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MAH JONGG WEDNESDAY RECIPES

As promised, here are the recipes from our most recent and very fun Mah Jongg Wednesday.

First, from my favorite chef, the Barefoot Contessa’s Lemon Drop Cocktails:

LEMON DROP COCKTAIL
Serves 6

2 cups frozen vodka
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Combine the vodka, lemon juice, and sugar and pour into a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour into martini glasses and garnish with lemon.Attachment

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.IMG_1563Shred the romaine lettuce and place in a large bowl. Add the Garbanzo beans and pitted Kalamata olives.IMG_1557IMG_1560Cut the cherry tomatoes in half, length-wise.IMG_1559Cut the cucumber into small diced pieces.IMG_1561If you decide to add red onion, dice it up into small pieces and add to the bowl.

Break up the feta cheese. IMG_1562Add the chicken pieces and dress with a balsamic dressing. IMG_1564I 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!!!IMG_1567Dessert 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.

When it was time for dessert I scooped Talenti Tahitian Vanilla Bean gelato into a bowl, added raspberries and blueberries, and then topped it all with that fabulous raspberry sauce. I usually serve some biscotti with this dessert but today we had those amazing Kristin Marin Mah Jongg cookies. Plus, S1 brought some AMAZING Dulce de Leche cookies – also known as Alfajores – and S2 brought some delicious miniature Madeleines.IMG_1569IMG_1571

IT’S BACK…MAH JONGG WEDNESDAY CHEZ MOI!

It seems like it has been forever since I hosted the OMs (Original Mahjettes, as we call ourselves)  but finally today we were all chez moi. And I used the occasion to celebrate three November birthdays: S1, S2, and J. 

Our lunch was my favorite – one of the Barefoot Contessa‘s fabulous and very hearty soups – so delicious! I will post the recipe tomorrow. IMG_1178Before everyone arrived I placed a jar of my homemade cranberry relish at each place. I have been making this recipe every year since 1976…it’s a tradition for me!IMG_1174IMG_1177Right after lunch we began our game play – and we were really playing fast today so we got in many, many games. Nothing could make me happier because we were able to make a donation to Stay Strong and Mahj On (SSAMO) for $75 (a couple of days worth of winnings)!

I was so happy to have a Jokerless hand…we actually had two of them today!IMG_1188Here are some of the winning hands today (although there were many more than what I will post here):
 IMG_1192Wait a minute, who is that causing trouble and suddenly sneaking out of the closet?IMG_1190But before we went any further, it was time for a happy birthday dessert for the three November birthday girls – Talenti Mediterranean Mint Gelato, Talenti Double Dark Chocolate Gelato, and topped with a fudge covered brownie and a happy birthday candle! YUM!IMG_1181

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IMG_1186IMG_1185 It was so great to have the OMs back here – it was a wonderful day!

MAH JONGG WEDNESDAY!

I hosted Mah Jongg Wednesday yesterday – the first time since before I had surgery back in March. It was so great to have everyone here and we really had a great time.

Lunch was perfect for this horrible heat wave we are experiencing right now in NYC.  The humidity is absolutely unbearable. We started out with a bottle of Cava, thanks to G – so nice to begin our lunch with a bit of bubbly, as she said. The first course was a chunky, spicy gazpacho with a dollop of sour cream (all recipes will be posted tomorrow) and cheese and different artisanal crackers. S1 brought some really fantastic crackers from a shop in Sag Harbor; they had a kick of spice in them – a perfect pairing with the spicy gazpacho and the cheese.

IMG_0789Spicy food seemed to be on today’s menu – the main course was Chicken Caprese Salad with a bit of a kick from the spicy bocconcini in it.IMG_0790And then it was time to get serious and sit down at the Mah Jongg table. There were five of us so I sat out the first few games and cleaned up the lunch dishes. IMG_0792 (2)Look how serious everyone is…you’d never know from these photos how much laughing went on today. IMG_0795I was thrilled to have a Jokerless hand today of 22 44 444 666 8888 – it really doesn’t happen that often to any of us and everyone was excited for me. IMG_0796Then it was time for dessert and, as usual, I forgot to take photos. But it was the perfect dessert for this hot and humid day – a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of chocolate Talenti Gelato, a big drizzle of Sanders Hot Fudge (the BEST hot fudge ever and it is from Detroit!!!), and a big sprinkling of chopped salted peanuts – YUM!

And then the craziest thing happened…S1 exposed 7 Bam, Joker, Joker, 7 Bam. My turn came around and I had two 7 Bams in my hand that I exchanged for her two Jokers. Everyone oohed and aahed – how lucky to get two Jokers at the same time! A few moments later I exposed 4 Dot, Joker, Joker, 4 Dot –  S1’s turn came and she exchanged her two 4 Dots for my two Jokers. Really? It’s rare enough that you can exchange two tiles for two Jokers in one turn, but two people doing it in the same game? Wow! But wait! Then S1 exposed 5 Bam, Joker, Joker, 5 Bam and when it was K’s turn, she exchanged two 5 Bams for the two Jokers. OMG – three times in one game!!! We really couldn’t get over it.

In spite of the heat and humidity (what ever was wrong with my A/C – or was it simply too hot and humid to get any relief?), we had a great day of Mah Jongg!

MAH JONGG CHEZ MOI, PART II

As promised, here are the recipes from Wednesday’s Mediterranean lunch. They are all so easy and definitely worth taking the time to make rather than buying the hummus and the tzatziki at the store. IMG_1377 Tzatziki in the center of the platter; then clockwise starting at the very top: hummus, toasted pita triangles, lemon wedges, slices of feta cheese (with freshly ground pepper, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of fresh thyme), Picholine olives, more toasted pita triangles, Kalamata olives.

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MAH JONGG CHEZ MOI

Yesterday was my turn to host our weekly Mah Jongg game and I was happy to do so. I was really looking forward to serving this Mediterranean lunch since it does feel as if the sun is actually out again after the horrid winter. Recipes will be posted tomorrow but in the meantime, here are some pictures of our lunch and some hands played from the new NMJL 2014 card.

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This was such a fun lunch to prepare. The homemade hummus (so much better than store-bought and so easy to make!) was yummy – right before everyone arrived I drizzled some Sriracha and some olive oil on it and a few toasted pignoli. The feta cheese had some olive oil and pepper on it and then some thyme leaves. And, at the last moment, I sprinkle some minced parsley on the homemade Tzatziki (again, a really easy recipe). The pita triangles were toasted for about 10 minutes until they were crispy and delicious.

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MAH JONGG WEDNESDAY CHEZ MOI!

Even though I am still on a walker and/or a cane as I recover from knee replacement surgery, I wanted to host our Wednesday Mah Jongg game with the OMs this week. But since I am not yet ready to put together some exotic meal, I did the next best thing – FRESH DIRECT!

If you don’t know about Fresh Direct, check out their website – and hopefully they deliver to your area. Their food and their service are terrific and they are truly a lifesaver.

Early this morning the Fresh Direct delivery arrived:

photo

As always, everything was there and looking good.

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