Green Eggs and Ham Cookbook: Izzy's Own Julie/Julia Project?

Uh oh, I think Izzy is envisioning his very own Julie/Julia project . Only his would be more like the Izzy/Suess project.

You see he received this cute, silly, somewhat revolting cookbook for the holidays (Thanks, I imagine, to Izzy's cousin J.) and has been pondering all of the recipes ever since. He rifles through the pages asking things like, "Can we make the "Nook Hook Cook Book Dogs?" The name alone hardly conjures up something innately edible and the recipe just so happens to be a truly vile combination of roasted wienies with baked beans, ricotta cheese and black olives, all served in a bowl. Now I do see the humor here but the question is, should I humor Izzy by actually allowing him to prepare that ill-conceived concoction? The jury is still out on that one.

Suffice it to say, we skipped that recipe for the time being and went straight to the Pink Yink Ink Drink which had a certain allure, even for me. This would make a striking sip for any little pink-lover's birthday and it was a perfect, quick after-school project. Izzy and I were both enamored of the results.

Pretty in pink it is and not only that but it is healthy and tastes good too!

Pink Yink Ink Drink
(From Green Eggs and Ham Cookbook by Georgeanne Brennan)

Ingredients

1/2 cup frozen blackberries (or blueberries would do)
1 cup milk
6 fresh or frozen strawberries hulled (or frozen raspberries would do, that's what we used, about 12 or so)
1 teaspoon honey

Directions

1. Put blackberries in blender and puree. Pour into a large glass.
2. Put milk, other berries and honey in blender and blend til frothy.
3. Carefully pour on top of puree. Add a straw and sip.

Lists, Not Just For New Year's

Lists are everywhere these days. Magazines, newspapers, blogs, you can't escape them. They are part and parcel of the New Year landscape. I, for one, am not the sort to make any New Year's resolutions so I hesitate to jump on the bandwagon. Yet I do love to make lists. Only I do so all year, especially those which involve food.

Shopping lists, places to eat, and recipes to try have long been a part of my listing repertoire and now Izzy is joining me. In fact list-making is another great way to get your toddler/preschooler/child involved in the kitchen. It helps them have a better understanding of the ingredients you use and eat and it is also a big help at the supermarket. I have to chuckle when we're at the supermarket and Izzy reminds me what we need to buy.

Here we have compiled a list of foods to make in the next couple of months. So far we have not settled on the actual recipes to be used so if you have any contributions, send them along.

What would you like us to make? Please comment upon what you think our tenth item should be. And try making some lists yourself..you never know what you might make!

Roast Chicken Issues

Nothing speaks to me more of home than the smell of a crispy, herby chicken roasting in the oven. I do not make them frequently enough because though I love them so, they never come out quite right. Let's face it, I have chicken issues.

On so many occasions, the chickens, though lovely and burnished on the outside, came out slightly underdone in the leg area. Most of these unhappy experiences occurred in my New York apartment where I had a most peculiar oven (ooh, what a great post that will make someday) in which most things took far longer to cook than the recipe suggested. Chickens suffered the most in that oven and what should have been just an ordinary part of my cooking repertoire, was relegated to the special occasion category.

Admittedly I had become slightly chicken-shy. Then I had the great fortune of encountering A Chicken In Every Granny Cart. There Ann describes a nearly fool-proof method for a perfect roast chicken. I have tried the recipe three times now and I what I have learned is that it can be tinkered with to suit your taste, with the same fabulous results. You can flavor the chicken with your favorite herbs, douse it with the booze you prefer, and add the vegetables of your choice. You don't need the butter either and you still get a crisp, moist bird. The best part? This bird is self-basting so you can forget about it for an hour and go about your business.

So tonight, after an afternoon of ice skating, Izzy and I returned home to prepare a quick chicken dinner. All I did was stuff the bird with rosemary,thyme, sliced shallots, garlic, salt and pepper and place it on a bed of shallots. I doused it with a bit of Lillet and some olive oil and into the oven it went. While it roasted, I peeled some sweet potatoes for braised sweet potatoes with rosemary and butter and then whipped up some creamed spinach. I had dinner on the table in 1 1/2 hours and I also managed to read some of the newspaper. Not bad for a Sunday dinner and hopefully this third chicken will mark the end of my chicken issues forever!

Eating Pizza: Ordinary For Some, Extraordinary For O.

Today was a momentous occasion for Izzy's friend O... You must understand that O. has been on a dairy, gluten and wheat-free diet for nearly three years. Lately, much to my great pleasure, his parents have been loosening the restrictions, hoping for no ill effects.

I was beside myself with joy to see O., at his very own birthday party, with a piece of pizza set before him. He seemed a tad bewildered and seemed to spend an inordinate amount of time nibbling gingerly at it. This is a boy who gobbles down cold ice cream in a flash so perhaps he realized the magnitude of the moment and was savoring his pizza, bit by bit.



Not only did he have pizza but he also was able to indulge in an ordinary birthday cake. So far so good, no ill effects were noted.

I am enthralled for so many reasons. For one, his mom will no longer have to stay up creating all manner of meals just for him, or have to agonize over what to prepare for his lunches. Best of all, it will be easier for O. to participate in parties and outings, without having to worry about what he can or cannot eat!

