Bisous, Mes Amis

I had planned my first party and I was truly excited...my new place...I was giddy picking out the plates and cocktails and invitations and napkins and sweets and dishes and sparkly things and candles and music and food, oh my! As everyone knows, I cherish all the little details of an event and this was no exception. Especially because everyone on the guest list was coming! I wanted it to be perfect and yummy and full of great fun.

A bit of side comedy...my grandma left me all of four to five appetizer recipes, so the fun always begins when I try to find something in the box to make its debut as an "appetizer" versus its original intentions!! So, tonight, I will attempt to masquerade a fish sauce as a shrimp dip! ha ha And, this sauce was going to need some work...let's be honest, one has to wonder when all the ingredients add up to a whole lot of mayo...I sure was curious. And, it didn't help that the next main ingredient was dill. The last herb on the list of favorites. But, plug along and have faith in grandma because she has been pretty kick ass so far. Did I mention that the sauce is titled "Deluxe #1"? Is that not hysterical?! Deluxe. That word has so aptly fell out of "cool"...it is truly outmoded. But, on the other hand, it reminds us of our childhood past when something could seem bigger than life...big burgers and sassy sedans and art sets and pizza. But, I digress. Tonight, it's about the shrimp.

I started to mix the ingredients. For those of you that have read the last blog, you know that at this point there are no measuring cups in the house, so this is going to get interesting. Honestly, I was 100% okay with it. I mean it was all going to come down to taste so a bit more of this or a bit less of that was totally kosher. I squirted in the mayo (such an odd food!),  vinegar, tabasco, Wocestershire (coolest food word ever!), and threw in the herbs. At this point, it was all about tasting and adding and tasting and adding and tasting, etc. That's a lot of mayo tasting...ugh! Just thinking about it makes me gag!! I know, so dramatic! It truly needed more dill and tarragon and tabasco and parsley, but at no point, did it need any more mayo!!!!!!! ha ha

I chilled it and prayed to the food gods that it would be delicious with the shrimp. Now, nothing against my grandmother, but we decided to grab a jar of cocktail sauce just in case!!! Both sauces would accompany the shrimp to the party...but, as luck would have it, my grandmother's sauce was the belle of the ball and the cocktail sauce didn't even know what hit it. It was such a pleasant surprise and the sauce became a dip. A dip that everyone loved.

By the way, the party was a smash, and one of my favorite things was telling all the glorious stories of Paris...those of you that were here know what the best story was...I will never forget the jaws dropping in the kitchen!! hee hee

As it stands~
guests- 16
emotions- one big yummy smile of joy
mistakes- lots...but they were all on purpose, so I will let you decide
meltdowns- about 5, every time I had to taste it when it just tasted like mayo
recipes-1
recipes to date- 15

The Recipe~

Dill Sauce Deluxe #1

1 cup of mayonnaise
2 tbsp vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp marinated sweet pickle (I didn't include because I think it is yucky!)
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
4 drops Tabasco sauce
1/4 tsp powdered mustard
1/2 tsp tarragon (used fresh)
1 tsp parsley (used fresh)
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill

Mix all ingredients. Serve with fish. OR SERVE WITH SHRIMP!! ha ha

Trick and Treat

The kitchen is a mess, we've gone through two bottles of wine already, the peppers are stinging my eye and the doorbell won't stop ringing and I couldn't be happier. The funny thing is that it was never planned; it was never thought of; it was never to be, but here it is and it is good. LIFE. Just happening and smiling. In a moment, Flo and the Machine will be playing on the ipod and a dance fest willl ensue. A dance that resembles flailing joy! One I know well. For music makes it all, even the yummiest of dishes, sing.

To compliment happiness, I have created a menu of appetizers with grilled asparagus, freshly shaved parmesan reggiano, tomatoes with pepper oil and French bread (I love bread!! hee hee) and a dinner of fish in red wine and risotto with parmesan cream.

The appetizers were enjoyed over great conversation...and great wine! Dinner was another story...a crazy story of debauchery...

We set out to make the sauce in a casserole dish. Why waste a bowl? Besides, I don't think my counter had a square to spare!! It was beautiful and messy and dark. Probably because midway through the assemblage, we realized that there were no measuring cups. "I guess we are going to free ball it!" I wouldn't have it any other way. A few swigs of olive oil, a dousing of tomato sauce, and a sprinkling of oregano were the first to decorate the dish. Now for the red wine! I just poured it from her glass...well, after I kind of wrestled it from her! She was drinking it at the time. ha ha Then it seemed to be a "Who is the strongest and can open the olives?" kind of drama! (Side note- is the joke, "you loosened it for me" getting a BIT old???) Before the olives made it into the casserole pool, they had to have their pimentos pooped out!!!!!!!!!!!!! HA HA HA (Now that is funny). Finally, the comedy of errors that seemed to be set from the start- a sweet pepper that has never "dressed up" as a sweet pepper found itself in the mix. Yes, the recipe called for a sweet pepper, but I really wanted to try a Pasilla pepper. Go figure...it's Halloween and I thought it was fitting. With a quick stir and a couple of pieces of orange roughy, it was popped into the oven right as the smoke alarm went off! Really?? How does cooking in the oven equate to a fire?? Hmmm? Don't answer that! But, in the midst of it all, she still found time to open the door to princesses and goblins and spooky things while I stirred the risotto, watched the "burning" oven and waited for the next song to take us away...

