holidays at home: lemon-caper crusted turbot and roasted rack of lamb

the holidays were quiet at the mimis, in a new city without having many new friends yet. i don't feel quite at home, yet. my stuff is here, but it still doesn't seem like something i can really nestle into (which only makes it worse to own so much stuff). i had the small epiphany that for every other apartment we've lived in, we always made sure to paint the walls of each room before moving in. i always thought it made the rooms show off our personality, and i guess now that my walls here are pure white, a palette of color made those old apartments feel like home, too.

but i'm too lazy (and uncertain of the future) to take the time and effort to paint the walls now that we've moved in. the only way to create some sense of comfort is in our cooking. so we decided that for both christmas and new year's eve, we would stay inside, trying to recreate the warmth of home with dinners that would hopefully make us feel like there was nowhere else to be.

we originally had this idea of crab stuffed sole for christmas eve, but when we got to whole foods (sadly, we haven't found a "real" fish monger here in DC, yet. we miss blue moon!) the turbot looked unbelievably fresh, as if you could eat it as sashimi. mr. mimi's dictum is always buy the freshest looking fish, even if it isn't what you thought of making. so we bought a fillet and crusted it with some lemon breading, broiled with white wine, and garnished with capers and chives.



for new year's eve, it was the rack of lamb that was looking the freshest that afternoon and who am i to refuse a beautiful rack! i guess i'm making up for all those years i didn't eat any, but i just love lamb.we cooked this up with a port wine reduction glaze, with deep roasted garlic and rosemary. it was all so rich and delicious, for a moment there, it almost felt like home again.



milo loves lamb, too.

hello, again

it's been 4 months, nearly to the day. i know a lot of you aren't reading anymore, or should i say i know that many of you probably don't have me in your reader feed anymore since there was nothing more to read.

at first i was going to blame it on work, and say it's not my fault, i was in the philippines responding to the emergency after typhoons pepeng and ondoy. and i was, but that was back in october and only for 4 weeks. so what happened to the other 3 months?


(for my other photos from the philippines, they're all on flickr).

and then i was going to blame it on this sort of late-early life crisis i'm having. you know the kind where you go wtf am i doing with my life? and perhaps it coincides with me coming back from the philippines because after i read this beautiful writing, i was left with that painful feeling that even though everything i've been doing for the last several years has me on the path to the success i've always envisioned for myself, now that i can see it closer, that version of success doesn't really seem to be what i want, afterall. or when i think about it honestly, that version of success doesn't match with what makes me happy, day in and day out.

but i'm still here, cooking and taking photographs, and occasionally baking. and what better way to start off this little blog again, then by sharing a quick and easy hors d'oeuvres that could easily start off your new years eve party coming up (we made them to start off our christmas eve dinner). i found these on smitten kitchen, who happened to find them on the nytimes. they just looked so good on her blog i knew i had to try them.

i made slight variation here and there, sometimes based on what we had in the fridge (sour cream instead of heavy cream) and sometimes based on the "classic" french method mr. mimi knows best (see note below). but they disappeared as soon as they were done. so easy, delicious, and does exactly what an hors d'oeuvres should -- whet your appetite for the next course!

so let these tasty creamed mushroom toasts whet your appetite for my blog again. i promise i'll be back soon with the rest of the holiday dinner, and lots more kitchen adventures for next year!



creamed mushrooms on chive toast: serves 2-4 (it served 2 of us gluttons, but you could, i guess, serve 4 people with this recipe)
adapted from smitten kitchen

note: this mixture is basically a standard duxelles. the original nytimes article, and smitten kitchen's recipe, has you chop the mushrooms to 1/4" and then cook. but to prepare this in the "classic" french method, the mushrooms are roughly chopped (or even not at all if they're small enough) and then after cooking, finely diced. the reason for this is because of the relative high water content of the mushrooms. cooking them on high heat nearly whole (or in bigger pieces) will make them brown nicely and sear in this moisture. i'm sure another reason is because the french like to make things more complicated than they seem, bien sûr! :-)

1/2 lb cremini and shiitake mushrooms
2 tbs butter
1 large shallot, chopped
2 tbs dry white wine
1-2 tb sour cream
salt + pepper, to taste
challah or brioche bread, 4 slices about 1/2" thick and then cut into points or other shapes
1 tb chopped chives

1. brush off dirt from mushrooms, de-stem, and chop mushroom caps.

