Stuffie Stuffing
Thanksgiving dinner in a state with as many unique eats as Rhode Island should not be boring! That’s why I created a recipe for Stuffie Turkey Stuffing, an adaption of the popular R.I. appetizer that are made from bread crumbs, butter, celery, onion and thyme (in other words, stuffing!) along with chourico sausage and quahog […]
Jewish Apple Cake
Originally published in Relish magazine September 2010 Philadelphia-style apple cake (aka Jewish apple cake) is a large, moist and hearty coffee cake laced with cinnamon and layered with sliced apples with origins and special popularity with Eastern European Jews and their descendants. Given that, it’s not surprising that almost all recipes for it – including […]
Jelly Bean Fritters
State fairs are laboratories of weird fried foods. R.I. clam cake mix maker Drum Rock came up with this dessert adaptation of their mix, featured in my Great Clam Cake and Fritter Guide, after hearing of the dish’s debut at the Big E multi-state fair in Springfield, Massachusetts. But these would also be great for […]
French-Canadian Salmon Pie
There are two savory pies traditionally served by French-Canadian families over the winter holidays. Both contain potatoes and onion: one featuring salmon; the other, meat. Both are comfort food to-the-max. The French-Canadian side of my family made the meat version, also called tourtiere. But the founding family and namesake of the clam-cake-making Huot’s of Saco, […]
Buche de Noel a la Twinkie
This is a white trash version of the fancy French holiday cake that itself evokes the even older tradition of burning a huge log in the fireplace over the Christmas holiday. For the frosting: 2/3 cup solid vegetable shortening 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon salt 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar 1/2 cup unsweetened […]
Jell-O Mousse with Raspberry Sauce
Standard-issue Jell-O looks like a toy and chews like plastic. But combined with real whipped cream and adorned with sauce made from real fresh berries as in this recipe I discovered and tweaked while working on my Jell-O book, Jell-O is transformed into something as elegant as it is easy and also light, at least […]
Clambake Chowder
This modern (i.e. quick and easy), clear-chowder-based take on the clambake was inspired by a food service offering from Blount, the R.I. clam processor turned national soup maker/clam shack operator. The sausage and corn create enough of a distraction to even win over clam haters. It got cut from The Great Clam Cake and Fritter […]
Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil
This was my favorite new recipe of 2022. Every time I’ve made it I’ve been asked for the recipe: And how many recipes can you say that about? My library cookbook club started cooking from websites during the pandemic and I discovered this during damndelicious.net month. Although there are other versions online, I like theirs […]
Fresh Strawberry Pie
Get great ingredients and get out of the way: This pie is that cooking philosophy personified. All it is is delicious fresh strawberries piled high on a cooked pie crust and covered in a light gelatin-sugar glaze. It is a featured dessert at the clam-cake-serving Chelo’s R.I. restaurants featured on page 34 of The Great […]