NICARICO LITERACY FUND THE DESSERT ON EDUCATORS' MENU

LITERACY FUND THE DESSERT ON EDUCATORS' MENU
Article from:Sun Publications (IL) Article date:September 3, 1997More results for:jeanine nicarico Literacy

The math is simple. Add a large number of enthusiastic cooks with a variety of excellent recipes and one worthy cause, and the sum is a top-notch cookbook -- Dining Delicacies: A+ Recipes from District 203 Employees.
Plus, the benefits from the cookbook fund-raiser keep multiplying for area students.

Sales of Dining Delicacies help finance the Jeanine Nicarico Memorial Fund for Literacy, which awards grants to educators in Naperville schools -- Naperville Community Unit School District 203, Indian Prairie School District 204 and the private schools.

Established by teachers and friends of the Nicarico family, the fund is a positive, ongoing way to celebrate the life of the fifth-grade child, slain in 1983, by providing educational opportunities for other children.

The ultimate goal is to develop lifelong readers, writers and learners.

Cookbook sales have raised more than $6,000 for the literacy fund.

Pat Nicarico, Jeanine's mother and a secretary at Ellsworth School, is thrilled with the community's response to the cookbook.

"It's kind of overwhelming to see the way people responded -- not only to buying the book, but also to contributing to it.

It was incredible.

People were so willing to take the time to put together their recipes and submit them.

Then to see the response when it came time to order.

I was so touched -- it's hard to put into words," said Pat.

"We felt loved by the community." Pat said that like many parents she has always enjoyed cooking and baking with her daughters.

The following recipe for Aunt Rea's Nut Bread, once a well-guarded family recipe which was given to Pat's aunt from a German relative, was one of Jeanine's favorites.

Pat and the girls baked the nut bread at Christmas time -- some loaves with the raisins, some without -- to suit family preferences.

Family favorites in the book, in addition to Aunt Rea's Nut Bread (recipe follows), include an Easy Chicken Casserole and Mom's Chicken Cacciatore.

Response by Dist. 203 personnel to the request for recipes was so enthusiastic that the cookbook ended up a hefty 425 pages featuring about a 1,000 recipes, said teacher K. C. Maddelein, who succeeded her colleague Kris Hartman as cookbook chairman.

"So many people shared their ideas," said K. C., "that there's a little bit of everybody in the cookbook."

The first printing of 1,500 books sold out quickly to Dist. 203 families.

A second printing of the cookbook assures wider availability in the community since grants from the literacy fund are open to educators in District 204 and Naperville's private schools.

Dining Delicacies will be available at most schools during fall orientation and for sale at Anderson's Bookshop, 123 Jefferson Ave., Naperville.

To receive a cookbook by mail, send a request with a check or money order made out to the Naperville Education Foundation in the amount of $17.50 ($15 plus $2.50 for postage) per book, to K.C. Maddelein, Ellsworth School, 145 N. Sleight St., Naperville, Ill. 60540.

For information about grant applications for the Jeanine Nicarico Memorial Fund for Literacy, write to Barb Jansz, River Woods School, 2607 River Woods Drive, Naperville, Ill. 60565.

The following recipes are from Dining Delicacies: A+ Recipes from District 203 Employees.

AUNT REA'S NUT BREAD submitted by Pat Nicarico 3 cups self-rising flour (no substitutes) 1 1/4 cups sugar 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon 1 cup finely chopped walnuts 1 cup golden raisins 2 egg yolks 2 egg whites 1 1/2 cups milk Combine flour, sugar and cinnamon in large bowl.

Add chopped nuts and raisins and mix until blended.

In separate bowl, beat egg yolks with milk and add to dry ingredients.

Stir until well-blended.

In separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff.

Fold beaten egg whites into mixture.

Pour into well-greased large, 9x5-inch bread pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Serve with cream cheese and enjoy.

SPICY TOMATO SOUP submitted by Mary Tarpey (Note: The recipe was acquired in England which accounts for the unfamiliar measures used in the ingredient list.) 1/2 ounce butter 1 onion, sliced 1/2 ounce flour Blade of mace 4 to 6 peppercorns 1 clove garlic Salt, to taste 10 sprigs fresh coriander 1 teaspoon paprika 1 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled Bouquet garni (3-4 sprigs parsley, sprig of thyme, 1/2 bay leaf) 1 1/4 pints chicken stock 1/2 ounce cornstarch 1 glass port wine, or to taste Melt butter, add sliced onion and soften.

Add flour, spices, salt, paprika and tomatoes.

Add herbs and stock.

Cook 20 to 30 minutes.

Either strain through a sieve or blend in a food processor.

Add cornstarch and simmer until thickened.

Add port wine.

Serve with shredded Cheddar cheese.

