Food, Fun and Friends

Tuesday night was bookclub night. I finally figured out what to cook, too! Everything was great, even though I forgot to add the tomatoes to the antipasto (don't think anyone even knew until now). Here's the menu:

• Chicken sandwiches: rustic bread, broiled chicken breast, homemade pesto cream cheese spread, grilled red and yellow peppers and sprouts - delicious!
• Beet Vichyssoise soup: a chilled soup (I like it room temperature) that tastes somewhat like creamy potato and chive soup, but gets this outrageous fuschia color from just one beet! Love this recipe from The New Basics Cookbook!
• Antipasto with Spring Vegetables: cooked until just tender, then drizzled with an herbed olive oil and vinegar marinade. Perfect lite accompaniment to any meal! Compliments of the Moosewood Restaurant New Classics Cookbook.
  
• Cupcakes: The hit of the evening! Two different types to choose from, either rich chocolate or yellow cake, but all of them also had various surprises, like raspberry jam filling, or a peanut butter cup, three different frostings (including one strawberry that I made up and which tasted great!), and a random assortment of toppings sprinkled on. With all of the choices, I had to create a little spreadsheet and color-coded toothpicks to signify which was which. It was so much fun to make!

You just can't beat cooking with and for friends - especially when there's so much to chat about! Book of the month: The Birth of Venus by Anita Dunant. I highly recommend it.