Recipe Mutiny steals recipes from food blogs and recipe sites. Then we publish them. With credit (Naturally).
This month, Megan Gordon is back with us sharing her weekly meal plans! Megan is a writer and recipe developer living in Seattle, WA, the author of Whole Grain Mornings, and mom to a 2-year-old. Please welcome Megan!
I spent some time last week stocking up on spring produce — nothing gets me feeling more inspired to step into the kitchen than new, seasonal veggies!
Continue reading "Meal Plan for May Week 2" »
Most moms are full of great advice, and are inveterate teachers in general. It’s not uncommon for kids to learn to cook from their mothers (and mother figures), so it’s no surprise that many famous chefs credit their moms with inspiring them too, although not always in the way you might think. In honor of Mother’s Day, here are some notable food celebrities’ memories of their mamas. Whether they were professional chefs, enthusiastic amateur cooks, or never set foot in the kitchen, they all imparted worthy lessons, from the practical to the sublime.
Gail Simmons’ Mom, Renée
Gail Simmons, “Top Chef” judge and cookbook author, came by her love of food naturally, and early on; her mother was a food writer and cooking teacher who kept the fridge stocked with exotic ingredients. The happy times Gail spent with her mom in the kitchen, she says, “helped make [it] a place where I’ve always found comfort and exhilaration.” Far better than associating the space with drudgery, for sure.
Alex Guarnaschelli’s Mom, Maria
When chef and “Chopped” judge Alex Guarnaschelli was growing up, her mom was a cookbook editor who often tested recipes at home, and in 1997, Maria oversaw the revision of the classic kitchen tome “Joy of Cooking”—but her initial reaction to her daughter’s decision to make a career in food was not exactly enthusiastic. They eventually got on the same page, and Alex describes her mom as “cantankerous, difficult, and fabulous.” She also recalls that her mom made her the best meal she ever had for her 11th birthday: scallops and chocolate caramel cake, which you can find in Alex’s book “Old-School Comfort Food: The Way I Learned to Cook”. And she deemed her mom’s macaroni and cheese recipe good enough to go on the menu at her restaurant too.
jsonline.com
Aaron Sanchez’s Mom, Zarela
Fellow “Chopped” judge and chef Aaron Sanchez’s mother wrote three cookbooks, and cooked professionally in her own NYC restaurant as well. Among many other lessons, she taught her son how to make a proper mole, even if it meant smoking out an entire apartment building because toasting the chiles is not optional!
Jacques Pépin’s Mom, Jeanette
Jeanette was also a chef, though not from the start. Eventually, she and her husband owned a restaurant, Le Pélican, where Jacques got his first taste of a professional kitchen, but when his Maman was newly married, she didn’t know how to make cheese soufflé. She forged ahead anyway (her son has described her as “willing and fearless”), and while the result was not exactly a standard soufflé, it became a family favorite that Pépin has gladly shared.
Anthony Bourdain’s Mom, Gladys
Anthony Bourdain may owe his appreciation of good food to his mom, or he may have simply inherited it. He says his mother taught him that food should not be taken for granted or simply “shoved into one’s face like fuel”—and she recalls that her son “always had this interest in good taste, good smells. From a very young age, he loved to try new things,” whether that was snails on a French vacation, or gingerbread cookies at Christmas.
Martha Stewart’s Mom, Harriet Martha Kostyra (“Big Martha”)
Martha learned a whole slew of lessons from her mom, including lots of specific recipes, but perhaps one of the most important things Mrs. Kostyra gave her daughter was “complete freedom in [the] kitchen” that encouraged young Martha “to experiment and create” whatever she could dream up. And on that creativity an empire was built.
Martha Stewart
David Chang’s Mom, Sherri
Sherri Chang doesn’t approve of her son’s potty mouth (on full display in “Ugly Delicious”), and she may only half-jokingly criticize his food as too salty and not as good as her own, but he recognizes that she’s “an amazing cook”—who is also not afraid to do things unconventionally as long as they taste good, like using 7UP in noodle dishes and beef stock. Following in her footsteps, David Chang uses it for fizzy white kimchi.
Marcus Samuelsson’s Grandmom, Helga
As a young boy, the chef lost his birth mother to tuberculosis and was adopted into a Swedish family. His mother Ann Marie cooked some things (like spaghetti with meat sauce and peas), but he credits his grandmother for his love of food. During summers at her home in coastal Sweden, Helga taught him and his sisters “to pickle fresh vegetables, and make meatballs, ginger snaps, cookies, and apple jam.”
