quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

More about my time in Rome.

A few more days went past and it got to be Christmas eve. We went out and partied pretty good. It got up towards 11ish and I decided I had to go to midnight mass at the Vatican. My 2 redneck buddies wanted to go too. We walked out of the bar and started asking “wish way to the vaacan?” we followed directions until it got to be about 5 of midnight and we were in front of a big church with steps that just went on and on up to the door. We went in and did the midnight mass thing in a very crowded church.We learned the next day that we were at the “Spanish steps”. We staggered back to the Pension Ricci and snuck in. We woke up about noon and were on our way out the door feeling pretty sorry for ourselves having to spend the first Christmas of our young lives away from home. Boo hoo. Mrs. Ricci stops us and gets it across that we were invited to have Christmas dinner with them. WOW. She let us know to knock on their door about 3 pm. We went out and couldn’t find anything open, of course, duh. We wandered around until 2:30ish and went back to the Pension Ricci. There was the Ricci’s oldest daughter, her husband and their 2 little girls there too. The son-in-law spoke pretty good English and that made things flow a lot easier. We fussed over the kids and played with them. They were great. Then came Christmas dinner. I didn’t know all the things we had, but I’ve dug around a little bit over the years since and I’ll try to tell you all about it. It started with “antipasto” which is the first course and means "before pasta" which came next. For antipasto there was bruchetta which is toasted slices of good Italian bread rubbed with garlic and topped with chopped up tomatoes, olive oil and basil. It’s great!! More antipasto, then there was roasted red peppers with mozzarella and provolone. Also some anchovies mixed up with some olive oil and garlic. I don’t like anchovies, but these were great. Oh, by the way the red wine appeared before anything else and got around pretty good. Next came the 2nd course which was pasta. We thought this was the rest of the meal,,no ,,just the pasta course. It was what I’ve since learned was

Pasta Carbonara



4-5 stips of bacon or pancetta if you can get it.
olive oil
5 eggs
2 tablespoons milk or light cream
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or 1 tbsp. dried
1/2 cup mixed grated parmigiano and romano cheese
½ - 2/3 pound spaghetti or whatever pasta you like
ground black pepper
Get the water and the pasta going
Slice bacon or pancetta crosswise into half inch strips, and cook slowly in olive oil. Don’t let strips burn. The bacon should be browned, but not burnt. Keep warm over low heat.
Separate egg whites and yolks. Put yolks in serving bowl and mix lightly with milk or cream, parsley and the mixed cheeses.
Cook pasta to al dente (firm to the bite), about 8 minutes for spaghetti. When cooked, drain in a colander and add all at once to egg mixture. Toss rapidly until pasta is coated with eggs which will cook from the heat of the pasta. Add bacon and freshly milled black pepper. Toss again. Serve it up!!
Next came the main or meat course. Mrs. Ricci had a leg of lamb ready. Now my mom made us a lot of leg of lamb over the years, but this was:
Mrs. Ricci’s leg of lamb
( Agnello al forno)
olive oil
½ cup dry white wine or lemon juice
Salt and pepper
6-8 cloves garlic
3 sprigs fresh rosemary, snipped in half or 3 tbsp. dried

Make 4 or 5 cuts into the lamb almost down to the bone

One to two hours before you plan to roast the lamb, set it in a ceramic or stainless roasting pan. Pour the olive oil and wine over the lamb and turn it over a few times so it is coated all over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the garlic cloves and rosemary into the cuts in the lamb. Let the meat marinate at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
Set the oven at 475 degrees.
Transfer the roasting pan to the oven and roast the lamb for 15 minutes.
Turn the meat over, and continue roasting for another 15 minutes.
Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees, and continue roasting, basting occasionally with the juices in the pan, for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the meat is cooked through, well browned, and falling off the bone. Total cooking time is 1 3/4 to 2 hours.
Let the lamb rest for 5 minutes before serving. Make a gravy in the roasting pan with a little water and flour added.
She served it with:
Mrs. Ricci’s Broccoli Rabe

about 2 pounds cleaned broccoli rabe (wash well, trim roots, and coarsely chop leaves)
olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Salt
Hot pepper, if you like it
Drain the broccoli well and cook them until half done in lightly salted boiling water (3-5 minutes from when the water resumes boiling after you add them to the pot). Drain them well, and squeeze them to force out the bitter juices.
Sauté the garlic in the oil, and when it is golden, add the broccoli. Cook over a brisk flame, stirring constantly, for about 10 minutes. Season with the hot pepper, if you are using it, half way through the cooking. Drizzle with lemon juice just before serving

ALSO,,, Italian Chick peas

3 cups canned chick peas (ceci)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped or 1 tsp. dried
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley or 2 tbsp. dried
1 cup diced Italian plum tomatoes
Salt to taste
ground black pepper
Warm the olive oil in a large saute pan. Stir in rosemary and garlic, and saute briefly over medium heat,. Do not let garlic brown and certainly, don't burn it.
When garlic turns a light golden shade, stir in parsley,, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Lower heat and cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes to thicken the sauce.
Or,, you could use some already prepared marinara sauce
Stir in chick peas (ceci) and cook for a few minutes to blend flavors and to heat ceci.

Then came dessert which was gelato (Italian ice cream) espresso, sambuca and the rest of the wine!!

We thought we had died and gone to heaven, but we were to stuffed to fly.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Mrs. Ricci’s chicken.

