Attention all book clubs: Morristown Festival of Books gearing up for 2nd Year

Once again the Recorder papers have written a great article on the festival and the One Community, One Book (OCOB) initiative. Attention all book clubs: Morristown Festival of Books gearing up for second year - New Jersey Hills: Madison Eagle News: The Morristown Festival of Books’ “One Community One Book” has made its choice for summer reading leading up to this fall's festival: The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken by Laura Schenone. We hope you read the book and participate in the OCOB events on June 10, August 27 and attend the Morristown Festival of Books on October 2-3. Books can be purchased at words and The Bookworm or your local library.

Superbowl Eats

Today is the 1st time in 20 years I will be home for the Superbowl. Usually I attend a friend's Superbowl party. However, this year the party is cancelled. As much as I will miss spending time with all my bowl game friends, I am looking forward to my Superbowl menu. My niece-in-laws will be attending the game courtesy of their new bff Seattle Seahawk Derrick Coleman. Fox taped a segment with the girls for the pre-game show. The pre-game show is four hours long and of course we don't know when their piece will air. Then the game. As football fans, we actually look forward to this part. At my friend's house the guys & I are glued to the game. This year will be no different. Prior to the aforementioned letter exchange, I was leaning toward Peyton Manning and the Broncos. Now, I'm die-hard Seahawk fan. Half-time is usually the time for eats, but this year Bruno Mars has invited several New Jersey marching bands to participate in his show. Roxbury High School will be among those performing at half-time. 

Multi-Grain Nachos

Sweet Potato Chips

Given the amount of articles written, it is clear how important what is served during the Superbowl festivities is as important if not more important than the game itself. Since we are planning on watching not only the game but the pre-game show as well; I need to plan enough food to cover 9 hours of munching. The menu choices will be on the healthy side: cut veggies (celery, radishes, cauliflower & carrots), multi-grain cheese nachos, baked chicken tenders, sweet potato chips and green beans. The green bean recipe intrigues me the most. I had been planning on frying them with olive oil & garlic when I came upon this recipe to bake them. 

  

Healthy Chicken Tenders               Oven Roasted Green Beans

Now to the good stuff... desert! One of my favorite memories of my Nana was sitting on the red stool in her kitchen while she cooked.  There were no short pre-packaged short cuts for her, everything was made from scratch. She made the BEST chocolate pudding on the stove. Once it cooled it had a yummy skin on top that seems to be out of vogue today. Awhile back I found a chocolate pudding recipe from Hershey. I'm going to make it in the morning (without the covering so it will develop a skin). As the game winds down, I'll enjoy the treat and remember my Nana. 

Chocolate Pudding

It’s August so we must be celebrating catfish

Did you know catfish can be found on every continent except Antarctica? Yup, they aren’t just a southern staple. Catfish are fresh water bottom feeders. This has led to many people comparing them to garbage collectors. Despite a somewhat disparaging reputation in the States, in Central Europe they are considered a delicacy. I have to go with the Europeans on this one. Catfish is one of my favorite fish.

Since the 70’s, catfish have also been raised on farms.  A pond can cover 10-20 acres. The catfish in these ponds are harvested after 18 months. That’s a lot of space and time, guess this I won’t be starting a catfish farm in my backyard.

The farming industry produces over 10 million pounds per week. The high production of farm raised fish along with wild caught fish keeps the price of catfish affordable.  Yeah, I’ve been looking for low cost, high tasting dishes to make. Tonight, dinner is spicy catfish, corn on the cob and green beans. 

Acid-Reflux is back

Thrilled am I not; my acid reflux is back. Drugs are good to a point, they can help stem the pain and minimize acid production, but I don’t like taking them on a long term basis. My gastro doc recommended Ginger tablets to relax the esophagus. Ginger is a wonder spice. Besides calming the digestive track, it helps with morning sickness and stimulating your metabolism. Trying to pinpoint trigger events can help aide in preventing a miserable night. For me it’s a “that time of the month” trigger. The food I eat around my period can help determine how painful and long the attacks will last. After visiting several sites, I’ve compiled a list of foods to avoid and foods to favor until my digestive track is back on track. Grilled Trout, brown rice and carrots with ginger sounds about right tonight.