Cooking with Dietary Restrictions

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free and Sugar-Free Banana-Coconut Bread

A couple weeks ago, we started working with a new client, a sweet family of four with lots of dietary restrictions. How many, you ask? Well, they're on a no dairy (including butter and eggs), no gluten, no sugar, all organic diet. We're also working with a pretty lengthy outline of foods that they can eat, and those to avoid. We've dabbled in the various dietary restrictions before for dinner parties and the like but never to this extent so I was looking forward to getting into the kitchen. 

I dove in, head first into learning everything I can about these dietary restrictions and also, bearing in mind that children are involved, we wanted to make sure that the food included very familiar and common "kid cuisine", but still meeting the dietary needs. I've been perfecting gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free breads and find myself covered in alternative flours and xanthan gums by the end of the day but I've been relishing in the challenge. The biggest thing that I've done to make a difference is to do as much as I can from scratch. That means I'm making rice flours and nut flours by hand because, not only is the packaged stuff costing my client a small fortune, I've found, to no surprise, that I get so much flavor out of using the fresh ingredients and doing it myself. For the most part, we're making all three meals for them and so far, the favorites have been a banana-coconut cake and strawberry muffins. (I'm still tinkering with the recipes a bit so I'm not quite ready to share just yet.)

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sugar-Free Strawberry Muffins

While we're still in the "getting to know you" phase of working with our new client, the feedback has been positive and the most rewarding part of all is hearing that they're happy. The other day when we stopped by, the daughter was excitedly telling us how she loves bringing her new lunches to school and she went on about an avocado dip that we had made. Her mother said it's been great seeing her get so excited about food and that makes all the extra effort worthwhile. 

Just Catching Up

Homemade Rye Bread

It certainly has been a little while since I've had the time to sit down and blog! Since I last wrote, I celebrated my birthday and had one of the best birthday's I've ever had. Burger Boy and I spent the night running around Boston drinking craft cocktails and eating bar bites at some of the best Boston restaurants before meeting up with some friends. Clio had a killer bar menu. Actually it's more like a bar book. But the most exciting page was the Mad Scientist section, where things get really fun. I had a gin and tonic with tea that is swirled into large, square ice cubes that infused the drink as they melted. We also went to L'Espalier and sat by the window in their Salon, and enjoyed cocktails, a cheese plate and some small bites. Funny enough, we were sitting right behind Barbara Lynch the whole time and didn't know until she got up to go to the restroom. Rounding out the evening, we went to The Hawthorne, which had a fun, chic atmosphere and an impressive cocktail list as well. It was quite the memorable evening.

Gin and Tonic at Clio

Our view from L'Espalier

On the home front, we've been cooking up a storm and I made some great rye bread, something I've wanted to make for a while now and some fun compound butters - a Vanilla Bean Kumquat Butter and Mole Butter. I've also really been focusing my energies on getting to know whole grains and I've really come to love their earthiness. There's just so many out there, each providing different textures and I've really enjoyed perking up my dishes with them.

My latest home project..

On the work front, I am happy to announce that our little baby, The Skinny Beet, is doing well. We've been working so hard and the past couple of months have been very good. We're looking forward to a busy next couple of months and we're delighted to announce that it looks like we've officially added larger parties (150 +) and wedding catering to our list of services that we offer and so far we've booked four for this year and we're working with a couple of other couples as well. I've found it to be so personally rewarding to work with a couple and developing menus that will make such an important day extra special.

Vanilla Bean Kumquat Butter and Mole Butter

Sprinkled in here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks, it seems that I can't put my camera down and I keep getting more and more into photography, something that I've found great joy in. As I further hone my kitchen skills and try out new things, I've been working on a lot of new recipes that I'd like to share too, so be on the look out for that! We've also got some great things coming up at The Skinny Beet, we're going to be working on a very special project that we're very excited about, as well as writing for another local publication and I'll be sure to share the details once things get ironed out. Until then, and as always, thank you for all your support!

The Skinny Beet Update

It's been exactly one month since we launched our new site, The Skinny Beet. It's been great to have an outlet to share what's going on in our world that we both can contribute to and we've also got our Twitter and Facebook pages up and running! On our new site, we write about work and the events that we cater as well as what we're cooking up in our own home. In case you missed it, here's some things that we talked about over the past month...

In October we got to work catering a dinner for the Phoenix Club at Harvard University, then, we entered the Boston Chefs Lamb Pro-Am (we both didn't make the final cut but we had a blast creating our recipes!).

Also in October we had date night at Hamersley's Bistro where we sampled their famous roast chicken that lived up to the hype. So much so, that we had to recreate it at home a couple weeks later.

