Jamie Martin – Page 26 – Simply Delicious: The Cookbook Project

1-28: Picnic Tuna Sandwiches

Jamie Martin Group 01: Hot & Cold Appetizers, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters May 15, 2016February 5, 2020appetizers, avocados, black pepper, breads, butter, celery, cheese, chilled, chopped, diced, easy, eggs, hard-boiled, iceberg lettuce, inexpensive, lemon juice, lunch, mayonnaise, paprika, party food, Pepper Jack, pickles, picnic, radishes, red onions, salt, sandwiches, sour cream, tuna, untested, whole wheat bread, yellow mustard

Leave it to Simply Delicious to try to make tuna sandwiches sound fancy. 1-28: Picnic Tuna Sandwiches is a basic method for constructing a sandwich, using tuna fish, presumably for a picnic. It’s really all in the title.

I suppose you have to learn how to make tuna salad somehow–maybe you grow up with parents who don’t like it and you never learn. That’s not what happened in my case (my mother adores tuna salad), but I suppose it’s the case for some people, and so recipes like this must exist. Reminds me of this xkcd comic.

4-34: Italian Roasted Vegetables

Jamie Martin Group 04: Potatoes & Vegetables, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters May 14, 2016October 13, 2020appetizers, asparagus, black pepper, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, corn, dairy-free, dinner, easy, egg-free, eggplant, favorites, gluten-free, green beans, green bell peppers, herbs and spices, hors d'oeuvres, Hutton house, inexpensive, Italian, lunch, mushrooms, olive oil, pared, party food, red bell peppers, revisited, roasted, Rozie house, salt, side dish, snacks, tender-crisp, Thanksgiving, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian, yellow bell peppers, zucchini

This one’s short and sweet. I’ve made 4-34: Italian Roasted Vegetables a few times before, once as part of a big dinner party I cooked for when I was about 13 (6-22: Crispy Chicken Drumsticks and 9-20: Meat Roly-Poly were part of that as well) and Thanksgiving 2000 based on my mother’s notations on the back of the card. I know I’ve used the concept multiple times in other instances, even if I wasn’t following this exact recipe.

This is more a method than a particular recipe–you can use pretty much whatever vegetables you want with this one. Now’s a perfect time for this recipe–farmer’s markets are open and there’s lots of good stuff out there to roast. 🔥

9-10: Lean Meatballs with Tomato Sauce

Jamie Martin Group 09: Ground Meat & Sausage, Section 2: Main Courses May 13, 2016July 5, 2020appetizers, basil, black pepper, boiled, bread crumbs, canola oil, chicken bouillon, chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, dairy-free, diced, dinner, dried herbs, eggs, fairly easy, fairly inexpensive, garlic, ground meat, ground turkey, herbs and spices, Italian seasoning, lunch, meatballs, minced, olive oil, panko, parsley, party food, salt, sautéed, tomato sauce, untested, veal, white bread, white pepper, yellow onions

Here’s another one of those 1980s attempts at “healthy”. 9-10: Lean Meatballs with Tomato Sauce calls for the use of veal, which doesn’t immediately resonate with me as being “healthy”. A quick and dirty Google search comes up with veal having less calories than pork but more cholesterol than beef. Calories were the enemy in the 1980s, so I suppose that’s part of their justification for deeming veal meatballs “healthy”.

I’m not a huge fan of veal, and considering there’s a whole lamb & veal section to this book that I’ve only begun to scratch the surface of, we’re going to keep these meatballs “healthy” and swap veal for turkey. My mom was (and still is) a huge proponent of ground turkey, so this is probably a swap she or I would have made if we’d made this before.

12-5: Greek Rice

Jamie Martin Group 12: Pasta & Rice, Section 2: Main Courses May 12, 2016July 27, 2020almonds, black pepper, blanched, boiled, chopped, crushed tomatoes, dairy-free, dinner, easy, egg-free, garlic, gluten-free, Greek, green bell peppers, inexpensive, long-grain, lunch, minced, nuts, olive oil, party food, pine nuts, red bell peppers, rice, sautéed, side dish, sweet peas, tomatoes, untested, vegan, vegetable bouillon, vegetable broth, vegetables, vegetarian, yellow onions

Here’s a healthier option–some of the last few have been more on the indulgent side. Don’t get me wrong–there’s plenty more indulgence to come. 12-5: Greek Rice is a nice vegetarian option for a party, picnic, or just an everyday meal. I’m not entirely sure what makes it “Greek”, but we’ll go with it.

What else can I say–it’s just not that exciting. The final dish actually ends up similar to what Americans call Spanish rice, but with more veggies and a somewhat tangy flavor. If that interests you, read on.

17-38: Olive Bread

Jamie Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods May 12, 2016September 20, 2020all-purpose flour, appetizers, baked goods, basil, black olives, breads, breakfast, brushed, buns, cheese, chipotle, crescents, crispy, dairy-free, dinner, dough, dried herbs, egg-free, fairly easy, garlic, Greek, herbes de Provence, herbs and spices, hors d'oeuvres, inexpensive, kalamata, kneaded, lunch, olive oil, oregano, parchment paper, Parmesan, party food, proofed, revisited, rolls, rosemary, salt, sandwiches, side dish, Silpat, sliders, snacks, Tarzana apt, vegetarian, yeast

Here’s one I’ve made a couple of times before. 17-38: Olive Bread is a nice, easy bread to make, especially if you don’t have a ton of experience with the process. I think sometimes yeast doughs can be intimidating to beginners, but this one hasn’t failed me yet–even when I was still just beginning to make bread. If you’re looking for a more “plain” type easy bread, check out 17-6: Best Ever White Bread. However, if you like those olive batard breads from the bakery section of the market, you’ll love this one.

