I was 13 in Homemaking Class back in Junior High, when I was introduced to sewing, and cooking. Yes, girls took Homemaking , and boys took shop classes. Do they still have such a thing? It was a time when no one concerned themselves with gender equality, or stereotyping.
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| Homemaking , a bit before my time |
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| Shop Class |
We learned how to make garments, and I became pretty good at it. Later on I made my prom dress, and was told by other students, and one of the band members, that it was beautiful and classy. This made my night! Oh, the look on my date's Tom G's face made it also, as I came down the stairs from the second floor of my house. The look on my face may have been a bit different, when I realized he had shaved his head into a near bald crew cut for his membership in the Crew Team in Syracuse University! ( Tom is 6 ft 6 inches tall, and prior to that night had the most beautiful, thick, wavy, blond hair. So, Yeah).
Laughing hard , and I fell down the rest of the steps, but, I did so gracefully. ( right?) Years of practice when 2 of my sisters and I slid down, usually on a couch cushion, or the occasional, OOPS, the cushion was still at the top of the staircase, and we slid anyway. This usually was due to the evil sister who would hold the cushion, and gave a push.
Clip from Pitch Perfect 2
Cooking. learning to prepare a meal and keeping the kitchen clean while cooking. I think my OCD kicked in at that moment. You take out all of your ingredients, at one time. Place near your work space. You put the spices and dirty items away immediately as you use them. Voila, a meal and the kitchen looks like you never cooked over that delicious meal! Due to our diligence in wearing aprons, even our clothing suggested we did not cook. Wow!
I ran home to ask my mother if I can cook dinner. My blessed mother made us a decent dinner every night, but, simple foods. There would be a meat, usually baked, broiled, occasionally fried, a starch , and a vegetable. Simple meals that tasted good, but, nothing imaginative, nor cooked with a lot of seasonings or imagination. My favorite meal Mommy made was broiled pork chops and elbow macaroni with tomato soup mixed into the pasta, a touch of salt and pepper, and a vegetable. To this day, I CRAVE that dinner, comforts my soul.
The first meal I made for my family, was Spaghetti and Meatballs, in a homemade Tomato Sauce using fresh tomatoes, and Italian Bread made from scratch.la mia famiglia . was in heaven, and once again, I was in love, for the love of cooking, and the love of eating good food. I asked my mother if I could cook sometimes in the future, and her big smile letting me know, yes, you may, and whew! at the same time.
One time I made a recipe I found for Sponge Cake in a Jewish Cookbook. The recipe called for 6 eggs, and 1/2 cup of flour, along with the other ingredients. I made the recipe exactly as printed, but, I ended up with a semi sweet omlette. Flat cake. I re-read the book, and no, I had not made an error, but, THEY did! I then realized that was too many eggs for such a small amount of flour! Oh, I was mad.
I wrote a letter to the publisher, as such: I told them I was a homemaking teacher, and we prepared this recipe with the 5 groups of students we had in class, therefore we wasted 2 and 1/2 dozen eggs, along with other resources from our pantry, disappointed all of those students, and embarrassed myself." They replied back with an apology and a huge box of assorted cookbooks! Awesome... the original Jewish Cookbook was in there too, with the same error in it. HAH.
I have cooked most of my life, worked as a caterer for a short period of time, and even went so far as to open a small restaurant for 8 years. My family counts on me for many occasions to bring my potato salad, macaroni salad, and cole slaw to their homes, as around here you cannot buy good salads, No way! I tried them all, but, um, no way! In NY, ANY Deli had good salads. Seriously.
My skill is in finding good recipes, being able to read, and following directions. That is how I start, then using good ingredients makes the food delicious When I say good food, it does not mean expensive, but, fresh and using good spices and condiments. I do NOT create recipes. If I was put on the show Chopped, where the cooks are given a basket of " ingredients" to use to prepare an entire meal and are to create this fantastic presentation to the judges, they would get back the same basket of crap. Oh, I am a " tweaker", over time you may not recognize the original recipe, as I own it now, but, I am not a Chef. Since I have been making many of our favorite dishes for so many years, I do not measure often any longer.
So, this said, I am going to share with you today. Macaroni Salad my way. At the restaurant I could not keep this in supply, as they ' tore it up", LOL.
8 oz dry elbow macaroni ( or any shape you prefer, but... elbows are best )
Dressing:
2 cups mayonnaise ( I despise Miracle Whip, and remember it is NOT mayonnaise, it IS salad dressing)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/8 cup lemon juice or juice from one lemon ( secret ingredient, freshens up the tart taste)
1 tbsp paprika
1/4 cup sugar.
