FOODIE FRIDAY RECIPE - IRISH SCALLOP "PIE"

If it's "Irish" you know it has potatoes!  This is a delicious variation on Shepherd's Pie and perfect for the Lenten season.  The recipe calls for baking in the traditional "pie" shape but I also like to bake it in ramekins for individual servings as a decadent first course.

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds fresh large scallops

1 carrot [diced]

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons butter

1 generous tablespoon all purpose flour

8 sliced white mushrooms

1/4 cup cooking sherry

1 cup light cream 

3 cups mashed potatoes [prepared]*

1 egg

Method:

Preheat oven to 350*

Prepare mashed potatoes as you normally would but beat in 1 egg and set aside. This is also an excellent use for leftover mashed potatoes!

Rinse the scallops and quarter them.  Poach them in the light cream, salt and pepper for 15 minutes.

Parboil the carrot, drain and set aside.

While the scallops are poaching, melt the butter in a small sauté pan and sauté the mushrooms. When the scallops are done, drain but reserve the warm light cream. When the mushrooms are softened, stir in the flour and mix well.  Then add the warmed light cream and the sherry while stirring constantly.  Remove from heat, add the scallops, sherry and carrot.

Transfer the scallop mixture to a casserole dish [ceramic pie or quiche dish works well]. Cover with the mashed potatoes and dot with additional butter if desired.

Bake for 25 minutes until lightly browned.

Serve with soda bread and your favorite ale.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

*prepare mashed potatoes with milk, butter, salt and pepper.  A tub of prepared mashed potatoes from your grocer's refrigerated section [Country Crock, Bob Evans, etc.] are a great shortcut trick for this. 

CAREGIVER AS MANAGER

The word "caregiver" conjures up images of healthcare, companionship and moral support.  What many people do not consider is that so much time is devoted to being a manager.  The amount of paperwork can be staggering.  Bureaucracy is intimidating.  If caregiving is stressful, managing is exhausting and mostly unrewarding.  When one signs on to be a caregiver for a loved one they never expect that the total realm of the job will take on that of CEO.

When my aunt Theresa began to fail at the age of 93, my sister and I had to step in.  Luckily she had appointed us as Power of Attorney several years earlier.  This legally enabled us to act on her behalf in her best interest.  At first I took over her bill-paying and straightened out her finances.  She had always been meticulous but the early stages of dementia had taken its toll on her book keeping.

When her condition further deteriorated, we had to make the difficult decision to place her in a nursing facility.  Now what were we supposed to do?  After the limited time that insurance would pay for her stay, the facility charges a staggering $355.00 per day.  That is roughly $11,000.00 per month.  I continue to think of how luxuriously I could be living on that kind of money for housing.

Theresa owned her own modest two-family home which we would have to sell.  Trying to sell any home in the current real estate market is difficult and time consuming but a house that hadn't been updated in 50 years was going to be impossible.

After quite a bit of research I decided that a reverse mortgage would be our best hope.  The reverse mortgage process was simple enough and took about 5 weeks from start to finish.  Now the paperwork had begun!  First there was the application process which required copies of documents which I had to hunt down.  Then there was a required phone interview.  Then, finally the closing process.  The closing required my signing in no less that 130 places on the documents.  Not only did I have to sign, but I had to sign in the extended and clumsy legally required "owner's name by my full name 'as attorney in fact'".  That was quite a challenge for a guy with Carpal Tunnel problems!  It was made worse because they changed their mind as to the exact signature format half-way though the process and I had to go back and revise all those signatures.

I chose to go with a reverse mortgage because it would buy time.  I could use some of the funds to pay the nursing home.  I would use some funds to renovate the house in order to make it salable.  I would allocate some of the money to fund everything while waiting for the house to sell.  I figured it gave me about a year to have the house sold.

Before any real work could get started, my sister and I had to spend several weeks sorting through my aunt's possessions.  Not only is this tedious and back-breaking, it's emotionally draining.  It's thought provoking when you see what a life boils down to.  As a side note, I went home every evening and began to sort though my own possessions and make donations.

We did months of renovations to the house.  I hired a contractor, electrician and plumber.  We used four large dumpsters for building debris and a large part of fifty years of accumulation.  We donated huge amounts of clothing and household items to charitable organizations.

Anyone who has ever experienced home renovation or has seen "The Money Pit" understands what a management job this is.  Planning, design, decisions, budget, permits and delays rule your life.

Finally the house is finished, the tenants have vacated, the house is "staged to sell" and the realtor is chosen.  More paperwork for the realtor agreement.  The house is officially "on the market".

