Full Moon Rising

Well, hell must have frozen over, because I got an "oh, wow" moment with a loaf of bread--thanks to the most relaxing Christmas gift ever from Ryan: a super-snazzy Cuisinart bread machine. Swoon.

I literally dumped the ingredients in and set the machine to do the work. And look what happened.

Now, some of you purists will scoff at this lazy bread-making tactic. I'll admit, I was skeptical at first. Well, that and I wanted to prove that I could make the perfect loaf without modern technology. Homemade caramels I can do. Bechamel I can do. Aioli I can do. But bread?

Well, folks, I couldn't. And now I can. So where does that leave me? Loving my bread machine, that's where! I am going to try a cinnamon swirl loaf with some organic raisins tomorrow. We also discovered the bulk bins at Central Market, where you can score 4 pounds of organic bread flour for less than 2 bones. Seriously, can it get any cheaper? I made a loaf of fresh bread, completely organic and all-natural, for about $1. And that means we're saving tons of dough (pun most definitely intended) and getting no yucky preservatives, additives, or high fructose corn syrup. Everyone wins. (Writer's remark: I'm on my second glass of vino for the night, and the word "wins" came out as "wines" on my first type. But since I'm not totally sloshed, I was able to edit that for your reading enjoyment. Just sayin.)

So, here's to a year of bread...from the magical machine that's going to live on our countertops.

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Rookie Mistake

I could start this post off many ways. I could tell you about my insatiable need to be adventurous in the kitchen--or to be in the kitchen at all, for that matter. I could also tell you that I've been reading non-stop about cooking holiday treats lately and I can't get enough. I could tell you that Ryan tried to tell me I made toffee, not caramel, because Jamie Oliver says you just add cream to caramel to make toffee. Or I could divulge the fact that I made my sister stand next to me and watch the thermometer while making this batch of caramel.

But I think the most satisfying anecdote to tell goes something like this.

At some point on Tuesday, I decided it was my destiny to make these Salted Caramels for all my friends. Here's what happened Tuesday night, around 10.

"Hey babe! The caramels actually turned out great. Here, taste."

"Mmm, yum. Those are great."

I left the caramels in the baking dish to set overnight, not wanting to cut them too soon. This morning, I turned the 8x8 square of caramel (minus one small corner) over onto the cutting board and reached for my sharpest knife. It slid, then crunched--very satisfyingly so--through the block of creamy sugar, and before I knew it I had 36 near-perfect squares of caramel. Before leaving for work, I told Ryan he could have the shards that were sitting on the counter. I'd packed the 36--make that 34--squares carefully into a glass dish and went on my way.

At work, I got an email. "Those caramels were great. I tried to eat one from that dish but they were all stuck together and I didn't want to mess anything up." Hah, I thought, they're probably just tacked together on the edges. I'll have to separate them when I get home--guess that's what they meant when they said "store between layers of waxed paper."

Well, I got home and saw my dish of caramels. It was one [not] solid blob of candy that could not be pried apart, even with my sharpest knife. It took everything I had to coerce the chunk of caramel back out of the dish. Which is what you see here.


I artfully chopped the block again, this time into ugly blob-shaped pieces unworthy of gifting. But I had bigger plans for these salted caramels. While dinner was in the oven (more about that later), I melted bittersweet chocolate in the microwave (even as Ryan asked, "Don't you want to use a double-boiler for that?") and then not-so-masterfully dipped the caramels in the chocolate. I laid them out on a baking sheet (covered in parchment) and then sprinkled fine sea salt on top.

So what have I learned?

I can make caramel.
You should ALWAYS use layers of waxed or parchment paper between candies.
Cream and sugar are toffee, but only at the hard-crack temperature point.
And yes, these are absolutely tooth-stickingly delicious and worth every moment of fret!

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Thanksgiving Pies

So this is a wee bit out of date, no? But better late than never. I have been cooking up a storm lately and enjoying every minute of it. I made two pies for Thanksgiving; one for Ryan's family (tried and true apple) and one for my family (never-before-tried Caramel Pumpkin Tart). Both turned out pretty swell, and it was actually a lot of fun to branch out from my standard apple pie and try something new. Of course, this was a marathon cooking adventure; in the span of 2 days, I made a rum cake (another new recipe for me, and my brother gave me tips for the sauce--just rum and sugar!) for Ryan's b-day, which he took to work...and then beginning at 5 a.m. the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, I began readying the crusts and peeling apples. I got home early from work that day and thankfully had 3 hours in the kitchen before Ryan's birthday dinner. Here's what the kitchen looked like....