By the way, as we sat at the table set for macabre, we enjoyed a dish of gluttony and greed...it was a perfect fit for creatures of the night...or two princesses that had lost their crowns...or two princesses that had found their crowns...I'll let you do the math.

As it stands~
guests- 1
emotions- 1 (girly fun giggles)
mistakes- 1
meltdowns- 1 (we ran out of Twix candy bars...don't look at me! It was a sweet little 2-year-old cheerleader!)
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 14

The Recipe~

Fish in Red Wine

2 lbs filets or steaks

Sauce
1 tsp oregano
1 sweet pepper
3 tbsp parsley
1 cup green olives
1 tsp capers (I love capers!!!!!!!)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup tomato sauce
1 cup dry red wine (Use what you're drinking, or what your friend is drinking! It is more fun that way!)
1 clove of garlic, minced
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients for sauce and let stand for 1 hour or more. (We cheated and made it on the spot...it's okay, my grandma won't be upset! And, it was still quite delicious.) Place fish slices flat in a casserole with a cover. Cover with sauce. Cover and bake at 350 degrees  for 20-30 minutes.

I am back with my stilettos and apron...

...thanks to all my peeps for sticking around when the blogger snuck off to Paris to have a couple of dreams, a few pastries and a bunch of wine. Well, I am back and the recipe box beckons me...of course, a French dinner party is in order. I have to be honest...I am ridiculously excited. Bisous

My New "Go To" Fish Recipe

I was so excited to be digging through my grandma's recipes again. Of course, I found quite a few that peaked my interest. What was to be on the menu...fish cooked in red wine? fish with gremolata? shrimp creole? Considering that I am embracing Tracy's Italian heritage (let's say calling it my own), I thought the fish with gremolata sounded Italian and cool. Besides, it only had a few ingredients! Since I was having a dinner party with a complicated artichoke recipe, I thought this would be my best bet.

Wendy and Dave arrived and with a glass of white from a recent wine tasting trip in Temecula and an aged white cheddar, we were on our way to another fabulous evening. Thank goodness I had already prepped the difficult part of the menu, so I was available to chat about the latest! (It's funny to think that I am a teacher and I truly struggle with multi-tasking...I mean it!! Ask my wife!) As she dished the dirt, I prepared the gremolata.

I got out the parsley and started to chop it. As I was chopping, I got to thinking- parsley, for most of my life, was the odd garnish on restaurant plates. Now, it seems to find its way into most of my favorite recipes. Weird. Next, I placed the butter into a ramekin and added the parsley. (I didn't really measure the parsley- I just eye-balled it.) Then, I zested one lemon into the same ramekin. Finally, I minced a couple cloves of garlic and with a dash of salt and fresh ground pepper, I microwaved it. It smelled so good. It even interrupted Wendy from her story! I had to walk around and let everyone smell the beautiful gremolata.

For the fish, I used two pieces of orange roughy. As I got it ready with olive oil and salt and pepper, I turned the oven on to broil. Based on the recipe, I only needed to broil it for five minutes. I was nervous about this but I decided to just go for it. After the five minutes, I took it out and spooned the gremolata on the top. Popped it back in for a minute, and let out a sigh because Tracy was coming in from the backyard with her steaks...perfect timing! As I took the fish out, I knew it was cooked perfectly. And, not to mention, looked so elegant.

We sat at the table with my new placemats from Vancouver, my complicated artichoke dish (delicious), flowers, Tracy's steaks, my favorite salad with Paula Deen's dressing, candles, and the prettiest fish dish I have ever seen! It truly is the little things that make an evening an event! Everyone loved the food. I was so thrilled with the fish that I knew it would be my new "go to" recipe for a quick but fancy affair!

By the way, the artichoke dish was from a recent Food and Wine magazine. Mario Batali was pairing wines with vegetables (vegetables that are typically hard to pair). And, when I mentioned mozzarella cream sauce to Tracy, difficult as it may be, I knew I was making the recipe the next chance I got!

Oh, and one more thing, I got a sweet tooth a little later that night and decided to bust out the ice cream machine. It was so cool; however, I didn't follow my grandma's recipe because I didn't think we had a hundred hours! So, in a mere twenty minutes, Wendy and I were slurping some vanilla love and the night was complete!

As it stands:
guests: 3
emotions: 1
mistakes: proud to say none!
meltdowns: none of those either!
recipes: 1
recipes to date: 13

The Recipe

Fish with Gremolata

1 lb fish fillets
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp margarine (used yummy butter)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
1 clove of garlic

Place fish in a foil lined broiler pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and dot with margarine (used olive oil). Broil 6" from heat for 5 minutes. In a small bowl, cream margarine with parsley, lemon rind and garlic. Spread over fish and broil 1 minute longer, until fish flakes with a fork.

