Recent Dinner Party

[KamA]

Recently my friend’s aunt and uncle asked us to cater a dinner party for them. My friend and I are four months out of culinary school and we decided why the hell not, we could use the experience. So this is our first attempt at creating dishes and recipes on our own. It’s not the best, but I don’t think it was bad either, all in all pretty simple. We did run into some problems so things changed as went, but it was successful. Enjoy the pictures and the recipes. Oh and thanks to his uncle for taking the pictures, his hobby. Also, the recipes are a bit of a guess because I usually just add and taste until I think its right.

Edit: My English and grammar skills suck, so if you have questions on anything or just want to make fun of me. Message me.

First Course
An baby arugala salad with tangerine supreme, pomegranate, goat cheese, a toast point and a balsamic vinaigrette

Unfortunately this is the only dish we don’t have a picture of, for some reason it got left out, someone where was also taking pictures I will try and get one.

Ingredients/Method

6 cups of washed arugala
1 Tangerine supremed
½ cup pomegranate
Balsamic vinaigrette to coat
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients above and then transfer to a plate, serves 2-3
1-2 table spoons of crumbles goat cheese on top
1-2 toast points on top

Balsamic Vinaigrette Ingredients/method
½ cup parsley leafs
1 shallot
½ cup balsamic vinegar
1/8 veg/canola oil
1/8 extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Blend all the above ingredients in a blender

Toast Points Ingredients/Method
Baguette sliced on the bias
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Slice the baguette about ¼ of an inch on a bias and lay out on a sheet tray (cookie sheet) drizzle slices with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, flip over and repeat, bake in a 350 degree oven until brown on edges, if they turn black you have gone way to far.

Second Course
Poached prawns served in a miso soup with chives and puffed rice noodles.
This dish is really simple (serves 2)



Ingredients/Method

6 prawns shelled and de-veined poached in pickling spice and wine
3 cups miso soup
Stalk of chives cut on the bias
Handful of puffed rice noodles

When serving, heat soup, reheat prawns in a little of the soup in a pan, toss until reheated. Plate the shrimp, pour in the soup, sprinkle with chives, spread around puffed rice noodles.

Poaching shrimp
2 quarts of water
½ cup pickling spice
1 table spoon black pepper corns
1 cup of white wine

Bring all ingredients to a boil, toss in shrimp and turn off heat, cook 3-4 minuets, remove shrimp and cool

Miso soup
Really all I did was buy Bonito flakes, Kombue and miso paste and checked and guessed based on the directions on the package then added salt.

Puffed Rice noodle
Buy Rice noodles and look for directions on how to fry the noodles.

Main Course: Steak and Lobster with mashed potatoes, asparagus and a red wine Aju
This dish is kind of cliché, but that’s what they wanted.



2 Beef Tender Loins
2 Small lobster tails
Red wine Aju
Blanched Asparagus
Mashed potatoes

Plate some mashed potatoes, place beef tenderloin on top, place lobster on steak, have asparagus coming off the back, standing tall and sauce pour around potatoes

Red wine Aju
2 cups veal stock
½ cup chopped onions
¼ cup carrots
1.5 cups red wine
Salt and pepper as needed

Bring all ingredients to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until sauce consistency.

Dessert Course: Tangerine Crème Brule in a Martini Glass.
My friend didn’t think I could make a crème brule in martini glass, but I proved him wrong.



Ingredients

8 oz cream
3 egg yolks,
4 tangerines to zest and juice
1 ½ ounces of sugar
¼ a vanilla bean

First place cream in a pot, zest the four tangerines and place in the cream and allow it to sit for 30 minuets

Juice the tangerines and put in a sauce pan. Put it on the stove at a medium heat and reduce to about 1 ounce of liquid and let cool a bit.

Scrap the vanilla bean and add to cream once it has sat for 30 minuets with tangerine zest. Add the tangerine juice. Bring to a scald (close to a boil)

Combine egg yolks and sugar then slowly drizzle the scalded cream into the mixture and stir.

