What do you miss most when you are traveling on business?
For me, I miss my family. I miss my warm
and comfortable bed. I also miss cooking
and having a home-cooked meal. There is
nothing better than coming home from a long business trip and being welcomed by
a home-cooked meal. That’s exactly how
we welcomed my husband home yesterday. He
had been on a business trip to India for almost two weeks. We missed him terribly! The kids were counting the days when Daddy
was returning home. So, yesterday, I
decided that I would make him something special for his homecoming dinner.
What was on the menu?
Caprese salad with heirloom tomatoes, fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella cheese – one of Patrick's favorites and an
awesome summer appetizer; rack of lamb marinated with fresh herbs and garlic,
seared in a cast iron skillet and then roasted to perfection in the
oven; roasted mixed vegetables (multi-colored squash, bell peppers, sweet red
onions, and garlic); fingerling potatoes with rosemary and extra virgin olive
oil; fresh peaches first grilled to get a nice brown
color, and then baked with a mixture of brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, almond
extract, amaretto liquor, and orange juice.
For the wine, we enjoyed a wonderfully delicious blend of Mourvedre,
Grenache, and Syrah from Croad Vineyards in Paso Robles, CA.
If you would like to make any of these dishes for your next
special welcome home dinner or special occasion, here is a summary of the
recipes:
HEIRLOOM TOMATO CAPRESE
SALAD
 |
| (Fresh Heirloom Tomatoes at the Local Market) |
Heirloom tomatoes are one of my favorite summer vegetables (or fruits, as my daughter often corrects me). It's so beautiful, decadent, and so versatile. Here is an easy to prepare recipe for a caprese salad.
Ingredients
Heirloom tomatoes (ripe, but firm so you can slice them easily; get
different colors for fun)
Fresh basil (washed)
Fresh mozzarella cheese
Balsamic vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and fresh ground black pepper (to taste)
Directions
 |
| (Patrick likes big chunks of Mozzarella Cheese) |
After rinsing the tomatoes under cool water, slice them
cross-wise to your desired thickness.
Chop some fresh basil. Slice the
mozzarella cheese (you can also buy pre-sliced cheese, especially at Trader
Joe’s). Arrange the tomatoes on a
platter or plate. Sprinkle a little bit
of salt and pepper and some basil on the tomatoes (leaving a few sprinkles of
basil for the top). Sprinkle a little
bit of balsamic vinegar on the tomatoes (just enough to get some flavor in the
tomatoes). Arrange the sliced cheese on
top of the tomatoes. Sprinkle a little more basil, vinegar, and a pinch of salt
and pepper each. Finally, sprinkle some
olive oil on top of the cheese and around the platter. For optimum flavor, you can cover the platter
with some saran wrap and place the platter in the Fridge for a couple of hours
or until you are ready to eat it. It’s a
great make-ahead appetizer. Enjoy!
FRESH HERB AND GARLIC
MARINATED RACK OF LAMB
Ingredients
1whole rack of lamb (about 8 ribs) – trimmed and frenched (have the
butcher do this for you)
2 Tablespoon (roughly) of finely chopped fresh parsley
1 Tablespoon (roughly) of finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 Tablespoon (roughly) of finely chopped fresh thyme
About 6 cloves of garlic (crushed well)
1 teaspoon of Dijon Mustard
2 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
About 1 Tablespoon of sea salt (or Kosher salt) – this depends on your
salt tolerance level; the key is to make sure that the meat is perfectly
seasoned before cooking
About 1 teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper
Directions
Pat the lamb dry with a paper towel if there is any
excess moisture. Season it with about ½
the salt and pepper. Lay it in a baking
sheet or dish. Mix all the remaining
ingredients (using only 1 Tablespoon of olive oil) in a small bowl. Rub the herb and garlic mixture all around
the rack of lamb. Cover it with saran
wrap. Place it in the Fridge for up to
24 hours. The longer you marinate it,
the tastier it is. But, if you don’t
have 24 hours, a few hours will do just fine.
Take it out of the Fridge about 30 minutes before you are
ready to cook it. Preheat oven to 400
degrees. Heat a cast iron skillet (or
non-stick skillet) on medium high heat.
Add the remaining Tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet. Sear the lamb (with fat side down first) for
about 7-8 minutes per side until you have a nice brown color – use a tong to
turn it over. Place the skillet with the
lamb in the pre-heated oven and finish cooking it for about 20-30 minutes,
depending on your desired doneness (medium-rare, medium, etc.).
Don’t overcook it. You can always
put individual slices in the oven to cook more (if it’s too rare), but if it’s
overdone, you can’t go back. When it’s
finished cooking, take the skillet out of the oven, and let it sit for about 10
minutes before slicing. This helps ensure
all the yummy juices remain in the meat when you slice it to avoid ending up
with dry meat (which is not good!). When
you are ready to slice, place the rack on a board or platter, and slice through
each bone and serve.
