Last Week France, this week Indiana

On our next adventure we headed to Bayeux to see the tapestries. These tapestries are the story from which the Pillars of the Earth book is based on. It was so interesting and I could follow the story better having read the book. We had lunch in lovely sidewalk café. I had an excellent Salad Nicoise. Jim had Andouillette. According to my menu translation book this means sausage. We saw a sausage looking thing in the market with this name, but every time Jim tries to order it, they tell him it is tripe. Today he said he wanted to try it. It looked like a cooked sausage, but was indeed tripe rolled up and cooked. It had a very strong taste. After lunch we took the little train through town and then Jim went to a wine store to buy Calvados. I bought a few gifts in the store. On the way to the car, we stopped in a café that had desserts. I had tea and a chocolate éclair. Jim had coffee and a very beautiful chocolate coated cake. It was fun and different for us to have dessert in the middle of the afternoon. We drove back to Caen and figured out how to get to a great Bistro area that we were told about at the hotel. One of the day clerks was from Chicago and went to France to teach English to French people. She stayed. This walking street of restaurants is by William the Conqueror’s palace. We parked there and walked across the street. We had an excellent dinner in La Poternse. I had oysters followed by Dover Sole. It was so fresh and tasty. Jim had really good French Onion Soup, sea bass with saffron, bacon risotto. He followed this with salad and a cheese course. This is where we had the wonderful white Bordeaux. I had Calvados for dessert. This is our last night in Normandy. I love Normandy. I think it is my favorite part of France. I want to come here again.
I am now in IN and ate lunch in my favorite Hobart restaurant, Bistro 54 I had a perfectly cooked Brat and the most delicious potato salad. Hopefully the owner, also named Linda will read this and send us the entire recipe. Unfortunately he did not have his delicious cucumber margarita, but he makes a wonderful Cosmo.
I forgot to add a photo.  This was our mid afternoon pastry stop. 

Normandy and the beaches of D-Day

Going to the WWII museum was only half the tour. Today was the day to visit the beaches and other activities. We started in St. Mere Eglise. They have a large 82, 101 Airbore Museum. Thi is where my Uncle Leo came in on D Day. We toured this and then left for Utah Beach. We had lunch at the Café Roosevelt. If possible we had even better Mussels and frites. Some were so fresh from the sea they had baby crabs in them. It kind of freaked me out. The beach was very calm with memorials. We drove from Utah beach to the Ranger Memorial and saw where President Reagan spoke and my friend Barbara’s father sat on the platform with him. He was one of the surviving rangers. Then onto Omaha beach. It is just a beach now, very calm and peaceful. There are now lovely cottages across the street overlooking the sea. We then visited the reinterred US Cemetery. The original cemetery was make shift and with wooden crosses which is probably why so many of the current graves are marked unknown. President Roosevelt’s brother is buried here. Sitting there I could only imagine and feel for the many parents and wives who were never able to see where their sons were buried. They played taps and lowered the flag as we left.
Having not learned yet, we drove to a Chateau that Patria Wells had recommended for dinner. It probably was someone’s country house at one time, and is now a hotel and restaurant. It was a gloomy day and with the evening approaching, it looked like a place you would enter and never be seen again. We returned to Caen. I was having a real time with walking so we returned to Le Grillon. This time I started with a Norman Salad. It really had nothing to do with salad. One leaf of lettuce, r tomato wedges, 2 huge pieces of cheese and four types of lunchmeat. I followed this with their tandori chicken. I had seen this amazing contraption delivered to other tables and figured rightly this was the dish. The skewer was held high on a hook over the plate. The frites were in a cone shaped ceramic dish also suspended along with a dish of sauce. There was finally real salad on the plate. The skewer had chicken, peppers, onions and mushrooms. The frites were dreadful and the chicken was over cooked, but I was more than full from the Normandy Salad and with this dish I finally got a real salad. Jim had the same scallop and mushroom pate, duck with orange sauce and the same apple tart. I had the largest floating island dessert you have ever seen in your life. The crème Anglese was the best I have ever tasted. I talked him into vin rouge. He liked the price, but had to get used to the wine.
Tonight’s photo was taken in the Omaha beach area in tribute all the brave men and women who stormed those beaches and continue to this day to protect our freedom.
Dinner is going to be simple tonight, busy, busy, busy. We are having salmon burgers from Costco with great tomatoes from the farmers market. We will have a salad of arugula with the light dressing from the chicken dish we had the other night that Jim pronounced boring.

