I'm a little late on this post and I apologize. We had a great dinner with fantastic friends, and then went to see the Train concert at Mohegan Sun over the weekend... I'm still recuperating a little. Soooo.... we have these friends (Jeff & Bonnie) who are vegetarians, and we wanted to create a meal for them that was fun, delicious, and equally as tasty for us.
Cocktail - Cucumber Yum Yum Cocktail
Delicious! The raspberries definitely "overpower" the cucumber flavor, so adjust accordingly. Also, we used half of the honey recommended, and it was still sweet, so also adjust to your tastes. We did have aquavit in the house, so if you don't - I cannot offer a substitute. I'm sure you can google it. And I'm pleased to say that you could not tell there was gin in this drink... so if you don't like gin, or prefer vodka... don't worry! You'll never know the difference!
Appetizer - Endive Spears with Stilton Cheese, Toasted Pecans, and Caramelized Pears
Fantastic! These were gone almost as fast as they hit the table! We followed the recipe exactly, although were a little more liberal with the toasted pecans. The caramelized pears were a dream - I could have eaten those up with a spoon! The pairing of the tart vinaigrette with the creamy blue cheese and the sweet pears - heavenly!
Main Dish 1 - Cheese and Spinach Puff Pastry Pockets
Okay, so I find those puff pastry shells to be the coolest invention ever! And perfect for little individual servings! These shells were the favorite of the night! The creamy spinach and cheese mixture was decadent and the shell was a lovely backdrop. Better than any creamed spinach I've gotten in a restaurant. One thing to note - the recipe says to cook the shells (that takes approximately 20 minutes) and then fill and bake another 20 minutes. I feel like there is something wrong with that timing. The shell would burn. We cooked the filling stove top and then filled the shell, however it kind of oozed out a little that way. Jennifer suggested filling the shell, but then lining with foil before baking? Let us know if you try!
Main Dish 2 - Cornmeal Crusted Roasted Roasted Ratatouille Tart
So filling and delicious! Who would think that a tart made entirely of vegetables would be so satisfying! (Round of applause for Jennifer who did all the cooking this weekend AND made a tart from scratch.) She did double the vegetables and cheese (it was an 11.5" tart pan) and it was perfection! This would be the perfect light lunch or brunch dish for any party!
Main Dish 3 - Couscous Stuffed Peppers with Basil Sauce
Even if you're not a couscous lover - you will like this recipe! The filling was so tasty and the basil sauce just put it over the edge. (However, the "sauce" was a lot thicker than we expected. We followed the recipe exactly, but must have done something incorrectly. We ended up spooning it into a ziploc, cutting off the tip, and using it like a pastry bag to pipe the sauce onto the peppers.)
Final Plate
Isn't it pretty?!?! And for a meal that has NO meat in it, it was incredibly filling and satisfying. (Don't worry carnivores, we'll be eating steak next week.)
Wine - House Wines
Sorry, folks. Because it was such a varied meal, we stuck to having a few more cocktails then normal, and opened a couple bottles of white and red that were stockpiled in the fridge. We'll be back to Harry's next week, don't worry!
Dessert - Caramel Pears Belle Helene
Yummmm. We drizzled with some poaching liquid, and served with vanilla bean ice cream! One recommendation, though - poaching time can be off. Once we started eating, we realized these weren't fully "poached" to the right level of softness. It all depends on the ripeness of your fruit.
Dessert Wine - Cascade Mountain Winery Heavenly Daze
Insanely incredible! This spice wine has cinnamon and lemon zest with a delicious hint of vanilla. It was unlike anything we had ever tried, and can't wait to continue to drink it, especially as the weather starts getting colder!
Next Week - John's Birthday Dinner (Get ready!!! Surf and turf!!!)
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