De Ma Cuisine

Friday

12

October 2012

0

COMMENTS

Dinner With Joy

Written by , Posted in Thoughts

Did you notice that I didn’t post on Monday like I normally do? Maybe you don’t know my routine yet. That’s alright. I’m not upset. But, if you did notice, and especially if you were terribly terribly sad, I’m sorry. You see, Husband woke up not feeling great that morning. So, I decided that since I work from home and I can, I took a sick day too. I wasn’t sick, but I was really tired. So we took it easy, slept in (waaaay later than I’ve slept in since high school, I think), watched a lot of The Office, and didn’t think about work.

But, I feel like I have a lot to catch up on. Mainly, I want to tell you about last weekend. Why? Because we had a super special dinner on Sunday night with someone that I really admire. If you’ve been reading for a while (or if you looked at the title), you may be able to guess who came over. In any case, I’m not going to leave you hanging, I’ll just tell you, it was Joy. Yes, Joy the Baker.

What?! I know! Pretty cool…

Let me tell you something about Joy. You know how she seems sweet, friendly, fun, easy to talk to etc… on the podcast and her blog? She’s not faking. She’s all those things in real life. We enjoyed lovely conversation and great food. What more can you ask for?!

You know when you not only get to meet, but spend time with someone you really admire? Wow… Incroyable (that means incredible… you knew that I think)! Husband and I both feel really blessed that we got to share a meal with Joy and have her in our home. It was a real treat!

Now while I pinch myself again, enjoy our menu and some recipes from our evening.

Our Menu

Roasted Fig Crostini with Gruyère

Homemade Pasta with Browned Butter and Roasted Butternut Squash Sauce

Homemade French Bread

Green Salad with Cherry Tomatoes, Almonds, and Figs, with a Maple-Balsamic Vinaigrette

S’mores Blonde Brownies  

I posted this pasta recipe a few weeks ago. But, it’s good enough to post again. Seriously good. Joy said so. 🙂 I used Cook’s Illustrated’s recipe for the homemade pasta. Buuuut, I don’t have a food processor, so I combined it with a recipe I found in The Silver Spoon cookbook, and made it literally just with my hands and a rolling pin. The French bread is my friend, Sheila’s recipe. The dessert was brought by Joy. I was so excited to eat something made by Joy the Baker. What a treat! The recipe is on her blog – it’s the Brittle and Jam Blonde Brownies recipe, but with chocolate and marshmallows. Um, yes please!! Joy left the leftovers with us. They didn’t last 24 hours. And I can’t stop thinking about them. Must have brownies!!!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend. And, if you have friends or family (or both!) over, and if you make some of this lovely food, I hope you enjoy it. We sure did! It’s our anniversary this weekend. We’re celebrating 6 years of marriage! Yippee!

Happy Eating!

Roasted Fig Crostini

Last modified on 2013-09-03 16:29:39 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

 

Roasted Fig Crostini

Recipe Type: Appetizer, Bread
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 3
Roasted figs and Gruyère all melted together on a crispy baguette. Yes!
Ingredients
  • 9 pieces of thinly sliced baguette
  • 18 slices of fig (about 6-9 whole)
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 9 slices of Gruyère cheese
Instructions
  1. Toss sliced figs with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes, or until figs are caramelized and slightly crispy on one side.
  2. Top each slice of bread with a drizzle of olive oil, 2 fig slices, and a slice of Gruyère.
  3. Bake for about 10 minutes at 350F, or until cheese is melted and bread is crispy.

 

Browned Butter and Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta

Last modified on 2012-09-10 22:57:01 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Browned Butter and Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta
Recipe Type: Pasta, Main, Dinner
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Cook time: 75 mins
Total time: 1 hour 15 mins
Serves: 2-3
Roasted squash and garlic are paired with Gruyère and a bit of cream to make a delightful pasta.
Ingredients
  • 4 T cream
  • 4 T butter, unsalted
  • 1 1/2 butternut squash
  • 4-6 cloves garlic
  • 3/4 to 1 t salt
  • 1/4 t pepper
  • 1t balsamic vinegar
  • 6 fresh sage leaves
  • 3/4 to 1 C pasta water
  • Gruyère, finely grated, for topping
  • 1/2 lb. fresh, homemade pasta
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 350F. Halve squash, scrape out seeds. Drizzle with olive oil. Place cut side down. Bake for 1 hour, or until flesh is soft. Let cool and scrape flesh from skin.
  2. Cut tips off garlic cloves. Drizzle with olive oil and wrap with foil. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool and squeeze pulp from skin.
  3. Over med-low heat, cook butter, with sage leaves, until it’s browned (I usually partially cover it because it tends to splatter a lot). Add squash and garlic, mash in with a fork. Add salt, pepper, vinegar, and cook over low heat for a few minutes. Remove from heat.
  4. Cook pasta for about 3 minutes.
  5. Add pasta water to sauce, stir.
  6. Drain pasta, add to sauce, add cream; combine.
  7. Serve topped with Gruyère.

 

Green Salad with Cherry Tomatoes, Almonds, and Figs, with a Maple-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Last modified on 2012-12-01 02:13:48 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Green Salad with Cherry Tomatoes, Almonds, and Figs, with a Maple-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Recipe Type: Salad, Side
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 3-4
My go-to green salad. Top it with your favorites and it’s perfect alongside almost any dish!
Ingredients
  • 1 head lettuce (approx.)
  • 15 almonds, chopped
  • 15 cherry tomatoes, chopped
  • 6 roasted figs, sliced
  • Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette
Instructions
  1. Toss sliced figs with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes, or until figs are caramelized and slightly crispy on one side.
  2. Wash and tear lettuce. Top with figs, almonds, tomatoes, and dressing.
Notes

Also yummy in a salad (maybe not all at the same time though): Grated carrot, grated radish, croutons, squash, apples, raisins, pears, peaches, plums, kale, spinach, cucumber, basil, corn, bell pepper, cheese… (obviously to keep it GF the croutons need to be GF, and to keep it vegan, use a vegan cheese or omit it). 🙂

 

Maple-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Last modified on 2012-10-12 19:02:30 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Maple-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Recipe Type: Sauce, Dressing
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Ingredients
  • 1/8 C (approx.) olive oil
  • 1/4 C (approx.) balsamic vinegar
  • 1 T maple syrup
  • pinch salt
  • dash pepper
Instructions
  1. In a bowl add: balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and maple syrup. Begin whisking and drizzle in olive oil (creating an emulsion).

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *