What are you eating?

[Sergeant Rock]

We still had truffles left so Mrs. Rock sliced them thin and stuffed them under the skin of a whole chicken. The resulting roasted bird was magnificent, as was the gravy from the drippings. Plain basmati rice and a green salad. Drank Frei Brothers Dry Creek Valley reserve merlot...which I thought a bit heavy for the meal but Mrs. Rock loved it.




Sarge

[Bogey]

We still had truffles left so Mrs. Rock sliced them thin and stuffed them under the skin of a whole chicken. The resulting roasted bird was magnificent, as was the gravy from the drippings. Plain basmati rice and a green salad. Drank Frei Brothers Dry Creek Valley reserve merlot...which I thought a bit heavy for the meal but Mrs. Rock loved it.




Sarge

What was the dressing for the salad....this is key for such a meal.

[MN Dave]

CLIF All Natural Crunch Granola Bar...and Diet Coke. 

[Sergeant Rock]

What was the dressing for the salad....this is key for such a meal.

Mrs. Rock invented the dressing. It's the second time we've tried it. She says the key is the type of dried tomatoes she used. From a jar of dried tomatoes in oil (bought from AldiSud), she sliced several superfine, crushed one clove of garlic, added a tablespoon of oil from the jar, a tablespoon of unsweetened Turkish grenadine syrup, then olive oil and balsamico vinegar. Tasted great and went very well with the chicken.

Sarge

[Sergeant Rock]

I'm a bachelor and I like to eat well, but I was sooooo disappointed yesterday when I couldn't find mussels from the nearest supermarket. All they have is like 15 different kind of Tuna cans but no mussels...;( It's different to live in downtown Helsinki--This is someways so miserable little town. The girl who worked at the groceries was sort of cute though; "mussels...? That's kind of EXOTIC". You know what Berlusconi said...

I feel your pain. Anything fresh and "exotic" --and that includes mussels and scallops (coquille st jacques)--is very hard to come by in our area of Germany. My sister-in-law lives in Bremen (a five hour drive from us). I'm so envious of the seafood shops in that city.

Sarge

[karlhenning]

First I knew there was any such thing as unsweetened Grenadine. Cherish your Mrs Rock, Sarge!

[Sergeant Rock]

First I knew there was any such thing as unsweetened Grenadine. Cherish your Mrs Rock, Sarge!

Yes, when I called her for the recipe, she specified it must be unsweetened...and from our local Turkish shop 

Sarge

[SonicMan46]

Sarge - that chicken sounds (i.e. tastes more likely) outstanding!  Susan will put different herbs, etc. underneath the skin of foul - really a new taste experience for those who have not given the method a try! 

For an after dinner suggestion - this time of the year, we are into Moravian Ginger Cookies - just wafer thin w/ an overpowering flavor of spice/ginger and some heat on the tongue - the saying that you 'can't eat just one' does not apply, better still is you can't just eat a dozen or a whole tin - 

For those in the USA (postage considerations), an excellent example is made by the Salem Baking Co. - if interested, check their website in the link for prices & shipping - now I've seen these in other cities and on other online catalogs, so might be available in your town?

But an Old Salem tradition in Winston-Salem, and BTW the Moravians made many more tasty items as the website above shows - enjoy the holidays!   

[karlhenning]

Yes, when I called her for the recipe, she specified it must be unsweetened...and from our local Turkish shop 

One of the benefits of a rich immigrant population!

[Bogey]

Mrs. Rock invented the dressing. It's the second time we've tried it. Recreating it might be difficult though. She says the key is the type of dried tomatoes she used. From a jar of dried tomatoes in oil (bought from AldiSud), she sliced several superfine, crushed one clove of garlic, added a tablespoon of oil from the jar, a tablespoon of unsweetened Turkish grenadine syrup, then olive oil and balsamico vinegar. Tasted great and went very well with the chicken.

Sarge

Yumm!  My wife and I are balsamic vinegar snobs fans, to the point that we enjoy it on EVERYTHING (we have not tried it on vanilla ice cream, but we would probably enjoy it on that as well ).  Here are two we roll out, the first is a glaze and the second the real deal:



and for the special salads:



http://www.giusti.it/eng/index.htm

[Sergeant Rock]

For an after dinner suggestion - this time of the year, we are into Moravian Ginger Cookies - just wafer thin w/ an overpowering flavor of spice/ginger and some heat on the tongue

Mrs. Rock's mother still bakes traditional cookies for Christmas. Her ginger cookies are outstanding.

Sarge

[Sergeant Rock]

One of the benefits of a rich immigrant population!

Indeed! It's a great place to buy fresh fruit and veggies too....very high quality.

Sarge

[mc ukrneal]

Yumm!  My wife and I are balsamic vinegar snobs fans, to the point that we enjoy it on EVERYTHING (we have not tried it on vanilla ice cream, but we would probably enjoy it on that as well ).  Here are two we roll out, the first is a glaze and the second the real deal:

Vanilla!! Well, there's your main problem!

[Bogey]

Vanilla!! Well, there's your main problem!

Ah.  The simple pleasures in life.  When done right, nothing better.

[greg]

Ken's Winghouse in Altamonte, FL...

the spiciest wings there. My favorite food, possibly, plus the more spicy, the better. I like it to be to the point where it is physically painful. 

[Bogey]

As per the wine thread:

Prime rib and Yorkshire pudding, complimented by garlic mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts cooked in olive oil and fresh garlic.  Chose this wine (2009) to go with the meal.  Just my wife and I will be drinking it, but we are most pleased with very modest sweet and dry finish.

[Sergeant Rock]

As per the wine thread:

Prime rib and Yorkshire pudding, complimented by garlic mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts cooked in olive oil and fresh garlic.  Chose this wine (2009) to go with the meal.  Just my wife and I will be drinking it, but we are most pleased with very modest sweet and dry finish.

Sounds like a wonderful dinner, Bill. We're celebrating all three days of Christmas at the in-laws. Mrs. Rock's mother is a great cook. Christmas Eve we had turkey, yesterday braised venison, and today will be leg of lamb. After that I'll need a week of vegetarian eating to clean my system 

Sarge

[Bogey]

Sounds like a wonderful dinner, Bill. We're celebrating all three days of Christmas at the in-laws. Mrs. Rock's mother is a great cook. Christmas Eve we had turkey, yesterday braised venison, and today will be leg of lamb. After that I'll need a week of vegetarian eating to clean my system 

Sarge

I hear you good brother.  Ham today with my folks, then we have guests for four days, so by Jan. 2, I will need a serious oil change.

[SonicMan46]

Christmas dinner at home this year - Susan roasted a pheasant w/ wild rice stuffing, a veggie, and some sparkling wine - delicious bird (kind of like a small turkey regarding taste/flavors of the breast & legs) - 

 

[jlaurson]

Plans for chestnut soup were frustrated by early closing times of stores on the 24th... so I ended up with pork tenderloins a red wine reduction and in a heap of mushrooms and chestnuts. Not bad... but the color was far too uniform to impress...  Not failure outright, since it tasted OK, but sad. My heart wasn't in it, I suppose, cooking for myself.

Along with a cheap Italian Wine that is surprisingly good at pretending to be a big-grape kind of wine...
One of the few where the result isn't completely embarrassing.


Ca de Rocchi Ripasso Monterè 2008 Valpolicella



Chestnut soup until postponed tomorrow, in delightful company... a better wine and, just to show what kind of a class act I am, a screening of "Caligula" (uncut) to someone with but a faint idea of what that film contains. (Hey, it's Helen Mirren and Peter O'Tool... it's *art*!)