Delicious Delights Recipes - Food is Poetry for the Palate

Noodles Kapama by Joanne Olivieri

Noodles Kapama

A. Ingredients

a. 1 lb. ground beef (or chicken pieces for a healthier alternative)

d. 1 tbls. butter

C. 1 small can 6 oz. tomato paste

d. 1/2 tomato paste can of water

e. 2 tsp. allspice

f. Dash of nutmeg and cinnamon

g. Salt and pepper to taste

h. 1 lb. thin egg noodles

i. Parmesan cheese

B. Cooking Method

a. Saute the meat in butter until pink is gone. You want it cooked.

b. Stir in tomato paste, water, spices salt and pepper.

c. Cook, covered over a low heat for 10 minutes stirring frequenty.

d. While sauce cooks, boil the noodles, then drain.

e. Pour the sauce over the noodles and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

f. This makes a quick easy dinner when served with a tossed salad. This is the Greek

equivalent of pasta with meat sauce. While I like it with ground beef, you can also substitute the meat or chicken with your favorite veggie and it makes a nice vegetarian dish.

By: Christine Tabaka

Chicken Roasted on a Bed of Vegetables – The Perfect One-Pot Meal

Chicken Roasted on a Bed of Vegetables Recipe

• 2 pounds chicken thighs and drumsticks
• a mix of vegetables (like onions, garlic, carrots, celery, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and/or broccoli) *( I leave the skins on)
• olive oil
• 1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper, to taste
• fresh parsley, chopped
• dried herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano)
• poultry seasoning

Heat the oven to 425°F.

Wash and prep your preferred vegetables and cut into bite-sized pieces. Make a bed for the chicken pieces by arranging the vegetables on the bottom of a baking dish. Sprinkle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and herbs.

Rub the chicken drumsticks and thighs with olive oil. Sprinkle the chicken pieces generously with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning and place on top of vegetables.

Bake for an hour or until chicken is done. Let the chicken pieces rest on a serving platter. Mix vegetables in the baking dish and roast 5-10 minutes longer if needed. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

Total Time: 75-85 minutes
Yield: 4-6 servings

By Christine Tabaka

Brown Rice, Gorgonzola and Dried Cherry Salad

Ingredients

17.5 ounces of cooked brown rice OR ... 2 (8.8-oz.) packages Uncle Ben’s Ready Whole
                                                           Grain Brown Rice
1/2 cup each: crumbled Gorgonzola cheese,
dried cherries, minced green onions and
sliced celery
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. soy sauce
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

Cook rice according to package directions; transfer to a medium bowl. Stir in cheese, cherries, green onions and celery. In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, soy sauce and freshly ground pepper to taste. Drizzle over rice mixture, stirring well to coat. Top with walnuts, if you like. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Nutritional Information:

(based on 5): 290 calories, 7 g protein, 12 g total fat (3.5 g sat., 0 g trans), 0 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 8 g sugar, 10 mg cholesterol, 360 mg sodium, 6 points

Shopping List:

2 (8.8-oz.) packages Uncle Ben’s Ready Whole Grain Brown Rice,1/2 cup each: crumbled Gorgonzola cheese dried cherries minced green onions and sliced celery,2 tbsp. olive oil,2 tbsp. red wine vinegar,1 tbsp. soy sauce, Freshly ground pepper to taste,1/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts (optional) 

Caribbean-Style Black Bean Soup
By: Christine Tabaka

Prep Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 12 hrs 20 mins

Servings: 8-10

About This Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb dried black beans, washed and stones removed

3 onions, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced (powdered works fine, too)

1 ham hocks or 3/4 cup cubed ham

1 tablespoon oil

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 cups water

2 tablespoons vinegar

Directions

Soak beans overnight in 4 quarts water.

Drain. Combine beans, onions, green pepper, garlic, ham, oil, cumin, oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, and 3 cups fresh water.

Stir well.

Cover.

Cook on Low 8-10 hours, or High 4-5 hours.

For a thick soup, remove half of cooked bean mixture and puree until smooth in a blender or mash with potato masher.

Return to cooker.

If you like a soupier soup, leave as is.

Add vinegar and stir well.

