Category Archives: Cooking

Mom Rocks

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Mom rocks so make her some rock fish for mother’s day. Rock fish is a light, tasty fish easily found in the Chesapeake Bay area. (It is the Maryland state fish after all.) If you can’t find it, any white fish will do — trout, tilapia, grouper, and the like.

Here’s my favorite recipe for grilled rock fish although a secret sauce of Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly makes it great. You can substitute any pepper jelly you like for an easy sauce.

Tommy Cooper, owner of Fire & Spice Gourmet on Nutt Street in Wilmington, North Carolina, located in the Cotton Exchange, gives this recommendation for fish. “I use Rose & Ivy Brand Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly with speckled trout we catch locally.” The jelly’s ingredients are sugar, sweet peppers, vinegar, pecans, pectin and the famous Scotch Bonnet Pepper. It is homemade by Bell Buckle Country Store.

May is a great time to eat on the porch or deck, grill something light, sit back and enjoy the moderate weather. Do it for mom.

Rockfish with Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly

  • 1 pound rockfish or other white fish fillets, boned and skinned
  • Non-stick cooking spray
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2-3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 jar of Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly

Spray baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Season fish filets with salt and pepper and place in baking dish. Dot top of fish with butter. Turn on the oven broiler to preheat. Set fish aside.

Pour the Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly into a saucepan and heat on low until warm but not boiling. (You don’t want it to thin down too much.)

Broil the fish for about 7-9 minutes or until flaky. Fish should not be overcooked. Remove from broiler and put on plates.

Drizzle the warm Pecan Pepper Jelly over the fish and serve. Keep the warm jelly on the side for anyone who wants more.

Yield: 4 servings

This recipe was originally printed in the spring 2013 issue of Celebrate Home Magazine. Download the magazine for free at http://www.celebratehomemagazine.com.

Raise Your Hand if You Remember Pickled Eggs

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Jane McLaughlin's pickled eggs

Jane McLaughlin’s pickled eggs

Pickled eggs can be traced back to a time when there was no refrigeration and eggs were preserved in vinegar brine. Although I didn’t live in the no-fridge era my mom made them and they were always a mainstay of dad’s 1950s-style smorgasbord restaurants.

Have you seen them lately? Probably not because they’ve fallen off the culinary map. Even the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, the red-and-white plaid standard for home cooks, has dropped the recipes for pickled beets and pickled eggs from its pages. I found this out when I went searching for the recipe in my newer copy.

There are some of us who not only like to preserve the eggs, but also the past. My sister Jane is one of those so she made some for Easter. Knowing they are loaded with nostalgia and taste, she said, “Look Barb, I made pickled eggs!”

My husband Bill said, “Oh yeah, good old bar food.”

“Huh?” my sister and I replied.

“Yes,” Hank Deitle’s Tavern on Rockville Pike [Maryland] had jars of them. That’s all they served — pickled eggs, bags of chips and beer. Then he added some advice, “Jane, you should have them in your restaurants at the bar.”

She dismissed the idea but she might reconsider when she hears this. It turns out Bill’s advice has merit. In England, pickled eggs, onions and beets were considered a working man’s food and gained popularity in pubs where the eggs tasted good with a pint of ale.  In the United States, just like Hank Deitle’s, a jar of pickled eggs were a permanent fixture on the bar.

It seems my sister and I haven’t been in enough bars to know about this but maybe she will bring the old times back in Bonefish Mac’s – a chain of restaurants in south Florida she owns with her husband Chuck. At least the old coots will appreciate them and maybe the egg jar fixture will breed a new generation of pickled egg lovers.

And by the way, Hank Deitle’s, since 1916, is still there. It’s not much to look at stuck in between luxury condos and new office buildings, but it remains a no-frills beer bar, cash only. Bill remembers his dad stopping off for a quick one while he left the 11 kids in the big station wagon to hoop and holler and make their own good times.

