Vinegar braised chicken (finally) and other stuff

I've been meaning to blog about this delicious Spring dish and not even the pleading of Facebook friends who saw the photo the night I made it has gotten me closer to doing it, until now. I guess life has been busy. June is a whirlwind lately, full of energy and sass and plenty of words. She is the most talkative little girl I've ever seen. She pretty much can express anything she wants to with limited words and it's really fun, mostly. Until she says something like "Go away mama." That hurts and happened only once, but I think it goes along with having a toddler. Their worlds are so frustratingly small at the same time that they are developing so fast and they can't get there fast enough for their little minds to be happy. And we're always telling them "No" and "Be careful" and "Do this and Do that" that sometimes I just want to let her do whatever she wants and not get in the way. Luckily, I have not really had to discipline her too much as she's pretty mellow and hardly ever throws a tantrum. I can count on one hand the number of times she's done something that resembled a tantrum and I'm grateful. But some days are still hard... and long.

She's on Spring break from the Mom's day out program this week and we're having fun. Here she is last weekend at the neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt. I love this photo and we had such a good time that day.

But back to the chicken. This was one of those dishes that I got inspired to make from one of my magazines. It was in April Food and Wine. And I will go back to it again and again because it was so easy and turned out so beautifully. We practically licked our plates when it was gone. Isn't it just Spring in a dish?

So here is the recipe. I tweaked it a bit and added little tiny French green beans that I had in the freezer, plus halved the amount of leeks and added an onion since that's what I had. And instead of creme fraiche, used sour cream because it's essentially the same thing and easier to find. I almost always have some in the fridge. If you make it, let me know how it turns out!

here is miss sassypants in the new hat and sunglasses her Papa got her for our trip to the beach in a couple of weeks.

Going to be a big weekend for cooking and entertaining. We're having family and friends over for Easter brunch on Sunday and June and I will dye eggs and hide them in the backyard for her and her friends. Also having some friends over for dinner who we haven't seen in a long time so I'm looking forward to a busy weekend of cooking, baking and enjoying everyone's company. Happy Easter!

Dreaming of snow

(photo courtesy of elephant.com)

To say that we had a "nice Christmas" this year would be such an understatement. To quote my older brother who is usually sparse with words and short on emotion, "It was one of the best in a long time." And I would have to agree. I know that a lot of people have mixed feelings about Christmas, and holidays in general, as they tend to bring up memories of family dramas of years past and the stress is sometimes running high. After all, anytime you gather too many family members under one roof, not to mention members of more than one family, things can get goofy at best, unbearable at worst.

But ours was a fun and cheerful time spent with both our families all together, our house serving as the neutral gathering place. We didn't travel to one or the other, or miss seeing one in order to see the other. We made everyone come to us and I have to say, it was perfect. Since everything pretty much revolves around the baby now, it made sense to do this and she had a ball. She really had fun seeing everyone and kept repeating everyone's names after they left, saying "see you." It was so sweet.

Now we are in the middle of January and I miss my family and also --the snow. I realize that after so many winters living in Colorado I equate winter with cold and snow and the beautiful mountain scenery that I miss so much. I can take really cold temperatures, as long as they're dry and mixed with sun. In the south when it's cold, it's often also wet and damp which makes winter a lot less enjoyable. I also miss skiing and hiking in the mountains and the FUN that winter brings in Colorado.
(the photo above is of the Flatirons in Boulder on a typical winter day).

So we try to make the most of it by going to the library or the coffee shops or wherever we can find a good train table (June is obsessed with trains all of a sudden and can't get enough of Thomas the Tank Engine) and we hit the playground on warmer days where she can get some exercise and meet friends.

In my kitchen things are warm and we're roasting a lot of chickens, making beef stew or creamy, indulgent things like this mushroom-leek risotto that I made last night. It was one of those wintry dishes with lots of cream, butter and cheese that you can only really justify when the weather is cold and you've earned it by working outside all day (like Daniel) or worked out at the gym (that would be me).

