Dinner at the Cheesecake Factory:
Thai chicken pasta
Chocolate tuxedo cheesecake

Cassoulet...that was way too much work but it turned out good

Meatballs and Spaghetti
Italian Spinich

Baked Haddock (Haddock was still moving at the fish market when I got it.)
Baked Sweet Potato
Sauteed green beans

Red-wine and veal stock braised beef shortribs with horseradish gremolata.

Last night:
Grilled flank steak (dashed with sesame oil, rice wine, salt, pepper, and garlic) and maple mustard flank steak
Steamed rice and crunchy broccoli

Tonight at a wine dinner for 14 that I have planned at my club:


A Christmas Celebration Dinner
December 6, 2006
Sainte Claire Club, San Jose, California

Hors d’oeuvres
Cocktail d’Huîtres (Oyster Shooters)
Cuisses de Grenouilles Poêlées (Flash-fried Frog Legs)
Filet de Boeuf Tartare, Pommes Gaufrettes (Filet of Beef Tartar)
Opening with 1990 Krug Brut Champagne and
1996 Dom Perignon Brut Champagne

Première Entrée (Assiette de Fruits de Mer)
Dungeness Crab, Maine Lobster and Maine Day Boat Scallop Sauté with
Chardonnay Beurre Blanc and Tomato Concasse
Enhanced by a selection of five white Burgundy & California Chardonnays served blind.

Deuxième Entrée (Canard Trois Façons)
Seared Breast of Maple Leaf Duck with Pinot Noir Demi-Glace
Roasted Leg of Duck Confit with Port and Mission Fig Reduction
Pan Seared Foie Gras with Sauternes and Sweet butter
Accompanied by a selection of five mature red Burgundys served blind.

Plat Principal (Côtes de Veau)
Grilled Western Veal Chop with Bordeaux5 and Minced Shallot Demi-Glace
Glazed Faurot Farms Organic Baby Carrots
Served alongside five mature Bordeaux & California Cabernet Sauvignon wines blined.

Les Bons Fromages de France
Epoisses & Montrachet with
San Joaquin Valley Pears and Mendocino Heirloom Apples
Paired with an array of five New World Pinot Noir wines served blind.

Dessert
Grand Marnier Soufflé with Crème Anglaise
Complemented by three specially selected Sweet Wines served blind.

Wines for Sauce Preparations:
2005 Loring Chardonnay, Keefer Vyd., Green Valley, Sonoma
2003 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma
2000 Dow’s Vintage Port, Douro, Portugal
1994 Château d’Yquem, Sauternes, France
1997 Chateau Charmail, Haut Medoc, Bordeaux, France


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Wow David! Now THAT's a dinner. Have a great time. I'm sure everyone will appreciate how hard you worked on that dinner/wine menu.

That IS a great menu! I haven't had lunch yet; it's making me salivate.

Maybe I'll go find a crust of dry bread to chew on.

I always get a good laugh when somebody's wine reduction sauces are better than what I'm drinking with dinner :-D That said, the Saint Claire guys were great guys, so I hope you had a blast.

Had pan-seared flank steak, broccoli, yukon gold potatoes with sea salt and olive oil drizzle and a wedge of roquefort vieux berger cheese. The roquefort is my new "must have" favorite!

Preparing for the cold weather:

Winter Squash Soup with Gruyere Croutons
Chicken Florentine

Recipes as follows:
Soup
1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
3 14 1/2-ounce cans low-salt chicken broth
4 cups 1-inch pieces peeled butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
4 cups 1-inch pieces peeled acorn squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
1 teaspoons minced fresh sage
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon sugar
Croutons
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
24 1/4-inch-thick baguette bread slices
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
1 teaspoon minced fresh sage

For soup:
Melt butter in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add broth, all squash and herbs; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until squash is very tender, about 20 minutes.
Working in batches, puree soup in blender. Return soup to same pot. Stir in cream and sugar; bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill. Rewarm over medium heat before serving.)
For croutons:
Preheat broiler. Butter 1 side of each bread slice. Arrange bread, buttered side up, on baking sheet. Broil until golden, about 1 minute. Turn over. Sprinkle cheese, then thyme and sage over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil until cheese melts, about 1 minute. Ladle soup into bowls. Top each with croutons and serve.



4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons shallots, sliced
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 (10-ounce) packages frozen cut-leaf spinach, thawed, drained

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour to coat lightly. Shake off any excess flour. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and tent with foil to keep it warm.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are translucent, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, about 1 minute. Add the wine. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the liquid is reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the cream and boil until the sauce reduces by half, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Stir in the parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and any accumulated juices to the sauce, and turn the chicken to coat in the sauce.
Meanwhile, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in another large skillet over medium heat. Add the spinach and saute until heated through. Season the spinach, to taste, with salt and pepper. Arrange the spinach over a platter. Place the chicken atop the spinach. Pour the sauce over and serve.

Quote:

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I always get a good laugh when somebody's wine reduction sauces are better than what I'm drinking with dinner :-D That said, the Saint Claire guys were great guys, so I hope you had a blast.

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It's not as "bad" as it looks. They were all 375s.

The sauces were FANTASTIC. The Foie was as good if not the best I have ever had; served virtually plain in a puddle of reduced Yquem.

There were 14 guys (mostly from eBob). It was $125 each out the door. That is crazy-low for the quality that we had.

Grilled Ribeye
Loaded Baked Potato
Salad

Started a little holiday party last night with
Smoked Trout salad
Jonah crab salad
Various Pate'
Wild Mushroom Flatbread
Various cheeses

Ended the night with a Spikes Chili Dog and chilli fries.

Started this AM with Advil and mass quantities of H2O

antelope pot roasted with a red wine sauce
toast points with pate de foie gras

Vietnamese chicken curry...one of the best I've made
With tons of toasted french bread

Venison Chili
Smoked Turkey

I made some lasagna to go with some 2003 Columbia Crest Merlot

Baked Raviolis and Blacked Peas. Drank a 2004 Ridge-Lytton Springs Zin with it.

After a long long day:
Pan fried pork chops with rice

Need an espresso for the long long night ahead of baking loaves and loaves of spiced pumpkin bread and molasses spice cookies for many teachers and not to mention gift wrap presents for 20 kids.