Around the World: Japan

They call it The Beautiful Game, and today is was beautiful, exhilarating and ultimately excruciating as the U.S. Women's Team lost to Japan in a World Cup Finals penalty kick shoot out.

Not that any of us really need to relive the rise and fall, but if you missed it, here're the highlights.



I watched the finals as a former soccer player (probably the shortest high school goal keeper ever!). Jason watched it as a former youth soccer league coach and the sport's newest Uber Fan.

In the middle of the game today (before the crushing loss) he declared that soccer is now his favorite sport. This, from a former college wrestler, triathlete, competitive weightlifter and high school cross country runner. This from a guy who can wipe the floor with anyone who challenges him in sports trivia, whether it's basketball, sombo or golf. (BTW, have to throw out some love to Darren Clarke. At 42, he won his first major today - the British Open (as we Americans call it) or the Open Championships (as the Brits - and Jason - call it).

But back to soccer. Jason loves it. And he loves the women's game even more than the men's. Now, I'd be inclined to think that's because he likes looking at Hope Solo

And who wouldn't?!? She's gorgeous! (stick with brunette, Hope.)

But Jason swears his love of women's soccer is because ...

1) it's much more unpredictable than the men's game, where precision passing and Beckham-bending seem a given

and

2) it flows better than just about any other sport. While baseball, football and basketball can be choppy, soccer is fast and fluid. And the women's game even more so because they don't rely as much on the "art of the flop" to draw a foul. Those men can be so damn dramatic!

But the women. Solo, Wambach (Go Gators!), Rapinoe and crew. They are poetry, even when they don't win.

So, licking our wounds tonight, we made an Around The World Dinner to honor the World Cup Champions...

Olivia was the head chef/team captain. I was her sous/goal keeper. And, as a team, we made Pork and Vegetable Soup and California Roll Sushi.

Pork and Vegetable Soup Ingredients

Notice that big, honking, white thing in the front? (and who wouldn't?!?)

Any clue what it is?

If you answered Parsnip, no dice.

Daikon? You win!

Here's the full ingredient list, from a recipe in this cookbook:

• 2 oz gobo (optional)
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 1/2 black konnyaku
• 2 tsp oil
• 7 oz pork belly, cut into thin strips
• 4 oz daikon, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 oz carrot, thinly sliced
• 1 medium potato, thinly sliced
• 4 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and thinly sliced
• 3.5 cups kombu and bonito stock or instant dashi
• 1 tbsp sake or dry white win
• 3 tbsp red or white miso paste
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• seven-spice flavouring

I know what you're saying. Gobo? Konnyaku? Kombu Stock? What the hell are those?!?

Me too. And while googling cleared it up (here and here and here) it didn't address my lack of

time to go to the asian market across town

and

money to buy exotic ingredients I won't use again any time soon

So, we made some Substitutions:

1. Pork loin for pork belly (not sure what cut is the "Belly", but the term just grosses me out!)

2. White mushrooms for the shiitake (I know.... shiitakes taste much different and they're not that exotic. But remember the $$? I had white 'shrooms in the fridge already)

and Subtractions:

Skipped the gobo (it's optional, afterall), konnyaku, kombu and miso paste and replaced them with store-bought Miso Soup.

Directions (modified from original):

1. Heat oil in a deep sauce pot and quickly stir-fry the pork. Add the mushrooms, daikon, carrots, and potato and stir-fry an additional minute. Pour in the stock and the sake or wine.

2. Bring the soup to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes, until the vegetables have softened.

3. Ladle soup into bowls and top with a sprinkle of scallions and seven-spice flavouring. (We only had 3 of the 7 spices on hand. Ya work with what ya got!)

California Roll Ingredients (modified from here):

• 3 tbsp sesame seeds (DANG! We didn't have these either. And we usually do!)
• 4 crab sticks (The fake stuff. You can find it in the grocery store, near the seafood section)
• 1 small cucumber
• 1/4 of a ripe avocado
• 1 lemon
• 2 toasted nori sheets (that's the seaweed your roll 'em in)
• 1.5 cups prepared sushi rice
• soy sauce, wasabi paste, pickled ginger (all optional) for serving with

Directions:

1. Juice the lemon

2. Ignore the messy counter!

3. Toast the sesame seeds without oil in a small pan on low heat until golden brown, stirring occasionally so they don't burn. Remove from pan and let cool

4. Dry off crab sticks and cut then lengthwise in half.

5. Wash and dry cucumber, then cut (with peel) in 1/4 inch thick slice.

6. Peel the avocado, cut into strips, and immediately sprinkle with lemon juice so it won't turn brown.

7. Cover a sushi rolling mat (or if you're like us and can't find yours, a countertop) with plastic wrap. Place nori sheet smooth side down. Wet your fingers, then spread half of the sushi rice on the nori sheet, leaving a margin on the upper and lower sides of the sheet.

