A feast fit for a champion January 8, 2008
Posted by charmingbutsingle in Being Southern, Cooking, It's a strategy, Men, Smack Talking.trackback
Note: Two posts today! After this, go read about my latest bridesmaid debacle.
I am renewing my call for single men with season football tickets. If y’all would have tasted the food I cooked for my Championship Viewing Party, you would gladly trade both your love and a ticket.
Olive Cheese Bread and Pan Friend Onion Dip. Both were phenomenal. I made a change or two to each – I added a (very) healthy dose of Tony Chachere’s original seasoning blend to my onions in the dip in the place of the other spices and also used sweet Vidalia onions instead of plain yellow. The spiciness and hint of sweetness in the onions balanced out the creaminess of the dip very well. That said, I’d sub in more sour cream in place of some of the mayonnaise because I found it to be a bit mayo-heavy. With the olive bread, the only things I changed were using mozzarella instead of Monterrey Jack cheese because that’s what the store had. Also, my French bread was a bit soft, so I hollowed out the halves, leaving about a half-inch of bread in the crusts. I filled in the hollowed portion to improve the filling-to-bread ratio.
The best part? I finally successfully caramelized onions for the dip. And as I scooped the soft, brown, spicy sweet onions into a bowl and went to scrub out the pan, I realized that I had a pan primed for perfection and I needed to sear something, anything in this pan. Luckily, I’d seen a reasonably priced piece of sirloin at the store and planned on cooking it this week. So I melted butter and dropped in the lightly seasoned steak. I seared each side, removed the meat to let it rest, deglazed the pan with beer and tossed in a small can of sliced mushrooms. (I was out of fresh.)
Oh man, was it awesome. And as I ate one small piece of rare meat swimming in browned butter mushroom gravy, I thought, “I resolve to cook like this for men within the first three dates. Because the guys I like would just LOVE this meal.” Other bonus: I have two dinners and one lunch because steak is a lot richer than this reformed vegetarian remembers.
So there you have it. Single men with football tickets: I will cook for you.
Also, my beloved Tigers went to the ‘ship and they showed everyone how it is done. Just another of many fond memories that waken in our hearts a tender glow. Today, and everyday, it is great to be an LSU Tiger.
(But seriously, I only have nine months to date my way into next season’s tickets.)
Yay spam! lol
The steak does sound good, despite my distaste for the ’shrooms. Gratz on a great cooking event.
Wow. I’m salivating and it’s 7:49 in the morning. Also, If I had tickets they would be so yours!
I made the olive bread this weekend with mozzerella (because that is what I had in the house). It was a huge hit at my American Gladiator party on Sunday.
I concur with tiff - it’s not even 10 a.m. and your post made me hungry for dinner. I don’t know if I agree with cooking for a man within the first 3 dates. It kind of sets a precedent, like you will wait on him… Kind of unrelated, but not really - have you ever read “Why Men Love Bitches?” Not that I’m ordinarily an advocate of those type of books, but the author explains resisting those urges to do stuff like that for a man right away and I think she has a point!
Mmm those sound delicious! I’ve found Tony’s to be a good addition to almost any recipe!
GEAUX TIGERS! Good luck dating into some tickets. Let me know if he has a younger brother who also has some.
Leelee, you’re crazy. I would adore a woman who cooked for me on, say, the third date. Why the third?
First date - getting acquainted
Second date - getting out and making sure you mesh
Third date - If cooked dinner shows she really digs me and doesn’t think I’m some psycho killer so I’m invited to her home
I’d not do it before that, though. I once cooked for a woman on the second date. The only mistake I made was that I could have, should have, and it was assuredly wanted, to bed said woman. But I did not.
But from now for me on there’s no paying the tab, no holding doors, no compliments… Hate to set a precedent, after all.
Leelee — I guess you do make a point. But I do really love to cook and I think it can be really fun. I also don’t mind making guys help me chop things or whatever while I’m cooking. There is some really sexy about two people in a small kitchen with food cooking and the smells and the wine and the heat?
Lordy!
I love to cook too Charming! It’s something that my boyfriend and I enjoy doing together all the time and I find it really romantic.
I didn’t mean to make it sound like you should never do it. In my opinion, the beginning of a relationship is the time to establish some unspoken rules about things. I just think that one should be careful with pampering a new boyfriend since you want to establish good patterns of behavior. For example, right from the first time I cooked for my boyfriend, I took him up on his offer to help with the dishes and clean up and now he does it every time. I think it’s important to establish that those things are a partnership. That’s all
making a good set of carmelized onions is a success in itself. it takes patience! good call on the searing. is it lunch yet?
although i am an OSU fan, LSU deserved the win. they played great.
O-H! O-No. : )
mmmmm I’m starving now. How about cooking for us instead of men?? hehe.
Sounds great!! Only I’d swap the beer de-glaze with a good red wine =) then serve the balance with the meal… But that’s JsT my preference
Sounds yummy. I cheered for LSU, but I’ll admit that was only due to geographic proximity. Still, yay tigers.
I will be down there in a couple weeks for a job interview, hopefully staff/faculty can get dibs on tickets! I’ve been an LSU follower for quite awhile, and even longer of the SEC….the best conference in the land.
Hahaha - congrats on the cooking masterpieces! And congrats on the football stuff… which I admit I know nothing about. There have to be some cute, single, season-ticket-holding men out there somewhere, right? Right??? : )