Friday night we went to Joe and Denise's for dinner. As usual, it was all good!
We had appetizers: olives, marinated mushrooms, bocconcini, provolone and parmigiano-reggiano, artichoke hearts, white beans, bread, finger sandwiches of salmon, dill sauce and capers on pumpernickel bread, and of course, wine and scotch.
Dinner was broccoli rabe, farro with shrimp (delicious) and i am totally at a loss for anything else :)
There was a fire in the fireplace and Grateful Dead on the Ipod and good friends chatting. What else is there?
Saturday night, and this may sound redundant, we went to Glenn and Eileen's where Steve and Lori met us also. We brought Iavarone goodies: olives, bocconcini, mushrooms, artichokes, white beans (sound familiar...we took Denise's leftovers), and also brought: soppressatta, ciao angelo and Brussels sprouts.
Eileen and Glenn brought in pots of clams and meatballs and garlic bread from Maroni's in Northport! They made lasagna and salad also. Wine and scotch (really), coffee and dessert, a fire in the fireplace and more good friends!
Sunday night Michael and I ordered in Caesar salad with chicken, mixed salad and baked ziti from D'Angelo's.
Tonight I am making cream of Brussels sprouts soup and baked chicken breasts with olives, sundried tomatoes and jalapenos.
Plans for the week, or next week or whenever include: Lentil soup, Cioppino and Cream of broccoli and cheddar soup (I am soupy in the winter) and since the snow came early....
Monday, October 31, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
This Week
So far this week I've made panko crusted chicken breasts with old bay seasoning. On the side was cauliflower with garlic, oil, red pepper flake and bread crumbs. Last night was Farfalle with spinach, garlic and oil. Tonight is chicken soup (I've been making that all day) and chicken salad (for Michael, not me).
Tomorrow is a no-cook evening. Michael has a meeting at little league and Friday night we are going out with Joe and Denise. Saturday night we'll be at Glenn and Eileen's with Steve and Lori. We are bringing goodies from Iavarone (and wine, of course) and I am sure Eileen will make a yummy dinner. Great food and great friends. What else is there? xo
Tomorrow is a no-cook evening. Michael has a meeting at little league and Friday night we are going out with Joe and Denise. Saturday night we'll be at Glenn and Eileen's with Steve and Lori. We are bringing goodies from Iavarone (and wine, of course) and I am sure Eileen will make a yummy dinner. Great food and great friends. What else is there? xo
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Brine! And so much More!
I have recently discovered the goodness of brining. http://www.howtocookmeat.com/briningmeat.htm is a great site to learn not just about brining but how to cook all sorts of meats. Clear instructions and quantities.
I brined pork chops that Michael said were the best pork chops I have ever made :) 2 C chicken stock, ¼ C kosher salt, ¼ C brown cane sugar, ½ tsp black peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, ½ Tbsp apple cider vinegar, 2 C ice water is the basic recipe. I let them sit turning once for about 6 hours in the fridge. Then I broiled them to almost complete the cooking, then I added balsamic vinegar to make a glaze and seared them in a very hot pan. Maybe a bit labor intensive, but obviously worth it.
Denise and Joe and Tom and Monica were here for dinner last Friday night and I brined Turkey tenderloins for about 4 hours, turning once, covering them in brown mustard, then with strips of black pepper bacon, then roasting them in the oven with fingerling potatoes, pearl onions and whole garlic cloves. They remained really moist. I served them with mesclun salad with thinly sliced red onion and crumbled French Feta cheese with garlic vinegar and olive oil. Also, Brussels sprouts sauteed with pancetta and garlic. Monica brought a yummy dessert of raspberry whipped cream in a chocolate cookie crumb crust.
Saturday night Michael and I went to a BBQ at the little league fields. Peggy made great chili, Carl was the pit master grilling hot dogs, hamburgers and sausage. It was a fun night under the stars!
Sunday afternoon Michael and I went into the city with Brett and Lenny to meet Jill after the Avon Breast Cancer Walk. She is a ten year survivor this year!!!!!!!!!! We also met her sister Karen and their cousins Vince and Patty. We all went to Dinosaur BBQ for a yummy dinner: Hot wings with garlic chipotle sauce, fried green tomatoes (which were $8.95 for 5 slices-WAY too pricey, but good. However, I will not order them again on principle), chicken, ribs, brisket, portobello, corn bread, collard greens, rice, baked beans, a few beers and cosmos and we were stuffed and happy!
This past week I made borscht with meat and matzoh balls. Borscht, if you like beets, and I do, is so yummy. My grandmother and mother used to make it for holidays, but I make it just because. I also made turkey chili with my homemade adobo spice.
Thursday night, Jennie and I took Barbara out for her birthday to Barosa. We shared a few glasses of wine and a chopped salad. I had shrimp parmigiana with spaghetti (it's be sooo long since I had that). Jennie had sausage and broccoli rabe (her favorite) and Barbara had linguine carbonara that was fantastic. We shared a creme brulee for dessert with no singing of Happy Birthday and it was a great evening with friends!
Last night, Michael and I went to Ariana's Sweet 16 at Larkfield Manor. The DJ was fun, everyone was dancing, all night (my feet are crippled). There was all sorts of food on the buffet and all sorts of drinks at the bar. We got home at 1am. Way past my bedtime, but we had so much fun with our friends.
