-Epicurus (Greek philospher, BC 341-270)
True, true, Epicurus. There's something to be said about sharing a tasty meal with friends and family over good conversation, laughter, and a bottle of nice wine. I suppose there are many occasions where I end up dining alone, but eating with others is a true joy. ...unless your dining mate has bad manners, of course.
In their new cookbook, The Gathering of Friends, Michelle Huxtable and Alyse Christensen provide menus, recipes and table setting ideas meant to help you Gather Your Friends to the table and enjoy a homecooked meal. Each section focuses on an event or party such as a shower, a "Ladies Luncheon," breakfast brunch, or holiday meal. The photos are stunning, the cookbook well laid-out and there's even a section for you to write your own comments / notes!After drooling over page after page, I decided to make the Toasted Sesame Chicken Pasta from the "Springtime Breakfast" section. Clearly, I have my seasons wrong, but give me a break. I live in California. Though probably intended to be more of a pasta salad, I decided to serve this warm and as our main entree for dinner. Delicious and hearty, we greatly enjoyed the toasted sesame flavor and ease in preparing the dish. I did make a few modifications as the original calls for candied pecans (delicious sounding!) but we had an allergy in the group. Hope you enjoy as much as we did!
Since I enjoyed this cookbook so much, I wanted to share with a copy with you! Please leave a comment with your favorite dish to share with friends. Whether it be ice cream or a big bowl of chili, I'd love to hear your favorites. I've always wanted to use the Random Number Generator so leave your comment by Thursday, October 30th!
Yay! I'm the first to comment :). My favorite dish to share with friends? Probably bbq...ribs! YUM!
ReplyDeletePizza, but on a really random note, one time my friends and I got together and ate like a pile of bacon. Totally unhealthy, but very very memorable. I can't wait till asparagus is back in season to try this!
ReplyDeleteOH, yummy! I need to give that one a try. I love to share with friends. My favorite would have to be pizza and pitchers of beer!
ReplyDeleteLove that quote from Epicurus!!
ReplyDelete**Favorite dish to share with friends = