Fresh pea soup
Roasted miso-crusted sablefish
Sauteed bok choy
Dashi broth
White Rice

2006 Tittarelli Torrontes

Dinner for the kids:

Santa Maria Pinquito beans, cooked with celery, carrot, allspice, bay leaves, garlic, and chicken stock. Served with a runny fried egg on top.
Cornbread with Toigo peach blossom honey.
Steamed broccoli.

Both kids loved this. It's definitely going in the regular rotation.

We inherited some Danish blue cheese from a local friend who didn't like it, so we had cocktail hour with cheese, crackers, and Tanqueray Gibsons. Dinner itself was takikomi gohan involving cubed beef, naganegi (looks like a leek, but slightly smaller), shiitake, burdock root, and aburaage from the local tofu store. It was gooood.

Pork shoulder roast braised in milk -- miaile al latte
Oven braised fennel
Crimini mushrooms with rosemary
Cannelini beans with fennel seed (leftover)
Wild rice and basmati pilaf with pine nuts (ditto)

Randolph's Pastry cupcakes

2004 René Barth Muscat d'Alsace

Deviled chicken drumsticks*
Lima beans with butter
Twice baked potatoes


*I couldn't find the recipe I'd used for this in the past, so I concocted my own deviling mixture, rolled the chicken in that and then in bread crumbs. The crumb mixture was part baguette and part buttermilk biscuits. It worked really well. There was no trouble keeping the crumbs on the chicken through the cooking time either, which is something I sometimes have a problem with. Since I hate throwing things out if I don't have to, I had in the freezer what seemed like an endless supply of biscuits that hadn't risen enough when baked but tasted okay. I'd kept them to thaw for a last minute bread item to go with soups or whatnot. They worked really well as bread crumbs, after being whirred up in the food processor with a chunk of baguette.

(Not quite braised) beef (not short) ribs
Collard greens
Cheese grits

Candy coated bits of chocolate and peanuts

2005 (Bonny Doon) Big House Red

I had bought the beef ribs earlier in the week, drooling with anticipation of a “quick” weeknight meal. Silly me. After 2+ hours of slow roasting: not bad, but surely not a quick weeknight meal. The ribs were a tad bit greasy but tasty nonetheless. Picked the bones clean. Next time I have a hankering for beef, I’ll get beef (not short) ribs -- as the three ribs were just the right amount and a good alternative to buying a 3 lb. roast -- and try a dry rub.

Continuing with the quick weeknight meal theme: I also purchased, from the freezer section, Glory collard greens. Dah-um! Those were some good collards. Lots of sodium but nicely seasoned. And, crunchy too! A bit too much liquid for me – which I drained before serving – but I will definitely purchase again.

Take four brutally expensive farmer's market lamb shanks, age them for a great deal longer than you'd care to think in the freezer.

Spend $140 to replace the ridiculously delicate KitchenAid pasta thingies; decide that you're in the mood to break (the important word here) them in.

Go to Whole Foods, but a bottle of something that seems cheap enough to cook with, but not too disgusting to drink. Maybe a Tempranillo.

Brown the lamb shanks, set aside.

Sweat a handful (two, if you're a chick) of diced onion, maybe three carrots. Throw the lamb shanks in. Pour the wine on. Add water if the wine doesn't cover the shanks. Throw in all that other braising crap. You know, bay leaf, thyme, whatever. We've all been through this drill.

Don't forget a cinnamon stick. Two, if you're using that cheap shit from the bodega around the corner. And a can of stewed whole tomatoes.

Cover, and put in a 285 degree oven for, what, three hours? Four hours? Until the meat is crumbly and all.

In the mean time, do whatever Alice Walker Waters says to do for making pasta.

Pull the meat off the shanks, strain the braising liquid, taste the lamb, decide it's too dry and try to save it with some olive oil and reduced braising liquid. And salt and all. Parsley. You know.

Decide not to open the wine just yet but maybe a little of the duty-free tequila would be OK. Drink tequila. Fight with your wife about whether to use those ravioli form thingies or to hand-cut the pasta. Discover how challenging it can be to get sticky pasta out of a ravioli form, completely fuck up the rest of the pasta dough, and stomp out of the kitchen to drink Prosecco with your guest while your wife saves the pasta and hand cuts it into squares roughly the same width as the pasta roller from the KitchenAid which -- praise Jesus -- did not break down at a critical moment; spoons on the lamby stuff on and fold it into triangles, remembering to wet the edges.