Vegetarian Lasagne and Mont Saint Michel

It is the day after my birthday and we are on our way to Mont Saint Michel. This is a site I have wanted to see since freshman art history class. It did not disappoint. My walking was not so good this day and I took my cane. When the parking people saw me walking they made Jim go get the car and directed us to the front of the lot. I thought they were extremely kind. I told Jim that I wanted to eat at La Mere Poulard and as luck would have it, it was right inside the entrance. We made a reservation and started exploring. The streets are lined with merchants and I found wonderful items. We headed back down for a wonderful omelet lunch. Mere Poulard was the inventor of the omelet as it was necessary to have a meal ready in an instant for the pilgrims coming to the Mount when coming and going was subject to the tides. I started with oysters on the half shell. They were served with a wonderful light vinegar and onion sauce and lemon. My omelet was huge and I chose bacon and potato as an accompaniment. This came is a small red le Creuset pot. Jim started with Normandy clam soup. He chose smoked salmon and potato for his omelet. He also had a second omelet for dessert with apples and caramel sauce. It was flamed and tasted like heaven. I chose not to have dessert, but I did get to taste. I believe this is where Jim chose White Bordeaux. It was wonderful. These omelets are large and fluffy. Not heavy or tough like we sometimes get. It is worth the trip, if for the omelets alone. We definitely walked off lunch. The climb to the monastery is a long way up. When you finally reach the point of ticketing and audio guides you still have a long climb to go. While waiting for Jim to get the tickets I saw many a person give up and go back down. The inside of the chapel here is my favorite of all the famous churches in Europe. As it was built for a monastic order it is very simple. But it is a very elegant simplicity. We had a great visit and stopped for wine and beer before leaving chosing a café with a water view. Hint to visitors. Never order vin White. The white vin ordinare in France does not live up to vin rouge. We finally had to head back. On the way Jim started falling asleep while driving. I convinced him to pull off to have some coffee. We stopped at a genuine French truck stop. Jim ordered coffee and ftites. Throughout Normandy when you order pomme frites they answer chips. They are used to the British tourist. I ordered vin rouge. These were the best French fries in all of France. Also note to coffee drinkers. The difference between Espresso and American coffee is 1 tablespoon of water and a wide cup.
For dinner we walked a little farther down the street to La Planche. It was very sleek looking, but the food was just ok. I ordered a seafood salad. It came with shrimp, pate, duck, salmon and crawfish. Lettuce was just a decoration. Jim had a steak with Béarnaise sauce, frites, twice baked potato, and a small serving of zucchini and tomato. He was thrilled, two potatoes and small vegetable. La Planche considers themselves a restaurant not a Brasserie. Today’s photo is of them making the omelets in the kitchen of La Mere Poulard.
Tonight’s recipe comes from A Year of Slow Cooking blog site. It is called:
Slow Cooker Pesto Spinach Lasagna. Serves 8
I made the whole thing as you can freeze left over lasagna for a later meal.
Ingredients
1 (26oz) jar prepared pasta sauce; I used a 24 oz jar of tomato basil sauce from Wegmans
1 (10 oz.) box lasagna noodles
1 (11 oz.) container pesto I used all that I made earlier this summer and froze
1 (15 oz.) container ricotta cheese, don’t know where these measurements come from as ours is 16 oz.
1 C grated Parmesan cheese
16 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
¼ C water
Directions
Use a 4 qt. slow cooker. Put a spoonful of pasta sauce into the bottom of your cooker and swirl it around. Add a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles. They have to be broken to fit. Mix the ricotta and pesto together and smear some on top of the noodles. Add a couple handfuls of spinach and top with a layer of Parmesan and mozzarella. Repeat layers until you’ve run out of ingredients. The spinach is fluffy, so you’re going to have to squish it down to make it all fit.
Before closing the pot, put ¼ C of water in the empty pasta sauce jar and close and shake. Pour this saucy water over the top of everything.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or high for about 3-4. You’ll know it’s done when the top layer begins to brown and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Uncover and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
This was very good vegetable lasagna. We had plenty leftover to freeze for future meals. If I had been thinking, I would have added eggplant. But it was good as is.