When I was in the Coast Guard I was stationed in Libya from August ’59 to Aug. ’60. The headquarters for the Coast Guard for the Mediterranean area was in Naples and they sent supplies down to us twice a month by plane from Naples. Well, Christmas was approaching and they let half the crew fly back to Naples and stay for the 2 weeks ‘til the plane went back to Libya and the rest of us went the next 2 weeks. We got to Naples and 3 of us decided we wanted to go to Rome for our stay. We got on a train and went. Didn’t have anyplace to stay, but we found the Pension Ricci. A pension, we learned is a family owned boarding house, kinda. Well the Pension Ricci was owned and run by the Ricci family, obviously. They didn’t feed their guests. You just got a room. The first day there we were on our way out to get some supper and the Ricci’s cute, no beautiful, 2 teenage daughters were on their way in. They didn’t know any English and we knew about 3 words of Italian between us, but we were making each other giggle when Mrs. Ricci shows up. She gave us a pretty stern look. We thought we were going to get kicked out right then. Well, in a second or 2 she smiles and invites us to come in and join them for supper. We sat at the kitchen table, the girls and boys eyeballing each other while Mrs. Ricci did this for supper. She sent one of the girls out to get another chicken and some more bread to take care of us too. She cut up the chickens so she had breasts thighs and drumsticks. She had a big cast iron skillet and she put some olive oil (I guess) in it. She made shallow cuts in the chicken. Through the skin and about a ¼ inch more. Then the chicken into the pan, no flour, no bread crumbs, and squeezed lemon juice on the pieces. When she turned them over to cook the other side she squeezed more juice on them. While the chicken was cooking she had one of the girls do the pasta. It was ziti or something like it. When the pasta was done and drained the pretty girl put in some garlic she had mashed up, some olive oil and a good bit of grated cheese. Mixed it all up with a spoon. They fed us all that with some salad and some of the best bread I’ve ever had. No butter just olive oil for dipping. Mrs. Ricci hollers out for Mr. Ricci to come to dinner. He looks at us with a what’s this? Look on his face. Mrs. Ricci tells him and he shrugs like its ok with him. The girls giggled. We were very quiet. Things loosened up a little with the help of some good red wine from a big jug wrapped up with straw. They fed us a few more times while we stayed there and I’ll tell you about some of the other meals we had in the next few blogs.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Quick pasta with sausage

This is a little different. It’s fast, easy and real good. The Mom of one of my buddies back in Jersey used to make this real quick for us sometimes. Serves 2, but you can double it if you have company or want to save some in the freezer or fridge. It heats up good in the microwave for a fast no brainer some other day.

2 Italian sausage links ,,sweet or hot it’s up to you.
About a cup of chopped and cleaned mushrooms. Any kind are good. I like baby bellas.
½ of a small onion chopped fine
a large garlic clove minced
olive oil
about a half cup of wine white or red will work. Whatever you like.
Salt and pepper
¾ cup of heavy cream


Take the sausage meat out of the casings and cook in a sauce pan until no more pink. Break it up with a fork or turner as it cooks. When the meat starts to turn brown add about 2 tbsp. of the olive oil and the veggies. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the onions and garlic are translucent. Add the wine and cook until the wine is reduced by about half. Add the cream, salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 10 min. or as long as the pasta takes. Any pasta will do but we like bite sized non swirly stuff, i.e. penne or rigatoni. Drain the pasta and save a little of the water. Add the sauce to the pasta in the pot add a little of the water if it’s too thick. Divvy it up, sprinkle some parmesan cheese and some dried parsley on it.

YOU’RE GOOD!! Some salad, good crusty bread and the rest of that wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pork chops with sauce and wine

Gammy is still up in Texas and I’m all alone here. Well,, not all alone,,,Stella is a very demanding presence. I got some thin cut pork chops on the way home. When I hit the casa I got some of the sauce that we keep frozen out and put about a cup and a half (it’s frozen of course so I had to “eyeball”)in a sauce pan with a little water on the bottom and put the heat to it. Or,,you could do the butoni thing. Started the water for the pasta and did the pasta while I was tending to the pork chops. Heated up a frying pan with a little olive oil in it. Sprinkled the chops with a little garlic powder and black pepper. Fried them up. When the second side was about half done I put the sauce in the pan. and about a half cup of red wine. Cooked them the rest of the way. The wine reduced and thickened up. The pasta was done. Used the sauce right from the pan for the pasta and a little bit on the chops. I had a little tomato and onion salad and some of popop’s homemade bread. And some of that red wine!

Stella and I enjoyed it!! Stella helped me with some of the scraps from the pork and a little of the pasta. She also likes a little of the bread dipped in some olive oil. She’s an Italian dog you know.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Tomato, Basil and fresh Mozzarella Rice

This real fast and easy. It looks and tastes like you spent a lot of time on it,,,,but you won’t. It’s great for a week night meal and the leftovers keep in the freezer in zip locks just great.

Pre heat oven to 375
2 cups of uncle ben’s or any other kind of instant rice.
1 medium regular or 2 roma tomatoes diced
about a half cup of fresh (wet) mozzarella. If you cant’ get or don’t have fresh,, reg. mozzarella will do in fact in a pinch any cheese will work,,BUT fresh mozzarella is best!
about a half a bunch of fresh basil chopped or about 2-3 Tbsp. of dried

Prepare the rice
Stir in the mozzarella, tomatoes and most of the basil. Save some for garnish
Put it all in a casserole dish and cover with aluminum foil.
Bake for about 15-20 min.

Serve it up!! With some good Italian bread (maybe garlic bread) and some chianti!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Risotto Primavera

Remember we made pasta primavera? This is just about the same but with rice,,of course. This recipe will serve 5 or 6. The leftovers from this keep great in zip locks in the freezer for a no brainer some other day.

