Birthday Food!

What a great day yesterday! I did practically nothing all day (save watching Miss Congeniality and Sixteen Candles), went to see Eulogy, then came home for an amazing birthday dinner, made by my favorite home chef, Jake.

We have a deal in our house: the birthday boy/girl gets to ask for whatever s/he wants for his/her birthday dinner, and the spouse has to make it. It keeps the birthday dinner budget down, and since food is one of our favorite things to share, keeps it personal. For the last couple of years, Jake has asked for one of my favorite recipes: lamb meatball gyros. They're not super-difficult to make, and I'm so happy he can take so much pleasure from them. He's already asked for them again this year, even though his birthday isn't until May, and I'm already excited to make them. (I only make them once or twice a year, so they don't lose their birthday novelty.) I'll also make some sort of dessert, since I know now I like to bake.

I had to think really hard when he asked me what I wanted to eat on my birthday. He makes so much wonderful food, it was hard to narrow it down. But over and over, my brain kept saying, "Cheese polenta! Cheese polenta!" So, I asked for cheese polenta with some sort of lamb...something... And I got:

Cheese polenta (recipe from Cucina Rustica), spicy lamb sausage, and a radicchio salad with pancetta. Amazingly delicious!

And now, for a medley of birthday cake pictures!

The cake, recipe courtesy Cook's Illustrated. It tasted like the world's best white box cake (which is what the recipe was going for), with the world's best chocolate frosting.

With a big chunk taken out. I won't pretend we didn't eat birthday cake for breakfast, too. I also won't pretend we won't eat birthday cake for breakfast tomorrow.

Looks good, doesn't it? And eaten with a Spumante Dolce--bought for an incredibly good price from Fenwick Beer & Wine--while watching Willow? Birthday perfection.