Last night’s dinner

These were the most fantastic cinnamon buns that I have ever made. So incredibly tender and the filling is just the very best.

I made a quickie Osso Bucco to go with this treat.

Tonight’s dinner

We’ve decided to have everyone over (about 15 of us) for my father-in-law’s birthday and to just reconfirm that even without our linch pin not here anymore we are still a family. It is a bittersweet night but the food needs to be great.

So….I’m making;
1) For starters: chorizo broiled, goat’s brie heated with jalepeno pepper jelly, french stick, extra old cheddar, crackers and homemade mustard (mustard powder that is made into a past with a bit of beer)

2) For the main: mixed vegetable (asparagus, green beans and brocolli) salad (dressed with garlic, olive oil, soy sauce, salt and pepper and rice wine vinegar) with potato salad (thanks Carol), homemade buns (see previous post for recipe), roasted chicken (stuffed with thyme, lemon wedges and shallots) and roasted pork loin(a Jamie Oliver recipe which has a crust of garlic, rosemary, fennel, lemon zest and sea salt).

3) For the dessert: Olive oil chocolate cake (this always is fantastic and doubles/triples/quadrulpes…) 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 cup cold water, 1/3 cup olive oil, 1 T. balsamic vinegar and dash of vanilla. For today, I doubled the batch and put it in heart-shaped pans. I then made a quickie butter cream with a bit of butter, cocoa, vanilla and icing sugar. There isn’t a morsel left.

We pair everything with a LOT of rose wine and remember that one that we love that really should be there. At the same time I am reminded how lucky I am to be a part of this terrific family and how in this ridiculous, busy world this is what should be a priority.

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