Friday night dinner

Chicken fricassee, interpreted by Bobby, inspired by Joy of Cooking

Chocolate pie, courtesy of William-Sonoma "Baking".......YUM!

Friday was a dreary weather day, and fairly typical of February in Toronto.  Grey, with a snow/freezing drizzle mix, and a horribly slow commute.  Luckily, our routine Thursday boys night had been deferred to Friday, so at least I had a lovely dinner to look forward to after work.  We were treated to a comforting chicken fricassee, with a lovely mushroomy sauce, and a delicious chocolate pie.  We've decided to give Survivor a miss this season, but Bobby's Martha Stewart Living subscription provided a catalyst to my outrage, and got the conversation going with a rant from me.  Ah!  Good times!

If Martha Stewart does another bulletin board, I'll poke my eye out with a rusty skewer!  Why does every other edition of her magazine need another interpretation of the bulletin board?  How many bulletin boards does one need?  Does anyone even have a flippin' bulletin board?!?!?!

I was beside myself with this advert featuring Martha in an intimate bathroom scene.   It was so obviously doctored, and gave the impression of her face having been applied over some else's visage, sort of like those iron-on transfers from the seventies that you could apply to T-shirts.  Topped off with her Cheshire cat grin, I was on fire!

Back to Belgium, and Thursdays, sixes and sevens.

Chateau du Lac, Genval, Belgium

So, our Thursday night schedule for 2013 is "all to pot".  Last Thursday (number 6 of the year), landed on Valentine's day, so that clearly needed to be reserved for individual plans, and this Thursday (the 7th of the year) has been rescheduled to tomorrow - a real case of "sixes and sevens"! This week's disruption was my fault again, because I had another work trip to Belgium at short notice, and just got back this afternoon.  I was worried that I'd fall asleep at the dinner table!  I'll report on the culinary delights of tomorrow in due course.

Given the trip to Belgium, and the fact that my return flight didn't leave before 7am this time (!), I was able to pick up some fresh cream Neumann chocolates at the airport - yum!  I stayed at the Chateau du Lac in Genval, a quiet little village on the outskirts of Brussels.  It was rather a deja vu, as I had been there about 10 years ago...still quite charming, and we were treated to some wintery sunshine and so it was nice to have the chance to walk around the lake before meetings started.  I had a bit of a confused history lesson from my taxi driver (could have been the jet lag!), and was amazed to discover from some Googling back home, that whilst the "Chateau" was originally built as a spa, it spent a good chunk of the twentieth century as a manufacturing plant for Schweppes, producing India Tonic Water, and was only converted back to a hotel and spa in the eighties.  If only I had known, I would surely have had a gin and tonic to celebrate the illustrious past!

Le Lac de Genval

Blue skies, in February, in Belgium!

On first glance, I thought there was truly a stork on the roof of this boathouse. 

Beautiful waterfront homes in Genval

I finished reading "Great Expectations" on this trip, and this house, which was clearly once very beautiful indeed, with some very unique features (like decorative brick dove cots built into the chimneys), reminded me of "Satis House", Miss Havisham's decaying estate.  With it's lakeside location and very large garden, this looks like a perfect restoration project for someone with nice deep pockets!

Sixth Thursday

My turn to host, for the 6th Thursday of 2013.  I have realized after 6 weeks, the immense skill of food stylists and photographers in the magazines I love to browse.  No matter how delicious or fragrant the food we have eaten on Thursdays thus far in 2013, the photographs do very little justice.

This week, we dined on:

•  "toast champignon", inspired by my trip to Leuven the previous week (De absolute bistroklassieker is een smakelijke toast champignon), washed down with a little bubbly to celebrate the recently completed country house purchase of Bobby and Mr. N......a dream regency cottage in Hastings county, which will only be enhanced by it's new owners.  
• Abbachio alla Romano (Roman roast lamb).....I've been making this easy-peasy Valentina Harris iteration of a Roman classic for years.  This week, it was made with little lamb cutlets, as I couldn't find a roast to cut up into chunks. Results equally gusty and dee-lish.  It only contains 5 ingredients - a case of brilliant simplicity.
• Meringue gelato cake.  This one came from "Nigellisima".  It's also very easy, and takes the prize for fewest ingredients, at a paltry four (cream, shop bought meringues, a dash of rum and some slivered chocolate).  Although not the most sophisticated dessert in the world, it went down very well, and the fact that it only took about 10 minutes to make mid-week, was highly appreciated by myself!

Toast champignon - recently consumed in the Flemish town of Leuven.

Roman roast lamb, with roasted potatoes and green beans.  This is a hearty, delicious and extremely easy meal.

Not exactly the "Belle of the Ball", but it was rather tasty.....Nigella's Meringue Gelato Cake.  The speed of preparation on a weeknight scored it some bonus points.......just need to work on the presentation!