¼ cup chopped onion
1 big garlic clove ( or 2 small ones)chopped fine
2 cups of rice
about a half cup of white wine you could use red wine here. I’ve done it when I only had red on hand and it worked out pretty good. Different look, different taste and good.
about 6 cups of chicken broth heated up in a separate pot. You can make this from powder or bullion cubes or you can buy it in those box thingies already to go. Try for the low sodium kind.
1 large carrot skinned and sliced thin or about 6 baby carrots sliced
1 small zucchini skinned and diced
and whatever other kind of veggies you want in your primavera. I’ve done it with peas or lima beans or string beans

Heat up about 3 tbsp. of butter and a quick swirl of olive oil in a heavy sauce pan.
Add the carrots and sauté until they start to get a little soft Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 1 1/2 minutes. Add the rice and stir until the rice is coated. Add the wine and cook while stirring pretty constantly until the wine is absorbed. Start adding the hot broth about a half or ¾ cup at a time. As the broth gets absorbed add more stirring all the time. After about 10minutes of the adding the broth process, add the veggies and cook ‘til the rice is soft but not mushy. Add 2 tbsp. of butter, ½ cup parmesan cheese and a big pinch of dried parsley. Mix it up for about 20-30 seconds and

SERVE IT UP!! We’ve had this with a barbeque chicken from the store, some good bread and the rest of the wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pasta and zucchini and/or whatever

I know we’ve done pasta a lot of different ways, but this is one more way that Poppop and Gammy do it. Well, we do this a lot of different ways. Tonight we’re going to do it with zucchini, shrimp and pesto.

3 small zucchini,, ends cut off, peeled and sliced
8-10 shrimp peeled and deveined
olive oil ,, are you surprised?
1 small (8 oz.) container of butoni basil pesto or make your own or get a different brand, ,,whatever.
½-1/3 lb of penne pasta or any kind of pasta you like. We like penne for this.
1 tbsp. butter
grated parmesan cheese

Put the salted water for the pasta on and cook it al dente.

While the pasta is cooking put a med frying pan on med/high with a bout 2 swirls of olive oil. Put in the zucchini cook for about 5-6 min tossing a few times. Add the shrimp and cook a few more minutes tossing every so often. The pasta should be done add it to the pan with the butter and the cheese lower the heat. Toss it a few more times and,,,,,,,

SERVE IT UP!!! with some salad, good crusty Italian bread and some chilled white wine !!! damn,, you’re good!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Sunday Pork Chops Popop’s special way

This is easy and it’s real good. Like, good enough for Sunday company. Serves 6 but you can do as much or as little as you want. Do whatever carb. And veggie you want with this. I like mashed sweet potatoes and broccoli.

6 thick pork chops
mustard, Dijon if you have it, just not the real spicey kind
Flour
1 tbsp. dried sage
1 clove garlic chopped
about 3 tbsp. butter
olive oil
½ cup wine (white or red)
½ chicken broth (bullion) cube
about 4 tbsp. good balsamic vinegar

Coat the chops with the mustard then flour. Heat up (med/high) a big frying pan add about a swirl of oil and the butter. When the butter starts to bubble add the garlic and the sage to the pan. After about a minute add the chops. Brown them good on both sides. Pour the wine over the chops and add the bullion cube. Lower the heat and cook until almost all of the liquid has reduced away. Drizzle with the balsamic vinegar and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

YOU’RE GOOD!! Serve it up!! With some crusty bread and the rest of the wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Swordfish Italian style

This works great with tuna or salmon also. The marinade and getting fresh fish are the secrets. Back in jersey we could always get fresh swordfish and tuna over in point pleasant at the fish stores right by the docks where the boats came in. We lived in Port Aransas, Texas for a while and it was the same deal. You can tell fresh from stale fish by the appearance. The edges of the cut will be shark and the fish will have a kind of sparkly, clear look. Stale fish has sort of rounded edges where it was cut and starts to look a little cloudy. The fresher the fish is the less it will smell like fish. Don’t be too proud to ask the fish person to let you smell it.

So, for instance if you want swordfish tonight, but the tuna is defiantly fresher,,,change to the tuna.

We’re zapping potatoes in the microwave for fast “baked” potatoes and peas with sauteed chopped onions for a veggie. In a frying pan put a little olive oil and butter. Heat it up and when the butter bubbles add the onions just cook until translucent then add the peas and cook and toss until they are done to your liking. Poppop and Gammy like them on the undercooked side but you do what you want.

4 swordfish steaks
1 large clove of garlic chopped up fine.
1 tbsp. dried parsley or 3 tbsp. chopped fresh
about a half cup of olive oil
juice squeezed from 3 lemons
about a half cup of white wine
salt and pepper

whisk everything (but the fish) in a mixing bowl big enough to handle the fish also. After it’s whisked put the fish in and turn a few times to get the fish coated.

Heat up a large frying pan med/high with a swirl or 2 of olive oil. Put in the fish. Pour some of the marinade over the fish. Cook them about 5 min. a side. Finger poke ‘em to test the doneness The firmer the doner.

You needed to be multi tasking the potatoes and the peas while the fish is doing.

SERVE IT UP!! With some good crusty bread and the rest of that white wine.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pan blackened talapia serves 2

Gammy's still up in Texas and Butch and Janie are leaving Sat. morning to be in time for their grandson's (Zack) graduation. So I'm going to feed them Fri.

We're going to have Pan Blackened talapia with french fries and carrots. I know we've done this before, but, hey, what can I tell you? It's what we're going to eat. We like it and it's fast and easy.

Pre heat the oven to 450.

About 2 cups of those little pre cleaned baby carrots.
about 2 cups of frozen french fries .
3-4 talapia fillets.

Put the carrots on the stove in a sauce pan med/high with a little salt in the water (don't forget the water) A tip. Any veggie that grows above the ground I.E. string beans, peas you start the water boiling and then put the veggies in. If it grows below the ground put them in cold water and start them that way. they'll take about 10-15 min.

Spread out the frozen french fries on a pamed cookie sheet and put them in the oven. They'll take about 10 min.

