50/50 (2011)

50/50, based on the real-life experience of the movie's writer, Will Resier, grapples with cancer and all the crap that comes with it. Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is diagnosed at 27 with a rare spinal cancer, and journeys through the treatment process with the support of his best friend, Kyle (Seth Rogen), therapist (Anna Kendrick), and mom (Anjelica Huston). The movie is both believable and funny, and we stayed awake!

Movie Rating

Plot: 5

Cinematography: 4.7

Acting: 4.8

Average: 4.8

For dinner, I was trying to come up with something made up of two different halves and landed on pizza. I had NO IDEA there would be so much pizza in the movie. Practically every time there was a food scene, pizza made an appearance.

Win-win-win! I picked up the dough from Luigi's Pizza Fresca near work, and we made up the "recipe" for both sides as we went with a few ingredients I wanted to feature. Each side turned out to be surprisingly delicious. A few other food options pulled from the movie: green tea, macaroons—extra points if they're laced with medical marijuana, anything shaved (parmesan? asparagus?), wheatgrass juice, pancakes.

50/50 (White/Red) Pizza

Makes 8 pieces

INGREDIENTS

1 ball of raw dough (next time, I might try this recipe and make it from scratch)

olive oil

flour

White Side:

3 oz. goat cheese

12 raw shrimp, peeled and cut in half lengthwise

1 red bell pepper

3 oz. baby arugula

2 TB olive oil

splash of balsamic vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

Red Side:

1 TB olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

15 oz. fire-roasted crushed tomatoes

salt to taste

1/4 lb. raw mild italian sausage, removed from casing

4 baby portobella mushrooms, sliced

8 oz. fresh mozzarella, sliced

Seasonings:

crushed red pepper

pinch sugar

thyme

oregano

DIRECTIONS

Roast the red bell pepper: turn the broiler on and brush the pepper's skin with olive oil. Place the pepper under the broiler on a rack positioned a few inches away from the heat and rotate as each side is blackened (about 5-8 minutes per side). When the pepper is fully blackened, remove it and place in a bag for a few minutes to steam the skin off. Peel the pepper and slice the flesh into thin strips.

Meanwhile, adjust the oven heat to 500 degrees and place a pizza stone (if using) on a center rack.

Brown the sausage in a saute pan until fully cooked, crumbling into small pieces. Remove crumbled, cooked sausage to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.

Wipe the saute pan clean and heat 1 TB olive oil over medium heat. Add the minced garlic clove and saute for a few minutes. Add the can of tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook for approx. 20 minutes.

While the sauce is simmering, arrange the dough on a work surface sprinkled lightly with flour. Toss, roll, stretch, etc. to fit the shape of your pizza stone or baking sheet.

When the oven and pizza stone are fully heated, place the dough on the stone with a bit of flour to pre-bake for about 8–10 minutes.

Remove the crust from the oven to arrange the toppings. (Our dough somehow picked up on the tumorous theme of the movie! We're terrible, we know.) On the white side, spread the goat cheese evenly over the crust. Evenly distribute the shrimp and strips of roasted red pepper atop the cheese.

On the red side, spoon the tomato sauce onto the crust and spread out. Sprinkle crumbled sausage over the sauce and top with mushroom slices. Finish this side off with slices of fresh mozzarella cheese. Season the whole pie to taste with a variety of seasonings. We used crushed red pepper, a light pinch of sugar, thyme, and oregano.

Place the pizza back in the oven for about 10 minutes or until the fresh mozzarella cheese has melted and begins to bubble. The crust should be a nice golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow the pizza to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.

While the pizza bakes, whisk 1 TB balsamic vinegar with 2 TB olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Toss the arugula in the vinaigrette. Top the white side of the pizza with the dressed arugula (easiest to do this after it's already been sliced).

Dinner Rating

Movie Relevance: 5

Taste: 4.8
Average: 4.9

We had a first-timer, my neighbor Nate, join us for Movie Night this week. He brought along dessert: a tasty, homemade, orange-cherry bread pudding with bourbon cream based on this recipe. Yum!