(image from the NYTimes)

Here's an article I just came across in the NYTimes Dining and Wine section today and it was totally speaking to me. I love vegetable risottos like the beautiful one above this time of year. They really warm the soul and satisfy that craving I have for a real winter. If I can't be in the Rockies or the Alps right now, at least I can cook the way they do in the colder climates. And keep dreaming of snow.

It's beginning to look a lot like...

...Christmas! Are you ready? Here it is only 10 days until Christmas and while it's been a crazy few weeks, I am really looking forward to the holidays this year.

For the first time I've convinced my family to come to Nashville and now we don't have to travel to Las Vegas. It will be a lot less stressful, but on the other hand, I have LOTS to do getting ready for guests and hosting Christmas Eve and Christmas dinners at my house. I can't wait.

To begin with, I've decorated more than usual. It has been fun to pull out things that were my mom's that I've collected over the years but never really used. Like all the pretty goose themed decorations --she had a thing for geese at Christmas that began sometime in the 80s--and her homemade felt ornaments which must be over 40 years old now. I love those. They have a special place on my tree every year. If you knew my mom you know that nobody loved Christmas as much as she did.

And, something I learned from my mom, I've been really frugal too. She was really good at finding great deals and didn't let lack of money deter her enthusiasm. I also didn't want to go out and spend a lot of money on things I use only once a year. So I've been thrift shopping a lot for my holiday gear and to great success. I found garland with lights already attached to go around my front door and on my fireplace mantle (okay so one strand out of three didn't work, but I only paid $2.99 for each), and enough wreaths to hang on all three doors and windows on the front of the house. With the icicle lights too it looks like a little winter wonderland out there.

The inside is cozy and warm and very festive too. We did a little dining room overhaul recently and repainted the walls the same color grey as the front room after Daniel tore down the wall that separated them and trimmed the opening exactly like the rest of our 1930s trim. Now it's a nice, big open space to entertain in. I got a new dining room table with an extra leaf so I can seat 10-12 people now. Four new chairs and gold seat cushions to match the damask curtains I already had and it's like a whole new room! Now everything looks a bit more elegant but still very warm and I love it.

I picked up these odds and ends at the Goodwill and spent next to nothing on them. I love the little tree with lights and the nutcracker and the old-fashioned ornaments look great on my tree. And how about this festive Benetton Fair Isle sweater that which cost only $3?

June had such a good time helping me decorate the tree. She kept trying to put ornaments in the same spot and then changing her mind and taking them back off and saying "ooh, pretty." We kept my mom's tradition of eating cookies and drinking egg nog (June drank soy milk) and listening to Christmas music while we worked. I loved getting to share this with her for the first time.

She also understands a little bit about Christmas and we've been reading books about Santa and all the fun things like angels and reindeer and treats under the tree. She can say "candy cane" and "Santa", "snowman" and "lights" and she's working on the idea that everyone is coming here to spend the holiday with us. I'm not sure she quite gets that part yet but she will soon and it will be so much fun to have everyone here to shower her with love and attention. Her uncles and her 'Papa' are thrilled to see her and both brothers are staying in our little house which should be like a big old slumber party.

In the homemade gift department which is usually what I work on in the weeks leading up to Christmas I have come up short as all of my attention has been on decorating my house and planning the menus for Christmas. But I did pick up these little Italian treats called torrone to give to June's teachers and use as hostess gifts. And the cute owl is one of a few little ornaments I found to give to friends' babies.

I've made only one batch of cookies but plan on making at least three more next week. My brother Greg, fresh from living on a farm in Southwestern France for four months, gets here on Monday and he and I are going to make patés and a roast pork and I'll make my cioppino for Christmas Eve. We plan to do a traditional Italian staple --braciole simmered for a long time in tomato sauce and served with pasta for Christmas day. My aunt Bev will make her delicious bread pudding and she'll be really helpful as well. I'm so glad I will have company in the kitchen.