Sunday Dinner and my Birthday in France

Ok, it is 2:30 PM we have been at the WWII Museum since 10:30 AM. I collapsed and demanded wine. They only had beer in the snack area and the lunchroom was closed. I had a beer and reminded Jim that it was my birthday. He had forgotten, said he lost track of the days. We then went to the movie and left to see William the Conqueror’s Palace. Did you know that he was William the Bastard before he conquered England? We then returned to the hotel and went next door to the Coca Cola brazzerie for a drink. I had an Americano followed by a carafe of vin rouge. The restaurants actual name is Le Grillon. We stayed for dinner but moved indoors as it was getting too cool outside. We had the 3 course dinner. I had pate, steak with frites and a cheese course. Jim had scallop, mushroom pate and lamb. He had an apple tart for dessert. We had a good bottle of wine. After dinner I had Calvados and Jim had scotch. Attached is a photo of William the Conqueror’s Palace.
Tonight’s dinner was Grilled Chicken and Peach Kebab Salad serves 8, but I cut in half

Dressing
2 t Dijon mustard
¼ C mayonnaises
1 C plain low-fat yogurt
2 t minced garlic
¼ C chopped chives
1 t each kosher salt anf pepper
Kebabs
2# boned, skinned chicken breasts halves, cut in 1” chunks
3 large peeled peaches (about 2#), each cut into 8 wedges No peaches available, I used Asian Pears
10 oz. baby arugula
¼ C thinly sliced red onion
½ C flat-leaf parsley leaves
1. Make dressing. Whish ingredients together in a small bowl.
2. Marinate chicken. Put meat and ½ C dressing in a medium bowl, let sit 30 Min. Add enough water (2-4 T) to the rest of the dressing to thin slightly, and then chill. Prepare a grill for medium heat.
3. Assemble kebabs. Thread 1 peach wedge and 2 chicken chunks onto a skewer. Repeat, and then add a final peach wedge. Thread remaining skewers the same way.
4. Cook meat: Oil cooking grate, using tongs and wad of oiled paper towels. Grill kebabs, covered, until browned and chicken is cooked through, about 12 minutes, turning once with a spatula.
5. Make salad: Arrange arugula on plates and sprinkle with onion and parsley. Lay a kebab nest to each salad and serve with remaining dressing.
I thought this was very good.  Jim thought it was boring.  I can understand based on the dinneres in France.  However worth making and good for you.  It would also be better with peaches, but they are not in the market at this time.  I love pears, Jim does not. 

