It's been so nice to settle back in and while we've been dragging our feet all week due to the time change, work for both Dave and I has been so chaotic that there's really no time during the day for our bodies to realize how tired we are. But then 8pm rolls around and we force ourselves to stay awake a few more hours to avoid waking up too early the following morning. So needless to say, we were both looking forward to a relaxing weekend and it turned out to be just that. Besides a trip to the grocery store (yay, finally some good homemade meals!) and a few hours on the slopes for Dave today, we lounged around and did pretty much nothing.

It's rare that I like weekends of nothing. Don't get me wrong, I like relaxing, especially after lots of traveling, but I'm currently at a standstill with many of my weekend projects -- I haven't cooked in a while since we've been gone, so not much to update on the blog, unfortunately I don't have any of my recent trip photos printed out so I couldn't catch up on my scrapbook and we don't have any trips booked :( so no research needed there either.

Of course, I would drive myself crazy with literally nothing to do, so after reading most of my new Ad Hoc cookbook, I convinced Dave to sit down with me to start scheduling some of the trips we'd like to take in 2010. Luckily our list of places we want to visit has dramatically shortened this year, as we're hoping to focus on a lot of Swiss daytrips or weekend destinations this summer and planning to do a longer trip over Dave's birthday that will combine several of our must-see destinations. But even just narrowing down the destinations gives me enough inspiration to start checking flight times, hotel recommendations and everything in between. I didn't book anything yet as we still have several things up in the air that could affect plans, but I already feel better knowing some of our holiday weekends are slotted in.

So finally a fridge full of food and several new cookbooks later, I was a happy camper. So for our exciting Friday night at home, I chose a recipe combination from Ellie Krieger's So Easy. All the recipes are just that, in fact, this took about 20 minutes start to finish. I almost don't know what to do with something that fast. In fact, on Friday night, Dave got home from work too late for us to go to the store, so we resorted to frozen pizzas for dinner. I was going stir-crazy for the 20 minutes it took for the oven to heat up and the pizzas to cook -- I realize that especially since I don't have any commute, cooking is a way for me to wind-down from my work day. I can't just sit down on the couch and watch TV, I need to transfer some of the stressful energy that has built up. Unfortunately, if Dave walks in too early and I've only begun preparations, I haven't had the same 'cool-down period' he's had through his commute home from work. Although I feel bad, sometimes I need a few minutes to get things going and start to relax. A 20-minute recipe is just enough time to do that.

Prosciutto-wrapped cod with pesto potatoes and green beans
(from So Easy by Ellie Krieger)

2 cod fillets
salt and pepper
2-4 thin slices of prosciutto
cooking spray

1 1/2 lbs red new potatoes, cut into 1-in chunks
1 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-in pieces
3 Tbsp store-bought basil pesto
salt and pepper to taste, crushed red pepper if desired

Place the potatoes in a large steamer basket over a pot of boiling water. Cover and steam for 6 minutes. Add the green beans to the basket and continue to steam for another 4 minutes or until the beans are tender but still have a crisp. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the pesto. Season and set aside.


Season the fish on both sides, then carefully wrap the prosciutto around each piece of fish. Spray a skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add the fish fillets to the pan and cook until the prosciutto is crispy, about 4 minutes until side.


Results: I like that Ellie's recipes are supposed to be healthy and balanced. Both Dave and I agreed that this was a good dinner, but perhaps not one of our all-time favorites. I have to say, oftentimes I have trouble wrapping fish, but this was super easy, it stayed in one piece and even the prosciutto generally stayed in place. I thought the potatoes and green beans were a strange combination from the start, but again, decided to try it. I'm not overly convinced either way. It was better than expected, but not necessarily a flavor combination epiphany.

I've known my best friend Stacey since freshman year in high school. We had both gone to public school until that point and met early in the year as the majority of kids came from Catholic schools in the area and therefore all knew each other already. We became fast friends and since I lived about 30 minutes from school and Stacey was just about 5 minutes away, I ended up spending a lot of time at her house throughout high school.

I've become close with Stacey's family over the years and really look up to her mom for everything she does. I especially loved staying over at Stacey's house for the delicious breakfasts she would make for us on the weekends. Every meal she makes is unique and special, definitely not just standards like meatloaf or pasta.

I was introduced to new things at the Pytlewski's as well, ingredients like capers and pine nuts were not often used at my house. I also stumbled over using the fancy Peugeot-style salt cracker as I was used to the shakers just with holes on the top.

Overall, it was just so much fun to dine at Stacey's house. Especially as we got older and with Stacey in the wine industry, they always served the best. Dinner turned into much more than just sitting down and eating. Roger (Stacey's dad) and I, fans of white, would share a bottle while Stacey and her mom would go for red wine. Betty (Stacey's mom) would also always have the best tablescapes for the holidays, with china, silver and all the best out.