Reduce braising liquid until it's a sticky goo.

Abjectly apologize to spouse and be enough of a man to admit that the hand-cut raviolis don't actually look as though they were made by the developmentally disabled at a charity pasta shop, regardless of what you might have suggested earlier.

Boil the little fuckers, and then toss in a pan with the gooey braising juice.

Open an expensive bottle of wine and eat like a king.

Waitman, that's precious. Gotta love cooking by the seat of your pants.
Today I'm making chili with "stew beef" from Costco. Cut beef into really small pieces, salt and pepper and attempt to brown in batches which....didn't work. They produced a ton of juice and steamed. In batches.
Threw the meat into the crock pot. Opened up spice drawer and gathered a Rachel Ray armful of stuff. Chili, paprika, cinamon, oregano, marjoram, garlic salt, dried onions, dried shallots (I got sick of cutting after the beef) dried chipotle peppers, yada yada. Used guestimates to season beef and poured a beer over it. It's braising now and will get some tomato puree in a bit and we''ll see where we go from there. Woohooo.
Super Bowl Surprise Chili is what I'm calling it.

Timed for halftime:

loaded potato skins
pigs in blankets
Cuban-style black beans
spare ribs (dry rub, then bbq sauce; long low oven)

Everything was great. I used the yeast angel biscuit dough linked elsewhere to make the blankets for the dogs. It worked very well.

Tonight was Hereford tri-tip soft tacos with pickled red onions.

Where'd you get the tri-tip?

For my dear +1 who will be out of town on Mardi Gras, last night we had grillades over andouille and cheddar cheese grit cakes and Abita Mardi Gras bock. The house still smelled great when I woke up this morning.

It was a rare treat from one of my cousin's steers. He also sent along a large chuck roast, 2 bone on strip steaks, and a flank steak (a belated Christmas gift).

If you are just looking for a tri-tip I have seen them at Wegman's, and Balducci's.

Last night featured leftovers of a really good pasta "casserole" that I whipped up on Friday night--whole wheat rotini (cooked al dente); sauteed shallots, spinach, and artichoke hearts; pesto sauce; and ricotta and parmesan cheese; all mixed together and poured into a baking dish, then topped with thinly sliced mozzarella cheese and baked until melted and slightly browned.

The flavors definitely improved after a few days of refrigeration, and the dish is very hearty and tasty, but it lacked a spiciness that I really like in pasta dishes. Next time, maybe I'll throw in some peppers (or at least some red pepper flakes) with the sauteed vegetables.

St. Marcellin--a soft ripened cheese packed in its own little crockery dish. Dead ripe and gooey. Goooood.

Roasted Eco Friendly chicken
Roasted fingerling potatoes--they were the "oven rack" for the chicken
Farro and black lentil salad
Puree of roasted Kabocha squash

Pear crisp with B&J's vanilla ice cream

2005 Ch. Thivin Brouilly

Saint-Marcellin-an amazing cheese which I sought out when making Molly Steven's Savoy Cabbage Gratin with Saint-Marcellin. It was so delicious and really turned me on to this cheese (I use the crock for nuts to feed a couple precocious squirrels).
Last night I made wedding soup with pork meatballs (Italian spices and grated parmesan) and served it up with Atwater's sourdough. The greens are Next Step's tat soi and Sunnyside's escarole.

Brussels Sprouts from Momofuku.
Just used chili-garlic sauce in place of the garlic and chilies. At first I was like "yeah, this is ok". Then I ate another bowl. Then I ate the entire two pounds of brussel sprouts.

I am consistently impressed by and jealous of the meals people are putting together out there. Seriously, where do you folks find the time? For those of you wondering what a person with significantly less time, talent and ambition eats on a Monday night:

-Store bought hummus and pita
-Leftover turnips
-Red leaf lettuce w/ oil and vinegar

Then I folded the laundry and went to sleep.