Fourth Thursday - dinner and a movie

For this weeks Thursday extravaganza, we had a super quick dinner of spanish-inspired chicken stew (think smokey chorizo, white beans and tomatoes) and portuguese custard tarts, before rushing out to the movies.  We saw "Quartet", with Maggie Smith, Tom Courtney, Billy Connolly and Pauline Collins heading the cast.  I have to say it was quite charming and very entertaining.  Highlights were audience reactions to the gardener (whose name was Nobby - much hilarity for middle aged same-sex couples in the audience apparently), and to a couple of choice moments of "language", which seemed much less shocking to me given my British up-bringing.  I was rather surprised to be likened by my peers, to the Michael Gambon character (named Cedric.....and most definitely pronounced "Ceeedric"!).  He spends most of the movie wondering around in various kaftans, kimonos, turbans and the like, screaming orders at people and visibly squirming at anything outside the spectrum of classical music.

Spanish chicken - white beans, smokey chorizo and succulent chicken pieces in a delicious, herby tomato sauce.

The Portuguese custard tarts were so good that we devoured them before I remembered to take a photo.

Third Thursday

Lamb tagine, heady with fragrant spices, meltingly tender, and presented splendidly.

On the "third Thursday" of 2013, Bobby hosted for the first time this year.  When Bobby hosts, it's always a treat.  Not only is he a prize winning pie-maker (I kid you not....look at the winners at the Rockton World Fair, under "P" for pies), but he is the consumate host, even on a mid-week, "work next morning" occasion.  Last night we were treated to a fabulous lamb tagine, served in the beautiful golden-ochre tagine that he found in a market when we were vacationing in Provence with twelve of our nearest and dearest,  a few years back (imagine fragrant spices, sweet dried fruits and meltingly soft pieces of lamb).  This was followed (after much banter and a bottle of Bevmo-winning Chilean red) by an apparently simple (according to Bobby) olive oil cake, light as a feather, and rich in flavour, accompanied by a delicious "fruits du bois" compote.
I can only apologize for the fact that I fell asleep on the couch, immediately after dinner.....I had a very early morning.
Next week.....my turn to host.

Olive oil cake with Fruits du bois compote.   Simple but "oh so delicious"!

Second Thursday, 2013

Host: Kitkat
Menu:
Pepperoni Lasagna (you may laugh, but reserve your judgement until you have tried it.  I have never eaten a more delicious lasagna, and of course the pepperoni was an accent, not the main feature).
Individual lemon curd pavlovas, served with berries and mint.  Very refreshing.
Wine: If only I could remember.  France and South Africa
Viewing pleasure: Herb and Dorothy - fascinating documentary about two very ordinary people (or at least "seemingly ordinary"), who collected one of the most significant collections of late 20th century American art, which is now housed at the National Gallery in Washington D.C.

Pepperoni lasagna - certainly a new recipe to me! But delicious!

Individual lemon curd pavlova with berries.

First Thursday, 2013

For nearly a decade, I have spent Thursday nights in the company of two other gentlemen.  We have wined, dined and entertained each other, through thick, and through thin.  In the face of broken romances, work pressures, financial woes, relocations, and great successes, new joys and good times,  we have found the time to commune together.  Some weeks, it's all Grand Baroque and home preserved, duck meat,  shot by the fair hand of the chef, other weeks, it might be homemade pizza or a menu inspired by travels or imagination.  The running theme has always been an opportunity, just once a week, to enjoy the company of others, the pleasure of someone taking the effort to prepare a proper meal, and the adventure of trying something new, for what you know will be an appreciative and supportive audience.  Otherwise known as "Survivor Night", because originally we started out by arranging to watch the foresaid reality TV show together, it has evolved into a very different "Survivor Night", and it is truly a highlight of each and every week for me.
Since I feel unable to invite you to join us for dinner of a Thursday (which is an honour very rarely bestowed), I plan to at least record the key culinary highlights of each week for our 10th anniversary year.....what, with my new camera and all (thanks Davey!)

Here was our Bill of Fare for Thursday, January 3rd, 2013:

Cocktail - sparkling rum and pomegranate punch (for this I can take no credit....thanks Davey (via CHOW).  Easy, very "more-ish" and readily adaptable for the grape-allergic (substitute sparkling cider for the sparkling wine - equally delicious.)
Soup: Cream of Celery - courtesy of BBC GoodFood.  Well received, and well presented - SUPER EASY!  Definitely one to make again. If only I had the foresight to make a delicious 1 hour, soft pretzel to go with it....need to ask Andrea for the recipe!).

Delicious Celery Soup, with a sparkling rum and pomegranate punch in the background ( just to set an edge on the appetite, you understand.)

Main course:  A classic, which we have enjoyed together several times before.  Fruity lamb tagine (again, see BBC GoodFood, with a few customizations based on what was to hand....i.e. substituting left over Christmas dates for the apricots, stewing beef for the lamb).  Served, this time, served with bulgar wheat, because no couscous was to be found.

Dessert: after all the over-indulgence of the last couple of weeks, I thought fruit salad might be welcome.  Persimmon, grapes, kiwi, banana, pomegranate and out of season rasps made for a palate-invigorating mix.  I managed to restrain myself from topping it off with some vanilla ice cream from Sweet Olenka's.  Maybe next time.