Boys Night Special

I ate 6000 calories of brie. I must have. I don't know that for sure, and please don't google it for me, either. I would repent, but I feel that to earn redemption, I have to promise to avoid such temptations... and I am incapable of denying my love for brie.

How did this happen, you ask? I blame my husband. He got this brie ball rolling.

1. He announced this morning that it was Guy Night, and that he was going to Joe's.


2. I went to Whole Foods to see friends that were taping for their upcoming Emeril episodes (Squee!! I'm so excited for them!!)


3. I bought brie and pears and fresh pita bread.


4. I made dinner and ate 6000 brie calories.

I may have rushed through a few details. Like how, when I went to Whole Foods last week to check out this Emeril stuff, I ordered a sandwich from the cheese bar. So mesmerised was I by Mr. Lagasse that the sandwich I ordered was filled with blue cheese! (Yick!) I totally wasn't thinking. The menu clearly stated that it was a blue cheese sandwich. I knew I liked the premise of the sandwich (cheese, pears, and fig jam on raisin bread), but somehow, the word "blue" escaped my eyes. Until I remembered, and well, by then, it was too late. Screwed.

And boy, was it too late. I had this idea of this sandwich in my head, and it was filled with such potential. How could I made that sandwich just perfect (for me)? Why, by swapping the blue stuff for brie! Of course! I thought about it daily. Hourly, almost. I was fixated, and anyone that has ever been in that position knows, the only way to dispel the demon is to give in. (Work with me here.)

When I broke down and made this my way the first time, I had whole wheat tortillas on hand. I thought I had fig preserves, but I didn't, so I pulled out some pear butter. Let me take a moment to tell you about this pear butter. It's glorious. It is produced by my friend's family farm, and it is delicious. I was initially smitten with their apple butter, and when my butcher ran out, I thought I would give the pear a try. They are lovely on toast, scones, pancakes, and even simply mixed in to cottage cheese (that's how my friend's husband eats it!) Huh, I hadn't thought about it until just now, but her family has a market stand at the farmers market held in the very same Whole Foods Emeril is taping in. I love when things connect.

Right, so, whole wheat tortillas, smeared with pear butter, filled with triple cream brie and sliced bosc pears. Lightly toasted in a saute pan for 3-4 minutes per side, just long enough for the brie to get gooey. Heavenly.

Today, though, WF was all out of tortillas, but they had pita instead (and the pita is so thin, it is practically a tortilla.) I tried to wait an hour after I got home from work before I made dinner. I lasted 45 minutes. While I loved it the first time, I wanted to sass it out a little... I sprinkled the tiniest bit of cilantro into the pita and hoped for the best. Yowza! The kick provided by the cilantro was perfect. The tangy cheese, sweet pears, smooth butter and zingy cilantro melded beautifully. It is such a peculiar sandwich, but I couldn't have asked for a better Guy Night.

Pear and Brie Girls Only Quesadilla
4 whole wheat tortillas (or any type of bread you choose)
1 3-inch wedge of brie, sliced thin
1 pear, sliced thin
4 tablespoons or so of pear butter, fig preserves, or your preferred fruity spread
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped (optional

Spread pear butter on one side of each tortilla. Top two tortillas with brie and then pears. Top with remaining tortillas.

Warm in saute pan for 3-4 minutes per side. Cut into wedges and enjoy!

See the recipe...

Sloppy Joe MMMBop

So, we were about to sit down to Sloppy Joes, and MMMBop was going on the Bose. As you can see in the picture, my sloppy joe is a little wonky. I don't know where I got it, but when I first made this recipe a few years ago, we had it in lettuce wraps, rather than buns. (Could have been South Beach Diet inspired, in fact). Dave doesn't care for them this way, so he used buns leftover from last nights burgers.

This particular recipe, found in Everyday Food magazine, suggested making it two different ways - for kids and adults. Kids get smaller buns, grown-ups get cilantro and avocado. (Yay being old!)

Sure, you could easily make Manwich or other brand sloppy joe from a can, but why? This is so easy and tastes great. Me, I like the lettuce... give it a go!


Sloppy Joes
Everyday Food Magazine, September 2005
http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.fc77a0dbc44dd1611e3bf410b5900aa0/?vgnextoid=2543a6e806b0f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&autonomy_kw=sloppy%20joe&rsc=ns2006_r3

1 1/4 pounds ground beef chuck
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tomato puree, (14.5 ounces)
2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
4 hamburger rolls, cut into mini buns
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon pickled jalapeno chiles
2 hoagie rolls, split in half
1/2 ripe avocado, thinly sliced

For the Kids (Serves 2) In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook beef, breaking apart pieces with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add puréed tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, tomato paste, Worcestershire, and 1 1/2 cups water. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Reserve half the beef mixture for the adults. Divide remaining evenly among the mini buns (2 per serving).

For the Adults (Serves 2) Stir cilantro and jalapenos into the reserved beef mixture. Dividing evenly, spoon over bottom halves of rolls; top with avocado slices.

See the recipe...