Steaks on the Barbie

Does anything scream summer more than steaks on the grill?

I love entertaining at my house anytime of year, but summer is fabulous. There is no chance of snow (the worse that would happen is that we have to retreat indoors from the mosquitos); the yard looks terrific with all the flowers blooming (we have had a lot of rain this year); the kids can run around the yard exploring the flowers and bugs (There was much excitement over a Monarch butterfly) and the parents can relax with a glass of wine and catch up.

The theme for dinner this time was herbs. (You know I have a weakness for themed dinners.)

Tomato basil bruschetta
Grilled mini pizzas with choice of toppings.
Ribeye with Chimichurri sauce
Parsleyed new potatoes
Cesear salad.
Homemade vanilla bean and mango ice cream

Yum.

The importance of guests

I LOVE entertaining. Yes, I like to cook and entertaining gives me an excuse to do it; but more importantly are the guests. If the food is bad, you can manage around it if you have to, if the guests are boring, you are sunk. I invite people that are charming, witty, well-traveled, well-read, adventurous, playful, good storytellers and good friends. Parties at my house are frequent and some are annual events. There often is hilarity and sometimes singing and dancing far into the night. Occasionally there is sitting around the firepit with burnt marshmallows being pulled off sticks to be sandwiched between a piece of chocolate and graham crackers.

Once in a while visiting friends of friends get roped into the fun. This has happened a few times. This past weekend Michael and David were here. I met them years ago at a mystery dinner. They were as engaging as I remembered.


Menu
Deviled eggs (brought by a guest)
Pigs in a blanket
Pear martinis

The most amazing homemade mushroom soup (brought by a different guest)
Artichokes steamed in chicken broth with white wine and fresh herbs (same guest as the soup)
White wine

Marineated bison steak
Roasted corn on the cob
Potato salad
Green Salad with fresh herbs
Red wine

Strawberry Rhubarb pie with strawberry ice cream
French-pressed Coffee

Thank you all for entertaining me. The flowers are still lovely and the kitchen is finally clean.

I love Easter.

I love that the Hyacinths, opening in the warmth of the house, fills each room all the way to the basement with the smell of spring.

I love the little wicker baskets stuffed with wisps of green cellophane grass and foiled-covered treats.

I love sharing my table with my loved ones at this first feast of the barely budding new season. 

 
I love the bright plastic eggs lovingly stashed in the crevices of rock walls by the Easter Bunny.

I love the ham, Au Gratin potatoes and asparagus with Hollandaise that we eat every year without fail.



I love the set of springtime dishes that grace the table with their gold rims and flights of butterflies, dragonflies and other winged things.

I love that there are 2 little people that look forward to coming to my house for Easter and start to pester their parents months in advance.

I love that this is the day that we celebrate our faith. Without the crucifixion and resurrection we would not be Christians.

I leave you on this Easter Sunday with my Aunt Evelyn’s recipe for Herb Rolls. She made them for every holiday when I was growing up.

1 pkg dry yeast
3 ½ C. flour
2 tsps. celery seed
¼ tsp. sage
1 tsp. parsley
1 ¼ C. milk
¼ C. shortening
¼ C. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 egg

In a bowl mix together the yeast, 1 ½ C. flour, and the herbs. Heat together the milk, shortening, sugar and salt until just warm (not too hot), stir to melt the shortening. Stir wet into dry. Add the egg and beat at low speed for 1 minute, then move to high speed for 3 minutes, scraping the bowl constantly. By hand, stir in enough flour to make a stiff dough. Grease a large bowl. Put in the dough, turning it over to grease all sides. Chill 2 hours covered with a damp cloth. (Don’t do it overnight, the dough grows too much in the fridge and oozes out of the bowl, then does not rise well when cooked. Been there, did that.) Pinch off a piece of the dough and roll it in the palm of your hand to make a 1 ½” ball. Put 3 dough balls in each opening of a greased muffin pan. Let rise about an hour until doubled in size. Bake at 400F for 12-15 minutes. Makes about 18 rolls. These can be made the day before and put hot into aluminum foil, sealed tight and refrigerated. Pop the unopened foil package into the oven, after the potatoes come out, for about 15 minutes. Set out the butter lamb to soften at the same time. One of my favorite things. I love these. Enjoy.