As cjsadler says quick, easy, and delicious! After I made it a couple times I was inspired with a new idea. I took this recipe, modified it and turned it into a curried butternut squash puree

Chop the squash into 1/2 inch chunks
Toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and curry powder (omit the chickpeas, cayenne pepper, yogurt sauce)
roast at 400 for about 45-50 minutes until very soft
mash with butter and cream until like mashed potato

Zora is actually a team of fifteen people. They just share a login.

When I was working full time, I only cooked multi-course complex meals on weekends. During the week, we ate a lot of "thirty minute meals." Knowing how to cook is a big piece of it. The best investment you can make toward an improved quality of life is cooking lessons, IMO.


I wish. Even some help with the dishes would be huge.

I do a fair amount with leftovers. Even if just one component of a meal is already made, it helps a lot.

Last night we had all leftovers: potato skins, pigs in blankets, spare ribs, and chicken. It's actually unusual for us to have a meal that's all leftovers, but I was running late.

Tonight I'm making some kind of green salad, hamburgers on biscuit buns, and bulgur with mushrooms (a Martha Stewart recipe I make periodically). The soaking of the bulgur accounts for most of the time devoted to that part of the meal. I'll start the bulgur first and then make the salad. I'll cut the mushrooms and shallots to go in the bulgur dish while I'm making the salad. The biscuit dough is leftover from the batch I made for pigs in blankets. That requires rolling out, cutting, and baking. The burgers will cook while the biscuits bake. I'm also planning to make a quick batch of guacamole, as the avocados I have are already overly-ripe and won't last another day. Some of that may go on the burgers or we'll have it with chips before the meal. It should take just over an hour to have everything done and on the table.

I know it's just a bunch of bluster for effect, but cf. Rick Bayless on the glories of the less expensive type of Mexican cinnamon that I like to pick up, too. A whiff tells you just how different it is from the spice that comes from afar and has all the mystique of your preferred French colonials... (Dinner sounds like a great save.) Makes a mean hot chocolate with a pinch of cayenne.

I'm a fan of making things on weekends like a good pasta sauce, a pot of beans, casserole or stew, and one kind of soup. If you make a smooth, puréed soup that isn't too thick, heat it up and sip it in a mug to tide you over as you put together the rest of the meal. A good way to get in vegetables, too, if need be, or your entire meal w toast if weary.

Mabo doufu using another block of amazing cotton tofu from the little tofu shop near my house
Steamed rice
Ryozeki Kome no Shizuku (Drops of Rice) sake from Akita Prefecture

[I tried this myself, a couple of weeks ago. However, I've gotta disagree with cjsadler; my response: dah-um! this is great! I shoulda bought more sprouts]

I agree. I plan my meals for the week prior to my Saturday morning grocery trip. In addition to helping me shop more efficiently, I also have a good take on what leftovers I'll have for lunches and for freezing. Since I cook for one mostly, planning ahead for leftovers allows me to do the cooking I love without wasting extra food as most recipes create 4 or more servings. On that note, I had some shredded cooked chicken in the freezer that I decided to turn into enchiladas. Last night's dinner was:

Chicken and black bean enchiladas in tomatillo sauce with a small green salad on the side.

guacamole and chips
pigs in blankets
cuban -style black beans
chipotle macaroni and cheese

Another round of tofu dengaku (grilled miso-topped tofu)
Steamed brown rice
Hourenso no goma-ae -- spinach dressed with sesame, sake, sugar, and soy sauce
Takuan (dried, pickled daikon) from a neighbor and my own rice-bran-pickled cucumber

Osso bucco with gremolata
Risotto
Haricots verts

Macerated strawberries and Haagen Dasz coconut-sesame brittle ice cream

2005 Willamette Valley Estate Vyd Pinot Noir

Moroccan chicken with olives and prunes, served with naan. P'tit Basque cheese and flatbread crackers before the meal.

I had bought a big pack of whole chicken legs, so I used the three smallest of those in place of the four thighs called for in the recipe. There are no chicken pieces left but still a decent amount of the sauce, and that will be good served over couscous.

Naan was made with the last of the yeast angel biscuit dough from this Post chat.. While it may not be a classic biscuit recipe, that turns out quite a versatile dough. Over the course of a week, I've made two batches of pigs in blankets with it, hamburger buns, regular biscuits, and naan. I've still got one naan loaf left.

