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Location: Northern California

Thursday, September 29, 2005

 

Home sweet home and a salad of arugula

We’re back from Manhattan and almost settled into our regular routines. The vacation laundry is done and put away, the suitcases are back in the closet, Mike’s at work, and the kids are hanging with the nanny. We did it!

The flight back was as uneventful as a flight with two small children can be. Hey, five and a half hours on a plane can make anybody cry. I felt like crying myself when I checked the onboard flight map and realized we were only in Utah and had hours to go before touchdown in beautiful San Francisco. But I do have some tips and tricks and thoughts and two cents’ worth of advice on how to travel by plane with little ones; I’ll compile and post soon.

While in New York, Mike and I got to enjoy two dinners out ALONE. Grammie Martha was kind enough to babysit the kids while he and I got a chance to remember what it was like when we could eat a leisurely dinner uninterrupted by the insatiable needs, demands, and wants of wee people. It was nice. Sitting across a candlelit table from my husband I was able to take a good long look at him and re-realize hey, this guy’s kinda cute! He’s also a good conversationalist.

One night we had dinner at a corner restaurant somewhere in the NoHo/NYU area of town; I can’t remember the exact street or the exact restaurant. What I do remember was enjoying some nice conversation with my brilliant husband, a carafe of wine, and two fabulous appetizers: arugula salad (me) and bruscetta with olives (Mike). Here’s a recipe based on our two appetizers. Add a carafe of vino to this and you’ve got a great meal. We’ve already had it twice since returning home.

Arugula Salad with Mozzarella, Tomato, and Prosciutto
Serves two

Ingredients
Large bowl of arugula, washed and dried
One hunk of fresh mozzarella cheese (the kind that comes in water), sliced into rounds
Two ripe tomatoes, sliced into rounds
Five strips of prosciutto, thinly sliced
Olive oil
Red wine vinegar

Preparation
1. Arrange the arugula leaves on two plates.
2. Layer the mozzarella cheese rounds and tomato rounds on the arugula.
3. With your fingers, shred the proscuitto into thin strips and lump into mounds.
4. Scatter the prosciutto mounds over the cheese and tomato.
5. Drizzle each salad with olive oil and vinegar to taste.

Serve with crispy toasted bread smeared with olive tapenade.

Hint: If you live by a Trader Joe's, you can get all of the ingredients for this salad there. God, I love that store.