In another thread, in another message, Frogleg > asked:
> Well. rfc is pretty chatty, and we all have stories of bad
> meals (and from the length of the thread so far, many
> willing to share), but why concentrate on the negative?
> "What's the worst thing you've ever eaten?" is
> thought-provoking, but what about 'good' meals? Perhaps
> not the best in the sense of perfect wine/perfect dish,
> but maybe a memory of good company, or a great potato
> salad at an otherwise unremarkable picnic, or the first
> time you tried some really good thing?

I have experienced many good meals, and been very lucky to enjoy a number of
excellent meals. Both my Sainted Mother(tm) and Father-unit were gifted
cooks that could create magical moments from seemingly limited stock via a
four-burner GE coil stove and a 14" cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven.

I've posted recipes for many of those meals over time but the most memorable
meal I've ever enjoyed was...

SWMBO[1] and I did A Date[2]. (Gran'mah and Paw-puh were pullin' down prison
duty at Castle Ranger, planning their own evening of partying, popcorn, and
movies.) We took advantage of their generous offer of hospitality by going
out to one of our favorite restaurants a mere 40 miles distant.

The evening started off like most of Real Life's® hopeful evenings: one
"disaster" after another but nothing a little patience (and two 800 mg
Motrin[3]) couldn't fix.

We arrived at the restaurant to find we had it to ourselves! [Bonus!] I'm
one of those type of patrons that enjoys a good pampering and an empty
restaurant means that the servers often hover like yellow jackets at a
picnic table. I like this. As we were seated, the staff converged (as
predicted) like we were magnetized and they were iron filings. We had bread,
water, drinks, a running conversation (not with ourselves) with the
owner/proprietor, and immediately started to relax. Ten minutes into this
spa-like setting, a trio of silver foxes arrived. They were greeted like
long-lost family and seated at the table next to us.

At first, I felt a toddler-like Jealousy coursing through my entire being
like poison. Here we had the ENTIRE restaurant (staff and floor) all to
ourselves and now we had to share. During my private grousing, the
similarity between what I was thinking and Spawn's philosophy as Center of
the Known Universe surfaced. That revelation and comparison was unpleasant
and almost enough to spoil the remaining portion of my evening. But SWMBO
saw my sulk forming -- and being a mom to multiples -- started to massage my
smarting ego.

Ibrahim, the owner, came out to tell us all about the food he was preparing
that night. Duck with port sauce, Pork Marsala, Beef Wellington, Sautéed
Salmon, and Pheasant were the specials. Stuffed Portabello, crab cakes,
creme d'asperagus soup, and a salad with walnuts [<YEESH!> A more
VILE-tasting nut there isn't! Yuck! Ick! Phooey!] were described in gory
detail. I didn't remember anything after the Pork Marsala, though, because I
tuned out. I'd made my choice and I was stickin' to it. This made
remembering what I wanted with the rest of the meal sort of difficult but
SWMBO is a more-attentive listener so she was able to (more-or-less) recite
the specials I missed. Our server came back and we placed our order for food
and wine.

During this time, I happen to glance over at the trio. The lone male looked
down quickly and turned an interesting shade of crimson. I didn't understand
the reaction because all we'd done was talk about food, the menu, the
difficulty that She was having deciding between Salmon, Beef, Pork, Duck,
Pheasant, Pasta, wine, salad, soup, appetizer, and the kids... <Ding!> The
proverbial light bulb clicked bright.

I dropped my voice and Herself nodded. She'd witnessed a similar event with
one of the women. We dropped our voices conspiratorially.

It took a few minutes to get "back in the mood" but the restaurant's
ambiance worked its magic; pretty soon we were back to joking and talking
about every topic that was verboten around the daughter-units. As we talked,
there were pauses between topics (normal for us) which seemed to get filled
by noises coming from the trio's table. Our pauses lengthened -- usually in
mid-thought... It was at one such point where I was talking about writing Da
Book[4] and heard, "...it was the largest kielbasa I'd ever seen! And it
just kept coming!" The two women of the trio were guffawing, SWMBO was
shaking with laughter, and I was burning from my ears to my toes because I
was definitely only half-listening when the punchline was delivered.

The male fox was grinning that pleased look of "Gotchya!" at our table and
asked, "Have either of you been to Poland?"

I'm sure I looked like both my daughter-units, Alpha and Beta, after I
caught them filching Oreo's that afternoon. I could feel the heat pulsing
through the neck of my Oxford white. I didn't, couldn't, answer.

"Well?" he continued good-naturedly, "Have you?"

SWMBO smiled, very sheepishly, and answered him, "No. Only Germany."

