In the meantime, I decided to prepare my steak halibut-thick-enough-to-be-a-steak and pop that in the oven.  Sometimes I wish fish were cheaper so I could make it more often, but it is a nice treat every now and then.  I created a concoction of dijion and honey mustard for the fish then covered it with panko.  I generally prefer panko to other breadcrumbs because they are less dense and crispier than the traditional kind.

Then back to those squashies.  What to make.  A little help from the interwebs and I decided on zucchini fritters.  Frying your vegetables is a great idea.  The fish was healthy, so a little olive oil won’t kill you, right?  As a side note, make sure your pan heats evenly otherwise you will end up with half-cooked fritters.

Halibut and Horseradish

• 1/4 c dijion mustard
• 2 tbsp horseradish
• 1/3 c panko breadcrumbs
• 2 lbs halibut fillet

1. Pre-heat oven to 375.
2. Mix the mustard and horseradish together and generously spread over the fillet.  Cover the fillet with the panko.
3. Bake until cooked.  I don’t have a time because it really depends on the thickness of your fillet.  The one I purchased was exceptionally thick an took approximately 45 minutes to cook.

Zucchini Fitters

Adapted from Martha Stewart

• 1 pound (about 2 medium) zucchini
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Grated lemon zest (1 lemon)
• 10 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Sour cream

1. Grate the squash using the large holes of a box grater, food processor or any other contraption you have.  Add salt, lemon zest, parsley, garlic, and eggs. Mix well to combine. Slowly add flour, stirring so no lumps form.
2. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.  Place some of the mixture into the pan and flatten it out so it forms a small disc.  They take about 2-3 minutes per side.  Serve with sour cream.
   

Hmm…methinks I’m forgetting something

Ah yes…the honey.

Delicious.

Balsamic Avocado Salad

• 1 ripe medium avocado
• 1/3 heaping cup of crumbled goat cheese
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes (I like the cherry ones)
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (I tend to use more)
• Salt & pepper to taste

Chop the avocado into pieces approximately 1-2 inch pieces.  Toss in a bowl with the tomatoes and goat cheese.  Pour the olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the mixture.  Lightly toast the pine nuts until golden brown.  Toss these into the mixture and stir gently with a wooden spoon, lest the mixture turn into the consistency of guacamole.   The goat cheese will melt a bit from the heat of the pine nuts and thicken the vinegar up ever so slightly.  This goes great in a sandwich, over sauteed chicken or a fried egg (it was good, trust me).  Also, this isn’t the prettiest thing to make, but it does taste delicious, if you like avocados that is.

My apartment smelled delicious though; warm honey, cinnamon and toasted oats make for a nice combination of scents when it’s chilly outside!  And then, I pulled the ultimate rookie move.  I burned them. Sigh.  That will teach me for attempting to write a cover letter, gchat with a team member and tweet all while attempting to make these!  The ones on the edge of the pan are pretty unbearable, but the inner ones aren’t too bad.  In fact, the top half are actually quite tasty.  I will need to make a second attempt because I know their potential goodness.  I will also need to start buying rolled oats in bulk if that is the case, 7 cups is a lot of whole grain!

Granola Bars

• 7 c rolled oats (NOT quick-cooking oats)
• 1/2 c vegetable oil
• 1/2 tspn salt
• 3/4 c honey
• 3/4 c packed light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 tspn cinnamon
• 1 1/2 c coarsely chopped nuts (I used sunflower nuts, almonds and added dried cranberries)

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375°F
2. Toss oil, oats and salt together and put on a baking sheet.  Toast in the oven, stirring frequently ~20-25 minutes
3. Cook honey and brown sugar in a sauce-pan over medium-heat to melt the sugar.  Add the extract and cinnamon then set aside
4. Remove the oats from the oven and lower the temperature to 300°F.  Toss the oats with the honey mixture and nuts
5. Line a 12×18 baking sheet with foil and coat with a vegetable spray.  Spread the mixture onto the pan and pack tightly and evenly
6. Bake until golden, 34-40 minutes
7. Cook on a wire rack for ~15 minutes then cut into 2×3 inch bars in the pan.  Let cool completely before removing from the pan
8. Because I think everything tastes better with chocolate, I melted some semi-sweet chips and drizzled over the bars prior to removing them from the pan (which also helped with the burn taste)

