Today's menu ...

All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast.
John Gunther

BREAKFAST :
Pea mash with Mint, White Radish, Olive Oil, and Black Sea Salt on Rye Bread (egg shape); Blue Cheese, Pear, Violas on Mixed Grain Bread (open faced square); Tomato, Avocado, Salmon, on Brioche (circle shape) and Cucumber, Goat Cheese, Sea Beans, and Flowering Broccoli on Rustic White Bread ...

SALAD :
Sesame Cucumber Salad Recipe

• Prep time: 7 minutes

Make sure your sesame oil is fresh and not rancid. These oils can go rancid after a few months. Do a taste test before adding to the cucumbers; if it tastes off, don't use. If you want you can sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on the cucumbers.

Ingredients

• 2 medium sized cucumbers (about 1 lb total)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 Tbsp dark sesame oil
• 2 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes

Method

1 Peel the cucumbers. Cut them into quarters, lengthwise. (If the seeds are bitter, scrape out the seeds and discard.) Cut the cucumbers again, crosswise, into 1/2-inch thick pieces.
2 Place cucumbers into a serving bowl. Sprinkle with salt. Toss with sesame oil, seasoned rice vinegar, and chili flakes.
Yield: Serves 2-3.

APPETIZER :

Cheesy Bread Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese
• 1 lb shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 to 1 cup chopped green onion (to taste)
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp sour cream (optional)
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup, 4 ounces), softened to the point of being slightly melted

• 1 to 2 loaves of French or Italian bread (I used Ciabatta), depending on the size of the loaves

Method

1 In a large bowl, mix together the cheeses and the green onion. Stir in the mayonnaise and sour cream. In a separate small bowl blend the butter and garlic until smooth. Add the butter mixture to the cheese mixture.
2 Preheat broiler. Slice loaf of bread in half horizontally, lay crust side down. Spread cheese mixture over the bread. Place under the broiler until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes.
3 Remove from broiler and let sit for 5 minutes until cool enough to handle. Slice the bread with a bread knife. Serve.
Makes 30 to 40 slices.

MAIN DISH :

Broccoli Beef Recipe

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound flank or sirloin, sliced thinly across the grain
• 3/4 pound broccoli florets
• 2 tablespoons high-heat cooking oil
• 2 cloves garlic, very finely minced or smushed through garlic smusher
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water

For the beef marinade

• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
• 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce

• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup chicken broth

Method

1 Marinate the beef: Stir together the beef marinade ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the beef slices and stir until coated. Let stand for 10 minutes
2 Prepare the sauce: Stir together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
3 Blanch the broccoli: Cook the broccoli in a small pot of boiling, salted water until tender-crisp, about 2 minutes. Drain thoroughly.
4 Heat a large frying pan or wok over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and instantly evaporates upon contact. Add the cooking oil and swirl to coat. Add the beef and immediately spread the beef out all over the surface of the wok or pan in a single layer (preferably not touching). Let the beef fry undisturbed for 1 minute. Flip the beef slices over, add the garlic to the pan and fry for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute until no longer pink, Pour in the sauce, add the blanched broccoli and bring to a boil. Pour in the dissolved cornstarch and cook, stirring, until the sauce boils and thickens, 30 seconds.

DESSERT

Baked Apples Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 large good baking apples, such as Rome Beauty, Golden Delicious, or Jonagold (see cooking apple varieties)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup currants or chopped raisins
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 3/4 cup boiling water

Method

1 Preheat oven to 375°F. Wash apples. Remove cores to 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apples, you can use a paring knife to cut out first the stem area, and then the core. Use a spoon to dig out the seeds. Make the holes about 3/4-inch to an inch wide.
2 In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, currants/raisins, and pecans. Place apples in a 8-inch-by-8-inch square baking pan. Stuff each apple with this mixture. Top with a dot of butter (1/4 of the Tbps).
3 Add boiling water to the baking pan. Bake 30-40 minutes, until tender, but not mushy. Remove from the oven and baste the apples several times with the pan juices.
Serve warm with vanilla icecream on the side.

Yield: Makes 4 servings.

DINNER

Crab Cakes Recipe

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

We started with two 2 lb Dungeness crabs, which were then cleaned and cracked, resulting in about 1 1/4 pounds of lump crab meat.

Ingredients

• 1 lb lump crabmeat, picked through and any bits of shell removed (try not to break up the lumps of crabmeat as you pick through it)
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter (divided, 1 Tbsp and 3 Tbsp)
• 1/2 cup chopped shallots
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp prepared tartar sauce
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• About 4 slices white bread, crusts removed, torn into small pieces, yielding 2 cups
• 2/3 cup fresh bread crumbs

Method

1 Heat one tablespoon of butter in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the shallots and a half teaspoon of salt. Cook until the shallots are translucent, a couple minutes. Do not brown. Let the shallots cool.
2 Whisk together the eggs, Worcestershire sauce, remaining half teaspoon of salt, paprika, freshly ground black pepper, tartar sauce, lemon zest, Tabasco, parsley, and the cooked shallots. Gently fold in the crabmeat and torn bread, taking care again to not break up the lumps of crab meat. The mixture will be very wet. Using your (clean) hands, take a scoop of the crab mixture and gently form it into a patty form about 2 1/4 inches across and 3/4 inches thick. Continue until you've made 12 crab cake patties. Line a rimmed tray with a piece of wax paper just large enough to hold the cakes and sprinkle the bottom of the tray with half of the bread crumbs. Set the crab cakes in one layer on the top of the layer of bread crumbs and sprinkle them with the remaining bread crumbs. Cover the crab cakes loosely with another sheet of wax paper and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

3 Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in a large non-stick skillet on medium high heat. The butter will melt and foam up. When the foam subsides, working in batches, place the crab cakes in the pan (do not crowd the pan), and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side.

Yield: Makes 12 crab cakes.