What’s For Dinner? by Patricia Tracy June 28, 2021 by Kristen Cudden 3 Comments When Marcel’s opened about 10 years ago, I was a culinary assistant. I helped with classes and learned so much from the various chefs. Although my children were young at the time, they started to get more involved with school, sports, and dance. Unfortunately, my culinary assistant tenure had to end. I still use some of the recipes in my dinner rotation (thanks Chef Kelly Sears). Fast forward to Fall 2020 and like everyone else around the globe, my family was on lock down. After an uncertain spring and an uneventful summer, I found a way out of the sweat pant lifestyle. Marcel’s posted an opening for their retail staff in the fall. Masked and ready for a change in my quarantine lifestyle, I joined the team in October. While I reentered the workforce, my family adjusted to my absence. As I learned about opening procedures and inventory, they figured out carpools and laundry. But if I was on the closing shift, I would receive a text around 5 p.m. without fail – What’s for dinner? Sometimes dinner would be cooking in the crock pot or ready to be grilled. Other times dinner would be picked up on the way home. One of our favorite dinners has become a big salad. We have tried all variations – cobb, taco, and Caesar to name a few. Our most recent favorite is an Orzo salad using the housemade Lemon Basil Vinaigrette available at Marché. It is the perfect make ahead summer dish to have ready when someone asks you – What’s For Dinner? Orzo Salad with Lemon Basil Viniagrette 2021-07-13 20:38:39 Print Ingredients 16 ounces of orzo 4 cups of chicken stock 2 cups of water 1 pint of petite cherry tomatoes 1 pint of petite golden cherry tomatoes 5 ounces of fresh spinach 8 ounces of fresh mozzarella Marché Lemon Basil Vinaigrette Instructions Bring chicken stock and water to a boil and add orzo. Cook for 5 minutes, drain, and let cool. Cut tomatoes into quarters and chop spinach. Slice mozzarella into bite size pieces. Toss orzo, tomatoes, spinach, and mozzarella together. Add Marché Lemon Basil Vinaigrette to taste (I did about 6 oz.) Can be served either room temperature or refrigerate until later. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
We Are All Students by Angie Lombardi June 4, 2021 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment It’s officially graduation season and a huge congratulations to all those students out there! As a mother of a recent college graduate, it was bittersweet to be on her campus for the last time. We took in our favorite places and sights. We have a regular hotel we stay at and for the past 4 years I have always loved this wall that brightly announces We Are All Students. I have been working at Marcel’s for about 10 months and I have a confession. When I started I was not a great cook like my coworkers, actually not a cook at all. Entertaining and the beautiful dishes etc. Marcel’s has to offer -YES! The front of the store where the cookware is wonderfully displayed – NO. My boundary was the candle display. I didn’t feel qualified or educated to be in that scary zone. Slowly, as the weeks went by and I learned from my coworkers and listening in on the fabulous classes taught by our chefs, I gathered information and it all became very interesting. So a long story short, I am 53 and learning to cook at last. I am a cooking 101 student and it feels great to be learning a new life skill. I am currently visiting my parents and have been doing a lot of cooking. The other day my mom requested a recipe from the Half Baked Harvest cookbook. It had 15 ingredients. Yes, I counted, and no I won’t tell you how long it took me at the grocery to find these items. My mom is a great cook and I have been using pieces from her Le Creuset collection. I understand the love of Le Creuset; customers come in every day browsing and shopping for new pieces. They really are wonderful to cook with, and it feels good to be using the “good stuff” to cook and create a meal. The right tools, even for a student, make all the difference. I think it’s time to invest in some for myself. I served my dinner, which for some reason looked nothing like the picture and I asked for a grade. My average was a solid B-. Not bad – after all We Are All Students. It’s officially graduation season and a huge congratulations to all those students out there! As a mother of a recent college graduate, it was bittersweet to be on her campus for the last time. We took in our favorite places and sights. We have a regular hotel we stay at and for the past 4 years I have always loved this wall that brightly announces We Are All Students. I have been working at Marcel’s for about 10 months and I have a confession. When I started I was not a great cook like my coworkers, actually not a cook at all. Entertaining and the beautiful dishes etc. Marcel’s has to offer -YES! The front of the store where the cookware is wonderfully displayed – NO. My boundary was the candle display. I didn’t feel qualified or educated to be in that scary zone. Slowly, as the weeks went by and I learned from my coworkers and listening in on the fabulous classes taught by our chefs, I gathered information and it all became very interesting. So a long story short, I am 53 and learning to cook at last. I am a cooking 101 student and it feels great to be learning a new life skill. I am currently visiting my parents and have been doing a lot of cooking. The other day my mom requested a recipe from the Half Baked Harvest cookbook. It had 15 ingredients. Yes, I counted, and no I won’t tell you how long it took me at the grocery to find these items. My mom is a great cook and I have been using pieces from her Le Creuset collection. I understand the love of Le Creuset; customers come in every day browsing and shopping for new pieces. They really are wonderful to cook with, and it feels good to be using the “good stuff” to cook and create a meal. The right tools, even for a student, make all the difference. I think it’s time to invest in some for myself. I served my dinner, which for some reason looked nothing like the picture and I asked for a grade. My average was a solid B-. Not bad – after all We Are All Students.
