Putnam Dinners

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

Reflecting on Cooking - 2024

This is perhaps the first year that I cooked with no exact goals in mind. But, I did try some new ways to ramp up the daily cooking schedule.

For many years, I have pretty faithfully followed this meal schedule

Monday: Chicken

Tuesday: Justyn Sports/Kids, Mac and Cheese, me: grazing

Wednesday: Fish/Vegetable

Thursday: Pork (Lamb was also on the schedule - but I have maybe made it twice in 10 years).

Friday: Ground meat

Saturday: Steak

Sunday: Pizza - mostly homemade.

This year, I tried to be more flexible and:

1) Continued to cook in ways that leave as little food waste as possible.

2) Changed pizza to pasta night. Years of making pizza from scratch has not made it better. I could not stomach it anymore. As a result, kids ate more, ate the leftovers, and the pasta could be made vegetarian for veg night. I am the only person who wants to avoid pasta in my family, so too bad for me it is such a hit.

3) Incorporated more ground meat - because the kids eat it. Meatballs.

4) Tried freezing some food/meals, and it never really took. I don't like eating reheated/previously frozen items, and neither do my children.

5) Made bread from King Arthur recipes. I was inspired by my trip to Britain to make better bread, and I did. It was good! No one ate it/appreciated it. I don't need to eat more bread. I guess I will continue to buy Killer Dave's White Bread Done Right for the kids, and not eat bread.

Cookbooks I cooked from:

What to Cook when You Don't Feel Like Cooking - Caro Chambers. My sister Sarah introduced me to her (in person!) this year and treated me to the cookbook. Favorites have been the Chicken Chili, and the Ground Meat/Peanut recipe. Have made about 15 from the book, and have repeated 2, which is always a good sign.

I purchased Jenny Rosenstrach's Weekday Vegetarian 2: Everyday (I think). Haven't cooked anything from it, and haven't tried. I do continue to receive (paid) and use her sub stack newsletter.

Modern Proper is also a cookbook I have not written about in the past, and have utilized a ton. Probably bought it in 2022 - and thus not mentioned. The meatball chapter is phenomenal, and I need to cook more from. Hopefully these ladies come out with another book this year!

Cooking Goals for 2025

1) Only buy what I need in order to lower food waste.

2) End buying greens and that I will just throw away 2 weeks later - I see you arugula, cilantro, parsley.

3) Make meals that the girls can pack in their new thermoses the next day: Pasta, Chile, and will think of something else. New thermoses are a hit! Make more soups they will eat

4) Eat less dairy and gluten - preferably not together. Drink less. I might incorporate me some of these in my all over goals of 2025 - which I will write tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Reading Round-up 2022

This year I read 63 books - the same amount as last year. My goal had been to read 65. But, if Anna Karinina counted as three books, I would have met that goal. Is this an excuse?

My Favorites for 2022:

Matrix, Lauren Groff

Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel

Fresh Water for Flowers, Valerie Perrin

In the Country of Women, Susan Straight

Honorable Mention: Ordinary Grace, William Kruger Kent, Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand

What makes a favorite? I want to pick it up, I don't want to put it down, and I REMEMBER IT. With the exception of Lauren Groff (and Elin, of course), all the authors were new to me.

My takeaways from this reading year:

1) I read a considerable amount of memoirs. Is that because the new memoir section is downstairs in the library, and not as perused as the new fiction section? Do other people like memoirs as much as me?

2) I did not enjoy my reading content as much as last year. Still trying to discover why this happened. Was it because I didn't do enough background research? trusted the wrong critics?

3) I could have read more. Doom scrolling is still my number one time-killer. There are not many book ideas found on twitter. Yet, a "not great" book prevents me from returning to reading. How to end the time-wasting cycle???

Classics read this year: Anna Karinina, and The Supper of the Lamb

Non-Fiction (not memoir): The Supper of the Lamb by Robert Capon, All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days, by Rebecca Donner, Untangled, by Lisa D'Amour, and We Don't Know Ourselves, by Fintan O'Toole.

Reading goals for 2023:

1) Read three of the books I already own.

2) This year's classic selection: Crime and Punishment

3) Try reading 63 books (again), but with a better selection process.

4) Try to read some better non-fiction, non-memoir books.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Reflecting on Cooking - 2021

While many people still feel like we are in the pit of despair, my year went from despair to hope. This is because my children are back in school. I still don't quite have the words to describe how having my children home for a year affected me, and I believe that it will take many years for words to come through. Nevertheless, my cooking life has expanded.

