The ones above were baked especially for my parents Golden Wedding celebrations last weekend...toasted pecan with lots of gold glitter!
On Good Friday, I traditionally bake something for our neighbours as an Easter gift. Last year it was hot cross buns. This time, I made loaves of the Colomba Pasqualina mixture that I described in my last post. I left them to rise slowly overnight and baked them first thing on Friday morning...then wrapped and delivered them to 6 houses while still warm...
It was a surprise...and everyone was very pleased & delighted! I have had some beautiful 'thank-you' cards this week. We have two sets of next door neighbours...the wonderful gentleman to our right is in his '90's, dapper & sprightly. He answered the door in his floor length, satin edged dressing gown & elegant velvet slippers....perfect!
Mum & Dad's party went so well, too, on Easter Saturday. 18 of their closest friends & family gathered for lunch cooked by moi. Of course, I was too busy to take pictures....& I confess that I actually forgot until it was too late - except for dessert!
I planned a middle-eastern inspired feast...as it is our family's favourite region for food. Nigella Lawson's Sephardi Roast Lamb, Sticky Garlic Potatoes & Involtini (all taken from her fabulous book 'Feast') & Ottolenghi's French Bean & Mange Touts with Hazelnuts & Orange plus (slightly adapted) Fennel & Pomegranate Salad with Sumac...I made an extra side dish of the jewelled rice stuffing from the lamb, so that everyone could have more. It looked and tasted absolutely gorgeous!
Puddings...
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Fresh raspberry almond tart with creme fraiche...
those brownies....
and, of course,
a special cake! I am the first to admit that the decorations here are not the most sophisticated I have produced...but my almost-4-year-old nephew was very eager to help...& I know that it meant all the more to my parents for that haphazard sprinkling of the glitter by their youngest grandson!
The flavour was lemon - a special request from my Mum - filled with home-made lemon curd. Light & delicious and the perfect end to a memorable celebration!
Last night we had a couple of close friends over for dinner - my favourite kind of evening. Easy & relaxed & fun - and I wanted the food to reflect that. So I cooked some 'real Mexican' from Thomasina Miers' lovely book 'Mexican Food made simple'. Lamb Barbecoa (a slow-cooked dish with the complex flavours of smoky ancho chilis, very dark chocolate & red wine amongst others) Green Rice (a revelation...a paste of onion, garlic, fresh coriander & flat leaf parsley is used to add a beautiful jade colour and fresh taste to simple rice - I will be using this a lot) & a pickled 'slaw' accompaniment made from white cabbage, radishes & red onion sliced paper-thin and dressed with olive oil, sherry vinegar, more coriander & my own addition of pomegranate molasses...which cut through the rich, strong flavours of the lamb beautifully.
Afterwards, Ottolenghi's Chocolate Fudge Cake which is a deep, dark yet mousse-y flourless confection that sparked many compliments (from the first book, Ottolenghi The Cookbook) Highly recommended & very simple to make. I added some pecans crumbled on top before the final baking, for a little crunch (I can never resist tweaking recipes, as you'll have noticed!)
So, I collected my new supply of brownie chocolate on Friday...100kg, in large, white sacks of 25kg each. They will last me about 4 weeks at this busy time of year...so I'd better get on with it!
Wishing you a wonderful week xo
Yum, yum and yum Wish I could have been there to see everyone but also to enjoy your beautiful exsquisite cooking.It all looks so wonderful.xxxxxxxxxx
ReplyDeleteThose brownies... All your dessert look delicious, but those brownies I am most curious about, only because this blog is called "Baking Brownies for Mozart".
ReplyDeleteI can't tell if I'm hungrier or more full experiencing all that. It sounds SO wonderful. Maybe I could be the girl toy of your elegant, aged neighbor so I'd be on your list of invitees! Wow there's an image!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness Rachel; this all sounds so delightful and so complex. So many flavors and so many things I've never tried before----you are wonderful in the kitchen!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm quite certain that your mum and dad just had a fantastic 50th celebration!!! How fantastic! And I must agree with you that the dusting of the glitter is much more appreciated from a grandchild's hand than the perfection we may attempt from our own...
Bravo...once again!!
xoxo
Joann
Ohhh, so much chocolate - hard to imagine! You have indeed had an even busier time of it than usual, but it all sounds quite delightful. I am very tempted to move in next door.
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