The Recipe Box

This one is from the area where I grew up, and I remember them on the menu at the "Beach Shack" spelled just like this -

"Portageese" Steamers

4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed or 2 tablespoons garlic paste
A foot of linquica (Portugese sausage), sliced medium-thick
1/2 cup white wine - wine-in-a-box Chardonnay is fine
2 bay leaves
1 pint water - you may use fish stock or chicken broth
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped
3 pounds soft-shell clams - use cherrystones or mussels if you can't find soft-shells.

Melt the butter inn a heavy-bottomed dutch oven or stockpot, ass the onion, garlic, and sausage and fry until the sausage is almost cooked through. Add the wine and bay leaves, then simmer until the liquid in the pot is reduced by half, then pour in the water/stock/broth, parsley and clams and simmer. The clams are done when they open – about fifteen minutes.

Serve in bowls with crusty bread on hand for dipping.

Good for early or late season berries that are not all that sweet.

Glazed strawberries and cantaloupe

1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled, washed, and halved
1/2 of a ripe cantaloupe, seeds scooped out, skin removed
1 tbs finely crushed raw sugar

Preheat the broiler, arrange the strawberries cut-side-down in a single layer on a baking sheet and sprinkle with the sugar.  Broil for 4 to five minutes until the sugar melts and starts to bubble. Slice melon into thin wedges and arrange on a plate. Top the melon with the strawberries and serve.

Curry Mayo for Fries and Chips

1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon curry powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
pinch of ground ginger

Mayo in a bowl, dump in the remaining ingredients and whisk - add a little lime juice if it seems to be too thick.

Lavender/vanilla drop cookies

3 and 1/2 tablespoons dried food-grade lavender

2 cups raw sugar

1 cup butter

3 large eggs - beaten

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups King Arthur flour sifted with 2 teaspooons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, and a pinch of nutmeg.

1/2 cup half-and-half

Grind the sugar and lavender together in a food processor or mortar and pestle until very finely granulated. Cream the butter, adding the sugar and lavender gradually, then the beaten eggs and vanilla. Add the four mixture alternately with the half-and-half until a soft dough is formed.

Drop by teaspoons-full onto lightly greased or nonstick cookie sheet. Bake at 350F for 8-10 minutes.

Caldo Verde (Portugese Kale Soup):

1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon roasted garlic
1 pound of  linguicia sausage, sliced thin
6 medium white or red potatoes, diced
1 can white beans, drained
4 cups cold water
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 pound kale or collard greens, cut very fine
Salt and pepper to taste

 

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until they are translucent. Add the garlic and linguicia, then cook for 2 minutes strirring constantly. Add the potatoes, beans and greens, cover everything with water and broth, bring to a boil and lower the heat, simmering until the potatoes are almost done, about 15 minutes.

This improves after a couple of days in the 'fridge.

Morning Muesli

1/2 cup rolled oats
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce w/ cinnamon
Any fruit - fresh, thawed, or dried
1 tablespoon wheat germ
2 tablespoons raw pecan bits, sunflower seeds, or chopped almonds
Cream or yogurt

Combine everything in a bowl, stir, and eat.

This can be eaten as-is, or heated up.

Plum Ketchup

Really good with pork, turkey, or game. This will keep for one week in the fridge, six months in the freezer.

3lb. red or black plums, pitted and halved.
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3-2/3 cup packed light brown sugar (depends on your taste and sweetness of plums)
2/3 cup cider vinegar
2/3 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 inches of cinnamon stick

Combine everything in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally until the plums are mush - use a potato masher if you want to speed things along, or a heat-resistant hand blender. Remove from heat, fish out the cinnamon stick, and pour it unto a pan for better cooling, then into your containers.

If you need a thicker ketchup to use as a spread, try adding one tablespoon of grated apple per pound of fruit at the start of cooking.

You can also make this with cherries, apricots, or peaches - try the cherry over grilled duck and the apricot or peach as a glaze on chicken.

Sangria Blanca

1 bottle dry white wine - I used a Pinot Grigio - chilled frosty
1/2 cup frozen sliced peaches, chopped
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 cup white grapes
1 clementine or small orange, cut into wedges
1 lime, sliced
2 shots of Kirschwasser, Framboise or other eaux de vie
1 cinnamon stick
Sugar to taste, you might not need it

Take the fruit and cinnamon stick and put it in a glass pitcher, pour the wine in - and chill. Test the taste before serving and add the sugar if needed, the fruit is sometimes sweet enough that you won't need it.

Basic mashed potato for one

1 russet potato - peeled, halved, chopped into thick chunks
2 tablespoons milk
Salted butter and white pepper to taste

Steam the potatoes until fork tender, but not falling apart. Drain and dribble in the milk, mash with butter to taste. The taste is earthy and rich, not mushy and boiled out

French Toast Batter

2 eggs
2 tablespoons half-and-half
1/2 teaspoon raw sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (if you can find vanilla in bourbon or rum, go for it!)
a pinch of cinnamon
a pinch of orange zest (if dried, soak it for a bit in the vanilla extract)

Beat all ingredients together, then pour into a flat-bottomed dish. Put the bread in, allowing the bread to soak. Butter your griddle and set to.