Who has extra champagne in their fridge? I do... I know it's weird but that's what I get for having a New Years party, people bring alcohol and the champagne gets ignored. So I had 2 bottles of champagne and I didn't know what to do with it so I decided to cook with it because you can't open it and have only one glass.
I'll start with the bad. I tried to bake cookies; it was bad. I put champagne, flour, sugar, butter, shortening, 1 egg, and baking soda. I baked it at 350 for 13 minute. They looked so good. They smelled really good. They tasted nasty. I have never thrown out cookies before but these were awful. They tasted metallic. I'm not sure if it was the champagne or the baking soda. I think it may have been that my baking soda was old.
The good: Italian sausage, spinach, onion, and champagne. Put the sausage in a pot of champagne and let that simmer for about an hour. Then drop 1 chopped onion in the pot with the champagne and let that simmer. Pull the sausage and drop in the spinach and let that wilt down (you could also use frozen spinach, just defrost it and drain it before mixing it in the pot). My secret for spinach is nutmeg. Add a little bit for that extra something. There shouldn't be much champagne left in the bottom of the pot. Now cut the sausage up and mix it back into the pot and let the sausage heat back up again. I threw a little pepper and salt over the top. To complete the meal make a bowl of rice and drop the whole mix over the top. It's pretty fantastic!
I know it’s been a long time since my last post. I’m sorry! I’ve been crazy busy or not in the mood for real food (Shocking but true). This weekend was the most amazing culinary adventure I had to share.
Friday night was “date night”. Dinner and a movie. Dinner started with a Sam Adams Cheddar Cheese fondue that was just amazing. I’m going to have to figure out how they made it because I’m a huge fan. I’m pretty sure it’s cheddar cheese, Sam Adams, and cream. Although maybe it would be better if I didn’t know so I can’t make it at home when I’m having a cheese craving because I’d probably eat a whole block of cheese plus the Sam Adams. Dinner itself was a pretty good grilled chicken and bacon sandwich but nothing compared to the cheese fondue.
Saturday night was dinner and karaoke. Dinner was very good. Lemon chicken with capers and grilled veggies. I didn’t make it but I’m pretty sure I probably could make a pretty good approximation if I were up to the challenge.
Two nights of really good food would probably be enough for most people in one weekend but there was a whole lot more to come because after karaoke we all trooped the 1.5 hours down to the shore to spend a few more hours together.
Best way to start a Sunday morning: Blueberry Pancakes and Sausage with some of my best friends (new and old). The combination of the fresh fruit, syrup, and the savory sausage makes for a very complete and happy meal.
But wait… there’s more. Bacon… lots and lots of bacon. It’s not just for breakfast anymore!
During breakfast we discussed the virtues of bacon and decided to take on the challenge of putting bacon in every part of our dinner. And we did.
Post breakfast (and a walk on the boardwalk) 5 happily full twenty somethings descended upon the Ocean City ShopRite with no list or clue. All we had was an idea and a mantra, “we need bacon”. An hour and a half later we ended up with 3 lbs of bacon, 2 flank steaks, shrimp, mozzarella, spinach, tomatoes, chocolate, onions and some various other cooking necessities. We were still left without a plan, just lots of food.
Soon the sounds of chopping, bacon frying and laughter filled the house.
The end result: The only item that did not have bacon or bacon grease in direct contact while cooking was the steak. I did meet its bacon in the end though.
Salad:
Spinach, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, bacon, slivered onions, and a strawberry/bacon vinaigrette. I learned that you can emulsify a vinaigrette with strawberry jam (necessity is the mother of invention, we had no mustard).
Dinner:
I have no idea what the steak was marinated it because I was not paying attention but it was amazing. I know it had cinnamon and balsamic vinegar.
On the steak we had browned onions with bacon
Grilled shrimp wrapped in bacon. The bacon was partly baked in the oven then wrapped around the shrimp and grilled.
Dessert:
We actually didn’t get to eat dessert because we took so much time to enjoy dinner that we didn’t need the bacon dipped in chocolate. But we did eat the strawberries that were supposed to go on shortcake.
Had we truly been on Iron Chef we would have had to come up with at least 1 more dish and I’m sure we would have made a bacon martini with a bacon rimmed glass or something but it was the 1st time this crew worked together and frankly there was no head chef running things. We all just picked something and went with it. We really all had a hand in making every dish.
But this weekend wasn’t really about the food. It wasn’t really about what we actually ate (although it was delicious). It had everything to do with the company. I don’t think I’ve laughed so hard nor had a more enjoyable weekend in a long time. I am a very lucky person that I have friends that can come together at the drop of a hat to share an extraordinary adventure in food and fill the house with laughter, love, and the smell of cooking bacon. My dear friends thank you for reminding me what life is all about. To those who were not there hopefully we can do it again soon.
