Autumnal Supper Club

Last Friday night saw the second Arbutus Supper Club up and running and it was a brilliant night. After a few minor hiccups the previous day with not very successful shopping leading to a slight menu change, I couldn't have been happier with the end result. The main course was due to be baked sea bass and I was really hoping to get two lovely big fish to bake in the oven stuffed with all sorts of delights but as I couldn't find a fish big enough in any of the fishmongers I went to I had to settle for poached fillets instead, which was a lovely substitute even if it wasn't exactly what was advertised! 

The evening started with a glass of sparkling wine and some apple chips and spiced nuts by the fire to help us get in the autumn mood (the unseasonably warm weather was ruining my Autumn theme!) The apple chips were a huge success. Very easy to make and absolutely delicious. They were all gobbled up with none left for me after. I highly recommend them. And they're relatively healthy too.

The starter was a duck terrine from the River Cottage with homemade chutney and sourdough bread. I'm a particular fan of this terrine. Again, it's quite simple to make and looks very impressive when you turn it out so it's great for dinner parties. And it can be made the day before giving you one less thing to stress about on the day itself. Winner.

The poached fish was lovely and I was really happy with the celeriac mash. The celeriac added a really nice sweetness to the potatoes which worked really well. The main was finished off with simple greens, wilted and then dressed with salt and butter. A garlicky tarator sauce was served for those who wanted an extra level of flavour with the fish. I hadn't come across this sauce before, or at least I thought I hadn't. It's very similar to humous, but made without the chickpeas. I found it in a recipe for the baked sea bass that I was going to do and the one I made had bread and pine nuts in it. Further internet searching has come up with lots of tahini based recipes for this dish and the more I read about it the more familiar it became. It's one of those ones that I've eaten loads of times in mediterranean restaurants but never known what it was called. Now I know. Anyway, it was an interesting accompaniment and the sharpness of it worked well to cut through the fish.

I had never cooked a pumpkin pie before Friday and was a little nervous about how it would go down, especially since I had no idea what it tasted like before I served it. I had a real live Canadian at the table and two of my other guests had family in the states and all three assured me it was very much like the real thing, so I took them at their word and was delighted. It was simple enough to make. I blind baked the pastry, but I'm not sure this was necessary and probably would bake it raw the next time. I also used a butternut squash instead of actual pumpkin as this was recommended as a tastier alternative by a lot of the recipes I read. I'm not sure if it would go down as my favourite desert of all time but it was perfect to finish to my Autumn celebration and there was none left at the end to wound my ego.

The thing I enjoyed most about my second supper club was how different it was to the first one. The first was in the height of summer and attended by friends of mine, who all knew me obviously, but not necessarily each other. It was a hectic affair, not least of all because it was all so new to me, but there was an excitement in the air that comes with a new venture and the summer sense of possibility pervaded. This time round I had two guests who had been before, two guests who I didn't know and three who were friends but were new to the club. It was a much more relaxed and laid back affair for many reasons. The time of year, the fact that it was on a Friday, the experience of the first event behind me and most importantly the unique combination of guests all came together to create a special atmosphere, totally different to the first time round. This to me is what supper clubs are all about. The food is merely a catalyst, hopefully a very tasty one, which allows people to come together and have an experience that is totally unique to that time and place. What more could you want? Can't wait for round three.