Fava Bean and Asparagus

Wine: Portal N. Sra Portal Terra Alta Roble 2004

Spring is here! First Strawberries at the Farmer’s Market. First Asparagus. First Fava Beans!

We made Fava Bean Pasta, one of our very favorite pasta recipes. It reheats well, always an important aspect for us.

We bought lots of asparagus and decided to make two different recipes on two different days.

The first night we made Asparagus with Parmesan Cheese. The recipe is from The Classic Italian Cookbook by Marcella Hazan. The Asparagus is first cooked in boiling water until still crisp. The asparagus is then removed from the water and put in a ceramic dish. It is then sprinkled with Parmesan Cheese and topped with butter. The dish is placed in a very hot 450 degree oven until golden brown on top.

On the second night we made Asparagus, Florentine from the Fine Art of Italian Cooking by Giuliano Bugialli. It is a great recipe, the asparagus is sautéed in butter (Cathy browned the butter first) with parmesan cheese then removed from the pan. Eggs are lightly fried in the remaining butter and then placed on the asparagus and served. It is very rich and good.

For desert we served the fresh cut Strawberries, I topped mine with Grand Marnier.

Bacon and Fava Bean Pasta
======================

1 lb. Linguini
1 ½ Onions
2 Garlic Cloves
2 Pounds fresh Fava Beans (start with about 5 pounds pods)
½ Cup White Wine
½ Pound Bacon
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Hand full of fresh chopped sage

1. Prepare the fava beans by removing all beans from the pod. Then blanch beans for 1 minute. Then peel the skin from the blanched beans. Discard the skin.
2. Chop bacon and sauté but not too crisp
3. Remove bacon from pan, pour off bacon fat
4. Add olive oil and sauté onion and garlic till soft and translucent
5. Add wine, boil till almost all evaporates leaving ¼ cup of liquid left in pan
6. Using wooden spoon scrape and deglaze the pan retaining the brown bits from the bottom of the pan in the liquid
7. Add chopped sage, peeled beans, and bacon and sauté until hot
8. Toss with cooked pasta and add grated parmesan cheese

Serve and enjoy!

Risi e Bisi

Wine: Coto De Imaz Rioja 2000

We started to see fresh peas at the Farmer’s Market and on menus. So we decided to build a dinner around fresh peas. That ALWAYS for us means Risi e Bisi. That is an Italian dish made from Pea Stock, Peas, Rice and Prosciutto.

On Sunday at the market we bought lots of unshelled peas and some freshly shelled ones. In addition, we went to The Cheese Store of Silverlake and Chris generously gave us the end of a piece of Prosciutto and we bought a couple of bottles of what Julian described as the “Fabled” Coto De Imaz to drink with the rici e bisi.

We definitely cooked the dinner in stages.

On Tuesday we made the Pea stock from the peas.

On Wednesday we ground the Prosciutto and cooked it with the garlic and onions. We then left it on the stove and we went to a wine tasting at Silverlake Wine, for a great high-end (for us) wine: Behrens & Hitchcock. We really enjoyed the wine, and bought a bottle of the Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2004, which we will save for a special night.

When we returned home, we heated up the remaining Cabbage Pizza as a first course and then proceeded to make the Risi e Bisi. We once again used the recipe in Bugialli’s Italy. The Risi e Bisi was great, and we look forward to the leftovers.

Once again for desert, we had the Carrot Cake from Literati II, that Martin had given us.

A perfect meal!

Chicken Vermentin

Wine: Shotfire

We always look at the recipes in the New York Times but very rarely find one that interests us. We did see, however a recipe that really looked good: Roast Chicken Vermentin. We made it and it was excellent. We will definitely do it again! I suspect that the reason that we liked the chicken so much was that the recipe was from one of our favorite London restaurants: The River Café. We also have several of their cookbooks, but not the one this recipe was from.

We started with some of our leftover Asparagus Pasta.

We had heard of a brand of chicken called: Smart Chicken. We were told it is exceptional and they use it at Campanile. We arranged to get some Smart Chicken from Campanile and used it. The chicken really tasted like chicken. We will always try to buy it in the future. We need, however to find out where to purchase the chicken at a retail store. I have a call into Smart Chicken and will try and find a local outlet.