Jane’s recipe comes from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book that she got for a wedding present when she and Chuck married in 1973. She says about the grease-stained, dog-eared book, “I still love it! The new one can’t compare!”

Rosy Pickled Eggs

From Better Homes and Garden’s New Cook Book, 1972, Fifth Printing

  • 1 cup juice from jar of pickled beets
  • 1 cup white vinegar
  • 4 cups water
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 medium bay leaf
  • 2 teaspoons pickling spices
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (sometimes I use garlic salt and omit the garlic clove)
  • 12 hard-cooked eggs, cooled and shelled
  • 1 small onion, sliced and separated into rings

Combine beet juice, vinegar, four cups water, garlic, bay leaf, pickling spices, and salt. Mix well. Put into a covered container and add eggs and onions. Cover tightly and refrigerate for several days. The longer they sit, the rosier and better they get.

Jam and Cheese

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Keep the ingredients on hand for a quick and easy appetizer. You can substitute another soft cheese like goat cheese or cream cheese, depending on your taste and what you have on hand. In winter, use pecans. These morsels of good will get big YUMS and an A+ in Hospitality.

Jam and Cheese Appetizers

  • Filo dough shells (These are mini shells about 2 inches in diameter and can be found in your grocer’s freezer, usually one dozen to a pack.)
  • 1/2 pound Brie cheese (do not remove the rind)
  • 1/2 cup apricot jam
  • 1/2 cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted

Thaw filo cups for about ten minutes, and place on baking sheet.

Toast almonds by spreading them in an ungreased pan. Bake in a preheated 350⁰ oven for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally until brown. Set aside.

Cut Brie into one-inch chunks and place one chunk into each filo shell. Do not remove the rind from the Brie as it gives the warm cheese a pungent flavor.

Top the cheese with a teaspoon of apricot jam, then top with slivered, toasted, almonds.

Bake for 10 minutes at 350⁰ or until bubbly. Serve immediately.

My recipe just appeared in the spring 2012 Celebrate Home Magazine. Download the magazine for free here:

Single pages version:Celebrate Home Spring 2013

Reader spreads version (my favorite!): Celebrate Home Spring 2013 Spreads

Order a print copy (at cost, plus shipping) or “Buy Digital: Free” for free download http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/540569

You can also view it on issuu.com here. 

Jam Session

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Cooking with different flavors of jam is fun and tasty! We all have a jar of something in our pantry — jam, jelly, preserves, etc.

Check out the spring issue of Celebrate Home Magazine with easy recipes for:

  • Milky Way Croissants
  • Jam n’ Cheese Appetizers
  • Mornin’ Jam Muffins
  • Queen of Hearts Blueberry Tart
  • Rockfish with Southern Pecan Pepper Jelly

Download Celebrate Home Magazine free here:

Single pages version:Celebrate Home Spring 2013

Reader spreads version (my favorite!): Celebrate Home Spring 2013 Spreads

Order a print copy (at cost, plus shipping) or “Buy Digital: Free” for free download http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/540569

You can also view it on issuu.com here. 

Coming soon: Excerpts of feature article for purchase on magcloud.com. (Smaller, less expensive excerpts of your favorite articles.

Celebrate Home Magazine — Spring Issue in Bloom!

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The spring 2013 issue of Celebrate Home Magazine is now available for digital download in the links below. Click on either of the links below to download your FREE pdf copy of this issue.

This issue is jam-packed (and there’s even a jam-making feature!), so download today and get started reading.

Single pages version:Celebrate Home Spring 2013

Reader spreads version (my favorite!): Celebrate Home Spring 2013 Spreads

Order a print copy (at cost, plus shipping) or “Buy Digital: Free” for free download http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/540569

You can also view it on issuu.com here. 

Coming soon: Excerpts of feature article for purchase on magcloud.com. (Smaller, less expensive excerpts of your favorite articles.

On the cover: What says “spring” more than colorful tulips? Cindy Dyer, art director, was photographing this bed of flowers and was standing on the edge of the wall when this little girl, clad in a princess skirt with sparkly shoes, came running around the corner. Cindy snapped this one shot and the little princess was gone. Serendipity!

