Labor of Love
Cooking should be a labor of love. For many years it has been just that for me. Any of you reading this article or browsing this website probably feel the same way. Most likely, cooking feeds your soul, and feeding others brings you joy and satisfaction. Labor Day was created more than 100 years ago to celebrate the contributions of the American worker to society and to the strength of our great nation. So many of us, whether professional or not, work hard in the kitchen. In honor of this national holiday, I want to share with you three recipes--and the stories that accompany them--that friends have prepared for me over the years as a labor of love.
Marianna Sullivan's Ice Cream Pie
Lat week I had the pleasure of attending a BBQ in Norwalk, CT. Although hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill may be standard summer fare for many, for New Yorkers it is a genuine delicacy and our gracious hosts knew it! But little did I know the real indulgence came at the end of the meal. My friend, Kelley, prepared one of her mother's many specialties: ice cream pie.
In spite of putting in a full and busy work week, Kelley took the time in advance to make this sinful dessert for our enjoyment, a decadent layering of Rice Krispies, chocolate and ice cream. She grew up in a home where her mother, Marianna, always had freshly baked homemade treats on the kitchen counter ready for after-school snacks. Cooking for her family was a labor of love, and Kelley is now following in the same great tradition. A plain bowl of ice cream just would not do!
Sarah Adams' Cauliflower Cakes
Anyone who can make cauliflower a craving deserves an award. My friend, Sarah Adams, does just that every time my husband and I are welcomed in her beautiful home. Her specialty is cauliflower cakes, and fortunately for us guests she makes them at virtually every gathering. When she sets them down you can see a pile of hands converge onto a small platter, fighting for the first warm, savory bite. Rustic yet refined is how I would describe this dish.
The story of how they came to be an Adams classic is about the same. When Sarah was in college, she frequently consulted her best friend's mother, Connie, for recipes to feed the hungry co-eds whom they and their two roommates invited to weekly dinner parties. Cauliflower cakes were a lasting hit. Elaborate and somewhat formal for a university setting, these dinners cultivated Sarah's love of entertaining for her friends and family. Today she is a caring nurse, devoted wife and loving mother of two little ones with one on the way. Plus, she makes these delicious cauliflower cakes. I told you . . . she deserves an award!
Carol's Grilled Knockwurst
For years my dear friend Carol has been preparing her spectacular knockwurst for me and my family. Whenever we visit her magnificent house on the bay, she makes all the fixings and grills the franks for our sheer bliss. She likes them, too, of course, and she is a superior cook. But I have no doubt she really goes to all the trouble because she knows how much we love this meal. These dogs are special--quite literally (knockwursts when kosher are often called "Specials"). The killer accent to her knockwurst is celery salt, an influence from her Midwestern upbringing and Chicago family. This seasoning is so perfect that a grilled knockwurst without it just is not the same.
The cooking method is even more outstanding. The franks are double cooked, first in boiling water then on the grill. This may seem gratuitous, but I assure you it is the secret to a masterpiece. Carol runs a knife around each knockwurst, making a spiral cut top to bottom around the body, before bringing them to a boil. When they cook in the water, the spirals open up, releasing some of the fat and rendering the meat more tender. Then the knockwursts are grilled to perfection, charred and crisp, yet tender as can be. We place them in toasted buns, top with our mustard of choice (Carol swears by Fox's spicy mustard), sprinkle with celery salt and devour . . . usually at least two per person!
I am so lucky to be the recipient of these labors of love. It is thrilling to carry on these cooking traditions both at home and professionally. And it is a privilege to be able to share so many of them with you each week.
Made with ice cream softened, corn syrup or maple syrup, margarine, milk chocolate chips, rice krispies
Serves/Makes: 8
- 2 cups rice krispies
- 8 ounces milk chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup margarine
- 1 tablespoon corn syrup or maple syrup
- 1/2 gallon ice cream softened
Melt the chocolate chips and butter in small saucepan over very gentle heat, or over a double boiler. Add the corn or maple syrup and stir.
Reserve 3 tbsp. of the melted mixture to be drizzled on top of the ice cream at the end before freezing the pie.
Add the Rice Krispies to the chocolate mixture and stir well to coat.
Spoon the Rice Krispie mixture into a pie dish to create a crust. Add softened ice cream and spread evenly. Drizzle the reserved chocolate mixture on top and freeze until firm.
Remove the pie from the freezer and let stand for a few minutes before serving.
Kelley Bolten, Marianna's daughter, recommends using two different kinds of ice cream so that one half of the pie is one flavor, while the other half is another flavor.
Made with olive oil, salt and pepper, cauliflower, fresh parsley, Parmesan cheese, eggs, flour
Serves/Makes: 6
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 4 tablespoons flour
- salt and pepper, to taste
- olive oil for frying
Place the cauliflower in a large pot of water and boil until soft. Drain well and let cool. You want it to be as dry as possible so let it cool on a rack or in a colander.
Once the cauliflower is cool to the touch, break it apart into small florets using a fork or your hands. Place in a large bowl.
Combine the parsley and cheese in a small bowl until mixed.
Add the cheese mixture to the cauliflower along with the beaten eggs. Mix well. Sprinkle with the flour, salt and pepper and mix until it is combined. Add more flour as needed to bind the ingredients.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough olive oil to be one inch deep.
Using a tablespoon, scoop up some of the cauliflower mixture and form into a patty. Fry in the olive oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Remove to paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining cauliflower mixture.
Serve with hot sauce or another favorite dipping sauce.
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