"Ah... Germany's beautiful, too, but Poland's stunningly beautiful! You
would both like it. By the way, I've been shamefully eaves-dropping on your
conversation, too. How'd you like to 'join' us, since we're obviously
wanting to hear each other's stories?"

And that's how we got caught. We closed the restaurant and a local bar
after... It was a stunningly successful date!

[1] She Who Must Be Obeyed
[2] This is becoming "regular" again -- we have a full corral of
baby-sitters just chompin' at their bits -- which means that all those
restaurants, plays, concerts, and movies that we've been meaning to see
we're now able!
[3] Better living through the US Pharmaceutical Industry!
[4] SWMBO took it amazingly well, considering her viewpoints on my sharing
family "secrets."

The Ranger
--
"I've often wondered just how much you share... 'Da Book' needs some
changing. You'll _start_ with my title."
SWMBO, 7/28/03

I will never forget a lunch I had at the Parador in Merida, Spain about ten
years ago. It's perfect simplicity contrasted beautifully with the grandeur
of the medieval castle's cloister where it was served. It consisted of
"setas" - local, black, flat mushrooms, char grilled with lashings of
excellent olive oil, garlic, lemon and pepper. And fabulous crusty bread to
mop up the copious juices. This with a bottle of excellent, crisp local
white wine and green salad. Absolute bliss.
Richard.
"The Ranger" > wrote in message
...
> In another thread, in another message, Frogleg >
asked:
> > Well. rfc is pretty chatty, and we all have stories of bad
> > meals (and from the length of the thread so far, many
> > willing to share), but why concentrate on the negative?
> > "What's the worst thing you've ever eaten?" is
> > thought-provoking, but what about 'good' meals? Perhaps
> > not the best in the sense of perfect wine/perfect dish,
> > but maybe a memory of good company, or a great potato
> > salad at an otherwise unremarkable picnic, or the first
> > time you tried some really good thing?
>
> I have experienced many good meals, and been very lucky to enjoy a number
of
> excellent meals. Both my Sainted Mother(tm) and Father-unit were gifted
> cooks that could create magical moments from seemingly limited stock via a
> four-burner GE coil stove and a 14" cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven.
>
> I've posted recipes for many of those meals over time but the most
memorable
> meal I've ever enjoyed was...
>
> SWMBO[1] and I did A Date[2]. (Gran'mah and Paw-puh were pullin' down
prison
> duty at Castle Ranger, planning their own evening of partying, popcorn,
and
> movies.) We took advantage of their generous offer of hospitality by going
> out to one of our favorite restaurants a mere 40 miles distant.
>
> The evening started off like most of Real Life's® hopeful evenings: one
> "disaster" after another but nothing a little patience (and two 800 mg
> Motrin[3]) couldn't fix.
>
> We arrived at the restaurant to find we had it to ourselves! [Bonus!] I'm
> one of those type of patrons that enjoys a good pampering and an empty
> restaurant means that the servers often hover like yellow jackets at a
> picnic table. I like this. As we were seated, the staff converged (as
> predicted) like we were magnetized and they were iron filings. We had
bread,
> water, drinks, a running conversation (not with ourselves) with the
> owner/proprietor, and immediately started to relax. Ten minutes into this
> spa-like setting, a trio of silver foxes arrived. They were greeted like
> long-lost family and seated at the table next to us.
>
> At first, I felt a toddler-like Jealousy coursing through my entire being
> like poison. Here we had the ENTIRE restaurant (staff and floor) all to
> ourselves and now we had to share. During my private grousing, the
> similarity between what I was thinking and Spawn's philosophy as Center of
> the Known Universe surfaced. That revelation and comparison was unpleasant
> and almost enough to spoil the remaining portion of my evening. But SWMBO
> saw my sulk forming -- and being a mom to multiples -- started to massage
my
> smarting ego.
>
> Ibrahim, the owner, came out to tell us all about the food he was
preparing
> that night. Duck with port sauce, Pork Marsala, Beef Wellington, Sautéed
> Salmon, and Pheasant were the specials. Stuffed Portabello, crab cakes,
> creme d'asperagus soup, and a salad with walnuts [<YEESH!> A more
> VILE-tasting nut there isn't! Yuck! Ick! Phooey!] were described in gory
> detail. I didn't remember anything after the Pork Marsala, though, because
I
> tuned out. I'd made my choice and I was stickin' to it. This made
> remembering what I wanted with the rest of the meal sort of difficult but
> SWMBO is a more-attentive listener so she was able to (more-or-less)
recite
> the specials I missed. Our server came back and we placed our order for
food
> and wine.
>
> During this time, I happen to glance over at the trio. The lone male
looked
> down quickly and turned an interesting shade of crimson. I didn't
understand
> the reaction because all we'd done was talk about food, the menu, the
> difficulty that She was having deciding between Salmon, Beef, Pork, Duck,
> Pheasant, Pasta, wine, salad, soup, appetizer, and the kids... <Ding!> The
> proverbial light bulb clicked bright.
>
> I dropped my voice and Herself nodded. She'd witnessed a similar event
with
> one of the women. We dropped our voices conspiratorially.
>
> It took a few minutes to get "back in the mood" but the restaurant's
> ambiance worked its magic; pretty soon we were back to joking and talking
> about every topic that was verboten around the daughter-units. As we
talked,
> there were pauses between topics (normal for us) which seemed to get
filled
> by noises coming from the trio's table. Our pauses lengthened -- usually
in
> mid-thought... It was at one such point where I was talking about writing
Da
> Book[4] and heard, "...it was the largest kielbasa I'd ever seen! And it
> just kept coming!" The two women of the trio were guffawing, SWMBO was
> shaking with laughter, and I was burning from my ears to my toes because I
> was definitely only half-listening when the punchline was delivered.
>
> The male fox was grinning that pleased look of "Gotchya!" at our table and
> asked, "Have either of you been to Poland?"
>
> I'm sure I looked like both my daughter-units, Alpha and Beta, after I
> caught them filching Oreo's that afternoon. I could feel the heat pulsing
> through the neck of my Oxford white. I didn't, couldn't, answer.
>
> "Well?" he continued good-naturedly, "Have you?"
>
> SWMBO smiled, very sheepishly, and answered him, "No. Only Germany."
>
> "Ah... Germany's beautiful, too, but Poland's stunningly beautiful! You
> would both like it. By the way, I've been shamefully eaves-dropping on
your
> conversation, too. How'd you like to 'join' us, since we're obviously
> wanting to hear each other's stories?"
>
> And that's how we got caught. We closed the restaurant and a local bar
> after... It was a stunningly successful date!
>
> [1] She Who Must Be Obeyed
> [2] This is becoming "regular" again -- we have a full corral of
> baby-sitters just chompin' at their bits -- which means that all those
> restaurants, plays, concerts, and movies that we've been meaning to see
> we're now able!
> [3] Better living through the US Pharmaceutical Industry!
> [4] SWMBO took it amazingly well, considering her viewpoints on my sharing
> family "secrets."
>
> The Ranger
> --
> "I've often wondered just how much you share... 'Da Book' needs some
> changing. You'll _start_ with my title."
> SWMBO, 7/28/03
>
>

