FRIEDGRAVY

You needed a bigger and better photograph of this whole deal.  See the gravy?  See the fried goodness?  Yes, come to MAMA....

Chicken Fried STEAK!

Holy hell.  This dish is comfort food at its finest...
I was gifted a Comfort Food Cookbook for my birthday last weekend, and Peter (smartly) dog-earred the Chicken Fried Steak page... heretofore referred to as CFS.  My mouth watered just looking at it.


Kristy, I will post the steps in this process but I have a bad feeling that you will never ever even try it.  It took about an hour to prepare, but it was diner goodness.

I need to work out for like 6 additional hours to work off all the fat & butter and fried amazing goodness, but oh well, it was worth it.
Check out that GRAVY!

A little rain must fall...

Ok we've been hurricaning here on the East Coast, so I haven't posted.  I know NOT what my partner in crime is up to (eating?) because she hasn't posted....in....well....TOO LONG!  How are we going to make it to the talk show circuit if you fall off the wagon like this?

Well this photo is just to show you, that even I have serious failures in the kitchen at times.  This last night's dinner (i know LAME) but I was in a mood, didn't want to feed my family, and a grilled turkey and swiss seemed perfect.  THEN...the phone rang..and this is what happened...

BOOOOOOO......I scraped off the burnt and still ate it.  It was MOSTLY tasty.  Kristy, what do you have to say about this?

Must rescue Jessica from foodie abyss

It's Sharon, the smart one on the left.

Recently my friend Jessica (there she is, on the left) revealed that when she heard the word sauté pan, she immediately thought emergency room or burn unit. The sum total of her at home cooking is boxed pastas and bagged rice….guess she’s mastered the boiling water part? She complains that most all recipes she finds have obscure ingredients and use gadgets she wouldn't even find in a Top Chef kitchen let alone waste her money on when she can buy shoes and eyeshadow instead! This fear (minus the shoes and eyeshadow bit) seemed to be echoed at every bbq or grad party I attended this summer! And we know Kris has been blabbering on about this "food ridiculousness" for a year.

Hmmm.....I'm in a quandry.  As I stare at the pages of  Bon Appétit's BBQ issue - what can I recommend to dear Jessica (HI Jessica - vote Team Sharon remember?) that will taste great, not have too many fancy smancy ingredients or required tools, AND be easy as pie to prepare.  (OK easy as shoes for Jessica)

Here’s what I decided - a delicious corn recipe that you can serve as a crudités. Don’t panic at the word crudités (crew-duh-tay) – this really pretty bulletproof recipe & really only features 5 ingredients - you will need a grill.  Follow along and impress your friends, family or maybe just yourself.

Ingredients: shucked corn, feta, sour cream, limes, nice thick bread, Extras: olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper.Brush the corn with olive oil or regular oil... salt and pepper and put on a hot grill...( if you don't have a brush just dip a paper towel in the oil and brush) Next make a mixture of equal parts sour cream and feta – don’t make this difficult, just a big spoon of each. Turn the corn periodically, it will get brownish/black on some parts. When it starts to look done place the sliced bread (which you should brush with olive oil on both sides) on the upper part of the grill. The bread doesn't have to be on the top rack but it will cook fast....keep an eye on it, you want toasted, not charcoaled! (I sometimes add some chopped garlic in the olive oil mixture before I paint it on the bread - that's up to you)

Remove everything from grill, spread the sour cream mixture on the toasted bread, use sharp knife and cut the kernels off the corn cobs and spread corn over sour cream mixture. Squeeze juice from a wedge of lime over the whole thing. This particular night I had put some whole red peppers on the grille and added some slices of that to the presentation. You can also sprinkle some red pepper on the top if you’d like a little more “kick” but you don't have to...viola.... You can cut these into strips and serve as an appetitizer, but I just eat the whole slice myself.(Tip: I get the sliced miche loaf from Panera but have even used Scali bread from Crowells in Canton)

Must give Kris a little love.

Even though it has been established that we despise each other in the kitchen, Kris's amazing, fabulous, gorgeous & brilliant daughter is off to college on Thursday..(cutting the cord may require power tools!) So im sending her this High Protein Winky Dinky Avocado Man (he was once my lunch) to keep her cheery!  I'll give you two days w no writing but that's it....and while you mourn, I'm leading a coup (you pronounce that coo idiot) for Team Sharon.

