Brooke Provinzano of Dunmore was recently featured in a principal role in the 35th annual presentation of “The Nutcracker” by Scranton Civic Ballet Company under the artistic direction of Helen Gaus.
The non-profit dance company performance at The Theater at North was made possible in part by a generous sponsorship from Toyota of Scranton.
By Cheryl Radkiewicz
One of the most popular things in entertaining today is a charcuterie board.
Many of us have been serving the items on the board for decades, some calling it an “antipasto.”
For my own family, I usually serve “charcuterie” items on cute, little serving dishes, rather than piled atop each other due to certain family members who won’t eat fruit on the same platter as cheese or meats. But, actually, it’s still a charcuterie.
Charcuterie is a display of dried meats, cheeses, olives, fruits, nuts, spreads, crackers, toasts, and other favorite vegetables. Certain meats are a MUST…such as Genoa salami, sliced paper-thin…as a matter of fact, all the meats should be sliced as such.
Prosciutto, pepperoni, and flavored hams are also a good choice. Don’t forget the olives, pickles, artichoke hearts, pepperoncini, roasted red peppers sprinkled with good olive oil and capers.
If you are pressed for time, you can always go to the store and get small containers of peppadew peppers, marinated artichokes, roasted garlic cloves, marinated mushrooms and Italian/Greek olives. You can also purchase fresh mozzarella ….for example, I buy bocconcini or pearls, drain the water, dress them with olive oil, garlic powder, black pepper and red pepper flakes.
Remember, bleu cheese, brie, cheddar cheeses and fresh fruits such as strawberries and grapes are a must.
Now think Super Bowl! Here are some recipes for you to prepare if time warrants:
Shrimp Salad:
2 lbs. cleaned, boiled shrimp
1 small onion, grated
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 cup chili sauce
1/3 cup mayonnaise
14 cup finely chopped celery
Mix all ingredients together and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
***
Shrimp Salad with Shrimp Vinaigrette:
1 lb. shrimp
Sesame oil
Peel and clean shrimp. Saute’ in sesame oil.
Vinaigrette:
1 Tbsp. ginger, minced
1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar or lemon juice
1/2 cup peanut oil
Juice of 1 orange
Combine all vinaigrette ingredients. Drizzle over shrimp.
***
BLT Dip:
1 lb. bacon
16 oz. (1 pt.) sour cream
8 oz. mayonnaise
1 medium tomato
Fry bacon crisp and crumble. Finely dice tomato. Mix all ingredients. Chill. Serve on bagel chips.
***
Brandied Cheese Ball:
Prepare this a day or two ahead to blend flavors.
8 oz. sharp Cheddar cheese
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup brandy
1 cup chopped pecans, divided in half
Combine cheeses with brandy, mixing thoroughly. Stir in half the chopped pecans. Chill until firm, then form into a ball. Coat with remaining pecans. Wrap in plastic and chill until serving. Serve with crackers.
***
Olive Pate’:
1 can black olives
1/2 cup green olives with pimiento
1 clove garlic
Olive oil
Put olives and garlic in food processor. Process until finely chopped. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil. Refrigerate. Serve on small toasts or water crackers.
***
Rosemary Cayenne Walnuts:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. dried rosemary
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 cups walnut halves or pieces
Preheat oven to 350. In medium bowl combine olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. Add walnuts and toss to coat evenly with mixture. Spread on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes.
***
Bistro Cheese Spread:
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. unsalted whipped butter
2-8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 tsp. fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. fresh marjoram, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. fresh chives, chopped
3/4 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 tsp. fresh dill, chopped
Place garlic in blender or food processor. Add buttter, cream cheese and herbs. Mix well and chill before serving.
By Steve Svetovich
It’s time for the annual New Year’s wish list for 2022.
It began with the 1991 issue of The Dunmorean.
And with a pandemic lasting two years now, and a year that ended with the passing of Betty White just 17 days short of her 100th birthday, there is plenty to wish for in 2022.
With thousands of lives lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic, America still had Betty White.
Until the final day of 2021 when we lost the TV legend.
