Tour-ette from Mummie's home on a Sunday afternoon!... Bolognese from scratch! 12/15/2019

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YUMMM!!!

A perfect day to make beef stock. First, I toss the ingredients in olive oil, kosher salt, and freshly ground pepper, and roast them at 450 degrees. ...Onions, celery, carrots, parsnips, and beef and marrow bones straight from the butcher with meat still on them. ...20 minutes or until golden brown! Then all of it and the juices into the stock pot full of boiling water with peppercorns, garlic, and two bay leaves. 8 to 12 hours (maybe more!) on a very slow simmer. "Low and slow" is the rule here!! To be honest, this amount of meat and vegetables is making almost TWO pots of stock!..... (Mummie sometimes gets a little carried away shopping and cooking!)

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Sybil Bruncheon's Helpful ‘n' Hearty Household Hints for the Harried Housewife!... Rush! Rush!! RUSH!!!

Girlfriends, do you find yourself running out of time between the office and the dinner table? Sure, who doesn't? Well, maybe, just maybe, Mummie can help you! We can't all afford the luxury to make elaborate French, Italian, or Uzbekistan gourmet meals during a day of creative semi-leisure like Martha Stewart and her billionaire gal-pals. But we CAN be clever with what our local grocer offers us and avoid calling in for a sad cardboard pizza from a corporate chain whose mascot is an UNstabbed Julius Caesar...

Here's what I'm doing tonight. I bought a pre-roasted chicken from my favorite grocery store. (I always choose the largest one!... perfect for reconfigured leftovers!!) I stuffed it full of lemon wedges, rubbed it with olive oil and butter, put it into my beloved All-Clad stock pot, surrounded it with huge chunks of parsnips, potatoes, onions, carrots, and celery, and poured a cup of chicken stock into the bottom. A bay leaf or two, and your choice of additional spices is optional. I'm putting it (covered!) into the oven for a couple of hours at 250. The lemon, vegetables, and stock will keep it all moist and actually bake the chicken to that fall-off-the-bone finish that I love. (The grocery always seems to undercook them, and I don't like chicken to be pink ANYWHERE!) By 7pm or so, it's done! I have done this after-work chicken-trick for ages, and it never fails! Bon appétit!!

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Sybil Bruncheon's "What's Cookin'?"...... A Midnight Snack from The Land Of Midnight Sun!

                                               NORWEGIAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS!!                        

          Dear Sybil, I’m always trying to throw little impromptu get-togethers at the beach and come up with cute themes for the parties and just the right menu!...but I find Sandra Lee’s “tablescapes and cocktails” profoundly UNsatisfying….especially because some of my guests are sober, and if your party depends totally on booze, napkin folds, and some citronella candles, you’re a loser…(no offence!) Have you got something that might be fun and a novelty? Sincerely, Bjørnstjerne “Skippy” Bjørnson

          Well…..um… Skippy! I may have just the thing for you!...and for any other hosts and hostesses who feel stranded…  Out at the seashore for vacation??? Planning a soiree on the patio??  Need a great and quick treat for company dropping by for cocktails at sunset??  In-laws checking up on you with NO warning???  Well, Darlings, Mummy went to her super-secret recipe library, (which looks like Severus Snape's personal storeroom at Hogwarts!! I dated him in Junior High School!...but that’s another story for another time!), and pulled out a simple recipe just perfect for a buffet, or passed hors d'oeuvres, or a midnight snack....in broad daylight!!!!!  It's NORWEGIAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS!!  I got it from my old friend, Hedda Gabler, shortly before her unfortunate …um… “accident”! ...so, in a way...you could say..."These are a dead woman's treats!!".  They're absolutely perfect for a FJORD FIESTA, and who doesn’t want a new theme like that for their deck party?!?!  Make them ahead of time, and let their wonderful flavor develop for a day or two...and of course they're great as leftovers for that midnight snack!!... If there ARE any!  You know, with all the Summer Stock Theatre and Plays-In-The-Park-type-things ....we could do a whole Ibsen menu....WILD DUCK as the entree, and of course, Nora Helmer's DOLL HOUSE Macaroons for dessert!!!  Enjoi, mes amis!!!!