Hot and sour cucumbers
Lion's head casserole
Chicken roasted with onions and soy sauce
Jasmine rice with garlic, ginger and cilantro

The question I'm asked more than any other, usually with looks that combine skepticism, horror, and pity, is: "Do you really eat out EVERY SINGLE NIGHT?"

Well, yes!

But yesterday I stayed in, and had my first home-cooked meal of 2008: lugaw, served with tokwa't baboy. Boiled pig ear, mmmmm...

Which brings me to the question I'm asked the second most: "Do you cook?"

Goodness no - how would I find the time?

Cheers,
Rocks.

ETA: Correction, make that two in a row - Chả giò with Nước chấm, and yes I'm going out for dessert (Barry Koslow, R U N 2 Nite? Wee shell sea.)

Last night:

Cabbage borscht with Greek yogurt and fresh dill
Caraway rye with sweet butter

2005 Montes Alpha Syrah

Sunday night:
Lobster for those who eat lobster
Talapia with garlic butter for those who don't
Big green salad with market goodies
Steamed new potatoes with garlic butter
Green tea mochi, a first for everyone but me

Monday night:
Basil and garlic lasagna
Salad with ginger dressing
Valentine day colored hershey kisses
Pomegranate gin fizzes

There is nothing like pho on a rainy, cold, crappy day.

True, though I am trying to decide if Scotch broth would do the trick. Or maybe reheated vegetarian Shepherd's Pie and Brussels Sprouts. Save the smidgen of leftover lamb shoulder for this tomorrow since I have cooked chickpeas and slices of raw butternut squash to use up in the fridge. Or...

Word. Doubly so when you're both fending off incipient colds.

Beefy mac and cheese with peas, tomatoes, and a shot of hot sauce.
Steamed asparagus with grated Romano cheese
Cornbread made with bacon fat (no sugar)

Insalata Caprese, made with a lovely bufala from Wegman's
Chicken parmesan*

*This is my wife's favorite food, and I've been working for the more than seven years we've been together to earn the title from her of "Best Chicken Parm Ever." Last night I finally achieved it. Now I have no goal in life.

Last night:

Eco-Friendly chicken livers with onion, mushrooms, bacon and balsamic pan reduction sauce
Mashed potatoes
(Veggie-teen had mushroom duxelles on her mashers, and some mozzarella di bufala)
Haricots verts

2005 Dom. Nicolas Rossignol Volnay

Dan, I'm sure you'll come up with another goal.

Meanwhile, mozzarella di bufala lovers, ain't you herd this?

* * *
So, tonight I transformed leftovers into that lamb and butternut squash dish linked in my erstwhile post, improvising and improving part of it by roasting wedges of squash before adding them to the pan. Served w couscous. Yummy. Tomorrow, more tofu, if earless.

tonight:
Buttermilk fried chicken
Deep-fried cheese grits cakes
Stewed chard

2006 Heidi Schrock Muscat

Valentine dessert:
Homemade meringues
Strawberries macerated with lavender and sugar
Mascarpone-coconut cream scented with vanilla and rosewater
Chocolate fudge

Sigh

Sometimes the kitchen gods are against you but what can you do?
It started when I realized that the box of polenta on the top shelf was actually lentils. Then, half way through preparation, the disposal clogged and started shooting grey guck around. Fortunately KG is just happy when there is food.

Sauteed chanterelles and shallots on top of lentils with smoked mozzarella
Arugula salad topped with an Italian cheese whose name I don't remember but tasted like a richer granna
(we were supposed to have roasted beets and heart shaped goat cheese napoleon, plus tomato basil salad but I was too frustrated at that point)
Blueberry pie (which was supposed to have a mango sauce with it but again, frustration won)

Soup and Salad, both from The Mansion on Turtle Creek Cookbook:

Jalapeno Jack Cheese Soup
Spicy Fried Oysters on Roasted Peppers with Spinach and Radicchio Salad

I had originally intended a more complex menu but was exhausted and running out of time, so we'll have Valentine's Dinner Pt. 2 tonight.

The soup was good but was intended to be part of a duo with black bean soup. I had decided only to do one of the duo because I had so much else planned, and I imagine it would have been better as the cookbook suggested. I also omitted the smoked pepper cream that was supposed to top both, and--too late--realized that I should have substituted another garnish. It needed another flavor, as the cheese flavor was not discernible, and jalapeno was the only strong note.

