Culinary Fool

Hood Canal: Union Bay Cafe

23-Aug-2006

Unfortunately, while I was visiting Hood Canal one of the region’s most famous foods was off limits. Oysters had been affected with some sort of bacteria and were not allowed to be harvested. This was very sad indeed! Although the ban was only on oysters, I believe, I decided to stay away from mussels and shrimp, too.

So one evening found me searching for a burger. Across the highway from the Union Country Store I had noticed the Union Bay Cafe. It’s been my experience in the past that many of the local establishments on the Olympic Peninsula have really excellent food so I thought I’d give them a try.

Being one of the only establishments in the area I think Union Bay Cafe tries to cover all bases. There was a dining area with booths and small tables; a long bar; and off to the side a room with pool table, large screen TV and stage for weekly features such as open mike and karaoke.

When I arrived the dining room was completely empty but there were several people at the bar. I chose a seat near the end where I could watch my M’s on the big screen. The bar top was a bit grimy having been recently vacated. The bartender cleared the used glasses away but didn’t bother to wipe down the surface. Hmmm.

I ordered a Stuffed Burger, which was their regular burger stuffed with bacon and blue cheese. According to the menu, the meat was from a local, natural beef producer. I chose fries from the listed options and placed my order. Service was on the leisurely side so I had quite a bit of time to watch the game and listen to the conversations of the locals around me. I think a couple of them may have already been there a few hours based on the distortion of their words!

Prior to my order arriving a gentleman sat next to me and we exchanged small talk. I asked if he lived nearby and he said no that he didn’t often make it to the area, implying it was not near his home. I asked where he lived and he told me Belfair which is only 16 miles away. Between that statement, the conversations I was overhearing and the relaxed serving style I was reminded that small town living is much different than city living. I live within Seattle city limits and it’s 10 miles just for me to get downtown and probably 16 miles to M or R’s house from mine! And I don’t mean that "country living" is bad in any way – in fact in many ways those things are attractive to me. It’s just being only a few miles from Seattle (a one-hour ferry ride and about 45 miles after that) I was surprised to find such a noticeable difference.

Once my order arrived I checked out my burger and fries. The burger was pretty good – nicely cooked and not as rich as it might have been as the bacon and cheese were not overwhelming but just complemented the beef. The fries on the other hand were sad. Very sad. No potato taste at all. They were pretty crispy but that’s about all I can say for them.

I’m not sure I would go back, but there’s a chance I might. I’m kind of a sucker for local places. Next time I might just stick with a beer and something from the Happy Hour menu, however.

Union Bay Cafe & Dog Salmon Bar
11801 E State Route 106
Union, WA 98592

Hood Canal: Union Country Store

22-Aug-2006

While wandering the shores of Hood Canal last week, I came across the Union Country Store in Union right where the Hood Canal makes its "Big Bend". I remembered reading something about this store several years ago so I decided to check it out.

Inside is a bit of an odd conglomeration of things: grocery items, of course; scented candles; a huge stack of old LPs; a great wine and cheese selection; homemade dips and take out meals; and a deli counter/coffee bar/ice cream case. There were other things, too, but that will give you an idea. When I walked in the place smelled of baked goods fresh from the oven! Upon further inspection I found trays of brownies, blueberry muffins and cinnamon rolls sitting near the cash register/deli counter. I chose a cinnamon roll and asked for a cup of tea.

Out on the front porch are a couple of chairs (and a hammock!) with a view across the highway of the canal and Union’s other main establishment, the Union Bay Cafe, which really isn’t a cafe but a country tavern. There was quite a lot of noise that morning as the roof was being repaired and extended but it was kind of good noise – workers yelling back and forth, some hammering and sawing. I took a seat while workmen scurried around me as they went about their work.

