Tag Archives: sunday night dinner

Food

Tomato and Cabbage Tabbouleh

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tomato-and-cabbage-tabbouleh

In Tomato Heaven with Cabbage Tabbouleh

I love tomatoes – served any way that is possible.  I’ve been known to simply salt them and eat them like apples – one bite at a time (I always remember my Father eating them like that) or if they’re tiny then I just pop them in my mouth and enjoy their natural sweetness.  Delicious!  This recipe stopped me because of the beautiful colors from the tomatoes and mint AND it’s so easy.  It would be great for a BBQ.  It was created by Anissa Helou and published in bon appétit July 2014. Serves 8, all you need is a room full of friends and family to enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup bulgur (not quick-cooking)
  • ½ medium head green cabbage, cut into 1”-thick wedges, then very thinly sliced crosswise (about 4 cups)
  • 1 small sweet onion (such as Vidalia), finely chopped
  • 4 cups assorted small tomatoes, halved, quartered if large
  • 3 cups coarsely chopped fresh mint
  • ¾ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper or ½ crushed red pepper flakes
  • Kosher salt

Directions

Place bulgur in a large bowl and add 1½ cups boiling water. Let soak until softened and water is absorbed, 40–45 minutes.

Toss bulgur, cabbage, onion, tomatoes, mint, oil, lemon juice, and Aleppo pepper in a large bowl to combine; season with salt.

DO AHEAD:Tabbouleh (without oil and lemon juice) can be made 4 hours ahead. Toss with oil and lemon juice just before serving.

 

 

Home Entertaining, Food

Sparkling Tarragon Gin Lemonade

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tarragon-gin-lemonade

Time to Spice Up Your Lemonade

Many of my best party food memories are from Sunday BBQs when the kids were growing up so when the weather changes and it begins to get hot outside I start thinking about those BBQs and fun get-togethers. Then I try to figure out what would be a good adult-beverage for an afternoon outside with my friends and family now that everyone’s grown up. This adult lemonade will fit the bill perfectly this summer. It’s easy to make, isn’t too sweet (even with the St. Germain) and has bubbles which automatically make anything fun. Muddling is a bar technique used to release the essential oils from herbs and fruits to deliver the maximum impact on the drink. It’s basically gently crushing (with what amounts to a wooden pestle) the items against the glass – press and give a ½ turn of your wrist. This was created by Alison Roman and published in bon appétit June 2013. This recipe serves 6.

Ingredients

  • 10 large sprigs tarragon
  • 2 lemons, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3/4 cup gin
  • 3/4 cup St-Germain (elderflower liqueur)
  • 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  • (1) 12-ounce can club soda

Directions

Muddle tarragon sprigs, lemon slices, and sugar in a large pitcher. Add gin, St-Germain, lemon juice, and club soda. Add ice and stir to combine. Serve over ice.

Food

Easy Recipe for Gnocchi with Sausage and Tomatoes in a Skillet

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Gnocchi on your Favorite Skillet

Food Memory in the Making: All you need is your favorite skillet.

This recipe for gnocchi on a skillet is so quick and easy. The big plus is that it looks beautiful on the plate – color in the dish is always important as we eat with our eyes.  It reminds me of a favorite food memory – the first time I ever tasted Gnocchi – they were so soft and delicate.  I found this recipe on a fabulous website, thekitchn.com, in a list called “23 Romantic Recipes” that appeared earlier this week.  One of the best things about this recipe is that you can use store-bought gnocchi. And if you already have a skillet, you’re good to go! Gnocchi is a dough dumpling that is usually made from a coarse, purified wheat that’s also used in pasta and couscous, among other things. Add in just about any type of Italian sausage you like. And as for me, the spicier the better! The recipe also suggests finishing with grated fresh Parmesan cheese. You can do that, it’s not necessary if you’d rather not have cheese, but trust me it adds a wonderful taste to the dish. This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound gnocchi
  • Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 9 ounces (about 3 links) cooked chicken sausage, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick coins
  • 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
  • 1 to 2 ounces fresh basil, julienned (1/2 to 1 cup loosely packed)

