Mexican cooking is a peasant cuisine—meaning labor intensive, dependent on many hands with plenty of hours to complete the laborious preparation and cooking stages. It is no wonder that the electric blender revolutionized Mexican cuisine when introduced in the 1950s by drastically reducing preparation time. It is the reason why the electric blender is found in nearly every Mexican home.

If you are new to Mexican cooking, avoid undertaking the “Mexican Dinner Party Syndrome” where you race through hours of preparation, before racing from table to kitchen and back, thus turning your dinner into a kind of Mexican kung-fu event! Incorporate one Mexican dish, such as an appetizer or entrée, into a menu where the other dishes are more American/European. In this way the unique Mexican flavors are highlighted and you’ll be stress free.

The following five recipes are taken from a Mexican cookbook proposal that I’m writing. Some of these rely on salsas and guacamole, and these foundation recipes are just the beginning. You’ll find no mention of specific side dishes such as the ubiquitous Mexican rice and beans. So choose something simple such as steamed rice, rice pilaf or couscous, or else char tortillas so the entrée can be eaten as a wrap.

Please let me know how you like these recipes!

Mexican Dry-Rub

This dry-rub is great on any meat that will be grilled or oven-roasted. Just rub it into the surface of the meat, then rub the meat with extra virgin olive oil, and grill or roast. As a variation, after rubbing the meat with the dry-rub, we like to rub the meat with Chinese mushroom soy sauce or Chinese dark soy. This is not authentic Mexican, but it is delicious! Remember, when adding a rub to meat, the rub has to be rubbed with vigor into the meat fiber. Then when you brush the meat with a marinade or olive oil, the rub will not dislodge from the meat.

• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon chile flakes (crushed red chile)
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon stick

Place all ingredients in an electric spice grinder. Grind into a powder. Transfer to a small container. Will keep its flavor for a year, stored with your spices.

Another Dry Rub

• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper (red chile flakes)
• 1 tablespoon Rainbow peppercorn mix
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon Expresso Powder

Place all ingredients in an electric coffee grinder. Grind into a powder. Transfer to an empty glass spice jar, label and place in your spice rack.

Guacamole

Everything depends on the quality of the avocado and, in particular, its oil content. The higher the oil, the more buttery tasting the avocado. Avocados grown in hot, humid environments (Florida) develop no oil, and avocados shipped from another hemisphere (Chile) never ripen. Always buy avocados from California and Mexico, such as the wonderful Haas, Bacon and Fuerte avocados. Avocados are extremely sensitive to frost and thus are grown in a very narrow climate band around the world. There are dozens of varieties of avocado grown in Mexico, ranging from softball size to just slightly larger than your thumb. If you are unsure of the quality of the avocado, buy a couple of extra in case the flesh is streaked with grey or brown. Pick avocado that has a slight “give” when gently pressed with your fingers. If not used that day, then store avocados in the refrigerator, using these within a few days. As a boy, I was always told that placing the avocado seed on top of the guacamole prevents discoloration. This is a myth. To prevent discoloration, always stir in lime juice, and press plastic wrap across the exposed surface. Refrigerated, guacamole will keep its bright color for several days. Great guacamole should have a little texture, so avoid the food processor. Just mash the avocado with the tongs of a fork. And please don’t turn guacamole into a sort of “garbage” dish by adding all sorts of extras such as chopped tomato, celery or oddities such as sliced grapes! It’s the buttery avocado taste and texture that should dominate. Lastly, great guacamole depends on having the perfect level of salt. I always enlist dinner guests to help me taste-test. There is never a shortage of volunteers!

• 3 avocados, ripe
• 2 whole green onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 serrano chiles, minced including the seeds
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, optional
• juice from 2-3 limes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Cut avocados in half. Remove the seed. With a spoon, scoop out the flesh. Then mash the avocados with the tongs of a fork. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Stir. Taste. Adjust the seasonings for salt, limes and chiles.

If making this more than 1 hour in advance, press plastic wrap across the guacamole and refrigerate. The guacamole will stay perfectly green for 2 days.

Variation: Garnish with crumbled goat cheese, queso fresco or Crema Mexicana.

Salsa Mexicana

Only make this when vine-ripe tomatoes are available. The tomato is chopped by hand and includes the skin and seeds. For variation, replace the tomatoes with the same amount of chopped ripe mango or slightly firm papaya or firm banana. Be sure to use under-ripe papaya since perfectly ripe papaya has a mushy texture when chopped. The banana variation may strike you as odd, but it makes an excellent salsa, especially when served as a side to barbecued meats. I combine everything well in advance, and then to prevent discoloration stir in the banana within 1 hour of serving. Or replace the tomatoes in part or in whole with ripe avocado. Or add avocado to the papaya, mango or banana salsa. Experiment!

• 4 cups chopped vine-ripe tomatoes, including skins and seeds
• 1/2 cup coarse chopped cilantro sprigs, including the stems
• 2 whole green onions, minced
• 2 serrano chiles, minced including the seeds
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt

Chop the tomatoes with a knife and do not use a food processor, which will mash the tomatoes. CHOP!

Combine all ingredients. Taste and adjust the seasonings, especially for salt and Serrano chile flavor.

This is best tasting if not refrigerated.