Our friend Martin had been telling us how great and large the Carrot Cake was at Litteratti II. He brought us a piece and we decided to have it for desert. It was so large, we split the piece in two saving a piece for the next dinner. The ½ of the piece we then split between us! It was excellent carrot cake, surrounded with actual carrots.

Roast Chicken Vermentin
===================
2 1/2 ounces (about 2 1/2 cups) dried porcini mushrooms, or mixed dried mushrooms
1/4 up extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 4 1/2 -pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 pounds waxy boiling potatoes, like Yukon gold or red-skinned potatoes, quartered
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
1 cup Vermentino, or other crisp, citrusy white wine, like Pinot Grigio.
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bring 1 2/3 cups water to a simmer, and stir in the porcini; soak for 10 minutes. Drain, reserving both mushrooms and broth. Roughly chop the mushrooms.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add the garlic and cook until lightly browned. Add the mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in the mushroom broth, bring to a boil and then simmer for about 10 minutes, so that it reduces by 1/3. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Trim off excess fat from the chicken pieces. Rinse and pat dry. Place the chicken, skin-side down, in one layer, in a large roasting pan. Tuck the potatoes and mushrooms around the chicken. Sprinkle with the rosemary, wine and remaining 3 tablespoons oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over, season with more salt and pepper and continue cooking until the chicken and potatoes are lightly browned, 30 to 35 minutes more. Serve with the vegetables and the juices from the pan. Serves 4. Adapted from ''Italian Two Easy: Simple Recipes From the London River Cafe,'' by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers.

Pizza, Pasta and Mah Jong

Wine:
Cottonwood Canyon 2000 Estate Pinot Noir
Shotfire 2005 Barossa Shiraz
Amador Foothill Sangiovese 2003
Terre Di Tufi Toscana Bianco 2004

Billy had returned from South East Asia. We decided to play Mah Jong on Saturday night. Billy had requested we make the Cabbage Pizza with Pancetta. Billy had read about the Pizza on the blog while traveling. We get our Pancetta at The Cheese Store of Silverlake – it goes great with the Cheese and Cabbage. We made the cabbage pizza and once again it was a hit. Kevin brought over the first printout from his on-line wine catalog. It was quite impressive to see how the program organizes and catalogs there wine storage.

Spring had arrived early at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market and they had lots of young Asparagus. It gave us an opportunity to made one of our very favorite pastas. It is from Chez Panisse Pasta Pizza & Calzone by Alice Walters. Asparagus Pasta is amazingly good and very easy to make.

For desert we served Cookies from Clementine & Dolce De Leche Ice Cream

We played Mah Jong till after midnight, when we decided to end the game!

Asparagus, Brown Butter, Parmesan & Fettuccine
==============================================

1 ½ pounds Asparagus (recipe calls for white, but we use green)
½ cup sweet butter
Fettuccine for 4
Salt and Pepper
Parmesan Cheese

Peel Asparagus
Heat the butter gently until it starts to turn golden brown
Cook the Asparagus in boiling water for a few minutes until they are cooked but not overly soft
Drain Asparagus and add to brown butter and coat well with the butter
Cook the pasta drain and return to pot
Add the Asparagus and any remaining butter to the cooked pasta
Season with salt and pepper, mix well.
Serve the pasta topping with grated Parmesan Cheese

Arista

Wine: Shotfire

We made a salad made from Bitter Greens with Hazelnut-Gorgonzola Vinaigrette from the cookbook: Cucina Simpatica. The salad wasn’t to our taste. Oh well, sometimes you win and sometimes you loose.

The main course made up for it! We made the Arista – from the Zuni Café Cookbook. It is made from boneless pork. It marinates in the refrigerator with great spices for 2-3 days. It is cooked on a bed of potatoes, fennel and garlic. It is a great dish and the leftovers make fabulous sandwiches!

