Menu for a Winter Party with Grown-ups and Kids

We had my son's three best friends and their families over for dinner tonight. It was a pretty-healthy comfort food night to suit both 10-year-old palates and those of an assortment of parents, some of whom are vegetarian. Here's what we served:

spiced hot apple cider (plus wine for the big kids)

cut veggies (red pepper strips, carrots, celery, fennel, radishes) and pita chips with guacamole

Thomas Keller's tomato soup (click for recipe)

Mini gruyere grilled cheese sandwiches

Roast turkey (I used the basic recipe from Sam Sifton's book Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well, which I reviewed recently for People.) apples, onion, rosemary, sage and celery in the cavity. Butter on the outside.

truffle-cream mashed potatoes

tangerines

salted fudge brownies, from Kate Krader, one of my pals at Food & Wine, where she is the restaurant editor. These are so good I made sure to send guests home with the leftovers so as not to keep half a pan in the house.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

p.s. After your end-of-year splurges, get "Smart Chefs Stay Slim" in paperback starting 12/31.

A glimpse of the future

I've got two big events coming up, which is dampening my ability to think in menus. The first is a major culinary trip later this month, the details of which I'll share soon. (But note that I am studiously staying away from Italian dishes at the moment.) And on October 13, the Smart Chefs Stay Slim panel at the New York City Wine & Food Festival, which comes to town Wednesday night. So, I'm going to take a little hiatus from posting menus. Well, I'm going to do this one.  More ideas when I return from the trip -- can't wait to share them.

MONDAY: Lentil soup, whole wheat baguette (bought), beet salad with mint (sorry, I still have an abundance of mint in my windowbox and an equal amount of guilt if I don't make use of it).

TUESDAY: Salmon teriyaki with noodles and garlicky green beans.

WEDNESDAY: Pan-seared fish (whatever is looking good and is not like salmon -- have I mentioned the chicken ban in my house?) with roasted little potatoes, tomatoes and olives

THURSDAY: Vegetable curry with rice. Poached pears (or figs -- or both).

Reusing's wonderful salad -- I make variations of this all the time.

FRIDAY: Warm asparagus salad with hard boiled eggs and homemade croutons. The recipe is by Lantern chef-owner Andrea Reusing, and appears in my book. Best in spring when it is asparagus season; I'll probably adapt it with some other green vegetables, gently blanched before adding -- everything goes good with just-cooked eggs and fresh croutons.

Più presto. Arrivederci!

What I'm hoping to cook this week

MONDAY: Made extra shrimp paella on Sunday night, so we'll be having that on Monday -- the busiest day of the week, and the one in which I am least able to pull a meal together. I modified the recipe that Marc Murphy gave me for the book.

TUESDAY: If it continues acting like fall, split pea soup with carrots; rye bread, cheese, cucumbers, radishes. Might do another round of this insanely easy mostly-apple Apple pie, from my former People magazine colleague-turned-lifestyle blogger, Ulrica Wihlborg. Just one crust, no rolling pin, and loads of apples.

WEDNESDAY: The no-chicken rule still reigning at our house. How long can we hold out? Tonight: Gingery tofu stir-fry with broccoli, napa cabbage and rice. from Cooking LightIf your house is not on meat-strike, feel free to substitute a different protein. Here's a good, adaptable starter recipe from Cooking Light.

THURSDAY: Taco night. Grilled fish, pickled red onions, romaine lettuce, avocados, corn tortillas (no, I don't make them myself) and hot sauce for those who go that route.

FRIDAY: Movie night. Sauteed squid with loads of garlic, lemon, breadcrumbs over lemony spaghetti.

A busy week, lots of fast meals

Have just come back from friends' wedding on Cape Cod. Beautiful ceremony, and beautiful menu by their pal Adam Shepard, the chef at Lunetta in Brooklyn. Am trying to shake some of the recipes (gorgeous white gazpacho, for one) out of the grooms or the chef and if I am successful, will update here.

MONDAY: Mercury has dipped below 70 degrees -- time for soup. Minestrone.

TUESDAY: Picking up fresh dough from grocery, making some quick pizzas: Caramelized leeks, mozzarella, basil. Antipasti di what's-in-fridge (some marinated artichokes, red peppers, eggplant spread, I think).

WEDNESDAY: Roasted fish: Dorade this time, stuffed with lemon, olives, oregano. Cous cous (the tiny kind that cooks in minutes, not the pearly variety), sauteed spinach.

THURSDAY: My son is on a no-chicken strike. This doesn't present too much trouble for me, as I was a vegetarian for decades before I was a roast-chicken addict. Holding the chicken stock in this stir-fry recipe, and adding Me, learning wok technique in Yangshuo, Chinatofu.Have everything chopped and prepared before you start to stir-fry.

FRIDAY: Movie night. White beans with Swiss chard and tomatoes, via Joe Bastianich. This is very easy, filling and delicious. Full recipe in Smart Chefs Stay Slim.Works perfectly well with canned cannellinis, which is how I'll make it. If you are one of the people who can remember to soak your beans, well congratuations. Do so the night before and enjoy.

Last week of peaches, first week of apples

At the farmer's market this weekend: summer fruit making a final wave, with fall fruits and vegetables debuting. Not ready for actual pumpkins yet, I walked past them. I did pick up a couple spaghetti squash, however, and at the grocery some pumpkin ravioli.

MONDAY: Roasted chicken and root vegetables with rosemary and shallots. (See page 110 in the book for several chefs' roast chicken variations).  Strawberries and dark chocolate.

TUESDAY: Having gone a little overboard at the green market, I'm planning to roast everything before it turns: Peppers, carrots, broccoli and whatever is left in the bin, at 400º with olive oil, salt, pepper. Serving with rice (if I get started in time) or quinoa (if I don't) and leftover chicken.

WEDNESDAY: Spaghetti squash -- I once improvised a delicious non-recipe of roasted spaghetti squash (takes about 45 min to an hour) topped with chick peas simmered in a paprika-y broth and some jamon Iberico crisped on top. Here's a more traditional treatment, with tomato sauce, just like real spaghetti. 

THURSDAY: Still lots of herbs exploding in the windowbox this week. Thyme-crusted Halibut with parsley sauce.  Roasted peaches with cinnamon, star anise, pepper, olive oil, lime and salt, via Gregory Gourdet. 

FRIDAY: Movie night. Big salad, pumpkin ravioli (store bought) with mushrooms, sage.