Bistro dinner

Last night I prepared a dish from Thomas Keller's Bouchon and I remembered why I like going out to dinner! I made the crepes with chicken and morels (sans morels because I wasn't about to pay the going rate; I substituted other mushrooms).

So my review: the crepes were absolute perfection. The filling -- a mixture of shredded grilled chicken breast, sauteed mushrooms, fava beans, and emmentaler cheese -- could have been better; I think this was mostly my doing. Clearly I should have subbed something for the favas because we are just past fava bean season and the frozen ones, while still delicious, are slightly mushy. The chicken was a little dry because I was trying to make the mornay sauce, which requires strict attention, while grilling the breasts. Certainly morels would have given a deeper dimension to the dish. The mornay sauce was good, but was it worth the nearly 90 minutes that it took me to make? I'm not sure.

Once put all together (place the crepes on the plate and top with a sprinkle of emmentaler, 1/3 cup of filling and a bit of the mornay sauce; fold four sides of the crepes up toward the center leaving the middle exposed) it was delicious. But was it worth the work? If I would have eaten at a local bistro, or of course Bouchon, I am certain I would have found it exquisite. At home, well, it was just good. It wasn't a wow dinner.

And that brings me to the virtues of eating out. Cooking is certainly something I enjoy, but I also enjoy sitting down to a good meal without all the running around the kitchen, sweating over the stove, running in between the grill and the stove constantly checking each item, the quick intense plating, the little details of setting the table, pouring the drinks and gathering the family. Of course Big J is generally there to help; he is the consummate sous chef, busboy, dishwasher, and sommelier -- in fact, I think he often works harder than I do at times!

Sometimes when I finally get things on the table I feel so wrung out that I can't properly enjoy the food. And forget a four + course dinner. I think I would pass out before I finished cooking. The best meals at home seem to be those I don't slave over. Rather they are those that I just throw together with minimal thought. That can be a bit frustrating.

I suppose it is all about finding a balance. And perhaps leaving the truly time-intensive dishes to the professionals.