Norwegian Swedish Meatballs: Serves 4 to 6
INGREDIENTS:
For the meatballs-
• 1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 pound ground chuck or sirloin                                                             • 1/2 pound ground veal
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 large egg
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

For the sauce-
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons juice from quick pickled cucumbers (optional)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper                                         • nutmeg (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
Prepare the meatballs: In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, veal, pork, breadcrumbs, onion, honey, and egg, and mix well with your hands.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add in the heavy cream, and mix thoroughly. Set aside. Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for about 5 minutes, until softened.  Remove from the heat.  With wet hands (to keep the mixture from sticking), (or better yet, use an ice cream scoop!) shape the mixture into meatballs the size of a golf ball, but no larger!!  Swedish meatballs are much more elegant when they're small enough to be popped in the mouth without smearing your lipstick!  Tres chic!! Place them on a plate lightly moistened with water.  You should have about 24 meatballs.  Melt the butter and a small amount of olive oil (to keep the butter from burning!) in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the meatballs, in batches if necessary, and cook, turning frequently, for about 7 minutes, until browned on all sides and cooked through.  Transfer the meatballs to a plate, and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the skillet. (Well, girls! We have to count a FEW calories!)

Prepare the sauce: Return the skillet to the heat, whisk in the stock, cream, and pickle juice, and bring to a simmer.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Add the meatballs to the sauce, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly and the meatballs are heated through. Add a dash or two of nutmeg if you like! Serve hot with the mashed potatoes, lingonberry preserves, and pickled cucumbers!  Pickled cucumbers…the perfect Summer treat!  Oops!  Mummy didn't include those recipes, did she?  Oh well... here goes!!

Quick-Pickled Cucumbers and Red Onion                                                   INGREDIENTS:
• 1 seedless cucumber
• ½ medium sized red onion
• 1 ½ cups of white vinegar
• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 tbsp. of dill                                                                                                     • 6 allspice berries
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• a pinch or two of freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS: Using a mandoline or a very sharp knife, finely slice the cucumbers and red onion….really fine… as in “see-through”! It’ll make the salad look ever so much more sophisticated for the recipe-snobs that might be there! But certainly be careful… the tip of finger is such an appetite depressant, don’t you think?! (When handling slicing or poking tools in the kitchen, it’s best not to be chatting on the cell phone or watching All My Children!) Put in a mixing bowl with the dill and a pinch of salt while you prepare the pickling solution. 

In a small pot over medium heat, combine white vinegar, sugar, allspice and salt. Stir well until the liquid is simmering and the sugar has completely dissolved. Pour pickling liquid over red onion and cucumbers and stir to ensure everything is evenly coated. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover with plastic wrap (press the plastic wrap down onto the cucumbers so there is no air) and refrigerate. Chill for at least 4 hours to cool completely before serving. Reserve two tablespoons of the juice for your meatball sauce! It adds just the right tang and serves as a counterpoint to the lush sweetness of the lingonberry preserves. Speaking of which, the best way to get good lingonberry preserves is to just buy them at the store, but make sure they’re high-end. You can get them at any fine gourmet shop or even at IKEA if you happen to be buying a bookcase! There are two ways of serving the preserves according to personal preference; warmed up and with a bit of ginger beer and lime to compliment the heated meatballs… or chilled to contrast with the hot meatballs….your choice!

Smashed Potatoes                                                                                            INGREDIENTS:
• 1 lb. baby new potatoes
• 6 tablespoons milk
• 1/4 cup of crème fraîche or sour cream
• kosher salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsely

DIRECTIONS: Put the potatoes in a stockpot, and cover by an inch of water. Season with salt and boil until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes, and return back to their hot pot. Add 6 tablespoons milk and 1/4 cup of crème fraîche or sour cream, and season with salt and pepper. Add half the parsley chopped very fine, if using, and smash the potatoes. Plate the potatoes, and pour the meatballs and sauce over the top. Top with the remaining parsley!...and voilà! …er, um…. här är!

          You know, Darlings!.. When I think of how those long Winters in Scandinavia with no sun, and then Summers where the sun never sets, I’m not surprised that those beautiful blondes get so down in the mouth… if only we’d popped a few of these sumptuous Swedish meatballs in Hedda’s mouth, she might not have gotten so grumpy! Ah well… As I said before, Enjoi, mes amis!!.... ooops!  I mean, Enjoi, mine venner!!!! ...and let me know how you like them! There’s absolutely nothing Smörgasbor-ing about them!

