1) The duck turned out fantastic and tasted wonderful!

2) I can introduce you to a FANTASTIC food blog that has helped me through a few new experiences in cooking.  Say hello to The Hungry Mouse.  It’s a fantastic food blog with gorgeous pictures and wonderful tutorials.

I knew that roasting a duck would be different from roasting a chicken.  I thank my lucky stars for having already known that.  I’ve heard horror stories of greasy meat, rubbery skin, and way too much fat remaining on the bird.  Because of this, I hit Google and The Hungry Mouse was the #1 response I got.  It’s always nice to see a familiar place when asking a question on Google.

Here is the tutorial on how to roast a duck, or rather, the BEST way to roast a duck.  Yes, it’s time consuming, but WORTH it.  My little duck turned out perfect and I have enough duck fat rendered out to make hash browns on the morning of the 26th.

And boy, am I looking forward to that.

Seriously, if you’re considering roasting a duck, CONSULT THAT LINK!  I cannot stress that enough.  That blogger knows her stuff.

If you’ll remember (HA!  I know better…) back in August I made Chicken L’Orange and expressed my desire to make Orange Duck, or Duck L’Orange for the fancy-pants out there.  Again, if you’ll remember (I keep writing that, but seriously, I know better) I overpaid for a smoked duck last year for the Five Days and was unimpressed.  I knew I wanted to try making a duck all on my own and Orange Duck just sounds so fantastic to me.

It was easier than I thought.

I used the exact same recipe that I used for the Chicken L’Orange except I didn’t stuff the duck with anything (it has to cook for over 4 hours!) but the glaze and sauce were the same.  To make your life easier, I am more than happy to provide a simplified version of the recipe so that you may also someday make homemade Orange Duck.

Orange Glaze/Sauce for Duck or Chicken

Simplified by Me

4 oranges

1 sprig tarragon

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 cups chicken stock

4 peppercorns

1 Tblsp. cornstarch

Peel 1 orange and cut peel in thin strips.  Set aside peel.  Juice all four oranges and add juice to discarded peel.

Dissolve sugar in the vinegar in a sauce pan over medium heat.  Simmer for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Add chicken stock, tarragon, peppercorns and salt to taste.

Add orange juice and orange peel.

Baste the bird during the last half hour of cooking twice in 15-minute intervals.  (Consult the Hungry Mouse on how to cook the duck!)

Dissolve cornstarch in a small amount of water and add to glaze.  When thick, pour into serving bowl and serve with the duck.  (You could, and should, strain the sauce before adding the cornstarch, but I couldn’t be bothered with it and it was fine.  The world didn’t blow up.)

Sweet orange-y duck awaits your pleasure.

Once upon a time I took more pictures of the product.  I photographed the before, during, and after.  I’m sorry the quality of the photography has been so poor, but I am going to plead the two small children under school age thing.  I have a 1 year-old who screams at me from a high chair and a 4 year-old who screams at me from my elbow…..pictures aren’t my #1 concern most days.  I’ll get back to it someday.  Just be patient.

I promised yesterday that I would share a recipe for an Orange Martini.  I hate to think that I made the drink to go with the duck so that everything could me matchy-matchy.  That was not the thought process at ALL. The thought process was more like,

“The juicer is out and I have just enough oranges to make a cocktail!  WOOO!”

Simple as that.

And an Orange Martini is yummy.  It’s weird that I like it considering that I find Screwdrivers (Vodka+Orange Juice) to be repugnant reincarnations of stomach acid.

Orange Martini

Who Needs Credit?  It’s a DRINK!

1 oz. vodka

1/2 oz. Triple Sec

2 oz. orange juice (fresh squeezed really is best here or the acid will probably cause painful and horrible death.)  (Just kidding about the death thing.)  (No I’m not.)

Shake with ice and serve over ice.  There’s nothing worse than warm orange juice, let alone a cocktail containing orange juice.

I know martinis are usually served in those angular stemmed glasses.  And I have those glasses and find them to be very posh, but OH MY GOD they are annoying to drink from some days.  Rock glasses work just fine.  I’m not breaking any rules by doing this, and if I am, it’s a stupid rule!

