Good for Company
I've been wanting to make this polenta for a while. A cold day, after we've gone out for our run - couldn't be a more perfect day for a rich and creamy breakfast. Was this good. Polenta made with milk and cream, plus a little butter, mascarpone cheese, brown sugar, cinnamon and dried blueberries. Very rich - I could only eat half a serving. The recipe calls for currents, but blueberries seemed more right to me, especially since they pair so well with cinnamon.
Food 2.0
This is kind of a big meal for just the two of us, but the entire menu from this article sounded really good, so I figured why not. We liked everything, especially the potato salad. Definitely something to make again. This menu is great as a make-ahead meal for company, because the last-minute stuff is quick and very little effort. The only change I made was to roast the broccolini instead of boil it. Because I generally don't like vegetables boiled, especially broccoli or anything broccoli-like.
The cake is very much something Larry likes, with warm spices and ginger. The interesting ingredient ingredient is grated butternut squash. It's an excellent cake, light and flavorful. Larry says definitely make it again, and I agree.
- Creamy White Bean & Herb Dip (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 76)
- Pan-Seared Skirt Steak with Warm Radish and Red Onion Pickle (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 76)
- Broccolini with Kalamata Dressing (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 79)
- Roasted Potato and Mushroom Salad with Mascarpone (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 79)
- Buttermilk Cake with Vanilla Icing (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 80)
Mally and Jay joined us for Sunday dinner tonight. I chose a pretty standard menu with things that I've made several times in the past - we love these chicken breasts. The parsnips were something new but nothing special, a little bland, in fact. We loved the tart but I didn't see the point of the pistachio brittle and won't make it next time - although it was delicious on its own.
- Smoked Trout Rillettes (Fine Cooking #42, January 2001, p. 44)
- Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Spinach & Goat Cheese (Fine Cooking #69, January 2005, p. 62)
- Potatoes Fondantes (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 59)
- Spinach & Basil Salad with Tomatoes, Candied Walnuts & Warm Bacon Dressing (Fine Cooking #70, March 2005, p. 55)
- Roasted Parsnips with Cinnamon & Coriander (Fine Cooking #84, March 2007, p. 18)
- Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Salted Caramelized Pistachios (Fine Cooking #96, October 2008, p. 90)
Wine: Kosta Browne 2005 Gary's Vineyard Pinot Noir (Santa Lucia Highlands, California). This is a great wine. Exactly how I like my Pinot.
Jay was over for Sunday dinner - I try to do fish on Sundays as much as possible, mainly because it's healthy but also because that's what Jay likes to eat! This salmon was excellent. I loved it, even though it was fully of mushrooms. Shiitakes aren't so bad because the texture isn't so chewy and they're sliced up in this recipe. We also loved the squash. I was looking for something different and was unsure about the grapes, but it actually turned out really nice. The pudding - good, but not thick enough.
Wine: Copain 2004 Kaser "En Bas" Pinot Noir (Anderson Valley, California). Salmon for dinner almost always means Pinot. And I am loving the Copain Pinots. This was our last bottle of the Kaser, but I think I have more on order.
Jay missed out on dinner tonight. Everything was really good, and very quick to make. Loved the sauce for the pork chops. The green beans were so simple, I hesitate to even call it a recipe. Perfect use of the last of the sun sugar cherry tomatoes from the garden.
The cake is the first recipe I've made from Pure Dessert, a cookbook I've been eyeing. Larry picked it up for me from the library and I have a bunch of recipes I want to try. I love olive oil in cakes, and this one doesn't have any butter. The flavor of the sherry really comes through.
- Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce (Fine Cooking #95, November 2008, p. 94a)
- Roasted Green Beans with Cherry Tomatoes and Oregano (The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight and Eating Great, p. 268)
- Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes (A New Way To Cook)
- Olive Oil and Sherry Pound Cake (Pure Dessert, p. 86)
We had a few people over for a post-July 4th barbeque: Assana, Dan, Chris, Tony, Janett. This chicken was excellent, and I think it would make a great chicken salad. We used both breasts and thighs. I hadn't made the zucchini roll-ups before but we liked them a lot. Janett and Tony brought a pumpkin polenta and Chris brought curried lentils and roasted veggies in a tomato sauce - all really good.
- Grilled Zucchini & Goat Cheese Roll-Ups (Fine Cooking #51, July 2002, p. 55)
- Goat Cheese, Pesto & Sun-Dried Tomato Terrine (Fine Cooking #61, Holiday Baking 2003, p. 98c)
- Moist Mustard-Rosemary Chicken for a Crowd (Fine Cooking #65, July 2004, p. 86)
- Quinoa with Roasted Red Pepper Dressing (Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way, p. 156)
- Black Forest Trifle (Fine Cooking #69, January 2005, p. 58)
Wine:
- Loma Prieta 2000 Zinfandel (Lodi, California). Assana brought this yummy Zin to start us off for the night.
- Sextant 2004 Wheelhouse Zinfandel (California). Delicious as always.