Friday Dinner and more of Normandy

After breakfast we left for the coast of Normandy and our next destination city of Caen. I read in a Patricia Wells book that the coast between Horfleur and Trouville-sur-mer was beautiful. Horfleur was a zoo. People and cars everywhere and immense traffic jams. There was a 16th century wooden church I wanted to see. I got to look fast as Jim wanted out of there. We found our way to the D513 thanks to Garmin and were on our way. The coast line was probably better in former years without the new high walled McMansions along the sea wall. Trouville-sur mer was a little less crowded and we found a place to park in the Casino parking lot. We chose an outdoor café with a view of the sea and the Casino and had pizza. A little known fact is that the French make the best pizza in the world. This did not disappoint. We chose a carafe of Rose knowing that the French are leading the fight to have only true Rose allowed to be labeled as such. Here a mixture of red and white wine can be labeled Rose. We tried to get inside the Casino to look at the building but you had to be French or part of the European Union to get in. Apparently they are more interested in gamblers than tose wanting to see the architecture. It looked like it could have been an old palace,
We then headed to Beuvran en Auge. It was supposed to be a charming town. It looked like a Disney town. We had driven through more charm than displayed here. (I have subsequently thrown Patricia Wells travel books away.) We drove on to Caen and checked into our hotel and took a nap. It was Sunday night and many places were closed. Jim chose a place called The Tavern. We started with Escargot. It was good. I wasn’t very hungry and decided on French onion soup. Jim had chicken and fries. We both agreed this food was almost on par with that served by United Airlines. I could not even eat the soup. We then went to the Coca Cola Café by the hotel and I had an Americano and Jim had a beer. An Americano is what we call Campari and Soda with a slice of orange and lemon peel. That and a green drink which is just crème de Mint and Perrier are seen everywhere.
For today’s photo I have chosen the Normany Cow. These cows were everywhere and have such a grumpy stare they are funny.
This will be posted on Sunday but was actually Friday dinner. We had grilled chicken that I marinated in Wegmans’ Brown Sugar BBQ sauce. It was delicious. I stir-fried a package of green and wax beans with carrots. I served the following recipe from the Washington Post with it.
Rice Pilaf with Chickpeas and Lemon serves 6-8. (I cut it in half)
Ingredients
2 t EVOO
1 medium sweet onion, such as Vidalia or Maui, cut into 1/4 “ dice, (1C)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 C raw basmati rice
1 ¾ C cooked chickpeas
2 C low-sodium chicken broth
Finely grated zest and jucie from 1 lemon (it zest and 2 T of juice)
Leaves from ¼ bunch parsley finely chopped (1/4C)
Steps
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
• Heat the oil in a 3 QT. oven proof pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and salt and pepper to taste; cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring until the onion is softened but not browned. Add the rice, chickpeas and broth. Do not drain the chickpeas if using canned. Stir to incorporate. Bring the liquid to a boil , then cover and transfer to the oven.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked through. Let it sit, covered, for 10 min.
• Transfer the rice to a large bowl; mix in the lemon zest and juice and the parsley, Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.
This rice was very good. I think it is the best I have ever made and went really well with the chicken. On Saturday I took a course at the Smithsonian called, An Introduction to Food Writing. In the afternoon there was a panel and on it was the Editor of the Food Section of the Post. She said that every recipe is tested by 7 testers before it is printed, no matter who submits the recipe. It must be while they always work.

