In the extensive list of pros and cons I made in the last year, when my husband and me were grappling over the choice to relocate back into New York from the suburbs, I was missing one huge positive…
That’s because people constantly swarming through the city! Students from the college of our youth, old friends from the pre-kid era and old colleagues, world-traveling uncles, and desirable is, the daughters’ college buddies Nothing can make me more happy than getting a message by one that says “Hey, I’m in New York next week, can I come by?” I’ll always respond”yes” every time. Sometimes it’s for a bagels breakfast, and sometimes for lunch that’s based on focaccia from scratch, but most of the time it’s dinners on the week which are my most favorite way to cook for friends. I can tell you with absolute certainty that these meals completely erase “no place to hang long dresses,” one of the negatives that I have listed.
There was enough change in my dining habits when I changed my dinner routine when I became the empty-nester and I’m not weeping about it. There is enough work (psychic and physical) involved in cooking for two people is astonishingly, pleasant and I love the fact the fact that I don’t be aware of what I’m cooking until I receive a text from my husband telling me “on the way home.” In addition to the dog’s constant grumbling beneath the table, the meal is what it’s supposed to be: serene relaxed, thoughtful, and restorative. But…
… Wow! I miss the distinct energetic energy my girls and peers are bringing to table. They’re all at different points of their lives. Some are in the middle of transition while others are taking a break, some are enjoying spring break Some completed their studies and now are now wearing nine-to-fivers. Some are completely confused exactly in the way that I was when was in that same age. Even though I clearly remember how difficult it can be to live at the edge of Real World like they are personally, it’s fascinating to hear their tales about their journey to figuring everything out. (Not to mention that they’re endless sources of inspiration for audiobooks, books, television shows, music and films from A24.) One of their mothers sent me a message of thanks after I made a quick and quick spaghetti with her little girl. “These kids are trying so hard to hold it together,” she said to me. “I think it still feels really good to be taken care of.” But there’s no doubt that it’s a dual street. They take into consideration my needs, too.
To celebrate my daughter’s friend Jazzy who graduated less than a week earlier, I prepared an simple focaccia from scratch with various sandwich fillings: fresh mozzarella, balsamic vinaigrette, arugula? Prosciutto, mozzarella, and pickled onions? While it seems like enough work, I made only the bread and pickled onions. Everything else was purchased from a store. This was a fantastic lunch.
But maybe Jazzy didn’t care about the food and just wanted to hang with Bean?
Also, I made these Cider-Glazed Sausages using Caramelized Apples & Fennel for another acquaintance, Ron. (When I asked Ron what he wanted for his food preferences, he replied with potatoes mashed and I went to work backwards.) The recipe comes taken from Lidey Heuck’s newest publication cooking in real Life that has a ton of very doable suggestions for these types of nights.
Cider-Glazed Sausages topped with caramelized Apples & Fennel
The Beyond sausages I prepared in separate pan to serve vegetarians. Recipe taken from the book Cooking In the Real Life, by Lidey Heuck.
1 medium Honeycrisp, or Fuji apple
Extra-virgin Olive Oil: 3 Tablespoons oils, divided
1 cup sliced thinly of Fennel (about half of a medium bulb)
1 cup of thinly cut the red onion (about half of a large onion)
1 tablespoon maple syrup 1 tablespoon maple syrup
Four tablespoons of apple cider vinegar divided
Black pepper freshly crushed and freshly kosher
4 sweet Italian sausage links (about 1 pound)
3 cups fresh cider apple
Fresh parsley or fennel leaves, to serve
1. Slice thinly and core the apple. Then stack the slices before cutting the slices into thirds, in a cross-wise fashion.
2. Inside a 10-inch Dutch oven or cast-iron skillet, cook 2 tablespoons olive oil on a medium-low flame. Add the onion, fennel along with the apple, fennel, as well as maple syrup. Cook with a stirring every now and then until the caramelization is light, around 15 minutes. (If the vegetables begin to brown too fast, turn down the heat to a simmer.)
3. 2. Add two tablespoons vinegar, along with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix and scrape any browned pieces from the pan. Transfer the mixture into an untidy bowl, then remove the pan using an absorbent paper towel.
4. In the same pan, add the rest of the 1 tablespoon olive oil and improve the temperature to medium-high. Once the oil is heated add the sausages and cook, turning them frequently until the sausages are evenly browned for 4 to 6 mins. Turn the oven down to medium and then add the cider (careful as it could spill!). Cook until the sausages are cooked to perfection while the liquid has drained and thickened, between 6 and 10 minutes, turning the sausages a couple of times. (If the sausages have been cooked to perfection before the cider has reduced, take them from the pan as the cider is reducing.)
5. Return the fennel, apples and onions to the pan along with the remaining 2 tablespoons of vinegar. Mix them to coat them in the sauce and then pour it onto the sausages. Add salt and pepper. Sprinkle with parsley and serve directly from the skillet.
Thoughts? Who do you like cooking for?