It was a dark and snowy night, yet in a storefront in SoHud, a comforting light could be seen! 37 people gathered together to brave the cold and hopefully eat some good food. The scene was Wild Goose Creative, a relatively new space which hosts lots of great events of their own. I wanted something warm and cozy for our winter dinner, and the nice folks from Wild Goose seemed like a great choice. The lights are dimmable! And I could play music on their great sound system!
Pictures here were taken by my great helper Shelley! You can read HungryWoolf's account of the dinner here! If you have pictures or anything, please don't hesitate to share them with me and everyone else!
So, first up, the menu:
Snacks
Duck "prosciutto" cured by my friend Chef Drew Garms, of Details
Thurns' Country Liverwurst
caperberries, cornichons, mustard, and bread from Omega Artisan Bakery (NV Jean-Louis Denois Brut Blanc de Blanc)
Soup
Butternut Squash with Thai Red Curry & Coconut Milk (ill-fated, see below)
Salad
Arugula with Dried Ohio Tart Cherries and Thruns' Servelot Sausage, Lemon & Riesling Vinaigrette (2006 Château Noel-St. Laurent Côtes du Rhône)
Main
Box Wine-Braised Boneless Country Pork Ribs, Braised Red Cabbage, Potato & Rutabaga Gratin (Kinkead Ridge "Revelation" 2007 Ohio Red)
Dessert
Chocolate Espresso Crunch Cake
The guests arrived, and I babbled and passed out the snacks while Husband poured the bubbly.
So. I burned the soup. This happened either early in the day or when I first arrived at the dinner to reheat it, but at any rate, it burned. It's unfortunate, because I made the soup earlier in the week and then froze it, and on the day I made it, I ate about 3 bowls and it was very tasty. These things happen. Fortunately, I wasn't catering for anyone mean, and I think everyone was very understanding. No one stomped or pounded their fists on the table, you were all very nice and I thank you for it. *sigh*
I also confessed that the soup has always been a favorite of mine, and until this week, I've always thought it is a vegan soup and was so impressed with myself for thinking of it one day. When I was scooping out the red curry paste, I noticed that it contained shrimp paste, and my precious vegan soup hopes were dashed.
The first two wines are imported by some great Central Ohios, Pat & Connie Allen, who own United Estates. Anytime you see their mark on a bottle (above the label), you can pretty much guarantee a quality wine. A lot of the wines are also a great value. We have several of their wines on the list where I work and people are occasionally concerned to buy a $25 bottle of wine, but they are always worth it.
Here are some pictures of the dinner...
The space, all set up for dinner:
Guests, hopefully having fun:
Hey! I didn't get any Kinkead Ridge!!
And here's little Crumpet, helping me clean up my kitchen this morning. (Sorry kitty, but I had to!)
Thanks to everyone for coming, and thanks to Husband for sacrificing one of the most important games of the season to help me (Go Steelers!!), and thanks to Jen, Shelley, and Freddie for all of your help! Thanks to Snowville Creamery for providing the cream for the gratin, butter, and dessert, thanks to Jen for making the butter, thanks to Andy & Amanda from Wild Goose for all of your help setting up and tearing down, we loved the space and hope we can do it again!
If you also loved the space, please think about Wild Goose for your next event - the rent is very reasonable and comes with tables and chairs!!
Thank you thank you thank you!! I can't wait to do the next one!! (which, by the way, will be March 22nd at the Hills Market in Worthington! Space will be limited for that one; I will open the store sometime this week with fair warning!).
Recipes are forthcoming!!