The cinnamon roll was heavenly! Not too big (I hate the monsters you find in so many shops), the dough was light yet had the density that makes a good roll, the warm cinnamon fragrance and taste enveloped me and the frosting was sweet but not overwhelming. It wasn’t fancy-schmancy, just a good, simple pastry made with care. I was very happy. In talking with the proprietor after I was done, he told me that he’d been working on his recipe for a couple years and was now pretty happy with it.

I came back the next day for another one. Now this is a small store and area, so the roll I had on day 2 was one made on day 1. But even being "day old" it was good!

As I was leaving Hood Canal to make my way home I made one last stop at the store.

I had been eying their line of housemade dips and spreads but didn’t want to purchase them until I’d be able to get it home and into good refrigeration fairly quickly. I was a little disappointed as I’d seen one earlier that was some sort of Parmesan combination but it wasn’t available at the time I was ready to purchase. Instead I picked up a pint of the Garlic-Clam dip.

I opened it a day or two after I got home and was transported back to my college days! Well, not exactly as this was a dip of a different color from the old dip in a plastic tub that we used to get! But still that great feeling of sitting around with friends with a bag of Ruffles and a tub of dip came rushing back. This clam dip, however, is made with a beautiful fresh sour cream, a nice amount of garlic (you can taste it but it’s not overwhelming) and big pieces of fresh clams.

I ended up eating mine with Wheat Thins but I really wished I’d had some good salty chips in the house! Well, I still have plenty left and so I’ll have the opportunity to try that combination out… The day I purchased, they also had lots of an Artichoke and Crab dip in the case. It sounded really good but I make that on my own so often that I decided to try the Garlic-Clam and I’m really glad that I did.

I did not try any of their sandwiches or ice-cream but those are two things I believe they are well-known for.

I had hoped to talk to the proprietor again on my last visit but he wasn’t in that day. I’m not sure if they are open through the winter months – many businesses in this area reduce hours or close after the summer tourist season. But if you are in the area and need a little lunch or treat, stop in and check it out!

Also, it turns out that the article I had in mind talked about a previous owner but it looks as if this one is carrying on a tradition of crafted food in a country setting.

Union Country Store

5130 E State Route 106

Union, WA

Duck with Cherry Chutney on Crostini

21-Aug-2006

My food contribution for the Deerfield Ranch Wine Pairing Dinner was to be paired with a Pinot Noir. I love Pinot for many reasons, one of which is that it’s such a versatile wine and will go with many foods. Although it is red, it is refined enough to often pair with dishes where you might feel white was appropriate. But where I really like it is with those foods that are sort of "cross-over" foods. For instance, I love Pinot Noir with salmon. Yes, salmon is a fish and people tend to think of white wine with fish, but salmon is a fish with a presence and often a pink fish which makes it a perfect candidate to pair with Pinot.

So my first inclination was to do something with salmon – maybe something like Salmon Three Ways, in which I could showcase a broiled or grilled piece, smoked salmon and maybe a mousse. But then I started thinking that I wanted to do something that I hadn’t done before. And, what was nice about this dinner, is that we were assigned our wines with plenty of time to think, plan and experiment. So I started thinking.

Pinot Noirs run the gamut from very light-bodied wines to much bigger versions. Although I hadn’t had Deerfield Ranch’s version before and could only find it by special order at my wine shop, I just knew it would be one of the bigger wines. And that would probably mean some good cherry flavors in the wine. So cherry became my focus. I happen to love cherry with duck and have had several dishes that combine those two elements, although I had never made anything myself. So I set out to explore what I might find.

I came across this recipe from John Sarich. I’ve used John’s recipes before (and even been lucky enough to take a couple classes from him) and have always found them to be tasty and, maybe more importantly, to actually work as expected.

I wanted to do a recipe check prior to the dinner so I set off in search of smoked duck. I really would have liked to make my own but since I don’t have a smoker that wasn’t going to be possible! My first stops were two meat markets in Pike Place Market. Neither shop had smoked duck but the guy at Don and Joe’s recommended Uwajimaya, which was also on my list of places to check out. At Uwajimaya, the woman at the meat counter directed me to the only offering they had, a frozen duck half from Maple Leaf Farms, the big duck producer. Although it wasn’t truly smoked it had been marinated and prepared with spices and herbs to give it a smoky flavor.