A Winner and a Loser

Wine: Beaumes de Venise Domaine de Fenouillet 2004

We had previously made a Cauliflower dish from Madhur Jaffrey’s memoir of her life in India: Climbing the Mangos Trees. The very delicious recipe is called: Grandmother’s Cauliflower with Cheese (Vali Cobi). The dish is wonderful. It is one of our favorites.

We love a dish we make called Pork Braised in Milk. In the new On Top of Spaghetti cookbook there is a recipe called: Pappardelle and Saffron-Scented Milk-Braised Chicken. Because we like the Pork in Milk we decided to make this new Chicken dish. The chicken was made with saffron, so we figured it would go well with the Indian Cauliflower dish. We made the chicken but found it bland compared with cauliflower. I don’t think we will be making Milk-Braised Chicken again. However, there will be lots more Grandmother’s Cauliflower in our future!

Grandmother’s Cauliflower With Cheese (Vali Gobi)
=================================================
SERVES 4-6

I don't have my grandmother's exact recipe. I never asked her, being too young at the time to know better. But the recipe here is a good approximation (as Jimmy Durante, the American come¬dian, used to say, "Da nose knows") and utterly delicious.

Do not use jalapeno or serrano chilies for Indian dishes. They have the wrong texture and flavor. Green bird's-eye chilies or any long, slim, thin-skinned variety, such as cayenne, are ideal. If you can't find them, use 1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper instead of 1/4 teaspoon.

2 tablespoons olive or other vegetable oil
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 1/2 pounds (8 cups) medium-sized cauliflower florets, cut so each floret has a stem
1 3/4 cups grated fresh tomatoes
3/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons heavy cream
One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated to a pulp on the finest part of a grater or Microplane
2 fresh hot green chilies, cut into slim rounds
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/4 cup coarsely grated sharp Cheddar cheese
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Pour the oil into a large, preferably nonstick saute pan over medium-high heat. When it is hot, put in the cumin seeds. Let them sizzle for 10 seconds. Add the cauliflower florets, and stir them around for 2 minutes. Add the grated tomatoes, ginger, chilies, cayenne, turmeric, ground coriander, and salt. Stir to mix. Stir and cook for 5 - 6 minutes, or until the tomatoes are almost absorbed and the cauliflower is almost done. Add the cilantro and mix it in.

Put the contents of the pan into an ovenproof dish about 8 inches square, add the cream, mix, and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Put in the top third of the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and developed a few light brown spots. Serve hot.

Cabbage Pizza Works!

We took the leftover Cabbage and made a great Pizza! We did nothing else but spoon the cabbage mixture on a Vicolo Pizza Shell. It turned out great!

A Taste of Providence

Wine: Shotfire

We went to Lucques for a dinner and book signing. Suzanne had once cooked at a restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island named Al Forno. The owners and chefs Johanne Killeen & George Germon had a new book out: On Top of Spaghetti. We received a copy of the book. In addition we bought their first cookbook: Cucina Simpatica.

We saw two recipes in Cucina Simpatica that we decided to make. Chris as The Cheese Store of Silverlake had given us the end of a Prosciutto and we wanted to use it in the dinner.

The first dish is called: Cavolo e Pancetta Soppresa. It is an incredibly rich cabbage dish. It could serve as a very cheesy side dish, or an appetizer. We plan to use some of the left over as a pizza topping. Never had a cabbage pizza but we think it will work. We really liked the dish.

For the second course we wanted to use the rest of the Prosciutto that Chris had given us. We found a recipe in the book for: Pasta with Lentil and Prosciutto Sauce. We ground the Prosciutto up in the K5A and made the sauce. It is wonderful. It was very rich and meaty tasting. We will make it again. No cheese is needed (and none was wanted after our cabbage first course!). One unusual part of the pasta is that when it is served it is topped with chopped raw diced red onion. It gives it a real kick! I would recommend the pasta.

For dessert we finished the Apple Crisp we had previously cooked.

So, we are two for two with the new cookbook!

