Birthday Dinner, Senior's Day, Cooking.

As you know, we planned to go for dinner at the Red Lobster. They had endless shrimp so I decided

to try that. I didn't even manage a second helping. Unusual for me, I figured I could have lasted a bit longer. I didn't even finish my Chocolate Wave Cake but brought some home. I very much enjoyed the food though. My BF bought me a present of a bottle of Champagne. It wasn't until I got home that I realised she had bought me French Champagne. I am not familiar with this particular champagne, Nicolas Feuillatte but the bottle is covered in gold with white flowers. Very pretty.

Saturday, I decided to make Steak Diane, kind of rounding off the birthday week. Mind you, I have discovered that Mandarin is doing a senior's day where everything is 50% off, might be pretty crowded mind you. Trouble with that is that it takes place on a Monday and as that is a bowling day, probably wouldn't have time for lunch.

Discussing with friends about cooking at home as opposed to eating out, it seems that for most people time is the biggest problem. Apparently, even in France where, once, every housewife could prepare gourmet meals, the younger women are no longer learning to cook at all. Of course you can buy very good frozen meals these days, but it appears that people would rather opt for fast food such as tacos, burgers or pizzas, which is both expensive and not very healthy. Then, of course, if you have a hungry family to feed when you come home from work, this puts extra strain on everything. Of course there is nothing to stop your kids helping you, especially if they are older, they can certainly peel things or chop things. Someone to do prep work is always helpful. Your family has to remember, they are not helping you, they live there so they should do part of the work in maintaining the family and home.

I love tomatoes done this way so obviously I had to select it. We always buy grape tomatoes but I have no doubt they would work the same.

Slow-Cooked Cherry Tomatoes with Coriander and Rosemary

1 ½ lb ripe cherry tomatoes
½ head of garlic
2 sprigs rosemary
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¾ tsp coriander seeds
¾ tsp kosher salt
1 Tbs red wine vinegar

1. Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Toss tomatoes, garlic, rosemary, oil, coriander seeds, and salt in a shallow 2-qt. baking dish to combine.

2. Turn garlic cut side down, then roast tomatoes, tossing 2 or 3 times, until golden brown and very tender, 40–50 minutes. Let cool slightly, then add vinegar and toss to coat.

Servings: 6

Source: Bon Appétit

Have a great day