I decided to try this out and figured if it didn’t work I’d move on to my other ideas for sources but at least this would let me know if I was on the right track. This duck had great flavor with lots of thyme present in the herb mix. I made a little reasonable facsimile of my idea for my final recipe, opened a bolder Oregon Pinot Noir I had on hand and tested. I was happy with the results!

I checked out a couple other places to see if I might be able to find another option for the duck, just in case. I didn’t go door to door in the International District and that might have turned up something else, but I did find another option at my local Central Market. I’ve forgotten the producer’s name but they carry a line of duck breast products, one of which was a smoky, bacon flavored version. Again, this is a line of frozen products. This duck breast was really good but I felt the bacon flavor was a bit too strong for what I had in mind. So I opted to go with the Maple Leaf product which affected my recipe modifications.

My main concern with John’s recipe was that the cherry wouldn’t really be evident enough as the chtuney was actually a cranberry base with cherry incorporated and there wasn’t much cherry in the meat mixture itself. So that was where my primary modifications were made. Since the meat was heavily flavored with thyme I also modified the herbs to use that as the primary flavor – as a bonus thyme and Pinot Noir are also great together.

I was really happy with the final result. Not only was the stand-alone dish very tasty but the pairing of cherry and duck with the wine was really good! The cherry flavors in both were in perfect harmony! The one thing I would modify a bit more is the chutney. Even though I reduced the cranberry aspect and flavor I would have liked it to be even more cherry-ish. I have some ideas around that and next time will give them a try. The other thing that is great about this recipe is that the three elements – duck, chutney and crostini – can all be prepared ahead of time and then assembled just before serving.

Now, I’m going to try to remember exactly what I did this time….

Smoked Duck with Cherry Chutney on Crostini

2 Maple Leaf Farms duck halves, cooked
1/2 large red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dried cherries, finely chopped – use tart cherries, like a pie cherry, you don’t want them too sweet or they will clash with the wine.

4 tbls. olive oil
2 tbls. Dijon mustard
Balsamic vinegar
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Salt, if needed
Splash of orange juice

One long baguette

Remove the skin from the duck and pull the meat from the bones using your fingers. You want long, thin shreds of meat. Then pile the meat with the shreds all in one direction and chop into thirds – you don’t want the pieces too long or they will be hard to arrange on the crostini. You’ll probably need to do this in several batches.

Toss the duck meat, red onion, garlic and dried cherries until all ingredients are thoroughly combined.

In a small bowl mix the mustard, olive oil, orange juice and balsamic. I’m not sure how much balsamic I used – I just kept adding it until I had a thick dressing and the taste was mostly balsamic with a mustard element. You may need to adjust the total amount of dressing based on how much meat you end up with. When you toss the dressing with the meat mixture you want it to be very moist but not dripping wet.

To make the crostini, slice the baguette into 3/8" slices. Brush one side with olive oil and broil until lightly golden.

Cherry Chutney

1/2 cup whole canned cranberries

1 cup dried tart cherries, chopped into medium size pieces

1/4 large red onion, finely chopped

2 Tbsp Kirsch (Cherry Brandy)

Splash of orange juice

1 tsp Dijon mustard

Gently mix all ingredients. You want the mixture to be loose but not runny. Adjust the ingredients as needed to get the texture correct.

To Serve

Mound a generous portion of the duck on the broiled side of the crostini. Top with a dollop of chutney.

This recipe makes 30 – 35 pieces.

