Robin’s Tried-and-True Recipes !2 Table of Contents ! ! Table of Contents ...............................................................1 Here ye, here ye...come one, come all! ...........................3 Now, Thatsa Spicy Meata Ball! ........................................5 Grilled Cheese, Please! .....................................................8 The Power of Pommes Frites! ........................................11 Belly up to the Berry Bar! ...............................................13 Tom Brady and Touchdowns ........................................15 What to do with Thanksgiving leftovers? ...................18 S'more Nachos...Please! ..................................................20 The Special Touch ...........................................................23 ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !3 Here ye, here ye...come one, come all! !ROBIN : NOV 16, 2012 Yay! I'm so excited that Thanksgiving is on its' way! I have so many tips for you that this Report could go on forever, so I'll make this short and sweet. After I opened my Word doc titled, ! "Thanksgiving to do list" and six pages appeared, I said, INGREDIENTS no way do my faithful readers want to hear every little detail of how to pull off a smashing Thanksgiving dinner. 3 packages of cranberries (I recommend fresh) Instead, I'll give you a sneak peek of my favorite 3 peeled and cut apples (I use Fuji but any sweet cranberry sauce (almost like jam) recipe. It's pretty simple variety will work) (there's really only one step!) and very yummy. 2 peeled and cut pears (I recommend Bosc or Anjou) ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !4 2 cups golden raisins ! 2 1/2 cups brown sugar I'll leave you with this cute re "mark" I overheard from an 1 1/4 cup orange juice (any brand will work) adorable young boy a while back. He was talking about 2 teaspoons of orange zest how to cook turkey and said, "put it in the oven for 6 3 cinnamon sticks minutes. You cut it. You put it in bread." Hilariousss! If it 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg was only that easy. 1/2 cup Cointreau (a "special" (hiccup) French ! ingredient!) Enjoy your turkey day! ! ! DIRECTIONS My best of happiness, wellness and healthiness to all! Now, back to my Thanksgiving to-do list. Combine all of the ingredients together and boil for 25 ! minutes. See, I told you this was easy! xoxo, ! ! To save you time, you can prepare this 2-3 days ahead of P. S. Always, order a fresh turkey! It tastes the best. serving. And for an extra special touch, I like to poach ! pears and fill each hollowed-out pear with this ! homemade cranberry sauce and put one beside each ! place setting. Presentation is key beyond all measures, so you should always put your best "food" forward. I like to say, it's sophisticated sweetness at your Thanksgiving table! ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !5 Now, Thatsa Spicy Meata Ball! !ROBIN : DEC 28, 2012 Holidays…traditions…pastimes…and cooking!!! Who doesn't love to cook for hours to please all your loved ones around you? I do! And that's exactly what I've been doing for the past week. I was trying to decide which meals, baked goods and appetizers to create, so I asked my kids what their three favorite food items were. ! We started off with a favorite among them all, spaghetti and meatballs -- a tribute to my Italian heritage a.k.a. The Rosa Bush. My grandfather, thinking of him. My grandmother, Florence Grace Roland Samuel Rosa (we later found out it was Salvatore Conselio was born in Waterbury, CT and was an Rosa) was born in Avigliano, Italy. He was one of the incredibly sweet and funny person. And that was the greatest people in the world. It warms my heart just start of the Rosa's! ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !6 I remember so vividly driving to my grandparents' home Here is the recipe for the yummy meatballs, as it was told in Westbrook, CT the night before Thanksgiving. to me by Uncle Bob: Undoubtedly, there would be that cute, round, brown, ! ceramic covered pot on the stove filled with the most INGREDIENTS amazing pasta shells and sauce. (We did NOT call it gravy like some Italians do!). Driving from RI to CT, all I * 3 lbs ground beef could think about was that little ceramic pot on * 1/2 handful of salt Grandma's stove. We sure had some yummy times at * 1 tsp garlic powder Grandma and Grandpa Rosa's! :) * 1/2 tsp pepper ! * 1 tsp parsley (or more to taste) Now, back to the spaghetti and meatballs…another Rosa * 5 oz. bread crumbs worth talking about was my Uncle Bob. He was definitely * 3 oz. Parmesan cheese the chef of the family! He's the one who taught me how to * 5 eggs hard-boil an egg. (Not so Italian, I agree!) And he even ! wrote three cookbooks called, "The Trials and Tribulations INSTRUCTIONS of Roberto" by Robert E. Rosa. ! Mix all of the ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl. Add 1 cup of water (maybe a bit more) to make a nice I faithfully use his spaghetti sauce recipe each and every meatball. Transfer meatballs to a hot frying pan. Fry time, with a few adjustments and by adding a few of my meatballs in oil until brown and crispy and then flip them specialty "Robin" spices. As a fond memory, I can always to the other side. Délicioso! These make great appetizers remember him letting me lick the back of the spoon to taste its richness. To me, the best part are the meatballs. ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !7 for parties - contact me and I'll help you plan the perfect menu. ! Depending on the mood I'm in, I'll either listen to Boyce Avenue or Ryan Seacrest, KIIS FM 102.7. I have to move to the groove when I cook! Stay tuned for a Report all about my love of dancing! ;) ! This Report is dedicated in loving memory of Roland Rosa, Florence Rosa, Robert Rosa, Fran Rosa and Steve Rosa. ! Buon anno! ! ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !8 Grilled Cheese, Please! !ROBIN : FEB 8, 2013 Grilled cheese is one of my "go-to" favorites when I want to mangez some good ol' comfort food. And what better way to get one (other than making your own; see recipe below) than from a local food truck? ! Food trucks are on the rise in all major cities. Here in the Bay Area, San Francisco specifically, there are over 100 specialty food trucks offering just about every type of cuisine. You can find out where they’re parked around town by visiting roaminghunger.com or following each trucks' Facebook page and tweets. ! In Boston, they have this amazing cupcake truck where the cupcakes have fillings like cookie dough and frosting. ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !9 Sweet! In New York City, everyone's favorite truck is INGREDIENTS: Korilla BBQ, which whips up Korean recipes including tacos, burritos and such. But currently, these east coast 2 pieces of your favorite bread (I use Sourdough) trucks are not around much due to the inclement weather. 3 slices of sharp cheddar cheese (any Vermont cheddar The best time to find a food truck on the east coast is works) during the warm weather months. But on the west coast, 1/4 cup of grated Monterey Jack cheese the trucks are abundant. I recommend trying Foster olive oil Brother's Ice Cream Truck, a true traditional ice cream butter truck. Yum! garlic salt ! crushed red pepper And did you know that food trucks cater private parties? smoked turkey or ham (optional yumminess) They really put a little wow into your now! Plus, they’re arugula (optional) fun and fashionable! I’d be happy to help coordinate the perfect truck for your next event. Just ask! :) DIRECTIONS: ! Heat olive oil and melt butter in a nonstick pan. Place And without further ado, here's my Mean Grilled Cheese buttered pieces of bread face down in the pan. If you'd recipe (sans truck). Thanks to all the chefs that gave me like to add additional protein to this grilled sensation, great pointers! ! warm the turkey or ham in the pan at this time. Then, ! place the slices of cheese on one slice of bread and top ! with the grated cheese. Add your turkey and ham to the ! piece of bread now, too. Place the other piece of bread on ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !10 top of all the cheese and meat and add the arugula for an added extra boost! ! Press down on the sandwich with a spatula or the back of a wooden spoon and flip the sandwich from back to front for desired goldenness and goodness! Immediately after grilling, place the grilled cheese sandwich on a cutting board and sprinkle garlic salt and crushed red pepper on both sides of the bread. Cut into four triangles and chow down! ! Bon appétit! ! ! ! ! ! ! © 2013 ROBIN LAUB !11 The Power of Pommes Frites! !ROBIN : JUN 21, 2013 Pommes frites are those frizzled, skinny potato French fries that I undoubtedly order whenever I spot them on a menu. But they have to be the "real" thing. ! Some restaurants serve thicker fries defending their I think the first time I had real pommes frites was when I position that they are the “real” pommes frites. But as a lived in Orléans, France (here we go again!) and during true lover of these French-fried wonders, pommes frites my first visit to Paris. I happened to be strolling down Le are the long, skinny, delicate variety. There is no Jardin de Tuileries along the flowery walkway and mistaking them! And they give a powerful punch in spotted a small snack kiosk. They were selling “le hot every mouthful. dog” and les pommes frites.