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What’s Cookin’?… PIP! PIP! CHEERY- OH!…

Some foods can be served in any season of the year, but nothing says warm sunny weather outdoors on the veranda, in the garden, or in a rugby scrum than tea sandwiches! ..don’t you agree? I know Oscar Wilde thought so! We discussed it all the time when he would drop by!… and I’m planning my annual Fire Island tea party with it’s oh-so-civilized flair. It coincides with my “Cross Country Beach & Obstacle Course Croquet Competition” which we hold every year at the seashore….(right in front of the infamous “meat rack”). Imagine the glamour of all the players dressing in their loveliest linens and eyelet laces, gingham frocks, plus-fours, argyle socks, starched wallpaper stripe shirts with separate stand-up collars, sleeve-garters, boaters, derbies, and picture hats ….and wielding heavy mallets and sending rock-maple balls as projectiles at each other’s heads! Sort of A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC meets ROLLERBALL!!! …..and I get to feed them all. The refreshment tables are set up along the dune-side of the beach while the players start out from the Pines side of the course and head to Cherry Grove, then turning and going back to the Pines with the sun slowly setting behind them; a perfect way to spend an afternoon on Fire Island! My menu for the tournament is easily portable with a minimum of clean-up or clutter, and a maximum of taste and tastiness! Finger sandwiches and cocktails (both “alcohol” and “non”!) Even the most ardent competitors will melt in your hands with a sumptuous selection of Sybil’s snack-ettes! And HEY! Before you turn up your nose at the thought of finger sandwiches as a holdover from your Grandma’s gardening club, check out some of these little treats!

Cucumber Watercress Sandwiches- 
      Ingredients:  8 oz package of cream cheese
                              3 tablespoons chopped cucumber
                                 (peeled and seeded!!)
                              2 teaspoons chopped watercress
                             ½ teaspoon of lemon juice
                            ¼ teaspoon of ground pepper      
                             bread of your choice
                             softened butter
                            additional ½ cup of minced watercress

      Preparation: Combine cream cheese, cucumber, 2 teaspoons of watercress, lemon juice, and pepper in a food processor. Scrape the sides and remix thoroughly. Spread the cream cheese mixture on one slice, pair it with a sister slice. Using either cookie cutters (spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs from a bridge set, or various geometric and flower shapes, etc.), a pastry round, or just a knife, cut slices of bread into small neat sandwich sizes without crusts! Then gently butter the cut outer edges of each sandwich and roll them carefully in the finely minced ½ cup of additional watercress. You can bump this recipe a little according to your taste by adding very finely chopped parsley, a pinch of lemon zest, chopped dill, and/or even cold smoked salmon to the cream cheese.  I have actually served this one recipe in all its varieties and combinations….. feel free to experiment and let me know your favorites!

Classic Egg Sandwiches-
    Ingredients:   6 large hard boiled eggs, grated
                             2 tablespoons finely chopped celery
                             2 tablespoons sweet pickle
                                relish (optional)
                             3 tablespoons mayonnaise
                             1 tablespoon sour cream
                             1 tablespoon grated onion
                                (or more to taste)
                             ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
                             ¼ teaspoon salt
                             ¼ teaspoon of ground pepper
                             ¾ teaspoon of McCormick’s
                                  Salad Seasoning                
                             bread of your choice

    Preparation: Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and cover with a sheet of wax paper or Saran wrap to prevent a “skin” from forming on the top. Chill for a few hours. Spread on bread. Prepare sandwiches with cookie cutters, etc. (same as above!). An interesting thing about great egg salad is how wonderfully different it tastes on different kinds of bread; rye, pumpernickel, whole wheat, grain, and basic white!

Watercress & Goat Cheese Sandwiches-
      Ingredients:    2 logs of fresh softened goat cheese
                               ½ cup of finely minced watercress
                               5 tablespoons of butter
                               ¾ cup finely crushed toasted pecans
                               additional watercress sprigs for garnish
                               cinnamon-raisin, date, or whole wheat bread 

      Preparation: Combine cheese (Montrachet is my favorite!) and minced watercress in a food processor. Spread on bread and match to sister slices of bread. Again, cookie cutter or prepare crustless sandwiches, and then gently butter outer cut edges. Dip in crushed pecans, arrange on a serving plate, and garnish with watercress sprigs.

