Category Archives: Uncategorized

Posted on April 1, 2012 | 1 comment

Brisket Recipe

cookingwithcandi's avatarCooking with Candi

Brisket can definitely be an intimidating thing to make. I once made it as a young cook, and it was perfectly inedible. Back then, I couldn’t believe how long it takes to cook, but it does take very long. Now I usually make it in the slow cooker, which is awesome; but I don’t have a slow cooker in New York, and I don’t have time to run out and buy one. So this time I used my trusty Le Creuset, which worked out beautifully. I just finished cooking it and froze it before I took pictures so I will post pics when it defrosts on Thursday. A lot of people have some pretty awesome brisket recipes and I welcome you to send me yours. This really couldn’t be any easier and it’s super tasty. This original recipe came from my friend, Michele (with a few comments from Karyn too.) I did change…

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Posted on March 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

This is tomato sauce I made with turkey meatballs

cookingwithcandi's avatarCooking with Candi

After a day of skiing it’s hard to get motivated to go back out, especially when you have only 2 episodes of Homeland to catch up with. I was too tired to even bother going food shopping, so decided to just check out what was in the pantry. Always have canned tomatoes, garlic, spices and red wine. There you go, and I always love spaghetti and red sauce. It cooks up quickly, is very tasty and we both had protein for lunch on the mountain, so just in the mood for some pasta. I have posted other red sauces, and this is how I made it tonite. Obviously it would be delicious with some meat or seafood in it, just didn’t have any on hand.

Ingredients:

1 – 2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped yellow onion ( app. 1 medium size yellow onion)

1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic

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Chicken Marsala – What I made last night

Posted on March 18, 2012 | 4 comments

I am just going on record that this recipe is so delicious and so easy. I made it again last night and it is just so awesome. If you are looking for an easy, quick recipe this is it. Just follow directions, and I think in an hour it was all done. Served with a vegetable and rice , perfect. Great recipe for dinner party or dinner party of 2! see recipe on website. What I Cooked – Chicken Marsala, original post date was 01/13/2012. It’s so worth looking up and cooking. Let me know how you like it. Joel loves it.

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Academy Awards Sunday and What I’m Doing

Posted on February 26, 2012 | Leave a comment

Academy Awards Sunday is here. My plan is to ski or hike during the day, have my DVR set for pre-show on E!, and then the main event and of course the after show. (and don’t forget to DVR the Fashion Police ) I like to get home, put on my PJs and just set myself up for the night of nights. As most of you are already aware, I am an avid movie fan. This year I even did an actual mail in ballot with all my picks, so wish me luck. I have seen all the top nominees with the exception of a few documentaries and foreign films. It’s tough to do it all. I think I will have to dig in to some of those wonderful leftovers that are in our freezer–maybe the lasagna and the italian wedding soup.  This is the beauty of cooking a lot and freezing the leftovers. They are perfect for a night like this when all you want to do is curl up and watch TV. The thing of it is that I really do love to watch by myself. This is not to say that there won’t be a lot of  texting going on, but no phoning–it’s too distracting. Texting and pausing is totally acceptable, and if I have to talk I will. Joel will usually make an appearance for a few awards, but he lacks the patience to stick it out. So here’s to my annual Oscars Party of One and may the best movie win!

*P.S. Just a hunch , I think the Artist is going to win, (and I adored it) but I would really love to see Hugo win.

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My Superbowl Menu–Go Giants!

Posted on February 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

I am not even sure what we are doing this Superbowl. We have been out of town and will just be getting back. I may not even be doing it, but this is what I did last year except for the shrimp, but shrimp is always a good idea for cold appetizers . I usually make the shrimp, dressing, cookies and macaroni and cheese a day ahead. I make the chili a day or two ahead. The salami can be ready to put in the oven, the nuts I make sometimes a week in advance. The idea is to enjoy the day and enjoy your friends. Last year we had 10 people so this is perfect for 10 – 12 people. Have to admit that last year I brought in wings. Sometimes it’s just easier to pick and choose what you know you want to make  and order in what you don’t want to make (in my case the wings!) These are just some suggestions for the day. Mostly enjoy the day and Let’s Go Giants!

Appetizers:

cold shrimp with cocktail sauce

sweet and spicy nuts (2 recipes on my site)

baked salami (also 2 recipes on my site)

bbq wings which I brought in , sometimes it’s just the way to roll

Dinner:

Macaroni and Cheese (recipe on my site)

Green salad with one of my salad dressings

Red or white chili , whichever you prefer

Dessert:

Cherry chocolate cookies (recipe on my site)

assortment of ice cream is always nice along with the cookies

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What’s in the Fridge?

Posted on January 3, 2012 | 3 comments

Freezer in Colorado

Colorado Fridge
fridge in NY

I have wanted to post this for a while. I am always intrigued by other people’s refrigerators or really what’s in them. While some people may be intrigued by what’s in other people’s medicine cabinets, I am more drawn to their refrigerators. So I thought it would be fun to see if I could get a dialogue going with what’s in all of your fridges. I am going to list my 10 items I almost always have without fail. Of course there is usually a salad dressing, leftovers, other kinds of milks periodically for baking etc. My NY fridge looks like it was fresh off the Thanksgiving tear, packed to the brim. Then we can do pantries, the other thing I’m curious about . Right now though let’s concentrate on fridges. Send me your pictures if you can figure that out, and I will post mine. Hope to hear from all  of you.