I hope that you notice in that picture that the drink, adorable vintage juicer, and cocktail shaker are sitting on a plywood surface.  This is because we are doing a total kitchen renovation and have been since about July.  It’s a long and terrible process and only crazy people would do this all on their own.  It just so happens that I’m crazy, so if you should notice my kitchen looking rather destroyed in some pictures, it is because of the renovation.

Tomorrow we eat a ham dinner with my mother and Day Five will be on Christmas Day.  You’re probably going to just have to suffer through a bunch of pictures of my husband and children in their pajamas because on Christmas, we have the same breakfast and dinner every year.

Happy Holidays and I hope that you’re enjoying some lovely food of your own!

Related posts:

1. The 5 Days of Decadence: Day 1
2. Five Days of Decadence: Day Three
3. Five Days of Decadence 2011: Day Two

Every year we have one of the days designated as the “appetizer day.”  Last year was a little hectic for me and my food all turned out gross looking and quite bizarre.  This year, I managed a bit better by not trying to make a bunch of little dishes in a tight time frame while also getting ready to go to a Christmas party.

I made the Barbecue Swedish Meatballs again this year, and unlike last year, they were not some psychotic looking color and actually didn’t fall apart on me.  Hooray!

I also made a cheese dip (that is supposed to be a cheese ball, but I didn’t make it ahead of time so that I could shape it into a ball.  Big deal, it tastes the same!) that my mom used to make when I was a teenager and it is so freaking good I have a hard time walking away from it!

It’s one of those things where you ask for the recipe and the person says, “Oh it isn’t a recipe you just throw these things together and that’s it!”  It’s in that spirit that I’ll share this with you.

Take 2 8-oz. blocks of cream cheese and let them come to room temperature.  Then finely dice one red bell pepper and one small onion.  Put them in a bowl.  Add a tiny bit of salt (seriously tiny) and a tiny bit of pepper.  Add about a 1/2 Tblsp. of garlic powder. Chop up some dried beef (about 1/3 of a cup) and throw it in the bowl.  Now add the cream cheese and mix well.  If you’re concerned about it being a cheese BALL, then wrap the concoction in plastic wrap, form into a ball and refrigerate at least over night.  If you don’t care if it’s a ball or a spread, put it in a bowl and have fun stuffing your face.

That is pretty much how it was conveyed to me, so have fun with that.

I also made a favorite appetizer of mine that I used to make way back in the days when I would make Thanksgiving dinner for my husband’s family and my family.  We would eat dinner at around 4 p.m. but I would have appetizers and finger foods set out so people could munch all day.  Again, it’s a simple dish.

Crisp Cucumber Rounds

An Easy Everyday Cooking Recipe

2 medium cucumbers

12 oz. cream cheese, softened

4 green onions, finely chopped

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

1 loaf soft white bread (about 32 slices)

Peel cucumbers and cut lengthwise into quarters.  Remove seeds.  Chop cucumbers very finely.

Place chopped cucumbers in a large kitchen towel and wring to remove all the liquid.

Combine cream cheese, cucumbers, green onions, salt and pepper in a medium bowl; mix well.

Cut 2 rounds from each slice of bread with a small round cookie cutter (1-1/2 inch or less).  Spread with cucumber mixture.  Serve immediately.  YIELD:  64 rounds.

Since I made the cheeseball, I decided that this might be too much cheese (if such a concept exists…) so instead of cream cheese, I made this with sour cream.  Not AS good, but still good.  And instead of using white bread, I used pumpernickel bread…just because I had it.

The only other things that I made were cocktail weiners in barbecue sauce.  Almost every buffet style party I have EVER been to in all my life always has these things sitting in a crock pot and smelling up the place.  My husband loves them..

I just made a mixture of 50% ketchup (mine is homemade, so not as sweet as store bought) and 50% dark, sweet store bought barbecue sauce.  It was a big hit.

