Playing Hostess

Cooking

It’s late, so I’ll make this one quick and let the pictures do the talking. PS: sorry about the blur on the right of some of the pics; I think I was doing a little too much nibbling with the camera and got a smudge on the lens:)

So, it was my turn to host book club. Being the lover of wine and cheese that I am (and given that Sarah’s Key was set in France), I decided to make fondue. After a quickie trip to the gym, I spent the afternoon readying my apartment…

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and doing a lot of slicin’ n dicin’.

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The spread included baguette bites (and later some tasty focaccia from Iggy’s), broccoli, apples, carrots, and roasted red potatoes for dipping. I also made a blue cheese and pear spinach salad doused with TJ’s cinnamon almonds and raisins.
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I was a little nervous about how the cheese would actually turn out since I’ve never made fondue, but it seemed to be a success. I used a blend of gruyere and swiss with a base of sherry plus a little flour and nutmeg at the end. It tasted just like my childhood!
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Book club discussions aren’t complete without wine, so I also had a glass of riesling and a glass of merlot. I was a little surprised that some people thought the book was just ok…I do think its one of those books where the author didn’t quite know how to end it, so the plot just kind of stops. But I liked it overall and it made me want to get over to Europe soonish.
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Lauren brought cupcakes from whole foods! I’m actually not a chocolate cake person, but these were vegan and the density made them better than most of the fluffy coco powder-tasting cakes that I don’t care for. The icing wasn’t rich enough for me though!!! I’m a true buttercream girl. It was nice having a big old fruit salad for dessert as well and I snagged the leftovers for tomorrow.

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I’m blogging from bed, so its time to say goodnight. Goodnight.

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  • Tracy
    April 5, 2011 at 11:12 pm

    Yum! Everything looks delicious. You’ve inspired me to get out my fondue pot this weekend! and I might have to pick up some cupcakes from Whole Foods too. 🙂

  • Matt
    April 6, 2011 at 9:59 am

    I didn’t see any leftovers this morning…!?

    • Laura
      April 6, 2011 at 10:06 am

      there’s fruit for you in the fridge!

  • Violet Monkey
    April 6, 2011 at 11:10 am

    “Sarah’s Key” is one of those books that has been sitting on my bookshelf for a couple of years. I am a compulsive book collector (it’s a serious condition! ha) and tend to get too many at one time and then forget about the one or two that I never read… I need to give it a go.

    Oooh, fondue. It sounds delicious.

    ~

  • natalie (the sweets life)
    April 6, 2011 at 1:17 pm

    I’m with you–I loved Sarah’s Key. I’m surprised people weren’t crazy about it!

    Love book club–always good food and wine 🙂

  • Errign
    April 7, 2011 at 5:35 pm

    I thought Sarah’s Key was an excellent book, but I do agree with you about the plot sort of just ending!

  • Amy
    April 9, 2011 at 9:24 pm

    That fondue looks amaze! I actually wasn’t a fan of the Boston Melting Pot, surprisingly, but look a fondue night!