8. Lay a strip of crab, cucumber and avocado on the bottom of the nori sheet, then roll.

9. Repeat with additional nori sheets and ingredients.

10. Once your strips are rolled, cut them into 8 individual pieces, serve with soy sauce, wasabi paste and/or pickled ginger, and enjoy!

We sure did! Miranda stuffed three piece of sushi in her mouth on her way out the door to hang with friends. Olivia loved the sushi, but thought the soup was too spicy (she kinda overdid it on the 7-Spice flavoring. It's very spicy, even with only 3 spices!). Hannah didn't like the sushi (the thought of eating seaweed freaks her out), but loved the soup. And Jason and I agreed, it was a great meal. A beautiful one, if you will.

Speaking of... did you know that the Beautiful Game inspired an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical?



Or music from English smooth jazz group Acoustic Alchemy?



Me neither!

Kitchen Inspiration

I am totally wiped out. Totally!

Many of you know I work in public radio. Well, today was the first day of our Summer Fund Drive -- also known as the semi-annual beg-a-thon.

We had just two days to raise $25,000. And you know what?!? We did it .. in .. one .. day!

A marathon day that started at 5 a.m. for several of my colleagues (6 a.m. for me) and ended 14 hours later.

Needless to say, I'm not cooking tonight! Well, I might broil a hotdog for the kids and warm up some leftover fund drive tacos for Jason and I. But no real cooking.

Instead, I'm gonna sit on my tush with a cold beer and look at kitchen porn.

Like this, from one of my favorite before & after sites Design Sponge...

And this...

(might want to jack my cabinets, thusly)

And this...

(and no, I wouldn't be the least bit worried about the open shelving. We took the doors off most of our cabinets about a year ago and love it.)

Ooooh, and this...

Oh my god, I so love that kitchen. I would totally love any of director Nancy Meyers movie houses. She's just genius!

And finally, this...

(Okay, it's not a kitchen. But it's flippin' fabulous!)

Photo Credits: Doberman, Marathon.

Rustic Swiss Chard and Fontina Tart

It's only July 7th and we already have more month than money, if you know what I mean. Between summer camp fees, a new-to-her car for Miranda, and high utility bills, things are a bit, um, tight. So we're cooking our way through the pantry and fridge, trying to use up what we already have.

Necessity is the mother of invention, and tonite I "invented" a new dish. We'll call it Rustic Swiss Chard and Fontina Tart Pizza (yeah, "pizza" ... that'll go over much better with the kids and Jason!)

Here's the finished product...

But let's break it down...

Dough Ingredients
1.25 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold butter
1/4 cup cold water
1/4 cup sour cream

Filling Ingredients
dough
2 cups swiss chard, washed and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 small tomatoes, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
3/4 cup Fontina cheese, shredded
fresh italian (flat-leaf) parsley


Directions

1. To prepare dough, combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut up the butter into slices, then cut in to the flour combo until the mixture looks like coarse meal. In smaller bowl, combine water and sour cream. Add half of the sour cream mixture to the flour mixture and mix. Add remaining sour cream mixture and mix until flour is moistened. Shape into a ball and refrigerate (up to an hour) while preparing the filling.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

3. In large skillet, cook chard, onions, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper in oil over medium heat for 5 minutes or until chard wilts and onions are tender. Cool slightly, then mix in cheese.

4. Lightly flour a surface, then roll out pastry dough with a rolling pin beer pint glass. Try to roll the dough out so it's a circle; but don't worry if it's an alien creature. It's "rustic", afterall!

5. Transfer the dough to a parchment-lined or greased baking sheet or a pizza stone. Lay tomato slices in the center of the doughy circle, then spoon the filling on top, leaving a 2-inch border. Fold dough over filling, leaving the center open and pinching the edges of the dough.

6. Bake for 35 minutes or until golden. Sprinkle with parsley and serve hot.

Reviews

Olivia -- 5.5 stars out of 5 - I liked this pizza. It's really good and it makes me feel good inside. Except I don't like the parsley on top. But I still give it a 5.5!

Jason -- 3.5 stars out of 5 - It was good. It was a little doughy in parts, which I don't mind; but the biggest negative about it was I only got one slice and I didn't get all that many vegetables.

Hannah -- 3.3 stars out of 5 - The reason I didn't really like it is because it had a lot of vegetables and I don't like vegetables. But if you like vegetables you should eat this dish.