Here is a picture of the cheese spread (should be a ball) and the cucumber sandwiches.

To avoid having the whole thing turn pink on you, don’t use a mini-food processor to chop the red bell pepper.  I rather like it, though.

And here is a picture of the weiners and meatballs.  Notice the normal look of the meatballs as opposed to how they looked last year.

There is a reason why I make those meatballs every year.  THEY ARE DELICIOUS!  God, I love those things.  They are so sticky and sweet and spicy and wonderful!

Now, it’s still early for me here so I’m going to go clean my kitchen, light a fire, and drink my favorite winter-time cocktail, the Cosmopolitan!

Ok, I’ll share that one with you too!

1 oz. vodka

1/4 oz. Cointreau

1/4 oz. fresh lime juice

2 oz. cranberry juice

shake with ice in a shaker and drink while it’s cold.

Very easy.  I had this drink at a nice bar in Seattle once, only they made it with white cranberry juice and I’ve been addicted to it (in the winter time only) ever since.

I can’t really explain the taste of cocktails in a manner that is universal because tastes are so different. You CAN taste the alcohol in a drink like this, but that’s not totally bad.  It’s tart and cold and lovely and somehow always makes me think of snow.  Sex and the City gave this drink (and many other things) a bad reputation, but it really is quite good.

Day Four won’t be until Friday, but I am making Duck L’Orange and orange martinis!

Happy Holidays!

Related posts:

1. The 5 Days of Decadence: Day 1
2. 5 Days of Decadence: Day 3
3. 5 Days of Decadence: Day 2

On the menu tonight was London broil marinated in red wine and served with red wine gravy, creamed spinach, and a fresh vegetable casserole (it’s just veggies smothered in a cheese sauce!).  It was fantastic.

The cocktail for tonight was a good old fashioned Bloody Mary.  Now I know that there are 1,000,001 recipes out there for homemade Bloody Mary mix.  If you want to go through the trouble of testing them and finding the right one and going through a bunch of crap to get a good Bloody Mary, be my guest.  Or, you know, you could listen to your old pal Somer and buy a mix.  I’m not usually big on drink mixes.  Most of the time, it IS better to make your own…but not this time.  This time you have Mr. & Mrs. T’s Bloody Mary Mix!  You can find this stuff anywhere and it is seriously the BEST Bloody Mary I’ve ever had.  We buy the Bold and Spicy version because we like a bit of kick, but they make a milder version for you big babies out there.  (Note:  This is NOT a compensated endorsement of Mr. & Mrs. T’s.  I’m telling you to try this stuff because it really is kick ass.)

I love these drinks.  My father-in-law drinks one or two on Fridays and says that it is his vegetable serving for the week.  And that is all kinds of awesome.

Now on to the glorious dinner!

Like I said, this meal was fantastic.  I was so excited eating it because I couldn’t wait to write about it and share my two creations with you all!  Let’s start with the London Broil.  Here is the recipe!

Smell My Plate London Broil

My Recipe

1 London Broil

2 cups red wine

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup water

1 Tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons dried parsley

3 cloves garlic, smashed

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced

Red Wine Gravy (Recipe Below)

Have your London Broil defrosted by the night before you intend to serve it.  It needs to marinate over night.

Place the London Broil in a large freezer bag.  Mix all other ingredients in a bowl and pour into the freezer bag with the meat.  Seal the bag and be careful to get most of the air out.  Smoosh (yes that is a technical term!) the meat and marinade around so that the meat is well lubricated.  Then place the bag in a large dish and store in the refrigerator.  Turn the bag over once the next morning.

Lay the meat out to come to room temperature 15 minutes before cooking.  Set oven broiler on high.  Place meat on broiler pan and cook for about 9 minutes on each side for Medium to Medium Rare.

Reserve marinade for gravy!

Strain marinade through a fine mesh strainer and set aside.  Melt 4 Tablespoons butter in a saucepan.  Stir in 4 Tablespoons flour and stir.  Add 1 cup of the marinade and 1 can of beef broth.  Stir until thick.  Serve with London Broil.