Truely French Soup

Rouen in the north of France is a delightful town. The city was virtually destroyed during WWII. Even the cathedral that Monet painted at the different times of day was almost destroyed. They have been rebuilding and have almost completed it. There are some of the old timber houses left, but basically it has wide streets and is very clean. In all towns in France they white trains that are their tour “buses.” We took the white train and saw the sights. After the tour, we went back to the area where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake for lunch of mussels and fries at Taverne Bovarois. Jim ordered a bottle of muscadet to go with them. They were delicious. We walked back to the cathedral area and sat in a café drinking vin rouge and people (dog) watching. The French have the best behaved dogs in the world. They all walk beside their masters on a slack leach and go straight under the table when they sit down.  No begging!
That evening we went to a restaurant called Gill. The chef is named Gilles and he is supposedly the best chef in all of Normandy. The restaurant was very elegant and they actually had small square downlight in the ceiling. The interior was a soft gray and white. Prior to the first course we were serves 2 small spoons each. One had meat pate and the other I believe was a fish moose with something red that was sweet. My first course was a ginger consume, jelled with shrimp slices and topped with an oyster mouse and shredded cabbage. This was served with a seaweed broth. I’d have to say that it was difficult to eat and weird. Jim had a crab and fennel salad that had a very truffle taste. It came with a large round dried tomato set decoratively on top, great presentation. We had a second “amuse” in a small narrow glass with lobster consume and oyster moose on top. For my main course I had sweetbreads set on top of a wonderful collection of peas, thin green beans, snow peas, asparagus and a decorative pave of pea moose. Jim had sea bass with Cepe mushrooms. Cepe mushrooms are in season in September. Jim said they were the best mushrooms he has ever tasted. We had a 2002 Sancerre with dinner. We then had an “amuse” of dessert, a small oval glass dish with lemon and rice pudding with a coffee mouse on top. This was followed with a plate of cookies, tarts and something that looked like a ba-ba-a-rum only with apple cider. I was too full, but Jim ordered an apple soufflé for desert. It had a paper thin apple baked on the top. Instead of dessert I had a 1984 Calvados. If there was a Zagat for Normandy this restaurant would be in the VE for cost. I am undecided whether it would definitely rate a very good, but not an excellent. He also owns a Bistro called Gill cote bistro. I think I would try this next time. Today’s photo is where Joan of Arc was burned at the steak.
Dinner tonight is from La Mere Poulard’s Cookbook that I bought in France. Meres Cuisinieres means the most talented women Chef. Paul Bocuse says, “La Mere Poulard is France.” This soup is so French. Although Jim ate the whole pot, I see it more as a first course for 6. I also served an artichoke.
Creamy Mussel and Celery Soup
4# mussels
1 Bouquet Garni (parsley, bay leaf and thyme)
3 celery stalks, thinly sliced
1.5 oz whole grain rice
1 QT. milk
3.5 oz dry white wine
16 oz. heavy cream
1 bunch parsley
Freshly ground pepper
• Heat the mussels in a pan with the white wine and bouquet garni. Shake the pan until the mussels open and then remove from the heat. Remove the mussels from their shell and set to one side. Strain the liquid through a colander and keep the liquid.
• Pour the mussel liquid and milk into a pa. Add the celery and rice and cook on a low heat for 30 minutes. Once cooked, blend the soup and stain it through a fine sieve.
• Put the mussels in the bottom of the bowls and pour the creamy cleley soup on top.
• Garnish with chopped parsley and a twist of freshly ground pepper.
(Note: This soup does not need any salt, as the mussels already contain a sufficient amount to season this creamy soup.)
Between the whole milk and heavy cream we would not want to eat this every day, but it is a true treat.

