Jonie
03-06-2005, 08:35 PM
Hi Everyone!
Here's a review of the Pittsburgh Area Supper Club March Supper Club gathering!
I hosted this event last evening at my home, actually about 30 miles SE of the 'burgh..
It was sunny but cold... but it was hot hot hot @ Chez Jonie's :p
Guests were greeted at the door by the hula clad.. ( don't worry, it wasn't ME ), DD, who gave each guest a flower lei...
Here's our menu & comments.. again another great success..
The theme was fresh, light, somewhat tropical, ...You'll get the idea as you read on...
All recipes can be found on this website, except the dessert was from the current CL.
Beverage:
Island Fruit Punch
I just had to have this, mainly because of the name! Although I couldn't sample it , being pregnant & all, but oh well...
This was ok according to our members.. Improvements to make: More RUM! & to use a seltzer as a mixer..
Appetizer
Fresh Spring Rolls with Dipping Sauce
WoW! were these ever awesome! Jenni asked for something fun to make, so there you go! She did an incredible job with these rolls. In the dipping sauce, she used a little less fish sauce & a little less chile paste w/garlic. The sauce had just enough bite to complement the freshness of the rolls. She said the rice paper was surprisingly easy to work with & she found them at a larger grocery store chain. She used bean sprouts, which were wonderful in these. When fresh basil is in season, it was commented that it could be added to these delicious rolls, & it would be worth it to find the purple thai basil, too. Jenni commented that since these are time consuming to make, it would be worth it to do as much prep work ahead (julienning, etc) as possible. They are good keepers, too, because I had the 2 leftover rolls for lunch today .. a nice hostess perk, :D
Salad
Fresh Tomato-and-Pepper Salad
This was made by Kathleen & this was just a gorgeous, crunchy fresh salad. She used halved grape tomatoes & I would recommend this even when "good" tomatoes are in season. I think regular diced tomatoes would be too watery in this salad & the grape tomatoes have so much flavor! It was commented this salad would be great spooned over grilled chicken breasts or fish.
Bread
Patty made the delicious Buttermilk-Dill Rolls. All by hand! (this coming from someone who uses the bread machine for ALL my doughs...)
These looked like mini baguettes, & had a nice crunchy cornmeal bottom & salt dusted top. I thought they were great, but some additional comments made were that they could have used a bit more salt. Patty commented that right out of the oven, the dill made them taste a little like rye, but at our dinner, the dill taste was there.
Fruit Salad
Instead of a soup course, I opted for another salad.. this one fruit based.
Alison prepared the Fresh Fruit with Tangy Dressing
This was a very very good salad, too!
Although reviews of the recipe commented serving it in bowls, we all agreed its at its best, plated on lettuce leaves. Alison used crisp green lettuce & had the banana & cantaloupe already marinating in the dressing. Here, all she did was top with the avocado. This was a fresh combination of flavors, very flavorful. The dressing was excellent & Alison reported this was easy to make & it comes together quickly.
Now.. the Main Dish(es)...
Normally, in our club, the hostess doesn't prepare a dish, she usually makes the entree the following month. Well, last month's hostess ( we missed you Jen! ) couldn't attend this month, & with this baby coming, I may be out of commission for next month...SO I made the main course(s)
Seafood Lasagna
This was time consuming, but very good!
I would recommend doing as much prep in advance as possible.
Namely, the chopping & pre-cooking of the mushroom/crab filling, preparing the cheese filling, & making of the stock.
Instead of peeling, deveining, cleaning shrimp, I purchased frozen shrimp that were already peeled, cleaned, deveined & tailed off! A big time saver!
I used ricotta cheese instead of cottage, & used the feta (not goat)
I doubled the sauce & instead of making shrimp stock, I made a stock using Penzey's Seafood base ( another big time saver )
Next time, I would add the grated cheese to the cheese filling & leave it out of the sauce.
The only herb I used in this was the fresh parsley. I just didn't see basil & thyme fitting in with seafood.