Put a large frying pan on the stove med/high. put in about 1 swirl of oil. It doesn't have to be extra virgin olive oil. reg. olive oil will work. When I'm going to use high heat like this I even use canola oil. Rinse off the fillets and spread out on a paper towel flat side down. Sprinkle dried basil, paprika, garlic powder, ground pepper and red pepper flakes on the fillets. Put them in the pan seasoned side down and then do the same to the then up side. They are going to cook pretty fast, about 3-4 min. a side.

Everything should be done about the same time. Drain the carrots and put them back in the pot add a little dried parsley and some butter. mix it up til the butter and parsley has coated the carrots.

SERVE IT UP!! with some crusty bread and some white wine. I think we're going to go with some red, actually. Just because it's what we like.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pasta, Spinach and Bacon, and/or shrimp

½- 2/3 lb. pasta I like the bite sized non twisty kind like penne or farfalle for this, but any pasta will do.
A couple of handfuls of prewashed baby spinach
3 slices of pancetta or bacon
1 small or half a large red pepper
1 small onion chopped
1 large clove of garlic minced
olive oil
grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes (optional)

Start the water for the pasta and cook it al dente.

Heat med high a med large frying pan with a turn or two of olive oil. Put in the pancetta (or bacon). Cook it ‘til it starts to get crispy. Add the onions, garlic and red pepper and cook a few minutes until the veggies are smellin good. Add the spinach and cook until the spinach starts to wilt. Turn it often. As soon as it starts to wilt take it off the stove and add the salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to your taste and a few good shakes of the grated parmesan. Mix it up. The pasta should be done by now. Drain it and save a little of the water Mix up the pasta and the veggie bacon stuff. Use a little of the pasta water if it looks a little dry. As an option when you put the onions etc. in the pan you could put in some peeled and deveined shrimp. Gammy and I like it that way.

SERVE IT UP!! With some crusty pop pop’s homemade bread and some white wine!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pepper Steak

This is a fast, good and easy weeknight meal.



1/2 pound top sirloin or chuck steaks (about 1/2 inch thick), trimmed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Garlic powder
Olive oil, or canola oil
1 medium bell pepper, sliced into 1/4-inch strips
½ med onion, thinly sliced lengthwise (root to top)
6-8 cherry tomatoes, cut in half, or one large tomato, chopped into golf ball sized chunks
1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
·
1 Season the steaks with salt and pepper and sprinkle garlic powder over them, both sides. Place the steaks between two sheets of plastic wrap or I just use a plastic bag from the super market. With a meat pounder, pound the steaks to a 1/4 inch thickness. You don’t have to do the pounding thing, but it makes them real tender. If you don’t be sure to slice the meat across the grain and real thin. Let the steaks sit for 10 minutes to absorb the flavor of the garlic. Then cut them across the grain into strips.
2 While the steak is sitting, heat 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet on medium high to high heat. Add the sliced onions and bell peppers, cook, stirring, until just barely tender, about 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute. Remove the veggies from the pan to a bowl and keep warm on the back of the stove.
3 Heat about an additional 1 tbsp of oil in the skillet on medium high heat, until the oil is shimmering, but not smoking. Add the strips of beef let the beef brown initially, without stirring, but as soon as it is brown on at least one side, then stir. Cook for no more than a minute (for rare). Add the vegetables and Worcestershire and cook for a half minute longer, tossing or stirring. Remove from heat.

Some real easy Uncle Bens rice would go good with it.

You’re good!! Serve it up!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Calamari, Pasta and sauce

Gammy and I like calamari and we do it this way every once in awhile to put a little different twist to both the pasta and the calamari. It’s easy and real good.

For the sauce you can get some out of the freezer that you saved from when you made the Sunday meatballs and spaghetti awhile back or you can get some butoni marinara in the store or you can make a small batch like this.

1 28 oz can of Progresso roma tomatoes, diced.
3 garlic cloves peeled and minced
olive oil
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes, the amount and whether or not you want to include them are optional. We like it a little spicey so we add about 1 tsp. If you go with sauce that is already prepared just put the pepper in when you start to heat it up.
2 tbsp. dried basil or 5 tbsp. chopped fresh

heat up the oil in a sauce pan. Add the garlic and the spices and cook until the garlic is fragrant. Don’t let it get brown. Add the tomatoes and cook over low heat for about 15 min. stirring often.

1 lb of pasta, we like linguini for this, but any pasta of your choice will work. Get it started after you have the sauce going.

¾ - 1 lb of Calamari cleaned and cut into rings. I’ve seen them in the frozen fish section already cleaned and cut up ready to go. If not it’s easy to get the calamari ready, Just cut or pull the head off. Pull out the bone and the innerds. Then the skin pulls off real easy. Then cut it crossways to get the rings. Put them in some water with an ice cube until you’re ready to bread them.

About a cup of Progresso Italian bread crumbs or regular bread crumbs with some dried basil and a little garlic powder added.
Heat up some vegetable oil med high in a heavy sauce pan to cook them in. drop a pinch of crumbs in the oil and when it sizzles it’s ready.

Bread them and fry them ‘til golden brown and let them drain on a paper towel.

Mince up 2-3 cloves of garlic, ¼ cup of fresh parsley chopped or 1 ½ tbsp. of dried and zest from 1 lemon.

Drain the pasta. Portion it out. top the pasta with some sauce, then the calamari, then the lemon zest mixture

SERVE IT IMMEDIATELY!! With some salad, good Italian bread and some chianti or some chilled pino grigio. Either one is good with this.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Caprese Salad

We like this a lot. Kimmi made it for us (and did a great job) when we were visiting Sharon and the gang a while back.

It’s super easy and you can have it for a salad or even a light meal during the week. You can add slices of pepperoni or shredded cooked chicken or cooked shrimp.

