Carpe Eatum

Happy Most Joyous May 11th – National Eat What You Want Day and Happy Birthday to a special someone I know that does just that ….

What is your favorite food or recipe? Please share in comments below!

There is not much I don’t love …My favorites in no particular order:
Veronica’s Sauce/Arthur’s Lasagna/BLL Pizza
BIG FAT Pastrami/Corned Beef on seeded rye with spicy mustard & kraut
Raw oysters all day long! (I liked steamed, fried and scalloped as well)
Boiled Maine lobster with clarified butter
Salmon & Cod
Mussels & Clams
Tomato sandwich with LOTS of Duke’s mayo on white bread
EXTRA spicy chicken wings with celery and chunky blue cheese
Hotdogs & Sausages – the more toppings the better
Country Ham or Sausage biscuit with mustard
Fried eggs with lace

Indian Potatoes & Green Tomatoes and Vegetable Vindaloo – Indian Hot
Southern Style Okra & Tomatoes & Southern Style Collard Greens
Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese with Duke’s mayo
E’s French Onion Soup
She CrabSoup
1st UCC Brunswick stew
Tacos, Tacos & more Tacos
French Fries with Heinz ketchup
Chips & Salsa and Dill pickles
E’s bread bread dipped in EVO, Balsamic vinegar & Parm Cheese
Pound cake with caramel icing (like my Momma makes) & Oatmeal raisin cookies
LB’s Beans
Homemade Banana or Peach Ice-cream
Apples & Grapes
Carrots, celery, broccoli & cauliflower with curry dip
Tom Yum Curry with tofu – Thai Hot
A good fried fish sandwich
Latkes with applesauce and sour cream ( Jewish cooking for that matter)

Family/Friends Favorites:
Mom- sliders
Erik – Lobster Ravioli with Shrimp, Instant Potatoes, Pizza
Katie – Pizza
Cathy – Spicy fried chicken and FF
Lani – Boiled Maine lobster with clarified butter
Josh – Good bagels, lox and kippered salmon we got when I was a kid from the jewish deli around the corner, along with plentiful cream cheese and really ripe tomatoes.
Don’t forget to list your favorites in the comments below : )

Now for the 2 best killer recipe of all times — Veronica’s Sauce and LB’s Beans. (note: everything is approximated as they are from the chefs’ mouths)

Enjoy!
~marchie

VERONICA’S SAUCE
Ingredients
Large Onion, Chopped small
1 Head Garlic, Chopped
6+ Sun Dried Tomato Slices, chopped, + Some Oil from the sun dried tomato jar
3-4 Bay Leaves
Handful dried oregano, basil, + a little lemon thyme
Small Pinch Rosemary
1 – 6lb 6oz Can Crushed Tomatoes ,2 – 15 oz. Cans Tomato Sauce
, 1 – 6 oz. Can Tomato Paste
Small Head Roasted Garlic
Sprigs of Fresh Basil Leaves
Approx. 1⁄4 Cup Sugar, more or less to taste, to take the tart out of the sauce

Instructions
Sauté onion with some oil from the sun-dried tomatoes, 1⁄2 way through add sun dried tomato slices, 
garlic, and dry herbs. 
When onion is tender and translucent, pour in the 4 cans of tomato products

Stir while slowly warming sauce mixture. 
Find a temperature where the sauce is simmering (but not splashing and splattering) Stir often, simmer approx. 2 hours. 
10-20 minutes before serving; 
Add salt, pepper and sugar to taste. 
Add roasted garlic and any additional dried herbs to taste. 
Serve with fresh basil leaves.

I use this sauce over angel hair, for spaghetti & meatballs or hot Italian sausage, lasagna & eggplant Parmesan. Can serve over spaghetti squash as well. Makes an excellent pizza sauce! And a mozz stick dippin’ sauce OH MY! Makes a lot but freezes well.

LB’S SPANISH BEANS
Ingredients
1 green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
Small jar of pitted green olives
2 Tablespoons capers
1 Tablespoon Recaito (found in Goya section of grocery store)
Sazon Goya seasoning (found in Goya section of grocery store)
Annatto seeds (found in Goya section of grocery store)
2 cans pink beans
1 Stout beer and 1 – 15oz can Tomato sauce

Instructions
Sauté green pepper, onion and garlic. Try not to stir so that the vegetables can sweat – about 5-8 minutes. Add olives and capers. Sauté 3-5 minutes. Add Recito, Sazon, Annato. Sauté 3-5 minutes. Add beans, rice and liquid mixture. Cook until rice is done. Serve hot. I like to add a little hot sauce to my bowl – go figure. And, it gets better with age – like we all do….