The Illusionist (L'illusionniste)

movie stills found here and here

To be clear from the start, no this was not The Illusionist starring Ed Norton. I have not seen that movie yet, but there is a fair chance it was more entertaining than this 2010 nominee for best animated feature. We had been so entertained by The Triplets of Belleville that we were hoping for another gem by director Sylvain Chomet. No doubt it is a beautiful film! However, the plot was slow and uninteresting and when paired with a strictly musical audial experience (a lullaby really) it lead to a big snooze fest.

Movie Rating: 

Plot: 1.5 stars

Cinematography: 4.25 stars

Acting: 3 stars 

Average: 3 stars

For this dinner I had intended to make Scotch Eggs with Croissant French Toast, however, there was a MAJOR mixup at the meat counter in whole foods and they gave me bacon instead of sausage!! Ruination! Luckily, the bacon was incredibly tasty, but I fear I lost points for my movie relevance as I really wanted to throw in a little Scottish cuisine with my French. To save the day, the french toast made with croissants was exquisite.

Croissant French Toast

INGREDIENTS:

9 day-old croissants (I picked ours up from Whole Foods)

6 large eggs

3 cups heavy whipping cream

1 shot whiskey

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS:

Halve the croissants as if you were making sandwiches. 

Whisk together the eggs, cream, whiskey, and cinnamon. Pour the mixture into a large shallow pan. Immerse the croissant halves in the liquid and let them soak for a few minutes, then flip them over and soak them for another minute.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the croissants, a few at a time, until golden on both sides, adding more butter as necessary. As they're cooked, put the croissants in a shallow pan loosely tented with aluminum foil to keep them warm.

Dinner Rating: 

Movie Relevance: 3.5 stars

Taste: 5 stars

Average: 4.25 stars

Bonus: This was our wine selection for the night which we finished off without a problem.

Howl (2010)

Howl tells the story of the landmark poem by the same name, written in 1955 by Allen Ginsberg (played by James Franco). Lawrence Ferlinghetti, co-founder of City Lights Books in San Francisco, saw Ginsberg perform Howl and telegrammed him shortly afterward saying, "I greet you at the beginning of a great literary career," offering to publish the work. He is taken to court in 1957 on obscenity charges, and this is where the film focuses its plot.

In between shots of the courtroom, we see clips from Ginsberg's formative years, time spent in New York, interspersed with bits of the performance of Howl at the Six Gallery Reading in October of 1955. Pieces of the poem are also animated to add yet another dimension to the film.

There is also a documentary-style interview with Ginsberg happening throughout.

I found the film very interesting and there are a few bits that have stuck with me: Ginsberg's description of "poetry as a rhythmic articulation of feeling" and the idea that prophecy and relevant writing is simply knowing and feeling and communicating something that someone will know and feel and connect with in 100 years.

Movie Rating

Plot: 3.8

Cinematography: 3.2

Acting: 4.2

Average: 3.7

No surprise on the dinner choice, since beets are probably my favorite vegetable...

Beetnik Pasta

Serves 4–6

INGREDIENTS

2 bunches of red beets with greens attached

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

4 tsp extra virgin olive oil

8 oz. whole grain spaghetti

1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese

2 handfuls of fresh chopped basil

4 TB feta cheese

salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove the greens from the beets and wash everything well.

Wrap the beets in aluminum foil and place them on the rack in the oven. Roast for 40–60 mins. depending on size. You should be able to easily pierce them with a fork when they're done.

Meanwhile, stem the greens and chop them into small pieces or thin ribbons.

Cook the pasta according to package directions (approx. 11 minutes), and reserve the pasta water.

Let the beets cool slightly in the foil once they're removed from the oven, until they're able to be handled, then slip the skin off the beets and chop into bite-sized pieces.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add in the onions and garlic and cook for about five minutes until the onions are translucent. Add in the beet greens and season with some salt and pepper. If you need a little extra liquid, stir in some of the reserved pasta water.

Once the greens have wilted, stir in the chopped beets, fresh basil, pasta, and ricotta cheese. Gently mix until everything is combined and the cheese has coated all of the pasta. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Plate into big bowls and top each with a tablespoon of feta cheese. Enjoy!

