Second Blooming

The Feast 2014

This year was our sixth Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes with this enthusiastic and stalwart group of friends...

Strangely good picture, considering the photographer was a 12-year old.

and these, their children...

Strangely less-good picture, considering the photographer was a 40-something year old.

 I love these people not just because they are lovely, smart, generous, and fun, and therefore excellent company, but also because they are...good eaters. Yep. No picky eaters in this group. They "ooo" and "aaah" over everything I serve, and gobble it all up.

For those of you who are uninitiated in the ways of the Feast of the Seven Fishes, a quick lesson...

The Feast of the Seven Fishes is the Italian-American celebration of Christmas Eve. According to the internets: "The long tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve dates from the Roman Catholic tradition of abstinence." We're supposed to be fasting on the eve of a holy day (Christmas) by not eating meat, only fish. Just like eating fish on Fridays during Lent. Why seven? Nobody's sure, except that it's a...bibley number - seven days of Creation, seven sacraments. You get it.

While I am not Italian by blood, I have whole-heartedly adopted this tradition from Jimmy's family. We never really had a traditional Christmas dinner growing up, Mama liked to mix it up - a turkey, a standing rib roast, a ham. So when I first experienced a big Italian Christmas Eve feast, it was a huge "aha!" moment. This was the feast for me!

From what I know, every Italian-American family has a different version of The Feast. Mommy says you don't really have to cook seven fishes. It could be whatever you want. She does the same dishes every year (well, she used to, I'm afraid she has now retired herself from the big meal preparation) - shrimp scampi, linguini with crab sauce, Alaskan King crab legs cooked in marinara sauce, and flounder stuffed with crab.

It's DELICIOUS, but I love the fun of mixing it up and the challenge of preparing seven dishes. The menu is different every year, but I sometimes repeat a dish from previous years if it was a favorite. The menu this year was...drumroll...

Roasted Shrimp Cocktail

The Barefoot Contessa's recipe HERE. Super easy, but infinitely better than just the usual old boiled shrimp cocktail.

NOTE: The shrimp were the only dish from The Feast that the children were actually allowed to consume. The kids are all fed at a table in the office - they get pasta and fish sticks. This was completely acceptable when they were five years old, but now they've pretty much outgrown the office and the fish sticks. It's a concern. But I'll think about that...tomorrow. Fiddle dee dee.

Trippy picture of the children who have outgrown the office.

Steamed Mussels with Sausages and Fennel

Really good. The broth was delicious, so I served it with a crusty baguette to sop up the juice.

This is a recipe that serves six as a main course, but I halved it since it was just one of many courses. I could have made more, they ate every bite.

2 lbs. sweet or hot Italian sausage (I used sweet)

1/4 cup olive oil

2 large fresh fennel bulbs, sliced

6 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp. dried crushed red pepper

3 cups dry white wine

6 lbs. fresh mussels, cleaned and debearded

chopped Italian parsley

In the biggest pot you can find...brown the sausages in olive oil. Remove from the pot and set aside. Add fennel and saute until softened. Add garlic and red pepper and stir for about a minute. Add the wine, cover and simmer until fennel is soft, about 10 minutes. Slice the sausages into 1 inch chunks. Add mussels and sausage to the pot, cover and simmer until the mussels have opened, about 5 minutes. Serve in a big bowl with bread to soak up the juice.

Men & Mussels

Tuna Crudo with Lemon Vinaigrette

Crudo is basically the Italian version of sashimi, and focuses on simple, fresh ingredients. Recipe is HERE.  It's very tasty. You must get good, sashimi-quality tuna. It's not cheap.

Awful picture of me putting together the crudo. I swear that all those bottles behind me were used for cooking, not for drinking. Well, not just for drinking.

Octopus Carpaccio with Arugula, Shaved Fennel and Satsuma Salad

This is the second year I've made this, and I'm afraid it wasn't as good this year. Peculiarly, last year I overcooked the octopus, and it was delicious. This year, I cooked it according to the recipe, and it was tough. So...whatever. I'm not even going to give you the recipe, because I know that none of you will EVER make it (if you really want it, feel free to message me and I'll get it to you). It involves cooking octopus then pressing it into a mold and then cutting it into a salami-like dish. But here's a picture...

It was delicous. But not...as delicious.

Frutti di Mare (Mixed Seafood Pasta)

I don't have an actual recipe for this. I basically just make a marinara sauce then add in the seafood and let it sit for a day or two so the sauce takes on the rich taste of the seafood. You can put in pretty much any kind of seafood you want. The only thing you have to be careful about is the order in which in you add the seafood and how long you cook each addition - kind of use your judgment. This year I used crab legs, scallops, squid and clams, but you could also add shrimp or fish (something firm, maybe halibut or cod, cut into 1-inch chunks) or whatever looks good to you. I prep the crab the way Mommy taught me - steam the legs in a pot with a lid for a few minutes until you sweat out the extra liquid. If you don't, your sauce will be runny. After the sauce is pretty much cooked, toss in the fish that needs to cook the longest (squid, fish) and let it cook for about 5 minutes. Then add whatever needs to cook less time (shrimp, scallops). Finally, add whatever has already been cooked (crab legs), warm through then turn off the heat. After it has cooled, stick in the fridge until you're ready to serve it. When you're ready to go, heat the sauce while you boil the water for your pasta. When you have it bubbling, toss in the clams (or mussels if you want), cover and steam until the shells have popped. Discard any that don't open. Serve over pasta. Yum.

Orange Roughy Oreganata

A hearty peasant dish. Easy to make. You could use any kind of soft, white fish. I used the roughy because it looked good at the fish market, but tilapia would be good.

4 fresh fish fillets

2 cloves garlic

olive oil

1 cup dry white wine

salt and pepper

1 cup bread crumbs (fresh or Panko are best)

1/2 cup (or more) grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp. fresh chopped oregano or 2 tsp. dried oregano

1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

4 tbsp. melted butter

Make roasted garlic - Remove papery bits around the cloves, but don't peel. Place the garlic cloves in some aluminum foil, drizzle with olive oil, then wrap the foil tightly around the cloves. Place in the oven or toaster oven at 400 degrees for about 20 to 30 minutes. When they're roasted, you can squeeze the soft garlic out of their peels.

Make crumb mixture - In small bowl, mix bread crumbs, Parmesan, oregano and garlic powder.