The BEST toffee ever? Really....I need to test this.

Hello, It's Sharon.

I'm always skeptical when I see this kind of internet bragging? Really? The best ever? Have you ever had a Heath bar? In my opinion, Heath has pretty much perfected english toffee wrapped in milk chocolate. Does anyone disagree? Or do some of you love The Skor bar (the spelling of that just grates on me–is it Sweedish? Must google.) Anyhow, i decided to try this Best Toffee Ever recipe off the web, and here's what happened.

Ingredients: 1 cup butter, 1 cup sugar, 1/8 t. salt, 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, 1 cup sliced almonds

In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the butter, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring until the butter is melted. Allow to come to a boil, and cook until the mixture becomes a the color of a penny. (Ok, if you have a candy thermometer your job is made easier because you can just wait until the mixture hits 285 degrees.) While the toffee is cooking, cover a large baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. As soon as the toffee reaches the proper temperature or COLOR, pour it out onto the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the chips over the top, and let it set for a minute or two to soften. Spread the chocolate into a thin even layer once it is melted. Sprinkle the nuts over the chocolate, and press in slightly. Place the toffee in the freezed to chill until set. Break into pieces, and store in an airtight container.

I had a dream there were shards of great toffee...shards of great toffee

Spending the entire day shopping for last minute college stuff for Mackenzie, I was ready to get home, but the condition of my house was...oh...good...god...let's just say if we didn't own it, we'd be evicted. My 7 yr-old son and my 50 yr-old husband are like germs...they-and their stuff- are everywhere. I navigated through three loads of laundry before realizing that I hadn't fed them dinner and begrudgingly threw some chicken on the grill at 7:45 (I told you I forgot). At 8:30 dinner was done. I had Mack clean up, gave Tom a haircut, threw in a load of whites and sent Tom upstairs to put Jack in the bath.

By now, the kitchen is clean and I'm tired, just...tired and the only thing that keeps me from egging Sharon's house is because we're making toffee. My blood type is toffee.

She promised it would take about 20 minutes, which is quicker than running to CVS and back for a Skor bar, and it only cost a buck and a quarter for the bag of chocolate chips, which is not much more than a candy bar and since I am on a budget, I passed on the almonds as a topper. My only condition was that she make it without her $20 candy thermometer which I didn't have. I was hoping it would ire her but she was all like "Ooooooooh! A Challenge!" (She's icky). The trick is watching for the copper penny color. It turned copper, I carefully poured it onto the parchment covered cookie sheet, sprinkled the chips, spread it up top and put the whole thing in the freezer. Once it hardened, I took it out of the freezer, broke it into pieces and tried it. I'll be damned if it isn't the BEST TOFFEE EVER! Just like the coffee houses that claim they make the best cup of coffee...I made the best batch of toffee for $1.25, in 20 minutes, in my kitchen, with no candy thermometer or heavy-bottomed saucepan. I can't wait till Christmas, everyone's getting toffee. It's toffee time.

What the hell is a Bacon neck t-shirt?

I cannot tell a lie - MAMA, I like tomatoes.

This post is to let you know mom, that YES, I DO LIKE TOMATOES.  I'm out of the closet completely with my new found tomato love.
Here's what I purchased at the Braintree Farmers Market & what I made for the cookout on Culloden Drive.

The cherry tomatoes, 5 leaves roughly chopped basil, 3 cloves of the garlic, thinly sliced shallot (you could use red onion) and a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper.

We grilled the bread and sliced it for dipping!  It was wonderful...

Braintree farmers market = WIN; can Canton's compare?

I hit the Braintree Farmers Market on Saturday.  It was AMAZING!  Here's a few shots of what I purchased plus what I made.  I will check out Canton's on Thursday and report back on results.  Please don't let me down....please don't let me down.

My Sangria is HAPPY, Yours?