Remembering the Yellow Phone

It all started with a text. My BFF wanted to play. It reminded me of being a teen and skating around the garage waiting for the yellow phone to ring. I don't know what it is but age doesn't seem to change the girly giddiness I feel when I get to play with my friends. Now, of course, back in the day there would inevitably be some issue dealing with the phone...Sharon or Barbara's line would be busy or no answer. With the absence of the answering machine, this Saturday afternoon event would typically end in frustration or miscommunication. But, every once in a while, the planets would align and I got to play with my friend. Times have changed and with technology allowing for you to be found in even the remotest of places a potential "play date" doesn't usually get missed! Woo hoo!

What shall I serve? (As a teen, it would've been Doritos and salsa with shredded cheese. I think I will have to make that soon!) Grandma's guacamole would be perfect! Especially because I had three ripe avocados and I desperately needed to post something on the blog...hee hee

What shall we drink? (Diet Coke would've paired nicely with the Doritos!) For us, water with lemon and pinot blanco would be delicious. We are so sophisticated.

I got to making the guac and everything was going well until I started the first step. You may be asking, "How could everything be going well if the first step was already messed up?" Good question...well, did I mention that my BFF was coming over to play. I was just so excited! Back to the guac, the avocados were too ripe and had some brown spots so I had to do some fancy spooning. After completely "massacring" the avocados, I had enough to salvage. I squeezed in the lemon juice, chopped in the tomatoes, sliced in the onions, cracked in the pepper, dashed in the salt and dripped in the tabasco. TAMARI? What's tamari? Of course, my grandma has to have some odd ingredient. Oh well, this guac isn't going to see tamari. It is, however, going to see my belly. Ha ha ha ha (That was a weak joke...I think I 've been influenced by my teen years!)

By the way, I didn't rub the bowl with a garlic clove because I made the guac in the bowl I was serving it in and I didn't have a garlic clove...okay, those are both lies...I just started eating it and I was so excited about my BFF being here and the yummy guac that I forgot all about it. (Yes, I know, another teen moment here.)

We had a great time laughing and gossiping and just plain being stupid...all the way into the night! I think BFF's at any age would consider that a great "play date." It got me thinking...I really wished that I had asked my grandma about her BFF. What were their best memories? What did they like to do? What did they like to eat? I'll never know the answer, but I am sure that it would've been glamorous and delicious...just like her.

As it stands~
guests- 1
emotions- 1
meltdowns- 0
mistakes- 3, but who's counting- everybody loves guac!!!
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 12

The Recipe~

Guacamole
Peel and mash 2 avocados with lemon juice, salt and grated onion to taste. Add 1 small finely chopped tomato, 3-4 chopped green chilies or chili peppers, a few drops of Tabasco and a few drops of tamari sauce. Rub a bowl with garlic and heap in the mixture. Chill and serve with crackers, potato chips or tortillas. (I am cracking up- crackers!!! bwa ha ha bwa ha ha! Obviously, I served with tortilla chips)

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Vanilla Soup

Okay, so apparently this post has three lives. I will attempt to share each of them because...

No. 1~ I had never felt that my blog lived up to its name until today. I had attempted to make vanilla ice cream...homemade vanilla ice cream. It just sounded delicious; like "roll around on a cloud giggling" delicious. My grandmother's recipe called for the "old school" barrel packed in ice method. Well, I didn't have to deal with that because I had an ice cream maker. (This is where the modern part comes in.) I whipped up the recipe. It was quite easy and fun. I placed it in the machine and, since we were outside having a delicious meal, the whirring sound didn't bother anyone. Scotty, Wendy's son, helped me check on its progress. Unfortunately, it had made no progress...15 minutes later, still no progress and when dessert could be prolonged no further...it was determined that Vanilla Soup would be making its debut! With a few sugar cookies to disquise, I had presented the concoction. To everyone's surprise, it was absolutely delicious! We actually had seconds. Now, did it live up to my original prophecy? No, the ice cream maker was no match for my Grandma's ice cream. Well, maybe I just needed to re-freeze the machine's core...

No. 2~ The next day all I could think about was making the ice cream. I raced home from school (I sound like a little kid with a new toy; not that far off!) and threw it in the machine. I had refrozen the core and thought this was definitely the trick. As it whirred, Tracy and I tried to watch American Idol. I say "tried" because with the whir of the machine and the "pitchiness" of the singers our ears were wincing! Finally, after enduring a lot of bad, we decided to move the machine. So, I put it in the bathroom and shut the door. It wasn't really that funny until I walked out and told Tracy that I put the ice cream on the toilet!!! We were dying laughing...the fact that we were watching bad singing and we were making ice cream in the bathroom. Needless to say, it didn't freeze. I did, however, eat/drink/slurp another delicious bowl of vanilla soup. It did help to make the singing better.

No. 3~ The freezer it is! We had to uncover a huge tupperware because this batch makes one lot of...stuff. I poured it in and prayed to the freezer gods. Maybe, just maybe I might actually get to eat this in its intended form. One can dream! After many hours, and a few more hours to be doubly sure, I checked on it and it was, drum roll, please, frozen! I grabbed the nearest spoon for a taste and it was right back to dreamy delicious. I guess if you put in 2 cups of sugar and lots of cream then there is no other outcome! Yum!