I’ve made this twice before, once in its intended form (but with more olives because I LOVE olives) and again soon after, but in a smaller bun-size with chipotle peppers & garlic instead of olives. I used them for slider buns for burgers intended for a New Years’ party, judging from the date on the card. What will I change about this recipe this time?

16-18: Lemon Basil Tart

Jamie Martin Group 16: Pies & Cakes, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods May 2, 2016November 5, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, baking powder, basil, boiled, butter, chilled, cornstarch, creamed, cut in, dessert, dusted, egg yolks, eggs, fairly hard, fairly inexpensive, fruit, granulated sugar, grated, herbs and spices, lemon juice, lemons, milk, party food, pastry, pie crust, powdered sugar, salt, shortbread, steeped, strawberries, tart, tart pan, untested, vegetarian, zested

Here’s one I’ve wanted to make for a LONG time, but never got to. I had even intended to do a version of 16-18: Lemon Basil Tart when I worked at the restaurant and was doing tarts every week moonlighting as the pastry chef, but the day I intended to make it, we were short on lemons and basil. Now I finally have a chance, and I even have the big tart pan in which to properly make it.

I didn’t even see until now that they mention that basil is related to mint–it makes sense. In this tart, the basil functions a lot like mint, and gives the tart a “fresh” flavor that just lemon wouldn’t provide. It took me a while to get to it, but it was worth it. 🍋🌿

9-20: Meat Roly-Poly

Jamie Martin Group 09: Ground Meat & Sausage, Section 2: Main Courses May 1, 2016July 5, 20201998 dinner, all-purpose flour, baked goods, beef bouillon, beef broth, black pepper, bread crumbs, breakfast, butter, canola oil, corn oil, diced, dinner, dough, egg wash, eggs, fairly easy, fairly inexpensive, green bell peppers, ground beef, ground meat, herbs and spices, Hutton house, kneaded, lunch, melted, milk, mushrooms, panko, paprika, pared, party food, proofed, red bell peppers, revisited, salt, sautéed, sesame seeds, Silpat, vegetable oil, vegetables, vegetarian, yeast, yellow onions

Here’s one I’ve made before. In one of my previous entries (6-22: Crispy Chicken Drumsticks), I mentioned doing all the cooking for a family dinner party when I was 12-13 years old with a similarly-aged family friend of mine. 9-20: Meat Roly-Poly is another one of the recipes I remember making for that party.

Another memory from this dinner party: I had just gotten a new CD (Version 2.0 by Garbage) and we were listening to it on my parents’ GIANT 1970s hi-fi stereo system over and over as we spent the day cooking. Gives you an idea of how old I am, and how long I’ve been cooking from this book.

6-32: Savory Buffet Chicken

Jamie Martin Group 06: Poultry & Game, Section 2: Main Courses April 30, 2016June 18, 2020apples, Asian, blender, breasts, chicken, coconut, coconut milk, creamy, crushed tomatoes, curry powder, dairy-free, dinner, Dutch oven, egg-free, fairly easy, fairly expensive, garlic, gluten-free, grated, herbs and spices, Indian, lunch, minced, olive oil, Oriental, salt, sautéed, sesame seeds, tahini, thighs, untested, whipping cream, yellow onions

Indian never goes well for Simply Delicious. 11-16: Indian Fried Fish was a bust, and 12-22: Nasi Goreng was less than exciting. This recipe, 6-32: Savory Buffet Chicken doesn’t openly identify itself as Indian-inspired, but it’s pretty similar to another clandestinely-influenced recipe, 6-8: Curried Chicken.

“Oriental” is a term you don’t really hear any more (as I mentioned in 7-11: Oriental Pork Stir-Fry), and the language seems a bit flowery for the 1980s. However, this project is not about that stuff–it’s about the food. Let’s press on.

1-16: Mushrooms Escargot

Jamie Martin Group 01: Hot & Cold Appetizers, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters April 29, 2016January 28, 2020appetizers, bacon fat, black pepper, bread crumbs, broiled, butter, dairy-free, easy, escargot, fairly inexpensive, French, garlic, herbs and spices, hors d'oeuvres, melted, minced, mushrooms, panko, pared, parsley, party food, side dish, Silpat, snacks, snails, stuffed, untested, vegetables, vegetarian

Here’s another mushroom recipe for you. 1-16: Mushrooms Escargot is similar to the last recipe I did, 2-2: Mushrooms à la Grecque, in that it’s a fancy name for a pretty well-known dish. Simply Delicious does that a LOT. This one is essentially stuffed mushrooms, something most everyone’s familiar with.

This recipe in-and-of itself doesn’t contain or use actual snails, but it’s suggested you can add them if you want. I didn’t go quite that far (although I’m not opposed to the idea), but the mushrooms provide a similar experience that’s not quite as…exotic. 🐌

2-2: Mushrooms à la Grecque

Jamie Martin Group 02: Salads, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters April 28, 2016February 5, 2020à la Grecque, appetizers, black pepper, boiled, diced, dried herbs, easy, egg-free, fairly inexpensive, French, garlic, gluten-free, Greek, herbs and spices, lemon juice, lunch, marinated, mushrooms, olive oil, parsley, party food, peppercorns, salt, shallots, side dish, snacks, thyme, untested, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian, white wine, yellow onions

“À la Grecque” means “in the Greek way” in French, and 2-2: Mushrooms à la Grecque is a French preparation of vegetables (in this case mushrooms) in a seasoned oil and wine marinade. Simply Delicious considers this a salad, so I guess we’ll go with that description as well.

This is essentially marinated mushrooms, a pretty classic dish. This one’s pretty simple, it holds well, and most people are into it, so it makes a good party dish too. 🍄