Mothers Day, Fondue, and Heaven with Chocolate

This past Sunday, as you may know, was Mother’s Day in the US.  It was a beautiful day — sunny, warm and lovely – As perfect a day as there has been lately.

My son and I had a fantastic afternoon, walking around at the park, doing some window shopping., talking about music, art, growing up, moving to another country, what kind of person he wants to be, changing attitudes and ideas.  A conversation that evolved into a bit about everything as we walked in downtown White Plains.

The city itself has changed a lot over the past few years, and I have not really explored it all that much.  Dancing Fountains, new shops — a restaurant in an old bank, with a special dining room — inside the bank vault.  A huge movie theatre, lots of new restaurants, Trumps new building, and the new ‘Ritz’ within walking distance of just about everything.

The real destination of our day out, though, was dinner.  My son had made reservations the previous week at a new restaurant in the area called ‘The Melting Pot’.

melting2We were seated in a comfortable 2 person table.  It was very cozy, with fiber-optic lighting above — a ‘starry night sky’.  The table was tucked away, in such a way that neighboring tables couldn’t even be seen.  I am sure this would be a very romantic place to take a sig-other.  For my son and I, the seclusion was very a good thing — he kept singing (quite off key) various songs (The Hippy Hippy Shake), as well as asking me a list of “Get to Know Your Mother” questions (What is your favorite movie, what is your favorite toe, what is your favorite song, etc.).

The menu was a special one for Mothers Day — there were 3-4 choices per course.  Our choices included:

 The Cheese Course  – We selected ‘Mediterranean Cheese’ – “Fontina and Butterkäse cheeses blended with roasted garlic, dates, shallots and a touch of white truffle oil.”

As a woman, with the need for cheese in my DNA, this selection was just amazing.  I would have liked to try a different combination, but this particular mix, I thought, would appeal a bit more to my son, than some others — he’s not overly fond of melted cheese.  Or, wasn’t, anyway.  He devoured this, and would have had more, if possible. It was the garlic that got him ;)

The Salad Course – we both chose Caesar salads.   

The Main Course came with a big selection – “Filet Mignon, Jerk-Seasoned Tenderloin, Teriyaki Marinated Sirloin, Garlic and Herb Chicken, White Shrimp, and Salmon, accompanied by summer Squash, Broccoli, Fancy Button Mushrooms, Red Bliss Potatoes & a variety of dipping sauces.  The main course was braised in Coq Au Vin broth made of fresh herbs, mushrooms, garlic, spices, and burgundy wine in a light stock.”

Oh, now this was fun, and so good.   There were several different selections of braising broths to choose from – lots of different flavors, as well as  one with canola oil, to fry the meats and vegetables in. 

There were also several different dipping sauces, which were nice, though with all the spices on the meat, and then the flavor of the Coq Au Vin, the sauces were really not necessary.

The Dessert Course – “The Flaming Turtle – Milk chocolate, caramel & chopped pecans, flambeed,  served with strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, chocolate marshmallows, graham cracker encrusted marshmallows, pound cake, and brownies”.

Okay……… I think chocolate is okay — nothing that I can’t live without.  Nothing I really go out of my way to eat, either.  So, when we ordered this dessert, I wasn’t as excited as some people might be (Anth, of course, was eagerly anticipating the chocolate, and probably could have slurped up the  melted chocolate via a straw, had I let him).  However.. when the waitress came to the table with this pot of melted chocolate, adding in the warm caramel, and the pecans.. I started to re-think my feelings about chocolate.  Nothing much else I can actually express here except……

“Holy gods almighty.. heaven on a fondue fork”.

Needless to say, with all the food served to us over about 2 hours, neither of us could really move — driving back home was endless, and about 13 seconds after I got up the stairs, and into the apartment, I was changed into loose fitting pjs.  But it was worth every bite.

One last thing.. a very big *Thank you* to my son for making this day such a special one – as he has since the day he was born.  I hope he remembers that the next time we go to the Melting Pot, I get both the chocolate marshmallows ;)

 

meltingbar

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Cityscape of San Francisco.. out of cookware

Bored?  Have nothing to do?  Grab your cookware and create a cityscape…

(Note: I don’t know whose image this is, so I don’t have attribution for it).

