The crew of marvelous regulars was here for the final Saturday night of February. Our gatherings haven’t had the frequency we had come to love but that makes it all the sweeter when the time of togetherness rolls around. It seemed like a good chance to bring out a recipe that I'd only made once before, back in the fall, when that issue of Bon Appétit was hot off the presses: mushroom and shallot Salisbury steak. Company mashed potatoes are also a consistent favorite, and a sheet pan of roasted hoisin whole green beans (with a spicy kick to boot) gave us green on the plates. For several of the bunch, the dinner conversation turned to reminiscence of the tv dinners they had growing up, although it was quickly noted that our dinner fare was in quite a different class.
As an evening like this approaches, I sometimes play out a silly conversation in my head, imagining these two couples doing an exchange of ideas about what predictable meal I might be serving up this time: lasagna? chili? nachos? burgers? I’d hoped to break that cycle on this occasion, and the menu choices seem to have gone over quite well. They made clear that a repeat of this dish would be welcome.
The morning dawned with a deep chill around us still, as the latest arctic air invasion was only begrudgingly surrendering its hold. That Saturday morning I awoke to 21°F. It warmed as the day went on, but the pups made good use of the indoor time to frolic and play-fight.
Guess that’s why the previous evening’s fire in the kitchen fireplace was all the sweeter: Fire No. 98 since the addition was completed.
It was mighty nice to have Sumner close by to enjoy its crackling warmth.
”Mushroom and Shallot Salisbury Steak,” by Jesse Szewczyk. In Bon Appétit, October 2024, p. 18.
"Company Mashed Potatoes," a Jones family favorite.
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