Our Thanksgiving Dinner

25 Friday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Celebrations, Main Dish, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Thanksgiving, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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What a great Thanksgiving Day and Dinner we had! Robin made this chocolate turkey and it turned out great. Thanks to everyone who joined us for this celebration: Robin, Chris, Madison, Sophia, Mac, Marnie, Margaret and Buddy. Our blessings are many!

Thanksgiving Prayer

– Iroquois Prayer, adapted

We return thanks to our mother, the earth, which sustains us.

We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supply us with water.

We return thanks to all herbs, which furnish medicines for the cure of our diseases.

We return thanks to the moon and stars, which have given to us their light when the sun was gone.

We return thanks to the sun, that has looked upon the earth with a beneficent eye.

Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit, in Whom is embodied all goodness, and Who directs all things for the good of Her children.

Here are some photos from our Celebration.

Robin and Chris making the fresh Cranberry.

Robin and Chris setting up the wines.

The dinner wines:
1990 Bollinger Grande Annee Champagne (not pictured), Backyard Bubbly (not pictured), 1989 Swan Zinfandel, 1976 Ravenswood Zinfandel Polsen Vineyards, 1976 Ravenswood Zinfandel Vogensen Vineyards, Rex-Goliath Pinot Noir, 2006 Kestrel Late Harvest Chardonnay (not pictured) and 2010 Ravenswood Zinfandel Suite. Great selections! The two 1976 Ravenswood wines were the first releases of Ravenswood wines that Robin and Joel Peterson made. (Robin helped to start Ravenswood Winery)

Mac, Marnie (holding the chocolate turkey) and our friend Margaret.

Robin, Chris, Madison and Sophia.

So there you have our day and what a great day it was. We do hope yours was as good. Cheers! The full menu is posted on the previous blog post.

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

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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

Tagine of Duck

21 Monday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe: Bob and Robin Young, Tagine of Duck, What's For Dinner?

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We do like duck. No! We really like duck! And when you combine it with a Mediterranean style recipe and cooking process, you end up with absolute estacy. If you have a little time and can get a tagine cooker – they are comparatively inexpensive and come in different sizes. Ours is large enough for four servings and cost in the neighborhood of $25.00 online.

Here is our recipe for our meal tonight. Serve with a minted green tea and you’re in for a treat. Pictured here from left to right – Bok Choy Salad with Mandarine Orange and Avacado, Couscous and Duck. Enjoy the recipe.

Tagine of Duck

Serves: 4

Note: Tagine refers to the type of dish used to cook this type of meal it is a round earthenware dish with a conical lid that is placed on top of an open flame and allowed to cook long and slow. Using an ovenproof dish with a lid will yield the same results.

Ingredients:
4 Duck Legs and Thighs, separated
4 med Garlic cloves
1 lg Onion, diced
2 lg Carrots, diced
1 T Ras el Hanout
½ c Pitted Black Olives
1 slice of preserved Lemon
2 t Pistachio nuts
1 Pomegranate – seeds
1 Bay Leaf
8 dried Apricots, sliced
2 cups Duck stock
Fresh Coriander Leaves to garnish

Directions:
Heat a fry pan and season the duck legs with a little salt and pepper.
Place skin side down in the fry pan and allow to brown turn over and cook for one minute.
Remove from the pan and place into the tagine or oven dish.

Pour off excess duck fat, put the pan back onto the heat and add the garlic and onions to the pan and allow to cook for 1 – 2 minutes. Add the carrot and the Ras el Hanout allow to cook for a couple of minutes. Add the bay leaf, apricots and stock and bring to the boil.

Pour over the duck legs and cover and place and scatter the olives and preserved lemon then into the oven for 1½ hours at 350ºF (180C). When cooked remove from the oven skim off any excess duck fat that may have come to the top.

Scatter chopped pistachio nuts, pomegranate seeds and coriander leaves over the top.
Serve with couscous and flat bread.

Shellfish at Le Café de Paris

20 Sunday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Things To Do, What's For Dinner?, Wine Dinners

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I just received this from Le Café de Paris in Boise. We will be there at 6:30pm if you care to join us. It will be a great meal! Cheers!

