Baked Salmon Dijonnaise

This one is so simple it’s almost embarrassing to write down the recipe.

Ingredients

·         SALMON FILET, whole, or cut into four-ounce pieces

·         MAYONNAISE, ½ cup

·         DIJON MUSTARD, 2 tablespoons

·         SALT and PEPPER, to taste

Directions

1.       Sprinkle salt and pepper on the salmon.

2.       Combine the mayonnaise and mustard, and spread on the top of the salmon.

3.       Place salmon on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper.

4.       Bake for 10-15 minutes in a 350-degree oven, or until the fish is just cooked through and flakes easily.

5.       Turn on the broiler and broil until the Dijonnaise topping is golden-brown. Do not overcook.

6.       Serve with a salad or scalloped potatoes.

Apricot Chicken

I made this recipe up. One morning, I woke up thinking about apricots and wondered when they’d come into season again.

Recently, I found some fresh apricots at the supermarket, so I tried this out.

Ingredients

·         CHICKEN THIGHS, 8-10, deboned, skin trimmed

·         APRICOTS, 5 fresh, seeded, quartered

·         APRICOT JAM, 3 tablespoons

·         HONEY, 1 teaspoon

·         WATER, ¼ cup

·         WHITE WINE, ¼ CUP

·         GARLIC SALT and PEPPER, to taste.

Directions

1.       Prepare the fresh apricots, mix with the jam, water and honey, then cook slowly over medium low heat in a sauce pot, stirring until the apricots are cooked and semi-soft.

2.       Salt and pepper the chicken, then brown the chicken in canola oil, skin side first, in batches. Remove to a bowl.

3.       Deglaze the pan with the white wine and return the chicken to the pan, covering and cooking at medium heat for five minutes or so, until the internal juices run clear.

4.       Arrange the chicken in a serving dish, and pour the apricots over.

5.       Garnish with chopped greens (any kind will do, the last time I made this, I used some celery leaves).

Split Pea Soup

I first had split pea soup during a lunch meeting of the Monterey Park (California) Lions Club. The cook – Jessie – had made a huge potful of the delicious soup and I could tell it was a popular item because when I went back for seconds, there was none left.

This is not my own recipe; I got it off the ‘Net a while back and fiddled around with it. I really regret not asking Jessie for her recipe 40 years ago. Darnit.

Ingredients 

·         DRIED SPLIT PEAS, 1 pound bag

·         COLD WATER, 2 quarts

·         HAM BONE, 1½ pounds

·         ONIONS, 2, thinly sliced or chopped

·         SALT, ½ teaspoon

·         BLACK PEPPER, ¼ teaspoon freshly ground

·         MARJORAM, dried, 1 pinch

·         CELERY, 1 stalk, chopped

·         CARROT, 1, chopped

·         POTATO, 1, diced (or, half-cup of mashed or equivalent) 

Directions 

1.       Soak the peas for at least a couple of hours with the water in a large stock pot.

2.       Add the ham bone, onion, salt, pepper and marjoram.

3.       Cover, bring to boil and then simmer for 1½ hours, stirring occasionally.

4.       Remove the bone. Cut the meat off the bone, dice and return meat to the soup.

5.       Add the celery, carrots and potatoes. Cook slowly, uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

6.       Turn off the heat and let cool for a bit before serving.

Karen's Kitchen Recipe Books

My sister, Karen Ono, is an excellent cook, and we all look forward to family dinners at her house, whether it be a pot luck, a family gathering, or some kind of celebration.

She's an avid recipe collector and tries all kinds of yummy creations. I'm not sure if she's practicing on us, but I have to say I haven't been disappointed yet.

The reason I mention this is because she used to file the recipes in three-ring binders, protected in plastic sleeves. She might still do that, but a few years ago, she compiled them in a little booklet that she distributed to family members.

Last year, she came out with volume two. The cookbook covers were designed by our cousin, Gale Okumura, of Okumura Design in Sacramento.

Want to follow some of her recipes? Tell you what ... I'll post some occasionally just for you.

Pasta Fagioli Soup

Soup is such a warming, satisfying, delicious comfort food, and when you make something like this Pasta Fagioli soup, it’s totally vegetarian without any of the baggage that goes with the label.

“Pasta” of course means pasta – whatever kind you like, although I tend to use rotini (y’know, the corkscrew pasta) because I can buy a whole package of it, use what I want, and save the rest in a Zip-Lok bag for some other time. “Fagioli” is Italian for beans. You can get dried beans and rehydrate them yourself, but the canned beans are perfect already.

This version is pretty heavy on the tomato sauce, which means the flavor is going to be pretty intense. If you want a slightly milder soup, cut the tomato sauce in half and add about a quarter-cup of water during the cooking.

