Category Archives: Nibbles

A la Carte: Spring is Here … Celebrate with Spring Minestrone

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Lee White

I have spent the past few weeks with friends, first with the Oscars (yes, we all saw the slap and, with all the brilliant actors and crew from the amazing movie, CODA, they knew what Will Smith was saying. I myself don’t read lips, but I knew what he was saying.)

The following Friday, we watched UConn ladies in the Final Four.

On Sunday, I watched them alone.  Sigh.

I had also made two cakes, the one called Emergency Chocolate Cake because it is dairy-free and can usually be made easily with pantry and refrigerator staples. During the Friday game, we all made make-your-own ice cream sundaes with slices of the cake.

During half-times, we talked politics and food. Libby is cleaning up her gorgeous flower and vegetable gardens, while the rest of us talked about how lucky we are to get incredibly superb frozen vegetables.

And now that I don’t have a garden, I do have a big freezer and buy pounds of Whole Food and Trader Joe’s frozen sweet peas, corn, beans and broccoli (I am also buying the broccoli, plus cauliflower, from the produce aisles). 

Ingredients for the following recipe can all be found without driving almost an hour. And feel free to add other vegetables and change the ones you can’t find. I have been using fresh asparagus for some weeks. Is it fresh and local? Probably not, but they are lovely, the tips tight and the green stalks wonderful upright.

Spring is here and summer is right around the corner.

Spring Minestrone
From Real Simple, April, 2022

6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 large leeks, white and light green parts only sliced into thin rounds
3 stalks celery, sliced (about 1 ½ cups)
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
1 ¾ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
6 cups lower-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup ditalini pasta
4 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (1 cup)
4 ounces cups green Swish chard
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil plus small leaves for serving
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over medium. Add leeks, celery, crushed red pepper (9if using), and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks soften, about 4 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil.

Add pasta to pan. Return to a boil. Cook over medium high, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender, about 12 minutes. Stir in beans during final 3 minutes of cook time. Remove from heat.

Stir in chard, basil, lemon juice and remaining 1 ¼ teaspoon salt. Ladle into bowls and drizzle with remaining 4 tablespoons oil. Top with parmesan (if using) and small basil leaves.

About the author: Lee White has been writing about restaurants and cooking since 1976 and has been extensively published in the Worcester (Mass.) Magazine, The Day, Norwich Bulletin, and Hartford Courant. She currently writes ‘Nibbles’ and a cooking column called ‘A La Carte’ for LymeLine.com along with the Shore Publishing and Times newspapers, both of which are owned by The Day. She was a resident of Old Lyme for many years but now lives in Groton, Conn. Contact Lee at leeawhite@aol.com.

A la Carte: Thinking Lent (or Passover or Easter)? Then Think Fish

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Lee White

Oh my, it may be April 1, as you are reading this. But this column is not about April Fool’s Day but rather two important holidays, which follow in just a couple of weeks—Easter and Passover.

Because the two holidays follow different calendars, rarely do Easter weekend (including Good Friday, Easter Sunday or, that new holiday, Easter Monday) and Passover coincide.

As with most Jewish holidays, Passover with its wonderful dinner, or seder — which can include brisket or turkey, sweet potatoes, matzoh topped with horseradish (which I love) and sometimes macaroons for dessert — begins on the evening before the holiday.

This year the seder begins on April 15 at sundown. The seder is sad in the beginning, but ends with happiness and songs.

Easter begins sadly with Good Friday, the day Jesus died and was entombed, and ends with Easter Sunday, when Jesus rose. After church on Sunday, Christians may choose a festive dinner, often with turkey or ham, rolls and butter, fresh peas (because sometimes, although rarely, the peas sown in mild-March might be ready to pick), rich scalloped potatoes and, if you are lucky, a ricotta cake and fresh berries. 

My daughter has Good Friday and Easter Monday off and is taking the red-eye from California; she will arrive very early Friday. By Friday evening, her eight-day Passover fast means no flour, meaning no bread. Also, over the past few years, she had a few bouts with crab legs and an allergist said it might be best if she stays away from shellfish.

I am not the least bit religious, so I do not avoid bread at Passover or seafood ever.

My daughter, on the other hand, has decided that lobster is okay. So, we may go to Ford’s before sundown, where I will have lobster risotto. She decided that rice is okay at Passover (others disagree) and will enjoy just a taste of lobster and order shrimp. 

The next night we will eat at home with this recipe. This is pretty and delicious for Lent or anytime.