Bonjour Mes Amis,

Our annual Fresh Shellfish Dinner before the holidays will be Wednesday, November 22nd, and is a great event to bring out of town friends and family to before the Thanksgiving festivities. Come out and enjoy some great shellfish dishes with some fabulous wines paired by our resident sommelier Christian Lamotte. The dinner itself is $39/person and includes a five-course tasting menu of some classic and innovative dishes that celebrate the best of les fruits de mer. Reservations are highly recommended and can be made by calling (208) 336-0889 or by emailing Le Cafe de Paris.

A Bientot,
Mathieu

Le Soupe du Jour
Lobster Bisque
brandy creme, butter poached lobster

Fruits de Mer
Bouillabaisse
herb scented tomato broth, varietal fruits des mer

Pesce Spada
sicilian style swordfish steaks, caramelized onions, red chiles, and kalamata olives

Pernod Steamed Mussels

Dessert
Croissant Bread Pudding

Homemade Pizza on Gameday!

20 Sunday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Gameday, Main Dish, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Pizza and Brew, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

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It must be gameday, because we had a special pizza! Plus BSU won, 52 – 35 over San Diego State.
Our own made fresh sour dough crust (from scratch), onion, Italian sausage, German brats, black olives, mozzarella cheese, fresh, from our garden, chopped red, yellow and green Zebra tomatoes, herbs and spices and mixed cheeses.

Add to this a great and aged Chimay Ale, some Blue and Orange M & M’s and we’ve got a party! Hope next week is as good with the Broncos. Hope so!

Locavore Lamb Dinner

14 Monday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Lamb, Locavore, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Turnips, What's For Dinner?

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OK. BSU lost to TCU, 35-36. They dropped 6 points on the BCS scale, from number 5 to number 11. Go figure! That means, one really needs a good local dinner. Look what we had. Sorry you missed it. Yea! Right!

Roasted Leg of Lamb
(Felzien Farms and herbs from Our Garden)
Hendricks gin, pear vodka, olive oil, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme, garlic

Steamed Baby Turnips and Carrots
(Boise Saturday Market)

Green Salad with Fresh Tomatoes
(Our Garden)

2008 Riverwoods Winery Magnafique
50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec

It was an awesome dinner. Sorry that you missed it. The lamb was the first that we have had from this years’ crop and it was delicious! The fresh and local vegies were a delight and the wine went very well with this dinner. Cheers!

Salmon with Lemon Curd

13 Sunday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Main Dish, Salmon, Seafood, Special Information, What's For Dinner?

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The other day, we had a very good salmon at Shige here in Boise. See Dinner At Shige on this blog. So this past Friday, we decided to have salmon again. We do try to eat seafood at least twice a week and we keep a supply on hand. Robin asked how I was going to make it and I told her with a little fresh tarragon. She suggested that I try it with lemon curd. Good idea! It is Mackays Lemon Curd (Mackays Lemon Curd)and we get it from the World Market here in Boise.

I took two salmon filets, 4 oz each, and placed them on a pyrex dish that had some olive oil spread on it, about 1 teaspoon. Then I put about 1 teaspoon of the lemon curd on both sides and baked the fish at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes and then on broil for 5 minutes. Served this with a vegetable mixture that was steamed and it was awesome. Try it —– You’ll like it.

Watermelon – The Superfruit

11 Friday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Special Information, Watermelon, What's For Dinner?

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Robin found this in the Idahostatesman today, 11/11/11. Interesting reading. Enjoy!

You Docs: There’s a new superfruit in town
The You Docs Tip of the Day:

– Statesman wire services
Published: 11/11/11

http://www.idahostatesman.com/youdocs
Unless you live in San Diego or Key Largo, scribbling watermelon on your grocery list in November is about as likely as the Cardinals winning the World Series. Be like the Cards: Do it anyway! Watermelon’s racking up health points. The latest:

1. Watermelon degunks arteries. Swapping watermelon juice for water reduces body fat, lowers LDL cholesterol and — the biggest effect — cleans heart-threatening plaque out of arteries. Early days on this research, but it fits.