Chef Tanya -- 4 stars out of 5 - Used random stuff out of the pantry and fridge. Didn't suck. Family gobbled it up (and asked for more). I call that success!

Win a Kitchen Renovation

Do you have the ugliest kitchen in America?

Ugly enough to win a free kitchen makeover?

and a trip to NY City??

We just posted info about the "Worst Kitchen in America" contest over at the Necessary Pleasures Facebook Page. Hope you'll check it out, "like" us and share your favorite recipes and tips!

Ooey Gooey Cheesy Chicken

After a weekend of house guests, a five hour Italian dinner party, and a 4th of July packed with Rio and barbecue, we really needed some simple comfort food tonight.

Ooey Gooey Cheesy Chicken fits the bill.

Ingredients

• 2 cups Stove Top Stuffing
• approximately one pound of cooked chicken (leftover from Italian Wedding Soup)
• 4 tbsp flour (we used Wondra Quick-Mixing Flour)
• 2 cup cold milk
• 4 tbsp butter or margarine
• 2 cubes of chicken bouillon
• salt & pepper to taste
• approx. 1/2 cup shredded cheese (we used mozzarella, but cheddar is good too)

Directions
1. Prepare stuffing according to directions.

2. In saucepan, stir together flour, milk, butter, bouillon, and S&P. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil and stir for one minute or until thick like gravy.

3. Spread cooked stuffing in bottom of baking dish. Top with chicken gravy, then chicken, then cheese.

4. Bake, covered, at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.

This recipe is very customizable and great for using up leftovers.  "T&T"* substitutions include:

• Turkey for the chicken
• Cream of Mushroom/Chicken/Celery for the flour-based gravy
• Leftover veggies? Throw them in! 

Enjoy the Ooey Gooey Cheesy Chicken!

* "T&T" = tried and true

Around the World: Italy

This is Olivia ...

She may look all sweet and innocent.

But she has a secret plan to take over the world, one meal at a time. Olivia loves cooking shows. Her favorite is Cake Boss.

(She's already saved more than $300 for a trip to Hoboken to eat one of Buddy's cannoli. And yes, cannoli is the plural of cannoli. I looked it up.)

One of her newest passions is this guy.

I don't know about his cannoli, but he's certainly a bit of eye candy!

And apparently Rocco (of Rocco's Dinner Party) has some cooking chops too. On his show, chefs compete to throw the best themed dinner party for a gaggle of celebrities, chefs and foodies. A recent episode featured an Italian theme and that, my friends, was Olivia's inspiration for Sunday night's dinner (a.k.a. her next step in total culinary domination).

An ambitious menu, no doubt. This girl doesn't mess around!

So, at 4 o'clock she assembled the ingredients. (well, most of them. With 5 courses, there's no way she could get all of the ingredients in one photo!)

Let's break this down into bitesize chunks.

Appetizer: Italian Chips

Ingredients

• 12 wonton wrappers
• 1 egg white, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Arrange the wonton wrappers on the baking sheet in a single layer. Brush each wrapper with egg white.

3. Sprinkle them with parmesan cheese and oregano, then cut into triangles with pizza cutter.

4. Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are brown, 6 to 7 minutes.

** DO NOT burn them, like this...

(dang oven, heats up so hot! Be sure you check yours regularly during the baking process)

If you need a do-over, take it .... and ask a friend to help!

(that's Olivia with newly-minted sous chef Emma, who's visiting from Dallas)

5. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 2 days.

Salad: Italian Macaroni Salad (though I'm not sure how "authentic" it is... lol)

Ingredients

• 1 pkg. macaroni
• 1 bottle Italian dressing
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 sm. jar pimentos
• 2 c. chopped ham
• 1/2 c. salad dressing
• 1 c. shredded cheese
• 1/2 c. sour cream
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Cook macaroni until tender but firm, drain well. Put cooled macaroni into large bowl. Pour Italian dressing over it and cover and keep in refrigerator overnight. Next day: add cucumber, onion, pimentos, ham and cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Fold in salad dressing and sour cream. Mix well. Serve chilled.

Soup: Italian Wedding Soup (**problems with recipe noted below)

Ingredients - Pt. One

• 1/2 lb. meat loaf mix (ground beef and pork)
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 c. bread crumbs
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. oregano
• 1/4 tsp. basil
• 1/4 c. milk

Directions
Combine the ingredients above.

Form small 1/2 inch balls.

Drop into boiling salted water or broth. Simmer for 10 minutes, remove with a straining spoon, place on paper towels to drain briefly, then refrigerate.

