New recipe, April 29, 2014

Spiced Fava Bean Soup with Rice and Tomato from the April 2014 Bon Appétit. Quite tasty, this gets a 4.

Wine: Van Ruiten Chardonnay 2009. Not at its best

New recipe, April 28, 2014

Grilled Hanger Steak with Cucumber Salad from the April 2014 Bon Appétit. We give this a 5!

Wine: Von der Leyen Riesling 2012

New recipes, April 27, 2014

Tuscan Steak with Sandy Potatoes from the May 2014 Food and Wine. Served with a garden salad with and orange vinaigrette.

I was going for the char on the steak that the recipe called for, and over cooked the steak. As cooked, it makes a 3. The potatoes get a 5!

Wine: Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino 2004

New recipe, April 26, 2014

Quick Rotini with Sausage and Tomato Sauce from the May 2014 Cooking Light, served with the Chopped Kale Salad with Prosciutto and Figs from the May 2014 Food and Wine. We give the rotini a 3, it has nice flavors. The salad was another step up, we give it a 4.

Dessert was a reprise of the Top Secret Mousse from NPR

Wine: Fattoria Rodáno Poggialupi 2007--a nice match

New recipe, April 25, 2014

Greek Style Chicken Breasts from the May 2014 Cooking Light--very tasty, we give it a 4. Served with a reprise of the Carrot Salad with Coriander Vinaigrette and Pistachios from the May 2014 Bon Appetít, still a 5.

Wine: Terredora DiPaolo Aglianico 2010

New recipe, April 24, 2014

Carrot Salad with Coriander Vinaigrette and Pistachios from the May 2014 Bon Appétit. Amazing, it gets a 5! Served with sautéed Turkey Italian Sausage.

Wine: Infinite Monkey Theorem Rosé 2013--a reasonable match, perhaps a bit sweet.

New recipe, April 23, 2014

Tonight's new recipe is a cocktail, the Italian Berry Mule, from the May 2014 Food and Wine. Besides vodka, lime and ginger beer, this has raspberries and balsamic, which give it a really nice flavor profile. We give it a 4.

New recipes, April 22, 2014

Two from the May 2014 Cooking Light: Skillet Asparagus Salad with Goat Cheese (we used Manchego), and Tortellini with Snap Peas and Pesto (we used ravioli). We liked these--the asparagus gets a 5, and the pasta a 4. A very tasty meal!

Wine: Vigneto di Gino Verdicchio Dei Castelli di Jesi 2009--a nice wine, a fair match

New recipes, April 21, 2014

Two new recipes from the May 2014 Cooking Light--Sesame Broccoli, and Steamed Snap Peas with Wasabi Butter. Both are ok, we give them a 3.
Served with roasted pork tenderloin with African Adobo rub

Wine: Von der Leyen Riesling 2012-a reasonable match

New recipe, April 20, 2014

Our contribution to the family Easter dinner: Roast Leg of Lamb with Rosemary from the March 2014 Food and Wine. This is tasty, we give it a 3.

New recipe, April 19, 2014

Chicken Cassoulet with Fennel and Sausage from the March 2014 Food and Wine. This is quite delightful! We give it a 5!

Wine: Domaine de Saint Siffrein Châteauneuf du Pape 2008-a good match

New recipe, April 18, 2014

Zucchini Farro Cakes with Herbed Goat Cheese and Slow Roasted Tomatoes from the April 2014 Cooking Light. The cakes are nice, the goat cheese and tomatoes really jazz this up. We give these a 4

Wine: Damilano Langhe Arneis 2011

New recipe, April 17, 2014

Pork Tenderloin and Cannelini Beans from the April 2014 Cooking Light. Wonderful dish, a definite 5! Served with a reprise of the Chopped Salad with Chive Vinaigrette from the May 2014 Cooking Light, which is at least a 4.

Wine: Vila Bonarda Reserva 2009

New recipe, April 16, 3014

Champagne Risotto with Peppers and Asparagus from the April 2014 Cooking Light. Nice flavors. We used low sodium vegetable broth--I would not do this again, as it needs more salt. This is very pleasant, and not quite outstanding-we give it a 4.

Wine: Gruet Blanc de Noirs Sparkling Wine--a nice match, it is also in the dish.

New recipe, April 15, 2014

The Gentle Ben, from the Mr Boston Official Bartender Guide. Tasty, this gets a 4

New recipes, April 14, 2014

Avocado and Tomato Grilled Sandwich and Chopped Salad with Chive Vinaigrette, both from the May 2014 Cooking Light. Both are tasty, and get a 4.

Served with Negro Modelo, no wine

New recipe, April 13, 2014

Quick Pork Posole from the May 2014 Cooking Light. This is very good, it gets a 4.

No wine, served with a Negro Modelo, which is also an ingredient

New recipes, April 12, 2014

From the May 2014 Cooking Light, two delicious very quick dishes: Shaved Fennel with Orange and Olives, which gets a 4, and Slider Patties with Pomegranate Molasses--this gets a very enthusiastic 5! Try cutting the salt back to 1/2 tsp, but make it! So good, and so quick!

Wine: Infinite Monkey Theorem Petite Sirah 2009. This is a pretty good match

New recipe, April 11, 2014

Sausage Ragu with Red Wine and Peppers from the Denver Post. This is a delightful, alchemical blend of flavors. We give this a 5.

Wine: Sterling Vintner's Collection Meritage Central Coast 2011--good match!

New recipe, April 10, 2014

Black Bean Cakes with Ginger Cilantro Cream from the May 2014 Cooking Light. We used kidney beans, and nonfat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. Wonderful flavors! We give this a 5! Served with a cucumber-radish-carrot and flower salad

Wine: Gascon Malbec, Mendoza Argentina 2012--a good

New recipe, April 9, 2014

Noodle Salad with Chicken and Chile Scallion Oil from the April 2014 Bon Appétit. These are great flavors--we give it a 5.

New recipe, April 8. 2014

Southside Baller from the April 2014 Bon Appétit. Tasty, it gets a 4!

New recipe, April 7, 2014

From the Spring 2014 CookFresh: Spicy Peanut Noodles with Ground Pork and Shredded Vegetables. Excellent! We give it a 4--a little more spicy heat might have made it a 5. Don't skip using the lime wedges--the juice really dresses this dish up!

New recipe, April 6, 2014

The Italian Berry Mule from the May 2014 Food and Wine. This has a great combination of ingredients and flavors. We give it a 4

New recipe, April 5, 2014

Sugar Snap Peas with Mint and Coconut Dressing from the May 2014 Food and Wine. Excellent, we give bit a 5! Served with a reprise of the Pork Tenderloin with Sage and Marsala Sauce from the Spring 2014 CookFresh--this is still a 5, and curiously works well with the peas, I think because the contrast works well.

Wine: Radio-Coteaux Savoy Anderdon Valley Pinot Noir 2010--a nice match with both dishes

New recipe, April 4, 2014

Ginger Julep from the May 2014 Food and Wine (no link available yet). Tasty, we give this a 3. A dash of bitters would make this pop

New recipe, April 3, 2014

Oaxaca Old Fashioned from the May 2014 Food and Wine--very nice, it gets a 4.

New recipe, April 2, 2014

Strawberry Mojito, from the Spring 2014 CookFresh, which gets a 4.

New recipe, April 1, 2014

Happy April Fools! Today's new recipe is Pea and Parmigiano Soup from the Spring 2014 CookFresh. A very tasty pea soup, we give it a 3. Served with a reprise of the Pork Tenderloin with Sage and Marsala, which is still a 5.

Wine/ Black Diamond Russian River Valley Pinot Noir 2009--an excellent match