La Familia
In the short life of this blog, I imagine you have already realized that along with cooking a great meal, hanging out with my tribe is by far my greatest joy. My girls, Madeleine, Anna and Currin, are three of the most fabulous people anyone could know. Whether it’s one or all three of my girls , when any combination of us are going to land in one spot for a day or longer, the adventure begins with the requisite planning of the menu, that sharpens into a list (we LOVE a good list) which facilitates the preparation of the meals that will ultimately become the focus of our time together. All other activities come in second, naturally.
We are also fond of a good theme around which to plan our culinary adventures. Many years ago, I used to host a Christmas dinner party in which each guest brought a dish representative of their favorite ethnic cuisine. The result was a beautiful choreography of colors, textures, aromas and stories dancing on our plates, accompanied by fabulous wine and music, and as the evening progressed, some dancing through the house. A wonderful affair! Having recently moved to Charlottesville, VA, I look forward to once again finding the “not yet known, but soon to be” dinner guests who will form the next guest list for a new scrumptious gathering around my table.
The most recent coming together for a meal was at my daughter Anna and her fiancée Scott’s house. As they are in the throws of planning their honeymoon, (yay!), where they will be landing in Rome for the first leg of the trip, Italian was our food vibe. Anna suggested ravioli. Perfetta! As it happened, Currin was also visiting so, the more the merrier. The only missing piece of the puzzle was Madeleine, but as you can see, she was there in spirit. :)
Out planning, accompanied by inspirational music to cook by from the movie Big Night, one of my favorites, yielded the gorgeous menu below:
Two Raviolis
-Wild Mushroom/Goat Cheese and Fresh Thyme
Both with a sauce of caramelized red onion, garlic and cream, fresh Parmesan and beet microgreens (grown by Scott!)
Roasted Asparagus
Garlic Sourdough Bread
In keeping with the theme, we all cozied up on the couch, Italy in or bowls and glasses and watched Moonstruck, another fav.
As I contemplate my family, my tribe, I smile thinking of the friends, partners and fellow foodies who find themselves around the table with us, glasses held high, ready to weave their stories with ours.
Salut!