Nessa's Dinner Party

A menu of favorite foods for a very dear birthday girl

Antipasto of Dried Apricots and Israeli Dates
Affettati Misti of Salumi, Prosciutto and Pancetta
Bruschetta with Tomatoes, Basil, Onion and Garlic
Formaggio Platter with Brie, aged Cheddar and Peppercorn Jack
Cracked Pepper, Sesame and Poppy Seed Wheat Crackers
Ziti with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Portobello Mushrooms
Side of Oven Roasted Summer Squash and Broccoli
Dessert Duo of Chocolate Truffles, Mini Oreo Cheesecakes
And a Sweet Ending of Chocolate Latte Ice-Cream Cake

Mint Chocolate Truffles

8-oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp peppermint extract
cocoa powder

In a medium glass bowl, combine the chocolate and the heavy cream. Melt the two together, whisking frequently, until just smooth. This can be done by placing the bowl over a small saucepan of gently simmering water, or by putting the bowl into the microwave on high in 10 second intervals, whisking between each.Whisk in peppermint extract.Chill at least 30 minutes.Remove from refrigerator and let the ganache soften until it is easy to work with. Form teaspoon-sized balls (using a teaspoon and a small knife to shape them) and roll in cocoa powder.Makes about 24-28 truffles, depending on size and whether you sample any ganache.

Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

1 package Oreo Cookies 2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp. vanilla extract 2 large eggs Foil or paper muffin cups

Instructions:Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Place foil or paper muffin cups in a muffin pan. Split cookies in half. Put the side of the cookie that has more icing in the foil or paper muffin cups, icing sides up. Reserve the remaining cookie halves and set aside. Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and eggs. Spoon mixture into the muffin cups about 3/4 of the way up. Crush the remaining cookie halves and sprinkle over tops. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Let cool, then refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight. Enjoy!!! Makes approximately 15 mini cheesecakes. I served these little goodies topped with a dollop of hand whipped cream and sprinkled more crushed oreos on top of it.

Easy Raisin Cinnamon Buns

My family (my mom to be precise) loves raisin cinnamon bread for breakfast. Sometimes she takes it toasted and with butter, but mostly just on its own. I love it too and always take it just on its own because it's so yummy. Gardenia California Raisin Loaf, Pepperidge Farm Raisin Cinnamon Swirl, Sunmaid Raisin Bread Cinnamon Swirl - we've tried them all.

I've experimented with a couple of recipes and have found this good 'no-fail' raisin bread recipe from busycooks.about.com. I followed it closely with a few modifications: I halved the recipe, used bread flour, omitted the eggs and shaped into buns than baking it into a loaf. I didn't make a sugar syrup as I found the bread sufficiently sweet. After baking, I felt that the bread could use a bit more cinnamon but otherwise, found it a tender, quick and easy bread.

1/2 cup sugar 2 packages active dry yeast 1-1/2 cups warm milk 2 eggs 1/2 cup butter, melted 4-1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1-1/2 cups raisins 1 cup powdered sugar 2 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon vanilla

Grease a 13x9" pan and set aside. In large bowl, combine sugar and milk and stir until dissolved. Sprinkle yeast over this mixture and let stand for 5 minutes. Add the eggs and beat well. Stir flour, salt, and cinnamon into the mixture.

Mix in raisins and spread batter into prepared pan. Brush top with melted butter. Cover and let rise until double, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake bread for 30-35 minutes until golden brown. While bread is baking, combine the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla and whisk until smooth. When bread comes out of oven, drizzle with the powdered sugar mixture and let cool.

Black Sesame Noodles in Oriental Lobster Broth

The bonus that comes with a home cooked lobster dinner is that you get to keep the lobster shells, if you so wish, to make a tasty soup stock! One Friday evening, we had fresh steamed lobsters, miso clam soup, pumpkin mushroom risotto and steamed broccoli; I decided to save the leftover lobster shells for a future attempt at making lobster stock. I kept the heads and tails, discarding the broken and smaller shells, and doubled bagged them in freezer proof ziplock bags.

After perusing a few recipes, I decided to make a simple broth. Most recipes were for a bisque but I didn't feel like a heavier soup so I sort of made up my own. I started by sauteing chopped garlic, onion, ginger and shitake mushroom. This was followed by the lobster shells. Thereafter, I added water, salt, pepper and soy sauce to taste and let the broth simmer over low heat. This made a good tasty soup to which one can add noodles, vegetables and other seafood ingredients. I finished mine with black sesame noodles and Chinese leafy greens. Simple but good.

Favorite Things in the North End

Italian biscotti, cakes and pastries...



Ice-cream stuffed cupcakes and candy-coated cones...



All kinds of spices, herbs and nuts...

Sandwiches and Schlesingers

The Parish Cafe on Boylston (www.parishcafe.com) is a sandwich shop that lets you choose from a list of gourmet sandwich creations from the city’s top chefs including Ming Tsai, Barbara Lynch and Jasper White. These sandwiches don't come cheap, starting at $11 and running up to $20. Despite the price tag (I mean, at its most basic, this is really some stuffing between two slices of bread), I was sufficiently curious about Parish Cafe to stop by and order the special sandwich of the week. This week's special was The Schlesinger; created by Chris Schlesinger of the East Coast Grille in Cambridge, the sandwich featured melted Monterey Jack cheese on warmed banana bread, topped with smoked ham and mango chutney. On the side, it came with some pickled ginger and red cabbage. It was an unexpected combination but it worked well for me and I enjoyed it very much!

That lunch got me thinking about other sandwich ideas and I've decided to list some of my favorite sandwich/wrap combinations:

• potato salad (here are two variants I've tried (i) with hard boiled eggs, crab meat, chopped green beans and black pepper, mustard and mayo to taste (ii) with hard boiled eggs, corn, scallions, capers, chopped giardiniera and mayo to taste)
• curried tuna salad with raisins and chopped apples
• sweet and spicy tofu wrap with carrots, corn, greens and brown rice
• hummus with cucumber, tomatoes and onions