Birthday Bash

So, how do you celebrate your husband's milestone birthday - with a crowd of friends, some great bubbly and good eats!  Over the weekend we about 36 of my wonderful hubby's pals and colleagues over for a "cozy" gathering! It was a great evening and David really enjoyed himself - especially because he had some surprise guests: our family from Fort McMurray showed up on the doorstep Friday night!  A wonderful weekend, but I think I am still recovering...

So, on request of the birthday boy, our theme was French: appetizers and wine.  I have to admit, I know NOTHING about French wine, so I happily trotted off down Jasper Avenue to DeVine (Jasper Avenue and 104 Street) where several enthusiastic wine lovers were armed and ready to give me guidance!  I decided on champagne, a dry French white and two reds: a lighter, pinot noir style and a heavier, Cab style, both from Southern France AND great price points on each!  If you are ever stumped on what wine to serve or give as a gift, the staff at DeVines are pleased to help!

http://www.devinewines.ca/

After many flips through my French cookbooks and researching local retailers, I decided to go traditional French using as much organic local products as possible.  Using high quality ingredients with no perservatives is our preferred means of cooking, and what a difference in taste! First on the menu were Gougeres, a simple cheese puff made from choux pastry which I flavored with gruyere cheese and herbs de Provence (a mixture of lavender, thyme, rosemary).  These were easy to make, though note to file: use the convection oven to increase the size of the puff!

Next was a traditional cheese platter, and thanks to Everything Cheese in Riverbend, I had some great choices straight from France and also some fantastic cheeses from both Quebec and Alberta!  A very traditional blue cheese (Bleu d’Auvergne), a goat cheese, a triple creme cheese and a cave aged gruyere.  Again, very little knowledge on cheeses, but through several cookbooks, realized that 4 - 5 cheeses are the maximum you should provide on a platter.  Simple served with salty almonds and an olive tapenade with baguettes completed the experience!

We decided to have a Charcuterie platter - simply put, a meat board.  I found a great selection of French meats at the Italian Centre Shop: pork sausages prepared in two forms and duck confit!  To my surprise, the Queen of Tarts (located in their new permanent locations on 104 Street) makes organic chicken liver pate on site using local farm products!  These meats, paired with some fig jam and three pepper preserve worked great together!

A simple appetizer, roasted fresh figs wrapped in prosciutto, was a welcome addition to the French table!  Many areas of France have influences of both Swiss (Gruyere cheese) and Italy (cured meats).  A quick and easy appetizer to pull together, courtesy of Ina Garten and "How Easy is That?"

And finally, a local ham quiche in a beautiful pate brisee crust, made with local/organic cheese and eggs from the Queen of Tarts bakery.  If you haven't been to the Queen, please do so over your next lunch hour! Not only is it a beautifully equipped French-style bakery with bread, brioche, tarts and french cookies, but also a great bistro with beautiful sandwiches, soups and specials, all using local and fresh ingredients!

Birthday cake?  Our good friend and fantastic baker, Larissa, created a wonderful Tres Leches cake (David's favorite cake) - Muy Bien!!  I know, not French, but who cares - it's Tres Leches!

All in all, a great evening filled with food, wine and most importantly, great friends and family!  Happy Birthday Sweetheart!!