happy 2012!!
i spent a fabulous new year’s weekend with my parents, and as you know, when mama cooks and i are together in the kitchen, magic happens! so here’s what we had:
date bars. i had sent her the recipe because i wanted to make them over the weekend i was there, and she had them ready for me when i arrived! perfect late-night snack.
i liked these a lot – they were sweet and a little salty. couple things we’ll change next time: use old fashioned oats, not quick-cook like the recipe said. also, i would have put toasted pecans in the topping because a little crunch would be very nice.
dinner friday night was shrimp cooked in the oven in a very hot cast iron skillet with white beans, tomatoes and capers.
on new year’s eve, we started with the cutest little appetizers: pre-made teeny-tiny philo shells, filled with smoked blue fish, a dollop of mayo-mustard, and topped with a caper or two.
how cute?! if you ever see these shells in your grocery store, pick them up. you can fill them with all kinds of things – how about chocolate mousse and a raspberry? endless possibilities.
then we had a couple of oysters.
and the main attraction was risotto with scallops and prosciutto.
our signature cocktail of the evening (besides champagne, of course!) was an apple manhattan.
2 parts bourbon, 1 part apple brandy, 1 part sweet vermouth. and a cinnamon’ed apple slice for garnish.
i made more chocolate chip gingersnaps for dessert.
and the next day, the best thing for a NYE hangover was beef stew with plums.
that side dish back there in the corner is christmas jello mold. details to follow. stay tuned, please.
happy 2012 :)