April 25th, 2013

Cooking Fun, Tune Your Palate, The Cordrey Center, Millsboro, Delaware, with Paul Cullen…and Bonnie too!! A little music, a little homemade pasta!! A One Man Show!

It really was a great evening on Wednesday, 4/24, when Jody, Donna, and I took off for a cooking class with Paul Cullen at The Cordrey Center located in Millsboro, Delaware.  We were looking forward to great food and music.  We had heard that the previous event was so much fun and a sell-out.

Now, I was a little worried, since I have been counting fats…and calories too.  It would be very interesting…pasta…olive oil; you know what I mean.

A little reception with wine and friends.  I only knew a few people.

Bonnie (Paul's wife), Jody, Donna

Paul Cullen has his own wine label.  Both, wine and music, were for sale on Wednesday.

Louie and Frank from Frank & Louie’s located at 58 Baltimore Avenue in Downtown Rehoboth Beach, arrived with cheeses and Italian delicacies….They are the Bascio Brothers who are on their own and waiting for you to come to the store and check them out.  Their tel. 302-227-5777.  You can find them on Facebook.

Maria DeForrest was taking the professional photos of the evening.  Please check her out at http://www.deforrestphotography.com.

So let’s get started…we all got the recipes…Paul does not measure; it is a little bit of this and a little bit of that.

Paul had fixed an Antipasti Salad with White Balsamic Vinaigrette.  The salad consisted of Romaine, fennel, radishes, cucumbers, red onion, salami, and sharp provolone.  The dressing took no time to make with Paul mixing the white balsamic vinegar, Virgin olive oil, stoneground mustard, a dash of salt and pepper.  Simple, tasty, and so easy.

Next course was Ricotta Cheese Crostini with a Balsamic Drizzle…..the key for making the homemade Ricotta Cheese is to stir constantly to keep the milk and half and half from burning on the bottom of the pan.

The next course was Homemade Potato Gnocchi with Pancetta Chive Sauce.  Plenty of Italians in attendance at this event.  They liked them!!  Paul did make this dish look easy.  To tell you the truth, I would have made such a mess in my kitchen!

You have to work in batches…bring out the potato ricer…make a mess!!

Knead until dough comes together…form into a ball, divide and roll each piece between hands.

Cut and place them in boiling water and as soon as they float, they are ready!!

The Pancetta Chive Sauce was easy and was done in no time…key ingredients?  Butter and Olive Oil!

Paul took a little break from the kitchen while we were all enjoying our food and played a little music for us.  The evening was flowing well.  Everyone was relaxed, taking it all in.

And one more dish…making pasta dough for Ravioli.  Again, Paul made it look easy.  The necessary ingredients of unbleached flour, eggs, salt….and have fun on the counter.

The ideal is a pasta machine for roling and cutting the dough.  And, a glass of wine in front.

On this photo, Paul shapes the ravioli and then will use a glass to cut them.  He likes the round shapes.

His simple sauce called Grandma Tags Fast Sauce consisted of San Marzano tomatoes, garlic, shallot, basil and olive oil.

Bonnie watching the sauce.

And then it was our turn to taste again….So good!!  Bonnie told us that she never has to cook.  Paul does all the cooking at home!!

The evening went quickly..2 hours in the middle of the week with friends…perfect!!

Note:  Please check Paul Cullen’s website http://www.paulcullen.net for more information and other events.

Also, please visit The Cordrey Center’s website at http://www.thecordreycenter.com.  They have already on their schedule…trips, classes, events, activities and even a cruise!!

Have a good one!!