Mondavi Vineyard, Napa Valley

After 2 weeks away from my kitchen, I’m having a hard time getting back into my routine. We’ve reunited with the cat and dog, and adjusting to our new time zone. I was so inspired by the dishes I ate in Northern California - not so much the over fried plates from Honolulu. We got to go to some of the best spots in San Fran - Nopa, Foreign Cinema, Hog Island Oyster, and Dottie’s. I also got to take a day trip up to Napa to scope it out - my parents want to take their dream vacation there next year. It was stunning - once the fog burned off - which seemed later and later every day. I stopped at the Marin Farmer’s Market - the best I’ve ever been to. This blows Union Square out of the water - and I went on the slow day (Thursday). There were a lot more purveyors, and vendors set up to cook - and there were places to sit!! I had a wheat crepe with heirloom tomatoes, brie, and pesto for breakfast - great way to start the day. I also tasted the best strawberries I’d ever had, and actually had great conversations with people there. I think the longer people live in New York, the lower their expectations are for everyday encounters - I was shocked how friendly, helpful, and interested people were there, and at the restaurants we ate at.

If you’ve ever been to the Bay Area, especially in San Fran itself, it gets chilly, and fast. It didn’t rise about 70F the whole time we were there. It did get a bit toasty in Napa, but Fall was certainly in the air. I woke up this morning to a muggy 86F and was dripping by the time we walked back from the crappy, stressful market with eggs, bacon, and cheese for breakfast. However, I’m still in Fall mode, even if NYC isn’t, and it might not be till late October. So this week’s menu is a bit homey, warm, and rich. We also have a friend of a friend from England via Figi (not sure how that works yet) staying with us Wednesday and he requested a good old American roast, which I’m so happy to do. Now I’m not sure how traditional this recipe is, but beetroots are in season and a rib of roast beef can’t be too bad. So if you can crank up your A/C here in NYC and pretend it’s fall or if you’re lucky enough to be experiencing it right now, enjoy these homey treats!

Monday - Mushroom Soup with Hazelnut Gremolata

Tuesday - Belgian Leek Tart with Aged Goad Cheese

Wednesday - Rib roast of beef with Beetroot and Horseradish

Thursday - Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower and Creme Fraiche

Friday - Risotto with Butternut Squash and Sage/ Carrots with Ginger-Honey Glaze

Endless Summer Taco Truck, Brooklyn

So, if you’re following this blog closely, you’ll realize I haven’t made one dish this week - the roasted portobellos with taleggio. Sometimes, life happens, and you end up at the burrito truck in Williamsburg or eating fried clams while celebrating a friend’s birthday in Coney Island. No need to worry - I’ll be making the roasted ’shrooms today for lunch - luckily I saved and procrastinated on a dish that won’t rot in the fridge.

I was trying to think about what I wanted to make this week, and I don’t necessarily want to have a “theme” every week, but some sort of guideline helps me sift through the books, magazines, and cravings I seem to be having the more I do this cooking thing. So this week I’m turning to the publication that made me ditch my vegetarian lifestyle with their 50th anniversary issue - Bon Appétit. Out of all the magazines I get in my little mailbox - and I’ve somehow subscribed to more than I thought - I get so excited about this one, and really pour over each issue cover to cover. I usually don’t skip the long articles like I do with some other magazines like New York magazine - do we need to talk about Obama’s marriage for 6 small typed pages, front and back? OK, I used recipes from issues from 2006-this months. I also wanted to use summer issues so I could try to find recipes that were relevant to what’s at the farmer’s market. I also find a lot of the Bon Appétit recipes challenging, and pricey. So I have my shopping list, but depending on the price of things - I don’t know how much a small game hen is - I might substitute some ingredients. I’ll splurge another time. I’ll also be able to link the recipes (well some) easily so you can download them from Epicurious. Here we go:

Monday - Rory’s Ribs with Grilled Corn, Cantaloupe, and Fresh Herb Salad - Johnathan has been BUGGING me for ribs - so I caved…ok, I lied about this link - this was a cover recipe and there’s no archive online…. - July 2007

Tuesday - Sweet Pea and Artichoke Lasagna - June 2007

Wednesday - Whole Roasted Game Hens with Grits and Wild Mushroom Sauce - I may be subbing some skin-on chicken breast and thighs depending on prices and another one that is not online - oy - September 2006

Thursday - Handmade Pasta with Pancetta, Cherry Tomatoes, and Herbs - September 2006

Friday - Edamame Ravioli with Browned Butter-Mushroom Sauce - July 2007

*Dessert at some point - Coconut-Mint Cream Cake - I saw this in this month’s issue and HAVE to try it!