And by God's grace alone, I was able to totally clean that kitchen by the time Ryan got home! It was like a birthday present for him. :) So here are the recipes...

My Standard Better-than-Grandma's-but-don't-tell-her Apple Pie (thanks Pastor Craig)

Pie crust (a top and a bottom!)
* If you have a reliable recipe, use it. I'm working up a new recipe myself, but here is a great place to start...

Apple filling:
5 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and chunked
1-2 tbls lime juice (to taste)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon (to taste)
pinch of nutmeg
1 tbls flour
2 tbls melted butter

* I'd recommend blind-baking the pie crust. I am still perfecting this task, but here are some tips...

Peel, core, and chop the apples. Put them in a large bowl, and spritz on lime juice as you go. The lime juice adds a tart flavor, but also keeps the apples from turning brown. Whisk together the dry ingredients and pour over the apples. Stir to coat each one. I'd recommend tasting at least four or five bites of apple to make sure you've got 'em all covered. :)

For the other pie, I googled to my heart's content and came up with this recipe from Epicurious: it's a Caramel Pumpkin Pie. Now, this sounds heavenly--but it had two hurdles for me. One, I've never made a pumpkin pie before. Two, I've never made caramel before. And so this one was my great triumph and EVERY bite of it was eaten.

Here's what I learned. First of all, I followed this recipe almost exactly as it said--I didn't pay too much attention to the comments, except for when folks warned of the caramel making. They said it took about 10 minutes, and to watch the sugar and water boiling like a HAWK because it turns in a second. This is 100% true. My timer said 9:58 and the pot still looked like this:


And at 10:00, it looked like this:

Forgive the crummy picture, but I did not want to risk burning the caramel for a killer shot. :) I quickly poured in the cream and the most beautiful thing happened. Caramel + heavy cream apparently = heaven on the stove.

I did not have (nor did I want to purchase) a 2" deep tart pan with a removable bottom, so I improvised and used a springform pan. This worked well except in a couple of places, the pie crust did not remain upright. In any case, everything worked out and this was one of the best pies I've ever made. (So proud. So very proud.)

Stay tuned for more updates, including the office cookie swap and a week of home-cooked meals (with leftovers!).

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Move over ladies, Ryan's in the kitchen

Today Ryan missed the traditional beans and cornbread at my grandmother's because he got swept up in cleaning our apartment. That's right ladies, he spent all afternoon cleaning. So we're gonna go ahead and call that a 100% legit excuse for missing Nan's famous beans.

But that was just the icing on the cake; last weekend, he treated us to a special homemade spaghetti recipe, brought to us via podcast by Jamie Oliver. Ryan prepared by watching the podcast multiple times, then shopping, then coming home to a clean kitchen to whip up something special for Sunday lunch.

Without further ado, I bring you Spaghetti and Meatballs a la Chef Ryan P: the best I've ever had.

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A Lesson in Roasting

This is photo documentation of my first successful attempt at roasting tomatoes and peppers. I put them under the broiler on a cookie sheet, and they got nice and charred. The skins of the tomatoes came off in a cinch, but the peppers were a bit trickier. After the roasting experiment, I cut up some onion...jalapeno...garlic...and blended into my own version of roasted salsa. And it was pretty darned good.

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Blueberry Hill...

Well, friends, it's been a while. Way too long of a while. And for that, I apologize. So to make it up to you... I come bearing beautiful photos of what turned out to be delicious muffins. Honestly, though, I made these so long ago that I've forgotten what recipe I used! I do know that I used a little whole wheat flour, and the blueberries were fresh and local, hand-picked from an East Texas farm. I made a giant batch of these puppies, complete with sugary streusel topping, and gave some to my sweet Nan.



And with that, another promise that I'll be updating again soon. Ryan and I stopped getting Greenling deliveries for a little while, but we may be signing back up (since I saw local apples on their website, it's hard to resist). We've been experimenting with a lot of new recipes, and have even started a weekly soup tradition! So as these nights begin to cool off, look for some delicious heart- and home-warming recipes to come your way.

