I have so many recipes that I never know where to find the one I want. Like now -- I know I made a great chocolate sauce once; we're having company for dinner next week.* I'd love to have poached pears, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce. I need that very recipe!
****Dinner was Saturday, and it was a great time with wonderful friends. All along I was taking notes so that I will have the recipes and the whole plan for next time. This is one good dinner party!
Here is the plan, hopefully without too many details missing, so you and I can follow along next time. Without freaking out about missing recipes.
Menu
crudités
little toasts
Sriracha aoli and olive tapenade
Fish in the oven
garlic bread
slaw
poached pears
vanilla ice cream
warm chocolate sauce
Chocolate sauce
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate -- I use Kallebut or Trader Joe's 72% cacao dark chocolate.
3/4 C. heavy cream
Sugar to taste.
vanilla extract
Put the chocolate and the cream in a heavy pan and warm over low heat until chocolate is melted. Don't let it boil. Remove from heat and stir. Add sugar and vanilla to taste.
Recipe above 3x
a 17.6 ounce bar chocolate
2 1/4 C. cream
sugar and vanilla to taste
Poached pears
for 3 pears
1/4 C. orange juice
4 C. water
1 1/2 C. sugar
grated rind of one lemon
cinnamon stick
4 cloves
Cook all but pears until sugar dissolves. Add pears, whole but peeled (Leave stem on, if possible.) Simmer until pears are tender but not falling apart, about 15 minutes. maybe we'll see. Can do pears ahead and refrigerate in poaching liquid. Saturday bring them back to room temperature.
Fish in the oven
 |
Red snapper at Southern Seafood fish store
(Snapper works fine. This time I used gag grouper -- no photo of that one!) |
Butter a large piece of foil, 1 1/2 times length of the fish.
Lay fish on top. I used gag grouper. I've also used other grouper and red snapper. All good.
Fan tomato slices over the fish.
Scatter 2 chopped shallots over top.
Add herbs and dot with black olives.
Season with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle with lemon juice and parsley.
Butter another piece of foil to cover the fish.
Fold the edges.
Put in pan.
Cook at 410° for 45 minutes. This is for a thick fish. I cooked 3 1/2 pounds this time, cut into thinner steaks. It took 25-30 minutes. It's important to watch the fish.
Open one end of foil and test at thickest part of fish to make sure it is done.
Serve in foil, with top of foil removed.
Here's another way to cook fish in the oven
Rub grouper fillets with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper; add small tomatoes, lemon juice, parsley and dill, and black olives and maybe a little hot pepper. Wrap in heavy duty foil and bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until done.
Garlic bread
(
Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics, p. 184)
(for one loaf)
Preheat oven to 350°
Process 6 garlic cloves
1/4 c. parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Heat 1/2 C. olive oil over low heat.
Add garlic mixture.
Cook 3 min. Cut ciabatta in half horizontally.
Spoon garlic mixture onto bottom half.
Spread 2 T. butter on top.
Place together.
Wrap in foil.
Place on pan.
Bake at 350° for five minutes. (I followed this timing, but I like it better when it's cooked a little longer. It's crisper and hotter.)
Discard foil. (That's what the Contessa says. I just fold the top of the foil back so I can serve it in foil.)
Bake five more minutes.
Slice crosswise.
Serve warm.
Rachel's slaw
Mix all ingredients:
- 1/2 head small (5-inch diameter) green cabbage
- 2 T. to 1/4 C. mayonnaise
- a couple drops Tabasco sauce, or use a little Sriracha mayo along with the regular kind
- 3/4 teaspoon fresh lime juice
- salt to taste
- honey to taste
Here's another similar slaw
Slaw like I made by accident, before I got Rachel's recipe
Mix all ingredients:
- 14 ounces prepared slaw
- juice of 1 1/2 limes -- or to taste
- 1/2 C. sugar, or to taste
- 2 tsp. cumin seed toasted and ground
- a few coriander seeds, toasted and ground
- olive oil as desired
Appetizer
Olive tapenade and Sriracha aoli (from Fresh Market)
crudité of choice
peppers
little tomatoes
cooked carrots
cooked little potatoes
and
little toasts
Shopping list
- grouper 3 pounds
- black olives
- lemons
- limes
- garlic
- parsley for fish and bread
- vegetables for appetizer (I used a red and a yellow pepper.)
- pears -- 6 pears
- slaw, prepared
- small tomatoes -- two pints
- 2 shallots
- ciabatta -- 2 loaves Ciabatta from Fresh Market
- butter
- ice cream
- sugar
- heavy cream-- 2 1/4 C.
- appetizer crackers
- chocolate (Kallebut or 72% bittersweet from Trader Joe's)
Schedule
Monday
- Shop for all groceries, except fish and slaw and some fresh appetizer thing.
- Prepare ciabatta for baking, wrap in foil and freeze it.
- Wash and iron napkins or make sure you have nice big paper napkins.
- Polish silverware (or not!)
- Find candles, candle-holders, small vases for flowers
Thursday
- Shop for fish and cabbage for slaw
Friday
- Cook pears
- Make chocolate sauce
- Fish waiting on ice in refrigerator
- Cut foil and prepare herbs, etc., for fish tomorrow
- Flowers -- coffee table, bathroom, hall, dining room
Saturday
- Make slaw
- Tidy bathrooms and sweep the floor