2. It drops your blood pressure and boosts circulation. Watermelon is one of the few food sources of citrulline, a protein that’s a real powerhouse. Got borderline hypertension? Citrulline lowers systolic blood pressure by as much as nine points, enough to prevent full-blown hypertension. That’s because it helps produce nitric oxide, powerful stuff that opens and relaxes your arteries. Citrulline also turbocharges blood flow, enhancing circulation to all your vital parts (much the way Viagra does). And citrulline helps wound healing and cell division.

3. It’s loaded with lycopene. This potent plant polyphenol is thought to fend off heart disease and some cancers (though prostate cancer looks like a bust). Tomatoes are considered the lycopene all-stars, but cup for cup, watermelon has 40 percent more.

4. It’s naturally low-cal. There are only 96 calories in two fill-you-full cups of sweet watermelon.
Whether you slice it, dice it or juice it, eat watermelon year-round, not just on the Fourth of July. Happily, it’s increasingly a salad-bar staple. And, yes, you can buy 100 percent watermelon juice; if your local health-food store doesn’t have it, Amazon.com does.

The You Docs — Mehmet Oz, host of “The Dr. Oz Show” and Mike Roizen of Cleveland Clinic — are authors of “YOU: Losing Weight.” To submit questions, go to www. RealAge.com. A King Features syndicate.

Read more: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2011/11/11/1873548/theres-a-new-superfruit-in-town.html#ixzz1dRJVko5r

Dinner At Shige

11 Friday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Japanese Food, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Shige, What's For Dinner?

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We certainly did not start out to eat here – we were on our way to an NPR conference, but that’s another story. So, we had to eat somewhere so we chose Shige in Boise. Really glad we did. It was good, but did not surpass our benchmark, Sushi Joy. You will get some idea of the quality of the food by looking at these photos I took. (I saw no reason to originally take my camera, so I used the phone for these photos.) Enjoy! And no, we did not have any Saki. Green Tea instead.

Sushi Ume

Tempura and Teriyaki Salmon
tempura shrimp, carrot, zucchini

White Tuna Sashimi
white tuna with truffle oil and sea salt

Oregon Pinot Noirs with Pork in a Montmorency Sauce

10 Thursday Nov 2011

Posted by Bob and Robin in Montmorency Sauce, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Special Dinners, Wine and Food

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The Treasure Valley Wine Society in Boise, held a great Oregon Pinot Noir Tasting on November 9. The tasting was accompanied by a delicious buffet line prepared by Chef James Grimes featuring a Pork with Montmorency Sauce (a recipe below). Jerry and Pamla Reimer selected 7 wines. Here they are:

2010 Carlton Cellars Agate Beach Pinot Noir Rosé ($18.00)
2008 Wilamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir ($28.00)
2009 Carlton Cellars Cape Lookout Pinot Noir ($20.00)
2008 Tualatin Estate Pinot Noir ($45.00) 90 points and #24 Oregon Best Wines
2008 Dundee Hills Thistle Wines Pinot Noir ($30.00) #8 and 93 points Oregon Best Wines Competition
2009 Andrew Rich Winery Pinot Noir ($22.00)
2009 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

That’s the list. Now here is the buffet and a recipe. Cheers!

Cheese Plate

Buttered Noodles
Red Cabbage

Pork with Montmorency Cherry Sauce

I don’t know if Chef James used this recipe or not, but here is but one of several Montmorency Sauce recipes:

Montmorency Sauce

“The sweetness makes it suitable for sautéed chicken breasts or roast duckling, as well as more robustly flavored meats such as pork chops.” (Yankee Magazine)

“Montmorency cherries get their name from the Montmorency Valley of France, where they originated.” (Product Oasis)

1 (17-oz.) can Bing cherries
1 cup tawny port
4 large cubes sugar
1 large orange
2 tbsp. cornstarch

Drain 1 (17-oz.) can Bing cherries and place cherries in a medium bowl.
Add 1 cup tawny port, cover and let stand at room temperature 3 to 4 hours (preferably overnight).

Rub 4 large sugar cubes firmly over 1 orange to remove zest and aromatic oils from skin.
Squeeze orange and measure 1/4 cup juice.

Add juice to 2 tablespoons cornstarch and stir until smooth.

In a saucepan, combine cherries and port with cornstarch mixture.
Cook, stirring constantly, until liquid is thick and clear.
Add sugar cubes and stir to dissolve.