Westfield Foodie Blog Now Features a Search Box

Finish this sentence and then look to the top, right corner of this browser. See the search box?

I just spent 15 minutes searching my own blog for my recipes and articles I wrote myself. A pretty phenomenal and ego-boosting experience! I've searched my "inner" self before but never quite like this.

Unlike any other website that exists, all the results from this search box will will reveal food discoveries in and around town, based on your own individual criteria. For those who eat, dine or cook in Westfield, this search box and blog is for you!

There is an option to search only the blog, or to search the blog and any restaurant, store or recipe I've linked to in my writing. You'll get a tantalizing cross section of observations about restaurant meals, grocery deals and recipes to try at home. For example, "burger" yielded an interesting array of results, varying from the butcher at Kings to the worst burger I ever had to my husband photographing his food and sending it to me. A little of this and a little of that...just like me!

Go ahead, test it out.... I'll be here when you finish. Play around.

Dear Westfield Foodie,

a) How do you make cauliflower rice? 
2) How do you know if baked salmon is ready? 
iii) What is the difference between a caper and a caper berry? 


I want to hear from you. Your questions make me feel like an authority. You challenge me and force me to learn new facts and methods. And, I like being the go to person for your food questions. And I am accessible...I'm on facebook, on Twitter, at school pickup, in town, on the elevator, next to you at a red light, pulling out of Surgents, the Lucky store or at the Mobil...I am everywhere you need me to be for your Food 911.  

Ask the Foodie! 

westfieldfoodie@gmail.com

Write me anytime. Ask the Foodie. Send me your stories, recipes and questions.  Your questions will be answered in my blog. Confidentially of course. Unless you specifically state otherwise, I don't name names.


The answers to the above questions are...


a) I have never tried it but here's a link. 
2) 400 degrees for 20 minutes for rare - you want it to feel like the skin between your thumb and index finger when you poke it. 
iii) Capers are smaller, rounder and darker in color; caper berries are larger and on the vine. Both are brined in water, vinegar & salt and they can be used interchangeably.


Write soon!
WF

Jersey Strawberries are in Season - and in town

Today, in between bouts of treacherous downpours and dark stormy threatening skies, there was a bright burst of spring in the air. A strawberry festival on Quimby Street. 


This afternoon, Alan's Orchard welcomed the spring harvest with a strawberry celebration - filled with eating contests, coloring, treats and a special treat from a local chef. After a long winter, the drab potatoes, beets and yams are finally yielding to green asparagus, yellow tomatoes and juicy red strawberries. And speaking on behalf of my 5 year old daughter and her friend, we couldn't be happier.

The local strawberries are from Cassidy Farm in Monroeville, NJ. They are raised with organic pesticide-free practices. They were remarkably clean, and surprisingly ripe for this early in the season. Strawberries top the Dirty Dozen - a well publicized list of fruits & vegetables highest in pesticides. You can reduce your exposure to pesticides by up to 80 percent by buying organic. And they are super fresh, thanks to their short trip from the farm to the store to my house to my mouth in just days. 


The sight of my daughter and her friend determined to eat as much whipped cream (grass-fed and organic, of course!) and berries without their hands was hysterical. I wanted to lick their faces. They got to color strawberries and see them hung on the wall.  And they saw Jeffrey Rust of Jeffrey's Restaurant make a spectacular 3 layer strawberry shortcake. 


Of course my kids wanted more strawberries at home. Alan's Orchard has wonderful fresh herbs, and I bought a bunch of mint. It stores well in the refrigerator or freezer, and matches beautifully with everything from lamb to yogurt to rum. Tonight, I paired chopped mint with sliced Jersey Strawberries, drizzled honey and the juice of half a lemon.


Getting my families to eat fresh veggies & greens has never been so easy.

Cowgirl Ranch Salad with Polenta Croutons and Filet of Soul

Food & music make me happy. I enjoy them both so much, ideally at the same time. I find it all the more enjoyable to crank a favorite tune while I chop and sear my woes away. When I am home, I generally have WMVY blasting, a Cape Cod radio station broadcast over internet radio. We have wireless speakers in the kitchen AND the patio so I can groove seamlessly from fridge to grill to table via a Sonos box.  I also like to cook to classical, Frank Sinatra and 70s hits. I guess it depends what I am making.

