Last year we, with help,
advice AND the offer to use their great house and wonderful kitchens from our good friends Brian and Ken, the four of us offered a French Cooking
Class/Dinner as our gift item in the Meals on Wheels auction. It was snapped up by the
same couples who had won the bids on our French dinners the previous two years.
The cooking class and
subsequent meal were Saturday night. We guided six adults through the steps of
preparing a five-course meal and then we became the servers for the dinner. The
menu follows:
Menu
Amuse-bouche (Appetizers) :
Wine : Pierre Delize Blanc de Blanc Brut, Vin
Mousseux (Sparkling
wine)
Tapenade
aux olives noires, paté de foie de volaille
Black olive tapenade, chicken
liver paté
Entrée (First Course):
Wines: Chardonnay de Chardonnay,Vin de Bourgogne (Unoaked
Chardonnay)
Villa Chambre d’Amour, Gros Mansang Sauvignon Blanc
Soupe
au potiron
Butternut
squash soup
Plat (Main Course) :
Wines: Chateau Pegau Côtes du Rhône 2012, Cuvee Maclura
OR Continuation
of first course wines
Lapin
à la moutarde, épeautre, carottes aux olives
Rabbit in mustard cream sauce,
spelt, carrots with olives
Assiette de fromages
(Cheese plate – assortment of cheeses)
Wine: Chateau Pegau Côtes du Rhône 2012
Dessert :
Wine : Mas Amiel vin doux naturel 2011 (Red dessert
wine)
Crème
caramel
and
Chocolat
au piment d’Espelette
Chocolate
mousse with chili pepper
We all had a lot of fun and
I think that our guests learned some new kitchen techniques and enjoyed some
new food items. Curt Kosal at Vine and
Brew in Okemos provided the suggestions for the wine pairing. He did an excellent job
of matching the wines to our menu.
Cooking in a group can be a
wonderful sharing experience. The food plus the aromas plus the wines make a
formula for enjoyment. Sharing tasks, telling stories and learning about new
food items turned the evening into a seven-hour party. Food with friends is the
formula for a great evening.
