Monday, April 05, 2010

Salmon, Skewers and Souffle

Wednesday evening at M&A's concluded with drinks and appetizers and barbeque and fun with their friend A. (though it could have been J.; I enjoyed his company but his name escapes me at this moment), and C. and T. (who will soon be referred to as C&T when appropriate). M&A are quite good at the whole tasty dinner making thing. They took out the remnants of the truffle cheeses and then added salmon into the mix for hors d'oeuvres. I then took it a step further and combined truffle cheese with salmon, maybe not a necessary pairing, but not bad.
There was talk of marinating chicken, so I took that on while A. marinated the beef and prepared the veggies. My marinade was mainly soy sauce, honey and garlic, but there were some other notes, like a good splash of white wine. Boo yeah. A. did a fantastic job with the grilling. Top notch.
Asparagus and eggplant.
And then M. cut up a few heirloom tomatoes and dished up a tasty sauce-type thing on top, a mix of feta, creme fraiche, mayonnaise and, I'm sure, a generous hand of general awesomeness.
After dinner, in the backyard on what was a very nice night, temperature-wise, and a great night when you added these folks we took a few obligatory (but I must have them) photographs. At first C. and I independently thought the last time we saw each other was at their wedding. We were both mistaken, as we saw each other the following summer and B. and L.'s wedding. It's weird that a year can sometimes feel like two, and at other times feel like a mere second behind you.
Pandora the dog, Panda for short, was doing quite well for herself and her stuffed Jay.
For dessert M. made a hazelnut souffle. Girl knows how to make a souffle. No lie. This was some good stuff. Moist and eggy, but sweet and hazelnutty and light; all at the same time I tell you. Also? And maybe she only does this when I'm around...but I don't think so...M. routinely whisks, by hand, her own whipped cream. I mean, I use a hand mixer, I'm not a Cool-Whip person, but hand whisking! My god.
I was a little nervous about mixing my two friend groups together. When I was younger I constantly wanted my different friends to hit it off, to melt together into an even larger group of friends, or something. But, as I have gotten older, I sometimes feel glad for the separation between my friends. I can't explain why, I just do. I own it. The point is that I do often feel a little trepidation when I consider introducing dear friends to one another. The other point is that this was crazy of me because I like good, interesting people who may not become bffs (which is probably for the best because I would get jealous) but can certainly appreciate one another. It was a great night, full of good friends, wonderful food and warm weather, and that's really all I want most all of the time.

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