Yesterday the big guy took a mandatory furlough day so we went shopping for each others Christmas gifts - together. It turned out to be a fabulous way to solve the gift issue as we're both extremely happy with the results....plus, it makes wrapping paper and bows rather redundant if you know what I mean.
Then we came home and pulled some kitchen duty as we had friends over for dinner last night. Taking pics when you've dinner guests is a bit of a pain, so I'll just tell you what the menu involved since we've "tested" some of the recipes before.
We started with a salad of mache' lettuce topped with pears, cambozola cheese and toasted pecans in a shallot vinaigrette. It's a slightly different take on the apple/stilton salad we've shared with you in the past, with a milder cheese paired (peared...ha, get it?) with a milder fruit and pecans rather than walnuts, and shows the versatility of the shallot vinaigrette. It's a lovely light way to start a meal.
Then we moved on to Lamb Shanks with Lentils, a dish we've also shared here with you in the past. It's a great "cold weather meal" and wonderfully tasty with lamb shanks braised in red wine with rosemary, onions, garlic and the lentils added after the first half hour of cooking. It smells divine while it's cooking and tastes great, especially with the "stellar" lamb we purchased from the U of A Meat's Lab.
The grand finale was a creamy, lusciously light lemon creme brulee. Crunchy on top with sugar caramelized via our trusty blow torch, the confection was topped with fresh raspberries drizzled with a little Limoncello. Creme brulee is so darned easy to make and the Meyer lemon flavor went perfectly after the rather peasant flavors of the main course. (That's peasant, not pheasant!) It was a great way to end a wonderful laughter filled evening with two new friends and their little 4 legged comedian.
Lemon Crème Brulee (adapted from Bon Appetit)
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup half and half
Strips of peel from 1 Meyer lemon
6 tablespoons white sugar
3 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
4 teaspoons white sugar
Fresh raspberries
Limoncello
Heat cream, half and half and peel in a small saucepan over medium heat until bubbles form on the edges and cream is almost boiling. Set aside and let steep for 15 minutes. Meanwhile place 4 – 6 ounce ramekins in a metal baking pan. Preheat oven to 325.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together eggs yolks, sugar, vanilla and salt. Slowly pour steeped lemon rind/cream mixture into eggs, whisking constantly until well blended. Strain custard through a sieve to remove lemon rind, and then divide custard evenly among 4 cups. Pour hot water into pan to reach half way up sides of cups. Bake until just set, leaving some “jiggle” in center of custards (about 50 minutes). Remove baked custards from water bath and cool on wire rack. Refrigerate overnight or until very cold. Just before serving, sprinkle tops with an even layer of sugar and caramelize with a blow torch until top is golden colored and crisp. Garnish with raspberries and a drizzle of limoncello. Makes 4 servings. Download Lemon Creme Brulee
What a lovely meal to share with friends!! The first and last courses look especially tasty to me!
Posted by: Nanan | 12/22/2010 at 12:51 PM
I love creme brulee and I think the lemon would counterbalance all that sweetness quite nicely!
Posted by: pam | 12/22/2010 at 01:25 PM
Lea, it was a nice combination and you're right about the last course
Pam, it was amazing how much lemon flavor came from just the rinds steeped in the cream mixture and you're right, it wasn't overly sweet.
Posted by: June | 12/22/2010 at 01:42 PM
New friends... how nice! And I'm assuming their little four legged comedian was a pot bellied pig ;)
Dave and I "shopped" for our Christmas presents separately as all good couples should. He bought what he wanted and I bought what I wanted...LOL
Posted by: Mags | 12/22/2010 at 03:11 PM
Mags - Sparky is a little Maltese Shitzu cross that's Max's new BFF. They are hilarious together. RE the shopping - we kinda' did it your way, but we did it together. Ha.
Posted by: June | 12/22/2010 at 03:56 PM