Dinner! 2007

[Chufi]

One of the nicest things about giving a Big Dinner is the leftovers. And I'm not talking about just the ready-made leftovers - nice though they are. But also the elements of the dinner that never made it to the dinner.

The scrap of Gorgonzola, the half head of radicchio, the piece of fennel, the hanfuls of various nuts, the grated parm that didn't get finished, the balls of mozzarella (4 was enough - why did I buy 6?) etc.

We've been eating them for days, combining and recombining the readymade and not readymade leftovers. The best ones:

This is the braised escarole with beans from Molly Stevens All about Braising. I cannot praise this dish enough! Here it is 3 days after it was first made, by now it has been reheated a couple of times and the texture has suffered a bit, but not the flavor. It is truly amazing how a dish of greens&beans can taste so utterly wonderful.

salad of radicchio, fennel, walnuts and gorgonzola. Verjuice/walnutoil/garlic vinaigrette. Croutons of some Really Old ciabatta.

Edited February 28, 2007 by Chufi (log)

[Dianne]

So much beautiful food here lately. Chufi, those beans and greens are calling my name

And Marlene and Ann_T those cinnamon rolls are just sinful.

Last night, working on a challenge elsewhere, I made a new recipe for Chicken Hash. It was nothing like my usual, but excellent. I will make it again.

This was served with a radish and cucumber salad which my husband whisked to the table before I could add any to my plate.

Both recipes were from The Gift of Southern Food by Edna Lewis and Scott Peacock.

[Kim Shook]

salad of radicchio, fennel, walnuts and gorgonzola. Verjuice/walnutoil/garlic vinaigrette. Croutons of some Really Old ciabatta.

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Klary, that salad looks fantastic. And the croutons are gorgeous - are they deep fried, shallow fried or baked?

Kim

[Priscilla]

Last evening, late, excellent Cantella's so-called English bangers, roasted to a turn in a hot oven. Cabbage and shallot and a big Fuji apple, chopped, braised in butter to total collapse and finished with white wine vinegar and sour cream, plenty of s & p. Batard from the Vietnamese French baker. Korbel Brut from a magnum bottle, testing, perhaps proving, again the E. Hemingwayism that sparkling wine tastes better from a magnum.

[santo_grace]

Last night my husband made the Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) soup from this month's issue of Gourmet. It was excellent. We had sunchoke soup at Schwa a few weeks ago and loved it. So we were very excited to see the recipe and give it a shot. We are looking forward to serving this our friends in the future.

Also had some almond encrusted mahi mahi. Girl Scout cookies for dessert (tagalongs).

[Marlene]

For a cooking challenge elsewhere, I made Chinese Braised Short Ribs and panko crusted asparagus, served with basmati rice.

Both recipes are from 150 Best Recipes.

[C. sapidus]

This started out as a Yunnanese stir-fry and morphed into something else. Thinly sliced pork loin, marinated with soy sauce, sugar, and cornstarch, stir-fried with tomatoes, red bell peppers, and Poblano chiles, and then finished with sesame oil. Marinating the pork with cornstarch produces a plush texture, a nice contrast against the still-firm peppers. For the second batch, I added a few bruised Thai chiles for heat.

This was a nice way to stretch meat – a pound of pork loin will probably make two meals. After picture time, I jazzed up my portion with hosin sauce and Sriracha. Corn on the cob, cukes, and basmati rice on the side.

[Ann_T]

This is the braised escarole with beans from Molly Stevens All about Braising. I cannot praise this dish enough! Here it is 3 days after it was first made, by now it has been reheated a couple of times and the texture has suffered a bit, but not the flavor. It is truly amazing how a dish of greens&beans can taste so utterly wonderful.

I keep coming back to look at Klary's beans and escarole and Nishla's Chili. They both look so good.

I made homemade hamburger buns today so we could have burgers and fries for dinner.

[enurmi]

This was served with a radish and cucumber salad which my husband whisked  to the table before I could add any to my plate.

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That looks SO good... I'm a sucker for radishes and crisp cucumbers. So, what... mandolin sliced? What sort of dressing? Vinegary so it's almost pickled? mmm... *floats off into dreamland*

I had mini penne with fresh mashed avocado thinned with pasta water and a goodly sprinkle of sea salt.

[C. sapidus]

Nishla: Your flavor combinations sound wonderful, especially the chili and the spinach salad. Did you add anything sweet to the salad, or was it good as is?

