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Dinner With Tuvi

Back in 1996 it was the year after my father had passed away and my mother spent month in Israel as part of an Elder Hostel. I was in Israel on business. We met up in Jerusalem and my friend Tuvi hosted us for dinner. That night in Jerusalem with Tuvi and his wife Mona, my mother was the center of attention and I came away with an understanding of why dad referred to her as the “Brains of the Operation”. She was just interested and interesting. Me I just sat back and watched. At the end of the evening Tuvi gave mom a recipe book and we have been making the hummus recipe from it for years

Tuvi is a friend of mine in Israel.. Tuvi and I have been friends since 1985. He is one of those people that brings amazing insight and wonderful humor to just about everything. His wife Mona is more than special. She is:

I talked to Tuvi a few months ago and asked how Mona was doing and he said: Ahh just google her, its easier.

(Tuvi and I discussing peace in the middle east or more likely the punch line of one Tuvi’s better jokes. Remember when people told jokes?)

I guess I have always known that my mother is smart. She has her Masters degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from Columbia university in New York. In addition, she has the equivalent of 2 other masters degrees. As the evening went on and I watched mom with Tuvi and Mona, two very bright people, I saw mom in a different light. She was the center of attention. (To this day, Tuvi sends me messages asking how mom is doing). It was that night when I first understood that mom was clearly, The “Brains of the Operation”.

Steak And French Fries

This is a re-write of a blog wrote last year

Remember when you went off to college and pretty quickly put on 15 pounds from the dorm food and regular beer drinking? Now, many of us are “Sheltered in place” and eating pretty well with threat of the coronavirus and Covid-19. Hopefully, we can avoid getting sick and all we get is a few extra pounds (AKA “The Quarantine 15) from eating well.

Last night we splurged a little with:

  • New York Strip grilled to a perfect medium rare
  • French Fries
  • Chopped “Three Hour” Salad
  • Pan Roasted Shishito Peppers
  • Caramelized Onion
  • Phelps Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

Talk about all the food groups!

Steak

We don’t eat a lot of red meat. When I get the green light to grill a steak, I like to work with a thicker cut of New York Strip. We bought a whole loin from Costco with our bulk shopping at the start of the lock down. I cut it into steaks that were 2 inches thick. The added thickness widens the window to get it cooked to the perfect medium rare.

French Fries

What is not to like about homemade French fries. The French really know how to make them. I will never forget my first trip to Paris and getting fries at a Bistro and thinking: These are better than McDonald’s. Growing up in the states, my gold standard for French fries were found under the Golden Arches. After working with a French chef, I learned that the Bistro in Paris and McDonalds both know the magic secret to a crispy fry. YOU HAVE TO COOK THEM TWICE. The key is to pre-cook them, let them cool and then finish them quickly in hot oil. It works every time.

3 Hour Salad

My daughter Jennifer has renamed my Romaine Wedge Salad with Gorgonzola Aioli as the “3 Hour Salad”. The combination of:

  • Roasting homemade croutons
  • Sautéing bacon
  • Whipping together a Gorgonzola aioli
  • Prepping a combination of green onion, olives and grape tomatoes with live oil and vinegar
  • Chopped Romaine Lettuce

What takes me about 30 minutes, will take Jennifer 3 hours. There is something to be said about trying to cook while at the same time keeping an eye on three kids under the age of 6.

Shishito Peppers

These are easy to make, taste great and add a perfect amount of zip/color  to your plate. I love that they add the zip without too much heat, The funny thing is that 1 in 10 will have a real pop of heat, but that isn’t exactly a bad thing,

Caramelized Onions

These were a last minute addition. It just so happened that we have a lot of onions from our “Buying In Bulk” exercise. A wonderful offshoot is you will add something different

Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon

Talk about a little splurge. Phelps is one of our favorite vineyards that we first visited back in the 1980’s. Do their wines taste better to us because they remind us of a wonderful afternoon in an idyllic setting 40 years ago? Probably! Past that, Phelps makes a pretty tasty Cabernet.

We can’t eat the way we did last night or we will be adding and unwanted Coivd-19 POUNDS. But, we certainly had a pretty good meal last night. Tonight, may be a pan seared chicken breast with extra vegetables. Being “Sheltered in Place” doesn’t mean we cant eat well.

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.

When Accidents Happen… You Need “Wine Away”

If you serve red wine, and people drink it, it is just a matter of time until there is an accident. We have been believers in the Wine Away product since we saw it in action at a wedding.

Picture this…the wedding is at a spectacular vineyard in southern California. The ceremony goes off without a hitch. The bridal party heads off for pictures as the guests  start enjoying the fruits of the vine. Just as the first picture is taken, the brother of the bride spills a whole  glass of Cabernet Sauvignon down the front of the bride’s beautiful white dress. We are talking major stain. To this day, I don’t know how she did it, but somehow the bride kept her cool. Almost instantly, the wedding planner arrived with a bottle of Wine Away and whisked the bride off to address the issue. Within minutes the bride returned with the wine stain gone. It was magic. I would like to say that was the only crisis du jour, but a short while later, the bride was enjoying a special dance with her grandfather that ended abruptly when Gramp’s pants fell down. Yes, the pants fell to his ankles in front of a hundred guests. Again, the bride smiled on.

I would like to say that was our only experience with red wine spilling, but there is my buddy Joe. Twice he spilled wine on our living room carpet. The running joke became that we needed to seat Joe on a drop cloth. It was all a lot of fun until Karma struck. After making fun of my buddy Joe with a case of the “dropsy’s”, sure enough I knocked over a glass at another friends house. Unfortunately, those incidents were before we knew about Wine Away. I can tell you that from those experiences that using Club Soda to get out a wine stain does not work.

My buddy Joe and the “Usual Suspects”

We have taken to giving bottles of Wine Away to friends and family at Christmas. I strongly recommend having an inventory of this miracle product be part of your wine group planning.

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/wine group/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.