Dinner Rating

Movie Relevance: 4.7

Taste: 4.7

Average: 4.7

Rock n Rolla (2008)

movie still found here

This movie has all the right ingredients for a great flick: lots of great actors, action, and a good plot. But, I am not sure I can give an accurate review of this movie because I am pretty sure the dinner we ate made us both slip into a coma. This was one of those crime movies that you need to pay attention to the whole way along–there are a lot of players and plot twists which should make for a great movie so I will have to re-add this one to my queue and watch it when I can pay attention. Here is the basic plot (which I have adapted from IMBD, not from my own memory): 

There is one guy that rules the London mob through control of the real estate market: Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson). Lenny's got a new deal with Russian developer Uri Omovich who, as a sign of good faith, loans his favorite painting to the London mob boss and when it goes missing the tides turn as things slip out of Lenny's control. Small time crooks (The Wild Bunch as they call themselves) find them selves mixed up with these two bosses as well as Uri's accountant (Stella) and Lenny's stepson (the wild, drug-addicted rock and roller Johnny Quid) in a classic plot-twisting account of who's got the painting and who's got the money. 

Movie Rating: 

Plot: probably a 4 if we hadn't gotten snoozy

Cinematography: 3 stars

Acting: 3 stars 

Average: 3.33 stars

Pan Haggerty (British and Irish recipe for skillet baked potatoes, onions, and cheese)

This recipe adds bacon!

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon butter

2.5 ounces streaky bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, slivered into lunettes

1 garlic clove, minced

black pepper

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon dried sage (we left this out because I didnt have it in the spice rack!)

1/2 – 1 pound yukon gold potatoes

1 3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese

[first time using my new mandolin! oh yeah and the knife proof glove for safety-thanks Barb!]

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F

In an 8" cast iron frying pan, fry the chopped bacon in the butter until crisp. Remove the bacon pieces to a bowl lined with paper towels.

Reserve the bacon fat, leaving about a tablespoon in the pan. Add the onions and garlic. Stir until the onions caramelize. Mix in a couple of pinches of pepper and the sage. Remove from the pan and mix with the bacon.

[YES! that is bacon frying in butter kids]

Remove the pan from the heat and brush the bottom and sides with oil.

Place one third of the potato slices on the bottom of the pan, leaving none of the metal exposed. Layer half of the onion mixture on top and then a layer of one third of the cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Layer half of the remaining potatoes on top, followed by onions and cheese layers. Place the remaining potatoes on top. Dribble the remaining bacon fat on top. 

Bake in the oven for 40–50 minutes or until a knife easily pierces the potatoes.

Sprinkle the top with cheese and bake for another 1–2 minutes. 

We served this potato yumminess with a simple salad of tossed lettuce, diced roasted butternut squash, shopped almonds, balsamic vinegar, oil, and salt and pepper. I usually make this salad with arugula which is even better, but the store was all out.

Another great thing to have with this movie if you can find it: lychee fruit!

Dinner Rating: 

Movie Relevance: 3.75 stars

Taste: 3.5 stars

Average: 3.625 stars

Midnight in Paris (2011)

At work lately, my two biggest projects have been designing a new logo/identity for the Rodin Museum and the graphics for the Philadelphia Museum of Art's upcoming exhibition Van Gogh Up Close.

I knew Midnight in Paris would be intriguing, and so it got moved to the short list for movie night consideration. What I didn't realize (until I started doing recipe research) was that this was the movie poster:

Oh, and that they visit Paris's Musée Rodin in the movie (twice!). Serendipitous choice, eh?

We were not disappointed—this was a fantastic movie. Sure, we were probably destined to appreciate the movie no matter what, but I think any dreamer would love it.

Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams play Gil and Inez—an engaged couple who are vacationing with Inez's parents in Paris. Immediately, Gil's passion for Paris is reignited, and he begins taking midnight strolls to clear his mind. It is on these rambling walks that he finds himself transported back to the Golden Age, encountering the likes of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Cole Porter, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein (played by Kathy Bates), Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, and filmmaker Luis Buñel. For a really good background and synopsis of the artists in the movie and their relationships, check out this New York Times article.