All that work, time and money paid off.  We had a buyer in less than a week!  In any market economy that would be impressive and in this "burst bubble" it was amazing.  Now more bureaucracy:  sign the contracts,  wait for home inspectors,  haggle over required upgrades, and  spend more money for asbestos removal.

Now the waiting game.  We found the buyer in 6 days.  The buyer had to wait months for financing.  We had to continue to carry the house.  Now winter was here which meant I had to heat the house.  Not only did I have to heat the empty house but I had to worry about heating the empty house through blizzards, sub-zero temperatures and storms. I had to keep checking to be sure the heat was working.  I had to keep the snow shoveled.  I had to worry about vandals.

Finally after several postponements it was closing day for the sale of the house.  Oh, good.  More paperwork, more [full, legal, expanded] signatures.  Done!  No more worry about the empty house.  The "albatross" had been removed from around my neck.  I'm ecstatic!  Free sailing from here on out, at least as far as the property was concerned.

That feeling of liberation and satisfaction was brief.  Now it is time to apply for Medicaid so that when all of my aunt's hard-earned money has been used to pay for her nursing home stay, the government insurance will begin to pick up the tab.  "Government" is the operative word here.  Not only do you have to spend your life's savings but then there is a 50 page application to be filled out.  Along with that application you have to submit endless amounts of supporting documentation.  You have to provide five years of bank statements,  receipts  for expenditures over $3000.00 each and every other form of legal document you can think of.  You have to dig up everything from birth certificate to tax returns, marriage certificate, spouse's death certificate...and the list goes on.

I'm half-way though collecting the required documentation.  So far the stack of copies on my desk has reached 20 inches.  It is a nearly impossible task to document someone else's life this way.  My aunt was very fastidious about keeping records and document and I am still having a dreadful time filling in the blanks.

I can't wait to get back to only having to worry about my normal duties as caregiver for my mother.  Sitting quietly doing my own personal work will be a pleasure.

FOODIE FRIDAY RECIPE - ITALIAN RICOTTA CAKE

Italian Ricotta Cake

This is a wonderfully simple recipe which is actually an embellishment to a boxed cake mix. A guaranteed pleaser,  when I serve this for company everyone begs for the recipe. My family loves it.  My friends love it.  I love it.  Don't let the rustic appearance fool you.  This cake is moist and creamy, light and satisfying.  There is a cake layer on the bottom with the scrumptious ricotta cheese layer on the top.  You can bake it in one large rectangle cake pan but I prefer to bake it in two 9 inch round pans.  I usually put one of the baked cakes in the freezer for a future treat!

Ingredients:

1 package white cake mix* and ingredients listed on box

in addition:

4 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 pounds ricotta

1 teaspoon vanilla**

Method:

Preheat oven to 350*

grease and flour 1(9 x 13) or 2 (9" round) pans

Prepare cake mix as directed on box and pout into prepared pan(s).

In the same mixing bowl that you used for the cake mix, combine eggs, sugar, ricotta and vanilla and mix well. Pour cheese mixture over the cake batter in the pan(s).

Bake in preheated oven 1 hour 10 minutes for the rectangle or 50 minutes for the round cakes.  Cakes are done when golden and firm.

Cool in pans.

Turn out onto plates or tray and dust with confectioner's sugar just before serving.

I like to serve this with fresh raspberry puree drizzled on the plate.

*yellow or flavored cakes can be substituted

**orange juice or Amaretto can be substituted

FOODIE FRIDAY RECIPE - PASTA e CARCIOFI

Pasta with Artichokes

This is a very simple, delicious and flexible recipe.  Light and satisfying, you can add, remove or substitute vegetables and even shrimp or clams.  I Like to keep mine to about 4 main ingredients served over angel hair pasta.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 stick salted butter

1 clove elephant or 4 cloves regular garlic [chopped]

One 10 ounce bag frozen artichoke hearts

2 carrots [peeled and rough chopped]

2 tablespoons chopped onion

2 tablespoons sliced sun dried tomatoes [in oil]

6 leaves fresh basil

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 cup canned garbanzo beans [optional]
Freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Prepared pasta of choice

Method:

In a large skillet, combine oil and butter and let the butter melt over medium heat.  Boil the carrots until just fork-tender.  Cook the artichoke hearts in microwave as directed on package. Sweat the garlic and onion in the oil until translucent but do not let brown.  When the garlic/onion are cooked, add the drained carrots and the artichoke hearts.  Continue to simmer on low and add the 

sun dried tomatoes, oregano, salt, black and red pepper [to taste].

 Drain pasta, reserving 3/4 cup of the cooking water.  Toss in a large bowl with the artichoke mixture.  Add reserved cooking water as needed for a shiny, moist dish. Toss in the basil.

 

Serve with grated cheese at the table.