Option: When vine-ripe tomatoes are unavailable, we use hot house tomatoes, add 1 tablespoon tomato paste (from a tube, not canned) and 2 tablespoons Chinese oyster sauce.

Tomatillo Salsa

The tomatillo—pale green and very firm—is one of the basic building blocks of Mexican cuisine. Slightly sour with hints of apple, it is used in many green salsas and sauces. It belongs to the nightshade family, as does the tomato, and is related to the Cape Gooseberry. About the size and shape of a lime, look for tomatillos whose papery husk is tightly clinging. The tomatillos should be very firm, and their surface will feel slightly sticky. Often a part of the tomatillo exterior will have a purplish coloration. This is fine. But do not buy any tomatillo that is even the slightest soft. Prior to use always remove the paper husk. For most recipes the tomatillos are given a browning on a very hot, unoiled, frying pan. Cook until there are a few brown spots here-and-there and the tomatillo is heated through, about 2 minutes. (You are not trying to blacken the exterior like charring a pepper.) Extra tomatillos, not charred, can be stored in a paper bag and refrigerated for up to a month.

Poblano chiles, when dried, are called Ancho chiles. Incidently, poblano chiles are confusingly called “pasilla” in California. Never eaten raw, they are usually given a preliminary blackening. This is the chile favored for Chiles Rellenos and other stuffed chile dishes.

• 1 poblano chile – green – not red
• 8 small green tomatillos, husks removed
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 to 2 serrano chiles
• 1/2 cup cilantro sprigs including the stems, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

In a heavy frying pan over medium high heat, lightly char the poblano chile and tomatillos. (It’s impossible to brown the tomatillos on all sides. Just brown them on the tops and bottoms and on a few places on their sides.)

Using paper towels, rub the charred skin off the poblano, then discard the seeds and stem. Cut the tomatillos into quarters. Lightly brown the garlic and chiles. Cut the garlic and chiles a few times so they are in slightly smaller pieces.

In an electric blender, place the poblano chile, tomatillos, garlic, chiles (including their seeds), cilantro and salt. Blend until smooth.

Taste and adjust the seasonings for salt.

Makes 1 1/2 to 2 cups. Can be stored for 3 days, refrigerated.

Barbecued Fish with Spicy Cucumber-Tomato Salsa

Serves 4

It’s more time consuming, but the salsa will have a better texture if chopped by hand rather than done in the food processor. This recipe uses a terrific barbecue technique by grilling the fish on orange slices. The fish never sticks to the grill, and once the fish is cooked, the oranges slices, with the fish on top, are transferred to dinner plates. This makes a great visual presentation.

• 2 pounds firm fish filets, very fresh, skin and pin bones removed
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 8 slices large navel oranges, cut in ¼ inch thick pieces

Salsa

• 2 cups chopped vine-ripe tomatoes, including the skin and seeds
• 1 cup chopped hot house cucumber, including the skin and seeds
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1/4 cup chopped imported black olives (not from a can)
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro sprigs, including the stems
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced ginger
• 2 serrano chiles, minced including the seeds
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoon grated lime skin
• 2 tablespoons lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Sprinkle fish with salt, black pepper and cumin, rubbing this into the surface. Then rub fish with olive oil. Refrigerate if not cooking immediately.

Combine all ingredients for the salsa, chopped by hand if time allows, and best tasting if made the day of serving and not refrigerated. Makes 3 cups.

Cooking: Preheat the barbecue to medium-high. Over direct heat, lay 2 oranges on the grill and slide them together so their edges touch. Place a piece of fish flat side down on the orange slices. Repeat with remaining orange slices and fish.

Cover the barbecue. Cook 6 minutes if the fish is 1/2 inch thick, and 8-12 minutes if the fish is 1 inch thick—never lifting the lid. When the fish just begins to flake when prodded with a knife, slide an offset spatula under the oranges, and transfer the oranges (with the fish resting on top) onto 4 heated dinner plates. Spoon the room temperature salsa across the fish. Serve at once.

BBQ Steak Cascabel

Serves 6

The dried chile “cascabel” means “rattle.” About the size of a large grape, these are thick fleshed, medium hot, and slightly smoky in flavor. Guajillo are one of the most commonly used chiles in Mexico. They are about 6 inches long and 1 1/2 inches across. If not available, then use New Mexico or Ancho chiles. This Cascabel Sauce is also great served with chilled shrimp, with barbecued shrimp or chicken hot off the grill.

• Your choice of steak (tenderloin, rib eye, New York, flat iron steaks)
• Mexican Dry Rub (see recipe posted at the beginning of this blog)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 3 dried Cascabel chiles
• 2 dried Guajillo chiles
• 2 cups orange juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 whole nutmeg
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro or parsley

Sprinkle Mexican Dry Rub on both sides of the steaks, rubbing this vigorously into the surface of the steaks. Rub the steaks on both sides with half the olive oil. Combine the garlic with the remaining olive oil.

Bring 1 quart water to a boil. Using scissors cut open the dried chiles and shake out the seeds. Discard the stem area. Place a frying pan over high heat. When hot, add the chiles. Toast the chiles about 10 seconds on each side (the chiles should just begin to smell). Transfer the chiles to a bowl. Pour boiling water over chiles. Put a small plate on top of the chiles so they are completely submerged.

