Agreeing on a Menu

Attendees (From upper left): Charles, Gregory, Peanut, Lance, Big-D
Cocktail: Manhattan
Appetizers: Cheese and crackers, cajun mix
First Course: Highlands baked grits
Main Course: Roast pork loin with fennel (a Barefoot Contessa standard)
Dessert: Mini orange chocolate chunk cakes

Creating the menu for Saturday night's dinner was a nightmare- we started planning it on Wednesday, but Peanut and I couldn't agree on a thing until Friday night. I wanted to do southern comfort with a twist, which was an idea he wasn't too thrilled about. Here he is trying to stab me:
Anyway, I always try to make new things, but Peanut was eager to make something that I'd made before and that we knew would turn out well. So we compromised.

We realized an hour before our guests arrived that we didn't have a cocktail and neither of us wanted to go to the store to buy mixers. So, it was Manhattans, enjoyed here by Charles.

Peanut agreed to a southern-inspired dish for the first course that I hadn't prepared before. I had to continuously stir grits until they were "done." But how the hell does a boy who grew up in Buffalo and went to school in Chicago know when that is? Apparently, when a spoon stands up by itself, around 45-50 minutes.

The grits were put into Ramekins and baked, then taken out of their dishes and served with sauteed mushrooms, prosciutto, and shallots and a lemon-butter sauce, a recipe by Frank Stitt.

The Contessa's roasted pork loin with fennel is a standard that never fails to disappoint.

Damn me! I always forget to take pictures of dessert until they're half-eaten. I made 6 individual orange chocolate chunk cakes, served with a chocolate ganache on top. The ganache topping was imperative, because the silicone mold I used decided to keep parts of the top when I initially "unmolded" them.

So, in the end, Peanut and I were able to compromise on a menu, and all parties went home relatively happy. Of course, that could have had everything to do with the Manhattans....