Dan, Assana and Chris came over for a casual holiday weekend dinner tonight. I make these roulades for company all the time, but hadn't made them for this group yet. We liked the zucchini salad okay, but I probably wouldn't make it again. The pie, on the other hand, was spectacular.
- Chicken Roulades Stuffed with Goat Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes (Fine Cooking #62, January 2004, p. 86C)
- Potatoes Fondantes (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 59)
- Zucchini & Yellow Squash Ribbons with Daikon, Oregano & Basil (Fine Cooking #93, July 2008, p. 51)
- Black & Blueberry Pie with Lemon Cornmeal Crust (Fine Cooking #93, July 2008, p. 70)
Wine:
- Gamba 2004 Moratta Vineyard Zinfandel (Russian River Valley, California). Yum - probably needed to be decanted, but it eventually opened up.
- Ridge 2004 Caboose Nervo Vineyard Zinfandel (Sonoma County, California). Good, but we should have had this one first.
- Don Pedro Ximenez 1979 Gran Reserva Sherry (Spain). Assana brought this over to drink with our pie - we both picked up bottles at The Spanish Table on our last trip there. It's really delicious.
Jay wasn't in town tonight, so we invited our neighbor Chris over for dinner instead. We probably won't be having much more salmon this year due to the cancellation of the season, but this was really good. I love lentils. I thought the idea of the potatoes was good, but they weren't as creamy as I like my potatoes. We all loved the tart, though.
- Salmon With Lentils And Mustard-Herb Butter (Gourmet, March 2008)
- Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes With Caramelized Shallots (Epicurious, November 2007)
- Butter Lettuce and Radiccio & Lemon Poppyseed Dressing (Fine Cooking #51, July 2002, p. 48)
- Honey and Pine Nut Tart (Dolce Italiano, p. 145)
Wine: Copain 2004 Hacienda Secoya Pinot Noir (Anderson Valley, California). Copain Pinots are becoming a favorite for me, and nothings more perfect with salmon than Pinot Noir.
Yet another really good meal tonight. It was just Larry and I since Jay's out of town. Everything was so easy to make. We loved the potatoes, and the carrots were very sweet but delicious. The halibut, newly in season, could have been cooked plain with just salt and pepper, but it was good like this too. The recipe called for cod, but it was perfect with halibut (the recipe is also in the cookbook Cooking New American.
- Halibut Fillets with Mustard-Tarragon Crumb Crust (Fine Cooking #12, December 1995 2007, p. 49)
- Baby Yukon Potato Salad with Shallots, Chives, Bacon & Lemon Vinaigrette (Fine Cooking #91, March 2008, p. 43)
- Maple Pan-Roasted Baby Carrots (Fine Cooking #85, May 2007, p. 53)
Whole Foods was fresh out of halibut, so I went with my other favorite fish - sustainable Chilean sea bass. We loved the flavors in this fish and I actually think the sea bass was a better choice. We really liked the cabbage, but I will never make it again because the process of cooking fish sauce at a high temperature about killed us (noxious odors and we couldn't stop coughing).
- Chinese Five-Spice Chilean Sea Bass with Pickled Red Pepper & Ginger (Fine Cooking #92, May 2008, p. 47)
- Stir-Fried Napa Cabbage with Garlic, Fresh Chile & Basil (Fine Cooking #84, March 2008, p. 56)
This recipe called for Haddock or Cod, but halibut season just opened up so I picked halibut instead. We loved this dish. Lucky Amy got to try it early as a Fine Cooking tester, and even got her name in print in the magazine! The mashed potatoes were good, but I prefer the buttermilk mashed potatoes I usually make instead.
- Sear-Roasted Halibut with Horseradish Aïoli & Lemon-Zest Breadcrumbs (Fine Cooking #92, May 2008, p. 48)
- Butter Lettuce with Creamy Black Pepper Dressing (Fine Cooking #51, July 2002, p. 48)
- Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes (Fine Cooking #92, May 2008, p. 60)
Wine: Ramazzotti 2005 Zin-Giovese (Dry Creek Valley, California). The article suggested a rosé, which we don't buy a lot of - but this one was nice with the fish.
Jay, Edith and Ron joined us for Sunday dinner this week. We had a party to go to in the afternoon, so I made the pie and prepped everything in the morning. The menu was made up of things I make quite a bit, because I knew I'd be pressed for time.
The pie is really good. The filling isn't as firm as I'd like, but the crust is a buttery shortbread and really tasty, and the raspberries, blueberries and strawberries in the filling are delicious and very summery. It was also really simple to make - the filling was done in about 15 minutes.
Today also marks the four-year anniversary of Pork Cracklins, and incidentally, the 500th entry as well. That's a lot of cooking. And eating.
- Smoked Trout Rillettes (Fine Cooking #42, January 2001, p. 44)
- Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Spinach & Goat Cheese (Fine Cooking #69, January 2005, p. 62)
- Potatoes Fondantes (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 59)
- Fennel & Red Onion with Arugula (Fine Cooking #62, January 2004, p. 48)
- Bumbleberry Pie (Fine Cooking #79, July 2006, p. 70)
Wine:
- Heritage Vineyard 2004 Zinfandel (Oakville, California). This is the wine that's sold at the annual ZAP festival. It's made by a different winemaker every year. The 2004 was made by Kent Rosenblum, and is really nice right now.