 

 

UP TO THE PRECIPICE

Gloria Eleanor Clemente

Gloria was a strong woman.  Except for one serious hospitalization I never remember her ever being sick.  If she was ever sick she certainly never let it stop her.  Hardy stock those Clemente women.  Enviable for their strength, determination and longevity.  Gloria was my mother's next younger sister and would be 89 years old now.  

Sometimes strength can also be translated as stubborn.  Stubborn can masquerade fear.  Fear can hide embarrassment.  Nine years ago Gloria began to have some "female" problems.  After doing her best to hide her discomfort she finally confided in my sister who urged her to see a gynecologist.  After much persuading from the family, Gloria went to the doctor.  

The doctor immediately referred her to a specialist for what turned out to be cancer of the vulva.  The specialist performed quite radical surgery during which Gloria encountered some surgery-related problems.  After a very difficult recovery period she was doing remarkably well.  At her six month check-up the doctor was very pleased.

By the time the one year check-up rolled around Gloria had once again been hiding additional symptoms.  The doctor made the pronouncement that the cancer had returned.  If an original diagnosis of cancer is bad, reoccurrence is much worse.  

By this time early signs of dementia had been surfacing.  Signs easily recognizable to a nephew who had been taking care of his mother with Alzheimer's disease for a dozen or so years at that point.  The dementia combined with the problematic previous surgery ruled out another surgery.  My sister and I were in agreement with the surgeon.  We agreed to a consult regarding radiation therapy.  We also agreed that we would not tell Gloria the extent of her condition because of the dementia. These are very difficult but pragmatic decisions caregivers are faced with.  I decided it was more humane not to keep her completely informed.

The visit to the radio oncologist was devastating.  The doctor examined Gloria and then made an excuse to speak with my sister and me alone.  She said the treatment would be excruciating.  It would require weeks of  burning treatment with frequent hospital stays.  I asked the prognosis and the doctor said she thought Gloria would have four to six months with the treatment.  "With the treatment"!  My sister and I were stunned.  I looked at Patricia who was now in tears and then asked the doctor to please give us the information for Hospice.  There was no way we would put my aunt through torture for such little gain.

The doctor was lovely.  She said she was hoping we would choose Hospice and promptly contacted them for us.  We agreed that we would tell Gloria that her discomfort was part of the healing process, knowing that she would never be able to get thought the months ahead of her if she didn't have hope.  We knew what we were in for.

Within the week the Hospice representative was in my kitchen getting things started.  That was the first night I slept in a while because I knew I wouldn't have to face this tragedy alone in my home.  Now I had Gloria on Hospice and my mother with her advanced dementia.  I had been thrust into running a de facto nursing facility.

Hospice was miraculous.  There were people to take care of Gloria.  Supplies would magically appear at my front door.  There were numbers to call if [when] I was feeling overwhelmed.  Hospice looks after the whole family.

Overwhelmed happened.  Even the strongest of caregivers is mortal.  Between the stress of both patients, the parade of strangers through my home and seeing Gloria in ever-failing health, I ended up with pneumonia.  It wasn't horrible but it was a warning for me to take care of myself.  That is a caution to all caregivers:  TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF!    It's akin to the instructions on an airplane that "in case of loss of cabin pressure ...put the mask on yourself first and then help others".

Ultimately the excruciating pain exacerbated Gloria's dementia. My wish had been to make it through the holiday season which was about three months after the onset of Hospice.  We made it gingerly though Christmas but on New Year's Eve morning I was awakened at 7 to Gloria hollering.  She had gotten dressed and made it downstairs, which was miraculous, and was in full psychotic break.  She was no longer in pain but had been transported, in her mind, back 40 years.  She was calling for my father to take her to work.  My father had been deceased for 30 years at this point.

I called Hospice and ultimately made the decision for Gloria to go to their cancer wing at a local hospital that they served.  There were more ups and downs but I was able to rest knowing that she was being well taken care of.  I knew that I was no longer able to provide the comfort and care that was required to make her final time comfortable.

Seven years ago this week I got the 5 o'clock in the morning call, in the middle of a blizzard, telling me that Gloria had passed away.  The pain and suffering were over.  None of our lives would ever be quite the same again.  

Pushed to my limits I was forced to learn so much from this experience.  An experience that no one wants to  face but so many of us do.  I found strength and compassion that I never knew I had.  I learned more about caregiving and Hospice and bureaucracy  than any post-graduate degree could ever offer.  An education I never wanted.

Never feel that you have to face these challenges alone.  For end of life, Hospice is there to ease the burden and the trauma.  At other, less serious, times there is Visiting Nurse.  Consult your physicians.  Turn to your clergy.  Utilize the help that is out there for you.  It's never going to be easy but at least it becomes more bearable.  

