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Archive for the ‘Eileen’s Recipes’ Category

Eileen’s recipe: meatballs and sauce

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged on March 7, 2026| 1 Comment »

Eileen’s meatballs and spaghetti.

 

The problem with the American College of Cardiology is that they don’t have a football team. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

 

Meatballs:

 

2 lbs ground meat (I used ½ beef and ½ turkey)

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

½ tsp red pepper flakes

½ tsp dry oregano

¼ cup Eggbeaters (or 1 large egg, beaten)

¼ cup water

½ cup panko bread crumbs

4 tbsp grated parmesan reggiano cheese

2 tbsp vegetable oil

 

In a sauté pan heat oil until it starts to sizzle. Add onion and cook until onion begins to soften. Add garlic, and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Do NOT let garlic burn. Remove from heat.

 

In a large bowl place meat. If you are using more then one type of meat gently mix the meats together. Add onion and garlic to the meat. Add all the other ingredients to the meat and gently combine.  If you mix too vigorously the meatballs will be tough.

 

Roll the meat into golf ball sized balls and place on an aluminum lined baking tray.

Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

 

Sauce:

 

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp dry oregano

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4  tsp freshly ground black pepper

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup unsalted chicken broth

1/4 cup dry red wine

1 28 oz jar Rao’s marinara sauce

1 28 oz can San Marzano whole tomatoes, crush with your hands

1 tsp sugar

½ cup fresh basil

½ cup fresh flat leaf Italian parlsey, chopped

 

In a 5 quart Dutch oven heat oil until it simmers. Add onion and cook until onion wilts. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add Rao’s marinara and San Marzano tomatoes, stir and cook until tomatoes begin to simmer. Add broth and wine, stir together and simmer for 15 minutes. Add all the other ingredients, except the parsley and basil. Stir together and cook for 30 minutes. Add the cooked meatballs to the sauce with the parsley and basil and simmer for 30 minutes.

Serve over pasta of your choice.

 

This recipe makes approximately 30 meatballs.

 

 

DISNEY STUDIO CHORUS.   From Lady and the Tramp  “Bella Notte.”

 

 

You can comment on this post by email:     Blogfinger@verizon.net

 

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Eileen’s Recipes: Beef Stew* (a perfect dish for a blizzard)

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged on February 9, 2026|

Eileen's Beef Stew. Ocean Grove, NJ. Paul Goldfinger photo ©

Eileen’s Beef Stew. Ocean Grove, NJ. Paul Goldfinger photo

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger

2 1/2 pounds chuck roast, trimmed of fat, cut into 2″ cubes

10 cipollini onions, peeled

4  carrots, peeled (2 diced, 2 cut into 2″ rounds)

2 russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 2″ pieces

2 yellow onions. diced

1/2 pound green beans, trimmed

3 stalks celery, diced

1 cup fresh green peas (frozen can be substituted)

4 cloves garlic, minced

6 large mushrooms, thickly sliced

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon dry thyme

1 cup Guinness stout

1 cup red burgundy wine

1 cup beef stock

1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus 2 tablespoons

2 tablespoons margarine

searing flour, as needed

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons tomato paste

3 plum tomatoes,  seeded and diced

In a 5 quart Dutch oven, heat 1/4 cup of oil on medium.  Remove moisture from meat with a paper towel and  lightly sprinkle cubes with searing flour;  place meat in oil and brown on all sides. Do  this in small batches and set meat aside as they brown.

Add diced carrots, celery and yellow onions to the Dutch oven and cook until they soften and brown, approximately 20 minutes. Add garlic and cook 3 minutes. Add wine, stout, beef broth, thyme, tomato paste, black pepper, salt and bay leaves.  Bring to a boil and stir.

Reduce heat to medium-low, add meat to pot and simmer covered for 1 hour.  Stir occasionally.

While the meat and sauce are simmering, heat margarine and 2 tablespoons of oil on medium in a large nonstick fry pan.  Add the 2″ pieces of carrot, potatoes, cipollini onions, tomatoes, and green beans; and sauté until the vegetables turn a little brown,  approximately 30  minutes.

