A recipe for success. And a recipe.

Sunday, January 10

Read on a bit further, and I’m going to give an ingredient for a recipe for success.  And a recipe.

It’s Sunday, and that means breakfast out.  In the borough.  Today’s pick?  Valentino’s Bistro on North Broad Street.  I really like going there for breakfast – they have great omelets.  We sat at a table we have never sat at before (they were VERY crowded).  I table that I don’t remember ever seeing.  It’s a high-top that is basically in the area where the waitresses put their orders in and pick up food.  It was quite entertaining.

Eggs Benedict – what a great restaurant breakfast.  I didn’t have it today, but if I did, it would be out.  Making that Hollandaise sauce at home is not easy! 

What’s so great about Eggs Benedict?  It’s basically eggs – with an egg sauce.  A wonderful egg sauce named Hollandaise.  I’d look up why it’s called that if I cared, but as it turns out I really don’t.  I just like to eat it.

Anyway, I told you that listening to the waitresses putting in their orders was entertaining.  Here’s one snippet:

Waitress:             Ordering!  Eggs Benedict, hold the holiday sauce.

Cook:                    How many times do I have to tell you it’s Hollandaise Sauce, not holiday sauce!

Waitress:             That’s what I said!  Holiday sauce!

Cook:                    (mutters something about the educational level of the waitress)

First off – who would order Eggs Benedict and hold the Hollandaise Sauce – that’s the best part!  Second – I think I will call it Holiday Sauce now.  It has a ring to it.

I also found out something today.  There must be a lot of people that don’t like Hollandaise Sauce.  Because a few minutes later, the same waitress comes back to put in another order:

Waitress:             Ordering!  One Eggs Benedict.  Dry.

Score one for the waitress!

I had the omelet special – with lump crab meat.  Not that fake crab leg stuff that they extrude like Play Doh and color to look like crab legs.  Real Jumbo Lump Crab Meat.  And it was delicious.

Ken had a Western Omelete.  We discussed what was the difference between a Denver Omelet and a Western Omelet, but didn’t really come up with anything.  Does anybody know?

If you haven’t been to Valentino’s Bistro, give it a try.  Good food and good prices.  And a giant fish tank at the cash register.  I like that.

Lansdale Shopping Score:  1

We have been invited out to dinner at a friend’s house.  I am bringing dessert.  So, it’s off to the supermarket.  You guessed it, not in the borough.  I go to Acme, because I don’t need many things, and it’s close.  So close.  Its property line is the borough line – but it’s just on the wrong side of the line.

Lansdale Shopping Score:  Zero (I would have if I could have, but it’s something not available in the borough)

To make this dessert (I’m going to call it Lansdale Chocolate-Raspberry Croissant Bread Pudding) I have honed a recipe over the years.  Honed, meaning I made quite a few clunkers before I found a good ratio of ingredients. 

So give it a try some day – it’s really good!

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Lansdale Chocolate-Raspberry Croissant Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

Two boxes (eight croissants) of croissants from Acme bakery.  Ask the lady to look for day old ones in the back.  You get a BIG discount, and they need to be a bit stale for this recipe. 

4 ounces bitter-sweet chocolate (NOT unsweetened!).  Yes, I know it comes in 6 ounce bars.  Eat the other two and justify it by saying you are “taste testing.”

One little plastic tray of fresh raspberries.  Or blueberries, or something else that goes with chocolate.  This is a flexible recipe!

4 really big eggs.  Or five if they came from a chicken that was under-performing.

1 Cup sugar

1 3/4 cups milk (I used non-fat, because that’s what Ken drinks – but ruin that with the next ingredient)

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream (take THAT, non-fat milk!)

1 teaspoon vanilla.  Don’t cheap out.  Use the real stuff.

1/4 teaspoon salt

Butter

To put it all together:

If the croissants are a bit stale, great!  Cut into bite-sized pieces.  If they are fresh, you have to get some moisture out, or the dessert will be a sloppy mess (been there, done that).  Cut into bite sized pieces and spread on a baking tray.  Put in 200 degree oven for half an hour or so.

Chop chocolate.  Eat remainder.  Cut raspberries in half.

Grease 9x9 inch pan with butter.  Put half of croissant pieces in.  Sprinkle chopped chocolate and cut raspberries around.  Cover with remaining half of cut up croissant.  Press down.

Now – whisk together eggs, sugar, milk cream, vanilla and salt.  Slowly pour this over the croissant mixture.  SLOWLY!  Or it will go all over the counter and you will swear.  A lot.  Trust me on this one.

After it’s poured in, press down so all of the pieces get soaked.  Cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator for an hour.  Or more – that won’t hurt.

Pre-heat oven to 350F.  Uncover pan and bake for about 50 minutes, until puffy on top and a light brown.

Remove.  Resist eating as guests will be disappointed to see a gnawed dessert.

Now – make a sauce:

Melt 4 ounces of bitter-sweet chocolate (eat other two ounces for “quality control”) in a double boiler.  Add a pinch of salt.  Whisk in about 1/2 cup heavy cream. 

Keep warm. 

I like serving the dessert a bit warm, but you can serve it at room temperature.  Go lightly with the chocolate sauce – just a little drizzle on top. 

Serves six.  Or four if you really like eating dessert.

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So – there’s your recipe for today.  But I also promised you an ingredient for a recipe for success.  Here it is:

We have a lot of successful businesses in town.  Valentino’s Bistro is just one.  We need a lot more successful business in town.  We (the Economic Development Committee, the Borough’s office of Community & Economic Development) should start soliciting testimonials or narratives from existing businesses to put in our marketing material packages that lure new businesses to town.  Nothing succeeds like success.  Let’s get our existing business to join in our effort to bring new businesses to town.

We’ll score today:

ONE opportunity to shop/eat in Lansdale met.

ONE needs not fulfilled by a Lansdale establishment.

Let’s see what today brings!