This was prepared on Friday & baked on Saturday. I baked it for much longer than it called for, since it had been chilled overnight in the fridge.
The flavor of the seafood, mainly the shrimp, really comes through on this dish. A make again in my book...
I also prepared...
Oven-Fried Coconut Chicken... This was from last month's CL..
I used chicken tenders instead of thighs/legs. I marinated the tenders overnight & then prepared as the recipe indicated. I baked on a baking stone along side the lasagna (@ 375 not 400) & they came out nice & crispy. I forgot to turn them halfway throught baking, but I don't think it made too much of a difference.
Another keeper...
And now....Dessert!
Strawberry Shortcake Jelly Roll
Kathy made an awesome masterpiece with this dessert!
It was light, delicious, very flavorful & made a beautiful presentation! Perfect all around!
Even though she claims she never made a jelly roll before, it rivaled the photo in the mag!
The fresh, sweetened strawberries were great with this; & the whipped cream, not sweetened, was just perfect! The orange zest added color appeal & another treat for the taste buds, too!
We also had coconut macaroons. This was from a recipe I got from a Reiman's Publications magazine, either Taste of Home or Quick Cooking.
These were fast & easy to make, one bowl, one spoon & NO whipping of egg whites.
Here's that recipe:
Oven to 325 & line baking sheet with parchment
In small bowl mix well together:
1-1/3 c sweetened flaked coconut
1/3 c sugar
2 TBS flour
1/8 tsp salt
In a small cup, lightly whisk with a fork 2 egg whites, & some vanilla & almond extracts.
Add this to the dry ingredients & mix well. Portion out onto prepared sheet. ( I used a #40 scoop & got a dozen) If desired, press a whole almond onto the top of each cookie. (this I did) Bake for 18-20 or til golden . Let cool
It was suggested that these would be even better drizzled with some chocolate! Absolutely :D
So that was it!
Even though we met a week early after a short month, it was great to get together again, sharing great food & conversation!
Hope you all enjoy the review!
Here's a review of the Pittsburgh Area Supper Club March Supper Club gathering!
I hosted this event last evening at my home, actually about 30 miles SE of the 'burgh..
It was sunny but cold... but it was hot hot hot @ Chez Jonie's :p
Guests were greeted at the door by the hula clad.. ( don't worry, it wasn't ME ), DD, who gave each guest a flower lei...
Here's our menu & comments.. again another great success..
The theme was fresh, light, somewhat tropical, ...You'll get the idea as you read on...
All recipes can be found on this website, except the dessert was from the current CL.
Beverage:
Island Fruit Punch
I just had to have this, mainly because of the name! Although I couldn't sample it , being pregnant & all, but oh well...
This was ok according to our members.. Improvements to make: More RUM! & to use a seltzer as a mixer..
Appetizer
Fresh Spring Rolls with Dipping Sauce
WoW! were these ever awesome! Jenni asked for something fun to make, so there you go! She did an incredible job with these rolls. In the dipping sauce, she used a little less fish sauce & a little less chile paste w/garlic. The sauce had just enough bite to complement the freshness of the rolls. She said the rice paper was surprisingly easy to work with & she found them at a larger grocery store chain. She used bean sprouts, which were wonderful in these. When fresh basil is in season, it was commented that it could be added to these delicious rolls, & it would be worth it to find the purple thai basil, too. Jenni commented that since these are time consuming to make, it would be worth it to do as much prep work ahead (julienning, etc) as possible. They are good keepers, too, because I had the 2 leftover rolls for lunch today .. a nice hostess perk, :D
Salad
Fresh Tomato-and-Pepper Salad
This was made by Kathleen & this was just a gorgeous, crunchy fresh salad. She used halved grape tomatoes & I would recommend this even when "good" tomatoes are in season. I think regular diced tomatoes would be too watery in this salad & the grape tomatoes have so much flavor! It was commented this salad would be great spooned over grilled chicken breasts or fish.