Preparation

  1. Heat a large pot of salted water to boiling; cook the gnocchi for 2 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and toss with a drizzle of olive oil.
  2. Heat a 10-inch or larger cast iron skillet over medium heat with a light drizzle of olive oil. Add the sausage and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until it begins to brown. Push the sausage into a pile at the edge of the skillet and turn the heat up to high.
  3. When the skillet is quite hot, add the tomatoes, skin down, crowding them in if necessary. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until they are blistered, then stir in with the sausage. Cook for 2 more minutes, until both tomatoes and sausage are slightly browned. Stir in gnocchi and cook just until all is combined, but the tomatoes have not broken down into sauce.
  4. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Cooking tip: a cast iron skillet is preferred only because it will give you the best color and sear to the sausage and tomatoes but any skillet will work as long as it does NOT have a non-stick coating.  That will interfere with the browning.

Food

Recipe for a Sweet Potato Casserole You Can’t Put Down

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Spiced Sweet Potato and Parsnip Tian

This recipe is by Anna Stockwell

I think everyone has had a Sweet Potato Casserole at Thanksgiving. It almost doesn’t matter if dinner was at your house, your Grandmother’s or a neighbor’s, someone made a Sweet Potato Casserole. But here’s the thing – the old standard of Thanksgiving can be brought in any time, for all kinds of holidays and family celebrations. And people will love you for it. Food memories, anyone?

Anyhow, most recipes call for puréed sweet potatoes (of course we just referred to it as mashed) with cinnamon and butter. But, the most important thing about it was the perfectly browned mini-marshmallows. Sometimes, they were just sprinkled across the top but if you were really lucky, the person who made it placed a cloud of mini-marshmallows on top so every bite had some sugary sweetness. You always knew who took time with making the casserole because the marshmallows were in a design or rows on the top. Now that was perfect!

As great of a memory as that is, I’ve been searching for an alternative and I think I’ve found it in a recipe that I just read in the Epicurious November 2015 edition. It looks so pretty, but seems so simple to prepare and sounds great. It will definitely be on the menu for my next celebration dinner party – especially because you can make it up to 2 days ahead. Any recipe that lets me spend more time with my friends before dinner is a GOOD one.

Ingredients
  • 4 cups apple cider
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
  • 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Aleppo pepper
  • 4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 6 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 8 medium), peeled, sliced into 1/8″-thick rounds
  • 2 pounds parsnips (about 3 extra-large), peeled, sliced into 1/8″-thick rounds
Instructions
  1. Special equipment:
  2. A 4-quart casserole dish or braiser, preferably round
  3. Position rack in middle of oven and preheat to 325°F. Bring cider to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, add butter, thyme, Aleppo, and 2 tsp. salt, and cook, stirring, until butter is melted. Let cool slightly.
  4. Place potatoes and parsnips in a large bowl. Pour cider mixture over and toss to coat. Stack a handful of slices about 3″ high, then place vertically in casserole dish. Using a measuring cup or small bowl, keep slices standing up as you go, working around the perimeter and then into the center, forming concentric circles. Continue arranging slices in pan until tightly packed (you may have some leftover). Pour in cider mixture to come halfway up sides of dish; discard remaining cider mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tsp. salt and cover tightly with foil.
  5. Bake, covered, 1 hour. Remove foil and brush pan juices over tops of slices with a pastry brush. Increase oven temperature to 425°F and bake, uncovered, until golden brown on top, 35–40 minutes more.
  6. Do Ahead:
  7. After first round of baking at 325°F, let cool, then chill for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature, then bake, uncovered, at 425°F for 40–50 minutes.
  8. Cooks’ Note
  9. If you have a mandoline, use it to slice the sweet potatoes and parsnips—it will help you get thinner, more even slices in less time than by hand. The number of potatoes and parsnips you need to fill your casserole dish will depend on their width, so buy extra just in case, and try to seek out parsnips that are as close as possible to the width of your sweet potatoes.

 

Home Entertaining, Table Top, Food

The 3 Essentials for Any Home Bar

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Party at home? Better get equipped.

I always love to learn simple tricks and I got lucky today!! I spoke with a good friend (a guy I’ve known for several years) about dating who told me a secret. He asked me if I knew what the 3 essential items every woman’s bar should have. My first guess was a good red wine. He said that it is assumed all women will have decent wine in the house-one strike. So, I said no I have no clue. He prefaced his comments with the following – When you are on a date with someone you like, pay close attention to what they order to drink. If they routinely order scotch, ask if they have a favorite or if they were just ordering what the restaurant had. If they mention a favorite ask what there is about it that they like- single barrel, a particular age, etc.

