Out and In

After Thanksgiving, Aunt Jeannie told me not to entertain anymore. She said to take it easy.
Just relax. I nodded, complied, but knew perfectly well that there would be many more guests before March rolled around. 

Last weekend, I did take Jeannie's suggestion though. Instead of staying in, we went out for sixteen dollar hamburgers, specialty drafts, and the company of our friends, Bill and Meghan. The hot spot was Vie, which besides coming over to our house, is the reason you should make the trip to the Western Suburbs for dinner. It's a Michelin rated gem with an impressive seasonal menu, excellent wine list, and a preservationist's dream walk-in. They also offer a whole hog butchering class, which was the highlight of our summer a couple years ago.

However, amongst the smartly casual crowd, I became (at least in my mind) the thing that didn't belong. Party due to my frugality and partly due to the way I've been carrying this baby, I've resorted to stretch ware's finest, which is just what I wore out last Friday night. I quietly hoped that the sassy suburbanites would focus on my new Frye boots instead of the Lycra-wrapped upper quartiles of my body. But I could sense the spandex haters all around me. Or maybe it was just me, hating myself in spandex. Regardless, the food was great, the company better, and the lack of dishes to wash, much appreciated.

This weekend though, I decided to return to my comfort zone and invited the party to come to us. That is, two of my cousins, two of their friends, and the showpiece of the evening, Ellen's new beau. (Uncle Mike, not a jagoff. Two thumbs up from us.) To fend off the frigid temperatures, there were platters of bruschetta served fireside, followed by Thomas Keller's filling and seemingly mile-high quiche, a roasted beet salad, and freshly baked biscotti for dessert.   

About midway through dinner, I once again confirmed the benefits of staying in. It's cheaper. And in many cases, better. Everyone seems a little more comfortable - so comfortable in fact, that picking at the crust of the quiche before its served is A-okay. There is full transparency about what's happening in the kitchen and the guests always seem to eager to participate. You don't have to weight for the server to fill up your pint glass. Stretch pants are totally acceptable. And when dinner is over, there's no road trip separating you from your warm bed.  

There is also something infinitely rewarding about preparing dinner and serving it to a group of young people who have dedicated the early part of their careers to making a positive difference in the world. Whether it's through clean energy, social work, environmentalism, educating some of the most vulnerable children in the country, or tackling the big issues through prose, Peter and I were in the company of some Millennial change-makers last night, privy to some incredible insider information that added human faces to the problems plaguing our nation. To send this optimistic, hard working crowd off into the 3 degree Chicago tundra, warm, full and happy, was awesome.   

So yes, Aunt Jeannie, there are hours here and there set aside for lying down, relaxing with my pregnant belly blocking the lower half of my book nowadays. But the hours leading up to dinner will always remain full, because they continue to bring so much life to my life.

Lo.

Thomas Keller's Over the Top Mushroom Quiche
Adapted from Food and Wine 

Buttery Pastry Shell
 
Ingredients: 
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small container oyster mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 big container white mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon unsalted butter 
2 small shallots, minced 
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped 
1 cup shredded Emmental cheese
1 1/2 cups milk 
1 1/2 cups heavy cream 
5 large eggs, lightly beaten
Freshly grated nutmeg
Salt, pepper

Directions:
Prepare the crust. This can always be a challenge, and stepping up to the heights of a spring form pan to create Keller's crust can be very challenging. Here are some tips:

• Make sure you chill the dough enough before rolling it out and right before you put it in the oven. 
• Roll out the dough enough that you have excess hanging over the side of the pan and press the top firmly around the edges. It seems inevitable that the crust will collapse inward, so being prepared in this vain will help. 
• If you are aiming for Keller's perfection, save some excess pie dough to fill in the cracks.  
• Use pie weights. 
• Bake almost the full hour that it calls for before adding your custard mixture and the rest of the ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 325 F. In a large skillet, heat oil. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook over medium high heat until they start to soften, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, and add the butter, shallots and thyme and cook about 12 minutes longer, stirring often. Season with salt and pepper and let cool. (There will be a lot of liquid from the mushrooms. You will want to drain most of this before adding the mushrooms to the quiche.)

Scatter 1/2 cup of the cheese and half of the mushrooms evenly over the bottom of the pastry shell. In a large bowl, mix together the custard: eggs, milk, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Pour half of the mixture over the cheese and mushrooms. Top with another 1/4 cup of cheese and the remaining mushrooms. Then add the rest of the custard. Finally, scatter the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese on top.

Now, there is a reason this is called an 'over the top' quiche. Sure, it's 'over the top' in that it's a higher, fluffier, quite impressive quiche. But it's also 'over the top' in that the egg mixture quite literally went over the top of the (and under) the pan for me. That is why I reduced the custard proportions a bit. I don't like wasting eggs in this house. Depending on how well you did with your crust, look out for the lowest lying crack, and try to fill the shell past that point.

Bake the quiche for more than 1 1/2 hours. I say more than, because at 90 minutes, it wasn't quite set yet. I needed an additional 15. It should be richly browned on top and barely set in the center. Let it cool in the pan until still very warm, but set. Pop out the bottom of the springform pan and serve in wedges.

