4/28: Electra makes: Tomato-sage soup; backed macaroni and cheese.

4/27: Grilled porterhouse steak w/ cilantro-parsley butter; grilled portobello mushroom w/ soy-balsamic sauce; grilled red pepper and leeks; sauteed broccoli rabe; buttermilk biscuits; tomato, fennel and arugula salad.

4/25: Fried chicken, buttermilk garlics sage mashed potatoes, biscuits, arugula w/ vinaigrette.

4/24: Grilled chicken, mashed sweet potatoes, biscuits.

4.17 - shrimp hors d'oeuvres a la plancha, homemade sausage-spinach tortell*o*ni in red sauce, sherry chicken, cote du rhone

sausage spinach tortelloni for dough: 1.5 c semolina flour, 1.5 c regular flour, 4 eggs for filling: 1/4 medium onion, 2 cloves garlic, half a bob evan's bulk sausage thing (about 1 c cooked), a healthy handfull of fresh spinach, one extra-large button mushroom, about 1/4-1/2 c romano cheese, 1 t rosemary, salt and pepper, 1 egg

this attempt at pasta was more successful than last time, but the dough ended up a bit tough in the final product, so you may want to adjust and add a bit less flour or work it a bit less than i did. start with the filling by chopping the onion and garlic and sauteeing in a bit of olive oil until onions turn translucent, adding some salt and pepper. dump this in a food processor, then in the same pan brown the sausage. add this to food processor, then add spinach and a few tablespoons of water to the pan and cover, cooking for a minute or two, then uncover and cook until water evaporates. add this to f.p. and put sliced mushroom into pan with a tablespoon of oil, sauteeing until mushrooms brown. add this to f.p., along with romano and rosemary, and let it sit until the pasta is ready. to make the pasta without a good kneading surface, place flours in a large, shallow metal bowl. form a well in the middle, crack the eggs into this, and start working in the flour with a fork, moving outwards fairly slowly. once you can get it all into a ball, knead it in the bowl for a minute. if it is too sticky, add a bit of flour, but not too much at one time. you want it managable bit not too stiff. divide into 4 balls and begin working one ball through the settings of your pasta machine, maybe 3 times on each setting, folding it in half and dusting with flour as you go. (note: if pasta gets holes or seems weird, dust with a bit more flour.) i stopped on the second to last setting, with each sheet being about 3-4" wide. at this point, go to the f.p. and add the egg, then run f.p. until the filling is processed but not pastey. cut a square peice of dough (you can leave the edges rough - it looks kinda neat) and place about a quarter-sized amount of filling. brush two edges with a bit of water, then fold one corner to its diagonal, making a triangle. as you seal the edge, work from one side to the other, getting the air out of the center pocket. now the dtricky part: roll the filling and the long folded edge towards the sealed point, about half an inch, then take the two side points and bring them together in the opposite direction. this should flip up that front point and make a nice little package. if the two side points don't stick well to each other, wet them with a bit of water. repeat, for about 2 hours ;) when ready, drop in boiling water for about 4-5 minutes. serves 3-4.

greg's farmhouse salmon 2.5 lbs salmon fillet, plenty of lemon juice, salt, olive oil, half a large onion, three small tomatoes, about 1 c chopped fennel, pepper

place salmon in a baking dish and doust with lemon juice (a whole lemon's worth) and sprinkle with salt. get the oven preheating to 425, then slice onion into thin strips, dice tomatoes, and chop fennel. when fish has been sitting for about 10 minutes, coat with olive oil, and pile on the veggies. bake for about 30 min. (our fillet was especially thick, about 1.5 inches... check yours after 15 min. if it is thinner). when almost ready, turn on the broiler to brown some of the toppings. served 4.

[chris returns]

4/8 Farmhouse chili; sour cream quesadilla; tomato, fennel and arugula salad.

4/6 Electra makes dinner: Cheddar-mushroom-red pepper puree Boboli (Tm) pizzas; sauteed bok choy with hoisin sauce.

4/5 Vegetarian penne carbonara; creamed chipped portobello on bruschetta; salad with red pepper vinaigrette.

Vegetarian penne carbonara: For my vegetarian, egg-fearing girlfriend: First, make garlic confit by simmering unpeeled garlic cloves in olive oil for an hour. (Yes, Dad, my dream has come true.) Strain the oil and reserve for something else. Remove garlic from peels and reserve. Saute one garlic clove in olive oil for one minute. Add chopped onion and saute until tender. Add a little cream and cook down on medium heat. Add reserved garlic. Add cooked penne to sauce pan; toss to coat. Add copious amounts of pecorino romano and black pepper; salt to taste. Take off the heat. Drop one egg yolk right into the pan; stir briskly. Serve immediately.

4/4 For breakfast, Tennessee whiskey bread pudding french toast. For dinner, veal cutlet Milanese alla piccata and farfalle carbonara.

4/1, Part 2: Chicken and shrimp "gumbo", asparagus with parsley mayonnaise, wilted dandelion greens and pancetta. For a midnight snack, grilled herb cheese sandwiches.

Chicken and shrimp "gumbo": Brown chicken legs in a Dutch oven. Remove when brown and reserve. Add a couple tablespoons of butter to the Dutch oven and melt. Add a couple tablespoons of flour. Stir and heat gently until the roux is light brown. Add a chopped medium onion and a chopped red bell pepper; cook until soft. Add the chicken legs and sliced andouille sausage and cover with chicken stock. Simmer for a half hour. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, cayenne, Crystal, Tabasco and sherry vinegar. When the chicken a nd sausage are done, add shrimp. Cook for 1 minute or until shrimp are cooked, then serve. (The astute or pedantic among you will notice that there is no okra in this soup. Well, that's why there are quotes around "gumbo".)

4/1: Wayne becomes vegetarian, devotes life to creating recipe for imitation Beef Braciole using textured vegetable protein.