A Thanksgiving Feast at Our House

23 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Party Time, Special Events, Thanksgiving, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

Here is the menu as it is right now. Probably will not change much. Cheers and have a great day! This is just sooooooo much fun!

For the Birds Menu for Thanksgiving Dinner 2011

1990 Bollinger Champagne

2009 Backyard Bubbly
2011 Criterion Apple Cider for Sophia
Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Juice for Sophia

Appetizers – Spinach Artichoke Dip – Marnie
Carrot and Celery Sticks
Mixed Olives and Nuts – Robin

1976 Ravenswood Zinfandel Polsen Vineyard
1976 Ravenswood Zinfandel Vogensen Vineyard
1989 Swan Sonoma County Zinfandel

Roast Turkey – Bob
with Wild rice Apple, sage stuffing
Giblet Gravy – Bob
Mashed Potatoes – Mac
Dried Corn – Bob
Green Bean Casserole – Margaret
Cranberry Orange Relish – Robin / Chris
Wilted Lettuce Salad – Robin
Mom’s Rolls – Marnie and Mac
Pear butter – Robin
NV Rex Goliath free range Giant 47 pound Rooster
Vin De Pays De L’herault Pinot Noir
Mincemeat pasties – Robin and Bob

2006 Kestrel Late Harvest Chardonnay from Prosser, WA
2010 Ravenswood Suite – a port-like Zin

Dessert by Madison and Chris
Big Gobbler chocolate – Robin
See’s Turkey Truffle Chocolates – Bob

Backyard Chickens!!

10 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Special Events, Special Information

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Gretchen Anderson, author of Backyard Chicken Fight, had this posted on her Facebook page. (Left-Click the graphic to view full screen) If you make the program, let her know you saw it here! Here is what she says about the evening. Enjoy!

What to do with the “girls” in the winter? Never fear! Chickens are actually pretty easy to care for in the colder months. Come to one of these workshops and learn!
For those of you who want a fun evening and to learn the tricks and tips of “wintering the girls” here is a schedule of workshops around Idaho. The only workshop that has a cost is Boise Community Ed (part of the $15.50 tuition includes a FREE book!)

Knock ‘Em Dead Dinner Theater – Robin’s Birthday

18 Sunday Sep 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Boise Adventures, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Special Dinners, Special Events, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

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What an enjoyable evening we had at the Knock ‘Em Dead Dinner Theater’s production of “Oklahoma!” here in Boise. It was Robin’s Birthday Evening Out. Such a joy! Here she is sitting by the fountain at the entrance to the theater. I do not normally “review” stage productions, at least not since my Martin College (Pulaski, TN) days or my Boise State University days. So this will be an exception.

If you want a night our with dinner, look to the right at the productions coming up. You really should try to make one of them. They are that good! Here is a hot link to KED’s web site. And, according to Millie Boardman the Business Manager, there are still season tickets available. The Producer/Director – Scott Beseman. A superb job, Scott. You had so very much talent to work with. Your production crew also did a superb job.

Stephanie Santos (Laurey) has one of the most fantastic voices I have heard in a while. And Ben Clegg (Curly) has another exceptional singing voice. But then, all of the cast could keep on key and sing exceptionally well. The only bad comment about the audio that I will say is that at the tart of the show, the music over powered the voices, but that was soon corrected. And it was great to see the cast “go with the flow” when a glass unexpectedly broke and a bench fell over. Ben Clegg was clever enough to incorporate the over turned bench into the flow of the scene.
All in all, I will rate this a 4-Stars out of 5-Stars. No, not a big New York or San Francisco production, but an extremely well acted, sung, produced and directed musical here in Boise. Scott Beseman and his staff did an outstanding job ….. again! Don’t miss these! And the dinner! Catered by Boise’s own Le Café de Paris, it was very good. Again, my only comment is that I missed bread with my meal. Beer and wine are available with your meal. Look at what we had.

Fresh Garden Salad
tomatoes, croutons, cucumber, creamy herb dressing

BBQ Baked Chicken
Mashed Potatoes
green onions, bacon bits, cheddar
Garlic Green Beans

Apple Tarte
chantilly whipped cream, cinnamon

The one thing that I failed to mention is that we have known Scott Beseman and Millie Boardman since the 1980’s. Robin and I taught them square dancing. And as a note, Scott has an awesome singing voice. Get him to do his interpretation of Boris Karloff’s “Monster Mash”. Close your eyes and just picture his routine. Sorry you were ill, Scott. We will see you at another production. Cheers! and Break a leg!