Emeril Lagasse’s Mom, Hilda
Much of what Emeril knows about cooking, he learned from his mother; she always let him help in the kitchen, and one of the earliest specific lessons was how to make vegetable soup, but she also imparted to him how food can satisfy much more than a physical hunger: “Our family life really revolved around the kitchen and eating and cooking together, and it was then that I learned how happy food can make people.”
Emeril Lagasse/Twitter
José Andrés’ Mom, Marisa
José Andrés learned a similar lesson from his mom: “the power of food to evoke memory.” That’s partly why he serves her flan recipe at his Washington, D.C. restaurant, and cooks Spanish food for his own children. “It is a way of reconnecting with home”—and of course, it’s delicious.
Anne Burrell’s Mom, Marlene
She taught her daughter a practical lesson everyone should take to heart–read the recipe all the way through before actually starting to cook from it!
Joan Nathan’s Mom, Pearl
Cookbook queen and Jewish food expert Joan Nathan says her mother was all about organization, so now she herself makes it a point “to clean up before guests arrive and do as much prep as possible a day in advance…always…so that I am more relaxed and probably there is less to clean up the next day.” Words of wisdom, indeed.
Ina Garten’s Mom, Florence
On the other end of the spectrum, Ina Garten’s mother was a strict nutritionist who treated food as medicine and didn’t let her daughter help in the kitchen. Luckily for us, Ina’s calling was kicked into high gear on a camping trip in France after she was married, and we are all blessed to have The Barefoot Contessa making our world more delicious today.
Julia Child’s Mom, Julia Weston
Julia Child also famously fell deeply in love with food and cooking in France, but not until she was 40—which might have something to do with the fact that while growing up, her mother wasn’t really into it. According to a quote that resurfaces with vexingly little supporting information, Julia Weston sometimes made an “English cheese thing” but really rather hated cooking, so she hired a chef to take care of the family’s meals. Those could include “gray lamb,” which can’t have been inspiring to young Julia.
Ruth Reichl’s Mom, Miriam
The former Gourmet editor in chief’s mother was very much not a gourmand—she was a notoriously awful cook who thought nothing of scraping the mold from month-old leftover chocolate pudding and then stretching it out with stale marshmallows, prunes, and canned peaches. Clearly, her daughter learned a lot through example (of what not to do), and even wrote an entire book called “Not Becoming My Mother”—but she also realized, once her mom was gone, that “Mim” taught her much more than she’d previously realized or appreciated.
NY Daily News
If you’ve learned anything useful from your mom, in the kitchen or elsewhere, don’t wait to thank her. And if you’re looking for ways to show her some love, see all of our Mother’s Day ideas for inspiration.
Long before I even knew the word “brunch” existed, my favorite meal of the day was the other fourth meal of the day: merienda. A hispanic tradition that made its way from Spain to Cuba to my Miami childhood, merienda nestles snugly between lunch and dinner, typically around 3 p.m. (lining up perfectly with my after-school life). My abuelo would pick me up from school and take me to abuela’s house, where I would hang out until mom was done working. Five days a week, while I was busy enjoying the very best era of after-school cartoons, my abuela did her level best to fatten me up. Her home cooking was such an integral part of my childhood and here are a few of my all-time favorite meriendas.
Platanos
True to her Cuban heritage, there was one staple you could always find in the kitchen: platanos (or “plantains,” if you’re feeling really Caucasian). Tostones, mariquitas, maduros, sopa de platano…the only thing my grandmother didn’t make out of platanos was patio furniture. From salty and crunchy (mariquitas) to sweet and squishy (maduros), she had a platano recipe for every bit of the spectrum. Get our Sauteed Plantains recipe.
Fried Steak, Fried Eggs, and Fries
Another of my favorite go-to Cuban dishes was Bistec Empanizado (think chicken-fried steak, but thinly pounded and served without gravy). When this wasn’t paired with white rice, it was french fries, and there was usually a fried egg on top. No, I was not bulking up for a heavyweight lifting competition, just living my best life. Again, the fact that I didn’t develop high cholesterol before high school is nothing short of a miracle. Get our Black Bean Cakes with Fried Eggs recipe.
Americana
I don’t know if this is a thing for all first-generation Americans, but growing up in Miami’s very Cuban culture, there was some unspoken imperative to be “Americanized”—to know the culture and speak the language. Although abuela demanded that my sister and I speak Spanish while we were at her house, she would add hot dogs, french fries, homemade cheeseburgers, and cherry pies to her merienda repertoire. For a telltale Cuban twist on burgers, just add a heaping pile of crispy shoestring fries. Find me a 7-year-old who doesn’t want to eat like this. Get our Corn Dog recipe.
