Gentlemen, start your ovens

"The only thing I've ever successfully made in the kitchen is a mess. And several small fires." (Carrie Bradshaw)

Tonight for the first time, EVER, I am having a dinner party at my apartment. As I mentioned in blog-postings past, Peaches Wilson and Kate Smiley invited me to join their dinner club last year-and never being one to say no to a club membership, I wholeheartedly accepted.

Over the past month I have diligently scoured the Internet searching for recipes that I couldn’t screw up, and earlier this week I spent a full two hours standing in the supermarket trying to collect all of the necessary elements for my recipes.

For the lay person, two hours might seem like a really long time to be food shopping; and the lay person would be right. But don’t forget, I am not what one would call an “experienced chef.” So I lost a lot of time simply trying to figure out what products the recipes called for and what the hell a “fennel” is anyway.

A frantic call placed to my parent’s house from the vegetable isle solved the “fennel” mystery; and after 15 minutes staring at labels and two well-placed questions with various supermarket shoppers, I was also able to discern the difference between balsamic vinegar and balsamic vinaigrette.

So here are the infamous recipes below-I will let you know how they turn out…

The Menu

Jack Cheese Breadsticks (12 servings (serving size: 1 breadstick))Refrigerated breadstick dough keeps preparation time to a minimum. 1/4 cup (1 ounce) finely shredded Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeño peppers1/2 teaspoon ground cumin1 (11-ounce) can refrigerated breadstick dough (such as Pillsbury)Cooking sprayPreheat oven to 375°.
Combine cheese and cumin. Cut dough along perforations to form 12 breadsticks; sprinkle cheese mixture over dough, gently pressing into the dough. Twist each breadstick, and place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.
Bake at 375° for 13 minutes or until lightly browned.

Pear, Fennel, and Blue Cheese Salad
Prep: 15 minutes; Cook: 13 minutes
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar1/4 cup dry red wine (such as Chianti)1 tablespoon light brown sugar1 medium bulb fennel, trimmed and cored1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil1/4 teaspoon kosher salt4 pears, such as Bosc or Anjou, cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes3 ounces crumbled blue cheese1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. To make glaze, combine the vinegar, wine, and sugar in a heavy, large saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat. Boil until syrupy and reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 13 minutes. Remove mixture from heat and set aside to cool.
2. Slice the fennel bulb paper thin, using a sharp knife or a food processor fitted with a slicing disk. Toss fennel with olive oil and salt.
3. Combine the fennel mixture, pear, and blue cheese in a large bowl, tossing to mix. Place about 1 cup of salad on each of 6 plates. Sprinkle with black pepper. Drizzle with glaze as desired. Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 cup).

Zucchini and Yellow Squash Gratin
Slice a bunch of zucchini and yellow squash (I used two of each) into 1/4 inch rounds. In batches, sauté in olive oil for a little while until the vegetables soften. Spread the veggies in a casserole dish with a couple of minced and sautéed garlic cloves. Top with some good tomato sauce. I didn't have any sauce so I used halved cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle the whole thing with grated mozzarella--you judge how much is enough--and Parmesan. Bake in a 425-degree oven until the cheese is slightly browned.Appropriate sides are good bread or new potatoes, but I ate this with linguine, pouring the zucchini-olive oil-tomato juices on top.