Braised Quail with Fava Bean Succotash, Birthday Greetings

Last night my husband and I decided to go out to dinner. We first stopped by the wine bar/restaurant where my son works as the chef. We wanted to get there early in the evening since this place is somewhat law-dee-dah and my son says that Thursday night is "Elective Surgery Night" which means women that have had face lifts and boob jobs come in for attention/action. I ordered a half bottle of Condesa de Leganza Crianza Finca los Trenzones and my husband ordered a Murphys Stout. My son brought out to us two appetizers; sweet potato chips and braised quail on a bed of fava bean succotash. The chips were very good and the quail was excellent. The bar/restaurant owner recently decided to change some of the menu items so my son gets to create new dishes. It's very exciting to get to sample some of my sons creative cooking. We then went down the street to a very nice Thai restaurant. After dinner we came home and watched the documentary, "Howard Zinn: You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train". A very nice evening for a Thursday night.

June is a big birthday month for us so I wanted to wish some family and friends a Happy Birthday; Laura, (June 1), Ann (June 2), Marc (June 2), Dan (June 11), Susan (June 23), Tammie (June 28) and a special greeting to baby Kyle, born June 1, 2005, Congratulations Elizabeth and Shawn. Also, a very special Happy Birthday to the love of my life, my husband, whose birthday is today.

Since it is my husband's birthday and we are celebrating tonight I have a big list of cooking/shopping chores I need to accomplish today. I am making fried shrimp, baked potatoes and salad along with a homemade carrot cake (Capt'n Grif's recipe) so I will be quiet busy the rest of the day. I also will need to make a vinegarette dressing for the salad and tartar sauce for the shrimp. I believe we will have 6 for dinner so I have lots of shrimp to clean, etc. I have been told by many that I make the best fried shrimp. My family loves my fried shrimp but I typically only make it for special occasions since it is somewhat labor intensive.

r.m.