Marlene: Apparently, your have put your free time to good use, overcoming your bread challenges and making Asian food that looks absolutely delicious. Thanks for sharing.

[little ms foodie]

Last night my husband made the Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) soup from this month's issue of Gourmet.  It was excellent.  We had sunchoke soup at Schwa a few weeks ago and loved it.  So we were very excited to see the recipe and give it a shot.  We are looking forward to serving this our friends in the future. 

this sounds great, and I saw sunchokes at our farmers market last week. can you tell me a bit more about the taste??

I made homemade hamburger buns today so we could have burgers and fries  for dinner. 

I've never had homemade burger buns! these look awesome, like brioche a bit?

tonight we did a bit out of HSSS

spring rolls with dipping sauce

lemongrass patties with jasmine rice

tom kai gao (sp?)

gwertz in the glass- thank goodness as there were some spicy bites!

[Domestic Goddess]

This is the braised escarole with beans from Molly Stevens All about Braising. I cannot praise this dish enough! Here it is 3 days after it was first made, by now it has been reheated a couple of times and the texture has suffered a bit, but not the flavor. It is truly amazing how a dish of greens&beans can taste so utterly wonderful.

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Chufi, eldest son saw this and asked me to make it. Will you share/PM your recipe so I can fix it for him tomorrow?

[Chufi]

Chufi, eldest son saw this and asked me to make it. Will you share/PM your recipe so I can fix it for him tomorrow?

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Doddie, the recipe is from Molly Stevens All about braising. I found a transciption online here in this blog. The parmesan was my addition, really good if you're eating this all by itself like we did. Enjoy!

Edited March 1, 2007 by Chufi (log)

[Marlene]

I made homemade hamburger buns today so we could have burgers and fries  for dinner. 

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Hamburgers make me think of spring, although my BBQ is currently buried under snow and we're expecting more today. I just got a mini hamburger bun pan so I can make slider buns!

Marlene: Apparently, your have put your free time to good use, overcoming your bread challenges and making Asian food that looks absolutely delicious. Thanks for sharing.

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It's called, keep really busy so you don't have time to think. It's going to be a snow day today and this evening, so some sort of breadmaking may be in order, plus I want to get a brioche dough going for rolls for Saturday's dinner party.

[Dianne]

This was served with a radish and cucumber salad which my husband whisked  to the table before I could add any to my plate.

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That looks SO good... I'm a sucker for radishes and crisp cucumbers. So, what... mandolin sliced? What sort of dressing? Vinegary so it's almost pickled? mmm... *floats off into dreamland*

Mandoline sliced; then crisped in ice water in the fridge for an hour or so. I had forgotten this technique and it needs to be resurrected. The veggies become very crisp and juicy.

The dressing is a standard type vinaigrette with apple cider vinegar and a little sugar.

[lucylou95816]

Hamburgers make me think of spring, although my BBQ is currently buried under snow and we're expecting more today. I just got a mini hamburger bun pan so I can make slider buns!

Marlene, do you mind sharing your source for the mini burger pan? I just gave my boyfriend the Bread Baker's Apprentice for his birthday on Tuesday, and that sounds like a fun idea! I've been enjoying your bread making too....I can't wait for him to get started, its a wonderful book!

[hathor]

Amazing meals everyone..as usual!

Chufi, you just reminded me that I'm out of verjuice. That's one of those sneaky ingredients that you can't always identify but it acts as a bridge for different flavors...if you know what I mean.

I'm back! I have BTU's!!

Last night was quick, easy comfort food. I dug out some duck confit from the crock, garlic/parsley potatoes and an argula salad with orange vinegarette dressing. I love duck confit, especially when the skin gets that crackle like glass texture....mmmmm.....

[Dianne]

Simple dinner last night; Chile Shrimp on noodles.

[Ann_T]

I've never had homemade burger buns! these look awesome, like brioche a bit?

Wendy, These aren't "brioche like". Just one tablespoon of butter and no eggs. You can find the recipe for them here:

The Fresh Loaf

The only adjustment I made was to leave out the sage. I used fresh rosemary and because the butter wasn't included in the directions, I mixed it into the potato when I mashed it.

I've got beans soaking to make the escarole and beans for dinner tonight.

Ann

[Chufi]

Wendy, These aren't "brioche like".  Just one tablespoon of butter and no eggs.  You can find the recipe for them here:

The Fresh Loaf

The only adjustment I made was to leave out the sage.  I used fresh rosemary and because the butter wasn't included in the directions, I mixed it into the potato when I mashed it. 

