An Elegant Dinner Party at my Home
This past Tuesday evening, I hosted a dinner party at my home for some business clients. It was a relatively small affair with the table set for ten. Since I was at work all day long, I arranged for my friend, Chef Pierre Schaedelin, to share his expertise in my kitchen. Together, we came up with a perfect autumn menu. The first course was a saffron risotto with porcini and chanterelle mushrooms. That was followed by seared lamb chops with celeriac purée, wilted spinach, and baby carrots. The dessert course was apple tarte tatin with quince sorbet. It was an evening of good company and great food!
1 These beautifully fragrant quince, which Pierre turned into an amazing quince sorbet for dessert, grew on trees that I planted at Turkey Hill, my old home in Westport, Connecticut. Levi, who was my gardener, still works there and thoughtfully gives me quince every autumn.
2 Pierre was able to find beautiful porcini mushrooms to serve with his saffron risotto. Porcinis are highly prized as an ingredient in many soups, pastas, and risottos.
3 He was also able to find beautiful and meaty orange chanterelles. With their fruity smell and mild peppery flavor, chanterelles are another terrific edible mushroom.
4 To make a great risotto, one needs to use a high-starch, short-grain rice, which has the ability to absorb liquids and release starch, giving a creamy characteristic to the dish. Arborio and carnaroli are both good choices.
5 Saffron risotto requires a good amount of vibrant saffron threads.
6 Other risotto ingredients included diced onion and a rich mushroom stock.
7 For the seared lamb chops, Pierre's meat purveyor provided meaty chops. Pierre neatly trimmed each one in the French manner, stripping the meat away from the bones, giving an attractive presentation when the food is plated.
8 Pierre browned all of the lamb trimmings with onion and then added water to make a rich lamb stock for a demi-glace.
9 One of the vegetables to be served with the lamb was a celeriac purée from the garden. Celeriac is a variety of celery, appreciated for its edible root, which has a pleasant celery flavor.
10 The celeriac was neatly trimmed and placed in a bowl of cold water to prevent browning before cooking.
11 There were also young carrots from the garden.
12 Pierre left the carrot stems intact, but carefully trimmed around them.
13 Did I mention that the quince were fragrant?
14 Here they are cooking down into a purée for the sorbet, filling the kitchen with an amazing aroma!
15 Pierre requested that apples be picked as well, for dessert.
16 Here he is peeling...
17 And trimming.
18 A little butter melted in a skillet
19 The apples, coated with sugar, were added to the melted butter.
20 The apples were tossed as they gently browned.
21 How beautiful!
22 Meanwhile, Pierre caramelize sugar in a saucepan.
23 A bit of that caramel was spooned into the bottoms of a muffin tin.
24 The sautéed apples were artfully arranged over the caramel.
25 And then baked in a hot oven.
26 Pierre saved all of the extra caramel from the sautéed apples.
27 A pâte brisée was rolled out.
28 Pastry rounds were cut.
29 The pastry rounds were placed over the baked apples.
30 The pan was returned to the oven until the rounds baked to a golden brown.
31 Next, the softened quince were blended.
32 The purée was passed through a chinoise, or China cap, which is made of a very fine mesh, producing a very smooth texture.
33 Pierre mixed the purée with water and sugar and when the liquid was quite chilled, it was placed in an ice-cream maker.
34 The ice cream maker transformed the liquid into an amazing sorbet, which was removed from the machine and placed in the freezer.
35 The porcinis were sautéed in olive oil.
36 As were the chanterelles.
37 The onions were sautéed for the risotto and the rice added to the pot.
38 Pierre pulverized the saffron threads to really bring out the fabulous flavor and color.
39 The saffron was added to the risotto.
40 And then some of the mushroom stock
41 As Pierre stirred and cooked, the risotto turned a vibrant golden color.
42 The porcini and chanterelles were combined and reheated.
43 The cooked risotto was spooned into individual serving dishes, topped with the sautéed mushrooms, and garnished with chopped parsley.
44 Pierre embellished with thinly shaved fresh porcini.
45 It was time to season the chops with coarse salt and freshly ground pepper.
46 Working with three hot skillets, Pierre seared the lamb on both sides over a very hot flame.
47 That searing process cooks the meat on the exterior. Pierre finishes the cooking just before plating the food.
48 The carrots were braised in a little water and butter.
49 The spinach was wilted.
50 The celeriac purée gently heated
51 The plated lamb chops with the celeric purée, wilted spinach, and baby carrots topped with a rich demi-glace made from the lamb stock - Perfectly delicious!
52 The tarte tatins were removed from the baking tin and inverted on their pastry bases.
53 The apple tart tatin with quince sorbet garnished with apple leaves - Perfectly refreshing!
54 The table was set with antique Wedgwood china with an elegant autumnal theme.
55 Another view
56 Sanu Sherpa and Laura Acuna love when Pierre comes to cook in the kitchen and he really appreciates all of their help!
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
Delicious-looking food and a beautiful table. What more could your guests ask for?
Gloria G!!
Posted by: Gloria | October 25th, 2012 at 12:13 am
The table looks so pretty Martha, what interesting place settings! What a perfect menu for an Autumn dinner, Chef Pierre always does such a fantastic job. Oh, to have a taste of the quince sorbet and mushroom risotto!
Posted by: Cindy F | October 25th, 2012 at 7:39 am
Thank you for this menu, looks good and I will try this for tonight's dinner.
