Friday was a special day for many reasons: It was the first day of summer break, I went to the DMV to change my last name, and we had family over for dinner to thank them for their love and support with our wedding back in March. Since the dinner was to celebrate the wedding, I thought it fitting to use our new china. (I've also been looking for an excuse!) Mike and I were very fortunate to receive all 12 place settings and 11 set of silverware. We registered for Waterford's 'Ballet Ribbon' at Bed Bath & Beyond though I know some family members purchased some on sale at Macy's.
Our guest list included both of my parents, my Nanna, and Mike's mom. Mike's dad was out of town for business. I set the table with our Lenox 'Chirp' tablecloth and used the dinner plates, salad plates, platter, and serving dish from the set as well as our matching silverware and Ridel Syrah glasses. We were directed towards the syrah glasses because our 'registry helper' said they would be good for both white and red wine. I don't know if that is 100% true, but it works for me for now! Since our tablecloth had birds on it, I made up some quick, cute place cards with birdcages on them to add a special touch. My napkin rings already looked like bird nests and I borrowed cloth napkins that one of my great-grandmothers had embroidered.
My menu included:
Chevre with honey and candied pecans
The 'Wedding Salad' as we call it since it was served on our big day. Spinach, cranberries, candied pecans, crumbled goat cheese, and poppyseed dressing!
Chicken with Prosciutto and Marsala Wine Sauce. I baked the chicken with the proscuitto on it for about 40 minutes and it was perfect! The recipe for the marsala wine sauce was found here and was delicious.
Asparagus Risotto
Onions Stuffed with Pecorino Cheese. Mike and I learned how to make this in our cooking class in Florence. I will revisit and share the recipe on a later date!
Dessert was a beautiful chocolate cake that my mommy made and Nanna provided the bread!
Since there was a sort of Italian theme going on, I purchased Chianti from Lamole Lamole Winery in the Chianti region of Tuscany. A few notes on Chianti that we learned in our wine class in Siena at the Tuscan Wine School:
~ If the bottle says 'Chianti Classico' it is from the Chianti region. If not, it is from somewhere else in the world.
~ Farmers are not allowed to irrigate their grapes in Italy. This means that their harvest heavily depends on the weather.
~ If the bottle says 'reserve' it means the wine aged 2 years in a barrel.
~ The same type of grape at the base of a hill has a different taste as one higher on the hill.
~ To truly know that you have a bottle from Tuscany, there needs to be a label around the top of the bottle that says DOCG or Denominazione di origine controllata ("Controlled designation of origin") and have a black rooster on it.
I'd have to say the most difficult part was timing all the food! I got so caught up with what I wanted to make that I didn't really plan anything that I could make ahead of time. I did my best but it came to the point where I was sitting in the living room waiting for the time that I could begin cooking. Once I began, I was a madwoman running all over the kitchen (think Meryl Streep in Julie&Julia when she is cooking pasta while Stanley Tucci (Paul) is writing a letter!) I got very lucky though! Everything was done at 6:30pm on the dot right when everyone walked in. Needless to say the cheese appetizer became part of the dessert course! Everyone seemed happy and full at the end of the meal.
"All great change in America begins at the dinner table."
~ Ronald Reagan
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