And take a guess at who Adrien Brody portrays:

Movie Rating

Plot: 5

Cinematography: 5

Acting: 5

Average: 5

For a Parisian-themed dinner, we made Croque Madames, because everything's better with an egg on top! It was our first real meal post-detox and we went whole hog (literally!). We attempted sunny-side-up eggs, but had to use a lid to get the whites to fully set. Also, we noted that you could probably serve the sandwich open face, with the egg on top of the melted Gruyère and the béchamel over everything to make it a bit less filling.

Our dessert choice was one of the best ice cream flavors either of us had ever tried, btw.

Croque Madame (Ham and Cheese with Fried Egg)

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

3 TB butter

3 TB flour

2 cups milk

12 oz. Gruyère, grated

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

dash of freshly grated nutmeg

12 (3/4" thick) slices white bread

6 TB Dijon mustard

12 thin slices baked ham

2 TB canola oil

6 eggs

DIRECTIONS

Heat butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, whisking, until smooth, about 1 minute. Whisk in milk and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer until slightly reduced and thickened, 6–8 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the grated Gruyère and the Parmesan cheese, and whisk until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, add nutmeg.

Heat broiler to high. (We used the toaster oven since we made just 2 sandwiches.) Place 6 slices of bread on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and spread 1 TB of mustard over each piece. Top with 2 slices of ham and divide the remaining Gruyère among the sandwiches.

Broil until cheese begins to melt, 1–2 minutes. At this point, top with remaining bread slices, then pour a generous amount of béchamel (cheesy sauce) on top of each sandwich. Broil until cheese sauce is bubbling and evenly browned, about 3–4 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a 12" nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add eggs, season with salt and pepper, and cook until whites are cooked but yolks are still runny, about 3 minutes.

Place an egg atop each sandwich and serve hot.

After the first couple bites:

The dessert that was très-bien? Ben and Jerry's Crème Brûlée ice cream. Out. Of. This. World.

Dinner Rating

Movie Relevance: 5

Taste: 4.5

Average: 4.75

We drank beer with our sandwiches but champagne or French wine would really have been the most apt beverage. Oysters on the half shell, for those who dare, would be a fitting complement to the movie as well.

East of Eden

photos found here and here

East of Eden (1955) did not pass the snooze test. We were both snoozing near the end. That may not be based solely on the movie-perhaps we ate too much rice and it was too warm in the apartment, but  nonetheless, we drifted off. Apparently the stunningly adorable James Dean couldn't charm our interest in the conclusion of the film. The rest of the actors in this movie, in particular Abra (played by Julie Harris) were a little annoying and overacting. I also remember a lot of spastic running or fighting or dancing happening quite a bit. Overall, I guess I am saying I barely remember the plot of the film due to all of these other distracting elements. Perhaps you should watch it for yourselves to determine if it is good or not? Or better yet-this is definitely a case of 'read the book' instead!

Movie Rating: 

Plot: 3 stars

Cinematography: 3 stars

Acting: 2 stars 

Average: 2.66 stars

California Roll Salad

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups long grain rice
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped pickled ginger
4 scallions, cut lengthwise into 1-inch strips (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup finely shredded carrot
1 large seedless cucumber, quartered lengthwise, cored and cut crosswise into thin slices
2 sheets nori
1 avocado
1/4 pound surimi (mock crab legs)*, sliced thin

Dressing ingredients:*
2 teaspoons wasabi powder
1 tablespoon hot water
2 tablespoons cold water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons ginger juice (squeezed from freshly grated gingerroot)

DIRECTIONS
Into a large saucepan of salted boiling water stir rice and boil 10 minutes. Drain rice in a colander and rinse. Set colander over a kettle of boiling water (rice should not touch water) and steam rice, covered with a kitchen towel and lid, until fluffy and dry, 10 to 15 minutres (check water level in kettle occasionally, adding water if necessary)
While rice is steaming, in a small saucepan bring 1/4 cup vinegar to a boil with sugar and salt, stirring until sugar is dissolved, and remove from heat. In a dry small skillet toast sesame seeds over moderate heat, stirring, until golden and fragrant and transfer to a small bowl.
Transfer rice to a large bowl and stir in vinegar mixture. Cool rice and stir in sesame seeds, remaining 3 tablespoons vinegar, oil, ginger, scallions, carrot, and cucumber. Salad may be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring salad to room temperature before proceeding.
Dry-roast nori, 1 sheet at a time, directly above moderate heat (gas or electric burner), holding it at opposite corners and moving it back and forth, until it turns bright green, 30 seconds to 1 minute. With scissors cut nori into thin 2-inch-long strips/
Peel and pit avocado. Quarter avocado and cut crosswise into thin slices. Add avocado to salad with surimimi if using and two thirds of nori strips and toss well.
Make the dressing: In a small bowl stir wasabi powder in hot water and stir in cold water, soy sauce, and ginger juice.*
Serve salad sprinkled with remaining nori and drizzled with dressing

