Let’s say you are reading a menu at a high-end restaurant and you have the choice between ordering a Marinated Flap Steak or a Marinated Bavette Steak. Which would you order based on the name alone? My guess is that the majority of you would order the Bavette over the Flap.

Well, as you may have already guessed, based on the leading question, flap and Bavette are the same cut of beef.

The flap is an extension of the T-bone and Porterhouse steaks. Texture-wise, the flap is similar to a flank or skirt steak and as with those two cuts, it needs marinating first and then to be cooked over high, dry heat such as grilling. What makes it more distinct is the flavor and richness of the flap over the other two.

In our part of the country, the flap needs to be specially ordered. I was able to call the butcher at A.J.’s and special order the beef I needed for my Friday the 13^th Dinner Party.

I tripled the recipe so don’t be alarmed by the price of the meet in my photo.

This dish had nothing to do with the Lucky/Unlucky theme. I chose it solely based on the wish to treat my guests to something different and special.

One last party detail I wanted to share was the notion of a 14th dinner guest.

There are French socialites called Quatorziens (fourteeners), who are available to fill in as a 14th dinner guest to rescue the other 13 attendees from bad luck. Franklin Delano Roosevelt believed in this superstition and refused to have 13 guests at dinner parties.

My original intention was to have 13 but one invited guest, my dear friend Anne, wasn’t able to commit until the last minute due to illness earlier in the week. Knowing that she may be able to come, I was planning on Anne being our Quatorzien. She did and she was and Peggy made the cute name tag for her, even though the word wasn’t spelled quite right, everyone got the gist of it.

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Today is Connor’s 25th birthday. Dave, Connor, and I are celebrating at Universal Studio’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Los Angeles. We are having the best time! Our only wish is that our expert in all things Harry Potter could be here with us. We miss you, Marissa! The photos above are from Sunday.

Yesterday, Monday, we spent the afternoon on Hollywood Boulevard and at Warner Bros. Studio. The tour at the WB is pretty darn great. Not only do you tour the lot on a tram, but you get off and walk around all sorts of cool spots. My favorite stop was the props building and that is where we found the Oval Office set from The West Wing. Connor is very presidential!

And if your favorite sitcom of all time is Friends, then no trip to Warner Bros. is complete without a photo on the set of Central Perk.

Connor, I love you, adore you, and could not be more proud of you and the loving, kind, and generous man you are. xoxo

Getting back to the Friday the 13th Dinner Party – we are nearing the end. Tomorrow will be the main course and then only dessert remains.

The lucky ingredient in today’s dish is lentils. The legumes are considered lucky because of their coin-like appearance. Additionally, when cooked, lentils are plump, symbolizing growing wealth.

Lentil Salad with Wild Mushrooms and Caramelized Onions

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 large red onions, peeled and roughly chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 pounds fresh mushrooms; a mixture of white, crimini, oyster, shiitake, etc.
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 cup capers, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup dry black lentils
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 bag baby arugula
• 1 cup fresh pomegranate arils (seeds)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

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I faced my usual challenge while trying to balance having fun with my guests and taking photos to use for this site during my Friday the 13th Dinner Party.

So in place of the usual photos of the cooking process, how about photos of the guests?

Above you see everyone hanging out in-between dinner and dessert, enjoying each other and the beautiful evening in Linda Land, as Tram and Steve so sweetly have dubbed my backyard.

Here are The Blondes, Amy and Anne vs. The Brunettes, Peggy and Tram, posing in front of the red wine selections.

Eventually, they were able to pull me out of the kitchen for a quick snapshot.

Adorable Scott and Amy. Scott with his lucky grapes and Amy holding the fun Texas Boot Scraper they brought me as a hostess gift. They found it at Sweet Salvage and thought I’d love it because of my Texas connection. They were right, of course! OK, on today’s recipe.

This dish was chosen because of the superstition that it is unlucky to cut a noodle before eating and the unlucky connection between hot peppers and friendship.

Cutting Noodles: While noodles are thought to bring good fortune and long life in Chinese culture, cutting those same noodles brings about a different fortune. Cutting noodles (especially those served on the New Year and at parties) causes bad luck and a shortened lifespan.

