French Fridays with Dorie: Brown-Sugar Squash and Brussels Sprouts en Papillote.

OVEN-READY SQUASH AND SPROUTS EN PAPILLOTE

While working on my end-of-last-year business paperwork I was dreaming about what might go well with Dorie’s brown-sugar squash and Brussels sprouts en papillote.  I’ve been so busy I’ve not cooked dinner for the past two days; leftovers have reached their limit.  The foil packets of vegetables will not stand on their own, but they would be a tasty side for to an outdoor meal.

I decided to cook them the campfire way.  When our kids were younger they used to enjoy “tin foil dinners” where we made a variety of tasty meals such as chicken and veges all wrapped up in foil to be cooked in the hot coals from a nice fire.  Well, I did not build the fire, but I did turn on the outdoor grill, put on my vege packets along with some steaks, and voila, dinner was done.

While snipping my sage I noticed that our past several days of rain had done wonders for my lettuce patch, so I picked some of that too.  Instead of making a fancy salad, I chose to let Dorie’s veges be the star and the lettuce could be just lettuce this time.  And being freshly picked it was sweet and juicy and crisp; any accompaniment would have been a distraction.

With hot homemade bread and freshly  made strawberry jam ( I paid $8 for enough strawberries to make 32 cups of jam and right now the berries are sweet and beautiful) we had a great meal and I had a pleasurable distraction.  After an afternoon of cooking I’m recharged to get back to work in the morning and will endure another no dinner day.  (I made extra vege packets for tomorrow...with all the snacking during work we’ll have something to grab that’s healthy.)

DORIE'S VEGE COMBO MADE A YUMMY SIDE FOR OUR DINNER

(One of my comfort foods is the foam that gets  skimmed  of the top of  finished jam just before it gets jarred.  Must be something from my childhood  memories when my mom gave me my own bowl of foam...no one else wanted it.  How could they not love that sweet, airy, fruity foam?  It’s what prompted today’s bread...that’s what you see in the photo and that’s why this spread is not bright red strawberry jam.)

Comments:
Hubby–I usually don’t honestly enjoy  Brussels sprouts, but with the apple and the seasonings, this arrangement is outstanding!  And I really love the squash.  I”ll be happy to have another one tomorrow.

No. 2 Son–upon opening the packet–Ahhh.  This smells like soap from those new soap shops where they use farm grown herbs and spices to scent their bathroom products.  It does smell really good.  (I didn’t know if I liked that comment, but it was meant to be complimentary.)

It was a lovely idea to let my eaters open their foil packages.  That initial whif from the steamy veges  enveloped by the aroma of fresh sage was really nice!

Hope you all enjoyed this simple project as much as we did!  Now that we’ve all had our veges we can enjoy guiltless Superbowl  junkfood.

French Friday with Dorie: Asparagus and bits of bacon

THIS ASPARAGUS DISH IS FABULOUS!

A simple post for a simple dish. 

After trimming off the tough ends, I steamed the asparagus just long enough that it began to soften.  While steaming the asparagus, I microwaved a pound of bacon by layering the strips between paper towels which makes this task easy and mess free.  This process takes about 13 minutes to get crispy bacon.  (Not all the bacon was used, but my men loved munching on the leftovers.)

The asparagus was drained and placed in a saute pan with about 2 Tablespoons bacon fat and a finely chopped 1/2 small onion.  Salt and pepper are the simple seasonings used.  After warming these ingredients for about 2 minutes, they were removed to a serving platter, topped with chopped crispy bacon, and drizzled with freshly squeezed lemon juice.

I had 5 tasters for this vegetable dish and all agreed that it was delicious and everyone had seconds.  This asparagus with bits of crispy bacon would make a lovely side for a special Easter dinner.

HONEY KNOWS HOW TO GET BEAUTIFUL

Honey slipped away and found my mascara.  She knows she is beautiful and wanted to show off her new look.

Happy Easter and Passover to everyone!  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

French Friday with Dorie: Broth Braised Potatoes

QUICK AND SIMPLE BRAISED POTATOES WITH SO MUCH GREAT FLAVOR

Who doesn't love potatoes in all their varieties and with so many recipes to choose from, but...the usual problem with potatoes at our house is that they get loaded with fats from many sources.  We love them fried, mashed and loaded with cream cheese and butter, in gratins and twice baked, with cheeses, swimming in gravies and sauces, in funeral potatoes and casseroles,  in soup, in spudnuts and breads...and the list goes on.  And all loaded with oils and fats of every kind.

THESE POTATOES WERE GREAT THE NEXT MORNING FOR BREAKFAST--EVERYTHING ON THE PLATE IS HOMEMADE--MAKES ME FEEL GOOD

Except for a very little olive oil, these potatoes are fat free.  Amazing.  And they taste good.  They are full of flavor from fresh herbs, lemon zest, garlic and other seasonings.

AND THEY FRIED UP NICELY WITHOUT EXTRA FAT---MAKES HUBBY HAPPY!

And, especially over the next month or so I'll be very thankful for simple, quick recipes because it is tax time for our business.  Today I did last quarters taxes (which were unusually horrible...I lost 50 cents and had to work hard and long to find it), tomorrow is W-2s and 1099s, next week is payday, and then I really get going...everything needs to get prepared for those April 15th taxes. I'd much rather be baking goodies or cooking tasty foods.

This morning's breakfast was also tasty with these potatoes.  I'll be making them again for sure.

It will be fun to see what you all have done with your potatoes...I expect to see some very yummy meals!