One of our usual haunts on our nights out without at least one of our four kids is Michael Timothy’s Bistro in downtown Nashua. It is one of those restaurant and jazz bars that have become so popular in all corners of the country. But Michael Timothy’s is a cut above the average bistro. The decor, food, drinks, and staff make it one of the best eating establishments in all of New Hampshire and one of the better ones I have visited anywhere.

On a Wednesday evening (the one weeknight that we ever have a chance of being childless), we visited Michael Timothy’s arriving at 5:00. Since it was pre-dinner time (they start serving at 5:30), we went and sat at a table in the bar area.  After just a short wait, a lovely waitress named Lindsey handed us wine lists, menus, and drink menus. She said she was going to check in the kitchen for the specials and be back to take our drink orders. My darling Michele and I had decided that it was a martini type of night so we put the wine menu aside and settled on the drink menu. Michelechose a fruity number called “Sa rah with an H“, and I chose a spicy martini called “Hot and Dirty” with blue cheese olives instead of regular olives. Both drinks were expertly prepared and nicely garnished.

Lindsey told us the specials, and we decided on a meal of one appetizer, two salads, and a soup. We are going the healthy route, so this mix sounded like a good fit for our evening consumption. The appetizer chosen was the most interesting we could find on the menu, Foie Gras Brulée which was a rich foie mousse served with toast rounds. The soup was the special — a reduced duck broth with mushrooms. Our two salad choices were the White Truffle Caesar Salad and the Warm Baby Spinach and Beet Salad.

After another round of drink orders, our appetizer arrived. It was a generous serving that was excellently presented with a sliced grape fanned on the top of the brulée. The taste was absolutely perfect. It was a savory pate that was warm and perfectly matched its presentation.

Our salads did not disappoint either.  The Caesar salad had a little bit of a mustard taste to it, which gave it a unique flavor.  The spinach and beet salad had a little bit of an issue: it was missing the beets!  When Lindsay returned to our table we made her aware of the issue and she apologized profusely.  Whisking the dish away, she went back to the kitchen.  While the kitchen worked on a new salad, I worked on the soup special.  It was a delightful combination and a wonderful light soup.  The duck broth had a delicious flavor and warmed me on a cold New Hampshire winter evening.   The new salad was returned, this time with with beets, and it was worth the wait.  The perfect combination of the dressing, a poached egg, and the chilled beets was ideal for my palate.  As we were enjoying the salad, three staff members made stops to our table to apologize for the salad redux.

As my lovely partner and I made our way to the door, a jazz band was getting ready for their evening set.   Any couples walking in were set for a great time of music, scrumptious food, inspiring drinks, and fabulous service.  Michael Timothy’s Bistro is a must stop for people looking for a great evening.

Being January, football playoffs are in full swing.  Our local team has played well, so we have been anticipating this season.  Playoff games mean inviting friends to our home and making lots of tasty snacks. 

Last night was our first playoff game.  To celebrate this exciting event we invited our dearest friends and planned the menu.  We were looking for more than the typical football food of wings and chips.  We also had a lot of different tastes in mind, so we didn’t stick to a theme.

To plan our meal we decided that we needed different categories of dishes:  meat, cheese, veggie, wrap.  Knowing we would eat while watching the game, they also needed to be finger foods.  For meat, we decided to make meatballs in a sweet and sour sauce.  We had two veggie options:  veggies and dip (to be healthy) and vegetable tempura.  We made an assortment of wraps with turkey and ham and different cheeses and spreads.  Finally, we made brie wrapped in puff pastry.

The assortment of dishes were a hit with our crowd.  Everyone, including our finicky almost 10 year old daughter, found different foods to sample.  It was a great way to spend a chilly winter evening:  delicious food, wonderful company, a win for our team.  I can’t wait for next weekend and a new menu of snack foods.

Pastry-wrapped Brie
1 sheet puff pastry7 oz. brie	1/2 cup apricot preserves1/4 cup slivered almonds, optional
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Remove puff pastry from package and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. At end of 30 minutes preheat oven to 425.  Unfold pastry and roll to make dough slightly thinner.  Place apricot preserves (or other flavor, if desired) in center of pastry.  Sprinkle almonds on preserves.  Place brie, wrapped in rind, on almonds.  Fold corners of pastry on top of cheese to seal.  Trim additional pastry so that there is not too much overlapping dough.  Place on greased cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and serve warm with crackers.

Last January my parents celebrated their 40th anniversary.  All 3 kids came home for the celebration.  Mom and Dad wanted a simple, enjoyable evening for everyone.  So, we headed to my parents’ favorite restaurant for an early dinner.  To extend our evening, we returned to our parents’ house for dessert and coffee.  Being the family baker, I offered to provide the dessert.  The happy couple chose carrot cake.  (A great choice not only for taste but also for the health benefits of walnuts and carrots in a tasty cake!)

Since then I hadn’t had an occasion to make another carrot cake.  But as January arrived, there was reason to make that same dessert.  Again it was the dessert chosen by my parents, but it was for a different celebration.  Mom and Dad are retiring and heading to a warmer climate.  Done with ice and cold, they have sold their house and will be leaving for shorts and flip-flops in the next few days.

Our family gathered for a late lunch this past weekend.  Wanting to spend more time together, everyone came back to our house after the meal.  Among the pleasant conversation, giggling children, and long hugs, there was carrot cake for all. 

While the reason for making this cake wasn’t the happiest, it will be part of this family memory.

Mom and Dad’s Carrot Cake
1 1/4 pounds baby carrots3 cups flour 2 cups sugar 2 tsp. baking powder 2 tsp. baking soda 3/4 tsp. salt 2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon	1 cup oil4 eggs 1 cup walnuts (optional) 8 oz. cream cheese, softened 4 Tb. butter, softened 2 tsp. vanilla 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
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CAKE:  Heat oven to 350.  Cook carrots in boiling water until tender.  Drain and mash.  Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Add carrots and blend.  Add oil and eggs, and beat well.  Mix in nuts.  Pour batter into a greased and floured bundt pan.  Bake for 70 minutes or until toothpick inserted in cake comes out clean.  Cool for 15 minutes.  Remove from pan, and cool completely.FROSTING:  Beat cream cheese and butter until creamy.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla, and mix well.  Spread on cooled cake.