This year - and mostly the second half of 2021 (again, "school") I accomplished:

* Cooked from and reviewed the following cookbooks:

Simply Julia, Julia Turshen
Eat better, Feel better, Giada De Laurentiis
The New York Times Cooking - No-Recipe Recipes, Sam Sifton
Come on Over: 111 Recipes for the Family that Cooks, Laughs, and Eats Together, Jeff Mauro

* Continued to cook from the following cookbooks that I own. The ones I reach for the most were:

Keepers and The Dinner Plan by Kathy Brennon and Caroline Campion
SkinnyTaste, One and Done by Gina Homolka
Dinner: A Love Story and Dinner: The Playbook, by Jenny Rosenstratch. Still have not completed these books, and will work on it this year!

* Purchased the following cookbooks: I try to only purchase books I REALLY want, and I usually will take them out of the library before I buy.

1. The Weekday Vegetarian, Jenny Rosenstrach - Cannot wait to dig in. Have already cooked through her Dinner: A Love Story and about half of Celebrations and Dinner: The Playbook.
2. Ready, Set, Cook, Dawn Perry - Maybe not worth the purchase. TBD in depth after a few more recipes. I was lured in by the fact that Perry was a recipe developer for Real Simple. GREAT for a beginner cook. I have only cooked her slow roasted chicken and coffee cake. The coffee cake will be made again and again.
3. 365 Days of Soup - encouraged to by this one by Paula Forbes in her Stained Page News. Which soup matches your birthday? Hope to make more soups as the years go by!
4. The New Basics (used) - Always wanted to own this classic and found it last week at a furniture consignment store.

* Subscribed to the following cooking e-"newsletters":

Dinner a Love Story, Jenny Rosenstrach, Cookbook Author
Stained Page News, Paula Forbes, Professional Cookbook Editor
The Department of Salad (unpaid still), Emily Nunn, Food Journalist and Author
The Wine Curmudgeon - great, inexpensive wine recommendations. Love Jeff!

Southern Living Magazine - Not electronic, but still love their recipes!

The New York Times Cooking website

* Continued to try different recipe of the following meals in order to find my family's "favorite" recipe.

Chicken Pot Pie: SkinnyTaste's is still the front runner (though this link is not the exact one in her book)
Sloppy Joe's: Sam Sifton's is still the front runner. But this pork sloppy joe from Real Simple was great too: Pork Sloppy Joes.
Breaded Chicken Cutlets: Practice makes perfect! But I found Giada's Chicken Breast with Gluten-Free breadcrumbs and Rice Flour to really shine! Also, the Ritz Cracker Chicken from the NYTimes was stunning!
Turkey Burgers - always ready to a healthy alternative to our favorite Reid's. My favorite is the New York Times Turkey Burger.
Pork Tenderloin - Siri Daly's Pork Tenderloin with Apples and Cider was made more than twice this year to much acclaim.
Pizza Dough - This is not really working for me. I still have not found a clear winner.

Turkey Chili: Smitten Kitchen's one the taste test. Kids devoured it. Dinner: A Love Story's still a top choice though.

* Other observations from 2021:

1. Leftovers appear more than in previous years. Continuing goals of less waste and better ingredients have made leftovers easier to swallow.
2. Ground pork appeared on our table more. Loved the pork meatballs, and pork with tofu in Keepers.
3. Kids ate tofu - they especially liked Julia Turshen's Sesame Rice with Tofu and Quickles and Peanut Sauce and the pork with tofu (see above).
4. Consistency is hard. I wanted to make Chicken and Rice every other week (so as to find the BEST Chicken and Rice recipe), but life gets in the way, and I have too many self-imposed requirements and recipe goals.

*How I did on my 2121 cooking resolutions?

1) Continue the search for good dairy free recipes.: Actually, I returned to eating a bit too much dairy, and will make this another resolution for 2022.
2) Continue to try different recipes for meatloaf/meatballs and chicken pot pie. CHECK!
3) My husband wants me to make gazpacho. CHECK!
4) Make this NY Times pizza dough. First, I have to buy the flour. CHECK!

* Cooking Resolutions for 2022:

1) Continue to research dairy-free recipes and food choices. Perhaps try nutritional yeast.
2) Incorporate more greens in dinner. Aim for 3 nights a week.
3) Try and limit food waste.
4) Finish cooking through Keepers/Dinner Plan/Dinner: A Love Story/Dinner: The Playbook (only recipes that appeal, of course).

