2 weeks (+) in Review

I am currently stuck waiting for one loaf of bread to finish baking so I can put another one in. I'm exhausted but it will be at least another hour before I can go to sleep, so I figured I'd take the chance to catch up on my very overdue blogging. David's masters clarinet recital is on saturday, and I am making the reception for it. I'm planning to make a selection of tea sandwiches, using the pain de mie from martha stewart's Hors d'Oeuvres book. This is a great book if you like to set out an impressive spread at your parties. If you are in or around boston, come to David's recital at 5pm at Boston Conservatory. The music should be excellent, and you can sample my food afterword. At any rate, here are our meals from the last few weeks.


After the improvised indian potatoes and peas I went on an indian kick.





The next day I made really simple, but surprisingly delicious indian-style spinach with potatoes and cream. I steamed some quinoa along with it.

If you haven't had quinoa it is a wonderful grain. It has a slight nutty flavor, a great texture, and has the highest amount of protein of any grain.




As promised, I made the samosas out of the leftover indian potatoes, along with some homemade tamarind chutney. I just used frozen spring-roll wrappers from the Japanese store.



Continuing on my campaign to use up all of my sprouting potatoes, I made pan-seared steak with red-wine caramelized onions and robiola mashed potatoes.



Then, I spent a whole day making homemade broth in another attempt at vietnamese beef noodle soup. This was by far the closest attempt. It turned out beautifully. Homemade broth helps, but another trick is to blanch the raw beef before you add it rare to the hot soup. Otherwise, it clouds and thickens the broth and makes the soup cold. I've got enough frozen broth now for one or two future uses.