New recipe, March 1, 2014

March already! The new recipe is African Sweet Potato and Chicken Stew with Couscous, from the March/April Eating Well. Quite nice--we give it a 4. We think this would be a 5 with a bit more of the spices--ground coriander, grated ginger, and cayenne.

Wine: Huia Marlborough Dry Riesling 2010-- very nice match,

March 5, 2011 new recipe

We decided to have dinner at the Sunspot, at the top of Winter Park today. So the new recipe is breakfast: Breakfast Couscous with Dried Fruit Compote, from Epicurious.com. As the reviews say, you can really do this any way you want, but I have to say this was really good! It is really quick, but the couscous is a great base for the fruit, which is really accentuated by the nuts. The combination was delicious! We left out the teabag (Carl and caffeine do not mix), but I do agree with the reviewer who said the lemon juice is key--it helps balance the sweet fruit. Make this!

It was breakfast, so I hope you weren't expecting a wine!

The Sunspot is a lodge and restaurant atop Winter Park. On Friday and Saturday, you can take the gondola to the top for a 5 course meal. We decided we had to check this out. It was a very pleasant experience overall--great service, gorgeous venue, a lot of fun! You are waiting for comments about the food. The butternut squash soup was excellent, and the entrees (grilled venison and buffalo) were done beautifully. We thought the appetizer (smoked trout mousse), the salad (mixed green salad with roasted citrus vianigrette) and the dessert (chocolate mousse) were middle of the road. It was very nice, but we wish they would kick it up a notch!

January 24, 2011 new recipe

Dinner on 1/24/2011 was a simple affair, with a recipe from Epicurious.com. Simple, but delicious! We had Mediterranean Couscous and Lentil Salad. I think this could be made with any lentils, but the French green lentils (Lentilles de Puy) really do hold together better than many others do. This recipe also had a lot of mint, but it was what really made it work. It was equally good for lunch the next day!

The wine with this meal as a 2009 Coppola Bianco Pinot Grigio.

January 9, 2011 new recipes

Here is dinner on 1/9/2011--a Moroccan Lamb-Chicken Stew, served over pearled couscous. It was delicious, and made many days of wonderful leftovers!

I need to dig back through our recipes to remember where this one came from.

Don't recall the wine.

We don't often have dessert, but this evening we had a chestnut cream, with vanilla ice cream and bitter chocolate. Anne found the recipe in French online and made it. Roasted chestnuts have a flavor that is really unlike anything else, and it is wonderful! Here is a recipe from Yankee Magazine.