Fall Menu Preview

I have two inspirations when it comes to "creating food":

1. Bouncing ideas around with K2 (which, of course, produces the best results), and
2. Being insanely bored and distracting myself with a game of WWFE (What Would Foodies Eat?).

Door #2 is actually what helped me come up with a potential meal for the fall menu coming up in a few weeks. K2 and I haven't had a real chance to sit down and discuss so the menu is not finalized (good thing the clients are friends). In fact, I believe I've only mentioned the food in passing to her, so we haven't been able to really dive in and come up with the ideal menu, but I really wanted to post something today, so below is the beginning of a menu.

Appetizer -- Tempura root vegetables (with some sort of dip)

Salad -- Baby spinach with granny smith apples, dried cranberries, and shaved Parmesan cheese with a warm maple, bacon vinaigrette.

Main course -- Inside out Paella (and this is the one I remember running by K2... I know we need a new name, I know) which is basically a chicken breast stuffed with paella goodness!

I'm having trouble with side dishes, I thought of roasted cauliflower, and crunchy cheese twists. Unfortunately, putting all that on a plate actually creates a bit of a problem... no sauce (it's always good to have a sauce on the plate).

Dessert -- Gingerbread pudding with a side of homemade pumpkin ice cream.

The other reason I decided to post is, I think it's important to show a developing menu. Like, here's the Before, and wait until after the After (the After will even come with pictures!!). You never know, could be a completely different menu come meal time!!

This is where I hope K2 chimes in (you know, to show the bouncing ideas aspect!! Some day, this process will be videotaped).

-Wendi-


Videotaped? Ah, that's right, Wendi's plan for us is (1) overnight business success, (2) our own cooking shows (you know, one for each of us), and then (3) take over the world! Oh wait, #3 is really mine, but Wendi's always game for new things.

So here is where I chime in now with a what we can do with the base menu (do you feel like you're at Oz yet, peeking behind the curtain, can we interest you in a heart or perhaps a dash of courage?).

Menu, Part Deux --

Tempura Root Veggies with various squashes would be good and maybe a beet-infused vinaigrette for dipping. Something light since tempura is not a heavy fried coating, tangy with a nice vinegar base, and "beet"ed to keep with the root veggie theme, plus would add a nice touch of color to the course.

The salad is everything wonderful, but for some extra crunch I would suggest tossing in some toasted walnuts. Walnuts are very fallish and would add a savory crunch to offset an already sweet-heavy salad.

Chicken stuffed with paella...how about calling it Pollo Paella? We can use a menu to describe the inside-outyness of the dish, but at least the title will give people a pretty good sense of what the basics are. And I'd like to do it with a chunky tomato sauce...not tomato sauce like "where's the pizza crust," but a rich thick sauce with heavy diced tomatoes, some fresh oregano, and some burgundy wine (oooh, here comes the drool).

As far as sides go, I'd only have one since your starch will actually be tucked inside the chicken and you've already fed them root veggies as an appetizer. Now I wouldn't eat it, but what about steamed asparagus (bleck!) on the side, a tidy little stack, done simply with no sauce? Then you've got green to go with the brown/yellow of the bird/paella and red of the sauce -- very fall-like colors.

And for the dessert, how about drizzling the whole thing with a pecan syrup or caramel sauce (secret is not in the sauce, it IS the sauce).

And this is how it begins -- Ta-Dahhhhh! (insert bow here)

k2