Christine got me a big Paella pan for my birthday back in November, and we finally got around to using it. First off, I made homemade merguez and chorizo the day before, and let them sit in the fridge overnight before forming the meat around wooden skewers and grilling them up. Shrimp shells made a broth with vegetables and wine, and red pepper, peas, shrimp, mussels, clams, and bay scallops rounded it out. Everybody brought…
Category: Parties
Danny got hold of a 1978 Mouton Rothschild, and thus a dinner was called for. John and Debi came too, and brought a 1979 Pichon-Lalande. I made more of the cannelini-artichoke mixture, and spread it on the toasted homemade bread, then topped each one with a quarter of an artichoke (alla Romana, of course) and a drizzle of truffle oil. These were insanely hearty and great with the 2004 Quintarelli “bianco secco” that John brought…
A fantastic party, up at Allaire studios, on top of a mountain, on a freezing night. Colin from The Tasting Room in NYC came up to make about 20 of us a crazy dinner, and we brought wine to go with. The meal began with oysters, then crostini of smoked trout, accompanied by Sine Qua Non’s “Backward and Forward” which tasted like mutant Sherry, as well as some Kistler Chards, and then we sat down.…
I spent the day making various finger foods for John and Debi’s party; he and I had worked out a vague plan so I contributed 4 things to what turned out to be an incredible night of food, champagne, and dancing. We made pie crust, and with my half I used a muffin tin to make little shells. These got filled with grated gruyère, then caramelized onions, then a pinch more cheese, then pine nuts…