FRITTERS RECIPE - FROM MY PANDEMIC CUPBOARD and ME

If you are using up what's been sitting in your cupboard or refrigerator or freezer rather than go to the store.  Or your store is out of the products you need.  You might want to try some new recipes, preferably healthy ones.  I put this together the other day and it worked out wonderfully.

You'll use:

One half pound of dried green peas. (You can try yellow).
Soak the peas overnight for some savings in gas or electric.
Separate the peas into two halves.  Cook half for about 20 minutes and then throw the rest in for another 20.  To do this bring to a boil and then simmer. This should provide you some peas that are almost mash and some that are closer to intact and crunchy. Drain thoroughly.

Potatoes.  It's preferable to use ones that you can cut up with skin on.
Cut up about five small to medium ones into cubes and cook until just ready to be mashed.  Again, bring to boil and lower heat.  Drain thoroughly. Mash them up.

Put your spices on the potatoes and mash again.
I used  MASALA originally intended for TANDORI CHICKEN. You can also make up your own spice mixes, such as garlic, paprika, oregano, marjoram, etc.  It's good to use fresh from the garden if you have it.

Kale. I cut up two long pieces of dark kale into thin strips - uncooked -
Throw that in the bowl.

Onion. I used yellow.  White or red work well too.  Dice fine - uncooked. Throw that in the bowl.

Also good: parsley, celery, cut fine.

Mix in the peas.

Let the mixture COOL.

Break two room temperature eggs into the cooled mixture of potato, peas, and herbs and mix again. You should now have a mixture that is easy to form into patties.

In large skillet - preferable iron - melt butter.

Dip each of the patties into Bread Crumbs.  It's OK to use stale toast.  I used left over bread stuffing from Thanksgiving.

Put patties in butter and cook until they have a nice brown crusty coat on each side.  I made 24!

These can be eaten right away hot.  The next day I tried some cold.  I liked them.

You can eat these with so many other foods.  Boiled or scrambled eggs.  Mayonnaise or catsup or soy sauce or plain yogurt or cottage cheese...  The peas and the kale provide lots of protein. There's vitamins in the potato skin.

Let me know if you tried it!


C Magyar-American BlogSpot

ICING IS NOT A HEALTH FOOD

I say this having eaten more thickly iced cupcakes.

It seems to me that over the last few months I have eaten more bread, more sweets, more cookies, slices of cake, and candy, than I may have in many prior years.  It's not showing on my body (yet) because I have also been using more calories.  I really must get back to my vegetable-loaded diet.

This is not a New Years Resolution.  It is an acknowledgement that I'm courting health disaster if I don't reform!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU!

CHRISTMAS EVE PRAYER FOR (IMPOSSIBLE?) PEACE

Recently I was with a group of people and one woman asked us all to pray for the survivors of Pearl Harbor.  She was of the generation - some call it "the Silent generation" and others "the Greatest generation" - in which her peers were involved in World War II.  World War II is not so long ago in history, but what is sure is that it remains a Hollywood film favorite subject, while other wars such as Korean - Viet Nam - and the whole big mess of the Middle East have comparatively few films made about them.  Unpopular wars, underreported wars, and wars that are no longer called wars, are going on all the time.


I spoke up and said, "Let's pray for peace instead."


Don't know that my blurt was appreciated, but to me all that was required was a moment of silence or a mental bookmark.  You see, I don't actually think there ever will be Peace of Earth, but in the West, at Christmas time, the notion of Peace of Earth is popular.  Consider that sometimes in war there are agreements that for that one day of the year, Christmas, there is a "peace fire."


And, I really do think that peace on earth has to begin with each individual, and in Christianity the prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi is my favorite.  Yet, for all the empathy called for, in order to understand and forgive others, sometimes I've been considered naïve, a fool, and exploitable for all the give I have.  I've been at times sneered at for my hope, faith, belief, or innocence.  I have not been testy, suspicious.  I haven't asked enough questions.  (These days an exploiter will blame the victim, saying, "you didn't do your due diligence.")


So, while I don't think there will ever be peace of earth, and am making no claim to perfection and a straight ticket to heaven, the notion of heaven is very influential.  Heaven allows us to imagine a place that is peaceful and joyful, and where everyone else is good!


This is my open mind set for the holiday season.


A week ago I told myself I should start decorating.  I managed to get a string of lights up around the door.  I pulled out my small artificial Christmas tree, only to discover that a piece of plastic had broken off while it was in storage.  Three days later I got out my glue gun and tried to fix the leg on without that piece.  It sort of worked.


I went off to Trader Joes, were I planned to buy all the ingredients needed to manifest five different cupcake recipes which I wanted to make to gift.  It's been years since I made or gifted baked goods and I remembered the days when Christmas visiting meant indulging in baked goods from many different ethnic backgrounds.  Family and friends had married into Italians, Russians, Ukrainians, Poles, Slovaks, Ruthenians, Irish, Germans -  we have a Persian - that whole mix that is United States of America - everyone making traditional cookies, cakes, pies, that their ancestors made.


