If we were living in a perfect world (and by perfect world I mean a world where every kitchen appliance and gadget was free) I would absolutely, 100% stock my kitchen with just about everything that Viking makes. If I had one of their GORGEOUS gas ranges in my kitchen (instead of my tiny hotplate!!) I don’t think I would ever leave…you could find me glued to my perfect (18,500 BTU) gas range!
Isn’t it amazing!! Ok, enough dreaming- on to the date night! Some of our best friends, Chris and Michelle invited us to join them at one of the best dinner parties I can possibly think of- a date night at the Viking Cooking school, put on by some friends of theirs. Of course, when I heard the words “Chris and Michelle” “Viking” and “date night” in one sentence, I got extremely excited about the night ahead- and for good reason! *side note- we temporarily halted our vegan eating for this wonderful extravaganza!
Our night started with a lovely display of wines, cheeses and Pellegrino (one of my favorite drinks-all natural, no added anything-but still fizzy and special) and then quickly moved in to the appetizer portion of the meal- seared scallops with an apricot-horsradish sauce. Scallops are one of my favorite proteins…and though I got a little nervous when they called the audience up to cook them (scallops are super hard to cook perfectly) they were amazing. Crispy on the outside, sweet and tender on the inside. YUM!
The scallops were definitely my favorite part of the meal- but the most fun part came next! Michelle and I got to help prepare the salad!
It was a light and crisp Mediterranean panzanella. I have tasted panzanella before and honestly not loved it. It was far to bread-y and soggy for my taste- but this one was different. If was FULL of fresh veggies.
We chopped cucumber, red and yellow peppers, tomatoes, green onion, fresh mint, basil and parsley. Then we added perfectly toasted pieces of pita (much better than the bread I am use to) and dressed it with a simple lemon juice and olive oil. It was finished with salt and pepper and topped with feta.
Next was Gavin’s turn to play chef. He was asked to help with the main dish- steak with horseradish cream, sautéed spinach and mushrooms and crispy potato wedges.
His job was the spinach and it was unbelievably good!! Why? you might ask…well, it had 2 sticks of butter in it…(way to take one of the world’s most nutritious foods and cover it in saturated fat) but as a special treat- it was totally worth it!!
The meal was followed by not one but two desserts- creamy delicious tiramisu and over the top bananas foster. We got a lesson on flambé and then enjoyed amazing sweets!
All in all, it was a perfect night full of great friends, great conversation, and yummy food!
