Culinary dishonesty

What is it about dinner parties that makes you so stressed out? My mom and I are both the same way. If there are more than 4 people, even if they happen to be immediate family, craziness ensues and heart palpitations attack mercilessly. So it happened that I got recruited to help out for a small dinner for 10 at Chez Maman. She prepped and made the cold apps, and then I cooked the hot stuff, and the only dessert I know how to make (actually, one of two, now that I know how to organize a flan), while she cleaned and set the table.

The best was when she went out for ciggie, came back in, eyed me for a while as I watched sugar and butter bubble and turn into caramel, and said, "Wouldn't it be cool if I had a cook/servant? You could just stay back here, and serve us, and then, at the end of the night, I'd bring back some leftovers for you..." Hilarious.

The dinner was a huge success. Elegant, they called it. The dishonesty was in that I took all the credit, even though the recipe was so totally not mine; it would never have occurred to me to make it cause I didn't know it existed. Chicken and Sausage bouillabaisse? Who knew!

OK, not true, I admitted that the recipe came from a chef friend, but I said it real quiet.

...And how gratifying is it, to make something, and then be able to just serve it right in the pot, steaming, aromatic, colorful; just scoop it up, chunky and beautiful, with the ladle into plates, and right away, you can feel heat seep into your body, and serotonin act up to make you just a bit happier...

I took no pictures of the main course, although, I have a picture of the one the chef made some months ago when he shared the recipe.... But that would be straight up plagiarism, and kind of stalky, so, no.

Well, ok, but just for an idea of how happy it looks. NOT mine, this is courtesy of Chef Josh:


The menu went something like this:
Cold apps:
1) seafood ceviche
2) shrimp salad

Warm apps:
1) Steamed mussels, white wine sauce
2) Warm red cabbage, fennel and gorgonzola salad with pears and walnuts

Main course:
Chicken and Sausage Bouillabaisse with garlicky rouille
(I don't even like chicken, but this was great!)

Dessert:
Upside down apple skillet cake (tarte Tatin)
Selection of sorbets
Wine: various selections
Remy martin Cognac

And this is my tarte:




Ain't that purrrty....

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