A Comprehensive and Analytical Book Review

The Madonna of 115th Street
Written by Robert A. Oris
Reviewed by Lucia J. Strother

Robert Orsi’s close attention to detail throughout his book The Madonna of 115th Street in the final two chapters. Because the first several chapters are kind of GAY--- but in these he really shows us that he knows his shit, uk? Robert Orsi is a gr8 gr8 man,. I think. I was a little confused about who the Madonna of 115th street actually was? I didn’t know Madonna lived there, or that long ago. I know that Jesus was her boyfriend but did he really die???? I just saw him on perez and he looked alive! Madonna of 115th street was a really well developed character – I really liked the foreshadowing in chapter 4. The final two chapters really paid off. Like, really paid off. I was starting to think Robert Orsi was a really boring man, but now I realized he must have known the Madonna of 115th street. Today I read the last chapter, and it really paid off. I wasn’t going to, but it served me well. I want to respond to the last chapter’s lack of detail. I’m offended by the lack of detail in the last chapter. I wasn’t going to say anything, but now I am, and it’s paying off. The second to last chapter was absolutely stunning. I loved the sex scene in the hot tub. In conclusion, although Robert Orsi certainly took his time making his point, he finally made it, and what a point it was. It certainly paid off, and it certainly served us well.

Tofu Spaghetti Sauce- A Burstein Family Tradtion

For this pasta recipe, from Ali's wonderful mother, simply sautee whatever veggies you like (we used carrots, red peppers, mushrooms, and onions in a little garlic and olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan. When the veggies are cooked, add the tofu and crumble it into the veggies. Then dump in some pre-made marinara sauce and add a little feta. Pour it over whole wheat angel hair and add a little parmesan and goat cheese on top!

My spinach salad included: goat cheese, craisins, almond slivers, and a peach with a dash of white balsamic, salt and pepper on top.

Personal Pita Pesto Pizzas!

Yum, these little guys turned out so well and it was really fun for everyone to make. First heat the whole-wheat pitas on a baking sheet at 400 for about 5 minutes. Then spread pre-made pesto sauce on each one. We sliced up some onions and shitake mushrooms and sauteed them briefly in a little olive oil. We also topped them with, fresh mozzarella, leftover curried chicken, chicken-apple sausages, fresh spinach, and grated parmesan. They go back in the oven for 8-10 minutes and they're good to go!

A Hearty Meal of Fall Veggies

A simple acorn squash recipe that can be found here, sauteed spinach with garlic and parmesan, honey-glazed carrots from bread & honey, and roasted broccoli. Everything but the spinach was from the Fruit/Veg Co-op!

Unfortunately, because of the way the pan was shaped, all of the butter spilled out of the acorn squash and stuck to the pan, instead of forming a beautiful pool of sugar-butter like the recipe's picture shows. It was still delicious though, and probably healthier this way as well!

3 day 3 way Ginger Pear Cake

This cake literally took 3 days the first time I made it. Of course, my mom figured out how to make the "quickie" version in about an hour; she swears it's not as good but I don't believe her. This cake uses three types of ginger: candied, fresh and ground.


On the first day, I made ginger cookies from scratch. They were delicious but we couldn't eat them. That is because they were required for the crust.

The second day, I poached pears in a poaching liquid that involved cinnamon sticks, vanilla beans, orange juice, a lemon, and white sugar. They had to sit overnight.

On the third day, I made the cake. We think there was a typo in the book because this cake should really be served with the pear side up, but I swear the cookbook said to serve the crust on top...either way, I slightly overcooked it and there you go- 3 days of work...was it worth it?

Sweet Potato Fritters

We still had some sweet potatoes leftover from the Co-op, even after our sweet potato soup. So I decided to make up a recipe for sweet potato fritters. They turned out well, just a little undercooked...:)

Basically- boil sweet potatoes, scoop out the insides and mash them up. whisk together a couple of eggs, curry powder, tumeric, cinnamon, salt, pepper, and 2-3 tbsp flour. combine potatoes and egg mixture. drop 2 tbsp of mixture into frying pan and sautee with a little bit of olive oil on medium. make sure to let them cook through so you don't eat any raw egg- about 2 minutes per side.

we ate them over spinach with a little sour cream. beat and feta salad on the side.

Apple-Filled Acorn Squash Rings with Curry Butter

I love stuffed vegetables. I found this recipe on Epicurious right after I got the email telling us we got acorn squash in this week's batch of Fruit/Veggie co-op. Because we were dining with our dear vegan friend Ali L, we used margarine instead of butter, and craisins instead raisins. With the leftover curry "butter" we fried some thinly sliced eggplant and seared some tofu. Also, some sauteed spinach, as always in our house. Yum!

• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, diced (about 2 1/3 cups)
• 2/3 cup apple juice
• 1/2 cup dried currants
• 8 1-inch-thick unpeeled acorn squash rings (from 2 medium), seeded

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 12 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon curry powder; stir 1 minute. Add apples, apple juice, and currants. Sauté until liquid evaporates, about 6 minutes. Season filling to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt 5 tablespoons butter in small skillet over medium heat. Add 1/2 tablespoon curry powder; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer curry butter to bowl. Brush 2 large rimmed baking sheets with some curry butter. Arrange squash in single layer on sheets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Scoop filling into center of rings. Drizzle remaining curry butter over squash and filling (mostly on squash). Cover with foil. Bake squash rings until squash is tender when pierced with skewer, about 40 minutes. Using spatula, transfer squash rings with filling to plates.

The Best Soup Ever

Lu brought us this recipe from Mark Bittman's NYT column. It was absolutely delicious and got better over time. I called this soup the "sacred leftovers"-- it was so good, everyone was afraid to eat it.
We ate ours with roasted asparagus, Trader Joe's cornbread and some red peppers (not quite sure what those were doing there...)


West African sweet-potato peanut soup with chicken:

3/4 cup roasted and shelled peanuts

2 tablespoons peanut or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn

1 medium red or white onion, chopped

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken (about 2 thighs or breasts) cut into chunks

Pinch of cayenne

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 cups stock or water

2 sweet potatoes or yams (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into thick slices

8 plum tomatoes, cored and halved (canned are fine; drain and reserve liquid for another use)

1/2 pound collards or kale, washed and cut into wide ribbons

1/2 cup chunky, natural peanut butter

1. Chop peanuts, or crush them with the side of a knife, or pulse them in a food processor to chop roughly.

2. Put oil in a deep skillet or medium saucepan over medium heat; a minute later, add onion, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add chicken and continue cooking for another 3 or 4 minutes, until just coloring. Add 1/2 cup peanuts and the cayenne and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3. Stir in the stock and the sweet potatoes, bring to a boil, and turn heat down to medium-low so the soup bubbles gently. Stir in tomatoes and collards, then cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.

4. Stir in 1/4 cup peanut butter. Taste, adjust seasoning (you may want to add more peanut butter at this point) and serve, garnished with remaining peanuts.

Yield: 4 servings.

Cabbage Stir Fry- Who knew?

Never thought I liked cabbage til I tried out this recipe my friend Kristin sent me. With all this cabbage from the Fruit and Veggie Co-op, it was a good thing this recipe was so tasty...I liked it so much I made two batches that night for dinner and another one the next day for lunch.

2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
6 cups shredded cabbage (1/2 medium head)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon liquid honey
1 tablespoon dry sherry, optional
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Over medium heat, melt butter in a large frying pan. Stir in onion and sesame seeds and cook for 2 minutes. Add cabbage and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes longer or until tender. Add remaining ingredient and cook everything together a few more minuts until the liquid cooks down and become syrupy. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

We made up this frittata recipe ourselves and it actually turned out really well! Eggs, milk, spinach, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes. First sautee veggies, then add milk and egg mixture and cook egg all the way through until just runny on top. Finally, put the pan in the broiler til egg is cooked through.

A Rosh Hashana Feast!

Barbequed and Garlic chicken, salad, sweet noodle kugel, roasted asparagus and homemade challah.
happy Jews!

My first attempt at homemade challah...round for the new year....didn't go as planned, although they looked great if i do say so myself. the texture was OFF to say the least, but as my mom always says, "Appeal is half the meal!"

Yum! Spinach Salad!

This one contained: spinach, craisins, homemade candied walnuts, red onion, goat cheese, feta, avocado, bacon and a poached egg on top. All it needed for dressing was a little white balsamic, salt and pepper.

Welcome to A5!!!

We began our cooking journey with veggie quesadillas, black bean, mango, peach and tuna salad, and mango and peach salsa!

Another Summer Cobbler

This one didn't involve the stovetop, like my blueberry Cobbler did, and I liked it less. But aesthetically, it was quite beautiful. the blueberries were just too sweet!

The Best Fish I Ever Made

escolar- a delicious white fish. with a marinade from epicurious that is divine. Also some made up mango salsa with lime, cilantro, red onion, salt, pepper; delicious iowa corn on the cob, basmati rice and fried plantains.

Blueberry Buckle!

A fun recipe I tried out in August...

Yum! The Beginnings...

Summer is birthday season around my house.

My mother's birthday was my first 24-hours-in-the-kitchen ordeal:
With Beef and Rice-Stuffed Red and Yellow Peppers, roasted asparagus and my favorite salad: spinach, strawberries, almonds, goat cheese with white balsamic dressing. And a coconut cake for dessert!
For Claudia's birthday, a triple-layer chocolate bourbon cake with whipped cream and strawberries.