Bistro Newsletter

I took advantage of the beautiful weather last Sunday and hosted a gathering for the Pickled Hens. After enjoying a few bottles of bubbly on the patio, we sat down for lunch inside. I served a Little Gem Salad with Toasted Coconut, Cucumbers, Radishes, Red Onion, Mint & Cilantro drizzled with a Coconut Lime Dressing. I was inspired by a salad I saw in the New York Times. It was tasty and fresh; I love a bright crunchy salad. You’ll see a version here at the Bistro when the weather cooperates again. Along with the salad I served my homemade Chili Crunch with Pan Roasted Tofu and Cumin-Tomato Marinated Grilled Chicken Breast. In my opinion the secret to good tofu is to cook it until it is almost burned. I don’t bother will all the pressing and drying, I just marinate it overnight and cook the hell out of it in a super-hot pan. The secret to good chicken is pound it thin, marinade it well and cook it until it is “just” done. We enjoyed some buttery Basmati Rice and Chili Crunch Dressed Sesame Avocado Slices. My friend Lisa made a wonderful Banana Cake with Dark Chocolate Chips, and I made a Lemon Bundt Cake for the birthday girl, Michelle. 

After lunch we had a painting party. Originally, I thought we would all try to paint the same thing inspired by a shared landscape. However, as usual, the train tends to come off the tracks with the Hens, and everyone just did whatever they wanted to do. One of the joys of my sisterhood is our shared sentiment of “who gives a flying #?@!”. Or as some fancy influencer now says, “let them”. Either way we still ended up laughing, playing our usual card games, building a fire and enjoying the musical shenanigans of Michael and his old friend Emily. Three girls spent the night which in my opinion means we must have had fun!

Speaking of fun, we will be celebrating St. Patrick’s Day on Tuesday the 17th all day. Corned Beef & Cabbage, Guinness Beef Stew, Green Beer & more… one day only. I suggest make a reservation as we are filling up quickly!

Sláinte,
Sharon

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