Date night

Last night, I made Champagne Risotto with asparagus and prosciutto chips. It is a Giada De Laurentiis recipe that was recommended to me by my friend Rebecca. She was right, it was a great excuse to open a bottle of champagne (we have plenty of bottles left over from our wedding). As far as risottos go, this recipe is quick and easy to make, as it serves just two people. The champagne adds just a hint of sweetness. With a side salad, this is the perfect date night dinner! However, you could easily scale the recipe for four or six people for a celebratory dinner party.

Perhaps the most delicious part of the recipe is the prosciutto chips. You take slices of prosciutto and put them flat on a cookie tray. I used a silpat on the cookie tray to make cleaning easy. You put the slices of prosciutto in a preheated oven at 450 degrees for 6-8 minutes or until crispy. Then remove the tray from the oven, take the prosciutto slices off the tray and place them on paper towels. Once cool, crumble the crisped prosciutto into bite-sized pieces. In the case of this recipe, you garnish the risotto with the crispy prosciutto, but you could put it in salad, on pizza, etc.

Check out the very delicious recipe for Champagne Risotto. I promise it is as good as the picture looks!

Roasting and boasting

Earlier this week I tried roasting a chicken for the first time. I now own a roaster which is very exciting. This is the first large piece of meat I have ever prepared. I mean, really, who has time to roast meat? It takes way too long. Definitely a weekend evening activity.

My roasted chicken turned out pretty well for a first timer. I had to consult several sources to figure out how exactly to roast a chicken so I will share the process with you.

Buy a whole chicken - kosher, organic, whatever. For me the kind of chicken wasn't that important the first time. I bought a 3.5 pounder, free range chicken from the local butcher, Drewes Bros Meats. I would probably buy a bigger bird next time though so I would get more meat. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. If you are like me, you'll pray that there aren't any innards in the cavity that you have to remove.

I sliced a lemon in half, peeled 3-4 cloves of garlic, and selected a few sprigs of rosemary and placed them in the cavity of the bird. Next I tied the legs together with kitchen string. I rubbed the whole bird with olive oil (you can also use butter) to make the skin nice and crispy.

I placed the bird on the v-rack in the roasting pan and placed the whole ensemble in the oven on the middle rack. Set the oven to 400 degrees and cook for 15 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and cook for an 1 1/2 hours (for a 3.5 lb bird) or 2 1/2 (for a 5 lb bird). Also, check (compulsively the first time) the status of cooking by sticking a meat thermometer deep into the thigh of the chicken and when the internal temperature is 170 degrees and the jucies run clear, that mad hen is ready to come out of the oven.

Like I have seen my mom do with turkey, I let the chicken rest on a cutting board for 5-10 minutes before cutting into the bird and serving.

Mike likes the white meat and I like the dark. We both thought the chicken was very flavorful and tender. Mike even said it was better than Boston Market and he holds Boston Market in high regard. I served roasted, rosemary new potatoes and fresh English peas with the chicken.

Next time I will try cooking a slightly a larger bird and maybe stuff the cavity with some other herbs.

The James Beard Awards influence

I have made some very important decisions today which were largely influenced by the announcement of the James Beard Awards.

I want to eat at French Laundry for my one year wedding anniversary. I need to eat there once before I die or I don't think I can call myself a "foodie." I know it is expensive, but I figure my anniversay is a time we can splurge. They take reservations up to two months in advance. Take note, honey. I love you!

Mazy and Deenie, when I come visit you in Chicago, I really want to go to Frontera Grill for dinner. My treat, since you both will be hitting the books at Northwestern. Rick Bayless is the chef and his cookbook was the one I used to make my menu the other week for my Mexican dinner party.

And brother, we still have to go to Babbo. I don't know why exactly, but I just have to eat there. This restaurant choice was not influenced by the James Beard Awards, but by my love of salumi, pancetta, prosciutto, and genuine Italian cooking. Bring your appetite, we are doing the tasting menu.