Hot Peppers and Friendship: Many people believe that hot peppers can bring discontent among friends. One version of the superstition says that spilling pepper can cause disagreements between friends. And when working in the kitchen, handing a hot chili pepper directly to a friend will cause disagreements in your relationship. However, bad luck can be avoided by putting the hot pepper down on a surface and allowing a said friend to pick it up as a separate action.

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It has taken all week, but we are finally finishing up with the appetizers from the Friday the 13^th Dinner Party.

Next week – Dinner and Dessert recipes.

The Lucky ingredient in this recipe is garlic. There are too many superstitions surrounding garlic to list, here are but a few:

Dreaming that there is “garlic in the house” is supposedly lucky; to dream about eating garlic means you will discover hidden secrets.

European folklore gives garlic the ability to ward off the “evil eye”. Central European folks believe garlic is a powerful ward against devils, werewolves, and vampires.

It became custom for Greek midwives to hang garlic cloves in birthing rooms to keep the evil spirits away. As the centuries passed, this ancient custom became commonplace in most European homes.

Putting a garlic clove under a child’s pillow while he/she sleeps is believed to protect him/her from evil.

And the list goes on…

Garlic Confit & Chèvre on Toasts

Garlic Confit

• 3 large or 5 small heads of garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Water
• 2 tablespoons high-quality balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed in the palm of your hand before using
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed in the palm of your hand

Toasts

• 1 sourdough baguette, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• Olive oil

5 to 6-ounce log Chèvre (goat cheese), room temperature

Garlic Confit in a Balsamic Reduction: Lightly tap each head of garlic with the side of a chef’s knife or a meat pounder to separate the cloves.

Remove the peels by using one of these two methods:

Place cloves in a small saucepan. Cover completely with boiling water, place over medium-high heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
Drain and then immediately place in a bowl of ice-cold water for 2 minutes. Drain and then peel the cloves, the peels should slide right off.

~OR~

Place the cloves in a metal bowl.

Place another metal bowl of the same size over the top and shake the “bowl ball” you have created like crazy. When you think you have shaken enough, shake some more. This is a good workout, so keep shaking! Do you feel your muscles building and burning? Keep shaking, it will be worth it!

Take a peek and see if you need to keep going or not. Pick out the peeled garlic cloves and discard the loose skins.

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Before I made this light and easy appetizer for the Friday the 13th Dinner Party, I’d made it the Wednesday before as part of my “Summer Entertaining” cooking class menu at Les Gourmettes Cooking School.

I loved the bright colors and freshness of it then and I loved it on the appetizer table for the dinner party just as much. It has no special powers or meaning in the “lucky/unlucky” aspect of the party, but it was a popular dish, nonetheless.

Zucchini-Basil Crostini

• 1 sourdough baguette, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• Olive oil

• 1 pound zucchini, washed and dried well
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1/2 cup chiffonade basil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2/3 cup Marcona almonds, toasted and finely chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Brush each slice of baguette with olive oil on both sides and toast for about 5 minutes on one side, turn the bread and toast for about 4 minutes more on the second side, or until golden brown. Let cool.

Using a box grater, coarsely grate the zucchini. Place the shredded zucchini in the center of a clean kitchen towel and sprinkle with the 2 teaspoons of salt.

Let sit for 5 minutes and then wrap the towel up and squeeze the towel to remove excess moisture from the zucchini.

Repeat until as much liquid as possible has been released; then transfer the zucchini to a medium bowl.

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Is it really hummus if it doesn’t have chickpeas/garbanzo beans?

I vote yes! Especially when you’re subbing them out for good reason, such as, for LUCK!

This is the second appetizer and the second recipe using black-eyed peas for the Friday the 13th Dinner Party.  As a reminder, 1-pound of dried black-eyed peas makes enough cooked peas for both this hummus and the salsa.

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I cooked up ten different recipes for the Friday the 13th Dinner Party and this appetizer was the clear favorite. At least half of the guests asked if it was on the blog. I assured them it would be posted this week, so we might as well start off the week(s) worth of recipes with it.

