London Bridges

Sunday Supper has been in a state of flux for the last week or so. I am in London on business and got here on Sunday June 19th. I arrived at about noon local time after flying all night and checked into the hotel. After a quick shower my colleagues and I went for a walk around London and settled in for supper at Cote, a restaurant along the Thames river. Quite a nice spot! We started with some bread and then here is my meal:


Bread Basket of freshly baked sourdough baguette with butter
Fougasse
Leaf shaped bread with parsley and sea salt

Roast Seabass Roast seabass fillet, braised fennel and a champagne beurre blanc with chives and tomato concasse
Gratin Potato
Crème Caramel Traditional set vanilla pod custard with dark caramel and cream
Meteor beer

BEST Ribs Ever

Nothing says summer like a couple slabs of slow cooked baby back ribs! I found this recipe in a Rachael Ray magazine and have used it a couple times. The ribs always get rave reviews! Now, these are not the easiest ribs to grill, there are a lot a steps and it takes about 4 1/2 hours. Totally worth every step! A few things you will need to pull off these ribs:

• charcoal smoker
• lounge chair
• cooler - to hold beverages of your choice
• bloody mary and a beer make a good choice
• a good book
• a nice lazy summer day

 To accompany the ribs, we recruited some friends to bring along some sides. Rindy and her grandma's potato salad, Johnny and his sesame seed coleslaw and of course kz is adding her own touches to the menu. the dessert comes from Beth in KC (something we had at the graduation party) and is light and tasty.

menu
Johnny's famous bloody mary mix
grandma's potato salad (click to go to this recipe)
best picnic beans (courtesy of my mom)
johnny's sesame coleslaw
best ever baby back ribs (recipe courtesy of chef adam perry lang)
crème anglaise with fruit and madelines


best picnic beans
ingredients:
1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 lb bacon

1/2 C ketchup

1 tsp salt

3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp mustard
1 C chopped onion
2 tsp vinegar
1 can lima beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can pork & beans
directions:
In a large skillet, cook beef, bacon and onions until bacon is crisp and beef is no longer pink. Mix all ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low 3-4 hours or until beans are tender.

Note: you can also cook this on the stove top. Just simmer at 210 degrees for 40 - 60 minutes.
johnny's sesame coleslaw
ingredients:

1 bag coleslaw mix

sesame seeds

rudolphs bar b que - famous coleslaw dressing
directions:
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Serve chilled.










best ever baby back ribs
how to:

in a medium bowl combine 1/2 cup water with

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp packed brown sugar

1/2 cup mustard

1/4 cup sweet smoked paprika

 1/4 cup chili powder

2 tbsp salt

2 tbsp peach-flavor gelatin powder

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

spread all over

four 1 1/2 lb racks baby back ribs

cover with plastic wrap and put in fridge until grill is ready

Fire up the grill and get the temperature to 200 - 225 degrees. You will want to maintain this temp throughout the process. I have a smoker with a side box so that is where I place the charcoal. If you do not have a side box be sure to grill the ribs over indirect heat. When the grill ready put on the ribs and grill for 2 1/2 hours. Add 7-10 charcoal briquettes every 30 minutes to maintain the heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine
1 cup apple juice
1/2 cup honey
1 stick butter

Cook over medium heat until the butter melts. Cut eight 12-inch long sheets of foil and pour 1/4 of the butter mixture on four of them, then top with a grilled ribs rack, meaty side down, top with other sheet, and crimp to seal. Grill the packets, meaty side down, for 1 hour. Unwrap and grill, meaty side up, 30 minutes more.

Meanwhile, stir together

1/2 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce

1/4 cup apricot preserves

1/4 cup water

brush the ribs with the glaze and grill, meaty side up, 20 minutes longer.

Transfer to cutting board and cut into individual ribs, brush with remaining apricot glaze. Move to a platter and enjoy!

crème anglaise with fruit and madelines
 Ingredients
2 cups half-and-half or whole milk
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1/2 cup sugar
4 large egg yolks, at room temperature

Directions
Set a large fine strainer over a medium bowl and set the bowl in a shallow pan of cold water.
In a large saucepan, combine the half-and-half and vanilla bean and cook over moderately low heat just until small bubbles appear around the rim, about 5 minutes.
In another medium bowl, whisk the sugar and egg yolks just until combined. Whisk in half of the hot half-and-half in a thin stream. Pour the mixture into the saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the sauce has thickened slightly, 4 to 5 minutes. Immediately strain the sauce into the bowl in the cold water bath to stop the cooking. Scrape the vanilla seeds into the sauce. Serve right away or refrigerate until chilled.