Cooked to perfection and tasting oh so faintly of that wonderful Pinot Noir I used in the marinade.  Seriously, folks.  Everybody has been saying for years to only cook with a wine you would drink.  THERE IS A GOOD REASON FOR THIS.

Also, really and truly make sure that when you put the meat and marinade bag in your fridge that you put it in a dish so that it won’t leak.  Like this:

Or if you like to learn things the hard way you can ignore me.  It will only take ONE instance of having your refrigerator leaking with raw meat juice and marinade for you to never make that mistake again.  And yes, I DO know from experience.  Learn from my idiocy, people.

The other dish that I put together was Creamed Spinach.  Can you believe that I had never had it before tonight?  As much as I eat steak one would think that I would have had it by now, but no.  But seeing how I was serving a huge piece of red meat with dinner and Creamed Spinach is traditionally served with red meat, my opportunity was hard to ignore.  It’s not a fussy dish.  It’s really straight forward and seriously only takes a few minutes to make.

Creamed Spinach

My recipe

1 1-lb. bag frozen spinach

4 Tablespoons butter

1 shallot, minced

3 Tablespoons flour

2 cups half-and-half

salt and pepper

Wrap thawed spinach in a clean dish towel and squeeze as much water from it as possible.  Set aside.

Melt butter in a large skillet.  Add shallots and stir until soft.  Add flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring the whole time.  Add half-and half.  Stir until thick.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Stir in spinach and heat through.

That’s it.  It’s really that easy.  And it’s really freaking good as well.  Win-Win.

The third thing that I served is a cheese-gooped vegetable casserole that comes from that cookbook I keep referencing lately.  It’s really good and really decadent.  I don’t usually serve my vegetables swimming in goopy cheese (even though I love it) so I really only make this dish around the holidays.

Fresh Vegetable Casserole

Favorite Brand Name Old-Fashioned Holiday Recipes 2004

8 small new potatoes

8 baby carrots (Did you know that baby carrots are actually mature carrots shaved down?  True story!)

1 small cauliflower, broken into florets

4 stalks asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces

3 Tablespoons butter or margarine

3 Tablespoons flour 2 cups milk

salt

black pepper

3/4 cup (3 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese

Chopped fresh cilantro

Cook vegetables until crisp-tender.  (I steamed all but the potatoes.  Steaming is a good option.)  Arrange vegetables in buttered 2-quart casserole.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To make sauce, melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in flour until smooth.  Gradually stir in milk.  Cook until thickened, stirring constantly.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Add cheese, stirring until cheese is melted.  Pour sauce over vegetables and sprinkle with cilantro.  Bake 15 minutes or until heated through.  YIELD:  4-6 servings.

It looks goopy and decadent, no?

3 days to go!

Enjoy!

Related posts:

1. The 5 Days of Decadence: Day 1
2. Cinco de Mayo Feast
3. Turning Lamb Leftovers into Indian Lovin’s

That first year we decided that we wanted to come up with a unique tradition that would just be for our small family.  Since we are both food-lovers, we came up with the 5 Days of Decadence.  Basically, we spend the days leading up to and including Christmas eating and drinking and just enjoying a sort of bacchanalia of gastronomical festivities.  Some of the food is a little pricier that what we normally eat, but mostly it is just good cooking served with good drink and followed up by good desserts.  That was 5 years ago that we started this tradition and we look forward to it every year.

This year, Day 1 consisted of the one big-ticket item (besides the lamb we have on Christmas Day) that I purchased for the 5 Days.  A smoked duck.  I paid $35 for a teeny tiny smoked duck and was curious to see if it was worth my money.  My experience with duck is, unfortunately, very limited and mostly comes from a Chinese Buffet experience.

I also served roasted butternut squash, homemade Potatoes au Gratin, and cranberry sauce.

And yes, that cranberry sauce is the jellied stuff from a can.  Homemade cranberry sauce is on next year’s to-do.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.  We also have a pre-dinner cocktail.  I decided to make a cocktail that I haven’t had in years.  Since it is named after a candy and pretty much tastes like candy, I thought it only fitting to have around Christmas.  The Tootsie Pop!

