Sunday, December 30, 2012

celery root confit, lobster stock, roasted chestnuts, chicken stock, candied walnuts

We're working on a little dinner with friends - with wine pairings -
here's a behind the scenes look at what goes in to making the dishes
sparkle with flavor (I'll post pics of the finished products too!)

Friday, December 28, 2012

Roasted Shallots and Parmesan Brussels Sprouts

Two of our favorites on one plate! We had marinated lamb, oven roasted
cippolini onions with a balsamic glaze, roasted shallots, and mashed
potatoes through the ricer. YYS!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Beets. Fresh. Small. Dirty. Clean. Cooking.

Beets. We love beets. The kids love them too. Their flavor is so
earthy and sweet. These are homegrown (Can I get a big Jeff
Foxworthy-inspired, Duhh?) . Summer was rough in the plains this
year, you may have heard. There just wasn't enough water. And I
wasn't interested in spending $300/month watering my garden. This is
the result. Beets picked after an entire season. We did pull a few out
earlier this season that were somehow larger - but not many. Hoping
for a more robust crop next year. In all their smallness and pain in
the lower back-ness, they remain one of the most delicious vegees.
ever. And the juice will more than likely be found on our porch next
week ... very red. Perfect.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

food coma after dinner with friends

dinner's done, I'm in a food coma. Butternut squash soup topped with
oven-roasted fennel bulb and toasted pecans, salad from the garden
with sorrel, arugula, tomatoes, cucumbers, pears, toasted fresh fennel
seeds, beet greens, carrot greens, a little sage, a little oregano &
green pear for crunch - dressed with cara-cara orange juice+zest,
basil seeds, honey, brown sugar, a little balsamic, a little rice
vinegar, salt, pepper ... microwaved then grilled quartered red
potatoes, and fab lemon and garlic stuffed roasted chicken. Tim
brought some of that killer rustic bread of his and awesome choco chip
cookies. YUM. To my delight, all of the kids but one asked for MORE
(drum roll please) SALAD! I didn't make an abundance of it, thinking
the kids wouldn't care for the bitterness of the arugula (I didn't use
any greens other than sorrel and arugula, pretty peppery for kiddos!)
Hooray! (ages: 3, 5, 6, and 9) Only one of the 5 yos didn't ask for
more!

sadly I did not take a picture. We were all so busy enjoying each
others' company and eating ... that the camera did not come out once.
Good times. Good friends. YYS food!

Monday, September 24, 2012

gnudi in tomato sauce

beauties bathing. Tomatoes getting a quick blanch before becoming
sauce for yummy gnudi. The kiddos gobbled them up like candy! Yummy
yummy! Schlurp!

Friday, August 24, 2012

busy bees, busy kids, a pumpkin! Ernie and the cukes, fennel pollen

chicken & acorn squash (from my garden, yummy oh my yummy schlurp!!)

this is the chicken marinade I make. It's good for any kind of
chicken, these happen to be thighs. Ginger, garlic (plenty of it),
lemon, salt, and a splash of olive oil. Grill to perfection. You
will not be able to stop eating it. Yummy yummy SCHLURP!

Sunday, August 12, 2012

experiment. finished product to follow.

all from our garden. fresh. Potatoes, tomatoes, zuchini, squash
flower, herbs, garlic, beet greens - with some wine, shallot, onion
... y.... yummmy ... s

Saturday, August 4, 2012

om nom farm to yummy yummy table schlurp dinner

YUM. We had lots of lovely, delicious things in the garden tonight,
which made their way to our table. Tomatoes, zuchinis, beets,
cucumbers, The protein, on the right, marinated and grilled ahi,
topped with pico, to its left, cucumbers, tomatoes, in a light rice
and balsamic vinegar with a pinch of brown sugar, some salt and pepper
and dill (also from our garden), black rice with chicken stock and
whole garlic, zuchini coins cooked in white wine with garlic, onion,
and tomato, and, in the middle, candied beets. Evelyn couldn't keep
her fingers off it long enough for me to shoot it! Yummy. yummy.
SCHLURP!

