Black Friday in a Cup: Remembering Pomegranate Shallot Vinaigrette with Mirin (and Forgetting the Fails!)
November 27th, 2009 § 2 Comments
Ah, to think that right this moment enterprising shoppers are storming the stores – or have been since some ungodly hour, with the Thanksgiving feast not yet digested – while I sit ensconced at the computer drinking my Black Friday in a coffee cup. Priorities, I tell you!
It was a great Thanksgiving. The best one I can remember in a long, long time. The food wasn’t even the best it’s ever been. My cousin Stacie hit the ball out of the park, but Mom and I? We turned out some big fat goose eggs this time around the ole Thanksgiving block. But the company was in great spirits. We drank, we ate, we talked… drank some more… ate some dessert… Some went to Blockbuster just for the fun ritual of it (even though these days, movies come on-demand on the couch.)
The movie-renters put on their jammies to watch Angels & Demons. The talkers were in the dining room, deep in conversation mode, floating in and out of the screening room. As the fickle trickled out, so did the crashers slowly make their way in front of the wide screen, piling on couches, watching the mystery unfold, bellies as full as the nest.
Cleaning Paradise Farm's certified organic oyster mushrooms with a damp paper towel
Red onions and shallots... sauteed with some olive oil, salt and pepper...
And some diced shallots for the winning vinaigrette!
I prefer these jewels to the real thing.
I like to build my vinaigrettes in plastic containers for easy shaking. This one was roughly 3 tablespoons minced shallots, 1/2 pomegranate seeded (some seeds smashed once in the container,) juice of 1 lemon, 2 tablespoons mirin, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup canola, salt and pepper to taste.
The vinaigrette (even better the morning after.)
Boiled old fingerlings would unfortunately get too much old saffron and be mixed with the beautiful, fresh mushrooms. Fail!
Humbolt Fog and Quince. Win win.
At least the bed of arugula, romaine, blanched green beans, and pomegranate vinaigrette was killer.
Cousin Stacie's roasted sprouts. Win, of course.
Stacie also cooked the bird, and did so magnificently.
Acorn stuffed with butternut from Food & Wine magazine. Eh.
Next year we're making desserts. This apricot tart was from Le Royal in South Miami. Pretty good. But not homemade good.
Good deal. $8 at Wolfe's Wines.
sss
That dressing sounds tasty. I like pomegranites in salads. Marina makes the best stuffed acorn squash! I’ve had it for the past 3 years and it’s become a thxgiving staple for me
I loved being with everyone too. I can’t believe cooking against Marsha and Jackie would lerave me with the award of BEST TURKEY.
I forgot to say how thankful I am to have a couson like you. Love YOU! Stacie