It's It ice cream sandwiches

These Bay Area classic ice cream sandwiches are the ultimate summer treat. It's Its are an old fashioned San Francisco sweet. They are ice cream sandwiches with a scoop of vanilla, chocolate, mint or cappucino ice cream sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies and dunked into dark chocolate. They were invented in 1928 and the packaging looks like it has not changed since then which is, admittedly, part of their charm.I like these treats so much I ordered a couple cases of It's Its to serve as our rehearsal dinner dessert. A little informal, yes, but lots of fun. I have also been know to run to a convenience store to pick up some It's Its for a dinner party. They are just fun and really tasty!

The neighborhood farmers' market

One of the best things about moving to Noe Valley (a.k.a. Stroller City, as I call it) has been the neighborhood farmers' market on Saturday mornings. This Saturday, my husband and I woke late, grabbed our canvas shopping bag and headed to the market on our way to brunch.

While farmer markets are abound in the city of San Francisco, there is something I really like about shopping at this one. It is small, not overly crowded, and easy to navigate. You can easily swing by and grab some seasonal fruits and veggies and be on with the rest of your day. It is a smaller, more intimate, version of the Saturday Farmer's Market at the Ferry Building downtown where the commitment to shopping and the hit to the wallet are both deterents to even going. Here you can easily compare quality and prices without driving yourself nuts. There is also a chance to get to know the vendors which I hope to do.

At The Noe Valley Farmer's Market I usually head to the back of the lot to the two larger veggie vendors. They have a nice selection and their prices are fairly reasonable, for organics. I have also been impressed with the quality of the things I have purchased. The herbs at these two vendors look amazing as well. One vendor even has italian, thai and purple basil! This week I bought, fresh English peas (I LOVE fresh peas), an artichoke, carrots, new red potatoes, and a crown of broccoli. Just enough to get us through the week.

The details, if you are in the 'hood:

Noe Valley Farmers Market

24th Street between Church and Sanchez

8am - 12pm on Saturday

French martinis

French martinis are my absolute favorite cocktail. They are the perfect stiff drink masked by just the right amount of sweetness. I have got lots of my friends hooked on them. If you want to make them at home here is the recipe that I use:

2 oz Vodka
½ oz Chambord (it comes in an orb-shaped bottle)
2 ½ oz Pineapple Juice

Pack a shaker full of ice and add all ingredients. Shake or stir. I usually shake to get a nice muddled color. Strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a lemon twist (optional, I never do it).

Enjoy! I sure do.

Arroz Con Pollo

Dinner was a hit! Twice actually, as my husband and I just had the leftovers for dinner tonight.

The pumpkin seed dip had a peanut butter taste to it that complimented the roasted tomatoes, cilantro, and habanero chili that were chopped and mixed in the paste. It was good with chips and with carrots.

The salad was really good, though I should have made individual salad plates instead of making a platter of butter lettuce leaves topped with the roasted pepper salad mixture. It was difficult to get them from the platter to plate. I added cucumbers to the roasted pepper mixture for the texture.

And the Arroz Con Pollo y Frijoles Negros entree was amazing. I promise I am usually quite critical of my own cooking, but this was really good. The chicken was tender, the rice cooked thoroughly, and the spices were just right. While you are making the dish you think there is no way that anyone should ever use that much ancho chili powder in one dish, but you do and it works. I even pulled off doubling recipe without a hitch. It was easier to make than I thought it would be. The salsa I made to top the dish was Smoky Chipotle and it added the perfect amount heat to the dish. I broken in my Le Creuset Dutch Oven making this dish and it worked like a charm (thanks Hunter and Caroline!) I could not have been more pleased with the outcome. Of course, I only remembered to take a photo after the dish was half eaten. At least that way you know people liked it!

Dessert ended up being very simple - sliced, fresh strawberries. A delicious ending to a somewhat heavy dinner.