 percent). Since I have a non-stick griddle, it's not necessary to lightly butter it. How did I arrive at all these changes? Because I have been eating the fresh corn pancakes once a day for 5 days in one way or another. I can tell you, though, that the batter keeps very well in the refrigerator and the quality of the corn pancake was as good the 5th day as it was the first.
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FRESH CORN PANCAKES
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 cups corn cut off the cob, divided
- 3/4 cup any kind of milk you have in the refrigerator
- 2 large eggs
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Cut enough kernels from cobs to measure 2 cups. Puree until smooth 1/2 cup corn and milk. Add eggs and cooled butter. Add to flour mixture with remaining 1 1/3 cups corn. Working in batches, pour 1/3 cup batter per pancake onto griddle and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip with spatula and cook until undersides are golden, about 1 minute more (reduce heat if pancakes brown too quickly). Lightly oil griddle between batches if necessary. Note: An ice cream scoop with a release mechanism worked better than a measuring cup.
The next recipe is so good that I ate it the second day as a meatless meal. It's best served the day it's made but if you do have leftovers, add feta cheese as needed, not on the entire salad when it's made.
Source: Adapted from July Gourmet Internet recipe.
WHITE BEAN, TOMATO AND GREEN BEAN SALAD
- Dressing:
- Juice of 1/2 fresh lemon
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (I use light because I prefer the taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste (after making this I would like just a bit more salt)
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 garlic clove, minced
Salad:
- 5 cups cut fresh green beans (about 1 pound)
- 1 cup finely chopped tomato
- 1 tablespoon chopped dill
- 1 15-ounce can great Northern beans, rinsed and drained well (Bush is my canned bean of choice)
- 1/2 cup reduced-fat feta cheese, crumbled
To prepare dressing, whisk together dressing ingredients until well blended. To prepare salad, place green beans into large saucepan of boiling water; cook 5 minutes. Drain and plunge into ice water; drain well. Place beans in a large bowl. Add tomato, dill and canned beans; toss to combine. Drizzle with dressing; toss gently to coat. Sprinkle with feta cheese when it's served. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Recipe makes 4 1 1/2 cup servings.
Source: Adapted from Cooking Light recipe. |
