smiling all of my days

thanks to all of the lovely people that make me smile all of my days, especially on this birthday day. today I got some extra special goodies starting with passing my emissions test with flying colors (uh-huh, that's right), beautiful looking and smelling flowers from Natalie and the coolest EVER, Robin's egg blue KitchenAid mixer from Dan! Now I can bake cakes everyday, and life will be even more awesome. Also, I got a very hilarious Jehovah card from Alonna and my little sister Molly called to sing me a happy birthday song this morning. you peeps rock. also, if anyone wants to get me a blue-eyed kitty, i will accept it with open arms. you know where to find me.

Super Italian, Italian Supper

Super Italian, Italian Supper (this is a fake palindrome. And by fake, I mean not really a palindrome at all.)

Warm summer nights call for hot Italian suppers. Lily had us over on Sunday evening to enjoy the sunset, drink a lemon & red wine spritzer and cook up maximum quantities of delicious Italian eats.

Recipes are still being acquired, but here is what was served:

1. Copious amounts of prosciutto & coppa, for starters. This was a meat-pile-mountain on a plate. We were not allowed to know where this meat came from. Apparently, Greg’s friend Jason uncovered a meat goldmine somewhere. Out of principle (that’s right, I have principles), I usually try to avoid eating meat from unnamed, mysterious sources. Not on this day. No, sir. Lily found the irregular cut meat leftovers in the fridge on Monday, and we ate them for dinner again, on day two. So good. No regrets.

2. Appetizer pizza with kalamata olives, onions and other deliciousness, courtesy of Alisha & Ben

3. Wisecrackers with goat cheese, nectarines and honey (already talked about it)

4. Garlic bread with fresh herbs from Lily’s garden, what were these herbs, Kelly? Mint, thyme and basil, perhaps. It tasted good, but no one knows what was in there exactly.

5. Roasted fennel and prosciutto salad with mixed greens from J.Son Santino. This came dressed in a homemade vinaigrette.

6. Beet salad with Arugula from Lily (see recipe below)

7. Braised oxtails also from Lily. She taught us that oxtails are not actually from oxen, but from regular cows. Thanks, teacher, you make my brain smarter each day that I know you.

8. Pasta Alla Checca with Heirloom Tomatoes alla K. Grubenhoff

9. Mine was the strawberry dessert soup (Strawberry Gelato) that no one ever ate. Mwoh mwoh. Here is the lesson of the day, freeze the boiling milk mixture for ice cream or gelato BEFORE pouring into the frozen tub of an ice cream machine. It WILL NOT work if you skip this step or try to freeze the tub AFTER it contains boiling liquid.

Lily’s Roasted Beet Salad with Arugula

INGREDIENTS
Beets, sliced (Roasted in tinfoil at 375 until they are easily sliced or stabbed with a fork)
Arugula

Dressing
1 shallot, chopped
½ cup red wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive oil

Mix dressing ingredients. Marinate roasted beets in dressing for 4+ hours or overnight, if you can. Toss with a few handfuls of arugula right before serving.

flaura & flily

Because we are not interested in spending sixty cash monies on fabric flowers, but had already fallen in love, Lily and I decided to make some flower pins at home. diy or die, as they say. the first attempt was fruitful. We both recognized areas where we can improve the design on the next go-round, and we'll work to perfect the system as we go. About $10 at Joann's fabrics, can get you enough supplies to make between 5-7 flower pins.

Here is what you need:

felt

stiff fabric in the color of your choosing

needle & thread

pin backing

and a hot glue gun (or you can just dew the pin-backing onto the flower)

Bon Anniversaire, Kelly Dear!

If one lady has got the joie de vivre, it's this girl. Sweet little Kelly had a b-day last week, and for her special day she had a sweet little sushi celebration. To satisfy Kelly's lemon love, Lily brought lemon cupcakes with white icing. She made the candied lemon segments herself, and they were perfect. moshi moshi j'taime. j'taime kelly aussi.

the original souse king

Just as there are two types of people in this world: those who like Neil Diamond, and those who don't...there are two types of pasta sauces: those that you buy in a jar, and those that you make from scratch. Don't get me wrong, I love popping open a jar of ragu as much as the next guy, but if you want to make an easy, freezy sauce to have on hand AT ALL TIMES, this is the one. It will not let you down. It’s rich, it’s meaty, it's perfect for spaghetti, for lasagna or for eating by the cup full (some people are into that, for reals).

