Brad and Tina dinner

Oh man, am I ever feeling overfed (and probably over-indulged on the wine) from last night. It's not even entirely pleasant to think about food right now. But blog I must, especially since I've been lazy about doing so lately. Besides, Conrad's not even out of bed yet, and it's too early for us to wander downtown as we've been meaning to do.

Two teammates, Brad and Tina, came for dinner last night. It was an intimate get-together intended so that Conrad and I could toast their engagement - the two met on a gay swim team, and, if anything, the team actively pushed them into coupledom - from earlier this summer, so that we could see their photos of a September trip to Finland, and so that Conrad and I could show them New Zealand photos. The New Year, alas, will bring a great loss to the Smelts: Brad and Tina will move to New Zealand for at least some while. Happily, Conrad and I will be able to visit them when we're there next year.

The New Zealand thread ran through the wines last night. We started off toasting them with a sparkling wine from Winslow in Martinborough. I think it was the last of the bottles Conrad and I had shipped back last year, and it was quite lovely. A 2004 vintage, it had mellowed out a little, I think. Nice with the cheeses, little toasts, olives, and nuts. Tina and Brad, meanwhile, had brought over two bottles, the Mud House Sauvignon Blanc and the Maven Pinot Noir. Both we good with dinner, though, Tina and I both said we preferred the white to the red. Later, as we looked at photos, we polished off a bottle of Stoneleigh Pinot Noir. In hindsight, I'm gad we didn't open anything else - that might have made for an especially tough morning today.

As for food, well, I didn't photograph much. Sorry. We dined in the kitchen, so I caught shots of the table set and of the salads set out before I called them in.

After that, however, it was about the conversation with each other, and I kept the camera tucked away. The salads were from a recipe we used to use at Don Diego's, the spicy Caesar salad from a Bobby Flay cookbook. I hadn't made it in years. Tina caught the distinctive saltiness of the anchovies in the dressing, but Brad didn't - Ha! I snuck some fish by him! Dinner was also another old friend from my restaurant days: South Miami Cuban Stew, from a Paul Prudhomme book. It's a deliciously seasoned mix of beef, chorizo, and ham. A meat-lovers' meal. Dessert was Tina's responsibility, and she came through with a moist chocolate cake. Conrad, of course went back for more, and Tina was happy (and relieved) that I shared some with him. I tossed a pan of cookies in the oven as well, and that completed an evening of food.

We haven't entertained in ages, and we should do it a little more - it forces us to clean up the place effectively. A good thing for us that we have two more people coming next weekend. I wonder if I should warn them that they'll be decorating the tree with us in exchange for their dinner....