After 30 minutes, transfer the chiles to an electric blender. Add the orange juice, sugar, vinegar and salt. Blend until completely liquefied.

Place a 10-inch frying pan over high heat. Add the garlic and olive oil. When the garlic begins to brown, add the chile-orange juice mixture. Bring to a rapid boil. Boil until only 1 1/4 cup remains. If done ahead, transfer to a small saucepan and refrigerate. Can be done 24 hours in advance.

To cook: Barbecue the steaks, cooking them to personal preference. Bring the sauce to a low boil. Taste and adjust seasonings. If you are serving flat iron steaks, cut the steak into 1-inch wide strips. Place the chile-orange sauce on the plate, and add the steak. If serving the steaks uncut, transfer the steaks to dinner plates and top with the chile-orange sauce. Using a microplane, grate a little nutmeg over the steak and sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley. Serve at once.

BBQ Chicken Breasts with Coriander, Cinnamon and Garlic

Serves 4

Without the protective layer of bone, chicken breasts quickly overcook on the barbecue. The solution is to, first, lightly brown the chicken by cooking it directly over a medium-hot charcoal or gas grill, and then, second, to finish the cooking by moving the chicken away from direct heat, covering the grill, and cooking the chicken indirectly in a 300-degree environment. Done in this manner, the chicken will be a marvel of tenderness with a texture resembling crème brulée. For large boned chicken breasts, indirect cooking takes approximately 20 minutes. In order to maintain the 300-degree environment, we use a combination instant-read meat-and-oven probe that has a cord attached to a little temperature monitor positioned next to the barbecue. If you want more flavor, just before closing the barbecue lid, sprinkle about 1 cup of hardwood chips (not soaked!) over one of the lighted burners or over the charcoal fire. The wood will immediately begin to smoke heavily.

• 6 chicken breast halves, boned but skin on
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, including the stems
• 3 tablespoons minced chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
• 1/4 cup honey or brown sugar
• 1/4 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Your choice of a salsa or guacamole

Preparation: In a food processor, mince the garlic, then add and mince the cilantro. Add and minced the chipotle chiles. Add the honey, lime juice, coriander, cinnamon, and salt. Process into a thick marinade.

Rub the marinade on both sides of the chicken breasts. Marinate at least 15 minutes but ideally for 8 hours, refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat a gas or charcoal grill to medium high. When hot, add the chicken. Sear the chicken on both sides until lightly browned.

Turn the heat off under the chicken, and if using gas turn all burners off except one that is set on low. If using charcoal, move the coals away from the chicken, place the cover on the BBQ and close the bottom and top vents 80%.

Cook the chicken until the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees on an instant-read meat thermometer, about 20 minutes.

Serve at once with salsa or guacamole.

Barbecued Chicken with Mexican Walnut Sauce

8 Servings

This recipe is an adaption of a famous central Mexico dish, Chiles en Nogada. Poblano chiles are stuffed with cooked, chopped meat and fruit, and then served at room temperature with a sauce that has the colors of the Mexican flag: green (chopped cilantro), red (pomegranate seeds) and white (the cream sauce). It’s an example of a classic Mexican dish: multi-layers of flavor, vibrant color contrasts and labor intensive. This recipe yanks the sauce away from the stuffed chiles, and uses it as a finishing glaze on grilled chicken or other meats. It’s a wonderful entrée to serve at a dinner party.

• 8 small chicken breasts, rubbed with salt, pepper and olive oil
• 2 cups walnut halves
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1/2 cup Crema or sour cream
• 1/2 cup chicken broth, low sodium
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds or chopped red pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 serrano chiles, minced including the seeds
• 8 lime wedges

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Drop walnuts into boiling water and cook 2 minutes. Then drain in a sieve, spread the nuts on a baking pan, and roast for about 20 minutes, until golden. Set aside 1/2 cup for the garnish.

In an electric blender, place 1 1/2 cups walnuts, cream, Crema, chicken broth, garlic cloves that have been cut into thirds, nutmeg, cinnamon, pepper and salt. Liquify. Refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Cooking: Prepare the garnishes. Heat the walnut sauce to a simmer. Taste and adjust the seasonings. If you want a thinner sauce, stir in chicken broth or freshly squeezed orange juice.

Barbecue or roast the chicken until internal temperature reaches 155 degrees on an instant-read meat thermometer. Transfer the chicken to dinner plates.

Spoon the sauce over the meat. Garnish with chopped walnuts, pomegranate seeds or chopped red pepper, and serrano chiles. Serve at once accompanied by lime wedges.

Roasted Shrimp with Mexican Jade Sauce

Serves 4

This is a spicy, complex tasting, bright green “jade” sauce. It is great spooned across any fish that has been barbecued, or on roasted racks of lamb, or placed in martini glasses each holding three large chilled shrimp. The following recipe introduces a wonderful way to cook shrimp—so effortless. The shrimp is simply seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then tossed in a little olive oil and roasted in the oven. It is a perfect match with this Mexican Jade Sauce.

