Our Table: The Oscars 2012

In keeping with our annual tradition, we again celebrated the Academy Awards in a big way.  After sharing our festivities on this lil' ol' blog last year, we couldn't let this year go by without divulging yet again.  Bill and I may have had to randomly guess our picks on the ballots, placing us pretty much dead last, but when it came to the food it's a whole nother story.  We kind of like to cook.  So between the two of us along with family and friends, we put together a nice little spread for the occasion.

From our table to yours, we give you the nominees for Best Picture...

1) The Decendants.  Because what's more "decadent" than creamy gooey irresistible cheesy mac n' cheese?

2) Moneyball.  Bean burritos for my man Billy, and Cake Balls.  And let me tell you, those cake balls?  They were money.

3) Hugo. The movie takes place in France.. French cheeses.. yea, you can't win em all :)

4) The Artist.  True to Bill-form, he made 28-day aged (as in, no packaged yeast) kalamata olive and caramelized onion artisan bread in both a loaf version, and in mini-melt sandwich versions.  The bread totally lived up to its Best-Picture-counterpart.. it was incredible.  

5) Extremely Loud, Incredibly Close.  "Key" lime for the key-themed movie, martinis to "toast" with, and the rims were pop rocks. They were "loud" :)

6) The Tree of Life. 

7) War Horse. Oat & Carrot cupcakes.

8) Midnight in Paris.  Midnight chocolate cake with mascarpone icing and port wine poached pears. 

 

9) The Help. Fried Chicken and Chocolate Pie.  If you've seen the movie, the pie is both self explanatory as well quite unappetizing.  However, I totally had two slices ;)

So there you have it.  Academy Awards, food, fam, and friends.  Nothing better.  So, how did you spend your Oscar evening?  Glued to the TV not missing a single Billy Crystal joke, wardrobe malfunction, or leg kick?  Flipping through the channels occasionally landing on the awards?  Forgetting/not caring it was on all together?  Do tell.

Our Table: The Oscars

My family has always had a serious love of movies.  Growing up, I don't know if a day went by where we weren't referencing my mom's "Academy Award Encyclopedia" (yes, this was before the days of Wikipedia guys), or my sister wasn't editing her running tally of favorite movies of the year written on the dry erase board dedicated solely to the subject.  We spent many a weekend excitedly heading to dinner and a movie as a family and discussing our favorite scenes the whole way home.  So, as a result, my sister and I have taken our Oscar Parties very seriously for years now.  When Bill joined on in, the parties were upped to a whole new level with some serious eats.  Two years ago we had a spread of food so big we probably could have fed 50 people... and there were 4 of us.  So, this year, with a whopping 10 Best Picture Nominees, and many more friends ready to join the party, it was on.

Witout further adieu, from our Oscar-watching table to yours, the nominees for Best Picture are (ahem, were)...

1) True Grit.  This was one I didn't see this year, but apparently a pivotal scene involved some chili made over a fire.  Don't know if the cornbread we had with it (served in a cowboy hat, no less) was invloved or not, but it suuuure was delicious!

2) The Social Network.  We have to give a huge shout out to our friend Mary Marantz for tweeting this idea!  It was just too good to pass up :)

3) The Fighter.  Okaaaay, so this one was a stretch.  But who doesn't need an excuse for some Mac 'n Cheese?!

4) Winter's Bone. 

5) The Kids are Alright.  I seriously apologize in advance for this one...

6) The King's Speech.  Since we came up with this, I've been unintentionally spelling 'peach' as 'peech'.  I did fix it for the sinage, but think I like peech better.  It was tasty nonetheless.

7) 127 Hours.  I also apologize in advance.  I'll spare you the explanation, but if you've seen the movie, you'll understand.

8) Black Swan.  

9) Toy Story 3.  Almond 'Joy Story' bars!

10) Inception. Yes, we realize this cake only has 3 layers.  Let's just say we were trying to confuse you just as much as the movie itself.  Either that, or we counted the ganache as a layer... take your pick of excuses :)

Cheers!

Eat well!
Melt

Our Table: The Superbowl

Everyone is always asking us what we eat.  Do we eat all of our meals at Melt?  Do we cook at home?  Do we bring Melt home?  Well, since we love sharing almost as much as we love food, we'll show you!  We're turning the original "Our Table" post into a little blog-series to give you a glimpse into what we eat when we're not eating Melt.  (But really, Melt will always be our favorite :)

Last night we headed over to my sister, Erin, and her boyfriend, Chris' house for a little Superbowl par-tay.  I love the Superbowl mainly because it's one night where football lovers and non-sports fans alike can both enjoy a game.  Whether it be for the footbal, for the food, or for the commercials, everyone loves a good Superbowl party.  At the Hall household, Bill and I take our Superbowl food seriously.  Even though Bill is more into the game while I'm much more into the commercials, we both agree on the food.  Without further ado, here's what hit our table for The Big Game.

How can you watch a game of pigskin without some potatoskin?

I kindly decided to share the 'Moonlight Chaource' cheese from my trip to the Farmers Market

A love of fresh food doesn't stop with Bill and I... My sister whipped up these tasty homemade soft pretzels.  Dipped in butter and salt, they were deeeelish-ious.

She also made another perfect football food, Guacamole.

And of course, what game is complete without the classic french onion dip?!

Here's where Bill's creative genius came into play.  Buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese.  The additional 5 or so pounds I gained was SO worth it.  

Bill's made-from-scratch meatball marinara.  Heavenly.

We didn't stop at the snacks!  Dessert was a must.

And.. of course.. last but not least.. the necessity to any football game and successful Superbowl Party (and Bill's absolute favorite beverage):

From our Superbowl-Watching table to yours, we hope you had as indulgent of night as we did over here!  Now, who's ready for the gym?

Eat Well!
Melt

Our Table

Traditions.  In our family we have them pretty much accidentally.  These things that we've done year after year just sort of happened and became things we stuck to.  Most of them started long ago, probably longer than I can even date back to.  Without question, the most important tradition in our family is Christmas Eve dinner.

Every year on this night we sit around the table for Alici Spaghetti.  Yes, Alici, pronounced 'A-leech', is anchovy pasta.  Eating this on Christmas Eve dates back as far as I can remember, as far as my father can remember, and even as far as my 93 year old Grandmother can remember.  I always thought it was something everyone did.  Ya know, like turkey on Thanksgiving, or cake on your birthday.  Year after year we ate Alici with my grandma sitting in the same chair at the same table and we'd hear the same story.  Back one Christmas Eve, somewhere around 1965, she decided to make something different for a change. Switch it up a little bit.  Ravioli sounded good.  Harmless enough, and of course just as delicious.  My dad, however, thought differently.  He was 12, maybe 15, and as soon as he heard Alici would not be on the table, that was it.  He left.  Walked in the freezing cold to a friends house and didn't come back until after dinner was long over.  And although I'm sure it took a long time for my grandmother to forgive him, there was not a single year after that where my father has not eaten Alici on Christmas Eve.

It starts with the basic components.  Anchovies and Olive Oil.

Both go straight into the pan along with a whole bunch of fresh chopped parsley and a lot of garlic. And by a lot, I mean, a LOT.

It's then sauteed together with a fork to blend the anchovies.

This is my moms job.  Many have tried it, but no one can compare.

Then comes the pasta.  Four pounds and no less.  Leftovers are a must.

Dump on the sauce, mix well.  Very well. (We call in the big guns for this job)

And that's it!

 From our table to yours, we hope you had a wonderful holiday.