>
> And that's how we got caught. We closed the restaurant and a local bar
> after... It was a stunningly successful date!
>


I'd have to say that one of the most memorable meals I have ever had was a
*real* Southern breakfast at a little restaurant near Table Rock, SC.
Friends and I had been camping for the weekend and rations had gotten thin,
so on the way back to campus we stopped and had breakfast......fluffy
scrambled eggs, crisp bacon and salty country ham, hash browns, fluffy like
Granny's biscuits, and of course grits with redeye gravy, the elixir of the
gods (here in Dixie!).
It was a combination of the friends, the wonderful meal in a cozy place,
with homemade jelly and fresh coffee on the table, and of course a budding
romance ...often an essential element in a memorable occasion....which made
it a morning I will always remember. Well, that AND the grits!
;-)

Beth Thomas > wrote in message
...
> I'd have to say that one of the most memorable meals I have ever
> had was a *real* Southern breakfast at a little restaurant near
> Table Rock, SC. Friends and I had been camping for the weekend
> and rations had gotten thin, so on the way back to campus we
> stopped and had breakfast......fluffy scrambled eggs, crisp bacon
> and salty country ham, hash browns, fluffy like Granny's
> biscuits, and of course grits with redeye gravy, the elixir of
> the gods (here in Dixie!).

Which explains y'alls soured attitudes towards the rest of the world.

> It was a combination of the friends, the wonderful meal in a
> cozy place, with homemade jelly and fresh coffee on the table,
> and of course a budding romance ...often an essential element
> in a memorable occasion....which made it a morning I will
> always remember. Well, that AND the grits! ;-)

Shoosh now or there'll be another Can O' Whoop opened up on y'all...