2. melt butter in skillet over medium-high heat, add shallot and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. turn heat to high, add mushrooms and cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes. mushrooms should be soft, and a deep golden shiny color. add wine and de-glaze, reduce until almost dry, about 2 minutes.

3. put the mushroom-shallot mixture back on the cutting board, and finely dice. return to the skillet on medium heat. temper sour cream and add to mixture (you could use regular heavy cream instead). season with salt and pepper.

4. toast bread (technically this should be a "buttered" toast recipe, but because challah or brioche is so rich already, we just toasted them and didn't butter. if you're using only white bread, you probably might want to add some butter after toasting). top each toast with mushroom mixture and sprinkle with chives.

twd: rugelach

this post is going to be short and sweet as i have (at least what seems) a zillion things going on today.

when i was younger i loved hanukkah. and not just for the gifts! but latkes and rugelach were my favorite holiday treats that basically i pigged out on because they only came around once a year!

so how delighted i was when grace from piggy's cooking journal picked rugelach for this week's tuesday with dorie!

the recipe was super easy to follow. i used a combination of whatever i had on hand: cherry jam, walnuts, and golden raisins. i did not add the chocolate, as dorie suggests, because i'm one of those few stalwarts who thinks not everything tastes better with chocolate!



these were the best rugelach i've ever eaten, especially right after baking. the dough was so light and flaky, compared to the denser dough typically found at store or even bakery bought versions. next time i want to try rolling them a little bit more uniform in size/shape, but i can't wait to make these again for hanukkah!



for the recipe, click here. and to see everyone else's rugelach combinations, click through the blogroll!

happy halloween!!

one of my favorite nights of the year has finally arrived .... happy halloween everyone!!

twd: chocolate-chocolate cupcakes, boo-yah!

for this week's tuesdays with dorie, clara from the wonderful i heart food for thought chose chocolate-chocolate cupcakes and gently suggested doing a halloween theme for decoration.

there had been some lengthy discussion about the texture and crumb being dry, with lots of talk about ratios and flour weights. i don't think there are any "fool-proof" recipes (especially for baking) so i tend to think that any discrepancies mainly occur because of differences in conditions, particularly in the oven. so i decided to proceed as written, but keeping a careful watch on the baking time. i checked in 16 minutes and the toothpick came out wet; only 2 more minutes and it came out completely dry.



the result? well first, the batter was soo good! that bowl hardly had to go in the dishwasher i cleaned it so well myself - no shame!

and the cupcake? amazing! moist and chocolately. i did not have any problem with it being a crummy dry crumb. i suspect that was related to my 18 minutes baking, compared to dorie's written 22-25 minutes. i would've preferred a chocolate buttercream, but that's just me (or is it you, too?)

i wasn't at all creative in the halloween department. but do you ever need a pretty reason to eat a chocolately chocolate cupcake??

for the recipe, please click here!

happy pesach!

the start of any great gathering ... the wine!

when i was very little i attended lutheran services, and my stepfamily is jewish. but if you gave me a form to fill out, next to "religion?" i would check off "none". i don't follow or practice anything. but if you met me and had a discussion about what religion i feel the most affinity for, i would reply, judaism.


when i was an adolescent, rabbi davidson gave me a copy of a chaim potok book, and i felt like she was nearly the only one who understood my passion (and obsession) with creating art, and my struggle identifying as an artist, even if we didn't explicitly talk about it in that way. i would have loved to have her officiate at my wedding if it were permissible. we did celebrate the jewish tradition of breaking the glass; it's one of my favorite momentos of our wedding day.

when i got older, i was swooning over my philosophy professor (who doesn't fall in love with their college philosophy professor??!) but what really interested me was his philosophical and moral interpretation of judaism. i felt like it spoke to my perspective, moreso than any other organized religion.

seder plate

and one of my fondest memories is celebrating the jewish holidays with nanny and pop-pop. hanukkah was always fun. who doesn't love receiving gifts? oh yeah, and eating latkes!! yumm. but passover was always a real favorite too. even though reading through the haggadah took f.o.r.e.v.e.r, i loved all the rituals and traditions. i loved bargaining to return the matzoh in exchange for some new nail polish (i think one year that is what i actually asked for!) and for being together with family. although pop-pop no longer presides over the seder prayers, i know that he was with us, in spirit and happiness, as we celebrated on saturday.

vegetables ready to be roasted

and of course, what's a family gathering without me trying to bring a baked goodie? i saw this recipe with an article on passover desserts in living last month and knew i really wanted to make it. the online recipe can be found here. i don't have any slice photos because everyone ate it up so quickly! but it came out absolutely delish. just the right balance of sweetness and juiciness. it would be a wonderful dessert, any time of the year.

almond filling

almond-coconut tart

end of year meme

i found this lovely meme over at sara's i like to cook.

