January 26 – February 1, 2026

Monday:                  Chicken-Rice Soup with Parmesan Crostini

Wednesday:          Spiced Meatballs with Golden Raisin – Pistachio Pilaf

Thursday:                Chicken Stroganoff

Friday:                     Salmon, Spinach and Lentil Salad

Saturday:                PFC Cougar Bar (pictured above is a serving of melted fennel gratin served with the chicken below

Sunday:                   Roast Chicken with Braised Vegetables and Melted Fennel Gratin

Housekeeping Note:  This is the second post this week – I’m trying to catch up with the calendar which always seems to be rushing into the future heedlessly, while I’m still cleaning up after last night’s dinner.

Old School and New Vegetables

It doesn’t get any more old school than the oldest operating bar in New York City.  McSorley’s Old Ale House opened in 1854 and you can have a drink there today, as Abraham Lincoln did over 160 years ago.  They still put sawdust on the floor and you have a choice of dark or light ale, and if you ask for a little something to snack on, you will get a plate with a few slices of sharp cheddar, some saltines, some sliced onions and a crock of horseradish mustard.  Do not turn up your nose at this simple appetizer, unless it is retroussé and nature has already turned it up for you.  Put a slice of cheddar on a saltine, top it with a dab of horseradish mustard and a few pieces of onion and enjoy.  This has become a new favorite at Casa Stuarti, where we drink a fair amount of ale.

Since I have already given you a recipe – and a fine one – to help you deal with the cocktail hour, I feel obliged to add a bit more substance to this post.  And it is difficult to think of a dish that is more removed in time and taste from McSorley’s snack than Melted Fennel Gratin.  I believe that if you had pronounced the word “gratin” correctly in McSorley’s back in the day, you might have gotten socked in the mouth.  The potato, not fennel, was the staple root vegetable at McSorley’s.  But if you had, without mentioning its name, served the dish below as an accompaniment to McSorley’s Corned Beef Hash, you would have been treated to a round or two of their fine ale.

And to go along with that Roast Chicken you’ll be cooking on Sunday, nothing is better than . . .. .

MELTED FENNEL GRATIN

(Adapted from bon appétit – winter, 2026)

Timing:                                                  About 1 hour

Ingredients:                                              Serves 4

4 Fennel Bulbs, trimmed, some fronds reserved  (Note – if you have very large bulbs, you may be able to get by with 3 bulbs.)

1 large white onion, sliced through the root

2 oz. parmesan, finely grated (1 ½ cups)

1 ½ cups chicken broth

½ cup dry white wine

½ cup heavy cream

4 Tbsp. butter

6 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped – we used garlic powder

4 bay leaves

Kosher salt

2 tsp ground black pepper

Prep:

Halve fennel through root ends and thinly slice – ¼” thick

Slice Onion

Grate Parmesan

Measure out other ingredients

Chop garlic, if using

Cook:

Melt butter in a large cast-iron skillet or braiser over medium (you’ll want a 12” skillet at least – and if you don’t have a 12” Lodge cast iron skillet, which costs less than $30.00, shame on you)

Add onion, garlic and a large pinch of salt and cook, stirring from time to time, until onion is translucent – around 7 minutes.

Add bay leaves, broth, wine, 2 tsp of pepper and 2 large pinches of salt and stir to combine.

Now add the fennel – the pan will be quite full – and cook, turning fennel from time to time until the broth is simmering and the fennel is beginning to shrink a bit.

Cover the pan and cook, stirring from time to time, adjusting the heat as needed to keep at a gentle simmer, until fennel is very tender – about 17 minutes.

Heat the broiler and place a rack in the upper third of your oven, then uncover the fennel and increase the heat to medium-high.  Add the cream and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cream reduces so all the sauce is clinging to the fennel – say 5 or 6 minutes.  Taste and adjust seasoning, keeping in mind that the parmesan will add some saltiness to the dish.

Scatter parmesan over fennel mixture and broil until cheese is melted and golden – maybe 5 minutes.  As with all broiling, you’ll need to keep a close eye on this to avoid burning.

Remove from oven, top with reserved fennel fronds and serve.

McSorley’s Cheddar with onion, crackers and mustard snack

(see first paragraph of post)