I had hoped to serve 13 items, but I could only get to 12 before I ran out of time and energy to pull off the last one. In addition to the ten, I actually made, I also served grapes, 12 per person for luck, and put out purchased fortune cookies on the dessert table.

The base for this salsa recipe is black-eyed peas. For many southerners, consuming this inexpensive legume on the first day of the new year is believed to bring wealth.

According to Wikipedia: “Two popular explanations for the South’s association with the peas and good luck date back to the Civil War. The first is associated with Gen. William T. Sherman’s Union Army’s March to the Sea, during which they pillaged the food supplies of the Confederates. Stories say peas and salted pork were said to be left untouched because of the belief that they were animal food and not fit for human consumption. Southerners considered themselves lucky to be left with some supplies to help them survive the winter, and black-eyed peas evolved into a representation of good luck. In other traditions, it was a symbol of emancipation for African-Americans who had previously been enslaved before the civil war who became free officially on New Year’s Day.”

Black-Eyed Pea Salsa

• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• Zest and juice from 1/2 lemon
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 cups cooked black-eyed peas (see note)
• 3 cups diced tomatoes
• 2 cups frozen corn, thawed
• 1 cup diced red onion
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• 2 ripe but still firm avocados, diced
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• Tortilla chips, for serving

In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon zest, juice, honey, garlic, and oregano. Whisk in the olive oil, taste, and season with salt and pepper.

Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl, except the avocado and cilantro, and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours. Thirty minutes before you’re ready to serve, add the avocado and cilantro and then bring back to room temperature for 30 minutes and toss just before serving.

Serve with tortilla chips.

12 servings

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Our Friday the 13th Dinner Party was so much fun!

Everyone arrived relaxed and into the theme of “superstitious, lucky, unlucky, cursed” … the whole shebang!

I sent this text message to all attendees, letting them know what to expect:

Our Friday the 13th Dinner Party will be a feverish mix of good and bad luck. You may want to play it safe and wear an article of your clothing (seen or not) backwards or inside out.

The belief that backwards or inside out clothing brings good luck is widespread – from children wearing their pajamas inside out in hopes of a snow day to baseball players and fans turning their caps backwards during important games.

Do you know why?

Wearing clothing backwards confuses the grim reaper, who is not only the harbinger of death, but also brings bad luck. He follows you – so if your clothes are on backwards it makes him think that you are walking toward him so he goes around you to get behind you and instead gets in front of you. He gets confused and gives up taking his bad tidings elsewhere.

You may also want to bone up on various superstitions, lucky and unlucky beliefs and traditions. There will be games and prizes involved!

Can’t wait to have a fun and delicious evening with y’all!
xoxo Linda

All of my sweet and awesome guests arrived with hostess gifts in hand; some of them were very theme-worthy.

Jonathan, Lori, and Kylie Vento arrived with Lucky Dice and a Lucky 8 Ball.

This instantly got me thinking about games of chance, and how they would be the perfect fit for a day that hinges entirely on good luck-bad luck.

Tram gifted me with a box of Lucky Charms and a bottle of Lucky Star wine. But that wasn’t all… Tram’s other half, Steve, had a special gift for everyone up to his sleeve! In the middle of the party, while I was giving out prizes for the Superstitious Trivia Game, this happened!

Yeah, Steve/Jason was lurking in the dark (in the very dark area behind the fire-pit, near the back wall) ready to attack! Too much Fun!

OK, let’s go back to the beginning, with how I built a party around a theme. Usually, I need just one thing to get the creative juices flowing. For this party, it was these four sets of typography letters.

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How I end up with any baking recipes on here, I’ll never understand. I’m so bad at it, but for some reason, I keep trying.

Case in point – this hot mess of a cake.

I know, it looks good on the outside, but if you only knew what it looked like on the inside!

What the heck … I’ll show you!

That’s right – this is the lovely cake I baked – from a Boxed Mix! Seriously, could anything be easier to bake than a cake mix? Small children succeed with box mixes all the time!

