Dinner at Rizette’s House

Our group had a mini get together following our trip to Cebu all because of this bbq ribs.

Rizette told us she brought home several slabs of Tony Roma’s cooked ribs from the US. She bought them frozen from Costco and just baked them. She said it was the best and we dared her to prove it.

Tes’ contribution to our dinner was to this platter of cheese and salami she bought from Santi’s. She arranged it herself.

In our group of college buddies Rizette is our Martha Stewart. Every party, casual or formal is given the same attention and over cooking. It must have slipped her mind only 7 people were expected for dinner. Check out all the food she prepared.

salad with apples, feta, dried cranberries & pine nuts

Rizette is a really good cook. She kindly shared her recipes which you will find below. I want to make the fish and chicken because they were so good and full flavored. It seems easy to make too since all were just baked in the oven.

baked dory Siciliana

She has been fine tuning this recipe after trying Cyma’s Greek chicken adobo. I think this is even better.

Rizette’s Mediterranean adobo with roasted vegetables

The ribs were indeed yummy! Super tender and the meat falls off the bone. The sauce was just the right blend of sweet and tangy too.

Tony Roma’s bbq ribs

mashed potatoes

She just invented this dish right off the bat.

shrimp, tomato & basil pasta

That’s Monet, the producer of What I See TV show starring premiere photographer Paco Guerrero.

I brought this queso de bola cheesecake from Indulgence by Irene which everyone liked.

queso de bola cheesecake

fresh fruits with Greek yogurt & honey dip

buko pandan salad

Our group is almost complete. We miss you Len!! When will you show up? 😀

Here are Rizette’s recipes. There are no quantities to some ingredients since she often cooks freestyle. So just let the recipe be your guide.

Rizette’s Mediterranean Adobo with Roasted Vegetables:
2 whole chickens (or 2 kilos chicken thighs)
2/3 c olive oil
1/3 Kikkoman soy sauce
1 c water
lots of garlic
peppercorns
thyme
Rosemary
laurel leaves
sugar
juice from 1-2 lemons (or more depending on your taste)
feta cheese

Vegetables:
zuchini
marble potatoes
tomatoes
corn
bell pepper

1. Mix all of the ingredients (except the chicken) with a whisk in a mixing bowl.
2. Taste and adjust the sauce to suit your preference. Pour over the chicken.
3. Cook in pressure cooker for about 15 minutes (after it starts to steam up).
4. Transfer chicken with some of the sauce onto a pyrex dish.
5. Top the chicken with some cubed feta cheese(optional).
6. On a separate pyrex dish, pour the remaining sauce on the vegetables.
7. Finish cooking the chicken together with the vegetables by baking in the oven at 450F for about 30-45 minutes or until the chicken’s skin is golden brown and the vegetables are thoroughly cooked.

Shrimp, Tomato and Basil Pasta
I kilo medium-sized shrimp
olive oil
lots of garlic
white onion
white wine (not dry)
tomatoes, seeded
basil
salt & pepper
grated parmesan cheese
Penne pasta

1. Cook penne according to instruction. Set aside.
2. Sauté  garlic and onion in olive oil until onions are tender. Add in the cubed and seeded tomatoes.
3. Add the shrimp. Right before the shrimps turn pink, pour a generous amount of white wine. Continue cooking until half of the liquid has evaporated.
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Pour in the cooked pasta into the pan and mix well. Top with julienned fresh basil and parmesan cheese.

Rizette’s inspiration for this recipe was from the cookbook “The Food of Italy: A Journey for Food Lovers” by Murdoch Books; Recipes by Sophie Braimbridge and Jo Glynn
In the original recipe though, swordfish was used.

Baked Dory Siciliana
1/3 c olive oil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 1/2 Tbsp. finely chopped basil
3 pcs. cream dory fillets
pitted black olives, chopped
baby capers
finely chopped anchovy fillets in olive oil
tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
dried breadcrumbs

1. Mix some olive oil with lemon juice and some basil.
2. Season and pour into a shallow ovenproof dish, large enough to hold the fish in a single layer.
3. Arrange the fish fillets and leave to marinate for 15 minutes turning once.
4. Preheat the oven to 450 F.
5. Combine the olives, capers, anchovies and tomatoes with the remaining olive oil and basil and season well.
6. Spread over the fish fillets and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top.
Bake for about 20 minutes.

Thanks to Rizette for the wonderful dinner and sharing her recipes with my readers. To those who will try these recipes and any recipes on my blog let me know how it turns out.