Shepherd's Pie
We eat a reasonably seasonal diet. The heavier sauces, soups, and stews of winter give way to grilled foods, fresh produce, and generally lighter fare during the summer. But every now and again something strikes a fancy and seasons be damned. We're having it.
I had pulled some ground beef out of the freezer this morning thinking I would stuff zucchini for dinner. After work today, I decided hamburgers and fries were in order.
The temperature outside is hovering just around what I imagine the third level of Hell to be. Burgers definitely sounded better.
Victor had other ideas...
When I got home, he said he was making shepherd's pie for us. Never being one to question someone cooking dinner, I immediately jumped on the idea. You're cooking, I'm eating. End of discussion!
It had tomatoes, celery, carrots, Italian green beans, peas, corn, garlic, onions, fresh herbs, and ground beef, topped with mashed potatoes and parmesan cheese.
I cleaned my plate and went back for seconds.
I contemplated thirds, but common sense roared its ugly head and I acquiesced.
Damn, it was good!
And there should be enough for lunch tomorrow and on Monday when Victor's in NYC. I won't have to eat hot dogs all day long like I normally do when he's out of town...
Rigatoni and the Cold From Hell
Right in the middle of a fabulous visit with friends, I developed the Cold From Hell. Who knows where this one came from. It hit me like a freight train, knocking me right into the ground.
I sucked it up and put on a brave face, but I have to admit I felt pretty lousy. And while I think I hid the feeling lousy part fairly well, I couldn't hide the sounding lousy part. I've been barking like a seal since Saturday. Ugh. I did everything in my power to keep the germs contained around me, so I'm really hoping no one else comes down with it. I went right into that 'working in a hospital' mode and just constantly washed my hands, didn't touch my face, washed my hands, kept everything around me clean, washed my hands... Plus, no hugs and kisses when everyone left today - I stayed back and waved.
In the meantime, my taste buds have gone on a medical hiatus, as has most of (but certainly not all) of my appetite.
Victor came to the rescue tonight with leftovers from Saturday. Sausage and meatballs and sauce with rigatoni.
I know it was absolutely delicious from having it a couple of days ago. Alas, tonight I just sort of went through the motions and ate a few bites here and there.
Since I'm the only person I know who can get sick, not eat, and still manage to gain weight, I doubt this will help with the weight-loss plan
On the other hand... right now, I don't really care.
As soon as the sun begins to set a bit, I'm crawling into bed.
Wine, Women, and Food
What a fun weekend we have been having!
Friends are visiting from Boston and we're eating (and drinking) well! That's a bottle of Marilyn Merlot on the counter. Gotta love it!
Victor did the honors with this dinner - meat balls, sausage, ravioli, salad... I baked a loaf of bread.
Simple food perfect for sharing with friends. We're having a blast!
Today, we're adding a couple more folks to the mix and having a Chinese 4th of July Celebration! Since the Chinese invented fireworks, it seems only fitting that they should be included in the festivities!
We'll be making a few things, thawing a few things, and steaming a few things we bought.
Stay tuned!
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Victor made dessert. Tyler Florence's Flourless Chocolate Cake.
Flourless Chocolate Cake
- 1 pound bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
- 1 stick unsalted butter
- 9 large eggs, separated
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1/4 cup strong black coffee
- 2 cups heavy cream, cold
- Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter a 9-inch springform pan.
Put the chocolate and butter into the top of a double boiler (or in a heatproof bowl) and heat over (but not touching) about 1-inch of simmering water until melted. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a mixing bowl until light yellow in color. Whisk a little of the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture to temper the eggs – this will keep the eggs from scrambling from the heat of the chocolate; then whisk in the rest of the chocolate mixture. Add the coffee and mix well.
Beat the egg whites in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form and fold into the chocolate mixture. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until the cake is set, the top starts to crack and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with moist crumbs clinging to it, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, then remove sides of pan.
Serve at room temperature dusted with confectioners’ and the whipped cream.
My stomach is smiling.
Expanding, but smiling.
The Italian Does Italian
We were sitting out in the back yard and Victor said "You didn't take anything out of the freezer this morning". I hadn't. There was a package of fresh tortellini in the 'fridge, and some veggies that needed using up. I told him I thought I'd cook the tortellini and do a bit of a veg sauce with it.
And it was at that point I heard those two words I just love to hear... "I'll cook".
There's just something about having dinner cooked for me now and again that just makes life grand.
I love to cook and would absolutely hate not being able to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, but it is also just so wonderful to have dinner prepared for me once in a while. And Victor does know how to prepare a meal!
Where I was going to make one dish, Victor made two - eggplant parmesan and the tortellini melange.
