Dinner Party

I'm throwing a dinner party tonight for the first time in what seams like ages, and I think I might be going a bit overboard. But, seriously, what is the fun of life if you don't go a bit overboard now and again (and begin a sentence with the word "but").

In danger of ruining the surprise for my wonderful friends that are coming over, I will be turning this blog into a cooking blog, just for today. And maybe some other time I decide to cook like this. (Ack! Started a sentence with the word "and," what is this world coming to)?

It feels a little weird writing this in present tense as I will be updating throughout the day, making this (as in now) past tense and the completed dinner present tense. Oh blogging! How you baffle my mind!

I will be using recipes from the vegan cookbook, "The Conscious Cook" by Tal Ronnen, which is my absolute favorite vegan cookbook ever. Out of respect for the author, I will not be posting the recipes, but I will say, if you ever thought vegan food was bland and boring, you should really try some of these recipes. Delicious!!

Starter (not to be confused with the appetizer): Crackers and cheese. I know what you are thinking. Bland. But no! (I did it again - began a sentence with "but" - I give up). This cheese is from the distant land of Wisconsin where I had the honor of witnessing my dear friends get married over the weekend. The cheese was a wedding favor, of sorts, so really, cheese and crackers are exciting and authentic.

Soup: Celery Root soup with Apple

I saved this dish for last as it didn't require any chilling, cooling, curdling or other complicated, time-consuming thing. I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out. Isn't it pretty?This is the way it was supposed to look (picture taken from the cookbook):

Main Dish: Pepper Crusted Portabello Mushroom in a tomato hollandaise sauce accompanied by mashed potatoes

Meat and potatoes. Simple and delicious. Well..vegan meat (aka mushroom) and potatoes with cashew nut cream rather than real cream...but essentially its the same thing. I was impressed with the flavor of the mushrooms and the creaminess of the potatoes.Here is what it is supposed to look like (picture taken from the cookbook):

Desert: Banana Pecan Cheesecake with a Rum Sauce

I must say, this cookbook is delicious, but it is NOT simple. Actually, I have no one to blame but myself as I didn't read over the recipes until 2pm (considering dinner is at 8, I figured I had plenty of time). I knew I was in trouble when the cheesecake demanded at LEAST 4 hours. EEK! So, I started here. I chose the cheesecake mostly because who makes a VEGAN cheesecake? How cool is that? And I had a lot of bananas that needed to be made into something. Didn't quite turn out like the pictures, but it was good none the less.

Can I just say that maple syrup, butter, and rum is THE BEST COMBINATION IN THE WORLD.

Again, what it is supposed to look like (picture taken from cookbook):
Post Dinner: Had a blast catching up with friends. Really missed "dinner club" that I did in college where a group of me and my friends would get together every week and cook for each other. I want to do that again...Any takers? Seriously.