It was raucous tonight! Everyone was in a party mood (see video here). We had two kinds of pasta, with clam sauce and with sausage and tomato sauce. Also garlic bread and two salads which I forgot to photograph.
Alicia, Amelia and Cathy made bunny cookies and apple pie for dessert. We closed it down by the fire pit, with lanterns on the beach. Magical.
It was cold and rainy today. The post-breakfast conversation was all about dinner, naturally. We settled on 3 kinds of soup, several kinds of grilled cheese and broccoli.
The soups were oyster and clam bisque, kale and white bean, and kale and white bean with sausages. I don’t even know what kinds of grilled cheese we had. One platter was labeled “hot” and one “not hot.” The cheeses were, jalapeno jack, cheddar, mozzarella and manchego. The extras were, tomato, scallions, avocado, bacon and prosciutto. There were a variety of breads.
For dessert, we devoured Britta’s brownies (see photo), with ice cream. Yum.
Dinner at Coonamessett Farm on Jamaica Night has become an annual tradition. It’s exorbitantly expensive for what you get—unless you’re one of those folks who can really take advantage and pack it in at an all you can eat—but we do it for the experience.
Last night was kind of buggy and duck-poop smelly. Perhaps not our best Jamaica night, but we had a good time anyhow.
It’s a lovely farm with pick-your-own veggies, lots of animals to visit, wagons to wheel, an ice cream stand and, of course, Jamaican food and live music on Wednesdays.
It was a man’s world, or more specifically, a man’s kitchen, tonight. The scene: Three big guys, classic Police, shots of Patron, deep frying, and an unbelievable mess.
The result: Oyster Po-Boys (scallop for ole preggers here – thanks dudes), tater tots, cole slaw with raw ramen noodles & cashews, fresh corn, tomato and cuke salad, fresh-caught bluefish, and three different creamy hot sauces ranging in spice from mild to ring-stinger.
Everyone wanted me to tell you that the boys ran out of cornmeal and had to put tortilla chips into the Vitamix blender for the final batch of oyster-frying batter. It worked brilliantly.
For dessert we had homemade peach shortcake (peaches, with sweet biscuits and whipped cream) by Cathy.
See photo captions for more details.
Holy moly! The Alexanders went all out tonight. Ian and Britta wanted to commandeer dinner. Everyone around here gets that having four (!) kids (including newborn twins) excuses you from dinner duty. But they insisted, and we’re glad they did, because it was friggin’ delicious.
Every available surface in the kitchen, mud room and on the porch was taken over to create one of our best Mexican meals yet.
On the menu: Grilled beef and fish for tacos and/or burritos, a variety of shaved and shredded cheeses for topping, Ronni’s guacamole, Jenya’s new cooked hot salsa, chipotle sauce with mayo and sour cream, mashed yams with cumin, corn and flour tortillas, black rice, grilled portobellos, peppers, beets and dandelion greens, cucumber and tomato salad, shredded cabbage and chopped scallions, corn with butter, lime, Old Bay seasoning and parmesan. I think that’s it.
It was SO good. And did I mention we had 22 for dinner?
Tonight’s was Drew’s night with a little help from Rita. Drew made a tremendous volume of delicious grilled salmon with cilantro sauce/marinade, garden-fresh zucchini & quinoa tabbouleh salad.
For appetizers, Britta put to use her 1970’s plastic mushroom canape server. She got it at a yard sale this morning—it was the score of the day— and we all had a good chuckle over the language on the box which promises to hold “scads of canapes, relishes, snacks, olives…(etc.)”
Rita had the brilliant idea to put the kids at a kids table. The 6 kids had a fantastic time on their own, and the grown-up table was so much more manageable with twelve instead of 18. Note to selves.
Our friends Ian & Britta are finally here for their annual visit, with their four (!) children. After assembling/bouncing on/watching the bouncing on Rose’s new trampoline, most of us were very hungry.
Wayne did most of the cooking, with help from Ronni, Drew, Ian & Rita (I think that’s everyone). On the menu, chili-garlic grilled chicken, roasted purple potatoes, fire beans (spicy string beans with black olives), and a tomato, basil & mozzarella salad.
A tasty beginning to what I hope will be a delightful last true summer week on the Cape.
Too busy, just sushi takeout tonight.
We dillied and dallied this evening. Big time. It was nearly 8:00 by the time anyone even thought about dinner.
To get a meal on the table as quickly as possible, I made just one incredibly delicious thing: Pasta with Tomato Ginger Salsa & Creme Fraiche. It may not look like much but it sure is satisfying and plate-licking good. It’s an all-time favorite of mine. You really should try it next time you’re in a pinch, or right now.
And because my daughter has been so good and helpful lately, here is the photo she requested I post:
My good friend Rachel has been calling and emailing me with ideas for quick and easy recipes. One of her suggestions was Chicken Piccata, which with my seemingly endless appetite for lemony-salty things, sounded like pregnant lady heaven. And it was.
Rachel gave me her recipe verbally, over the phone. I hung up and promptly forgot what she told me. This recipe (also below) from Giada De Laurentiis seemed simple enough, and most closely resembled what I think Rachel may have said to do.
It was a huge hit. I loved it because it didn’t taste like chicken (just incredibly delicious sauce), but satisfied my newfound craving for animal protein. Rose loved it because it was lemony and capery and chicken, and Shane just loved it.
To keep the lemony thing going, I made a salad of tomatoes, cukes, roasted corn, chick peas and parsley. It was dressed with (you guessed it) lots of lemon, a smashed garlic clove, salt and olive oil. CSA members, take note.
• Chicken Piccata •
from Giada De Laurentiis via the Food Network
2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half*
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.
In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes. When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. You can do all of the chicken at once if you have a large skillet, just be sure not to crowd the pieces. Remove and transfer to plate. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.
Into the pan add the lemon juice, stock and capers. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.
* To make this a lot easier, buy your chicken breasts already cut really thin, to avoid having to butterfly and cut.