Debone ham, cut into bite-sized pieces and return to soup.

Directions

Serve in soup bowls.

Can be topped with sour cream and fresh cilantro.
Serve over rice or with cornbread.

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By Ahmad Al-khatat

Spicy Noddles with Shrimps 

Two tea spoon of salt, and black pepper.

Half cup of soya sauce and seeds oil

Fry 2 whole onions and 2 tiny garlics

A bit of ginger 

Mix them all then put put hot peppers 

then put shrimps and some spicy sauce 

Then add some spinach leaves, then add

the noddles with bit of water. Then turn the heat lower for 10 or 15 minutes then is ready to be served as everyone can eat it.

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Spicy Shrimp and Grits

Shared by Christine Tabaka

3 cups of milk

1 cup water

1 Tablespoon butter

½ teaspoon salt, divided

¼ teaspoon black pepper, divided

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits

½ cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan (or I prefer Locetelli) cheese

4-5 slices Applewood bacon

1 pound peeled, deveined large shrimp

1 cup thinly vertically sliced white onion

2 cups grape tomatoes, halved

1-2 teaspoons of hot pepper sauce (or chopped chipotle chili canned in adobo)

1/8-1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

¼ cup green onions cut into thin strips

1. Combine milk, water, butter, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in a saucepan over medium-high heat.  Bring to a simmer; gradually add grits, stirring constantly with a whisk.  Reduce heat to medium; cook 4-5 minutes until thick, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat; stir in cheese.

2. While grits cook, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp.  Remove bacon from pan, reserving some (or all) of the drippings; crumble bacon and set aside.

3. Cook shrimp in bacon drippings in pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done.  Remove shrimp from pan and set aside.

4. Add white onion to pan; sauté until tender (1-2 minutes).  Add tomatoes, remaining salt and black pepper; continue to sauté and stir for several minutes until tomatoes break down.

5. Add the bacon and shrimp back to the mix.  Add the hot sauce and crushed red pepper. Cook 1 minute until shrimp are heated.

6. Serve over the grits, sprinkle with the green onion strips.

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Keftethes - My Mom's Recipe

Greek Meatballs

By Joanne Olivieri

Greek Meatballs (Keftethes)

I love this recipe. It makes 4 servings. Being of Greek heritage on my Mom’s side of the family we would frequently have Greek dishes. This particular dish is a Greek meatball. I have so many fond memories of picnics down in Santa Cruz and days at the beach where my Mom would prepare Keftethes and potato salad and we’d have our feast right out by the water enjoying the beautiful day. I thought about this today because it is a gorgeous day in San Francisco and memories flooded my mind. So I thought I’d share this will all of you.

A. Ingredients

a. 4 slices bread, white or wheat or whole grain - or Bread crumbs - they’re easier.

If you use bread, trim the crusts.

b. 1 pound ground beef

c. 1 egg

d. 1 medium onion chopped fine

e. 1 tbs. crushed mint salt and pepper to tasted flour

f. 2 tbs butter

g. 2 tbs olive oil.

B. Cooking methods

a. Place in mixing bowl and cover with small amounts of water. For bread crumbs you

can omit this step.

b. Add meat, egg, onion, mint, salt and pepper.

c. Shape into two inch patties.

d. Coat the patties well with the flour.

e. Fry the patties in the mixture of oil and butter.

f. Brown on each side then drain. You can make these ahead of time and freeze them then

when you are ready to serve defrost and reheat them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

These are absolutely fantastic with potato salad or coleslaw. They’re also great cold and on picnics. You can also use these with a tomato sauce and serve meatballs and spaghetti. A little twist on the traditional. Enjoy!

Pasta with Eggplant Sauce

1   medium eggplant

1   medium chopped onion

2   14 ½ ounce cans cans diced tomatoes

1   6 ounce can tomato paste

8   ounces sliced button mushrooms

½   cup dry red wine

¼   cup water

3   cloves of garlic chopped

1 ½  teaspoons dried oregano

1 ½  teaspoons dried basil

½   teaspoon dried crushed rosemary

¾   cup sliced kalamata olives

2   Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 Tablespoon capers

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Fresh ground black pepper (to taste)

Fresh ground sea salt (to taste)

Cooked penne pasta

Shredded Parmesan or Locetelli cheese

1. Peel eggplant and cut into 1 inch cubes

2. in a 3 ½ to 5 quart  Crock Pot (slow cooker) combine eggplant cubes,  chopped onions, canned tomatoes with liquid, tomato paste, EV olive oil, sliced mushrooms, red wine, water, chopped garlic, oregano, basil, and rosemary.  Gently stir to mix.

