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Engaging stories of love, joy, comfort and friendship with proven scrumptious, healthy recipes, we celebrate LOVE as the secret ingredient for wonderful food!

Julia & Eric

August 15, 2012 by Mary Frances 2 Comments

Today would be Julia Child’s 100th birthday!! Happy Birthday to the great chef and instigator of the whole foodie movement that is so prevalent today. There are several articles about her in the Times this morning, one recalling favorite recipes of hers. I have my favorites too – her soy, garlic, rosemary, mustard sauce for a leg of lamb can’t be beat. It is my go-to lamb roast recipe. Leeks braised with a parchment paper cover as a side dish is a really simple dish that seems oh-so-elegant and impressive. I always refer to her for the way she sauteed mushrooms and, of course, boeuf bourguignon. She taught me to smash garlic cloves to remove the skin, but more importantly, she taught my mother the fine art of cooking, which she then passed on to me.

Last night we took our boys out for dinner at Le Bernardin to celebrate our youngest starting on his PhD at Yale next week. My husband and I have not been there in years and yes, it was still so very lovely with superb service. We saw Eric Ripert but unfortunately we did not get to speak. The depth and combination of flavors he achieves with each dish is unique and truly delights the palate. It was a very special evening. We stayed and chatted late into the night.

Here was my third course lobster dish with a stuffed squash blossom – really super delicious. Much to the chagrin of my boys, yes, I snapped these photos.Le Bernardin lobster on a white plate.

Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: 100th birthday, beef bourguignon, dessert, Eric Ripert, Julia Child, Le Bernardin, leg of lamb, lobster, mustard sauce, seafood, stuffed squash blossoms, The New York Times

A whirlwind weekend!

April 9, 2012 by Mary Frances 2 Comments

Passover dinner table.The Passover table

Ranuculous at the Passover table.So you may remember, my husband was raised Jewish and I was raised Catholic. We are now Unitarians but culturally we celebrate both traditions, and why not? It’s way more fun this way!

We hosted a Passover seder on Friday night for eleven people – old friends, new friends, family and girlfriends from 4 different countries and both coasts. It was such fun – lots of wonderful conversations and the traditional readings and food, with some new traditions thrown in. The party lasted until nearly 1 am – I do believe a good time was had by all and that makes it all worth it.
Making Passover brisket and egg noodles.Beef brisket with egg noodles tossed with fennel fronds
Roasted asparagus in a pan.Oven roasted asparagus with olive oil and lemon zest

My brother hosted Easter dinner in CT – and early dinner with cocktails outside on that gorgeous day, serving a beautiful butterflied leg of lamb with Julia’s traditional and delicious mustard coating with a Madeira sauce, but starting off with 2 spectacular spinach soufflés! We are spoiled!
Easter dinner table.The Easter table

Lamb on a wooden cutting board.

Delicious lamb

I hope you enjoy the photo gallery and remember, the brisket recipe is here on the blog.

Tell me what you did this past weekend!

Filed Under: Dinner, Meat Tagged With: asparagus, beef brisket, Easter, good times, lamb, mustard sauce, Passover, ranunculus, seder, spinach souffle

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Mary Frances

Mary Frances

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