Fresh Tart

As the holidays always go, I'm glad to bring the noshing and sipping and constant cooking, cooking, cooking to an end.  It was a wild ride, what with double tenderloins and buttery lobster tails and souffles and pastries and pate and cheeses and cookies and all the uff da that comes with the season.  But now I am done for a while.  Perhaps due to feeling unwell on the 26th, but mostly in the name of moderation, it is high time for the food pendulum to swing back to simple salads and soups, fresh fruits and vegetables, and things that taste lighter and more restorative.  Do you agree?  I walked by some caramel popcorn at Whole Foods today and gagged a little - I am most certainly caramel-ed out, blech.  A lovely brown-rice-and-veggie-sushi sounded (and tasted) amazing instead, and I knew the holidays were over.

The brothy beef-and-barley soup I made last night was a nice transition - hearty (I have to use up this defrosted beef!) yet not heavy, it hit the spot for all of us.  If you can find your grill in the snow (I had to shovel a path on our deck to mine), grilled fish with miso glaze is sounding delicious right now.  In fact, so is simple miso soup.  Or fish soup with rouille, ooh, I'm overdue on busting out that beauty, one of my all-time favorites.  Even a basic-yet-warm, meatless meal of roasted vegetables (brussels!) alongside polenta sounds comforting without being rich.

What are your favorite post-holiday restoratives?

Also to read this week (and every week): the awesome The Moment blog at the NYTimes Magazine website (love) - spend your New Year's Eve with this spectacularly affordable, achievable menu and be very, very Happy.  Understand my deep photographic jealousy by scoping The Kitchen Sink blog (sigh).  Be inspired by gorgeous, healthy dishes at 101 Cookbooks blog (veggies, yum!).  And if you're of the Minneapolis variety, make sure to check Dear Dara for the scoop on the latest hot spots (and old stand-bys too).  Alrighty then.

Ah, the celebrating is over (and the mess is almost all cleaned up). Because of the weather, we ended up staying here in the city instead of heading to the farm on Christmas Day - shucks. But we made the best of it by playing lots of Xbox 360 Rock Band 2, going to see Avatar (so cool), and eating...not boeuf bourguignon...but homemade pizza. Hey, we were all tired. And still full from our Christmas Eve's feast of lobster tails.

Because I got sick yesterday, we still have a beautiful beef chuck roast sitting in the cooler. Not sure I yet have the stomach to cook it tonight - might be something I do tomorrow and freeze for a later treat. Or, I might use part of it tonight to make a brothy beef and barley soup, that sounds really good to me right about now.  Yeah, that's the ticket.  I won't do anything fancy, just brown some beef (I start with 4-inch cubes); add some chopped onion, minced garlic, and chopped carrots; stir in some dried thyme, a cup or so of red wine, and beef stock to cover by a couple of inches.  When the beef is tender (2-3 hours), I'll remove the beef and cut it into small pieces, then add 1/4 c. or so of pearled barley to the broth and cook for 20 minutes or so until the barley is tender.  I'll also saute mushrooms on the side (a nod to my son, who hates mushrooms, otherwise I'd cook them in the soup), stir the beef back into the broth, and ladle the soup over mushrooms (for John and me) and serve with toast.  Sounds restorative, right?  (For a healthy, lovely-looking crab soup, check out this recipe on the NYTimes Recipes for Health section.)

On a completely different note, check out this fascinating list of places to eat in New York City (from The Wednesday Chef blog). Looks completely amazing, I can't wait to hit the city again soon and try out a few of these tasties.

I'll be blogging my New Year's Eve celebration from Wyoming - not sure of our specific plan, but I know we'll be eating something delicious over the weekend.

We casually sent a holiday card this year saying "Let it Snow."  I meant it, since I love a snowy holiday, but I was dreaming of a white - not white out - Christmas.  Unfortunately, we (and a good portion of the Midwest) are about to get blasted with piles of snow, mixed with ice, a dangerous holiday brew.  The latest forecast is for several inches overnight tonight, several more tomorrow, and potentially several more on Christmas Day, which would wreck our plans for driving out to my aunt Mary and uncle Bruce's farm for the day, my favorite Christmas tradition.  No!

