After a very long and bitter winter, spring is in full bloom here in North Texas. And there’s no better way to celebrate than a dinner with the Food Creates Community supper club.
Of course, we went with our good friends. {Love them.}
Side note: I love this photo of The Boy and I. Isn’t he a handsome devil?
Our meal was prepared (as always) by the Vestals Foods team.
As an extra-special treat we had coffee pairings with our meal, courtesy of Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters. We enjoyed a French-pressed Brazilian coffee and an Chemex-prepared Ethiopian coffee. Both delightful, both very different.
And for something completely different, we also had music with dinner. Singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed performed between courses.
As an extra-special treat we had coffee pairings with our meal, courtesy of Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters. We enjoyed a French-pressed Brazilian coffee and an Chemex-prepared Ethiopian coffee. Both delightful, both very different.
And for something completely different, we also had music with dinner. Singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed performed between courses.
On to the food…
Guests were greeted with the most amazing appetizer upon arrival. Based on a modified recipe from Gourmet, this wood-fired pizza was topped with crawfish, German sausage, gouda and mustard greens. Delicious! The Boy said if we didn’t eat anything else all night, he’d still be happy.
The meal proper opened with an amuse bouche. Slightly more than one mouthful, the tasty white bean soup included purple kale, pecorino cheese and homemade garlic croutons.
Our first course featured the spring’s first asparagus (tasty crisp-tender), topped with a homemade ravioli stuffed with sweet peas, ricotta and parsley. The ravioli was garnished with a wonderful purple carrot puree and hollandaise sauce. I would absolutely love to have that puree at home – fantastic!
The second course was more of a mouthful. Our chefs had a hard time deciding on a protein, so offered up two! The first was roasted quail, marinated in balsamic vinegar, lemon, honey and mesquite oil. It was served over cremini mushrooms and braised artichoke hearts. The dish was topped with raw milk feta. (The Boy happily gave me his feta, which I happily ate!)
The meal proper opened with an amuse bouche. Slightly more than one mouthful, the tasty white bean soup included purple kale, pecorino cheese and homemade garlic croutons.
Our first course featured the spring’s first asparagus (tasty crisp-tender), topped with a homemade ravioli stuffed with sweet peas, ricotta and parsley. The ravioli was garnished with a wonderful purple carrot puree and hollandaise sauce. I would absolutely love to have that puree at home – fantastic!
The second course was more of a mouthful. Our chefs had a hard time deciding on a protein, so offered up two! The first was roasted quail, marinated in balsamic vinegar, lemon, honey and mesquite oil. It was served over cremini mushrooms and braised artichoke hearts. The dish was topped with raw milk feta. (The Boy happily gave me his feta, which I happily ate!)
The second protein was an ancho-glazed bison-lamb meatloaf, topped with Texas sweet onion. The meat sat atop a hash of Texas red and gold creamer potatoes, Texas squash, yellow tomatoes and cilantro. This was easily my favorite dish of the evening.
The third course was another mixture of sweets – ginger ice cream, fresh strawberries, a gooey chocolate walnut brownie and a rice krispie treat. As an avowed rice krispie treat lover, I can say that it was absolutely unnecessary to complete the dessert and absolutely appreciated anyway.
Yummy as always. Fun as always. And great (as always) to spend the evening with friends old and new!
The third course was another mixture of sweets – ginger ice cream, fresh strawberries, a gooey chocolate walnut brownie and a rice krispie treat. As an avowed rice krispie treat lover, I can say that it was absolutely unnecessary to complete the dessert and absolutely appreciated anyway.
Yummy as always. Fun as always. And great (as always) to spend the evening with friends old and new!