Cavolo e Pancetta Soppresa
======================

7 cups finely shredded savoy cabbage
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
¼ cup shredded Bel Paese or Fontina Cheese
¼ cup crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 oz. pancetta chopped

1. Preheat oven to 500 Degrees
2. Combine all the ingrediants except the pancetta, toss to to combine, and transfer to shallow ceramic baking dish
3. Top the cabbage with the pancetta and bake for 15 to 18 minutes. Cabbage will be cooked through and crusty on top.

The Asana of Eating and Drinking

Wine:
Portal Terra Alta Roble 2004
Pago Florentino Tinto 2003
Farnese Pecorino Terre di Chieti 2005

We had our Yoga instructor Jonathon and his wife Juliette over for dinner. Luckily we didn’t have to stand on our heads or do downdogs!

We started with Carrots Puree with Caraway and Feta from the Casa Moro cookbook. The carrots at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market were exceptionally sweet. I had picked up some more pita chips from Joan’s on 3rd Street. They are definitely the best pita chips in Los Angeles.

For a first course we had Sautéed Red Cabbage Salad with Pancetta and Broiled Goat Cheese from The Cuisine of California. This salad is one of my favorites.
.
We then made Braised Chicken with Saffron Onions, Italian Couscous, and Dates from Sunday Supper at Lucques. It is a multi-layered dish with lots of contrasting flavors. The dates at the Farmer’s Market are especially sweet right now. They were so sticky it was hard to cut them in slices.

For desert, we made an Apple Crisp. Cathy improved the topping by adding diced Crystallized Ginger and Amond Paste and Calvados. We added Haagen-Dazs Dolce-de-Leche ice cream.

Sautéed Red Cabbage Salad with Pancetta and Broiled Goat Cheese
=====================================================

½ pound pancetta, sliced
6 oz Goat Cheese
½ Olive Oil
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1 or 2 red cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
3 large shallots, finely chopped
4 1/2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1/3 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon coarsely cracked pepper
½ cup toasted walnuts

1. Over Medium-low head cook pancetta until crisp and lightly brown, place on paper towels to drain, crumble into small pieces and reserve
2. Slice goat cheese into 4 equal portions. Brush each piece with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs so they adhere to cheese. Refrigerate covered for 1 hour.
3. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of pancetta drippings add 3 tablespoons olive oil to skillet. Add cabbage and sauté until it begins to wilt. Remove to a bowl.
4. Add remaining olive oil to pan. Add shallots and sauté until soft. Add sherry vinegar and boil for about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and pour over cabbage. Add pancetta and toasted walnuts and mix well.
5. Preheat broiler. Broil coated goat cheese until golden brown.
6. Place cabbage mixture on 4 individual plates. Set goat cheese in center and serve.

A Soft Dinner for a Sore Mouth

Wine: Shotfire


We were on the west side of Los Angeles, both having dentist appointments. The key criteria was soft food because we knew our mouths with be sore!

We went to Clementine and picked up their great Chicken Pot Pie. We also picked up their Banana Cream Pie, It is very good.

Chris at The Cheese Store of Silverlake had given us the end of a Prosciutto. We made a great warm winter dish: Rici-e-Bici from Bugialli’s Italy by Giuliano Bugialli. We needed to cut up the Prosciutto and I experimented with grinding it using the K5A meat grinder attachment. It was perfect, it came out just like sausage. The Rici-e-Bici is much easier to make than a risotto and reheats well.

We had the Banana Cream Pie for dessert (it was a small one).

The dinner almost made going to the dentist worth it!

Kevin is the Valentine

Wine:
Chateau D’Aiguilhe 2003 Cotes De Castillon
The Lackey 2004 Shiraz
Saint-Veran 2004 Vieilles Vignes


Billy was off to Southeast Asia, and Kevin was alone for Valentine’s Day. We decided to invite him to dinner.

We made some old favorite comfort foods for dinner.

We started with a Caesar Salad from the Zuni Café Cookbook.

We then had Gratin de Macaroni a l’Ancienne from Paris Bisto Cooking by Linda Dannenberg. This is the BEST Macaroni and Cheese ever! It uses, Cream Fresh, Bacon, Prosciutto, Parmesan Cheese and Gruyere Cheese. We bought all of the cheeses and prosciutto from The Cheese Store of Silverlake. I love this dish! However, I probably should take an extra Lipitor!

