Secret Table News

Our New Partner: Tricia Davey!

East Coast/West Coast Birthdays

Over the last few years my birthdays took a backseat to a lot of unvoidable grief in my family's life so I decided this year to celebrate with gusto because I'm so sincerely grateful to be here.  As in here, on this planet.  Alive and well.  If not busy and stressed and trying to count my calories like the rest of the world.  So it is with pleasure I talk about a few foodie elements to both my birthday in New York City and my birthday in Malibu (honestly it doesn't get much better) that are truly worth mentioning.

First and foremost, my dear friend and partner in the business, Shannon surprised me with a bespoke apron as a birthday gift.  I haven't received a handmade stitch of clothing since I was a child so I nearly burst into tears when presented with my bright brown, red, and yellow, two fabric, overlay with a pocket, pleats and thick waistband apron. 

Needless to say, the ever thinking social marketing guru that she's become suggested we have our line of Secret Ingredients' aprons to sell at our next Secret Table.  I concur.  But someone else is going to have to make them as Shannon is will be too busy with all the hats she wears in the business.

Next up, I have to share the ridiculously delicious red wine and chocolate cake my dear friend and new business partner (but sssshhhhh, it's a secret for now), Tricia Davey, baked me for my birthday.  Schlepped it across town and more than likely on and off a subway before presenting it at our working lunch replete with French Candles whilst singing Happy Birthday in French!  We are both Europhiles... email tricia@secretingredients.us for the complete recipe. 

My friends are positively genius are they not?  What made this cake so indescribably good was the sweet and savory combination.  In fact, I dubbed it the perfect adult alcoholic brownie as you could really taste the red wine embedded in the thick and rich chocolate mold.   Trix, who is always on the lookout for how to "lighten" things up topped with tart Greek yogurt which I love too as this adds a teeny component of nutrition while cutting back on calories and palate numbing sweetness.   I love ths cake and it will be up on our website soon available for all of our clients to sample.  My late father loved chocolate and red wine post a great dinner so this one's for you dad -- I still wish you were here to enjoy all the great food, great wine and beautiful people in my life.

And finally, for my West Coast birthday sur la plage I cooked!  My guests got  to sample an almost entirely vegetarian menu inspired by Mediterranean flavors and the fresh herbs of summer.  Anything I could cook with dill, Italian parsley, basil, and mint went into the menu planning.  And despite the oohs and aahs that all dishes elicited my fresh pea, mint, and goat cheese puree won the day as the official taste of summer.



There's alchemy in this combination and I'm here to tell you the sweetness of the peas combined with the unapologetic brightness of the mint, the droll creaminess of the goat cheese and tart but breezy taste of lemon juice and zest created an otherworldy spread.  I served on toast points but any thin crisp cracker will do.  Email me at events@secretingredients.us for the complete recipe. 

For this party I was not responsible for my cake and dear friends Wendy and Virginia Plumb surprised me with my favorite Red Velvet with Cream Cheese frosting.  That's our official taster and she agreed it was the best cake ever!

So with love and gratitude I sign off from this two week celebration and hope to sharing lots more birthdays with everyone in the future.  

Cheers!

Lisa

Secret Table May 12, 2012

On May 12, 2012 we held a "Chef's Night In" Secret Table at a loft-like home in Brentwood.   The menu was a simple South of France style dinner with a colorful table set in Mediterranean colors.

I was meant to join my guests for the duration of the evening but spent too much time in the kitchen orchestrating the dinner.   Sorry for that but still happy for the time I was able to spend one-on-one with my guests. 

We started with bubbles and a raspberry coulis that made a beatiful pink confection...

together with my new favorite cocktail cookies this time around Apricot/Tarragon and Chocolate/Cayenne... they are the perfect combination of sweet and savory with a delicate shortbread base.

We also served a whipped Feta spread that was combination of Feta/Cream Cheese/Cream, half a shallot and a clove of garlic.  The cuisinart did the rest!  I love Middle Eastern flatbreads toasted and cut into triangles for dipping.