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Ann, what's the glaze on your buns? I don't see that on the bread in the link. I think yours are much prettier

[Ann_T]

Ann, what's the glaze on your buns? I don't see that on the bread in the link. I think yours are much prettier

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Klary, usually I want a nice 'crusty' crust. But in this case I wanted it a little softer so I brushed the buns with butter when they first came out of the oven.

These make wonderful sandwich buns too. We had tuna, tomato and lettuce sandwiches for an early lunch today.

Ann

[santo_grace]

Last night my husband made the Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) soup from this month's issue of Gourmet.  It was excellent.  We had sunchoke soup at Schwa a few weeks ago and loved it.  So we were very excited to see the recipe and give it a shot.  We are looking forward to serving this our friends in the future. 

this sounds great, and I saw sunchokes at our farmers market last week. can you tell me a bit more about the taste??

Sure can.

I think it is a sweet taste, but not as sweet as if you were to make a pureed carrot or squash soup, but the sweetness is enough to come through the richness of the 2 cups! of cream. The soup had some lemongrass in it also, so that flavor came through but wasn't overpowering. Slightly nutty too - but also not very strong. We were trying to think of some way to pretty it up in order to serve to others at a dinner party.

As far as the look - it's color is beige. So we were thinking of creating a herb puree/oil of some sort such as a sage, parsley or basil to drizzle a few drops on. It would be fun to try the different combos. We also thought about serving with a touch of crisp serrano ham or proscuitto draped on the side which I think we are blatantly stealing from Schwa. The version we had at Schwa was more buttery, which makes us feel like you can do a lot of different things to the soup as long as you don't overpower it with the variations.

I hope you pick some up and try something with them. I would love to hear what others come up with.

[little ms foodie]

great insight, thank you! I love what Michael does at Schwa so now I'm even more interested. I understand what you mean about beige soups! we generally do a little cream fraiche, bright evoo and cracked pepper on top to make it purty! maybe a burnoise dice of tiny croutons? I like the crisp serrano idea!

Last night my husband made the Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) soup from this month's issue of Gourmet.  It was excellent.  We had sunchoke soup at Schwa a few weeks ago and loved it.  So we were very excited to see the recipe and give it a shot.  We are looking forward to serving this our friends in the future. 

this sounds great, and I saw sunchokes at our farmers market last week. can you tell me a bit more about the taste??

Sure can.

I think it is a sweet taste, but not as sweet as if you were to make a pureed carrot or squash soup, but the sweetness is enough to come through the richness of the 2 cups! of cream. The soup had some lemongrass in it also, so that flavor came through but wasn't overpowering. Slightly nutty too - but also not very strong. We were trying to think of some way to pretty it up in order to serve to others at a dinner party.

As far as the look - it's color is beige. So we were thinking of creating a herb puree/oil of some sort such as a sage, parsley or basil to drizzle a few drops on. It would be fun to try the different combos. We also thought about serving with a touch of crisp serrano ham or proscuitto draped on the side which I think we are blatantly stealing from Schwa. The version we had at Schwa was more buttery, which makes us feel like you can do a lot of different things to the soup as long as you don't overpower it with the variations.

I hope you pick some up and try something with them. I would love to hear what others come up with.

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[Marlene]

Chicken Milanaise and Potatoes Dauphonaise tonight. Sorry, no veg.

The Milanaise was finished with lemon butter which is why it looks so shiny.

[Shaya]

I think yours are much prettier

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You can say that again, Ann, there's no comparison! Great burger meal.

Klary, I love escarole with white beans; it's the perfect comfort food.

Wendy those lemongrass patties look really nice.

Welcome back, Hathor, great dinner you "whipped up" there.

Here are some highlights from recent dinners:

Cheese Sambousak - these are another of my Grandmother's specialties

Roasted Veggies from a roast chicken dinner

Last Friday we managed to have cocktails again! Raspberry Chocolate, yum. You can see my sweetie has drained his glass long before I've made a dent in mine. I used to be able to keep up with him, but since having kids he sort of goes at about triple my speed. In the background you can see some of the goodies for the beef fajitas we had that night.

Boeuf Bourgignon - this was fantastic, so succulent, so flavorful. 1 1/2 bottles of wine gave themselves up for this dinner.

Tangerine Peel Beef that has been discussed over in the Chinese Forum.

Homemade Chinese Noodles with Shrimp and Beef