Even though I greased the pans and let the layers cool the required about of time before turning over, it looked like that! What the heck? I did my best to salvage it by leaving it on the rack, covering it with plastic, and refrigerating half the day.

Thankfully, the frosting I made turned out perfect and was the glue that magically held it all together. I found the recipe for the super cute and clever Piñata Cake HERE. As you can see, it called for a homemade cake, and I thought I was taking the safer route with the boxed variety. Oh well, at least it looked good. Not only is this the perfect cake for Cinco de Mayo, but it would be adorable for a birthday party any time of the year.

I did change the original recipe a little. I found the amount of coconut the recipe called for was way too much, so I’ve reduced that. Look at how much extra coconut I have! I feel that I have no choice but to bake some sugar cookies to use them up. #nothappy#hatetobake

I did follow the frosting recipe to the letter, thank goodness!

I brought the cake to my dear friend and neighbor, Lisa’s, annual Cinco de Mayo party last night. I cut the first piece out and hoped for the best. I was certain the whole thing would collapse, but it somehow held up. Although, I did not wait around to see what happened when the subsequent pieces were removed. :-/

Oh well, a piñta is supposed to fall apart, right?

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Ever since I started this blog, coming up on 7 years now, in August, 2009, there has been one aspect of posting that I’ve been terrible at keeping up on.

It is the task of putting all new recipes over there into the Complete Recipe Index that you see in the left column of the page. It’s not that it is a hard thing to do, it’s just something that I consistently forget to do.

You see, it can’t be done when the post is being written. It can only happen after the post goes live. Therein lies the problem. Once a post goes live, I’m already on to the next post, the next recipe, the next day. Out of sight – out of mind.

Then, once I’ve gotten far behind, it really does become hard to do and even harder to catch up.

Well, I’m here to tell you that I’m very proud of myself. I am all caught up! I updated the Menu Ideas page while I was at it. And it only took me … three days. Really, I’ve been working on it since Monday morning, off and on, but still, three damn days! I hope you’ll check it out.

The last recipe I entered into the Index was from early March 2014. There have been more than 300 posts since then. It makes me grateful that I took that 7 month’s hiatus for Marissa’s wedding, otherwise that number would have been much higher!

Besides getting it done, the upside is that while I was doing all that work, looking over every single post from the last 2+ years, I realized that I never posted about Marissa & Jeff’s Wedding Brunch. This Sunday will be their 6-month anniversary, so I guess this is as good a time as ever.

Here is the sad part. I don’t remember much about the brunch at all! I was in a complete fog and haze. I don’t know what I served or how it was set up.

I only remember that I had a pretty great Bloody Mary & Mimosa Bar on my cute French buffet on the back patio. There are no photos of it but I do recall that Jonathan Vento was the voluntary master bartender and was whipping out Bloody Marys like nobody’s business.

I remember that the bridal party all the kids’ friends were hanging out on the far east side of the patio and seemed to be having a grand old time.

I distinctly remember that my wonderful friends and family helped me A LOT! I had not slept a wink on the wedding night. I never even put my head on the pillow. I was up cooking and setting up the entire time from when we got home and unloaded from the wedding until my girlfriend, Mary, showed up to help and as others arrived early and pitched in.

I can’t remember even one dish that I served, not one! If any of my family, friends, or Marissa’s friends who were there remember, I’d love to know. Seriously, I would!

And I remember that after all the friends left, and only family remained, I had to excuse myself and go to bed and pass out. I didn’t wake up until hours later, long after everyone had cleaned it all up and left. What a haze it was and still is.

But the one thing that I will never forget is this gorgeous Cheese Cake that I assembled for my girl. She had seen something like it on Pinterest – long before her engagement – and she wanted one so bad.

We had thought about having it at the wedding, but the cost was prohibitive. Having a venue or restaurant do this would be crazy expensive. To do it yourself is still not cheap, but totally worth it.

Even though I could barely put together a cohesive sentence or keep my eyes open during the brunch, this beautiful presentation and the joy on the many faces, especially my beautiful girl’s face, when they lay their eyes on it – that made the sleepless night seem like nothing.  It was the perfect wedding brunch.

That, I remember.

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