Kill the Fattened Calf…My Soldier is Home

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My husband, Bill, returned home tonight after a year’s deployment with the First Infantry Division – “The Big Red One” — based out of Fort Riley, Kansas. Bill is a JAG with the U.S. Army Reserves and served his second deployment to active duty. I couldn’t have predicted I’d be writing this blog; but as all bloggers, we write when the spirit moves us.

I haven’t talked about his deployment in this blog because frankly I thought it was better if I kept it to myself. But now that’s it’s over, I just want to say thank you to all the families who serve along with our military and who say goodbye and, God willing, hello, again to those we love. “All give some and some give all” so we can live in freedom.

The way for me to make the time go fast was not to let any grass grow under my feet…I had a long to-do list and, by golly, I was going to get it done up until last night hanging that last picture on the wall. I really didn’t need a to-do list because our 12-year-old son turned into a teenager during that year and his schedule alone is enough to keep me on the run. My list included small things like cleaning out the basement, to big things like publishing a new magazine (Celebrate Home Magazine) — and everything in between. But now that Bill’s home, I want to thank those helped us out throughout the year. The danger here is forgetting someone. So, with that said, if I forgot you, I expect you to stand up and be counted.

Thank you to the following for extending your warm hospitality to the Kelley’s during the past year.

(These are in no particular order, just steam-of-consciousness gratitude.)

  • To Linda for bringing me homemade chicken soup with bones when I was so sick, and the pound cake on my birthday.
  • To Linda, Jesus, Kathleen and Andrew who drove the carpool when I was sick or had a work commitment.
  • To Nancy who tells funny real-life stories and told me on Fridays before I left the office to go home and have a Sprodka.
  • To Marion who was willing to take Patrick any time when I got scheduled out at work (and to her and her kids for being taste testers for recipes).
  • To Bob who turned our septic (oh, and by the way, cut up our mightly oak that at midnight fell from our yard into the street and blocked traffic, but he’d rather be known for the septic!)
  • To Don who poured me a glass of wine and to his wife Tracy who took Patrick to Houston and every other time.
  • To Melanie who just knew when to show up and when to offer (even before I did).
  • To Mark who kept the prayers going and always gave me encouragement to just do it (whatever I said I was going to do that day).
  • To Veronica and Michael for driving Patrick to “elbow” lessons.
  • To Hollace who always asked.
  • To Joan who always checked in.
  • To Susan who laughed at my jokes and asked for my autograph.
  • To Tami and Chilo for driving to basketball early Saturday mornings.
  • To Cindy for getting me busy the minute Bill left catering her Garden Muse show.
  • To Margaret, Rick, Susie and Jim for joining us in Marietta.
  • For Margaret and Clark who welcomed the soldier to New Mexico
  • To Susie who texted daily or called and who gave me the pretty primroses.
  • To Elaine who sent Bill delicious food (and for the hospitality she showed to us).
  • To SFC Rice for serving as Bill’s NCOIC and for the “Irish Basket” that we all enjoyed when he got home.
  • To BilliJo for calling to see if we were okay
  • To all my neighbors on the Lane for being neighborly.
  • To Irene and Mike for always being happy to see me at school and ask about Bill.
  • To Herb for fixing the toilet when it leaked through the ceiling.
  • To Peggy who dreams big for me.
  • To Ethel, my hairdresser
  • To Father Beers, our friend
  • To all of Patrick’s friends who hung out at our house and let the good times roll.
  • Finally, to all of you who read this blog, write to me, send me photos and recipes, and let me know what you’re cooking for those you love.

Welcome home, kill the fatted calf. Prepare food for the traveler and rejoice! Tonight’s menu: Beef Bourguignon, salad, focaccio bread, and a blueberry tart. No recipes today but stay tuned for the recipe of the “Queen of Heart, Blueberry Teart” in the spring Celebrate Home Magazine.