1/4 tsp, pinch of ground red pepper
1/2 tsp celery seed
Sprinkle in some parsley, fresh or dried
Salt and pepper to taste ( I do not measure. approximately tsp of salt, and 1/2 tsp of pepper)
1 celery stalk, diced to preference
1/2 green pepper, diced ( use red, or yellow, whatever floats your boat, and is on SALE)
1 tomato diced
1/4 cup of shredded carrot ( I do not know who I am kidding, I have no clue how many cups of carrot I use. just shred some and toss it in there for texture and COLOR)
Bring water to boil, and add the elbows. Turn the heat down to allow the water to do a low boil, and cook until tender. Drain and rinse under water. Allow to sit until ready to add dressing.( pasta and potatoes are best used in salads with dressings warm or room temperature, they absorb more dressing)
Mix dressing well, and Taste It. Adjust as you wish. ( I do!) ( maybe some chopped red onion, or add a little bit of mustard to the dressing) Variety is the spice of life.
Add the elbows into the bowl of dressing, and toss well to cover all pasta. Add in the chopped vegetables, fold in gently. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Tips:
( Make your dressing in a bowl large enough to fit your salad. Why wash another bowl? Things that make you go hmmmm.)
Make it an entree on a hot night and for those leftover meats
Add in some chopped ham , or any kind of deli meat you prefer
Mix in a can of Tuna Fish
Add in some cooked chicken
Add in some chopped hard boiled eggs
Add in some peeled shrimp, crab meat, or lobster chunks
Bacon bits anyone?
Shredded cheese of any variety laying around
Can of beans, drained, most any kind ( except Lima beans. If you like Limas, just do not tell me about it, ok:?)
Toss in some frozen peas ( If you use canned peas on here, I am not even going there!)
Enjoy!
MY Potato Salad. aka Classic Potato Salad as tweaked by Valerie
HUGE hit with my adoring fans.
- 8 medium red skin, or 12 small potatoes, cooked with skins on
- 1 1⁄2 cups mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon spicy brown , or 1/2 tsp of dried mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic ( I never use powder or garlic salt. Granulated is closest to the real garlic taste, and the salt? Why pay for salt mixed with something for twice the price?)
- 1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tbs paprika
- 1/4 tsp ground red pepper
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp celery seed
- 1 tbs dried parsely
- 1/4 cup shredded carrot
- 2 celery ribs, sliced
- 1 cup onion, minced ( or 3 chopped green onions, all of it except the roots, thanks, LOL )
- 5 hard-boiled eggs chopped
- Paprika or Parsly to garnish
Add potatoes with skin on and boil until fork tender. Drain under cool water and let sit until they can be handled to the touch. ( you could easily remove the skins at this point, with your fingers, if preferred. The skins will come off very easily)
Mix together the next 12 ingredients in a bowl large enough to add the rest of the ingredients. Slice
( or dice) the potatoes , peels and all. Add to the dressing and toss gently. ( I use a rubber spatula ) ( if they are too well done, they may mash up just tell people you did this intentionally trying out a mashed potato salad recipe)
Add in the chopped eggs, celery , onions, and shredded carrot, again, mix gently. Cover and chill in refrigerator 4 hours, stir occasionally. ( Over night is perfect) serve with a sprinkle of paprika or parsley for presentation)
Mangia!
Creamy Cole Slaw
2 cups mayonnaise ( I despise Miracle Whip, and remember it is NOT mayonnaise, it IS salad dressing)
1/4 cup white vinegar ( or cider vinegar, which I prefer)
1 tbsp paprika
1/4 cup sugar.
1/4 tsp, pinch of ground red pepper
1/2 tsp celery seed
Salt and pepper to taste
1 package of Cole Slaw with carrots, or Tri Color mix
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 large red or white onion
In a bowl large enough to mix all the ingredients in, mix the first 8 ingredients. Add in the slaw mix, green pepper, and onion. Mix well. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
Tip: add one small can of Pineapple tidbits in it's own juice, reserve half the juice and add to the slaw, and stir tidbits and reserved juice into slaw.
Use a little bit of slaw atop your hotdogs or hamburgers.. oh yeah!
The only issue with having to make your own salads, is, if you suddenly have to have it, you have to make it and wait for the " mingle" to happen.. how annoying is that?
And then there is the dog...
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