Good Morning, fellow Culinary Sundays followers! For the first time since the inception of our little blog, I was on my own last night in the kitchen! But I hope I did my fellow partners-in-food justice while they were out enjoying the beautiful country of Monaco.
When I think of Monaco, I think of casinos, the French Riviera, glamorous yachts, and of course - James Bond. So in honor of their absence... I chose a special cocktail.
Cocktail - The Vesper Martini (aka 007 Martini)
"Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?" - Casino Royale, Chapter 7
Okay... first off, you can tell my lemon peeling skills leave something to be desired. That is why I don't handle the cocktails normally. I'm not a huge gin fan, so while my dinner guest said it was very tasty and he finished it easily, I ended up adding a bit of lemon seltzer to mine just to water it down a little. But hey, at least I can say I've had the official James Bond martini.
Appetizer - Spinach Sauteed with Garlic, Dried Fruit, and Honey
This was fabulous! I did make some substitutions based on what I had in the kitchen. The original recipe calls for using dried figs while I used dried fruit pieces. And I used regular bagged spinach and not baby spinach. I don't think these alterations had any effect on the flavor, and I am excited to try it again with baby spinach and figs. Regardless, the flavor was spot on and the fruit and honey helped jazz up the spinach! This could have been a light dinner in itself.
Entree - Caramelized Onion and Pancetta Lasagna
I am so glad I trusted my gut on this one and didn't let my overwhelming doubts cloud my judgement. This was an amazing meal! The sweetness of the onions balanced the pepper in the pancetta and went so perfectly with the gooey-ness of the mozzarella! Let's discuss some cooking methods/changes/etc.
Take the time to caramelize your onions. It took me the 15 minutes covered and then almost an hour uncovered for them to be the perfect texture. Don't rush this process becuase then you may as well not make it at all. Secondly, I know you're thinking "holy crap, that's a lot of sliced onions." Trust me - they cook down to barely anything.
Double the pancetta. And then crisp it in a saute pan until the fat renders out. Otherwise, you have chewy pieces in the lasagna which is not very attractive. I also used up some thinly sliced mozzarella from Sargento that was in my fridge - easy and hassle-free.
Assembly. There is no way this can make 5 layers of lasagna. If you double the onions, then maybe. I could barely get my two layers of filling. You want to spread the onions out very thinly, too. It's kind of like that fake spiderweb material at Halloween which you just keep stretching and stretching. If you pack on the onions too thickly, it will be overwhelming.
With those changes, this was flawless. My dinner guest ate up multiple servings, and I already have some leftovers packed for lunch today!
Wine - 2009 Benton Lane Pinot Noir
Wine Advocate - 90/100
Compared to your traditional pinot noir, this Oregon red was very deep and complex. It had great aromas of cherries, blackberries, and even mushrooms with a savory taste of raspberries with a hint of spice. It balanced the sweet of the onions and the pepper in the pancetta very well and was extremely drinkable even after the meal was over.
I didn't do a dessert tonight, and I apologize to the avid dessert followers out there. I will make sure to do something great next week.
Next Week - Thai Chicken Pizza
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