Sear-Roasted Halibut with Tomato and Capers
Adapted from Fine Cooking, volume 93, June-July, 2008

Yield: serves 4

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and chopped
1 ½ tablespoons fresh oregano (if dried, use only a teaspoon)
1 ½ teaspoons balsamic vinegar
sea salt or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds thick, skinless halibut fillet (or mild white fish, like cod) cut into 4 even pieces
½ cup all-purpose flour (or gluten-free flour)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (I used canola because I was out of EVOO)
2 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced

Position rack in center of oven and heat oven to 450 degrees. 

In a medium bowl, mix tomatoes, capers, oregano, vinegar, ½ teaspoons salt and ¼ teaspoons pepper.

In a plate, place flour and the rest of salt and pepper. Dredge fish in flour and shake excess flour.

Heat oil in a 12-inch (preferably non-stick) ovenproof skillet over medium high-heat until shimmering hot.

Add fish, evenly spaced and cook without touching until it browns and released easily from the pan (check by gently lifting one of the corners), about 3 minutes.

Flip fish, sprinkle garlic around it, and cook until garlic just starts to brown on some edges, about 30 minutes. Pour the tomato mixture around the fish and transfer skillet to the oven.

Roast until the fish is just firm to the touch and opaque when you pry open a thicker piece with a paring knife, 3 to 6 minutes.

Let fish rest for a couple of minutes and then serve with the tomato mixture spooned over it.

About the author: Lee White has been writing about restaurants and cooking since 1976 and has been extensively published in the Worcester (Mass.) Magazine, The Day, Norwich Bulletin, and Hartford Courant. She currently writes ‘Nibbles’ and a cooking column called ‘A La Carte’ for LymeLine.com along with the Shore Publishing and Times newspapers, both of which are owned by The Day. She was a resident of Old Lyme for many years but now lives in Groton, Conn. Contact Lee at leeawhite@aol.com.

A la Carte: Thinking of Those Southern Warmer Climes? Creole Daube Will Take You There

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Lee White

Finally, inflation has really got to me at the supermarket.

I so wanted to make a pot roast and saw a lovely fat chuck roast. Before I put it into my cart, I saw the price: $31. I looked again. Yup, $31 for a piece of meat that requires 3 to 4 hours of cooking before it has the perfect chew.

I left that market with chicken. The next day I tried another market. That piece was $23, still expensive, but bought it and made the recipe below.

I shared enough with my next-door neighbors and the next morning Sue told me she saw the circular at McQuade’s said $3.99 a pound. Quick like a bunny, I went to McQuade’s and bought three and put them in my freezer.

Instead of my regular recipe, shared with friend Ralph Turri some years ago, I found this recipe in a new Southern Living. My friend Meredith, a Texan transplant from Connecticut, shares the magazines with me. In return, I give her my New York Times Sunday Magazine. 

This recipe has exact amounts. The bacon doesn’t have to be hickory-smoke, the chuck can be smaller or larger, the veggies can vary. But I am in love with Better than Bouillon stock and they are now available on the shelves of most big supermarkets.

Creole Daube
From Southern Living, January, 2022, page 96
Yield: serves 6 to 8

3 thick-cut hickory-smoke bacon slices, coarsely chopped
1 3 ½ pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 small yellow onions, chopped (about 2 ¼ cups)
1 small green bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 large celery stalk, chopped (about ½ cup)
3 tablespoons tomato paste (from 1 6-oumce can)
2 ½ tablespoons chopped garlic from 8 garlic cloves)
1 cup dry red wine
2 cups beef stock (I use Better than Bouillon—1 teaspoon for each cup water)
5 fresh thyme sprigs
3 bay leaves
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
5 small carrots, sliced on an angle into 2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
2 medium turnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
4 tablespoons of flour stirred into 2 to 3 cups cold water

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until brown and fat rendered, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and reserve dripping to a skilled.

Sprinkle roast with salt and pepper. Increase heat to medium-heat. Add roast to Dutch oven and sear. Until browned on 2 sides, about 12 minutes. Carefully flip halfway through. Transfer to a plate.

Reduce heat to medium. Add onions, bell pepper and celery to Dutch oven; cook, stirring often and scraping browned bits from bottom of Dutch oven, until onions soften, about 6 minutes. Add tomato paste and garlic; cook, stirring constantly, until paste turns a share darker, about 2 minutes. Add wine and bring to a simmer oven medium.