Rub the outside of the fish with the roasted garlic - the garlic will melt right into the fish. Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of a roasting dish, then add the fish fillets. Pour wine over fish into pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lightly pack the crumb mixture over the fish. Drizzle with melted butter.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Fish will be flaky and crumbs should be nicely browned.

Serve with lots of lemon slices.

Petrale Sole with Warm Pine Nut Dressing, Wilted Greens and Fennel Puree

While the roughy was peasant food, this was much more sophisticated. And I must say, it was really quite good. It sounds a little complicated, but it was easy to get prepped ahead of time, and then just sear the sole at the last minute. Again, you could use any kind of soft, white fish.

1 fennel bulb, cut into thin wedges

6 garlic cloves, peeled

1/4 cup plus 2 tsps. olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms

1 cup boiling water

1/2 cup pine nuts

5 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

4 fish fillets

2 ounces baby greens (I used baby kale)

Make fennel puree - Place fennel and 5 of the garlic cloves on a piece of foil. Drizzle with olive oil. Fold the foil into a packet and roast in a 425 degree oven for about 45 minutes. Transfer the fennel and garlic to the food processor, puree and season with salt and pepper.

Make pine nut dressing - In a small bowl, place dried porcini. Cover with boiling water and soak for 20 minutes. Drain and save the mushroom broth. You won't need to use the mushrooms here, but don't throw them away - they'd make a great omelette. In a medium skillet, heat 1 tbsp. oil. Add the pine nuts and the remaining 1 clove garlic and cook over moderate heat until the nuts are golden, about 3 minutes. Add the porcini liquid and balsamic and simmer until the liquid is reduced by about half, about 5 minutes. Discard the garlic clove. Add 4 tbsp. oil and season with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tsp. oil in a large skillet. Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper. Sear the fish fillets in the pan until cooked through, flipping once.

Spread the fennel puree on a serving plate (or on individual plate). Top with fish fillet. Drizzle with 3/4 of the dressing. Add the greens to the remaining dressing in the skillet, and warm until wilted. Mound the greens on the fish and serve.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Trifle

Oh good God this was good! I love a good trifle. And I love Mexican Hot Chocolate. So how could this go wrong? The recipe is out of Southern Living magazine's Christmas issue (my dear Cousin Keith gives me a subscription every year and I pour over every issue). You can find it HERE. It's amazing layers of moist chocolate cake, chocolate ganache and marshmallow cream. And you serve it with some of the ganache warmed up as a hot fudge sauce!

Not as good of a picture as the one on the website, but looks pretty damned good nonetheless.

NOTE ONE: This is pretty complicated. The cake takes forever. HOWEVER...don't wimp out and make a simpler cake! It's super rich and moist and full of cinnamony goodness.

NOTE TWO: It wasn't until I got to the assembly point in the recipe that I read the part that said "Makes 15 to 20 servings". Which is ridiculous. I actually froze an entire cake layer.

So that's it. This year's Feast of the Seven Fishes. At the end of the night we went around the table and everybody reminisced about their favorite dishes over the last several years. I have written these down, and next year? A "Best of" year. Should be good!

Hope everybody's Christmas was very merry!

 

 

Catching Up

Well hello.

I don't seem to have been paying much attention to y'all lately, have I? I'm so sorry. I think about y'all all the time, but I just haven't been able to sit down and write anything.

It's funny, the other day I was telling my friend Melissa that despite the fact that I hadn't seen her in months, I felt like I had because I often talk to her INSIDE MY HEAD. I could pick up a phone and call her and actually tell her things, but instead I have long conversations with her INSIDE MY HEAD. She was happy to hear that she's very witty and charming INSIDE MY HEAD, and I love that she always laughs and laughs at my jokes and wholly appreciates what I'm sharing with her. INSIDE MY HEAD.

And that's just where I've been blogging lately. INSIDE MY HEAD. I have written, maybe...15 posts. INSIDE MY HEAD. Trust me, they were all very witty, and clever, and you all loved them all. INSIDE MY HEAD.

But now we are OUTSIDE MY HEAD, so I will try to catch you up a bit on Christmastide in Second Blooming world.

It rained. Finally. Y'all have to understand that we are in a serious drought out here on the west coast. It hadn't rained in moooooonths. So rain was good. What was weird was the way our 100-year old house reacted. About six months ago, the bathroom door stopped closing. The old house had shifted and the door suddenly didn't fit the frame anymore. We had somebody look at it, but he said he was worried about changing anything because it was likely to shift back, and if he messed with it, he'd ruin it. Well guess what? After the rains, the bathroom door now closes perfectly. But now the FRONT door isn't working. It's better now, but for about three days, the only way we could get in or out of our front door was for me to perform what Jude called a "This is Sparta!" on the door. Much like this...

 

 

It really was much like that. Only the role of the Spartan dude in the skirt was played by a middle-aged woman in yoga pants and Uggs. Me. I can't imagine what the neighbors thought. Jude LOVED it! He thought I was a read bad ass.

Jude is, sadly, no longer a believer. And in true Judelike fashion, he was in no way angry that we had deceived him Santa-wise, he was only worried that he had ruined Christmas for me. Because he knew how much I loved the whole Santa business. Sweet boy. So when it came time for him to write his letter to Santa (or letter to "Santa" as he now says with air quotes), he balked, and said he really didn't want anything. After much needling, I discovered that the problem was that he had suddenly realized that Jimmy and I pay for his Christmas presents. All this time he'd been thinking it came for free from the North Pole. How much do I love my kid? So I had to go kind of off-letter this year to figure out what he really wanted. I knew he desperately wanted a gaming computer, but sadly, they are a bit pricey. Then...a high school-aged friend of Jude's told me about...Zee. Zee is a computer geek dude who rebuilds computers and beefs them up with lots of RAM and...video card thingies (okay, clearly I don't have a clue here, it's all very technical and...stuff), and sells them to gamers on the cheap.

So I email this Zee, and he told me he could hook me up with just what Jude needed. All I had to do was drive down and pick up the computer in (cue the ominous dum-dum-dum-dum music)...Bellflower, California. Beautiful Bellflower is a wasteland of stripmalls and factories and storage units situated in the armpit of the 605 and the 91 freeways. Let's say it's in Southeast Hell. Zee then texted me this picture so I could find the building...

