A Delicious Surprise

Saturday night was another Farm to Table dinner at Farm Girl Nursery.  I saw the guests beginning to arrive, so I went into full-steam mode, getting the first bite into the oven and ready to plate....

Figs stuffed with prosciutto, topped with Pt Reyes blue cheese and toasted walnut, then baked for 10 minutes and drizzled with pure maple syrup.  My culinary partner-in-crime, Tom, made these for me a few weeks ago, with the same fresh figs from his garden that we used Saturday, and I knew at first bite that these had to welcome everyone for the dinner.

Lisa, of Farm Girl Nursery, came to the kitchen door as I was racing around and asked me to come outside for a minute.  This had never happened before, so I was a little confused.  I was even more confused when I walked onto the porch and slowly started to recognize people I knew.  My brain went into some kind of weird slow motion groove.  Turns out my BFF Sue had organized a little surprise for me.  A couple months ago when I old her I was having a farm dinner on her birthday, she apparently got the idea to secretly invite some friends to come with her, and what she thought might be three or four of them turned into 14 (including my lovely sister, Michelle). 

I momentarily" lost my business" (it's rare that I am actually surprised), and when I went back into the kitchen I had to ask my crew what the heck we were serving for the first course!  Thankfully they had their act together and we were back in order.  First up: Thai Pumpkin Soup garnished with creme fraiche, pure maple syrup, and red chile strips (recipe follows)...

Next was a lovely salad:  Watercress, Asian Pear, Toasted Walnuts & Shaved Pecorino with a Champagne Vinaigrette.  This is another example of how using fresh, in-season produce elevates simple ingredients to delicious heights...delicate watercress, crisp pears, crunchy walnuts, salty cheese and a sweet dressing.  A perfect combination.

The tables got quite a bit more animated with our next course:  Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with Sage Browned Butter Sauce.  The excitement, the oooh's and aaaaah's were heard all the way into the kitchen. Tom made fresh semolina pasta sheets that we laid into ravioli molds and stuffed with creamy roasted butternut-sage puree.  We topped the little pillows with browned butter and a crispy sage leaf. (I'll do a separate post with recipes later in the week).

By the time we got to the entree, I was visiting with friends, and it escaped my camera's lens, but it was delicious...trust me!  Pork medallions marinated in apple concentrate, olive oil, thyme, Dijon, garlic and shallots.  We made a roasted pork bone broth during the week that Tom reduced down and added to onions, carrots and celery, with a full-bodied red wine to create a wonderful sauce that had everyone begging for more.  The pork loin was topped with sauteed apples and onions and served along side my cauliflower "couscous" (cauliflower pulsed in a food processor until it's the consistency of couscous, then sauteed briefly in olive oil with turmeric and curry powder and tossed with currants).

And for dessert, we revisited the pumpkin patch....pumpkin bread pudding topped with homemade vanilla ice cream (made with coconut palm sugar instead of the white stuff....YUM!)

This may be our last Farm to Table Dinner for the year (too chilly), and it was certainly one I will never forget.  Cooking for anyone makes me extremely happy and fulfilled, but cooking for people you've known and loved most of your life....now that's really something!  My cup runneth over!!

Thai Pumpkin Soup

Serves 6

2 small sugar pie pumpkins, seeded and quartered

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 cup chopped onion

¼ cup chopped basil

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon chopped ginger

3 red chiles, seeded and chopped

2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup coconut milk

¾ cup coconut cream (the solid part at the top of a can of coconut milk)

1 teaspoon grade B maple syrup

2 teaspoons lime juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Crème fraiche & maple syrup for garnish

·         Preheat oven to 400°.

·         Place pumpkin slices on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and roast 25-30 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool.

·         When cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh from the skin and chop the flesh into bite-sized pieces.

·         In a medium saucepan heat oil and sauté 8-10 minutes until softened.

·         Add pumpkin, basil, tomato paste, garlic, ginger and chiles and sauté another couple minutes.

·         Add broth, coconut milk and coconut cream.  Stir to combine.

·         Bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes.

·         Transfer to a blender and working in batches, puree until smooth.

·         Return to pot and add maple syrup and salt & pepper to taste.

·         Garnish with crème fraiche and a drizzle of maple syrup.