Not so Lil' Dinner Party

So Neighbor Brad is being flakey about getting me pictures, so I'm just going to write about Saturday night's "Lil' Dinner Party" and let you imagine just how tastey everything was.

Like most nights that involve me cooking for other people, this one's menu got a little out of hand. First up was the spinach and artichoke dip. I made sure to leave it under the broiler for about the last ten minutes so it got some nice char on the top. Look for future variations beyond the usual parm/cream cheese/sour cream/mayo/garlic/spinach/artichoke combo that makes this one so good. Some spice additions (cayenne, anyone?) could definitely kick it up a notch.

Real homemade macaroni and cheese is super easy and super good. If you ever make this stuff, don't tell me about it because it will make me want to strangle you with speaker wire. Boil some macaroni pasta. The specific kind doesn't matter so much, although I'm partial to anything with lots of texture. It holds the cheese better. Speaking of cheese, I use tons of extra sharp and sharp cheddar, some Colby, Monterey Jack, and a bit of Mozarella. There's one more cheese in there that I use for texture, but I'm not telling you what it is. I will tell you it's a good idea to add something in there that melts very well, since your cheese will be mostly cheddar and cheddar isn't exactly creamy. Cream of mushroom soup and French's fried onions will round out the body of the dish. Stick it in a baking dish, sprinkle with more cheddar and more French's fried onions, cover with aluminum foil and cook for 20 minutes at 350. Uncover and cook another 10, and serve hot. Yum and yum.

Hint: You need more cheese than you think you need, but don't go too overboard or you'll just have a lot of melted cheese with your macaroni.

Those two were home runs. Next up was the lobster bisque. Now I wasn't personally satisfied, but I think the guests were happy just to be eating lobster bisque that they didn't have to pay for. I can't really blame them.

::detour::

I went to the Maine Avenue Seafood market for the first time on Sunday. I had heard about it in various food venues online and expected this huge open-air seafood market with tons of different vendors fresh in from Maryland where I'd be able to pick from that morning's haul.

Perhaps my expectations were a bit too high. Instead, it was quite obviously one big vendor that set up multiple stands, all of which had the same prices and the same selection. I'll grant that the fish was definitely fresh--my boy Tommy noticed that the whole catfish were actually still alive--but it certainly wasn't as amazing as I had expected.

::end detour::

Nonetheless, I picked up a couple of medium sized lobsters from out of the tank and some tilapia fillets. Headed home, boiled the lobster for ten minutes, cleaned it (with help from Tommy), and used the shells and tomalley to make a stock that got a dash of tomato paste (I would later find out that I had a bit too much "dash" for my tastes.). I cooked some veggies (celery, bell peppers, carrots) in some reserved stock and then strained the two together, mixed in some corn starch and heavy cream, and kept it simmering. The whole process should take about 3 hours and 15 minutes, but I rushed it into about two and a half. So my lobster stock didn't have quite as much flavor as it should have gotten, and it also didn't end up as thick as I wanted it. Served it with some of the previously cleaned lobster meat. I'll definitely try this again later, because a well made lobster bisque is one of the best tastes I can imagine--but I've got some work to do.

But like I said, no complaints from the guests, who were just happy to be eating lobster at a dinner party.

Finally, the cedar plank tilapia came out. And it was just boring. I had used butter, olive oil, tarragon, sea salt, black pepper, cayenne, and coriander, but the only strong flavor was the cedar plank. Till Neighbor Brad brought over a little cajun seasoning that knocked it up a couple of levels.

Not a bad night. Pictures will come later.