By the way, I forgot to mention that I am the only ice cream eater in the house, so, needless to say, next time I will make a smaller batch. No, next time, I think I will make the ice cream in the ice cream maker recipe book. Sorry Grandma, but this modern girl is a little too impatient...

As it stands~
guests- 3
emotions- 501
meltdowns- now this is just plain funny!!!!!!
mistakes- 1
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 11

The Recipe~

Homemade Ice Cream
5 tbsp vanilla
4 eggs
4 cups heavy cream
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 cups half and half
1/2 tsp salt
Beat eggs. Add sugar and beat until stiff. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into freezer, leaving head room. Pack outside of cylinder with rock salt and ice and freeze. Fruit, berries, or nuts may be added when ice cream is about half frozen. When adding any of these, decrease vanilla to 1 tbsp.

A Tribute to Sourdough Starters...Wherever You Are

Once upon a time a little Belmont Shorean dreamt of a martini brunch. She had visions of cinnamon rolls and croissants dancing in her head...of pastries and sugary icing on the lips of all her friends. And, it was all thanks to a romantic dinner date at Roman Cucina, where she had tasted the inspiration for such an event, an espresso martini. A martini that would tantalize all her friends.

Okay, so I can drop the princess act, but the dreamy espresso martini needs to get all the glory it is due. It was so delicious that after a couple of sips, my mini notebook came out to play. A party was born!

After playing around with some yummy ideas that would bring this martini brunch to fruition, I decided on a sweet round and a savory round. Of course, the espresso martini would pair with the sweet breakfast appetizers...blueberry muffins, cinnamon rolls, monkey bread and fruit with dip. The savory course was filled with bacon, latkes, cheese souffles, and ham pastries; this would be paired with a champagne cocktail.

Grandma's blueberry muffins would be so cute. I even purchased silver muffin cups and turquoise sugar crystals to go with the motif.

As I got everything ready, I laughed with Sue about the grocery shopping adventure! She had come up the night before and shopped with me...I would be remiss if I didn't mention our fun and merriment! So, we dashed out to the store for all the yummies. First stop, Trader Joe's and we found potato latkes that would be so much easier than the potato bites Tracy wanted! (A quick text to get approval and we would be solid!) Sue and I picked up the rest of the ingredients and payed the bill. Off to Ralph's for everything else. As we walked in to the cheese rounder, I screamed, "We forgot the latkes!!!" We run out and leave the cart for a mad dash to TJ's. All I can say is they are going to be closed! Sue thinks we will be fine, but I don't agree. It's about 8:56 PM...they close at 9! We raced there and I kicked Sue out of the car by the door. She's yelling, "I don't have any money!" I just yell back, "Who cares, just get the latkes," as a guy closes the door behind her! I pulled the car around to a spot and realized that if I want the latkes, I will have to get her money. I run up to the door and flash a $20 bill through the crack in the door. A guy that works there is cracking up at the crazy ladies running and yelling about latkes! (P.S. I will save you the time of reading the whole post and let you know that the latkes were well worth the drama!!) We went back to Ralph's and our cart was still there...we busted up about our crazy adventure. We thought the drama was over until we got to the alcohol aisle. Apparently, making espresso martinis was going to be the most difficult and expensive "fricking" inspiration! We ended up buying so many different bottles because we weren't sure what would be right. Finally, it was time to go home and crash.

Up early the next morning, to start the festivities. Most everything was just heated in the oven, so the muffins got my full attention...and when I read 'add enough sourdough starter from crock' as a direction you better believe they got my full attention. In fact they got the full attention of everybody in the whole household! AHHHHHH! What the heck!! Plan B...thank goodness my grandma had two blueberry muffin recipes. This next one, however, had seaweed as an ingredient! Huh!?!? Okay, the little princess that dreamt about this pretty party didn't factor in seaweed...

So, the muffins, sans the seaweed, were quite easy. After pulling them from the oven, they looked so beautiful with their silver coats and turquoise sugar caps! I placed them on a cake pedestal for all to admire...truly a princess brunch treat. But after a bite, Baby Bear would've thought they were too dense and Mama Bear would've thought they weren't sweet enough, but Papa Bear would've thought they were just right...well, maybe he would've said they needed seaweed! Hee hee...

All in all, the inspiration lived up to its dream and everyone enjoyed themselves.

By the way, my mom shared the "sourdough starter" story. It was something women kept in crocks and used to make breads. These starters were shared with friends and neighbors to then be shared again and again. Oh, to live in a time when people shared bread...

As it stands~
guests- 5
emotions- 1
mistakes- 1 (but does it really count; I mean who has sourdough starter in a crock?)
meltdowns- 1 (the latkes, of course!)
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 10

The Recipe~

1 3/4 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp allspice
6 tbsp honey (sugar would've been better; needed the sweet!)
3/4 tsp kelp (need I say more)
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup oil or shortening
1 cup blueberries
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp lemon peel

In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, 1/4 cup honey, baking powder, kelp and allspice. Make a well in the center. Combine milk, egg, and oil and pour into well. Stir to moisten. Combine blueberries, remaining honey and lemon peel. Stir into batter. Spoon into muffin pans, filling 2/3rds full. Bake at 400 degrees until golden brown.