Back from France

I’m back having spent a wonderful 13 days in France. It was a present from Jim for my birthday. We concentrated on the Normandy region this time. We’ve never been to this section of France and I wanted to see Mont Saint Michel. Jim was interested in the D-Day beaches. When I read Patricia Well’s book on France about this region, she was very negative about the food. She couldn’t have been more wrong. The seafood in this area was so fresh it smelled like the ocean. Moules and Ftites were everywhere.
Our first day was a little energetic. We landed at 12:30 PM our time which was 6:30 AM in France. We got very little sleep on the plane. I would also like to add that United served the worst food I have ever tasted in my life on the plane over. It took hours to get through customs and get the car. We hooked up the Garmin and off we went to Giverny. What an adventure. We were not real sure how to use it as it worked a little different than the GPS in the car. We were on roads no wider than a cow path. Jim was driving a stick shift for the first time in years. I alternated between screams and laughter all the way. Giverny is where Monet lived and had his famous water lily gardens. The gardens were amazing. Julia Child would have given her right arm for the stove in the kitchen. After lunch in Musee des Impressionnismes, we drove on to Rouen. I had quiche and a salad. I did not like the quiche as it had a smoky taste. Jim loved his duck. After checking into the hotel and taking a nap, we went in search of dinner. We found a Brasserie next to the Cathedral with lovely wicker chairs and yellow umbrellas, Brasserie de Lestre. The meal we were served here was not only supersized, it was delicious. Jim had beef and lamb shish-k-bob. It came with both pommes frites and a baked potato. He was in seventh heaven. I ordered Couque Madame, a lovely ham and cheese sandwich, grilled with “bacon” on top of the egg. The bacon is like nothing I have ever tasted. It was more like prosciutto but had more marbling. It was the best I have ever tasted. I also had a ton of frites. Jim ordered a bottle of red and we followed this with a carafe of rouge.
Sidewalk eating in France is everywhere and we really enjoyed it except, you are no longer allowed to smoke inside anywhere in France, so all the smokers are in the sidewalk cafes. I plan to write a little each night over the next weeks about the pleasures of dining in France.
Tonight’s meal:
Wide Noodles with Broccolini, Feta, Lemon and Pine Nuts from the Washington Post who credits it from a new book by Tom Hudgens called The Commonsense Kitchen.
Ingredients:
Kosher salt
8 oz dried wide egg noodles
½ C pine nuts, toasted
½ lemon
12 oz Broccolini
1 or 2 pinches crushed red pepper flakes
2 t EVOO
Black pepper
4 oz. block feta cheese (do not use crumbled)
Steps:
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the noodles and cook according to the package directions.
• Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a small dry skillet over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, until lightly browned, shaking them often to keep from burning. Cool.
• Use a microplane grater to yield ½ t lemon zest. Cut the Broccolini in to small pieces.
• When the pasta is almost done, add the Broccolini and cook just long enough to blanch, no more than 4 minutes. Drain and reserve at least ¼ inch of water in the bottom of the pot.
• Transfer the pasta and Broccolini to a wide, shallow serving bowl. Add the pine nuts, lemon zest, crushed red pepper flakes to taste and 1 t of EVOO. Season with black pepper.
• Add half of the feta cheese crumbling it in your fingers as you work, then toss to incorporate. Crumble the remaining feta over the top, then drizzle with the remaining oil. Serve immediately.
Serves 4, 460 calories per serving and ready in 20 minutes.
This recipe is delicious and just the kind of pasta that Jim likes, no tomato sauce. We bought some inexpensive wines at Wegman’s today and just finished up with one I was drinking while cooking.
Following is Monet's water lilly garden. 

Bon Appetite!

Last of eating our of our freezer

We are still eating out of the freezer. Tonight Jim grilled the pork sliders with Viansa Citrus Blend mixed in the meat. We used whole wheat buns and Giants sugar freeSsalsa on top. They were delicious. Jim picked the last of our green beans today and I stir fried with a scant tsp of EVOO, fennel and zucchini. I mixed in some Penzeys Creamy Peppercorn Dressing Base and a little salt. The vegetables were really good.  As bad as the meals have been the wine is still good.  Viansa 2006 Merlot. 

Labor Day and the Day After

Yesterday was Labor Day. I labored, by doing the wash while Jim played golf with Mike and Linda. I have been in a lot of pain and did not want to add to it. Jim came home and we went to their house for dinner. I brought a great goat cheese and fresh salsa from Giant. Gieant makes it completely fresh and no sugar added. It was excellent. My chiropractor turned me on to it.  She was looking for something easy that they could eat in quanity without gaining weight.  All loved the cheese, but unfortunately, I threw the wrapper in the trash before I remembered the name. Have to go look at Wegmans again to see what I bought. I do know it was a goat cheese with ash. For dinner we had steaks on the grille and also grilled veggies. Mike did very good pan fried potatoes. We had dessert wine that we bought on our trip to Richmond a week ago with a delicious chocolate cake; really great Labor Day.
Today started earlier than I like to arise, but finally was able to get a rheumatologist appointment. When Jim and I went to NYC for our anniversary and I was not able to shop, that did it. I think he enjoyed that I could not shop, but I did not. Today’s visit seems hopeful.
As I had to get up earlier than I ever arise, we again ate out of the freezer. I speed cooked salmon with Penzeys Trinidad seasoning. We had left over soba noodle and veggies. I also made a salad with lettuce, peas sprouts, tomatoes and cucumber. Not too Gourmet, but good and Jim was happy. Off to bed