10-Barrel Brewery Coming To Boise?

03 Saturday Sep 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in 10 Barrel Brewing, Beer and Ale, Party Time, Special Events, Special Information

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There is a story in the Idaho Statesman by Patrick Orr entitled Patrick Orr: 10 Barrel Brewing coming to Boise?. Follow the link to read the full story. But here is a teaser from the article.

“We are thinking about Boise, I can say that,” Wales said, confirming 10 Barrel is the business that has discussed the 9th and Bannock property with the Idaho Department of Lands. “We are looking at a few different cities. We just love the city (Boise). We like the vibe.
“We like the proximity to Bend. We like the size of (Boise). The site is Downtown, and it’s close to the North End. We think there could be a good lunch business. We just really like everything about it.”
Boise has two brew pubs (TableRock and The Ram) in the Downtown area already, but neither is in the core. I really like the idea of a new unique brew pub in the middle of Downtown, and how it would be close to 8th Street and Basque Block restaurant nexuses but expand that area to the west, where it would be across the street from Yen Ching.

Let’s cross our fingers that 10-Barrel Brewing comes to Boise. They offer some fantastic IPA’s. Be sure to follow the link above to read the full article. It is really informative. Cheers!

Treasure Valley Food Coalition

26 Friday Aug 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Red Feather/Bittercreek, Special Events, Special Information

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It was great to be part of the Treasure Valley Food Coalition program last night, Dinner and a Movie. (The movie never arrived!) It was a great discussion night and hearing what others are doing in regards to their own sustainability. I.E., raising backyard chickens and writing a book about chickens. Creating hydroponic gardens so as to have fresh vegetables all winter. Backyard, frontyard, alley and raised bed gardens. Look in the sidebar for the link to the Treasure Valley Food Coalition.

And once again, it was great to have the Red Feather Lounge in Boise providing a fantastic, locally produced dinner for us. Look at the photos below for the wonderful entrees we had.

Broccoli Soup

Buffalo and Vegetable Pasta

Mixed Local Fruit with Whipped Cream

And to slightly change the subject, we read in the August 24 – 30, 2011 issue of the Boise Weekly an article named Bye Bye Mystery Meat – Farm to School program brings local produce to cafeterias. The article, written by Tara Morgan starts off by stating that:

If you grab a plastic tray and shuffle through an Idaho school lunch line this fall, things will look a bit different than you might remember. In addition to whole grain pasta and brown rice, you’re also likely to find a Healthy Choices salad bar and bright posters advertising “incredible edible Idaho” grapes or honey.

“More than 70 percent of our schools in Idaho are serving locally grown food, but nobody knows about it,” said Heidi Martin, Idaho State Department of Education Child Nutrition Programs coordinator.

Read the entire article so that you are not one of the people that do not know about the schools in Idaho using locally produced products. That’s what the Treasure Valley Food Coalition and the Sustainable Community Connections (Links in the sidebar) is all about – to use locally produced agricultural products at home, in the school systems and in locally run restaurants. The Red Feather Lounge is but one of the restaurants in town that really advertise the use of local products. See their link in the sidebar or above. Cheers and Think Local please, whether you are in Boise, Twin Falls, Moscow, San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta or wherever.

Anniversary Dinner

15 Friday Jul 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Anniversary, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe: Bob and Robin Young, Special Events, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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So today, July 14, 2011 is our 28th Wedding Anniversary. And yes, it is Bastille Day. We had so much fun, me especially, preparing this dinner for Robin. Exciting and great. We could not have gotten a dinner like this in Boise. It was that good! Just look here.

Start the dinner off with this exceptional wine, although, it is time to finish the bottle.
1983 Mercury Clos des Barraults
Original – $15.95, Today $100.00

And then, finish dinner off with chocolate and this fine, fine port.
1983 Porto Hutcheson Port

Original – $11.99, Today $197.00

Cod with Tomato Shrimp Sauce
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
2 T Crème Fraîche or Sour Cream
Minced Chives
2 t Sun-Dried Tomato Paste
1/8 t Cayenne
1 t Lemon Juice
1 oz Salad Shrimp, cooked
2 4-oz Cod fillets

Directions:
Mix the 2 tablespoons of Crème Fraîche, or sour cream, with the chives, tomato paste, cayenne and lemon juice. Fold in the shrimp and serve as a sauce over micro waved steamed cod fillets.

But let’s look at this plate:

Cod with Tomato Shrimp Sauce
Minted Carrots
Garden Fresh Green Salad
Lamb Meatloaf with Mushrooms
Whipped Cauliflower

And then for dessert that went very well with the port, this cheesecake.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecakes
Serves:12
Ingredients:
12 1¾ inch Fluted Paper Cups
12 cup Muffin Tin
1 lg Graham cracker, finely crushed
1 x-lg Egg
¼ c Sugar
¼ t Vanilla Extract
1 8-oz pkg Philadelphia Cream Cheese or Mascarpone, softened
2 T semisweet mini Chocolate Chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350º F

Place the paper cups in the muffin tin and distribute the crushed graham cracker among the cups.

Put all of the ingredients, except the chocolate chips, into a food processor and blend thoroughly, or beat the egg, sugar and vanilla together with a whisk and then incorporate the cheese.

Fold in the chocolate chips and then spoon the blended mixture into the cups. Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges are set and the center is still moist.

Remove the cheesecakes and let cool. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

——————————

An awesome day; An awesome dinner; An awesome wife!!! “That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it!”

Quarterly Wine Dinner at the Buzz

20 Monday Jun 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Special Events, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

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On the evening of June 19th, Father’s Day, we went to the Quarterly Wine Dinner at the Buzz Bistro here in Boise! And it was a wonderful meal! Most of the recipes, I think, came from Debbie’s favorite cookbook, Cooking Light – Cooking Light Mix and Match. She said that this book is available either from Walmart or Costco for about $29.00. If the meal tonight was any indication, it might be a good book for your library of cook books. And then, Cristie and Debbie did an awesome job of matching the wines to the food presented. I found myself, which is good, rating the wines as to how they went with the meal. So the scores [20] may represent the wine/food relationship more than just how the wine was. One should always have food with wine, so this just may be one of my better scorings. At any rate, here are the photos of the meal and the wines we had with each course. Cheers!

Grilled Shrimp with Garlic

2009 La Joya Carmenere 14.5% alc, [17], $14.00
good with the shrimp and the thyme, chocolate and black cherry

2010 Jack Riesling 12.9% alc, [17], $14.00
pear on the nose and lemon, emphasizes the thyme

Cold Summer Soup
honeydew melon, cucumber, green onion, celery, Greek yogurt, parsley, vinegar, sugar, lemon juice

2010 Alamos Torrentes, 13.5% alc, [18], $13.00
great paring with the soup

2010 Jean-Luc Columbo Rose, 12.0% alc, [16], $14.00
did not have the same paring attributes as the Torrentes

Grilled Apple Salad

2009 Fat Bastard Shiraz 13.5% alc, [16], $13.00
salad overpowered the wine, deep red pepper and mint

2010 Apaltagnua Chardonnay (Chile) 14.0% alc, [18], $13.00
lemon on the nose, went well with the salad

Tuscan Lemon Chicken
Grilled Potatoes
Spicy Tomato and Aioli Grilled Vegetables

2007 Niner Sangiovese, 14.9%alc, [17], $20.00
2007 Mossback Cabernet Sauvignon, 13.7% alc, [18], $22.00
Ninkasi Beer [18]
Nigera Medala [19]
The beers took the show with this chicken plate. An awesome entree!

Guy Fieri’s S’mores Pizza

2007 Brazin Zinfandel (Old vine Lodi, CA) 15.0% alc, [17], $17.00
definitely a zin, big, bold and good with the chocolate

2009 Maritson Zinfandel (Dry Creek) 15.1% alc, [18], $26.00
absolutely superb with the chocolate

Interesting that Cristie added some beer varieties in with this Quarterly Dinner. And great choice. The beers, in my opinion, went so much better with the chicken and the vegetables than the wine did. A great party!

