entertaining

An Ap-peel-ing Idea

Nibbles

For those who don’t already know, I have a creativity-focused blog, the 64 Arts, that lets me flex the right side of my brain on a regular basis. Last March, while exploring the art of Cutouts (from paper to peel), I created a cute lemon cup that might make a nice addition to your Easter table this year.

Originally posted on the 64 Arts on March 24, 2010…

~~~oOo~~~

How Ap-Peel-ing

a Little Lemon Bowl

To make the lemon bowl, start by trimming each end of the lemon so you have a flat surface for the bowl to sit on.

You can buy a fancy garnishing tool (I do have them) but it may not always fit your project’s size. I just used a sharp pairing knife and cut a zig-zag all the way around. If I were doing more than just messing around, I’d probably measure and mark off equal increments–instead I just winged it. Inside each little point I cut a little window to dress up the lemon bowl.

The lemon should easily come apart at that point, but I did have to go back over a few places where I hadn’t completely cut through. Next you want to scoop out the lemon pulp and sections as best you can. A grapefruit spoon can be useful for this but the paring knife did really well, too. Make sure all the little windows are clear of pulp, rinse it and pat it dry.

I’ve fridge-tested my samples and they’ve done well in the refrigerator for several days. I even popped one in the freezer for a night just to see how it held up. It did great! They will dry out if they’re in there too long, but 3 or 4 days shouldn’t hurt. The little points did curve in a bit but that seems to be making the overall structure that much stronger.

Now, what to do with it?

Sorbet comes immediately to mind. Fancy dinners sometimes include a palate-cleansing course but you don’t need to go to that trouble. Some Italian ice, granita or even a minty ice cream would look great and taste even better when served in these fun lemon cups.

Still too cold for an icy dessert? Candies or nuts would be fun in them or, with Easter right around the corner, how about displaying your eggs in their own little basket?

Lemon Egg Cup

When I was a little girl and we lived with my grandmother, we would do the customary egg-dying the day before and make sure every family member had an egg with their name on it. We’d leave the eggs in their cartons out on the counter when we went to bed and, in the morning, I’d wake up to them all arranged on a huge silver platter with that cellophane grass all around. It’s still one of my fondest childhood memories.

How cute would it be, then, to have personalized eggs at each place setting for the big family dinner? Placed in little lemon or lime cups that are so much more fun than those paper stands the dying kits come with and definitely eco-friendly. Plus, the pulp doesn’t have to go to waste if you turn it into fresh lemonade to serve with dinner!

“Todd’s” Turkey

Nibbles

There is some concern in my family about the fact that I only purchased a 17.22 lb turkey for Thursday.

Now, we’re 6 people. Even discounting bones that’s a LOT of turkey per person. Last year’s bird was just over 21 pounds and we had turkey coming out of our ears. Even after my brother took some home. And we froze some for gumbo, later. Not to mention that it barely fit in our large roasting pan.

So 17.22 lbs seemed quite adequate to me.

“But Jason’s already salivating over Todd’s turkey,” Mom informs me.

This same Jason who already went to 3 other Thanksgiving dinners before mine but who still ate a plate full and was moaning in misery on my living room floor afterward. This same Jason who has to go to FOUR dinners before mine this year.

I’m not exactly worried.

But let’s get to the heart of the matter, here.

Todd’s turkey.

Last year was the first year we hosted Thanksgiving and, therefore, roasted the bird. Usually Mom’s job, it just didn’t make sense for her to have to cart a turkey across town (or, even, around the corner of town as it actually is from her place to ours). She brought a couple of sides and we handled the rest.

This was also the first holiday Todd & I were living together for, so some collaboration was in order. Thrilled to be getting a crack at the turkey but knowing I couldn’t go too far astray from the usual without shocking my family’s palate, I planned to supplement the usual turkey seasoning (quartered onions & apples in the cavity plus a few garlic cloves) with some herbed-butter coins placed under the skin.

Right about the time I voiced that idea, Todd suggested we brine the turkey. Having never done that before it seemed as good an idea as any.