I swear to God, this is the place. The things we do for our kids.

Luckily, I did not get sold into white slavery, and Zee turned out to be a righteous dude. He set us up with this baby...

This picture doesn't do it justice - the monitor is massive!

The boy is in heaven. He gave me a hug that would be worth driving to Southeast Hell and back every day.

I managed to avoid a Great Teacher Gift Debacle again this year! See previous disasters HERE and HERE. Nosireebob, I have learned from my mistakes. This year, I found something quick and easy and usable, that has a long shelf-life. Just what I needed. I combined a couple of recipes and this is what I came up with. You should save this recipe for next year...

Rosemary Sea Salt

1 3-lb. box kosher salt

2 bunches fresh rosemary (destemmed)

Finely chop the rosemary. Place salt and rosemary in a large pot, and heat over medium heat, stirring often, until it's heated through - about 10 minutes. Pour into a large bowl to cool. Add to wide-mouthed half-pint Mason jars and seal.

Made 11 half-pint jars. Weird amount I know.

My favorite Mondegreen of late...

Jude asked me why there was a Christmas song about "Korean eyes". After puzzling for a bit, I figured out what he was talking about and explained that the line in "Winter Wonderland" is "It will really be like a picture print from Currier and Ives" not..."Korean eyes".

It reminded me that I spent much of my childhood thinking there was a country called Orientare. As in "We three kings of Orientare."

Maybe folks from Orientare have Korean eyes

Well there you have it. Words have appeared OUTSIDE MY HEAD. In the next couple of days I'll be back with my Feast of the Seven Fishes menu for this year. It was goooood (if I do say so myself).

Merry Christmas, y'all!

 

Almost not bad picture of us if Jude had just stopped moving. Thank you Aida.

Another Thanksgiving in Bullet Points

• Best turkey ever. Seriously. For several years now, I've been brining my turkey using THIS recipe from Alice Waters. And it's been damned good. But this year, I decided to try something new and went DRY brine. Oh yeah. I used this recipe from good ole Southern Living Magazine. It was super simple and MUCH less messy than the wet brine. And the turkey was moist and yummy.

 Herbed Dry Brine for Turkey

3 tbsp. kosher salt

3 tbsp. dark brown sugar

2 tsp. rubbed sage

2 tsp. dried thyme

1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp. garlic powder

Stir all this together. Pat the turkey dry. Sprinkle 1 tbsp. brine into the cavity of the turkey. Reserve another tbsp. brine for later. Sprinkle the rest all over the turkey, rubbing it into the skin. Cover and chill the big bird for 10 to 24 hours.

When you're ready to roast, rinse the brine off the turkey and pat dry again. Then mix the reserved tbsp. of brine with 1/2 cup of softened butter. Loosen the skin over the turkey breast and spread the butter under the skin over the breast. Oh YES! Amazing!

Then just roast it the way you like to do.

• JUDE ATE SOMETHING GREEN! Spinach, no less! My best friend Kaysie's family always makes Spinach Madeline for holiday meals, and I decided to haul it out this year. I must admit that it's possibly the least healthful vegetable recipe imaginable, right up there with that Bloomin' Onion from the Outback. But he not only ate it, he gobbled it up and asked for SECONDS! Here's the recipe that Kaysie gave me long ago, but I'm afraid that the Jalapeno Cheese stuff can't be located anywhere, so you should substitute Velveeta and some Pepper cheese grated together. I'm thinking you could put in whatever kind of cheese you want, but don't try to make it too healthful or you're defeating the purpose.

Kaysie's Spinach Madeline

2 pkg. frozen chopped spinach (boiled and squeezed very dry - reserve 1/2 cup of liquor)

4 tbsp. (1/4 cup) butter

2 tbsp. minced onion

2 tbsp. flour

1/2 cup evaporated milk

1/2 cup reserved spinach liquor

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

6 oz. Kraft Jalapeno cheese roll (or Velveeta or Pepper Jack) - cut up or grated

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 cup bread crumbs

Melt the butter and saute the onions. Stir in flour to make a roux. Add evaporated milk and spinach liquor and cook until thickened. Add salt and pepper. Add cheese a bit at a time, stirring each addition until it melts before adding more. Add the Worcestershire and garlic powder and spinach. Transfer to a baking pan. Top with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees until it bubbles around the edges, about 30 minutes. Sit in shock as your vegetable-hating child asks for seconds!

• I'm thinking that next year I'm going to find a folding table to set up on the side of the dining room and just go buffet. It's the same problem every year, there's too much food on too many large serving dishes that don't all fit on the table and are too hot and/or heavy to pass. I think it would be easier if we all just got up and helped ourselves. And that way the kids could grab their own food without their parents having to wait on them. Somebody (mmm...Lynn) needs to remind me of this next year!
• Best Thanksgiving purchase - a Girlmade Apple Pie. I am a total snob about store-bought desserts. As in...I won't allow them at my dinner table. I either make it myself or we don't eat it. However...this year I made a slight exception. Jude's school is very involved in do-gooding, and every year each class does an Adopt-a-Family thing. The kids all come up with ideas to raise money for their family. Six little girls in Jude's class got together and offered homemade apple pies, which they took preorders for and then handed out in the carline at school. Those little girls worked themselves silly and damn if that pie wasn't delicious!

• This last Friday after Thanksgiving was possibly the laziest day that our family has ever experienced. Jimmy stayed in bed all day. Really. All. Day. And Jude and I sat on the couch and played video games and ate leftovers until I finally decided that we had to do something productive. So we went and got ice cream. Yes, productive is a relative thing. We then curled back up on the couch with MORE leftovers and watched a double feature - The Princess Bride, followed by Spaceballs. A Sillyathon. Next year we need to add some Monty Python. I am proud to say that Jude is now walking around saying things like "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.", "Inconceivable!" and "May the Schwartz be with you."

Jude, eating ice cream at Scoops, our favorite neighborhood ice cream parlor. Please notice that Jude is dressed only because these are the clothes he wore in Thanksgiving night and he SLEPT IN THEM.

• Best leftover repurposing of the year. I made Aimee's Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Onions recipe again - delicious as always. But by Sunday we were totally OVER the whole leftover thing, so I had to get creative. So I sauteed a mess of kale (That's a Texanism - "a mess". It's a vague measurement that approximately equals "a buttload".), tossed in the leftover sweet potatoes and onions, added olive oil and a half a pound of cooked pasta, then sprinkled it with freshly grated Parmesan and YUM!

