Sunday, February 17, 2013

An exciting weekend in The Humble Bungalow...

We have been busy entertaining friends John and Cheryl from Vancouver this weekend.
They are the kind of friends that we are very comfortable spending time with...
we are all very relaxed and casual...
I think that is the sign of a great friendship... one does not need to "put on airs" or dress up.

Many conversations, walking and seeing some local sights were all part of our time spent together.

Friday evening we went out for martini's and sushi at The Oak Bay Marina.
Saturday after breakfast we did some marketing.
Cheryl and I decided that we wanted to cook a rack of lamb
to go with the exquisite 2004 vintage St Emilion grand cru that they brought home from France.
A visit to Slater's butcher shop for the Frenched rack of lamb.
Chiarelli's (the best deli in Victoria), for our assorted cheeses
Peppers Grocers for the fresh vegetables.

We also went to Hatley Castle and had a wonderful walk in the sunshine
(post to follow soon)
Olive the Senses for an olive oil and vinegar tasting and some purchases
and a quick stroll through Silk Road Tea Company for some teas.



The recipe is straight forward and has clear instructions
our results were delicious!


The racks were "Frenched" by the butcher
making it look very professional when entwined.


Truffle mashed potatoes
 french style bean with almonds
Rack of lamb Persillade

followed by a cheese course
Roquefort
caramelized onion cheddar
goat cheese
Manchego
Pecorino with Pepper





The mashed potatoes were easy peasy
boil peeled spuds
drain
mash and add 1 tablespoon truffle oil
2 tbsp. butter
then fold in one shaved truffle.


Dinner was a wonderful combination of flavours
and clean up went swiftly with many hands.

We had a lovely walk at Mount Douglas Summit and looked out over the city and the Gulf islands beyond
before driving out to Island View Beach for another stroll.
We worked up an appetite for lunch and enjoyed The Noodle Box in Sidney before taking them to the ferry. 

It's been a whirlwind of fun.

The leftover lamb is simmering now as Scotch Broth Soup
and the washer and dryer are humming ever so quietly.

I'm excited about The Hatley Castle Post
the stately home and grounds reminds me of Downton Abbey...
oh and it's the season finale is tonight!

Hope that you have enjoyed your weekend.

Hostess
XO

20 comments:

helen tilston said...

Sounds like a delightful day. Looking forward to reading your post on Hatley Castle

How about that final act in Downton Abbey. Cannot wait till season 4
Helen

Sheila said...

Wow, what a fun time! Your dinner looks amazing!

Pondside said...

The lamb sounds delicious. I love lamb but never cook it because The Great Dane ate too much bad lamb (mutton) in his Royal Roads days!

Anonymous said...

Trés joli menu avec des mets trés français Bravo!
Quelle joie de recevoir des amis et de leur faire un bon repas
Belle journée
Amicalement
MYRIAM

KSL said...

Your whole weekend sounds wonderful, and the dinner looks delicious. Don't you just love Manchego cheese? I would be perfectly happy to have just that with some bread and wine every night for dinner.

Susan B said...

It sounds like a wonderful weekend. Rack of lamb is one of my favorites.

La Vie Quotidienne said...

What a delious dinner ~ rack of lamb is my favorite entree. Ina's receipes are always dependable and good! I sounds like the perfect weekend.

Sheree said...

What a beautiful time together. You will all remember your lovely dinner forever.

We had such a little dinner here. I opened red wine with smokey cheddar and Breton multi grain crackers. Then we had roasted red potatoes with olive oil, garlic and cracker pepper. Next we had red leaf lettuce with blue cheese dressing. Just a little very dark chocolate for dessert. I had some bread, too.

So now we are the humble ones! :) Basically I made dinner out of a few potatoes and leaves of lettuce.

Sheree said...

Me, too!

Sheree said...

Oops! I'm not sure if I've had that cheese. I thought it was goat cheese.

Sunday Taylor said...

Sounds like a wonderful weekend with your friends. I love the menu that you cooked for dinner. I watched the finale of "Downton" and have so many thoughts but don't want to spoil if for others if they haven't seen it yet! Have a great week!

Duchesse said...

Elegant and beautiful menu! What was the dessert?

Judith said...

That is weekending in style just what I would expect from Hostess,great food,wine,friends + sparkling conversation.

Mine was sipping water from my sick bed stomach flu had me in its grip,hopefully not for much longer.Ida

KSL said...

You might have Sheree. It's a Spanish cheese made from the milk of sheep.

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

It is a wonderful series, I love watching it several times.

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

It has such a nice tangy flavour...I have used it on kale salad and the combination is pure heaven!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

This is the first time I have made it and it was less intimidating than I originally thought it might be.
I love to order it when I go out and leave the cooking to the professionals!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Your dinner sounds delicious...love blue cheese on lettuce!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

The cheese plate was dessert. We had a small bit of each type of cheese with grapes.

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Oh yikes Ida...I do hope you are on the mend.
There is such a lot of sickness around and I think we all need some springtime weather and sunny vitamin D.