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Edward’s birthday is Saturday. Although we sometimes dine out, I usually prepare some of his favorite dishes, especially since our anniversary (which we always celebrate in a restaurant) is three days later.
November is a beautiful month. The trees are still dressed in bright reds, oranges and golds and the air is crisp. Cooler temperatures mean heartier fare and some of my husband’s favorite dishes are fall delights.
Edward is not a picky eater. He detests zucchini and lima beans are way up there, too. He enjoys osso bucco, which I prepared for his birthday last year. My sister Sandy is joining us for the weekend. She is a picky eater and won’t touch osso bucco. She is quite content eating the same dishes over and over again.
I’ve decided to prepare French Pot Roast for this year’s meal. It is considered French because the beef marinates overnight in red wine. I usually use a C�tes du Rh�ne for the marinade and serve the wine with the meal.
We will begin dinner with a Champagne toast followed by a sturdy winter green salad. Buttered noodles or old-fashioned steamed potatoes go well with the pot roast. I especially like the made-by-hand egg noodles the Amish merchants sell at the Reading Terminal Market.
We all enjoy French green beans, known as haricot verts. I like to prepare them with Prosciutto di Parma, but fussy Sandy would not be happy. I will substitute crisp pancetta for the Prosciutto. Sandy is a funny eater; she won’t touch ham, but she loves bacon. Go figure.
Dessert is always a rich poundcake with butter cream icing. Edward prefers vanilla to chocolate. I always buy a birthday cake from a bakery and rarely bake one at home.
Here are the recipes for Edward’s birthday dinner:
Winter Salad
Ingredients:
1 heart of romaine lettuce, sliced
2 Belgian endives, sliced
1 small head escarole, sliced
1 small head of radicchio or Treviso, sliced
4 large radishes, diced into small pieces
1/2 an English cucumber, seeds removed, diced into small pieces
1 small carrot, grated
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sprinkling of Parmesan
Directions:
Place the romaine, endive, escarole and radicchio or Treviso in a large salad bowl. Toss well. Add the rest of the vegetables and toss again.
Whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice in a small bowl. Pour over the salad. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with Parmesan and toss well.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: Treviso is shaped like a large endive, but is purple like radicchio. It is named for a town in Northern Italy and is available in many stores.
French Pot Roast
Ingredients:
3-pound chuck roast
1 shallot, peeled and diced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sprinkling of dried thyme
Red wine
4 to 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 (22-ounce) package beef stock
1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
Directions:
Place the beef in a large bowl. Add the shallot, salt, pepper and thyme. Pour on enough red wine to cover the beef. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Turn the beef over from time to time.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Heat the oil over medium in a heavy 4-quart ovenproof pot. Remove the beef from the marinade and dry well with paper towels. Reserve the marinade. Add the beef to the pot and sear on all sides. This should take about 10 minutes. Remove from the pot and add the beef stock and the tomato paste. Bring the liquid to a boil and return the beef to the pot. Add the marinade to the pot. Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and bake in the oven for about two-and-a-half hours. The beef should be fork-tender. Add a bit more wine if some of the liquid has
evaporated.
Remove the beef from the pot and allow it to stand for about five minutes. Slice the beef and arrange on a platter. Serve with buttered noodles or steamed potatoes.
Serves four.
French Green Beans with Pancetta
Ingredients:
1 pound French green beans, trimmed
1/2 pound pancetta, diced
1 small shallot, peeled and diced 2 tablespoons olive oil
Directions:
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and blanch for one minute. Drain immediately under cold running water. Set aside.
Place the pancetta in a skillet and cook until crisp. Remove the pancetta with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Pour off any fat from the skillet. Add the shallot to the skillet and cook over medium for a few minutes.
Add the olive oil and warm over medium. Add the green beans and pancetta. Sauté for a few minutes.
Serves four.