Posted by: Isayo | October 25th, 2012 at 7:50 am
You inspire me.
Posted by: April | October 25th, 2012 at 8:10 am
Hi Martha! I really enjoyed this very detailed blog posting with all of the step-by-step by pictures. It was very educating and empowering, making me feel like I could try making this dinner for my parents. Everything was relatively simple, but so incredibly elegant. Of course I am no Pierre, but I really do think this menu could be tackled by any confident home cook. Thanks so much for your inspiration!
Posted by: Walter | October 25th, 2012 at 8:20 am
Martha, the food looks goooooooood! Thanks for sharing this blog!
Posted by: KLBrown | October 25th, 2012 at 8:32 am
The menu looks delicious and the table setting is gorgeous. I'd love a dinner party at Martha's!
Posted by: Sharon @ Red Poppy | Pink Peony | October 25th, 2012 at 8:40 am
Pierre always does a beautiful job and your table looked very elegant. I also liked your serving dishes for the risotto. Trish
Posted by: Trish | October 25th, 2012 at 8:59 am
Hi Martha, WOW! What a beautiful elegant dinner party this was at your home in Bedford! Being so busy, it was fabulous that you had Pierre, Sanu, and Laura at your home to cook such a fantastic dinner party! Pierre is an absolutely outstanding chef and he certainly produces the most delicious foods anytime you need him! I think we could call this blog "Chef Pierre Schaedelin's Cooking School!" It would be fun to see him on PBS, also! I love seeing your Cooking School on PBS as often as possible and every show is magnificent! These photos make me so hungry and my mouth is watering! Sure would love to be there and the kitchen and dinner table are also gorgeous! Was so great to hear you live on Sirius XM 110 again yesterday! I am on my computer and Sirius Radio everyday to learn something new from you and you inspire me so much! Thanks for all you for us! Hope you have another great day! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | October 25th, 2012 at 9:54 am
After reading this "menu" all I can think is =-= what am I going to have for lunch? nothing will measure up in any way, shape or taste. Delish
Posted by: Susan | October 25th, 2012 at 10:11 am
Love it! Thanks for making the ordinary something special.
Posted by: Audrey | October 25th, 2012 at 11:46 am
Tears of joy... and inspiration. What a colorful dinner! Do you still have dreams about it Martha?
Posted by: David | October 25th, 2012 at 12:20 pm
Martha,
The dinner looks wonderful. Your new dining room table looks great. The dark wood will really showcase your beautiful china. I can't wait until your new furniture line is introduced. I have put our decorating projects on a back burner until I can see the whole collection.
Posted by: Brian | October 25th, 2012 at 12:36 pm
Another lovely dinner, Martha. Lovely autumnal ingredients and the perfect Bedford fall setting--all so inspiring. Kudos to Chef Pierre and his helpers for producing such a wonderful meal. And thank you for sharing. Your's is my favorite blog!
Posted by: BG in SF | October 25th, 2012 at 4:02 pm
Looks like you had a wonderful evening what a beautiful table setting! How are the new kittens doing, i hope they are getting along with the other cats, will you please show new pictures of the kittens they are so darling! thank you, Jennifer.
Posted by: jennifer mcalinden | October 25th, 2012 at 6:56 pm
Everything looks just perfect! Love the china!
Posted by: Beth | October 25th, 2012 at 8:09 pm
Hi Martha
Your dinner really enchanted me. The lovely table was perfect. You are a great hostess.
Posted by: Maria Lúcia | October 25th, 2012 at 8:56 pm
I didn't realize you were having a new collection of furniture. When is it expected?
Posted by: Barbara | October 25th, 2012 at 9:40 pm
I love you so Martha.
Posted by: burak | October 25th, 2012 at 10:45 pm
Please share the source for the gilded ramekins. Beautiful!
Posted by: Cynthia | October 26th, 2012 at 8:29 am
I cannot find any of your TV shows in my area. What network is carrying your shows. I miss starting my day with your show. My zip code is 29666.
Thanks, Marie
Posted by: Marie B. Miller | October 26th, 2012 at 10:12 am
Wow amazing menu, everything looks delcious
Have a wonderful weekend xo
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | October 28th, 2012 at 3:44 am
That was so beautiful. The Turks make a sweet drink out of quince they call composto. They flavor it with cloves.
Posted by: Karen | October 28th, 2012 at 11:43 pm
The plate with the apple tart tatin and quince sorbet... Can anybody identify the manufacturer and pattern for me?
Posted by: Scott Trudell | October 30th, 2012 at 12:00 am
So wonderful to see your pictures, bring to life what can be tried, and shared.
Posted by: Malene Heim | October 30th, 2012 at 4:34 pm
What a beautiful spread of food!
Posted by: Peggy | November 7th, 2012 at 6:40 am
I LOVE the start-to-finish demonstration of ALL of it, and/but mainly the dessert. LOVELY. NATURAL. Fancy finish. Not processed. (clapping)
Posted by: Valerie | November 17th, 2012 at 3:44 pm
I love lamb chops. Lamb is a underrated meat.
Posted by: Tim | December 28th, 2012 at 7:19 pm
The plate with the apple tart tatin and quince sorbet... Can anybody identify the manufacturer and pattern for me?
Posted by: krishna | February 5th, 2013 at 10:43 am