Mary's Dinner Club Stories - French Dinner II

By Mary Anglberger - The latest French dinner was a repeat, as so many people had regretted having missed the first one a while back. And just like the first one, it filled up quickly (of course with a usual last changes before all guests had cancelled for good, confirmed for good…). It turned out to be a very special one indeed as it also included a ‘guest singer’.

After some moaning (on facebook ;) on Friday night about the amount of onions, potatoes and apples to be sliced when one makes onion soup, potato gratin and apple pie it quickly became apparent that yes…. it’s all worth it. I was less afraid to use too many spices and things turned out wonderfully flavorful. Even though I almost did overdo it on the cognac for the coq au vin who was ‘a bit drunk’.

I was also careful not to drip any caramel on the back of my hand this time when making tarte tatin – though I still find this practice of turning a pie upside down a bit strange (and still tricky) but here too – people loved it so I was happy.

As mentioned earlier, we met at 7:30 for a very special treat: over glasses of sparkling wine we got to listen to jazz singer Sarah Fenwick’s very interesting story of her career here in Cyprus. Lots of questions were asked and after the first song (a French one) everyone wanted to hear more of her amazing voice. What a way to start off an evening! Thanks again Sarah! Pleeeease come back soon!

The group was the ‘usual unusual’ mix of people: Dutch, Austrian, Russian, French, Cypriot, British, Canadian…. I was especially pleased that the French guest praised my food so much. One interesting guest was the visiting mother of a young Dutch man living here, who does similar dinner clubs back home – it was great to exchange ideas with her. Obviously there were lots of other topics going round with music still being on our minds, Sarah being a journalist, and people coming from so many different backgrounds. All in all: another greatly enjoyable evening – one of my favorites so far!

Now looking forward to the Salvadorean evening featuring authentic food from El Salvador: pupusas (maize flour patties filled with cheese and beans) with a side of pickled cabbage, a shredded beef salad with avocado, and a ‘three-milk-pie’ for dessert. A menu inspired by a friend of mine from that country with everything being made from scratch. Don’t miss this one for something out of the ordinary!

Be sure to contact Mary's Dinner Clubs Limassol on facebook or maryanglbe@hotmail.com

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