2 Birthdays Means 2 Desserts for Family Dinner

March 31, 2017 The Culinary Chronicles1 Comment

Somehow along the journey of our Family Dinners, I decided that even if there’s more than one birthday for the month, each bday babe gets their own dessert.

So when it was seester T and Nini’s bday, I found myself baking TWO cakes. Albeit, Nini’s was slightly larger and 15 pounds heavier.

I’m royally screwed in July since there are FOUR BIRTHDAYS!!

Oy vey.

Why do I do this…..

Actually, our birthday gals were very low maintenance. They didn’t request anything over the top which made things quite easy for the other dishes.

PHEW!

We opened up with fresh Salmon Shōyu Pokē and Chips — Nini’s choice.

I have to admit, salmon generally isn’t my fish of choice. It’s fine but I think I went through a period where I was eating it all of the time and then one day….BLEH! NO MORE!

Nowadays, I rarely order it when out and generally just prefer my salmon as lox over bagels. But when seestrah N whipped up this pokē, I was about it!! Fresh, slightly sweet and savory. She based it off my Ahi Shōyu Pokē that can be found here.

Onolicious!

As for the entrée, we went for the rich, stick to your ribs type of dish — as in short ribs!!!

T made a GINORMOUS pot of Red Wine Braised Short Ribs that had tons of herbs, aromatics and ‘shrooms! I may or may not have stolen the below pic from her IG.

Alright…I totally did.

Once the ribs were utterly tender and at the melt-in your mouth consistency, she shredded them and topped them over the freshly made Ricotta Gnocchi by brother V and my SIL L.

And since the beef was so rich, we added a big dollop of gremolata (garlic, lemon zest, and parsley) that our niece prepared. The gremolata adds a much needed freshness and bite to cut through all of that unctuous goodness.

Then one of us (it sure wasn’t me!) thought it would be a good idea to add some greens to the meal and pulled together a Gorgonzola and Asian Pear Salad.

Don’t get me wrong, it was lovely but I would have been fine with just the greens from the gremolata!

And then….DESSERTS!!!

Nini requested a coconut cake. She asked and I delivered this three layered Toasted Coconut Cake.

I used Thomas Keller’s recipe that can be found here. It’s a pretty standard southern coconut cake recipe that uses a combination of coconut milk, buttermilk and mayonnaise for a dense but moist cake crumb. The cake is frosted in a thick Italian Meringue but instead of desiccated sweet coconut shreds, I covered it all in toasted coconut flakes so that it wouldn’t be too sweet. And I generally prefer the texture of the flakes over the shreds too.

Nini was a fan. Success.

What a cutie-patootie.

Seeestrah is slightly obsessed with the Butter Cake from Mastro’s so I did my best to try and replicate it. If you’ve never had the cake from Mastro’s, think of an incredibly rich and dense pound cake….but with more butter!!!

After scouring the internet, I went with this recipe here. Truthfully, I had mediocre success with it and it took nearly twice as long for the cakes to bake. Not to mention we had a heck of a time removing it from the pans. But the flavor was pretty good and there’s nothing that a ton of fresh whipped cream and berries can’t hide—am I right?

Sorry seester, I’ll definitely try again for ya…..

Needless to say, we all nearly knocked out after our heavy meal — but it was worth every calorie!

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This Month’s Family Dinner Menu

Cocktails: Assorted Wines
Appetizers: Salmon Shōyu Pokē
Entrees: Red Wine Braised Short Ribs over Fresh Ricotta Gnocchi
Sides: Gorgonzola and Asian Pear Salad
Dessert: Toasted Coconut Cake, Butter Cake with Berries and Cream

Rosemary-Garlic Lamb Rib Chops

February 21, 2013January 27, 2015 The Culinary Chronicles5 Comments

I’ve been rather bad about reporting on our Family Dinners over the past few months. And not because our menus weren’t delish but somehow amongst the endless events, time slipped by.

December’s dinner menu featured Mexican-inspired fare. We had a variety of fresh salsas, chicharrón, ceviche, salmon-dill tacos, rice, and beans. I whipped up some mango margaritas and my beer braised carnitas. And although it may not have been Latin, our sis, P, made a ridiculously amazing chocolate bread pudding. The icing on the cake? It was our adorable nephew, Leonidas’ 1st birthday!

For January, we let my seester, T, and our niece pick the theme as they’re Jan-Babies. So we were off to the islands for mouthwatering, ono grindz! Our spread included mai tais and my take on hamachi-ponzu shooters. Our eldest seester created a wonderfully light yet fulfilling banana leaf-wrapped monk fish with a curry sauce. And for dessert? Big seester made molten lava chocolate cakes and paired them with my toasted coconut ice cream and guava ice cream.