Tootsie Pop

2 oz. Grenadine

5 oz. Amaretto

3 0z. lemon juice

2 drops chocolate syrup

Layer grenadine, amaretto and lemon juice.  Stir.  Add 2 drops chocolate syrup. Let sink and drink.

Ok, so this drink is a throw back to my younger days when I was more of an Appletini kind of girl instead of the “Waiter, the bartender skimped on the vodka in this.  Have it remade please!” kind of woman I’ve come to be.  It’s VERY sweet and I was surprised to see that it was hard for me to finish.  But if you’re not a big drinker and like those sweet cocktails with training wheels, this is perfect.

Now about the dinner!  There wasn’t much preparation needed for the duck as it was fully cooked (as smoked meats tend to be).  I just had to reheat it in my oven.  EASY!

As for the butternut squash, I could give you a recipe, but it’s really not necessary.  An oven at 350 degrees F, one butternut squash, two cups carrots cut on the bias and two medium onions diced.  Put them on a sheet pan covered in foil, coat with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper and 1 Tablespoon of brown sugar and roast for 45 minutes to an hour.  Again, EASY.  The only thing not easy about it is peeling and chopping the squash.  I think butternut squash is divine, but it is a royal pain in the ass to break down.  Tip:  Sharp knife and forearm strength come in handy here.

The Potatoes au Gratin was a little more involved, but still quite easy.

Potatoes au Gratin

Favorite Brand Name Old-Fashioned Holiday Recipes 2004

1-1/2 pounds small red potatoes

6 Tablespoons margarine of butter, divided

3 Tablespoons AP flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

1-1/2 cups milk

1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese

4 green onions, thinly sliced 3/4 cup cracker crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray 1-quart round casserole with non-stick cooking spray.

Place potatoes in 2-quart saucepan; add enough water to cover potatoes.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Cook, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until partially done.  Potatoes should still be firm in the center.  Drain and rinse in cold water until potatoes are cool.  Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, melt 4 Tablespoons margarine in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add flour, salt and pepper, stirring until smooth.  Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until sauce is thickened.  Add cheese, stirring until melted.

Cut potatoes crosswise into 1/4-inch thick slices.  Layer 1/2 of the potatoes in prepared dish.  Top with 1/3 of the onions and 1/3 of the cheese sauce.  Repeat layers twice, ending with cheese sauce.

Melt remaining 2 Tablespoons margarine.  Combine cracker crumbs and margarine in small bowl.  Sprinkle evenly over top of casserole.

Bake, uncovered, 35-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly and potatoes are tender.  YIELD:  4-6 servings

It was a good dinner.  A nice way to start off the 5 Days.  The duck…well it was good but I won’t be buying it again.  Next year I’ll see if I can get my hands on a goose.  And if not a goose, then just a regular duck so I can sauce it up and maybe make Duck L’orange.

The side dishes were great.  Warm in the tummy and good-tasting.  We were very satisfied and ready for a nap after this meal.

I hope you enjoy your own holiday traditions and have a wonderful week!

Enjoy!

Related posts:

1. Meatloaf: A Mom Dish
2. Potato Salad and a Picnic at Home
3. Using Dinner Leftovers for Breakfast

I’ve had hot spiced cider since then that was prepared the right way and have rather enjoyed it, but I kept hearing about buttered cider.  Quite honestly, putting a bunch of butter in apple cider sounded disgusting to me and I avoided trying it.  Of course, I made myself suck it up and try a recipe that has been catching my eye in my favorite holiday cookbook.  People.  PEOPLE.  LISTEN TO ME.  I’m glad I tried it.

Hot Buttered Cider

Favorite Brand Name Old Fashioned Holiday Recipes Cookbook 2004

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened

1/4 cup honey

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Apple cider or juice

Basically what you’re going to do is whip the butter up with all the rest of the ingredients minus the apple cider and make a sweet butter out of it.  Put it in an airtight container and refrigerate.  When you’re ready to use it, let it come to room temperature.  Heat up some apple cider and put it in your drinking mugs.  Put a plop of the butter in the hot cider and stir.  You want to add 1 Tablespoon of the butter for every cup of cider.