Leftovers Again? by Jennifer Dorn April 29, 2021 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Food waste has been on my mind lately as I have recently read that Americans waste almost 25% of food that we purchase. It breaks my heart to throw away food. I know that can not be good for our environment. I was raised by an extremely frugal mother where no food went to waste and leftovers were a way of life. I have learned to “shop my fridge” before I run out to the grocery store. Also the importance of meal planning and creating shopping lists that I stick to when distracted in the grocery store aisle so that I do not over buy. Really these leftover lunches and dinners can be delicious! So let’s get creative…Here are some favorite ideas of mine and others from talking with my co-workers at Marcels. – Make Soup or lunch wraps with leftover chicken – Frittatas – add all those leftover veggies or ham – Turn extra fresh herbs into compound butter – Freeze extra basil with a little water in ice cube trays and add to pasta sauces – Leftover mashed potatoes make great potato pancakes – Freeze Ripe bananas for smoothies (peel them first and place in ziplock) – Leftover Rice makes great fritters – just add an egg and some cheese (Every Day Smitten Kitchen by Deb Perelman had a great recipe) – Croutons from leftover bread or pretzel bread are yummy! – Fresh Paper sheets (available at Marcel’s) help keep food fresh longer – up to two times longer! – A Brown Sugar Bear (available at Marcel’s) helps to keep your brown sugar moist for up to 3 months so you have perfectly packable brown sugar for all your baking needs Even these small changes in the way we shop and cook can help reduce our impact on the environment. I now challenge myself everyday to cut down on food waste. I often freeze the food that we don’t eat immediately or share an extra meal with a friend. Here is my husband’s favorite use of leftover french bread (from Marche of course!). French Toast & Banana 2021-04-29 13:42:20 Print Ingredients Day old French Bread Baguette sliced 2 eggs 3 tablespoon milk 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon sugar 1 ripe banana Butter for frying Instructions Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl. Dip bread in egg mixture to coat both sides. Fry bread in a hot pan with butter till brown. Add sliced ripe banana on the side of the pan. Serve with maple syrup. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Springspiration by Teri Hiben April 8, 2021 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Here we are in April! Together we’ve walked through winter with all of its challenges. We all had our ways of managing, but I know that over the past months I’ve made a lot of bread, simmered, then savored many different soups and stews, and tried my hand at some new culinary skills. All of those efforts, whatever they have been, nourished and comforted us. But now, with birdsong out my window, buds on the trees and enjoying the greening of the neighborhood, I’m looking for some new idea to match. There’s a desire for freshness, spring green vegetables, something a bit lighter to jumpstart our meals. Can you relate? I’ve decided to freshen up by finding some new sources for ideas. Actually, some of them aren’t “new”, simply revisited. I recently revisited the Marcel’s website, full of recipes from my co-workers over the past 10 years. Many of them are from our free Tuesday demos which means they are easy, tasty and tested. I was reminded of one of my all-time favorites: Janie’s Penne with Beef and Arugula (try it!). Then there are some of the cookbooks in my kitchen that I already use, but maybe haven’t looked at with new eyes, like Alison Roman’s Dining In. Her lemon tart isn’t complicated but certainly fills the desire for a fresh (and lovely) spring dessert. At Marcel’s we’re offering a richly varied collection of new cookbooks. There are 4 different sheet pan cookbooks for easy and healthy all-on-one-pan meals (think ideas like salmon, potatoes, asparagus – dinner is done!). Or Simply Julia for easy, simple and healthy meal ideas. My current obsession is Mandy’s Gourmet Salads from a restaurant in Quebec. I know, a salad is a pretty easy thing to throw together and I’ve done my share of throwing, but mine were