![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Yesterday, I cooked.
I have held a Hair of the Dog New Year's Day Open House for a long time -- since I worked in restaurants and it was one of the few days I had off.
I woke up around six and laid around until seven or so, screwed around on the computer until close to nine, which was going to be the start of shopping. First, Shuang Hur, the neighborhood's biggest Asian store, for fresh ducks and a cooked duck. I also bought some sugar snap peas and green onions, then to the Lake & Grand liquor store to see if they had bread, which they did not, but I picked up a case o' cider, and on to the French Meadow for bread, then Lunds for more bread. Note to self: All five loaves of bread vanished, although the three big loaves were uncut. Not to make too philosophical a statement, I like the crust that remains when it's not cut, but it does fore the guests to cut it, since I'm too lazy to do it in the kitchen.
I finished prepping by two, showered, and started setting up before the first guest arrived around 3:10. Everybody helped set out food, including the six varieties of herring. Someone came back to spin the ducks after chasing all over town trying to find purple sweet potatoes. (Yes, I made almost everybody eat a piece of purple sweet potato...) At the end of the day, there was one piece of duck remaining from the three ducks, a neck piece with some skin.
As usual, nobody ate much dip, although the liver mousse and the duck rillette went quite quickly. I made a two-pint version of chicken liver, so it lasted through the night. I never did taste Surdyk's duck rillette. I did taste the curry herring, which was pretty much as I expected. I probably prefer the mustard herring, if it's yellow. As usual, there was little herring left by the end of the night. I was proud of the fava bean pate, it tasted great with the fresh thyme, and it whipped up extra nice. It went down, but not down as much as I would have liked. The taramosalata went down, but it too could have gone down more. The last spritz of lemon juice I added to it, thinned it out a bit too much. I really should do labels even though it seems like I do the same dips every year...
I tried to buy a lot of non-cow cheese this year for Pamela Dean, and at least half were non-cow. One, a French piment cheese (I'm fudging the name) was really nice. The truffled affinois was quite fine as well. They even ate the Roquefort this year, which seems unusual. I sent David home with the remainder of the Delice, Brie, and one other. I should have sent him off with the remaining milk...
I kept a pan of Swedish meatballs on the stove. I couldn't find the simmer plate, but put the small grid under it. It got a little toasty by the end of the night, but it had been there for quite some time by then.
They drank almost all my best ginger beer. I shoulda hidden it better. Meanwhile, they drank almost none of my soda. Next time, I'll put the ginger beer in the entry and the soda in the kitchen.
Food: Three ducks, one small and one large pack o' baby peppers, taters, purple sweet taters, lottsa cheese, almost one kg of Swedish meatballs, six or seven bottles of wine (red, white, and bubbly), three round loaves and two baguettes, half a pack o' pita, almost all the liver mousse, all the duck rillette, various assorted crackers, a bit over a pint of olives, one smoked whitefish, one chunk o' smoked salmon, three avoes worth o' guac which I put out quite late in the day.
I have held a Hair of the Dog New Year's Day Open House for a long time -- since I worked in restaurants and it was one of the few days I had off.
I woke up around six and laid around until seven or so, screwed around on the computer until close to nine, which was going to be the start of shopping. First, Shuang Hur, the neighborhood's biggest Asian store, for fresh ducks and a cooked duck. I also bought some sugar snap peas and green onions, then to the Lake & Grand liquor store to see if they had bread, which they did not, but I picked up a case o' cider, and on to the French Meadow for bread, then Lunds for more bread. Note to self: All five loaves of bread vanished, although the three big loaves were uncut. Not to make too philosophical a statement, I like the crust that remains when it's not cut, but it does fore the guests to cut it, since I'm too lazy to do it in the kitchen.
I finished prepping by two, showered, and started setting up before the first guest arrived around 3:10. Everybody helped set out food, including the six varieties of herring. Someone came back to spin the ducks after chasing all over town trying to find purple sweet potatoes. (Yes, I made almost everybody eat a piece of purple sweet potato...) At the end of the day, there was one piece of duck remaining from the three ducks, a neck piece with some skin.
As usual, nobody ate much dip, although the liver mousse and the duck rillette went quite quickly. I made a two-pint version of chicken liver, so it lasted through the night. I never did taste Surdyk's duck rillette. I did taste the curry herring, which was pretty much as I expected. I probably prefer the mustard herring, if it's yellow. As usual, there was little herring left by the end of the night. I was proud of the fava bean pate, it tasted great with the fresh thyme, and it whipped up extra nice. It went down, but not down as much as I would have liked. The taramosalata went down, but it too could have gone down more. The last spritz of lemon juice I added to it, thinned it out a bit too much. I really should do labels even though it seems like I do the same dips every year...
I tried to buy a lot of non-cow cheese this year for Pamela Dean, and at least half were non-cow. One, a French piment cheese (I'm fudging the name) was really nice. The truffled affinois was quite fine as well. They even ate the Roquefort this year, which seems unusual. I sent David home with the remainder of the Delice, Brie, and one other. I should have sent him off with the remaining milk...
I kept a pan of Swedish meatballs on the stove. I couldn't find the simmer plate, but put the small grid under it. It got a little toasty by the end of the night, but it had been there for quite some time by then.
They drank almost all my best ginger beer. I shoulda hidden it better. Meanwhile, they drank almost none of my soda. Next time, I'll put the ginger beer in the entry and the soda in the kitchen.
Food: Three ducks, one small and one large pack o' baby peppers, taters, purple sweet taters, lottsa cheese, almost one kg of Swedish meatballs, six or seven bottles of wine (red, white, and bubbly), three round loaves and two baguettes, half a pack o' pita, almost all the liver mousse, all the duck rillette, various assorted crackers, a bit over a pint of olives, one smoked whitefish, one chunk o' smoked salmon, three avoes worth o' guac which I put out quite late in the day.