With island music playing throughout dinner, it was almost—almost like we were in Hawai’i. <le sigh….>

For this month, we revisited Italia. Big seester got me a ravioli mold for Christmas and we were eager to give them a try. For our entrées, we had raviolis three ways: butternut squash with brown butter sage sauce, spicy sausage with a marinara sauce, and lump crab with a pesto sauce. They were quite the success considering it was our first time making raviolis. And because I learned from October’s Family Dinner, I invested in a hand crank pasta machine. Best…idea…ever.

Since I knew it was going to take us some time to get the raviolis to the dinner table, I wanted to make a heartier-than-usual appetizer. We’re a big fan of lamb chops so I turned to my trusted recipe using a ton of rosemary and garlic. By slicing the racks into rib chops while giving them ample time to marinate, the lamb is able to seep in a ton of great flavor. And because my fam loves condiments, I made a quick and herbaceous gremolata to pair with the lamb to help brighten the gamey flavor.

We also found that a light sprinkle of sea salt over the rib chops not only added the perfect seasoning but it also added some great texture. My fam gobbled these appetizers up in no time flat but they can also be served as a mouthwatering entrée.

Can’t wait until next month’s Fam-Din!

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Rosemary-Garlic Lamb Rib Chops
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

Lamb
½ cup chopped rosemary
2 heaping tablespoons minced garlic
zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
16 lamb rib chops, Frenched and trimmed (approximately 2 Frenched racks)
kosher salt and black pepper

Gremolata
1 cup chopped Italian parsley
¼ cup fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt and black pepper

Optional
sea salt

In a small bowl, mix together the rosemary, garlic, lemon zest, red chili flakes and olive oil. Place the lamb rib chops in a large shallow dish or gallon sized resealable bags. Season the lamb well with kosher salt and black pepper. Pour the herb mixture over the lamb and turn the chops around to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for 6-8 hours (I like mine to marinate overnight).

Prepare gremolata by adding parsley, basil, garlic, lemon juice, and red pepper flakes into a food processor. Pulse to combine. On low, stream in the olive oil until you reach a smooth consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the lamb 15 minutes before cooking. Preheat grill to medium high. Grill the chops on each side for 2-3 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 130 degrees F for rare or 135-140 degrees F for medium. Allow the lamb to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Serve the lamb rib chops with a sprinkle of sea salt over the top (optional) and gremolata.

Pastas/Noodles · Sunday Family Dinner

Homemade and Hand Rolled Tagliatelle

December 21, 2012November 20, 2015 The Culinary Chronicles2 Comments

When my sibs and I brainstormed our menu for October’s Sunday Family Dinner, we thought it would be delicious to create a meal that was hearty and celebrated the flavors of Fall. But when the day finally arrived, instead of chilly weather we were greeted with a sunny, 85 degree afternoon. That’s Southern California for you…….

We put together a simple antipasti platter of delicious cheeses, cold cuts, olives and bread to munch on while we were prepared dinner. And for dessert, my sis, N, made fruit tarts with pears and apples.

My sis, T, was in charge of the main course– slow braised Osso Bucco. Due to the hours of slow cooking, the shanks broke down into rich, meaty goodness with a wonderfully, savory sauce. Once plated, we topped the Osso Bucco with spoonfuls of gremolata—a condiment made from tons of chopped garlic, lemon zest and Italian parsley. The gremolata brought brightness to the dish and also helped cut some of the richness.

To serve with the Osso Bucco, I was inspired to try my hand at homemade, hand rolled/cut pasta. Why hand rolled instead of employing a hand crank or KitchenAid attachment? Simple…I don’t own either. (Hint! Hint!)

I used Mario Batali’s recipe for the dough and have one recommendation–beat the eggs first before pouring them into the “well” of flour. It may not be traditional but it’ll reduce any potential “leaks” that may occur. Trust me, you should have heard the shrieks coming out of me when the walls of my “well” started oozing eggs. I was a mess for a hot second! And I have to admit, I was working up a sweat from all the rolling that was going down—those Italian grandmas must be buffer than they look!

In the end, I think the Tagliatelle turned out well and was worth the effort. I do wish I could have gotten it a little thinner but I guess I’ll need to work out my biceps a little more in preparation for next time.

Happy Friday Friends!

This Month’s Family Dinner Menu

Cocktails: Mumm Napa Brut Rose
Appetizers: Antipasta
Entrees: Osso Bucco over Fresh Tagliatelle and Gremolata
Dessert: Apple and Pear Tart

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Recipe from Mario Batali via Joy the Baker