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
i lived outside the u s of a for more than two months. i bought a mac. i traveled and hiked by myself. i went canyoning in interlaken.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
dang, i can't even remember what my last year's resolutions were, but i'm sure they had something to do with money and weight ... and sadly, if that is true, none were kept!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
yes!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
yes

5. What countries did you visit?
france, switzerland, spain, germany (twice), italy, czech, and hungary

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
direction and confidence

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
the day i realized how fortunate i am to have mr. mimi in my life

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
living on my own (even if it was only for two months)

9. What was your biggest failure?
i failed to be excited about the school i am attending

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
no

11. What was the best thing you bought?
my mac!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
those lawyers working pro bono on behalf of detainees at guatanamo

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
george w. bush and all his cronies

14. Where did most of your money go?
school

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
my garden, my kitties, coming back home

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
the coldplay/radin/snow patrol/shins/etc playlist that i had on my ipod and which i played over and over and over again while in geneva

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? 
b) thinner or fatter? 
c) richer or poorer?
happier
fatter ... ugh!!
the same

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
swim and read

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
procastinate

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
quietly

21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
yes, again

22. How many one-night stands?
too many to count!! haha, just kidding

23. What was your favorite TV program?
scrubs

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
i have never hated anyone ... oh wait, yes, i hate A even more now

25. What was the best book you read?
in 2007? the best book was the kite runner ... i think, i can't remember what i read :(

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
coldplay

27. What did you want and get?
new opportunity

28. What did you want and not get?
work in the field

29. What was your favorite film of this year?
not technically correct, because it was a film from last year, but i only saw it this year, and loved the lives of others

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
it was the first time (in a long time) i did something actually *on* my birthday ... had a lovely dinner with friends at tempo

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
if i advanced in my french studies

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
less is more

33. What kept you sane?
milo

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
i am in love with zach

35. What political issue stirred you the most?
torture. and civil rights for gays and lesbians (the perennial issue for moi)

36. Who did you miss?
the girl i always miss ... RL

37. Who was the best new person you met?
MC ... the man of a million amazing stories (and a couple old-fashioned naughty jokes to boot)

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
take the risk (and stop needlessly comparing myself to everyone else)

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
when the truth is ... i miss you

bonne année!

this past year has been quite a busy one for me. not necessarily momentous, but certainly busy and fruitful. here's to hoping that 2008 brings even more good things. actually, not really "things" per se, but more clarity, focus, and direction ... and less regret and wishing for something different.

there was an article in the new york times about regret. i didn't find the writing very engaging, but it did have some interesting points. i don't feel resentment, or regret, over negative or traumatic things that have happened in my life (adolescent psychotherapy took care of that). but i do still feel regret about two (three?) things in my life, and they are all academic-related ... smith. history. public health. but then again, those decisions that i wish i made differently about, and in, school have lead me to some other, perhaps even more wonderful and deserving, things, people, and opportunities.

so in that spirit, instead of looking back with doubt, i am truly looking forward to 2008. my resolutions are mostly bane and cliché but for what they're worth:

1. master français once and for all
2. treat my money to a well-deserved rest in my savings
3. swim four times a week

oh snap! our host/ess last night purchased a box of goods from here for their new years eve party, but because it was all packaged in a box, unbeknownst to them, it was leftovers from last year!!

need a laugh?

even if christmas is past, this is one of the funniest blogs i have read recently: tacky christmas yards

merry christmas!!

it's a quiet christmas day for us. last night we were at mr. mimi's mom's place in the west village, with some family and friends. on the menu: parmesan crusted cod, fingerling potatoes (recovery dish after the le creuset crisis with the originally planned scallop potatoes), toasted brussel sprouts, and german red cabbage.

toasted brussel sprouts: serves 6-8

3 lb brussel sprouts

8 garlic cloves, sliced

olive oil

salt+pepper

1. clean and score brussel sprouts. pre-heat oven to 400f. bring salted water to boil.