Now on to the important data – The 3 essentials:

  1. Have a really good Scotch in your bar. If this is their beverage of choice make sure you have the one they like.
  2. Have a really good Tequila on hand. Same rule if this is the favorite beverage.
  3. Have a really good Vodka in your freezer. Same rule as above.

These three items are apparently crucial. Have all three in your bar, just make sure that whichever one they like to drink is included. I would think you might need a good Gin too but I guess that’s only if it’s your favorite or theirs-otherwise just these. He also said that you should always have a chilled beer glass and good cold beer if you’re not sure what the beverage of choice is. Then he said that everybody LOVES the really big ice cubes that some restaurants use in their alcoholic beverages because they keep the drink cold but melt very slowly so they don’t dilute the alcohol. But, there is nothing worse than stale ice. It will ruin your drink. Be sure to throw away the ice cubes once a month.

I happen to have a couple of silicone VERY large ice cube trays that I bought at Crate and Barrel. They are just 6 cubes to a tray so the tray isn’t big just the ice cubes. They fit about one ice cube in a double old fashion glass-you know those short fat glasses. I guess I need to actually fill them with water and put them in the freezer and not just have them on the shelf! My friend said everyone thinks those are really cool. This is apparently (per my friend) the quickest way to seriously impress someone you’re interested in. Just sharing!!!!

 

Home Entertaining, Kitchen Hacks, Friendships

3 Glasses You Need in Your Bar

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a row of cocktail classes

There are only three types of glasses that you absolutely need in your bar at home:

The old-fashioned short, squatty, wide base glass, that typically holds about 6-10 ounce drinks.

Then there’s the highball glass (often referred to as a tumbler) that will serve a an 8-12oz drink. These are taller than the old fashioned glass squat ones.

And the Martini glass – think James Bond here). An inverted cone bowl with a slender stem and wide flat base. This one can be anywhere from 6oz to the HUGE Margherita glasses you find at your neighborhood Mexican restaurant with a busy Happy Hour.

Drink up!

 

Food

Recipe for Noodle Kugel – Good Anytime

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kugel recipe

I Love Good Noodle Kugel

I think this recipe from Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman (apparently her Mother’s own family recipe) first published October 2008. I’m thinking of using this recipe to serve at a dinner party this week. But you can make this anytime for any occasion. Actually, I love anything with noodles. Traditionally, we make kugel for Chanukah.  Kugel is a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish recipe for a baked pudding or casserole – using either egg noodles or potatoes.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound wide egg noodles
  • 8 eggs
  • 2 cups sugar (Mom uses 1 1/2 cups)
  • 2 pounds full-fat cottage cheese, creamed or large curd
  • 2 sticks (1 cup or 8 ounces) melted unsalted butter or margarine (Mom uses 1 1/2 sticks butter)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • Dash of salt
  • Optional: 2 cups canned cherry pie filling (Comstock is specified)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Parboil the noodles (five to seven minutes).
  2. In a very large bowl beat eggs until fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, then the cottage cheese, margarine or butter and vanilla. Stir in the drained noodles.
  3. Pour into a 9×13-inch pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until kugel is set. If using the cherry pie filling as a topping, pour it over at the one-hour mark, then bake it for an additional 30 minutes.
  4. Deb note: Your baking time may, of course, vary. Check for doneness at one hour and go from there. Our oven, always running cool, took almost two hours to bake this. At home, my mothers inferno of an oven does it in an hour.
  5. About the topping: Okay, so apparently, the original version of this recipe has the cherry pie filling (from! a! can!) as a topping. Should you want to try some version of this but avoid the mystery-in-a-can stuff, a quick cherry pie filling can be made with a bag of frozen sour cherries cooked with half a cup of water in a saucepan for about 10 minutes. Mix 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and stir these into the pot. The mixture will thicken within a couple minutes. Cool before using.
Food, Friendships

Simple Recipe for a Night With a Friend

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Simple Saturday Night with a Girlfriend

There are those nights when you’re tired but you’d still like to get together with a girlfriend. They’re easy to do with almost no planning at all.