I'm a huge Neil Young fan, and his music makes a delicious soundtrack in the kitchen. Think about it - his prolific set list includes Cinnamon Girl, Harvest, Southern Man and Down by the River. Suddenly I'm thinking of line-caught trout, fried chicken, apple pie and mashed potatoes. Not bad for a Canadian. Did you know that Needle and the Damage Done is actually about a tragic, too-early piercing of steak? And it's always the right time to turn up on the volume on Mr. "filet of" Soul.

My favorite Neil Young song is Cowgirl in the Sand. I heard this song for the first time in high school and I have always thought it was about me. I love mountains and I love the beach. My parents have lived in Colorado for the past 20 years, but I was raised going to the Jersey Shore. My passion for skiing, hiking and high altitude golfing connects me to the mountains, but my love for surf, sand and seafood keeps me by the coast. I could not possibly decide between a Colorado rack of lamb or lobster in Maine. I just couldn't. I love both, ideally at the same time.

Today I am a cowgirl. Yes, it is freezing and rainy and totally not beach weather. Meet the Cowgirl Ranch Salad, perfect for those cold days when you are home on the range. It's all about leftovers & lettuce. Take whatever you have - steak, chicken, pork, shrimp, fish - and add to your favorite lettuce. The lingering smoky bbq taste adds depth to a salad, and then add whatever fresh veggies you have. Better yet, add the leftover charred asparagus. It's that simple. If you have leftover bread, rolls, corn or potatoes, add them too. Anything works here, folks.

Last night I grilled pork tenderloin smothered in bbq sauce. I also mixed 2 tablespoons of the same sauce to a bowl of 4 ribs chopped celery, 1 can black beans and 1 can corn (rinsed & drained.) This side dish was great - nice bright color, and the celery gave it a subtly sweet crunch. I also sliced up a tube of polenta into ¾-inch hockey pucks and tossed them on the grill until they were charred with a crisp crust.

Today, I cut the polenta slices into 1-inch cubes and roasted them for 15 minutes at 400. I added these “polenta croutons” to romaine lettuce and topped with the corn & bean salad and the remaining 4 slices of pork. I drizzled the salad with Annie's Natural Cowgirl Ranch dressing. Yee haw!

I have yet to make it to the beach on the east coast this season, but I am hoping to write the "sand" installment of this 2-part blog sooner than later. Until then, enjoy the early spring grilling season!

Lauren Weiss blogs on www.westfieldfoodie.com and The Alternative Press about cooking, dining and food shopping in her hometown of Westfield, NJ. A busy stay at home mom of 2 takes on the challenges of every day life, one meal at a time. If you like this article please click on the alternative press link - my writing career depends on you! 

Listen To Your Mother - at least in the kitchen

Happy Mother's Day! In the spirit of the holiday, today's piece is a shout out to my two mothers - my mom and my mother in law. Elaine & Ellen. Two women who have had a big impact on my cooking and eating through the years.  I've learned so much from both.
I asked them both to submit to me a 3 course meal, that I would write about. I am reprinting their recipes below, exactly in their words. I wish I came up with feathery to describe the herbs, but that is all Ellen. and noone but my mother in law would start a recipe with "NYTimes maybe 20 years ago...."  
Both menus are lovely and filled with delicate beautiful ingredients, as well as some cooking tips. For example, if you roast the salmon on foil it transfers intact to the serving plate and you cut away the extra foil to keep the fish shape. Ingenious!  There are similarities: they both chose soups for the first plate, both chose fish for the entree. Ellen's cookie recipe sounds really easy. So does my moms...but she's trying to out-pie me. And I won't let that happen - not on my own blog! Her single response to my blog piece was that I should have included her rustic tart. Positive feedback or a compliment would have been nice, but I guess my blog about my cooking should also be about my mom. Well, luckily for her Mother's Day is here so today, mom, today you are the subject and the chef! tomorrow, it goes back to being all about me!

Elaine's Kitchen 
I loved to watch my mom cook as I grew up. She encouraged me at an early age to experiment in the kitchen. I remember making blueberry ice cream at age 9. I mixed crushed berries with milk & sugar and stuck it in the freezer. My early tinkering with Tollhouse cookies, spinach omelets, apple pizzas and onion dip in "Elaine's Kitchen," as the sign above the dinner table overlooking the redwood deck so clearly spelled out, laid the foundation for a lifelong love of cooking. I spent a lot of time working on catching the spaghetti (before it was pasta) at that perfect al dente chewiness. We also went out for dinner a lot, and I totally credit my parents for developing a love of dining out, fresh food, etiquette and experimenting. I loved pizza burgers at Don's, lobster at Sammy's Pizza at Star Tavern and Clams Casino and Portuguese food in Newark. Growing up in Roseland, and later Mendham, gave us access to a diverse culinary landscape. 