Cherry Pumpernickel Bread

20-Aug-2006

From Tall Grass Bakery in Ballard and also available at many of the neighborhood Farmers’ Markets. Sweet and dense with great caraway flavors! Really good with a schmeer of Cambozola…

Jelly Roll

20-Aug-2006

Growing up I learned to make pie from my Mom. It seems like there was always pie around the house – apple, all sorts of berry, rhubarb, cherry, lemon meringue – you name it and we probably had it at some point. Each time we made pie there would be trimmings left from the crust. Never one to waste a thing, my Mom would then take these trimmings, carefully re-roll them (not too much or the crust would get tough…) and then we’d make some sort of little jelly roll or a crispy piece of cinnamon and sugar crust.

Each time I make pie I follow this same little ritual. It’s the thing that tides me over until the real pie can be sliced, as pie right out of the oven needs to cool a bit to let the juices gel, but little jelly rolls can be eaten almost immediately!

When I made my apple pie on Friday, I guess because it had been some time since I’d made one, this memory came flooding back to me. And as I made my little peach jelly roll, I thought of my Mom and hoped she was enjoying watching me make it and was happy that I remembered this little treat she always made.

Moussaka and More

20-Aug-2006

I pretty much had a perfect weekend. I got enough done to feel industrious but actually spent much of the weekend doing fun things with friends. I started out the weekend doing a bunch of little errands but that involved stopping by my U-District Farmers’ Market, which is much more pleasure than "task". The produce is starting to change to fruits and vegetables I associate more with fall than with summer. The chiles and peppers were running rampant as were eggplants. I love eggplant and picked up several varieties, colors and shapes.

Saturday by late afternoon I was back at DW and MGs for a garden party and more Deerfield Ranch and Grochau Cellars wines. In theory the party ended at 7:00 but I was a very bad guest and finally dragged myself out the door about 10:00! This morning I was up early for breakfast over at M’s house. Her mom is in town for a few days (I just love her!) and the woman who owns the Harmon Brewery, a family friend, was also at her house for the weekend. We had a lovely breakfast, watched part of the Danskin Triathlon as the participants ran by just down the hill from our location, and then decided to meander over to Fremont for the Sunday Market.

After spending a couple hours wandering and looking at stuff I made my way back home got a few things done and then made one of my favorite meals, Greek Moussaka. Years ago I started using this recipe from Tyler Florence and it’s still the base of what I do, although I tend to make little variations based on what I’m feeling like and what’s on hand. For instance today I added: an Anaheim chile from my garden; a little anchovy paste to add a bit of complexity; substituted Chevre for the feta and dry breadcrumbs for fresh. There may have been more but those are the major changes.

It’s such a hearty yet healthy tasting/feeling dish! And the there are so many layers to the flavors that I never tire of it. This is a great recipe and you should try it. The photos don’t do the dish justice so you’ll just have to believe me!

Now I’m finishing up a few more loose-ends and getting ready to hit the ground running on Monday morning. It was a weekend well done!

Apple Pie ala Mode

19-Aug-2006

Apples from my tree and homemade vanilla ice cream.

I should make more pies but when I make them I eat them. Two pieces yesterday. One for breakfast today. Still over 1/2 a pie to go… Now I remember why I don’t make them too often.

Deerfield Ranch Wines, Dinner and Pairings

17-Aug-2006

Last Saturday night I attended and participated in one of the most fun dinners ever! A couple of months ago, my friends DW and MG contacted me to ask if I’d like to join them and a few others in a wine-pairing dinner. They are very tied in with a California vintner, Deerfield Ranch Winery. Their idea was to select eight wines from Deerfield Ranch, assign a wine and a dinner course to each person attending the dinner and then it was each person’s responsibility to come up with something to pair with their assigned wine. Well, as you might guess this whole idea appealed to me!

And, I have to say the people/wine/pairings were done with great skill, I thought. DW and MG did a great job at looking at people’s interests, talents and experiences to match up who got what and when. I think that had a lot to do with the success of the party.