Craving-Beating Biscotti
(Barely) adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Directions:
Preheat to 350F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. Mix sugar, melted butter, eggs, almond extract, orange juice and zest in large bowl. Add flour mixture to egg mixture and stir with wooden spoon until well blended. Mix in almonds.

Divide dough in half and shape each half into logs on the prepared baking sheet. Depending on how long you want your biscotti, vary the width of the log. (You will be cutting them on the horizontal.) Brush egg log all around with prepared egg white.

Bake logs until golden brown about 30 minutes. Cool logs completely on sheet, about 25 minutes, but maintain oven temperature.

Using a serrated knife, cut logs horizontally into slices. Again, based on preference, cut them thinner or thicker. We prefer a 3/4 inch slice. Arrange slices, cut side down, on baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes, turning the slices over about midway through the bake. In the last five minutes, watch carefully, because they turn color quickly. Transfer to rack and cool.

A Table for Fourteen

Peter is on a twelve hour (yes, twelve hour) fishing excursion led by Captain / Pirate Tim. The crew is about six hours in and word came back to the house via text that it's been a prolific morning. They've been reeling the big ones in. Wahoo after Wahoo. Ahi after Ahi. And as I look out over the cove, waiting for the salty sailors to return home with their prized catches, I'm thinking fish tacos with a jerk cabbage slaw. But also an Island Fish Stew. Crusty bread. Perhaps both. Definitely some rice and beans. There are fourteen people to feed after all.

One of my favorite parts of any vacation are the meals. They are actually the only activity that seems to keep you on some sort of schedule. After the sun sets and your first margarita yields its last sweet sip, your stomach bellows a slight growl, and you know it's the best time of the day. That time right before dinner where you scrape off the sand that is stuck between your toes, shower, change, shake up another cocktail and begin to salivate over the specialties of the house and the courses to come.

Here, in Tortola though, the restaurants, a boat ride away, are better during the day, when you don't care if you and your dollars get wet on the swim in. So the appetizers, soups, plates, and desserts of the day are made in our own house - our own creations, made in a kitchen that fits fourteen cooks, and served at a table that seats fourteen famished friends. Oysters on the half shell. Homemade tortilla chips and guacamole. Smoked duck empanadas. Tabbouleh. Carnivorous Quiche. The Fresh Catch of the Day. Our portfolio continues to expand.

A couple nights ago, with the New Year's celebrations checked off the list, I was presented with the opportunity to play the role of house chef - a role that I embraced with vigor, especially with a support crew that seemed equally as anxious. 

The first night's performance was underwhelming, a warm up run per se to see if it was possible to serve a table of fourteen when I was so used to cooking for two. There was no grocery store run, so with what was in the house, I made homemade roasted tomato sauce over fettuccine topped with Parmesano Reggiano, green beans, and a chopped salad. Simple and appreciated.

Last night, I put some thought into it though. Along with the crowd, I had the challenge of accommodating gluten intolerance, vegetarianism, and my carnivorous husband. So I decided to make a variety of quiche - vegetarian, carnivorous, smoked salmon, and crustless. We got back from a day at Cooper's Island at 6:30 PM and with the help of the most amazing assembly of line cooks I have ever had led by sous chef, Peter, dinner was on the table at 8:30 PM. And stomachs were fully stuffed by 9:30 PM. A little more elaborate. A little more loved.

Almost seven hours in, and I'm assuming that the haul is growing and that fish will be on the menu tomorrow evening as well. Tonight will be the piece de resistance. I can already taste it. By the growl of my stomach, I can tell it's just about lunch time, but removing myself from the view could be hard right now. 

Lo. 

Tortola Quiche Night Recipes:
Crust:
2 cups flour
Pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons Crisco
7-10 tablespoons ice water (I didn't have to use as much because I was working in a very humid climate and the dough formed much quicker than I had expected.)

Filling Base
12 eggs
2 cups cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Whisk together and set aside.

For Vegetarian
1 Cup chopped mushrooms, sauteed for about five minutes in olive oil, juice drained
1 Cup spinach, steamed, pressed of all water, and chopped
Goat cheese

For Caniverous
8 slices of bacon, pan fried, drained of fat, and chopped
6 ounces of Chorizo, chopped
6 ounces cheddar cheese shredded
6 ounces Gruyere cheese shredded

For Smoked salmon
1 teaspoon chopped dill
1 cup spinach, steamed, pressed of all water, and chopped
One package of smoked salmon, chopped
6 ounces Gruyere cheese, shredded

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Add butter and Crisco and with a pastry blender or two knives, cut until the dough looks like small crumbs. Add water tablespoon by tablespoon and mix with your hands until it just comes together to form a ball. Ideally, you would then refrigerate the dough for at least two hours, but I had a hungry crowd, so I went straight into rolling it out and inserting it into the greased pans. I didn't have quiche or pie pans, so I used rectangular roasting pans, which did the trick. (This recipe made dough for 3 quiches, but I like my dough thinner.)

Line the inside of the crust with aluminum foil and weigh it down with pie weights or dried beans. I used forks actually because we didn't have the other two options. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until just golden.

Remove from oven and let cool about ten minutes. Line with filling of choice, then egg mixture, then cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes or until golden brown on top and set.

Remove from oven and let it stand for about five minutes. Serve. Last night I served it with a fruit salad tossed with mint and lemon juice, tabbouleh, and Ciabatta.