I "love" love dinner party

Valentine's Day may be a week behind us, but celebrating love is something you can do 365 days a year - especially when you gather good friends, good food, and good wine. It's no secret I'm a Julia Child fan, so after reading My Life in France, I was inspired to host another Julia dinner party. I loved the way she entertained, relishing in good company and good prep so that she could enjoy herself. With this dinner, I could too!

The dishes

• Cheese plate (featuring aged English cheddar, Cypress Grove Truffle Tremor, 1 year aged Manchego, creamy buffalo milk cheese, quince paste)
• Potato, Leek and Broccoli Soup with Pancetta Breadcrumbs from Food & Wine
• Julia Child's Coq au Vin, served with egg noodles (note, I used bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs and drumsticks and omitted cognac)
• Spring greens salad with walnuts, goat cheese and dates (recipe below)
• Mexican chocolate ice cream from Cuisinart
• Banana walnut chip ice cream from Cuisinart (recipe not online, typed below)
• Heart shaped brownies with ganache filling from Williams Sonoma (recipe not online, typed below)

The prep
1 week prior

• Prepare ice cream. Store in freezer with wax paper on top to prevent freezer burn

1 day prior

• Prepare soup and breadcrumbs. Cool both and store separately
• Make brownies. Cool and store in a sealed container
• Make French bread, cool and store wrapped tightly in foil
• Create place cards and cheese labels

Day of

• 3 hours before dinner, make the coq au vin. When done, store in a just-warm oven.
• While coq au vin cooks, set table
• 2 hours prior, assemble salad and place in fridge covered with plastic wrap.
• Set out cheese about one hour prior to guests arriving to cheese will be at optimal room temperature.
• 30 minutes prior, slice french bread into thin pieces. Place cheese on tray and place labels.

During dinner

• When guests arrive, warm soup in oven (I used individual Le Creuset pots, so I placed all pots on a baking sheet for easy transferring in and out of the oven then to people's plates. I topped soup with pancetta breadcrumbs before placing in the oven)
• When sitting down to soup, boil water for egg noodles, make sure coq au vin is heated through
• When finished soup, cook egg noodles and drain, dress salad
• When finishing dinner, warm brownies, remove ice cream from freezer 10 minutes prior to eating for easy scooping

Recipes
Spring Greens Salad with Walnuts, Goat Cheese and Dates

8 ounces spring greens
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
6 dates, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Toss greens, walnuts, goat cheese and dates in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Store in fridge until ready to eat. When serving, drizzle with vinegar and oil and toss.

Banana Walnut Chip Ice Cream (from Cuisinart)

1/2 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons butter
2 large, ripe bananas, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 tablespoons dark rum
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped

In a medium saucepan on medium-low heat, bring milk, cream, vanilla and slat just to a boil. Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes.

While setting, heat sugar and water in a large skillet until it begins to sizzle. Stir in butter and melt. Add bananas and cook 2 minutes, until fragrant and softened. Carefully stir in rum and cook 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and remove bananas with a slotted spoon. Reserve bananas and rum mixture in separate bowls.

Stir lemon juice into bananas then mix bananas into cream mixture. Cover and refrigerate 1-2 hours or overnight.

Pour mixture into ice cream maker and let mix until thickened, about 15 minutes. While churning, melt chocolate in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water. When ice cream is fully churned, gradually add reserved sugar mixture and let mix until combined. Now add walnuts and let mix until combined. Right before ice cream is done, drizzle in melted chocolate and let swirl in. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and freeze.

Chocolate Ganache Heart Cakes, courtesy of Williams Sonoma

Cocoa powder for dusting pan
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon heavy cream
3 tablespoons butter, cubed and softened
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon flour

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease your 6-well heart shaped baking pan (or 6 muffin cups) and dust with cocoa powder.

In a medium heatproof bowl, combine 2 ounces chocolate and cream. Set bowl over (not touching) simmering water in a small saucepan and melt chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth and blended. Transfer to a small bowl and refrigerate until firm, 20-30 minutes.

Next, in another heatproof bowl, combine remaining 4 ounces chocolate and butter and melt, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove and cool 10 minutes. In a standing mixer or medium bowl, combine eggs, egg yolk, sugar, vanilla and salt. With wisk attachment, beat 5-6 minutes until nearly triple in volume.

Sift flower over bowl and gently fold until blended. Add chocolate and gently fold again until smooth and blended. Divide batter amongst 6 hearts or muffin tins. Remove chocolate from fridge (now ganache) and roll into 6 small balls. Place into each heart and press in gently. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes, then carefully remove cakes from pan.

