New recipes, April 4, 2016

We celebrated Mark's Mom's birthday with his parents with the Spring Vegetable and Sunflower Panzanella from the April 2016 Food and Wine, served with Mario Batali's Lamb Chops Scottadita from the Italian Grill. Dessert is Strawberries in Sambuca from Epicurious. We give the salad a 4, and the dessert gets a 5.

New recipe, October 6, 2014

The tomatoes are finally really getting ripe (in October!!) so we had the ever wonderful Scallops Alla Caprese from Mario Batali's Italian Grill. It is still a 5!

So the new recipe is the Saint Florent Cocktail from the October 2014 Bon Appétit. This is pretty tart--we would have liked a little more balance between sweet and sour. We give it a 3.

New recipe, October 12, 2013

We got Halloween up today (THE holiday in our neighborhood). We decided to celebrate the end of tomato season with a repeat of Mario Batali's amazing Sea Scallops Alla Caprese, from The Italian Grill. It is still a total 5! The wine was the Gilles Barge Condrieu La Solarie 2010. An amazing wine.

So the new recipe is the Fresh Pear Cocktail from the October 2013 Cooking Light. It is refreshing and captures the flavors of the fall. Not a lot of alcohol, great flavors. We give it a 4.

New recipes, June 29, 2013

We visited the Montanya Rum Distillery in Crested Butte on our ride. Who would have predicted that in Crested Butte? But the rums are excellent and they have a huge collection of carefully crafted recipes. Tonight we had the Breath of God, which is very tasty and gets a 4.

Our main course was the fabulous Scallops alla Caprese from Mario Batali's Italian Grill.  We love it, it still gets a 5.

For dessert, we had Figs with Parmesan and Balsamic (who could resist the first figs of the season) from Local Foods on About.com.  These were nice, we give them a 4.

Wine: Château La Rame Bordeaux 2010

New recipe, June 19, 2013

Mario Batali's Tuna Dice with Mint and Peas from the Denver Post, served with udon. Nice--we give it a 4.

Wine: Apaltagua Carmenere Rosé 2012

New recipe, December 4, 2012

Rocco DiSpirito's Polenta from Now Eat This! Italian, served with a chicken breast with more of Mario Batali's Basic Tomato Sauce. The polenta is very tasty--gets a 4!

New recipe, October 19, 2012

Tonight's new recipe comes from Mario Batali's Molto Italliano: Roman Style Veal Cutlets with Sage. Served with a kale red bell pepper salad with lemon dressing. We liked the veal--we give it a 4.

Wine: Droin Chablis 2010- great match!

New recipe, July 9, 2012

We had Scallops Alla Caprese from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano--always wonderful, still a 5! The new recipe is Quinoa and Grilled Pepper Salad from Epicurious. This was a nice recipe, but needs more lime, cumin and soy to really reach a good balance. We give this a 3, as written.

Wine: Van Ruiten Chardonnay

New recipes, March 24, 2012

We got to spend the day with Mark's nieces, Georgia and Julia Burns, doing a Top Chef type experience! We all had fun, the food was great, and a great meal was had by all (grandparents, Ann and Mike Groshek, and the rest of the Burns Family, parents Kenny and Mary, and brother Brett):

Appetizer: Scallops alla Caprese from Mario Batali's Italian Grill, rating always a 5!

Wine: Pére Sauvignon 2007 Sauvignon Blanc

Salad: Spring Panzanella with Asparagus, from the April 2012 Food and Wine.  Still a 5!

Wine: still the Pére Sauvignon, still as good match!

Pasta: Potato and Beet Gnocchi, from the March 2012 Cooking Light.  Rating 4.

Wine: liana Pinot Grigio 2009

Main Course: Beef Braciole Pinwheel Style, from Mario Batali's Italian Grill.  A 5!!

Wine: Bionzo, 2006 Barbera D'Asti Superiore--fantastic match!

Dessert: Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake from Martha Stewart, with Oreo Truffles.  Ratings 4. Thanks girls, for creating this?  A wonderful dessert, suitable for celebrating Carl's birthday!  Actually worked very well with the Bionzo wine!

New recipe, February 28, 2012

Veal Scallopine with Mushrooms, Marsala and Thyme, from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano, with an arugula salad, and leftover Mushroom Barley Soup from David Waltuck's Staffmeals.
Veal gets a 3.5--great flavors, I may have overcooked it as it was not very tender.
Wine: 2010 Guy Drew Russell Vineyard Riesling

New recipes, October 17, 2011

The Devil's Chicken (Pollo al Diavolo) from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano, and Delicata Squash and Roasted Mushrooms with Thyme from Epicurious.
Wine: went back to the Undone Rheinhessen Dry Riesling 2009, which worked well with the spicy chicken as well as the earthy sweet flavors of the squash dish

New recipe, October 16, 2011

Spicy Sicilian Chicken, from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano.  I used the requisite number of hot peppers, but this was not as firey as Mario wants it.  It was still very tasty.  I remain in awe of what mint can do in a savory dish!
Wine: Undone Rheinhessen Dry Riesling 2009. An unlikely match for a chicken dish with red wine, but it has lovely aromas of honey and citrus blossom. While it is dry, those aromas and flavors are a nice counterpoint to the earthy, salty, spicy meal.

New recipes, September 24, 2011

Tonight's new recipes are Chicken Alla Diavola from Mario Batali's Italian Grill, and Salad of Dandelion Greens with Almond Vinaigrette and Dried Ricotta (used Parmesan) from Epicurious.
Wine: Tenuta Sant' Antonio Nanfre Valpolicella 2008

New recipes, August 2, 2011

Today was our day to cook for the family reunion. We started with a collection of goat cheese from Basalt, just down valley from Aspen. They were all delicious. The salad was a Panzanella that we have made many time before.