• 2 pounds large raw shrimp shelled
• Salt, pepper, and extra virgin olive oil
• Pomegranate seeds
• Crèma Mexicana

• 2 poblano chiles
• 2 tomatillos, leafy skins removed
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 serrano chile
• 1 cup baby spinach, packed
• 1 cup parsley sprigs
• 1 cup cilantro, packed, including stems
• 2 green tops from a green onion
• 1/4 cup mint leaves, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon grated orange skin
• 1/2 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed

Shell shrimp and, if you wish, cut along the top ridge of the shrimp to butterfly.

Roast poblano chiles until charred. Place in a bag, seal, and steam for 5 minutes. Using paper towels, rub off charred skin. Seed and stem chiles. In a hot frying pan (with no oil), toast the tomatillos, garlic, and Serrano chile until there are a few browned spots. Cut tomatillos into quarters.

In an electric blender, place all the ingredients (poblano through orange juice). Liquify. If the sauce seems too thick, thin with more orange juice. Makes 3 cups.

To use: Use the Mexican Jade Sauce at room temperature (it will brown if heated). Can be made 1 day in advance with plastic wrap pressed across the surface to prevent oxidizing.

For shrimp: Rub the shrimp with salt, pepper and olive oil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil. Add shrimp in a single layer. Roast until cooked, about 12 minutes. Place shrimp on warm dinner plates. Spoon the Mexican Jade Sauce across the shrimp. Garnish with pomegranate seeds or chopped red pepper, and a zigzag of Crèma Mexicana. Serve at once.

• 1 pounds firm mushrooms (shiitake, portabello, cremini)
• 12 organic chicken thighs, boned and skinned by the market
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup white flour
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon Asian chili sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or thyme leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup heavy cream, optional
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley

If using shiitake or portabello, trim off and discard the stems. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices. Cut each chicken thigh into half. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then coat with a thin dusting of flour. Place a deep 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the olive oil. When hot, add the chicken. Cook the chicken, stirring often, until it is browned on all sides. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms wilt, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the wine, broth, oyster sauce, tomato paste, chili, sugar, and thyme. When the mushrooms wilt, return the chicken to the pan and add the wine mixture. Cover, and simmer over lowest heat until the chicken is very tender, about 20 minutes. Cool. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking, with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasonings, especially for salt. Stir in cream. Transfer to a heated platter, sprinkle with parsley, and serve family style, or serve on dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Spicy Marinated Mussels; Melon Slices Wrapped in Prosciutto. With the entrée serve Oven Fries. Salad course: Classic Tuscan Salad. Dessert: Dense Chocolate Brownies with vanilla ice cream.

To quickly remove thyme leaves from the woody stems, place the thyme flat on a cutting surface and then with the top ridge of a chef’s knife, scrape the stems. The leaves will come off easily.

• 8 organic bone-in and skin-on chicken breast halves
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup minced fresh thyme
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon skin
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper or hot sauce

Rub chicken breasts on both sides with salt, pepper, and half the thyme. Place a 2-quart sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter, garlic, and shallots. When the butter just begins to brown, add the remaining thyme, wine, cream, grated lemon, lemon juice, and salt. Bring to a low boil. Then remove from the heat. Can be done to this point up to 8 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the chicken skin side up in a heavy shallow roasting pan. Pour in the sauce. Place in the preheated oven. Roast until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 155 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 20 minutes. Midway through cooking, baste the chicken with the sauce. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Transfer the chicken to a heated serving platter, pour the sauce over the chicken, and serve family style. Or serve the chicken on heated dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Three appetizers brought by dinner guests. With the entrée serve Crisp Polenta with Roasted Red Pepper and Green Beans with Walnut Oil. Dessert: Bought at the local Farmer’s Market.

When roasting or barbecuing chicken, the flavor is greatly enhanced by lengthy marinating. The protein fibers are loosely bound together so that after an 8- to 24-hour marinating, the flavors will have penetrated right to the bone. On the other hand, fish is even more absorbent and rarely benefits from more than one hour of marinating. As for pork, beef, and lamb, the tight structure of the proteins means that even with lengthy marinating, very little of the marinade penetrates deeply into the meat.

• 2 to 3 organic frying chickens cut into thighs, drumsticks, and breasts
• 1/4 cup Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup oyster sauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons Chinese chili sauce
• skin from 1 lime, grated with a micro-plane
• 1/4 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 8 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup minced green onion

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken. Stir well. Add chicken. Can be done up to 24 hours before cooking, with all the food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a shallow baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack on top. Drain the chicken and place skin side up on the wire rack. Transfer the chicken to the oven. Roast until the breasts reach 155 degrees and the thighs 165 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 30 minutes cooking. Twice during roasting, brush any extra marinade across the chicken. Transfer to a heated platter for family style, or onto dinner plates. Serve.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Bloody Mary Shrimp Cocktail; thick wedges of bleu cheese and Brie with crackers. With the entrée serve Oven Roasted Mashed Potatoes (made a day in advance); Salad course: Waldorf Salad. Dessert: A premium ice cream with Caramel Chocolate Sauce.

This is a very good cooking technique for casual dinners. The chicken is given an initial charring on the barbecue and then slow roasted in an oven. Done in this manner, you’ll have more time to enjoy your friends.

