I made cavatelli with pan-roasted grape tomatoes, onions, and garlic, blanched broccolini, chicken Italian sausage, half and half, fresh basil, and Parmesan. It was a big hit. Garden spinach sauteed with garlic on the side.
19 Likes
This doesnt offer MY picture and Ive probably posted this meal before but its a really excellent, balanced meal in terms of freshness (the salad/relish) balanced spice (the sambal/citrus salad dressing) and savor (the fried bluefish and ginger/onion rice. I had plenty of rice so I made a fried rice version of the ginger rice sauteeing lots of fresh ginger and onion until soft then adding the cold rice and frying together. The recipe calls for the ingredient âsambalâ which I have scratched myhead about before in the times. I used some sambal badjak this time. No mint (thought i had it but didnt) but a good handful of cilantro lemon vs lime (didnt have). The recipe calls for a lot of citrus and a lot of sugar; I think you can freestyle this to your taste using less of both. A very worthwhile recipe and will be good for the summertime.
9 Likes
A couple recipes from Gunpowder tonight: Malabar shrimp pulao and boondi raita with pink peppercorns. I am going to start a Cooking From for this cookbook soon (no energy tonight though). This was enormously satisfying to make and eat. You make a shrimp stock from shrimp heads and shells that gives a great depth of flavor to the pulao. The boondi (crispy chickpea flour balls) in the raita were a nice textural contrast to the pulao as well! Leftover for tomorrow!
23 Likes
Looks great!
I like my boondi crunchy only, but I am always corrected when I make raita for others that itâs supposed to be soggy in there â people often soak it in water first to ensure full sog 
2 Likes
Thanks!
Lol! The boondi definitely had a half life! Iâd say they were beginning to sog by the time we were finishing up dinner. I am firmly in the crunchy camp myself!
1 Like
Tsukune meatballs (pork-chicken-zucchini-shallot), glazed with tare sauce. Sesame asparagus with Japanese 7 Spice. Long-grain rice.
21 Likes
We enjoyed another excellent dinner at Jasper Stone, in Monroe County, NJ, including outstanding shrimp scampi; our first stuffed zucchini blossoms of the year; steak tartare with shallots, caper, truffled mushrooms and quail egg; mushroom gnocchi, and Misoyaki butterfish. We had peanut butter ice cream and chocolate budino for dessert. It all went great with our favorite red blend and Zinfandel.
15 Likes
I made spicy lemongrass chicken meatballs over rice with pickled veg, cilantro, Thai basil, mint, scallions, nuoc cham, a Sriracha mayo, and hoisin and more Sriracha for the BF. Meatballs turned out juicy and hot. I would have preferred rice noodles for this but the BF wanted rice, soâŠ
22 Likes
oooh, we had a similar idea tonight⊠i need to try my hand at tsukune.
1 Like
beautiful! boondi sounds so interesting! did you make that or buy it? Iâm wondering if my Indian grocery store carries itâŠ
1 Like
that looks so incredible!
1 Like
It was easy and delicious. I used these as a jumping-off point:
7 Likes
A sandwich made with one slice of roast beef, hard salami, provolone and Swiss cheeses with half a small avocado spread on toasted focaccia.
Yesterday when I was at a NY style deli, I got one of my most favorite baked goodsâŠwhat my sister and I call âalmond hornsâ, but the deli calls âalmond horseshoesâ. Itâs a thinnish cookie filled with almond paste and covered with sliced/slivered almonds and dipped in chocolate. Itâs VERY rich so my sister and I shared half today and will eat the other half in the next few days. I hadnât had one of these in about 20 years and it was great to have some for dessert.
22 Likes
I bought it from Amazon, mostly because I was too lazy to drive to Patel Brothers 
I see high potential in it as a snack to accompany adult beverages!
3 Likes
Jimmy Carr delivered, and in a beautiful venue at that.
Went back to an old stand-by for a late-ish dinner, The Warren Bar & Burrow. Iâd already settled on the BLT Iâd seen on their menu & was kinda looking forward to it all day⊠it was just ok: lots of bacon but some of it overdone to the point of being burnt & a perfectly fried fish & chips⊠'cept that the fish wasnât very well seasoned, i.e. was in desperate need of salt. Fries were perfect, me thinks they may have been L&W fresh from the fryer.
A couple martinis to go with 
14 Likes
Sev and gathiya are also good accompiments, but there are spicy coated peanuts that are actually the âtraditionalâ booze snack
1 Like
Itâs a pain to make, always bought (unless youâre making laddoos, but then youâre a real glutton for punishment 
)
(You want plain boondi, not masala boondi, for raita. Itâs a staple not a specialty, so your indian store should have it.)
3 Likes
I rescued last nightâs disappointingly tough pork chop by making a ragout, served over cavatappi, with grated romano.
23 Likes
The only thing on sale this week (that I could use) was avocados, so I made some California Rolls (w/ Imitation Crab). Both Sunshine and Neighbor #2 very much enjoyed them. Neighbor #2 told me she loves sushi, but hadnât eaten it in years. She didnât really know why she hadnât treated herself to some, but tonight she was very happy with her dinner!!
23 Likes
Variation on Moroccan Loubia - Used some Ayocote Blanco beans from Rancho Gordo and braised it in the oven with two lamb shanks (which get shredded at the end), onion, red pepper, tomato paste, garlic, cumin, ground ginger, sirarakhong chili, parsley, white wine and chicken broth. Served with a salad made with iceberg lettuce, red and orange pepper, olives and onions with a vinaigrette made with olive oil, white wine vinegar, diced olives, garlic and thyme
20 Likes
