My friend Dara, who I met because she went to film school with Craig, cooked me not one, but TWO fantastic meals over the past two weeks. The first was an intimate dinner with her, her husband Kieran, Craig and myself; the second was a Rosh Hashanah dinner for a small group of mostly non-Jews (Dara asked me to do the prayer for the bread, and I forgot it!)
So this is just a quick (public) note to thank Dara for her wonderful food. At the first meal, there was a barley risotto that Dara fretted over because it took a long while to become tender–but the work paid off: it was extraordinarily flavorful, and a great base for the scallops (perfectly cooked) that she served on top with a piece of pancetta.
The second meal was a veritable feast with poached salmon in a dill sauce, chicken with prunes and olives, and a butternut squash risotto. Not to mention, of course, the requisite apples and honey that we ate at the start to bring on a sweet New Year.
If Dara cooks for me again, it’ll be a sweet new year indeed. Thanks, again, Dara, for feeding me so well.
GO DARA! I can only imagine how nerve-wracking it would be cooking for a food blog writer! I get nervous just cooking for my family and friends!
You go girl!
I misread that and really thought you had pancetta on Rosh Hashana, which would have allowed me to show off my new knowledge of Yiddish (“a shonda!”), but since you didn’t, I guess I can’t. (My NJ-Jewish roommate would have been so impressed.) Oh well. It still looks delicious — nice work Dara! =)
For next time Adam:
Baruch atah adonai elohenu melech haolam hamotzi lechem m’haaretz!
Can I hear an amen?
Sounds like two really delicious meals.
I have often made barley risotto (orzotto in Italian, I am told) and agree that it takes an exorbitant amount of time. Someone recently gave me a great tip, though–soak the barley for several hours (cover with water the morning the meal is planned) for a shorter cooking time. I haven’t tried it yet, but it makes sense.