12.30.2009

Simple Italian Night, with Crab Cakes

I usually spend every Monday night cooking delish things with my fabulous friends at CEC, but this week I missed it because I was spending one last evening with my brother Ryan who flew in from Amsterdam for the holidays.

I didn't miss out on good eating though, for Ry poured us glasses of red wine and fixed a fantastic dinner of glazed ahi tuna steaks with a veritable fiesta of a baby greens salad tossed with roasted beets and bell peppers, pears, corn niblets, Gorgonzola cheese and candied walnuts. Oooeee!!!



Afterward we had a jolly time playing Chicken Foot Dominoes with Mums and were thrilled to bits when Daddy-O stayed up late and joined us for a couple of rounds. He is neither a night person nor a game person so we were thoroughly impressed and marked the momentous occasion with photo-taking to prove to my other sibs that it really did happen! :-) So happy you joined us, Pa! :-)


Staring down the tiles to find a spot :-)

Since I can't rely on this week's chronicling of CEC's culinary adventures, I will go back in time a little bit and share photos and recipes from our Simple Italian Night, with Crab Cakes.

Cameron brought gorgeous strawberries and juicy apples to nibble on while Kat turned freshly caught crab from her parent's beach house into the most tender and flavorful little crab cakes.



Darren shelled shrimp and threaded veggies onto skewers for savory kebabs on the grill.



I fried up wedges of polenta and topped them with marinated roasted peppers and garlicky mascarpone cheese. I love the crispy, buttery edges, the creamy polenta a perfect base for vinegary peppers and tart mascarpone.



We ended our meal with the simplest of desserts: plump raspberries and vanilla ice cream drizzled with balsamic vinegar.


 

Raspberries with Vanilla Ice Cream and Balsamic Vinegar

1 pint raspberries, washed
1 carton good quality vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Scoop ice cream into dishes, top with raspberries and sprinkle with 1-2 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar.

14 comments:

  1. Yummy, like the way the polenta looks but its the simple raspberries which have my heart. Have a blessed season! Oz @ kitchenbutterfly

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  2. All of the food looks amazing, from your brother's ahi tuna dinner to this simple and delicious raspberry dessert. It's so cute that your dad stayed up to play with you guys! Best to capture it on film...such things only happen once in a blue moon.

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  3. Everything looks too delicious!
    i must dig out my Balsamic vinegar and make it syrupy for berries...

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  4. Thank you, dear Oz! :-) If I weren't so cold I'd absolutely agree with you. :-)

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  5. Thanks, Joanne! :-) Aren't Dads funny creatures? :-)

    BTW - I tried your Roasted Corn Pudding in Acorn Cups last night and WOW!! So good! :-)

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  6. I'm so glad you like it, Carol! :-) Your skating pics made me so happy this morning :-)

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  7. Delicious looking food! I would totally gorge myself on the polenta and crab cakes! And my dad is in bed by 9pm so if he stayed up, I'd take a photo too! :P Happy New Year! :D

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  8. Well it all looks so absolutely yummy! Good for you!~ A devine dinner with your visiting brother , a game and some sibling/ parent companionhip with non-nocturnal, non-game loving "daddy-o"; good for you!..,I love your blog and plan to visit often!..,

    Wishing you a fabulous and "tea-licious" New Year in 2010 my dear!.., I figure you'll need some tea to go with all those yummy tarts, and treats after all!

    You are most warmly invited to pop by with the "click of your mouse" my dear to my little corner of the blogging world!..,

    Cheers from Silken Purse @ Silken Purse and also @ The Plumed Pen;(if you're feeling particularly adventurous, some dressing room/ closet, "eyecandy" also awaits you at, The French Dressing Room blog)~ Enjoy!

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  9. Wishing you are happy new year! Lovely Italian feast :)

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  10. Thank you, Lorraine! That's so funny about our matching Dad's :-)

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  11. A tea-licious New Year sounds wonderful, Silk Purse! :-) And I will be heading over to visit your "little corner" shortly :-)

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  12. A very Happy New Year to you too, Ellie! :-)

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  13. That's an incredible feast. I'm glad you posted it because some of the vegetables we can still buy locally. The raspberries look delicious too. Have a very Happy New Year!

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  14. Oh, that's great, El!! How wonderful to have such produce available at this time of year :-)

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