HERB AND
GARLIC-INFUSED ROASTED VEGETABLES
Ingredients
Mixture of squash or zucchinis (washed and cut into quarters or large
cubes)
1 whole sweet red onions (cut into large cubes)
2 large cloves of garlic (sliced lengthwise)
1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon of kosher salt
¼ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of Italian Seasonings or Rosemary or Thyme (whatever flavorful
dry spices you have in your pantry)
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix
all the ingredients in a large bowl.
Place the vegetables in a large baking sheet. Put the vegetables in the oven and bake for
about 20 minutes (or until soft, but not mushy).
NOTE: If you want to make the roasted fingerling potatoes, put them in
the oven about 10 minutes before the vegetables. All you need to do is wash the potatoes, mix
them with about 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper, and
about 1 teaspoon of dried rosemary.
Place the potatoes in a baking sheet and put in the 375 degree oven. Cook them for about 30 minutes (or until soft
but still whole).
BAKED PEACHES AND
HOMEMADE ALMOND WHIPPED CREAM
 |
Fresh peaches make wonderful and healthy dessert. Just take some nicely ripe, but firm, white
peaches. Cut them lengthwise in
half. Take the seeds, and the dark spots
around the seeds, out with a small tea spoon.
Brown the flesh side in a non-stick skillet with a little bit of butter
until you get some nice brown color.
Butter a glass or ceramic baking dish.
Place the grilled peaches – flesh sides up – in the baking dish. Then sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon on the
grilled sides. Then, sprinkle some pure
almond extracts (or vanilla extracts if you would rather have vanilla
flavor). DO NOT USE THE IMITATION
EXTRACT – IT WILL RUIN YOUR DESSERT! For a little more sophisticated taste,
sprinkle some Amaretto Liquor on the peaches and a little bit in the baking
dish for moisture. Squeeze the juice of
½ orange in the baking dish for added moisture and flavor. Bake the peaches in a 350-degree oven for
about 25-30 minutes (or until soft, but still intact). Let cool completely. Serve with fresh whipped cream (see below) or
vanilla bean ice cream.
[FOR THE WHIPPED
CREAM: Place 1 cup of heavy whipping cream in a medium bowl. Add ¼ cup of granulated (white) sugar to the
cream. Add about ¼ teaspoon of pure
almond extract (or vanilla extract, if you’d like). Using a hand mixer, or whisk, whip the cream
until firm and peaks are formed. Chill
in the Fridge until you are ready to serve.]
WINE PAIRING
To accompany this wonderful meal – and to add that extra
special touch to Patrick’s welcome home dinner – I decided to open up a bottle
of wine that we had picked up from Croad Vineyards during our recent visit to
the Paso Robles wine region. Croad is a
family winery that is owned by Martin
Croad – from New Zealand.
http://www.croadvineyards.com/ We discovered Croad when we visited J Lohr Winery. Ann – our Tasting Room host – had recommended
Croad to us. We drove to Croad that
day. When we got to the winery, the gate
was closed. I called the phone number
listed in the wine tasting map, and a gentleman answered. When I explained to him that we were referred
to his winery by Ann at J Lohr, but we did not realize that it was closed that day. The man said: “well, since you
already drove here, and I am on the property doing some work, why don’t you
come on up? I’ll open the gate for you.
Besides, there is another couple here right now who are in the same
position as you.” So, he opened the gate,
and we drove up.  |
| (View from Croad Vineyards) |
The view from the
winery overlooking the valley was breathtaking.
Martin was hospitable, friendly, and extremely welcoming. Their motto at the winery is: "Kia Ora," which means "Welcome" in the native New Zealand Maori language. Martin told us a little bit about his
background and New Zealand heritage, how he came the United States, how he started the winery, the highs
and lows of owning a winery, and how he continues to take on various projects
around the winery. In fact, when we
visited, he was working on building a bed and breakfast on the
property. That’s why he happened to be
on site the day we drove to the winery.
We tried about 3 different wines, which he had opened that day specially
for the other couple and us: the 1011 Sauvignon Blanc, the 2008 Zinfindel, and the 2008 Towhenua Pure. We ended up
purchasing a bottle of the 2008 Towhenua, which is a blend of 50%
Mourvedre, 30% Grenache, and 30% Syrah.
This is a full-bodied wine, with a deep ruby red color. It has complex but well-balanced flavors of dark ripe fruits, such as black cherries, and plum with a hint of mocha. It received a silver medal from the SF Chronicle. I thought it was fitting to pair this wine
with lamb – both of which have roots in New Zealand.  |
| (Ten, the Kids, Patrick, and me, July 30, 2012) |
Needless to say, Patrick was very grateful for this
wonderful and welcoming meal. But, I got
another great compliment on this meal.
Our Au Pair, Ten, told me during dinner that she did not usually like to
eat lamb because when she has had it before, it had a gamy smell and taste that
she did not like. But, she said, she did
not get that smell and taste from my lamb.
She ate both of her pieces. She
said I should definitely make this dish again because she would eat it. Thank you for the compliment, Ten!
I hope you try some of these dishes the next time you want
to make something special for yourself or that special someone in your
life. These dishes also would work great
for your next dinner party. You will
definitely impress your guests, especially with the lamb.
Until next time . . .
Cheers! ZinAdel
