Back in November we decided to collaborate with Ryan’s brother Colin (a multi talented chef and carpenter) to throw a rather elaborate dinner party. Colin and I had been talking about doing such a dinner for so long that I finally decided to nail down a date so we could finally do it! I wanted it to be rather fancy, with restaurant quality food. Colin made Chad and I dinner one time years ago and it was amazing so I knew this dinner would blow all other dinners out of the water.
I decided to channel my inner Emily Gilmore when setting the table and ask my very talented aunt to put together this floral arraignment for me.
I also decided to pull out the crystal glasses and (what turned out to be fake) silverware, you know, because when else does one have the opportunity to use such things.
Colin and I had a lot of discussions about when we wanted the menu to be like. We finally decided on duck and Colin took me to a duck farm in Surrey where we actually got to choose the ducks we would cook for dinner. It was something I had never experienced before and it was rather neat to know exactly where our dinner was coming from. While I didn’t watch the actual slaughter the rest of the process didn’t leave me as squeamish as I thought it might.
Colin used every part of the duck over all of the courses (except dessert) so nothing went to waste. The amount of prep work he did before coming to our house was insane. When you sit down at a restaurant and order a meal, you know that it has taken a great deal of effort to put that plate together, but I never really realized it until I watched it come to life before my eyes.
Salad Course
Belgium Endive Salad with BC Pears, Candied Walnuts, Aged Gouda and Rocket tossed in Pomegranate Vinaigrette
Main Course
Duck Wellington with Butternut Squash, Haricot Vert, Pearl Onions and a Bacon Croquette served with a Duck Glace Grand Marnier Reduction
Overall the dinner was a huge success. We were all stuffed to the gills by the end of the night. It was quite the experience! Hopefully we can make this an annual tradition.