Fall Dinner Party

For our dinner party Friday night we whipped up a tasty menu featuring seasonal ingredients:

First course: butternut squash risotto topped with grated asiago cheese. Secret ingredient: a dash of curry powder spices up this dish, complimenting the naturally bright orange hue of the squash and adding depth of flavor. Chop and saute the butternut squash first before starting the risotto (you can even make this ahead and refrigerate so it's ready in advance) and in the final stage when the risotto's ready and piping hot, stir in a soft cheese such as the fontina we chose, for absolute creaminess.
Second course: creamed spinach topped with caramelized eggplant, sundried tomatoes and fresh gorgonzola. Secret ingredient: a pinch of sugar caramelized the diced eggplant as it sautees, browning it wonderfully to perfection. It's best to toss the eggplant with sea salt and let sit for as long as possible before cooking, to soak up its natural moisture to achieve the desired caramelized consistency. I also add minced garlic to the eggplant when cooking (and minced shallots to the creamed spinach because, in the words of my chef friend Bennett, "shallot makes food taste good.")
Dessert: poached pears drizzled with hazelnut liquor served over vanilla ice cream. Secret ingredient: a spoonful of honey in the poaching liquid. This plates as such an elegant dessert and yet it couldn't be easier - peel and core pears, keeping the stems in, and submerge in a pot of sweet wine and water (I used half a bottle of Muscato with about two cups of water), vanilla and a cinnamon stick and turn heat up to simmer, about 15 minutes. In a small saucepan I made a simple syrup with hazelnut liquor and sugar, whisking until smooth. For presentation I placed two scoops of vanilla ice cream in each bowl, sitting the pears upright in the center, and drizzle the hazelnut simple syrup over top. *Tip: I found it helps to slice the bottoms off the pears to create a flat base so that they sit up while poaching and plating. The combination of the hot pear and cool ice cream is delectable, the fruit so soft it scoops up in your spoon ...

Using fresh produce and seasonal ingredients such as butternut squash and pears, this dinner is a perfect example of how one can serve a farm fresh vegetarian meal to entertain in style.