A Little Milestone

No, this ain't that kinda milestone. Don't let that adorable Fishs Eddy tea towel fool you, we can't afford to get married - not with a cat applying to Princeton in the fall.  It's the 100th installment of The Little Dinner Party! When I began this endeavor three and a half long years ago, I thought I'd be famous by now. Unless you print out this weekly blog and bind it together like a real book (as I do) it's not a coffee table book yet. Apparently it takes a lot more to get famous than just being a precocious child or a cute animal. If you have the secret, illuminati me. ∆ 

Maybe the secret to fame is working hard and updating once a week. Why can't it be working as hard as I feel like and updating randomly? In any case, in honor of our 100th post, I present this beautiful cake! To be honest, I'm really reaching for an excuse to make cake these days. 

A Little Hangover Brunch

There are some Sunday mornings you wake up so unmercifully hung over you temporarily consider rehab. It's on these days you wish you had brought your sunglasses out with you so that your walk of shame could be a little less obvious the next morning. Have no fear, the Starbucks barista has probably seen worse stumble in on a weekend morning. You'll really thank yourself for this make-ahead French toast as it's almost the perfect cure for your throbbing head and gurgling belly, especially when served with salty breakfast meats. 

Summer Cherry French Toast

I think we can all agree that making pancakes and French toast in a skillet is pretty annoying, especially when you have company. You have to eat in shifts which is inconvenient. I pieced this baked French toast recipe together from a few different blogs I read. It's a keeper. It's way better than the yucky French toast my mom used to make, sorry mom. I really hate cheapy sandwich bread so I used French bread instead. 

You will need the following: 

2 demi baguettes 

1 c whole milk

3 eggs

1/3 c maple syrup

pinch of salt

cinnamon & sugar

butter pats

2 c pitted cherries

1/4 c orange juice

3 tbsp sugar

dash of pie spice

1 vanilla yogurt

confectioner's sugar

Step 1: Slice bread in 1/4" slices. In a bowl, whisk milk, eggs, syrup and salt. Lightly butter each slice of bread and dip in egg mixture. Place in a single layer in a casserole dish. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Cover and allow to sit overnight. 

Step 2: Steep pitted cherries in sugar, spice and orange juice overnight. 

Step 3: The next morning (in your still-kinda-drunk haze), put toast slices in a single layer on a buttered baking sheet and bake 15-17 minutes at 400 degrees. Turn toasts over half-way into bake time. While toasts are baking boil cherry compote in a sauce pan until thickened. 

Step 4: Arrange toasts and top with cherry compote, vanilla yogurt and confectioner's sugar. Serve immediately. 

A Little Nor'easter Dinner Party

Welcome to the first installment of July's three-part regional cuisine month! Since it's 'merica's birthday month,  I will be featuring weekly foods and crafts influenced by the diverse-ish cultures we have in America. This week we're putting on our Top-Siders and seersucker for a nautical-themed dinner. Keep in mind that even though the menu sounds pricey, it's much cheaper than getting lobster at a restaurant. I mostly decided to get all fancy because my sister came to town and we're classy broads. Now pass me that Carlo Rossi!

Eastwick Cherry Pie

Of all the fruit pies, I think cherry is my second favorite. I try to make at least one per summer. What twenty-three year old boy has a ceramic pie plate? This lucky boy! Cherry pie can be really over the top or really trashy, I'd like to think mine is somewhere between Baker's Square and those Hostess snacky-pie-devil-thingies. I am reviled by canned fruit-goo pie filling, fruit pies should always be made with fresh fruit. Unless you have a handy-dandy cherry pitter (which I don't because that's stupid), be prepared for cherry juice to stain your fingers!

You will need the following:  

(for crust) 

2.5 c flour

2 sticks cold butter

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1/3 c + 1 tbsp ice water

(for filling)

1.5-2 lbs bing(er) cherries

3/4 c sugar

3 tbsp corn starch

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp pie spice

Step 1: Make the best pie crust ever by cutting little pieces of cold butter into dry ingredients. Push butter into flour until it's mostly smooth. Add little bits of cold water to bring dough together. Split dough in half and roll out two crusts. Wrap in plastic and chill. 

Step 2: Pit all your cherries by popping them in half, like so:

Step 3: Mix cherries with lemon juice, sugar, starch, spice and vanilla: 

Step 3: Fit one pie crust into pie plate: 

Step 4: Fill crust and begin building a lattice top from the second pie crust: 

Step 5: Brush top with milk and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Bake 425 for 30 mins. Remove pie and place it on a cookie sheet and reduce temp to 350. Bake 20-25 minutes longer. 

$ Baked Lobster Tails $

Nope, you're not at the Red Lobster, this is my apartment! Lobster (for two) is super simple and really not all that expensive. I got my frozen tails at the supermarket seafood counter. As long as you get cold water tails, they'll be fine. To distinguish between cold and warm water tails, look at some websites. This was my first experience with lobster in general, I used to be horribly allergic to shellfish...but after this dinner, I think I'm hooked. Sorry guys, no cheesy biscuits. 

you will need the following: 

2 (5oz) cold water lobster tails

1 stick of butter

1 lemon 

Paprika

2 cloves roasted garlic

Step 1: Prepare your marinade by melting butter and skimming the fat from the top. Squeeze in roasted garlic, lemon juice and paprika. Keep warm and liquidy.

Step 2: Once your tails thaw, take a pair of scissors and cut the shell down the middle: 

Step 3: This part is gross, but pull the meat away from the membrane, careful not to disconnect it from the shell. Push the broken shell back together and set the meat on top. Remove the vein and open the meat like butterfly wings. Baste in marinade and sprinkle with paprika: 

Step 4: Fill a cake pan with one tablespoon of water and bake tails for 20 minutes at 350. Serve with butter and hot lemon slices. Lobster should be served at 140 degrees.