Simmer stirring occasionally, until it is slightly thickened and some of alcohol burns off, about 3 minutes. Stir in stock, thyme sprigs, bay leaves and clove. Nestle in roast and bacon along with any juices that have accumulated; bring to a simmer over medium, then remove from heat.

Cover and transfer to oven, and braise about 2 hours.

Remove from oven, uncover and stir in carrots and turnips. Cover and return to oven; braise until meat and vegetables are tender, about another hour. Remove and let rest 15 minutes. Remove roast and shred into large pieces. I reduce liquid to 1/3, then add flour/cold water mixture and whisk into a gravy.

Serve with fresh vegetables and roasted potatoes.

About the author: Lee White has been writing about restaurants and cooking since 1976 and has been extensively published in the Worcester (Mass.) Magazine, The Day, Norwich Bulletin, and Hartford Courant. She currently writes ‘Nibbles’ and a cooking column called ‘A La Carte’ for LymeLine.com along with the Shore Publishing and Times newspapers, both of which are owned by The Day. She was a resident of Old Lyme for many years but now lives in Groton, Conn. Contact Lee at leeawhite@aol.com.

A la Carte: It’s St. Patrick’s Day, So It Must Be Time For Corned Beef & Cabbage!

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Lee White

I had such a fun weekend watching the UConn women play basketball at Mohegan Sun. And as I write this column, the final game (UConn vs Villanova) is tonight. We had only one loss in the Big East, and that was to Villanova. I have my fingers crossed.

Friends Sue and Karen had extra tickets for me to see all the games. Frosting on the cake was the ability to see most of our women watching the game when they weren’t playing. In addition, five rows in front of me were R.J. Cole and Tyrese Martin, members of the UConn men’ basketball team watching the women play. This is the first time I have seen them watch each other’s games. By the way, the men are seeded three in the Big East games.

For two of the days, we ate at Tom’s Urban at the casino. I had a burger on brioche both meals. The better of the two? A burger with mushrooms, Swiss cheese and white truffle oil (or truffle butter). I also had tater tots, something I’d never tasted before. Meh.

What to make at home this week?

Of course, it is almost St. Patrick’s Day. While I love deli corned beef, regular corned brisket isn’t my favorite. What I do love, however, are the veggies: cabbage, potatoes and carrots. With just a whisper of salt and a pat of butter, I’m happy. And in less than 45 minutes in the Instant Pot, it’s dinner time.

Maybe enjoy a green beer with your corned beef this year?! Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash.

Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

From Real Simple, March, 2022, page 114

Yield: Serves 8

1 3 ½ -pound package uncooked corned beef brisket with spice packet
1 cup unsalted beef broth (or 2 tablespoons More than Bouillon stirred in 1 cup water)
1 ½ pounds yellow baby potatoes (I love the Little Potato Company brand)
4 carrots, sliced into 2-inch pieces (about 2 ½ cups)
1 head green cabbage, cut into 8 wedges, core intact
2/3 cup cups sour cream
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon lemon zest plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (from one lemon)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

Select sauté setting on a multicooker (such as an Instant Pot). Remove brisket from package, reserving spice packet, rinse brisket in cold water and pat dry. Sprinkle both sides of brisket with contents of spice packet. 

Place brisket, fat side down, in cooker; cook for 2 minutes. Flip and add broth, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits. Lock lid and turn steam-release handle to sealing position. Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes.

Quick-release the pressure. Remove lid and add potatoes, carrots and cabbage in layers on top of brisket. Lock lid and turn steam-release handle to sealing position. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir together sour cream, horseradish, lemon zest and juice, 1 tablespoon parsley and ½ teaspoon pepper in a small bowl.

Quick-release the pressure. Remove brisket from pot and thinly slice against the grain.

Serve with vegetables, topped with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and ½ teaspoon pepper. Serve with sour cream.

About the author: Lee White has been writing about restaurants and cooking since 1976 and has been extensively published in the Worcester (Mass.) Magazine, The Day, Norwich Bulletin, and Hartford Courant. She currently writes ‘Nibbles’ and a cooking column called ‘A La Carte’ for LymeLine.com along with the Shore Publishing and Times newspapers, both of which are owned by The Day. She was a resident of Old Lyme for many years but now lives in Groton, Conn. Contact Lee at leeawhite@aol.com.

A la Carte: Twice the Usual Feast Today:- First Maple Gooey Butter Cake, Then Whole Coconut Curry Chicken

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Lee White

Column #1

All winter, friends have been wailing about winter. When will it be over? Will summer ever come? Others complain about the cold. Some have slipped on ice. 

