Experimentally Delicious

It was a Christmas to remember...
All you could hear from the kitchen was laughter...I mean serious laughter! My mom and I were on our third bottle of champagne, the "hot and cold" game of finding a childhood memory present was over and it was time to start experimenting! That's right, experimenting. My mom and I decided to try some new stuff...a turnip and sweet potato gratin and, of course, one of my grandmother's recipes, Spaghetti Squash Fritters. Now, the turnip recipe had excited both us as we were pouring over magazines and cook books in preparation for this exciting family Christmas; however, today, as we looked at the odd root vegetables in front of us and noticed the 60 minute cook time (we promised brunch at noon and now it was looking more like 3ish! ha ha), we were a bit trepidatious to say the least. It only got more interesting when my mom said that she couldn't cut it and would have to ask my dad for help. I squealed at the thought!!! "Mom, we can't let them come in here because they will freak out about what we are making!!" She did agree so she told my father to come help, but he couldn't ask any questions or make any comments! ha ha My father is an amazing husband and so he obliged, but not without a few odd looks and suspicious "hmmmm's." Meanwhile, for g-ma's recipe, she wanted me to use a spaghetti squash. Of course she did because that just sounded weird and, as I stated before, this was an experimental Christmas. My mom told me to throw the squash into the microwave for 5 minutes and then check. "Not done," she says with a squeeze. After another 5 minutes, it was plenty squishy so I pulled it out to rest. By this time, my brother sauntered in. This was not a good sign! Mom and I quickly scrambled to cover up the title on the recipe and stand in front of the cut up turnips and sweet potatoes. It was ridiculous how we were both trying to distract him from the stuff. I just kept saying, "WE HAVE HAM!!" That seemed to quiet the masses. Truly what made it so entertaining was that we had the giggles! We were very suspicious. I guess you can't begrudge my brother and father for coming in and checking on us...we were supposed to be cooking and all we were doing was laughing. Oh, and I forgot to mention that I only had one knife. So, to cut the onions for spaghetti squash fritters, I had to use a little cheese knife, ridiculous.

On to cooking the fritters, I put the onions and garlic in an oven safe pan and started to soften them. Meanwhile, my mom cut the squash in half lengthwise and scraped out the seeds. Using a fork, she dug into the flesh. It pulled up like strands. It was pretty cool and, I must say, quite delicious. We added it to the pan. I scrambled 11 eggs (the recipe called for 12 but I needed one for the cake, who cares!?!), added freshly grated parmigian reggiano, bread crumbs (I used panko because they are so much better!! yum), and a splash of water. All that was added to the pan and cooked.

Time for more champagne! It was all coming together beautifully.

The turnip dish was done, the ham was done and the asparagus was grilling as we high-fived in the middle of the kitchen. All I had to do was pop the fritter dish in the oven to finish cooking through and we were going to be table-bound. That, of course, is when things go awry! My mom is scrambling to finish the traditional Christmas Cake, my dad is carving the ham, my brother and I are arguing about how to get the egg fritter dish out of the pan, and the dog is running through the kitchen. Okay, so maybe there wasn't a dog!! ha ha!! It just made the scene seem more exciting. Anyway, the ham got sliced, the cake got mixed, and the egg dish flopped out of the pan...with a big divet! I guess you can't win them all. I scraped the rest out and played Picasso as I creatively recreated the masterpiece. Let's be honest, I just threw extra parmesan and some green onions in the hole!

Now, it was truly time for the table. Everything was delicious; however, a few dishes became the big topics of the table. Yes, we have some skeptics...don't act surprised. I truly enjoyed the turnip dish as did my mother. I think I will make it again but it definitely needs some doctoring. As for the egg dish, it was the favorite. Well, I have be truthful here- I asked people their favorite dish, but made them choose something other than ham. I know it sounds kind of unfair, but who is going to pick anything other than the ham!

I asked each person to think of one word to describe the meal...my dad needed four he says, "I'm not done yet." I said, "experimentally delicious!" My mom said, "unique." And, my favorite was by my brother, "country." It made me think of us sitting at a big rustic table in the Italian countryside. "Mmmm, that's nice," we all say. And, before we can keep dreaming, I say, "I think something is burning!" My mom and I look at each other and, in unison, say, "THE CAKE!" All we could was laugh!!

By the way, eating chunks of "unburnt" cake from the middle of the dish with our fingers, was a glorious way to end one of the best Christmases I have ever had.

As it stands~
guests- 3
emotions- 1 (joyful laughter)
mistakes- 1 (the masquerading divet)
meltdowns- 0 (anything that went wrong became sheer comedy!)
recipes- 1
recipes to date- 16

The recipe~

Spaghetti Squash Fritters (basically a frittata)

1/3 cup of oil

1 onion, minced

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/4 cup of water (I thought this was a little too much)

3 cups cooked squash

12 eggs

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs (I used panko)

Heat oil. Add onions, salt, pepper and garlic. Cook until tender. Stir in squash. Beat eggs thoroughly. Add cheese, crumbs and water to blend. Stir in egg mixture into sauteed vegetables. Cook slowly, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Gently lift. When bottom is browned, put under a broiler and cook top. Invert omelet onto platter.

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.