Barbecued Pulled Pork Enchiladas

Have you ever found yourself in possession of a large amount of pulled pork? I love everything about it - making it is a breeze (hello easy crock pot meal!), it's so tender and juicy and there are a ton of things to do with it! When my roommate Rachel moved to Michigan, she bestowed her Omaha Steaks barbecued pulled pork stash upon me, so I was befuddled to do with 6 1-lb packs of pulled pork.

Luckily, Des from Life's Ambrosia has a great recipe for pulled pork enchiladas, which I've slightly adapted here. Trust me, you'll find yourself making a few extra pounds of pulled pork next time just so you can make these enchiladas :)

Barbecued Pulled Pork Enchiladas

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper1 14-ounce can tomato sauce
1 roma tomato, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

For the enchiladas:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 onion, sliced
1 poblano pepper, seeded and sliced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and sliced
1 pound barbecued pulled pork, cookedCanola oil (enough to cover bottom of a skillet about 1/4 inch high)
12 corn tortillas
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded and divided

Warm olive oil in a medium sauce pan. Add onions and garlic and saute 3 minutes. Add in spices and cook another minute. Stir in tomato sauce and diced tomato and simmer 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and stir in cilantro; set aside.

Meanwhile, warm 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add onions and peppers and cook about 8 minutes, until starting to char. Stir in pulled pork and cook to warm through. Remove from heat.

In a small skillet, heat canola oil until about 360 degrees (or when small bubbles form around the end of a wooden spoon when placed in it). Cook tortillas, one at a time, about 10 seconds on each side. Set on paper towels to remove excess oil.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9 x 13 pan, spread 3/4 cup tomato sauce over bottom. Place about 2 tablespoons pork mixture in each tortilla and top with about 1 1/2 tablespoons cheddar. Roll and place in pan, one right next to the other. Repeat until all tortillas are used and pan is filled. Top with remaining tomato sauce and spread remaining cheese over (1 to 1 1/2 cups). Cover and cook 15 minutes. Remove cover and cook another 5 minutes, until cheese and melted and just starting to brown.

Let sit at least 10 minutes before digging in, but this is also a great meal to make a day ahead!

May Food Adventures

Alas, there's been a blogging drought on Apron Adventures, but that's not for a lack of food festivities! The month of May was quite busy and the summer shows no signs of slowing down. Happily munching on a delicious peach fresh from the Republic Park farmer's market, let me catch you up:

The people at Ruth's Chris were kind enough to invite me to a tasting. Having come to Austin as a poor college student, I never really envisioned RC's as within my price range, so sadly I've never been (even though I've now worked 1 block away for the past 3 years!) All I can say is wow, I didn't know what I was missing. Who knew the magical equation of a thick, juicy steak plus salt and pepper plus 1,800 degrees (yes, that's no typo) would equal decadent bliss.

If you're looking for indulgent food beyond what you could imagine, The Trailer at Gibson is the place to go. Imagine a cheeseburger sandwiched between donut slices (surprisingly the sweetness of the donut countered with the meat quite nicely) and a hot dog wrapped in bacon topped with a fried egg. Note, this is not for the weak hearted! I'd recommend coming with a hungry group to get a taste of everything. Luckily, they serve our group of food bloggers with small tastes so we could enjoy everything.

Most notably, I took a trip to Seattle with Luke where we then proceeded to eat our way through the city for 5 blissful days. Here are just a few of the culinary highlights:

• Palace Kitchen, a Tom Douglas restaurant that stays up late and serves classic cocktails and fantastic appetizers (though I've heard the burger is also to die for). We loved the lavender and goat cheese fondue!

• How to Cook a Wolf, in the charming Queen Anne district, boasts an ever-changing menu and a space with merely 6 tables and an L-shaped bar. We sat mesmerized by the executive chef slicing and dicing and were oh-so-pleased with our gnoccheti and halibut.

• Etta's, another Tom Douglas restaurant right down in Pike Place Market. We sampled an array of apps and salads, most notably the ahi tuna salad and bread salad with asparagus. We came in not that hungry but couldn't put our forks down!

• The Harbour Public House, just a 40 minute Ferry Ride over to quaint Bainbridge Island, is a surprising jewel of a pub. Serving a large list of Washington beers and wines, we once again found ourselves indulging even when we weren't hungry. The menu was quite diverse, but we went for the Canadian favorite Poutine since neither of us had tried it before. The verdict: heavy but delicious!