A Souffle and a New York Engagement

"Some where over the rainbow bluebirds fly. Well, if bluebirds fly over the rainbow then why oh why, tell me, why can't I? Some day I'll wish upon a star and wake up where the clouds are behind me," dreamed Wendy. Well, last summer, Dave took her to New York and proposed. She was over the rainbow and the moon with a diamond on her finger! I promised to scrap her adventure and that is exactly what I did. After a weekend of scrapping and gluttony with Susan, I created a romantic black and silver book. I was so excited to give it to her. What dish would complement a much needed and anticipated girl's night? A souffle. Yes, a souffle.

First, I started with a dose of reality. I don't think I can cook a souffle. When I found a recipe for "Puffed Crab," I thought that might be more up my alley. Hee hee. I had to make a thick cream sauce. I did that in a large saute pan because it seemed that all steps could take place in the same pan. Really? I asked myself. Could a "Puff" masquerading as a souffle be this easy? The verdict was still out but I was game for the adventure.

I used crab meat from a can and added that to the mixture. Time to whip up the egg whites. That was serious fun. Surprisingly, they take a good amount of time to whip into stiff peaks. I folded that carefully into the pan with all the other ingredients. Once again, I reflected on my Food Network knowledge in order to keep my egg whites fluffy. I didn't want to deflate them.

I greased a round casserole dish with butter and carefully folded my puffy goodness into it. With a beautiful sprinkling of smoked paprika, it was ready for the oven.

Now, on to the "Squash Provencale." I prepped all the vegetables. Of course, I used yellow pepper instead of green pepper. I threw everything in the pan. Unfortunately, I was supposed to cover the pan, but we din't have a lid that fit. I grabbed a sheet pan and giggled. We were going ghetto style! I planned to cook the vegetable dish before the souffle was ready, but, as most people know, I suck at timing!!! What many of you might be thinking at this moment is...you can't make a puff/souffle wait!! If I have learned anything, it is that the souffle is the star, like "Glenda, the good witch"! Well, there is only one thing to do when a meltdown is coming, pour a glass of wine. Sip, sip and the world of cooking seems more palatable.

Ding. The puff is ready! Everybody gathered around the oven to watch the unveiling. It was...it was...a beautiful souffle! It was truly cool! Just like in the movies! Ha ha! We just stared at it. Then we posed with it! You laugh, but we were serious. I mean it was my first souffle and, although it had been masquerading as a puff, it was a genuine, no doubt about it, souffle. I had been christened.

Now, if only my f@#$ing vegetables would be done, this meal would be perfect. Of course, they weren't. So, every couple of seconds we had to check on the souffle. Yes, it was falling. Still pretty, but falling. Finally, it was time to add the tomatoes to the vegetables. And, with a shower of parmesan and parsley, the dish was ready.

We threw together a salad with meyer lemon olive oil and honey balsamic vinegar (a lovely Christmas present from Tracy xoxo). I felt it would round out the delicate flavors in the souffle and the bold acidity in the squash provencale. I was proud to produce a meal of my grandmother's recipes and have it all be so balanced.

By the way, the long awaited squash provencale was magnificent and the crab souffle was decadent. And, if I do say so myself, I had created a truly French dinner. Although her memory book was from our beloved NY, all we could do was dream of flying over the rainbow to Paris!

As it stands~
guests- 2
emotions- 2
mistakes- 2
meltdowns- 1
recipes- 2
recipes to date- 9

The Recipes~

Crab Puff (aka souffle)

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 cup hot milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 eggs, separated
1 can crabmeat
1 tsp paprika

Make a thick cream sauce by melting butter, adding flour and gradually stir in milk and bring to a boil. Cool slightly and beat in egg yolks and fold in mayonnaise. Add flakes of crabmeat. Season. Beat egg whites stiff and fold into crabmeat mixture. Place in greased casserole. Dust with paprika. Bake at 400 degrees until light brown and puffed- about 25 min. (I would probably add more crabmeat next time and cook for a bit longer---but as they say, souffles are finicky!!)

Squash Provencale (an absolutely delicious and beautiful dish)

4 small zucchini
1/2 cup green pepper (used one whole yellow one)
1 clove of garlic
1 onion, thinly sliced (used yellow)
2 tomatoes, peeled, in wedges (I didn't peel...I was too stressed about the souffle!)
1/2 tsp oregano
2 tbsp polyunsaturated oil (used evoo)
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tbsp snipped parsley
1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

Cut unpared zucchini into 1/4" slices. Cook and stir all ingredients except tomato wedges, parsley and parmesan in a medium skillet until heated through. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until vegertables are tender crisp. Add tomato wedges and cook over low heat just until tomatoes are heated through- about 3 minutes. Sprinkle on parsley and parmesan.

