Two good new recipes tonight.
Farro & Parmesan Pie has been on my “to make” list for a while. I wasn’t disappointed, I rarely am when a dish calls for heavy cream, nutty grains, and cheese.
And since I’m on a smoked paprika kick, we tried Roast Chicken Breasts with Garbanzo Beans, Tomatoes & Paprika. The yogurt sauce that goes with this doesn’t call for salt, which seems criminal to me. I added salt.
Rose decided to have a keychain-making party today. Seemed like a good enough idea for a school holiday afternoon. All was going well until the pizza place forgot about our order.
Our hero Shane, ran out to another parlor, Due Fratelli, to score us a pie. An hour and a half later, five hungry girls and four moms were eating. It was pretty decent pizza, though Rose would tell you not as good as Pepe’s. The square pizza made with basil and fresh mozzarella, was particularly good.
Shane was out mourning tonight, so Rose and I had the leftovers for dinner.
Tonight was the last Patriots game of the season, and our last dinner in front of the TV for a while. We had miso glazed salmon, roasted brussels sprouts, orange pepper salad and rice.
Neither of the recipes I followed came out that great. My miso sauce burned almost immediately, I guess my broiler is hotter or more shallow than theirs, and I had to finish it off in the oven. Also the salmon was a bit too fishy tasting for me, but that might have been a freshness issue.
I figured you can never go wrong with Ina Garten, I do love her so. Her roasted brussels sprouts were fine, but not as delicious as I had hoped. I usually braise them with bit of butter and soy sauce, and I like them better that way.
All in all, the meal was much like the Patriots game, we went into it with high hopes and ended up disappointed. Don’t even ask about how Shane is doing.
See that handsome man there? The one behind the bottles of wine, rum, beer, empty plates & glasses? His name is James, and he was responsible for our delicious dinner last night. He made a fancy piece beef that everyone raved about, and a delicious orecchiette with shrimp, something creamy and a hint of truffle. (I made the salad) It was a delicious meal and I forgot to take a picture! It’s possible that those bottles are, at least in part, responsible for this oversight.
My crime is compounded by the fact that James is a follower of The Steady Table, and most certainly deserves to see his own meal posted here. Mea culpa, James. Next time, I wear a post-it note on my forehead. I promise.
Black Bean & Goat Cheese Quesadillas, I’ve posted about these before, that’s for sure. Tonight I stuffed them extra full, almost too full to cut without everything squirting out the sides, but we managed.
We also had Button Mushrooms a la Creme, from the New York Times. So good and I didn’t even have the fresh herbs (I know, terrible). The lack of herbs was compensated for by the juice and zest from an almost orange Meyer Lemon, that my super gave me from his mom’s garden in California. Thanks Peter!
And because it’s Friday night, I thought I’d post a super-goofy video of a typical mid-meal rock-out (that’s a lot of hyphens). Happy weekend!
My dad sent me this recipe*. I love that he sends me recipes!
Penne with Roasted Eggplant, Chili & Mint is easy and delicious, and gets bonus points for being a one-dish meal. You could easily skip the anchovies and add extra capers to take it from pescetarian to vegetarian.
*Over the holidays I discovered that my Dad has an entire document box filled with recipes he’s clipped, labeled “recipes to try.” I know he’s only going to send the ones he’s vetted, so I can count on them to be good.
We had leftovers. Guess what I fried my sweet potato in?
More smoked paprika butter tonight, this time on baked sweet potatoes. Rose and Shane had shell steak cooked in the grilling pan. The salad was the same one we’ve been having a lot lately, recipe is below.
• Lemony Dijon Caper Dressing •
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Juice of half a lemon
1 tablespoon capers
1/4 cup olive oil (more if you like it less tangy)
Combine mustard and rice vinegar. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the olive oil and stir to combine. After adding the olive oil whisk with a fork until thick and emulsified. Serve over greens or radicchio with sweet peppers and parsley.
I overheard the fish guy at the farmers market call Tilefish “buttery,” and I was sold.
Dinner A Love Story has a post about Tilefish with smoked paprika butter. Seemingly perfect, until I was already preheating the oven and realized that the fish was supposed to be grilled. On a grill. (I don’t have a grill.)
I used DALS’s smoked paprika butter recipe*, but instead of melting the butter, I just kind of smeared it all over the top of the fish. Prior to smearing, I placed the fish skin-side down on an oiled and foiled a baking tray. The fish cooked at 450, for about 12 minutes. It would probably be better grilled, but we didn’t have any trouble polishing it off.
We had the barley that Shane brought home last week. After boiling it until tender, I tossed it with olive oil and salt. Barley is a nice change of pace from rice and probably more healthful.
For salad we had radicchio and orange peppers with mustardy, lemony, caper dressing. I’m going to measure next time and post the recipe because it’s a favorite of the moment. Even Rose liked it, she thought the peppers were tomatoes.
*I could eat smoked paprika butter with a spoon, by the way, it’s that good. And that color! Intoxicating.
My husband, Shane, can’t eat when there’s a New England Patriots game on tv, he’s just too emotionally invested. The problem is that it feels weird for Rose and I to sit in the dining room eating dinner, while Shane watches the game in the living room.
And so I’ve taken to ordering takeout on game nights. Rose and I eat, while sitting next to Shane as he watches the game. I don’t think he really gains anything from the experience, but it makes me feel better, and Rose gets to sport her Patriots gear.
Tonight we had Thai from Arunee (ironically, the stress of ordering takeout is gone now that I don’t have a migraine). Shane ate during half-time.