This weekend is shaping up to be fun and busy --two parties, a night out to listen to a friend's music on Sat., plus helping a friend cook for her holiday staff party and somehow doing some baking of my own. It's a lot of work but, like my mom, I really enjoy the holidays and all the build-up too. As I know was true for her, for me the cooking and preparing and decorating is just the warm-up for the real fun: spending time with family and gathering around the table over delicious food. Let the fun begin!

a bang up holiday weekend

This weekend was the most fun weekend I've had in a long time. I did something I've never done before (participate in a neighborhood bike parade) and something I have not done in way too long: I went out to see live music and not just any live music, but the U2 concert at Vanderbilt stadium.

On Saturday night 45,000 fans convened on a hot and muggy Nashville night to see and hear a spectacle of greatness, talent and sincerity that left us practically skipping all the way home. For me, it was an extra special concert, as I've been a U2 fan for most of my life. Well, for as long as I remember being able to really love music. The band have been together now for 35 years which makes me feel really old.

I first saw them in concert in high school, though I followed them for long before that. I actually got to meet them when I was 17 and they were on tour and played in Las Vegas, where I am from. Through my dad's friendship with one well-connected man, my friend Erica and I got to deliver tickets for a boxing match, a gift from the concert promoter, to the band at their hotel (!!!). Imagine the excitement. It was a dream come true. Somewhere I have a photo of that meeting - my friend and I sandwiched between Bono and the Edge, looking every bit as nervous and elated as you would imagine two teenage girls meeting the famous rock stars of their dreams would look. I would post that photo if only I could find it.

We had not been planning to go on Sat., but I got a wild hair and decided to look for tickets on craigslist. I found them, we found a babysitter last-minute and off we went!

The concert was wonderful and special and Daniel and I had a really fun time. I loved the opener too: Florence and the Machine, an ethereal and stunning British woman in a long green chiffon costume who sang beautifully and skipped around the stage barefoot. I had heard only one of her songs before and knew she was a fashion icon so it was cool to see her perform live.

When U2 came on the stage Daniel joked, "Look at them - they're like Gods." And that's how it felt. They looked great too. Time has done nothing to diminish their god-like rock star status. Bono kept talking about how much they loved Nashville and how great it was to be playing here for the first time since 1981. It was also their 100th show on this "360 Tour." He sang a song that he wrote and performed with Johnny Cash called The Wanderer. And they played a lot of old hits as well as newer material. There were about 10 years in there when I was in grad school and not listening to much music and I lost track of them (around the time Zooropa came out). But since then, I've managed to catch one other U2 concert --in 2004 in Denver, in addition to the couple of times I saw them in the 80s-- but none was as great as this show. Maybe it's because, like the band, I am aging and living in a new phase of life, one that is amazing and beautiful, but which contains too few opportunities to rock out. And it was all so nostalgic for me. Hearing them perform "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "I Will Follow" and "In the Name of Love" will always tug at my heartstrings and remind me of my younger days.

Here are some photos from the show, not the best because shot from afar with my phone, but nonetheless they capture the drama and impact of the rocket ship stage framed by hundreds of very sophisticated moving video screens in a 360 degree ring above the stage. From this the concert was projected spliced with cutting edge video graphics and special effects, old footage of the band, and even recorded transmissions from Desmond Tutu and Gabrielle Gifford's astronaut husband from outer space telling us that "It's a Beautiful Day." Pretty cool.

It was all so spontaneous and that added to the fun of the evening. I am so glad I got that wild hair and that it all worked out so perfectly. I was meant to rekindle my love affair with U2 here in Nashville on this 4th of July weekend.

The other thing we did that was super fun was participate in this cute little bike parade that our neighbor Zella, age 6, organized.