The eggplant was excellent! He took a baby eggplant and sliced it and breaded it with seasoned panko breadcrumbs. He overlapped the breaded slices on a sheet pan, added a bit of sauce I had made a few days ago, fresh mozzarella, and a bit more sauce. Into a hot oven for about 20 minutes.
In the meantime, into a hot skillet went some olive oil, garlic, pancetta, yellow zucchini, green zucchini, broccoli and tomatoes. He cooked it all together and then added the cooked tortellini, some grated cheese, fresh from the garden herbs, and a sprinkling of pepper.
It is funny how the same ingredients can be imagined so differently. It's one of the reasons why we seldom have the same meal twice. We do have our favorites that we make now and again, but for the most part, if we're not making a specific recipe, meals are put together on a whim.
And we have lots of whim in our house!
Super Salmon Salad
While I was working today, Victor was enjoying the first day of his 4-day weekend. And when I got home, I got to enjoy a lovely dinner.
He created salads tonight that were just out of this world. They had everything in them... poached salmon, tortellini, tomatoes, cheese, hard-cooked eggs, marinated artichoke hearts - that he marinated, asparagus, kalamata olives, arugula, other assorted greens, and a simple homemade vinaigrette.
Just perfect.
I do love a man who can cook!
He did leave one chore for me, though - a loaf of bread.
I had the easy job. So I made dessert. A raspberry and banana tarte from La Cucina Italiana magazine...
Time to go put it together.....
Stuffed Pork Chops
Victor cooked dinner tonight. He had a rough day at the office and wanted to decompress a bit in the kitchen. I had a great day at the office, and was more than happy to oblige.
I had pulled a couple of thick bone-in pork chops out of the freezer this morning with no real idea for them, other than I thought I would stuff them with something. Victor had the same idea.
The first thing he did was make a cold green bean salad. He blanched some fresh beans and then cooled them quickly. Diced a ripe tomato and mixed it in with some chopped garlic, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, fresh basil from the garden, salt and pepper. Mixed it all together.
It was perfect. Simple flavors that blended perfectly together, yet were individually present. Did I mention perfect? Perfect.
And the pork chops...
Fresh bread crumbs, sun-dried tomatoes, onion, garlic, celery, carrot, mushrooms...
He sauteed the vegetables in olive oil, then added the sun-dried tomatoes to the milk-soaked crumbs. He added just a bit of the sun-dried tomato butter I made a while back just for grins and giggles. He slit the chops and stuffed them, adding the leftover stuffing on top. They baked at 400° for about 35 minutes.
He boiled some yukon gold potatoes and served them simply with butter and parsley - also from the garden. (The herbs have taken off!)
It was one of those meals that just work on every level. Simplicity and complexity of flavors, colors, textures. I loved it!
Not that I would ever wish a bad day on someone, but... It was definitely my gain that Victor had one, today!
(And speaking of gain - I was down a pound at weigh-in today!)
Tomatoes Fresh (Frozen) from the Garden
Back in September, I froze the last of our homegrown tomatoes. We had a great crop last year and had more than we could quickly use. I put about a dozen of them on sheet pans and put them right in the freezer. When they were solid, I vacuum-packed them. I was looking forward to fresh sauce in the middle of winter.
With a couple of feet of snow still on the ground, I think this classifies as "the middle of winter." I pulled them out of the freezer last night and in my nicest voice I asked Victor if he wanted to make fresh sauce today while I was toiling away at work. My pathetic look worked. I came home to a simmering pot of outrageously perfect marinara. And it tasted fresh from the garden.
We never bother to peel tomatoes when we're going to use them in sauce, but since these had been frozen, the peel slipped right off. An added bonus.
He cooked up some rigatoni and browned a couple of sausages and pork chops. Those he simmered in tonight's dinner. The rest of the sauce went into the 'fridge for another day.
Fresh tomato sauce - and the tomatoes didn't have to travel - unripe and hard as a rock - half-way around the world.
Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies
Dinner tonight was pretty simple - burritos. Ground beef, rice, and beans, chilis, olives, cheese. Simple, basic, and filling.
So after dinner, Victor laments that we don't have dessert tonight. Situations are actually reversed, for once. Usually it's my sweet tooth looking for goodies. Being the unsympathetic person I am, I said there were two pieces of Valentine chocolate left. One for each. Dessert is covered.
Victor said he was going to bake cookies. My clever ruse worked.
I left the kitchen and Victor went to work.
When we bake cookies, we use ice cream scoops (known as "dishers" in the food biz) to scoop out the dough. We have about a half-dozen of them in varying sizes. They are so much easier than trying to deal with tablespoons and the like - and you get a consistent-sized cookie! (They're also really good for making cupcakes and muffins!)