Add the browned vegetables to the meat and sauce after the meat has cooked for 1 hour.

* For the best flavor prepare the stew to this point a day or two prior to serving.

Reheat the stew on medium-low until the sauce begins to simmer.  Add the green peas and mushrooms.  Stir and cook for 1 hour.   Taste to adjust for flavoring.

Serves 4

 

FATS WALLER:  “The Rump Steak Serenade”

 

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Eileen’s recipes: chicken pot pie

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Eileen's Recipes, tagged on January 22, 2026|

Eileen Goldfinger’s chicken pot pie. Blogfinger.net. Eileen photo©

 

Ingredients:

3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

3-5 tablespoons olive oil

salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

4 tablespoons of butter or margerine

2 medium sized onions cubed

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup fat free half and half

4 carrots peeled and diced

1  10 ounce package frozen peas

1 small package of small whole onions

2 packages of frozen puff pastry

32 ounce box unsalted chicken stock

1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

 

Chicken:

Place chicken on baking sheet. Sprinkle them on both sides with saltand black pepper and rub them with olive oil.  Bake them for 35 minutes or until they are baked through.  Half way through turn chicken parts over and finish baking. Remove from oven and set aside. When chicken is cool cut it in bit sized pieces.

 

Filling:

In a large Dutch oven melt butter and saute onions and carrots for 15 minutes.  Add flour and cook over low heat , stirring constantly for 2 minutes.  Slowly add the chicken stock to the pot.  Simmer over low heat until stirring until sauce becomes thick.  Add 1.2 teaspoon of salt , 1.2 teaspoon black pepper and fat free half and half.  Add the chicken, peas, whole onions and parsley.   Mix well.

 

Assembling:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

You will need two 9-inch pie plates.

Roll out a sheet of pastry on a floured surface , one for each pie plate. Place in plate and press pastry into plate. Trim off excess pastry.  Prick the pastry thoroughly with a fork. P lace aluminum foil onto the surface of the pastry.  Bake for 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and remove foil.

Divide filling in half and place in each pastry  lined plate. Roll out two more pastry sheets on floured surface. Place one on top of each filled pie plate.  Pinch the edges of the dough to  make it stick and seal all around the plate.  To make a lattice top, cut  top pastry into long strips and weave in and out on top of the filled pie plate .  In either case brush the top pastry with an egg wash (one egg whisked in a small bowl) and sprinkle with sea salt.

Place pies on baking sheets in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour or until the top crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.

Note:   Don’t bother the cook while she is timing the  pie:

 

PALAST ORCHESTER and MAX RAABE:   “As Time Goes By.”

 

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Eileen’s stay warm recipe: Cabbage soup, Russian style…

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, Food and Restaurant, tagged , , , on January 22, 2026|


By Eileen Goldfinger, food editor @Blogfinger.net

 

1 large head green cabbage, slice into 2-3 inch pieces

2 24 ounce jars marinara sauce

4 24 ounce jars water

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon

2 medium onions, diced

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

salt to taste

2-3 pounds short ribs, trimmed of fat

6 tablespoons vegetable oil

 

In an 8 quart stock pot heat oil on medium low. Add short ribs and brown on all sides. Remove ribs from pot and set aside. Add onion and cook until it wilts.

Next add marinara sauce, water (use the marinara jar for measurement), lemon juice, sugar, salt and pepper.  Stir and cook until liquid begins to simmer. Add cabbage and short ribs, then stir.

Place lid askew on pot and cook at a simmer for 2 hours or until meat is ready to fall off the bones.

 

Serve with boiled potatoes and Russian rye bread.*

Serves 4

 

* We like Pechters Russian rye bread (made in Harrison, NJ) with black caraway seeds, purchased at Wegmans.  Eileen is a Weg Woman.

But in 2023  the Weg Man changed to an equally fine version made by Paramount.  Inquire at the fresh bread section.

Paramount Kosher Russian rye breads have been made in Newark for nearly 100 years:

 

Paramount Russian Jewish rye bread. From their web site.