We also squeezed in a mini-food crawl to two local hot spots in Cambridge; Catalyst and Area Four. Catalyst disappointed but we totally dug the atmosphere at Area Four.

Finally Richard made buffalo burgers at home and accompanying homemade spicy ketchup and steak sauce and we proved yet again that homemade anything is way better than store bought.

We can't tell you how much we've been touched by the support that we've received. We're thrilled with the work that we're doing and we're really looking forward to what the next couple of months have in store for us. In the spirit of this month of thanks, we'd like to express our extreme gratitude to those that have supported us on this journey. It's not always easy but it is always fun and the work is so satisfying.

A Catered Affair - Last Minute Dinner Party

Seared Cod with Pomegranate Salsa and Roasted Tomato Lentils

One of the biggest sacrifices that I've made since starting my new career is my free time and the realization that at a moment's notice, something can come up and I may have to drop everything to be there. As much as this can be a little annoying, it's also kind of exciting too. I love that fly-by-the-seat-of-your pants feeling and the adrenaline rush, not to mention that elevated sense of satisfaction that comes along with pulling something off on the fly - it's quite an incredible feeling. 

Gougeres

On Monday evening around 9 PM, I received a call from a woman who was hoping to get a last minute dinner party catered on Wednesday evening. She requested that it be a formal three course sit-down dinner. She also requested gougeres to snack on while their guest arrived. We also threw in an extra appetizer as well to help them get their evening started. The agreed upon menu for the evening was:

Gougeres

Spiced Fig and Port Jam Crostini with Prosciutto and Balsamic Reduction

Sweet Potato Bisque with Crisped  Pancetta and Fried Sage Leaves

Seared Cod with Clementine-Pomegranate Salsa and Roasted Tomato Lentils

Shaved Fennel Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette 

Mulled Wine Poached Pears with a Homemade Pistachio Cookie

Homemade Pistachio Cookies

Once the menu was finalized, the next day was a blur. In between grocery shopping and prepping for the evening, in addition to catering to our regular weekly clients, we didn't stop until the last dessert plate was cleared. Of all of the dinner parties that we've catered, I think I was most proud of this one. Usually, we have at least a couple week's time to pull off our events and countless hours to plan. This one was done totally on the fly and challenged our adaptability and efficiency and I consider the work we did to be a success. 

Mulled Wine Poached Pears with Homemade Pistachio Cookie

Yesterday, I was dead tired from it all and decided it was time to take a day off. Never had I had a more satisfying and well deserved day of relaxation.

A Catered Affair - 50th Birthday Party

In addition to unpacking boxes and setting up the new kitchen, we squeezed in a catered dinner party on Sunday evening for a group of 11 people to celebrate a 50th Birthday. The client wanted a classically elegant dinner and we worked to design a menu that merged late summer and early fall produce and flavors, and staying true to our cooking style, we added some creative twists along the way.

We started the evening out with some light refreshments - Honeyed Herb and Goat Cheese Stuffed Dates, Scallop Ceviche served atop Fried Plantain Chips and Oven Roasted Golden Tomatoes, Arugula Pesto and Whipped Lemon Ricotta Crostini (not pictured).

For the first course, we presented our diners with a warm Summer Corn Soup that was simmered for hours with herbs and packed with lots of sweet corn flavor. To finish the soup, we drizzled creme fraiche and dotted a vibrant homemade chili oil before topping it with a generous chunk of lobster tempura. (Unfortunately this picture was snapped before the lobster was placed on top.)

The star of our main course was a generous slice of Beef Wellington - tenderloin coated with a thin layer of duxelles (a finely chopped mixture of mushrooms and shallots sauteed in herbs and butter) before being wrapped with sheets of puff pastry and baked until golden brown on the outside. The Wellington was served alongside some duckfat roasted purple potatoes.

In the world of catering, there's always a twist or two along the way and I've learned to be prepared for the unexpected. In this case, we found out (after our Wellington had already been served) that one of our diners is vegetarian. Fortunately we had enough items on hand leftover from our apps and we were able to move quickly to throw together a vegetable wrapped puff pastry entree that we drizzled with leftover arugula pesto. For our final course, we ended with a warm apple crostata served with homemade sea salted caramel and spiced whipped cream.

After spending 10 hours on my feet in a hot kitchen, I've come to truly appreciate the whole art of catering an event. There's something so exhilarating about starting out with an email or phone call from a client and watching an event come to life through menu planning, hours of grocery shopping and prepping and there isn't much that is more satisfying than watching it all come together successfully and hearing that our clients are happy.

A Catered Affair - HeyWire Burgers

Grilled Portabellas 

One of the cool things about my job is that my "office" keeps changing. Last weekend we were cooking beef tenderloin out of a countryside home in Maine. A couple nights earlier, we were grilling up burgers and chicken at a rooftop party in Cambridge. If there's anything I love as much as the cooking itself, it's the change in venue and excitement of the challenges that go along with each event.