We started the dinner early – as you can imagine it takes a little time to relax and enjoy eight dinner courses. Saturday was beautiful here in Seattle! At 5:30, our start time, the temperature was in the low 70s and DW and MG’s yard was shaded. Their yard is always beautiful and welcoming, and for this night they’d set up a dining area outside, complete with dining canopy and graceful tied back panels. But I’m ahead of myself…

Upon entering their home and specifically the dining room, we were greeted with the array of wines, glasses and the night’s wine menu. They were artfully arranged on the dining room table – but that only gave a hint of what was to come. Outside on the deck the outdoor seating area beckoned, as did a table prepped for the appetizer course. And then, down the deck steps in the center of the yard stood the dining area, complete with appropriate linens, dinnerware and more glasses. Each place was marked with a placecard and the list of wines. The napkin rings were individual vases holding petite flower arrangements!

Each guest arrived with their offering tucked away in Tupperware or on a prep tray or already prepared on a serving platter. They found a little corner of the kitchen to tuck away the treasure until it was their turn to show what they had prepared.

Although the meal was based on Deerfield Ranch wines, several "bonus" wines were brought out throughout the evening. The first of these came just prior to the appetizers. MG brought out a wine made by his brother’s winery in Oregon, Grochau Cellars Sauvignon Blanc. This winery is still in its infancy but is doing some really great things – so watch for the characteristic label. While I’m not going to go into detailed notes on each wine, since this was the first of the night I can tell you it has a gorgeous grapefruit taste upfront and then finishes with a nice, clean mineral taste. I really liked it.

While we were enjoying that wine and the all-ready free-flowing conversation, JJ brought out the appetizer. Actually not just one appetizer but two, although they were assembled in a bright mosaic pattern that looked as if they had always been paired that way.

And for those who were ready, the "first" wine of the night was poured, the Deerfield Ranch Peterson Vineyard 2004 Sauvignon Blanc. (Note: The "counting" of the wines will be very confusing what with the "regular" wines and all the bonus bottles so don’t worry if you lose track!) This wine had quite a different character than the GC Sauvignon. It was much more subdued and softer. It actually seemed a bit like a "light" Chardonnay.

The appetizers were wonderful! One was a grilled shrimp with a great slightly spicy flavor. The other was a Gruyère Artichoke Tartlet – perfect little bite-size morsels of creamy goodness with a bit of a tang from the Gruyère. We were off to a great start.

While we were chatting, comparing the two Sauvignon Blancs and nibbling our way through the appetizers,

MG snuck off to assemble course number two. There was a little blender noise, a little slicing and the sound of another cork being pulled from a bottle. Then we were all called to move to the table for the next course.

The wine for this pairing was the Deerfield Ranch Château Labbé Vineyard 2002 Chardonnay. It was so buttery that we almost didn’t need the sauces for this course – freshly cooked and cracked Dungeness crab – almost. The crab was served with a spicy cocktail sauce made with (my favorite!) lots of horseradish; a wonderfully tasty and fragrant tarragon butter – which was probably the table favorite; and ghee. We did our best to make a dent in the heaping platter of crab – believe me freshly cooked Dungeness can’t be beat – but we were also mindful that we still had two courses left before the entrée and more after that!

I was up next with the third course. My assigned wine was the 2002 Jemrose Vineyard Pinot Noir.

I love Pinot Noir. Love it. My first inclination was to do something with salmon but I do that all of the time. Instead I put on my thinking cap and cherry popped into my head, since Pinot often has a cherry element. What do I like with cherries? How about duck? After a bit of research a plan was pulled together! Smoked Duck with Cherry Chutney on Crostini. (In another post I’ll tell you more about this recipe including the elements I based it on.)

While the folks were finishing up "just one more bite" of crab I headed for the kitchen to do my assembly. I chose to do individual servings of three crostini each and then decorated each plate with a couple of fresh cherries from the morning’s Farmers’ Market run. The cherry in the appetizer echoed the cherry tastes in the wine – or vice versa. I was very happy with the pairing. Although, by this point, probably two crostini per person would have been enough – although nearly everyone managed to consume all three pieces!