Today Elaine will be preparing chilled carrot ginger soup, chilean sea bass soffritto, and a rustic fruit tart. 

Chilled Carrot and Ginger Soup

2 Leeks, thinly sliced, 3 Tbsp Olive oil, 6 Carrots, thinly sliced, 1 Red potato, peeled and diced, 1 1/2 tsp Ginger, peeled and grated, 5 Cups Chicken stock, 1/2 Cup Orange juice, 2 tsp Orange zest, Salt and pepper to taste, Thin orange slices and mint sprigs for garnish

Directions

In large saucepan warm the oil and sauté leeks about 3 minutes. Add carrots, potatoes, and ginger and sauté 5 minutes more. Add chicken stock and simmer till all vegetables are softened, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Purée soup in blender and leave some texture. Add orange juice and zest and salt and pepper to taste.

Chilean Sea Bass SoffrItto4 Pieces Sea Bass, 1 Can readi cut tomatoes, Julienned strips of leeks, fennel and carrots, EVOO, Salt and pepper to taste
The Italian version of mirepoix is called soffritto (not to be confused with the Spanish sofrito). According to the American reference work The Joy of Cooking, an Italian soffritto is made with olive oil rather than butter, as in France, and may also contain garlic, fennel,leek, and herbs.[8] From Tuscany in central Italy, restauranteur Benedetta Vitali writes that soffritto means "underfried", describing it as: "a preparation of lightly browned minced vegetables, not a dish by itself". (Remove the dark green parts from the leeks and discard them. Slice the white parts of the leeks paper-thin. Wash the leeks well, making sure to remove any dirt. Pat the leeks dry with paper towels.) 2. Cover bottom of saucepan with julienned vegetables (the soffritto) Sprinkle with olive oil and salt and pepper Place fish in single layer on top of soffritto Sprinkle with salt and pepper Pour can of readi-cut tomatoes over fish. Cover and simmer (steam) for about 15 minutes until fish is tender and opaque. Plate fish and cover with vegetables. Serve with rice casserole and steamed asparagus. Makes a great first course as well. Just cut fish into smaller pieces, cook the same way and serve as an appetizer, garnish with baby greens. (Recipe from Family Recipe)

Freestyle Fruit Tart1 Box Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts ( if using both crusts, double other ingredients and make two tarts), 4 oz Phillie cream cheese, softened, 3 Cups Sliced fruit (plums, apples, nectarines etc), 1/4 Cup Granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp Flour, 1 tsp Cinnamon sugar (3/4 tsp sugar and 1/4 tsp cinnamon), 1 Cup Topping or ice creamDirections

Preheat oven to 450. Place pie crust in greased 10 inch pie plate. Carefully spread cream cheese in 6 inch circle in center of crust set aside. Toss fruit with sugar and flour. Spoon over cream cheese. Gently fold edge of crust about 2 inches over fruit, leaving center uncovered. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over tart. Bake 25 min or just until crust is golden brown and fruit juices are bubbly. Cool slightly before lifting out of pie plate. Cut into slices and top with whipped cream or ice cream. If making two tarts, freeze one for another occasion. Use any fruits you prefer... seasonal or in combinations. This tart is meant to be rustic, so don't worry about making it look perfect. That's what makes it a perfect tart to make!

Chez Ellen
My in-laws are also crazy about cooking, eating and consuming all things delicious. Ellen had six kids to feed so she had to cook huge amounts of food daily, requiring ingenuity, resourcefulness and economy of scale. She entertains exquisitely and loves to throw a party. She figured out how to make gourmet food on a budget by being crafty. Clam chowder and a whole side of salmon feed a family efficiently. They eat every part of the lobster. They had a whole goat on a spit this past Thanksgiving. I'm pretty sure my nephew Owen still sleeps with the lights on.... Well, to quote the chef herself, her food leaves people always wanting more.  So true!


Today Ellen will be preparing a curried crab soup, whole roasted salmon and pecan dainties. 

Curried Crab Soup

NYTimes maybe 20 years ago. 

