February Dinner Party

Ok, so for February I had my second dinner party from The New Southwest Cookbook. This one was delicious as well. I love working with new ingredients and learning new techniques!

Appetizer- Oysters Rio Lobo with Cilantro Pesto (from Fuego! in Tucson, AZ- pg. 62)



These were amazing- we shucked fresh oysters and topped them with a homemade cilantro pesto, diced roasted poblano and red bell pepper, diced hard chorizo sausage and Monterey jack cheese- all baked until hot and bubbly. Really, really fabulous!

Soup- Butternut Squash Soup with Goat Cheese Ravioli and Fried Sage (from Graze by Jennifer James in Albuquerque, NM- p. 79)



So, the name of the soup kinda tells the whole story. It was a thick butternut squash soup flavored with cinnamon, topped with a homemade ravioli (seasoned goat cheese sandwiched between wonton wrappers) and topped with flash fried sage. It was a really complex soup- very hearty and also had really interesting flavor combination. (And that is a good interesting, not the nice way of saying weird)

Dinner: Roasted Achiote Pork Loin with Prickly Pear Glaze (from The Gold Room at Westward Look Resort in Tucson, AZ- p. 148)
Roasted Corn and Sage Mashed Potatoes (from The Gold Room at Westward Look Resort in Tucson, AZ- p. 203)



Achiote is a paste of crushed achiote seeds, vinegar, garlic and various spices. It has a very distinctive flavor and is quite yummy. I combined it with oil and rubbed it on the pork loin, seared the pork on all sides in a cast iron pan and then finished roasting it in the oven. The prickly pear glaze was made by simmering prickly pear syrup, lime juice, jalapeno and a shallot and then straining to remove the solids. The flavor for me was interesting (and I am using that to indicate a little weird) but everyone else really seemed to love it. I think I was also a little put off because I thought it made the meat look bloody- which is never a good look for pork.

These were some pretty delicious mashed potatoes. I roasted the corn over the gas flames on my stove before I cut the kernels off the cob- a little messy but the flavor was delicious. Sadly, fresh corn is not in season, but I used frozen ears and they were still very good. These also had fresh sage, which was a great flavor combination with the crispy roasted corn kernels.

Dessert: The Rose Chocolate Mousse (from The Rose Restaurant in Prescott, AZ- pg. 222)



Desserts kinda scare me- I love to cook but sweets recipes make me nervous. They are generally very precise and have a lot less room for error. Especially a mousse- you have to separate eggs, whip egg whites and fold them into a chocolate/egg yolk mixture and then whip cream and fold that in as well. All the work was very worth it- it was light, fluffy, rich and delicious!