I had a blast this weekend, preparing an enormous meal for friends on Saturday night. I planned this two weeks in advance using my amazing Food of Italy cookbook which is an authentic guide to Italian cooking, with gorgeous photography thrown in.
I am also lucky to have a Waitrose supermarket nearby, which is committed to high-quality, fresh produce and unusual cooking ingredients. So I could arrive there knowing full-well they would have fennel bulbs, aubergine, a rack of pork, porcini mushrooms, fresh chorizo sausage, Parmiggiano Reggiano, etc.
This is the menu I planned:
Antipasti
Red Peppers stuffed with Mozarella
Chargrilled Fresh English Asparagus wrapped in Prosciutto
Scallops and Chorizo
Grilled Marinaded Aubergine on Bruchetta
Cherry tomatoes with Basil and Balsamic Vinegar
Olives
Second Course
Wild Mushroom Risotto
Meat Course
Roast Rack of Pork with Fennel
Dessert
Italian Pear Tart with Marscapone Cream
Coffee with Chocolate Biscotti
Suffice to say, we were all stuffed full at the end of the meal. It was such fun to make, and even better to eat. Here are some photos during preparation. If you want to know what the end product looks like, you'll have to buy the cookbook!