Cookbook review: Come on Over: 111 Recipes for the Family that Cooks, Laughs, and Eats Together, Jeff Mauro

Come on Over: 111 Recipes for the Family that Cooks, Laughs, and Eats Together, Jeff Mauro

I had never heard of Jeff Mauro, aka, "The Sandwich King" of Chicago. I don't watch television. I picked up his cookbook in the library, and now I might even want to watch his show on the Food Network. He is witty and loves his family. And he has great recipes that he has clearly made for his family over and over.

Mauro has made popular and tested food choices. I cooked Mauro's sloppy joes (The Sloppy Lo, named after his son), meatloaf (United States of Meat Loaf, because meatloaf is wholly American), and turkey burger (The Juiciest Turkey Burgers Ever). His recipes are created for his large family, so my family of three little girls and two "normal" eating parents always had leftovers, even though all portions were devoured. His "Sausage, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandos" changed our family's schedule because these were the best breakfast my husband had ever frozen and warmed up. These are permanently on our family's menu now - the biggest compliment I can pay any cookbook author.

Mauro is also hilarious. His instructions make you want to read every word of the recipe. Example, "Close and cut to admire the colorful and inspiring cross section. Take a bite and quickly forget about cows in general." Also, "Serve with 14 napkins, preferably need a bathtub or garden hose." I read almost every word of this book as it sat on my worktable for nearly two months, picking it up just to get a quick laugh.

I want to hang out with Jeff and his family and share a meal, and the book really helps you picture what it would be like. While it might never happen, you can use his great recipes to have your own friends over. They always work!

Cook Book Review: Eat Better, Feel Better by Giada De Laurentiis

Eat Better, Feel Better Giada De Laurentiis

Maybe I liked this because I have been trying to eat better (just "trying", tbc) by staying gluten and dairy-free, like Giada started to do as a reset from her poorer diet of yore (i.e., the healthyish yet mouthwatering meat/ cheese/pasta dishes we expected from her). And while her weight was "not the problem", as she tells her readers repeatedly, she "just felt bad," and eating made her feel better - much much better. Now, I relate, because I did eat gluten and dairy-free for about nine solid months. But, chose to eat that way explicitly to lose weight, and I did, BUT, I felt GREAT. Eating well really does make you feel better. And while Giada is gaggingly beautiful no matter what she puts in her mouth, I totally know she is right. I just hope she cheats a bit more then she lets on.

So, the recipes I tasted are great. They are flavorful, healthy, and tested so they work. She made a great effort to create different sides made from the same old ingredients, for example: Herbes de Provence Roasted Potatoes, and Roasted Cauliflower with Grapes and Pistachios. I appreciated her addition of protein in White Bean and Broccoli Rabe Sauté, and the beans and greens combination she adds to her Steak Salad and Broiled Salmon. The Milanese Chicken using rice flour and gluten-free panko bread crumbs was the best I ever had, and I will continue to use that recipe exclusively when I "Milanese" chicken.

On the baking front, I made her gluten-free Spiced Apple Muffins, which the kids liked and ate. Her Chocolate and Orange Brown Rice Treats were good, but nobody craved them, and they ended up in the trash after being in the back of the fridge for a week.

While I look forward to cooking a few more of Giada's healthy recipes, I will admit that many of the once I didn't try were because they were plain recipes for "Rice" and "Brown Rice", and "Roasted Vegetables." While it is always useful to see what temperatures and methods a trained chef uses, I would have been more interested to hear about more flavorful recipes. I hope she writes some more!

Cookbook Review - The New York Times Cooking - No-Recipe Recipes, Sam Sifton

The New York Times Cooking - No-Recipe Recipes, Sam Sifton

Sam Sifton writes extremely good recipes. His See You on Sunday recipes always come out like a dream. I make his potato salad five times a summer. So, why did he write No-Recipe Recipes ? Because they truly are still recipes, no matter how Mr. Sifton seems to deny it. And, they also have amazing finished product. Each recipe has an ingredient list, a description of how to make the meal, small commentary you have come to expect from Sifton's newsletter, and a beautiful picture of the food.

The "no-recipes" have worked. The Sloppy Joes were perfection. The Salmon with Barbecue Sauce and Hot Peppers not only brightened up our weekly salmon intake, but also used up the half cup of BBQ sauce I had in the fridge for a year. The Fried Halloumi Salad was genius, and Roasted Shrimp Tacos will be made over and over. Sifton's tips and modifications for each recipe make this "no-recipe" book an actual resource, rather than a quick cooking jaunt.

About half of the recipes from this book are available on the NYTimes.com/cooking website/app. (If you have not downloaded the app, it is truly the only reason I sustain my NY Times subscription) If I see this book at a used book store, I will snap it up for my collection.