Best. Dinner. EVER!

Well, best dinner ever until the next time we have the best dinner ever.

Conrad and I have a rule: any time anyone goes to any lengths to make any meal for us, we are deeply deeply appreciative. You make us some Kraft Dinner, we love you for it. Open a can of beans, heat them, serve them atop toast, and we worship your culinary chops. We're not joking. We know - as you can guess from this blog - the time, thought, effort, expense, and exhaustion involved in hosting friends for dinner (or other meals). Consequently, we adore those who cook for us.

Last night Greer cooked for us, and very well at that. Not only was the food delicious, but it was also an uproariously fun evening together. Here's the rundown...

Shortly after we arrived at her house, Greer had a pan of chopped garlic sizzling for an appetizer of sweet BC shrimp. BC products was her theme last night, and she did well by it. Conrad and I try to get as much local food and wine in on these BC vacations as possible, after all, so it was a great way to start. She cooked, Conrad opened a bottle of a Joie rose,

and in no time at all, we had warm bowls in front of us and a basket of bread for dipping in the garlicky wine sauce.


Second course: bison steaks.
Wow. Greer was out to impress us, and certainly the steaks looked quite fine. She had made a whiskey butter for them, had cut up veggies for grilling, and had corn cobs (still husked) soaking in cold water. All of this was to go on the grill. You know, there's a certain pleasure in sitting back and watching others cook, and there's another pleasure in kidding around when funny things happen like the corn husks catching fire on the grill. Mari, meanwhile, was distracted for a bit with a bone. Conrad was distracted by dessert ingredients.


Dinner turned out very well.

Greer had really thought about her different ingredients and how they'd work together. We had sweetness on the plate, saltiness, tanginess. The steaks were cooked to a nice medium and rested. The zucchini and tomato took on the charring well. The corn, slathered with a seasoned butter and lime, was a good replacement for a starchier side. We enjoyed an Inniskillin Meritage - lush on the nose, dry on the tongue, very good partnered with the lean bison.

After dinner frivolity with Mari entertaining us, thanks to a toy dragon. Yes, the dog is humping that toy. Crude humour, but so long as the dog enjoys it...

Dessert - I'd sent Greer the chocolate budini recipe and brought up ramekins. And then I mostly sat back and watched Greer go to work.



The puddings turned out well, though I think Greer's oven may be a bit on the hot side. We sipped a Gehringer Brothers late harvest Cabernet Franc, though we all agreed that it maybe wasn't a great match. No matter. Fun with whipped cream ensued, and Conrad made sure no raspberry was neglected.
Good Conrad.

So there, the best meal ever. Greer knocked herself out on this one, but rather than leave us impressed, it left us feeling immensely welcome. Coming back to the hometown is a very odd experience what with it being 5 years since the last visit and no immediate family left up here. It's just so nice, in the end, that friends still welcome us into their homes in such a manner.