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Simple Summer Supper simmers as you play – Sally’s Chicken Cacciatore, lemony cookies too

An invitation to dinner at Sally and Ken Stier’s home is always a delight.  You know dinner will be great and you’ll have the fun of watching Sally – the most naturally gifted cook I know – prepare it.

Stepping through the door on our latest visit, we were greeted by the aroma of Chicken Cacciatore simmering away on the stove.  Handed a glass of wine, other guests  joined artist Ken in the studio where his watercolors are displayed.

But I hung out in the kitchen where Sally moved effortlessly from sink to counter to stove – washing and trimming green beans, cutting up vegetables for a salad,  giving the chicken an occasional stir – and chatting all the while.

Served in the dining room with salad and the aforementioned green beans, the Cacciatore was superb. The recipe for it originated with Sally’s Italian mother Millie Ruggieri Pannell  who made it often.

“Our family didn’t have a lot of money so my mother was thrifty.  This recipe using chicken thighs was easy on the budget,” she said.

Sally shares it here.

Millie Ruggieri Pannell’s Chicken Cacciatore

1 Tablespoon olive oil

8 Chicken thighs

(Sally used skinless, deboned thighs her supermarket had on sale but says using bone-in thighs with skin on works well too)

1 whole red pepper diced

1  16-ounce can diced tomatoes (any good brand)

1  8-ounce can diced tomatoes (any good brand)

Handful of mushroom slices (optional)

(You’ll need a large saucepan or skillet.)

Heat oil over high heat and brown the 8 thighs on both sides.  Remove thighs from pan to a plate.

Saute diced pepper in remaining fat (if excessive pour a bit off)

Return thighs to pan.

Pour both cans of diced tomatoes into pan over chicken and toss in mushrooms if using.

Turn down heat and allow to simmer for two to three hours

Serve over spaghetti or linguine

I like to serve Chicken Cacciatore over spaghetti with a simple green salad.

Note: The diced red pepper and long simmering time develop an amazing depth of flavor…without adding any salt.  Sally’s family grows mushrooms so she’ll sometimes add a handful but they’re optional.

Since both the tomatoes and red pepper in this hearty recipe are packed with vitamins and a good source of dietary fiber,  I find a  green salad the perfect complement.

For a light dessert, I like to trot out a recipe for lemon sugar cookies that I discovered over a decade ago in a book called “Lighthearted Everyday Cooking” by Anne Lindsay published in conjunction with The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada in 1991.  It’s still available.

I got my copy in 1994 at a time when the American Medical Association was recommending that polyunsaturated margarine be used in place of butter.  Thus, margarine is the fat listed in the recipe.  I recommend using a “trans-fat free” margarine like Land O’Lakes .

I’ve made only one ingredient switch to the original recipe substituting finely ground millet for some of the flour as it adds a light but interesting texture.

Lemon Sugar Cookies

1/4 cup soft trans-fat free margarine

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1-1/4 cups all purpose or unbleached flour

2-1/2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon more unbleached flour mixed with 2-1/2 Tablespoons of finely ground *millet  (or 1/3 cup wheat flour)

Grated rind of 2 lemons

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 Tablespoon granulated sugar for sprinkling

Mix together soft margarine and sugar and add egg.  Mix well.

Then squeeze and add two Tablespoons lemon juice.  Beat until light and fluffy.

 

Add flour, millet/flour mixture (or whole wheat flour), grated lemon rind and baking soda.

 

 

 

Shape tablespoonfulls (I use two soup spoons) of dough into balls.

 

 

 

Place on greased cookie sheets.  (I coat my timeworn favorite cookie sheets with canola oil.)  Use the tines of a fork to press the balls of dough flat. Sprinkle a little granulated sugar on top.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or till firm.  Makes 40 cookies that smell heavenly while baking and taste even better.

Light and lemony, these cookies are wonderful on their own or served with a piece of fruit and tea or coffee.

 

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It’s Berry Time – from Banana/Berry Pancakes to Chilled Blueberry Soup

It’s berry time, one of my favorite times of the year.  Nothing tastes quite like berries ripened on the vine.  And lucky me.  Strawberry season has begun and I’ve found several sources nearby.

Baltimore-based Zahradka Farms brought boxes and boxes of freshly picked strawberries to the Severna Park Farmers Market on Saturday.  Also found strawberries at Diehl’s Produce Severna Park and at Diehl”s Produce of Annapolis.

