Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Dinner Party for 10

I was just thinking about some past meals that I have had the opportunity to do for different people. One of those meals was a dinner party for two friends and the board of directors that oversee their ministry. I have pictures which is the big reason that I want to tell you a little bit about it, but it really was a fun meal to pull off and gave me a great first test to pull of a plated multi course meal.

To start the meal I served everyone a few appetizers. Each plate had three individual items on them for each person to sample. One of the items was clams casino, the other a piece of shrimp on a rosemary skewer with a mint pesto sauce, and the third item was a date stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped with basil and prosciutto. Unfortunately the ugly plates that I had to present them on kind of took away from the dish itself but it was pretty cool plating them all and serving them.


The second course was a "Caprese Salad." It is a salad made up of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, fresh basil, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. It is every simple but very delicious. For this particular salad I used different heirloom style tomatoes and also some Roma tomatoes.


The third course was the main course. It consisted of a duck breast with a port wine reduction, bacon wrapped asparagus, and a homemade rice pilaf. I was a little disappointed in my reduction as I just didn't get it to the consistency that I really wanted to, but they loved it anyways.

And the final course was of course the dessert. For this dessert I took fresh peaches and grilled them and then served them with a big scoop of ice cream and drizzled it all with a raspberry puree.

It was really cool getting to do this meal and seeing the different reactions that each person had to what was set in front of them. The favorite thing that I heard was from the couple that at the beginning of the meal was upset that they were not going "out" to eat. They had dressed up and expected a different style of meal, and were frankly disappointed that they were going to have to eat dinner where they had been meeting all day long. By the end of the meal though, I had completely won them over, and I am still holding out hope that they will someday fly me out to Las Vegas where they live to do a dinner party for them. How cool would that be.

Well that is it, I hope it looks as good in the pictures as it was in my mouth.

2 comments:

Chuck and Becka at REST said...

This truly was one of the best meals I ever had...Derek isn't just blowing his own horn...it was exquisitely fantastic!

Derek pulled off the meal without a hitch. You will never find a better meal than what Derek prepares specifically for you.

The only problem I have is trying to figure out more excuses to have Derek cook for me!

If you want to experience one of these mouthwatering meals why don't you come to one of the many Holiday Meals Derek is doing November through February.

Better yet why don't you hire Derek to prepare an intimate dinner for you and a few of your friends...it will be a truly memorable experience! You will love it and your friends will never stop talking about the fantastic meal they savored! It will be worth every penny you spend on the memorable unique dining extravaganza!

I love good food and Derek does the beat!

Chuck & Becka @ REST

Chuck and Becka at REST said...

We really need to get this site publicized...it really needs to go National!

Help by telling everyone you know!