2 ripe tomatoes
1 ball of fresh (wet) mozzarella
extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
A little sugar
About ¼ cup Fresh basil, chopped. Dry will work in a pinch, but for this, fresh basil is best. You can find it in the same section as the bagged spinach. In the summer you could have a basil plant or 2 in yard and have a constant supply of fresh basil,,,,,, in the summer.

Slice up the tomatoes and the cheese. Arrange them nice on a plate. Whisk together the oil about ¾ cup, vinegar about 3 tbsp. and the sugar about 1 tbsp.

Drizzle this over the tomatoes and cheese. Sprinkle the basil leaves over it.

Again it can be a salad, appetizer or a light meal. It’s good!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Hey, It's Sunday!!

Roast Leg of Lamb

Baked potatoes and lima beans are what my mom did with this.

1 Leg of Lamb 5-6 pounds (Whole or Boned)
3 Large cloves of garlic
5 Tbsp. Fresh Herbs (Rosemary, Parsley, Thyme, Oregano are good choices)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt & Pepper to Taste


Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Slice the garlic cloves into three or four long strips, and with a sharp knife, make 1-inch deep slits into the lamb spaced fairly evenly apart. Place a piece of garlic in each slit. Chop the herbs and mix with the olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Rub the herb mixture over the outer surface of the lamb. Place in a roaster pan, and cook for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees, and cook an additional 10-12 minutes per pound, or until the meat thermometer reads 130°F. for medium rare. If you are cooking a roast bone-in, the roast will require a little longer cooking time than a boneless roast. Remove the lamb from the oven, and tent or cover with aluminum foil and let sit about 20 minutes before carving.

Serve it up !!! with some mint jelly, good bread and some red wine!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Down home catfish

This is easy, fast and good!

If you don't want to do the deep fat thing, I've done it in a frying pan with a good bit of oil. You just have to remember to turn the fish after it is done on one side.

Once upon a time Gammy and Poppop visited our friends Butch, Janie and Mimi at there house ,next to their daughter Shelly's house, in Jasper, Texas. They don't do dollar double cheeseburbers there, but everything else is real nice. Well, Shelly's husband , Tony, made us deep fried, deep south catfish and I'm going to try to tell you about it.

Get some catfish fillets and cut them across about 1 inch thick. Dredge, roll, cover, whatever, the fish with corn meal and only corn meal. Drop them one at a time into hot fat. It could be any kind, but just a big jug of vegtable oil will work best. Fry them 'til they are golden and firm. While you are doing that get your veggies going. Fried or baked potatoes and some tossed salad.

Seve it up!! with some beer and maybe some jalapeno peppers stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped with bacon!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pop pop's cheesecake.

My mom (Nan) used to make this for us. I've "Italianized" it and it goes over real good with guests. I keep the leftover in the fridge and have it for breakfast, with stella's help.

Oh, yeh. I made chicken Parmesan with the sauce I keep in the freezer, some pasta with the sauce on it, sliced tomatoes and onions leftover from "cheeseburgers in paradise" the other night. I put Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil, ground black pepper and some grated Parmesan on the salad. Also did some homemade bread from the dough I keep in the fridge. And, some red wine. Now the cheesecake.

You'll need a 9 inch cheesecake pan. They come with a side that snaps open and shut or with a 1 piece side with a bottom that slides down in it.

Pre heat the oven to 350.

8-10 Graham crackers
1 1/2 tbsp. ground Cinnamon
1 tbsp. sugar or Splenda
about 1/4 cup olive oil

Put the crackers in a large zip lock bag and roll them with a rolling pin until they are ground up small. Put it in a med sized mixing bowl. Add the rest of the stuff and mix it up with a handheld mixer. It has to stick together kinda when you pinch a little bit of it. Ad a little more oil, if need, til it does. Spray the pan with Pam and put the crust stuff in and tamp it down with the pam can with the lid back on until level. Put it in the oven for about 8-10 min.

While the crust is cooking lets do the cheesecake.

3 8 oz. bars of cream cheese at room temp. or zapped in the microwave until soft.
16 oz Ricotta cheese it comes in 8 oz and 16 oz containers
1 cup sugar or splenda
4 tbsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tbsp. sambuca or anise extract
2 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. sour cream
4 eggs

Put everything except the sour cream and the eggs in the mixing bowl. Mix it up until it is thoroughly blended and smooth. add the sour cream and mix in at slow speed. Add the eggs one at a time mixing slowly after each one. put it in the pan on top of the crust stuff. put it in the 350 oven for about 1 hour. Test for done by sticking a table knife in the center, twist it just a little and when it comes out clean, it's done.clear of a shelf in the fridge, put a dish towel on it and put the cheesecake on the towel leave it over night. The next day remove the side of the pan and when you are ready to serve it you might want to make some fruit topping. Any fresh small fruit will work. I like strawberries.

about a tbsp. water in a small sauce pan.
about 2 cups cleaned and cut up fresh strawberries on top of that and about a cup and a half of sugar on top of that. Cook it over med low heat until the sugar has turned to liquid.


Serve it up!! you're good!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Rueben sandwiches

This is a sorta long story for a great meal.

Last Sunday our friends Butch and Janie and Mimi had a little get together that included a guy named Smitty. Smitty makes all kinds of meat stuff i.e. barbeque ribs, Italian sausage, etc., etc. Well it turns out he also puts out corned beef. Butch and Janie and Mimi made corned beef and cabbage just like back in Jersey that my mom made for us on every 2nd or 3rd Sunday. It was good, no,,, great!. Well it seems there was some leftover corned beef, cabbage and potatoes. Gammy is up in Texas hugging our new little grandbaby, Payton Grace Kelly. Butch and Janie took pity on me and Stella and had us over for dinner. Janie did great!! She made Rueben sandwiches. Rye bread with slices of corned beef, swiss cheese, sauerkraut and mustard in a lightly greased skillet (med heat) with a dish on top for a little squeeze action. A few minutes on each side and “BAM” great ruebens. She fried up some of the leftover potatoes with a little bit of chopped onions as a side dish and it was fantastic!!