We serve this over fresh berries and madeline cookies. Excellent!!!!!

Now just set a beautiful table and enjoy good food,

good friends and good conversation.

See you next week, Cheers!

 

Thai One On

This past weekend I had to travel to Iowa for the Hog Wild Classic, an annual golf tournament not to be missed. We finished tied for second but unfortunately they only pay for first place in each flight. So what does any of this have to do with Sunday Supper? Nothing much, other than it meant I traveled back to the cities on Sunday morning. By the time I got my chores done I just did not feel like cooking so the next best thing is to give Johnny a call and have him bring over some Sawatdee - an excellent Thai restaurant in the area.
Johnny was up for it so as soon as he was done with his bike ride, shaved and showered he came over with a tasty feast.

menu
fresh spring rolls
caterpillar roll
cream cheese won tons
chicken red curry
shrimp pad thai
rice

For the dessert kz and I had picked up some lemon cake earlier in the day while having lunch at 3 Squares. It was awesome!

Even though it was not a home cooked meal, it was excellent! See  you next week!

Graduation

This week kz and I traveled to Shawnee, KS for a graduation party. Our good friends, B & D, son graduated from high school and we were invited down for the party. It turned out to be the 'Best Graduation Party Ever'! That was on Saturday night and the theme for the food was Hot Dog night. It turned out great and the food was incredible. There were a total of five hot dog choices. B&D had each family member create one of the dogs (yes - we are considered family:)) and here were the choices:

Italian Dog - created by Mama Bev  - A hot dog covered in homemade bruschetta
Asian Dog - created by Mama Mila - Toppings included pickled green papaya and hot chinese ketchup
New York Dog - created by Sis Gigi - A twist on the chili cheese dog, this topping was like a sloppy joe with cheese on the dog
Chicago Dog - created by k and t - A classic Chicago style dog - including all the fixings - poppy seed bun, bright green relish, onions, tomatoes, sport peppers, dill pickle slice, celery salt
KC Dog - created by b and d - Invented by b and d - This dog was topped with homemade baked beans and BBQed burnt ends - This was my favorite!

As for Sunday Supper it was a feast. B and D do not mess around when in comes to cooking and outdoor entertaining. I wish they lived closer - I would be over there more often for supper! Here is the meal from Sunday night:

appetizers
leftover bruschetta on toasted (leftover) hot dog buns
grilled scallops with sweet pea sauce
poor mans caviar (Mila's black bean salsa) with chips

main course
asian strawberry salad
roasted salt potatoes with asparagus
corn on the cob
cedar planked salmon
grilled KC strips

dessert
crème anglaise over berries and a madeline cookie

This is one of the best desserts I have had, light and tasty!

I am hoping to post some pictures of the 2 nights soon!

Hot Dog Heaven - Here is what we had to choose from:

Stormy Weather

It has been a stormy weekend. Saturday we had a tornado touch down about a mile west of us. And on Sunday another tornado touched down, this one did a lot of damage, about 3 miles east of us. A very unsettling weekend. The only good news was it cleared off Sunday afternoon so we were able to grill and enjoy our supper. kz has been craving creamed spinach so that was the start of the menu. Now we needed something to go with it. Jasmine rice is always a good choice. And for the meat we decided on grilled pork tenderloin, one of our favorites.
I put together a new marinade (even wrote down the ingredients in case it was a keeper) for the pork and let it marinate for a few hours while we watched the news and tracked tornado's! Our prayers go out to all the families affected by these terrible storms.

menu
creamed spinach
jasmine rice
grilled pork tenderloin
butterscotch pudding w/homemade whipped cream and snickedoodles
note: we had this dessert at our favorite weekend stop - 3 Squares -
and decided to try it at home. I used Dewars scotch in this version

creamed spinach
ingredients

2 10 oz packages frozen spinach, thawed

2 shallots, chopped

4 strips bacon,cubed
1 cup heavy cream
1tbls butter
directions
Drain spinach and chop. Cook bacon in large skillet. Add shallots as bacon begins to crisp.
Cook for 2 minutes, until shallots are tender. Add butter, spinach and cream. Cook until
heated through.