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Homemade Gifts...yum

I know I've been absent lately, and I'm SORRY DINA.... :)

But I've been busy blogging on another site and haven't had much time to devote to cooking. No excuse!

So, without further adieu, here's the beginning of the catching-up. A few weeks ago, a friend of Ryan's sent him home with a jar of plum preserves. Home-canned. DELICIOUS. And so, that little jar needed a complementary baked good. I whipped up a batch of whole-wheat zucchini bread (double the zucchini). My recipe makes enough for two loaves, but I like to fill a muffin pan (a dozen zucchini muffins), and then use the rest to make a small loaf. This time around, I froze the muffins for my grandmother and then made a personal delivery! They turned out great. Recipe coming soon...And more updates coming soon, too.

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Remembering growing up...

I wrote this post only weeks before this skit aired on SNL. Now I read this and think...that's really hysterical. The SNL sketch is pretty close to what I saw that night. So read on, and then watch the clip for a good chuckle.
"I'm gonna go watch the football game." That's how it usually starts. This football season started out a little bit on the rough side...And so the first U.T. game of the season, I stayed home while Ryan made his way to a local Tex-Mex place to watch it on PPV. We'd just watched some inspirational cooking shows on PBS, and Ryan left the TV on when he walked out the door.

I'd been organizing our plethora of untouched Greenling produce. Sadly, we hadn't been utilizing our deliveries very well; we have a lot of rotten eggplant and a few too-old squash...but plenty of onions and potatoes that keep well. In this week's box, we got a lot of tomatoes and the last of the summer cucumbers.

Wanting something cool and light, I sliced a few of the cukes and tomatoes, grabbed the vinegar, and whipped up my mother's best cucumber salad recipe. The salad felt perfect for the afternoon late-summer rain. And then I heard it; like a big tidal wave, a sense of giddy nostalgia crashed upon me.

The first few notes of the Lawrence Welk Show played out on the tele, and my childhood came rushing back. This seems to happen a lot more frequently when I'm reaching into a box full of local produce; I grew up on a farm, and we had a little section of one of the fields set aside for growing vegetables. Every summer, my grandparents would have us picking veggies from the garden, and then we'd spend Saturday evenings over at my grandparents' eating fresh vegetables and watching Lawrence Welk and his brightly-suited orchestra.

My grandfather had his own big band--The Gilbert Kautz Orchestra--and he'd delight us with his trumpet playing in the afternoons...I loved to listen to him practice in the garage. Our house was about a quarter-mile from theirs, and in the summer evenings when the wind was right, we'd hear Papa playing in our backyard. If the wind came from the other direction, we'd hear the Tejano music playing down the hill.

Then, when Papa turned on LW, he'd dance with my sister and I in their living room. I remember it so well: the brown shag carpet, the squeaky faux-leather couch, the recliners, and the tiny orange chair that we loved to sit on.

My grandmother would sit with my little brother, calling him Schatze. I loved those summer nights and tonight, I'm reminded so vividly of them that I'm brought to tears.

Of course, now I can appreciate the cheesiness of the LW show. Tonight's particular episode aired in 1985, and right now they're gracing my ears with one of Englebert Humperdink's big hits--in English and Spanish. Something about Le bicicle de Versaille... or something like that. "Carry us through the sky, le bicicle de Versaille..."

And now I come full circle to the present: Ryan and I spent a lot of the day biking around our neighborhood side by side. Funny how that works.

So forgive me for the personal divergence, but of course I couldn't pass up something that means so much to me. My family will appreciate it. :)

Now excuse me...there's a rousing accordion duet and I really don't want to miss the action.

OH--and if you want the Kautz cucumber salad recipe...

2 cucumbers, sliced
2-3 fleshy garden tomatoes, sliced, OR 2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
A good splash/pour of white vinegar
Scant 1 teaspoon sugar
Scant 1 teaspoon salt
A good sprinkle of black pepper

Combine them all in a bowl...and mix well. This salad is best served icy-cold and the flavors taste even better the next day!

By this time, I want to take up tap dancing. Not kidding. THANK YOU LAWRENCE WELK!

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Agua Fresca II

We wised up for Agua Fresca, Part Deux.

Instead of running all the melon through the food processor and pushing it through a sieve, I used the juicer. Worked wonders! Then, I added a good squeeze of lime and some fresh mint. The three flavors combined for an icy-cool refreshment on a 100-plus-degree day.