June Events at The Buzz

27 Friday May 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Photos By: Bob Young, Special Events, Things To Do

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I just received this from Cristi and Tom at the Buzz in Boise. Looks like there are some really great events coming up, starting with this Memorial Day weekend. Hope to see you at some of these “happenings”. Don’t forget to call to see if you need reservations. Cheers!

Well the summer is about to begin…even though mother nature has not caught up with Julius Caesar, the first holiday weekend of the summer is upon us. We at Buzz want to take a moment to remember all those who have gone before us, blazing trails, fighting for liberty, and loving us (often without knowing us).

With the weather playing tricks all over the country, including the pacific northwest we wish to extend an invitation to you and yours to join us at the Buzz this weekend for some fun. We will feature another weekend of fun named wines to go along with Memorial Day while enjoying music and great company. Friday night we will host Gayle Chapman and Sandy Sanford. Saturday night Blaze and Kelly will be entertaining us. We will be featuring Teriyaki bowls for our dinner specials both nights and look forward to seeing you. We will be open on Monday during the day for those that are enjoying a day off.

We are currently taking reservations for our June wine dinner June 14 or 15 at 6:30. This month we will feature the wines of the Hess family. Also on June 19th is our quarterly dinner, our theme for this dinner (on Father’s Day) will be BBQ and BBQ wines. Bring dad or just drink a glass of wine in his absence. Kids are welcome as we will have a different fun beverage (no wine for the kidos) with each course for them as well. Call (208) 344-4321 or E-Mail (buzzwine@cableone.net) for reservations or information on either event.

May your first summer holiday weekend be safe and enjoyable and keep those in the mid-west in your thoughts and prayers as they begin the recovery from the tremendous storms that have ravaged the midsection of our country.

Sincerely,
Cristi and Tom Takeda
Buzz Coffee and Wine

And

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BAILEY!

Mother’s Day Brunch at Salt Tears

08 Sunday May 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Celebrations, Main Dish, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Salt Tears, Special Events, Things To Do

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Wow! What a weekend. All we did was eat and have wine, with a Mint Julip – more Julip than Mint – thrown in just for spite. We went to Meredith Nelson’s Graduation Party and to the Seasons Bistro party on Saturday. Then today we went to here to Salt Tears and tonight we are going to Sushi Joy!
And then I look out the window and up to the top of the mountains – 15 miles from us – and I see snow falling. They can keep it there. Just raining down here. So here are some photos from the Salt Tears Mother’s Day Brunch this afternoon. They were “slam dunked” and did not expect the crowds that came. I think that is great to have such a crowd. They were lined up out the door at one time. They had to struggle to keep up on food delivery at the buffet table. But all was extremely good and worth the short wait for refills. Good time to catch up on the Mimosas they were serving. It was great to meet Rick Dean, President/CEO of Moxie Java International and his family. Look for his link in the sidebar. Look at these photos. Cheers!

The music was good. A nice blend of titles and rhythms.

See the 4-Handed violin player?

They had a full house!

Here is a Goat Cheese Torte, Bacon and Sausage offering.

A great vegetable offering. I think the asparagus were “cooked” in their pickle marinade. They were really good!

And a plated selection. They also had a variety of scrambled eggs, toasts and breads.

Seasons Bistro Saturday Special

08 Sunday May 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Cajun Food, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Seasons Bistro, Special Events, Things To Do

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I would be quite remiss if I did not say that we have not been to Seasons Bistro in Eagle for quite some time now. It has changed since we were there last ….. It is better! The floor plan in the main dining area now has a small stage where the cooler used to be and that opens the area up. The food is still as good as it was. So here are some photos we took Saturday while we were there. Much fun and excitement. Loved the band!

Along with the band and a book signing for Gretchen Anderson’s, The Backyard Chicken Fight and Patti Murphy’s, Mother Knows Best – Wit and Wisdom from Idaho Moms, there was a great wine tasting from the Houston Vineyards, Houston, Idaho. (Yes, there really is such a place as Houston, ID!) And Yes, there really is a road named Chicken Dinner Road, but “…. Therein lies another tale!”

Here is their wine list. The 2010 Chicken Dinner White is $22.99 and well worth that price. The 2009 Chicken Dinner Red is $25.99 and the 2009 Houston Vineyards Merlot is $38.99.