My Husband Is Wonderful! -2/15/09
I'm a day late to write a Valentine's Day post but I wanted to write about how much I appreciate Richard's willingness to go along with this "Month of Gourmet" project. He's never complained about having to eat different foods night after night and having no choice in the matter. Tonight was the first time that Richard questioned the sanity of the idea of cooking every recipe in an entire cooking magazine in one month. I play on a tennis team and we didn't get back home until 5:30 and dinner still had to be made. Thankfully, I had made the dessert, the Dense Chocolate Torte on page 15, this morning before we left. But, I had planned to make the Smoky Radicchio Risotto on page 14 and the Duck Breast with Frisee Salad and Port Vinaigrette on page 61 and still needed almost a hour before those would be ready. Richard put Eyrleigh in her seat and got her some crackers to tide her over until dinner was done. I can work fast when I have to and quickly got the onions and raisins softening for the risotto and preheated the oven for the duck. Dinner was ready in 40 minutes!
I love risotto. I only began making it regularly in the last year but it is one of my favorite foods. Eyrleigh loves it too. She has gotten much pickier about what she puts in her mouth in just the last month but she eats risotto even after she refuses to eat anything else. The Smoky Radicchio Risotto was as good as any risotto I've made and the smoky Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses were great additions. The radicchio gave a purple tint but I really didn't taste a flavor difference. I don't think it was really necessary, unless you wanted the color.
The Duck Breast with Frisee Salad and Port Vinaigrette was not as spectacular. Duck breast has a very mild flavor and is not that distinctly different from other poultry. It is not as readily available so I don't use it as often. This recipe did not change that for me. I enjoyed it but would not go out of my way to shop for duck over chicken. The salad was good. I couldn't buy frisee by itself but instead bought a mix of greens that contained frisee. The dressing was good but there was not enough of it. We had purchased Ferreira Dona Antonia Port when crossing the border from Canada several years ago and it was so good, we enjoyed a glass with our dinner.
The glass of port also helped cut the richness of our dessert, the Dense Chocolate Torte. This dessert was sentimental to me as my grandmother was an interior decorator and had worked for the Deerfield Inn, the inn where this recipe was created. The Torte was very rich. Only a small piece was enough to satisfy any chocolate craving. A large piece would be too much very quickly. It was surprisingly easy to make, but every time I use a springform pan in a water bath, I'm amazed the Reynolds or some other foil manufacturer has not created a pan cover so that water doesn't leak into the pan.
I love risotto. I only began making it regularly in the last year but it is one of my favorite foods. Eyrleigh loves it too. She has gotten much pickier about what she puts in her mouth in just the last month but she eats risotto even after she refuses to eat anything else. The Smoky Radicchio Risotto was as good as any risotto I've made and the smoky Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses were great additions. The radicchio gave a purple tint but I really didn't taste a flavor difference. I don't think it was really necessary, unless you wanted the color.The Duck Breast with Frisee Salad and Port Vinaigrette was not as spectacular. Duck breast has a very mild flavor and is not that distinctly different from other poultry. It is not as readily available so I don't use it as often. This recipe did not change that for me. I enjoyed it but would not go out of my way to shop for duck over chicken. The salad was good. I couldn't buy frisee by itself but instead bought a mix of greens that contained frisee. The dressing was good but there was not enough of it. We had purchased Ferreira Dona Antonia Port when crossing the border from Canada several years ago and it was so good, we enjoyed a glass with our dinner.
The glass of port also helped cut the richness of our dessert, the Dense Chocolate Torte. This dessert was sentimental to me as my grandmother was an interior decorator and had worked for the Deerfield Inn, the inn where this recipe was created. The Torte was very rich. Only a small piece was enough to satisfy any chocolate craving. A large piece would be too much very quickly. It was surprisingly easy to make, but every time I use a springform pan in a water bath, I'm amazed the Reynolds or some other foil manufacturer has not created a pan cover so that water doesn't leak into the pan.
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