Supper Club

Last week, A & I invited eight of our favorite people for a casual backyard dinner party to enjoy the final days of summer.  We got lucky with a not-too-hot (for Austin) evening, fended off mosquitos by creating a perimeter of citronellas, and set a simple table with all-white dishes and brilliant blue hydrangeas.

Strings of glowing white lanterns created a touch of summer magic and provided enough light for us to linger way past dark.

I served a light & simple first course salad, with baby greens, sliced pears, & candied walnuts.  The main course was one of my favorite hearty pasta dishes: rigatoni with sausage, eggplant, & fresh mozzarella.  A perennial crowd-pleaser, this one is great for a group, since you can pop it in the oven as guests arrive, and 30 minutes later you have a feast.  Get the recipe here.

Although this iPhone-quality photo doesn’t fully do justice, the Dessert Bake-off was not only a decadent ending to the meal, it was a fun way to get our friends involved in the baking.  Each guest was presented with a sampler plate that included (clockwise from top) blackberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream, an eclair-inspired cake, mini cheesecakes with raspberry sauce & chocolate crust, tiny whoopie pies, & molten chocolate cakes with whipped cream.  After the dessert course (with a bit of port to wash it down) we voted for the winner, and the cheesecake took home the prize.

Beverages were kept close by so we weren’t constantly having to get up from the table to refill glasses.  White wine & Voss water chilled in an aluminum tub, while bottles of red wine adorned the table & provided a bit of Italian family-style ambience.  Nothing beats a beautiful summer night surrounded by friends and great food!