• 8 organic boneless chicken breasts halves, skin on

Dijon Marinade

• 1/3 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons Asian chili sauce
• 3 cloves minced garlic

Red Pepper Glaze

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tequila
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons Asian chili sauce
• 1 cup roasted red pepper, store-bought
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro sprigs
• 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (or toasted pine nuts, or slivered almonds)
• 4 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled

In a bowl that is large enough to hold the chicken, combine all ingredients for the Dijon marinade. Add the chicken breasts, and coat evenly. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil and garlic. In another bowl, combine the broth, tequila, oyster sauce, cornstarch, and chili sauce. Rinse the pepper, pat dry, and chop. Add to the chicken broth mixture the chopped red pepper and cilantro. Place a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and garlic. When the garlic begins to brown, add the chicken broth-red pepper mixture. Immediately remove this from the stove. Set aside the pumpkin seeds. Crumble the goat cheese. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking, with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Line a shallow baking pan with foil. Spray a wire rack with nonstick spray and place on the baking pan. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Preheat a gas or charcoal fire to medium-high. Add the chicken skin side down. Cook the chicken over direct heat on both sides until golden and lightly charred, about 6 minutes. Transfer the chicken, skin side up, to the wire rack. Place in the preheated oven and roast until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 155 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 20 minutes. Stir the Red Pepper Glaze. Bring to a boil. Place the chicken on a heated platter. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle on the pumpkin seeds and crumbled goat cheese. Serve family style or serve on dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Stir-Fry Shrimp in Lettuce Cups. With the entrée serve BBQ Corn with Lime, Olive Oil, and Garlic, and hot dinner rolls; salad greens tossed with your favorite salad dressing. Dessert: Chocolate Crème Brulee.

Boned chicken breasts quickly lose their moist interior when barbecued entirely on direct heat. That’s why in this recipe after the breasts are lightly charred, they are grilled over indirect heat that is maintained at a low temperature.

Lemon-Basil-Garlic Glaze

• 1/2 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 cup thin soy sauce
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 1/3 cup chopped basil or sage or cilantro
• 1 tablespoon your favorite chili sauce
• 4 organic whole chicken breasts, boned but skin on
• 2 cups wood chips
• Vegetable oil to brush on the grill

Combine all the Lemon-Glaze ingredients and stir well. Add the glaze to the chicken and coat the pieces evenly. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat a gas or charcoal fire to medium. Place the wood chips on a small layer of foil, and place at one corner of the cooking grate. Brush vegetable oil on the grill. Place the chicken, skin side down on the grill. Cook until the skin becomes lightly charred, about 8 minutes. Brush with more marinade, and turn the chicken over. Turn off the heat under the chicken (if using coals, push them to one side). Turn the other burners to low. Cover the lid, and cook the chicken over low heat until the internal temperature on a meat thermometer reads 155 degrees. Every 5 minutes during cooking, turn the chicken over, brush with remaining marinade, and close the lid again. When done, transfer the chicken to a heated platter if serving family style or to individual dinner plates. Serve.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Chinese Jade Dumplings (guests help fold the dumplings), crackers and a dip. With the entrée serve BBQ Portabello Mushrooms and hot dinner rolls. Dessert: Homemade pie and ice cream brought by a dinner guest.

Organic chicken is the ideal meat to cook for dinner gatherings. Few are the people that will not relish the succulent meat, intense chicken taste, and crisp skin. And of all the methods to cook chicken, barbecuing is the most effective accenting the unique qualities of chicken. All barbecuing requires supervision. Get your friends involved turning the chicken on the grill and brushing on more marinade. However, if you find this distracting or stress inducing, the chicken is great roasted in a 425-degree oven for approximately 30 minutes.

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 2 cups chopped vine-ripe tomatoes, including the skin and seeds
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 1/4 cup cider or white distilled vinegar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or cilantro
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 organic frying chickens cut into pieces, or 8 chicken breast halves, bone and skin on
• 2 cups wood chips, such as hickory or apple
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, optional

Combine olive oil and garlic. In a bowl, combine all remaining ingredients except the chicken and wood chips. Place olive oil and garlic in a 12-inch sauté pan. Place over medium-high heat. When the garlic begins to brown, add the chopped tomato mixture. Bring to a boil and cook until it thickens so it clings to the end of a wooden spoon. Cool to room temperature. Add half the sauce to the chicken. Combine the remaining sauce with the cream. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat a gas or charcoal barbecue to medium (not hot). Place the wood chips on a small layer of foil and place at the corner of the cooking grate. Brush vegetable oil on the grill and add the chicken. Cook the chicken until both sides are golden, about 10 minutes of cooking. Close the lid. Every 3 to 5 minutes open the lid, turn the chicken over and then close the lid again. The chicken is done when the internal temperature of the thighs is 165 degrees and breasts 155 degrees using a meat thermometer (about 30 minutes of cooking). Transfer to a heated platter. Bring the cream-chipotle sauce to a rapid boil. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Serve family style, or transfer the chicken to dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Imported olives, both black and green, seed-in, and pitted; thinly sliced salami; roasted, salted nuts. With the entrée serve Oven Roasted New Potatoes and Buttered Peas. Dessert: Fresh Peach Ice Cream.

