Last weekend I did a very nice dinner/wine tasting for a couple celebrating the wife's birthday. They had 20 very good friends over and we did a seven course round of small plates with some very nice wines. Sommelier John Sousa provided great background and notes on the wines. We started off the evening with a pair of appetizers: Local Grilled Peach Tart with French Chantilly and Savory Sage and Sundried Tomato Cheesecake Bite on Spiced Flatbread; with a Henri Giraud Hommage Grand Cru Brut, a Billecart-Salmon Champagne and a Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc.
Once all the guests had mingled and caught up, we ushered them into the dining room where we went course by course through our tapas-inspired small plate dinner. Thas was a great solution to those who wanted to try a great variety of food with the various wines, but not get filled up. Everyone was able to have just a few bites of great tasting, flavor-packed foods and not be overwhelmed by standard dinner portions.
We started with:
Cardamom Dusted Mango Lhassi Shooter
Followed by:
Baked BBQ Pulled Pork Spring Roll with Firecracker Coleslaw and Candied Peach Bite
Brandy Braised Stuffed Chicken Thigh with Dried Figs and Apples and Blackberry/Maple Glaze
All served with a 2007 Felsina Fontalloro from Tuscany
Next we served up a lovely Champagne Poached Lobster Claw and Body on a Bed of Fresh Frisse Lettuce, Heart of Palm, Roasted Red Pepper and Mango Slaw with Tarragon Citrus Vinaigrette. John chose a 2007 Paul Hobbs Chardonnay from Russian River Valley to go with this dish.
Then it was time for the Chimichurri-Rubbed Flat Iron Steak, Asiago Potato Croquettes, Wilted Spinach, and Roasted Red Pepper Coulis. We did our best to cook the beef to the requested temps, which were everywhere from "red and warm" to "medium well". Based on the plates that came back empty, I'd say we did a good job. With this dish they had a very nice 2007 Keenan Cabernet Sauvignon out of Spring Mountain, Napa.
The Sesame-Seared Sashimi Salmon on a Phyllo-Wrapped Cream Cheese Pillow, Orange-Glazed Asparagus, Celeriac Puree was a show-stopper. Everyone loved the little phyllo cream cheese pillows, and the salmon came out moist and perfect. The wine was a 2009 Sotor Pinot Noir from Mineral Springs, Oregon.
What kind of birthday party would it be without cake? We offered some Assorted Chocolate Truffle-Cake Pops, which had rounds of richly flavored truffles stuffed inside moist and yummy cake pops. I left off the little sticks because I thought it would look tacky. I made some extra to leave for the kids, who didn't get to come to the party, but they were so popular the guests ate them all.
In the end everyone had a great time, we go lots of compilments on the food and wine, and looks like we are scheduled to do this menu again for a holiday dinner in November. I can't wait to cook up a few new goodies for them to try. I have a creme brulee cake pop in mind which ought to be just awesome.
The ladies I got to help with the plating were fantastic and really made the evening go smoothly. And John's classy and entertaining wine tasting elevated the dinner to an evening I am sure no one will soon forget. So much fun!
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| Maggie was having too much fun making cake pops! |
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| Dolores takes plate-up very seriously! |