Are you stuffed yet? Amazingly we were doing a great job of pacing ourselves and although we were now prepared to start our fourth course, I think everyone was doing okay. Our fourth course was also the signal that another bonus bottle of wine would be shared!

LE who was assigned this course is a big Syrah fan and he just happened to get the Syrah pairing – interesting how that worked out… So, in addition to the Deerfield Ranch 2001 Ladi’s Vineyard Syrah that was on our night’s menu, he brought along a Washington wine for comparison, the 2002 Cayuse Vineyards Coccinelle Vineyard Walla Walla Valley Syrah. (Try saying that a few times!). The Cayuse was a big, hearty Syrah, that had been decanted for a couple of hours by this point and still benefited from air in the glass to help it completely open. The Deerfield Ranch was no wallflower either and both went well with what appeared to be an "interesting" accompanying dish that was a perfect flavor pairing with these Syrahs.

LE’s food offering was a version of Vietnamese Bahn Mi. He’d made spicy little pork meatballs, a red chili sauce and pickled carrots. We were offered tiny little poorboy rolls to assemble our own sandwiches with the already mentioned elements and fresh cilantro. These slightly spicy flavors met and mingled with the black pepper elements in the Syrahs for a very happy marriage.

At this point there was a little break in the eating action while the grilling, baking and sautéing needed to finish the entrée was taken care of. We all got a chance to move around a bit before settling back at the table for the next few rounds. It was just what we all needed before continuing on.

TJ and C had the entrée course which consisted of three elements. As a side note TJ and C are actually part owners of Deerfield Ranch and were able to fill in lots of interesting detail about the winery and it’s history throughout the dinner.

But back to the entree… While TJ handled the grill, C had kitchen duty. On the grill he had thick-cut, rosemary encrusted lamp chops. Oh, my! Heavenly fragrances drifted from that grill. In the kitchen, C was warming beautifully molded (as in formed not "moldy"!) polenta made with lots of milk, butter, Gorgonzola and Parmesan cheeses and she was also sautéing Haricots Vertes with tarragon.

Once on the plate the tastes, colors and textures of these elements all came together in a tasty ensemble and one that paired perfectly with our wines. Yes, I said wines as we had another bonus bottle for this course. This time though, instead of being from another winery it was another vintage. Our scheduled wine was the Deerfield Ranch 2000 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon. Our bonus was was the 2001 North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon. I was never quite clear on which glass held which wine but I can tell you that I enjoyed them both! And the strong flavors of the rosemary and lamb were great with the Cabernets. We spent a nice leisurely time on this course and with the wines.

TS had been assigned the cheese course to accompany the next wine, Deerfield Ranch 2001 Roumiguiere Vineyard Sangiovese.

He’d actually done all of his preparation and even setup ahead of time, allowing the cheese to sit at room temperature for a while prior to serving. Since Sangiovese is an Italian grape he chose mostly Italian cheeses to go with their Italian cousin. On the platter was Fulvi Pecorino Romano, a sheep’s milk cheese; Vacche Rosse Parmigiano Reggiano, a raw milk cheese that comes from the Red Cow breed that almost became extinct but was granted protection in the 1980s – after tasting this cheese, we’re certainly glad that happened; an aged Asagio; and to round out the offering an Appenzeller Swiss.

As I was nibbling on this cheese and sipping the Sangiovese, it occurred to me that any one of the courses and their wines would have provided a completely satisfying experience. I would have been happy just sipping Sangiovese and breaking off bits of cheese and sprinkling in bits of conversation along the way. And that could have been true of any of the courses we’d had throughout the evening. But lucky us – we got the whole series of experiences! And we weren’t done yet.

It was now somewhere around 10:00 pm; time to move inside to keep the neighbors happy, to warm up a bit and to enjoy dessert. It was DWs turn to provide this final course.