Okey dokey, that's all for Thanksgiving. I am proud of myself for not veering too far off my diet and leftovering myself back into my fat pants and for managing to get to the gym twice during the Thanksgiving weekend.

How were your Thanksgivings?

RTT: Endorphins, Rock Stars and Barilla

 

How's everybody doing out there? It is GORGEOUS here in the City of Angels - clear, cool, autumnal - puts me in my happy place. I'm all upbeat and bursting with energy. Of course, it could be the three cups of coffee I've consumed. Or perhaps it's...

 

Oh yes I did!

...ENDORPHINS. That's right, 3 miles, baby. My exercising is coming along well. Very soon I will be able to fit into my skinny jeans (which used to be my fat jeans, before I outgrew even them). Assuming, of course, that I don't get derailed by Thanksgiving. And Christmas. Which, of course, I will. Sigh...

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Last week, I took Jude on his first "seeing a band in a club" experience. Which sounds much more radical than it was. Remember his cooler, older friend, Lucas? The one we took to the Paul McCartney concert? Well, Lucas is in a band. A real band. Or at least as real a band as a group of 14-year olds can form. They're totally old school rock and roll - lots of Zeppelin and blues rock. They played a real club, in a fairly iffy LA neighborhood, but the crowd was all kids. Very fun. I kept having flashbacks to my youth, except everybody at the club was drinking bottled water and nobody was smoking! These kids really blew us away - little rock stars!

 

Bang

Here we are. You can see us if you squint...

 

It was very dark.

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You know that you have moved on to a new stage of your life when Buck a Box on Barilla is the most exciting thing that happens to you all week...

 

I stocked up. Which inspired me to come up with the following recipe...

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I have been fairly obsessed with kale lately. Yeah, I know. Anyway, I've also been trying to minimize our meat eating, so have been coming up with lots of vegetarian meals. I threw this together last night, and damn if it wasn't excellent. The proportions are rough, as I just kind of tossed things together...

Pasta with Butternut Squash, Kale and Walnuts

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. butter

2 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1/2 inch dice (I bought a bag of pre-peeled because I'm lazy)

4 cups kale, chopped

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 cup walnuts (halves and pieces)

3/4 lb. pasta (I used Cellentani, which is like Fusilli but more interesting)

Parmesan cheese - tons

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Get the water boiling. When it's ready, add the pasta and cook according to the box. 

In the meantime, add olive oil and butter to large, heavy saucepan. Heat over low heat. Add squash and saute until softened. Add garlic for about 30 seconds, stirring. Add kale and stir well. Saute until softened. Add walnuts and heat through. Stir a lot.

When the pasta is cooked, drain well and add to the pot of squash/kale/walnuts. Toss well. Salt and pepper to taste. Toss with TONS of Parmesan.

YUM.

I have no idea what the nutritional content on this recipe is, but I'm thinking it's HIGH in nutrition.

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Hey, can y'all do me a favor? My Subaru commercial ran for a while, but now it's just on "Hold". Can you let me know if you see it? And tell me what channel you're watching and what time of day? It would be much appreciated. I'm the mom who wishes she had girls...

 

 

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Alrighty. Happy Tuesday. Go visit Stacy and the others!

 

Spin Cycle: Hollywood Bowling

One of the greatest iconic Los Angeles summer activities is a night out at the famous Hollywood Bowl.

Built in the 1920's, the Hollywood Bowl is an amphetheater nestled into the Hollywood Hills. Every summer, they offer a series of concerts - classical, jazz, rock, world music, and special events. But it kinda doesn't matter what the music is, the fun is in the event. Everybody brings food and liquor and has a giant picnic. You can either go all hoity-toity and purchase the box seats down near the stage, or go more plebian and grab the nose-bleeds way up top - it's fun either way.

For the past two years I've been going with the Fun Moms from Jude's school to the Grease Sing-A-Long, which is just what it sounds like - they show the movie Grease on a big screen and we all sing along with it. Everyone dresses in silly Grease costumes and is very loud. It's a whole audience of Pink Ladies and Greasers and Beauty School Dropouts.  It's amazingly silly and fun.

Yes, we did wear the silly costumes. Yes, we did have the fancy box. Yes, I did dress as Rizzo, though I realized I was a little long in the tooth for that, so decided I was actually Rizzo's slutty mother. No, that's not a real cigarette.

We had lots of fun, and ate lots of food and drank lots of drink. But don't worry, nobody drove. The original plan had been for Jane's teenaged son to be our driver (excellent idea I thought), but he threw us over for a date with a cute girl. Hmmm...hot girl...carload of your mother's drunken middle-aged friends dressed in dorky costumes...can't understand the kid's decision.

Anyway, the picnic portion of the Hollywood Bowl experience is always pretty serious. Nearby restaurants have started businesses just catering for these upscale picnics. And I have to say, this group of ladies delivers the good stuff. This year was particularly innovative and yummy, so I thought I'd share some fab picnic at the Bowl recipes.

We started with Rachel's cocktail, which she dubbed the Pink Panties since we were all the Pink Ladies.

Pink Panties Cocktail 

1 medium watermelon, chopped then puréed

1 liter bottle 100 proof vodka

1/2 bottle pink lemonade flavored vodka straight from freezer

1 pint raspberry sorbet

 

Here's what Rachel did in her own words...

In the morning I chopped the watermelon in large chunks and poured in large ziplock bags with bottle of 100 proof vodka. 8 hours later, took it out of the fridge. Reserving vodka left in bag, I puréed the watermelon then placed purée in large fabric tea strainer and poured 100 proof vodka from bag through the purée in strainer. I gave it time to run through before adding more watermelon purée and vodka. Yield approximately 1 gallon. Then I blended 1 pint sorbet with 1/2 bottle of pink lemonade vodka and stirred into watermelon vodka and refrigerated.  Ice kept separately in ready to serve!

And it  went beautifully with my appetizer...

Watermelon Goat Cheese Bites

I got this idea from this recipe HERE, but I boogered with it some. I'm fairly sure boogered is a proper culinary term.