Nevermind birthday, I want to throw an "O. Eats Wheat" party!

Pease Porridge Hot: Warm Wintry Weekday Breakfast

How is it that I've gone through my whole life not knowing that porridge was just another name for oatmeal? To me, porridge is the stuff of Oliver and fairy tales and sounds far more fun to eat. I still don't know what "pease porridge" means but that won't keep me from eating it

.

I don't really know much about oats because I was raised as a Farina girl, lapping up soupy bowls of it, doused with milk. Only later it life have I have discovered the pleasures of a hearty bowl of oatmeal.

As it turns out, oats can be quite enticing, provided they are gussied up a bit. The best way to do this is by adding frozen berries. Izzy loves to add blueberries, raspberries and blackberries to his porridge, sweetened with a touch of maple syrup and a touch of heavy cream. The berries not only serve to sweeten, they also cool down the steaming porridge so that a child can eat it without waiting.

There is nothing I like more than the idea of sending Izzy off to school with his belly full and warm. So each morning I have taken to preparing a different type of porridge. This week we have been eating Scottish Style Porridge Oats (too chewy for my tastes) and last week we were having Whole Foods Organic Oats (much softer and more pleasing to our palates). Whichever oats you choose make sure they are not instant. Surprisingly, most regular oats (barring McCann's) cook in about six minutes.

Aside from frozen berries, there are many other welcome additions to oatmeal. You can play around with all sorts of fruits, including dried, creating an entire porridge repertoire.

OX Take Two: No Tails?

I couldn't be more pleased that a restaurant of the Ox ilk has opened in Jersey City. I am more than happy to report that on this, our second visit, just a few months later, things have definitely improved. For one, a basket of bread and butter appeared at our table. Apparently I wasn't the only one to lament the lack thereof.

The menu offerings our now more complete and most of the items were available. However strangely enough, at 6:30 on a Thursday evening, they their signature dish, the luscious Ox Tail appetizer, was mysteriously missing, indicating that the bread issue may have been ironed out but other issues are still pending.

On the bright side, all of the main dishes sampled were appealing and the duck definitely stands out. The Duck Breast special (served with mashed sweet potatoes and Swiss chard in a chocolate port sauce) and the Duck Confit were both expertly prepared (Maybe they should consider changing the name to Duck since that bird always seems to be on hand).

My companions sampled the Scallops, very flavorful and the Rabbit Pappardelle which also held their own. More in-depth descriptions are unavailable as I was mainly entertaining Izzy at an hour when he should have been sleeping.

Which brings me to yet another reason to love Ox. Despite of what I have read elsewhere, I must insist that Ox is a child-friendly establishment( not that I suggest going with a gaggle or on a noisy weekend late night). For an early weeknight, it is a fine spot for one or two reasonably behaved little ones. Izzy was thrilled with his Tomato Soup appetizer and the Broccoli/Cheese Gratin which was not even on the menu. The staff were also kind enough to bring him one tiny portion of Grapefruit sorbet to round out his meal. Not only that but he was enchanted by the mini disco balls which adorn the ceiling. Watching them spin kept him happy long after his bedtime.

All told, even though Ox still needs a bit of work (I'd stay away from the Frisee with Goat-Cheese stuffed dates), and a larger stock of ox tails, it is an extremely welcome and appealing addition to the downtown Jersey City restaurant scene.

The

A Fancier Potato: The Gratin

I became enamored of potato gratin while living in Paris. It was frequently served in restaurants as an accompaniment to any number of meat dishes and seemed like an indulgence, which is why I almost always make one for New Year's Eve. There are numerous variations to this dish and in Patricia Well's, Bistro Cooking, there are 10 different recipes!



If you want to elevate an ordinary meal, primp your potatoes! It really sounds harder than it is. Aside from thinly slicing the potatoes, gratin preparation is a breeze. The recipe I favor calls for parboiling the potatoes in herb-infused milk. This technique insures that the gratin will be tender and creamy when cooked through.

Izzy's review says it all: He took a forkful and proclaimed, "Yumm..tastes like macaroni and cheese." (So much for the elegance I had aspired to...)

Pommes de Terre Solognottes (Potato Gratin from the Sologne)
(from Patricia Wells, Bistro Cooking)

2 cups milk
1/2 cup minced herbs (I use thyme and parsley,but she uses tarragon and chives too)
2 bay leaves
5 whole peppercorns
2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1 garlic clove, halved
1/2 cup heavy cream or creme fraiche
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp. dried
1 cup freshly grated gruyere or similar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Combine first four ingredients in a large saucepan. Cover and scald over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and let steep, covered for 10 minutes. Strain, discarding herbs and peppercorns.
3.Add potatoes to milk. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Rub the inside of an oval gratin dish(14 x 9 x 2) or whatever you have. Spoon the potato mixture into the dish. Pour cream over it and sprinkle with thyme.
5. Bake about 45 minutes or until golden and then sprinkle with grated cheese. Return to oven and bake until top is crisp, about 15 minutes more.

6 servings