Last weekend’s Memorial Day came with an extra emphasis this year.
We missed Dad and our tradition of spending the days before the holiday with him, filling our family cemetery concrete urns with live geranium plants and asparagus ferns for an added green accent.
Dad’s passing last December at age 96 meant this month’s holiday was a first with Dad being with his parents and siblings and other family interred at our small-town Catholic cemetery.
But this year’s holiday weekend also brought the balance of a family milestone celebration for my mom and her Green Family roots in the tiny neighboring town of Wheatfield.
Mom, who will have her own 95th birthday later this summer, joined her oldest sister, my Aunt Ruby, age 96, myself and oldest sister Carol with all of Mom’s extended family to celebrate Mom and Ruby’s youngest brother, my Uncle Sonny’s 90th birthday, last Saturday at the Rensselaer American Legion.
Uncle Sonny’s true name is Arthur, and he’s been married to Aunt Toots, age 89, for 67 years. (The fun story of the newspaper comics page character connection to how Mom’s sister-in-law was dubbed as “Toots” by her father is included in my second published cookbook from 2007.)
Uncle Sonny’s milestone birthday celebration included a feast overflowing with fried chicken, homemade prepared side salads and custom-decorated cupcakes galore.
My uncle Sonny shares the same nickname as my friend Sanjin Bosnjak, formerly of Griffith and now a resident of Chicago. Sanjin, of Bosnian descent, found that when he arrived in the United States with his family two decades ago, many people had trouble pronouncing his first name (it sounds like “son-yen”). Once he began his first job, it wasn’t long before friends and coworkers dubbed him “Sonny,” a reflection of his bright and cheery personality.
While I didn’t leave my uncle Sonny’s birthday party with any recipes to share, friend Sanjin “Sonny” Bosnjak has provided a recipe this week for his easy homemade fried rice.
“I served my fried rice recipe to my friend Johan the other day with some potstickers,” Sanjin said.
“You can also serve it with egg rolls. I like to air-fry potstickers and egg rolls to accompany this recipe and menu.”
He said he likes this recipe because it is high in protein and filling, making it perfect to heat up for a quick at-work lunch.
“I learned recently that Martha Stewart likes to make her own chicken fried rice by using day-old rice,” Sanjin said.
“And Hugh Jackman is also a fan of variations of fried rice because of the high protein value.”
Columnist Philip Potempa has published four cookbooks and is a weekly radio host at WJOB 1230 AM. He can be reached at philpotempa@gmail.com or mail your questions: From the Farm, PO Box 68, San Pierre, Ind. 46374.
Sanjin’s AKA Sonny’s Chicken Fried Rice
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
4 ounces chicken breast, cooked and prepared
Splash of vegetable oil
Dashes of low-sodium spices and seasonings of choice
Seasoning salt to taste
Dry-blend herb seasoning to taste
2 cups cooked brown rice
4 eggs
1 tablespoon butter
1 bag (12 ounces) frozen stir-fry mixed vegetables
Soy sauce as desired
Directions
Cut up the chicken breast, season as desired and toss with splash of vegetable oil. Put in the fridge overnight.
Boil the rice, season with dry herb blend and seasoning salt to taste and allow to “cure” and chill overnight in the fridge.
Whisk the eggs and loosely quick fry while leaving fairly wet. Do not overcook or scramble the eggs. While still warm, mince eggs into small pieces.
Lightly cook chicken with a tablespoon of butter until golden but not overcooked.
Follow package instructions and steam frozen prepared vegetables for 10 minutes.
Combine the chicken, eggs, veggies and rice in a large bowl. Toss until thoroughly combined.
Pour into large, deep frying pan, adding a little more oil or water as needed and pan fry, stirring constantly and adding desired amount of soy sauce for a balanced and savory zest, until hot and ready to serve.
