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| Table Setting for Bistro Dinner |
To many people Entertaining means putting out your finest china and crystal, and cooking a meal that you’ve cooked many times before.
Entertaining is so much more.
Entertaining isn’t just about fancy. It’s about graciousness and making your guests feel special and warm. You have to love every part of the process.
It’s about the entire experience you present to your lucky guests. From when your guests arrive at your home, until you say goodnight, you want everyone to feel welcomed. And you want them to have a unique experience.
The way you accomplish this…
Creating a theme is one of the most important ingredients for a successful evening. The theme sets the mood, the look and the taste. The food should also relate to the theme. Entertaining is about presentation. The planning and setting of the table, the drinks or wine you serve. The music you play.
Who you invite, the conversation, the stories that are told, making friendships that blossom.
The way you dress, your personality, your uniqueness, cleverness, hospitality and sense of humor, all add to the art of entertaining.
There are so many cookbooks. And more and more cookbooks are published every year. They give you an enormous repertoire of recipes to choose from but following a recipe is just a part of entertaining.
What they can’t give you is how to make the entire experience memorable and original. How you would like to present your entertaining style is what I am talking about.
As an example in each of my blog posts, I talk about the theme of my dinner and what I want it to be.
In France a bistro is a small, casual, work-day style café, known for hearty foods served in a cozy atmosphere.
My bistro themed dinner refers to a style of restaurant that is informal, unpretentious and relaxed in it’s setting. The foods served are simple meals of generous portions, and full of flavor. Comfort food that can be made in advance and just reheated the night of the party. The wine, like the dining in a bistro, should not be complicated or expensive.
Bistro Dinner Journal, November 15, 2011
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| The table was set with no tablecloth, and no placemats. Linen napkins, always. Casual French Pottery. No flowers, but gourds and votives. |
To set your bistro themed table, use your everyday plates with linen napkins, unfancy wine glasses, votive candles and a small vase of flowers. Wine bottle on table or in a pitcher.
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French Provencal flower pattern plates, terra cotta Italian hand painted pitcher for wine. The Menu: One main course: Braised Short Ribs over Polenta with a Side of Sauteed Spinach. Dessert: Apple Tart The Wine: A sturdy robust red from the Rhone Valley.  Short Ribs and Polenta Adapted from “The Mozza Cookbook” Very convenient for entertaining at home, since the ribs can be prepared a few days in advance. Braise them before dinner date and reheat. 6 beef short ribs- about 1 pound each 2 tablespoons kosher salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed 1 medium onion, cut up into large pieces 1 carrot, peeled and cut into 2 -inch pieces 1 celery rib, cut into 2-inch pieces 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1 tablespoon tomato past1 bottle dry red wine 1 14-ounce can San Marzano Italian plum tomatoes in their juices 4 cups Chicken Stock, plus more as needed 10 fresh thyme sprigs 10 fresh oregano sprigs 1 long rosemary sprig ½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms. Instant Polenta- Polenta is a native dish, orginated from Friuli, Italy. Polenta is made from boiled yellow or white cornmeal. It has a smooth, creamy texture ( you can prepare the polenta while you are reheating the short ribs). Easy! Place the short ribs in a large rectangular baking dish and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour, and up to overnight. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until oil is smoking. Place the short ribs in the pan and sear on all three sides, ( not necessary to sear bone side). Cook the meat until deep brown, about 5 minutes per side. Add more oil to the pan as needed. Sear in two batches if necessary. Remove short ribs to a platter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Reduce the heat to medium, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When almost smoking, add the onion, carrot, and celery and sauté, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft and the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly to prevent from browning. Move the vegetables to one side of the pan and add the tomato paste to the bare spot. Cook for 1 minute stirring, to caramelize the tomato paste slightly. Add the wine, increase the heat to high, and boil for about 20 minutes, until it is thick and jammy. Add the tomatoes and their juice and sauté for about 2 minutes to meld the flavors. Return the short ribs, bone side down to the pan. Add any juices that may have collected on the platter they were in and enough stock to come to the top edge of the short ribs. Nestle the thyme, oregano, and rosemary sprigs in the liquid around the meat. Wrap the dried porcini in a doubled piece of cheesecloth, and tie it into a bouquet with cooking twine. Tuck the bouquet between the ribs, making sure it is submerged in the liquid. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and place a lid on it. Place the short ribs in the oven and cook until the meat is fork tender and falling off the bones, about 3 hours. Remove the short ribs from the oven and remove the foil, but be careful not to burn yourself from the steam. Set aside to let the short ribs cool in the braising liquid for at least 30 minutes. Remove the short ribs from the liquid to a platter. Pour the contents of the pan, including the veggies and the bouquet, through a fine sieve and extract as much juice as you can from them. Remove the porcini from the cheesecloth and add the mushrooms to the braising liquid. Discard the rest of the veggies. You can prepare the short ribs to this point up to five days in advance. Refrigerate the short ribs in the braising liquid, until you are ready to serve it. Proceed as below. If you plan on serving right away, remove the short ribs to a platter. Remove the meat from the bone and any sinewy tissue that connects the meat to the bone. Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat, and simmer until the liquid is the consistency of a thick glaze, stirring occasionally and it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. To Serve: Spoon polenta in the center of each plate. Place one or two short ribs on top of the polenta and ladle a generous ½ cup of sauce over the short rib. Divide the porcini evenly among the servings and serve any remaining sauce on the side. A much simpler recipe(for Short Ribs), but yummy too, is adapted from "The Silver Palate Cookbook" Serves 6 4 pounds beef short ribs 3 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 5 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped 1 ½ cups canned Italian plum tomatoes, with juice 3 medium carrots, cut into ½-inch pieces 1 medium onion, roughly chopped 8 whole cloves 1/ cup chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley ¾ cup red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons tomato paste 2 tablespoons brown sugar ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper 3 cups Beef Stock Sprinkle 2 teaspoons salt and 2 teaspoons pepper over short ribs. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat until it smokes. Sear ribs, 3 or 4 at a time, till browned on all sides. Remove the ribs and set aside when done. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Return half the ribs to the casserole. Sprinkle with half of the garlic. Layer half of the vegetables over the meat. Add the cloves and half of the parsley. Add the rest of the ribs and the remaining vegetables. In a bowl mix together the vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, the remaining teaspoon of salt and cayenne. Pour over the meat and vegetables. Add the beef stock just to cover the ribs. Cover the Dutch Oven and over medium heat, bring to a boil. Bake in the oven for 1 ½ hours. Uncover and bake for 1 ½ hours longer, or until the meat is very tender and falling off the bone. Serve over mashed potatoes(alternative to polenta). I have enjoyed making Bistro style dinner parties over the years... Here is one from 1997: A French Bistro Dinner  Menu Main Course: Blanquette de Veau, Rice Pilaf and Buttered Peas. Composed Salad with endive, red leaf lettuce, watercress, baked sliced red comice pears, walnuts and roquefort cheese. Wine: A soft, round white Meursault.  Dessert: A classic chocolate mousse with chantilly cream. I hope you have many warm and hearty dinner parties this Winter. Next Sunday's post will be from a 1995 journal "Twas the Night Before Christmas" Cocktail Party. As always, xxoo Sheila |
One of my very favorite meals anyway, but this brings it home! I can smell it and taste it, and feel like I'm sitting right there enjoying a great meal with wonderful friends. The whole package, as always.
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