I love dinner parties… going to them, throwing them. They’re like little projects and heaven knows, I love a project (implementation plans and all). Plus with the new house and proper kitchen I was dying to give one a whirl and Papa’s Wife was the perfect excuse for a whirl.
Papa’s Wife works hard, she has a full time job then comes home and cooks for her husband and takes care of her ninety year old mother. She does the bookkeeping for Brother-in-Law’s business, watches La Petite every other weekend, and hosts the family every Sunday for lunch. Plus, she’s always been really nice to me so I thought it would be nice to serve her Sunday lunch for once.
I’ve only cooked Sunday lunch for Papa’s Wife twice,
the first time I had been living in Le Petit Village for a little over a month and was wracked with nerves, and then there was
the time I made fajitas and everyone kept referring to the tortillas as crêpes (
weirdos). This time, I wasn’t nearly as nervous and new exactly what I wanted…
Like little nibbles for an appetizer, they’re so much more fun.
See these cucumbers topped with herbed cream cheese…
… fun!
I stirred chopped basilic and ciboulette (basil and chives) into France’s answer to Philly Cream Cheese, St Môret, and topped cucumbers with it. C’est tout!
And because they’re so damn good, I made the Mad Men deviled eggs that I had made for
Gatz’s birthday again.
I think it’s the capers that make them so good. I love a caper.
(And in case you couldn’t tell, the photos aren’t mine. I don’t take photos of my food because I’m terrible at it)
Besides little nibbles, I knew that I wanted to make something that I could prepare a couple hours ahead and since Chicken Piccata can be prepared a couple hours ahead, and has capers in it, it seemed like a solid choice. Throw it on top of some linguine and voila (I can’t seem to find an appetizing photo of chicken piccata so please use your imagination for this one).
Dessert was the best part though. On Friday night, Papa’s Wife had handed me a large, round, green, ripe fruit and told me to use it on Sunday before it went bad. I took the large, round, green fruit and decided that it was a very ripe mango and instead of just serving up slices of it (RE: boring) I googled, mango desserts, and came upon this bowl of heaven…
Mangoes in Cinnamon Custard. Yes please. Saturday I went out and bought another mango (just in case, you know) and later that night made the custard.
The next morning, a few hours before lunch, I began to cut the mango and made the oddest discovery… that large, round, ball of fruit that Papa’s Wife had given me wasn’t a mango, it was a giant freaking avocado! An avocado the size of a softball! Now maybe mangoes don’t come in that size but neither do avocados. Color me shocked. Good thing I had my ‘just in case’ mango to save the day (ABP… always be prepared… take that freakish softball avocado).
But, if it wasn’t for that weird and freaky, softball sized avocado, I never would have made the most delicious dessert there ever was.
Thank you avocado.
bisou
P.S. all of the recipes can be found on my Pinterest boards; delish dish and sweets for my sweet.
It's Me, Sara Louise 
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