​Thursday was such a beautiful day, that my husband and I decided to go to Asbury Park for dinner and returned to Flavia’s Cucina Romana. We were here during the summer and enjoyed it immensely. We started our dinner with their light and crunchy Carciofi Fritti and served with a lemon vinaigrette. I overheard the owner say to another table that he created this dish and used rice flour for the coating.  They are the best fried artichokes we’ve had.

​Last week was a slow cooking week for me. My husband was on a short vacation visiting his college friends so I took the opportunity to have some friends over for brunch. I made Sweet and Spicy Bacon and Three-Cheese Baked Eggs with Roasted Peppers from “Gourmet Magazine,” November 2001. To balance the richness of the breakfast, I made a Grand Fruit Salad, a recipe from “Bon Appétit Magazine.”  I had some British-Style Currant Scones and Pumpkin Ginger Scones in the freezer.
 
The egg dish and bacon are both baked in the oven, which makes it perfect for entertaining. For the baked eggs you’ll need three medium bell peppers, all-purpose flour, kosher salt, baking powder, 9 eggs, unsalted butter, 6 ounces grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese, 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese, 1 cup grated Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese and 3 scallions. 

​While you can roast the peppers on the gas burners of your stove, I prefer to cut out the stem end, remove the seeds and white ribs and roast outside on my gas grill. To me, this seems a faster way to roast peppers. You also need a 10-inch (6-cup pie plate). I didn’t think my Pyrex dishes were large enough, so I used a 2-quart Corningware dish.
 
The eggs are beaten until doubled in volume. This is followed by adding a mixture of flour, salt and baking powder and melted butter. Once those ingredients are mixed in, the diced roasted peppers and finely chopped scallions are stirred in. The mixture goes into a buttered dish and bakes for 30 to 35 minutes. At the same time, you can bake the Sweet and Spicy Bacon. The egg dish bakes for approximately 30-35 minutes and the bacon, roughly the same amount of time.
 
What a delicious breakfast. The eggs were light and fluffy. You can taste the cheddar and Parmesan cheeses and the richness from the whole milk ricotta. The smoky, sweetness from the roasted peppers added another layer of flavor. The seasonings on the bacon was fantastic, taking the bacon to a different flavor level. The bacon was seasoned with brown sugar, cayenne, and black pepper. By the way, it made for a fabulous BLT the other day.
 
For the fruit salad I used green grapes, strawberries, plums, peach and fresh orange segments. I would have used a kiwi, however, the selection at the food store was less than desirable looking. To keep the fruit from turning brown, I tossed the cut fruit with granulated sugar and orange juice. The recipe called for Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur, however, not knowing if my guests were on any medication, I left the liquor out. The fruit salad was a nice sweet addition.
 
Overall, my guests and I enjoyed the meal. If you’re having company this holiday season, I recommend these recipes for your guests.