I had a “DAYUM! THAT’S GOOD!” moment when I first tasted this.  You know how spiced cider can sometimes have a little bit of a bite to it?  Well the butter smooths that bite out.  This drink slips right down.  It’s spiced, sweet, and delicious.  To be honest, you can’t taste the butter.  It’s just a smooth and yummy sweet spiced cider.  Luckily this recipe makes 12 servings so I still have a few mugs of this wonderful libation from the batch that I made.

Please try it and really, you should buy that cookbook I keep linking to.  Every holiday season I link to it because I love it so much.  Give it a whirl!  It’s not the current hot cookbook and it wasn’t written by a celerity chef.  It’s a hokey cookbook put out by Nestle, I believe, but the recipes inside are so damned good.  (No, I’m not being paid or compensated in any way to push this cookbook off on you.  I’m doing it for the sheer joy of annoying you!)

Enjoy!

No related posts.

I grew up seeing people drinking bright yellow beer that you could see right through.  This beer called itself a lager, but the color resembled…well….the stuff that comes out of your body after drinking anything more than it resembled beer.  I didn’t realize this until I was in college.

In the early years of college when the real thrill from drinking beer came from getting drunk and not so much the enjoyment of the beer, we bought the cheap stuff or the stuff that our parents had been drinking all our lives.  It got the job done, but I never would have admitted to actually liking beer.  Then as we started getting older and the goal was not so much to get wasted but rather to enjoy a cold one, we started buying good beer.  We went to the local microbrewery and drank.  We crossed the state line and brought home cases of our favorite Pennsylvania-made lager.  Myself and my group of college friends had had enough of the good ol’ stuff and wanted a beer that was actually substantial and good.

Then Samuel Adams got huge and the age of the microbrews began.  Okay, maybe the age of the microbrews started before Jim Koch got that beautiful beer on the big stage, but microbrews started getting a lot more attention afterwards.  We started taking an interest in the different types of beers.  Ales, lagers, hefeweizen and a whole army of specialty beers made from just about anything.

Just as in the food world a cooking and taste revolution had started, in the beer world the same was happening.  Microbreweries popped up everywhere.  People started making beer at home.  Beer had become more than just something in a can that accompanied family barbecues.  Beer had become a food group that people took VERY seriously.

And why shouldn’t they?  A good beer is one of those things that isn’t necessarily a luxury, but it feels damned good to indulge in.  Drinking a good beer makes me feel like a grown up.  Drinking a good beer is just nice.

To all of those beautiful home brewers and microbrewers and beer revolutionaries, I say thank you.  Thank you so much for saving me from that terrible “beer” that my hometown rednecks worship.  Thank you for showing me a diversity in something I had no idea could be diverse.  Thank you for showing me that Americans (although a couple of centuries behind) can make one hell of a good beer.

PSA Courtesy of Smell My Plate:  If you are a poor and misguided person still drinking your good ol’ beer and defending it fiercely to those of us who try to get you to try a beer that actually tastes good, please please, for the sake of future generations TRY it.  Don’t turn your nose up at these beers because maybe they aren’t as “down home” or simple as your good ol’ beers.  They aren’t as gourmet as you are making yourself think.  A lot of these brews are made by simple people in tiny breweries.  These beers ARE salt of the earth.  These beers ARE something to be proud of and no, they do not make you pretentious for drinking them.  Just try them.  If you go back to the good ol’ brews, I will assume you have no taste buds but I will also stop bothering you about the subject.  I’ll drink my wonderful delicious beer, and you’ll drink your beer flavored water.

Disclosure:  My favorite beer is Yuengling Lager.  It is the beer we all discovered in college and it really is amazing.  As someone who had never been a beer drinker before, Yuengling was my conversion factor.  Samuel Adams Winter Lager is a close second.  I also love a good hefeweizen.