jasmine rice
ingredients
1 cup brown jasmine rice
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup onion
olive oil
directions
Coat large skillet with olive oil. Saute onions until soft and translucent, 5 - 7 minutes. Add rice and stir to coat. Add chicken broth, bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 45 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Remove from heat, let stand 10 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve hot

grilled pork tenderloin
2-3 lbs pork tenderloin

marinade

1 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tbls soy sauce

1 tbls yellow mustard

garlic salt

dried basil

salt
pepper
directions
Mix all marinade ingredients in a large bowl
Place tenderloin in a large resealable plastic bag. Pour marinade over pork, seal bag and marinate in refrigerator for 2-3 hours.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Grill tenderloins for about 25 minutes, turning frequently until internal temp reaches 155 degrees. Remove from grill and cover with foil. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

butterscotch pudding w/homemade whipped cream & snickerdoodles
ingredients

2 1/4 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Scotch whisky
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
directions
In a large saucepan, combine the milk and cream, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Immediately turn off the heat and set aside. In a large, heavy skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Stir in the brown sugar, raise the heat to medium-high, and cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly, to caramelize the mixture. (You will smell a characteristic nutty-caramel odor when the butter browns, signaling that the mixture is ready.) Whisking constantly, gradually add the butter/brown sugar mixture to the hot milk/cream mixture.

Put the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Whisk in about 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture. Whisk in the cornstarch and salt until dissolved. Whisk the cornstarch mixture back into the hot milk mixture in the saucepan. Add the scotch and whisk in. Whisking constantly, cook over medium-high heat until thick and just boiling. When the mixture thickens, the whisk will leave trail marks on the bottom of the pot and the mixture will have a few large bubbles boiling up to the top. Turn off the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.Chill, uncovered, at least 2 hours, or overnight.

snickerdoodles

Now that everything is all done it is time to eat! Enjoy!

Couples League

Normally every other Friday night is our golfing couples league. We play nine holes, drink a cold one, collect our prize money, (we are that good!) then head to one of our houses for some food. Well this past Friday it was 50 degrees, windy and misting so we bailed on golf and just went to Aaron and Rindy's house for some good food and a bonfire. Rindy put the menu together and made everything from scratch (including the honey mustard sauce for the chicken!).


menu
Grandma's Potato Salad (Pillsbury Complete Cook Book)
Sweet and Smoky Baked Beans (How to Grill book)
Honey-Mustard Chicken Sandwiches (Pillsbury Complete Cook Book)
No-Bake Fruit-Topped Cheesecake with whipped cream  (Pillsbury Complete Cook Book)


Grandma's Potato Salad
ingredients

Salad:
3 eggs
2 cups cubed peeled cooked potatoes
3/4 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion

Dressing:
1/2 cup salad dressing or mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Paprika
directions

Place eggs in medium saucepan; cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer about 15 minutes.  Immediately drain; run cold water over eggs to stop cooking.
Peel eggs.  Chop 2 of the eggs; reserve 1 egg for garnish.  In large bowl, combine chopped eggs, potatoes, celery and onion.
In small bowl, combine all dressing ingredients except paprika; blend well.  Spoon dressing over salad, mix well.  Cover; refrigerate at least 1 hour or until chilled.
Just before serving, slice reserved egg.  Garnish potato salad with sliced egg; sprinkle with paprika.

 

Sweet and Smoky Baked Beans

ingredients

6 ounces bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cans (15.5 ounces each)

cooked navy or great Norther beans
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons your favorite barbecue sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
Coarse salt and black pepper

directions

Place the bacon and onion in a large nonreactive saucepan over medium heat and cook until the bacon fat renders and the onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes.  Pour off any excess fat.
Stir in the beans, brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, barbecue sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and liquid smoke.  Gently simmer the beans until thick and richly flavored, 10 minutes, adding 2 or 3 tablespoons water if necessary to keep the beans from burning.  Taste for seasoning, adding alt and pepper as necessary. 
Note:  If you have the time, you can simmer the beans for 5 minutes, then spoon them into an aluminum foil pan and bake in a 350 degree F oven until thick and richly flavored, about 30 minutes.

 

Honey-Mustard Chicken Sandwiches

ingredients

1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon sliced green onions
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
4 lettuce leaves
4 slices tomato
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
4 kaiser rolls, split

directions
Grill Directions:  heat grill.  In small saucepan, combine honey, onions, tarragon and mustard; blend well.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low; simmer about 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.
When ready to grill, place chicken on gas grill over medium heat or on charcoal grill 4 to 6 inches from medium coals.  Cook 15 to 18 minutes or until chicken is fork-tender and juices run clear, turning once and brusing occasionally with mustard mixture.
Layer lettuce leaf, chicken breast half, tomato slice and avocado slices in each kaiser roll.