FOODIE FRIDAY RECIPE - PIZZA

PIZZA!

The word alone makes most people smile.  That perfect combination of home made bread, tomato, cheese opens the door to an endless variety of personalization choices.  For me, the basic combination is all I need but once in a while I splurge with some fresh asparagus or leftover meatballs or shrimp.  

There are few aromas that can compete with that of pizza baking in your oven.  The rich cheeses, the aromatic basil and the slight acidity of the tomato all get your memories flowing and your mouth watering.

I am going to give you the basics, including the dough recipe.  I promise not to frown if you choose to use a fresh pizza dough from your grocer's refrigerator or from your local bakery.  They are fairly readily available and perfectly acceptable.  Please do not used one of those pre-formed packaged pizza / focaccia shells sitting on the shelf next to the white bread.

I do not usually advocate single-use or specialty gadgets but one item that I suggest you add to your collection of  baking sheets and pans is an aluminum pizza screen.  They are reasonably priced and help produce a wonderfully crisp crust.

Ingredients:

[for the dough]

1 package active dry yeast

1.5 cups room temperature water

3.5 cups all purpose or bread flour

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

[for the topping]

2 cups shredded cheese [I like the mozzarella/provolone mix]

1/3 cup grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

6-10 fresh basil leaves

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup tomato puree

1 small clove garlic, minced

Method:

[for the dough]

Combine the dry ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer or in a large bowl if you are going to kneed by hand.  Stir to mix well.  Add the oil and all but 2 tablespoons of the water. Mix with the dough hook for 5 minutes. If the dough seems dry then add the rest of the water. Let rest for 5 minutes and kneed for another 10 minutes.  Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise for an hour.

[for the sauce]

For pizza it is best to use a raw "sauce".  Please don't use a pre-made sauce!  Blend the tomato puree, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.  

Assemblage:

When the dough has risen for an hour, turn it out onto a floured surface.  I like to use a silpat mat for this but you can work directly on your counter top.  

Preheat oven to 425*

Rub some flour on your hands and begin to stretch the dough with your hands.  At this point you can cheat and use a floured rolling pin to flatten and continue to stretch the dough until it is quite thin but not torn.  This dough generally makes a 16" crust.  Feel free to leave the dough in a free-form shape if you are unable to get it into the traditional round.  I like the rustic look and then you can be sure your guests will know it is handmade!

Place the dough on the pizza screen or baking sheet and very lightly cover with the sauce.  The sauce should barely cover as illustrated in the photo above.  If you use more sauce than that the pizza will be soggy.

Sprinkle the grated Romano over the sauce. Now arrange the fresh basil leaves over the pie.  Cover with the shredded cheeses and sprinkle with the remaining olive oil.  

Bake on middle rack for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

Serve piping hot from the oven.  You can also cut into bite-sized pieces and serve as an hors d'oeuvre.

FOODIE FRIDAY RECIPE - OVEN "FRIED" CAULIFLOWER

Crispy breaded cauliflower baked in the oven is a wonderfully delicious, simpler and healthy alternative to the fried cauliflower I grew up eating [and loving].  I made this tonight as a side dish to our Friday night family dinner and we could have easily made this the centerpiece of the meal.  Crispy on the outside and creamy and sweet on the inside you're going to want to try this recipe / method with all of your favorite veggies.

"cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education"
mark twain

Ingredients:

1 head fresh cauliflower

2 eggs

1 cup plain bread crumbs

1 cup all purpose white flour

1/3 cup milk

3 tablespoons grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

salt

fresh ground black pepper

1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

1 tablespoon olive oil

non-stick cooking spray

Method:

Remove any leaves from the head of cauliflower and pare the florets.  Begin by turning the head on its face so the stem is facing up.  With a paring knife, remove the large center core and discard.  Remove the florets by hand in chunks as pictured above.

Rinse the florets in cold water and then place in a pot with enough water to barely cover.  Add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil.  Lower to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until barely fork tender.  Immediately drain and run under cold water until cooled.  Place in a colander and set aside.

Preheat your oven to 425*.

Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

Now set up for the traditional 3 bowl dredging:

Bowl 1:  flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Bowl 2:  eggs, milk, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, parsley, cheese.

[beat these together as for scrambled eggs]

Bowl 3:  bread crumbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

One at a time dip a piece of cauliflower into flour, then egg wash, then roll in bread crumbs and then place on baking sheet.

When all the vegetable is coated and on the baking sheet, drizzle with the olive oil and put into the center of your pre-heated oven.

Bake for about 35 minutes until golden brown.

I prefer to serve these just the way they come out of the oven but you can certainly serve with your favorite marinara sauce or an aioli for dipping.