making lemonade: mafia dinner eats

as much fun as the actual party was, i was equally thrilled with how amazing the food was! all of the courses were recipes that were new to me and were typical of 1930s cuisine. the greatest part was that they were tried and true sicilian recipes. how great is that?

and as much as i love food, i felt these dishes needed their own post in order to truly do them justice.

[all the cured meats and cheeses]

[sweet wine-marinated apricots]

[pistachio ice cream]

dessert:

so, the recipe said i needed to make a cassata which if you've never tried it, it's a little like an ice cream cake. the idea is to use a small metal bowl to create a thick layer of gelato. then, you fold egg whites and powdered sugar into whipped cream until combined. lastly, before filling the center of the gelato layer, you fold in candied fruit. since i'd never done it before and felt the most stressed about it, i made a deconstructed version of it. so, i made pistachio ice cream, layered whipped cream on top, and added sweet wine-marinated dried turkish apricots. it was for sure the right call in my book, and was the cherry on top of an already amazing night.

[prepping the meats]

[table and glassware prep]

the dinner:

i don't think we've ever used or cooked so much eggplant. i figured it would play a big part since it is so common in italian recipes, but phew! i feel like we have officially mastered the art of frying it.

since this was my very first time preparing a multi-course meal, let alone six, i knew coming up with a game plan would be my best bet. so, by thursday, we made sure to purchase all ingredients needed, friday, we started the prep work of cutting veggies and i studied the menu, and saturday, we really got to work. thankfully, T cut all the onions for me and spared me the awkward tears.

[delicious sauce 'a bubbling]

to make sure we could actually enjoy the party and wouldn't get stuck cooking the entire time, we made what we could earlier in the day. all pastas had been cooked in advance to mix in, sauces had simmered, and each pasta recipe was prepped to be reheated in the oven when the time came. the only one we didn't do in advance was the pan-seared swordfish with tomato sauce. swordfish is too delicious to be ruined by reheating. plus, it would be an easy cocktail interlude :)

[drooling so much]

[sauteed squid with herbs]

cocktails:

to kick the night off on the right foot, we made the included prohibition cocktail. it was a stout drink, but such is the case when alcohol was illegal...you had to get your drinks in, and get them quick!

so we added lemon garnishes, and greeted our guests at the door with their beverages. but, you can't have an italian dinner without wine so we asked our guests to bring themselves and a bottle (or two) of wine. as an added surprise we grabbed a sweet wine as an added treat, and it was quite the hit.

[hunky godfather]

[drinks ready for our guests]

the setting:

since this was to be a long dinner, we kept the table settings simple. i really love to create intimate table settings. i feel they are perfect for making a cozy night all the more intimate. plus, it's perfect for helping keep the conversation flowing. that, with our homemade seating cards and florals jana brought over the day before, made for a gorgeous arrangement.

[each couple checking out their menus]

[first course - prosciutto-wrapped cantaloupe]

[second course - baked pasta with cheese; my personal favorite]

[third course - pasta with eggplant and ricotta salata]

[fourth course - spaghetti with squid in ink sauce]

this course in particular was the most exciting to make. i'd always wanted to experiment with squid ink since it makes pasta taste all the more delicious. and now i finally had my chance.

unrelated note, i may or may not be on the hunt for more recipes to use squid ink...including homemade pasta ;)