Bachelorette Feast

My grandmother asked me today, after her first viewing of this blog, whether I didn't also like to cook vegetables. In fact, I do (there are red beans and rice simmering on the stove right now), but I don't usually think of them as special projects. Instead, they're just dinner, which is only photographed when I'm in a particularly festive mood.

Luckily for my grandmother's viewing pleasure, my wives and I recently hosted a very festive occasion, with vegetables as a featured player. My wives and I have been friends since childhood, and we are all going to be bridesmaids at another childhood friend's wedding in July. To celebrate the upcoming event, we threw Nicola our kind of bachelorette party--the kind with wonderful food.

The three of us spent a wonderful day shopping and cooking, and the results were impressive. The menu featured:

Pickled Garlic
Two kinds of olives
Pane Genzaneze Crostini
Cabbage Potstickers (from the New York Times)
Red Sonja (a lentil and kasha finger food featured at Mundo, a favorite restaurant of Nic's)
Fava Skorkalia (Yellow Lentils with Garlic), adapted from Aglaia Kremenzi's The Foods of the Greek Islands, as was the Melintzanosalata Me Maidano (Eggplant and Parsley Spread).
Asparagus in vinaigrette with hard-boiled eggs
Green Salad
and a vegan chocolate cake from Babycakes

For those of you who think we're hopeless old ladies, we did go out and party afterward. Just wanted to show everyone the vegetables. (Note the groom-to-be's soulful mug overlooking the proceedings from his CD cover on the bookshelf.)