Suppah Six

Likely the final PD of the year... Fridays have filled up for the busy holiday month.  Florentine Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken was a great meal... challenging enough, but not too much for our skilled Dory!    We also enjoyed Oven Based Risotto which was very tasty and simple enough for me to try again for a weeknight meal. Another year of great food and laughter... I am the richest man in Bedford Falls!

It was Frizz's Birthday Night - happy 29 sista'!   She chose our menu and it was a great one.  The always popular Panko Crusted Haddock and Cilantro Chile Aioli.  Yum Yum! (you can check March 15th for the recipes). We picked the side dishes -spaetzle with garlic cream sauce and spicy green beans.  We used boxed version rather than homemade and it was tasty and much less messy! Dory provided an gooey chocolate dessert... birthday celebration complete!

Good fall fare... it was not a simple meal, but it was tasty! The side dish of Buttered Spaetzle was actually selected first, then the main of Chicken Schnitzel was a logical pairing.  This had to be a night Dory could be here early to get things underway.  She even had to make the batter during the afternoon so it could rest. The noodle production process was alot of work... luckily, Squirts had the day off, so we had earlier than usual access to his expertise and  strength to stir and drop batter over a steaming pot.  The original recipe called for a disposable tin pan, but I can't imagine that could have withstood the density of this batter.  The final result was sauteed in some butter and was just great. The schnitzel had our traditional favorite, panko crust, with a tangy sauce.  Green beans rounded out the meal. We also enjoyed some of Dory's apple pie - perfect as usual.  She used key lime juice rather than lemon juice, fun tasty twist.

This was better than average comfort food!  I had made this myself  in the spring for a saturday night dinner with friends, but we needed Dory's advanced skills to really enjoy  Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese . It came out cheesy and bubbly, with some kick from the hot sauce.  The immersion blender stepped in again to ensure a creamy sauce.  YUM!

Back to school time!  What an incredibly nice summer.... it was tough to stay indoors and cook.  Our Labor Day weekend started out great with Easy Chicken Tacos. This was a wonderful recipe that has inspired me to try more poaching chicken breasts rather than roasting in the oven.  I like to cook up a few pieces just to have on hand for creating dinners.  Lots of recipes call for purchasing a rotisserie chicken and shredding the meat for quick meals.  I really like to cook it myself - tastes better, cheaper and probably a bit healthier as I think those store chickens are full of salt.  Dory enhanced the recipe a bit - used the entire can of adobo chilies and the sauce was just great.  Good heat, but not too firey.  There were a few leftovers that made yummy lunches during the week. We started out with guacamole & chips and also had some beans for a side.  A lovely start to the new season of PD!

We are having are usual PD break... summer travels and visitors shake up the routines.  To that end, I think we need new nicknames. Frizz = Sleepy (she never stays awake for the drive home) CPap = Doc ( he is a line leader) OR Grumpy (sometimes, he is) Dory = Sneezy (not good for the chef.... but she can have issues) Squirt = Bashful (quiet and sweet) Bubbles = Dopey  (distracted by a butterfly) Squints = Happy (Frizz says that is what i should be, which is really sweet!)

This week's meal tasted great, but was team effort.  When I offered the options to Bubbles, he responded "Bacon Bacon Bacon!", so Loaded Carbonara was the menu selection. The flavor was great, but it wasn't simple!  Squirt ended up helping Dory out, as the final blend of cheese and hot egg was a bit involved.  It is important to incorporate it slowly, so you don't end up with scrambled eggs, yet you need enough heat to melt the cheese.  Surprisely, this version of carbonara did not call for cream (white wine instead) and the cheese needed some extra persuation to get creamy.  A few short trips in the microwave to gentley melt it and lots of whisking eggs combined to a delicious finale. Our side items were different - with Caesar salad rather than  mixed greens, and some sauteed squash from our friend Roger's vegetable garden .  YUM!

