A Sunday Dinner Birthday Celebration: Happy Birthday J!

Appetizers: Flatbread and Dip Trio

Flatbread:

• 1.5 c. Self Rising Flour

• 1 c. Greek Yoghurt

• Pinch of Salt

• Olive Oil

Preferred Seasonings - this can be oregano, rosemary, italian seasonings, whatever you like or have in your spice rack.

Mix flour, salt, and any preferred spices (2 tsp) and yoghurt together in a bowl. Dough will start out very shaggy. Mix until a ball forms. Add water as needed if your dough is dry. Let sit for 15 minutes. On a floured surface, roll out your dough to your desired size and thickness.

Add olive oil to your baking sheet. Place your dough on the prepared pan. Season with preferred seasoning and drizzle olive oil over the top.

You can dimple the dough like a focaccia to make those nooks and crannies

Bake for 20 minutes at 375o until golden.

Finish with your favorite finishing salt. I like the pinot noir salt from Jacobsen’s Salt Co.

Bruschetta:

• 4 c cherry tomatoes

• 1 onion

• 4 cloves of garlic

• Olive Oil

• Salt and Pepper to taste

• Italian Seasoning (Oregano, dried basil, rosemary, thyme, marjoram)

• Fresh Basil

Preheat the oven to 375o.

Roughly chop the onion. Put tomatoes in a roasting pan with the onion and garlic cloves. Drizzle with olive oil and season. Mix. Roast for 25-30 minutes until soft.

When tomatoes are roasted, add to the food processor and process until desired consistency. Season to taste. Add fresh basil. And allow it to cool.

When serving, drizzle with good olive oil and a fresh sprig of basil.

Mushroom Tapenade

• 2 c. mushroom

• 4 T butter (always salted)

• ½ c White Wine (ABC)

• 2 large shallots

• Parsley

Add mushrooms and shallots to your food processor and chop until very fine.
Heat up a large saute pan with olive oil and half the butter. Add mushrooms and cook down. Once the mushrooms look like they’ve cooked, add the wine and continue to cook down.

When the moisture is all gone, add fresh parsley and allow to cool.

Whipped Ricotta

• 2 c Ricotta

• A healthy squeeze of Lemon Juice

• 2 tsp. Lemon Zest

• Salt to taste

Add Ricotta to the food processor and whip till smooth. Add lemon juice, zest, and salt to taste.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Gnocchi

• 5-6 large sweet potatoes

• 1.5 - 2c flour

• 2 eggs

• 2 tsp ground nutmeg

• Splash of milk

• Salt and Pepper to taste

Brown Butter Sage Sauce

• 1 lb butter

• Fresh sage

• Fresh Parmesan

To Make:

Roast sweet potatoes for about an hour at 400o F. Let cool.

Peel potatoes and set aside. These should peel easily.

Put potatoes in the food processor until smooth. Pour into a separate bowl. Add egg, milk, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Add flour ½ c at a time until your mixture resembles a loose dough.

Transfer to a piping bag.

To Cook:

Heat up a saute pan on medium high heat. Add the butter and sage. Allow to cook.

Boil heavily salted water. When boiling Pipe mixture into the water, cutting into dumplings. Gnocchi are done when they start to float to the top of the water.

Transfer gnocchi from the pot into the saute pan and sear on both sides. Transfer to serving platter.

Grate fresh parmesan over the top and serve warm.

Beef Tenderloin & Oven Roasted Greens

• 1 beef tenderloin (3 lbs)

• Preferred Seasoning mix *

• ½ c butter

• 2 large onions

• 2 c. Beef Broth

• ½ c Red Wine

Italian Seasoning

(Oregano, dried basil, rosemary,

thyme, marjoram)

Heat oven to 450F. Season the meat liberally all over.

Use twine to tie roast to keep its shape.

Add butter and olive oil to a large roasting pan. Brown the roast on all sides.

When oven is ready, put meat in the oven until it reaches an internal temperature of 140o F.

Take out of the oven and let rest 5 minutes. Remove meat from pan (carefully) and put the roasting pan on the stove over medium-high heat.

Add onion and cook till soft and translucent.

When done, add wine and cook til reduces by half and the alcohol has cooked off. Add beef broth, up to 2 cups. If you’d like more concentrated flavor, use less broth.

Cook and reduce until onions are jammy.

To Serve:
Place onions on serving platter and cut meat into medallions. Sprinkle with parsley if desired.

Oven Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Broccolini

• As many brussels and broccolini as desired.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Cut up brussels into desired size. Add to pan. Add broccolini to the pan. Drizzle with salt,

pepper, and olive oil. Put in the oven and forget about it.

I like my brussels a little charred. I’ll leave these in the oven for at least 20 minutes.

Affogato Bar

• Espresso

• Ice cream (vanilla, pistachio, salted caramel, chocolate)

• Toppings (crushed biscotti, pistachios, chocolate shavings, walnuts)

Brew espresso.
Spoon ice cream into desired glass, pour espresso over the top. Add whatever toppings you'd like.

The Story:

This all started in January of this year - months before J’s birthday. We tested these gnocchi right after Christmas. I used some purple sweet potatoes and paired it with a chickpea cream sauce. That recipe is here (thanks instagram). We loved how light and pillowy these were and that they were a fun color. The chickpea cream sauce was nutty and delicious. In our discussion of future Sunday dinners, we discovered that J’s birthday fell on a Sunday this year. It seemed only right that we put together a meal fit for a birthday celebration for our dear friend

What I didn’t account for is that the party expanded to about 16 people! It was a beautiful evening. In some menu planning, it felt right to keep everything else kind of simple. The beef tenderloin ended up being done in minutes after browning it in the roasting pan and I forgot about the vegetables in the oven. I love when an accident turns into a happy discovery. The brussels were melt-in-your-mouth and the perfect companion to the meat and the gnocchi. If you’re attempting the gnocchi, be aware that these take more time than you think. Serve everything up on platters and allow your guests to make their plates for a cozy family style meal.

Keep them fed while you’re cooking gnocchis with the flatbread and dip trio.

For a fun twist on an ice cream sundae dessert bar, brew some espresso and make it an affogato bar. That was super fun!

And for a signature cocktail: a Mezcal Blood Orange Sour.

Happy Birthday J! I hope we get to celebrate again next year.