Gift-Giving Through Food

My friend Linda is finally catching up in age with me with her late October birthday. Instead of getting her a gift this year I decided to invite her over for lunch. Have you ever gotten a gift you appreciated but never put to use? Or something that sits on your shelf or drawer and you forget you even have it for years? But food, everyone loves food. Especially when you take the time to make everything at home for that special person. Sure you can take them out to a restaurant but home is more comfortable and also you can indulge a bit more.



I made Goat Cheese Tart (Barefoot Contessa) to start off. There was a lot of butter, cream and cheese involved in this rich recipe. However, the tart did not taste heavy at all. The tanginess of the goat cheese and the cream balanced each other out. Originally I didn't plan on making the dough (bc I suck at doughs) but I couldn't find any folded up pie dough at stupid Ralph's and I didn't feel like making a separate trip to Dupar's at the Farmer's Market. I definitely need practice and a huge silpat I can work on. Wow, I made dough.



I served the Goat Cheese Tart with some baby greens with dijon dressing (dijon, red wine vinegar, olive oil, black pepper and salt). Then we moved onto the Butternut Squash Soup which I cheated a lil bit and bought from Trader Joe's. But I made my own croutons with some La Brea Bakery baguette, pasta seasoning, herbs de provence, black pepper, salt & olive oil. I sprinkled some chiffonaded basil but next time I will dollop the soup with some pistou.



And of equal importance, what beverage did we drink to round out this girls' luncheon affair? A bottle of Basa Rueda Blanco from the D.O. Rueda region in Spain. So good! It went perfectly with the Goat Cheese Tart and the Butternut Squash Soup. Another great value wine at only $8-$10! Check out a review here bc as you know my wine descriptive skills are rudimentary. We drank the whole bottle without a blink so let that speak for itself.