A great summer meal- Crispy Chicken Salad Wraps.   They were a great blend of creamy and crunchy.  We altered the recipe a bit - brushed them with melted butter instead of spraying with cooking spray and added some fresh basil, since my cilantro crop is not doing so great. We also had great side dishes - Syracuse Salt Potatoes tasted great and were fun to cook.  We made sure to use the really small red potatoes, as bigger ones would probably not get tender enough.  My chive plant was a fine producer for the butter drizzle.  Additionally, Kraft Kitchens has a great recipe for pasta salad - Family Reunion Macaroni Salad .  Good holiday weekend eats!

Summer is a crazy time for pity dinner - lots of comings and goings make Friday nights busy.  We had family visiting, now we have fishing trips.  But do not fear - you can't keep us out of the kitchen for too long!

Break in the action... mid May brought visitors to our town and work took me out of town.  We missed a few weeks in May, but Memorial Day weekend eve was grillin' time. We had Bacon Cheeseburgers... mixed some crumbled bacon and cheese with the beef- YUM! I also provided my crunchy noodle salad - cabbage slaw, ramen noodles and green onions with an oil and vinegar dressing.  Simple, but tastes great.

I needed some comfort food after a busy work week and a warm "sandwiches" with potato salad hit the spot.  Hoagie Bake and classic Potato Salad were simple to shop for, easy to cook and yummy to eat.  Not the most complex flavors or techniques, but some Fridays should be easy! Frizz could not join us due to work demands - we missed you!  We will have a few weeks hiatus due to visitors and travel.  Things get busy as the weather warms up.

We wrapped up the month and welcomed the early spring with a great meal... Chicken Florentine and Orzo with Peas and Mint.   This was a real winner winner chicken dinner.  Everyone seemed to really enjoy it- even Dory, who never likes her own cooking!  It was good to get back on schedule with such yummy eats.

The season of travel and other distractions contributed to some missed PD's... Dory & I visited her folks at the Icehouse... C Pap and Bubbles checked out the fishing on the Jersey shore... and Frizz enjoyed some hometown southern hospitality. We left poor Squirt on his own for a while.  Sorry buddy!

The return of meat - the people rejoiced!  Balsamic Steak Tips with Horseradish Mash. This was well received - though Bubbles seemed to feel it was a bit sweet.  Didn't stop him from cleaning the plate and enjoying the leftovers!

We closed out Fish Friday season with Buffalo-Style Catfish Strips with Ranch Dressing .  Of course, we departed from all the low fat / no fat ingredients and even ended up frying them rather than baking.  Oh well... we have a talented chef to make those kinds of upgrades!  Added some blue cheese dressing for dipping as well.  Celery had to be rationed to ensure a balanced presentation for the table.  Squirt was a late arrival, but we saved a little for him anyway!

This week featured Cheesy Toasted Ravioli with Pesto - we used Momma Anne's homemade pesto and it was great.  She gave us a little container when we visited in February so we saved it for a special meal. We added some sliced cooked sausage so the carnivores were satisfied and some rosemary rolls completed the meal.  It was very, very tasty and we were lucky enough to have leftovers!

Mexican meals just lend themselves so well to different proteins... it is perfect for a variety of eaters!   We enjoyed creating our perfect fajitas on handmade tortillas from Dory!  WOW - they were great. She also supplied some delish guacamole that we basically devoured before dinner.  I marinated the steak overnight in this marinade and tossed the chicken for a few hours as well. We even had sopaipillas with the tortilla dough.  Fresh fried goodness! Bubbles missed out, as he had a serious case of March Madness and had to be treated downtown with beer and chicken wings.   He is expected to make a full recovery.

Triumphant return of the biggest winner ("we're all winners!") in the history of Pity Dinner... the Lenten favorite.... Haddock Sandwiches.    Yum. Yum. Yum. Dory produced the best version yet and we all rejoiced.  She even made the aioli earlier in the week, so it was the tastiest ever. As with many great achievements, there are occasional losses.... goodbye dear spoon rest, we will miss you. We have modified the original recipe - we prefer haddock to cod and we prefer this sauce (use regular mayo - it's worth it!).  Ah, Friday fish season...