Saturday, July 28, 2012

carrot, cukes, and fennel amuse

there was one carrot - a small one - for 5 people. How would You have
served it? I used a little salt, a little white sugar, a drop of
honey, and some rice wine vinegar. Yummy! YS!

beauty is skin deep. Flavor is through and through.

from the YYS garden! Isn't it beautiful, this raiinbow carrot, with
its beet red exterior and gorgeous orange interior?

Monday, June 25, 2012

pickled baby beets and baby fennel amuse bouche!

first beets and fennel of the season! We've been eating the tops for a
while. Yum-o! Ernie and Evelyn kept wanting more. Sorry, kids. Only
enough for 3 smalls and 2 large! The pickling liquid was a little
rice vinegar, a little red wine vinegar, a splash of balsamic, salt,
pepper, and brown sugar.

Monday, June 18, 2012

yummy Fathers' Day Crepes Yummy! Schlurp!

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Tuesday, April 17, 2012

my garden greens, lightly dressed

they were topped with a piece of salmon in the same honey mustard
dressing accompanied by a piece of sauteed eggplant. I just love the
simplicity of this shot! YYS!

Friday, April 13, 2012

Grilled chix thighs on a bed of squash with quick pickles from fuzzy melon.

squash, cleaned, cubed, marinated in salt, honey, sriracha, olive oil,
pan roasted and caramelized, deglazed with orange juice, then pureed
with a little more sriracha - and fuzzy melon, quick pickled in cider
vinegar, salt, and dill. YYS!

And of course, Chicken thigh, grilled, on top of the squash. Num yum. Schlurp!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

fish tacos, yys. So yummy!

Mahi marinated til serving, fresh salsa, and delish slaw. Yummy.
Yummy! Schlurp!

Monday, April 2, 2012

yummy fresh salsa

was.so.yummy. fresh chopped scallion, juice of 1 lime, superfine chop
clove garlic, fresh cilantro and parsely, splash of salt. YYS!

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Fresh eggs. Nothing beats them!

Except, maybe, a whisk. ;) Aren't they GORGEOUS? Remember - with
eggs and scallops, the more colors the better. These eggs are
magical.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

what was left!!

Here's some of the tags from the cheeses on Saturday. The Drunken
Goat was far and away the #1 by weight, volume, and vanishing acts. I
think people were surprised by its nuttiness, creamyness, dryness, and
deliciosity. Unikaase I love because it actually has texture - a
little crunch, together with salt and nuttiness. Cheddar is a
perennial favorite. The fig spread? To die for. I think Whole Foods
needs to send me a commission check. ;) Lots of new fans. And you
just can't go wrong with triple cream brie! Yummy Yummy Schlurp!

pain perdu

So, our friend Tim Hoffner makes the.best.bread.ever. Really. He
does. He made some (36 batards) for a little get together we had on
Saturday night. This was breakfast on Sunday morning. Pain Perdu --
another word for French Toast. Delicious. The crust, the crumb, all
played together so harmoniously. It was amazing. And yummy. Oh so
Yummy. Made you want to schlurp it all up!

Sunday, March 4, 2012

dinner party

filet of beef sandwich with dressed arugula, rainbow carrot crudites,
ginormous strawberries, roasted shallots, creamy dreamy Mac n Cheesy
(with eggs, gruyere, butter, cream, it's amazing and the kiddos loved
it), roasted fennel, roasted celery, beets napoleon, roasted
mushrooms, mushroom juice, and red pepper cous cous ... I didn't shoot
the cheese. It was good! Drunken goat, unikaase reserve, big wheel
cheddar, triple cream brie ... om nom nom yummy yummy SCHLURP! And,
there was a crown and a dress. We also had our 3 year old's birthday
party last night -- 15 or so kids, a bunch of adults, Mme Queen Potty
Pants enjoyed her party immensely.