If you don’t have leftover corned beef and potatoes you can go to a deli or the deli section at the super market and get some sliced corn beef, some swiss cheese. Then some canned sauerkraut and some frozen French fries or some potatoe salad.

SERVE IT UP!! You might be as good as Janie?!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Zuppa de pesce

This is great! I always liked it in Italian restaurants back home in Jersey. Then we started to make it at home and as usual it got better than eating out.

Start water for pasta ½ - 2/3 lb. and cook it while you do the fish.

About 8-10 mussels. You can go with fresh (clean them)or get the frozen precooked in a bag in the frozen section of the fish dept. at the super market.
About 8-10 fresh clams, cleaned
A small snapper fillet cleaned and skinned, about a half a lb. cut in to a little bigger than bite size
6 large shrimp. Peeled and deveined


½ med onion chopped
1 celery stalk chopped
2 garli cloves peeled and chopped
olive oil
about a cup of chopped tomatoes or a small (8 oz.) can of diced
1 tbsp. red pepper flakes
½ cup white wine
salt and pepper

In a sauce pan, put about 2 swirls of olive oil add the veggies without the tomatoes. Cook until translucent. Add the tomatoes, the white wine and the spices. Cook for a couple of minutes. Add the fish stuff and cook ‘til the clams open remove any clams or mussels that don’t open all the way. Drain the pasta serve the zuppa de pesce over the pasta with some good Italian bread, some salad and the rest of that white wine!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

cheeseburgers in paradise

I know I've told you about cheeseburgers in paradise b4 but this was a real good revisit to the jimmy buffet song again at our house. We had our good friends Butch and Janie over and it was great!!

I went to the store and got some 90-10 ground beef, some sliced cheese and tomatoes and onions.

When I got home I put the meat in a mixing bowl and busted it up a little. Sprinkled some parmesan cheese, basil, onion powder, salt and pepper and mixed it up with my hands. Made it into burgers and put them in the fridge. Sliced up the onions and tomatoes and put them on a plate. I had some frozen french fries in the freezer and I spread enough for the the 4 of us out on a cookie sheet.

Butch, janie and Mimmie (their great little dog) came over and we "happy houred" for a while. Then Butch lit up the grill and I lit up the oven. I put the taters in the oven a few minutes b4 butch put the burgers on. While the cooking was going on I put the tomatoes and onions out. I told butch i wanted my buns toasted and he laughed and said ok. The potaoes and the burgers were done at the same time and it was great.

Then we had some espresso, anisette and some of poppop's world class cheesecake. Of course there was some good red wine threading it's way thru the whole meal.

Cheeseburgers in Paradise!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Calzones

This is very “Jersey Italian. It’s easy and good for a weeknight fast meal

1 cup ricotta cheese
1 link cooked Italian sausage, diced
3/4 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
about 2 cups a bread dough , you can make it yourself with poppop’s bread recipe or you can but brad dough at the super market frozen section, OR you can get it some times at a local Italian deli.
1 cup marinara sauce, warmed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In medium bowl, stir together ricotta, sausage, frozen peas, and mozzarella.
Spray large cookie sheet with pam cooking spray. Unroll pizza dough on center of cookie sheet. With fingertips, press dough into 14" by 10" rectangle.
Cut dough lengthwise in half, then cut each piece crosswise in half to make 4 rectangles.
lace one-fourth ricotta filling on half of one dough rectangle. Fold other half of dough over filling and pinch edges together to seal. Repeat with remaining filling and dough.
Bake calzones 25 minutes or until well browned on top. Serve with marinara sauce.


Chianti goes real good with this!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

prime rib roast au jus serves 6-8

It’s Sunday

This easy, but it’s real impressive for the family or guests. If you don’t already have one, get a meat thermometer.

Any good Sunday kind of carb. will work. Baked potatoes, baked sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, garlic mashed potatoes, etc. etc.

Poppop and Gammy like boiled carrots or broccoli or carrots and broccoli.

You’ll need a 3 rib prime rib roast. Ask the butcher to trim off the chin bone and the excess fat. Make about a cup and a half of beef bouillon.

Pre heat the oven to 450deg. Rub the roast with olive oil then salt and pepper. Put the roast in a heavy oven proof pan or a casserole dish Whatever you use should have a little bit of sides to it ‘cause you’re going to make the au jus sauce in it after the meat is done. Put the meat in the pan fat side down and roast at 450 for about 20 min. lower the temp to 325 and cook until a test with the meat thermometer says 115 deg. This oughta take about an hour and a half. Switch the roast to a cutting board that you've put in a cookie sheet and let it rest. As it rests it will continue to cook and firm up a little making it hold the juices better. Take the excess fat out of the pan you roasted the beef in and add about a cup and a half of red wine. Cook on the stove at med high for about 5 min. scraping the browned stuff off the bottom of the pan. At this point you can strain the wine stuff into a smaller sauce pan or not. I usually opt for not. Add the beef bouillon and cook until reduced by almost half and thickened. Whisk in about 2 tbsp. of butter. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep it warm while you slice the roast. Slice the roast across the grain like as if it’s a loaf of bread. Trim it off the bones as you go along or not. Some people like the bone left on if the slices hit that way. It should be rare in the middle. The ends are there for people who like well done. I put the cutting board in the cookie sheet to save the juices then whisk the juices into the gravy.

Serve it up!!! right away with some of the gravy on the meat slices. Some good crusty bread, the carb. de juer, veggies and the rest of that red wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

pasta with garlic, red pepper, lemon and zesty crispy bread crumbs


This is real fast, real easy and real good. You can add some pre-cooked shrimp or chicken when you add the garlic to the pasta, or not. It’s still real good with just the veggies and crumbs. Serves 2. double it for more folks or to save some for zapping another day.