Cesar Salads followed with Crispy Thyme Croutons and then we served my favorite pizza inspired by La Pizza in the Old Port in Cannes:  Caramelized onions, Nicoise olives and Gruyere cheese.  I waited years for that reveal and thanks to an article in The NY Times learned that it's all Gruyere baby and no Mozzarealla in the mix...

We next served our new favorite Merguez Sausage Couscous for the main course studded with dried cranberries and fennel.  Dessert was a slice of Lemon Ricotta Poundcake with more raspberries and whipped cream.  Our lovely host made espressons for our guests and my partner, Shannon and her divinely gorgeous husband, Jason, helped me out enormously with KP -- I promise to never do that to them again.  

Egads where was scullery for the night?   All in all it was such a swell night and I thank my guests enormously for their support of The Secret Table!   For a quick look at the night, follow this link:

http://youtu.be/gYBfIAun2m0.

Cheers!

Lisa & Company



Client Appreciation

Suffice it to say that my food business has exploded.   We have been busier than one-armed paper hangers (one of my dad's favorite and I'm sure politically incorrect analogies) so this blog is really dedicated to all my clients who make my life a revolving door of new faces and places (some of which are mind blowingly fabulous like this particular home in Newport). 

Work aside -- because we all know it's great to do what you love and make a living at the same time -- however, the real reward for a private chef/caterer is how sincerely happy people are with the food we serve, our professionalism and our presentation.  In other words, I feel loved.  And I believe my clients feel loved at the time they partake in eating what I have labored over for days -- investing time, creativity and care to make sure everything is as perfect as it can be.  Even when it's for a two-year old's special birthday party!

As a result of this huge upsurge in business our menus have been expanding as well:  New dishes we're extremely proud of are Chili Prawns -- a combination of jalapenos, lemons, prawns, plum sauce, sesame oil, and garlic chili sauce; Dorie Greenspan's psychotically divine cocktail cookies: Parmesan, almond and rosemary, tarragon and apricot and chocolate cayenne.   Melt in your mouth delicious. 

Empanadillas stuffed with spinach, roasted pine nuts and currants.  Wrapped in puff pastry they are a lunette of rich buttery flavors. 

Strawberry meringue pie and of course, my summery triple berry crisp. 

And due to a lack of fresh figs at the market, I stuffed beautiful plump apricots with honeyed goat cheese, wrapped them in prosciutto and roasted them at 400 degrees until they were the perfect sweet and savory kiss.

And last but not least what has become a new favorite dish on the menu adapted from a Padma Lakshmi recipe is my Merquez couscous studded with the eponymous spicy lamb sausage, fennel and dried cranberries.   A perfect one-dish meal that's been showing up on menu after menu.  Thank you Padma!



So we thank you, all our Secret Ingredient clients, for making our business such a huge success and such a massive pleasure serving you.  For recipes, please email me directly at events@secretingredients.us.  Otherwise this blog would have been a novella!

Bon Appetit,

Lisa and company







April 21st Secret Table

A Spring Communal Table

Dear Friends,

We want to hear from you!  In order to bring you the best communal dining experience possible we want to know what tickles your fancy, stimulates your palate, and piques your interest.  Our goal is to grow the table so many intrepid foodies can gather and meet one another over great meals and good times.   

A Spring Communal Table

If you would, email us at secrettable@secretingredients.us and let us know if you'd be interested in attending a dinner on the 21st or the 28th of April. If a ticket price over $100.00 is a deal breaker?  And should we offer a complete vegetarian menu in addition to our regular menu?  Does providing an open bar make the table that much more lively?  And since we asked, please feel free to email us any other suggestions you might have that would make your communal dining experience the be all, end all. 

Once we've collected your feedback, the next Secret Table will be underway and the invitation will follow shortly.  

A million thanks!

The Secret Table Team