Anniversary dinner

[jscarbor]

My wife and I will be "celebrating" our 6th year anni this weekend at home with our 2 kids (3 and 1). I'm thinking kind of french influenced since I have some really cool french music from the "Sparrow" Edith Piaf. Anyway, I had an appetizer in mind that was seafood but I think my wife would prefer seafood entree???So I think I am going to do a rosemary almond shortbread and top with seared beef slices and topped with a hollandaise or perhaps a red wine beurre blanc????

For the main course I am stumped? I could do a nice salmon dish? I don't know? My wifes not real adventerous but maybe some monkfish? In fact I would really like to do a monkfish in a sea urchin sauce but have no idea where to start on that? Any ideas?

Not to messy cooking eaither, don't really want to clean all night after I cook.

[annachan]

I like monkfish simply prepared. For easy clean up, what about monkfish papillote? Monkfish with some vegetables in a lemon/white wine type sauce maybe. You can definitely do that with other fish like salmon or sea bass.

[jscarbor]

I have a really Great bottle of Henri Billot Grand cru brut rose. So I might start leaning towards building towards that?

Thai food can go well with champagne? Maybe shrimp in a thai red curry sauce?

[petite tête de chou]

My wife and I will be "celebrating" our 6th year anni this weekend at home with our 2 kids (3 and 1). I'm thinking kind of french influenced since I have some really cool french music from the "Sparrow" Edith Piaf. Anyway, I had an appetizer in mind that was seafood but I think my wife would prefer seafood entree???So I think I am going to do a rosemary almond shortbread and top with seared beef slices and topped with a hollandaise or perhaps a red wine beurre blanc????

For the main course I am stumped? I could do a nice salmon dish? I don't know? My wifes not real adventerous but maybe some monkfish? In fact I would really like to do a monkfish in a sea urchin sauce but have no idea where to start on that? Any ideas?

Not to messy cooking eaither, don't really want to clean all night after I cook.

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Monkfish is a *great* idea. Meaty, white and open to other flavors. Not sure about the urchin. Sea urchin has a flavor and texture that might not be welcome (at all) to those with a conservative palate.

I would keep it simple- buttery and winey. Congrats!

[jscarbor]

Went with the parmesean shortbread with sauteed shrimp in beure blanc sauce. It was good but needed something else to brighten it up a bit. Also ended up going with a very simple black sesame seared tuna with a ginger soy sauce concoction. It was very tasty and very easy.

[ludja]

Went with the parmesean shortbread with sauteed shrimp in beure blanc sauce. It was good but needed something else to brighten it up a bit. Also ended up going with a very simple black sesame seared tuna with a ginger soy sauce concoction. It was very tasty and very easy.

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Congratulations and kudos for preparing a wonderful dinner for your wife.

The shortbread dishes you mentioned sound interesting: the parmesean shortbread with sauteed shrimp in beure blanc sauce and the idea you mentioned, rosemary almond shortbread and top with seared beef slices and a sauce.

Are the shortbreads really like a sweet shortbread cookie, except savory? I'm picturing the texture of a sweet shortbread cookie and it is pretty crunchy. Do you have a base "savory" shortbread reicipe that you modify?

[jscarbor]

Went with the parmesean shortbread with sauteed shrimp in beure blanc sauce. It was good but needed something else to brighten it up a bit. Also ended up going with a very simple black sesame seared tuna with a ginger soy sauce concoction. It was very tasty and very easy.

←

Congratulations and kudos for preparing a wonderful dinner for your wife.

The shortbread dishes you mentioned sound interesting: the parmesean shortbread with sauteed shrimp in beure blanc sauce and the idea you mentioned, rosemary almond shortbread and top with seared beef slices and a sauce.

Are the shortbreads really like a sweet shortbread cookie, except savory? I'm picturing the texture of a sweet shortbread cookie and it is pretty crunchy. Do you have a base "savory" shortbread reicipe that you modify?

←

They are savory little shortbreads and they have a nice crunch. I may have left mine in a minute to long. Basically they are butter, parmesean, a little flour, some red pepper chopped very fine, toasted almonds and rosemary. The "dough" needs help coming together.

The beurre blanc needed a little kick to it, maybe lemon? One way I really would like to try these(besides with beef) is with some seared fois gras. I think the crunch of the shotbread and the silk of the fois gras would be great! I would add a sweetish type accompaniement to it.

[ludja]

Thanks for the further information on the shortbreads; sound like they could be used in a variety of applications.

The basic beurre blanc version that I've made has white wine and white wine vinegar in it to provide acidity but I think there are variations made with lemon juice as well. Maybe this substitution would help make a brighter sauce for your dish. For the shrimp combnation maybe one could look to completely different flavored sauce like a gribiche or a dijonnaise.

Thanks again.