Entertaining

Matt and I got the chance last night to host our first true party. We themed it as a Hipster party and asked everyone to dress up in whatever hipster-like clothes they could find, and then also act pompous for the duration of the evening.

It was also a chance for Matt and I to cook a lot of really amazing food. For each course we had wine pairings, and since it was a hipster party, there was of course plenty of PBR.

Appetizers:

Assorted hard and soft cheeses

Crackers and freshly baked bread

Roasted red pepper strips stuffed with goat cheese

Roasted cajun-spiced chickpeas

Prosciutto

Grapes, oranges, apples, blood oranges

Green and Black Greek Olives

Tomato tapenade paste

Dried fruits

Cut up sausage (we are in Germany, after all)

Homemade granola (brought by a guest!)

wine pairing: choice of white from Greece, red Côtes du Rhône, or an aperitif, an Aperol Spritz (Matt found this and boy is it good and easy!)

Here's a shot before everyone started digging in. We got to use our fancy cheese tray and knifes, had our French tea towels out, and new wine aerator.

First course:

Peanut butter and brambleberry jam sandwiches

Carbonara-flavored potato chips

wine pairing: Blackberry Merlot

Second course:

Sweet and sour chicken bites

Wasabi coleslaw

Eggrolls (brought by a guest!)

wine pairing: Japanese plum wine

Third course:

Meatloaf sandwiches on freshly baked rolls

Horseradish garlic cream spread

Caramelized onions

Green beans wrapped in bacon, drizzled with truffle oil vinaigrette

wine pairing: red Bordeaux from France

Mmm, meatloaf. Matt doesn't usually go for it the first day, but making it the second day and putting a bit of a crust on it while reheating in the pan and shoving it into a roll? That he can get behind.

At this point we took a mini break and did a white elephant style gift exchange. Most gifts were of the drinking variety and only one person "stole" a gift, so I think people were happy enough with what they selected.

Dessert course:

Gingerbread cake

Banoffee pie (made by a guest, from scratch)

Scones with homemade strawberry jam and clotted cream (brought by a guest!)

Assorted cupcakes (brought by a guest)

wine pairing: Asti Spumante from Italy

Suffice it to say, even though we had 12 people gobble up plenty of food and put away no less than 6 bottles of wine plus over a dozen PBRs, there's still some leftovers I'm currently enjoying. By my count we must have enjoyed food or wine purchased or brought from at least 6 different countries and everything tasted so delicious. Matt made the sides for the second and third courses and did a really great job. I think those and a few others are going to be added to our meal rotations.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to work on these leftovers, party cleanup, and starting my third grad school class. More to report on that front for Wednesday.