Perfect End-of-Winter Fare

While most of my friends are adventurous eaters, thank God, I still have requests for “regular” food now and then. (Picture eye rolling and head shaking at requests for regular food). As a result of my outside the box cooking (it happens when you take classes at the CIA), I haven’t made braciole for years. (I don’t know that I have ever made it in this house.) I saw a package of the beef at the store weeks ago and it triggered a memory of dinners past with friends. When a spontaneous dinner party came together yesterday, I immediately thought of browned beef with a lovely turkey cheese stuffing wallowing in a thick brown wine sauce with creamy risotto with mozzarella and parm accompanied by asparagus with mushrooms. Perfect end-of-winter fare. And to bring a touch of spring, fresh strawberries with zabaglione.

I do not stuff my braciole and instead of pork filling I use ground turkey. Let me give you the Robertsonian method.

Buy the cut of meat called braciole at the local market. It is large very thin slices of beef. Prepare the stuffing with a package of ground turkey, a handful of Parmesan cheese-about 4 Tbs, another handful of chopped parsley, 4 cloves of chopped garlic, S&P and 2 eggs. Mix it together and then spread it on the slices of beef. Roll the slices up and tie them with kitchen string. Coat the bundles with flour and brown them in 2 Tbs of butter and 2 Tbs of olive oil—more or less depending on how many braciole you are making. When they are browned nicely, pour in ½ a bottle of white wine and scrape up any brown bits. Cook them for about an hour. Take out the bundles and thin or thicken the sauce as needed. Put the braciole on a platter then pour the sauce over them and put any extra in a gravy boat. Enjoy!

Halloween Howl

My family has a tradition of throwing Mystery Dinners. No. There isn't any murder.

How it works is that after the guests are seated, they are given a menu from which they have to select 4 courses of 4 items each. Included in the selection is the first course, main course, dessert AND the utensils and napkin. If you end up with the soup, a knife, an olive and a piece of pie, oh well. You do not get another course until you have finished the first one. It has led to much buffoonery and hysterics.

I give you a Halloween Howl Mystery Dinner.
Elphaba’s Ride
Died So Young
Crusty Shroud
Stained Harvest
Bleeding Ground Dweller
Mummy Remnant
Zombie Snack
Poltergeist Musical Instrument
Ripper’s Victims
Every Devil has one
Terrifying Tidbit
Mold in the Making
Cauldron’s contents
From the Grave
Full Moon Rain
Mackie’s Back

Come to the Kasbah

Once a year I have a big blowout party. The build-up goes on for months. By sometime in May people will start to subtly inquire. As time progresses and I decide on what I am doing. The first thing everyone says is “What’s the theme?” I always have a theme.
Last year it was Caribbean.

This year it was “Come to the Kasbah” A Moroccan BBQ.

Visualize with me—At the top of the driveway in the backyard, there is a copse of trees that is roughly circular. (My friend Louise came up the day before the party to help cook and decorate.) We tied maroon sheers to the trees to create the allusion of a tent. We used lots of brightly colored linens, maroon pillows on the chairs and a dhurrie rug. There were candles on all the tables and hanging from the trees. It was a magical setting.

The Menu was the following:
Meze
Various olives
Moroccan flavored shrimp and pineapple skewers
Fennel and black olive salad
Beet and cumin salad
Tomato and preserved lemon salad
Spicy Humus

Main course
A vegetable couscous
Garlic Beef skewers
Monkfish skewers with charmoula
Tagine of onions
Tagine of chicken with preserved lemons
Carrot raisin salad

Dessert
Almond snake
Rice Pudding
Ghoriba cookies
Cinnamon cookies

The most requested recipes were the chicken tagine and the carrot salad.

I encourage to try something different next time you have a party.