This Friday, pity dinner was a custom affair.  Some good basic pastas... spaghetti, fusilli and cheese tortellini ... topped with a strong red sauce .  From there you could add  browned sausage, pinto beans, kalamata olives and cheese.  This was inspired by Bubble's Pasta Fagiole at The Grit. An Italian meal would not be complete without some bread, so i also whipped up some seasoned olive oil for dipping.  Very tasty! Dory was back to cooking again - which is good on many levels and she even brought some brownies for dessert.  C-pap was quite pleased.  A successful return to a missed tradition!

we have been traveling the past two friday nights... off to Georgia with C Pap and Frizz to celebrate my father's 80th birthday!  happy bday Dad! last friday, a not so good meal at a truck stop burger king in CT... this friday, an ok late lunch at a deli in CT.  none of it compares to a pity dinner!  we missed you Dory and Squirt. during our stay in the south, best meal was a toss up between Momma Anne's dinner (awesome meatloaf!) and lunch at The Grit .  who knew tofu could be so tasty???

  Dory is still on crutches;  C-Pap and Frizz have a work event (on a Friday!), so I think we will let someone else cook, serve and clean up for us.   Mexican food should work just fine... margarita, rocks, salt!

A cold night calls for comfort food.  Dory served in a supervisory capacity as she recovers, so I took the reins as executive chef.  Glazed Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green beans - all American comfort food after a long work week! It was just the right amount ... with enough left over for a meatloaf sandwich.

No PD this week. Dory had an operation on her bum fin - get well soon! – so, we gave her the week off. I think we will pressure her to return next week, as crutches are no excuse for laziness. Bubbles and I pick the menu and Dory is head chef. Every meal has a protein and starch. We generally have salad, but sometimes we add a hot veg, depends on the mood. Frizz and C-pap supply all salad and Frizz is the salad chef. It is perfect job for her as she cuts the vegetables into beautifully equal pieces and always gets the best fresh stuff. We make sure to have an assortment of dressings ("Holy Dressings!") and toppings. One new favorite they found is a yummy Caesar and we also love Paul Newman's. We set up the salad buffet and everyone gets to build their own perfect bowl. Some skip the olives, others skip the blue cheese... we allow for lots of independent expression - since the main course is decided  without an opinion survey!

Today we are traveling "up'ta" camp! Squirt's family generously allows us to visit their beautiful home near Sugarloaf. We will eat, drink, take walks, read and play some Wii. Such fun. Since we will be eating some fast food en route, there will be little worthy of description. Instead some PD basics... We live in an old house. The kitchen cabinet for dinner plates is on an exterior wall. This cabinet gets pretty chilly in winter, so we warm the plates on the radiator. Regular rotating to get them all consistently toasty helps ensure our delicious food does not get cold from immediate contact with freezing stoneware.

Dory was traveling back from (not so) Hotlanta this Friday (our hometown!), so I stepped in to feed and water... Crockpot Enchiladas from Paula Deen was the solution. Pretty simple... brown and season some ground beef, layer it in a Crockpot with tortillas, cheese and chili sauce. it certainly doesn't equal some of the amazing flavors we have enjoyed before, but Frizz opened the bar for margaritas, so we all enjoyed ourselves, despite our missing companions.

Friday, 01 January 2010 Recipe from Cook's County Review: fanastic might be one of best PD's ever

New Year's Resolution... blog about Pity Dinner. Our tradition is that Friday nights, we gather for yummy meals. It started when Squirt was off at school in Florida and Bubbles and I "took pity" on Dory for dinner companionship at the end of the week. Once C-Pap and Frizz moved to Maine, they joined in and soon we were the Super Six! Dory travels often for work, so we skip some weeks, but if the chef is available... G Street hosts a weekly gathering of great food and loads of laughs. 2010 will be the year I share the photos and "reviews".