the arugula files

Uncle Sonny's Turkey Meatballs

As far as I'm concerned a meatball is the perfect food.  Delicious.  Versatile.  Convenient.  Make a batch and freeze them to pull out whenever a craving strikes.  Eat them on a sandwich or with pasta.   Or let them fly solo with a salad on the side.  Make them with beef, pork, or, as My Uncle Sonny makes them, with ground turkey.  Season them the Italian way or add Asian flavors.  

Uncle Sonny's Peanut Butter Fudge (aka Fluff Fudge)

I'm trying to get in the holiday spirit over here at casa de arugula and what says the holidays more than homemade fudge?  And this one, this one features one of my niece Megan's favorite ingredients: marshmallow fluff.  Full of preservatives you say?  Yes, but come on, it's the holidays, and you know you want an excuse to buy that plastic white tub.  And this fudge is delicious.  Plus you will have leftovers to make peanut butter and fluff sandwiches.

Uncle Sonny's Garden (Plus What Happened to the Groundhog that Ate My Aunt's Beans)

July was a busy month.  I traveled to Seattle, Portland, Boston, Hartford, New York City, and the Eastern Shore of Maryland.  That didn't leave me much time in the kitchen.  My Boston trip was one of the highlights because I visited my parents, brother, niece, and my Aunt Franny and Uncle Sonny.  Here's a quick tour of Uncle Sonny's AWESOME garden.  Wait, have you not met my Uncle Sonny?  Please shake hands with him here or here.

Uncle Sonny's Baked Stuffed Shrimp

When I was growing up, my Uncle Sonny trapped lobsters and crabs from his boat just outside Boston Harbor. In those days the Atlantic was teeming with "water bugs" and he and my Aunt Franny always had a freezer full of lovely crustaceans. I was a kid, and, unfortunately, I thought lobsters and crabs were gross. Every time we stopped by their house for a visit, my uncle would offer some of his catch.   No thanks, I thought as I popped peanut M&Ms into my mouth. I didn't start eating seafood until I was twenty-one. Now I love, love, love all of the ocean's creatures…on my plate! I’m definitely making up for lost time.

This baked stuffed shrimp recipe was one of the dishes that helped convert me from a snack food only kid to a seafood loving adult. They are simply delicious.  While I was in Boston for Christmas I stopped by Uncle Sonny's and asked him for a quick tutorial on how to make these delightful snacks.

Uncle Sonny's Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Unfortunately, my attempts at making any eggplant dish always end with bitter eggplant. On a recent trip to my hometown, I decided to put an end to my failure and learn how to make eggplant parmesan from a terrific cook, my Uncle Sonny. Every year, at some point during the holiday season, Uncle Sonny, who resembles an older, better looking Emeril, makes baked eggplant parmesan. It's perfectly delicious. 

From Uncle Sonny, I learned three secrets: (1) always peel the eggplant; (2) place it in water to draw out the bitterness (previously I was using salt and that method was not working for me); (3.) while this recipe is called baked eggplant, it's important to use a lot of olive oil while "baking" so that the eggplant gets crispy.

Here it is, INTERNETS, Uncle Sonny's online cooking debut.