The Ranger

When I received a last-minute invitation to a last-minute New Year's
Eve dinner, I opted out of going to a large, probably raucous party. I
*think* the main dish was leg of lamb and white beans. A zucchini
timbale, salad, good soup, 8 people consumed 5 bottles of wine over
about 5 hours, the last being a Chteau d'Yquem with trifle made from
flash-frozen, home-grown raspberries. The dinner was a long succession
of courses served by relaxed and experienced host and hostess. The
conversation was lively, and the mix of people just about perfect. A
golden glow surrounds the memory.

Okay, here's mine. One of thousands but it's
one I made myself just recently. I had friends
over for dinner on the Sat. after Xmas. Here's
what I made.

For appetizers we had:
Spanish Romescu Dip with toasted pita triangles
(made of pureed toasted red and yellow bell peppers,
roasted garlic, basalmic vinegar, olive oil, ground
almonds, and cayenne; pita bread split and brushed
with olive oil and toasted until crisp)

Sweet Spiced Toasted Almonds
(almonds tossed with beaten egg white and cinnamon,
allspice, cloves, sugar and baked until dried)

Savory Spiced Toasted Cashews
(cashews tossed with beaten egg white and curry
powder, allspice, cayenne, cumin, garlic powder and
baked until dried)

Red Rooster cocktails
(vodka, cranberry juice cocktail, and orange juice
frozen and then frapped in a blender)

The soup course was:
Moroccan Tomato Soup with puff pastry reindeer
croutons
(I used canned crushed tomatoes, orange juice,
cinnamon, garlic, onion, grated orange peel, chicken
broth - not sure if that's all - don't have the recipe
at hand right now; I used my reindeer cookie cutter
to cut reindeer shapes out of puff pastry dough and
then brushed them with an egg wash and baked until
puffed and golden brown, floating one in each bowl.)

The main course was:
Pork Sauerbraten
(This was my first time making sauerbraten with pork
and it was awesome. I made it in my slow cooker, too,
and that was the first time for that method. Took about
5 hours and it was perfect. I had a 5-6 lb. pork butt.
I marinate for 48 hours in buttermilk and a little lemon
juice. Then rinse and cook with red wine, peppercorns,
bay leaves. A gravy is made from the cooking juices
by thickening with ground ginger snaps.)

Himmel und Erde
(A regional specialty - mashed potatoes with apples.
Just mash up a mess of potatoes and add applesauce.
I cooked McIntosh apples in the microwave until they
turned to mush and then mashed in with the potatoes
and lots of butter. About 1/4 apples to 3/4 potatoes.)

Medieval Spinach Saute
(Fresh spinach wilted in a little olive oil and seasoned
with small amounts of ground ginger and allspice and
salt and pepper)

Hungarian Fresh Cucumber Pickles
(Paper-thin slices of cucumber in a dressing of
apple cider vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and pepper -
simple but delicious)

Whole Wheat Apple Sour Dough Bread
(Homemade from scratch)

Oregon Hill Blueberry Wine
(The only disappointing thing at dinner - a little
too sweet for my taste)

Dessert was:
Tarte Tatin served with homemade cinnamon ice cream
(My first ever made with McIntosh apples and
using puff pastry. Scrumptious. The ice cream was
made from Monica Adamski's recipe from the 2002 CT
Cook-In)

Kate, who will never make beef sauerbraten again

--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

Kate Connally > wrote in news:4033C33A.7BF9A407
@pitt.edu:

