Culinary Gifts: The Results Post

I finally opened one of my Laura Chenel goat cheeses I received from Brian and Ron. After some extensive internal dialogue, I went for the herb and it served as the inspiration for today's side salad.

The salad was comprised of: baby arugula, sliced orange segments, herb goat cheese, sherry vinegar and olive oil. I was hoping to add some pistachios to the mix, but until I can stock up at Manhattan Fruit and Vegetable Exchange, it was not meant to be. In the end, the salad did not need anything else.

The peppery bite of the arugula was smoothed over by the creamy richness of the goat cheese. The cheese had a nice hit of fresh herbs on the back end and the orange provided a bit of juicy sweetness to the salad. The sherry vinegar and Spanish olive oil from my recent trip to Spain were just mild enough to bring the salad together in perfect harmony.

What a perfect way to get me out of my salad rut!

Culinary Surprise!

I came home late from work last week and found two boxes waiting for me. Since I wasn't expecting anything, I was a bit perplexed and increasingly curious about what was inside these packages from Williams-Sonoma. After examining the packing slip, I saw that the mystery gifts were "thank you" presents from Brian and Ron for being in their wedding party! Thank me? Thank you! These boys certainly know the way to this foodie's heart.

After I stopped running around the apartment exuding an Abagail Breslin-as-Olive in "Little Miss Sunshine" scream, I caught my breath and took inventory.

First, was a box of frozen French butter croissants and my eyes glazed over as I fantasized about enjoying the warm pastry (with my favorite jam of course) over the Sunday newspaper and a piping hot mug of coffee.

In the second box were some more treats right up my alley - four different Laura Chenel goat cheeses! Ms. Chenel is an artisan whose love for her goats led to her becoming a pioneer of the goat cheese revolution of the 1980s. And even though the Sonoma based dairy goddess sold her business to the French Rians Group in 2006, we continue to enjoy the delicious cheeses that still bear her name. Williams-Sonoma was even so kind as to include an insert with descriptions, storage and shelf life for all of the four cheeses: chablis log, cabecou, tapuiniere and herb coated chabis. I can map out my cheese intake for months!

But wait...there's more! I came home the next night to ANOTHER Williams-Sonoma box! Are you kidding me? The treats in this box included an Olivier cruet set complete with extra-virgin mission olive oil and barrel aged balsamic vinegar. Hmmmm....might go well drizzled over some goat cheese!

And finally, last but certainly not least was a Recchiuti sauce duo: burnt caramel sauce and extra-bitter chocolate sauce. Ohmigosh! Poached pears...stat!