<--  or?  -->

I'm still holding out hope, planning to reprise the brussels with pancetta and dried cranberries I made for Thanksgiving (three pounds of brussels are in the cooler, waiting, waiting)... But in case we can't make the trip, I've also made a plan for celebrating here.  A humble chuck roast is already defrosting, awaiting the magic of a bottle of Burgundy, a (small) slab of bacon, and a long, slow braise to transform into silky-rich boeuf bourguignon.  Which will it be - brussels and prime rib at the farm, or boeuf bourguignon here in the city?  Beefy either way, so stay tuned...

In the meantime, there are other meals to consider.  Like tonight's chicken soup with popovers.

And Christmas Eve dinner, which I'll be preparing, and which I've spent precious little time thinking about because of my worries about the weather.  Well, not precious little - I did get it together enough to order some lobster tails and make a plan to grill them brushed with garlic butter.  And to plan the rest of the menu (for my mom, Stacey, Cooper, Bowen, and John and myself).  Here it is:

gougere

steamed artichoke with aioli

....

grilled lobster tails with garlic butter

rice with peas and mushrooms

sauteed spinach

....

lemon souffle with whipped cream

chocolate truffles (leftover from our party, made by Vincent’s, insanely good)

....

I hope the snow isn't messing up your plans too.  Hang in there everyone - and stay safe!

You're likely thinking finally, sheesh, have the party already.  And indeed we did, and it was great fun.  I can't say enough about how awesome Silver Service catering is, I wish they just lived with us - it is so decadent to have someone think about how the table looks, and add garnishes, and light candles, and do all the things I would do (except waaay better) so that I can completely relax and talk to my guests.  Heavenly, truly.

The food - other than what I made - was prepared by Vincent Francoual, owner of the Vincent's Restaurant.  He actually delivered the food himself, which I didn't expect and left me more than a little starstruck.  Nothing like making your own kitchen feel completely weenie than to have one of the best chefs in town standing in it, eek.  Thankfully, he's a very sweet and low-key person and it was way cool that he delivered the goods himself.  Made my day.

So the wine flowed, and food was devoured, and friends and coworkers had plenty of time to chat and spread good cheer.  My 13-year old son was a huge help, greeting guests, taking coats, clearing plates, and making me so proud I almost burst.  All that remains are a few lemon tartlets (from Vincent's) and a few almond triangles (the Star Trib cookie contest winner that I prepped, very tasty).  For the rest of the menu, see below.

All in all, a grand time, thanks again to Silver Service and Vincent's and John's partners and spouses for making such a fun afternoon/evening.

I'm done entertaining until Christmas Eve (menu, haven't considered, but stay tuned).  Until then, Happy Holidays!

John and I shifted into high gear today, doing set up for tomorrow's party.  Plates and glassware are set out.  Food is assigned spots on the buffet table.  Flowers are arranged.  Fruit and nuts are scattered amongst the greens and pine cones (this year I chose kumquats, persimmons, and seckle pears - mostly because it's so fun to say all those words).  The actual centerpiece I got from Arts & Flowers and it turned out beautifully - they do seriously cool arrangements (I love Roger Beck too). Candles are distributed around various parts of the house, wood is in the fireplace; both await the touch of a match.  Beer is chilling in the garage; water, soda, and wine are ready to pour.

Despite a cold day, I was able to get my grill hot enough to put a good sear on both pork and beef tenderloin roasts (I'll serve them tomorrow cold, sliced, and garnished with mushrooms, chopped tomatoes, and fresh herbs). Tonight I'll bake the Almond Triangles (stay tuned for results).

Tomorrow we'll do the final straightening of the house, chop and prepare garnishes, slice the roasts, compose a cheese tray, set out bowls of cashew brittle and almonds, ice the beverages, light a million candles, get some good holiday tunes playing, and clean the kitchen of pretty much everything in preparation for the caterers to do their thing.  Somewhere in there I'll remember to get dressed and put on some party shoes.

Hope your holiday party plans are going well!  (We're going OUT for dinner tonight - Cafe Barbette, here we come!)

Yesterday I caught an early version of Eric Asimov's The Pour column on the New York Times Dining & Wine page.  The headline - A New Course for Dessert Wine - jumped right out at me.  I prefer dessert-style wines paired with savory foods (foie gras, blue cheese), so I clicked through and was delighted to read about Madeira wines in particular.  Asimov acknowledges that "...serving a sweet wine with a savory dish may strike many people as odd - unless they live in one of the great sweet-wine centers of the world."  But he goes on to give several enticing examples of sweet wine/savory food pairings, all of which sounded delicious: Sauternes with lobster, auslese reisling with lamb vindaloo, and his own personal experiment, Madeira with skirt steak and pickled Vidalia onions.  He tasted the steak with two Madeiras, both from the Rare Wine Company's Historic Series.

