's motd Sat Aug 14, 2010

[Guest guest]

DINNER WITH ME!

Saturday, 14 August 2010

I often ask my Clubhouse members to tell me what they'd make for me if I came to their homes for dinner. And with that in mind, let's say I rang your doorbell at dinner time. What will you have prepared for our little dinner date, huh? Now of course, you know that I love dinner just as much as all of you.

Hmmm, I wonder how you'd set your table. Would you have candles on the table, flowers or maybe both? Would you take a napkin and fold it really nicely for me? I wonder what your plates would look like? Do they have a pretty pattern on them or would they be a classic bone-white china?Would you serve dinner family style? Or would you just prepare the food on the china and serve it to me that way? What would your water glasses look like? What kind of salt and pepper shakers would you use? I wonder how many hours you'd spend in the kitchen preparing dinner for me. And I wonder how many pots and pans you'd use to cook our dinner. Well, I'm gonna turn the tables. Today, it's all about if you came to my house for dinner. What would I serve you?

For starters, I'd have a beautiful tablecloth on the dining room table. It's so pretty. It has a colorful array of butterflies all over it. In the middle of the table, I'd have a bouquet of freshly cut roses, grown in my own rose garden and I'd arrange them in an elegant vase. And how would I fold the napkins for you? Well, years ago back in New Orleans, my father taught me how to turn a simple napkin into the shape of a beautiful lily. It only takes a few seconds to do but boy, is it ever pretty!

I'd set the table with dinner plates that also had butterflies on them, to match the tablecloth. (I found them in a great catalog I received in the mail.) I have some water glasses that actually belonged to my parents so they have real sentimental value for me. I'd proudly place them on the table next to each plate.All right, enough table talk, right? I mean, I know what you really want to hear about. What's for dinner? Okay, get ready...Our dinner menu will include a beautiful array of colors like red, yellow, green, purple and orange. See, those are the colors of the healthy foods you should be having for dinner.

First, I'd make you a chopped salad. I'd make it with romaine lettuce, shredded purple cabbage, cherry tomatoes, zucchini squash, cut into thin slices, mushrooms, celery and shredded carrots. I'd add a little finely chopped purple onion, one shallot, some chives and finely minced parsley. Now I spritz the dressing onto my salads. For the dressing, I combine olive oil, a little canola oil and a dash of red wine vinegar. I put all of those ingredients into a bottle and shake it vigorously. The bottle also has a sprayer on top. That way, I can spritz the salad dressing onto the salad which means fewer calories but just as much flavor. Oh, wait 'til you taste it! It's a very colorful and crunchy salad filled with, as you can see, ingredients that are so good for your body. I'd also serve chicken piccata. It's a really fun and great-tasting dish to serve company. I take boneless, skinless chicken breasts, put them in a baggy, then pound them very thin with a kitchen mallet. Then I saute my chicken medallions in a little butter, chicken broth and lemon juice. After the medallions are cooked, I remove and put them on a platter, placing them in the oven at a very low temperature to keep them warm. I then slowly simmer the sauce until it thickens. After the sauce is done, I add a handful of capers. Next, I remove the chicken medallions from the oven and place them back into the sauce and it's ready. I serve my chicken piccata on a bed of basmati brown rice.

I'd also serve three kinds of steamed vegetables, broccoli, string beans and asparagus. I would sprinkle each of my vegetables with some freshly grated parmesan cheese.And for dessert, you'll be having papaya stuffed with fresh blueberries. Oh! My mouth is watering just telling you about this scrumptious and healthy dinner we're going to have. Now I must tell you, my favorite moment of the evening will be having you sit at the table and enjoy every bite of our delicious meal. Hope you're full!Hey, be sure and cook something healthy for your dinner tonight!Love,