So here we go with the 2022 wish list:
An end to the COVID-19 pandemic, omicron variant, or any other variant that mysteriously comes along…a cure for those seriously afflicted with COVID-19…unity and much less division among the American people…better and more effective vaccines…less haters…an entertainment and humanity lifetime achievement award named after the late Betty White…America celebrating Betty White’s momentous life in memorium this January 17…a Dunkin Donuts in Forest City…breakfast at Katrina’s Diner in Dickson City…Debbie serving coffee at Katrina’s Diner…a Sunday at The Roosey in Dunmore…Olena serving fresh drafts at The Roosey…Shania Twain anywhere…another Bob Dylan concert…Mick Jagger strutting and singing “Satisfaction” at 78…Keith Richards alive at 78…Charlie Watts pounding the drums in Heaven…breakfast at Neen’s Diner in North Scranton…Taco Bell…an Arby’s Gyro…Starbucks coffee…crumb cake from Cwikla’s in Avoca…a night with The Sperazza Band…a hike at Lake Scranton…Joe Tomko back in politics…Nardozzi’s Pizza…my dad’s chilli…a chili burger from Carawana Diner in Carbondale…Mary Tyler Moore reruns…Carol Burnett hosting Saturday Night Live…a special place in Musician’s Heaven for Johnny Cognetti, former guitarist of The Fabulous Fortunes…a recovery from a stroke for Art Stanton, former sax player for The Fabulous Fortunes…more band jobs for my dad, the leader and drummer of The Fabulous Fortunes who is in his 75th year of performing…Nicholas Pizza…a Keystone Diner texas wiener in West Side…a hoagie from West Side Flavas…a happy retirement for Gene and Maria of Roberto’s Pizza and Restaurant who served West Scranton for so many years…a Hank’s hoagie from Tommy Owens in Green Ridge…Green Ridge Pizza…a visit with Tim Wagner at his sporting goods store in Green Ridge…more books from Dunmore’s legendary Guy Valvano…another successful year for Dunmore’s Bob Walsh, chairman of the Northeastern Chapter of the PA Sports Hall of Fame…Ross Zanghi making the Northeastern Chapter of the PA Sports Hall of Fame…Todd Helton, Gary Sheffield, Jeff Kent, David Ortiz and Jimmy Rollins being elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame…the late Cliff Branch in the Pro Football Hall of Fame…a special place in football Heaven for legendary NFL coach and broadcaster John Madden…a night at Legends in Dickson City…a fresh Blue Moon draft…a night at Sanderson Street in Throop…Thunder Road…no road rage…Valerie Bertinelli back on a TV sitcom…Happy Days reruns…Barbara Eden in a Jeannie bottle…a German brownie from the Minooka Bake Shop…Honeychild’s wings in Dunmore…Mickey Gannon’s wings…a night at the Chestnut Street Tavern in Dunmore…dinner at LaCucina in Dunmore…breakfast at The Bucktown Diner…Eva Longoria…Alyssa Mylano and Tony Danza on a Who’s the Boss reunion…Laverne and Shirley reruns…Nibs Loughney back in politics…a solid quarterback to lead the New York Giants for Dunmore’s Paul Nardozzi, the team’s number one fan…Neil Young back at Montage…the peanut stick back at Krispy Kreme…Maroni’s Pizza in West Scranton…more good people like Dunmore’s Carol Scrimalli…good health to Dunmorean publisher John Hart and his wife Maureen…a lamb or chicken gyro from Crown Chicken in South Side…dinner at Ragnacci’s in Dunmore…a cure for M.S….good health to my great friend Jeannie Hoppel whose dad always taught me to look at the bottle as half full…lower real estate taxes…a lower Scranton wage tax…less pot holes…no animal cruelty…less desperate housewives…no desperate husbands…much lower water bills…Jimmy Connors singing Johnny B Goode…Roger Finnerty, Billy Woelkers and Jimmy Tigue back with the Fabulous Fortunes…good health and complete recovery from a heart ailment to Dunmore’s Gary Duncan…best of health to my beloved friend and former coworker Leah Cronauer who continues to kick cancer in the butt…a night out at the Waldorf Tiki Bar in East Mountain…a winning New York Mets season for Steve Gall…Robert Plant in concert…a night