Most Lavish Dinner Yet

Last night I hosted a dinner to support the charter school I work for. I dubbed it Italia Organica (I'll let you figure out what's wrong with that) and put together a mixture of organic vegetarian dishes. It was probably one of the better things I've ever made. On the menu was:

1) Mixed Crostini (half with a marinated tomato spread, and half with a cannellini/pesto paste that was yum)

2) Mixed roasted veggies over bed of polenta and topped w/ roasted pepper puree

3) Roasted beet salad with vinaigrette and goat cheese

4) Wild mushroom goat cheese

5) Spinach salad with warmed goat cheese (I forgot to warm it)

6) Sorbet

You can find all the recipes on epicurious, so I won't spell them out here, but I will offer a few suggestions:

1) sometimes grilling is a better method to roasting veggies for the polenta dish. I would have preferred more of the grill flavor and springyness you get from the control of the grill.

2) the cannellini/pesto combo is a keeper and something you have to try

3) Keep the roasting of beets to a little over an hour. They're going to cook a little longer as they cool down, and then when you marinate them they'll soften up too. No overkill allowed here.

4) I've changed my mind about the risotto. Cook the crimini mushrooms before so they brown properly, then add about 2/3 of the way into the risotto recipe, but before adding the butter/parm. Roast the shitake and add at the end for both flavor and texture.

I might make a habit of this

Josh

Leek and Potato Soup

Soups. I've never actually made my own soup before, so this was a true pleasure just to begin this journey. Whether it's the economy, the season, or the abundance of really good soup recipes out there, I've noticed an upsurge in soup-cookbooks and even high-end soups in restaurants. And it's easy to understand why: put a few good ingredients together, spice it just right, and bam, you have something that tastes like it took you hours but wasn't that hard in the end.

This one came from Jamie Oliver's "Food Revolution." It's somewhere between an Italian and Greek interpretation. While the recipe called for this soup to be served 'a la chunk' - that is, it is chunky and cooked form - I decided to pull out my immersion blender, add a tbsp of butter and a little extra virgin olive oil, and see what I could do. Topped with a little fresh chili and a dollop of greek yogurt, this was a quick, filling, and warming soup that will be added to the 'make again' list.

Chicken Cacciatore and Moroccan Cod Stew

When I decided to explore other cuisines, I realized I couldn't run too far from the Mediterranean. And I'll be honest, chicken cacciatore is about as Italian (American) as it gets. However, it was chicken over polenta and that was different (at least for me).

I took a cacciatore recipe from Lidia Bastisomethingorother. It was good, but the cooking time of 35 minutes for the chicken didn't leave it as tender as I wanted. It's possible I overcrowded the pan or used too much white meat, but after reading some other recipes, it seems I should have just let it go for another 10-15 minutes.

But that's not why I decided to break the silence of nearly 3 months. I was hungry, had leftovers, and fish that wasn't going to last much longer. More importantly, I had a chocolate cake my fiance and her friend had just baked that needed about 10 minutes to cool. Ok, I needed a meal that took 15 minutes start to finish.

It's really simple:

1) Make couscous and set aside

2) heat sliced garlic (2 cloves), chopped basil (handful), cinnamon (couple dashes), chili (to taste), and moroccan spice in saute pan (with lid nearby). Toss in the cod (and shrimp if you have!), let it saute for a minute, add half a can of tomatoes (14 oz), pull to a boil, and then simmer for 8 minutes. Eat with lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Yum! Possibly better than the chocolate cake that followed, although it was close.