Reading and food among the best of gifts
My mother: always learning
The time I spend with my mother, most of it in her room in the nursing home she lives in, is so many things but most of all, it just plain-old feels good, for both of us. When our visit is finished and I pack up my bag, I like to tell her that the time we spent, she in her wheelchair and me on the same ladder-backed kitchen chair I sat in as a child, was the best part of my day. We fall into routines, she and I, and so our visits always start with small talk and a little nip of wine. I like to scroll through the pictures on my phone, to show her the faces of our family. I introduce her, again and again, to her grandchildren and her great grandchild. She delights in those faces, in stories of her grandchildren, any story at all.
We read together. She loves the written word in all forms and though reading can be hard for her now, she is still passionate and dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. In her quiet room with my feet wound around the rungs of that old chair, I read her all sorts of things, anything, really. She loves to hear poems from Emily Dickinson, James Herriot stories, Chris Churchill columns, passages from the Bible and it might not count as reading but we open her big atlas and find faraway places and wonder about them. When I read to her, she closes her eyes, tips her head back and lets the words wash over. What a beautiful sight that is.
We sip and we talk and we read, and sometimes we eat. My mother loves McDonald’s, and so I bring her a Big Mac and French fries and a chocolate shake. I bring her Doritos. I bring big fancy coffee drinks with whipped cream and sprinkles, drinks that make her exclaim and clap. Sometimes, I bring pieces of cake I’ve made. Whatever it is, she eats with gusto and thankfulness in her heart. I love that and try to take some of her spirit, even just a tiny bit, with me when I go.
Boozy Cranberry Snowballs
I always talk to my mother about what I’ve been cooking and eating. I tell her about dinners in restaurants and dinners I’ve made. She loves the details: what was beautifully plated, who liked it, who didn’t and we laugh over disasters: burned pots of rice, cakes that fell in the center and sandwiches stolen from the plate by very bad dogs. Here follows are a few things I made recently, food that’s good for winter and for holidays, for sharing with family and for telling stories about with the people you love.
There’s a soup recipe for cold winter nights, times that call for nourishment and a warm belly. The marriage of red lentils and roasted butternut squash is a happy one: creamy squash with bits of caramelized edges combine beautifully with red lentils, the steady workhorse of the food world. Lentils provide plenty of healthful nourishment, including fiber and protein, iron and potassium, as well as body for a rich soup. The base of this soup is made by chopping and roasting the squash and then putting it together with some sauteed onions, broth and those red lentils. Cook that up for awhile, unattended, it doesn’t need much fussing, then puree it all and top it with crispy toasted pita and a bit of plain yogurt. I’ve waxed about the texture and nutrition of this soup but equally important, it’s a beautiful, golden color. When nights are cold and dark, I find comfort in a warm and sunny bowl, don’t you?
Hot honey is a foodie fad that landed a few years ago, and I don't know why, but until recently, I had never tried it. My children stared in shock and disbelief at this announcement. I try to stay current but really, there’s always something to miss. Hot honey is very popular on pizza topped with pepperoni (and I know it may sound weird but the combination of salty pepperoni and hot honey hits every important and delicious flavor note.) It’s the kind of taste balance that makes your mouth happy. After that very enjoyable pizza, I got to thinking about the bottle of hot honey in the cabinet, and how it could be used in other ways. I don’t eat pepperoni pizza that often, but I wanted more hot honey in my life. Here, I sauteed chicken breasts, then finished it with a light handed drizzle of the hot honey. The chicken and onions were piled onto a flatbread that was layered with arugula, then finished with both feta and mozzarella cheeses, for a salty and creamy bite. Hot honey is made by warming honey with crushed red pepper and straining it all out. It’s easy to make, I suppose, but even easier to buy. There’s a bottle, for sure, among the honey and syrup bottles in your local grocery. Keep it close for when salty and creamy food is calling out for sweet and spicy flavors. This dish is fast, easy and crowd pleasing food to make during the busy holiday season.
