Snow and "Stoup"

We had our first snow in NYC about nine days ago. It was really beautiful and also the perfect weather to try a new stew recipe. This one came from Rachel Ray's "Cooking 'Round the Clock" cookbook and was absolutely delicious!

Beef and Watercress Dumpling "Stoup"

2 lbs beef sirloin, cubed

2 tbsp olive oil

4 slices hickory smoked bacon, chopped

2 medium onions, chopped

4 ribs celery, chopped

2 bay leaves

4 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried

2 tbsp flour

1 cup dry red wine

1 tounded tbsp grainy Dijon mustard

1 quart beef broth

1/2 tsp Liquid Smoke

salt and pepper

2 1/4 cup Bisquick

2/3 cup milk

1 cup chopped watercress or mache

Pat the meat cubes dry with a paper towel.

Heat a large stock pot over high heat. Add oil, then meat in a single layer, working in batches if necessary. Sear meat until caramelized, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove to a shallow dish and tent with aluminum foil. Reduce heat to medium-high. Add bacon to the pan and cook until edges are browned. Remove bacon and drain all but 1 tbsp of the fat from pot. Return bacon to pot along with onions, celery, bay leaves, and thyme. Stir and cook 5 minutes. Sprinkle in flour, stir, and cook another minutes. Whisk in wine and mustard and scrape up pan drippings. Add broth. Cover and bring to a boil, 1 to 2 minutes.

In a mixing bowl, combine Bisquick and milk. Stir in the watercress or mache.

Add meat back to the stock pot and settle it in so that it is covered with sauce. Add liquid smoke and season with salt and pepper. Drop large spoonfuls of dumpling mix onto the surface of the stew and cover the pan. Cook until dumplings are plump and cooked through, about 8 minutes. Serve hot.

Billy's Bakery

John brought home some delicious Christmas treats the other night from Billy's Bakery. It was our first time to try this bakery and I have to say these cupcakes blow Magnolia cupcakes away! They were pretty fantastic. The cake was deliciously dense and the frosting was the perfect creamy texture. We now have a new favorite!

Vegetarian Bolognese - Celebrating the Fifth Taste, UMAMI

The latest issue of Cooking Light did a feature on umami, the fifth sense beyond sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Four recipes were presented to showcase umami and the Vegetarian Bolognese was one of them. It turned out delicious, but as a meat eater, I would definately choose traditional bolognese sauce to this. It was a very good, healthier alternative, though. An interesting aspect to this recipe is that it calls for a 2-inch piece of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind to cook with the sauce. It is removed at the end of cooking and infuses a delicious salty-cheesy flavor. According to Cooking Light, it's the simmering cheese rind that gives the deep, savory umami taste.

Vegetarian Bolognese
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1 (8 oz) pckg baby bella mushrooms, finely chopped
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes with basil, undrained
1 (2-inch) piece Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind
12 oz uncooked spaghetti
1/2 cup shaved or grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot, celery, and mushrooms; saute 10 minutes. Add wine; simmer 2 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Add 1/4 cup warm water and next four ingredients (through cheese rind). Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 40 minutes. Keep warm. Remove and discard cheese rind.

Cook pasta. Serve with sauce and top with shaved or grated cheese.

The recipe above is actually my variation on the original in Cooking Light. The original recipe calls for two types of mushrooms - 1/4 cup dried porcini, finely ground in a coffee grinder, and 8 ounces of cremini mushrooms instead of baby bellas. The recipe also calls for whole wheat penne pasta, but I used what I had on hand which was spaghetti.

Meeting Garrison Keillor!

I thought it was pretty cool to be in the audience for a live broadcast of Prairie Home Companion Saturday night, but tonight totally trumped that! John and I actually got to meet Garrison Keillor at his book signing tonight. It was so exciting! Earlier today on my walk with Georgie I noticed as we were passing McNally Jackson books that Garrison Keillor was doing a book signing this evening. John and I walked back to the book store after dinner and saw Mr. Keillor browsing books as we walked in. John walked right up to him and asked if he would take a picture with me (I'm so glad that John is not shy like me!)

Date Night - Prairie Home Companion

Tonight John and I had one of our best date nights ever. We went to a live broadcast of "Prairie Home Companion" which is something I have been wanting to do since I was about 8 years old! Next to our wedding day, it was one of the most exciting experiences of my life!

I snuck this picture (photography wasn't allowed) at the end of the show. You can see Garrison Keillor in the red tie in the center. On the far left you can see Yo-Yo Ma, one of the musical guests. He as amazing! We also heard music from The Assad Brothers, Connie Evingson, and Inga Swearingen.



