Supper Club #2

Gorgeous Clara giving her seal of approval on the table settings for Supper Club #2. My turn to be the hostess this time around. Up for entree was pate & yes it does indeed freeze very well so a great make ahead dish. (See previous post for recipe) Which is especially good when putting on a 3 course dinner on school night. Rustled up the caramelised onion & pomegranate molasses a couple of days before just to let the flavours develop - a lovely little recipe & it really is the pomegranate molasses that makes it special. I also tweaked the recipe, just a tad, & add a reasonably generous pinch of chilli flakes which gave it just the right amount of heat which played off really well against the pomegranate molasses. Again courtesy of Dish magazine. 

Caramelised Onion & Pomegranate Molasses

2 tbsp olive oil
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
2 chives garlic, crushed
2 tsp yellow mustard seeds
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (you could substitute with balsamic vinegar)


Directions

Put the olive oils, onion, garlic & mustard seeds in a saucepan.
Season, cover & cook for 10 minutes until the onion is tender. Uncover & stir in the sugar& pomegranate molasses. Cook over a gentle heat for 30 minutes until thick & syrupy & the onions are glossy. Tip in to a fine sieve to remove excess oil.
To serve:Top the pate with the onion relish or serve on the side. Serve with small toasts or crostini.

I also rustled up a quick dip, pretty much following a Giada De Laurentiis recipe for her Mascarpone Chive Dipping Sauce. I have made this a few times & it always goes down a treat & it really could not be easier. I guess it really is true that everything is better with a little bacon. Throw everything together in bowl, mix & serve. It is great with the pita chips in the recipe.

For the main course I went with fish & based it on a Tyler Florence recipe for Sole Almondine. Being in New Zealand I substituted terakihi, but snapper would work too. This one can't be made ahead but it is really quick & well worth it. It is a great dinner party dish. It's a classic & delicious.

Served with fish up with some steamed seasonal vegetables with a warm caper vinaigrette, inspired by a recipe in the latest issue of Cuisine in conjunction with what I had to hand. I used potato, celeriac, parsnip, carrot, cabbage, fennel & broccoli. I love celeriac, it would have to be one of my favourite Winter veg. & it is so versatile - raw in remoulade, boiled, mashed, roasted, with potatoes in a Dauphinois - delicious! It is just a shame it is not so readily available. For any other celeriac lovers in Auckland I have managed to find a pretty regular supply at Huckleberry Farms at Greenlane.

Back to Supper Club - sadly over steamed the vegetables a tad, but still pretty tasty, the vinaigrette really makes the dish. For the vinaigrette just mix together EVOO, white wine vinegar, salt & pepper, a little crushed garlic, roughly chopped flat leaf parsley & some capers.

For dessert I went with one of Mum's classic & my Dad's favourites...Russian Rum. It does require quite few bowls but is easy to put together & one that can be made a day ahead of time so more time to enjoy the dinner party which is always good.

Russian Rum
 
Ingredients

3 tbsp rum
2 eggs, separated
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
100g caster sugar 1 tsp gelatine
1/2 pint cream 1/4 cup chocolate shavings  

Directions

Beat egg yolks, essence, rum & sugar till light and foamy. Dissolve gelatine in a little cold water by stirring over heat. Beat into egg mixture. Whip whites stiffly. Whip cream till foamy then combine egg whites and cream. With a metal spoon, fold into rum mixture. Put into individual glass dishes or one serving bowl & decorate with grated chocolate.
Leave to set for a few hours or over night.

So that's my turn done for Supper Club for now & over to Pip for next month's event, which I am sure will be delicious, but Pip is adding an element of surprise & we will have to wait & see what is on the menu as all will not be revealed until we get there. Next up for me is our street, & slightly delayed Midwinter Christmas shindig & I am on the main course so roll on the weekend & some more kitchen time.