Over a year ago my friend Jenn and I donated a five-course family dinner as part of a silent auction event for Recovery On Water (ROW). Jenn and I wanted to contribute an item for the inaugural silent auction, but neither of us felt we had an artsy craft or piece of art to contribute. So, we decided to donate a sit-down family dinner that included prep, table setting, service, and clean-up in your own home!
The top-bidder for our dinner was an awesome woman named Jackie who couldn’t be more gracious or sweet. Once we settled on a date, I threw together the following menu:
Whiskey-Spiked Peach Tea
Creamy Heath Dip served with Granny Smith Apples
Layered Italian Pesto Dip Served with Crostinis
Braised Chicken in a Tarragon-Shallot Sauce
Wild Mushroom Tartlets
Asparagus with Prosciutto and Hollandaise Sauce
Blueberry Cream Torte
I picked up the groceries in the morning on the day of the event. I spent most of the morning and afternoon doing the prep work. This included chopping millions of shallots (I was crying like crazy!), making the mushroom filling for the tartlets, and preparing the two dips for the appetizers. Once the prep work was finished, I felt a lot more at ease knowing that all Jenn and I had to do once we arrived was assemble a few things and cook the chicken and the asparagus.
Of course, we got a little lost on the way to Jackie’s house, which made our timing a little interesting. But the whiskey-spiked tea and the generous amounts of appetizers held Jackie and her guests over until we were ready to serve the meal. Jackie’s kitchen is amazing. I now have something to strive toward. Complete with an eight-burner stove and shiny hood, warming drawers, two ovens….we were in heaven. The final preparation was a little hectic at times, mostly due to working in a space we were unfamiliar with (Where is her rolling pin? Where the heck does she keep her linen napkins? Which set of plates should we use? I need some tongs….).
All in all, the meal was pulled off without a snag. One of Jackie’s guests even asked the name of our catering company! Jackie and her husband were wonderful to cook for and truly made us feel at home cooking in their fantastic kitchen. Jenn and I will definitely donate another dinner at this year’s silent auction, and with this experience under our belts, maybe it’ll go for an even higher bid!
For photos, click here.