- Biale 2004 Aldo's Vineyard Zinfandel (Napa Valley, California). Big and hot. We decanted and it opened up a little, but it was still kind of tight.
We went to a barbeque at another neighbor's house today - same group as last weekend. I brought the dessert again, and since no one had any objections, I did another Black Forest dessert. I wanted to redeem myself from the Black Forest cake from last weekend, which was good but not delicious. And I wanted to experiment with another recipe to see if maybe I just don't like Black Forest desserts.
This trifle is as good as it looks. No, better. It has a lot of whipped cream and less than a half a 9" round of cake in it. Not too many cherries, and a good amound of Kirsch. So it had all of the same flavors as the cake, just different proportions. Plus the cake is a standard chocolate cake instead of a genoise. This is a perfect make-ahead dessert, great for company and was a big hit, I think. The recipe is also in Fine Cooking's Chocolate 2006 special issue.
- Black Forest Trifle (Fine Cooking #69, January 2005, p. 58)
Ron and Jay came over for a spur-of-the-moment end of the week dinner. We delivered Ron's Rafanelli to him - he usually takes part of our allocation. I shopped at lunch so dinner was pretty quick to make. We loved this salad. I'm obsessed with butter lettuce.
- Goat Cheese Crackers with Hot Pepper Jelly (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 63)
- Chicken with Marsala, Mushrooms & Gorgonzola (Fine Cooking #63, March 2004, p. 43)
- Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta (Fine Cooking #57, May 2003, p. 86C)
- Butter Lettuce with Poppy Seed & Tarragon-Crème Fraîche Dressing (Fine Cooking #86, July 2007, p. 49)
- Bourbon-Chocolate Mousse (Fine Cooking #85, May 2007, Back Cover)
Wine:
- Gamba 2004 Estate Zinfandel (Russian River Valley, California). One of our favorites.
- Amphora 2003 Mounts Vineyard Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley, California). Delicious.
Jay and Jeff came for dinner last night. Dinner was good - I love this chicken. And the potatoes. The cake is super moist and kind of different because of the stout and the molasses. I'm eventually going to make a whole-grain version of this cake and see which one we like best. The recipe is also in Fine Cooking's Chocolate 2006 special issue.
The only issue I had with the cake is that my ganache broke. Yet again. Chocolate-to-cream ratio too high? I should have fixed it by whisking in some warm cream but I didn't.
- Goat Cheese Crackers with Hot Pepper Jelly (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 63)
- Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Spinach & Goat Cheese (Fine Cooking #69, January 2005, p. 62)
- Lemony Salt-Roasted Fingerling Potatoes (Food & Wine, October 2006)
- Hearts of Romaine with Caesar Dressing (The Best Recipe, p. 42)
- Chocolate Stout Cake (Fine Cooking #61, Holiday Baking 2003, p. 46)
Wine:
- Sea Smoke 2004 Botella Pinot Noir (Santa Barbara County, California). Sadly, our last bottle of Botella. Absolutely wonderful, as usual.
- Gamba 2004 Moratta Zinfandel (Russian River Valley, California). This wine is settling down and is really delicious. The good news is we have several bottles left.
Chris and Julie came for dinner tonight. I had everything prepped as much as possible last night, so it wasn't too bad putting together dinner after work. The smoked trout was especially good tonight. The meal consisted of reliable stand-bys, things I've made a million times so I don't need to think about it. Julie loved the potatoes, and Chris was crazy over the pot pies.
- Smoked Trout Rillettes (Fine Cooking #42, January 2001, p. 44)
- Chicken Roulades Stuffed with Goat Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes (Fine Cooking #62, January 2004, p. 86C)
- Potatoes Fondantes (Fine Cooking #64, May 2004, p. 59)
- Fennel & Red Onion with Arugula (Fine Cooking #62, January 2004, p. 48)
- Chocolate-Raspberry Pot Pies (Just a Bite, p. 228)
Wine: We opened several bottles of Zinfandel, since we're all Zin lovers:
- Rockpile Ridge 2002 Rockpile Ridge Vineyard Zinfandel (Rockpile, California). One of the best Zins I've ever tasted. Perfect balance, lots of fruit, but not a huge fruit bomb.
- Valdez 2004 Rockpile Road Vineyard Zinfandel (Rockpile, California). We opened this second wine without even thinking it was another Rockpile. This wine is still a bit hot and closed, even though we decanted it. We bought a case so we'll continue to wait and drink. Still good, though.
- A. Rafanelli 2000 Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley, California). One of the better Rafanelli vintages. A bit earthy, but still with bright fruit, kind of mellow.
- Smoked Trout Rillettes (Fine Cooking #42, January 2001, p. 44)
- Chicken with Marsala, Mushrooms & Gorgonzola (Fine Cooking #63, March 2004, p. 43)
- Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta (Fine Cooking #57, May 2003, p. 86C)
- Sautéed Spinach with Garlic