A Great Team

Being at a new school, has had its ups and downs! By far, the biggest "up" is the new family I have joined, namely Jami, Claire and Tammy. To further foster this new and exciting relationship, we decided to break bread, or, to be more specific, drink wine with really delicious appetizers! We decided to meet at Tammy's house after school and the rest is, as they say, school history! What is the perfect dessert to accompany this menagerie? Well, cheesecake dreams! I had made them for the Charger Party and thought they would be delicious with the girls.

To get started, I had to poke my head out the window to my wonderful neighbor, "Janelle, do you have an 8" by 8" dish?" "Of course, I do!" she says. And, like many other times before, our neighbors always seem to have what we need and vice verse!

On to the dreams, I mixed the brown sugar, flour and walnuts. I just needed to melt butter, so I threw the amount in a ramekin and hit the start button. Apparently, it wasn't long enough, so I turned it on for a few more seconds and, unfortunately, it frothed all over the place. Argh! Now, how do you measure the melted butter that frothed up and over? I asked myself. At this point, most people, including myself if I were sane in the kitchen, would just dump it and start over. No, not me. I tried to quantify it and then add it to the ramekin. Oh, and by the way, Tracy has mastered this technique so I got to hear all about how I was doing it wrong. Huh, melting butter will have to be added to my "not that good at" list.(And, yes, this is a lot of talk about butter...you may think it silly but Julia Child would think it a proper discussion! Hee hee) Ultimately, the butter created glorious crumbs! Glorious crumbs!

Now, to the cream part. Mmmmm, cream. This needed lots of blending and a few dashes of fun things before it was all ready for the oven. Since, I haven't baked much this is a real exciting point because you just know it's going to be yummy...maybe that's why I haven't baked much...how can you be a skinny baker? No, seriously, it just isn't possible; it would be like nailing Jell-o to a tree, like Tracy leaving the house with her first outfit on, like Susan not farming on farmville, like me melting butter, like Sue leaving my house without stealing anything, like Chewy walking up to strangers and licking them, like Wendy saying no to a pair of shoes, like Autumn thinking she can draw cheese, like Dave walking out of Best Buy with nothing...I could go on, but I probably shouldn't. (Boy, that was fun!)

Ding (or would that be dong in past tense? HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I'm crying right now). The dreams were ready. And, yes, they were dreamy! Bet, you knew that was coming.

By the way, everybody loved them, and it was a wonderful night with a wonderful team, "The Bobkittens." "Absolutely," said James.

As it stands~
guests- 3
emotions- 1 (it was a Julia Child emotion= melted butter smell)
mistakes- 1
meltdowns- 0 (happy to report)
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 7

The Recipe~

1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup walnuts
8 oz package of cream cheese
1 egg
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup melted (hee hee) margarine (used butter)

Grease 8" by 8" square pan. In small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour and walnuts. Stir in butter until well combined. Reserve 1/3 cup crumbs. Pat remaining gently in pan. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven 12-15 minutes. In same bowl, at medium speed, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in remaining ingredients. Pour over crust. Sprinkle remaining crumbs on top. Bake 25 minutes more. Cut into 2" squares and then cut diagonally in half.

The Baked Bean Debate

So, the Chargers were one game away from a Super Bowl opportunity and I thought, "Let's throw a party." After a few emails, our house was full and the french onion dip was made. I left the menu up to Tracy so my fancy self was shlepping over chunks of cheese and fried chicken. I think baked beans would match nicely. I found three recipes and one of them required eight hours of cooking. Really, eight hours! I don't think I am going to make that one. Ever.

Okay, imagine standing in a grocery store in front of tons of beans. Beans. What kind of beans should I choose...the recipe didn't say? Why does there have to be so many beans? We decided to check a baked bean can to determine that the white bean was the winner. As we were driving home, I started to panic. Remember Daryl Hannah in Steel Magnolias (use the right accent when you read the next part!)..."I was supposed to soak the beans overnight. Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, what will I do? I had everything ready to make 'bean and ham something.'" That's funny. But, not that funny because I am in the same predicament! Tracy hadn't brought all the groceries in before beans were flying into the pot of water. Paying attention to the quick soak version, the beans would be ready for half time. Not too bad. I told the beans to be good little beans and cook, cook, cook.

By the time the guests had arrived, the beans were on round two of the cooking process. I did enjoy that they could be left alone for awhile because I wanted to get into the game, enjoy the guests and, yes, eat the french onion dip! hee hee Apparently, everone else wanted to eat french onion dip because we went through a ton of it. Back to the beans, I mixed up the rest of the ingredients. As Sue and I were looking at it, it seemed too "tomatoey." The proportion was all tomato and only a little brown sugar and molasses. We decided to double the brown sugar and the molasses. When I poured in the molasses, it kind of poured a lot. Ooops. This recipe was doomed. Take that last comment as foreshadowing...no, really, I mean it. The recipe called for 7 cups of boiling water, but that would be too "liquidy." We, I mean Sue and I (I didn't want to take the blame, so I made her help with the decisions!), only put in 2. Once again, I was faced with a recipe that looked weird and, might I add, needed to bake for one hour on NO SPECIFIED TEMPERATURE...huh, did I say doomed? It was covered and in the oven.

