Since my great grandfather was born in Limerick, I believe I am well-qualified to spread a bit of Irish cheer, plus my brothers are named Patrick (noble) and Michael (God-like), and then there is daughter Colleen Erin (Irish girl)! I will wear my green T-shirt today and partake of corned beef and cabbage at the annual dinner here at the park. I'll skip the green beer!
The temperature has finally risen to the high seventies, but the wind has continued to keep us pretty cool. This has been a very unusual winter as far as the weather is concerned.
We are going to leave here a bit early and go home via Las Vegas and the Tri-Cities. Las Vegas is more about staying at the Nellis Famcamp and shopping at the commissary than it is about gambling, and then we will mosey on to Prosser where we will spend a day or two to do some wine tasting/shopping.
Even though I am never anxious to get home and am content living the life of a vagabond, I am looking forward to seeing the new kitchen. I think it should pretty well be finished by the end of this week including a thorough cleaning. Our contractor has a crew he uses to come in and clean after the work is finished and that is a good thing!!!!!
Craig came up with the idea to widen and arch the doorway from the kitchen to the dining room, and it appears to have made a big improvement in the flow between the two rooms. I have lost some wall space in the dining room so will have to do a bit of rearranging but that is a small price to pay.
Since this is a pretty uninspiring blog, I'll post one of my newest favorite recipes from the cooking goddess, Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. And since I can't seem to leave well-enough alone, I have incorporated a couple of changes that seem to work just fine.
I slice up the stems as well as using the florets (in fact I prefer the stems to the florets), and I found it wasn't the end of the world when I discovered I was out of pine nuts, but I suspect most any kind of nut would enhance the dish. Since fresh basil isn't exactly a year 'round kitchen staple I skipped it and in this instance I think no basil is better than dried basil. This recipe is also fabulous with fresh asparagus!!
Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
* 4 to 5 pounds broccoli
* 4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
* Good olive oil
* 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
* 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
* 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
* 2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks. Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 8 cups of florets. Place the broccoli florets on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic on the broccoli and drizzle with 5 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.
Remove the broccoli from the oven and immediately toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, pine nuts, Parmesan, and basil. Serve hot. Bon appetite.
Ciao
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment