Sunday

Here it goes again. What you ask? Well we had a big Sunday and I was too tired to type up the meal and the events surrounding it. So I got up Monday and typed the whole thing up. Went to post and found out the internet, phone and cable were down. It came on later in the afternoon and I thought I had posted the write up. I had not. I also discovered today that I sent the wrong Sunday file to the recycle bin. I sure hope this cures my obsessive compulsive bent for order and tossing, but I doubt it.
Sunday was the Rally for the Cure golf tournament at our Club. Saturday afternoon we picked up our friend Annie at the airport. She had graciously agreed to be a volunteer for the event so we could play. I actually got out of bed at 6:00 AM to do this. I discovered that it is light at 6:00 AM; what a waste of sunlight. The club served breakfast. Who can chew that early, but luckily they had some yoghurt. The club was a sea of pink shirts. Only a few pooper men had on other colored shirts. It was supper hot and everyone looked drained when we finished around 2:30 PM. I know for sure that I drank about a gallon of water and never had to use a restroom. My clothes were soaked with sweat.
A wonderful lunch was provided by the Bonefish Grille. The Bonefish and other merchants were outstandingly generous with their donations for both the raffle and the silent auction. I did a painting of the clubhouse to be in the silent auction. I received a lot of compliments but was disappointed to see it only fetched $275. But not many in our club are into art. A lot of member were amazed that I was “artistic”, I guess that they just thought I was a great golfer. Only those who have golfed with me will get the joke. I won 5 rooms of carpet cleaning in the raffle, which I really need, and bid and won a wonderful basket of goodies from Weber Grille. The basket was so wrapped and bedecked with ribbon that I did not understand how grand the item was until I got home. I saw food and only a minimum bid so I upped it. There were 8 different kinds of marinade and a couple rubs. A complete set of grilling tools, Vegetable grilling pan, grilling corn holder, Outdoor placemats, and wine glasses plus matching serving bowl, bamboo skewers, a Fine Cooking Grille Cookbook, Pam Grilling Spray, a lighter, plus it was all in a great basket with a decorative cloth liner.
We used the Teriyaki marinade for the chicken on Sunday. I don’t travel the pre-made aisle often, but thought this was a great thing for campers. The marinade is premade and in a reseal able plastic bag. Put your meat in at home and pack in the cooler. When ready take it out and grille, toss the bag. We marinated the chicken for about an hour. I would say that it was probably as good as the one I had planned to make from scratch. Also with an overload of premade marinades in the pantry now, don’t expect any recipes from scratch this summer. I will however comment on each one as I use it.
I had purchased baby zucchini, baby corn and portabella mushrooms that I was going to wrap in foil packets with a basil sauce for a side. With the new grilling pan, I used a basil EVOO, salt and pepper. They were easy and delicious.
I made, the day before, a Potato Salad with Pancetta, Rosemary, and Lemon from the July Bon Appétit. It is a no mayo approach to potato salad that I found refreshing. The recipe served 8 so I only made half.
5 oz 1/8” thick slices pancetta, about 5 slices
¼ C fresh lemon juice
1T minced fresh rosemary
2t finely grated lemon peel
1 garlic clove, pressed
2/3 C olive oil
3T Yukon Gold potatoes
3 large celery stalks, thinly sliced
2 T chopped fresh parsley
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange pancetta slices on rimmed baking sheet, spacing apart. Bake until golden brown and crisp about 20 minutes. Drain on paper towel and Cool. Coarsely chop. Personally I would cook it less. I thought all the flavor was cooked out.
Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice, rosemary, lemon peel, and garlic in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in the oil. I did the whole thing in my mini food processor and achieved a good emulsion. Add salt and pepper.
Place the potatoes in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover by an inch. Boil with the lid ajar until tender about 18 to 20 minutes. Cool and slice ¼” think. Place in a large bowl and add the celery, parsley, and dressing. Taste and again add salt and pepper to taste. If not serving immediately, refrigerate the salad and the pancetta separately and combine when ready to serve.
Dulce De Leche Cheesecake Bars (the dessert from hell) Serves 24 (Yes really, it is very rich)
I opened up the June Bon Appetite and find this cheesecake recipe that sounds really good. It says that Dulce Leche is popular in Latin American Countries. Annie before going on to being a Principal and now Director of Special Education for the state of IN was a Spanish major and spent time south of the border. Perfect! Bon Appétit says that dulce de leche is available in Latin markets and specialty stores. We have in Manassas a store called Global Markets. It specializes in both oriental food and the other have is south of the border. Well, our SOB people do not request ducle de leche. So unless you live in NYC where apparently the editors were able to obtain it premade, you will have to make it yourself. I had to do a second start, and be forewarned, plan on spending 3-4 hours standing over the stove.
After searching the local stores I went to FoodTV and followed Alton Brown’s Dulce de Leche recipe. Go to FoodTV.com. Go to Alton Browns site and type in Dulce de Leche, 2007. He has a video that is very helpful in case you missed the show. But with my stove I had to constantly change the flame height to keep it from boiling over and simmering. Frankly, if you can find a very good brand of caramel sauce, I think you will achieve the same results.
Crust:
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2 ¼ C finely ground graham crackers (about 17 whole, I used 18 as they were 9 to a package)
2T sugar
¼ t ground cinnamon
10 T unsalted butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 13x9x2” baking pan with the spray. I put the graham crackers, sugar and cinnamon in the food processor and let it rip. When I had fine crumbs I add the butter and pulsed. Press evenly onto the bottom of the pan. Bake about 10 minutes.
Filling:
3 8 oz packages Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
1 C sugar
3 large eggs
½ C purchased dulce de leche (HA, HA)
2 t vanilla extract
Blend cream cheeps and sugar in processor until smooth and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time and process about 3-5 minutes between additions. Scrape down the sides. Add the dulce and vanilla and blend about 10 seconds. Spread batter over cooled crust. Bake until just set in center and the edges are puffed and slightly cracked about 38 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool completely.
Glaze:
2/3 C dulce de leche
3T heavy whipping cream
Fleur de sel
Blend the cream and dulce. Mine was still warm, but they suggest using the microwave to blend if it is not. Poor over the cooled cheese cake and spread evenly. Sprinkle with the Fleur de sel. Refrigerate until chilled, about an hour. The glaze will not be firm.
Can be made up to 2 days before, which I did. I did not believe the 24 servings, but it is very rich, so believe it. This would be a very good dessert to make for a large party.
Don’t look for Monday we had leftovers.
Here is my painting that I donated.  This is before matting and framing.