Source: The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

Ok…so technically the party past already, I apologize for the late invite.  Although quite frankly, I’m not sure I could have handled more guests; I ran out of chairs in my apartment.
The party was successful (or at least my friends are good sports and like to humor me).  It was actually the first time I had cooked for more than 5 people and I haven’t heard of any cases of food poisoning, so I guess technically that defines a successful party; depending on who you ask.
Initially, I was excited to have a get together with friends.  Having just moved to Boston, I thought it was a good idea to get some people together and eat.  Then of course I started getting overwhelmed, not with what to make, but what not to make.  There are so many options and I wanted to impress, but not make it too complicated that the meal wouldn’t be done cooking until midnight.  Eventually I decided on a menu, presented below (with selected recipes!).  I do apologize for the lack of pictures though, it’s difficult to cook for ten people and take pictures.
As a side note though, I do recommend having dinner parties during the workweek.  It is likely your guests will bring more alcohol than consume, thereby replenishing your wine rack.

Simple Green Salad
Stuffed and Broiled Tomatoes
Roasted Beets with Goat Cheese and Toasted Pine Nuts

-8-10 beets depending on size
-1/3 c Goat cheese
- 1/3 c Pine Nuts
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-Red Wine Vinegar

• Preheat oven to 400°F
• Individually wrap each beet in aluminum foil (it will help keep the moisture and flavor in) and cook in oven ~45 minutes or until skewer can be inserted easily
• Meanwhile, toast pine nuts over medium heat until they begin to brown, then remove from heat
• Let the beets cool ~10 minutes then remove skins by holding a beet in a paper towel and rubbing the it off. This will also prevent your hands from turning hot pink
• Add the chopped beets, goat cheese and pine nuts to a bowl. Toss with olive oil and vinegar to taste

Chicken Roulade with Mustard Sauce

Sauce:
-1/2 c plain yogurt
-1 tbsp Dijon mustard
-2 tsp chopped chives

Chicken:
-4 boneless chicken breasts
-1/3 c plain yogurt
-1 tsp Dijon mustard
-1 c breadcrumbs (I used Italian style for extra flavor)
-1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
-2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
-Extra virgin olive oil
-Salt & pepper

• Preheat oven to 400°F
• Lightly brush baking pan with olive oil
• Mix together the yogurt, mustard and chives for the sauce and set aside
• Sprinkle ~1 ½ teaspoons of basil in the center of each chicken breast and season with salt & pepper. Roll the chicken breast up, enclosing the basil
• In a bowl mix together the yogurt and mustard. Separately, mix together the breadcrumbs and the Parmesan
• Roll each chicken breast in the yogurt mixture then the breadcrumbs. Place on the baking pan and drizzle with the olive oil
• Bake ~30 minutes and serve with the sauce on the side

Source:  Williams-Sonoma Chicken Cookbook

Mixed Berry Pie with Graham Cracker Crust

Deluxe Double-Chocolate Cookies

WARNING: If you tend to eat the batter while making baked goods, chances are you will end up with very few of these cookies

Ingredients

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used Scharfen-Berger aka the Rolls Royce of chocolate)
1 c + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 c + 2 tbsp Cocoa powder (I used Droste)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 c unsalted butter at room temperature
1 c + 2 tbsp sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 c whole milk

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F
• In a double-boiler (or make-shift one, like I used) melt the bittersweet chocolate until smooth then remove from heat and set aside to cool
• Stir flour, cocoa powder and baking powder together in a bowl
• Beat the butter on medium-high speed until creamy
• Slowly add the sugar to the butter until smooth
• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well
• Beat in the salt and vanilla
• Add the melted chocolate and beat until incorporated
• Mix in the milk
• Slowly add the flour mixture until fully incorporated
• Place ~1 tablespoons onto baking sheet lined with parchment, about 1 inch apart
• Bake until the cookies are barely firm, ~7-10 minutes – highly recommend using a thin metal spatula to transfer from pan to wire rack for cooling
• Store in an airtight container

Source:  Tartine Bakery Cookbook

Now any takes to help with some of the dishes?!