Ryan's dad introduced us to the watermelon-mint-lime salad (cube watermelon, then add fresh mint and lime, marinate for 2-3 hours in the fridge and serve at a summer picnic) and the same idea works just as well as a beverage. Could make a pretty good margarita, too--just add some tequila and Triple Sec.

Everyone together now... Ahhhhhhhhhhh.

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Early Morning Inspiration

Just a few photos of fresh morning fruit: blueberries and Texas figs with wildflower honey, the sweet nectar of life.

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SalisBEERy Steak

We had quite the success in the kitchen the other night. Out of sheer invention came one of the best meals we've had yet. It was a true team effort, and the name was Ryan's brilliant brainchild. Read on, friends: this is one you'll want to whip up for sure.

Seasoning:
1 teaspoon Season-All
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp salt
Mix together well

1 large sweet potato, cut into large matchsticks
3 medium red potatoes, cut into large matchsticks
1-2 tablespoons olive oil to coat the potatoes

Preheat the oven to 450. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix the potatoes with 1-2 tablespoons additional olive oil and half of the seasoning (the rest will go on the steaks). Spread the potatoes on the baking sheet in a single layer, and bake for about 35 minutes, or until the potatoes have a good crisp color but are very tender.
For the salisBEERy steak...

3/4 to 1 lb beef cutlets
the rest of the potato seasoning, plus salt and pepper to taste.
2 to 3 tablespoons butter
3 cloves minced garlic
8 oz good beer (like Fireman's 4 or Shiner)
Scant 2 tablespoons flour

Season the cutlets with the same mixture you put on the potatoes. Add a little extra salt and pepper for good measure. Melt the butter in a saucepan large enough to hold all the cutlets. Add the minced garlic, and let it brown just a bit before adding the seasoned cutlets.

Cook the cutlets over medium-high heat until golden-brown on each side, about 4 minutes or less per side. Remove meat from the heat, and place in a covered dish. Keep the pan on the stove, but turn down the heat to medium. Add the beer, stirring constantly. Add the flour and continue stirring over medium heat until you've deglazed the pan and the sauce is nice and thick. Pour over the steaks and serve piping hot!

Fin really wanted some. BAD.

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Home Court (dis)Advantage

We had plenty of okra from Greenling and needed something to do with it. Pickled okra was the obvious choice. So, one hot Saturday morning at around 7, I hopped on the bike, grabbed the (wrong) wallet, and headed to the store for lids, the right kind of salt, and some dill seed. Pickling proceeded.
At about this point, we realized that we do not own any kind of jar tongs to get the boiling mason jars out of the boiling water. Luckily for us, we're inventive and brave, and we wound up using regular old kitchen tongs with a wing and a prayer. Seriously.
Three of our four jars popped satisfyingly, and before 10 a.m., I'd pickled okra and was on my way to dog training with Fin.

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Manana...

With the leftover tortillas and meat, we whipped up breakfast tacos. Now that's a good way to start the day.

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Viva La Fiesta!

Mmmm...tacos. We cooked grass-fed beef from my dad's neighbor with all the right seasonings (for us: plenty of garlic, s&p, celery salt, and some cayenne), and added onions and peppers from Greenling. A few months ago, I bought a cast iron skillet (which I love) and learned to make homemade flour tortillas. So, I busted it out. Ryan says that he'll never go back to store-bought--what a compliment! The salsa is also homemade--and it's my mom's famous recipe. We had jalapenos in the basket, too, and cilantro, so the salsa was a jiffy: Here's the skinny:

1 large can organic peeled whole tomatoes, or use 2 cups fresh peeled tomatoes
1 jalapeno, seeds removed
1 large handful cilantro
2-3 cloves garlic
salt, garlic powder, and a squeeze of lime to taste

This one's easy: BLEND IT ALL, BABY! Be careful with the jalapeno. Some like it hot. I generally use extra cilantro and less heat for my #1. Don't get me wrong, he can take the heat--but the man can also down the entire bowl if I make it just right. And that's just plain impressive, something I like to see.