 

 

Jonathan Settel:  “Oseh Shalom”     Hebrew–A prayer for peace:

“May He bring peace, may He bring peace
Peace upon us and on all of Israel
May He bring peace, may He bring peace
Peace upon us and on all of Israel.”

 

 

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Eileen’s Recipes: Cod with cherry tomatoes….

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on January 6, 2026|

Eileen’s cod with cherry tomatoes. Photo by Eileen. 7/21/21 ©

 

 

Recipe by Eileen Goldfinger,  Food Editor, Blogfinger.net

 

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 pound cod loin

1 tbsp searing flour

1 tbsp paprika

10 cherry tomatoes, halved

4 scallions, diced

1/4 cup dry white wine

4 tbsp margarine  (or butter)

3 cloves garlic, grated

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lemon, juiced

 

 

PREPARATION:

Butterfly the thick section of the loin so that the piece of fish is the same thickness throughout.

Rub both sides of the cod with searing flour  and then with paprika.

In a 10 or 12 inch non-stick frying pan add 1 tbsp of margarine and 2 tbsps of extra virgin olive oil and heat on medium until margarine melts.

Next add cod to pan and brown on both sides, approximately 10 minutes.

Remove fish from pan and set aside.

Add the remaining margarine to the pan.

Heat on medium low until margarine melts.

Add tomatoes, scallions, garlic, salt and pepper to the pan and sauté for 10 minutes or until the scallions and tomatoes begin to wilt.

Then add white wine and lemon juice.

Stir all ingredients and add cod back into pan.

Using a spoon drizzle the sauce over the fish as it cooks–approximately 10 minutes or when the fish becomes opaque.

 

Serves 2

 

THE DANLEERS  “One Summer Night”

 

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Eileen’s Recipes: Veal Stew. A hearty Italian dish for a cold day.

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged , , , on December 10, 2025|

Eileen’s veal stew.  1/13/18. Blogfinger photo ©

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food editor @Blogfinger

 

1 pound veal cubes, cut into 1 inch pieces

1/4 cup searing flour

1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 2 inch strips

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium carrots, peeled, cut into small cubes

1 stalk celery, cut into small 1/4 inch pieces

5 ounces crimini or white button mushrooms,  cut mushrooms in half

1 cup frozen peas

2 russet potatoes

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

salt to taste

14 ounces canned plum or cherry tomatoes with puree

1 medium onion, cut into small cubes

2/3 cup unsalted chicken broth

1/2 cup red wine

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Combine flour with black pepper and lightly coat veal with flour. Heat oil in a 5 quart Dutch oven over medium heat until hot. Brown the veal in small batches. Remove from pot and set aside on a plate.

Add celery, carrots, onion and garlic to Dutch oven, lower the heat and cook until the vegetables wilt, approximately 10 minutes.

Stir tomatoes, wine, and broth in Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, add veal and peppers to the pot. Simmer uncovered for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

At this point in the recipe, peel, dice into one inch cubes, and boil two russet potatoes in a separate pot until they are fork tender. Next pour off the water, take the pot off the heat, and leave the potatoes in the covered pot until ready to serve with the finished stew.

Cover the stew pot and cook for 3/4 hour.  Continue to stir occasionally. Taste sauce and adjust seasoning (more pepper and salt if necessary.)  Add mushrooms and peas, and cook another 15 minutes with the top back on  or until the veal is fork tender.

Add some additional chicken broth during the cooking process if the liquid begins to evaporate.

Serves 2-3 people

 

 

PUCCINI.  “O Mio Babbino Caro.”

 

 

*Editor’s notes:

Red wine is a must.  We had an Acrobat Pinot Noir  (2016)  from Eugene, Oregon—-Wegmans selection.  The bread is a Bastone, a crunchy-crusted Italian loaf from Mario’s in Fort Myers, Florida—by way of Sicily.  But, in the OG area, “A Taste of Italy” on Asbury Avenue has excellent Italian bread.

Substitute meats:  Skinless boneless chicken thighs cut into one inch pieces, or beef.