Everybody enjoyed lots of snacks because, yes, you guessed it, the beans wouldn't be ready for a long time. Now, I could turn my focus to the game...Oh no, we're losing! The team needed my full attention and so did my forgotten Blue Moon beer. With a few screams and lots of jumping up and down, we were on our way to...nowhere. Ding. The beans were ready. Out came the fried chicken, amico mio pasta and the AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I forgot to put the onion in the beans!! In went the chicken and the pasta. I threw in a cut up onion quickly and then had a mini meltdown. Did I mention doomed? I told everyone just a few more minutes in my most Julie McCoy coy voice. I decided to add some cornstarch as well. It needed to thicken up and, based on the recipe, that was supposed to happen as it cooked, but that didn't have a specified time either. Really? Really.

Okay, enough stalling and enough onion seepage into the beans. Time to eat. Finally. Everyone started digging in. And, fortunately, the game was still on. Unfortunately, my Chargers were losing.

Everybody tried the beans (well, not everybody- Melissa hates beans and she gets a free pass because she's pregnant.) and here are there comments:
Mike- They taste fresh and healthy.
Wendy- I like 'em better than in a can although they're a bit too sweet. (Apparently, I shouldn't have doubled the brown sugar---that is surely Sue's fault!)
Tracy- The sauce is sweet and delicious...I had to spit out the beans cuz I don't like 'em.
Sue- I like the onion the best. (Jerk!)
Autumn- I like them. I've never had homemade baked beans. (She's the cutest!)
Janelle- I don't really like baked beans. (After tasting them quietly, she said, "Hmmm, good.")
Dave- Bacon. Bacon. Bacon. (But he had 2 helpings.)

By the way, the beans were good if you like Spaghettios (my verdict). Big picture, everybody enjoyed them and Mike took the rest of the them home. He's my new best friend!

The final score- Beans- 7 fans out of 11; Chargers- 13 and Jets- 17
Regardless of the beans or the Chargers, it was an amazing day with absolutely wonderful friends. I am smiling just thinking about it.

As it stands~
guests- 19
mistakes- 2
emotions- 3
meltdowns- 1, no 2, maybe 3
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 6

The Recipe~

Baked Beans
2 1/2 cups dried beans (used white beans)
7 cups boiling water (used 2 cups lukewarm)
3 1/2 cups tomatoes (used canned diced tomatoes)
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup brown sugar (doubled, but Wendy said it was too sweet, go figure!)
2 tbsp molasses (doubled)
2 tbsp oil
1 large onion
1 tsp basil (OMG! I JUST realized that I forgot to add this! Did I say doomed?)

Cook beans as directed. Add all ingredients except onion and basil. Mix well. Put in bean pot. Place whole peeled onion in the center. Bake for 1 hour (started at 350 and then elevated to 425 degrees) covered. Remove cover. Add basil. Stir with a fork. Bake, uncovered, until liquid is thickened.

Boxing Up Christmas

I am such a fan of setting up Christmas, but boxing it up has to be low on my list of things I like to do. It has a sadness to it...like that yummy, sparkly, festive, eat-anything-you-want moment is over. So, in honor of ending a chapter, I thought I would cook up something really fattening and delicious...something cheesy! I perused the recipes and "Golden Potato Casserole" was the ticket. It was requiring a whole tub of sour cream, a half stick of butter and cups and cups of cheddar cheese. Yum. As I've gotten older, and shall I say wiser (okay, let's say prissy), I am all about the fancy cheeses- brie, gruyere, gouda- but when it really comes down to it, cheddar rules the world.

So, on to my cheddar escapade. My grandma's recipe called for potatoes that had been cooked & chilled then grated, but I decided to use raw potatoes. I threw them in the food processor and had grated potatoes in seconds. I used a trick I saw on Tyler Florence's show- wrap shredded potatoes in paper towels to squeeze out all the moisture. (I thought I was so cool at this point.) I then followed the recipe and melted butter and cheese together; I let it cool and added the sour cream. I omitted the green onions for two reasons- 1) my wife is really picky and 2) I didn't have any. For the record, if I had them I would've added them. Hee hee.

I poured my dreamy, cheesy mixture all over my potatoes and kissed them into the oven...just 45 minutes until dinner.

Well, 45 minutes came and went. Apparently, my grandma knew what she was talking about. You have to cook the potatoes first. They were still crunchy, but the cheesy mixture was delicious (but you already knew that). Maybe 15 more minutes...no...maybe the microwave for a bit. Huh. Since we were starving and Christmas had now been crammed in any and all tubs and dragged kicking and screaming into the rafters, we decided to eat, regardless. Funny how melted cheese, sour cream and butter fixes everything- we decided they were delicioius, not revolutionary, just delicious. With every bite, I snickered to myself because I knew my grandma would get a kick out of this.

By the way, I added a Polynesian marinade to a piece of salmon. It had a great flavor; I mean it tasted Polynesian...who am I kidding! I don't even know what Polynesian tastes like. For crying out loud, I have never even been there. And, yes, I said, "for crying out loud." It reminds me of that movie where Hugh Grant says, "whoopsadaisy"! Bugger, I can't remember what that movie is called. Anyway, the salmon was great.