One seedless watermelon (you'll have lots of leftover)

One log of goat cheese

Fresh basil

1 cup balsamic vinegar

Slice the watermelon into big disks, about one inch thick. Lay flat and use a cookie cutter or the lid to a jar to cut out small (1 inch to 1 1/2 inches in diameter) cylinders. Then slice the cylinders into 3 or 4 disks. Arrange little circles on tray.

Slice goat cheese into little disks about the same diameter and thickness of the watermelon disks. Place on top of the watermelon.

Place one piece of fresh basil on top of each goat cheese disk.

Make a balsamic reduction by gently boiling 1 cup of balsamic vinegare until it reduces by half. Drizzle the balsamic reduction over the little disks. Serve.

The original recipe called for bacon, but shockingly, I chose not to use it. But here's a picture of how it would look with the bacon (and if you were an extreme perfectionist - mine didn't look like this, but it tasted GOOD).

Super fresh and summery!

For the main course, Amanda made this amazing...

Grilled Chicken with Mango Salsa

It was so good that when she dished up huge portions for each of us, we all protested "No, no, that's to much!" then we all promptly gobbled up every bite.

The chicken recipe, which involves an incredible Indian spice and buttermilk marinade,  came from Amanda's friend Lisa's blog The Skinny, which you should definitely check out even if you don't make the chicken recipe, which you should. The recipe is HERE.

And her Mango Salsa recipe, which made it truly special is as follows...

2-3 ripe mango (you are looking for about 2-3 lbs. worth)
1 large jalapeno, or 1.5 small
1 large clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
a handful of chopped cilantro (about 1/4-1/2 cup)
grated zest of 2 limes
juice of those 2 limes (about 1/4 cup)

Chop the mango into a small dice.  (my tip: slice the fatty part of the mango - the "cheeks" away from the long center pit, then score it like an avocado - cutting a pretty narrow grid into the flesh without cutting through the skin.  Then scoop the flesh into your bowl - instant dice)  Put the mango in a medium size bowl.

Carefully seed and finely chop the jalapeno pepper (you should have 1-2 TBSP depending on how hot you want the salsa).  Add to the mango, along with the remaining ingredients. 

Toss together gently.  Season with salt and pepper to taste..

Refrigerate.  Serve within 4-6 hours.

Makes enough for 4-6 people

Then for dessert, Jane made these amazing treats, so good you won't believe it...

Barefoot Contessa Chocolate Chunk Blondies

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1 1/4 pounds semisweet chocolate chunks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 x 12 x 2 inch baking pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on high speed for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the vanilla, then the eggs, one at a time, and mix well, scraping down the bowl. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt and with the mixer still on low, slowly add flour mixture to the butter mixture. Fold the walnuts and chocolate chunks in with a rubber spatula.

Spread the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30 minutes exactly. Don't overbake! A toothpick may not come out clean. Cool completely in the pan and cut into bars.

It was an excellent feast! And a super fun evening.

 

What are your favorite picnic spots this summer? What are you putting in your picnic basket?

 

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Spin Cycle: Summer Things I've Been Thinking About Lately

Aunt Margaret's Summer Tonic

My friend Shannon, who is now a Manhattanite, but grew up in Big Spring, Texas, posted a recipe on Facebook the other day for her Aunt Melissa's Summer Tonic. It sounded so tasty that I tried it myself, then tweaked the ingredients a little and since I don't have an Aunt Melissa, I rechristened it for my Aunt Margaret, who I do believe would have enjoyed it very much. It's the perfect tonic for the summer heat!

Aunt Margaret's Summer Tonic

Fill a tall glass with ice. Add...

1 jigger of Citrus vodka

1/2 jigger peppermint schnapps

Fill the glass to the top with unsweetened iced tea.

Enjoy the freshness!

 

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser

 

This is the stuff!

Oh dear Lord is this the bomb! It's a cleanser and a makeup remover and an exfoliator. It's a multi-tasker! They bill it as a "two-part skincare system". You start with the super rich and creamy cleanser, rubbing it into your dry skin. It has this amazing eucalyptus/rosemary spa smell and is not only really moisturizing, but it takes off makeup - even mascara. Then...you move to part two, which involves this cool little muslin cloth which you soak in hot water, then use to wipe off the cleanser. It's just the right amount of soft/scratchy to exfoliate your skin. I'm in LOVE with it!

 

Quinoa with Grilled Zucchini, Garbanzo Beans and Cumin

Yes, I know, I know, it sounds a little too damned healthful, but I'm telling you this is so stinking good! I discovered it when I was on a quest for vegetarian meals to counter the whole cholesterol thing, and Jimmy and I both love it. It's really lemony and flavorful, and you feel like you're doing yourself a favor while gorging yourself. I guess you could make it as a side dish or salad (I'm bringing it to the next pot luck!), but we just eat it as a main dish. Give it a try!

 

Picture stolen from the Epicurious website which doesn't look nearly as good as it tastes!

Quinoa with Grilled Zucchini, Garbanzos and Cumin

1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2 garlic cloves, peeled

3 teaspoons ground cumin, divided

1 teaspoon turmeric, divided

1 teaspoon paprika, divided

2 cups water

1 cup quinoa

1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

1 1/2 pounds medium zucchini (about 5), trimmed, quartered lengthwise

4 green onions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Combine garbanzo beans and lemon juice in large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons oil; press in garlic and stir to combine. Let marinate at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of cumin, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, and 1/2 teaspoon paprika; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 2 cups water, quinoa, and coarse salt; bring to simmer, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until all water is absorbed, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare barbecue (medium high heat). Place zucchini on rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, and 1/2 teaspoon paprika. Toss to coat evenly.

NOTE ON ZUCCHINI: I usually just "grill" it on the George Foreman. But when that is too much trouble, I just sliced it up and fry it in a skillet. I've also added broccoli. It's all good as long as you dump all those yummy spices on it!

Place zucchini on grill; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Grill until tender and browned on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to work surface. Cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces.

Add zucchini, green onions, and parsley, then garbanzo bean mixture to quinoa. Toss to blend. Season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Please try!

 

Orange is the New Black

The bad girls are back!

Season 2 on Netflix

 

No second season slump here, the show is better than ever! I've been doing my Netflix binge thing, and tonight I watch the last episode of the season, so don't spoil it for me!