Ingredients: Pt. Two

• 1 stewing chicken
• 1 onion, quartered
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 carrot, thickly sliced
• 2 stalks celery, with leaves, cut up
• 1/3 teaspoon oregano
• 4 peppercorns
• 2 tsp. salt
• 6 quarts water or broth

Directions
Simmer chicken with the remaining ingredients in the 6 quarts of water or chicken broth for about 2 1/2 hours or until tender. Remove skin and bones, cut up and refrigerate. Strain broth and return to pot.

Add 1 head escarole, torn into bite sized pieces, black pepper, and red pepper flakes, to taste. Simmer 20 minutes. (WAIT!!! What do you mean escarole?!? The ingredients list doesn't include escarole!! Fatal flaw with the recipe, as posted. Thankfully, we had some extra spinach, so we threw that in)

Meanwhile, break spaghetti into 4 inch long pieces and cook according to package directions; drain. (WAIT!! What spaghetti? That's not in the recipe either! ** ding, dang Cooks.com!! But we've always got pasta in the pantry, so we threw in some shell pasta)

Add 1 1/2 cups prepared chicken and meatballs to broth. Simmer 10 minutes more. Serve warm.

Entree: Cheesy Vegetable Lasagna
(this one's pretty straightforward, folks)

Ingredients

• 12 lasagna noodles (we use whole wheat -- the kids & pickier grownups don't even notice!)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 heads fresh broccoli, chopped
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped
• 2 small zucchini, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 cups milk
• 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 1 (8 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese
• 24 ounces ricotta cheese
• 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish.

2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

3. Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot add broccoli, carrots, onions, bell peppers, zucchini and garlic. Saute for 7 minutes; set aside.

4. Place flour in a medium saucepan and gradually whisk in milk until well blended. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook 5 minutes, or until thick, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper; cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in spinach. Reserve 1/2 cup spinach mixture. In a small bowl combine cottage and ricotta cheeses; stir well.

5. Spread about 1/2 cup of spinach mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan. Layer noodles, ricotta mixture, vegetables, spinach mixture and 2 cups mozzarella cheese, ending with noodles. Top with reserved spinach mixture, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.

6. Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. Cool for approximately 10 minutes before serving.

Dessert: Tiramisu

Yes, tiramisu is not a cannoli. But we discovered, as we were heading out to the grocery store, that to make a cannoli we needed a cannoli tube. We don't have a cannoli tube. We weren't sure where to get a cannoli tube. We were tired and wanted to get cooking. So, tiramisu it is ... prepared by sous chef Erika.

Ingredients

• 6 egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 pound mascarpone cheese
• 1 1/2 cups strong espresso, cooled
• 2 teaspoons dark rum (we used vanilla extract instead)
• 24 packaged ladyfingers
• 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate shavings, for garnish

Directions

1. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Add mascarpone cheese and beat until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of espresso and mix until thoroughly combined.

2. In a small shallow dish, add remaining espresso and rum. Dip each ladyfinger into espresso for only 5 seconds. Letting the ladyfingers soak too long will cause them to fall apart. Place the soaked ladyfinger on the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking dish, breaking them in half if necessary in order to fit the bottom.

3. Spread evenly 1/2 of the mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers. Arrange another layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with remaining mascarpone mixture.

4. Cover tiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 8 hours. Before serving, sprinkle with chocolate shavings.

(PHEW! I'm tired just typing all that!!)

It took a looooong time, but by...

Olivia had everyone at the table...

and Frank Sinatra on Pandora.

We ate...

We critiqued...
chips were easy & tasty

wedding soup was spicy, but really good

macaroni salad tasted like something we'd eat at a fancy bistro in Florence at the family reunion on the farm in Iowa

lasagna was a little watery (always a risk with veggie lasagna)

tiramisu was to delicious! and not very difficult

We laughed ("that's what she said!")...

And had a lot of fun.

Watch out world (and Rocco), 'cause here comes Olivia!

Necessary Pleasures Featured in B-Metro Magazine

We've been sitting on this news for a while, but our humble little family food blog is featured in this month's B-Metro Magazine!!!!!!

(do the exclamation points adequately capture how excited the girls are over this?!? okay, me too!!)

And wow - look at the photos Beau captured...

We might be using that one as a profile pic for a long, long time! I wish Jason had been in it, but he was busy cooking the dinner. The meal we featured (Mozzarella Chicken) is handed down from his family in Utah. Here's the super yummy photo:

Don't you just want to gobble it up right now?!? It's easy to make. Check out the recipe and learn a little more about our food philosophy here.

And friend us on Facebook ... we're always interested in what you're cooking!