Grace’s Marketplace | Mah Jongg and Me

For our lunch I made a chopped salad inspired by Joe Trama, the executive chef at Grace’s Marketplace.

YUMMY CHOPPED SALAD
Serves 6

Romaine lettuce
Garbanzo beans
Cherry tomatoes
Cucumber
Kalamata olives (buy the ones without pits)
Feta cheese
Red onion (optional – I don’t use this ingredient)
2 Chicken breasts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and dry the chicken breasts and then rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Place them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and cook for 35 – 40 minutes.

Once the chicken breasts have cooled enough to handle, remove the skin and dice the breasts into bite-sized pieces.

Shred the romaine lettuce and place in a large bowl. Add the Garbanzo beans and pitted Kalamata olives.

Cut the cherry tomatoes in half, length-wise.

Cut the cucumber into small diced pieces.

If you decide to add red onion, dice it up into small pieces and add to the bowl.

Break up the feta cheese.

Add the chicken pieces and dress with a balsamic dressing.

I don’t season this dressing as the olives and the feta are very salty. I put salt and pepper on the table and let everyone add them to their own taste.

YUM!!!

Dessert was a variation of a Barefoot Contessa creation. The night before the luncheon I made her fabulous Raspberry Sauce:

BAREFOOT CONTESSA’S RASPBERRY SAUCE

1 half-pint package fresh raspberries   1/3 cup granulated sugar   1/4 cup water   1 cup (12 ounces) seedless raspberry jam (if you can’t find seedless raspberry jam, pour the sauce through a sieve before chilling) 1 tablespoon Framboise liqueur

Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 4 minutes.
Pour the cooked raspberries, the jam, and Framboise into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until smooth.
Chill.

Thursday, April 14th finally came around and the Stay Strong and Mahj On benefit took place at Sarabeth’s for a yummy lunch, an afternoon of Mah Jongg, lots of candy for snacking during game play, and a welcome gift of a fabulous Baggu with the SSAMO logo proudly printed on the front. There were also great prizes handed out during the day for special winning hands. I think it is fair to say that we all had such a great time! Enjoy the photos of a very memorable day…The much-loved Linda Feinstein, our honorary chair of the event. Barney G. was – as always – the life of the party. We were all so happy that he was there!Here is Alexis with her inspiration, her wonderful mother, Blair. Three of the OMs and my cousin Linda.

Here are photos of most of the raffle winners. First, the most sought-after prize: the For the Collector package with a fabulous vintage Mah Jongg set along with one of my vintage-style Mah Jongg table covers.The beautiful Breast Cancer Awareness Set donated by our dear friend Lynn, the owner of www.wherethewindsblow.com. The Coffee, Coffee, Coffee package winner with a $50 Starbucks gift certificate, a Chambord Press Pot, 3 lbs. of coffee, 2 vintage-inspired Mah Jongg mugs, and an assortment of milk chocolate and dark chocolate-covered coffee beans:The Vino Veritas package containing a case of fabulous wine plus 4 Reidel wine tumblers, a Corkcicle, and a wine stopper. The Let Me Entertain You package containing a set of SmorgasBorges CDs, a beautiful scented candle, a bottle of wine and 2 Reidel wine glasses, a ceramic bowl by J. Warner, and a signed copy of Lior Lev Sercarz’s book, The Art of Blending + 5 jars of his amazing spice blends; all packed in a beautiful and eco-friendly basket.The Read and Write to your Heart’s Content package with a $50 gift certificate to the Corner Bookstore, a Moleskine notebook and accessories, a hand-crafted wooden pen, and lastly, a signed copy of Mah Jongg: The Art of the Game!How lucky is this winner? A gift certificate for one of Tracie Martyn‘s famous Red Carpet Facial plus some of her products.For the Little Loves in Our Lives package – won by a new dog owner! The package contains a $100 gift certificate to Canine Styles, a chock-full of great goodies gift basket (tied with pink ribbon!) from Unleashed, and a bully stick and an antler. This is one lucky puppy!YUM!!! A signed copy of Lior Lev Sercarz’s book, The Art of Blending + 5 jars of his amazing spice blends, Gracious Gourmet‘s chutneys and tea towels, and a huge basket filled to over-flowing with goodies from Grace’s Marketplace. We Love Sarabeth’s! Need I say more?! Many thanks to Sarabeth’s for a wonderful day!Feeling Good! $125 gift card to the Equinox Spa, Haircut with Paul Labrecque, Caviar Luxe Pedicure at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel’s La Prairie spa, and to finish it all off, a manicure!6 friends will enjoy an exclusive party at bluemercury, including a makeup artist, goodie bags, refreshments, and after-hours scheduling!Looking Fabulous! A tote bag and $100 gift certificate from J McLaughlin, a beautiful necklace by Luanne Vrattos, and a personal styling consultation with Susan Lawrence, Stylist/Personal Shopper. Dine Like Royalty! And she will with her $250 gift certificate for dinner for 2 at The Mark Restaurant by Jean-Georges.The Melissa Joy Manning $600 necklace and the Mah Jongg at Home and On the Road package were also won but we weren’t able to get the winner’s photographs. I do know that they were thrilled with their great wins. And once the day was over, Alexis, Blair, Caroline, and I had Mimosa’s and Dirty Martinis – definitely needed when the day ended!