And for his wine there was 1997 Sonoma Mountain Late Harvest Gold, made with Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling grapes. Earlier in the evening I’d had a conversation with a couple other guests about our preference or lack there-of for dessert wines. So many of them are rather sickeningly sweet. But this wine deserves its name – it is pure, liquid gold, full of a rich, honey flavored essence that satisfies your sweet tooth but knows how to move on without superfluous lingering.

To pair with this golden treasure DW concocted a mixed berry crisp full of summer sunshine. He used blueberries, blackberries and raspberries, just lightly sweetened, topped with a crunchy layer and finished off with whip cream and more berries. It was the perfect ending to this many-coursed meal. A hint of sweetness, flavorful but light. Ahhhhh…

And just when you thought we were done – one more bonus wine made its way to the table. Deerfield Ranch Zinfandel. We sat around the table sipping our last little sips. Although at this point we’d been eating and drinking for five and a half hours, I think we were all a little hesitant to go for then the spell of this wonderful evening would be broken.

Eventually we had to move away from the table, pack up our various containers, leftovers and whatever else, and each make our way (along with bottles of water from our hosts!) back to our respective homes. As I mentioned at the start, this was really one of the most fun dinners I have ever been party to – I am so happy to have been included!

More Photos

Blueberry Ice Cream

14-Aug-2006

Same recipe as for the Strawberry Ice Cream. Well, except, you know – use blueberries…

22nd Dinner Club: Indian Summary

13-Aug-2006

As mentioned in the recipes post this was our first repeat theme dinner but it did not even resemble our first Indian dinner. Well, that’s not 100% true; we had naan at both dinners and the dessert was Kheer but the type of kheer was much different.

I had responsibility for the cocktails and appetizer. Finding authentic Indian Cocktails is a bit of a challenge as alcohol has not been a huge element in Indian lifestyle and, in fact, is not consumed by many Indians due to a variety of societal reasons. Beer is rather common and during British rule cocktails definitely had their place but still these were Western cocktails served in an Eastern setting, not concoctions native to India. So after a bit of research I settled on an Indian-influenced cocktail, the Diwan-e-Khas. It turned out I couldn’t find one ingredient, Khus, but the recipe only called for a trace amount so I don’t think it affected the final cocktail too much. This cocktail was really refreshing, a bit fruity and it packs a big old punch! It’s deceptive with all the fruit tastes – try it but be careful!

I was not as happy with the mini-naan I made. First, the recipe was off and I had to bake them way longer than indicated. And by the time they were golden they were also too dry. I think where the recipe was off was with the oven temperature. I liked the idea of these and would try them again but would bake them at 425ºF or maybe even 450ºF. With the chutney, even though they were on the dry side, they were good. The chutney was a locally produced Indian-style Mango Chutney. It was very good.

After enjoying our cocktails M2 put the lamp "popsicles" in the oven to broil. It seems everyone (but me!) has been to Vij’s and all who have been there rave about the lamb popsicles. And now I know why! Lamb is already one of my favorites but top it with the Curry Cream and it is raised to a whole new level. The best part was that M2 had made so many we each got to take some home. I ate mine for breakfast the next day!

Along with the lamb we had a fresh cucumber salad made by R. The cooling yogurt, cilantro and cucumbers were the perfect foil to all of the spices in the other dishes. K’s contribution was Aloo Gobi a yummy cauliflower and potato dish. At first blush the combination of those two items doesn’t jump out at me but after trying this dish I’m sold! The ginger, cumin, mustard, cilantro and other spices elevated this dish to a wonderful taste sensation.

We ended the meal with Kheer. At our last Indian dinner we also had Kheer but it was made with vermicelli noodles. Let’s just say no one has chosen to make it again…. This version was made with rice and was fragrant with raisins and almonds. M did make several adjustments to the recipe, however, and they are noted in the recipe. It was a very yummy ending to another great meal!