Chicken Divine*
Funny story about this dish: I’ve called it by the wrong name my entire life and I don’t plan to stop anytime soon. Shredded chicken smothered in cream and cheese, Abuela’s famous Chicken Divan was nothing short of divine.
Cuban Bakeries: Cornucopias of Sweet Confection
There is an entire wing of the Cuban food pyramid dedicated solely to pastries (or pastelitos). The funny thing is, no one really makes homemade pastelitos, but everyone has their own go-to bakery. Pastelitos come in many shapes and forms: from the savory de carne, to the sweet de guayaba, and cream cheese rich de queso, to name just a few. Get our Cream Cheese Pinwheels recipe.
My Heart Is in Havana
My grandmother came over from Cuba in 1960 with her 5-year-old daughter in tow, just months after becoming a widow (my grandfather had died suddenly of a brain tumor). Shortly after Castro had swept into power and took my grandparents’ property, they came to the United States and got themselves a piece of the American dream. They built lives for their children, who went on to build better lives for their grandchildren. I am forever indebted to my family for the life I have today, and I honor the memory of my abuela by cooking and, most importantly, feasting on these special dishes from my childhood.
Apples. Chocolate. Coffee. At first blush, those three foods might not appear to have much in common, but one thing is for sure: They all play well with caramel! Sure, you can buy pre-made caramel products for pairing, but making it yourself is a lot easier than you may think. So, how exactly do you make the sweet stuff? Here’s a step-by-step guide.
Though the end result is complex and has incredible depth when it comes to flavor, the concept is actually pretty simple. Making caramel is pretty easy; you just have to heat sugar up!
There are two basic methods for doing so: dry or wet. First up: the dry method. Spread a layer of white sugar evenly in a clean saucepan and place it on the stove over medium heat. Don’t step away; you’ll want to be close by to avoid it burning! As the sugar starts to melt, use a wooden spoon to keep moving the sugar around to avoid clumps or burning. The sugar must reach at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit for caramelization to take place (certain sugars have to be heated at slightly higher temps for the same reaction), but too much higher and it could burn and spoil the batch. As the color deepens, you can use the caramel as is for desserts like flan or pralines, or add in cream or vanilla for additional flavor and a more sauce-like consistency.
Hoping to end up with a more liquidy version of the confection (like the kind that is used to make caramel apples)? Then you might want to go with the wet method. It’s a pretty simple ratio: add in about ⅓ cup of water per one cup of sugar into a clean saucepan. Set it on high heat and stir it until the water starts to boil. At that point, the water will begin to boil off and the sugar will start to caramelize. Keep a close eye on the sauce as the color begins to deepen and pull it off the heat once you’ve found the tone you’re going for. That’s when you’ll want to add any other ingredients (like cream or butter) that your recipe calls for. Boom—you’re ready to add the sauce to any number of baked goods!
A couple of things to keep in mind: adding liquid (like cream) to caramel typically makes the mixture bubble up, so be prepared for that. The caramel mixture will be scalding hot, so either use oven mitts or extra caution throughout the process to avoid any burns!
At a loss for how to use your newly whipped-up caramel? Read ahead for some ideas.
Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce
Chowhound
If your familiarity with bundt cakes begins and ends with “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” (you know the scene!), then it’s time to school yourself on this hole-y dessert. Pumpkin flavor and warm spices combine to make an autumnal treal that you’ll want to eat all year. A salted caramel sauce is the icing on the cake—literally. Get our Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce ecipe.
Veganosity
This take on caramel actually doesn’t use heat; it uses lots of blending instead. Grab your food processor and watch a bowl of dates transform into a nutty thick caramel-like topping that is vegan and gluten free. Get the recipe.
Pecan and Salted Caramel Cheesecake
Chowhound
Making a homemade pie crust may seem intimidating, but with an end result as delicious as this one, it’s worth the work. Chopped pecans pair with a layer of caramel sauce for a drool-worthy cheesecake. Get our Pecan and Salted Caramel Cheesecake recipe.
Paleo Running Momma
Were you the kid who plotted out which houses had the best Halloween candy growing up? Then this grown-up take on one of your favorite treats will make your inner child beyond happy. The creamy and sweet bites won’t last long, so enjoy them before they fly off the plate. Get the recipe.
Salted Chocolate and Caramel Pretzel Bars
Tastes Better From Scratch
Crunchy, salty, and sweet? That’s a trio anyone can get behind. This recipe pairs pretzels with chocolate and caramel sauce for a crispy dessert you can eat on the go. Get the recipe.