I thought her poster was really cute, and the parade was even cuter. The kids all decorated their bikes and wagons and we took June along in the trailer behind my bike. Zella's dad and another neighbor blocked the traffic on our street at each end of the block and we all paraded down and back complete with accompanying drum and saxophone and a live Statue of Liberty. It was really very sweet and reminded me of what a great neighborhood we chose to live and raise our child in.

A Father's Day feast

It was my husband's first Father's Day and I thought it deserved a special celebration. It's hard to believe our first year as parents is coming to a close (June will be one year old a week from today) and as I plan her first birthday party, I am reliving the memories of a year ago: the pregnancy, the birth, the bliss of our first few days and weeks as new parents. And, most of all, we are really enjoying getting to know her as she grows into the cutest and sweetest little girl, her personality lighting up our lives on a daily basis.

Of course, the year has not been without its challenges, most of all in the sleep department. But June gave her daddy and I the best present of all the other night: she slept through the night (almost) for the first time in her life! Which meant that mom got some rest (finally) and was not a huge grump all day long. It also meant I had the energy and desire to cook a feast for my hubby and his family who came over to spend the day with us.

I wanted to use the grill since that always seems like a Father's Day thing to do, even it means the dads usually end up "manning" it while I'm busy in the kitchen with the other dishes. But I'm not really a huge fan of grilling meat, or fixing meat in general. But I wanted that summer flavor that the grill imparts and also didn't want to have to turn on the stove on a hot summer day.

I found a great recipe in Cook's Illustrated for Grilled Argentine steaks with Chimichurri sauce. Perfect. Has Father's day written all over it. I bought three smallish sirloin steaks from the Turnip Truck. I made the sauce in the morning --a delicious mixture of cilantro, parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes and oil that would make anything taste great. The recipe for grilling the steaks called for a few unusual steps that promised to give the meat that Argentine taste of "churrasco" or wood-infused flavor that comes from grilling over an open fire. Also, it promised to yield a steak that was perfectly charred on the outside, but still moist and juicy on the inside. Let me just say that it delivered on all counts and was probably the best steak I've ever made at home.

(photo courtesy America's Test Kitchen)

Those unusual steps were to sprinkle a mixture of kosher salt and corn starch on the steaks and then put them on a wire rack over a sheet pan and into the freezer for 30 min before grilling. It also called for using wood chunks (preferably oak) on a perforated aluminum pie plate while heating the grill on high for 15 min with the lid down. Then, move the wood to the side but keep it in the grill while cooking the steaks. This is what produces that smoky, delicious and subtle essence of burning wood. Man, were they right. The meat, perfectly grilled by my father-in-law to medium rare, then sliced thinly, the chimichurri sauce passed at the table to pour over it, made for a near perfect steak. And I'm not a steak person.

To go with it, I made veggie skewers with red and green peppers, red onion, mushrooms and zucchini that we threw on the grill while the meat rested. And a French potato salad made with a vinaigrette of olive oil, red wine vinegar, parsley and lots of fresh herbs from our garden. Yum.

(the photo is from the magazine since mine didn't look that pretty when served)

And for dessert, I made this peach thingy I saw in Martha Stewart Living, July. An easy summer dessert made of store-bought angel food cake, fresh peaches which are really good right now and whipped cream, layered in a loaf pan and put in the freezer just long enough to set and slice. It was a hit and so very easy!

It was a lovely day and a feast worthy of the best dad in the universe, next to my own, of course.

New year and BIG news

Another year, another blog post-- finally. Wow, it has been way too long since I visited you here and for that I apologize. But you should forgive me once you hear my excuses.

December was quite a month! Even before that, November ended on a busy note. I did my first wedding cake which turned out beautifully. It was made for some friends, new to town, who had a lovely and intimate Fall wedding at their home. People came from as far away as New Zealand and Ireland and a good time was had by all. The cake was really special: a dense almond cake with a almond dacquoise layer and a layer of apricot glaze and almond buttercream frosting. We decorated it with handmade marzipan fruits, acorns and berries and finished it with two woodsy animals on top. The couple loved it!