For me, winter on the Connecticut shoreline isn’t bad.

I grew up in Troy, N.Y. Went to college in Ithaca and Rochester, and lived and worked in Worcester, Mass.

Even the isolation during the pandemic wasn’t bad for me. I read a lot, I write a lot, I cook a lot, I learned about HGTV. My daughter installed Roku on my television.

And I get all my food magazines. 

Last week, my new Bon Appetit arrived and the cover showed a pale green cake topped with chocolate glaze showered with pale green powder. But the recipe called for mochiko (or sweet rice flour) and matcha. So I called Christine, who owns Fromage in Old Saybrook. “Oh, Lee,” she said, “I just sold the last package,” and said she’d have more by the end of the week.

Obviously, I wasn’t the only shoreline denizen who saw the magazine’s cover photo.

The next day I got my copy of Yankee magazine and saw a recipe requiring all the ingredients in my pantry and refrigerator. Wait until you try this one.

Maple Gooey Butter Cake
From Amy Traverso, Yankee magazine, March/April 2022, page 60
Yield: 12 servings

For the cake:
1 cup salted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan*
2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting pan*
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup  maple syrup, at room temperature
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the topping:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup maple syrup, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon maple extract (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and set a rack in the middle position. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with a thin layer of butter, then sprinkle with some flour, tilting the dish to coat evenly. Discard excess. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

In a medium ball, whisk together I cup melted butter, maple syrup, egg and vanilla. Add butter mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until evenly combined. Use your hands to press this mixture into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared pan.

Now, prepare the topping: Using a stand or handheld mixture, beat the cream cheese with the confectioners’ sugar and eggs in a large bowl until smooth. Add maple syrup and maple extract (if using). Beat until smooth.

Pour topping over the cake base. Bake until edges are golden brown and center is puffed but still jiggles slightly when you shake it, 45 to 55 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Sprinkle with additional confectioners’ sugar just before serving.

*I use PAM in the blue can for baking instead of buttering and flouring a baking pan.

Column #2

Almost eight years ago, I sold my big old 1690 cape and moved to a condo. And while I miss the house, without my husband, who died in 2009, I couldn’t keep up with the what an old house requires to stay gorgeous. 

Generally speaking, a condo is just fine for me, especially during the fall (raking all those leaves) and winter (shoveling all that snow). But this winter, with too much snow, the company hired for the complex couldn’t begin to do a good job.

Good thing I always have a refrigerator full of leftovers.

Last week I ate chili three different meals and made my new favorite: pasta with summer-frozen basil pesto, lots of little  tomatoes, tiny frozen sweet peas from Trader Joe’s and flurries of grated good parmesan.

But what I was hunkering for was chicken with red curry and coconut milk, and during those snowy days I couldn’t get into my garage to buy a chicken.

In the meantime, I found a recipe on the internet I had not made before. A few days later, I tried this recipe, adding carrots and fresh cauliflower: Using one pot, a can opener and a good knife, I had four more yummy dinners.

Whole Coconut Curry Chicken

Adapted from Modern Proper
Yield: serves 6

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 whole chicken (about 3 ½ pounds)
2 tablespoons salt
2 cans unsweetened coconut milk, divided
2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 small onion, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 red bell peppers, sliced
1 cup cauliflower florets (optional)
1 cup carrots, cut into ½ inch dice (optional)
1 lime, zest and juice
Cooked rice for serving

Rinse and pat chicken dry inside and out with paper towels. Discard anything inside the cavity. Salt inside and out.

Heat olive oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat. Brown chicken until skin is golden and crispy on both sides. Remove chicken from the pot.

Add 1 can coconut milk, curry paste, onions, garlic and ginger. Bring to a simmer. Add chicken, cover and cook for 30-45 minutes over medium heat.

Uncover and add peppers (or any other vegetables you might like), lime zest and juice, the second can of coconut milk and continue to cook, covered, for another 10 minutes, or until internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees. 

When you are ready to serve, either shred the chicken or quarter the chicken from the carcass and serve in a bowl along with the broth and rice.

About the author: Lee White has been writing about restaurants and cooking since 1976 and has been extensively published in the Worcester (Mass.) Magazine, The Day, Norwich Bulletin, and Hartford Courant. She currently writes ‘Nibbles’ and a cooking column called ‘A La Carte’ for LymeLine.com along with the Shore Publishing and Times newspapers, both of which are owned by The Day. She was a resident of Old Lyme for many years but now lives in Groton, Conn. Contact Lee at leeawhite@aol.com.