To round out the night and keep it all Tex-Mex themed, I made watermelon agua fresca...the long way. I washed out the Cuisinart and dumped chunks of watermelon in. I completely forgot that we have a JUICER. Like, one with a big motor and everything. So I blended the watermelon, then passed it through a tiny sieve into a pretty pitcher. It took forever, but it was delicious--no sugar added. We downed it all that night, and only after it was all gone did we have the brilliant idea that (next time) we should add lime and mint.

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It was a...DISASTER!

Now, I'm the first to admit that I am still learning my way around the culinary arts. But I've made eggplant parmesan [once] before [with a chef's help] and it was great [because I had a chef helping]. Making it on my own couldn't be too different, right?

And by the looks of things...it turned out pretty good.

But then we tried to eat it. Poor, sweet, understanding Ryan. I ignored every warning he tried to give me ("Are you sure you know how to make eggplant parm?" "Do you know what to do with an eggplant?" "I can make French onion soup if you want!") and went ahead with my plan.

I sweated the eggplant (I thought) and cooked them plenty long (I thought). But in the end, even after over an hour of cooking all together, the eggplant were impossible to eat. That's the sight of all the store-bought organic tomato sauce and cheese being scraped off of the way-way-way-too-tough eggplant and mixed with the saving grace: spaghetti noodles.

Thank goodness for spaghetti noodles and store-bought sauce. And lots and LOTS of cheese. And of course, Ryan's good sense of humor.

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Easy Veggies

Sometimes, nothing is better than just simple roasted vegetables.

Summery zucchini, squash, and red potatoes tossed together with plenty of seasonings (including celery salt, garlic powder, sea salt, fresh pepper) and olive oil were roasted at about 450 until very tender.

The details are a little fuzzy (no, there wasn't any wine involved this time...but this dinner was a couple of weeks ago!), but I'm pretty sure this was the night that Ryan stopped by Boston Market for a rotisserie chicken and I had roasted veggies ready when he got home.

Just goes to show, when in doubt (and when you're drowning in summertime squashes), roast 'em!

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Dressing up a weekday meal

Ryan's generous colleague sent a bottle of white wine home with him one night. In our four-year history together, we've only ever saved one bottle of wine for a special occasion--and every time a special one comes about, we forget to open our special bottle of wine. So I didn't think twice when I popped this bottle open for nothing more exciting than a Wednesday evening dinner. Mushrooms, onions, and squash (all from Greenling) sauteed together in plenty of butter, minced garlic, and sea salt with a splash of wine. The veggies topped off a mini-mountain of whole wheat cous cous, and a sprig of rosemary on top added flavor as well as elegance. So, naturally, I poured two big glasses of vino to round out the meal.

Ryan sat down and gave me the look. "Is that the wine I brought home?" "Yeah..." "That's really expensive stuff, are you sure you want to drink it tonight?"

Oops. Well, the damage was done, and we were much better for it. The wine was delicious! Oh, and so was the meal...kind of.

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When life hands you lemons...By all means, don't waste 'em!

It was a hot Saturday. We're talking 100-plus degrees. In the shade. Ryan and I had made a trip down to Torchy's for breakfast tacos, and then over to Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop to look for an earth-friendly messenger bag. We left with a pair of Earth-friendly shoes and a t-shirt for Ryan, and with an unquenchable thirst that kept begging the question, "Where should we stop for lemonade?"

Not wanting to pull over yet again and shell out more cash for a beverage when we'd done enough shopping already, we decided to make it at home.

Talk about hitting it out of the park.

We made a simple syrup on the stove--1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water, reduced to the perfect thickness. We minced up the rind from a lemon, and squeezed about 3/4 cup lemon juice. We mixed the sugar syrup, lemon juice, and rind, and put it in a glass pitcher. We filled the pitcher with ice, and then topped it off with filtered water. I surprised Ryan with a little homey touch: mason jars meant for canning the next weekend were pulled from the cupboard and filled with ice and tangy lemonade. We added mint for an extra-special touch. The pitcher of lemonade didn't last long--but it absolutely did the trick.

That evening, I continued the lemon theme and tried to make lemony ricotta and basil pasta. It was quick and easy, and we used up some on-the-brink ingredients (the fresh basil from our CSA was on its way out, and I had just enough pasta left for two)...but the overall effect, while beautiful and fresh and summery-looking, didn't quite pack the punch we were hoping for. Then again, we could have just been lemon-ed out.

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Updates Coming Soon!

