On Saturday I invited my mom, her husband, my aunt and her husband over for dinner. In the spring, we had my uncle build us a great picnic table, and it was finally going to be warm enough to have everyone over for a good old fashioned BBQ. Except that it really wasn’t, but that didn’t stop us.
So, because I was entertaining, I pulled out all the stops for the family.
Appetizers: Goat cheese filled figs with honey
Main Course: Pepper Steaks, Broccoli slaw, homemade focaccia bread and Scalloped Potatoes*
Dessert: What ever my wonderful Aunt Leslie brought
*I didn’t make the potatoes either.
So, here is the scoop, I’m sure you’re dying to know.
The figs are super easy and delicious. I was scared of them at first, and Dylan thinks they are gross (but he also has the taste buds of a 10 yr. old boy)
I used Turkish figs which can be found at your local New Seasons. Slice them into quarters, without slicing all the way through the fig. Fill with as much goat cheese as your little heart desires. Then pop those suckers onto a cookie sheet and into the over at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or so. They will come out all warm and gooey. Top off with a drizzle of honey and you have yourself a delicious snack. I would even eat these as dessert as they are fairly sweet and the goat cheese is divine.
Don’t you love my countertops in all their 50′s glory? It really wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t have 60 years of wear and tear. This was a kitchen that has seen a lot of love.
Figs up close and personal.
Dylan was also kind enough to snap a few photos while I was kneading bread. The recipe is from one of my favorite Cookbooks, the Newlywed’s Cookbook. Reminds me of the housewives of Mad Men with all these classic recipes that I feel like I should only prepare in an a-line dress and apron.
As you will see, that is not what I wear when I cook.
And here is the bread after several session of rising and kneading and poking. Right before you pop it into the oven.
Maybe some day I’ll get better at taking more pictures – particularly when I’m done making things. In the case of the figs I was too busy burning my hand taking them out of the oven.
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Just ignore the ugly white stuff on that leaf. Not bad for some hand-me-d0wn tubers I threw in the ground in June and hoped for the best. I’m waiting to see what color the other plants that have come up are – as I don’t know what they look like yet. And then I’ll need a few more for the yard.