2. add brussel sprouts to boiling water, stirring occasionally and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. while cooking, slice garlic cloves.

3. drain into large bowl. toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, and sliced garlic.

4. place evenly on baking sheet (regular, NOT non-stick). roast in oven until light brown, about 10 or 15 minutes. (sorry for the blurry photo, i am used to slide film in my old SLR camera, not this point and shoot digital!)

on saturday, my parents came down and we all went to the most fabulous restaurant in brooklyn (maybe even the city). because mr. mimi is a chef, people often ask him what his favorite restaurant is. they typically expect to hear an answer about per se, or daniel, or union square cafe or something of that order. first of all, we can't afford to eat at those places on a regular basis. and second of all, while we are sure those kind of places have amazing food, it's not really the scene that we enjoy for dining.

so his answer is always this small, unassuming italian restaurant in downtown brooklyn called noodle pudding. i hate to even tell anyone lest it gets even more busy! if you don't like to wait, or have a large group, then definitely go early or late because they don't take reservations. but it is so worth it ... the menu is always changing with seasonal specials, but even the standard inexpensive pasta dishes are delicious. the wait staff is always professional and just there when you need them. the owner, tony, is friendly and remembers everyone. mr. mimi says they have the best tiramisu, ever. it isn't fancy on the decor and maybe this is "just" a "neighborhood" restaurant, but it really is the best. of course, we did have our wedding there so maybe we're a little biased too :)

here is a photo of tony and his amazing food buffet at our wedding

holidays are meant for food and drink shared with friends and family

holiday party last night was a resounding success. probably the best one we have hosted so far. i think what is really super about our parties is that most of our friends don't really know each other. there are friends from a decade ago to friends we just made a couple of months back. from all parts of our lives ... work, school, neighbors, friends of friends, etc. because it's a lot of people meeting for the first (or second) time there are none of those typical party cliques or couples that only hang out with each other. everybody is out there mingling, chatting, and laughing.

unfortunately because we had so much fun hosting, there are no photos of all our delicious food! but in case you're interested, this was our (entirely home-made) menu:
hors d'ouevres ... apricots, grapes, nuts, and olives; deviled eggs with caviar; parmesan rosemary icebox crackers with artichoke dip; crudite with onion dip; shrimp cocktail; gruyere stuffed mushrooms.
dinner ... toasted garlic brussel sprouts; steak fries; pernil.
dessert ... chocolate fondue; cupcakes.
booze ... lots!!

so the only photo i have to share is the post-party clean-up scene :)

i love the holidays

i remember christmas as a child fondly. our living room had a door on it, so there was this keen level of suspense. we'd all wake up early, eat chocolate dipped donuts in the dining room (i have no idea where that tradition came from) and then race up the hallway to the living room. mom and dad would creep inside and take photos, and then we'd be allowed to open the door and see all the glittering gifts inside. we'd rush to open them all up and then play for hours afterwards.

when my parents divorced, christmas became a little different. but hanukkah then became something special. my sweetest memory is when pop-pop laid out all the gifts in the shape of a menorah on his living room floor. it was such a giddy, abundant celebration. he always hung up my silly hanukkah menorah craft, even when i got older and it wasn't so cute anymore. we miss you pop-pop.

as i entered the years of young adulthood, christmas wasn't necessarily a special holiday for me. because i'm such a paper and typology fanatic, i did always enjoy the cards and gift wrap and ribbons. but it wasn't until mr. mimi came into my life and we bought my first ever real christmas tree together from the awesome firemen in highland did christmas become a treat.

i love christmas now. i love the lights. i love trying to pick out the perfect tree, the smells of the fir in the house. i love buying new ornaments. i love having friends and family over. i absolutely hate the beginning of winter and cold weather, but the fun of christmas makes up for it.

we bought our tree this afternoon. a little shy of 8 feet, douglas fir. straight as a whistle, and not too wide on the bottom. it's a really nice shape. the front of our apartment has a bay window type of alcove, and the tree fits perfectly. it's a bright beacon of happiness from the outside. we always decorate our fireplace mantle too, with some extra branches and the heavy ornaments that don't really fit on the tree (or the special ones that need to be out of reach of kitty paws). next weekend is our holiday party, can't wait!

tree

pardon the blurry photo ... no tripod! :(