The Classy Cooks gathered for their March luncheon, having been given their secret envelopes the prior month. What the ladies didn’t know was that the dish they were given to prepare was also given to another member. The twist was that it was to be prepared with a few must-include ingredients along with suggested additions. Beyond this, the cook was free to create whatever they liked. Each chef plated up their dish, sat back down, and our hosts, Audrey and Lora, passed out two plates of the assigned dish without anyone knowing who prepared which item. Everyone had a scorecard to rank and comment on the dish. A small kitchen tool was awarded to the chef of the preferred recipe.
The dishes included an appetizer that could be made on either crostini or puff pastry, must include tomato or jam, bacon or prosciutto and cheese. The salad had to include greens or veggies, nuts or seeds, and a homemade dressing. The side was pasta in either a cream or oil base that had to include at least one vegetable and use truffles or truffle oil. There were two main entrees: pork (roast, loin, chop, ground) that could be prepared in any style but had to include a marinade, sauce or glaze; and a short rib that could be prepared in any style with coffee, wine, or soy sauce as suggested ingredients. We ended with a dessert that had to be chocolate (melted, cocoa or chips) made as either a cake, cookie or pie, using oil, flour or graham cracker, white or brown sugar and either eggs or egg whites (i.e., from scratch). The out- standing recipe was made with chocolate olive oil from Queen Creek Olive Mill. The lunch proved that all Classy Cooks are Top Chefs and, when they get together, have a marvelous time!