The Rooftop Venue

This past Thursday, HeyWire hired Burger Boy and I to cater their open house rooftop party, serving up - what other than - burgers! We showed up at their office, armed with trays full of hand packed patties, burger condiments, bags full of buns and we got right to work, cooking for the 60-100 people that we had expected. With one grill it was tricky to cook everything but we were feeling good. Here's a peek at our menu:

Argentinian Steakhouse Burger

Cilantro-Mint Chimichurri, Fresh Sea Salted Tomatoes

The Bacon Burger

Caramelized Bacon Jam, American Cheese

Spice Rubbed Chicken Kebabs 

Cilantro-Citrus Mustard Marinade

Portabella Mushroom Sandwiches

Whipped Red Pepper and Goad Cheese Spread, Olive Oil Ciabatta

I was able to snap a couple of pictures at the beginning of the event but then, we were swamped by masses of hungry party goers and sadly, not a picture of a burger was taken.

Sea Salted Tomatoes, ready for the burgers!

One of the biggest challenges we have as caterers is being able to predict the amount of food needed. We base our numbers on the information that we're given and what the client wants. In this case, the client anticipated 60-100 guests and we had a fixed budget to work with. At one point I was able to look up from my burger assembling station and assumed that twice the number of people showed and all were hungry - HeyWire knows how to throw a party! At one point, I couldn't help but feel like I was on an episode of the Next Food Network Star. I had a mob of people huddled around me, watching me furiously assemble burgers and shouting out questions. "What's in the bacon jam!?" "How did you make it?" "What's Chimichurri?" It was a little overwhelming but exciting at the same time to have so many people interested in the food that we were preparing.

Chicken ready for the grill

I'll consider it a compliment that 190 sliders were polished off within the first 45 minutes! The chicken was next to go (we had 10 lbs of it) and the mushroom sandwiches got finished before they even hit the table. We were amazed at how quickly the food got devoured and we were flattered by the compliments. Special thanks to HeyWire for hosting such a fun event!

The view from the grill

A Catered Affair - Wedding in Maine

My work space for the day

There's still a sense of pride that I just haven't gotten over yet and I can't help but wonder if that ever goes away. I hope not because it's something I've never experienced before and to be honest, there's nothing quite like it. This past weekend we had the honor of catering a wedding. Burger Boy had been talking with the Bride and Groom since January and then in April, I jumped in on the planning. We poured over the menu, wanting to make sure everything was as close to perfection as we could get. We compiled list after list, had diagrams of the plating and developed plans B, C and D..ya know, just in case..

Duo of Crostini

This past Friday we packed up the car with coolers full of meat and fresh produce and headed three hours north to Andover, Maine. It was all very Dinner Impossible, arriving somewhere we've never been before to a kitchen we've never cooked in to prepare an intimate wedding dinner for 24. What a rush! We arrived early on the day of the wedding and were fortunate enough to have the kitchen to ourselves so that we could get to work.

Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho

Mixed Greens, Blueberries, Peaches and Nectarines with
Parmesan Cheese and Blueberry Vinaigrette 

The house itself was alive with history, a beautiful countryside home with sloping mountains visible from every window and secret passages rumored to be hiding spots to escape invading Indians in the 1700s. Cocktails and hors d'oeuvres were to be served on a beautifully sunny wraparound porch and the meal was to follow inside a large dining room adjacent to the kitchen. The Bride and Groom wanted us to be creative with the menu and to have fun with it, and that we did. The final menu was as follows:

Hors D' oeuvres

Duo of Crostini

 Duck Confit, Bacon Jam

Lemon Whipped Ricotta, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Arugula-Mint Pesto

Tuna Ceviche 

with Avocado relish

Goat Cheese Stuffed Strawberries

with Balsamic Reduction

First Course

Farmer's Market Salad

Mixed Greens, Fresh Blueberries, Peaches and Nectarines, Parmesan Cheese and Blueberry Vinaigrette

Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho

with Red Pepper and Cucumber 

Entree

Coffee Rubbed Beef Tenderloin

Ancho Blackberry Sauce

Sweet Corn Risotto

Romano Cheese and Fresh Parsley

Roasted Hericot Verts and Baby Shiitake Mushrooms

The Entree

After 14 hours of work, I couldn't help but beam with pride and a strong sense of accomplishment as the father of the bride told us how much he enjoyed our food and how much he appreciated all of our effort. The Bride and Groom personally came out to thank us for the spread we put out. I was so moved to feel responsible for people's enjoyment. We made people happy through food and I can't think of anything more personally rewarding and satisfying than that.