A leaving celebration dinner? I suppose it could be misconstrued our friends were pleased to see us (and our dog) leave after 2 weeks staying with them. Our dowager dog was a little unfriendly and ungrateful towards their hospitable young playful dog and she stayed in her room and out of his way where possible! Anyway, they announced they were holding a leaving dinner for us. I love cooking but I especially love having food cooked for me. And any excuse to enjoy D's fine cooking is fine with me. She said it was to be a little retro and a little of the 'different, unusual, nice' - still fine with me I said, really, really looking forward to it I said! We were not disappointed.
First course was a classic crayfish and prawn cocktail, SO YUM!
The crayfish reminded me of happy summer camping holidays at south Beach in Kaikoura - a place well known for its scenic beauty where the mountains meet the sea and of course for the plethora of seafood available. In those days crayfish was not the price of a small car and if you were lucky enough to know someone who dived, you could cook them really fresh straight from the sea. As we passed through Kaikoura on our way home, I planned to grab a photo for this blog but unfortunately the weather was cloudy and overcast. In spite of that I was pleasantly surprised when I got home, unaware of it at the time the shot of the bay in the 'milky' sun included a seagull in flight, I really like it.
Second course was a middle eastern flavoured dish D had experienced at a restaurant, she worked out the ingredients and made it for us. I just love pomegranates, such a beautiful colour and I am so pleased they seem easier to get nowadays.
This dish is so surprisingly simple and delicious.
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| Smear dessertspoon of hummus onto dinner plate |
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| Add lamb mince well cooked with seasoning, cumin, garlic and pomegranate molasses |
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| Sprinkle chopped parsley and coriander on top |
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| Add pomegranate seeds as a garnish |
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| Serve with flat bread |
Finally dessert, vanilla ice-cream softened and blended with rose water with Turkish Delight ( D included a few maltesers) stirred through, frozen in a mould and served decorated with a gorgeous garnish of pomegranate seeds - in season right now - just wonderful!
All washed down with a number of perfectly matched wines.
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| The chewy Turkish delight was heaven in the ice-cream |
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I want to give this recipe my twist as my daughter gave me a box of chocolate coated Turkish Delight at Christmas. She knows it is my favourite and has given me a box at Christmas for as long as I can remember. I think pistachios would look and taste good too so I think I might try that option.
I need to buy a jelly mould, the only one I have is a antique glass one in the shape of a rabbit, which is perfectly appropriate for children's parties but not so for grownup dinner parties, I don't think it would look quite right!
Watch this space and in the meantime, thank you again D and M for your wonderful hospitality and friendship over the holidays.
The crayfish reminded me of happy summer camping holidays at south Beach in Kaikoura - a place well known for its scenic beauty where the mountains meet the sea and of course for the plethora of seafood available. In those days crayfish was not the price of a small car and if you were lucky enough to know someone who dived, you could cook them really fresh straight from the sea. As we passed through Kaikoura on our way home, I planned to grab a photo for this blog but unfortunately the weather was cloudy and overcast. In spite of that I was pleasantly surprised when I got home, unaware of it at the time the shot of the bay in the 'milky' sun included a seagull in flight, I really like it.
Second course was a middle eastern flavoured dish D had experienced at a restaurant, she worked out the ingredients and made it for us. I just love pomegranates, such a beautiful colour and I am so pleased they seem easier to get nowadays.
This dish is so surprisingly simple and delicious.
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