Cityscape-detail

Original Link

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Country Fried Steak ( aka Chicken Fried Steak )

This is a slightly different country fried steak recipe, in that it uses crushed crackers, instead of just flour/egg.  This is the way my mother and her family always made this recipe. 

To make it more traditional, just leave out the crackers, but still double dip the steaks in the egg/flour. 

Don’t forget to serve this with mashed potatoes!!!

Country Fried Steak (aka Chicken Fried Steak)

2 Pounds Beef Bottom Round Steak (or ‘Cube’ steak if you prefer)
kosher salt
Pepper
1/2 cup flour
3 eggs, beaten
1 sleeve of crushed saltine crackers
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups chicken stock or broth
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon thyme

Heat your oven to 250F

Place the flour in one dish, and the beaten egg in another dish.  Dip the steak into the egg, allow to drip excess off for a moment, and then dredge the steak in the flour, shaking off any excess.  Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes, and then re-dip the steak in the egg and then into the crushed crackers, making sure the crackers stick well.  Do this for all the pieces of steak you have.    Allow to sit for about 10 minutes before cooking.

Cover just the bottom of your skillet, and heat to medium-high.  Once the oil is hot enough, add in the steak.  Don’t over crowd here — the steak won’t cook evenly if the pan is crowded.  Leave about 1/4 inch between the pieces.  Cook each steak until golden brown – about 4 minutes per side.  Move the steaks to either a plate or a wire rack that has been placed in the oven.  Now repeat with the remaining steaks.

Once all the steaks are done, whisk in the rest of the vegetable oil (about 1 tablespoon), and then quickly whisk in 3 tablespoons of flour (you can use the leftover flour from dredging the steaks).  Add the chicken broth, and whisk until the gravy comes to a boil.  Once it has come to a boil, add the milk and thyme, and whisk again until the gravy coats the back of a spoon.  Salt & pepper to taste.  Serve with the steaks.

Your choice here is to use either bottom round steak, or cube steak — either will work here just fine.  Usually, if you are on a budget, you can get cube steak much cheaper.

About the crushed crackers — you’ll want these in pretty small pieces, so they stick well to the steak.  You can  use your favorite cracker — Ritz, or Saltines are what I usually use, though.

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Coconut White Russian

kahluapinacoladaabsolute milk

Coconut White Russian

1/4 part Kahlua
1/4 part Piña Colada
1/4 part Vodka
1/4 Part Milk

Put the alcohol over ice, in a shaker if you have it, and then pour into a glass, add milk to fill the glass.

Be careful — it’s surprisingly strong — if you drink too much of it, you’ll be singing ‘Long Tall Glasses” in no time ;)

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On the other hand, it might be helpful with getting laid – it is sweet and doesn’t taste like there is much alcohol in it – always advantageous for my boyfriend ;)

I did a two-step, quick-step and a bossa nova
A little Victor Silvester, and a Rudy Valentino
You should a seen me movin, right across the floor
Hand me down my tuxedo, next week I’m comin’ back for more
I can dance — oh yes! I can dance
Look at me dancin’ the floor movin’
I feel good — I can dance
I can dance, I can dance, I can dance.

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Stuffed Chicken Rolls with Basil and Roma Tomatoes

Gads…

I just had a foodgasm..

And then another..

And then another..

And then another..

Until all the chicken rolls were gone.  And now I’m so full I can hardly move.

Sander (DukeLupus) has been making these chicken rolls for a while, and always says how amazing and delicious they are.  So, last night when I went to the market, I picked up the ingredients he uses, as well as a few of my own, and made these chicken rolls.  He was absolutely right.  They are freaking amazing.  Sander’s recipe is a bit different — he spread the mayo on the chicken, and then the cream cheese.  I, however, loved the idea of the cream cheese, but wanted to try it with basil and tomatoes – which, in my opinion, creates a perfect combination.

I hope you like these as much as we did.  Thank you for the idea, and the recipe, Sander. :)

Enjoy!