Sydney Opera House from the ferry

I was supposed to make the pesto pizza yesterday, and have it posted this morning, but I ended up going out to celebrate a friend’s birthday. I have the dough sitting in the fridge, and I’ll make it today, and post it tomorrow, I promise. Meanwhile I’ve been thinking about what to eat next week, as well as what I’d like to learn to cook better. As I said earlier in the week, I’ve been craving breakfast and eggs (maybe after seeing Michael Phelps eat a 5,000 calorie breakfast), so I thought I’d do a week of breakfast for dinner, and work on my egg skills. As I was flipping through cookbooks, I realized there are not a lot of breakfast recipes (if any) to be found in books by Giada, and Jamie Oliver. Everyone is very focused on dinner recipes and sandwiches. I have one breakfast specific book to work from, as well as one from the famous Bill’s of Sydney I visited, which has the best breakfast in town. So this week also requires some creativity. Brunches and egg breakfasts aren’t always the most healthful - think hollandaise, creamy eggs, and lots of melty cheese. So I want to also try to add lots of veggies and seasonal fruit to these sometimes decadent meals. Don’t worry though, there will still be an eggs benedict night, mmmmm….. I also think this could be a way to get the budget down even more, and support the local farmer’s market more than the past couple weeks. Here’s the line up:

Monday - Sweetcorn Fritters with Roast Tomato and Bacon - Bill’s Sydney

Tuesday - Huevos Rancheros - Jess B Recipe (native New Mexican transplanted to Brooklyn)

Wednesday - Eggs Benedict with Prosciutto

Thursday - Kedgeree with Tea-Smoked Salmon (a classic Anglo-Indian breakfast dish)

Friday - Roast Mushrooms with Thyme and Taleggio - Bill’s Sydney

This week I’m craving seafood. I’ve seen great deals on mussels, all signs are pointing to a seafood dinner. So, in the Cooking Broke spirit of trying to save money and eat well, I decided to make each meal from the week with 1 or more ingredients I already have in my pantry. The seafood risotto, I have chicken broth and the Arborio rice as well as all the spices. The flank steak burritos, I have organic refried beans - plus flank steak is a great inexpensive lean meat anyway. My husband makes a mean homemade spinach pasta for the edamame dish. For the shrimp pitas, I used a wine pairing cookbook and a bottle of wine that’s collecting dust as well as pitas I already have in the fridge. Lastly, I love making my own pizza dough and have everything except the basil for the pesto pizza. P.S. I found this deal guide on the Whole Foods website. They encourage planning, and the 365 brand of products among other things. It’s semi-useful.

Here’s the menu

Monday - Seafood Risotto - Jamie’s Italy

Tuesday - Shrimp Pitas - The Wine Lover’s Cookbook

Wednesday - Flank Steak Burritos - my own

Thursday - Edamame and Spinach Pasta - 12 Best Foods Cookbook

Friday - Summer Pesto Pizza - my own

One of the first things I knew needed to change in our diet was our fruit and veggie intake - which I think applies to a lot of us. We were eating a lot of meat and pasta and cheese (yummy, not heart healthy). So my first weeks menu includes just 2 dinners with meat. I used to be a vegetarian, which my husband is thankful I’m not anymore, but I felt so much more healthy while doing it. I also want to try to buy organic and antibiotic free meats, so less meat is less $$$.

I’ve planned out our whole week’s dinners, with plans on leftovers for lunches. This is another goal of ours - smaller portions so there are leftovers.

I also want this to be realistic. I’m not an expert cook - I just watch a lot of Food Network and pour over cook books. I’m going to share my failures (not easy for me to do) as well as things that have worked well for me. I also know lots of people work 9-5, or work on different schedules. I’d love to hear how you cook and shop! I have many friends who are actors and artists, and keep really different schedules from most people. Together we’re our own experts.

So, here’s the menu for the week - things may shift depending on how much time I have

Monday - Eggplant Parmigiana - Jamie Oliver

Tuesday - Honey Chicken Skewers and Corn Salad - Real Simple

Wednesday - Tomato Basil Soup w/ crusty bread - The Farm to Table Cookbook

Thursday - Summer Quiche - The Farm to Table Cookbook

Friday - Moroccan Lamb w/Carrot Salad - Real Simple