Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Happy 34th Anniversary to Russell and Marie! To celebrate, we did the following:

Mixed green and arugula salad with lemon, olive oil, dijon mustard and pepper dressing

Rustic Boule-style loaf 

So, I was a bit torn on the dinner-portion. When I lived in Madrid, I was very accustomed to making (screwing up, at first) paella. But once I mastered it, I made it regularly. Since my return to the states, I made it only one time! My rice-making adventures have been almost exclusively with risotto.

So what's a fella to do for his parent's anniversary? Pae-sotto is the answer, folks!

Scallop, clam and asparagus Pae-sotto with saffron and chardonnay, a slight modification to the traditional scallop and mushroom risotto recipe in the linked book above.

Accompanying the Pae-sotto was pan seared (any white) fish. I used Tilapia. Patted in flour, then pan seared, topped with a diced tomato and pineapple, cilantro, lime and lime zest and thai chili salsa, the basics of which came from here, I improvised the rest.

Vegetable side dish was roasted yellow squash and zuchini topped with "Marrakesh" seasoning (Thyme, cinnamon, cumin and coriander) and olive oil.

Thai breakfast

So, it's not actually a breakfast that they eat in Thailand, but I noticed how much this tastes like a Thai meal:
Green tea with fresh grated ginger and peanut butter toast!

To get the most ginger taste, use 1 green tea bag and grate about 2 teaspoons of fresh ginger (skin and all) into a measuring cup. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then pour through a tea filter into a cup. Add some honey and lemon and enjoy the peanut/ginger flavors!

Inaugural Dinner Success!

Thanks to all who made it to my inaugural dinner! To everyone else, I look forward to eating with you soon.

So let's get down to it. What was on the menu? G, take it away with the photos...

  


Traditional bruschetta, (top) and sweet bruschetta (bottom). The strawberry and chevre was a great combination! Who would have thought that you can eat dessert for an appetizer!


Primi piatti: (with inspiration from Risotto) Bay scallop, clam and parsley risotto. This turned out wonderfully creamy mostly because of the nature of arborio rice, while maintaining a reasonable calorie content. Be sure to add the fish-stock slowly for this recipe.

Side: Homemade crunchy kale chips topped with salt, pepper and lemon, cut into squares, and placed (not crowded) onto a baking sheet at 350F for approx 15 mins.

Segundi piatti: (with inspiration from Julia) Poached tilapia in a scallion, butter and pinot grigio reduction. Turned out wonderfully tender without flaking, just like Julia says. (Insert ridiculous imitation of Julia Child's voice here). Too much wine by this point to remember the camera, so no photos, sorry!

Dessert: 
1. Canele from Market Day. Canele are a crunchy-on-the-outside and soft-on-the-inside cake-ish pastry that is way better than I can describe it here. Plus, nuns make it! (Maybe not, see photo)

2. Chile Mango Fruit Floes (Trader jOES pun). Mango at first taste, converts into chile flavor a few seconds after your first bite!






Wines: All white: 2008 Voga Pinot Grigio, 2005 Leaping Horse Chardonnay, 2006 Blue Nun Qualitatswein.

Next dinner to be announced shortly! Thanks again everyone!

Funky grilled cheese

Quick Lunch: 
Honey Wheat bread Cabot Sharp Cheddar, minced kalamata olives and Texas Pete hot sauce. Apple juice

Just another Monday

Mixed panko and regular bread crumbs to fully coat the Pan-seared chicken chops. The spinach/ricotta tortellini were a nice starchy addition, topped with a lot of fresh ground black pepper. These torts are salty, so you really don't need any additional cheese.

The Merlot was TJ's 3 buck chuck!  (thanks E and L)

I nearly forgot to mention and thank my friend, Renee, who has graciously sponsored the flowers for BarufFeast!

Want to buy flowers for your next event? Sikking farms is conveniently located at the Collingswood Farmer's Market (henceforth known as CFM)

Russ and Marie visit

As Marie astutely pointed out this evening after the meal, BarufFeast could also double as BaruffEast, since I am one of two Baruffi Brothers, one of whom is in San Francisco- "BaruffWest" AKA Russ.


(Here's Marie totin' the evening garden contribution: Fresh basil and sage, Pinot Noir grape, apples, peaches and some lettuce)

So what WAS dinner? Good question. It was my parents' turn to experience BarufFeast, and I had to make it a good one!


As arugula is my favorite salad base, so yes, I went with it YET AGAIN, and dressed it up with a basic balsamic vinaigrette and added some goat cheese.

I tempted fate a bit this evening as I planned the main course: Indian food-mild cuisine for my parents. Don't get me wrong, I love Indian food, but my parents haven't explored it much, so I had to tread lightly. Well, I think I've got them hooked with this recipe from the Better Homes and Garden's Cookbook. Pay attention, all you folks striving to pull your parents from their pasta-eating comfort zones, here comes Basil chicken in Coconut-Curry Sauce (p. 427).

Basil straight from Marie's garden, 4 chicken breasts, KPs fantastic old-country curry recipe, Onion, garlic, jalapenos and coconut milk. Since coconut milk can be high in saturated fat, instead of 1 can (14 oz) coconut milk, I used 1/2 can of coconut milk and 1/2 can of vegetable stock (no complaints)

I think that sweet fruit juice pairs best with indian food, so I would choose a Mango puree, but Acme disappointed, so I opted for the next best thing: Arizona Mucho Mango (which you can mix nicely with gin or vodka).

The recipe didn't call for this kick, I added a surprise ingredient: KPs famous homemade curry! 

 Russ, Marie and Gia at my new low-table. Thanks G and T!

  

A big thanks to Russ for his help with installing my shelves!

Marie and Russ signed their names on the BarufFeast chalk-board wall, now it's your turn!


Inaugural dinner to be announced tomorrow. Stay tuned!




-Baruff-East