Dinner Party

I held a delightful dinner party last week. I did 3 courses for 7, and it was surprisingly stress free, I think because I kept the menu very simple and just focussed on keeping flavours clean and delicious.

Entre: portobello mushroom and sage tarts

Melt some butter in a pan and add lots of chopped sage, simmer for a while to let the flavour infuse then allow to cool.

Cut 2 sheets of flakey puff pastry into 4 squares each.

Brush with butter

In the centre of each square place a portobello mushrooom, pleats up and destemmed

Inside the mushroom place about a teaspoon of the sage butter

Bake in a moderate over untill pastry is puffed up and golden and mushrooms are cooked

Serve with garlic aiole.

Main: Stuffed chicken breast

These are very easy to make, just cut a slit in each chicken breast, and stuff with whatever you like. I used cream cheese and spinach leaves. Other delicious optiona include sundried tomato, pine nuts, olives, rocket, and any other cheese you wish (camambert or something blue are good choices).

Wrap each chicken breast in streaky bacon and bake until juices run clear.

Sides:

Warm couscous salad

This is very easy and amazingly delicious. Again use your own culinasry judgment to decide what you want to put in. I made mine with couscous, currants, pine nuts, red capsicum and corriander.

The thing with any salad, but especially carb based ones like this, is to not skimp on the delicious pieces, the salad shouldn't be more than half couscous.

Crispy zuchini

To make fried zuchini super delicious, mix in a bowl polenta with some salt and pepper. Slice your zuchinis and coat in oil, then coat in the seasoned polenta before frying.

Dessert: Poached pears

Sadly at this point in the evening wine consumption resulted in a lack of any dessert photos that were in focus.

Peel one pear per person. Make a syrup of equal parts sweet dessert wine and water and a few tablespoons of castor sugar (enough to cover the pears). Bring to the boil, and simmer pears in it untill soft right through.

I served these with vanilla bean icecream, a boysenberry sauce/ compote type thing (which I will admit I did not make), and chocolate grated on top.

For now, that is all I have to say on the matter.