Yvette’s Potato and Olive Salad.

INGREDIENTS

Small Potato’s
Olives
Balsamic Dressing

You can either boil a few small potato’s or use canned ones. Cut them into bite sized pieces. Then add sliced olives. Yvette uses the salty black Greek Kalamata olives. I prefer the Bella di Cerignola olives from Italy, which are very large and sweet. Add some Balsamic dressing and you have a quick and tasty lunch.

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Improved Grilled Cheese Sandwich

INGREDIENTS

Cheddar cheese
Oatmeal Bread
Butter

Making a Grilled Cheese Sandwich isn’t rocket science and I was certainly skeptical about any recent advances in the state of the art but I discovered that Oatmeal Bread gives the best results. Nothing else crisps as well. You can cook this in your frying pan using a gas or electric range but an electric fry pan is most helpful in keeping the bread from burning.

Set the electric fry pan at 400 degrees. Take a tablespoon of butter and melt it in the pan. Put two slices of oatmeal bread in the pan and fry until almost done. Put one slice of cheddar cheese on each and, when it begins to melt and drip down the edge, put one slice of the finished toast on top of the other and serve.

If you’re not a purist you can add a slice of bacon, ham or tomato.

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Mexican Style Pizza #1

INGREDIENTS

1 12” Burrito wrap
Monterey Jack or Cheddar Cheese
1 Small Paste Tomato sliced
2 Green olives

Cut the tomato and olives into small pieces on a paper towel to absorb any excess liquid. Place both on the Burrito wrap. Cover with cheese. Put in toaster oven preheated to 450 degrees. Cook until done. Cut into four slices. This makes a good light lunch for one.

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Mexican Style Pizza #2

INGREDIENTS

1 12” Burrito wrap
Mozzarella Cheese
Pasta Sauce
Mushroom

Put a tablespoon of sauce on top of the Burrito wrap and coat the bread evenly. Add extra sauce if necessary. Cut the mushroom into thin slices and place on top of the sauce.  Cover with cheese. Put in toaster oven preheated to 450 degrees. Cook until done. Cut into four slices. This makes a good light lunch for one.

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New York Minestrone Soup

INGREDIENTS

3 Large fresh ripe Tomatoes
2 Celery Stalks
2 Medium carrots
1 Medium Onion
1 Can Goya Kidney Beans in Sauce
2 Dried Chipolte Peppers
Feta Cheese
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Powdered rosemary

New York Minestrone soup has Spanish, Greek and Italian influences and is much tastier than the traditional variety.

If tomatoes are out of season, don’t use them. Don’t even think about using those hard supermarket varieties. Instead save your money and substitute a can of diced tomatoes. The kind with no added salt is best.

You can make your own powdered rosemary by putting dried rosemary leaves into a spice grinder until they are pulverized into a powder. This turns it into a much more usable form. If you don’t have a spice grinder, leave out the rosemary.

Dice the tomato and the onion. Cut the celery into bite sized pieces including the leaves. Cut the carrot into small circles. Put everything into a pot with six cups of water. Turn the heat to high until the liquid comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to a low simmer. Add the Chipolte Peppers, lots of powdered garlic, onion powder and a few pinches of the powdered rosemary. Cook for 30 minutes. 

Open the can of Goya Kidney Beans in Sauce. Pour the juice into the pot. Take a handful of beans and crush them before tossing them into the mixture. Put the rest of the beans in the pot. Cook for 20 more minutes with the cover off so some of the water evaporates and the soup thickens.  Add three tablespoons of feta cheese and cook for five more minutes. Serves four.

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Lentil and Mint Soup

This is a variation on a classic Turkish recipe:

INGREDIENTS

8 cups water
1 medium onion, grated

1 cup dried red lentils.

¼ cup fine grained bulgur

¼ cup rice
4 tablespoons Marinara or plain Tomato Sauce
2 tablespoons Margarine, butter or Olive Oil

1 teaspoon Paprika
1 tablespoon dried mint

Salt and red pepper to taste

In a heavy pot lightly cook onions in margarine or olive oil until they are soft but not brown. Add water, rice, bulgur, marinara sauce, paprika, red pepper and salt. Cook about 40 minutes stirring occasionally over a very low heat until lentils and rice are soft and the soup becomes creamy. If the soup becomes too thick, add some extra water. Finally add mint then let everything simmer for another 10 minutes.

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New England Clam Chowder.

INGREDIENTS

1 Medium Potato
1 Small Onion
1 Small stalk of Celery
1 Can Chopped Clams
Margarine
Milk
Ground Pepper

Serves 2

Boil Potato until soft, then drain. Add a teaspoon of margarine, a dash of ground pepper and then crush with a potato masher. Thin with milk until you have thick coarse Mashed potato's. Cover and keep warm.

While the potato is cooking, finely dice the onion and sautee with margarine in a frying pan under low heat. When the onions are translucent, add two tablespoons of diced celery. When the celery is soft, open a can of chopped clams. Drain and reserve the clam juice.

Add a cup of hot water to the frying pan then slowly add a cup of milk. As the mixture heats, add several tablespoons of the mashed potato. Add clam juice to taste taking care to avoid any sediment. Cook under low heat until the soup is hot then add the chopped clams, cook for 90 more seconds and serve.

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