Not what I expected.....

I've been dreaming about a New England type lobster roll for awhile. Since this xmas dinner was just Robin, me and her mom, I decided to make something very casual for dinner and I chose the lobster roll. I ordered 2 lobster tails from work and when I got them, I was surprised, because the flesh of one of the tails was pink, while the other was white. The tails were 8oz each so I knew it would be plenty of meat. My catering boss suggested I saute the lobster meat in butter which I did. However, It curled up and just didnt look like lobster to me. I'm thinking it was a spiny lobster or rock lobster instead of Maine lobster. It was good, just not what I wanted. I searched high and low for top loading hot dog buns, but I could find any so I made some faux hot dog buns using white whole wheat flour and a recipe from King Arthur. I mixed the cooked lobster with some mayo, a bit of celery and scallion. I served these with root veggie chips and full sour pickles from Trader Joes.

Cupcakes.....

Here is a picture of most of the cupcakes. The carrot cupcakes were in the fridge. I piped the icing on and it went a lot faster and looked a lot better.

Meyer Lemon Budino.....

I was so excited about finding those Meyer Lemons, that I immediately went in search of a recipe. I found this budino( Italian for pudding) on epicurious.com. It was fairly simple to make and I wanted to really love it, but I didn't. I expected a really strong lemon flavor, but what came across more prominently was a rather eggy taste. I suppose I should have made some lemon curd, but I'd just made some last week for those minature lemon tarts.

I'm busy today. I have 50 cupcakes to make for a job tomorrow. I'm making a carrot, black magic and white chocolate lemon.

Look what I found......

I swear, I've dreamnt about finding Meyer Lemons here. I could NOT believe it when I saw them at my small town grocery store today. One pound for 2.49. 7 lemons. Cheaper than buying regular lemons that are 2/1.00. What can I do with these fabulous Meyer Lemons?

A Cook's Illustrated Dinner( almost).....

You know how sometimes there are just days where you shouldnt be cooking. Well, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday were those days for me. Unfortunatly, I had a catering job that I could not cancel so I had to suck it up and do it even though I was so sick. I even called the client and told them I had a bad cold/cough but they were ok with it so cook I did.

We got back from Florida late Wednesday night. On Thursday, I made miniature lemon tartlets, mini vanilla bean cheesecakes and chocolate pot de cremes( CI). However, I read the recipe wrong( and left out 1 cup of heavy cream) so the pot de cremes, turned into bittersweet chocolate truffle ramekins with frangelico whipped cream.

On Friday I made the thai grilled shrimp w/ chili lime mayo( app) at home. At the event I made a warm spinach bacon salad( CI), pan roasted chicken breasts with sage/vermouth sauce, smashed red potatoes with garlic and rosemary and green beans with toasted pine nuts and browned butter. The original recipe called for toasted hazelnuts, but I burnt those at home so I subbed out Pine nuts. I told you, I shouldnt have been cooking. I had no sense of taste either ( due to the cold)so I brought an assistant with me to help with plating, serving and tasting. I'm happy to say that there wasnt one speck of food left on anyone's plate. Of course then I worried that I didnt buy enough food. I usually always have leftovers when I cook, but the one thing I learned working for Barb is that caterer's dont provide seconds. Everything is quoted as so many items per person.

Last year I made a soup/salad for this same client. Next week I'll be doing an office party for them however this one is thru Barb( the caterer).

I worked on Saturday and Sunday for Barb too and I definately should NOT have been cooking on those days either. Today is a day of rest, that is for sure!!

This is why I havent been blogging ......

So we went to Florida for my 40th birthday.( and no, I didnt take that picture of the cake, I would have removed the diet coke before I took it) We left our house at 3pm on Friday( Dec 1st) and arrived at the airport by 6:30pm( we have to drive to Detroit). Our flight was supposed to leave at 9pm, but due to the stupidity of NW Airlines, we didnt leave until 8:30am the next day. We were forced to spend the night in the airport because the electricity was out at the hotels across the street. Robin can sleep anywhere( as you can see). However, I require a bed, darkness and some kind of white noise. Needless to say, I got no sleep. When we finally arrived in Ft. Lauderdale at 1pm, I had to get a pedicure and order the food for my party. I never fully caught up on my sleep so when we came home Wednesday night( driving home in a horrible blizzard) I was really sick( bad cold and cough). Then I had to cater a dinner for 8 on Friday and I had to do all the shopping on Thursday and make 3 different mini desserts. Then yesterday I had to work at Barbara's, baking and cooking for a job she has today( she had surgery and can't do much, I committed to working for her so I couldnt let her down). So, consequently, I have done zero cooking( for myself) since we've come back. I made a quiche at work yesterday and I brought that home and we had it for dinner, but who wants me to blog about quiche? Kinda boring. So, when I finally have a breather, I need to plan some meals and cook for my honey.

Btw, That is a 4 layer coconut cake from We Take The Cake Bakery in Ft. Lauderdale. It was very yummy.