David's Birthday Dinner with Ina Inspiration

Well..I just got my second load of dishes going in the dishwasher, and only have one more load to do after this. We used a LOT of dishes at the dinner party last night! So here is the scoop--my two Ina recipes were wonderful made the day ahead and reheated. I will give you the details on each, and a couple things I would change. Here is the video of my guests...who were a little nervous about me videoing them, but I tried to make it more about the food and not them. However, I do wish I had the video camera running when they all took their first bite of the beef bourguignon--the room went quiet and then a soft symphony of mmm, oooh, augh...It was so funny--not a word said, just sounds.

Roasted-tomato basil soup was my first course. I served it with a wilted spinach salad and a homemade rosemary bread, and it all made a perfect first course. When I made the soup the day before, I didn't simmer it as long as the recipe said, because I knew it would be simmering a bit before I served it anyway. I felt the soup was just a bit salty...and I think next time I will not use the full amount of Kosher salt when roasting the tomatoes, just because the boxed broth and canned tomatoes added to the soup both come salty too. However, I am a little extra-sensitive to too much salt, so it may just be me. David thought it a little salty, but not in an unpleasant way--he didn't mind it. Even the guest that I know does not like tomatoes, and the one that doesn't eat seeds...all ate the soup, so I guess they either liked it or were really hungry!

I included a picture of my wilted spinach salad just because it was so pretty...but this recipe is not in Ina's book--it is a Cook's Illustrated recipe.

Next came the beef bourguignon: I was nervous about heating it up, not sure how well the meat would hold up. When you first cook it, the meat is browned, but very rare...and I didn't know if reheating it would possibly not get it cooked enough, or cook it too much. The reheating definately finished cooking it, and it was no longer bright pink inside...but it is a little touchy not to let it heat too long. You have to remember this is a very tender cut of meat, so you don't want to "stew" it. (And remember, you have an investment of a good hunk of money in this pot!) I served the beef with Basmati rice on the side. Because I was using flat plates and not a shallow bowl, I didn't put much of the sauce on the plate, as I thought that would look messy. However, after just a few bites, I jumped up and put some sauce in a gravy boat to pass around. The sauce is so good, you just want more of it.

So...then we finished off with Boston Cream Pie--not in the cookbook either, but a pretty dessert, so I will let you see a pic of that so you get a feel of the whole meal. And then I had to include my one causality--burning my hand taking the bread out of the oven...:)

David rated his 60th. birthday properly celebrated with a really good time. And the food blogging conversation seemed to add to the fun of it all. Our friends left with smiles and I had an enjoyable time too because I did all the hard work the day before! (That is my favorite thing about the recipes!)