Related posts:

1. Beer Marinated Chicken
2. The Skinny Bitch

Here is a picture of the finished product and we’ll break it down from there:

On this platter is sliced watermelon, sliced Bartlett pears, sliced green apples, strawberries, sliced salami, toasted French bread, Roquefort (blue) cheese, Chevre (goat cheese), and a gorgeous French Brie.

When you are indulging in heavier tasting cheeses, it is important to accompany these cheeses with palate-cleansing fruits.  Grapes are usually the generic fruit for this, but I really prefer green apples and pears.  And there’s no better pairing in the food world than strawberries and Brie.  (Brie is one of my favorite cheeses to schmeer on some bread.  It’s like butter, but with some FUNK mixed in.  And people, FUNK is a good thing where cheese is concerned.)

I don’t like to put crackers on a gorgeous platter like this.  I just go to my local grocer and buy a loaf of French bread.  There’s more body to it and it stands up better to some of the strong cheeses.

Just slice the bread, drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and toast in a 400 degree F. oven for 10 minutes.

I also really love the pairing of this platter with white wine spritzers.  I know most spritzers will be served with seltzer water or sparkling water, but I use lemon lime soda.  I buy a HUGE bottle of an inexpensive, fruity wine and a 2 litre bottle of lemon lime soda.  Just put ice in your glass and do half and half of the wine and soda.  It’s a light and sweet drink that goes great with the cheese and fruit.  Also, I buy the big bottle of wine because I will drink these babies until the bottle is empty.  They are spectacular.

Of course if you choose to make a fruit and cheese platter, I would expect that you use your favorite fruits and cheeses.  This is just my personal pick for favorites.  It’s a great dinner, brunch, picnic, cocktail party serving, appetizer, etc. meal.  Enjoy!

No related posts.

I wanted to make fajitas with a marinated skirt or flank steak.  Alas, my grocer was not carrying those cuts of meat (weird…) so I ended up buying a brisket.  I made a marinade for the brisket and let it marinate overnight.  I then slow roasted the brisket in a 250 degree F oven for 5 hours to ensure tenderness.  Here’s how to do it:

Marinade:

zest and juice of 1 lime

1 Tblsp. garlic powder

1 Tblsp. onion powder

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried chili powder

1/2 Tblsp. salt

1/4 Tblsp. black pepper

4 chipotle peppers, finely chopped (I use the canned ones in adobo sauce)

1 Tblsp. adobo sauce (from the can)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Just mix it all together (it will be a thick paste) and cover both sides of the meat and store in an airtight container overnight.  Cook the meat on a sheet pan and when it has finished cooking, cover it in aluminum foil for 45 minutes before cutting.  After you cut the meat, saute lightly in a skillet with sliced onions and then serve with tortillas.

I also decided to make guacamole and pico de gallo as condiments for the fajitas.  These are super easy dishes and are very fresh tasting in contrast with the savory meat.

I prefer a creamy guacamole over a coarse one.  Simply throw 1 avacado (peeled, and roughly chopped), 3 cloves of garlic (also peeled and roughly chopped), and the zest and juice of 1 lime into a food processor and process until smooth.  Easy easy.

For the Pico de Gallo, dice and deseed one large tomato, place it in a bowl.  Finely chop one jalapeno pepper, 1/3 cup of onion (minced) and 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro.  Zest and juice 1 lime and toss with the tomato mixture.  Bam,  Pico de Gallo.  Easy easy.

Simply spread the guacamole on your tortilla, add your meat and onions, then top with the Pico de Gallo and roll.  It’s very delicious and fresh tasting.  The perfect way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.