I quickly sent the link to both Stu The Wine Genius Williams, and my husband John, who happen to work together.  A few minutes later my phone rang - Stu had read my email, and the article, and was just about to run an errand, so offered to pick up the Madeira mentioned in the article for us to try.  Yes!  (The Rare Wine Company's Historic Series Madeiras are distributed in Minnesota by the New France Wine Company, info@newfrancewine.net, 651-698-2533.)

Stu picked up and John brought home four Madeiras from the series, each named for a U.S. city where Madeira was popular in the 18th and 19th centuries: Boston Bual Special Reserve, New York Malmsey Special Reserve, Charleston Sercial Special Reserve, and a limited release New Orleans Special Reserve.  Since Asimov particularly loved the Charleston Sercial Special Reserve with the steak and onions he'd prepared, that's what we opened first, since I just happened to have...steak and onions already in the fridge, ready to go for dinner.

I decided to caramelize the onions to bring out their sweetness, adding sauteed mushrooms and a splash of the Sercial to finish.  Since our grill and deck are covered in snow, I just pan-seared the steaks on one side and finished them in a hot (500 degree) oven.  I prepared the onions first, set them aside, then prepped the steaks.  When the steaks were done, I transferred them to a cutting board to set up, then sauteed the mushrooms in the (fabulously crusty) steak pan.  After adding the splash of Madeira, I stirred the caramelized onions into the pan, sliced the steaks, and served the steak with the onions and mushrooms alongside.  The Sercial was as delicious with the crusty, salty beef and sweet onions as promised.  The mushrooms added an extra earthy note that complimented the sweetness nicely.  All good.

My next try is likely to be an Indian-style curry, with the Boston Bual (sweeter than the Sercial, which is the dryest of the group), which would be a stunning combination, I think.  I'll let you know how it goes.

In the meantime, I plan to finish off the Sercial with some sort of fabulously toasted ham and cheese sandwich.  Or with another mushroom saute - I'm telling you, the splash of Madeira to finish the mushrooms was so delicious, I could have had just that for dinner.

Big thanks to Stu and New France Wine Company for all the fun!

Ho ho whoa, it's holiday party time!  Always fun, of course, seeing friends and coworkers and tasting all sorts of delicious appetizers, cookies, and drinks.

Back in the 90s, I used to do a rip-roaring holiday buffet for the neighbors each year - I thought of it as the perfect opportunity to serve all of my favorite appetizers in one night and experiment with new ones.  I would start cooking and freezing a couple of weeks before the big event, then spend the whole night in the kitchen chatting and cooking my brains out.  Great fun, but exhausting.

These days, I edit my menus - and stretch my energy! - a bit more carefully.  John and I are hosting his partners and spouses on Sunday, a group of about 70, for a late-afternoon cocktail party.  I'm making a few things and having the rest catered (by the fantastic Silver Service, they always do a lovely job), with the goal of leaving the kitchen to greet our guests.  The buffet menu is shaking out as follows:

cold, sliced, grilled beef and pork tenderloins with wild mushrooms and fresh herbs (me)

assorted cheeses with crackers  and apple slices (me)

roasted vegetables

warm chicken curry with red pepper skewers

warm puff pastry with cauliflower puree & sauteed mushrooms

warm shrimp spring rolls

mini lemon tarts with raspberries, chocolate truffles, almond triangle cookies (me), & grapes (me)

John and I are doing all the beverages, ice, and set up.  I'm renting plates, glassware, and silverware.  I'll complete the decorating and flowers.  I've done giant parties this way before - plugging in a caterer to help with the most time-consuming tasks and clean up, but taking care of decor, set up, drinks, and a portion of the food myself.  It's pretty much the perfect combination - I get to do what I like to do without killing myself, or our budget.

I managed to put the final touches on the Christmas decorations despite Puppy Louis having a difficult time post-neutering.  Bad reaction to pain meds, biting/licking his incision despite the "cone of shame," special food and narcotics, lots of puppy pain, trips to the vet, antibiotics, and finally...a happily healing pup.  A bit more of an adventure than we expected, but all's well that ends well.

Happy Partying!