Squash soup with pita croutons and pomegranates
Lastly, there is a fun and festive recipe for cranberries that are all dressed up for holiday snacking. This is a take on a viral Tiktok video recipe, where cranberries are soaked in orange juice and soda pop, then coated in sugar and baked until dried, tart, sweet and crisp. They are a fun and addictive snack. In my version, I made them decidedly grownup by soaking the berries in liqueur and apple cider, with a cinnamon stick thrown in. After soaking for a night, the berries are tossed in powdered sugar and baked, just for a few minutes. The result is a sweet and snack-y kind of dessert that would be fun to add to a cookie tray, or like I did, put in a bowl with a spoon and offer them up at a holiday gathering. A note, after soaking the berries (in liqueur, in wine, in anything boozy), drain them and then don’t throw that liquid away. After draining my batch, I combined the chambord, apple cider with bubbly hard cider to make a jolly, belly-warming cheerful drink to share with a few friends. It’s holiday cheer, start-to-finish.
In this holiday season of giving, I think often of what kinds of gifts to give my mother. I’ll bring a sweater, a blanket, chocolates, books. I’ll bring the kinds of things that are nice, but not as nice as the time and the words and the love she gives me with each visit and every story we read.
Loretta and me in November.
Spiced Lentil and Winter Squash Soup with Yogurt and Pita Croutons
Serves 4
1 large butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1” pieces
Olive oil
Kosher salt
4 small pita breads
1 red onion, trimmed and diced
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Kosher salt
1 ½ cups red lentils
4 cups unsalted chicken broth
Juice of ½ lemon
Plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Pomegranate seeds
Preheat oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, toss the squash with enough olive to generously coat and season with a generous pinch of salt. Spread out on the prepared pan and roast for 25 minutes, until soft and brown (and even a touch of black) on the corners. Remove from the oven and set aside.
Reduce the oven to 350°. Line another baking sheet with parchment (or reuse the squash pan and parchment.) Tear the pita breads apart and brush generously with olive oil. Season with salt. Bake for 7-8 minutes, until toasted and crisp. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, set a medium-sized pot over a medium flame. Add a swirl of olive oil and cook the onions until they are soft and translucent. Add the cumin and cinnamon and cook for another minute more, until very fragrant. Stir in the lentils, broth and roasted squash. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 25 minutes. Taste the lentils to be sure they are tender. If not, cook for a few minutes more. Allow to cool a bit.
Use an immersion blender to puree the soup completely. Taste and add more salt, if you like. Squeeze the lemon juice into the soup and stir through.
To serve, ladle the soup into bowls. Top each with a spoonful of yogurt, a sprinkling of thyme, pomegranate and a few pita croutons. Serve hot.
Hot Honey Chicken Flatbreads
Serves 4
Olive oil
1 yellow onion, trimmed, peeled and sliced thin
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
Kosher salt
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into strips 1 ½ ” wide
¼ cup hot honey, plus more for serving
4 flatbreads (naan or pita works well)
4 cups arugula
1-7 ounce container feta in brine, drained and crumbled
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
Heat a swirl of olive oil in a large skillet set over a medium low flame and cook the onion with the rosemary and a few pinches of salt until it’s all very soft and deeply golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove the onions to a plate and set aside. Add the chicken to the same pan and season with a bit of salt. Turn the heat up to medium. Cook the chicken, flipping after about 5 minutes. Pour the hot honey over the chicken and turn to coat well. Check for doneness after 5 minutes per side (the inside of the chicken should register 165° with a meat thermometer) and remove to a plate.
Preheat oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Assemble the flatbreads: set the flatbreads on the baking sheet. Divide the onions between the four breads and spread evenly. Top the flatbreads with ¼ of each of the toppings: arugula, chicken, feta and mozzarella.
Bake for 10 minutes, until the cheese is melty and the bread is crisp. Cut the breads in half and serve hot with extra honey for anyone who wants a little more kick.
Boozy Cranberry Snowballs
Makes about 3 cups
1 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed
2 cups apple cider
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup chambord (or liqueur of your choice)
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
Combine the cranberries with the apple cider and liqueur in a glass bowl, cover tightly and allow to marinate overnight.
Drain the cranberries. Save the liquid: it makes for a fun cocktail with a splash of sparkling wine, seltzer or hard cider.
Preheat the oven to 200°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the drain cranberries with the powdered sugar in a large bowl and shake well to coat the berries. Each berry should be well coated with sugar. Add more if there is any red showing, a bit at a time.
Spread the berries onto the baking sheet and bake for 7 minutes.
Remove to an airtight container and allow to cool in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving. Keeps, refrigerated, for one week.
