"Whatever Happened To Sunday Dinner?" Cookbook Review & Giveaway

Two savory recipes in a row! No, I'm not sick and yes, I have more sweetness coming your way, but first I have a cookbook to share with you- Whatever Happened To Sunday Dinner? by Lisa Caponigri. This is such a clever book. The concept behind this book is bringing back Sunday dinner. "Fifty-two menus are presented in the Italian tradition: an antipasto (usually a crostini to pass at the table), a primo (first course: almost always a pasta), a secondo (call it the main course) served with a single contorno (side dish) and finally, dessert. Every menu is different; not a single repeated."

Sunday dinner according to Lisa is not just about eating. It's about getting the family together in the kitchen and dividing up the tasks so that everyone is involved and contributing to the family meal, whether it's by chopping, baking, stirring or setting the table. "Sunday dinner doesn't have to be elaborate, just delicious." There are 260 recipe in this book to choose from. Obviously you don't have to follow each menu as written; you can mix and match recipes from different menus to create your perfect meal. The idea is to get comfortable in the kitchen, eat, linger at the table, relax and share the highlights of your week. "Sunday dinner is irreplaceable, the meeting place of memories that will last a lifetime."

You can feel Lisa's passion for Sunday dinner through her family photos, words and menus. As I read about her love of food and family, I started planning my own Sunday dinners. We often have Sunday dinner at my mom's house, but that usually means my mom does most of the cooking and I provide dessert. We all sit down together, share stories and laughter and enjoy a great meal. But I realized after reading Lisa's stories that we could all help out a little more and make it more of a family activity.  

I flipped through page after page of this book. The recipes are enticing and the photos are gorgeous. This really is a handsome book, and hefty at that. And because there is so much variety, you could cook through it all throughout the week, not just on Sundays. I chose to make Pasta alla Carbonara and Pesto Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes, only to simplify things I used store bought pesto because it's what I had on hand. I made the pasta recipe as written but I added my thoughts and notes below. Both were delicious and easy enough to make on a  busy weekday. To win a copy of "Whatever Happened To Sunday Dinner?" scroll down. 

Pasta Alla Carbonara- Pasta with Eggs and Bacon

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Recipe serves 8, but can easily be halved-

• 8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter* (see note)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound thick-sliced bacon or pancetta, cut into 1-inch pieces
• head of garlic, separated into cloves and chopped
• 2 pounds of spaghetti
• 6 large eggs
• 2 cups grated pecorino romano 
• freshly ground pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. 

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the olive oil. Add the bacon and garlic and cook until the bacon is very crisp, taking care not to burn the garlic* (see note). Remove the bacon and garlic from the skillet, using a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels. 

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. 

Meanwhile, in a large serving bowl, beat together the eggs, cheese, and pepper to taste. Stir in the bacon and garlic. 

Drain the pasta and add to the bowl. Toss until the pasta is well coated with the eggs and cheese mixture and serve immediately. 

NOTE: I didn't find that cooking the bacon and garlic in butter and olive oil was necessary. It just resulted in a lot of grease in a pan that had to be thrown away. The bacon yields a lot of fat on it it's own- next time, I'd crisp up the bacon then just before it's done, add the garlic. I found cooking the garlic along with the bacon just overcooked it.

Pomodorini Ripieni Di Pesto- Cherry Tomatoes Stuffed with Pesto

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• 1 cup fresh basil leaves
• 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 5 Tbsp. pine nuts
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more if needed
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino romano
• 1 pound cherry tomatoes

Place the basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, salt, olive oil, and Pecorino in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. If the pesto is too thick for your taste, add a little more olive oil. 

Cut the tops off the tomatoes. With a small spoon scoop out the seeds and pulp, taking care not to puncture the skin. Fill the tomatoes with the pesto and serve at room temperature. 

NOTE: Don't use grape tomatoes to make this- they won't stand upright and the filling will spill out.

To win a copy of "Whatever Happened To Sunday Dinner?" by Lisa Caponigri all you need to do is leave me a comment below telling me about your family meals. It doesn't have to be Italian, it can be anything. Do you have a tradition of getting the family together on a regular basis, cooking and eating? Tell me about it! 

Be sure to leave your contact info so if you win I know how to get a hold of you. I'll announce a winner next week and ship the book out. One comment per person, please. Giveaway open to US residents only. Good luck!