1. Tropicana OJ, no pulp (Joel has drunk this every day of his life since I’ve met him)

2. Skim Plus milk (in my NY fridge) and 2 % milk (in Colorado fridge, because they don’t have Skim Plus out there)

3. Unsalted butter sticks (always on hand to cook with)

4. Fage and Activia yogurt

5. Lots and lots of different mustard, but always Dijon

6. Strawberry and raspberry preserves

7. Eggs

8. White wine

9. Apples and Grapefruits

10. Parmesan Cheese

My Freezer always has butter sticks, blueberry or corn muffin Vitamuffin tops, bacon, Skinny Cow truffle Bars (chocolate), cranberries, vodka, ravioli, Dr. Praegers veggie patties, Haagen Dazs (hopefully Caramel Cone) and I am hooked on this new Gelato , Talenti Brand and Sea Salt Caramel is my favorite.

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After the Scampi

Posted on December 31, 2011 | Leave a comment

Cold Shrimp after Scampi

Salad with Cold Shrimp Sherry Lemon Vinaigrette

The day after the Scampi, Joel and I went skiing. After ski, I wasn’t in the mood to go out so we stayed in . We had actually cooked up some of the remainder of the 5 lbs. of shrimp we had taken out to cook the scampi. It was in the fridge cold. Joel was happy eating that with cocktail sauce, and I was happy eating that cold shrimp in a salad. I used the Sherry Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing that I already had made. It was delicious, light, and just what we were in the mood for, no fuss no muss, and sometimes you just need to eat lightly, forgo some of those calories. Even with working out all the time, skiing, and hiking the amount of calories can be daunting , it just helps us to indulge a little more frequently.  The thing with cold shrimp is you can’t keep it for too long in the fridge, so we had to eat it within 2 – 3 days of cooking it.

Here is my cocktail sauce, which I’m sure you know by now that we like it with a lot of kick. Just alter ingredients to your liking.

Heinz Chili Sauce ( available next to Heinz Ketchup)

White Horseradish

Heinz Ketchup

Just mix up about a cup of Heinz Chili Sauce, a cup of Ketchup and put in by the tablespoon the white horseradish till you get the consistency you like, and the flavor you like, I know by now how it should look, but you’ll have to taste. Be careful with the horseradish, but you can always add more ketchup to tone it down. These are just the 3 ingredients I use, Use as much or as little as you’ll need. It beats those store bought brands by a mile.

Cold Shrimp the next day

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Goodbye 2011 and Hello 2012

Posted on December 31, 2011 | 4 comments

Happy New Year to all, and a very special thank you to all of you who actually read my blog, and read my stories. It’s been a great experience having all of you as my audience. A Big Thanks to everyone who’s subscribed  and looking forward to cooking and talking with you in 2012.

Some Memories of 2011 ( in no special order, just as I thought about the past year)

Regis Philbin who will be missed so very much by me every single morning, it’s just not the same without him. I love Kelly but something’s missing.

Steve Jobs , Amy Winehouse, Elizabeth Taylor ,Betty Ford, and Andy Rooney you will all be missed. Bin Laden, Qadaffi, and Kim Jong-il you will not be missed.

Charlie Sheen

OWS becomes part of our vernacular ( Occupy Wall Street) and the other 99 percent, and Zucotti Park, I’ve lived in NY for 56 years and never heard of it before!

Homeland, my new favorite show , now if I can only find the time to catch up and finish watching this season.

Hugh Jackman – best show I’ve seen in a long time on Broadway

Same sex marriages in New York, won’t all the states follow?

Kim Kardashian’s 72 day marriage ????

The Tenth Anniversary of 9/11

Goodbye to Oprah – I really miss you , Ellen is funny but she’s not you.

Adele

Welcome to the next Queen of England – Kate

The Launch of Cooking with Candi ( a little personal memento)

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Cooking Class with Karen Lee

Posted on December 13, 2011 | 3 comments

Ginger Sesame Grilled Salmon

Poached Pears and Cherries
Ginger Sesame Grilled Salmon
Parchment Salmon in Saffron Sauce

We are nearing the end of our stay in NY for the fall so I squeezed in one more cooking class with Karen Lee and I am so happy that I did. I had to be on the Upper West Side by 9 a.m. and left Roslyn only to sit in bumper to bumper traffic for 90 minutes to the midtown tunnel. So, I obviously didn’t arrive at the class until closer to 10. It was raining again and it’s such a good thing to do on a rainy day, but such a bad thing for the traffic situation. Once I walked in, any stress I had due to traffic left my body. It’s such a warm, “hamish” atmosphere, yet totally professional. Karen is a real dynamo, and very talented; she knows a lot about cooking, products, and food in general. If the opportunity ever arises, I highly recommend her classes. We cooked from 10 – 2:30 and ate our way through the morning into the afternoon. When I looked at the clock at 1:40, I didn’t know where the time went but it was well spent for sure. We made 3 kinds of salmon, 2 beautiful salads, and a poached pear dessert. (I will elaborate on the recipes.) I learned a few new techniques, a few new facts, and made a few new friends. What a great day!

Check out Karen Lee’s website at: www.karenleecooking.com  

Prep for Salmon in Parchment PaperSalmon in Parchment Paper

142 West End Avenue, NYC             212.787.2227

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Good Ideas

Posted on December 5, 2011 | Leave a comment

I keep all of my measuring spoons on hand by my stove in this mug. You can never have enough of these spoons. Just a good idea: when you see spoons in the market, buy them and if you have nowhere to store them, this is such a good idea and always handy. I also keep a jar of spoons for tasting, because you can never have enough of these either.

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