49998549
Sunday is Mother’s Day, one of the busiest times of the year for restaurants. There are options: Make a reservation for brunch or dinner or prepare a special meal at home for Mom.
I’ve always believed in giving practical gifts on special occasions. Last year, I wrote about gifts for mothers who love to cook and bake. I mentioned my birthday is two weeks after Mother’s Day and I would love to receive a mortar and pestle. My friend, chef Christopher Thames, arrived at my home with a beautifully-wrapped package. Inside was a marble and stone mortar and pestle made in Italy.
Cookbooks rate high on my list of gifts for Mom. Literary works about the world of cuisine are a delicious alternative to the soup-to-nuts cookbooks. My favorite authors include M.F.K. Fisher, Ruth Reichl, Waverley Root, Jeffrey Steingarten, Calvin Trillin, R.W. Apple and A.J. Liebling.
This year, why not prepare brunch for Mom and then visit a museum, take in a play or a movie. If you are a beginner cook with a bit of experience, two new tomes will provide inspiration. “The Great Potluck Cookbook” by the editors of Good Housekeeping magazine and “The Little Book of Pies & Tarts” by the food editors of Country Living magazine contain full-color photographs and are spiral-bound for easy reading and cooking.
Dessert is up to you. You can purchase Mom’s favorite cake, cookies or pie and serve with ice cream, strawberry sauce or hot fudge sauce.
Here are recipes for Mother’s Day brunch. They are from “The Great Potluck Cookbook.”
Fizzy Cranberry-Lemonade Punch
Ingredients:
4 cups of cranberry juice cocktail
1 6-ounce can of frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 bottle of seltzer
Ice cubes, optional
1 small orange, cut into one quarter-inch slices, then cut in half
Directions:
In a large pitcher, stir the cranberry juice and lemonade until blended. Stir in the seltzer and ice cubes. Add the orange slices and serve.
Serves 12
Note from Phyllis: Cranberry juice cocktail has added sugar. I would use pure cranberry juice in this recipe.
Chunky Greek Salad
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, each cut in half
6 Kirby cucumbers, peeled and sliced
1 large red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 scallion, sliced
1/2 cup of pitted Kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup of fresh mint leaves, chopped
3/4 cup of feta cheese, crumbled
Directions:
In a large serving bowl, with a wire whisk, mix the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Add the remaining ingredients, except the feta, and toss well. Cover and refrigerate for at least six hours.
When ready to serve, add the feta and toss again.
Serves four to six.
Scallop and Cherry Tomato Skewers
Ingredients:
1 lemon
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
24 cherry tomatoes
16 large sea scallops, preferably dry day boat
Directions:
Prepare the outdoor grill.
Soak eight wooden skewers in water for at least 20 minutes.
Grate 1-1/2 teaspoons of the lemon peel and squeeze 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice and place in a bowl. Add the oil, mustard, salt and pepper and blend.
Thread three tomatoes and two scallops alternating on each skewer, beginning and ending with tomatoes.
Brush the scallops and tomatoes with half of the mustard mixture. Grill for about seven minutes, turning several times. Brush with remaining mustard mixture and cook until the scallops turn just opaque, for about five minutes.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: You can prepare this dish using a stove-top grill pan. SPR
49998554
49998559
