Pasta Salad & Muffaletta Salad

This tried and true Pasta Recipe was adopted by our family, and we are “told” to make it for several family occasions.  It’s now a main dish but is actually based on Grandma’s recipe,  a side dish which she made for picnics to the wonderful Chicago Forest Preserves and to Humboldt Park.  Somewhere in all of that there was the North Branch of the Des Plaines River – you could go down the green banks to the river.

Humboldt Park at that time had a Boat House with large squared-off green dinghies which were for rent to row on the adjoining lake.  It also had a Rose Garden with beautiful large Asian green urns which had pink roses climbing up them, as well as a long curved arbor at the end.  The arbor had benches where Grandma like to sit in the shade, and in back of it, there was a gurgling brook.  The Forest Preserves, many of which are now surrounded by the city, were green and had water pumps and picnic tables.

The Antipasto we make has also has become rather “regular”, and though we first served the different parts individually, I recently used an olive muffaleta dressing  which I made into a mixed salad.  This dressing is used on focaccia with Italian lunchmeats in New Orleans.  Italian stonemasons and iron worker came to do the work and brought some of their foods with them.  It  was easy to put together and prepare the night before.  These are tried and true recipes.

Pasta Salad (Forever and Updated):

4 cups (one pound) of Rotini pasta, broken into ½” pieces (originally I used elbows or shells) -cooked al dente and cooled.      1 cup of green sweet peppers, diced l/2”     1 cup of cucumber, seeded and diced 1/2”        1/4 cup onion diced fine      1 cup muenster cheese, diced about 1”            1/2 cup toasted almonds    2 Tablespoons of Pesto – or 4 Tablespoons of finely shredded basil, added last      2 cans deveined medium shrimp (broken deveined okay) remove any remaining veins /drain/ chill/ and put the shrimp and almonds on top of the salad.  Add half of this dressing last:  1-1/3 cup sour cream mixed with 2/3 cup mayonnaise.  Add the other half of dressing just before serving and mix in with the almonds and shrimp.

We use Breakstone’s  reduced fat sour cream, Hellman’s mayonnaise, and Hannah likes to use the tri-colored Rotini now available.

Muffalette Olive Dressing/Salad:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

1/4 cup roast red peppers, drained/ w/o vinegar if in jar/ 1” + diced     1/4 cup pitted black olives    1/4 cup pitted green olives (these can be filled with pimento/ red pepper     two or three anchovies minced or sliced small/ canned in oil or salt (drain oil or wash off salt)   And I added a half package of frozen artichoke hearts sauteed just to tender /cut smaller if nec   plus  1 teaspoon capers  and   2 ounces cubed white cheese, if des.    1 teaspoon chopped fresh flat leaf parsley    1/4 teaspoon dry thyme     1/2 teaspoon dry oregano     juice from half a lemon     2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil   2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar    Combine and refrigerate.

At The American Table – Copyright Laura Nobilis

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Gingerbread and Mulled Cider

Presidents’ Day is coming up on February 22nd, and Abraham Lincoln is honored on that day.  In real life “Honest Abe” tended to be an ordinary person without pretensions, and as he said about Gingerbread:  I don’t s’pose anybody on earth likes gingerbread better’n I do and gets less’n I do.” 

 

 

Yes, very few people “don’t” like Gingerbread.  It’s been now made for hundreds of years, as in England, in more than one form. It’s also made into cookies in other parts of Europe, such as  Lebucken and Speculaas, and was often rolled out and cut with molded cutters – such as a windmill cutter in Holland.

When Hannah’s cousin was here recently, we served the gingerbread with a marvelous “pairing”:  Mulled Cider.  Gennie, on winter break from college, was especially interested in the star anise we put in the apple juice (cider), and wanted to know where it came from, and its makeup. My original recipe for Mulled Cider called for more spices, but I decided to make it a bit milder. I chose to put a star anise into it (in the cup of cider in the photo as served with the gingerbread).  I was able to get star anise in Omaha awhile back – it also keeps well in a tightly closed container in a closed cupboard.  Following are the recipes we used.

Gingerbread Cake with Raisins

6 tablespoons  butter (room temperature)       2 large eggs           

 3/4 cup brown sugar        1/4 teaspoon vanilla          2 cups flour

3/4 cup dark molasses      1/2 cup whole wheat flour        

3/4 cup raisins            2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoons cinnamon         2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger         

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg         1/8 teaspoon ground cloves    

1/4 teaspoon salt            3/4 cup boiling water                     

Cream the butter and brown sugar with mixer – until smooth.  Beat in molasses, vanilla and then eggs singly.  Scrape down bowl and beat thoroughly.   Combine dry ingredients (no boiling water or raisins) and beat in on low.  Add boiling water and mix in on low.  Add raisins. And put in buttered 9” square pan.   Bake in preheated oven at 350° for 40 to 45 minutes.  Skewer should come out clean.  Do not over bake – check the temperature of your oven.  Cool on rack about 10 minutes, then turn cake out on rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes:  This cake has about 1/3 cup of simple syrup with about 1 1/2 ounces of raisins – cooked about two minutes, and poured over the cake when serving, as desired.

Mulled Cider     one gallon of apple juice (we used Mott’s)    

two 3” long cinnamon sticks, broken up      1/2 star anise     3 whole allspice     

5 whole cloves

Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.  Let sit on Low Heat to use.  Can be cooled, refrigerated and reheated.  Note:  Can float a star anise or a piece of cinnamon stick in cup.

At The American Table – Copyright Laura Nobilis

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