Ingredients

·         CELERY, 2 stalks, chopped

·         ONION, 1 medium, chopped

·         GARLIC, 3 cloves, minced

·         DRIED PARSLEY, 2 teaspoons

·         ITALIAN SEASONING, 1 teaspoon

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         CHICKEN BROTH, 1 14.5-ounce can

·         TOMATOES, 2 medium, peeled and chopped

·         TOMATO SAUCE, 1 8-ounce can

·         PASTA, ½ cup uncooked (rotini is great)

·         CANNELLINI BEANS, 1 15-ounce can with liquid

·         PARMESAN CHEESE, grated

Directions

1.       In a large saucepan, cook celery, onion, garlic, parsley, Italian seasoning, and salt until the onion is translucent.

2.       Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes and tomato sauce. Simmer on low for 15-20 minutes.

3.       Add pasta and cook 10-12 minutes until pasta is tender.

4.       Add the undrained beans (I smash half first) and heat through.

5.       Serve with grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top.

Creamy Cauliflower

I’ve made a few adjustments to this recipe that I downloaded from the Internet, because the first time I made it, the flavor wasn’t as intense as I hoped it would be.

For the cheese, the recipe originally called for a cup of grated Parmesan cheese. What I did was substitute half of it with grated sharp cheddar for an additional layer of flavor. Be aware that if you use cheddar, the sauce will thicken and won’t be as creamy.

You can use whatever bread crumbs you have available. I like to use Progresso Italian-flavored crumbs mixed with Japanese panko for an additional crispy crunch.

Ingredients

·         CAULIFLOWER, 1 head

·         PANCETTA, 4 ounces

·         BUTTER, ¼ cup

·         FLOUR, ¼ cup

·         MILK , 2 cups

·         GARLIC, 2 cloves, crushed

·         NUTMEG, ground

·         CHEESE, grated, 1 cup

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         BREAD CRUMBS

Directions

1.       Cut up the cauliflower into florets and arrange in a single layer in a baking dish.

2.       Cut the pancetta into lardons and crisp them in a frying pan. Sprinkle over the cauliflower.

3.       Make a béchamel sauce: Melt the butter, add the flour to make the roux, stirring constantly, and then whisk in the milk.

4.       Add the garlic, nutmeg and cheese. Add the garlic salt to taste.

5.       Pour the sauce over the cauliflower and then top with bread crumbs.

6.       Bake 30 minutes in 350-degree oven.

7.       (Optional) Brown for 3-5 additional minutes under a broiler until the bread crumbs on top become golden.

Chicken Cutlets with Roasted Pepper Relish

I came up with this recipe several years ago when I was in the mood for roasted peppers, and put it in the back of my mind until recently when I saw Bobby Flay roasting peppers on his television brunch program.

So, before I could forget it again, I went shopping and put together this relish. It’s very tasty with chicken or on scrambled eggs in the morning.

I use Japanese panko for the breading in this recipe to impart crunchiness to the cutlets, but have also made the chicken with Italian-flavored Progresso bread crumbs in the past. Either works, it’s up to your preference.

Ingredients

·         CHICKEN BREASTS, 2 or 3, boneless and skinless

·         COOKING OIL, Canola, about a half-cup

·         BREAD CRUMBS, about a cup

·         SWEET PEPPERS, 1 each green, red, orange and yellow

·         SWEET ONION, 1 large, chopped

·         TOMATOES, 2 medium, seeded and chopped

·         CALAMATA OLIVES, about a quarter cup, seeded and chopped

·         BUTTER, 2 tablespoons

·         HONEY, 1 tablespoon

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground to taste

Directions

1.       Coat the peppers with vegetable oil, place on a foil-lined tray and roast in a 450˚ oven for 30 minutes, turning often, charring all sides if possible.

2.       Place the roasted peppers in a paper bag and close. Let stand for about 15 minutes and the steam will loosen the skin.

3.       Peel, seed and chop the peppers.

4.       Melt the butter on medium heat in a large pan, then sauté the onions until tender but not browned.

5.       Add the sweet peppers, olives and tomatoes. Stir together.

6.       Sweeten with the honey, then season with garlic salt and pepper to taste.

7.       When the tomatoes are heated through, remove from the heat and let stand uncovered.

8.       Cut the chicken breasts in half horizontally so you have two flat pieces for each breast. Cut these in half again width-wise to make large medallions.

9.       Pound each piece flat between sheets of plastic wrap, then salt and pepper each piece.

10.   Coat each side of each piece in bread crumbs and fry in a large frying pan in vegetable oil until golden brown and delicious.