As it stands~
guests- 1
mistakes- one big one
emotions- 2
meltdowns- one big one
recipes- 2
recipes to date- 5

The Recipes

Golden Potato Casserole
6 potatoes, cooked and chilled
1/4 cup butter
2 cups cheddar cheese
2 cups sour cream
1/3 cup chopped green onion

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-quart casserole. Grate potatoes into a large bowl. In a medium saucepan, over low heat, combine butter and cheese, stirring occasionally, until almost melted. Remove from heat. Blend in sour cream, green onions and salt and pepper. Pour over potatoes. Stir lightly and turn into a casserole. Dot the top with butter and bake for 45 minutes.

Polynesian Marinade
1 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup of honey
1/2 cup of sherry
1 clove of garlic, minced

Combine ingredients. Mix well. Pour over meat and let stand about 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Drain. Brown meat lightly. Then add a 1/4 cup of the (reserved) marinade. Cover skillet and and simmer until meat is tender.

Ding, Ding, Ding, Round Two

Okay, so I wanted to make something for our New Year's Eve Game Night. Unfortunately, my grandma didn't make a lot of appetizers. I think, as a matter of fact, there are nine recipes in that section, and 3 of them are versions of guacamole. Funny, I don't know if I even needed a recipe for guacamole. Oh well, enough about that, let's get on with it. So, I needed an appetizer for the party and I would have to fish through another section...breads, No; vegetables, No; seafood, Maybe. After flipping through every card, I stumbled on Sweet and Sour Shrimp. Sounded good. I read over the recipe and, after seeing catsup (I thought it funny that they called it catsup and not ketchup...huh? How did that come to be? I'll have to google that later.) and apple juice, I thought I should call in some reinforcements! Foodnetwork.com would lead me on the right path to culinary nirvana. I checked out a couple of recipes and it looked like Grandma wasn't crazy, well at least not crazy when it came to Sweet and Sour Shrimp. Alrighty then, on to cooking.

As instructed, I combined the catsup, apple juice, vinegar, sugar, butter, salt and soy sauce in a sauce pan. I brought that to a boil. It didn't look that good. In fact, I thought it looked kind of gross. The catsup was a little clumpy. Oh well, one must forge on. I boiled it for about three minutes. The recipe wanted me to basically cook all the veggies in this "concoction," but, remembering what Tyler Florence said on the food network (my culinary college, if you will!), "more color equals more flavor," I must grill them first. I was actually excited about this part because I got a grill pan for Christmas. I chopped up the carrots, yellow peppers (Green peppers were the recipe's choice, but I think they are yucky.), and green onions. I kind of cheated because I had leftover "stuffing mix" celery and onions. I thought if I just rinsed them off, then I would wash away the Thanksgiving flavor. Hee hee. It worked. So, I threw all the veggies, with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper, on the grill pan. Everything sizzled with delight, even me! I can't believe how beautiful grill marks are!!

Back to the sauce, hmmmmm, about the sauce...it looked, well, weird. I just kept on cooking it. I didn't know what else to do with it. I added the cornstarch to a bit of juice and added that to the pan. It instantly thickened. So cool. I love cornstarch. I really, really do; it's magic! The sauce still looked weird, but at least it was thick now. When I tasted it, it kept its weird verdict. I think its time to cheat. Ginger would be my hero...lots of ginger and a pinch more of sugar and a couple dashes of soy sauce. Taste number 253 and, yes, yes, yes, Houston we have lift off! Tracy, the pickiest eater on the planet next to her mother, said, "It's delicious...tastes warming...like home." Wow, that's a compliment considering that her favorite bread is Wonder bread. Scary, I know. Okay, so my sauce is amazing...how the heck did that happen?? Veggies in the pool!

It was time for the shrimp. I peeled them and tossed with garlic and salt and pepper. Back to the grill (love the grill!), I threw them on for a couple of minutes on each side. Delicious. Then I threw them in the pool too. I think it's party time. No, it actually is time for the party. AHHHH! I am not ready. Ding, ding, ding, dong.

By the way, everyone slurped up the shrimp...it was like a party in your mouth with the sweet, the salty, the sour...huh, I guess I know where it got its name. Duh!

As it stands~
guests- 7
mistakes- 1
emotions- 2
meltdowns- 1
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 3

The Recipe

Sweet N Sour Shrimp
3 5 oz. cans shrimp (used 2 lb. raw, frozen shrimp, 16-20 count)
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup catsup
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 1/2 cup apple juice
1/4 cup apple juice (dissolve cornstarch)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp melted margarine (used butter)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup diagonally cut carrots
1/4 cup sliced green onions
(added diced white onion and celery)
1/2 cup cubed green pepper (used yellow pepper)
2 cups cooked rice

Drain and rinse shrimp (Defrost and peel shrimp). Combine apple juice, soy sauce, salt, catsup, sugar, vinegar, and margarine in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Add carrots and simmer for 15 min. Add green pepper and onion. Cook 5 min. more. (Grilled all the vegetables before putting in sauce.) Dissolve cornstarch in 1/4 cup apple juice and add to the sauce pan. Stirring constantly. Add shrimp (grilled shrimp first) to the sauce. Heat. Serve sauce over rice.