Foods from Chile Dinner Party: Part 1

The morning of Hurricane Sandy, I was contacted to host a promotional dinner to celebrate Foods from Chile. It was exciting news, especially because we were in the midst of preparing for a huge storm and anticipating that our power would go out (as it usually does). Well, the power did go out for a week, but we were lucky. So many of our friends and neighbors had terrible damage and are now suffering real hardship. 

It has felt a bit weird planning a foodie extravaganza in the midst of all this. But it's also felt like a relief from all the sadness and stress. It's been something lovely and fun to look forward to. And now I look forward to sharing this dinner party—including fabulous, new recipes—with all of you. I hope you, too, find it to be a bit of an escape from the strains of "real life."

And so, we begin with a sneak peek at the fabulous menu for tomorrow's event:

Important ingredients: chilean extra virgin olive oil and merquén.

I don't host too many fancy, grown-up dinner parties. They're a lot of work. And a lot of that work happens before I even start cooking. I like to get the dishes, serving platters, and glasses cleaned and dry. Do you know this neat trick for drying wine glasses on chopsticks? It really works!

Wine glasses, coffee cups, dessert plates, all lined up on the sideboard (and out of my way!).

I also like to set the table, so everything is out of the kitchen and out of my way.

Of course, I'll need to assemble some centerpieces tomorrow, but most of the non-food prep work is done. I am tired and I need energy for tomorrow. So, I'll bid you all adieu...stay tuned for recipes, food pictures, and some fun party photos!

For more information on Foods from Chile, check them out on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Use #FoodsFromChile and #NowInSeason to follow the festivities on Twitter.