French Dinner Party
It all started with My Life in France by Julia Child. I picked it up at the library thinking it might fill my need for a good summer read and I wasn't disappointed. Then, I recommended it to my friend Juliette (who is French by the way), and she lent me her Laura Calder book, full of great French recipes and anecdotes ... we both love her show, French Food at Home. So, over a glass of wine by a summer fire we thought that our next "gourmet night" just had to be FRENCH! (We hadn't told our "gourmet club" friends at this point ... but hoped they'll be okay with it!)
Juliette had the brilliant idea that we should come up with a typical French dinner menu and everyone in our "gourmet group" (six couples) would contribute. Normally we choose a theme, such as Chinese, or Italian or "rib" night and everyone brings a dish - potluck style. Our vision for "Nuit Frances" would be to have a more organized menu. This is one that Juliette found (on Sauveur.com) and I thought it was brilliant!
A Classic French Dinner Menu
I had clearer photos, but decided to post the one below ..... hands in motion, Cathy in a "blurry" of laughter and an arm in the way pouring some wine. After all that's what a French dinner party is all about right? The food is just an opportunity to bring us together for a good time! (Don't tell Julia Childs!)
Juliette had the brilliant idea that we should come up with a typical French dinner menu and everyone in our "gourmet group" (six couples) would contribute. Normally we choose a theme, such as Chinese, or Italian or "rib" night and everyone brings a dish - potluck style. Our vision for "Nuit Frances" would be to have a more organized menu. This is one that Juliette found (on Sauveur.com) and I thought it was brilliant!
A Classic French Dinner Menu
· Chicken
Liver Pate
· French
Bread
· Selection
of French Cheeses
· Coquilles
St. Jacques
· Winter
Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
· Blanquette
de Veau (Veal in Cream Sauce)
· Chocolate
Mousse
Juliette pipes the chocolate mousse into martini glasses and it turns out beautifully! Since this was a collaborative effort, our "better? halves" were not off the hook. Ross prepared the pate and the blaquette du veau and Richard was in charge of logistics.
It was great to have dinner guests who thoroughly embrace the theme of the evening ..... French attire and all!
So, we began to organize, deciding to give our friends the choice of either choosing an item on the menu to bring, ..... or "we" Juliette and I (and our hubbies) would prepare the whole meal but share the cost among the gang. Everyone chose the second option....... and that was okay with us as we were excited to try out these recipes ourselves.
Planning a "French Dinner Party" is not all about the food. We had to decide what dishes to use, table linens, and of course, what to wear! We chose a dark blue damask table cloth with my mother's Limoges dishes and matching napkins which were folded in a "French Fold" .... gotta love Pintrest! My pansies were still thriving so I picked them for the table and even used them in the salad! Since Juliette and I (and Richard and Ross) were the chefs, we wore aprons and pearls, naturally.
Planning a "French Dinner Party" is not all about the food. We had to decide what dishes to use, table linens, and of course, what to wear! We chose a dark blue damask table cloth with my mother's Limoges dishes and matching napkins which were folded in a "French Fold" .... gotta love Pintrest! My pansies were still thriving so I picked them for the table and even used them in the salad! Since Juliette and I (and Richard and Ross) were the chefs, we wore aprons and pearls, naturally.
The day of our dinner began with Juliette arriving with her super-duper mixing machine around 10:00 am. We began with the Chocolate Mouse and then moved on to the Coquilles St. Jacques.
 |
Juliette tips the bowl of meringue over her head .... if nothing falls out, it's ready!
 |
It was great to have dinner guests who thoroughly embrace the theme of the evening ..... French attire and all!
I had clearer photos, but decided to post the one below ..... hands in motion, Cathy in a "blurry" of laughter and an arm in the way pouring some wine. After all that's what a French dinner party is all about right? The food is just an opportunity to bring us together for a good time! (Don't tell Julia Childs!)
Comments
Post a Comment