Ad Hoc Retro Dinner, July 2012

We did it again…another fabulous dinner! Although Thomas Keller’s Ad Hoc Cookbook was not as detailed as his French Laundry book, it yielded some memorable entrés that I will certainly try again.

We began our gathering over a glass of Aspasie Brut Carte Blanche NV French Champagne as Sharon began assembling the two soups she brought and the rest of us waited for everyone to arrive, say hi, and reconnect. After driving 3 hours to get here, Sharon always arrives in high spirits and with yummy dishes. She couldn’t decide which soup to bring so she brought two of them. She made the Mushroom Soup last week and didn’t find it that outstanding after all the work she put into preparing them and selected two other soups to try. The Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup was amazing and I will now make it myself soon! When tasted in the pot, we all thought it tasted a bit bland BUT, showing us the importance of garnishes, when served with the chopped cilantro and crumbled smoked bacon, the soup came together to give us a spectacular dish.

She also prepared the Heirloom Bean and Escarole Soup for us last night. Escarole is a variety of endive whose leaves are broader, paler and less bitter than other members of the endive family. The head of an escarole resembles a head of lettuce. The stems and leaves are thick enough to stand up to being blanched and added to a hearty soup that has ham hock pieces, carrots and other vegetables. The garnish for this soup was chopped Italian parsley. Another tasty and healthy soup from Sharon, enhanced by a glass of Pine Ridge 2011 Chenin Blanc/Viognier from Bill’s cellar. This wine had both floral and grassy notes that complimented both soups. With the first soup, it provided a nice contrast to the heavy lentils and sweet potatoes and for the second soup, blended well with the bright flavors of the escarole, carrots, and white canelli beans.

Along with two soups, we also had two salads this evening. Jeffrey prepared our first salad, Chickpea & Curried Cauliflower Salad, a 2-hour effort. The curry is part of the vinaigrette, very light, adding just a note of smoky flavors. Again, to pay tribute to the value of garnishes, the salad was garnished with fried parsley leaves. Jeffrey made this salad before without the fried parsley and noted how much better the salad is with the garnish. The added touch of crunchy parsley leaves finished the dish. While not a big fan of chickpeas or garbanzos, I really enjoyed this salad because of the different textures and flavors. Bill chose a Joh Jos Prum 2004 Riesling Auslese to compliment this dish thinking that the curry would be more pronounced. Even though it wasn't as curry-ish as we thought, it was a delicious wine that everyone loved and drank every drop! What's not to like with a Riesling? I love the low alcohol of rieslings as well as the lovely fruit and clean finishes.

Our next salad was prepared by Janis and, although she listed several dishes she thought about bringing, I am glad she chose this one: Green Bean & Potato Salad with Mission Figs & Iberico Ham. She used fingerling potatoes and as you can see from the photo, the small coins of potatoes were the perfect size to go with the green beans. She spent hours driving around, searching for mission figs at gourmet groceries and finally found them at a chain grocery store by just asking for them. . .go figure! This salad was a tribute to the natural flavors of each item, having each one compliment or contrast beautifully with the other. We always count one Janis to bring wonderful vegetable based dishes and she never disappoints. We served this dish family style and passed the platter around and served ourselves. Bill served a Murrieta's Well 2005 Sauvignon Blanc Los Tesoros De Joaquin,from the Livermore Valley region. It was amazingly clean, well-balanced and a perfect companion to this salad. It's always difficult to pair wines with salads because of the vinegars but Bill always does a yeoman's job successfully.

As may have noticed, the photographs are not as professional as they’ve been in the past. Willie and Sandi have sold their home here and have literally “hit the road” and are driving their Ford truck, towing an Airstream, as I type. What an adventure!! They are taking a hiatus from our group and will be maintaining their own blog, writing about their travels, travails and adventures, complete with photos! We look forward to reading their blog posts and to, hopefully, their eventual return to our area.

Our main course was Buttermilk Fried Chicken, garnished with Fried Onions and Fried Herbs; thyme, rosemary and sage. I have made this chicken twice before and reduced the number of lemons from 5 to 3 in the brine this time. I thought the lemon flavor was too pronounced in the previous times and even with just 3 lemons, the lemon was still pretty evident. I also made a error and changed how I fried the chicken. I “pre-prepared” the chicken and floured and dipped the pieces in buttermilk and then re-floured them about 15-20 minutes before I actually fried them. I wanted to sit down and eat Janis’ salad and didn’t want a big break between courses. BIG mistake! The crust was tough and not flaky as a result. It tasted fine but the texture was very disappointing. Dusting and dipping just before putting the pieces into the hot oil will produce flaky, crispy fried chicken and onion rings. Next time, I'll know better. Bill poured a delicious Penfolds 1986 Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 707 that everyone simply raved about and we easily finished this bottle too. This was a hearty Cab that was a great representative of the Australian style of wine-making.

We served George’s preparation of Creamed Corn with the chicken. Believe me, this was NOT anything like the canned creamed corn that we all remember from our childhoods. This recipe produces a rich, creamy and flavorful bowl of kernels that has a touch of cayenne to give it a tiny kick. I had two spoonfuls of the corn; I liked it so much. Bill chose a Sbragia Family Vineyards 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Rosso Vineyard, Sonoma to go with the corn. The Sbragia red was much softer than the Penfolds and a better wine for the corn. I enjoyed this wine very much and am hopeful that we’ll be able to visit this winery in October when we do our Sonoma field trip.

Our first dessert was Panna Cotta with Strawberries that Annie wanted to try. She had always wanted to make a panna cotta and thought this was her opportunity. This panna cotta is made with sour cream that gave it a tang that I usually don't find in panna cottas. I very much liked it in this dish and really loved the soft, silky texture. Many panna cottas are too stiff, perhaps because the recipe calls for more gelatin but this one was sublime! She did mention that the recipe omits to mention that one should warm all the ingredients because if one adds the gelatin mixture to refrigerator-cold ingredients, the gelatin will form a ball in the center and not disperse throughout the cream. She chose to serve her panna cotta with lightly sweetened strawberries. Bill graced us with a lovely bottle of Chateau Clos Haut-Peyraguey 2001 Sauterne that added a wonderful note of sweetness to the panna cotta. More raves! Ahhhh Sauterne!

Our last dessert was a fun dessert that Tina made for an earlier event for her daughter and then brought to our dinner. Carrot Cupcakes are time-aged, proven favorites for children, of ALL ages. She made them half-sized so they were small “muffin tops,” that were, after all we’ve already eaten, the perfect size, about 3-4 bites! They were light, flavorful and the frosting of creamed cheese, sugar and butter was so decadently rich. . .what a perfect marriage of tastes, textures. . .not too sweet either, like bakery versions. Bill had us taste a Kirkland 10 Year Old Tawny Port with the cupcakes and because of the walnut garnish (See?! The value of garnishes works in desserts too!). Umm, Kirkland?? Isn’t that the Costco brand? YES, it is! While certainly not the quality of a Dow’s Tawny, for the price (less than $20), a wonderful port to serve with this dessert. It was the perfect choice again, Bill!

I and other members of this group have prepared multiple recipes out of this cookbook and find it to be one our favorites. We may even cook a dinner from it again because there are still so many recipes that each of us have intended to make but haven’t gotten around to it -- yet!

We also chatted over dinner about the field trip to Sonoma. I am investigating a biodynamic garden and vineyard tour and tasting/dinner event at Quivera Winery as well as an educational lecture on pairing wines with foods with the Sbragia Family Winery. I’ll keep you posted on the final dates and costs, etc. and then we’ll see who can make the trip.

In the meantime, cook on!