 

Stuffed Chicken Rolls with Basil and Roma Tomatoes

1 pound chicken breasts, boneless
4 ounces softened cream cheese
2 tablespoons mayo
1 tablespoon Romano or parmesan cheese
basil, chiffonade
seeded and diced Roma tomatoes
bread crumbs

romatomatoes In a bowl, mix softened cream cheese, mayo, cheese, and basil together.  Set aside.  Seed and dice the tomatoes, and set these aside as well.

If you are using whole, boneless chicken breasts (or cutlets), you can do a couple of different things here.  Slice them very thin to make several thin cutlets, or butterfly the cutlets (as shown here).  I opted for butterflying, and then pounding the cutlets until very, very thin.  To pound them, place the butterfiled cutlet between 2 pieces of plastic wrap, and, using your mallet, pound the chicken outwards, to create a thin cutlet.  The thicker the chicken rolls, the longer they take to cool, therefore, your goal is to have very thin cutlets, without ripping them.

Once the cutlets are ready, lay one out, and spread the cream cheese mixture on the cutlet, leaving 1/2 inch of space around.  Sprinkle with a bit of the tomatoes, and roll up.  If the roll won’t stay closed, you can use a wooden toothpick to keep the roll closed – just remember to remove it before serving.  Don’t overfill the chicken — too much and the filling will ooze out during cooking.  Roll the chicken rolls in the bread crumbs.  basilleaves

Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil in a non-stick skillet, and one the oil is hot (but not smoking!!), add the chicken rolls, being careful not to crowd the pan, or they will cook unevenly.

Cook the chicken 2-3 minutes per side, until the chicken is completely done.  If your chicken is a bit thicker, they may take a few more minutes.

If you are making a lot of these, as soon as the chicken breasts are done, place in the oven set to 225F, to keep warm.  Serve as soon as possible.

 

Notes:

I’m sure there are a lot of variations to these, but a few that I would like to try would be:

  • Replacing the tomato with red pepper.  You’d have to lightly saute the pepper before you put it on the rolled chicken, though.
  • Adding onion to the red peppers above.
  • Using chopped scallion (green onions or spring onions), mixed in with the cream cheese instead of basil.
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The Best Sugar Cookies

This is my Grams recipe for sugar cookies — these melt in your mouth and are just wonderful. 

I would not use these for icing/decorating style cookies – there are other recipes better suited for decorating — this contains too much oil/butter, and really won’t hold up well with heavy icings.  Just a sprinkle of sugar, before baking, or some powdered sugar very lightly sprinkled over top after they have completely cooled if you must.  I almost never add anything to these. 

I’ve changed out the vanilla for almond flavoring, and pressed a sliced almond into the cookie before baking and had good success with it as well.

Enjoy!

The Best Sugar Cookies

(aka Grams Sugar Cookies)

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
1 Cup Softened Butter
1 Cup Cooking Oil
2 eggs
4 1/2 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cream of Tarter
1 tsp Vanilla

Cream the sugars, butter and oil until light and fluffy.  Add in the eggs and vanilla, and mix well.  In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cream of tarter.  Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until combined.

You can spoon these onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet, and flatten.  Bake at 375, for 10-12 minutes.

OR

You can chill these 2-3 hours, and roll out, and use as for cutouts. Bake as above.

You can sprinkle these with a light coating of powdered sugar once completely cooled.

These keep about 1 week, in a tightly covered container.

My notes:

Gram used Lard, but I use softened butter.

I like these as cutouts, so I lay the dough on a piece of saran wrap, flatten, lay another piece of saran wrap on top and roll out.  I then chill for at least an hour before cutouts are made.  Repeat the process once the dough has softened.

Also, I make this in large batches (4-5 batches), lay out as above with the saran wrap in small batches, and freeze.  Let dough thaw in the refrigerator before using.

Also, I have made this as a ‘slicing log’ — i.e….. I’ve rolled it up into a log shape, refrigerated and sliced and baked.  This also freezes well.

I like these cookies a little on the ‘thick’ side.

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