Family Feasts

The P-Man and I were invited to an Italian family feast last night. We were treated to a multi course meal at a long communal table, served to us by two extremely generous people. The company was lively...the wine was plentiful and the food was delicious. We started with 2 pates: pheasant and chicken liver flavoured with cognac, that was beautifully textured, and spread easily on toasted spelt bread. Next, was homemade tagliatelle with wild boar. The pasta was perfectly cooked and lightly dressed with the rich meat ragu. The last meat course was leg of lamb with a red wine sauce. It was presented with simple boiled potatoes, and a shaved radicchio salad with olive oil and Parmesan. The sweets that came out were a marvelous contrast to the rich meal. We had light little meringue' sandwiches' with whipped cream centres, a beautiful puff pastry cake with caramel profiteroles on top, more meringues dipped in chocolate, and a plate of almond torronne. Before you could wipe the crumbs off your chin, tiny cups of fragrant espresso appeared. More stories were told, and we laughed until our cheeks hurt. Thank you to our wonderful hosts...