Serves 8

Organic chicken is the ideal meat to cook for dinner gatherings. Few are the people that will not relish the succulent meat, intense chicken taste, and crisp skin. And of all the methods to cook chicken, barbecuing is the most effective accenting the unique qualities of chicken. All barbecuing requires supervision. Get your friends involved turning the chicken on the grill and brushing on more marinade. However, if you find this distracting or stress inducing, the chicken is great roasted in a 425-degree oven for approximately 30 minutes.

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 2 cups chopped vine-ripe tomatoes, including the skin and seeds
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 1/4 cup cider or white distilled vinegar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or cilantro
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 organic frying chickens cut into pieces, or 8 chicken breast halves, bone and skin on
• 2 cups wood chips, such as hickory or apple
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, optional

Combine olive oil and garlic. In a bowl, combine all remaining ingredients except the chicken and wood chips. Place olive oil and garlic in a 12-inch sauté pan. Place over medium-high heat. When the garlic begins to brown, add the chopped tomato mixture. Bring to a boil and cook until it thickens so it clings to the end of a wooden spoon. Cool to room temperature. Add half the sauce to the chicken. Combine the remaining sauce with the cream. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat a gas or charcoal barbecue to medium (not hot). Place the wood chips on a small layer of foil and place at the corner of the cooking grate. Brush vegetable oil on the grill and add the chicken. Cook the chicken until both sides are golden, about 10 minutes of cooking. Close the lid. Every 3 to 5 minutes open the lid, turn the chicken over and then close the lid again. The chicken is done when the internal temperature of the thighs is 165 degrees and breasts 155 degrees using a meat thermometer (about 30 minutes of cooking). Transfer to a heated platter. Bring the cream-chipotle sauce to a rapid boil. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Serve family style, or transfer the chicken to dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Imported olives, both black and green, seed-in, and pitted; thinly sliced salami; roasted, salted nuts. With the entrée serve Oven Roasted New Potatoes and Buttered Peas. Dessert: Fresh Peach Ice Cream.

Keep It Fun: Visions of Grandeur

It’s Monday. I pick up the phone and invite eight friends for dinner Saturday night, thinking “Simple, Easy, Quick.” But as the days pass, a little voice becomes increasingly shrill and persistent. “Complicate.” “Impress.” “Make a Culinary Tour De Force.” The goal of a simple dinner becomes lost. By Saturday night, I’m in a culinary daze, slightly irritable, and distracted throughout the dinner. The next morning I hear the standard refrain from Teri: “Why did you do such an elaborate dinner. You didn’t even have time to talk with your friends.” Quiet that inner voice. Embrace the simple menu. Grandeur comes with a cost.

BBQ Chicken with Lemon-Basil-Garlic Glaze

Serves 8

Boned chicken breasts quickly lose their moist interior when barbecued entirely on direct heat. That’s why in this recipe after the breasts are lightly charred, they are grilled over indirect heat that is maintained at a low temperature.

Lemon-Basil-Garlic Glaze

• 1/2 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 cup thin soy sauce
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 1/3 cup chopped basil or sage or cilantro
• 1 tablespoon your favorite chili sauce
• 4 organic whole chicken breasts, boned but skin on
• 2 cups wood chips
• Vegetable oil to brush on the grill

Combine all the Lemon-Glaze ingredients and stir well. Add the glaze to the chicken and coat the pieces evenly. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat a gas or charcoal fire to medium. Place the wood chips on a small layer of foil, and place at one corner of the cooking grate. Brush vegetable oil on the grill. Place the chicken, skin side down on the grill. Cook until the skin becomes lightly charred, about 8 minutes. Brush with more marinade, and turn the chicken over. Turn off the heat under the chicken (if using coals, push them to one side). Turn the other burners to low. Cover the lid, and cook the chicken over low heat until the internal temperature on a meat thermometer reads 155 degrees. Every 5 minutes during cooking, turn the chicken over, brush with remaining marinade, and close the lid again. When done, transfer the chicken to a heated platter if serving family style or to individual dinner plates. Serve.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Chinese Jade Dumplings (guests help fold the dumplings), crackers and a dip. With the entrée serve BBQ Portabello Mushrooms and hot dinner rolls. Dessert: Homemade pie and ice cream brought by a dinner guest.

BBQ Chicken Breasts with Red Pepper Tequila Glaze

Serves 8

This is a very good cooking technique for casual dinners. The chicken is given an initial charring on the barbecue and then slow roasted in an oven. Done in this manner, you’ll have more time to enjoy your friends.

• 8 organic boneless chicken breasts halves, skin on

Dijon Marinade

• 1/3 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons Asian chili sauce
• 3 cloves minced garlic

Red Pepper Glaze

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tequila
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons Asian chili sauce
• 1 cup roasted red pepper, store-bought
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro sprigs
• 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (or toasted pine nuts, or slivered almonds)
• 4 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled

In a bowl that is large enough to hold the chicken, combine all ingredients for the Dijon marinade. Add the chicken breasts, and coat evenly. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil and garlic. In another bowl, combine the broth, tequila, oyster sauce, cornstarch, and chili sauce. Rinse the pepper, pat dry, and chop. Add to the chicken broth mixture the chopped red pepper and cilantro. Place a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and garlic. When the garlic begins to brown, add the chicken broth-red pepper mixture. Immediately remove this from the stove. Set aside the pumpkin seeds. Crumble the goat cheese. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking, with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Line a shallow baking pan with foil. Spray a wire rack with nonstick spray and place on the baking pan. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Preheat a gas or charcoal fire to medium-high. Add the chicken skin side down. Cook the chicken over direct heat on both sides until golden and lightly charred, about 6 minutes. Transfer the chicken, skin side up, to the wire rack. Place in the preheated oven and roast until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 155 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 20 minutes. Stir the Red Pepper Glaze. Bring to a boil. Place the chicken on a heated platter. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle on the pumpkin seeds and crumbled goat cheese. Serve family style or serve on dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Stir-Fry Shrimp in Lettuce Cups. With the entrée serve BBQ Corn with Lime, Olive Oil, and Garlic, and hot dinner rolls; salad greens tossed with your favorite salad dressing. Dessert: Chocolate Crème Brulee.

Keep It Fun: Red Wine Choices

There is a vast range of red wine choices to match with these poultry recipes. Generally the more aggressively flavored the dish, the more full-bodied the matching red wine. Keep in mind that chili in food intensifies the tannins in red wine. The wine and food matching is badly thrown off balance. So if serving a spicy Szechwan chicken pour a low-tannin, full-bodied red wine such as a Zinfandel.

Szechwan Oven Roasted Chicken

Serves 8

When roasting or barbecuing chicken, the flavor is greatly enhanced by lengthy marinating. The protein fibers are loosely bound together so that after an 8- to 24-hour marinating, the flavors will have penetrated right to the bone. On the other hand, fish is even more absorbent and rarely benefits from more than one hour of marinating. As for pork, beef, and lamb, the tight structure of the proteins means that even with lengthy marinating, very little of the marinade penetrates deeply into the meat.

• 2 to 3 organic frying chickens cut into thighs, drumsticks, and breasts
• 1/4 cup Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup oyster sauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons Chinese chili sauce
• skin from 1 lime, grated with a micro-plane
• 1/4 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 8 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup minced green onion

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken. Stir well. Add chicken. Can be done up to 24 hours before cooking, with all the food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a shallow baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack on top. Drain the chicken and place skin side up on the wire rack. Transfer the chicken to the oven. Roast until the breasts reach 155 degrees and the thighs 165 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 30 minutes cooking. Twice during roasting, brush any extra marinade across the chicken. Transfer to a heated platter for family style, or onto dinner plates. Serve.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Bloody Mary Shrimp Cocktail; thick wedges of bleu cheese and Brie with crackers. With the entrée serve Oven Roasted Mashed Potatoes (made a day in advance); Salad course: Waldorf Salad. Dessert: A premium ice cream with Caramel Chocolate Sauce.

Keep It Fun: Plate the Food in the Kitchen

We’re huge fans of plating each course in the kitchen, assuming, of course, that there is plenty of counter space. The food is transferred to the plates quickly. There is the same size portion on each plate. Every plate looks equally attractive. And the serving process is far speedier than serving the food buffet fashion or using the pass-the-platter syndrome. You’ll be amazed. Guests love to help—they’re hungry. Do the following: Place the starch on each dinner plate just slightly off center. Add sauce and place the protein on the sauce. Alternatively, lay the protein on the plate or tilt it on the side of the starch and spoon the sauce over the meat or seafood. Garnish with chopped herbs and serve.

Oven Braised Chicken Breasts with Lemon and Fresh Thyme

Serves 8

To quickly remove thyme leaves from the woody stems, place the thyme flat on a cutting surface and then with the top ridge of a chef’s knife, scrape the stems. The leaves will come off easily.

• 8 organic bone-in and skin-on chicken breast halves
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup minced fresh thyme
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon skin
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper or hot sauce

Rub chicken breasts on both sides with salt, pepper, and half the thyme. Place a 2-quart sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter, garlic, and shallots. When the butter just begins to brown, add the remaining thyme, wine, cream, grated lemon, lemon juice, and salt. Bring to a low boil. Then remove from the heat. Can be done to this point up to 8 hours before cooking with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the chicken skin side up in a heavy shallow roasting pan. Pour in the sauce. Place in the preheated oven. Roast until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 155 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 20 minutes. Midway through cooking, baste the chicken with the sauce. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Transfer the chicken to a heated serving platter, pour the sauce over the chicken, and serve family style. Or serve the chicken on heated dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Three appetizers brought by dinner guests. With the entrée serve Crisp Polenta with Roasted Red Pepper and Green Beans with Walnut Oil. Dessert: Bought at the local Farmer’s Market.

Braised Chicken with Garlic and Wild Mushrooms

Serves 8
Chicken breasts simmered in a sauce taste great. But the problem is that chicken breasts quickly overcook whether they’re cooked from scratch that evening or reheated. On the other hand, chicken thigh meat is richer tasting and higher in fat. It tastes even better cooked a day in advance and gently reheated, which is great since this easy recipe takes about 1 hour to complete.

