Amanda is fun. This makes it hard for me to refuse her anything. Her suggestions are followed up with this smile that manages to look like a smile with a wink in it. It infers that whatever she is proposing is something that you won't want to turn down. The smile isn't even followed by a lengthy list of reasons or overt peer pressure. Generally, the scenario works like this. She suggests and then I instantly agree. I'm not exactly sure who else her magical powers of persuasion work on, but I find myself staying out later and playing harder when Amanda is there. To be sure, her wickedly good cocktails might be a contributing factor to my decision making processes.
It was my turn to have the girls over, but then Amanda called and offered to co-host the supperclub on her rooftop deck. It was a no brainer for me even without seeing the winky smile or drinking her cocktails. I knew we had a beautiful night ahead of us on top of her yellow-bricked row house with its 360 degree view of the city and Wrigley Field. It was a warm, almost tropical night. Island-like breezes fanned about keeping us comfortable. We were surrounded by her gardening. Flowers bloomed in boxes and were attended to by butterflies. Scotch bonnets, jalapenos and herbs thrived in pots. Far in the distance, planes in their flight pattern onto O'hare circled the city and twinkled.
We lugged up our containers of food up on to the deck. Amanda set about unloading a pitcher of water with slices of lemon floating in it from the tray she was carrying, while we poured ourselves glasses of her white sangria with raspberries. As the sun set, she brought up a stereo for music and lit the hurricanes and tiki torches. There were only four of us but we had enough to feed a small army. Amanda brought out chayote squash and pineapple that we grilled on the BBQ. She also prepared her own personal recipe for Asian-inspired chicken wings. Elisa had outdone herself making a guacamole, a traditional red sangria AND a shrimp, artichoke and cheese dip. Jody made a pub favorite in the form of Scotch eggs served with whole grain mustard. Resembling dinosaur eggs, they were like breakfast in a capsule. Each one was a hard boiled egg wrapped in sausage and then deep fried. I cheated and purchased Kobe hamburger meat from Fox and Obel that had been pre-seasoned. I shaped them into sliders and made assorted fixings like blue cheese and caramelized onions to put on top.
Poor Elisa started to come down with a cold and left early. After some time, Jody, Amanda and I went downstairs into the kitchen and begun to clean and pack up all the leftovers. We were almost done when Ken buoyantly announced the arrival of their group of tipsy boys in a "Hi! We've been drinking at the Hopleaf!!" sort of way. Behind him trailed Thomas, Josh and a co-worker of Ken's who we were introduced to as "The Kid". Out came the packaged food and back up onto the rooftop we went until well past midnight.
I sent Thomas to work with a leftover Scotch egg for breakfast that following Monday morning. "This is really good!" he said to me over the phone.
"You had one on Saturday." I replied.
"I did?"
Later on in the week, I emailed Amanda. "You know, the Kid hung around 'til like 3am -- we had to practically kick him out. :-)" she wrote.
Apparently, I'm not the only susceptible one.
--
Amanda's Baked Chinese Wings
4 lbs wings
6 oz soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup honey
6 gloves or garlic or 2 tsp garlic powder (more or less, depending on taste)
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
2 tbsp sambal (more if you spicy)
1 tbsp dark vinegar or worcestershire sauce
1/4 tbsp sesame oil
Wash the wings and pat dry. Blend all sauce ingredients, pour over wings and let marinate at least 2 hours, preferably overnight. Preheat oven to 375, arrange wings in a single layer, cover with foil, and cook for approximately 45 min. Remove foil and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes
(check for browning).
-Amanda
--
Traditional Sangria
2 bottles chilled dry red wine, like Rioja
1 cup brandy
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup superfine granulated sugar
2 oranges, cut into thin rounds
2 Meyer lemons, cut into thin rounds
3 Key limes, cut into thin rounds
2 apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 cups cold club soda
In a large pot or bowl, combine the wine, brandy, orange juice, and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the orange, lemon, and lime slices, the apples and refrigerate until well chilled, about 1 hour. Remove from the refrigerator and add the soda. Serve in glasses over ice.
Emeril Lagasse
---
Guacamole
6 ripe avocados
3 limes, juiced
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, smashed then minced
2 serrano chiles, cut into rounds
1 big handful fresh cilantro with stems, about 1/2 cup, finely chopped
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepperHalve and pit the avocados. With a tablespoon, scoop out the flesh into a mixing bowl. Mash the avocados using either a fork or potato masher, leaving them still a bit chunky. Add the remaining ingredients, and fold everything together. Drizzle with a little olive oil, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and give it 1 final mix with a fork.
Lay a piece of plastic wrap tight on the surface of the guacamole so it doesn't brown and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Tyler Florence
--
Spinach, Shrimp, and Artichoke Dip
2 (10-ounce) packages fresh spinach, well rinsed and stems trimmed
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup chopped yellow onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 pound roughly chopped cooked shrimp
1 cup (1/2-inch) cubes rindless Brie
1 cup grated Monterey Jack
1 (6 1/2-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
4 strips bacon, fried crisp, drained and chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Assorted chips, for dipping (pita chips, tortilla chips, bagel chips)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 or 10-inch round ovenproof casserole and set aside.
Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the spinach in batches and cook until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and refresh under cold running water. Squeeze to remove all excess water and chop. Set aside. In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, to make a light roux, about 2 minutes. Add the milk and cream in a steady stream, and cook, stirring constantly, until thick and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cooked spinach and lemon juice, and stir to incorporate. Add the shrimp, cubed and grated cheeses, artichoke hearts, and bacon, and stir well. Remove from the heat and pour into the prepared dish. Top with the Parmesan and bake until bubbly, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve hot with chips.
Emeril Lagasse
--
Scotch Eggs
1 1/4 pounds bulk country-style or herbed sausage
1 teaspoon crumbled dried sage
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
4 hard-boiled large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 raw large eggs, beaten lightly
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
vegetable oil for deep-frying the eggs
In a large bowl combine well the sausage, the sage, the thyme, and the cayenne, divide the mixture into 4 equal portions, and flatten each portion into a thin round. Enclose each hard-boiled egg completely in 1 of the sausage rounds, patting the sausage into place. Dredge the sausage-coated eggs in the flour, shaking off the excess, dip them in the raw eggs, letting the excess drip off, and roll them gently in the bread crumbs, coating them well. In a deep fryer heat 2 1/2 inches of the oil to 350°F. and in it fry the Scotch eggs, 2 at a time, turning them and transferring them to paper towels to drain with a slotted spoon as they are done, for 10 minutes.
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.
Servings: Makes 4 Scotch eggs, serving 4.
Epicurious
Notes from Jody: Don't roll out pork as described by recipe. It's much easier to wrap the eggs if you flatten the pork mixture in the palm of your hand, then gently wrap in your hand - I couldn't get it to work the other way. I also used 4 Seasons breadcrumbs (not fresh), and they turned out great. Serve with spicy, grainy mustard, of course!
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