I always keep some fresh pasta in my freezer along with a few sauces that I like to “fix”. I’m very happy with almost any fresh pasta from the refrigerated section at my market – stuffed pastas are my personal favorite. When I get them home, I separate them into individual portions and freeze in Ziploc bags. That way, I can use one package (if I’m home alone) or more depending on how many are coming to dinner.

I do the same thing with boneless/skinless chicken breasts. I cut them up when I get home and freeze in single portion bags. If you want to add protein to your pasta (for this I would use a noodle and not a stuffed pasta) simply take a bag or more from the freezer and thaw (if it’s last minute, place the frozen CLOSED Ziploc in a bowl of water and let sit. It will thaw pretty quickly). Heat some olive oil in a skillet, throw in the thawed pieces of chicken and season with salt, pepper and any dried herbs that smell good to you. Brown the chicken and slowly simmer until cooked through. Add your sauce to the same skillet and when the pasta is cooked, throw it in with the sauce/chicken mixture and toss.

I’ve found that if you add some extra spices to even jar sauces they “come alive”. I love spicy food, so dried chili flakes are always my go-to. Grab a fresh baguette from the market and have your friend bring the makings for a salad.

Of course, I always add a bottle of wine – and there you have a VERY easy, quick, complete dinner that you can enjoy with a friend with almost no planning at all.

 

Travel, Friendships

I will Travel Far and Wide for Good Food

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One thing I know is that sometimes the food that I’m craving is not at a restaurant close by – wherever I am.  It doesn’t matter what city I’m in, whether I’m traveling or at home, this holds true.  There are a lot of Italian restaurants close to where I live, including my favorite that is within walking distance from my house.  But if I want Indian cuisine, I get in my car and drive about 15 minutes away to a favorite place in Culver City.  If I want to try the newest American place, it might be downtown or Santa Monica or in one of the beach cities- all perhaps at least 30 minutes away.  And, here’s the kicker, if I want great Dim Sum I drive over an hour. 

That’s just the deal.  Good food is worth the travel miles – it’s worth the gas and the traffic. If you want good food in a particular cuisine, you might need to drive. Just be prepared to do it.  You can’t always find what you’re looking for close by. I’ve found that the drive is part of the whole dining experience.  Gather your good friends together who are up for an adventure and GO.  You won’t regret it.  At least, I never do. 

Food

Recipe for a Smashing Rack-Roasted Chicken Dinner

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rack-roasted-chicken

Easy Brined Rack-Roasted Chicken

This recipe is by Dai Due, from Austin Texas. I have no idea why, but I’ve always thought that a simple roast chicken would be so hard to do well. It’s one of the reasons I’ve never attempted it. I do crazy other stuff, but somehow this one thing has been scary for me. Well, that and I only like white meat chicken and have always felt that it would be a waste to make a whole chicken. But, I do have plenty of friends who love chicken legs, as well, so I really have no excuse other than my fear.

After reading the September 2015 issue of Bon Apetit, I have no excuses left. They featured a recipe from Dai Due in Austin, Tx – the Rack Roasted Chicken and it kills two birds (sorry!) with one stone. You get a perfectly roasted chicken AND amazing roasted vegetables all at the same time. Make sure that you use the Dai Due Master Brined Chicken recipe (found in the same issue) in this recipe. Brining a chicken adds huge flavor with very little effort. I’m going to make this for my next Sunday dinner with friends!

Ingredients

  • 1½ pounds small fingerling potatoes
  • 1 pound small shallots, peeled
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
  • [url href=”http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/dai-dues-master-brined-chicken”]Dai Due’s Master Brined Chicken[/url]

Instructions

  1. Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 425°. Arrange potatoes and shallots in a roasting pan or baking dish just large enough to fit them all in a single crowded layer. Drizzle with oil and season with a little salt and pepper, then toss to coat. Place pan on lower rack, then set chicken, breast side up and tail facing oven door (this will make it easier to remove when it’s done), directly on rack above vegetables. Roast chicken and vegetables until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of chicken thigh registers 165°, 35–45 minutes.
  2. Insert a long-handled wooden spoon into the chicken’s cavity and carefully tilt the bird toward you to allow juices in cavity to drain into pan below. Remove vegetables from oven, then, using spoon, remove chicken from oven and place on top of vegetables. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.
Serving size: 2