The turkey was amazing.

But it was a joint effort, as I continue (as does Todd) to point out to my mother. Nonetheless, because of a bit of salt and water, the turkey of note is known as Todd’s turkey.

Harrumph.

To Brine a Turkey

There are several ways to do this but this is ours and, hey, it’s won Todd fame with my family so it must work okay.

  1. Clean out a good-sized cooler that will hold the turkey with space around it for liquid and ice.
  2. Line the cooler with a fresh (unscented) tall kitchen bag.
  3. Divest the turkey of it’s neck and giblets, give it a good rinse and place inside the bag inside the cooler.
  4. Combine kosher salt and water (1 cup per gallon) as needed and add to the bag inside the cooler, making sure to completely cover the turkey.
  5. Tie up the kitchen bag, fill the space around the bird with ice.
  6. Let sit in this brine (topping off the ice as needed and, if it’s a really big bird, turning it once) for 24 hours or so.
  7. Rinse the turkey and season at will prior to roasting.

Last year our turkey was a little icy on the inside, still, but this actually worked in our favor as it helped keep the temperature of the turkey-and-brine below 40 degrees. If you’ve got room in your fridge (and if so, I envy you), you can brine it in a bag (or 2–no spills allowed!) or large container in the fridge. I’ve even seen where it’s suggested to use a crisper bin if the bird will fit.

You can also add other seasonings to your brine, but we went with simple last year and had excellent results.

The Rest of the Table

What will appear alongside Todd’s turkey, this year? Here’s our menu:

Baked Brie en Croute with Figs and Honey
Spinach Dip and Crackers

Buttered and Brined Turkey
Cornbread Dressing
Turkey Gravy
Candied Sweet Potatoes
Broccoli and Cheese
Eggplant & Zucchini Gratin
Rice and Pigeon Peas
Garlic Green Beans
Parker House Rolls
Cranberry Sauce (jellied and whole berry)

Ambrosia Salad
Pecan Pie
Amaretto Pumpkin Pie w/Gingered Pepitas
Caramel Apple Cake

Yes, I know, we’re only 6 people. And 2 will have eaten several times before they make it to our evening supper. And 1 still isn’t 100% sure he’ll make it if work intervenes.

But the leftovers will be glorious.

Feed Your Ears

Make sure to check out the November episode of Random Acts Radio: Grab a Spoon. There’s over an hour of food-related tunes to keep you company in the kitchen or on the road. Sage (and safe–that was a typo too good to pass up) Thanksgiving wishes  to all, and may all your waistbands be elastic.

Supper Clubs Made Simple

Nibbles

Last week we talked about dining out and splitting the check, but what about that alternative–staying in? If you’ve got a group of like-minded individuals and want to get more bang for your entertainment buck, a supper club scenario may be just the thing!

At it’s heart, a supper club is like a book club only your sharing food instead of literary opinions–okay, you can certainly do both (after all, you’ve got to have something to talk about between bites). Each person takes a turn at hosting, but from there you can choose between a couple of approaches.

  • One person supplies the entire meal. This boils down to taking turns throwing a dinner party. It can be for club members only or include significant others, depending on space constraints and the wishes of the participants.
  • Each person brings a part of the meal. Sounds like a pot-luck but there’s usually a theme, rhyme or reason behind the offerings. The hostess could either assign a dish–sharing a specific recipe–or ask for something with a key ingredient or component, but acting as coordinator ensures a balanced meal. Each meal the participants rotate roles, that way no one always gets stuck with the main dish. This also works well if not everyone has company-ready homes (small apartments can either make for difficult arrangements or creative solutions).
  • A progressive supper. Great for larger groups–items can be served cocktail or buffet-style–in a particular neighborhood or geographical area. Each home takes a course and folks travel between places for each. If alcohol is served, a designated driver with a van might be a good idea if the homes are not within walking distance of each other.