Cathy was working, so I decided to bake Date Bars from the City Cuisine Cookbook for desert. All went well, until Cathy came home and noticed they looked strange. I was supposed to layer the oatmeal crust on the bottom of the pan, add the filling and then top with more of the oatmeal crumbs. Woops I put all of the oatmeal on the bottom and put the filling on top rather than in the middle. While the Date Bars were cooling, we went to some museums downtown. On the ride back we decided to throw the date bars out and start again. We then decided to try them first, if they were OK we wouldn’t discard them. We cut a small piece and tried it. It was good! We had a dessert.

Kevin arrived and we drank lots of wine and had a great meal, sorry Billy missed it!

Bye Bye Billy

Billy was leaving for Southeast Asia and had a late night flight. He was nervous about leaving and we decided that Kevin and Billy should come over to our house, and play Mah Jong. They arrived at about 6:30 and we ate first then played Mah Jong. We had Beef Daube, the Polenta Pie, we had made with the Spinach topping. Billy didn’t want to eat before the long flight, but he did decide to drink wine. For desert we had Brownies. We then played Mah Jong until it was time for them to leave for the airport. It was fun for us and it really calmed Billie down.

Veal Shanks Goes Head To Head

Wine: Shotfire

We had dinner on Sunday night at Mozza and had brought home some left-over Pizza. They really don’t have Pizza to go, but this worked will. We re-heated the pizza and it was great.

We had previously made the Roasted Veal Shank and had joked that Mark at Campanile hasn’t had it on the menu for a long time. It was one of our favorite dishes. When we went to Campanile on Monday night we found the Veal Shank had returned! We intended to order the special Monday night dinner, but instead ordered the Campanile Veal Shank. It was great and we had leftovers that we took home.

We decided to have a veal shank shoot-out and served both of the Shanks: the Campanile version and the recipe that we had made. We both agreed we liked Campanile’s better. It wasn’t only that they made it, but the preparation is braised not roasted, making the meat moister. The only downside, of course, is the recipe for Campanile’s Veal Shank is more complex to make. Maybe we will try it later this winter.

We made a wonderful dish from Paula Wolfert’s Mediterranean Grains and Greens: Provencal Tian with Creamed Spinach. We highly recommend it!

We also made Polenat to serve as a side. We always use the recipe from the Zuni Café Cookbook to make polenta.

When we were finished with the dinner, we used the leftover Polenta and Spinach Tian to make a great Polenta Pie. We buttered a ceramic dish, the covered with the remaining Polenta and topped with the Spinach Tien. We later baked it and it was delicious.

Provencal Tian with Creamed Spinach
===================================
4 quarts stemmed spinach
5 tablespoons butter
3 cups chopped onions
Salt
1 ½ cloves garlic
Freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ tablespoon milk, heated
Grated Nutmeg
¼ cup grated bread crumbs
1 teaspoon olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees
2. Wash and drain the spinach
3. Heat 3 tablespoons butter until bubbling. Add the onions and cook, covered over medium heat for 10 minutes.
4. Chop the spinach
5. When the onion is soft but not brown, stir in the spinach, garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Raise the heat and cook for 10 minutes while stirring, until the spinach is very liquidity.
6. Drain the liquid into another pan and reduce the liquid by ½
7. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a heavy saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute without browning
8. Pour in the reduced liquid and stir until creamy and smooth
9. Gradually stir in the warm milk, nutmeg bring to a boil stirring
10. Add the spinach and stir to mix
11. Place the spinach mixture in an oiled 10 inch earthenware dish, sprinkle with breadcrumbs and drizzle with oil
12. Bake 20 minutes until the breadcrumbs are brown and the tian bubbling
13. Cool for 15 minutes and serve warm

A Hearty Dinner for Two

Wine: Shotfire Barossa Shiraz 2005


We decided to make a Daube, a great winter dish. The weather didn't totally cooperate and Los Angeles has been un-seasonably warm. We decided to use a recipe we found that had been adapted from "Mediterranean Cooking," by Paula Wolfert. We did augment the recipe by almost doubling the meat. This will ensure plenty of leftovers.

