July 13, 2005
A little cooking
I haven't been cooking much lately since we've been so busy and getting home too late, but with the parents-in-law visiting a couple weekends ago it gave me a chance to get back in the saddle.
For Sunday morning brunch we hosted the parents-in-law plus my wife's uncle and cousin from Greenland. I made Sauteed Cauliflower Frittata with Thyme, home fries and bacon. I really liked this frittata and everyone else seemed to enjoy it. Sauteeing cauliflower until its browned really gives it a good flavor.
Sometime in the afternoon, I tried to imitate a Cold Cucumber Buttermilk Soup I had at the The Shaker Table. One cucumber, one cup of buttermilk, lemon juice, salt, pepper, more lemon juice, salt, pepper. Bland.
For dinner we had the same group for Herb Roasted Pork Tenderloin, mushroom risotto and asparagus in lemon-tarragon butter. No real recipes, just a goal to use as many herbs from my indoor garden as possible. The risotto turned out particularly well this time I thought, no doubt because I had my mother-in-law on stirring duty.
For dessert, we had something I've wanted to try for a while: Strawberry Parfait with Fresh Normandy Cream which sounds rather pedestrian for what it actually is: strawberry-black pepper sorbet homemade in our ice cream maker using last year's frozen strawberries, topped with this year's fresh sliced strawberries macerated in balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and then a dollop of creme fraiche (sort of like sour cream) sweetened with sugar. It sounds bizarre, but it was really great. It lived up to Cooking Light's intro: This dessert ... has the most amazing combination of flavors and textures. It combines sweet and tart, creamy and peppery flavors. Try to purchase locally grown strawberries that have ripened on the plant. Thank you Gary for the local strawberries!
Posted by David at July 13, 2005 08:58 AM | Edit