ArcaMax

The Snails, The Duck and Dessert...

Whenever I go out to dinner I try to find things on the menu that I don’t cook at home. If I like them, I order them.

This past Tuesday, I was coming back from a business trip and didn’t have time to make dinner. We had business guests along with us too, so I wanted to have a nice dinner, but just didn’t have time to shop and cook. I had “nothing” in the refrigerator, so the decision was made even before I got home, that we would be dining out.

I called a fun restaurant that is located across the street from Oprah Winfrey’s television studio and headquarters.

La Sardine is the name of the restaurant. Mind you, I’d never name a restaurant after a sardine, but this place makes you feel like you just stepped into Paris as you walk in the door. The décor, the flooring, the flower arrangements, the bar, and the overall ambience is just like Paris. The only thing left out is almost everyone in La Sardine is speaking English. Even the music is French. I guess you can see I love the place.

There’s no pomp and circumstance in this place. You can walk in wearing jeans or a business suit and you will be treated the same. Well. The food is, for the most part, traditional, French bistro food. I love simple French.

This evening, I decided to go a little overboard and order 3 courses. We had a good day in our business. I was tired and wanted to relax. I felt like spoiling myself just a tad. Spoiling yourself usually means you have to be prepared to pay the price. Not this time.

We sat down with the menus and had a pleasant surprise. It was Tuesday night, during the worst recession since the Depression, so lo and behold, Tuesdays nights are special. It’s a slow night in the restaurant business. In order to fill the place, they offer three courses for $25.

Most places that means a few select items that have a huge profit margin. In this place it means choose anything you want on the menu and it’s only $25 for appetizer, entrée and dessert.

I spied the escargot and nabbed that. Then I found a lovely duck breast with the veggies I love on the side. French green beans (aka haricot verts!), drowning in butter are my fave. Then I chose a French cheese plate and it was to be accompanied by fruits.

The dinner was wonderful. Enough said. Nothing left on my plate.

Here’s the kicker.

I decided to go on line today and check the prices of the food if I had decided to order the ingredients on line. I found a gourmet food site that suited my mission well. The escargot were going to cost me $15.99 if I ordered them on line. The duck breast was $12.99. The French cheeses I estimated, in bite-sized amounts to come in at about $6 plus the fruits. So, at net pricing I was at $34.98 for a dinner that I was charged $25 for. And guess what? If I had ordered those items on line, I still would have had to cook it.

I think I got a pretty tasty deal, don’t you?

Since I don’t make snails, or duck at home I don’t have any recipe to share you for those, but since I had cheese that night I am sharing a favorite low carb, perfectly decadent crustless cheesecake.

If you are diabetic this should make your nutritionist and your insulin count pretty darn happy. And you and those you share this with will be happy too.

Crust-less Strawberry Cheesecake
Serves 4

8 oz mascarpone cheese (Italian cream cheese. It’s lighter than US cream cheese, but if you cannot get mascarpone you can use American cream cheese)

3 cups of strawberries, divided. 1.5 cups would be cut into bits. 1.5 cups would be cut into halves.

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

1 packet of stevia (Truvia or Purevia)

In a medium bowl with your mixer, whip the cream cheese with the lemon and vanilla. You just want to get it mixed up really nicely and it will become slightly fluffier. Add the strawberry bits and mix those in until combined.

Get out a fancy glass or dish to serve this in. Divide what’s in the bowl into 4 portions. I use the antique champagne saucers I have that are on stems. They make a really pretty presentation.

Cover with plastic wrap and put in your refrigerator until you are ready to eat them.

Put the other strawberries in a bowl with the stevia. Stir. These strawberries will mascerate and become very juicy. Serve them on top of the cheesecake mixture when you are ready to eat.

Nutrition Facts
Amount Per Serving

Calories, 283.2
Total Fat, 26.4 g
Saturated Fat, 14.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat, 0.2 g
Monounsaturated Fat, 0.1 g
Cholesterol, 72.0 mg
Sodium, 33.2 mg
Potassium, 194.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate, 9.3 g
Dietary Fiber, 2.6 g
Sugars, 0.1 g
Protein, 4.7 g

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola

Send email to Zola at dinnerwithzola@hotmail.com.