*This asterisk indicates that we changed up this recipe from the original. We decided to purchase a Japanese inspired dressing (something with ginger, sesame, etc) and we simply spiced it up with some wasabi powder. Secondly, we were not fans of the imitation crab, so we go real lump crab meat-delicious!

Dinner Rating: 

Movie Relevance: 4.5 stars

Taste: 5 stars

Average: 4.75 stars

Gremlins (1984)

Gremlins was our holiday-week movie selection, and it had a strong Christmas theme which was great. Billy Peltzer, the main character, lives at home and works at the bank. He is treated more like a "boy" but has the looks and job of a "young man". His father, Randall, is an inventor who can't quite seem to make his products work reliably. There's the egg machine, the orange juicer, the telephone answer-er, the smokeless ashtray, and maybe even the grandfather of today's Keurig! Mr. Peltzer buys a Mogwai from a Chinese man to take home to Billy for Christmas. Take a look at the similarity to Furbees:

Unfortunately for Billy (and the entire town), he didn't follow three simple rules:

1) no water

2) no food after midnight

3) no bright light.

Surprisingly violent, this movie was one of two that spurred the MPAA to introduce the PG-13 rating (the other was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom). The scene where Billy's mom is fighting Gremlins in the kitchen was particularly gross--we honored it with our snack of microwaved popcorn.

Movie Rating

Plot: 3.75

Cinematography: 2.75

Acting: 2.25

Average: 2.92

Our dinner was taken straight from the movie... Billy gets a plate of leftover fried chicken out of the fridge when he thinks it's still OK to feed the Mogwai. Those tricky mofos chewed his alarm clock cord to dupe him into feeding them! This recipe was amazing and totally worth the extra work to brine the meat.

Lemon-Brined Fried Chicken (Too Good for Mogwai)

(Slightly adapted from this recipe)

Serves 6–8

INGREDIENTS

1 gallon cold water

1 cup plus 2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 cup plus 2 TB honey

12 bay leaves

1 head of garlic, smashed but not peeled

2 TB black peppercorns

3 large rosemary sprigs

1 small bunch of thyme

1 small bunch of parsley

finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

6 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts, halved

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 TB garlic powder

2 TB onion powder

2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 cups buttermilk

Vegetable oil, for frying

DIRECTIONS

In a very large pot, combine 1 quart of the water with 1 cup of the salt and the honey, bay leaves, garlic, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme and parsley. Add the lemon zest and juice and the lemon halves and bring to a simmer over moderate heat, stirring until the salt is dissolved. Let cool completely, then stir in the remaining 3 quarts of cold water. Add the chicken pieces, making sure they're completely submerged, and refrigerate overnight (or prep brine in the morning and cook for dinner, like we did!).

Drain the chickens and pat dry. Scrape off any herbs or peppercorns stuck to the skin.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne and the remaining 2 teaspoons of salt. Put the buttermilk in a large, shallow bowl. Working with a few pieces at a time, dip the chicken in the buttermilk, then dredge in the flour mixture, pressing so it adheres all over. Transfer the chicken to a baking sheet lined with wax paper.

In a very large, deep skillet, heat 1 inch of vegetable oil to 330 degrees. Fry the chicken in batches over moderate heat, turning once, until golden and crunchy and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of each piece registers 160 degrees, about 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to paper towels to drain, and keep warm in a low oven while ou fry the remaining pieces. Transfer the fried chicken to a platter and serve hot or at room temperature.

We added a simple side salad of iceberg lettuce and tomato wedges with my favorite ranch dressing.

Dinner Rating

Movie Relevance: 4.875

Taste: 4.625

Average: 4.75