at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park…Cher…Brian Wilson back at the Kirby Center…another Elton John concert…the New York Knicks advancing in the NBA playoffs…Brett “Gardy” Gardner back for one final season in a New York Yankees uniform…The Yankees retiring Paul O’Neill’s number…Marie Osmond and her Nutrisystem diet…Dunmore’s Shannon Miele and her sister Michelle rocking and dancing at the Waldorf Tiki Bar…Stuttering John and Jackie the Jokeman back on Howard Stern…a J.T. Concert…Bob Barker back on the Price is Right…Taylor Swift…a Pappas Pizza tuna grinder…a trip to Seaside Heights, New Jersey…a trip to Santorini, Greece…a Bengals game in Cincinnati…another great year from Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto…the New York Yankees back in the World Series…more government support, funds and adult transition programs for autism…Pete Rose eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame…a trip with my sons to Cooperstown…dinner at Fratelli’s in North Scranton…Old Forge pizza…Carly Simon in concert…Paul McCartney back in Hershey…Rod Stewart kicking soccer balls and doing back flips at 77…a Guiness draft…Sirius-XM radio in every vehicle…more of The Mad Dog on MLB Siriius-XM radio…good health to Dunmore’s Fran and Santa Burne…singing American Pie…Susanna Hoffs…Cooper’s Maryland crab bisque soup…Mike Sperazza strumming and singing Rolling Stones songs…Jennie Sperazza on drums belting out Zeppelin and Janis Joplin…Eric Sperazza on keyboard singing The Beatles’ Ballad of John and Yoko…my son Ryan on lead guitar singing “Oh Boy!”…a successful football season next year for Kevin McHale and his Dunmore Bucks…continued success for coach Ben O’Brien and the Dunmore Lady Bucks…continued success for coach Al Callejas and the Holy Cross Crusaders basketball program…success for all Dunmore and Holy Cross sports programs…a Dunkin Donuts hot coffee…an egg on croissant from Main Street Bagel in Dickson City…Odd Couple reruns…David Letterman back on TV…Jennifer Lopez…the Hawley Winterfest…a trip to Jim Thorpe…the Montrose Winterfest…a trip to Greene, New York…breakfast at Abe’s Diner…fresh water…a fresh Miller Genuine Draft…Yankees baseball on YES…my dad on drums…Jack Mead on sax…Tom Gavern on guitar…Jeff Lewis singing and on guitar…Firp on base…Ed Kosmahl on guitar…Vince Parisse singing and on guitar…a special place in Heaven for late Dunmore community volunteers and activists Addie Michalek, Carmel Arnone, Blanche Shaw, Philomena Errico, Fritz Voytek, Sam and Tom Cali, Leonard Verrastro, Billy Weller, James McHale, Sr.; and Al Frioni, Sr….no domestic violence…Dunmore’s Paul Nardozzi back in politics…risotto from Cafe Rinaldi in Old Forge…a romantic dinner at Carmella’s in Dunmore…good health to Dunmore’s Jimmy Burne…Nina’s wing bites in Dunmore…Kelly’s wings in South Side…a draft beer in the newly renovated Buddy Clarke’s in Dunmore…a special,place in Heaven for my Aunt Stella, a caregiver to her family for many years, who died this past year…a return to health to my Aunt Annette…a special place in Heaven for my late in-laws…continued recovery from cancer for my ex wife Beth who is winning the fight…a special place in Heaven for my uncles Gus, Art and Wally…a special place in Heaven for my sister-in-law’s parents and brother Nickie Stelmac…a most special place in Heaven for my late grandmothers…a most special place in Heaven for my late mom who always told me to take a chance…great health to my brother George, his wife Maria and three children: Mia, Livy and George…great health to my dad and sister Denise…great health and continued success in his job as a pharmaceutical sales rep for my son Dylan, the best center fielder I ever saw…great health and many more gigs with The Sperazza Band for my son Ryan, the best lead guitarist I ever saw…little baby ducks, old pick up trucks, tomatoes on the vine…life is short…enjoy life to the fullest…enjoy the simple things in life…Happy New Year, everyone.