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Stirring the Pot: Eileen’s Chicken Cacciatore

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on November 5, 2025| 7 Comments »

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger.  Re-posted from 2013 on Blogfinger.net

 

3-4 pounds chicken, cut in 4 inch pieces, wings cut at the joint

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup vegetable oil

5 tablespoons searing flour

2 bell peppers, any color, cut in ½ inch strips

1 large onion, diced

12 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced

½ cup red wine

½ cup chicken broth

1  28 ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes, crush by hand

½ cup marinara sauce

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (this is spicy)

½ teaspoon dried oregano

3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Sprinkle flour on both sides of chicken pieces. In a large fry pan, heat vegetable oil and brown chicken on both sides. Remove chicken from pan and set aside and discard the oil.

In a 5 quart Dutch oven, heat the olive oil.  Add onion and peppers. Sauté on medium heat for 10 minutes. Lower the heat and add the garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, San Marzano tomatoes, wine and broth; stir and simmer at a low heat for 30 minutes. Add oregano, red pepper flakes and black pepper, cook for 5 minutes.

Add chicken pieces to the sauce. Make sure the chicken is covered with the sauce. Cook at a simmer for 1 hour with pot cover ajar. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a small amount of broth.  Stir occasionally to make sure the chicken does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Taste sauce to adjust seasoning. If you want it spicier, add more red pepper flakes. Remember you can always add more but if you put too much in you can’t remove it.

Add mushrooms, stir and cook on low-medium heat for 30 minutes.

Serve over pasta.

Serves 4

 

SOUNDTRACK: Luciano Pavarotti, from the film “Quartet.”

 

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Eileen’s Recipes: Spicy Butternut Squash Soup with Crème Fraiche

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on November 1, 2025| 3 Comments »

Eileen's Spicey Squash Soup. Photo by Paul Goldfinger ©

Eileen’s Spicy Squash Soup. Photo by Moe Demby ©  It’s a fine autumn recipe because of the ready availability of NJ farm grown squash.   Blogfinger.net photograph.  This recipe previously posted at Christmas time, 2013.

 By Eileen Goldfinger, Food and Garden Editor @Blogfinger

3 pounds butternut squash

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (optional)

3 sliced shallots

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 small leek, white section, washed and thinly sliced

2 teaspoons fine sea salt

1 teaspoon ground garlic

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 spice “tea” bag, (1 bay leaf, 1 thyme sprig, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 4 whole peppercorns wrapped in cheesecloth and tied closed with kitchen twine)

1/2 cup white wine

4 cups vegetable broth

4 cups chicken broth

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Squash preparation:

Cut squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Rub the cut side of the squash with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon ground garlic and half teaspoon black pepper.

Place on baking sheet and roast in oven for 30 minutes or until the flesh of the squash is fork tender. Remove squash from oven, set aside and  let it cool. Remove flesh from skin.

Soup preparation:

In an 8 quart stock pot add remaining olive oil and butter and heat on medium low until butter melts, approximately 5 minutes. Add leek, shallots, fresh garlic, remaining salt, black pepper, white pepper and spice bag. Cook until the shallots are soft, approximately 5 minutes. Add the wine and cook until it has reduced by half. Add the flesh of the squash and broth and cook at a simmer for 1 hour, uncovered.

Remove the spice bag.  Use an immersion blender and blend until the soup is pureed. Taste and adjust the seasoning.  Add more cayenne pepper if you want it spicier. The soup should have the consistency of apple sauce. If it is too thin, raise the heat to medium and cook until it thickens.

Serve it with a dollop of crème fraiche or sour cream.

Here is Eileen preparing this heart-healthy recipe while wearing her American College of Cardiology sweatshirt. It’s a great college, but unfortunately, they have no football team.

Eileen fights the battle of the saturated fats. PG photo

Eileen fights the battle of the saturated fats. PG photo

Serves 6 – 8

LADY ANTEBELLUM

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A special breakfast treat: Eileen’s French toast–a springtime delight. Re-post.