4 T butter, 1/2 cup fine chopped onion, 1 clove garlic, fine minced, 1/2 cup peeled, fine diced apple, 1 T curry powder, 3 T flour, 1/2 cup chopped ripe tomato, 3 cups chicken broth, S & P 1/2 lb lump or backfin crabmeat, 1/2 cup heavy cream (or half and half, you decide), Tobasco sauce, Chopped parsley for garnish

Melt butter, add onion and cook stirring till wilted. Add garlic and apple. Stir briefly, sprinkle with curry and flour. Add the tomato and broth, stirring rapidly with a wire wisk. When thickened and smooth, add S & P to taste, then crab meat. Simmer 10 minutes, add cream and bring to boil. Add touch of Tobasco. Serve hot with parsley garnish.  (I double the recipe which is supposed to serve 6. People always want more.)

Whole Salmon Side

I place aluminum foil on a jelly roll pan (like a cookie sheet but with sides), sprinkle it with olive or canola oil depending whether I want the olive oil flavor or not, and place the whole side of salmon in the pan. (Some fishmongers remove the skin for you, a convenience, but there are cooks who want the skin left on for enhanced flavor.) I smear a good flavored mayonnaise like Ojai (my favorite)---lemonaise or chipotle---over the surface of the salmon. Sometimes I sprinkle cumin or garlic powder or a fine minced herb like dill or basil on top.  I roast the fish in a 400 degree oven, maybe 20 minutes.  Keep track of the time: Do Not Overcook.  I like my fish a little underdone. I usually slide the whole foil base with the fish in place, onto my serving platter, and then trim the foil away to the fish edge: that saves the hassle of trying to get the intact fish from cook pan to plate. Then decorate with cucumber and lemon slices, and maybe some feathery dill.  

Pecan Dainties

1 cup soft butter, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 cups sifted flour, 1 t  vanilla, 1 T water,  2 cups ground pecans (more or less fine) 2 cups pecan halves

Cream butter and sugar till light. Add remaining ingredients except the pecan halves.  Mix well. Chill till firm. Shape into 3/4 inch balls. Top with a pecan half. Bake in 325 degree oven 20 minutes.  (Roll in confectioners sugar when cooled, if you like.) Store in airtight containers.  Makes 6-8 dozen.

Where to Shop the Blog:
Chilean Sea Bass, lump crab meat (frozen is ok) - Westfield Seafood Market
Whole salmon - Costco on Route 22, Union
Pecans - all sizes at Trader Joe's
Feathery Dill, Leeks, Carrots, Fennel, Ginger, Oranges - Kings or Westfield Farms
Pillsbury Pie Crust - Stop & Shop or Kings.

A Slice of Life - Ferraro's Restaurant

It is with disbelief, shock and sadness that I write about the loss at Ferraro's in Westfield. The six-alarm fire destroyed the Italian restaurant that is a landmark in our town.  I know they will be back. Westfield would have it no other way.

Ferraro's was a really great place. A true neighborhood institution. We've had 3 of my daughters birthday parties there. The restaurant turned 42 this year, like I had.  This means that all my friends who grew up in Westfield have been going there all their lives. Two days ago I was at Ferraro's and I bumped into JD, who is from Westfield and just celebrated his 50th bday. He was picking up some pies for his baseball team; I was with a group of 16 gymnasts & moms (and 1 dad!).  Chuck welcomed JD with a big hug, I guess they go way back. Ferraro's was that place - perfect for little league, a moms night out, a pizza party, a celebratory dinner. Everyone was welcome and we all came, and came back.

On the second to last night at Ferraro's, all was good in Westfield. Just 36 hours ago I had dinner at Ferraro's. The restaurant was full, the sidewalk bustling. I was enjoying a new menu pasta item that I wanted to write about. They added some new items that are lighter, whole wheat and in some cases even gluten free. The whole wheat penne with eggplant and grilled vegetables was fabulous. It was a beautiful night and we were enjoying a dinner with our girls who just completed a fantastic competitive gymnastics season at Surgents. Chuck expertly seated us in a private area, he knows what happens when kids have their own table next to someone trying to have a quiet night out. A gaggle of leotards, ponytails and giggles went through 3 pizzas while the moms (and 1 dad!) enjoyed sipping wine at our table by the sidewalk. 

That was Tuesday, today is Thursday. I can only hope this is just a temporary setback, that they will rebuild and reopen. I think back to Charlie Browns, they had a new place up and running in a few months. In the meantime we can still eat their food from Ferraro's South and support them as they grieve and recover from this sad loss.  

My Lust for the Crust - Finding Happiness and Order in Pie Making

I love pie. Cross that - I love making pies. I usually don't end up eating most of the pies I make but I like to bring them to parties.  I never order pie for dessert or at a diner. It's not necessarily my thing to eat, but it has become one of my signature dishes to make.

