Cooking for the boy; a guest post from the wife of the Downsized Chef’s.

The boy’s birthday fell on a Saturday this year and I had to go all out. While plans to celebrate with close friends down the shore proved impossible thanks to Hurricane Danny, we decided to celebrate at the Chateau – aka – our house! Note: Our house is not a Chateau, but because of the amount of wine consumed in our house, it has been lovingly nicknamed as such.

This last minute hurricane threat then required a menu change. At the shore we would have grilled chicken for sandwiches and gone out to dinner at the Blue Water Café, a chic, BYO restaurant about a block from the house. Now that we were celebrating at home, I needed an alternative plan. Armed with a cook book purchased for the boy’s birthday, Giada’s Family Dinners I identified a few simple but sure-to-be-a-hit-recipes to prepare for the boy’s birthday dinner.

The menu:
The Birthday Dinner!

Appetizers
Pepperoncini Shrimp
Sautéed shrimp tossed with pepperoncini oil with salt and freshly ground pepper
Insalata Caprese
Tomato slices layered with fresh mozzarella cheese and basil with a light drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette

Main Course
Garlic and Citrus Chicken
Bright flavors of citrus fruits make this chicken a zesty but light favorite
Sautéed Green Beans with Tomatoes and Basil
Sautéed green beans tossed with fresh basil, tomatoes, dry white wine, butter and black pepper
Baked Mashed Potatoes with Parmesan Cheese and Bread Crumbs
Comfort food at its best with warm cheesy mashed potatoes coated with Italian bread crumbs

Overall, the menu was flawless. Our guests loved the lightly seasoned Pepperocini Shrimp and while it took me about 20 minutes to figure out what Pepperocini were (Thanks to Google on Blackberry for the hints!), I finally found them. Who knew they were the little green peppers that come with Papa John’s pizza?

The Insalata Caprese was refreshing and delicious and the Garlic and Citrus Chicken was incredibly moist and flavorful. The Baked Mashed Potatoes were the perfect comfort food for the rainy evening and I will absolutely be making these for Christmas this year; maybe even Thanksgiving too. But the big sleeper hit of the evening were the Sautéed Green Beans with Tomatoes and Basil. It occurred to me after they were plated that I forgot to include the dry white wine AND the basil, but they weren’t missed. The shallots and tomatoes added such a delicious flavor to the beans that they were an instant hit.

The evening commenced with a chocolate cake and homemade chocolate chip ice cream. Overall I think the boy was pleased with his birthday dinner; and I felt like Giada cooking up a delicious and simple meal that everyone is sure to remember. So Happy Birthday Hubby!