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged on October 3, 2025|

French toast with fresh Jersey blueberries and peaches. 6/24/16© Paul Goldfinger photo

French toast with fresh Jersey blueberries and peaches. Recipe by Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @ Blogfinger.net.      Paul Goldfinger photo. Click to enlarge.

 

The fresh  blueberries and peaches  are wonderful now—very sweet.  (referring to mid to late June)   Eileen got hers at Wegmans.  In May blueberries are nice  but no peaches yet. You can substitute fruits.

The French toast recipe is easy and delicious.  You must use challah  (braided Jewish egg bread) which you can always get at Wegmans.  If you buy one, it will last for a week in your fridge, or you can freeze it.

Use a large shallow bowl and break some eggs into it.  (For two people, use four large eggs.)  With a fork or a whisk, beat the eggs until the yolks and whites are combined.

Add two teaspoons of real vanilla extract and a pinch of salt, and stir into the eggs.

Cut three  1 1/2 inch  slices from the center of the bread and place them in the egg mixture.

Allow the bread slices to soak up the egg mixture on both sides.

Add a tbsp. of vegetable oil to a  12 inch non-stick fry pan and spread the oil over the bottom of the pan. Heat until the oil begins to sizzle.

Place the bread slices into the heated pan and cook both sides until brown.  (approx. 3 minutes per side)

Serve the French toast with fresh fruits and real maple syrup.

 

Serves 2.  Make this wonderful recipe  for Father’s Day, Sunday,  June 15, 2025. He will love it,   and bring Dad to the June 14 Art on the Porch festivities on Saturday June 14..   Artontheporch.org

 

 

STEVE LAWRENCE AND EYDIE GORME´:

 

 

 

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Eileen’s Chicken Stew

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged on June 11, 2025| 1 Comment »

Eileen’s chicken stew. Blogfinger photo ©.

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food editor @Blogfinger

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs cut into one inch pieces

1/4 cup searing flour

1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 2 inch strips

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium carrots, peeled, cut into small cubes

1 stalk celery, cut into small 1/4 inch pieces

5 ounces crimini or white button mushrooms, 5 ounces, cut mushrooms in half

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

salt to taste

14 ounces canned plum or cherry tomatoes

1 medium onion, cut into small cubes

2/3 cup unsalted chicken broth

1/2 cup red wine

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

16 ounce package of frozen peas

5 small red or butter potatoes cubed

 

Using a medium size sauce pan, fill three quarters with water and bring to a boil.  Add the potatoes and cook until they are fork tender. Then pour off water and place the potatoes aside.

Combine flour with black pepper and lightly coat chicken pieces with flour. Heat oil in a 5 quart Dutch oven over medium heat until hot. Brown the chicken in small batches. Remove from pot and set aside on a plate.

Add celery, carrots, onion and garlic to Dutch oven, lower the heat and cook until the vegetables wilt, approximately 10 minutes.

Stir tomatoes, wine, and broth in Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, add chicken and peppers to the pot. Simmer covered for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

After the one hour make sure the chicken is fork-tender. If not, cook until its is fork tender.

Taste sauce and adjust seasoning ( more pepper and salt if necessary.)  Add mushrooms, peas, and potatoes.  Cook another 15 minutes.

Add some additional chicken broth during the cooking process if the liquid begins to evaporate.

 

PUCCINI.  “O Mio Babbino Caro.”

Red wine is a must.  We had a Foris Pinot Noir  (2014)  from the Rogue Valley in Oregon—-Wegmans selection.  The bread is a Bastone, a crunchy-crusted Italian loaf from Mario’s in Fort Myers, Florida—by way of Sicily.

Serves 2-3 people

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Heart-Healthy Boboli Vegetarian Pizza

Posted in Blogfinger News, Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on April 12, 2025| 1 Comment »

ingred 2

All photos in Eileen's kitchen by Paul Goldfinger

All photos in Eileen’sOG  kitchen by Paul Goldfinger

Boboli Vegetarian Pizza

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger

 

1 10 inch Boboli thin crust pizza or 2 Indian naan breads

1 8 ounce package fat free mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 cup marinara tomato sauce

¼ jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced, seeds removed

4 artichokes hearts, quartered (canned)

4 asparagus, peeled and cut on the diagonal in ½ inch pieces

½ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ teaspoon dry oregano

freshly ground black pepper to taste

6 cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese (grated)—optional

 

Pre heat the oven to 450 degrees.

