V-Day Top Chef Style

I can't even begin to tell you how much fun we had doing this. It didn't hurt that the food turned out really well too. To recap, Bill and I drew proteins - B drew fish, I drew pork. We kept our dishes a secret until after we were done grocery shopping yesterday. Bill gets credit for coming up with his course on his own, without the help of a recipe. I used a Top Chef recipe (Richard Blais season 4) for inspiration but changed it up a bit with my own greens and some other substitutions. We served Delta Vineyards Pinot Noir.

Bill's course - Three fish three ways at three temperatures: Salmon sashimi over rice with a ginger lime soy sauce, seared yellowfin tuna encrusted in sesame and poppy seeds over a mixed greens salad with a honey ginger balsamic vinegarette and parmigiano-reggiano encrusted baked cod with roasted rosemary squash and zucchini.

My course - Braised BBQ and coffee pork shoulder in an apple cider reduction with bacon and onion brussel sprouts and cilantro, corn and white truffle oil salad.

Course 3 - Toasted coconut and honey pecans over sauteed bananas with ice cream and homemade caramel sauce. And coffee, of course.

Bill wins for creativity. I loved his lime ginger soy sauce and the tuna was my favorite of the three. I definitely think we'll be making that again. Overall, my dish won for it's flavor. It was excellent and the meat was so tender, we couldn't believe it was pork.

We think we're going to start doing this regularly, possibly even once a month. It really forces you to try new things and go outside of your comfort zone. Bill had an idea for next time that we would again draw proteins but that the other person will tell you what dish you're going to make. I like it.

V-Day Proteins

Last night we drew our Valentine's dinner proteins. I drew pork, Bill drew fish. We decided ahead of time that fish includes shellfish too. I have no idea what I'm going to make but I think I'll incorporate bacon because bacon makes everything better. Apparently Bill knew immediately what he is going to make but only mentioned something about raw fish. While we're keeping our actual entrees a secret, we did agree to be each other's sous chef if needed and to open a Pinot because the varietal can work well with both proteins if we plan for it. We also agreed on toasted coconut and pecans with caramel sauce over bananas and ice cream for dessert. Stay tuned!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is this Saturday and we actually don't celebrate the holiday but we do use it as an excuse to have an awesome dinner. Last year we did the prix fixe dinner at Atlas and it was actually really, really good. We were very pleasantly surprised and agreed to make it a tradition. That was before we knew what the word "budget" meant. Now, while we'd love to spend $150 for deliciousness, we really shouldn't. Instead, I think we're going to go Top Chef. Bill had the idea to write down proteins (lamb, duck, beef, fish, etc.), put them into a hat and we'll each draw one. We will have to make an entree based on our protein and then we'll collaborate on a dessert. A fun, 3-course meal on the cheap. Or at least cheaper than $150.

We did a similar thing with our good friends Matt and Sara for New Year's Eve this year.

Faced with the prospect of spending around $200/couple for a prix fixe dinner, we decided to stay in instead. Each couple took two courses and it was a blast.

Laura & Bill course #1 - Lemon shrimp over roasted garlic and goat cheese risotto with tomatoes. A slightly modified recipe from the Wine Lover's Cookbook.

Laura & Bill course #2 -Broiled lobster tail over a crab cake and bed of spinach with a spicy remoulade sauce.

Sara & Matt course #3 - Fennel crusted pork chop in an apple cider reduction with apple fennel salad and raisin emulsion paired with artichoke risotto. A Top Chef recipe.

This course was my fave and I am not ashamed.

Sara & Matt course #4 - Molten chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream paired with Little Death by Hot Chocolate with Godiva liquor and homemade chocolate whipped cream.

I'm excited to see what creations Bill and I come up with this weekend!!