3. Cover, cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours, or high-heat setting for 3 /12 to 4 hours.

4. Stir in kalamata olives, capers, and parsley.  Season with salt & pepper, to taste.  Pour over cooked pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan or Locetelli cheese and serve.

By: Christine Tabaka

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Puttanesca Sauce with Fried Capers over Linguine

Serves 4

30 minutes or fewer

This versatile sauce also works great spread on crostini, spooned over soft polenta, or served with poached eggs.

·         1 Tbs. olive oil

·         2 Tbs. capers, drained and patted dry with paper towels

·         1 red onion, chopped (1 cup)

·         3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)

·         ½ tsp. red pepper flakes

·         1 lb. cherry tomatoes, halved (3½ cups)

·         1 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced, divided

·         1/4-1/2  cup pitted Kalamata olives, coarsely chopped

·         12 oz. linguine

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add capers, and fry 1 to 2 minutes, or until many capers have split. Remove capers with slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels. Add onion to skillet, and cook 3 to 5 minutes, then stir in garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook 1 minute more. Stir in tomatoes, and cook 5 to 7 minutes, or until tomatoes begin to break down. Stir in 1/2 cup basil and olives, and remove pan from heat.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water. Add drained pasta to skillet, and toss to combine with sauce, adding some pasta water if mixture seems too thick. Serve garnished with remaining 1/2 cup basil and capers

By: Christine Tabaka

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Tuna Niçoise(simple sheet pan)

This is served French style, as a “Salade Composée,” where each person assembles the elements on a plate and then drizzles the vinaigrette. 

Vinaigrette (make about 1/4 to a ½ cup)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Red Wine Vinegar

Dijon Mustard

finely minced garlic

Herbs de Provence

4 ounces of haricots verts (or very slender green beans)

1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 8 ounce Ahi Tuna Steak (or Albacore Tuna steak)

2-3 large eggs

½ to 1 cup of pitted Niçoise olives

4 new red potatoes (or very small potatoes)

baby spinach

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, and coat pan with olive oil.

2. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil (enough to submerge eggs).

3. Gently submerge eggs in boiling water; reduce to a gentle boil, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove eggs from boiling water, run under cold water, and peel.  Let sit while finishing the rest of the cooking. 

4. Scrub potatoes. Cut into quarters with skin on. In a bowl, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper then spread in a single layer on Sheet pan.  Cook for 8 minutes.  Remove to add other vegetables. 

5. In a bowl toss haricots verts and tomatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place in a single layer on sheet pan along with the potatoes, and roast for 5 minutes.

(Cooking time ~ 13 minutes so far).

6. Brush tuna steaks with Herb de Provence Vinaigrette. 

Add tuna and olives to haricots verts and tomatoes and potatoes.

Continue cooking another 10 minutes or until tuna is done, and vegetables are fork tender.

7. Cut eggs in half

8. Serve as is with the remaining Herb de Provence Vinaigrette, or place on top of spinach and serve with Herb de Provence Vinaigrette

By: Christine Tabaka

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Scallop Piccata with Sauteed Spinach

From: Christine Tabaka

Serve over a bed of angel hair pasta, linguine, or brown rice. Serves 2.

3/4 pounds sea scallops (about 8)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 teaspoons of canola oil (I use olive oil)

1 clove garlic, chopped (I use 3 cloves)

1/4 cup of vermouth

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon butter

2 teaspoons capers

5 ounce package of fresh baby spinach

1. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat.  Pat scallops dry with paper towels.  Sprinkle salt & freshly ground black pepper over scallops.  Add 2 teaspoons of oil to pan and swirl to coat.  Add scallops; cook 2 minutes on each side or until browned & done.  Remove from pan; keep warm.