This is where things change from most crème Brule recipes. Usually you would strain and then bake it off, but you cant really bake in a martini glass. So I attempted a stove top method, that worked.

After you have combine the cream with the eggs and sugar return to a pot. On a very low heat return pot to the stove and continue to cook. If you cook at too high of a temperature your eggs will curdle and your custard wont set right. Cook until about the consistency of a gravy, maybe even a little less. Took me about 30 minuets of constant stirring, if you just leave it, it could allow the eggs to curdle.

Strain cooked mixture and then place into martini glasses. Place in refrigerator and allow to set.

When serving cover top with turbinado sugar, then torch it, please be careful, if your martini glasses are thin glassed then I would not attempt it because the cold glass and the heat of the torch could cause the glass to break

Garnish and serve.

[Huipe]

Bravo, it all sounds very good.

[Kyckling]

Looks great

[Nano]

Though I'd prefer larger portions personally, the plating and combinations are pretty decent. I dunno about mashed potatoes with tenderloin, but thats your business

[drone]

A very nice thread. A+

[Huipe]

Originally Posted by Nano

Though I'd prefer larger portions personally, the plating and combinations are pretty decent. I dunno about mashed potatoes with tenderloin, but thats your business

Yeah, that amount of creme brulee looks downright stingy, even if beautifully presented. And only two stalks of asparagus? Give me more! I hate when fancy restaurants give you an appetizer sized portion and call it an entree when they swirl a little sauce around the plate to make up for the fact that there's not much food there.

Oh, and good mashed potatoes go with just about anything, silly.

[KamA]

Well, like i said this was my friend and I's first dinner party. I personaly like smaller portions with more courses where as he prefers larger with less. The other problem was that the family wanted steak and lobster as its main course. That took up most the funds leaving us not alot to work with. I was against it, so cliche, but it had to be done. OH and I don't feel the creme brulee was stingy, the picture seems deceiving, it was about 5 ounces. And mashed potatoes are awesome.

[sanjay]

wow! where do you live so we can dine together? excellent thread!


(i own this forum so my opinion is worth 1.5 times anyone elses)

[Nano]

Originally Posted by KamA

Well, like i said this was my friend and I's first dinner party. I personaly like smaller portions with more courses where as he prefers larger with less. The other problem was that the family wanted steak and lobster as its main course. That took up most the funds leaving us not alot to work with. I was against it, so cliche, but it had to be done. OH and I don't feel the creme brulee was stingy, the picture seems deceiving, it was about 5 ounces. And mashed potatoes are awesome.

Well, you didnt show the salad. If it was a decent portion, then it wouldve been ok, but that meal would've left me hungry. Id have rathered to toss the lobster, and get a larger strip instead of a tenderloin. probably gone with a larger twice baked potato instead of the mashed ( just personal preference there ), but it needs something more filling, to me. Take the strip and pair it with a good light pasta dish, perhaps... no meat, just veggies, and a light sauce, and maybe some cubed grilled rosemary and olive oil crusted new potatoes... dammmit im making myself hungry :P

I like lots of courses, and more. But then again, thats probably why i weigh more than I'd like too. lol. Typically speaking, european culinary schooling teaches towards smaller portions anyway, since not everyone eats like we do here.

Note: I would however humbly request that if you have the time, to post that creme brulee recipe and prep, as i know a certain female in my life that would swoon at its appearance on the dinner table

[Aleksandra]

that looks very nice and classy
i enjoy smaller portions, i hate when they slab a lot of food on your plate...

[KamA]

Originally Posted by Nano

Note: I would however humbly request that if you have the time, to post that creme brulee recipe and prep, as i know a certain female in my life that would swoon at its appearance on the dinner table

I will type it out on my next day off

Originally Posted by sanjay

wow! where do you live so we can dine together? excellent thread!

I live in Monterey CA

[Nano]

Originally Posted by KamA

I will type it out on my next day off

Thank you.