How the meals are organized, beyond the hostess, can get pretty creative, too. A particular cookbook could be the source for the group for a single meal or several, the better to vet a new book by a favorite author. Themes could be arranged (or chosen from a hat) for each. Less experienced cooks could pair up with those with more–like my Kitchen Day–and joint meals presented. Or, like a group I once participated in, a single ingredient can be chose for each meeting and each person brings something (not necessarily a full course) that best uses the ingredient with information to share.

Most important, of course, is to have fun. It’s not, after all, about the size of your dining room (have an indoor picnic in the living room if that’s where you’ve got the most space!) or getting out the fine china (though, by all means, use it if you’ve got it!) but hanging out with good food and good friends, or those on their way to becoming them.

Dear Mr. Knowlton…

Nibbles

In the September 2010 issue of Bon Appetit, Andrew Knowlton (as the BA Foodist) responds to a reader’s question about the best way for a large party to split a check.

Dear Cecilia,

Unless you’re with only one other person (okay, maybe two–I’m feeling generous) or you’re 17 years old and out with a group of friends at a local chain, splitting a check is lame…

He then whinges on for a few more inches about how tough it was being a Brooklyn waiter and how you should just (wo)man up and put the entire thing on your own credit card and hope your friends pay you back.

But, really… the best word he could come up with is lame?

First of all, mingling money with friends is the fast track to ending a friendship. I speak from experience having been the point person on a bulk buy of fabric several years ago and one of the girls stiffed me for her portion. It took certified letters and untold stress to get the money from her and it was during a time just after my divorce when I didn’t have a lot of wiggle room in my monthly budget (this was after I’d dug myself out of credit card debt and canceled all of the cards I’d previously owned so we’re talking real dollars here, not credit). It wasn’t that she was a bad person or a bad friend in general, it just underlines the point that you should never lend money to friends unless you don’t want it back.

I cannot advocate anyone picking up the tab for a group of 6 or 8 friends when there’s the possibility that it will add to their credit debt. “Thoughtful and considerate” are gestures best left free of interest charges. It’s far easier, in contrast, to pick up the tab for one or two friends in a ladies-who-lunch situation with the express understanding that the next check will be picked up by someone else, that to do so for a large group.

Second, might I remind Mr. Knowlton and those like him the industry they are (were) in. It’s called the service industry for a reason, more specifically the hospitality industry. While I know, firsthand, just how difficult some customers can be and that “the customer is always right” is not always correct, your customers are paying a premium for food that comes with service and, yes, it should be with a smile or at least some civility.

If a server sees a large party without obvious familial hallmarks and doesn‘t ask, beforehand, if this will be on one check or separated then he deserves the check-splitting headache that’s to come.

Finally, if you are going out in a group with the plan to split the check, here are some ways to make the process easier:

  • Call ahead. Whether reservations are required or not, it’s always a good to give a restaurant a heads up that you’ll be arriving en masse and, while you’re at it, ask if they are able to split checks for large groups. Most will tell you it’s no problem but some will say no. If you run into one of the latter you can make plans to go someplace more group-friendly or advise everyone in your group to bring cash. If the restaurant has a website with their menu online, folks can figure out ahead of time what they’ll need to bring.
  • Tell the server you’ll need separate checks before the first glass of water is ordered. Forewarned is forearmed and it’s up to them how they want to keep track of the divisions.
  • Have patience. Not only do larger orders take longer to prepare, serve and clear, there will be extra time preparing the checks and processing them. If you’re on a time-line (like our ladies nights heading off to see a movie after dinner), make sure you give your server ample time to process 8 credit cards and still have time to get to your show. For that matter, ordering in waves–before everyone arrives–let’s the kitchen get a jump on those first few dishes.
  • Arrange large gatherings on nights other than Friday and Saturday or have an early dinner mid-afternoon on the weekends. A less crowded dining room means less-harried waitstaff and more flexibility for your group.
  • Tip well. Yes, it’s more work to process 6 smaller checks than 1 large one, so show your appreciation for their willingness to work with your situation. Large parties usually get gratuity added on to the bill, but a few dollars more per check adds up and may win you a favored server if you frequent the same establishments.