Bread crumbs
1/2 cup bread crumbs. I like progresso Italian
1/2 tsp. lemon zest save the lemon for the pasta
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt & pepper


½-2/3 lb. of pasta I like a long pasta,i.e. spaghetti, linguine or fettuccini for this
1/2 cup olive oil
3 large garlic cloves chopped fine
Juice Of 1 Lemon ( the one you zested)
1-1/2 tbsp. red chili flakes
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or 1and a half tbsp. dried


In a heavy frying pan, heat 1/2 of the oil and add the bread crumbs, lemon zest, salt & pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring often until the crumbs are crisp and light brown. Put 'em aside.

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water. While it is cooking, heat the rest of the oil in a small, heavy saucepan. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is sizzling but not browned. Remove from the heat. Once the pasta is cooked al dente, remove a little of the pasta water, and drain the pasta. Return to the pot, and add the garlic, oil, and lemon juice. Mix well over medium heat until hot, adding a little pasta water if the mixture seems dry. Add the parsley and mix well.

SERVE IT UP!!! With the bread crumbs on top, some grated parmesan cheese, some good crusty Italian bread, some salad and some Chianti!!

A tip: extra virgin olive oil is made from the first squeezing of the olives without any heat being applied to get more oil from the olives. Regular olive oil is made from later squeezing where heat is applied to get it all out of the olives. Keep some of both on hand. Just use the extra virgin when you are not going to heat up the oil. Like in salad dressings or toppings. When you are going to cook in it use just the reg. stuff. You’ll save money.

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

zucchini, pasta and ricotta cheese

This also works good with some chicken or shrimp in it.

2 med. zucchini peeled and sliced
2 2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes (Optional)
1/4 Cup white wine
1/2 pound pasta
1/3 Cup ricotta cheese
1 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. Cup coarsely chopped fresh basil or 1 tbsp. dried


Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water. When al dente, drain, removing a cup of the water for the sauce.

While the pasta is cooking heat the olive oil in a saucepan, and once it is hot add the zucchini. Cook, stirring frequently over medium heat for about 8 minutes, or until the zucchini has softened and is turning a little brown. Add the garlic, and cook another couple of minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Add the wine, and cook until reduced by half.

Return the pasta to the pot with the zucchini mixture and stir to combine over medium heat. Add the butter and ricotta cheese and mix well. Add a little of the pasta water, and stir until the sauce is well mixed. Stir in the chopped basil and

SERVE IT UP!! With some crusty Italian bread, some grated parmesan cheese and the rest of that white wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Sausage, cherry tomatoes and pasta

This is easy and real good. Serves 2

Cook up 2-4 Italian sausages. Sweet or hot, whatever you like. Fry them in a pan until firm and clear oil comes out of a poke with a fork, then a little more. Let them cool a little and slice them up.

Boil up about a half pound of pasta. Penne works good with this, but any pasta will do. Go with what you like.


About 8 or nine cherry tomatoes
Salt and pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
about 3/4 tbsp. basil


Heat 1 swirl of olive oil in a frying pan medium-high. Add tomatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Saute, tossing frequently, until tomatoes soften and skins just begin to wrinkle, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and continue to toss the pan until garlic is fragrant. Off heat, stir in the basil 1 more swirl of olive oil. Combine the pasta, tomatoes and sausage in the frying pan. Toss it all together.

SERVE IT UP!!! With some good crusty Italian bread and some Chianti!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

poppop's favorite way to go with salmon serves 2.

We're going to go with potatoes fried with onions and rosemary for a carb and sauted string beans with garlic for a veggie.

This real good on the grill. A hot frying pan will work in a pinch.

Get 2 salmon fillets. ask the "fish person" to cut the fillets from the middle, not the end, of that big slab of salmon on display. You'll want them about 2-2 1/2 inches wide. Then ask him to skin them for you.

When you get home immediatly put the fillets in a large plastic zip lock bag. Add about a half cup of white wine, half cup of olive oil, a couple of shakes of garlic powder, a couple shakes of paprika, juice from a lemon (throw the skins in too) and about a half cup of onions real thin sliced or julliene . Somersault it a few times to mix it all up. let it sit while you get the veggies cut up.

2 med potatoes cut into chips about a 1/8 inch thick and 1/2 med size onion cut up julienne.

trim up about three hand fulls of string beans. mince 2 cloves of garlic.

After the veggies are cut up put the fish on the grill or pan med high heat. Be sure to get the onions on the fillets and let them cook up with the fish. Throw out the bag and the marinade.

Multi task the veggies and the fish. They all should be done about the same time.

Oil in a frying pan med high. Start the potatoes in the oil. Add the onions to the potatoes when they are about half done also about 2 big pinches of rosemary. Toss or turn the potatoes fairly often as they cook.

As soon as the potatoes are going good start another pan med heat. Add the string beans and after a couple of minutes the garlic. toss fairly often.

SERVE IT UP!! with some crusty bread, some lemon wedges for the fish and the beans (maybe some of poppop's recipe) and the rest of that white wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pan seared scallops serves 2

Gammy and I like this (me more than Gammy) with some pasta aglia e olia. Also, some tomato and onion salad with some extremely virtuous olive oil and balsamic vinegar and some grated parmesan cheese and some crushed pepper and some basil on it.

Tip: go to the seafood section of the super market and ask if they have any frozen sea scallops. They probably get them frozen in 5 lb bags. Buy a bag and keep it in the freezer for another night. It’ll be a little expensive for the bag but it’ll save you some time and maybe a little money in the long run. If you can’t afford 5 lbs. get 2 or 3 , but get them frozen not the defrosted ones on display.

4-8 sea scallops (the big ones) depends on how piggy you are tonight.

