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Recipe of the Month: Sticky Toffee Pudding

Filed Under: Catering Chronicles, Festive Fare, Inspiring Ideas

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list of ingredients
  • 1 cup & 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¾ cup pitted dates
  • 1 ¼ cups boiling water
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
toffee sauce
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ cup unsalted butter
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • ½ cup pecans
  • 1 cup heavy cream & 2T Sugar, whipped
  toffee_pudding
DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch round or square baking dish. Sift the flour and baking powder onto a sheet of waxed paper. Finely chop the dates. Place in a small bowl and add the boiling water and baking soda; set aside. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla; beat until blended. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Add the date mixture to the batter and fold until blended with a rubber spatula. Pour into the prepared baking dish. Bake until pudding is set and firm on top, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven to a wire rack.

Toffee Sauce: Combine the butter, heavy cream and brown sugar in a small heavy saucepan; heat to boiling, stir constantly. Boil gently over medium low heat until mixture is thickened, about 8 minutes. After the cake is cool, cut slices and drizzle with toffee sauce, top with a spoonful of sweetened whipped cream.

*recipe photo from whatjessicabakednext.com/
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Recipe: Pumpkin Creme Brulee

Filed Under: Festive Fare

Want to satisfy your sweet tooth? Our Executive Chef, Eric Petrus makes a killer creme brulee. It’s a perfect introduction for the fall season and a great way to impress, well, anybody. You get to use a torch!
pumpkin creme brulee
INGREDIENTS:
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
  2. Whisk egg yolks and brown sugar together in a large bowl. Stir in heavy cream, pumpkin puree, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
  3. Divide pumpkin mixture between seven (5-inch) ramekins about 1/2 inch from the top.
  4. Place the ramekins in a baking dish and fill with the baking dish hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
  5. Bake in preheated oven until just set, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove ramekins and refrigerate until completely cool, at least 2 hours.
  6. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of sugar onto each creme brulee. Melt the sugar with a chef’s torch until crisp and dark brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.

 

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Awards in Equity: Vibrant Table’s Kurt Beadell

Filed Under: Biz Buzz, Catering Chronicles

 

awards_kurtWe are happy to announce that Creative Director/Partner of Vibrant Table, Kurt Beadell has been selected as the honoree of Equity Foundation’s 2014 Equity Awards. Equity Foundation promotes philanthropy, and seeks to represent the interests of the LGBTQ community and those that promote diversity and inclusion, by granting funds to organizations that work to eradicate prejudice against gender and sexual minorities, and people from other diverse communities. The Equity Award is given to individuals and businesses that are champions in creating social, economic, and political equity for the LGBTQ community.
Congratulations Kurt!
To find out more about Kurt and the Equity Award visit : www.equityfoundation.org

Thank you to Evrim Icoz Photography for allowing us to use his images. These images have been stylized by Vibrant Table.

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All About Hors D’oeuvres: The Where, Why & How Much

Filed Under: Catering Chronicles, Factual FAQs

Hors d’oeuvres are to dinner what aperitifs are to wine: a little something before the main event; but can’t they be a meal on their own? Deciding if your event may or may not be the perfect Spotlight for hors d’oeuvres only- well we’ve got you covered. Some tips of the trade as to what’s what.
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Hors d’oeuvres: “apart from the main work.”

What’s important to know is: How many hors d’oeuvres will my guests eat? You don’t want to be the hostess sending guests home hungry, but you also do not want too much food. Goldilocks and the Three Bears had it right; it takes some trial and error before you really know the right number of pieces per person for different events. Luckily, we have done the work for you and have come up with best estimates, by event type and time:

  • 2-4 pieces per person, 30-60 minutes before dinner, cocktail hour
  • 5-6 pieces per person, 1.5-2 hour event, preceding dinner time
  • 8-10 pieces per person, 2-4 hours event, heavy hors d’oeuvres
  • 12-15 pieces per person 4+ hour event, dinner replacement

Tips of the trade for hors d’oeuvres events:

  1. Hors d’oeuvre dinners are not always a less expensive dinner option. Although many people hope that ordering hors d’oeuvres will reduce overall cost, this is typically not the case!  Hors d’oeuvre dinners are often more expensive since the menu is more labor intensive.
  2. How can you make an hors d’oeuvre dinner option economical? Mix it up!  Be sure to include some heavier items like salmon sliders or braised lamb meatballs; take advantage of “platters” and avoid lots of handmade smaller pieces; add some other options like quinoa salad, baked brie or a mezza platter.
  3. Perks of an hors d’oeuvres dinner:
    1. Multi- stations- who doesn’t like variety of flavor?
    2. Cocktail atmospheres create a less formal service
    3. Live chef action. Watch chefs prepare your tapas!
    4. “When do you” vs. “When don’t you”:
      1. Venue matters – hors d’oeuvres menus are equipment and kitchen sensitive.  More so than the traditional buffet or plated dinner, hors d’oeuvres may require ovens, fryers and grills.  If your menu needs all three, the cost to rent equipment adds up!  And if an outdoor kitchen must be created for your event, it’s likely you’ll also need a tent, lighting, and then heating and side walls in the cooler months.
      2. If you want to encourage movement at your event, if perhaps there is not enough seating for all, hors d’oeuvres parties are absolutely great for mixers, networking and open houses.
      3. If the budget fits!

Hors d’oeuvre parties can be fun and dynamic – just remember to consider time of day, right amounts, event style, and of course, the kitchen!

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WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Do you have any experiences with hors d’oeuvre events? What have your experiences been? Any tips of your own? At the end of the day, we can only know so much.

PHOTO CREDITS

We are indebted to the photographers who allow us show their work. The white spoons filled with a bite of deliciousness was taken by Sara Gray. The plate of skewers was contributed by Evrim Icoz Photography.

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