Then, there were the December parties: like the staff holiday cooking party with my friends at Crema at which we made homemade pumpkin-stuffed ravioli with butter and sage, among other things.



I also catered a party for my friends Ross and Jimmy and did a barrage of Italian antipasti like bruschetta with prosciutto and figs, wild mushrooms and fontina, a bagna cauda with crudités,and little meatballs with spicy tomato sauce. I was so busy that night I didn't take one photo.

And then came the usual December baking frenzy. I made so many dozens of holiday cookies I couldn't even find time to make any for my family! They were not amused. But I did make a lovely orange chiffon cake for Christmas Eve dinner. And I cooked with my brother on Christmas Eve which was fun. We managed to make a fabulous 3-course dinner for 16 people including homemade ricotta and spinach ravioli with tomato cream sauce, a spectacular 14-lb salted and spiced pork roast from Heritage Farms, and the most amazing potato and celery root gratin which my brother makes at Minetta Tavern in New York.



The whole meal was wonderful and the time spent with my family the most important thing.

And then there was the surprise... (actually two surprises)

Which I humbly present to you here by way of apology for my extended absence.

I'm pregnant!

And, I'm engaged!



So 2010 is going to be a big year for me. It's all very exciting news and we are over the moon. Happy New Year everyone.

Next post: my New Year's Day lentil and spicy sausage soup. Can't wait to get back in the kitchen!

blackberry walnut cookies

There is nothing quite like the perfect sandwich cookie. You can smear a bunch of things between two cookies and call it good, but in reality, not all sandwich cookies are created equal. Think of the oreo. It's an insult to the sandwich cookie if you think about it. Like the famous linzer cookie with its heart-shaped cut-out reminiscent of the holidays. Those are pretty darn perfect.

And the cookie in question: two buttery, nutty shortbread cookies with tart berry jam in between, dusted with powdered sugar. mmmmmm.

I am a fan of this cookie recipe, not only because it looks so pretty, dusted as it is with powdered sugar as if to say 'this was just an after-thought, nothing more, nothing less' but because it is such an easy recipe. If you have a food processor or nut grinder for the walnuts, even better. But if not, finely chopping the walnuts is the hardest thing you'll have to do.



I served them as a simple ending to a holiday meal. It was a Hanukkah dinner I gave for my b.f.'s family. I made potato latkes and topped them with smoked salmon and horseradish cream, as well as a homemade spicy apple chutney. I got inspired to try them after seeing the beautiful spread in the December issue of Gourmet.



I have to say, for a 'shiksa' (is that the correct spelling?) I make a pretty damn good latke. I have become quite fond of embracing my non-Jewish Jewish side and for two years now I've made latkes for the family so we can say we celebrated Hanukkah, even though the Catholic girl is the only one who really gets into the tradition. What can I say? I love food traditions revolving around holidays --religious or otherwise-- and any excuse is a good excuse to throw a dinner party.



Blackberry Walnut Cookies (from Gourmet magazine, Dec. 2008)

2 sticks unsalted butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup a.p. flour
1 cup walnuts, toasted, cooled and finely chopped
about 1/2 cup blackberry or raspberry jam
garnish: confectioner's sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350. Blend together butters, sugar, vanilla and 3/4 t salt in a bowl. Stir in flour and nuts (dough will be sticky). Form level tablespoons of dough, or use a cookie or ice cream scoop, into balls (40 total) and arrange 2 in. apart on 2 large, ungreased baking sheets. Flatten balls to 1/3 in thick with the back of a water glass dipped in flour. Bake, until edges are golden about 20 minutes. Cool completely.
Spoon 1 tsp jam into flat sides of 20 cookies, then sandwich with remaining cookies.
Dust with confectioner's sugar.