When we left off, I had just been to the pool for a refreshing dip and Fran had visited the Flea Market for some more shopping. We both made it back to the room around the same time. There was a special concierge reception going on that evening and I was looking forward to going since I was pretty sure that there would be a character appearance of some sort. I hadnt been able to get to see as many characters as Id hoped this trip mainly because the lines were really long and filled with kids. Not wanting to fight off a lot of kids, I just skipped the characters instead. Fran was really exhausted now that she went back out shopping again, so she passed on the reception.
I was again back at the Cadillac Lounge, they had a very nice spread of appetizers.
This Pirate Shrimp Boat was quite impressive!
These were coconut shrimp and pigs in a blanket
These were Jalapeno poppers and tandoori chicken bites
After a little while Captain Mickey showed up
After the reception we needed to get ready for dinner. However, this was our day to deliver our Fish Extender Gifts. As it turned out this was a much more ambitious task than I had anticipated. Mostly because I went a little overboard on the gifts and sizes of the gifts. I know for the future that I can tone it down a bit, but here are some of the gifts that we handed out.
This is what we gave the DHs
This was for the boys around 8-10 years
And for the girls around 7-9 years
This was for the girls around 4-6 years
This was for the boys around 4-7 years
The teenage girls got this, but I think I also added another puzzle book and some pencils
Now we were supposed to have five kids under the age of 3, but it ended up that we only had about three so I gave a couple of the kids two of these books.
For the DWs, they got the same candies as everyone else, but I gave them some photo frames or plastic hanging frames for 5x7 photos to display memories from the cruise or other family moments. In addition everyone got five recipes. Ill share them all with you here now.
---------------------------------------------------
Heirloom Tomato Salad - Chef Andrew Sutton, Napa Rose Serves 2
2 slices bacon, chopped into small pieces
¼ cup shallots chopped
1/3 baguette cut into bite sized pieces
4 tbl butter
½ cup Blue Cheese crumbles
3 Heirloom tomatoes, varied colors & varieties.
Vinaigrette or Caesar salad dressing
2 tbl chives chopped
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crispy. Remove and drain reserving the bacon fat. Sauté the shallots in the bacon fat until they are tender. Remove and drain.
Meanwhile place bread chunks on a baking sheet and cook for 20 minutes or until they begin to turn golden brown. While the bread is baking, melt butter in a skillet over medium low heat. Add half the Blue Cheese and stir to melt. Add the baked bread crumbs to the butter mixture and toss to coat, making sure to use up every drop of the butter/cheese mixture. Return croutons to baking sheet and bake another 7-10 minutes to crisp croutons.
To Assemble the salad, cut tomatoes into pieces similar to the size of the croutons. Place tomatoes on plate, add croutons, sprinkle shallots, bacon, remaining Blue Cheese, and chives over salad. Drizzle with vinaigrette dressing, serve with remaining baguette, sliced.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Grilled Romaine Hearts - by Chef Sutton of Napa Rose Serves 2
ROMAINE HEARTS
1 head Romaine Hearts
1/2 cup Toasted Garlic Caesar Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
1/2-3/4 cup Toasted Garlic Croutons
1/3 cup Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese
TOASTED GARLIC CAESAR VINAIGRETTE
4-5 cloves roasted garlic
3/8 tsp Chopped Anchovies
¼ tsp Prepared Dijon Mustard
½ Lemon, juiced and zested
2/3 tbl Golden Balsamic Vinegar
2/3 tbl Red Wine Vinegar
1/8 tsp Worcestershire Sacue
Dash Kosher Salt
¼ tsp Cracked Black Pepper
1 tbl Grape Seed Oil
3 tbl Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2/3 tbl Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
2 tbl Garlic Chips (thin slices, baked on low 10 min)
TOASTED GARLIC CAESAR VINAIGRETTE
Smash garlic and Anchovies in a bowl. Add Mustard, Lemon Zest, Balsamic and Red Wine Vinegars and beat with a whisk. Add Worcestershire, salt, pepper and mix again. Whisk in Grape Seed Oil, then Olive Oil. Add Garlic Chips and Parmesan.
ROMAINE HEARTS
Cut Romaine hearts in half lengthwise. Brush the cut side of each half of the Romaine heart with vinaigrette. Grill romaine on both sides for 1-2 minutes per side.
ASSEMBLY
Drizzle each half of the grilled romaine with vinaigrette. Top with purchased croutons and the freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Serve with a knife and fork.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Beer Cheese Soup - Le Cellier Serves 6
¼ lb. smoked bacon finely chopped
1 medium red onion cut into 1/4 in. pieces
1 cup finely sliced celery
½ cup finely chopped carrots
3 tbl all-purpose flour
3 cups whole milk
2 cups chicken stock
12 oz grated white cheddar,
3 dashes Tabasco
½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ cup Moosehead Ale, room temp
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbl thinly sliced chives
Cook the bacon in a large heavy-bottomed, non-reactive soup pot over medium heat until wilted but not browned.
Add onions, celery and carrots and cook until the onion is translucent and bacon has crisped.
Sprinkle in flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes. Stir in milk and stock, a little at a time, blending well to ensure there are no lumps. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and whisk in cheese, Tabasco, Worcestershire and ale. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with your favorite bread and top with chopped chives.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Lamb Burger - Catal Restaurant & Uva Bar Serves 2
1/2 lb ground lamb
4 oz Feta Cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Kaiser rolls (I prefer the mini rolls)
2-3 tbl butter
2-3 tbl mayonnaise
2-4 slices roasted red pepper (I keep a jar in my fridge, I make these so often!)
2 slices red onion (from a whole onion, not just a couple strips)
Arugula leaves (I use 2 leaves red leaf lettuce, but any kind is fine)
Mix lamb, Feta, salt and pepper. Don't over mix as it will make the meat tough. Butter the Kaiser Rolls on either side. Brown in a skillet over medium heat until the rolls are golden brown. Cook lamb patties for about 3-4 minutes per side (longer if you prefer medium or well). Spread rolls with Mayonnaise, and assemble each burger with the red pepper, onion and lettuce.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Disneyland's Blue Bayou Monte Cristo Sandwich Serves 2
BATTER
2/3 cup water
1 small eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
SANDWICHES
4 slices white bread
2 slices roasted cooked turkey
2 slices tillamook swiss cheese
4 slices smoked ham
vegetable oil, for frying
GARNISH
Currant Jelly
Powdered Sugar
BATTER: Place water, egg, salt, and pepper in a bowl and using an electric mixer, mix well at low speed. Add flour and baking powder and mix until batter is smooth. Chill.
SANDWICHES: Make 4 sandwiches, putting cheese between ham and turkey. Cut into fourths and put a toothpick through each quarter. Heat about 6" of oil to 340 degrees in a fryer. Dip sandwiches in batter to cover all surfaces. Deep fry sandwiches until golden brown, turning as needed. An alternate way of frying is to put approximately 1/4" oil in a large pan and fry the sandwiches on both sides until crispy and brown.
Remove from oil and take out toothpicks. Drain on paper towel to remove excess oil. Sprinkle sandwiches with powdered sugar. Serve with currant jelly sauce.
---------------------------------------------------------
I still have a few of the cards that I printed out, in case anyone would like me to mail them to you. Oh yeah, and after all the discussion about how to laminate them. I saw a laminating machine at Costco the other day for $19.99. Might be worth the investment for the future.