Chicken-Orange-Lemon Sandwiches-
     Ingredients:   1½ cups of chopped roasted chicken breast (dark meat optional)
                              8 oz cream cheese softened
                              ½ cup toasted pecans finely crushed
                              2 tablespoons mayonnaise
                              ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
                              pinch of lemon zest
                              ¼ teaspoon of salt
                              ¼ teaspoon of ground pepper
                              raisin bread or bread of your choice
                              mandarin orange slices 

   Preparation: Combine all the ingredients in a food processor. Scrape down the sides and remix. On this sandwich, cut the crusts off the bread and shape it before applying the spread because you’re going to toast the slices in the oven at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Allow to cool, then spread cream cheese mixture, match to sister slices and garnish with a mandarin slice. To up the ante on sweetness, you can roast the mandarin slices in the broiler for a few seconds or with your mini-blow torch! Or you can replace the mandarin slices with apricot slices soaked for an hour in fresh orange juice and broiled for a few seconds. This particular sandwich is a winner!!!

There are a thousand different recipes for finger sandwiches….these four are classics that I’ve made for years. But here are a couple of basic all-purpose suggestions for these finger sandwiches and any other recipes you find;
1) Freezing the bread ahead of time until firm makes it easier to cut it into precise and fun shapes whether you’re hand-cutting them or using cookie cutters. 
2) If you use cookie cutters (my favorite!!) be sure to reserve specific shapes for specific recipes. Guests will be able to keep their favorites straight. 
3) Some folks like to combine different breads on one sandwich; pumpernickel with rye, white with whole wheat, etc. It’s not only decorative, but the differing breads can add to the taste sensation! Again, feel free to experiment!
4) To keep the sandwiches fresh and moist, refrigerate them in sealed containers with a piece of wax paper over them and a moistened paper towel on top. Most sandwiches can be made a day before serving, and still remain fresh if stored properly!
 
I hope this little sandwich seminar meets the exacting standards of the sophisticates in the Pines! ……Saltaire and Point O’ Woods too, for that matter! And perhaps I’ll extend invitations to all the towns on Fire Island for the annual “Cross Country Beach & Obstacle Course Croquet Competition”. Each town could send its best players (are they called “croquettes”???) We’ll make it our own little sandbar Olympics with fine fellowship, good sportsmanship, and all-around roquet-ness as our ideals! Imagine! Long tables with cloths blowing in the afternoon sea breeze, nodding and smiling spectators, players in pastels and plaids, waiters passing tasteful sandwiches and chilled cocktails, stories of championships past, legendary cannon, carom, and crush shots….and our motto! Embroidered on a waving banner over the field!! “Faster! Higher! Sandier!”  Xoxoxoxo, Sybil.

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A Girl's Gotta Eat!!! ..... Roast chicken thighs with onions.

Well, Darlings, Mummie just finished making her fabulous roasted chicken thighs with onions.... Salt and pepper four thighs (organic!), and then brown on both sides in a pot with olive oil and butter (leave the skin ON!). Lift them out and remove the skin but throw it back in the sizzling pot with two large onions (chopped but not diced), seven cloves of garlic (chopped but not minced), and 6 heaping table spoons of tomato paste. Sauté them until fragrant, then throw the thighs back in with 2 cups of chicken stock and a large lemon cut in half. Cover it and put it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 60 minutes. On top of your stove fill a large pot with water and put a handful of sugar and a large lemon cut in half into the water. Bring it to a boil and drop in 4 ears of corn. In five minutes, turn off the heat but leave them in. Check the thighs at 60 minutes to see how they're doing. If the meat is falling off the bone but looking cooked, good! If it's still a little pink but falling away, pull it off with two forks, and cover it with the sauce. Put the pot back in for another 10 minutes... Depending on your oven, it should be done. Don't bake it any more than 80 minutes!! The chicken should be unbelievably moist and flavorful. Carefully cut the corn off the cobs on a generous cutting board, preferably one of those plasti-sheet types that will catch all the kernels and juice. Dump all of the corn and juice into the chicken thighs and sauce, stir thoroughly. Follow with optional sprinkling of chopped scallions and/or parsley. Serves only about one very appreciative woman who's staying home on a cold Winter night....