“Duty First…Victory!”

A Southern Boy Who Likes to Cook

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I don’t know who spoke first — Steve Davis or I. When I was at Giant at North Point Village in the checkout line buying several packages of cream cheese, he said, “Someone likes cream cheese.” His tone was friendly and non-intrusive. His line was delivered in such a way that I could ignore it or take the bait. You know me; I never back away from a friendly face and a good chat.

“Oh yes…I’m creating a cheesecake recipe and I need lots of cream cheese to do several tests.” I enjoy inventing my own recipes.”

Steve took my bait and succinctly shared a shrimp-cream-cheese recipe. Then he revealed, “I’ve been cooking since the age of five. One of my first things I made was cookies. Take one cup of peanut butter, one cup of sugar, one egg, stir it up and add chocolate chips.”

“That’s it?” I said.

“That’s it,” he replied.

We packed a lot in during the time it took him to check out my order and get it bagged. Steve has a knack for knowing how much to talk and still get the job done. It seems he got his schooling in cooking at home and from working in restaurants. (There might be more to the story, but you know, we only had a brief time in the checkout line.)

I told Steve about this blog, snapped his photo, and asked him if I could share his recipe.

“Sure,” he said, “I’m not a special feller; I’m just a plain ‘ole country boy in the city.”

The Other Night

Steve works nights, usually the time I am doing my shopping. I was in Giant late one night last week and I asked my checkout guy if he was there. He smiled wryly and said, “Everyone asks for Steve. He talks to all the customers, they love him.”

“Oh, you mean I’m not special?”

“All our customers at Giant are special,” he replied.

Recipe for Steven Davis’ Cookies
Cookies pictured above, Steve pictured here

  • 1 cup peanut butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg

Mix the three ingredients and add about a cup of chocolate chips. Drop onto cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes at 350 degree oven. Check the time as it depends on your oven.

Bowls of Comfort

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When Bobby G. cooks it is nothing short of excellent. Try his Chicken Noodle Soup. It’s rich yet healthy. The secret? Cooling the soup and skimming off the fat from his homemade stock is key. You just can’t get any better than this recipe.

Recipe for Bobby G’s Chicken Noodle Soup

His recipe hit the big time when it was published in the winter issue of Celebrate Home Magazine (page 42).

Three Ways to Get Celebrate Home Magazine

  • Download the magazine free here. Or buy a printed copy at this site.
  • Click here for the reader spreads (my favorite).
  • Single-page version if you want to print a recipe page.

Pretty as a Picture

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I just love these bottles of dessert wines lined up on my bar. If you walked into our home and saw these waiting for you, wouldn’t you just want to sit down and have a little sip with a bite of dessert? I hope so, because that’s what Kelley Hospitality is all about — making you feel like we were waiting just for you to come by.

How-To

Invite a few friends over later in the evening for dessert and wine. To keep it simple serve one wine and one dessert. Serve the first wine on the left — the Moscato D’Asti — it’s light, bubbly and low in alcohol. It pairs well with a cheesecake, pound cake, apple pie, cobbler or the like. If you’re short on time, buy the dessert. If you can’t find the Moscato D’Asti, serve any Spumante. Add some decaf coffee and tea, and you have an easy get together.

For More on Dessert and Wine Pairings

If you want to get a little more elaborate, read a Wintertime Dessert Party in Celebrate Home Magazine (page 44).

Three Ways to Get Celebrate Home Magazine

  • Download the magazine free here. Or buy a printed copy at this site.
  • Click here for the reader spreads (my favorite).
  • Single-page version if you want to print a recipe page.

 

So Beautiful…and So Edible

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My petite chocolate bundts are rich and gooey with a hint of something..what is it? For the recipe see the winter issue of Celebrate Home Magazine (page 50).

Three Ways to Get Celebrate Home Magazine

  • Download the magazine free here. Or buy a printed copy at this site.
  • Click here for the reader spreads (my favorite).
  • Single-page version if you want to print a recipe page.