What a Week!

Grilled Lamb with Potatoes and AsparagusIt's been a busy week in DC--for those of you who follow closely, sorry I am behind on posting recipes!  I'll update them soon.  promise.  I went to the grocery store to get some rib eyes to grill, but they didn't look very good, so I came home instead with a butterflied leg of lamb.  I love lamb.  My mom credits it to the fact that she ate lamb chops the night before she gave birth to me and it was the only food I would eat until I was five. I usually buy a bone-in leg of lamb and roast it in the oven, but it's such a beautiful night and I was working on a relatively tight schedule the grill seemed the way to go.  Leg of Lamb can be a bit chewy (even though it's from a lamb, not older meat or mutton, the leg muscle does a lot of work!) especially if it isn't slow roasted, sEnjoying meat and potatoeso it is important to marinate the meat before it goes on the grill. Since I didn't plan ahead of time and only had an hour and a half to marinade, I increased the amount of acid (rice vinegar and Worcestershire sauce).  Lamb and dijon mustard go well together--ask Julia Childs--and of course garlic, mint, thyme and rosemary enhance the flavor of the meat.  I also added a bit of soy for salt and olive oil for flavor.  Since we were grilled, I threw some baby potatoes and asparagus in the marinade and grilled them as well.

Cooking for a Crowd

Yes, it's bigger then his mouthTonight I managed to pull off a dinner for 7 big eaters even though I didn't get home until 6:30.  Let me put "big eaters" into perspective.  It was my husband, brother, and six of my brother's 20-something friends.  The last time I cooked dinner for one of them, the four of us (including me, and I don't eat much) ate a loaf of bread with 1/2 pound of cheese, a 5 pound rib roast, 3 pounds of potatoes, broccoli, and an entire sweet potato pie.  I don't know if that says more about my cooking or their endless appetites.  As a cook, I don't care.

Given history, I was slightly concerned about the challenge before me.  I relied on my old New Mexico days when I used to cook for lots of people.  There is no substitute for homemade guacamoleFajitas are a great meal--they are relatively easy to prepare, you get to "make your own" which is fun, you can make them in large quantities, and they are delicious.  I do not like pan fried meat--it dries out the proteins and is flavorless.  I prefer to marinate the beef and brine the chicken overnight, grill it, let it rest while I"m setting the table, and then slice it thinly.  I also made homemade guacamole and served the fajitas with cheese, sour cream, refried beans, and sauteed onions and peppers.  I used to make homemade tortillas, but they are a lot of work, and Whole Foods finally makes a delicious substitute.  A New Mexican Feast isn't complete without Margaritas, so I made my favorite summer variety--Watermelon Margaritas!Making Margaritas

oh, and the best thing about cooking for a crowd--I had seven helpers in the kitchen!All of my helpers

I'm back!

Sorry for the hiatus folks, but I was foiled by comcast last night.  Not only did we lose our internet and phone, all of our neighbors lost their internet and phone service so I couldn't even use one of their networks.  By the time Comcast fixed our service I was already in a benadryl-induce fog (I think I was allergic to something in the black raspberry fields).  We did have a delicious dinner, however -- Tuna and Scallop Ceviche with Warm Carmel Corn.  Ceviche RecipeTo me, ceviche is a perfect summer meal--it's light and citrusy, high in flavor and protein but low in calories, and it's incredibly easy to make!  The "Carmel Corn" actually didn't have any additional sugar in it.  I removed fresh corn from the ear and sauteed it in a little butter and salt until it began to carmelize on the bottom of the pan.  I then deglazed the pan with a little bit of white wine, which made a delicious "carmel" sauce to coat the corn.  The warm sweetness of the corn was a perfect complement to the cold and citrusy ceviche.

Unbeknownst to me, my drivers license expired on my birthday last month even though I got a brand new license in February.  I only realized my license was expired when I tried to buy a box of Claretin and was denied.  The DMV is always an adventure; it's great people watching and most of the stereotypes are true.  I sat in the waiting room with a motley crew of compatriots for 45 minutes when a rather large, scowling woman called my number.  I had a great rapport going with Selma Bouvier until the time came to take my picture.  First offense--I smiled.  Second Offense--I had my head tilted.  Third offense--Selma forgot to save the picture.  Strike three. I was ready to give up my right to drive, and was adjusting my hair when BAM the flash went off.  Success, I think, although I won't get my new license for a week and I think my hand might have made the glamour shot. 

I definitely need to stress cook.  We are having pan seared grouper and Black Raspberry Honey Drops.

Update on Monday, June 15, 2009 at 9:12PM by Klutz in the Kitchen

Pasta wtih Lemon, Maple, and RumI originally was going to make a lemon caper sauce for the grouper.  My capers mysteriously disappeared (I"m thinking The Case of the Caper Capers could be my next great work...).  I switched gears and went with a sweet and sour sauce instead.  Using Shallots, Rum, Lemon juice and zest and the secret ingredient, maple syrup, I created a tangy sauce that paired perfectly with the pan fried fish and linguini.

Happy National Kitchen Klutzes Day

Black RaspberriesHope it was spectacular!  Isn't it wonderful that the powers at Hallmark would create a holiday for us?

I celebrated by driving an hour to go pick black raspberries.  My husband thinks I'm crazy.  Ok, maybe I am a little, but they are hard to find (hence the hour drive), have a very short season, and are delicious.  It was hard work.  I even have the wounds to prove it...those thorns are sharp! I'm going to make jam tomorrow.  yum.  Black raspberries look like their cousins, the red raspberry, but you guessed correctly, they are black.  The flavor is different as well.  I find them more intense, slightly tart, and less delicate.  We used to pick them wild growing up, but shockingly I haven't seen them growing on the streets of DC. 

I never knew they brewed beer in France...

and they shouldn't!  It tastes terrible.  I have been craving meatballs all day.  I don't know why.  its hot here and not exactly meatball weather, but I gave into my urges and stopped by the grocery store to pick up some necessary ingredients.  Whole Foods has fabulous quality ingredients, but the best part of the grocery store are the free samples.  If you time it right, you can actually eat your way through the store.  I made my way from the produce section, to meat, to dry goods, to dairy, to the wine and beer section.  To my delight, they had beer samples.  "Mademoiselle, can I offer you a sample?" Yes, please! 

I'm not one to turn down free beer, but if you ever get offered French beer do yourself a favor and just say no.  The first brew, was ok--brewed in the Alps near the Swiss border, it was a fairly standard unfiltered beer.  It didn't taste bad, but it was unremarkable.  The second, brewed in the Loire Valley, was not good.  I should have stopped there, but I'm an optimist and it's been a long day, so I held out my plastic 1 oz beer tumbler for one final shot.  UGH.  It was brewed with wine (which should have been a clue) and tasted like a white zinfandel.  It was so bad that I had to walk back over to the cheese counter and beg for a piece of cheese to get the offensive taste out of my mouth.  They must have tasted the beer too and took pity on me and my palate.

Braised Meatballs with PenneAnyway, back to the meatballs.  I like my meatballs full of flavor, so I add lots of spice (parsley, oregano, garlic, and onion); an egg and a milk-soaked piece of bread to bind the meatballs together and make them juicy; parmesan cheese, mustard, and tomato paste for flavor; wine just because; and a combination of pork, veal, and buffalo.  I braise them in tomato sauce and finish them off with a bit of cheese and fresh shredded basil.