So go out and have your fun! And if you continue to receive less-than-stellar service from the hospitality industry consider turning those Girls Nights Out into Girls Nights In and keep your dollars where they will be appreciated.

Kitchen Fun!

Nibbles

During a manicure at the Nail Bar (literally a nail place that does your manicure at a wood-and-tile bar while you sip wine or cocktails) I offered to let a friend come over one Saturday and we’d spend the day in the kitchen, preparing awesome food and then have a small dinner party with our significant others. And lots of wine.

After many reschedules, we finally had our kitchen day.

Dinner is Served

Dinner is Served!

The Menu

Bacon-Wrapped Artichoke Hearts

Individual Beef Wellingtons with Onion Marmalade and Goat Cheese
Garlic Green Beans
Oven-Roasted Red Potatoes

Crullers with Vanilla Ice Cream

Q arrived just after 2pm and we donned our matching aprons and got to work.

Desserts were first (as they should be) since they needed to be prepped, piped and chilled before being fried. And then they could sit.

This was one of the Q’s requests, as the light and airy cruller is her favorite and she really wanted to learn how to make them herself. It’s a testament to our friendship that I agreed as I really don’t like to fry things and these are basically fried cream puffs, unfilled but topped with a glaze. We used Gale Gand’s recipe (via Food Network Online) which says it yields 12 (but I think a single batch will give more than that, based on our own yield). Well, we figured since it was early and we’d want to snack test them for quality we’d increase it by half and make sure we still had plenty for after dinner.

Crullers, pre-frying

There's a definite learning-curve with piping the dough.

To pipe the crullers you need a pastry bag and a large star tip, which gives you the traditional “tractor tire” ridges. Trace a 3″ circle while keeping even pressure applied to the bag and the same distance from the parchment-lined sheet pan (about half a inch). When you get back to the beginning, stop the pressure but continue to follow the circle around so that the tail hides in the rest of the grooves.

While those chilled, we got started on the next long project: the onion marmalade. Usually a wellington is topped with either pâté or a duxelles (minced mushrooms, etc. cooked down to a pâté-like consistency). Since neither of our guys are big mushroom fans, I decided it would be fun to try something new. A quick search yielded a recipe that seemed promising. It was also time-consuming, taking up most of the afternoon waiting for the liquid to reduce. It did give us time to start frying the crullers, though, and glaze them (tip: for all that’s good and flavorful, add some good vanilla to the glaze.)

frying crullers

Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble!

I want to try the onion recipe again because it’s truly delicious but almost too sweet (yes, I know, I can hardly believe I typed those words, myself) and I want to make it slightly quicker. Not instant, just quicker.

Meanwhile, we pre-cooked the fillets for the wellingtons according to this recipe. In the past I’ve always baked it just the once and been a little apprehensive about getting the meat done enough while not overcooking the pastry. This method of baking the meat til rare, cooling, assembling and then baking just long enough to heat everything and brown the pastry worked so well I’ve adopted it as my new favorite method.

The side dishes are the epitome of simple: steamed green beans sauteed with garlic, olive oil and a last minute addition of the bacon leftover from the marmalade. The potatoes are steamed first, then tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, sage and rosemary with just a dash of chili powder before going into the oven to get nice and golden-brown.

The last thing to be started was the appetizer: bacon-wrapped artichokes are, truly, as simple as they sound. Wrap half an artichoke heart with half a slice of bacon, place on a foil-lined pan and broil until crispy.

Let's Eat

Let's Eat

Glaze Upon Pastry Perfection

Dinner was lovely. It took us about 4 hours to cook and the meal lasted close to 3. Q & I had finished off a bottle of Arbor Mist Blackberry Merlot while we cooked, served a bottle of my favorite Pinot Evil during dinner and then had coffee and Blackberry Wine from Chautauqua Winery with the crullers and ice cream (did you know Breyers has a Lactose Free version? I’m officially in heaven!).

Eclairs and lamb have already been requested for the next Kitchen Day.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gale-gand/crullers-recipe/index.html