23 August 2009

Less than a week before we leave for Cabo! I can't wait to spend nine days on the beach. I was in Boston last week to judge the Sappi Ideas That Matter grant program. It was really intense but really great. We awarded $400,000 to some really great causes. My dear friend, Ann Willoughby, was also a judge, so that made it even more fun. After we finished judging on Friday, I went to dinner with Annie and her fiance Steve. We ate at an amazing restaurant, Scampo, that is located in the new Liberty Hotel. The hotel use to be a prison, and it is very cool. Dinner was amazing. We ate roast suckling pig, pizza with clams and bacon, and spaghetti with bolognese sauce. The suckling pig was especially amazing, and our waitress even brought us out some extra crispy pork skin! It was a great night! I got home yesterday, and I am a little tired. However, our friends Jeff and Cory came over for dinner and to watch True Blood. They have been wanting to try my curry, so I made it for them. I went a little Bollywood for tonight's theme. I will be on vacation the next two Sundays, so this post will have to tide you all over for a while. I keep getting a lot of great comments about Bill's Sunday Suppers, so I know a lot of you are reading it. Please comment if you feel inclined. I would love to hear from you, and feel free to share some of your own Sunday Supper stories!

Adios amigos,

Bill

The Menu:


- Indian Curry with Chicken, Potatoes, Cauliflower, Zucchini and Spinach

- Hummus with Organic Zucchini, Squash, Carrots and Grilled Wheat Nan

- Grilled Nan

- Homemade Mango Ice Cream with Star Fruit and Waffled Butter Cookies

- Persimmon Creek Vineyard Seyval Blanc

16 August 2009 - Countdown to Cabo

We are heading to Los Cabos on August 28 for nine days, so the countdown has begun. We have not taken a week off for almost two years, so the break will be nice. Also, business has really started picking up, so we should be able to relax somewhat. We signed a deal with Caluco outdoor furniture on Friday! We will be developing their brand as well as some Grant outdoor furniture collections! It is very exciting, and Cabo will be a great place to think about the possibilities...

For tonight's Sunday Supper, I decided to prepare some Baja inspired cuisine. I made fresh margaritas for the preparation and served them with homemade tortilla chips, guacamole and salsa fresco. For supper, I made chipolte and tequila chicken sandwiches with hand cut french fries dusted with cumin and ancho chili pepper. For dessert, I made simple Mexican Coke Floats! As my friend Ann Willoughby would say, "you forgot how real Coca Cola tastes until you have a Mexican Coke! They still make them with real cane sugar there, not corn syrup. Mexican Cokes are hard to find, but our local grocery store, Macfarlands, caters to the Hispanic community and they import a case or two every Friday around noon. You have to get there early, but the "real thing" is worth it!

Hope everyone has a great week!

Adios amigos,

Bill

The Menu:

- Handmade Lime Margaritas

- Fresh Guacamole and Salsa Fresca with Homemade Tortilla Chips

- Chipolte and Tequila Grilled Chicken Sandwiches

- Hand Cut Cumin and Ancho Dusted French Fries

- Mexican Coke Floats

Day Late – Happy Birthday Dad!

Well, I am a day late for this week's Sunday Supper post! I made homemade pizza on Saturday night, so I decided to take Sunday off this week. Today is the anniversary of my father's birthday. He was a chef in the Army, so I decided to cook for him tonight...

We went to see Julie & Julia on Friday night, and Meryl Streep is delicious as Julia! Julia was my ROCK STAR! I once sat next to her on a flight to Paris! I was able to upgrade to First Class with miles, and there she sat just across the aisle from me. Of course, I was frozen with admiration! She had a couple of glasses of champagne before we took off, and then she switched to Budweiser! Way! She got up to go to the restroom, and the lady was truly towering! When they came around to take our dinner order, I told the flight attendant, "I'll have whatever she is having!" I finally got up the nerve to talk to her when we landed in Paris. I had kept my dinner menu and asked for her autograph. However, a good friend and fellow cook in Dalton had been in a terrible car accident before I left, so I asked her to address it to her. She wound up being fine, so I still regret not getting Julia's autograph for myself! Shallow, I know.

Anyway, one of our neighbors, and now a good patron at the Store at Grant Design Collaborative, brought us some brilliant heirloom tomatoes on Saturday. They were too gorgeous to waste, so I made a homemade tomato sauce tonight and served it over thin spaghetti. I had some leftover wheat bread, so I grilled it peasant style and made a simple green salad. I also harvested the first figs from my tree and made a rustic fig tart with local honey. I had a busy Monday at work, but great, fresh, local produce should not go to waste!

So happy Monday Sunday Supper everyone, and happy birthday to my dear late father.

Bon Appetite!

Bill

The Menu:

- Fresh Local Heirloom Tomato Sauce Over Thin Spaghetti

- Simple Green Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette

- Rustic Tart of Homegrown Organic Figs

02 August 2009

I can't believe it is August already! The summer is flying by, but I sure have enjoyed the Canton Farmers Market in the Historic Downtown Loop! Thanks to our new Main Street Manager, Ginger Girrard, the farmers market has grown steadily. It is so great that I have even been getting up at the crack of dawn every Saturday morning so I can be there when it opens at 8 AM to score the best locally grown produce. No doubt, those of you who know me well are astonished by this development. The only thing I love better than sleeping is cooking! Yesterday, I scored some beautiful Silver Queen corn, green and ripe tomatoes and beautiful sunflowers from Eddie Smith's son, Sam. On Friday, I broke down and had a hand patted bacon cheeseburger from the Keithsburg Cafe. I posted about it on Facebook, and I got a ton of comments - most of them about bacon. Oh the universal appeal of bacon! Yesterday, we lounged by the pool and I made some great BLTs with the beautiful homegrown tomatoes from the market! They were divine! I agree with Julia Child that "bacon is the food of Gods!" Speaking of Julia, I can not wait to see Julie & Julia! The movie opens on Friday, and I will be there! I read the book and loved it, and I hear that Meryl Streep becomes Julia! One of my favorite quotes by Julia is "You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients." So I am taking her advice to heart for tonight's Sunday Supper and utilizing my fresh ingredients from the Farmers Market. I prepared a Silver Queen Corn Chower and served it with a garnish of homemade bacon bits and thinly sliced jalapeno peppers. I also made panko fried green tomatoes as a side dish. Supper began with a mixed green salad with the very first figs from our fig tree, walnuts and goat cheese. Next week, I should have enough figs for a delectable rustic fig tart, and I can't wait! So on that note, as Julia would end, bon appetit!

The Menu:

- Local Silver Queen Corn Chowder Adorned with
Housemade Bacon Bits and Jalapeno

- Panko Fried Green Tomatoes

- First Harvest Fig Salad with Toasted Walnuts and Peppered Goat Cheese