Line the lower rack with tin foil to protect oven from drips.

Place a second rack in the middle of the oven. Use this rack to cook the pizza.

Spread the tomato sauce on the Boboli crust (or naan bread) with the back of a spoon so that it covers the entire crust.  Layer the mozzarella cheese on top of the sauce.  Arrange the vegetables on the cheese. You can substitute any low fat toppings that you like such as soy pepperoni, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, tuna or anchovies.  Sprinkle the seasonings including the Parmigiano on top. Drizzle olive oil over the pizza.

Place the pizza in the oven.

Cook for 10 minutes.

Serves 2

 

DEAN MARTIN:

 

 

This recipe is adapted from “Prevention Does Work: A Guide to a Healthy Heart”  (2011 4th edition , page 75 )  by Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC and Eileen Goldfinger, BA.

In this book, Eileen has created 34 original heart-healthy recipes which have been designed to be both delicious and easy to prepare. The book provides patient information about all aspects of prevention, with an emphasis on nutrition.

It can be obtained in paperback or hardcover at IUniverse.com or Amazon.com.

 

front cover

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Eileen’s Recipes: Sautéed Grouper with Cherry Tomato Sauce

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, Food and Restaurant, Heart healthy cooking, Heart healthy recipe, Prevention Does Work: A Guide to a Healthy Heart, tagged , , on March 24, 2025| 2 Comments »

Sautéed grouper with cherry tomato sauce. Paul Goldfinger photo ©

Sautéed grouper with cherry tomato sauce. Paul Goldfinger photo ©

 

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor   @Blogfinger

1/2 pound  grouper fillet (or any mild white fish)

1/2 pint  cherry or grape tomatoes

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 scallions, diced

2 cloves garlic, grated or minced

2 tablespoons Smart Balance Original “buttery spread”

1/4 cup white wine

4 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon freshly ground  black pepper

1 tablespoon searing  flour

4 teaspoons canola oil, plus 1 teaspoon to rub into fish

salt and pepper to taste

Sauce:

Make this early in the dinner  preparation. It needs to cook slowly.

In a sauce pan place cherry tomatoes, scallions, extra virgin olive oil, margarine, garlic, white wine and a pinch of salt and a 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.

Cook on low to medium heat until the  tomatoes get soft—-approximately a half hour.

The sauce should simmer not boil.

Fish:

Heat a 10″ non-stick fry pan on medium until it is hot.

Rub flour, paprika and black pepper on both sides of fish fillet.  Sprinkle with a little canola oil and rub spices into fillet

When the fry pan is hot add 4 teaspoons of canola oil to the pan and place fillet in pan. Reduce heat to medium low.

Then cook on one side until the fillet turns brown, then flip fish over and cook until the meat flakes and is white in the center. Add more oil to pan if the pan gets dry.

Pour sauce on plate and place fillet on top of sauce.

Serves 2.  Heart healthy recipe.*

 

Editor’s note: Some new data (2025) shows increased mortality from cancer and heart disease when excess butter is used compared to plant based oils as in this recipe: canola oil, Smart Balance, and olive oil.    Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC. 3/24/25.

 

Mama Eileen on the way to a tea party. Captiva Island, Fla at the Mad Hatter gift shop.

Mama Eileen on the way to a tea party. Captiva Island, Fla. at the Bubble Room gift shop.

 

CLIFFORD CURRY   from his album Shagadelic.   “Mama’s Home Cooking”

 

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Myrna’s authentic chicken soup: “Jewish Penicillin.”