I learned something VERY exciting over the weekend: people actually read my blog! Yes. You do. And you like it! You really, really like it! (So leave me a comment, ok? Puh-lease?)

My heart is a-flutter with the thought of you, my dear readers, perusing through this site. And here I am, leaving you with no fresh material!

Well, rest assured, a big honkin' update is on its way. Let me tell you: there is fresh salsa. There are homemade tortillas. There is agua fresca. (C'mon, we're in Texas. Mexico is not that far away, folks.) I will be catching up this week, no doubt about it.

And in the meantime, catch me midday here at Apartment Therapy Re-Nest, where I'll be blogging daily about all things green and sustainable.

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more delectable digressions!

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"Do you need some help?"

Last week, Ryan offered to cook dinner one night. I headed straight home after work and played with Fin, and was greeted half an hour later by my boyfriend walking through the door with two paper bags full of groceries. I spotted carrot foliage sticking out the top, but hadn't a clue what else was in store. He'd nabbed crisp, organic romaine lettuce and carrots, tilapia fillets, white wine, and organic chocolate chip cookie dough. Using a recipefrom Mark Bittman, Ryan showed me how to slightly wilt the lettuce in boiling water, then wrap the fish gingerly. He poached them in white wine and butter, while I boiled the carrots.
The meal was simple and delicious: nothing but a little salt and pepper to season the perfectly-poached fish and tender carrots. And Ryan couldn't get enough of the butter-wine sauce. So there you have it--a meal from the man. Pretty impressive, isn't it?

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Lemon dose #1: Lemon-Rosemary Cake

After tasting a bite of my friend's lemon-rosemary cake at Chez Zee, I knew I had to find the perfect copycat recipe. After whipping up a success in the kitchen for dinner (see the pizza?), I decided spending another hour or two baking would be a treat, and not a chore.

I found a simple recipe and followed it to the tee. I'm not going to post it just yet, because I think it can be better. Once I get it just right, I'll post it here.

The first try was tasty, but it was too dense for what I wanted. I also want to try the lighter, fluffier version with a seven-minute icing. Not a bad first try, though. I'll say that.

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What are you cooking?

After hopping off the bus home, I trotted over to our grocery store, canvas bag in hand. (Go green!) I had a short list--a friend went to NYC and inspired me after all her talk about pizza, so I decided to try my own pie. It wasn't such a hard decision to make, since it was pretty well governed by an intense craving for a fancy pizza. You know what that feels like, right?

This thin crust recipe has resulted in a not-quite-successful pizza before, but last night I tried it again. I used only AP flour (no whole wheat subs this time) and I think that truly was the trick. Might have also been the carefully heated pizza stone. Who knows? In any case, the crust was perfect this time around.

I tossed it without dropping it (big step forward in my culinary career, folks) and was even prouder that it actually stretched out over the entire stone. The topping was simple: thinly sliced organic pears, twists of prosciutto, and a handful of gorgonzola crumbles. In the oven just long enough for the crust to crisp, and voila.
To round out the main dish, I made a salad with boiled red potatoes (from last week's Greenling delivery), organic lettuce, and locally-grown red onions. My new favorite dressing recipe topped it off:
2-3 tbs EVOO
1 tbs lemon juice
small handful chopped herbs--I used oregano, rosemary, and basil
1 squirt (about 1/2 tsp) brown mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp red onion, minced
salt and pepper to taste

I like to coat the hot potatoes with about 2/3 of the dressing, then pour the potatoes over the lettuce and toss. After they're happily thrown together, I pour the rest of the dressing on. The dressing sticks very well to the potatoes, so it helps coat the lettuce without drowning it in EVOO. Also, since the potatoes are hot, be sure to use really fresh, crisp lettuce--otherwise, it will wilt right away and you won't enjoy the clash of hot/cold, soft/crisp. (In the winter, I'll try the same salad concept with a wilty green and let you know how that goes....)

Overall, a major success. We topped it off with the last of the wine from Ryan's friend, and it was the perfect compliment to the sweet-and-salty pizza! Ryan gave me lots of praise for the meal! I believe my favorite was, "I think you should send this recipe to Mark Bittman." Or better yet, "I think you've finally become a great cook." It went something like that. In any case, the words made me supremely happy and sent me right back into the kitchen to try my hand at lemon-rosemary cake.

To be continued!

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