We happened to be in Seattle during the Seattle Cheese Festival (an annual festival that occurs in Pike Place Market - did I mention it's free?!) Besides the dozens of samples we enjoyed, we watched a session on how to make your own mozzarella. I'd long toyed with the idea of making my own, and this was just the motivation I needed! Over Memorial Day I trekked to Central Market to buy mozzarella curd and proceeded to make my own. The process is a bit tricky, however the most difficult part was reaching into scalding water and handling the cheese! My mozzarella turned out quite tasty (I made it into a margherita pizza with fresh homemade pizza crust), but I think I'll leave cheese making to the experts :)

Now grilling season is upon us and I feel obligated to tell you to go buy the June issue of Food & Wine. They feature one of my favorite grilling magazine features, grill once eat twice. I made not one, not two, but THREE of those recipes in one weekend. Do yourself a favor and check it out :)

Hi hello Apron Adventurers!! Lindsay was kind enough to let me, Christine (one of the ones fortunate enough to live with Lindsay and eat all of her scrumptious food), share one of my favorite recipes – tarta!

I first ate tarta when I visited my boyfriend in Argentina while he was studying abroad. It was one of Nate’s favorite things that his host mom made, and I asked for the recipe in very broken Spanish so I could bring a taste of Argentina back to the States.

Argentine Tarta

2 store bought pie crusts (the kind that are rolled up, not the frozen ones in the pan)
½ pound ham, diced
½ pound cheese, shredded (I usually use provolone or some other mild, white cheese, but this time I used Colby Jack and it was equally delicious)
2 Roma tomatoes sliced
2 tablespoons basil, chopped
1/3 bag baby spinach
2 eggs
1-2 tablespoons milk

Place the first pie crust in your pie pan. Spread the ham evenly on the bottom of your pie and follow with the cheese. Lay sliced tomatoes on top to form and sprinkle with basil. Whisk the eggs and milk together in a small bowl and pour the mixture into your tarta. Add the spinach and placed the second crust on top, pinching the ends of the two pie crusts together so the pie is sealed. Poke a couple holes in the top with a fork to let air escape. Bake at 360 degrees for 35-45 minutes (until the top crust is a nice golden brown). Remove from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Enjoy!

I often just have tarta as an entire meal, but we were having guests over, so we needed a little something else. After scouring the kitchen for ingredients, Luke whipped up a great Mexican rice to compliment.

Mexican Rice

½- 1/3 onion
½ stalk celery
1 chunk green pepper
¾ can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes
½ tablespoon garlic
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups rice
4 cups water
4 cubes chicken bouillon
1 heaping tablespoon fresh cilantro

Blend or coarsely chop first 7 ingredients. Heat oil in large skillet then brown the rice. Add blended ingredients, water, and chicken bouillon. Heat to boiling and add cilantro. Simmer, covered on low heat for about 20 minutes.

A Taste Adventure

Well the time has come for the apron adventurer to step outside the kitchen and attempt new food in a new place. Recently some coworkers and I have started a boot camp run by our very fit/ambitious/inspirational office manager Kim. We run from our office building in downtown Austin to Town Lake, do some drills and run back. While running back a few weeks ago we noticed a wine bar we'd never heard of- Taste.

The ambitious wine drinker/happy hour lover that I am, I couldn't wait to try it after checking out their menu and wine list. Kristen, my coworker and friend, and I went yesterday and had sort of a mixed experience.

First on the list was of course picking the wine. They have a $5/glass happy hour special on weekdays, but I was all that intrigued by what they had to offer, so I tried the Waters Winery Viognier ‘07 that my boss Emily said I HAD to try.

I have to say- it was delicious!

Kristen was in a red wine kinda mood, so she had Alamosa Wine Cellars' El Guapo Barrel Reserve (Tempranillo) ‘01, a Texas wine!

After we had some wine to make us happy, it was time to try some yummy new foods. Their menu was pretty diverse and interesting, so there were several things we wanted to try. Lucky for us 3 out of the 4 "small dishes" we wanted to try were happy hour specials too!

First up, the cheese: There was no way we were going to a wine bar without having a cheese plate, so we went for the small one in order to squelch our cheese craving without ruining our appetites. The plate included a pretty strong fontina cheese and a very different small granual-like cheese that was very sweet like honey. (Note: our server was very incompetent and I'm fairly certain he knew less about wine than ME- which is pretty tough to do. Enough to say he didn't know what cheese he was serving us either :( )

I decided I wanted to be adventurous, so I insisted we try the smoked ostrich. I was not disappointed! Wrapped around buffalo mozzarella, served with cherries and drizzled with a smoked tomato vinaigrette, there was a ton of flavor packed in this small little dish.

Kristen is currently going through an Ahi Tuna phase, so we had to include that on our list. Served with a watermelon salad and melon vinaigrette, this was a refreshing and simple piece of fish that was really fun to eat- and look at!

Finally we had the salumi plate, including speck, salami, & other assorted dried meats with house mustard. I have to say this was less than inspiring, definitely not my favorite.

Overall, I'm glad we went, but I don't think I'll be making a ton of repeat visits. This was a bit overpriced for happy hour, and the expertise (at least from our waiter) was somewhat lacking.

Question: What is your favorite wine tasting trick/technique?