Defrost them if necessary in cold tap water with a little salt (about 10 Min)

Dry them on a paper towel. Heat up a frying pan med/high and add a little olive oil. Just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. While it’s getting hot put garlic powder, paprika and pepper on one side of the scallops. Put them in the pan seasoned side down and season the then up side. Cook until opaque and no more juices coming out. About 2-3 min. per side.

SERVE IT UP!! With some of pop pop’s home made bread and some Santa margarita’s pinot grigio!!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Shrimp like we like it

1/2 Pound Of Large Shrimp
2 Cloves Of Garlic, Minced
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Salt & Black Pepper
Dash Of Red Pepper Flakes (Optional)
1/2 Cup White Wine
1 Cups Chopped Tomatoes, Or Fresh Tomato Sauce
6 Black Olives, Pitted And Coarsely Chopped
1Tablespoons Capers (optional)
1 tbsp. Cup dried parsley or 3 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
2 Tablespoons Butter

Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When hot, add the garlic and shrimp. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook just 30 seconds on each side until the shrimp turns pink. Remove the shrimp from the pan, and add the wine. Turn the heat up to medium high and cook until it has almost evaporated. Add the tomatoes, and cook until the sauce thickens. Return the shrimp to the pan, add the olives and capers, and cook for another minute. Taste, and adjust seasonings if needed. Add the fresh parsley and butter, and mix well. Serve immediately, while hot and bubbly, maybe over some pasta!! And with a good salad and some crusty Italian bread, and some (Sharon’s pick) santa margharitas pinot grigio!!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Chicken Farfalle Alfredo

Farfalle means butterflies in Italian. Female butterflies , actually.

Don’t get scared this is super easy and real good.

We’re going to need some cubed, cooked chicken. You can fry up a few tenders in some oil after dredging them in some flour or you can get a roasted chicken in the store. Sometimes you can find just a couple of breasts roasted or legs, whatever you like. Anyway cut up the meat into cubes a little bigger than dice and have them ready.

Put the bacon on to cook. Cook it up sorta crispy (no bubbles) then put it on a paper towel to drain and cool

Next comes the Alfredo sauce. You can make it real quick.

8 ounces cream cheese, cut into bits
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk

put it all in a pot med low and stir until smooth. Or, you can buy some butoni or some other good brand and be even faster and easier.



2/3-3/4 of a lb. of Farfalle pasta. Fettuccini is good also.
about a cup of frozen peas. Sometimes you can find an 8 oz. package ready to go. (8 oz. = 1 cup)
1 med. jar Alfredo sauce, (about 16 oz.).
6 strips bacon, cooked crispy and chopped (or broken up with your fingers)
Crushed red pepper and salt to taste



Saute chicken until not pink. (If you go with the already cooked chicken just put it in the pot after the Alfredo sauce). Place in pot with peas and Alfredo sauce, heat, stirring occasionally so it does not burn. Cook pasta as directed on box, then drain. Place in a large bowl, add sauce mix, and sprinkle with crushed red pepper and bacon and maybe a little dried parsley, or basil!. You can also do this with shrimp instead of chicken. Just peel and devein and put them in with the alfredo.

SERVE IT UP !!!with some good Italian bread (maybe some of pop pop’s homemade!) , some salad and some cold pinot grigio!!!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Easy pork chops for a Sunday



2 (or more) 1 1/2 thick pork chops with the bone in.
Italian bread crumbs
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
About a cup and a half of cubed (a little smaller than golf ball sized) potatoes
Same deal with carrots
Same deal with broccoli
Same deal with any other veggie you might like (big stuff no peas or corn)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine bread crumbs salt and pepper. Coat pork with olive oil and then coat with crumb mixture packing on with your fingers. Spray pam coating on a oven friendly dish or cookie sheet. Bake uncovered for about 45 min. After about 15 min. add the veggies. Drizzle the veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper. When the meat is firm to the touch and not leaking any more and the veggies are done.

SERVE IT UP!! With some good bread and some good wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Portobello Mushroom parmesan

This is just a different twist on chicken or veal parm, but real good.

You’ll need some sauce either leftover in the freezer or get some butoni from the store. Some mozzarella cheese, some of those big Portobello mushroom caps (1 per serving) and the rest of the stuff you have on hand by now I’ll bet.

Heat up the sauce a little. Heat up the oven 350 degrees.

Wash of the mushrooms off with cold water. Put them on a paper towel round side up and let them drain a little. Med sized frying pan 3 swirls of olive oil. Med/high heat. Cook the mushrooms about 3-4 min each side. Put them in a casserole dish round side down. Cover with sauce then the mozzarella cheese grated or sliced, oregano, basil and drizzled with olive oil. Topped with a little parmesan cheese. Put in the oven ‘til the cheese gets a little bubbly. We always cook up a little pasta and be sure to have enough sauce for it too. A little salad, crusty bread and some chianti!!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Aracara

Light up the grill. A frying pan big enough to handle the flank steak(s) will work if you don't have a grill.

1 large onion cut up juliene but kinda wide slices
1 large poblamo pepper cut up to the same size as the onion. They're dark green, longer and skinnier than regular old green bell peppers. Regular old green bell will work if you can't find poblamos.

Some tortillas

Med sized frying pan, med heat, couple of swirls of olive oil. Add the veggies with a little salt and pepper. I like to also put in a little basil and a large garlic clove finely chopped. Toss them often.

Start the meat cooking. Throw away the marinade and the plastic bag.

The meat and the veggies should be done about the same time. turn the heat down real low under the veggies and spread the tortillas out over the veggies to heat up a little. After the meat has set on the cutting board for a few minutes slice it up. Thin slices and across the grain.

SERVE IT UP!! with some salsa. Put a few slices of the meat and a spoon or two of the vegies in a tortilla and chow down. don't forget some corona beer or some tequila!!