Movie Night. Snack board for dinner.
burrata, bruschetta and what to do with the last of the season tomatoes. Who wants to cook after or during movie night anyway? No One.
Hey Friend,
It was Movie night. The four of us huddled up on the couch, daring not to move as we anxiously watched A Quiet Place. My teens are finally mature enough to handle it. We were down one family member too, my daughter in all fairness was excited to have opted out, all things scary are not for her. I don't blame her.
So there we were the boys and I, for the next 90 mins we sat this way, glued in suspense. Myself squeezing my oldests hand the entire time. The other gripped my husband's hand. Of course in classic fashion, we stuffed our faces in between suspense with large handfuls of popcorn dripping with endless amounts of butter. This did not help make us feel better about what was happening on screen like we'd hoped. Landing in a false sense of security.
We kept on though.
Movie night has been a long standing ritual in my life. As a child and teen, it was the one stable thing I could count on each week. During my parents rocky marriage and eventually divorce, my father made it a point to keep this up no matter what chaos occurred. We always had Movie Night. Accompanied with big batches of popcorn he'd make on the stove, always topping it with so much butter it was a sin.
Since my dad's passing years ago, we've been keeping the ritual going with our kids. Experiencing the love of movies together, having conversation after, eating endless amounts of popcorn. And selfishly, still being able to cuddle my very big kids- humans just a little bit longer before they fly the coop. In Some ways it keeps his spirit here with us today.
By the time A Quiet Place had ended, I'd lost all motivation to make a proper dinner. Maybe it's because we were all scared shitless! Maybe stuffing our faces with the endless popcorn?
Either way, who wants to cook after or during movie night? No. One.
Instead of cooking, I stood in front of the refrigerator, stared for sometime, and decided snack dinner was in order. Since those growing kids need to be fed around the clock, I knew I had to make something to hold their bellies over. Just like when I was infant feeding.
I put some fresh burrata in a bowl, drizzled it with olive oil, and flakey salt. Tossed tomatoes with lemon, garlic, olive oil, and crushed red pepper flakes. Finishing with fresh torn basil. I put the tomato mixture right on top of the burrata, and served it with garlic toast. Which of course to elevate you can grill the toasts and sprinkle with olive oil, and rub a clove of garlic over. I cheated, skipped the grill and used the oven. A toaster oven if you have one could be another good cheat.
Cured meats and pickled veg were a nice addition via my kiddos. Soon after we put it together, we all found ourselves back on the couch. Eating and watching silly cartoons to ward off any "bad vibes" we felt we'd encountered via the suspenseful film we just watched.
The perfect end to Movie night indeed.
To Make the the easiest snack dinner board, see recipe below.
home video below… then full recipe with printer friendly version.
burrata, tomato toasts and simple board recipe :
feeds about 6-
(or two very hungry teen boys and their parents)
helpful tools: serving bowls, pastry or grill brush. A large cutting board or platter for serving. Your appetite.
Ingredients:
1 ball of fresh burrata cheese in water
1 pint small grape tomatoes, heirloom, or two large ripe tomatoes roughly chopped. ( de seed optional)
1 bunch fresh basil
3 cloves of fresh garlic, peeled
Good quality Olive oil, ( EVOO) ( i used finishing oil, it's worth it)
1 loaf of Bread ( crusty, sourdough, GF, sliced bread all works here)
prickly things: cured olives, pepperoncini, roasted red peppers in a jar
cured meats such as hard salami or prosciutto - ( deli meats could work here too)
flakey sea salt such as maldon or jacobson
crushed red pepper as desired
fresh lemon , cut in half
Method:
1. Using a strainer, drain the liquid from the burrata and transfer to a clean serving dish. Lightly drizzle with olive oil ( about ½ tablespoon), pinch about ¼ of teaspoon flakey sea salt in your fingers, then sprinkle it all over the burrata. Set aside.
2. In another bowl toss your chopped tomatoes, repeat the same salt method in step 1. Squeeze about half the lemon over the tomatoes, use a strainer or hands to catch any seeds. Add one tablespoon of EVOO, pinch or crushed red pepper, toss a bit more. With your hands gently tear the basil over tomatoes, give a big mix. set aside. Also taste to see if it needs more salt, pepper, acid, or EVOO. should taste like really well seasoned tomatoes.
3. Make your toasts. I mentioned a few ways above. Honestly all work. I used the oven, I turned it up to about 425F ( 218 C Fan ). Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper, place the sliced toast on the prepared pan. I made the whole loaf of sliced bread, if your pan isn't large enough do this in batches. Toast the bread until golden, about 2- 6 min. You don't have to turn them, but you can at the halfway mark.
Put about two tablespoons of olive oil in a small bowl. When the toasts are done, with your brush lightly paint the toasts with the olive oil evenly coating the tops. Take one garlic clove and rub over the top of all the toasts. Repeat as many times needed.
4. Assemble. Take your tomato mixture and gently arrange over the burrata cheese. On your board place any other meats, olives, or peppers. Cut your toast in half or quarter, place next to your burrata. Serve by taking spoonfuls of tomato burrata mixture and place it on toast.
enjoy.
( full disclosure, we always talk about films after we watch them together, something my dad also taught me that stuck. This way we can check in, see how everyone felt, was it scary, sad, how did it hit us? Or well, like my son asked me " would we survive in a quiet place, we are so noisy?" - we still have been having conversations about this movie and experience all week long. totally worth all the scary and bits)
PRINT ME FOR THE RECIPE TOO click that link
Thank you for being here friends, and a little housekeeping:
my husband is doing so much better it feels mountains have been moved, he’s driving after 6 months which is amazing. This means, I am able to return to work and this newsletter full time. It’s just the two of us with parenting, so I was the lead for awhile. anyway i hope you stay tuned I have a lot of things coming your eay I am excited to share with you.
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This is BRILLIANT Nicole! I am craving this right now as we head into a movie night. I love making our boards with seasonal foods. I just downloaded your recipe. Hope you and your family enjoy your weekend PS: I am in Rochester visiting ❤️ xo Carla
Movies are the best escapes ❤️