I would be remiss if I neglected a wonderful drink to go with this festive meal.  I’m not much of a beer drinker, so my next option was a Lime Margarita.  I love a fresh margarita, i.e. it doesn’t come in a pre-mixed form.  I saw Ina Garten (Food Network Barefoot Contessa….my favorite FN cook!) make a fresh margarita once and wrote down the recipe.  I’ve been dying to make this drink and was happy that I finally had an excuse.  Here’s the recipe:

Margarita

Ina Garten

1 lime, halved

kosher salt

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

the juice of 1 lemon

1 cup Triple Sec

1 cup White Tequila

3 cups ice

I made my mix ahead of time in a cocktail pitcher and put it in the refrigerator to chill before blending with ice.

Simply mix the lime juice, lemon juice, Triple Sec and Tequila together.  When ready to blend, put the 3 cups of ice in your blender and blend with the mix until frothy.  Use the halved lime to rum along the rims of your cocktail glasses and dip into a shallow dish containing the kosher salt.  This is a fresh tasting and delicious margarita.  I’ll be making this for my mom this summer and we’ll drink it pool-side.

Oh yeah, I promised a finished picture of my Key Lime Pie:

I let my whipped cream sit out a little too long so it was deflated when I piped it onto my pie.  It still looks nice.  It was a very good Key Lime Pie, especially with that pretzel crust.  Please try that recipe.  It doesn’t get any easier and it is very good.

Happy Cinco de Mayo everybody!  I hope you enjoyed it as much as my family and I did!  Enjoy!

Related posts:

1. Key Lime Pie

It’s insanely simple.  Diet cola and vodka in a rock glass and blammo!  You’ve got a great drink that doesn’t have that alcohol burn.  I guess maybe I’m a big baby where the alcohol burn is concerned.  I hate it when people try to get me to try a new drink and the tell me “You can’ taste the alcohol at all!”  That’s never true.  I can always taste the alcohol and I always flinch after that first swallow because I can taste the alcohol A LOT.

With the Skinny Bitch, there is a little bit of a burn, but it’s warm and I don’t make a smooshy face after swallowing.  Vodka is such a clean taste.

The recipe is simple.  4 ice cubes, a shot of vodka (some people like BIG shots and some people like tiny shots.  I don’t judge.  Go with what you like), and half a can of diet cola.  There you go.  A Skinny Bitch.  Drink with enthusiasm, preferrably while playing cards with your special someone and dominating the game.

I also like to add vanilla vodka to this.  It’s smooth and crazy good.  I don’t think anybody should be hesitant about making drinks at home.  Going to a bar is expensive and depending on the bar tender, the quality of your drink can be a little dicey.  Get yourself a small bar set, some rock glasses and martini glasses and you’ve got all you need.

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You want 10 tea bags for this recipe.  If you choose to add a flavored tea, it’s 9 regular tea bags and 1 flavored tea bag.  The flavoring will be really light and sweet and people will sit and sip the tea asking what that flavor is.

Take the tea bags out of their outer wrappers and throw the bags into a large bowl.  Pour 8 cups of boiling water over the tea bags and make sure all of them are steeping.  Let the tea steep for 10 minutes.

The liquid will be very dark and will have a pleasant aroma.  Remove the tea bags with a spoon, making sure to squeeze any liquid out of them.

Now for this to be Iced Tea, it has to be served cold.  You can certainly just pour this into your pitcher now and dillute it with cold water and have cold iced tea in 2 hours OR you can fill your 1 gallon pitcher 3/4 of the way full with ice and then add the undilluted liquid, melting the ice and cooling the liquid.  Stir to melt the ice thoroughly and then add enough water to reach the 1 gallon mark on your pitcher.

You’ll notice at this point that I have not mentioned any sort of sweeteners.  I know you can add like a bajillion cups of sugar and then you’ll have Southern Sweet Tea (and no teeth) or you can leave the liquid in the pitcher unsweetened.  I buy those little yellow packets of artificial sweetener and add 1 packet to my glass and it sweetens the tea just enough without making the brew taste like syrup.  If you like Southern Sweet Tea, then by all means add a bajillion cups of sugar.  Me?  I’ll stick with the one packet.

The end product is a truly refreshing drink that my husband and I both love to drink in the warmer months.  It’s real Iced Tea and it’s cheaper and better than that other stuff.  Give it a try, thank me later.

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