The main courses were a Pork Tenderloin marinated in Balsamic Vinegar, Garlic and Red Pepper Flakes

, and (new for us) a Mario Batali recipe for Pork Tenderloin with Negroni Vinaigrette (sorry, I found reviews but not the recipe online). The recipe is from Italian Grill, and while it has many steps, it is not hard. It was delicious, and won a lot of kudos from the family, even after the tenderloin in balsamic, which we made before.!

Dessert was an Olive Oil Cake with Candied Orange from Epicurious. Amazing dish! The key is adding the orange syrup to the cake--it was fantastic!

March 26, 2011 new recipes

Since tonight was Carl's birthday (55!!), everything was new! The main dish was Duck Scallopine with Green Apples and Malavasia from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano (sorry, I can't find a link online!). I served it with Mashed Potatoes with Brown Butter and Scallions from Epicurious.com, and Mario's Spiced Cabbage from Lake Garda (sorry, also no recipe on line!), though I did it with red cabbage, since that is what we had. Though each of these was delicious, the cabbage was a tad too spicy for the relative sweetness of the main course. The potatoes were fabulous with the duck!

The wine was 2008 Sciarpa Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, which complemented everything very well.

We had dessert with a Clairette de Die--Molten Chocolate Cake with Cherries from Epicurious.com. Dirty little secret--molten chocolate cake is insanely easy to make. Try this!!

March 14, 2011, new recipes

Hoping Carl enjoyed a fabulous dinner in London. Tonight I made Pork Chops with Apricot-Tomato Chutney, from EatingWell.com. The recipe called for canned tomatoes, but I used fresh. There is no sugar in the chutney, so the only sweetness comes from the dried apricots--this resulted in a nicely balanced chutney, flavorful but not very sweet. I was very pleased with this! I served it with Broccoli Sauteed in Garlic and Blood Orange Juice. This is a riff off Mario Batali's Broccoli Sauteed in Wine and Garlic. The citrus juice brightened it nicely and it was a great complement to the pork chop. I would do both again!

The wine was a 2004 Ken Forrester Petit Pinotage--fruity, with dark red fruit, not a lot of oak. I hoped it would be a nice complement to the pork, as well as the brighter citrus and tomato-apricot flavors. It worked even better than I hoped! A very nice meal and wine combination!

March 2, 2011, new recipe

Tonight, we took our inspiration from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano, looking, I might add, for something quick! We did Tuna Sicilian Style with Shallot Frittata (sorry, no link out there!). We had a nice arugula salad with the Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette from Shinin' Times at the Fort that Carl made yesterday. A lovely meal!

The wine was a 2009 Liana Pinot Grigio--a nice match to the meal!

February 27, 2011 new recipes

Once again, Mario Batali comes through in Molto Italiano. We can get duck and duck legs (but not breasts for some reason) at Har Mart, a great asian market not too far from here. So we made Braised Duck Legs with Dried Orange Peel and Almonds. The sauce cooks down during the braising to the thick near-stew you see on the duck. Fabulous! We had Roasted Asparagus with Capers and Eggs on the side, also really delicious. We would do both again!

We drank a Willamette Valley Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir with this meal, a really nice match. Asparagus is notoriously difficult to match with wine, but when you roast it and then dress it like this, it becomes quite different, and does not seem to me to be as hard to match. It worked well with this wine.

February 26, 2011 new recipes

Tonight's recipes are from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano. For a kid who hated fish and still dislikes very strong fish flavors, I find myself fascinated by seafood. This evening, we made Barbecued Octopus with Grilled Escarole and Mint, and Broccoli Sauteed in Wine and Garlic. We drank a 2006 Regilli Frascati with this (it was also in the broccoli), which was really past its prime. So we switched to a 2009 Fontana Candida Frascati, which was much nicer, with aromas of peaches and a little grapefruit.

The octopus came out much more tender than I feared it would, and the flavors were nice, but it didn't quite pop, to use an overused term. Makes me wonder if it is the dish or the execution--I may have to try this again some time. I did learn how to clean an octopus from the folks at the Sydney Fish Market, since my frozen octopi came fully equipped with eyes, beak, and innards. It was still a fun dish to make.

February 21, 2011 new recipe

This evening's new recipe was Goat Cheese and Scallion Ravioli with Black Olive Butter, from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano. If you use the linked recipe, we did not use the sun dried tomato in the sauce, thought I think it would be a very nice addition. We had it with a celery, tomato, grapefruit and cucumber salad that Dwight and Anne made from scratch.

Here is Carl making the pasta. And the finished product!

The wine, which was a very nice match, was the Santa Alicia Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2008, from the Maipo Valley in Chile.

Several kind people have told us that they can't believe we are doing a new dish every day. This is not so hard for us, as we cook almost every day anyway--for us, it is just a matter of deciding to try something new instead of fixing something familiar. Now that we are in the swing of it (and planning ahead for new things), it is pretty easy. But it flows from the fact that we cook every day anyway. If you don't cook every day, try something new every week. We are having a lot of fun!

Though we've made fresh noodles before, this is our first foray into ravioli. It is not as hard as we expected. Carl had made the pasta before I got home, and started the filling. I finished the filling, and then put a little dollop on each little piece of dough, while he and Anne came behind and folded and sealed them. This would have been a big deal for one person to finish, but with a little assistance it was quick and easy!