Tonight we are going to Glenn and Eileen's for Sarah's 17th birthday party. Eileen is making a big pot of turkey chili with all the fixings and I know we will have a great time with our friends! We are very lucky to have such a wonderful "framily."
I will try to write more often, I have no idea where I've been lately. xo
I brined pork chops that Michael said were the best pork chops I have ever made :) 2 C chicken stock, ¼ C kosher salt, ¼ C brown cane sugar, ½ tsp black peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, ½ Tbsp apple cider vinegar, 2 C ice water is the basic recipe. I let them sit turning once for about 6 hours in the fridge. Then I broiled them to almost complete the cooking, then I added balsamic vinegar to make a glaze and seared them in a very hot pan. Maybe a bit labor intensive, but obviously worth it.
Denise and Joe and Tom and Monica were here for dinner last Friday night and I brined Turkey tenderloins for about 4 hours, turning once, covering them in brown mustard, then with strips of black pepper bacon, then roasting them in the oven with fingerling potatoes, pearl onions and whole garlic cloves. They remained really moist. I served them with mesclun salad with thinly sliced red onion and crumbled French Feta cheese with garlic vinegar and olive oil. Also, Brussels sprouts sauteed with pancetta and garlic. Monica brought a yummy dessert of raspberry whipped cream in a chocolate cookie crumb crust.
Saturday night Michael and I went to a BBQ at the little league fields. Peggy made great chili, Carl was the pit master grilling hot dogs, hamburgers and sausage. It was a fun night under the stars!
Sunday afternoon Michael and I went into the city with Brett and Lenny to meet Jill after the Avon Breast Cancer Walk. She is a ten year survivor this year!!!!!!!!!! We also met her sister Karen and their cousins Vince and Patty. We all went to Dinosaur BBQ for a yummy dinner: Hot wings with garlic chipotle sauce, fried green tomatoes (which were $8.95 for 5 slices-WAY too pricey, but good. However, I will not order them again on principle), chicken, ribs, brisket, portobello, corn bread, collard greens, rice, baked beans, a few beers and cosmos and we were stuffed and happy!
This past week I made borscht with meat and matzoh balls. Borscht, if you like beets, and I do, is so yummy. My grandmother and mother used to make it for holidays, but I make it just because. I also made turkey chili with my homemade adobo spice.
Thursday night, Jennie and I took Barbara out for her birthday to Barosa. We shared a few glasses of wine and a chopped salad. I had shrimp parmigiana with spaghetti (it's be sooo long since I had that). Jennie had sausage and broccoli rabe (her favorite) and Barbara had linguine carbonara that was fantastic. We shared a creme brulee for dessert with no singing of Happy Birthday and it was a great evening with friends!
Last night, Michael and I went to Ariana's Sweet 16 at Larkfield Manor. The DJ was fun, everyone was dancing, all night (my feet are crippled). There was all sorts of food on the buffet and all sorts of drinks at the bar. We got home at 1am. Way past my bedtime, but we had so much fun with our friends.
Tonight we are going to Glenn and Eileen's for Sarah's 17th birthday party. Eileen is making a big pot of turkey chili with all the fixings and I know we will have a great time with our friends! We are very lucky to have such a wonderful "framily."
I will try to write more often, I have no idea where I've been lately. xo
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Latest Dishes
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| Chicken & broccoli with sundried tomatoes |
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| Brined pork chops with escarole & tomatoes |
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| Broccoli quiche |
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| Chicken sausage with Peppers & onions |
Friday, October 7, 2011
Verso
Last night I went with Barbara, Paul, Jackie and Kenny to see Katie play at the Alphabet Lounge. She plays guitar and sings her original songs, folk style. Always nice to see her play!
Afterwards we went to dinner nearby at Verso (http://www.versonyc.com/index.html). They have outside tables, but it was a bit cool, so we sat inside. Our party grew to 8 people and they were very accommodating in adding tables for us. The inside is decorated with warm wood, faux tin ceiling and candle light. The bar area is very nice. We shared everything: Insalata Arugula with roasted pear, caramelized walnuts, shaved pecorino and lemon vinaigrette dressing; Insalata Misto with mixed greens and olives; Penne Melanzane with fresh mozzarella and roasted eggplant; Pappardelle Anitra with duck ragu, anise star and goat cheese; Stuffed squid with ricotta cheese in a light tomato sauce. A few glasses of Montepulciano and all was very good. If you find yourself in alphabet city, definitely drop in.
PS: Just for Paul, there was the small matter of the chipped bread plate :) oh, and they were out of Caesar salad.
Afterwards we went to dinner nearby at Verso (http://www.versonyc.com/index.html). They have outside tables, but it was a bit cool, so we sat inside. Our party grew to 8 people and they were very accommodating in adding tables for us. The inside is decorated with warm wood, faux tin ceiling and candle light. The bar area is very nice. We shared everything: Insalata Arugula with roasted pear, caramelized walnuts, shaved pecorino and lemon vinaigrette dressing; Insalata Misto with mixed greens and olives; Penne Melanzane with fresh mozzarella and roasted eggplant; Pappardelle Anitra with duck ragu, anise star and goat cheese; Stuffed squid with ricotta cheese in a light tomato sauce. A few glasses of Montepulciano and all was very good. If you find yourself in alphabet city, definitely drop in.
PS: Just for Paul, there was the small matter of the chipped bread plate :) oh, and they were out of Caesar salad.
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