We started with a Pear Salad. Lots of lettuce, salt, sliced pears, toasted walnuts, and walnut oil were mixed in a salad bowl. We then plated the salad and sliced Gorgonzola Natural cheese over it that we purchased at The Cheese Store of Silverlake. We then dribbled Brauerei Noble Sour P.X. over the cheese. It adds a great taste to the salad.

We started marinating the meat on Sunday. Turning several times on Monday and Tuesday AM. The actual cooking of the dish is very easy. Basically throw in the pot, and put it in the oven for 4 hours or so, one adds the mushrooms and pitted olives at the end, and serve over noodles. This is a great winter dinner.


Daube de Boeuf Provencal
Serves 6

1/2 cup carrots, peeled, in 1/2-inch slices
1/4 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped mixed fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary or savory and dry bay leaf)
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 cups dry red or white wine
Salt to taste
12 black peppercorns
1 pound beef shank (meat left in one piece)
1 pound beef short ribs
1 pound well-marbled beef chuck, cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup (3 ounces) pancetta, diced into 1/4-inch pieces
1 28-ounce can and 14.5-ounce can tomatoes, seeded and chopped (5 cups)
Bouquet garni of dry bay leaf, 5 parsley sprigs and 2 thyme sprigs, tied together in cheesecloth
1 tablespoon orange zest
Parchment paper cut to fit the inside diameter of the pot
1/4 pound fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 dozen brine-cured black olives, rinsed and pitted
2 tablespoons chopped parsley


In a small skillet, saute carrots, celery and onion in olive oil over low heat for 5 minutes. Add herbs and garlic and continue cooking until the flavors are released, about 1 minute. Add wine, salt and peppercorns. Bring liquid to a boil, then reduce and simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Place beef cuts in a bowl and add cooled marinade. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight, turning the meat once or twice.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place meat and made in a large, heavy casserole or Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. Scatter with sliced onions, then add tomatoes, bouquet garni and orange zest. Wet circle and place it on top, pressing down to remove any air bubbles. Cover and cook for 1 hour. Lower the temperature to 250 degrees and cook an additional 3 to 4 hours, until meat easily falls apart.


Set pot on top of stove over very low heat. Remove parchment and stir in mushrooms and olives. Cook until mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove bouquet garni and bones, then skim fat from the top of the cooking liquid. Adjust seasoning. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve over cooked noodles.

Mahjong-a-Thon

Wine
Domaine Raymond Dupont-Fahn Bourgogne 2005
Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Chateauneuf du Pape 2004
Le Vieux Donjon Chateauneuf du Pape 1998
Vieux Telegraph Chateauneuf du Pape “La Crau” 1998
Kracher Nouvelle Vague 1998 Desert Wine


This was the last Saturday night we could play Mah Jong with our friends Billy and Kevin, because Billy is leaving for South East Asia for 5 weeks of traveling.

We served a lot of great red wines to celebrate. We think that the Hummus at Joan’s on 3rd Street is absolutely the best. In addition, they have incredibly crispy pita chips. For another appetizer we picked up the Baba Ganoush at Marouch Lebanese Restaurant. The Baba Ganoush is very smoky tasting. Every one loved it. We love their Yogurt Kabobs, when we eat there we always order it!

For our main course we made Expatriate Roast Chicken with Preserved Lemons and Olives from the The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen by Paula Wolfert. The chicken is cooked in the oven over a water bath, that has grated onion and cinnamon in it. The result is a crispy chicken that is very moist with a Moroccan flavor. We served it with cous-cous.

Half way through the mah jong game we served desert. We went to Whole Foods and bought 7 different small deserts from Perfectly Sweet Bakery. Cheese Cake, Boston Cream Pie, German Chocolate Cake, Carrot Cake, Lemon Pie, etc. We each a little bit of each one. It was quite a sugar rush. We played until 1pm. When we quit Cathy was ahead!

Fun Night, we will miss Billy and our Sat. nights.


Scroll Down and "Click" to watch the movie.

