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| 25 candles on 23 cupcakes. Because either my mom can't count, or she's in denial of my aging. |
"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels." - Kate Moss
Sorry Kate, but I must disagree. And clearly you haven't had Sal cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner for you. Since my birthday was spent in a torrential downpour (5+ inches of rain, the exact amount we don't know because it rained so much that the rain gage overflowed during the night), my original plans of skydiving for the big 2-5 got scrapped. And with December 20 falling on a Monday, a fun night out at the bars wasn't in the cards either.
With nothing to do but sit at home and enjoy the day with my parents, the entry into my second quarter of a century was highlighted almost entirely by food. I usually don't overindulge like this, and I'm sure I will regret it when I get on the scale next. But so be it. Nothing the cabbage soup diet, master cleanse, stomach flu, or lots of running can't take care of!
The whole menu was at my request, and they are some of my dad's best dishes. They're all easy to make, so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. (Recipes below.)
Breakfast
omelettes with mushrooms, scallions, spinach, and brie
pomegranates
bellini's
Lunch
brown rice penne pasta with spicy brocolli sauce
Veuve Clicquot Rose champagne
Dinner
Matriciana (traditionally a sauce for penne pasta) over sauteed chicken breast
sweet potato fries
salad
Funfetti cupcakes!
Marques de Murrieta Spanish Rioja
Recipes
Omelettes
(Ingredient quantities are for three omelettes.) 3 scallions, white parts diced
2 cups mushrooms, peeled and sliced
1 bag spinach
2 tbsp brie
2 eggs per omelette, lightly beaten
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
butter
The trick to making a great omelette is to cook the filling ingredients beforehand.
Sautee the scallions in olive oil. Once they begin to sweat, add the mushrooms. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes or so. Add the spinach and sautee until spinach is completely wilted.
In a medium frying pan, melt a small amount of butter (just enough to coat the pan). Add eggs, and cook until the eggs are cooked on the bottom and still slightly runny on top (they must be cooked enough on the bottom so that they slide in the pan).
Add the filling in the middle of the eggs and then add 1/3 of the brie on top. Fold the edges of the eggs over the filling. Flip the omelette and cook briefly on that side for maybe 30 seconds. Slide it onto your plate and enjoy.
Disclosure: I can't flip an omelette to save my life, so if you can't either, just omit that step and plate it.
Spicy Brocolli Sauce
This is my favorite sauce, and it is so easy to make.(Ingredient quantities are for 4 servings.)
4 stalks of brocolli
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 strips of bacon (pancetta is ideal), diced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp madras curry
1/3 cup half & half or heavy cream
salt
Boil large pot of salted water.
Cut off bottom 2 inches of each brocolli stalk. Peel off thick outer skin of the stalks. Retain some leaves for flavor. Wash brocolli and boil for about 8 minutes, until slightly tender. Remove brocolli from boiling water, and retain the water for cooking the pasta.
In a sauce pan, heat olive oil and garlic over medium heat. After the garlic begins to cook, add the bacon or pancetta. Stir constantly so that the garlic doesn't burn. Once the fat from the bacon has rendered and the bacon is slightly browned, add one stalk of brocolli. Mash it until the stalk is broken up well. Add about half a ladel of cooking water to thin it out slightly. Continue adding and mashing one stalk at a time, with about half a ladel of cooking water added for each stalk.
Once all the brocolli has been mashed into the desired smooth consistency, add the curry and the hot pepper. Stir well. Add the half & half or cream, stirring until the sauce is smooth but not runny. Salt to taste.
Mix with pasta and top with parmesan cheese.
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| That's some fast brocolli mashing. |
Matriciana
(Ingredient quantities are for 4 servings.)
8 roma tomatoes
2 strips bacon (pancetta is ideal), diced
1 yellow onion, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp red pepper flakes
parmesan cheese
Boil water in a large pot. Once boiling, add tomatoes for about a minute. Allow to cool slightly, and peel off skin. Seed and chop tomatoes and set aside in a bowl. (Do not reserve water for pasta, use a fresh pot of salted water.)
In a sauce pan, sautee onions until translucent. Add the bacon or pancetta and cook for a couple minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the red pepper flakes. Next, add tomatoes. Let cook for a minute or two, then mash tomatoes and let simmer until the mixture is homogenous (about 10 minutes).
Mix with pasta and top with parmesan cheese.
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| You know you're getting old when it takes both of your parents to light all your birthday candles. |