> Okay, here's mine. One of thousands but it's
> one I made myself just recently. I had friends
> over for dinner on the Sat. after Xmas. Here's
> what I made.
>
> For appetizers we had:
> Spanish Romescu Dip with toasted pita triangles
> (made of pureed toasted red and yellow bell peppers,
> roasted garlic, basalmic vinegar, olive oil, ground
> almonds, and cayenne; pita bread split and brushed
> with olive oil and toasted until crisp)
>
> Sweet Spiced Toasted Almonds
> (almonds tossed with beaten egg white and cinnamon,
> allspice, cloves, sugar and baked until dried)
>
> Savory Spiced Toasted Cashews
> (cashews tossed with beaten egg white and curry
> powder, allspice, cayenne, cumin, garlic powder and
> baked until dried)
>
> Red Rooster cocktails
> (vodka, cranberry juice cocktail, and orange juice
> frozen and then frapped in a blender)
>
> The soup course was:
> Moroccan Tomato Soup with puff pastry reindeer
> croutons
> (I used canned crushed tomatoes, orange juice,
> cinnamon, garlic, onion, grated orange peel, chicken
> broth - not sure if that's all - don't have the recipe
> at hand right now; I used my reindeer cookie cutter
> to cut reindeer shapes out of puff pastry dough and
> then brushed them with an egg wash and baked until
> puffed and golden brown, floating one in each bowl.)
>
> The main course was:
> Pork Sauerbraten
> (This was my first time making sauerbraten with pork
> and it was awesome. I made it in my slow cooker, too,
> and that was the first time for that method. Took about
> 5 hours and it was perfect. I had a 5-6 lb. pork butt.
> I marinate for 48 hours in buttermilk and a little lemon
> juice. Then rinse and cook with red wine, peppercorns,
> bay leaves. A gravy is made from the cooking juices
> by thickening with ground ginger snaps.)
>
> Himmel und Erde
> (A regional specialty - mashed potatoes with apples.
> Just mash up a mess of potatoes and add applesauce.
> I cooked McIntosh apples in the microwave until they
> turned to mush and then mashed in with the potatoes
> and lots of butter. About 1/4 apples to 3/4 potatoes.)
>
> Medieval Spinach Saute
> (Fresh spinach wilted in a little olive oil and seasoned
> with small amounts of ground ginger and allspice and
> salt and pepper)
>
> Hungarian Fresh Cucumber Pickles
> (Paper-thin slices of cucumber in a dressing of
> apple cider vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and pepper -
> simple but delicious)
>
> Whole Wheat Apple Sour Dough Bread
> (Homemade from scratch)
>
> Oregon Hill Blueberry Wine
> (The only disappointing thing at dinner - a little
> too sweet for my taste)
>
> Dessert was:
> Tarte Tatin served with homemade cinnamon ice cream
> (My first ever made with McIntosh apples and
> using puff pastry. Scrumptious. The ice cream was
> made from Monica Adamski's recipe from the 2002 CT
> Cook-In)
>
> Kate, who will never make beef sauerbraten again

Kate, that's a marvelous, ambitious, delicious-sounding menu!!!

I would love to make all of these things, and will definitely keep a copy
of your post.

Wayne

Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>
> Kate, that's a marvelous, ambitious, delicious-sounding menu!!!
>
> I would love to make all of these things, and will definitely keep a copy
> of your post.
>
> Wayne

Let me know if you want the actual recipes.
Kate
--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

Kate Connally > wrote in
:

> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>
>> Kate, that's a marvelous, ambitious, delicious-sounding menu!!!
>>
>> I would love to make all of these things, and will definitely keep a
>> copy of your post.
>>
>> Wayne
>
> Let me know if you want the actual recipes.
> Kate

Kate, if it isn't too much trouble, I would sincerely like to have all of
the actual recipes. I'm not sure I would have the ambition to make all of
them for one fabulous dinner as you did, but I definitely would like to
make them all at one time or another. They all sound wonderful!

Thank you,
Wayne

Kate Connally > wrote in
:

> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>>
>> Kate Connally > wrote in
>> :
>>
>> > Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>> >>
>> >> Kate, that's a marvelous, ambitious, delicious-sounding menu!!!
>> >>
>> >> I would love to make all of these things, and will definitely keep
>> >> a copy of your post.
>> >>
>> >> Wayne
>> >
>> > Let me know if you want the actual recipes.
>> > Kate
>>
>> Kate, if it isn't too much trouble, I would sincerely like to have
>> all of the actual recipes. I'm not sure I would have the ambition to
>> make all of them for one fabulous dinner as you did, but I definitely
>> would like to make them all at one time or another. They all sound
>> wonderful!
>>
>> Thank you,
>> Wayne
>
> Wayne,
> Some of them I have here at work on the computer but
> others are at home in books so it may take a while
> to get them all. I don't mind at all. BTW, I had
> 2 weeks off at Xmas time so I had lots of free time
> to make everything and made as much of it ahead as
> possible, like the ice cream, the soup, the dip, the
> nuts, the bread, etc. I like to have a "fancy" dinner
> a couple of times a year and I usually take a couple of
> vacation days, say on Thur. and Fri., to get things
> done ahead of time as well as do my housecleaning, and
> then I don't have that much to do on Sat. I always have
> my dinners on Sat. if possible so I can spend Sun. resting
> up and doing all the dishes at a relaxed pace.
>
> Kate

Thanks, Kate. You're being so generous, please take all the time you
need. For a really special meal I do almost the same thing as you do.
As much pre-paration as possible, and I almost always take off at least
on Friday. Luckily, when I plan a dinner party like this, my SO will
take care of the housecleaning, setting the table, etc., so I can usually
accomplish everything with just the Friday and whatever time is needed on
Saturday. As far as I'm concerned, when you work, Sunday is definitely
not a day to putting on a meal like this. Sounds as though you plan very
well for these occasions.

Wayne