Veal is the Meal

Wine: Shotfire Barossa Shiraz 2005


At Campanile, Mark used to make a great dish: Roasted Veal Shank. He served it standing up and besides being delicious, it always wowed the room as it was served. Years ago, when I went to Chicago, Cathy's father to me to a restaurant in Deerfield where they also served Stinco. Unfortunately it is no longer there and to make it worse, Cathy never got to eat there! We have been thinking about it, and decided to make it ourselves. We actually have two different recipes the one from Campanile and the one from Angelini Osteria. We decided to do the one from Angelini. Hopefully, Mark will take our hints and his version will occasionally return to rightful place on the menu.


We had a first course of a great salad from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook: Radicchio with Croutons, Hardboiled Eggs and Anchovy Vinaigrette. It is an excellent salad and easy to make.

Shredded Radicchio with Anchovy Vinaigrette, Bread crumbs, & Sieved Egg

A strong-flavored salad with an unusual texture. For a different flavor balance, you can replace some of the radicchio with escarole hearts or Belgian endive, or use a bitter radicchio - Castelfranco or Treviso variety.

for 4 servings:
1/2 ounces fresh, soft bread crumbs (about 3/4 cup) made from slightly stale, crustless, chewy,white peasant-style bread
about 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
about 1-1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
about 1-1/2 teaspoons chopped
salt-packed anchovy fillets {2 to 3fillets)
1 large shallot {about 1 ounce), finely diced
About 2 medium heads radicchio (about 12 ounces)
2 hard-cooked freshly cooked and peeled
Salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Preheat the oven to 400°.
Combine the bread crumbs with about a tablespoon of the olive oil and knead very gently to distribute it. Spread the crumbs on a sheet pan and bake until they are unevenly golden, about 6 minutes. You may need to rotate the pan or stir the crumbs with a spatula. {The crumbs will shrink to about 1/2 cup in volume.) Cool completely. You could cheat and buy store bought croutons!
Combine the remaining oil, the vinegar, anchovies, shallot, and salt to taste.

Remove any damaged outer leaves from the radicchio, then rinse, dry, and quarter it. Remove the stem and core, then slice as if for coleslaw, about 1/8 inch thick. Place in a salad bowl and toss and fluff to separate into individual threads. Incorporate the toasted crumbs. Drizzle the vinaigrette evenly over the salad and toss well to combine. Taste and add more salt, oil, or vinegar as needed.
Press the eggs through a strainer, or grate on the finest face of a grater, letting the mimosa-like bits fall evenly over the salad. Give the salad only one or two folds to distribute the eggs, then serve. Offer cracked black pepper.


We then made the Roasted Veal Shank Stinco from Angelini. They call it Stinco, I always wondered why, guess I could have asked, but through the magic of the internet I found that Stinco is Italian for shin.

I purchased the Shanks from Guss Meats. As it happens he provides the Shanks to both Campanile and Angelini. They were huge! It could have served 6. In fact, it will serve 3 meals for 2. The house smelled great as they roasted away in the stove.

With them we served a Roasted Beet Farrotto from The Babbo Cookbook by Mario Batali. It was a wonderful side dish to serve with the veal.

ROASTED BEET FARROTTO
Adapted from ''The Babbo Cookbook''
by Mario Batali (Clarkson Potter, 2002)
Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
1 bunch beets, about a pound, scrubbed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups farro, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses or saba, unfermented boiled-down grape must (sold in specialty food shops)
1/2 cup brown chicken stock or half chicken, half beef stock
Parmigiano-reggiano, for grating.
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Trim tops off beets, drizzle with oil, and season with salt and pepper. Wrap in heavy-duty aluminum foil and roast until tender, about 45 minutes. Cool.
2. Bring 3 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add farro and cook until just tender, about 20 minutes.
3. While farro cooks, peel beets, cut in two and slice in half-moons 1/4-inch thick. Place in a bowl and toss with pomegranate molasses or saba.
4. Drain farro, and place in a skillet with stock. Add sliced beets, and toss over high heat until most of the stock is absorbed and farro is tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve, topped with grated cheese.
Yield: 4 to 6 first-course servings.