Of course,  when white blossoms appear on the black raspberry vines in my own garden in April, I love it.  By the end of May, they’re beginning to ripen and I watch with anticipation as they turn from light green to red and finally deep purple.

I love watching the black raspberries in my garden ripen as they turn from light green to red and, finally, to purple.

This year I’ll have quite a haul of my own berries.  But I also have local sources for pick-your-own red raspberries, blackberries and blueberries  – enough to pick and eat with plenty left over to freeze.

(To freeze,  rinse berries, scatter them  on a cookie sheet and place uncovered in your refrigerator’s freezer.  When frozen, transfer  into containers or seal in freezer bags.)

Berries are splendid eaten in dessert dishes unadorned…or with a dollop of whipped cream.  However,  I use fresh and frozen berries of all kinds in a variety of recipes including Banana/Berry Pancakes.  The easy-to-make recipe is one you can play with by substituting different grains or berries.

You’ll need a pan or grill large enough to accommodate several pancakes at once. A cast-iron skillet or non-stick saute pan works well.  An ice cream scoop is handy for  transferring the batter from bowl to  pan.

Banana/Berry Pancakes

Dry ingredients:

1-1/4 cup flour (all-purpose or unbleached)

Pinch of salt

2 teaspoons of baking powder (Can use three if you go for fluffy)

Combine

Next four ingredients (which are optional) add flavor and  texture

1 handful Old Fashioned Oats (any brand)

1 teaspoon Sesame seeds (no need to toast)

1 teaspoon ground flax seed (grind in electric coffee grinder)

1 Tablespoon ground  buckwheat

Wet ingredients:

1 mashed banana

1 egg

1 heaping Tablespoon of plain yogurt (not Greek)

1 cup of milk (or more if needed to thin batter)

2 Tablespoons Canola oil

Berries (any variety and as many as you like)

First, mix dry ingredients together.  (You’ll note that I do not include sugar as an ingredient since the banana adds sweetness enough.)

Next, add the mashed banana followed by the egg, plain yogurt and milk. Add the Canola oil last.  Mix well by hand.

Add berries.  In this case, I used sliced strawberries, black raspberries and blueberries.

Mix well and let batter stand while you coat the pan with a light film of canola oil and heat it.

When the pan is hot, add a pat of butter and swirl pan.  Then, use a spoon or ice cream scoop to transfer batter into the pan. These hearty pancakes are quite filling so I make them medium sized.  When bubbles appear on top of the batter, flip the pancakes over with a spatula.  You’ll see that they are nicely browned.  (You may have to flip again if any uncooked batter remains on top.

You’ll note that they are not perfectly symmetrical (but they are delicious) . When done on both sides, transfer the pancakes  to a plate and top with  butter and syrup.

For house guests, I’ll add bacon or ham but for busy family members, grabbing a plate full of these hearty pancakes with a cup of coffee is a fine start to the day.

My most recent recipe discovery blueberry-wise came as a surprise to me and all who tasted it at Benevolent Baskets‘ luncheon at Chartwell Golf and Country Club.  Organized by co-founders Karen Lerario and Lesley Geisel as a fundraiser for Benevolent Baskets’ transitional skills  program for homeless women, the luncheon featured a three-course meal prepared by Chef Andrew Maggitti  including his amazing Chilled Blueberry Soup.  We were delighted to get his recipe.

As cocktail hour ended at the Benevolent Baskets’ fundraising luncheon, our first course –  cups of Chef Andrew’s Chilled Blueberry Soup – appeared on the tables. The soup’s deep purple hue perfectly matched the table centerpieces.

Chef Andrew Maggitti’s Chilled Blueberry Soup

4 cups blueberries

4 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon all spice

Blend the first five ingredients in blender

Then add:

1/3 bottle of Riesling

2 Tablespoons sour cream

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

Blend  and then add:

8 ounces of plain yogurt

2 ounces of simple syrup

Blend until smooth and strain through chinois (strainer)

Chef Andrew created the soup in conjunction with the fundraiser’s “Be Fit for Benevolence” theme and followed the first course with an entree of Lemon Pepper Marinated Chicken Breast on a bed of Quinoa topped with Pineapple Relish and a dessert of Chocolate Hazelnut Polenta Torte.