getting tired and boring. After looking through it at the store a few times, I had to have it and at home since then, we’ve been pleased to enjoy the fresh flavors of the growing variety of fresh produce I’m finding in the grocery stores, all with an easy twist. Come in to take a look at some of these cookbooks and freshen up your spring meals! Mandy's Shanghai Salad 2021-04-08 12:35:28 Print Ingredients 2 cups chopped romaine 2 cups spinach or mesclun 1/2 avocado, diced 1/4 cups drained mandarine orange slices 1/4 cups halved cherry tomatoes 1/4 cups shredded lettuce 1/2 cups crisped ramen noodles (saute in oil) 2 tablespoons black and white sesame seeds Left over chicken, shrimp or salmon Sweet Sesame Dressing (or one of the tasty similar ones at Marcel’s) 1 cup sunflower (or light) oil 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil 1 cup Sweet Sesame Syrup (see below) Sweet Sesame Syrup 3/4 cup agave syrup 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar 3 tablespoons Tamari or soy sauce Instructions Sweet Sesame Dressing: Mix together all ingredients for dressing in a jar and shake until homogenized. Combine and toss with salad ingredients. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
The Double Yolk Egg by Niki Ludington February 18, 2021 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Like many folks, I’ve been spending more time in the kitchen cooking with family during the pandemic. This past summer my son and I took turns making eggs – scrambled, fried, hard-boiled – for breakfasts, lunches, and brunches several times a week. One morning I opened a fresh carton of eggs to make a scramble for us. As we talked and shared plans for the day, I cracked the first egg into the bowl – business as usual. Then, I cracked the second egg into the bowl and it was a double yolk. I had never seen a double yolk egg before and was pretty excited! The third egg was a double yolk….and so was the fourth….and the fifth. I can be a little superstitious at times and had the idea that a double yolk egg was a sign of good luck. But, I had to know for sure, so I Googled double yolk eggs and confirmed they are indeed a sign of good luck! But, four double yolk eggs? My son and I couldn’t imagine what might be in store for us, the year being 2020 and all. Over a very yolky scramble, we laughed and talked about what it might mean. Later that week we got an offer on our home that had been listed for sale. We felt pretty lucky! Could the double yolk eggs have been a sign of our good fortune? Double yolk eggs are considered to be rare, with just 1 out of every 1000 having two yolks. A double yolk occurs when a chicken releases two yolks into the same shell, and is most likely produced by a very young or an older chicken. Eggs with double yolks are perfectly safe to eat. Baking with double yolk eggs can be tricky as they do affect ratios. If your baking recipe calls for egg yolks only, pay attention to yolk size. Sometimes double yolkers will have half-size yolks, so two would count as one. If you don’t want to risk using a double yolker in a baking recipe, get creative with rustic scrambles and frittatas. I’m sharing one of my favorite frittata recipes – it’s an easy and delicious one-pan meal that can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s a crowd-pleaser in my home. Wishing you many delicious meals, happy times in your kitchen, and the luck of the double yolk egg! Chicken Sausage and Vegetable Frittata 2021-02-17 00:38:16 Print Ingredients 3 tablespoons olive oil ½ cup diced onion 2 links cooked chicken sausage, diced ½ cup diced peppers 1 cup spinach coarsely chopped ¼ shredded Italian cheese 8 large eggs ½ cup milk ¾ teaspoons salt ¼ teaspoon pepper Instructions Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a bowl and set aside. Heat olive oil in a 10” oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook until slightly browned. Add onions and peppers and cook until softened. Cover mixture with spinach and allow spinach to slightly wilt. Pour egg mixture into skillet, stir, and sprinkle with cheese. Cook until edges start to pull away from the pan, 5 to 7 minutes. Bake at 350 F until set, 16 to 18 minutes. Cool slightly, cut into wedges, and serve. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/