PENNE BOLOGNESE submitted by Karen Tomei 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 minced onion 1 minced carrot 1 minced celery stalk 1/2 pound lean ground beef 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/3 cup no-salt-added tomato paste 1 2/3 cups 1 percent milk 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 12 ounces penne pasta 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley 3 tablespoons Parmesan or Romano cheese In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil until hot, but not smoking, over medium heat.

Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until softened. Stir in the carrot, celery, and 1/3 cup water and cook until the vegetables are tender and the liquid has evaporated.

Stir in the ground beef and cook until no longer pink.

Add the wine and cook until the liquid has evaporated.

Stir in the tomato paste, 2/3 cup of the milk, the salt, pepper and oregano.

Reduce to a simmer, and cook until the milk has been absorbed (stir frequently). Continue to cook until the sauce is thick and creamy, gradually add the remaining 1 cup milk until all has been absorbed.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until just tender.

Drain well.

Transfer the sauce to a large bowl, add the pasta, parsley and Parmesan and toss to combine.

Spoon the Penne Bolognese into four serving bowls and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

CHICKEN POT PIE submitted by Kim Eriksen 1/2 cup margarine or butter 1/3 cup flour 1/3 cup onion, chopped 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1 3/4 cups chicken broth 2/3 cup milk 2 cups chicken, cut up 1 package frozen peas and carrots or mixed vegetables, cooked and drained 2 pie shell crusts Heat margarine or butter over low heat, until melted.

Blend in flour, onion, salt and pepper.

Cook over low heat, stir constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly, remove from heat.

Stir in broth and milk.

Heat to boiling, stir constantly.

Boil and stir 1 minute.

Stir in chicken (if using canned chicken, drained) and cooked, drained vegetables.

Place one pie crust shell in bottom of pie plate.

Pour in mixture.

Top with second pie crust, flute edges and cut slits in center for steam to escape.

Bake at 425 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Note: Pot pie is even better warmed over.

CHICKEN WALNUT-SZECHWAN submitted by Dick Pope 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, skinned, split and boned 3 tablespoons soy sauce 2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons dry sherry 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 2 tablespoons cooking oil 2 medium green peppers, cut into 3/4-inch pieces 4 green onions, bias sliced into 1-inch pieces 1 cup walnut halves Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces and set aside.

In a small bowl, blend soy sauce into cornstarch; and stir in dry sherry, ginger, sugar, salt and red pepper.

Set aside.

Preheat a wok or large skillet over high heat and add cooking oil.

Stir-fry green peppers and green onions in hot oil 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove from wok.

Add walnuts to work; stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes or until just golden.

Remove from wok.

Add more oil if necessary and half the chicken to the hot wok; stir-fry for 2 minutes and remove from wok. Stir-fry remaining chicken for 2 minutes.

Return all chicken to the wok.

Stir sauce mixture into chicken.

Cook and stir until thick and bubbly.

Stir vegetables; cover and cook one minute more.

Serve at once.

CRANBERRY PORK ROAST IN THE CROCK POT submitted by Sherry Paulson 1 pork roast (2 to 3 pounds) 1 can (16 ounces) jellied cranberry sauce 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup cranberry juice or water 1 teaspoon dry mustard 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons cold water Place roast in crock pot.

In a medium bowl, mash cranberry sauce, stir in sugar, juice or water, mustard, and cloves.

Pour over roast.

Cover and cook on low for 6 to 9 hours or until meat is tender.

Remove roast and keep warm.

Skim fat from juices, measure 2 cups, adding water if necessary, and pour into a sauce pan.

Bring to a boil.

Combine cornstarch and cold water to make a paste, stir into boiling juices; stir into gravy. Cook and stir until thickened.

Season with salt.

Serve with sliced pork roast.

SCOTCHEROOS submitted by Sue Hannon 1 cup sugar 1 cup light corn syrup 1 cup peanut butter 6 cups Rice Krispies 6 ounces chocolate chips 6 ounces butterscotch chips Cook sugar and corn syrup in 3-quart saucepan over moderate heat until mixture boils.

Remove from heat.

Stir in peanut butter then mix in Rice Krispies.

Press lightly into buttered jelly roll pan.

Let harden.

Melt both kinds of chips in microwave (or double boiler). Stir to blend.

Spread over mixture.

Cut into bars after chilling.

K. C. Maddelein, left, and Pat Nicarico display Chicken Pot Pie, Penne Bolognese and Aunt Rhea's Nut Bread, recipes prepared from Dining Delicacies: A+ Recipes from District 203 Employees. Sales of the cookbook benefit the Jeanine Nicarico Memorial Fund for Literacy. | At left, Anna Maddelein samples the chocolate on Scotcheroos. | Mary Tarpey's Spicy Tomato Soup makes delicious use of homegrown tomatoes. | Chicken Pot Pie, prepared by Cathy Garrity from a recipe by Kim Eriksen, is filled with peas and carrots.