Wednesday, November 17, 2010

The Secret is in the SauceS - 7 Course Pom Dinner Party with 7 Pomegranate Based Sauces



If you have not been following along at home, I was selected to host a POM DINNER PARTY.  I spent a week experimenting pondering and learning how to open a Pomegranate.  I got so good at opening them, that I can now open one on a white towel without leaving a mess...


Here's proof...





In addition, we used pomegranates to decorate our home for the event.  


This is a picture of our side table in our living room.  


Click HERE to see the whole house, from the front walkway and stoop, to the living room to our dining table.  Pom generously gave us 2 cases of Pom Wonderful Pomegranates, and we used everyone to set the mood.


I used the party as an excuse to finally have the first ever Kansas City Food Blogger get together.  Sharmin from WHAT YOU'RE MISSING KC and Chris from BLOG WELL DONE came to help me out as my party guests.  It turned into a great evening of talking food, food prep, dining experiences and favorite KC foodie stories.  There were several other local foodies that maybe possibly could have come, but busy schedules prevented it.  Karma, I think we were the perfect mix.


So, the mood was set, the perfect guests and spouses were invited.  Now, it's time to discus the food.  Ultimately, a dinner party rises or falls on the food.  I decided to base my dinner on sauces.  Pomegranate Arils (the juice sacks that hold a bit of the sweet tangy juice, as well as the seeds) are perfect to accent almost any dish.  Sprinkle them on a salad and you have not only a colorful addition, but it also changes the texture.  I gave each guest a small bowl filled with Arils that they could sprinkle or not on their dishes.  But by concentrating on the sauces, and the different ways to flavor a sauce, I infused that sweet tangy taste into the food, not just as an accent.




If you count using POM WONDERFUL Juice straight, for my dinner party, I used 7 different sauces.  Along with the honor of hosting a party, Pom Wonderful sent me enough juice and enough fresh pomegranates that I could juice to make plenty of different sauces.


Here's my menu, along with the sauces I used in each dish...


Drinks...
Shirley Temple with Pomegranate Grenadine on Pomegranate Rocks
Whiskey on Pomegranate Rocks
Champaign Pomegranate Cocktail with Pom Wonderful Juice
Tequila Sunrise with Pomegranate Grenadine

Bread...
Anadama Rolls with Pomegranate Molasses

Appetizers...
Olive Tapenade Straws made with a Pomegranate Garlic Power Sauce
I served these with raw Pomegranate Arils and a shot of Pom Wonderful Juice straight
so my guest would know what taste to look for in the rest of the meal.

Salad...
Insalata Caprese with a Pomegranate Ricotta Cheese stuffed Mozzarella Ball
The Pomegranate Ricotta was made with Pomegranate Molasses
The salad had a drizzle of Balsamic/Pomegranate Reduction

Soup...

Creamy Creole Shrimp and Artichoke Hearts Soup

with a drizzle of Pomegranate Garlic Power Sauce


Palate Cleanser...
Pomegranate Sorbet made with Pom Wonderful Juice

Fish Course...
Pomegranate Court Bouillon Flounder
Made with Pomegranate Garlic Power Sauce

Meat Course...
Pork Wellington served with spicy pureed Sweet Potato Grits
Both the Pork Loin and the Sweet Potato featured a glaze made with
Pomegranate/Chipotle Sauce

Dessert...
Chocolate Cordial Cups filled with Chocolate Pomegranate Sauce
Topped with White Chocolate and Pomegranate Arils




I love this picture... 7 AM, day of the party and I am up and making my sauces!


In the next couple of days, I will be posting more than once a day to get all the sauces and all the recipes in the record, so come visit often.


As much fun and tasty as it was to accent all the dishes with the Pomegranate Arils, it felt more like cooking when I used Pomegranates as the base for the sauces.


You will love these dishes!


So, 
Which Dish 
are you most looking forward to hearing about?




...

5 comments:

  1. They all sound good, but that pork wellington has me intrigued.

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  2. Pork Wellington please...

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  3. MMMMMM... the creole shrimp & artichoke soup! AND the sorbet :)

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  4. I can tell you put a lot of effort into constructing and prepping for your menu. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

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  5. You put together a great party with some great food!

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