I made my first pie 5 summers ago from the recipe on the side of the Pillsbury pie crust box. I then experimented like crazy with fillings: peaches, pears, frozen fruit, apple sauce, jams & jellies, mango & pineapple. Then how much flour? sugar? what about honey or agave?  I found that fresh ground pepper, nutmeg and lemon zest go with everything and add a complexity and spice that you might not expect from a fruit pie. I also learned that frozen fruits - like the frozen mixed berry bag at Trader Joe's - will produce more liquid as the ice melts into the filling. Use a baking tray under the pie dish to catch the bubbling blueberry juices. And because making 2 pies is as easy as making 1, when I shop for pie crust, I pick up several boxes. They are usually in the same section as the rolls of cookie dough. In fact, I have 3 boxes in my fridge right now!

When it's pie making time, I know for sure that within 1 hour I will have a beautiful, creative, unique and a picture-perfect pie. I know it will taste good and will make lots of people happy, which makes me feel good. Where else can I say this in my life? In an unpredictable world, I bake pie. 

Rhubarb Strawberry Pie with Triple Lemon Infusion

a Westfield Foodie original recipe

2 pounds strawberries

1 large stalk rhubarb

8 oz Lemon Curd

1 large Sunkist lemon to zest & juice

1 tsp Vanilla

1/4 cup Flour

1 cup Sugar

Dashes of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Sea Salt & Ground Black Pepper

1 Box Pillsbury Pie Crust (includes top & bottom crusts)

Mix first 11 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Lay 1 crust over pie dish. Fill with fruit mix. Top with dough, or create lattice top.  Bake the pie at 400 for 45 minutes covered, last 15 minutes uncovered.  Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, or cinnamon ice cream from Cold Stone when it is in season.

You too can create a stunning golden flaky pie. Pies take just a few minutes to make, plus an hour of baking time. Pie snobs, read no further. I use the prepared pie crust from Pillsbury. My mother-in-law, who is an excellent cook and prolific baker, uses prepared pie crust from Pillsbury. If she is ok with it, I am ok with it. This nod of approval gave me the confidence to try pie-making in my own kitchen.  Maybe one day I will evolve into the make your own crust type, and then perhaps I will snicker at someone taking an inferior short cut. But until then I'm all about the dough boy.

I put the bottom round crust into a pie dish and fill it with the yummy stuff. Then I get to decorate. I make sure the top layer of the fruit mix is lookin' good because this is what will peak thru the woven crust. I usually do a single layer of fruit to give a consistent color. I take one of the pie crust rounds and slice them into 8 strips using the slicer with the beveled edge I got from the supermarket. I discard the side pieces and lay 4 strips lengthwise across the pie. Starting at the top right corner, I weave the remaining 4 strips 1 at a time, making sure not to dip the beige crust into any red staining berries. Then I press the crust around the perimeter with the fork marks to hide any imperfections and add a cool looking visual element. 

Last week I was in Westfield Farms and saw a bright red celery stalk type item. It was Rhubarb. Aha, so that is rhubarb,?! I thought and tossed one in my basket. Intrigued, I decided to make a pie.  A new pie challenge - bring it on! I looked online for a few recipes, and learned a few quick facts about this vegetable that acts like a fruit. I had the bejeezes scared out of me by a few who had experimented with this mysterious stalk, waring me of its bitterness and need to be paired with lots of sugar, fruit & lemon. This led to my decision to add lots of red ripe strawberries and a triple lemon infusion of juice, zest and half a jar of lemon curd I've had in my fridge for a year. It was heavenly and I did not eat one slice. I had two.

Chicken Pot Pie

The next week, I stared at leftovers in the fridge and remembered the extra pie crust. Suddenly the random collection of a leftover Costco rotisserie chicken, canned corn, cream of mushroom soup, organic carrots and wilting tomatoes had a purpose. Chicken pot pie. I tossed the chicken and veggies with a can of cream of mushroom soup and it was in the oven 5 minutes later, this time with a top pie crust sliced with 4 vents.  Comfort food at its best.  Campbell's soup meets smoked paprika. We're all friends in foodie's kitchen.

My older daughter loves chicken pot pie in theory, but hates peas so she never eats them. She was a happy girl that night. And my younger daughter seems to have inherited her mommy's lust for the crust. Next time I will try potatoes instead of tomatoes, which isn't even a vegetable anyway. 

It's a crazy world out there. Fruit in savory pies, and veggies in dessert pies. Doesn't matter much, as long as it looks pretty.