Cheese!!!!

A long overdue post...

Things on the food front have been good - The Pedant and I have made some tasty dishes lately. A few weeks ago we made a Mark Bittman salad with Israeli Couscous, preserved lemons (which are so, so much better after sitting for a month or so), chick peas, golden raisins, pine nuts, fresh parsley, capers and a vinaigrette. We fudged the recipe a bit, mostly because we didn't have a pound of couscous, but rather 8 ounces (a lie, I found another bag 2 days after making the salad). Plus, we used a whole can of chickpeas rather than 1/2 a cup for extra protein. But the result was wonderful. A real winner. Tart and fresh. We plan to make it again next week in our quest to use up grains before passover (and cook things that don't use the oven and don't make a giant mess on the stove). This weekend we made a spicy basque bread stuffing that was very tasty. We used a really good 9-grain bread that kept moist all week long before we actually made it. It was a slow cooker recipe, so we, of course, added MANY more spices than it called for, although too many cloves. But it is still pretty tasty. For lunch yesterday we made the ever popular Bittman's Beer and Black Beans and then made a scramble with them and feta. Always a winner.

Friday was a celebratory dinner since I got into Library School (yay me!). We went to Cheesetique in Alexandria and had a really great feast. We started with drinks while waiting for a table and salavating over their amazing cheese bar. I had a glass of the White Rioja which was splendid. TP had their apricot fizz which he enjoyed. Then to dinner!

We shared a cheese plate: Goat D'Affinios, Whiskey Cheddar and Ossau Iraty along with fig and orange jam. Oh, my, are cheeses good! The whiskey cheddar was not to sharp. The Goat cheese was perfect and the Ossau Iraty, a raw sheep's milk cheese was divine - strong, not too pungent, hard, not too hard. With 2 more glasses of wine: a perfect dry Riesling for me and a Vouvray (I think) for TP we had a great time.

Main Courses: I had ordered the baked mac & cheese but sadly they were out. I enjoyed the quick with artichokes which was really tasty, although too much food! I should have ordered something smaller - it was a little too much after all the wine and cheese. TP got grilled cheese and tomato soup which was a hit. Not too greasy, very cheesy and the soup was perfect. Of course, we shared a chocolate mouse for dessert which was excellent. Turns out, we didn't need it. The servers give you small cups of dark chocolate chips after dinner. Amazing. This place is a definite winner!

More on dinners this week later - we bought a curry cookbook and are making 2 dishes this week.