Party food - Menu pentru petrecere

This post is not about something recent, the party was back in April, and the pictures were taken then, but since at that time i wasn't yet ready to start this blogging affair, i saved them in a folder. Honestly, i was thinking i'll have the time to re-make some of the food to take new pictures, but until now, i didn't get to do it. Maybe later on, and then i'll edit the post to add the new pics.

First, about the party. It was meant to be a surprise birthday party for my friend Lily, even though it was a week after her B-day. On her birthday we went to her house for dinner, gave her the gift and she really didn't expect anything else after that. We planned it for a couple of weeks. Claudia, her daughter was supposed to get the flowers and decorations, then together with my sister to clean and set up our place for the party, while i was in charge with the food. Everything was planned, when my dear husband, while chatting with Lily three days before the party said: "so, we'll see you at the party Saturday". He knew it was supposed to be a surprise, but somehow forgot Lily is the only one who shouldn't know about it!! He called both me and Claudia immediately to appologize, i think he was actually affraid how mad we'll be, and to repair the damage we told Lily that he meant to say "we are having a BBQ on Saturday, see you then", but he got it wrong. While we were thinking that the surprise was ruined and Lily will no longer be surprised, she actually wasn't paying attention to Gabriel when he said party, and all our worries were for nothing. The only worry we should have had it was that Saturday, Lily was so tired after her work day, that she thought a BBQ is not worth all the trouble and she wasn't lanning to come to my house. She had a bad day, she couldn't wait to go home and get in bed. I don't remember why Gabriel dropped Clara at her house that day, but if it wasn't for the fact that i asked her to bring her back home instead of us going to pick her up, Lily wouldn't have come at all. We had no clue about this until it was after 7 o'clock and Lily wasn't showing up. We kept on calling her to make sure she is coming, otherwise, the three buckets of flowers Claudia bought that morning from the flower market downtown ( for which she had to wake up at 6 am on a Saturday morning), the hours spent by her and my sister decorating and then helping me, and the hours i worked in the kitchen were in vain. I mean we could have managed to eat everything and enjoy the party, but this was not meant for us, it was meant to celebrate Lily, and thank her for the wonderful friend she is, hoping to make her feel special.

That's why, in spite of all the worries, it was actually a big surprise. So big, that for about two minutes she didn't understand what are we celebrating. And that this was really for her. And that she had no clue whatsoever, and she almost missed everything. After those two minutes, the party was on, and Lily got the message - we love her dearly and she deserves ten times more than this.

Here is what we had that night:

- Tartines with pork tenderloin and a celery - carrot remoulade
- Mini savory palms with an olive -roasted red bell pepper - parmesan - parsley stuffing

- Cucumber cups with whipped cream cheese, cured salmon, shallot, dill and capers

- Crab Salad

- Beets and cheese "cake" - layers of roasted beets and feta - ricotta - dill with crackers

- Black Forrest prosciutto with cantaloupe

- Squid ink pasta with shrimp

- Chicken "Lollipops" with herbed couscous and roasted mini squash/ zucchini with feta crumbs and basil

- Napoleons with vanilla custard and strawberries (really sorry for the blurry photo, but i'll make it again very soon, when i'll post the recipe too).

Since this post is long enough, I think i'll break them down in different posts, at least the ones that have kind of a recipe to write about. There was nothing extraordinary about the cucumber-salmon bites and the cantaloupe-prosciutto combination, or about the beet & cheese "cake" with the crackers, but i knew our friends would like them. The rest, to be continued....

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Postul acesta e cu poze vechi, de la o petrecere surpriza in Aprilie. Am salvat atunci pozele, si am tot zis ca o sa ajung sa le postez si poate chiar sa refac bucatele pentru niste poze mai bune, dar nu am apucat pana acum.

Petrecerea surpriza a fost pentru ziua Lilianei, prietena noastra. Chiar de ziua ei fusesem la cina impreuna, i-am dat cadoul si nu se mai astepta la nimic dupa aceea. Dar noi vorbisem cu fata ei Claudia sa ii facem petrecerea la 3 zile dupa, la noi acasa. Am planificat totul cu saptamani inainte, si a ramas Claudia o sa cumpere florile, decoratiile si sa aranjeze casa noastra cu sora-mea, iar eu ma ocup de mancare. Numai ca scumpul si dragul meu sot s-a scapat si i-a spus Lilianei ca ne vedem la petrecere Sambata, iar noi ca sa dregem busuiocul am zis ca ne-am gandit sa punem de un gratar la noi Sambata, si Gabi i-a zis din greseala petrecere. Ne-am facut noi griji sa nu cumva sa se fi prins, cand de fapt Lili nici nu-l auzise bine pe Gabi, si habar n-avea de nimic. De fapt, nu numai ca nu avea habar, dar dupa o zi lunga la lucru sambata aia, s-a gandit nici sa nu vina la noi. Noroc ca Gabi a lasat-o pe Clara la ea, si am insistat noi sa o aduca ea inapoi, altfel toata munca noastra ar fi fost de pomana (Claudia a fost la 6 dimineata in piata de flori si a venit cu 3 galeti acasa, iar dupa-amiaza a muncit cu sora-mea sa aranjeze totul si m-au ajutat in bucatarie, in timp ce eu am petrecut jumatate de zi cu pregatitul). Nu ca nu am fi fost noi in stare sa consumam totul, dar ideea e ca totul a fost pentru ea, sa-i multumim pentru prietenia ei si sa o sarbatorim.

Lili a ajuns la noi dupa 7 jumate seara si in primele doua minute nu a inteles pentru cine era surpriza si de ce e casa aranjata asa frumos. Se uita la noi, la flori, la masa, de parca nimic nu facea sens. Dupa cateva minute, pupaturi si imbratisari, din nou, am inceput petrecerea, iar Lili a primit mesajul - ne e tare draga si merita chiar de zece ori mai mult, mai ales de ziua ei.

Meniul a fost:

- Tartine cu muschiulet de porc si salada de telina si morcov

- Mini plamieri cu umplutura de masline- ardei copt- parmesan- patrunjel

- Cupe de castraveti cu spuma de Philadelphia, somon, ceapa rosie (esalota), marar si capere

- Salata de crab

- "Tort" de sfecla si branza telemea- ricotta - marar cu biscuiti

- Prosciutto cu pepene galben

- Paste negre ( cu cerneala de sepia) si creveti

- "Acadele" de pui la gratar, couscous aromat si mini dovlecei la cuptor cu telemea si busuioc

- Cremsnit cu vanilie si capsuni (scuze pentru calitatea pozei atat de incetosate, dar o sa le fac in curand din nou si o sa postez atunci reteta si pun alta poza).

Si pentru ca postul asta e destul de lung deja, o sa am altele separate pentru fiecare din mancarurile care au un fel de reteta. Nu a fost nimic iesit din comun in ce priveste castravetii cu somon, prosciutto cu pepene galben si sfecla cu branza si ( mai ales biscuti), dar sunt combinatii care stiu ca le plac prietenilor nostri. In rest, o sa vina continuarea....