Nice, And Easy Too

 A club that Hubby Tony belongs to holds their monthly meetings in a restaurant banquet room on the third Monday of each month. At the December meeting they invite the spouses and turn it into a party. The night starts with a happy hour and appetizers. Once everyone is seated the food is brought out by a waitress instead of the usual buffet line. Each table has a bottle of red and a bottle of white wine in the middle, and people help themselves. The meal ends with dessert and coffee. Some years there are organized pen and paper games, and sometimes just a quick recap of the club's year before the evening breaks up.

Right now all the restaurants in the county are under an indoor dining ban, so the party had to be cancelled. The group's president suggested that members might want to support the restaurant by ordering a carryout meal on the party night. I was all for that; any night I don't have to cook sounds like a good deal to me. Especially four days before Christmas.

In previous years Tony would get a letter ahead of time offering a choice of four entrees from which to choose. We made our selections, then sent the information back to the organizer. Tonight we could order anything we wanted. The restaurant's online menu had a nice selection of entrees (which came with soup or salad and a side dish of pasta, broccoli, or fried potatoes), sandwiches, pastas, and pizza. I chose Eggplant Parmigiano, my go-to whenever it's available. Tony ordered baked ravioli. He called in the order and picked up the food, while I set the table. I thought about getting fancy, but last time I had Italian food at home I got red sauce on the tablecloth, and decided to stick with a bare table and everyday plates.

When Tony got home he put the hot food into the oven to stay warm while we ate the salads-a wonderful combination of lettuce, hearts of palm, artichoke hearts, pimentos, red onions, Parmesan cheese, with an olive oil/red wine vinegar dressing. Next it was time for the main course. As we do, Tony and I shared samples of food with the other person. We're more malt beverage than wine types of people, so we chilled some of our favorite dark amber ale, even remembering to put glasses in the freezer for the full effect.

Tony saved half of his entree for lunch tomorrow, but mine was too good and I kept going until it was gone. If someone had put dessert in front of me I definitely would have eaten it, but I was definitely OK without it. 

Five years ago today: WHAT Season Is It?