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Eileen's Recipes, tagged on March 21, 2025| 11 Comments »

Myrna's Jewish Chicken Soup. This batch was just made. By Eileen Goldfinger. Editor @Blogfinger ©

Myrna’s Jewish Chicken Soup. In the middle is a home-made matzo  ball.  This batch was just made. By Eileen Goldfinger. Editor @Blogfinger   Re-posted from 2017.

 

Eileen (left) and Myrna Goldfinger. Chester, NJ. c.1995.

Eileen (left) and Myrna Goldfinger. Chester,  NJ. c.1995.

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger and Paul Goldfinger, MD,  Regular Editor@Blogfinger.net

 

Most Jewish families have a favorite recipe for what has been called  “heaven in a bowl” (Jaimie Oliver, chef.) It is a “classic comfort food” and has been part of Jewish tradition since medieval times.

Jewish chicken soup  is often prepared to make the sick feel more comfortable. The Huffington Post says that it “has healing powers,” and the University of Nebraska documented some health benefits (anti-inflammatory effects) for colds; probably due to breathing in those delightful fumes.

Eileen follows the tradition of my Mom’s family who came over from Eastern Europe (Poland) shortly after the turn of the 20th century. They settled in Bayonne, New Jersey where they lived in a small row house on the Boulevard. There were 9 children. Grandpa Chaim was a tailor. He sewed uniforms for the Czar until he got to New Jersey.

Grandma Helen was a little gray haired lady with a tiny kitchen where she turned out phenomenal traditional foods. I previously posted the photo of my Mom’s 4 brothers in uniform, newly returned from WWII.

As a kid I loved to meet my cousins in Bayonne where we would search the attic and basement for souvenirs from the Pacific and eat all those treats which we craved at that little house.

My mom, Myrna, known also by her Jewish name–Malka, was best known for her soups, and the one I loved so much was her chicken soup with matzo  balls and/or noodles. She always said that she had two “secret ingredients” which Eileen divulges below (with asterisks.)

Never try this recipe without those two items. Sometimes Mom would exaggerate, like when she would tell her students that my Dad was in the FBI and wore a secret code ring. They loved her because she told stories and because she would dance and sing at the drop of a hat.

Mom’s soup is great anytime, but especially for a cold day or if you have a cold..

 

So here is Myrna’s  recipe for Jewish Chicken Soup.  (Shared by Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger.net)

1 4 pound whole chicken, quartered, skinned; wrap it in a cheese cloth and tied with cotton string

1 large onion, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

4 carrots, peeled

2 cubes chicken bouillon*(see below for amount)

1 1/2 bunch fresh dill*

1 bunch fresh flat-leafed parsley

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

water

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper to taste

salt to taste

Heat oil in an 8 quart stock pot; add onions and celery; sauté for 10 minutes, until they wilt.

Cut 2 carrots into rounds and 2 carrots lengthwise and then in half. Add carrots to pot. Add chicken to pot and fill with water two inches above the chicken.

Bring to boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Take ½ of the dill* and parsley, tie them together with cotton twine, and place in pot. Break bouillon cubes* into pieces and add to pot. Then add ½ teaspoon black pepper to pot; stir.

Place cover on pot, leaving it ajar; simmer for 1 hour.

Remove dill and parsley from soup and discard. Remove the lengths of carrot from pot, mash them and put them back into pot.

Taste soup; add more pepper and salt according to taste. Add 4 tablespoons of chopped dill to soup.

Serve with cooked thin noodles or matzo balls. (Matzo balls can be purchased in the kosher, refrigerated section of some grocery stores).

Serves 4  (PG note: Some people throw out the chicken after that, but I have always loved boiled chicken with Heinz ketchup.)

Mom adored Broadway show music, and she sang those songs all the time around the house.   The last show she saw on Broadway was her very favorite,  Oklahoma.

Eileen and I took her and bought her an official T shirt which said “I’m just a girl who can’t say no.”  She was thrilled.

This song, “People Will Say We’re in Love” from Oklahoma is performed by Alfred Drake and Joan Roberts; written by Rodgers and Hammerstein, and would have brought tears to her eyes. (As did peeling and dicing onions for the soup)

 

 

 

 

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