 

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

 

I know this is old news. In fact it won the Pulitzer for fiction back in 2009. But I just read it and loved it, and I think it would be a terrific vacation read. It's short stories, so easy to digest in short spurts, but also really rich and filled with character, so a serious upgrade on the usual beach reading. Olive Kitteridge is the one character which ties all of the stories together, and she's a beautifully drawn character, not completely likable, but stunningly real and familiar. It's a book that resonates.

What are you thinking about this summer?

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Spin Cycle: Springtime Things I've BeenThinking About

It's Springtime!

Not that we had much of a winter here in Los Angeles. I'm saying this more in solidarity with all of you East Coast/Midwesterners who have been snowed under for months. But it has been particularly springlike around here lately - mild, warm weather, a bit of much-needed rain, flowers galore. And so I'd like to share a few springtime things I've been thinking about...

Wisteria

I'm not thinking about wisteria because I have any wisteria growing at my house, but because I DON'T have any wisteria growing at my house. When I was a little girl, we had a massive wisteria just outside the back door, and every year on my March birthday, it would explode in fragrant, purple blossoms. I always thought that the wisteria vine was blooming just for me (and I must admit that my mother contributed to this belief). And the smell? Heavenly. If I close my eyes I can smell it right now. Aaaaaah! I want a wisteria!

Havaianas Flip Flops

Pretty.

It's flip flop season! I love my Havaianas. Yes, I know. You're wondering why I'm encouraging you all to buy a $20 pair of flip flops when you can get them at Old Navy for $2.50. Well I will tell you why. They are the best damned flip flops in the world. Seriously. They are totally worth the extra $17.50. They are comfortable and look good and they last FOREVAH! And I'm telling you, I know my flip flops. I live in them. Really, I wear them most of the year. Don't judge, I have big feet and hate shoes. This winter, I changed over to Uggs (the winter version of the flip flop), but my tootsies are veeeeery happy to be back in their flips!

Jergens BB Body Perfecting Skin Cream

 

They sent me a sample of this in my most recent Birchbox, and I'm crazy for it! Birchbox items are usually more "high-end" products, but every now and then, they'll stick in a "mass market" product that they really like. This stuff is SO good. It's really moisturizing, and has a little bit of "coverage" that actually smooths out your skin tone. Perfect for when we start shedding our winter clothes and showing a little skin!

Spaghetti with Sardines, Fennel, and Capers

Weirdly, fennel is one of Jimmy's favorite foods. He eats it all the time. If you're not familiar with it, it's sort of like licorice-flavored celery. But when you cook it, it takes on a mellow, mildly sweet flavor. We love it. This recipe is a traditional Sicilian concoction (that's Jimmy's people!), and often served during Lent for the fish-on-Friday's thing. This is really delicious. Don't be afraid of the sardines, the lemon cuts the fishy taste, and the capers give a nice salty crunch.

Spaghetti with Sardines, Fennel, and Capers

Serves 2

3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup white wine

1 can sardines packed in oil, drained

2 tbsp. capers

2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

Juice and grated zest from 1 lemon

1/2 lb. spaghetti

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

2 tbsp. chives, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.

While the water heats up, make the sauce. Add oil to large skillet over medium heat. Add fennel, red pepper flakes, and about 1/4 tsp. salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the fennel is completely tender and caramelized around the edges. Pour in the wine and cook for another minute. Push the fennel to one side of the skillet, then add the sardines, capers, garlic, and lemon juice to the empty side of the skillet. Let them sizzle for a minute, then remove the skillet from the heat.

When the water is boiling, drop in the pasta, and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of cooking water. Add the pasta and a splash of cooking water to the skillet. Stir in the chopped herbs and lemon zest. Serve.

Give it a try!

Pigeons

My new friend.

A pigeon has taken up residence in our chimney. I'm guessing that she's building a nest and planning on starting her family up there. During the day I can hear her, cooing and scratching. It's completely fascinating - the sounds echo down the chimney and are amplified, so I hear her all the time. Part of me thinks I should find this slightly distressing, but another part welcomes this new little inhabitant to our house. I hope I hear little peeping baby pigeons soon.

New TV Series

THREE new shows debuted last week - Resurrection, Crisis, and Believe. And guess what? They're all good. Really. And I don't like most things. I was completely surprised.

Resurrection

Crisis

Believe

Resurrection and Crisis in particular have really good casts, and all three got me hooked. With most shows, I'll watch the  pilot, yawn, and never watch again. But I've started DVRing all three of these. I recommend tracking down the first episodes on demand, and catching up!

So that's my Spring so far. What's happening in your Springtime?

Check out our other Spring spinners. It's not too late to add your Springtime post to the Linky below! And check back on Monday for next week's Spin Cycle topic!

 

 

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Spin Cycle: The Best of Ireland

I've always thought that I must be at least a bit Irish, because I identify with it all so completely. So I did the Ancestry.com thing and discovered a tiny bit of Irish blood, we're talking six generations back. But it is there. The Logans, from County Westmeath.

 

I LOVE this crest so much! Not only does it boast TWO stabbed, bloody hearts, but the motto translates to "The valour of my ancesters."

 

Those are me people! I'm an Irish lassie!

And so, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, I present my personal favorite Irish things.

Stout

Ah stout! The perfect food. It neatly combines booze and dessert. It's sort of an entire food group unto itself. While Guinness is certainly the iconic Irish stout, I asked my friend Brian, who is a proud Irishman and a beer geek, I mean, mmm...expert (and his wife reads this blog, hi Laura), and he says that the very best Irish stout is actually Murphy's Stout, from Cork, Ireland.

 

Guinness devotees don't shoot the messenger, this is Brian's opinion! But he does really know his beer.

And he says if you want to go domestic, buy Black Bear Stout from Bear Republic Brewery, which I've had and is to die for.

Literature

Although the Irish didn't invent the English language, they certainly perfected it. Irish folks just know how to turn a phrase. The number of great writers who have come out of that tiny green island is staggering - James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Jonathan Swift, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett, Seamus Heaney - feel free to add your favorite to the list.

Van Morrison

I know that most people consider U2 to be the best Irish rockers ever, but for me nobody compares to Van the Man. Van just always touches my soul and puts me in my happy place. Part rock, part jazz, completely soulful and totally sexy. Both Moondance and Poetic Champions Compose are near-perfect albums. Most people know him for his big hits like Brown-Eyed Girl and Moondance, but most of my favorites are the "deep-cuts. The perfect slow-dance music. Oh yeah...