My little helper!

Burgers For Dad

Do you have plans for Father's Day? I think we're going to have Mr. H's parents over for dinner or we may go out to eat at a cute new cafe we just discovered. Not entirely sure yet. My father does not live here and our relationship has deteriorated over the last few years so it will probably be just us four and the doggies :-) I'll stop by to see my step dad and send my grandpa a card but one thing I know for sure is that we will be celebrating my husband and father-in-law this coming weekend.

These burgers would be great to serve for your favorite Dad on Sunday. They're a nice twist on the "regular" burger and they're just as simple but so much better! The bruschetta topping on this burger is what makes it extra special and tasty. It consists of diced tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil and parm cheese- good stuff! I found these burgers on Debby's A Feast For The Eyes. I've seen these burgers on her site before but she recently reminded me of them again and I made them the very next day. We loved them.

We like our burger patties cooked to medium, with a little pink on the inside but even if these were cooked all the way through , they'd still be good. Just don't cook them til they're tough like shoe leather- that's the only thing that could ruin this burger. ha ha! The meat was juicy and flavorful but the star was the bruschetta. The tomatoes were fresh and summery tasting, then you got a little punch from the grated garlic and saltiness from the cheese. I made some pesto mayo to slather on the buns and that finished them off perfectly. Make these this weekend, they'll be a hit, I'm sure! Thanks Debby!

Bruschetta Burgers adapted from A Feast For The Eyes

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Serves 3-4

Bruschetta Topping:

• 2 ripe tomatoes on the vine, seeded
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil or basil puree
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• pinch of kosher salt & fresh cracked pepper to taste

Pesto Mayo:

• 3 Tablespoons good mayonnaise
• 1 Tablespoon prepared pesto

Beef Patties:

• Ground beef, seasoned only with salt & pepper
• Mozarella or Provolone cheese, to melt on the burger

For the bruschetta: Mix all the ingredients together except salt. Add salt right before topping the burgers so the tomatoes don’t get watery. Set aside.

For the pesto mayo: In a small bowl, mix the pesto and mayo together. Set aside.

For the burgers: Season your ground beef with salt and pepper, then form them into patties of your desired weight. (We prefer 1/3 pound burgers so I made 3 patties, if you don't want them as thick, you can make 4 quarter pound burgers). Cook burgers to your liking either on the grill or on the stove top. Once cooked to your desired internal temperature, place cheese on top of burgers while they're still hot so it melts on the patty.

Assembly: Toast buns or foccacia then generously spread on pesto mayo. Top the bottom bun with patty then scoop bruschetta on top of that. Sandwich it all together with the top bun and eat up.

Yummers!

Olivia's Croutons Review and Soup!

I was recently given the opportunity to sample and review Olivia's Croutons. But I didn't want to just use them as toppers on a salad. I envisioned them floating in a bowl of creamy tomato soup nestled cozily with a dollop of pesto and fresh Parm shavings. Folks, I made it happen and it was everything I thought it could be.

I don't make soup very often because Mr. H claims he doesn't like it. I threatened to make this for a few days and every time I brought it up he'd snarl at me. But faced with a big hearty bowl of soup, he'll eat it, happily. Cause he ain't gonna get nothing' else. ha ha! Truthfully though, he liked this soup- we all did. I took this soup and all the fixin's over to my in-laws' house and my father-in-law went back for seconds! The Olivia's Crouton floaters were a hit and added a nice balance of textures to this creamy soup.

This soup was thick and creamy, a bit garlicky and had great tomato flavor. It was simple and satisfying and so were these croutons. I was sent 2 different flavors- Parmesan Pepper and Butter & Garlic, their two most popular flavors. What I liked about these croutons is that they actually tasted like bread and olive oil and seasonings. They aren't doctored up with anything artificial and don't contain any preservatives. They also received awards for winning taste 2 years in a row. This is no ordinary crouton people.

Olivia's Croutons were originally made at home in their kitchen in Vermont. As the popularity of their croutons increased and their business grew, they were forced to find a larger commercial space to produce their products. That eventually led them to the big beautiful historic barn where they set up kitchen and the house in which they call home. All this on 50 acres of land--I think I'm in love! Did I mention that on this land they also grow their own wheat for their croutons? Yeah you read that right, THEY GROW THEIR OWN WHEAT! So not only are the croutons essentially homemade, but they're home grown! Isn't that impressive?!

