One blustery evening last winter, a group of suburban dinner guests trudged through the slush to an empty storefront that was giving off a soft blue light. Like frozen Dr. Zhivagos stumbling out of the Siberian snows, they pressed their faces against the window in anticipation. Inside, the part of warm and welcoming Lara was played by floral designer Kim Merlin, owner of ex floreus in Lake Forest.
Merlin’s party was originally conceived to heal the winter “blues,” to chase away the misery of icy windshields and salt-stained boots with Blue Curaao as the tonic.
But, as usual, Merlin’s enthusiasm overwhelmed her and the therapy was not restricted to liquid cures alone. She draped the walls of her borrowed storefront in copious folds of thick white linen and placed huge containers of birch in beds of moss at the entrance, “kind of like Dr. Seuss,” Merlin mused. Each large square table was dressed in a mint-blue cloth with iridescent sequins the size of quarters sewn over the fabric, and the centerpieces were boxy vases stuffed with corpulent blue hydrangeas and thick pillar candles, like ice cubes in bloom.
The guests adhered to a strict dress code of blue and white and, for a while, everything was happily art-directed as they ordered their “Blue Moon-tinis”; that is, until Loren Dixon rebelliously requested a Cosmopolitan.
“That’s red,” a friend pointed out. Undaunted, Dixon kept on sipping with her naughty smile. Meanwhile, former Bears quarterback Chris Chandler appeared with his model-slim wife, Diane, who, in perfect keeping with the theme, was wearing white jeans and a soft blue blouse. Her husband, however, did a quick 180 to retrieve the inevitable North Shore necktie in order to adhere to another, unspoken, dress code.
The party began at 6 p.m. and by 7:30, the noise level was up and the guests were still enjoying the mini bleu-cheeseburgers being passed on trays. Merlin finally dimmed the lights, lit the candles and began herding the guests to their tables.
She stood to speak, tapping her glass as the last straggler pulled out his chair: “Besides the Academy, I would like to thank Blue Plate Catering for their blueberry blue menu and to remind you that if we keep partying we might be blue tomorrow.” She went on to acknowledge her friend, Geoffrey Luce, for his wine selection, which was indeed deliciously compatible.
The ingenious Blue Plate carte du jour was printed on square stationery that doubled as placecards tucked into napkins at each setting. One guest, clearly distracted by her dinner partner’s witty repartZe, neglected to read hers and mistakenly poured the blueberry soup over her salad greens. Insisting that it was really good, she encouraged her table mates to follow suit. She had takers, though John Dixon remarked that even though he had never heard of blueberry bisque, he was enjoying his without the greenery. The soup was infused with an intense vegetable stock to give it a hearty flavor and soften the sweetness.
The arrival of the entrZe of seared Montauk bluefish turned the conversation to beaches and vacation plans. One guest remarked that everywhere her family went on vacation, fellow travelers could not believe that she had seven children in tow. “You mean you have seven children and you can go out like this on a Wednesday night?” wondered Lisa Meers, of Broadacre Management, whose firm had lent the space to Kim Merlin for the night. “Are you kidding? If I had seven children, I would be out every night,” laughed her dinner partner.
Mini blueberry pies ^ la mode were served with a glass of champagne. Blue Plate Catering often likes to do the unexpected and pass the flutes after dinner as a celebratory exclamation point. It didn’t, however, seem to bring the intended closure to the evening. Laura Luce, wearing a furry blue snake entwined at her neck, said she loved the party so much that she would definitely be asking ex floreus to do a blue-and-white theme for her daughter’s Sweet Sixteen.
“Our daughter’s only 9 years old,” her husband chided.
“I am planning it early,” she replied, whipping her boa aside and pulling up a chair next to the hostess.
As she cranked up the music, Merlin announced that she was “completely devoted to iTunes,” and that she had chosen the song currently playing because it is her “favorite song in the whole world.”
“What is it?” a guest queried of her husband.
“I have no idea,” he replied.
“It’s Outkast,” interjected an incredulous Merlin as she gyrated to the music, a high priestess who had successfully cast out the last of the winter blues.