As I made way to the location, I passed by an Armenian banquet hall.  Someone must have had a wedding, ordered in numerous floral ornaments for the tables, and when unboxing found one was broken.  Outside on the sidewalk was a beautiful gold sprayed branch that had blooming rose petals glue gunned to it!  One rose had fallen off and there was a glob of glue.  I took one look at it and grabbed it.  At home I decided not to use the artificial pine tree at all, but hang my small ornament collection off the branches of this bare limbed "tree."  I set it up and it's beautiful.  My dog lay in her swirl of blankets looking at the pretty lights.


Then I made the cupcakes.  Pumpkin oatmeal spice with no icing.  Walnut flax seed with vanilla powdered sugar,  dried cherries in the mix and topped with cherry jam,  and finally Ghirardelli Chocolate (from San Francisco) inside and melted atop plain white cake.  Improvising with cardboard shirt boxes, wrapping paper and tissue, I made up four boxes.  One delivered to a friend who lives in an assisted living.  I assured him, I used no milk, no butter, no corn, corn starch, or corn syrup.  (I used safflower oil, spring water, brown sugar, real sugar, flour, flax seed, oatmeal, real vanilla.)  Then off to the neighbor who a few weeks ago did me a huge favor even though he barely knows me.  (He came to the US as a refugee from Bosnia.)  This morning, I delivered another to a business that I frequently visit, me and the dog.  The people there have fed her endless treats.  And then I went to visit another friend who has leant me films this year, some of which I have to return, and learned he has moved!


Such is the state of art and science at this time in my life.


I wish all my readers, whatever your ethnic origins or religious beliefs, at least one day of complete and total peace, inside yourself and with the world.




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Magyar American Blogspot

SLOW COOKING AMERICAN VERSIONS OF HUNGARIAN INSPIRED FOOD!

SLOW COOKERS, previously known as CROCK POTS, are increasingly popular these days.  It's so easy to throw your ingredients in, set a temperature (high or low) and timer (6-8-10 hours) and go off to work or shopping, come home hours later to a ready meal, with the house smelling of wonderful cooked food. 

Hey, my dog loves it.  On days when I slow cook, upon arriving back home, she doesn't just leap up to say hello to me and wag her tail, she almost attaches herself to my ankle as I go from room to room, making sure that I don't forget about her when it's time to eat.  And I do give her a small portion of the meat or vegetables that were cooked.  It wouldn't be fair to torture her!

Now there are so very many recipes on the Internet and in cookbooks that I'm not going to give recipes here.  I'm just going to tell you about some of my versions of Hungarian food, call it Hungarian-American food, that I've been successful with.  Some of this may make you laugh!

Trader Joe's, a chain store, has a spice called 24 Seasonings Salute, and I swear by it.  It is the only prepared mix of spices I use.  According to their web site, "Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute is a smooth blend of onion, black pepper, celery seed, cayenne pepper, parsley, basil, marjoram, bay leaf, oregano, thyme, savory, rosemary, cumin, mustard, coriander, garlic, carrot, orange peel, tomato, lemon juice and lemon oil. Leave the other spices out and add 21 Seasoning Salute to a vinaigrette, sprinkle some on burgers, steaks, or chicken, before you cook them, or add a dash (or several) to soups, sauces, dips, and even scrambled eggs. Need a quick breakfast idea? Mash a scoop of avocado atop a slice of toast, and sprinkle 21 Seasoning Salute atop the avocado. It's always a good idea to sprinkle the blend into your palm first, and then break up the spices with your fingertips to release their essential oils, delivering the best of all the components. We're selling each 2.2 ounce jar for $1.99, every day."

Remember when you load your crockpot that the heat rises inside of it and so the meat should go ON TOP of all your veggies.  Also, how thick you should cut a carrot or potato, and other veggies, may also be about how long you plan to cook.  So the longer you'll be gone, the thicker the cut.

TRY THESE COMBINATIONS!

Carrots, onions, sour kraut, pork or beef, and (in the last hour of cooking put on top) egg dumplings with caraway or mustard seeds made by mixing flour, sea salt, seeds, and egg.

Kidney beans, Black Beans, and White Beans, green beans, chicken, and tomato.

Mix oatmeal and flour and sugar or brown sugar.  Throw some in the pot.  Add cut apples.  Or Apricots. Or Pears. Throw some more dry mixture on and around the fruits.  Cook on a low setting.  Serve hot over vanilla ice-cream or yogurt.








 

GOAT CHEEZE AND PUMPKIN CHEESE and OLIVE OIL - HUNGARIAN HEALTH FOOD - POGASCA

Health food in Hungary? Well here's a recipe that includes some healthy ingredients? Are you Americans going to try this recipe for Thanksgiving?