We can finally celebrate the end of a not-so-stellar year in our nation’s economy and what better way than a wine and cheese party. Normally when my wife and I host these parties we go out and spend a bunch of money on great wine and cheese. This year to honor the rest of the country, we decided to give ourselves a bailout.

Rather than supply all the food, we asked that each party guest bring their favorite bottle of wine and favorite cheese. I know we took a risk and could have possibly ended up with cheese from a can, but thankfully everyone brought great cheese and equally great wine. It was also a lot of fun anticipating what everyone was going to bring. We also asked for board games and ended up playing Apples to Apples.

Now you know I couldn’t just stop at supplying fruit and chocolate and crackers. It’s New Year’s Eve! I decided I would do a trio of flatbreads and a dessert. I ventured out to Central Market the morning of NYE and was shocked at how crowded it was. While shopping I realized I wouldn’t have time to make my own bread dough, so reluctantly, I bought some fresh pizza dough from the bakery. I promise that’s the only thing I cheated on.

The three flatbreads I came up are as follows:
1. Basil Pesto with toasted Pine nuts and shaved Parmesan.
I bought fresh basil to make the pesto along with a great hunk of Grana Padana.

2. Goat cheese with roasted red peppers and fillet of beef. Topped with micro greens.
I roasted the red peppers, sliced them and placed them in a jar of olive oil ahead of time. I also pre-cooked the flatbreads on my grill. I bought a great fillet and sliced it thin to place on top of the goat cheese and roasted peppers. For my presentation, I seared the beef with a torch to slightly cook it.

3. Marscapone cheese and sliced pear with balsamic glaze.
This one was simple. I spread the marscapone on the flatbread and thinly sliced the pears which I placed on top. I quickly warmed it under the broiler and drizzled the balsamic glaze over the top.

For dessert, I made grilled cheese sandwiches. Not the one’s you’re thinking of. I actually got the idea from one of the episodes of the show After Hours with Daniel Boulud. I made a dark chocolate ganache ahead of time and poured it into a baking dish so it was about a 1/2 in thick. I then placed it in the refrigerator to set up. The other two ingredients were cream cheese and brioche. To assemble, I cut the brioche into large squares about an inch think. I cut the ganache and cream cheese into the same size squares as the brioche. I then melted some butter, dipped the brioche and placed it on the griddle. After the first side was lightly browned, I turned them over and placed a layer of ganache and a layer of cream cheese on top of the brioche. I then topped it with the other piece of brioche.  Once the inside barely started to soften, I removed them from the griddle and cut them in wedges. I made a blackberry compote to serve with the sandwiches.

I’d have to say it was the perfect goodbye to 2009. Great food, and the company of even greater friends. Here’s to 2010!

Since high school (long before Iron Chef came around) I often found myself scavenging for ingredients in the refrigerator to turn into interesting meals. The other morning was no exception. My wife had previously made some plain pasta shells for our one year-old daughter and I thought they might make an interesting breakfast.

Pasta for breakfast? Hey, why not. Nothing like some good carbohydrates to give you much needed Saturday morning energy. After some searching I also found some bacon and eggs. Hmmm, this is sounding a little familiar. Carbonara anyone?

As you may guess, I cooked the bacon and crumbled it. I used the rendered fat with a little butter and olive oil to saute some fresh garlic and then added the pasta and bacon back to the pan. For a little twist I added some chopped sun-dried tomatoes I found in the refrigerator door and the juice of a fresh lemon with a little dried basil and parsley. I finished the dish by folding in the beaten egg with some Parmesan cheese, off the heat.

The dish turned out great. I especially loved the addition of the sun-dried tomatoes and lemon juice. The acid was a great balance to the saltiness of the bacon and Parmesan cheese.

So the next time you look in the refrigerator and think to yourself, “There’s nothing to eat”, remember that thinking outside the box can be a rewarding experience.