John in front of The Town Hall in Times Square where the show is broadcast...

...and John in front of the marquee.













Afterwards we went out for cherry pie a la mode and coffee at a nearby diner and then walked to Herald Square to see the window displays at Macy's.














Here I am in front of one of the windows...a wild display of letters to Santa spinning in a spiraling funnel.




Today was also a day of celebrations. My little brother CJ turned 25...Happy Birthday CJ! Also, my dear friend Missy had her baby shower. I wish I could have been with both of you today to help you celebrate!

Our First Christmas Tree!

Last night John and I decorated our first tree together as a married couple. We listened to holiday music and drank hot chocolate while we hung the ornaments. It was so much fun!

Thanksgiving in South Carolina

John and I spent Thanksgiving in South Carolina on my extended family's farm.







One of the highlights of our trip was feeding the cows. Their tongues are much larger in real life than they appear in the pictures!



Richard lauging at a cow that was sniffing out more bread to gobble.







This was the largest Thanksgiving dinner I have ever attended. Believe it or not, I'm related to nearly all these people! I took this picture just before our hay ride to the cow pastures.
Josh tried riding the cows, even if for a split second! I snapped this picture just as the cow bumped him off.








Lizzie and I were really excited to discover a beautiful flowering shrub (we thought it might be peonies, but we're not sure) behind our great grandmother's house.

Me posing near one of the ponds on the farm...

...and John in the same spot.
John with Uncle Jimmy, my grandmother's younger brother...

...and mom with Aunt Dot, my grandmother's younger sister.

Georgie

Here are some recent pics of the sweetest and cutest beagle in the world! John and I are leaving for South Carolina tomorrow for Thanksgiving and while we're gone, Georgie will be staying at Happy Paws. We'll miss you Georgie!

Brussels Sprouts Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

I recently found this recipe in the 2009 holiday issue of Cooking Light. I made a few changes to make the salad a little more Cass-a-rific. I substituted the applewood bacon for turkey bacon, romaine lettuce for a blend of butter lettuce and arugula, walnuts for pecans, and added dried berries and blue cheese crumbles.

3/4 lb Brussels sprouts
6 slices turkey bacon (or applewood-smoked)
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
3 cups butter lettuce
3 cups arugula
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
1/4 dried berries (blueberries, cranberries, raisins)
3 Tbsp blue cheese crumbles

Slice the Brussles sprouts into thin cross sections. Set aside. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bacon to pan and cook until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 tablespoons of the drippings. Reduce heat to medium-low; add vinegar and next 4 ingredients, stirring well to combine. Add Brussels sprouts; cook 1 minute, stirring to coat. Cover and cook 2 minutes. Combine Brussels sprouts mixture and lettuce in a large bowl; toss until well combined. Sprinkle evenly with crumbled bacon, walnuts, berries, and blue cheese. Serve immediately.

Beef Barley Soup

I cut out this recipe from the Houston Chronicle in February of 2000 and just cooked it for the first time this month. It was delicious!

In a soup pot over medium heat saute:
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
1 Tbsp minced garlic

Drain off fat and add:
6 cups beef stock
1/2 cup uncooked barley


Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add:
1/2 cup diced turnip
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup diced peeled potato
2 tsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2-3 dashes black pepper

Stir to blend. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Season with salt and serve with crusty bread.

Dinner at David Salle's in Honor of Karole Armitage

A few weeks ago, John and I were invited to a Karole Armitage dance performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and then a dinner in her honor at the home of artist David Salle. It was pretty exciting for me considering David Salle was one of my art heros when I was in graduate school. Dinner was served in his studio which was very cool. It was also our first night out as Mr. and Mrs. John Newsom which was very exciting!

Margaret and Richard seated in front of one of David's paintings.

John and David Salle.

David saying a few words to the guests before dinner.

While talking to his neighbor, Barbara, at dinner, John discovered that she is the mother of the actress who played Janice on "Friends"!

The guest of honor, Karole Armitage.

Life is Newsom-rific!

We're married! We said our "I do's" on October 24 and we have been blissfully happy ever since.

After our wedding, we took an amazing honeymoon cruise through the Caribbean visiting Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel.

Now we're back in New York and getting into our daily routine. I'm excited about getting back to the blog after a well deserved break. I've been cooking up a storm the last few weeks so starting tomorrow, I'll be posting some new recipes from the Newsom kitchen.