Saturday, 6/12/2010

Wow, tonight's meal was FANTASTIC- easily the best meal I've had a long time. In May 2008, we went to an auction at our church to benefit a mission trip to Mexico. Along with our friends Laura and Bron, we purchased a dinner for 12 people at our pastor's home. He and his wife Lyn, well known to be a great cook and entertainer, offered an un(wine)d party where they promised to serve mojitos and arepas. An arepa is a bread made of corn, popular in both Colombia and Venezuela. We were not disappointed. So, here's what we had tonight:

Beverages: Mojitos- fresh squeezed lime juice, simple syrup, tonic, rum, and mint. Wine and sangria were available with dinner.

Appetizer: toasted baguette slices, spread with cream cheese, and topped with a cherry, onion, jicama mixture. Lacking a better description, it was like a sweet bruschetta.

Dinner: grilled chicken breast that had been marinated in a heavenly orange-flavored marinade. A salad made of sliced naval oranges, jicama, and thinly sliced red onion. And, then, the arepas topped with: white rice flavored with onions and finely diced peppers, black beans, and an amazing salsa. I'm not sure what all went into the salsa, but it definitely had avocados, tomatoes, and onions in it. I helped to slice the avocados and tomatoes:) The flavor combination was soo good. I just can't say enough about how good it tasted!

Dessert: chocolate brownies with Full Tilt ice cream. Lyn and David offered us either coconut or salted caramel flavors. Ben had coconut, and I had the salted caramel. Both paired perfectly with the brownies.

Well, it goes without saying that we were quite stuffed when we left their house. But, it was totally worth it. We had a great meal with some of our favorite people. Thank you Lyn and David for hosting such a memorable evening!

EDITS FROM LYN:
Lyn, our wonderful cook, looked at my blog and sent some updates to the ingredients I listed for the meal she prepared. Here they are:

1. The mojitos were made with club soda, not tonic. And, they included triple-sec and lemon juice.
2. The cheese spread on the bruschetta was a blend of goat cheese and ricotta. Mint and cayenne were mixed into the cherry topping.
3. Dijon mustard is the special ingredient in the salsa. Good thing I didn't know that ahead of time. Mustard usually turns me off. But, I will embrace that I liked it in this dish!