Brown Soda Bread

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds, lightly crushed in mortar with pestle
• Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450°.

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Make a well in center of mixture. Add buttermilk to flour mixture; stir until blended (dough will be sticky). Turn dough out onto a generously floured surface; knead lightly 4 to 5 times. Shape dough into a 4-inch round loaf; place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Cut a 1/4-inch-deep X in the top of the dough.

Bake at 450° for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 400° (do not remove bread from oven); bake 15 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.

1 loaf, 6 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

adapted from Cooking Light

Stuffing for Dinner

• 2 cups bread
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, divided
• 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed, divided
• 1/4 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 large celery ribs, chopped
• 1 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup heavy cream, divided
• 2 T cup turkey giblet stock (recipe precedes) or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (2 ounces)
• 2 T cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter baking dish. Put bread in 2 shallow baking pans and bake, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until just dried out, about 10 minutes. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then cook half of sausage, stirring and breaking it into small pieces, until golden brown, about 6 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large bowl. Brown remaining sausage in remaining tablespoon oil, transferring to bowl. Pour off fat from skillet and wipe clean. Heat butter over medium heat until foam subsides, then cook onions, celery, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Add vegetables and bread to sausage. Whisk together eggs, 1/2 cup cream, turkey stock, cheese, and parsley, then stir into stuffing and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Reserve 5 cups stuffing to stuff turkey and spoon remainder into baking dish, then drizzle with remaining 1/4 cup cream. Cover stuffing and chill. About 1 hour before stuffed turkey is finished roasting, bring dish of stuffing to room temperature. When turkey is done, increase oven temperature to 425°F and bake stuffing, covered tightly with foil, until hot throughout, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake until top is golden and crisp, about 15 minutes more.

Italian Wedding Soup

• 3/4 lb Meatball Mix for Spaghetti and Meatballs
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 3/4 cup chopped white onion
• 3/4 cup chopped carrot
• 1 celery rib, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 small can whole tomatoes, drained and halved
• 1 can white beans
• 1 cup orzo
• 2 cups shredded kale or spinach
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for garnish

Prepare Meatball Mix according to recipe. With damp hands, shape into small balls. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, carrot, celery, salt and pepper and cook until translucent and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, water and tomatoes. Cover and cook 10 minutes over medium heat or until soup comes to a boil.

Add meatballs, beans and orzo to the boiling soup and stir to make sure they are fully submerged. Cover and simmer for another 15 minutes over medium heat. Stir in kale or spinach. Test a meatball and a piece of orzo to ensure that they are fully cooked. Whisk the eggs and cheese in a medium bowl to blend. Stir the soup in a circular motion. Gradually drizzle the egg mixture into the moving broth, stirring gently with a fork to form thin stands of egg, about 1 minute. Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately with extra Parmesan, if desired.

Combined recipes from Food Network, Whole Foods, and Epicurious, 3/08.

Meatball Mix for Spaghetti and Meatballs

• 3/4 cup fresh bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 3 cloves garlic, mashed
• 1/2 cup minced Italian parsley
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk

Soak bread crumbs in milk for a few minutes. Combine all ingredients except egg and mix with hands to evenly combine. Add egg and mix.

Form meatballs about 1" in diameter. Saute in olive oil to brown on top and bottom. Add to sauce and simmer for at least 45 minutes to cook through.

Makes enough for 3 meals. Freeze leftover, uncooked mix for later.

Red Sauce for Spaghetti and Meatballs

• olive oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• tomato paste
• splash red wine
• 1 can whole tomatoes in juice
• 1/2 t. dried oregano
• 1/2 t. dried basil

Saute garlic in olive oil until it just starts to color. Add tomato paste and stir for a few seconds, then add wine. Add tomatoes (trim any skins or tough bits and strain off most of the juice) and mash with a potato masher. Add dried herbs and bring to a simmer. Partially cover and simmer for a hour on the stovetop or several hours in the crockpot. Check consistency: if too thin, allow to simmer lid off until slightly reduced.

Makes slightly more than enough to sauce 1/2 box spaghetti.

Mushroom Barley Soup

Variation of Zingerman's Ann Arbor Mushroom and Barley Soup from Epicurious. I loved it -- not Peter's thing.

• 1 1/4 cups whole, hulled barley
• 1 oz. dried mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large or two small onions, thinly sliced
• 2 ribs celery with leaves, diced
• 1/4 cup parsley
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound fresh button mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon whole wheat flour
• 2 quarts beef broth or water (Better Than Bouillion works fine)
• sour cream for garnish

1. Soak the barley in 6 cups water for several hours (I did 6 hours). Add more water if necessary and parcook for 45 minutes.

2. Soak the dried mushrooms in enough hot water to cover for a half hour. Strain through a filter. Reserve the water. Coarsely chop the dried mushrooms.

3. Melt the butter in a stockpot and sauté the onion, celery, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, carrot, garlic, and all the mushrooms until soft, about 5 minutes.

4. Lower the heat and add the flour, stirring, for about 2 minutes or until thick.

5. Heat the broth or water. Add a cup of at a time to the mushroom mixture in the pot, stirring.

6. Turn the heat to high, and add the reserved mushroom water and barley. Stir well.

7. Simmer, covered, for about an hour or until the barley is tender and the soup is thickened, stirring often.

8. Add additional chopped parsley, mix thoroughly, and adjust seasonings.

9. Stir in a bit of sour cream at the table.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Greek Shrimp

• butter + olive oil
• garlic, minced
• shrimp
• canned diced tomatoes
• white wine
• orzo or other pasta, cooked to your liking

Thaw shrimp. Melt butter with olive oil in a skillet. Add garlic for one minute, then shrimp. when they're starting to pink up, add tomatoes and a bit of white wine. Quantities are all to your liking so test and serve when you like it. (Possibly originally from a Moosewood Cookbook.)

Serve over orzo or other pasta.