• 1 pounds firm mushrooms (shiitake, portabello, cremini)
• 12 organic chicken thighs, boned and skinned by the market
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup white flour
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon Asian chili sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or thyme leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup heavy cream, optional
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley

If using shiitake or portabello, trim off and discard the stems. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices. Cut each chicken thigh into half. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then coat with a thin dusting of flour. Place a deep 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the olive oil. When hot, add the chicken. Cook the chicken, stirring often, until it is browned on all sides. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms wilt, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the wine, broth, oyster sauce, tomato paste, chili, sugar, and thyme. When the mushrooms wilt, return the chicken to the pan and add the wine mixture. Cover, and simmer over lowest heat until the chicken is very tender, about 20 minutes. Cool. Can be done to this point up to 24 hours before cooking, with all food refrigerated.

Cooking: Bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasonings, especially for salt. Stir in cream. Transfer to a heated platter, sprinkle with parsley, and serve family style, or serve on dinner plates.

Menu ideas: Appetizers: Spicy Marinated Mussels; Melon Slices Wrapped in Prosciutto. With the entrée serve Oven Fries. Salad course: Classic Tuscan Salad. Dessert: Dense Chocolate Brownies with vanilla ice cream.

Is That Wine Red or White?

Want to amuse your dinner guests? Have them taste wine from black votive glasses (available at Target). The black interior makes it impossible to see the color of the wine. Each guest tries to identify only the color of the wine. Unless the wine is a big, buttery California chardonnay or a high-tannin California red fruit bomb, picking the correct color will be difficult! Enlist the aid of an expert. Go to your local wine store and involve the owner or manager in selecting the wines that will lead later that evening to confusion, wrong guesses, consternation, and amusement.

Wine from the Refrigerator? What To Do?

An unfinished bottle of red wine lies in the refrigerator. And you’d like to finish off the bottle early that evening before opening another bottle. But the wine is 44 degrees and warming it to cellar or room temperature will cause an agonizing wait. The solution: pour yourself a generous amount, and place the wine glass in the microwave oven. Heat for 7 seconds at full power! The wine will have risen to just above cellar temperature, the microwaves have no effect on the taste of the wine, and you’re immediately able to enjoy a glass of wine.

Serving a Young Red Wine with Lots of Tannins?

A noted Napa Valley winery owner confided the following tale. Arriving in the tasting room just prior to an important tasting with a wine critic, the winery owner discovered that the latest cabernet release, a big powerful wine with lots of tannins, hadn’t been decanted hours in advance and remained unopened on the tasting room counter. Decanting it vigorously wouldn’t have softened the tannins sufficiently. But maybe a few pulses in an electric blender might prove more effective. Now that’s a very different use of the word “blended” from its usual meaning in the wine industry! The critic loved the wine, and the electric blender remained unmentioned, out of sight, and available.

Cooking with Wine

Students often ask me whether they should cook with the same wine that’s going to be served with dinner. The answer: Absolutely Not. It’s an often-stated rule by chefs that using the same wine in cooking establishes a “taste bridge” between the food and the wine. This practice is flat out wrong and leads to the most pretentious wine discussions. Not even a wine educator is going to be able to tell the quality of wine used in cooking once that dish—a beef stew for example—has simmered for hours in a sauce flavored by garlic, tomatoes, caramelized onions, dried porcini mushrooms, salt, and pepper. Save the good wine for drinking.

Do you have any stories about wine, the subject of wine and food pairing, myths to debunk, funny wine stories, or reactions to the above “wine tales”? I’d love to hear from you.

Once when Teri was on an exotic adventure trip, I gave a dinner party for 8. I ushered my friends into the living room, served wine and engaged in animated conversation, but not a speck of food appeared. After awhile some of the dinner guests went into the kitchen and cooked a delicious dinner. So control and power, blended with a little group activity, are hallmarks of any good dinner.

Several years ago Teri and I gave a dinner party for our long-time publisher and friend Phil Wood to celebrate the publication of Fast Appetizers. He arrived wearing one of his signature billowy polka-dot outfits, created especially for him by a Hawaiian artist, and carrying an armful of wines and copies of his recent cookbook publications. Other friends arrived. I cooked madly as course upon course appeared only to disappear. Massive numbers of wine bottles were opened, and the din rose as one of Phil’s authors led the conversation on the custom of eating bugs in other cultures. He described how the Vietnamese coax tarantulas from their underground dens and then batter and deep-fry the hairy spiders, which led to much theorizing by all of us about suitable condiments.

Meanwhile, sunset transitioned into inky blackness with faint starlight since the installation of an outdoor lighting system had never been a priority of our “work-eat” program. A sudden frantic banging on the pantry door silenced the group. Then more banging. We rushed to the pantry door, and there stood an agitated shepherd, waving his arms and motioning into the darkness. His flock of several hundred goats, brought in by a neighbor for the purpose of “weed-eating” the spring grasses, had broken through the fencing and was moving across our hilltop, devouring not just grasses but roses, Russian sage, low limbs on our olive trees, and the vegetable-herb garden. We couldn’t see the goats, but the sound of their mastication and the image of our hilltop laid barren sent our group into an unbalanced frenzy. Teri supplied flashlights, and after much tripping, shouting and pushing (I fell down and was trampled by goats), we managed to push the intruders back through the hole, secure the opening, and return breathless and disheveled to the dining table.

Surprising dinner guests had entered, eaten and been expelled. “Weed-eating” had been completed in a matter of minutes. And the “work-eat” program, disparaged by some, already had me planning the next dinner party.