Cold Soba Salad with Crisp Vegetables

This dish is from the September issue of Sunset Magazine.  Jim did not die of vegetable poising, but I had to get some hot dogs out so he could survive. Actually this meal, if you have to have meat, would be really good with grilled salmon.
8oz. dried soba noodles
¼ C reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 T Mirin
1 T unseasoned rice vinegar
½ t toasted sesame oil
1 t sugar
1 English cucumber, halved and sliced
1 medium carrot, cut into 2” matchsticks (mine were small so I used 2)
1 chunk daikon (about 6 oz) Cut into 2” matchsticks
1 each red and yellow bell pepper, halved and sliced thinly
4 green onions, sliced diagonally
1. Cook soba as package directions, 3 minutes, drained, cooled, and pat dry with towels. (I just drained.)However I had # 2 ready and the veggies chopped)
2. Mix soy sauce, Mirin, vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar in a small bowl.
3. Combine noodles and vegetables in a large serving bowl. Pour half the dressing over noodles, tossing well to coat. Serve with remaining dressing on the side.
I poured all the dressing on the noodles and then put in the veggies. Next I mixed and mixed to combine.
This is really good. I enjoyed and was filled on the noodle/veggie dish. Jim was grateful for the hot dogs.

Omlets in the AM and Sauce for Future Dining

Last night we went to dinner at the club again. They are still doing half price wine. While Jim was deciding what to have for dinner he asked what we were having tonight. I answered cold soba noodles with vegetables. I got such a look and he ordered steak. I ordered mushroom ravioli. I think the ravioli was purchased; the sauce was horrible.


This am I made mushroom cheese omelets. (Don’t want Jim to die from too many vegetables today.) I cooked the mushrooms after the bacon and before starting the omelets. Per Julia, I put a T of butter in the skillet and whisked two eggs. Keep shaking the pan thrusting to the outside edge away from the handle. Toward the end add the shredded cheese. Today I used Monterey Jack. They were light and fluffy and came out perfect. I then topped with the mushrooms.

Speaking of sauce I made a second batch of basil tomato sauce to store for quick winter meals. My basil was big again. I changed the recipe a little from that I made at the beginning of July. I was reading Wegmans Menu magazine and they had a similar sauce. It differed from the one in July as it only had 2T of EVOO instead of 1/4C, but finished by adding 2T of butter. It started with 6 cloves of garlic and ½ C minced onions instead of just 5 garlic cloves. The one in July also cooked the chopped basil from the beginning with the garlic. This added at the end and only cooked the basil 5 minutes. This sauce has a more pungent basil smell. I am now cooling it to package for winter.