The salad took a lot of work but was worth it--much better than I expected. I am not competent at shucking oysters and that really slowed me down. I still have all of my fingers intact, however .

The base of the salad was a chiffonade of spinach and radicchio, tossed with an anchovy balsamic vinaigrette. This was topped at intervals with small mounds of julienned red, green, and yellow roasted peppers, which had their own light dressing of lemon juice and olive oil. Each mound of peppers was topped with a chile-cornbread crumb breaded fried oyster. Additional anchovy vinaigrette went over top of the salad. I would totally make the salad again, knowing better how to time everything and probably using preshucked oysters .

How did you make it this time? I love chicken parm too.

Reprinted from my blog:

The Chicken
Take some high quality, kosher chicken breasts and pound them to an even thickness of one half inch. Season both side with salt and pepper.

The Flour
Mix some all purpose flour with salt, oregano, black pepper, and tons of sage. Dredge the chicken in the flour.

The Batter
Thoroughly whisk two sticks of butter, three tablespoons of dijon mustard, two eggs, and three tablespoons of fresh lemon juice. Add a few handfuls of the above flour mixture. Rub the batter onto the floured chicken. It's okay if it goes on thick (in fact, you want it to).

The Fry
Dredge the floured, battered chicken in panko breadcrumbs and fry in olive oil over medium high heat until browned on both sides. Remove and drain.

The Sauce
Start the sauce before the other steps, then just keep it on low until you need it here!

Caramelize a mixture of one onion and 75% that amount of celery root over low heat. Add three cloves of minced garlic and some salt towards the end of the cooking process. Increase heat to medium high and add one cup of marsala wine. Cook until the wine evaporates and the vegetables have a sweet, golden coating. Add one can of fire roasted tomatoes and one bottle of V-8 juice. Canned tomatoes are best here because they're always canned at the peak ripeness, as opposed to ones purchased in the produce section (which can be inconsistent). Cook over medium-low until reduced by 25%, then place in a blender and liquify. Return to the pot and increase the sauce's volume by 50-75% by adding tomato juice. Continue cooking until reduced by 50%. Add a few palm-fulls of diced basil. Salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon the sauce over the cooked chicken.

The Cheese
Two parts shredded mozzarella to one part grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Sprinkle over the sauce-covered chicken in an even coat.

The End
Broil the chicken for about one minute or until the cheese is melted with a few small splotches of brown. On the plate, top with a few spoonfuls of sauce. Indulge.

I'm a firm believer that not only are week night VDays a good night to stay in, but that they are a good night to not cook and instead have a smattering of prepless dishes. Second year in a row we've done olives, cheese, etc with bubbly and I couldn't have been happier.

Mixed Greens
Mixed olives
Port Duck Pate with Aspic
Boucheron
Cantaloupe

Roederer Estate NV

Lenitl soup with macaroni- crushed tomatoes, chili flakes, marjoram, cumin, oregano, chili powder, onion and garlic. Topped with crumbled Keswick Creamery Feta de Provence.
Shrimp Scampi.
Ah....Lent.

I never seem to learn that and often attempt something far too elaborate.

Part Two was less successful than part one. It took forever to construct the dishes, even though I'd done a lot of the prep previously. I think some of the issues were with the recipes. (I'll post something more in the cookbook challenge thread.)

Mango Margaritas
Tequila-Cured Salmon Tostadas
Zarape De Pato (Stacked Enchiladas with Duck)

The margaritas were excellent. The tostadas looked pretty but that was about it. The enchiladas were okay. Again, they looked pretty, but the creamy poblano sauce was really the highlight, both visually and tastewise.

Pat--you've been cooking for a long time. You undoubtedly know a lot more than you give yourself credit for. Perhaps the issue is that it's time for you to spend less time following someone else's recipes to the letter, even if they do seem to be an expert. Just trust your knowledge of technique and your own sense of what combination of flavors work best. I've learned that it is essential to read recipes with a critical eye--they rarely are a guarantee of success. I use cookbooks as inspiration, not prescription, unless it is baking a cake, where specific ratios are critical.