Hello it’s Sharon–56% prettier in sepia tones.
It’s been a hot one in Canton this summer, and although most days I have my hands in the flower beds weeding (not really) or on the keyboard facebooking (really,) when I finally get to sit out on my comfy patio chair, I love to drink an icy glass of homemade sangria. I’m not talking about that pre-bottled foul swill, I mean the sweaty, overflowing pint glass of goodness so full with fruit it’s like eating a fruit salad. Sangria is simple to make and can take many shapes (wondertwin powers activate.)

I love red wine sangria, so that’s the recipe I’m giving you here. But mix it up, you can make a delicious white wine sangria if that’s your pleasure. It’s easy with the plentiful stone fruit of summer. (Note to Kris: those are the fruits that have a giant stone or pit inside, like peaches & plums.) Here is the recipe for some of the most refreshing stuff you’ve ever sipped. Kris, perhaps you can serve this up to The Guild, and see what happens to their quilt work? And check out this picture, even the sangria looks happy!

Recipe at the end of Kris's babble.....ho hum, try to hang on for it.

OH YEAH!

Hi, It's Kris.

Sharon prefers sepia tone not because it makes her prettier (it doesn't) but because she feels my piercing, cerulean, blue eyes will distract readers, and give me an unfair advantage (It does). I get all distracted with Sangria, it's like wine with accessories–plus it looks like cherry flavored kool-aid so I tend to drink it as such, with disastrous results because it's loaded with booze.

To be quite honest, I've actually fantasized about partaking in a glass of fresh Sangria on one of Sharon's comfy patio chairs on her deck. The sun is out, I've got this cute little terricloth jumper on...(just stay with me) I wipe the back of my hand across my forehead and say to Sharon, "Whew! I get hot and thirsty watching the landscaper weed your flowerbeds." (As if she does it herself....please) Sharon says, "Me, too! This is a job for Sangria!" and outta no where, the Kool-aid guy bursts through her fence screaming "OH YEAH!"

But then his cute little kool-aid smile fades, he's been duped, by booze covered drupe. And as Sharon sits there in shame, I walk over to my despondent kool-aid friend (we're friends in my fantasy) and I say, "Cheer up, giant pitcher of my sugar-filled youth, I brought you a gift." I gingerly handed him a bowl full of pits, the discarded remains of the fruit, not good enough for Sangria, but perfect for chucking at Sharon's sepia colored head.

Ahhhhhh, Sangria. I like Sangria.

Food Fight: You've Got the Way to Move Me Cherry!

Hello, Sharon here.
Aren’t the cherries in Shaws just gorgeous this week? So perfect and tart and sweet. I can’t resist them and since the prices are more in line with what I’m willing to pay for fruit, I’ve been buying them by the bucket load.   On Saturday I told Peter he’d have more cherry sweet treats in his future if he could find me a cherry pitter and I’ll be damned if he didn’t go out and find one!  Here’s the photo of it.  Ridiculous, right?  It’s horror film worthy.  

What to do with all these cherries? Well here is a handheld cherry pie recipe. A picnic pie!  It makes a mean breakfast treat too. Kris, since apparently you don’t like cherries (that’s just un-American,) won’t you try this for your mom’s quilting club? (heretofore referred to as The Guild – ultra American.) They’d love them.

Take the pits out of about 30 cherries. It’s fun, I got my daughter involved. (I’m not sure she’d say fun but…)  Put the cherries and ½ cup sugar in a sauce pot.  Turn the heat on medium and use a fork to press down the cherries and release the juices. Add one t. vanilla and let the cherries soften. Then mix 1 1/2 T. cornstarch with and equal part water. Mix until the cornstarch is combined then pour into the cherry mixture.  Bring to a boil stirring and then take off heat, the mixture will be all bubbly and thick. (I’ve dubbed this consistency jelly-esque.)

Meanwhile, roll out your puff pastry to about 18” by 15” on a lightly floured surface.  In a small bowl beat one egg and add a bit of water. Cut the pastry into 5” by 6” inch rectangles. (You don’t have to be exact, you’re going to make a pocket out of these, go BIG!) Add some cherry mix to one side of the rectangle, then paint the egg mixture along the fold side. (It will act as eggy glue.)

Put all the pockets on a cookie sheet (use some parchment paper to line the sheet) paint the tops of the pockets with the egg mixture and sprinkle generously with sugar. Cut a slit in the top of each pocket and bake at 375 for 20 - 30 minutes.