If you happen to make this soup I suggest you top them with Olivia's Croutons. If soup is not your thing, toss them into your salad or make one the recipes found on Olivia's Croutons website. Either way, I hope you'll give Olivia's Croutons a try and taste a little bit of "wholesome, all natural, uncomplicated" taste. Place your Order Here.

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup from Monica H

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced or sliced
• 2- 28 oz. cans diced tomatoes, drained (reserve the liquid)
• 1 Tbsp. basil puree or fresh basil, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup reserved tomato liquid (from the cans)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper

Garnish:

• Olivia's Croutons
• basil pesto
• fresh Parmesan cheese

In a large pot over medium high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the chopped onion to the pan and cook til translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir. Cook for another minute til fragrant. Add the drained diced tomatoes, basil and thyme and cook, uncovered, for another 10 minutes until the flavors meld together.

Add the reserved tomato liquid and chicken broth. Stir and lower the heat to medium. Cook, uncovered, for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. In small batches, puree the chunky soup in a blender or use an immersion blender til the desired consistency is achieved. Stir in heavy cream til well incorporated. Re-season with salt and pepper if necessary.

Garnish with basil pesto, Parmesan shavings or Olivia's Croutons if desired.

Thank you Francie for giving me the opportunity to try Olivia's Croutons!

Chicken & Dumplings For The Soul

This is one of my mother-in-laws famous recipes. It is famous for a reason. It is SO good. She never actually gave me the recipe, so this is my interpretation. In fact she hasn't made it in a while. The last time I remember her making this is when were on vacation in Santa Fe last Easter. This is also when I observed and took mental notes in order to replicate it.

I got the gist of it, but the measurements were all wrong. The first time, I used chicken breast which was good, but I knew the whole chicken would provide more flavor. The second time I used the whole chicken and it was better, but I added too much water and it was a little too soupy for me. During all this trial and error, the dumplings were being tested as well. I've asked my mother-in-law for the recipe a couple of times, and either she couldn't find it or just forgot about it. The first time I made the dumplings, they were okay I think, but they weren't anything memorable. The second time, I didn't add enough dried basil (according to my husband) and the third time, I added too much shortening as they were almost greasy- way too rich and not fluffy.

This time, I think I've done it. These proportions have proved to be the best combination thus far. In fact, I think I'm done tweaking it, there isn't anything I would change. And the two bowl fulls and a happy tummies are indications of it's goodness. My dog even licked the bowl, but when does she not. You can thank Jenn for this recipe, she asked for it a few weeks ago and it made me get in the kitchen and write the recipe down. Before it was all in my head and pieced together on post-its. Now it's all here-for you. This recipe truly comes from my heart, so I hope you enjoy it!

Nonie's Chicken and Dumplings

Stew:

• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 bunch celery, chopped
• 1 whole chicken fryer (about 4 lbs.)
• 3 chicken bouillon cubes
• 6 cups chicken broth or water
• salt and pepper to taste

Dumplings:

• 2 cups flour
• 4 tsps. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. dried basil (optional)
• 2 Tbsp. Crisco shortening
• 3/4 -1 cup buttermilk

In a large pot over high heat, saute onions, celery and bouillon cubes in butter til tender. Add whole chicken fryer to pot and cover with 6 cups water or chicken stock. Cook over medium heat til chicken is cooked through.

Once chicken is cooked through, pull out and place on a cutting board. Once cool enough to handle, take off all the meat and shred into bite sided pieces. Add chicken back to pot and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Bring to boil.

While the chicken stew is coming to a boil, make the dumplings: In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and dried basil. Mix dry ingredients and cut in shortening with a fork or a pastry cutter. Stir dough while adding buttermilk. Start with 3/4 cup and add more til completely moistened and biscuit like but not wet.

Drop by the spoon full onto the boiling stew. Do not stir dumplings. Reduce heat to low and cover pot with a tight fitting lid. Allow dumplings to steam for 15 minutes. Once dumplings are cooked through, stir dumplings into the stew and serve. The flour from the dumplings will thicken the stew.

NOTE: You can substitute chicken pieces with the bone in or 4 large chicken breasts instead of the whole chicken. Or you can use leftover turkey (about 4 cups) from Thanksgiving. You can also sub milk for the buttermilk.

My happy little hand model :-)