Last weekend we celebrated the arrival of Miz Emily back to the east coast with a retreat at her parents house in Western Connecticut.  Sadly we were missing one crow, Riane, who was busy in California hunting for a new nest in the Bay Area but we all got a chance to chat with her on the phone so she was with us in spirit!

The night of our arrival we focused on drinking wine and catching up  so we didn’t get a chance to try any new recipes but we did get to dine at the best BBQ spot in CT, The Cookhouse Restaurant. Emily’s parents treated us all to a delicious meal of pulled pork sandwiches, cubanos and brews which were much needed after our New England traveling.  The food came out in a flash and we were all pleased with our choices.  Interesting highlights were the “flatboys” which are grilled flatbreads that they use for their sandwiches and their “Scary” BBQ sauce which Emily described as Connecticut Hot, aka mild but flavorful.

The next day was our time to cook and we kicked it off with a shopping trip to the legendary Stew Leonards.  VBar, Mo and I really had no idea what we were in store for but we got a few hints when we saw a miniature petting zoo located in the parking lot.  For those readers who have never been to Stew Leonards I would describe it as a Trader Joe’s on steroids who’s owner has a love for amusement parks.  Sounds weird but the place has fresh food, competitive prices and an abundance of free samples (fresh squeezed orange juice- who gives that out for free!?)

Looking for a protein, we set our eyes on gorgeous sushi grade tuna steaks and had the fish monger cut them in half lengthwise to get more bang for our buck.  We got other items we needed for a grill marinade and then headed across the street to the Stew Leonards Wine store because Puritan law decrees that food and booze must be sold separately!

Once we got back to the Ferrier Bungalow it was straight to the grill to make one of our trademark pizzas.  Emily had whipped up some dough before our shopping adventures and had finished rising by they time we got back.  We broadened our horizons in terms of toppings for an adventurous pizza Emily saw in a magazine: sliced potato, grapes, asparagus and goat cheese.  The potatoes were sliced thin and we rolled the dough out fairy thick so we could cook it long enough for the veggies to soften.  What sounded like such a bizarre combination of ingredients turned out to be harmonious for the taste buds and there was only a small sliver left which we saved for Emily’s dad, Dave.

Our next food challenge was to make a tuna ceviche.  None of us have ever made ceviche before so it was exciting to try it out together.  We had fresh tuna diced up so all we had to decide was what other flavors we wanted in there.   VBar took the reigns and we settled on lime juice, cilantro, soy sauce, sesame oil, hot sauce, red onion and tomatoes.  As far as amounts go we just winged it and luckily after 30-45 minutes in the fridge and after a couple mixes, it was time to dallop the ceviche on some grilled ciabatta and chow down.

After all of this food I don’t know how we had room in our stomachs for dinner but a long stroll through the neighborhood and some more wine helped get our appetites going again.  We grilled the remaining tuna steaks in a marinade that mirrored the ceviche recipe and roasted some miniature sweet bell peppers to top off a fresh garden salad.  Emily’s mom, Lynn, made a delicious and comforting risotto with asparagus and lemon that had us all spooning for seconds.  It’s a shame we didn’t get a picture of the dinner table because it was quite the spread but that just goes to show that sometimes the food overtakes you and the thought of snagging a photo never enters your mind.