Dinner for Five at Six.

The Dinner Menu | Photos courtesy of Moi

That’s right as part of my “Youthful New Year” campaign posted earlier this year I deigned to throw 10 Parties in 2011.

For my first big adventure I organised a dinner party, something simple and classy was my initial plan. And why not invite, quite possibly my toughest audience. Yes, you’re quite right I organised a dinner party for my family: 4 members of my immediate family in fact.

I tried to time it so that there were appetisers ready to serve very soon after they arrived. With the main served about 1 hour following that. So, the menu is as follows:

appetisers
Caramelised Cabonossi
Antipasto platter

main
Marinara spaghetti
Green Leaf Salad with Lemon Salt Dressing
Crusty Bread

dessert
Pomegranate Ice Cream

supper
Good Quality Coffee
Chocolate

I deem this party a success!

The Cabonossi, which seemed completely kitsch was actually really tasty and the plate was inhaled rather quickly. I got the recipe out of Nigella Lawson’s Nigella Express. For the platter, I went to the local deli Venus Deli (located on Vulture Street, West End) who were very helpful in helping me obtain these beautiful spanish olives that tasted both clean and pleasantly tart. Some marinated persian feta which is so smooth and delicate it just melts in your mouth. And a few other odds and ends.

The main course was from a Jamie Oliver’s Happy Days.  The salad was my own invention. I just wanted something that was light and summery to offset all those carbs. Jamie’s recipe made a HUGE amount of spaghetti: we could have possibly fed a whole mess hall with the dish! I became quite the food-pusher urging everyone to “eat” and “eat again”. I’m not sure what good leftover marinara might be. I for one wasn’t going to explore the possibility.

And could anything sound as exotic and sophisticated as pomegranate ice cream? This was absolutely delicious, again the recipe can be found in Nigella Express. I’ve made ice cream before and it was not worth the effort – beating it every few hours but this recipe is incredibly easy and once it’s in the freezer you’re done. It’s a light soft pink colour, the texture is very creamy but not dense like some homemade ice-cream. It feels light to eat and the flavours of lime and pomegranate beautifully complement each other.

There was satisfied mmming around the table following each course. It was a pleasant affair and it seems my audience were appreciative. Wonderful!