 

 

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Though "Irish cook" is often thought of as an oxymoron, there are quite a few iconic Irish dishes that are amazing. The following is my friend Amanda's recipe for Corned Beef and Cabbage. Amanda is a damned good cook, and an Irish lass. She took several versions of this and tweaked and perfected it, and she has generously allowed me to share it with y'all. It takes the standard Corned Beef recipe and kicks it to another level. And you have to love any recipe that involves this much liquor!

Amanda's Corned Beef and Cabbage

Based on a House & Garden 1965 Recipe

Serves 4 with leftovers

5 pounds corned brisket of beef (I use the flat cut)

2 bottles Guinness (large bottles)

6 peppercorns, or packaged pickling spices

3 carrots, peeled and quartered

3 onions, peeled and quartered

1 medium-sized green cabbage, quartered or cut in wedges

Melted butter (about 4 tbsp.)

For glaze:

Whole grain ground mustard (or Dijon)

Brown sugar

Place the corned beef in the slow cooker and add with 1.5 bottles Guinness, and water to cover.  Set slow cooker for all day (minimum 6 hours, I would say, or up to 10 hours on low).  After about an hour, I skim off the scum and add the seasoning packet, a little ground Mustard powder, and a little more Guinness to cover.  I then let it cook all day.

If you want to serve the corned beef with cabbage and carrots: About an hour and a half before it is scheduled to be done, add the carrots and onion.  During the last 45 -30 min. (depending on how “crunchy” you like your cabbage), add the cabbage. You can skip the vegetable step if you just want the corned beef for sandwiches or hash.

Remove the cooked corned beef, and slather it with a glaze of equal parts whole grain mustard (or Dijon if you prefer, or a mix of the two) and brown sugar.  Put the glazed corned beef in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or so, until the glaze browns a bit.

The vegetables should be done at the same time as that finishes. Brush the vegetables with melted butter to serve.

Alternate glaze recipe:

¾ cup bourbon

¾ cup apple juice

3 Tbsp. Mustard

1.5 cup brown sugar

DELICIOUS!

Irish Saints

Anybody who knows me well knows that I'm a bit of a saint geek. I love me the saints. And while we all celebrate St. Patrick, there are actually quite a few really good Irish saint stories.

St. Patrick - So...he wasn't really Irish, and he probably wasn't really named Patrick, and he certainly wasn't the first missionary to Ireland and didn't really convert all of Ireland single-handedly and most likely there weren't really any snakes there for him to get rid of. But we love him anyway. He had been kidnapped and enslaved by Irish pirates, then after he finally got home, decided to go back to do some converting. Which seems pretty brave to me, so I'll give him the snake thing.

St. Brendan the Navigator - May or may not have been the first European reach North America, crossing the Atlantic in his tiny currah. He and his crew sailed for seven years and he said he baptized several mermaids, and once saw Judas Iscariot taking a vacation from hell on a passing iceberg.

St. Brigid - I love pretty much every story about this Patroness of Ireland. As a young girl, she was known to magically multiply the the household supply of butter.She desperately wanted to become a nun, but because of her beauty was constantly pursued by suitors, so she prayed to be ugly, and God answered her prayers, helping her to become grotesquely disfigured. After becoming a nun, her bathwater was often transformed into beer for the thirsty clerics and she was known to hang her cloak on a sunbeam to dry. By some crazy coincidence, her feast day is the same as that of a pagan goddess also know as Brigid. Who'd have thought?

St. Columba - The patron of both Ireland and of poets, which is fitting, right? Columba was one of those famous Irish scribes who copied manuscripts, but also wrote verse himself. His copying a manuscript without the author's permission led to the first copyright infringement lawsuit, and eventually an actual war. As penance for having caused a war, Columba banished himself from his beloved Ireland, living in Scotland from which he swore he could see the hills of Ireland. While in Scotland, he did some cool stuff, like banishing a monster from the river Ness to live in the loch. He did eventually go back to Ireland when the High King attempted to outlaw the Poets Guild. Columba gave an impassioned defense of poetry and verse, and saved Irish poetry forever.

Denis Leary

I must confess a life-long weakness for Irish badboys. Something about the weird combination of smartass/drunk/funny/Catholic has always gotten to me. Denis is the epitome of all these things. He drinks and curses and is hysterical, yet has been married to his wife since 1989. He met his wife at Emerson College, which I was thiiiiiiiiiiis close to attending (Daddy nixed the expense), but if I had gone, I just know he would have married ME instead. I'm sure of it. Hmm...Mrs. Denis Leary. Sigh... Anyway, here is a video of Denis singing the funniest Irish song ever written. The lyrics actually make me cry with laughter. Enjoy...

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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Spin Cycle: Love Is...

Love is...

...Etta James (this, btw, was Jimmy and my first dance at our wedding. Awww.)

 

...Grandma's Quilt

My sweet paternal Grandma, Martha Elizabeth Peters German (known as Mattie) made this quilt back in the 1930s. It was pieced, as a quilt really should be, from fabric cut from her children's old clothes, and her dresses which had worn out. I remember having it since I was just little. It was always our camping quilt and picnic quilt, and as a result, is worn and stained and frayed. I never use it, because it's so worn out, but on a recent particularly cold night, I pulled it out and tucked it around Jude as he was going to sleep. I told him that I liked to think that Grandma was wrapping her arms around him and keeping him warm at night. That sentimental little boy has taken to sleeping with it every night, it's his new favorite thing. Maybe he needed a little hug from his great-Grandma who he never knew.

...Words to be Proud of From My Wise Little Boy

The other day, Jude said to me, "You know, Mom, most guys say that when they pick a girl to marry they want a girl who's foxy and hot and everything. But I think I'd rather marry a girl who is kind." I swear to God. That's what he said.

...My Favorite Picture of my Grandparents

On the back is the date - February 14, 1932.