Surf and Garden Quesadillas with Avocado Salad

Good meal tonight. It comes from the September Sunset magazine. Sunset also owns Cooking Light. I noticed about 2 years ago that the recipes I enjoyed the most in Cooking Light were also in Sunset. Plus I did not have to wade through 135 pages of stuff I was not interested in to get to the first recipe.
Quesadillas
¾ # peeled, deveined shrimp. tails removed
3 garlic cloves
½ t each, course sea salt, ground cumin, and paprika
¼ t each pepper and cayenne
1 T each, OJ and EVOO
1 ½ C 5 oz shredded sharp cheddar or jack cheese. I mixed both
4 large, 9-10” flour tortillas, I used whole wheat
3/4 # zucchini, coarsely shredded
¾ C fresh corn kernels, I thawed frozen
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Salad
2 firm ripe avocados, sliced
2 large heirloom tomatoes cut into wedges
¼ C thinly sliced yellow onion
2 T chopped cilantro (I skipped as I do not like it)
1 T EVOO
3 T lime juice
½ t salt and pepper
I did not exactly follow the sequence as I thought cooking everything first and then making the salad would result in cold quesadillas.
So first I made the salad first which was very easy. Slice the tomatoes, avocado and onion and place in a bowl. Next I mixed the remaining ingredients and pored over and stirred. Cover with wrap and placed in the refrigerator while I prepared the rest.
Next toss the shrimp with the garlic, salt, spices, OJ and EVOO. Place by a grille pan on the stove.
I next took the tortillas and placed them on wax paper on the counter. I grated the zucchini on wax paper. Cut the scallions and placed on wax paper. I had previously measured out the corn and thawed it. Next I measured out the cheese by weight.
Assembly
Place half the cheese on ½ of the tortilla. Top with all the veggies and then top with the other half of the cheese. Grille the shrimp for a total of 3 minutes in the grille pan that has been heated to 450 degrees. After cooking the shrimp, chop them. Divide among the tortillas and turn the one half of the tortilla over the other half with all the veggies, cheese and chopped shrimp.
One at a time, grill the tortillas on each side for 2 minutes on medium low. You are only melting the cheese and making grill marks on the tortillas. As you finish each, place on a cutting board and cut in thirds.
Serve with the salad. We really liked this meal. Jim served a Rosenblum Santa Barbara County Roussanne from Fess Parker Vineyard. I have to say this was a fabulous wine.

Steak, sweet potatoes and aspargus

We are still eating out of our freezer. I had two Omaha Steaks. Jim grilled them for a total of 7 minutes. I probably would have liked 6. I speed baked a very large sweet potato that we split and served the steaks with Wegmans premade Béarnaise sauce. We also put some on our asparagus. This is Jim’s favorite meal. I could serve this to him every night of the week and he’d be a happy camper with very high cloistral. So, I keep him alive with veggie meals and every now and then give him a treat.
Back when I was in fig mode I made Spiced Figs. I served them tonight with pistachio ice cream for dessert. They are the first thing I have made out of that Silver Spoon Cookbook that have been good and turned out as expected.
Spiced Figs
½ t ground cinnamon
½ t ground coriander
2 cloves
1/2 t ground ginger
½ C superfine sugar
Rind of 1 orange, thinly pared and cut into strips
12 ripe figs
Put the spices, sugar and orange rind in a pan, add 2 ¼ C water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minute, then add the figs and simmer for 5 minutes more. Do not let the syrup boil. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool. Drain the figs, reserving the syrup, and put them in a dish. Bring the syrup back to a boil and cook over medium heat until reduced by half, then pour over the figs. Let cool completely.
Jim served an Italian wine. Cantine Antonio Caggiano, Taurasi, 2002, Vigna, Macchia Dei Goti. He has no idea where he got it, but it was wonderful. I highly recommend it.

Salade Nicoise, Linda style

I was looking through salad books as it is again hot as hell here. I came across a Salade Nicoise. I made up my own based on ingredients in a cookbook calleed Salads by Elsa Petersen-Schepelern.  Following are the ingredients I used.
Romaine lettuce
Crunchy Sprouts
Jalapeno preserved eggs, quartered
Green beans, cooked and cooled
Cherry tomatoes, halved
½ each of a red and yellow pepper cut in thin strips
Small red potatoes, cooked, cooled and cut in half
Olives
Capers
Pea shoots
Small cucumbers, sliced on the diagonal.
I served Fat Free Lime Basil Dressing from Maple Graves Farm in Vermont. It is very pungent, flavorful; you need very little dressing.
Instead of tuna, I used salmon that was grilled in cedar grilling papers from Williams Sonoma. I seasoned them with Penzeys Trinidad spice. Jim cooked for 7 minutes on medium high.
Jim served with a 2007 Reserve Chardonnay from Viansa.
Dinner was very filling. Jim thought there were way to many vegetables. I loved it.