He's a heckuva sous chef....

The man looks good in an apron

As a wedding gift, our creative and thoughtful friends gave us a couple's cooking class. Last night, in honor of Valentine's Day, we cashed it in.

And I'm happy to report that the husband + a little wine = a man who isn't afraid to wear an apron.

The class was "Tapas for two" and taught 5 small dishes among about 6 couples. The featured dishes were:

- Paella with chicken, chorizo and shrimp
- Chicken and ham croquettes
- Mussels with sherry, parsley and Serrano ham
- Garlic potato salad
- Sangria

We were broken up into groups, and we were paired with another couple, tasked with the mussels. The husband and the other couple were a little squeamish, but I love shellfish so much I could bathe in it, so it didnt bother me. It was an appetizer dish that required the mussels to just be steamed in white wine, and we made a ham, toasted almond, and various herbs/seasoning mixture to serve them with, inside the halfshells. It's a tasty, easy appetizer recipe for rookie entertainers out there (like myself), and it looks pretty on the plate.


The best (and most pathetic) takeaway from our first cooking class was that we liked the couple we were paired with so much (perhaps because we liked the Sangria so much), that we found ourselves unsure how to "ask them on another date" following the class.

Me: I really like them. We need more friends.
Husband: Me too. You should do something.
Me: No, YOU do it. Ask them out.
Husband: I can tell she wants you to ask. I can see it in her eyes.
Me: I just don't want to be rejected
Husband: You have to follow your heart and just act. Do it. Leap, Meg. Leap.

Ok, so it didn't go exactly like that...but I did temporarily fall in love with this couple and desperately wanted to be friends with them. In the end, we parted ways outside the class with standard pleasantries (even though I tried the "so we're going to get a drink...") to no response.

The husband and I turned out to be decent chefs last night. We also turned out to be undesirable to the couple we hit on.

I'll share the Sangria recipe, courtesy of The Wooden Spoon.

Spectacular Sangria

Ingredients:
1/2 c water
1/2 c sugar
1 lemon
1 orange
1 lime
1 granny smith apple and/or green pear
1 bottle Spanish red wine (you can really use any Merlot)
1 c brandy
juice from 1 orange (about 1/2 c)
juice from 1 lime

Method:
1. Cut the ends off the lemon, orange and lime. Place fruit ends in a small saucepan with the water and sugar. Bring to a boil and cook until the sugar dissolves completely and the fruit softens. Remove from heat to cool.
2. While syrup is cooling, cut the rest of the lemon, orange and lime and apple or pear into small chunks. In a large pitcher, combine wine, brandy, juices from the additional orange and lime, and fruit chunks. When syrup has cooled, squeeze juices out of the fruit and into the syrup. Discard fruit ends. Add the syrup to the mixture in the pitcher.
3. At this point, store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Before serving, add a little club soda.