As I've gotten more into cooking, I love talking to Betty about new recipes or cookbooks that she's come across. We both are huge fans of the Nordstrom cookbooks. So when Dave and I were home for Christmas, I definitely wanted to see the Pytlewskis so I casually suggested dinner at their house and luckily, both her parents are always so great and were more than happy to have us over. Betty chose the recipes for the main dish from the Nordstrom Entertaining at Home Cookbook.

I love hanging around the kitchen while Betty is finishing everything up, but as usual, she had a tasty appetizer for us to be enjoying in the meantime. Most who know me know that I do have certain foods that I avoid -- one being cream cheese -- so you can imagine how surprised I was when Betty sent me the recipe for this leek and goat cheese dip and noticed that there's a bunch of cream cheese in it!

When I'm at the Pytlewski's, I eat anything that Betty makes and everything is always delicious.

Warm Leek and Goat Cheese Dip from Food & Wine magazine
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 leeks, chopped white and tender green parts only
1 lb fresh goat cheese at room temp
1/2 lb cream cheese at room temp
salt & pepper
2 Tbsp snipped chive
pita crisps, crackers, bread or raw veggies for serving

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the leeks and stir to coat. Cover and cook over high heat just until softened, about 3 minutes. Uncover and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until tender and lightly browned in spots, about 8 minutes. Keep on low heat or remove from heat. Stir in the goat cheese and cream cheese until melted and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to fondue pot and keep warm. Sprinkle with chives. Serve with flat breads, etc.

Chilean Sea Bass with Wild Mushrooms and Three-Cheese Polenta

Mushrooms
1/2 lb portabello mushrooms, stems discarded, tops halved then sliced
1/2 lb shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, tops halved then sliced
1/2 lb cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed, and mushrooms sliced
1/2 lb oyster mushrooms, stems trimmed
1/2c extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
pepper

To make the mushrooms, toss all mushrooms together in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat, then arrange on a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer. Cook for 15 minutes or until browned, remove from oven and set aside.

Roasted sea bass
olive oil for brushing
8 Chilean sea bass fillets (about 7 oz each)
4 tsp chopped thyme
kosher salt
pepper

To make the roasted sea bass, brushed a rimmed baking sheet with olive oil and arrange the fish fillets so they aren't crowded. Sprinkle each fillet with 1/2 tsp of the thyme and season with salt and pepper. Cook until just slightly firmed, but not cooked through, about 10 minutes (depending on thickness of the fillet). Remove from the oven and set aside. Reduce the oven heat to 400 degrees.

Three Cheese Polenta
6c water
2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2c medium-grind yellow cornmeal
1/2c diced Taleggio cheese (all rind removed, about 3 oz)
1/2c diced brie (all rind removed, about 3 oz)
1/2c freshly grated Parmesan (about 2 oz), preferrably Parmigiano Reggiano
1c heavy (whipping) cream

To make the polenta, bring the water to a boil in a heavy 4-quart saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the salt. Whisking constantly, add the cornmeal in a slow, steady stream. Adjust the heat so the polenta doesn't splatter and then cook, stirring frequently, until the water has been absorbed, the cornmeal no longer tastes grainy and the mixture is creamy, 18-20 minutes. Add the cheeses a little at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the mixture starts to firm up, add the heavy cream. The mixture should be pourable. Remove from the heat.

In a baking dish large enough to accommodate all of the polenta (or 2 smaller dishes), spread the polenta in an even layer. Scatter the mushrooms evenly over the polenta. With a wide metal spatula, lift the fillets off the baking sheet and arrange over the mushrooms. Evenly top each fillet with tomato sauce.

Bake until heated through and bubbling slightly around the edges, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately. Betty served with a side of spinach.


Results: Betty had prepared most of the dish before I arrived and as you can see from the finished product, it's quite impressive. Everything tasted delicious. The dip was much more elegant than your average dip and had great flavor with the leeks. I can't wait to make this for my next party because I love making fondue. And as you can see from the recipe, it's really not too difficult to make, but it looks so much more impressive than something you'd pick up at the store.

I had a great time catching up with Stacey's parents and as always, the food and wine were fantastic too. The dinner was truly something special and what I really liked about seeing the actually recipe afterward, is that it really is perfect for entertaining. It looks extravagant when it's finished, but the recipe is really easy to follow since you're preparing each part of the dish separately and then cooking it all together. I would assume that it could be fairly easy to prepare each part earlier in the day and then put it together and bake once ready to serve.

I think I will get this cookbook too, as I think I sometimes make things more difficult than they should be when I entertain. The point is not to be in the kitchen all day and stressed by the time your guests arrive, but making something that looks like it took all day, when (hopefully) it didn't. I guess I'll have to check with Betty on that one...

And a note on the mushrooms. Often I avoid mushrooms, but again, when at the Pytlewski's I tend to eat everything because usually it's good -- and this definitely was! It's funny that Betty, and probably even Stacey to some degree, don't know some of my food dislikes because for some reason they don't really apply when Betty's cooking ;)

Looking forward to the next dinner at the Pytlewski's. Thanks to Betty for hosting us and passing along the recipes.