...The Love Story of Pups and Lambie

Pups and Lambie are Jude's very most favorite special lovey animals since he was little. When he was about six he announced to me that Pups and Lambie had gotten married. Apparently, it happened while we were on a Cub Scout camping trip, which  puzzles me a bit, but I never asked for the details. Nonetheless, they are a happy and much loved couple. Recently, Pups and Lambie have been a bit...sigh...forgotten. In fact, I hadn't even seen them in a while. I guess that's to be expected now that the boy's ten years old. The other day, in a fit of cleaning, I decided to tackle the Ninth Level of Hell, also known as the area under Jude's bed. There I found, amid numerous books, toys and dust bunnies...Pups and Lambie, and they were, fittingly, right next to each other. I rescued them and arranged them on top of the bed where they belong. Jude was happy to see them. Their love story continues.

...My Nomination For Best Rock and Roll Love Song

 

 Inspired by the most enduring rock and roll marriage of all time. Kills me every time.

...Dog Love

The other morning Jude woke up complaining that he hadn't slept very well. When I asked him why he said that our little dog, Fancy, had slept on top of him the entire night. When I asked him why he hadn't just shoved her off, he said "But she looked so happy!"

...Friends

I am blessed to have a writer's group which I meet with once a month. We are five women who met  because our boys attend the same school, and we all had an interest in writing and reading. We started out as a somewhat unlikely quintet, with diverse upbringings and sensibilities. However, over the last two years, we have gone through a tremendous amount together, Cecilia having lost her son, and Julie, her husband. We have shared our writing and our pain, and we have come to depend on each others support. Last Saturday, when we met, Cecilia, who is understandably sensitive and intuitive about these things, was worried about how Julie was going to get through Valentine's Day, having so recently lost her husband, George. So she decided to buy her (and the rest of us) a little Valentine's something. She went to the store and stood there, unsure what to buy. Should she get her a card? Flowers? Champagne? Finally, she just looked to heaven and asked, "George, what should I get her? What do you want me to get for her?" And suddenly she knew she should buy her (and the rest of us) chocolates. When she gave them to us that night, Julie burst into tears. Because George had always given her chocolates. Isn't it great to have friends?

...My Very Favorite Picture of My Parents

The look on Daddy's face, the look on Mama's face, the look on my face. Perfect.

...This Year's Valentine's Feast

Those of you who are old-timers here at Second Blooming know that many years ago Jimmy and I decided to forgo the crowded, over-priced, bad-service Valentine's meals in restaurants in favor of a decadent meal at home, prepared by me. We love it. In the past, I have often made so much food that we seriously over-did it, and a couple of times never even ate the dessert. So this year we're simplifying, but it's probably the richest and most decadent meal yet. This year's menu...

Cioppino - This is the same thing I made for New Year's Eve, and it was so stinking good that we were licking our plates. Seriously, one of the best things I've ever made in my life. Recipe is HERE.

Molten Chocolate Cakes - For my chocolate-fiend husband and son. Everybody gets their own little ramekin filled with chocolately love. Recipe is HERE.

...The Return of the Beef Broth

Several years ago, I wrote THIS post about a silly ritual that Jimmy and I shared which involved silently hiding a can of beef broth for the other one to find. If you don't remember it, go read it now. No really, seriously, go read it, or this won't make sense. And it's a really good story. So READ IT now. I'll wait.........Are you back? Okay, so not long after writing that story, I decided that for the sake of public health, I needed to throw the old soup can away. It had been expired for years, and I was honestly afraid that the thing would explode and kill us all. Sad, but true. But...marriage has been stressful lately. I guess we all go through this. And I decided that we needed a reminder of why we fell in love in the first place. So I bought a new can of beef broth. The can made it's return under Jimmy's pillow one night. The next day I found it in my boot. Right now, it's here...

Jimmy's sock drawer.

Ain't love grand?

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Happy Valentine's Day, y'all!

 

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He Ate Green Stuff!

I've been trying to mix it up a little in the dinner department around here lately. I feel like I get into ruts when I make the same dishes over and over. And over. Those easy go-to standards, that I can throw together without any thought.

So the other night I decided to give Jimmy a treat and make Linguine with Clams. As I have mentioned many, many times, Jimmy is a seafood fanatic. He'd eat it every day if I was willing to make it. Luckily, Jude is also a seafood dude, which is a little strange because he's so damned picky. Even though the kid won't eat anything that resembles a vegetable, he will scarf down his weight in calamari or shrimp. So I decided to make the Linguine with Clams for all of us, taking a risk and ignoring that there are ingredients in it that DO resemble vegetables.

I also must say that Jimmy grew up eating...how do I put this without offending...hmmm...no, can't do it...nasty clam sauce. Mommy's idea of clam sauce is straight out of a can of Progresso.

 

Has its charms.

 

Which is kind of tasty in a childhood-food-elementary-school-cafeteria kind of way. But there's nothing in it that could remotely be described as "fresh". It's basically a bowl of gray matter.

But I just refuse to eat that nastiness, and decided I would make a fresh Linguine with Clams, in the more traditional Italian way, which is in more of a broth than either a cream sauce or a tomato sauce.

I was apprehensive, but, surprise, surprise, they BOTH went crazy for it. Jimmy ate himself silly, and Jude ate even more than Jimmy! He's only ten and I'm flabbergasted by the amount of pasta the kid can put away. He even ate parsley despite its greenness! And tomatoes which still looked like tomatoes (as opposed to tomato sauce, which is his staple)! They fought over who got more clams!

Please make this for your family. It's super easy and they will think they've gone to a fancy Italian restaurant!

Linguine con le Vongole

1 lb. linguine

12 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 lbs. fresh clams, the smallest you can find

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 cup dry white wine

1 14-oz. can whole San Marzano tomatoes, juice reserved, tomatoes chopped

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. Italian parsley, chopped

In large pot, boil linguini in salted water, cooking it 1 minute short of al dente.

Meanwhile, in a large heavy stock pot, heat 6 tbsp. of the olive oil. Saute garlic, stirring, for about 30 seconds. Toss in the clams and red pepper flakes and stir for 1 minute more. Add wine, tomatoes and their juice and parsley, and simmer, uncovered, until clams open, about 7 to 8 minutes.

Drain the pasta (reserving about a 1/2 cup of cooking water) and add it to the pot with the clams. Cook, stirring, until linguini is done, about a minute or two. Add some of the reserved cooking water if needed to keep it moist. Add remaining oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle with remaining chopped parsley.

Make sure you say the word "Mangia" when you serve it to your awed and adoring family.

___________________________________

This post was inspired by...

 

 

Prompt #2 - Share a recipe that everyone in your family loves.