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PASSED HORS D’OEUVRES
Apple potato pancakes,with Nova Scotia smoked salmon
Chesapeake Bay blue crab cakes
Mini blue cheese hamburgers
Chicken breast and sour blueberry roll, with ponzu dipping sauce
Grilled lamb lollipops, with black and blue dipping sauce (black raspberry and blueberry)*
Miniature artichoke and feta pizzas
FIRST COURSE
Sweet and sour blueberry bisque
Mixed green salad topped with saga blue cheese, candied spicy walnuts and white balsamic vinaigrette
Parmesan cheese straws, sourdough rolls and black pepper drop biscuits
ENTREE
Montauk seared bluefish with saffron whipped potatoes and braised cardoons, drizzled with artichoke nage, garnished with fried parsnips
(Vegetarian option: white bean and braised artichoke cassoulet)
DESSERT
Miniature blueberry pie a la mode, with cinnamon ice cream*
COLOR COORDINATED
BLUE MOON-TINI
Serves one
1 1/2 ounces of Absolut Citron Vodka
1/2 ounce Blue Curacao
2 tablespoons lemonade
Splash of orange juice; blueberries for garnish
1. Add 1 1/2 cups of ice to a cocktail shaker. Pour in vodka, curacao, lemonade, orange juice. Shake well, strain into a martini glass. Garnish with several blueberries.
GRILLED BABY LAMB LOLLIPOPS WITH BLACK AND BLUE DIPPING SAUCE
Yields 7 to 8 pieces (chops)
For the black and blue sauce:
1/2 pint fresh blueberries
1/4 pint fresh black raspberries or blackberries
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup water
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Salt and pepper
For the lamb lollipop:
1 rack New Zealand baby lamb, preferably 10 to 12 ounces (see note below)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1. Wash and clean the berries. Drain and set aside.
2. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the berries and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in the water, vinegar and sugar and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes. Pour sauce into a blender and carefully puree until smooth. Strain if desired. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Sauce can be served hot or cold.
3. Pre-heat a grill.
4. Place the rack of lamb on a cutting board and use a knife to trim away any fat along each of the rib bones (this will expose most of the bone, except where the chop is attached).
5. Rub lamb with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and grill on both sides for 2-3 minutes each, or until lamb is medium rare. (Cooking time will be longer for larger racks of lamb.) Remove from the grill and let sit for 2 minutes. Cut the rack between each bone to achieve 7 or 8 lollipops. Serve with black and blue sauce.
Note: Most lamb racks found in retail markets range in weight from 14 ounces to 11/4 pounds. When preparing racks of the larger size, increase cooking time.
MINIATURE BLUEBERRY PIES
Yields 4 pies (serves 4 to 8)
Pie crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 ounces (14 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 large egg
6 tablespoons ice water
Blueberry pie filling:
6 cups fresh blueberries
1 to 11/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large egg white, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
4 3 1/2-inch pie tins (top of pan width is about 4 3/8 inches wide)
Ice cream, optional
1. Prepare the pie crust by combining flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and mix with fingertips or pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Break the egg into a small bowl, lightly beat in the ice water and add to the flour mixture. Gently mix until the dough just comes together. Do not overmix.
2. Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Form each into disks, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour.
3. Roll out 4 pieces of dough one at a time (about 61/2 inches in diameter each) on a lightly floured surface to fit each pie pan. Press one piece into the bottom and sides of each pie pan. Trim the dough around the edge of the pan, leaving a small overhang. Chill until ready to use.
4. Roll out remaining 4 pieces of dough (to about 5 inches in diameter each), which will be used for the top crusts. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
5. Wash blueberries and drain in a strainer. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with 1 cup sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, vanilla and cinnamon. If blueberries are tart, add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
6. Remove the pie tins from the refrigerator and brush the bottom and sides of the dough with the egg white and water mixture. Divide the blueberry mixture between the 4 pans. Remove the top crusts from the refrigerator and place one over each of the filled pans. Moisten the edges of dough with additional egg white mixture, then press them together lightly, trim and crimp with fork tines to seal. With a knife, make three slashes in the top crust to allow steam to escape, then brush lightly with water. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for about 30-35 minutes or until the filling bubbles and the crust is a light golden brown. Cool. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature with cinnamon or vanilla ice cream.