No-Bake Fruit-Topped Cheesecake
ingredients

Crust:
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (12 squares)
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted
Filling:
1 cup boiling water
1 (3-oz) pkg. lemon flavor gelatin
1/4 cup orange juice
1 (15-oz) contatiner light ricotta cheese
1 (8-oz) container low-fat lemon yogurt
3 tablespoons sugar
Topping:
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 cup fresh fruit

directions
Spray bottom of 8 or 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.  In small bowl, combine crust ingredients; mix well.  Press in bottom of sprayed pan.  Refrigerate.
In medium bowl, combine boiling water and gelatin; stir until dissolved.  Stir in orange juice.  Refrigerate 20 to 30 minutes or until lukewarm.
In food processor bowl with metal blade or blender container, comgine ricotta cheese, yogurt and sugar; process until smooth.  Gradually add to gelatin mixture in bowl, folding together until completely mixed.  Pour into crust-lined pan.  Refrigerate 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until firm.
Just before serving, run sharp knife around edge of pan.  Carefully remove sides of pan.  Top with mixture above or with your favorite fruit topping.  Store in refrigerator.
Pour heavy whipping cream in mixer bowl.  Blend on high until thick, adding powdered sugar to taste.
Now the important part of the evening: Eat, drink and build a big fire!!!

Chocolate Cookies

Growing up my mom made these chocolate cookies in powdered sugar that were my favorites. I have been talking about them for the last couple weeks so KZ said to make a batch for tonight. Good idea!! So now that we have the dessert time to come up with the rest of the menu. It will have to be easy as KZ and I have a dance recital to go to for our god daughter at 3:30 and supper is at 7:00. I was thinking about scallops ever since I saw a tasty recipe posted by the Savory Gourmet (a blog we follow and published by a friend of ours). Good thing about scallops they take less than 10 minutes to cook so perfect for tonight's menu!
Of course we gave Johnny Yoga a call and put in an order for a salad and maybe even another dessert for tonight. Cookies are sometimes not enough. Johnny came though with a classic salad and a lemon meringue pie. Tasty!!! For a hungry crowd I thought scallops and salad may not be enough so I decided to grill a flank steak (another quick cooking item) as well. Here we go.

menu
johhnys american salad
pan seared scallops w/lemon aioli - courtesy of tmk - the Savoury Gourmet
grilled flank steak
chocolate cookies
lemon meringue pie


Johnny's american salad

ingredients:

organic baby spinach

craisins

pine nuts

feta cheese

Brianna's american dressing

pan seared scallops w/lemon aioli
ingredients
Fresh or frozen & thawed scallops (patted completely dry)
Butter
Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
Heat skillet over med-high heat and melt about 1 tbsp. butter and 1 tbsp.

olive oil in the pan, until hot, but not smoking.
Season scallops with salt & pepper. Sear scallops in pan,
 uncovered for 2-3 minutes per side (or until caramelized
brown on top and bottom and cooked through.)
Be careful not to overcook, as the scallops will get rubbery.
Serve hot with lemon aioli.

Lemon Aioli
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. chopped fresh chives (or red onion)
Whisk ingredients together until mixed well.


grilled flank steak

ingredients
2-3 lbs flank steak
marinade
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
12 oz beer (I use a dark beer)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
kosher salt
fresh ground pepper

directions

place steak in a large plastic bag. Mix marinade ingredients together and pour over steak. Marinade for 1-3 hours. Prepare grill and grill over high heat. 6 minutes per side for medium rare. Remove from grill, tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.

Note: the lemon aioli goes great with the steak too!


Chocolate Cookies in Powdered Sugar

1/2 cup cocoa
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
Combine and beat
Add 4 eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly
2 1/4 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla
Chill dough
Drop by teaspoon into powdered sugar and roll
Bake 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees.
Do not over bake.

lemon meringue pie - picked up at Perkins courtesy of Johnny Yoga!

Now for KZ's speciality - setting the perfect table.

Step 1 - Flowers









Step 2 Plates

Step 3 Place settings for all


See you next week (or maybe sooner)

Cheers,
The Sunday Supper Gang