2. Reduce heat to medium.  Add chopped garlic to pan; cook 10 seconds.  Add Vermouth, scrapping pan to loosen browned bits; cook 2 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half.  Remove from heat.  Add parsley, fresh lemon juice, butter, and capers, stirring until butter melts.  Pour sauce in a bowl.

3. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in pan over medium-high heat.  Add spinach, sauté 30 seconds or until spinach almost wilts.  Serve scallops over spinach (over rice or pasta).  Drizzle sauce over scallops.

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Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

From: Christine Tabaka

Makes 4 servings:

1  Tbs. olive oil

1  medium onion diced

2  cloves of garlic, minced

2  14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes

¼ cup finely minced fresh parsley

1  Tbs. finely minced fresh dill

1 ½  pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

¼  tsp. salt

¼  tsp. freshly ground black pepper

2/3  cup crumbled feta cheese

1  cup cut fresh string beans, slightly steamed

1  Tbs. capers

Serve over orzo or brown rice

Preheat oven to 425^o.

Heat oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium heat.  Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic, cook for 1 minute.  Add tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and let sauce simmer for about 5 to 10 minutes, until tomato juices thicken.  Remove skillet from burner.  Stir in parsley, dill. shrimp, green beans, and capers.  Season with salt & pepper.  Sprinkle feta over top.  Place skillet in oven; bake until shrimp are cooked through and cheese has melted (about 12 minutes).  Serve over orzo or brown rice.

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Scotch Whisky Butter Ball recipe - from my Mom's recipes. You can use any Scotch whisky or American whiskey or anything you like however a sweeter whisky would work best. Smoke and peat wouldn't go well for these little cookies. Use a sweet Speyside or Highland.  Rum and sweet bourbon or brandy or just plain old vanilla extract are all delicious with this recepie.

***note, whisky refers to Scotch whisky only. Whiskey with the "e" refers to American and all other brands from around the world.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cubes butter or margarine
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
¾ cups water
2 ½ cups flour
1 cup chopped nuts (preferable almonds or walnuts)
3 tsp. of either Scotch whisky, brandy or rum

Cream butter, add sugar and water and cream thoroughly. Add remaining ingredients. Shape into balls and bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven until lightly browned on bottoms. Turn and brown other side. If the mixture falls apart when you are making the balls, add more water. When baked, roll hot butter balls into sifted powdered sugar until the flour sticks to the balls. Refrigerate after cooled. We had these every Christmas day. They are divine.

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Taken from our original issue of Yasou! A Celebration of Life published in 2000.

El Mohito and Surprise Sugar Pie contributed by Lise Peters.

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Photo courtesy of Pixababy

Stuffed Zucchini Squash

My Mom's Recipe

A. Ingredients
a. Buy medium size squash about 8 to 10
b. 6 eggs
c. Boiled chard fresh or packaged. If packaged (1 pkg.) You can also use spinach.
d. About 2 cups grated parmesan cheese
e. 1 1/2 cup bread crumbs. If you can find Italian style bread crumbs, they're much better
f. About 6 slices hard bread soaked. French bread is perfect for this recipe.
g. 2 tbls. oil or margarine. (Olive oil is best)
h. Pepper and salt to taste
i. Sweet basil (to taste)
j. Italian seasoning (to taste)
k. Minced garlic

B. Cooking Methods
a. Cut medium size squash lengthwise in half and par boil them until fork goes through
without too much effort. Do not over boil them because you won't be able to handle them.

b. Add the ingredients above, in the order given in a large bowl.

c. When squash is par boiled scoop out insides of squash leaving just a little to form a groove

.
d. Put some of the squash that was scooped out of each one, about half or so into the mixture.

e. Pierce the shells of the squash with fork about three times in each shell.

f. Scoop the mixture into the groove of each squash and place in oiled pan with thinly sliced potatoes
underneath each squash and around the pan and bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
Make sure the potatoes are thinly sliced.
**Make sure you boil the chard or spinach before adding to the mixture.

C. Servings
These are good both heated or right out of the fridge. I prefer them cold. Great for picnics.

©Joanne Olivieri