Ingredients: cherries, sugar, vanilla, one egg, cornstarch, box of puff pastry.  (Cherry pitter helpful, but totally optional. Yeah, you do need an oven too.)

Sharon

Sweet sweet cherry WHY?

Hello, Kris here. Did you catch that? Paragraph two? The part where she says "since you don't like cherries..." and what's her very first food entry? Sweet, sweet cherry, WHY? This is why I don't like Sharon. I'm Kris, the attractive girl on the right who is not photoshopped to death (see Sharon's picture.) I'm the sensible one, who has a crapload of stuff to do when I get home and baking is NOT on my radar, especially on a Monday, and especially because the only thing tart here is the look on my face because 1. Who (big dramatic pause) asks for a cherry pitter? (Seriously, poll your friends) and 2. Tell me why I would spend $13-$290 (yes, that's right) on a tool that can be replaced by a can of cherry pie filling I can get off my grocer's shelf for a buck.

Who’s your audience here, Sharon? Even McDonald's no longer sells cherry pies which means a billion people rejected it. Wait, unless you’re reaching out to the Facebook group that's urging McDonald's to bring it back. It could happen, they are 250 strong...that's a bucket load according to your calculations.

But, I digress, let's just get this over with. I spent about $10, $5 on the cherries/$5 on the pastry puff (double check my math.) Mackenzie, my 18-year-old daughter, assisted me. I assure you she's qualified as she took advanced foods her senior year. It took us seven minutes to pit 35 cherries...I know an ETERNITY. At minute four we couldn't help but think that we'd probably be done already if we had the advantage of the fancy gadget Sharon had. Fifty minutes later they were in the oven. Did you know that puff pastry actually "puffs up" as it cooks? It's like a shrinky dink, but different. And since it smelled so great whilst it was baking I had to try it and to my surprise, I liked it.

I'm sending it over to The Guild for a second opinion as I might be confusing my new fondness of cherries with the adoration of the puff. When I make again, I'd use a can of pie filling as I figure it would shave off 30 minutes of prep time.. That is, of course, unless I had me one of them there fancy cherry-pitters, then strike that last comment.

And so it begins....

The idea for a foodie blog was born from a good, dare I say happy, place. Why the “fight” in the title then? I’ll get to that. I’m no chef mind you – I’m a cook – and I think I do more right than wrong in the kitchen. I subscribe to and read Cooks Magazine, Saveur, Bon Appétit and until recently Gourmet. (Rest in peace,, Gourmet.) I watch the Food Network, get annoyed at most of it, welcome some of it, and continue watching because Mad Men has been on hiatus for WAY too long. I try adventurous recipes, I mix a killer cocktail, I steel my knives, I own a mandolin – wait am I getting ahead of myself?

When some friends (yes, I have friends and they’ve actually eaten my food) said, “You really should be blogging Sharon.” I thought, (picture a thought cloud,) Yes, I should.

Now, here comes the “fight” part. My pain in the rear/best friend/frenemy chimed in. “What the heck do you know about how working moms and regular people cook? If you’re going to blog, then I’m going to be right there with you, telling you how you’ve got it wrong, and maybe, on a very rare occasion, when you get it right.”

Sigh, I knew it couldn’t be so easy, but then what fun would pontificating from on high be, without someone like….ahhem….Kris (she’s like my Voldemort/foodie kryptonite) to bring me back to the ground.  

I hope many of you will play along too. Let the Food Fight begin, DING!

-Sharon

Oh, it's on....Food FIGHT!

That's me basking in terri cloth goodness,
and Sharon is serving me cake!

I'm Kris, Sharon's BFF in real life, frenemy - no, not frenemy, that still connates a bit of a friendly courtship..I can't stand Sharon in a kitchen..there's actually loathing involved. Sharon gets a giant kick out of planning some ridiculous dinner, and for me, dinner is just one more thing that I have to do when I get home. I cook normal meals that do not require fancy gadgets or food that smells like feet. Sharon's food has a trust fund and a house in the Hamptons. She's spent the better part of last year trying to convince me that her way is best and I've spent the better part of last year convincing her that Mad Men is not real.

We will not be on the same food page... ever. I just threw gravy (from a jar) at the screen, let the food fight begin.