Bread
Patty made the delicious Buttermilk-Dill Rolls. All by hand! (this coming from someone who uses the bread machine for ALL my doughs...)
These looked like mini baguettes, & had a nice crunchy cornmeal bottom & salt dusted top. I thought they were great, but some additional comments made were that they could have used a bit more salt. Patty commented that right out of the oven, the dill made them taste a little like rye, but at our dinner, the dill taste was there.
Fruit Salad
Instead of a soup course, I opted for another salad.. this one fruit based.
Alison prepared the Fresh Fruit with Tangy Dressing
This was a very very good salad, too!
Although reviews of the recipe commented serving it in bowls, we all agreed its at its best, plated on lettuce leaves. Alison used crisp green lettuce & had the banana & cantaloupe already marinating in the dressing. Here, all she did was top with the avocado. This was a fresh combination of flavors, very flavorful. The dressing was excellent & Alison reported this was easy to make & it comes together quickly.
Now.. the Main Dish(es)...
Normally, in our club, the hostess doesn't prepare a dish, she usually makes the entree the following month. Well, last month's hostess ( we missed you Jen! ) couldn't attend this month, & with this baby coming, I may be out of commission for next month...SO I made the main course(s)
Seafood Lasagna
This was time consuming, but very good!
I would recommend doing as much prep in advance as possible.
Namely, the chopping & pre-cooking of the mushroom/crab filling, preparing the cheese filling, & making of the stock.
Instead of peeling, deveining, cleaning shrimp, I purchased frozen shrimp that were already peeled, cleaned, deveined & tailed off! A big time saver!
I used ricotta cheese instead of cottage, & used the feta (not goat)
I doubled the sauce & instead of making shrimp stock, I made a stock using Penzey's Seafood base ( another big time saver )
Next time, I would add the grated cheese to the cheese filling & leave it out of the sauce.
The only herb I used in this was the fresh parsley. I just didn't see basil & thyme fitting in with seafood.
This was prepared on Friday & baked on Saturday. I baked it for much longer than it called for, since it had been chilled overnight in the fridge.
The flavor of the seafood, mainly the shrimp, really comes through on this dish. A make again in my book...
I also prepared...
Oven-Fried Coconut Chicken... This was from last month's CL..
I used chicken tenders instead of thighs/legs. I marinated the tenders overnight & then prepared as the recipe indicated. I baked on a baking stone along side the lasagna (@ 375 not 400) & they came out nice & crispy. I forgot to turn them halfway throught baking, but I don't think it made too much of a difference.
Another keeper...
And now....Dessert!
Strawberry Shortcake Jelly Roll
Kathy made an awesome masterpiece with this dessert!
It was light, delicious, very flavorful & made a beautiful presentation! Perfect all around!
Even though she claims she never made a jelly roll before, it rivaled the photo in the mag!
The fresh, sweetened strawberries were great with this; & the whipped cream, not sweetened, was just perfect! The orange zest added color appeal & another treat for the taste buds, too!
We also had coconut macaroons. This was from a recipe I got from a Reiman's Publications magazine, either Taste of Home or Quick Cooking.
These were fast & easy to make, one bowl, one spoon & NO whipping of egg whites.
Here's that recipe:
Oven to 325 & line baking sheet with parchment
In small bowl mix well together:
1-1/3 c sweetened flaked coconut
1/3 c sugar
2 TBS flour
1/8 tsp salt
In a small cup, lightly whisk with a fork 2 egg whites, & some vanilla & almond extracts.
Add this to the dry ingredients & mix well. Portion out onto prepared sheet. ( I used a #40 scoop & got a dozen) If desired, press a whole almond onto the top of each cookie. (this I did) Bake for 18-20 or til golden . Let cool
It was suggested that these would be even better drizzled with some chocolate! Absolutely :D
So that was it!
Even though we met a week early after a short month, it was great to get together again, sharing great food & conversation!
Hope you all enjoy the review!