It takes about half an hour to cook all of the ingredients, but then you can just “Set it, and forget it!” (that’s right, Ron Popeil style). The longer you forget it, the more delicious it becomes. It’s pretty much magic. Or maybe it is science. Who can really tell the difference these days?

After cooking and enjoying, bolognese freezes well and thaws quickly for saucy meals on the go.

Ragu Alla Bolognese

INGREDIENTS

½ lb. hot Italian sausages

1 lb. leanest ground beef

1 chopped onion

2 chopped carrots

2 chopped celery sticks

8-10 cloves garlic, minced or put through a garlic press

1 tbsp. oregano

1 tbsp. basil

1 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. ground black pepper

2 tsp. fennel seeds

3 tsp. salt (salt monkeys, do it to taste)

½ tsp. ground nutmeg

1 bay leaf

½ cup dry white or red wine (both work well)

¼ cup tomato paste (mix with ¼ cup water)

2 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes, peeled and crushed in heavy puree

Remove sausage from casings and slowly brown in a skillet along with the ground beef, a large sauce or soup pan works well. Break up the sausage as it cooks. Once meats are browned to your liking, drain the fat. Add vegetables and all spices to meat pan, sauté until onions begin to cook, and be careful not to brown the garlic. Add the tomato sauce, water and wine. Simmer for 5 minutes and add canned tomatoes. Simmer over medium-low heat, for 1-2 hours. Serve with the pasta of your choice.

More substantial noodles such as linguini, spaghetti or pappardelle, work nicely with this sauce.

word to the wise...cwackers

Wisecrackers with Goat Cheese, Nectarines and Honey Drizzle

(A take on crostini with goat cheese, nectarines and honey drizzle)

The meaning is twofold: the crackers are wise because they are low in fat, you are making a wise choice for the bod when you eat them...Kristin and Elof, who made this snack, are wisecrackers because they like to make clever and/or sarcastic remarks. next to making delicious snacks, it is probably what they are best at. (in case you couldn't connect all those dots, i've done the connecting work for you. you are welcome.) we first tried these goat cheese, nectarine & honey niblets at Lily's wedding tasting. it was the best snack at the event. hands down. we would have stayed there all night just eating cheese/bread/fruit snacks if we could have. alas, the event ended along with the endless flow of silver-plattered snacks, and we had to go home.

needless to say, everyone was thrilled to see these things make their homemade debut at lily's italian supper. the sweet and savory flavor combo is complex, but you do not need to be an aeronautical engineer to appreciate it's deliciousness.

What you will need to replicate these at home, for your next party:

INGREDIENTS

1 box Wisecrackers or crostini (or baguette, sliced, brushed with olive oil and toasted)
1 roll of goat cheese or chevre

2 ripe nectarines, sliced into thin segments

honey

Arrange your crackers/crostini on your serving dish and spread each piece with chevre. Atop each cheesed cracker, place a nectarine slice. Drizzle with honey. Honey is key here, so don't be shy people.

tomato & fennel salad

My mom made this for dinner the other night. It was inspired by her favorite salad at Tutta Bella, the Insalata Di Salerno. She opted to leave out the cucumbers and lettuce that are in the restaurant version, and focus more on the tomatoes and fennel.

1 1/2 pounds cherry or heirloom tomatoes
1 small fennel bulb
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces, with cherry or grape tomatoes you can leave whole or slice in half. Remove the top of the fennel (save some fronds for garnish) and slice the bulb very thinly crosswise with a knife or on a mandolin.

Toss the tomatoes and fennel in a bowl with the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Garnish with 2 tablespoons chopped fennel fronds, season to taste, and serve.