Victor used a #16 scoop tonight - 1/4 cup. These are big cookies!
The recipe is a variation on the recipe from the lid of the Quaker Oats container.
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
- 1/2 pound butter, softened
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups rolled oats
Heat oven to 350°. In large bowl, beat butter, peanut butter, and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.
Drop dough by rounded 1/4 cup scoops onto parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until light golden brown.
Of course, you can drop them by rounded tablespoons (try a #40 disher) and bake for about 10-11 minutes.
They totally rocked.
Chicken Wings
Victor's had a hankerin' for chicken wings. Tonight, we had them!
He marinated the wings all day in peanut oil, lots of garlic, honey, sambal oelek, and salt & pepper. Into the oven.
We don't really eat a lot of chicken wings. A lot of chicken, yes. Wings? No. So this was a treat.
And we weren't all bad. We had roasted potatoes and roasted carrots along with it.
And then we had the last of the chocolate whiskey-peach upside-down cake for dessert.
We were a little bad.
Valentine's Day Breakfast
It's funny how Valentine's Day changes the longer we've been together.
The first few years we were together we showered each other with pounds of chocolates, dozens of roses - all of the Hallmark-trappings of the day. There's a lot of pressure those first few years. The pressure recedes as the love grows. The heart above is from a pound of See's candy from one of those early years.
16 years later it's "Let me cook breakfast for you" and "I'm going to the drug store to get something for that cough of yours." That's love.
I've been fighting a cold all week, but it's been a losing battle. And you know the saying "Feed a cold, starve a fever"? Well... we're feeding the cold!
Victor cooked a really good egg pie this morning - eggs, white asparagus, fingerling potatoes, mushrooms, peppers, cheese - but the surprise part of breakfast was Trevor's Pepper Jelly!
Trevor sent us a jar at Christmas and it's been sitting right in front of the cabinet, staring at us every time we opened the cupboard door.
I can be of two different minds when it comes to special foods. One is to just go for it and eat it all up - enjoying every bite and morsel with abandon. The other is to kind of hide it away because there isn't going to be any more, sneaking a peak now and again and imagining how wonderful it would be.
I've been waiting and waiting and waiting for just the right moment to open it up.
So... what could be a better day than Valentine's Day to enjoy a gift from a good friend? You're right. There isn't one. And I'm glad we waited until today.
The Pepper Jelly is unbelievably wonderful. Repeat. Unbelievably wonderful. A rich pepper flavor with the perfect amount of sweetness. Spread on thick slices of toasted and buttered whole wheat Italian pane, it was the nectar of the gods. I had to stop myself from eating by the spoonful right from the jar.
I think I'm going to be making some really soon!
The egg pie was just what the Doctor ordered. And alternating bites of egg, potato, toast, and jelly - with sips of coffee in between - was the perfect way to start the day. Fortunately, my taste-buds are still in full operation.
We passed on dinner with Victor's family tonight. No sense spreading this around.
I see a chicken noodle soup in our future. And maybe a pepper jelly crostini...
Gnocchi à la Victor
It's another night of Victor in the kitchen. See the smile on my face!
I picked up a pack of gnocchi a while back and it's been staring at us both whenever we open the cupboard. Today, Victor decided the time was right to end the staring.
There are times when you want a gazillion complex flavors assaulting your taste buds simultaneously. There are times when you want a couple of simple ingredients to speak for themselves. Victor chose the latter tonight.
Chopped red and green bell peppers and a couple cloves of garlic fried in olive oil, a bit of tomato paste, Greek oregano, fresh basil, a few red pepper flakes, and fresh parmesan cheese. That was the sauce. Into it, he stirred the cooked gnocchi, with a bit more cheese on top.
A few slices of fresh-baked bread (from the grocery store, today!) and dinner was served.
Simplicity.
###
Rumor has it we're getting another snow storm tomorrow. Another big snow storm. I love it!
We had more than 2 feet of snow Friday and Saturday. The weather service is calling for 18" or more to fall starting tomorrow afternoon. I'm psyched! I loathe and despise these 2" annoyance snowfalls. All they do is make life miserable for a few hours. When snow starts getting measured in feet, the world has to stop for a while. It's a good thing to stop and regroup. Spend some time in the kitchen with the family. Maybe cook a nice stew or something.
Which is exactly what I plan to do.
There's a chicken in a pot on the stove right now that is going to become Chicken Pot Pie tomorrow. There will be leftovers for a hot lunch on Wednesday and we have enough stuff in the house that we won't have to venture out until it all melts!
Victor had a business trip out to California Wednesday morning. American Airlines just called and canceled his flight. It seems they are planning on a big storm, too.
All the more reason to turn on the oven and start baking!
I'm enjoying this.
A lot.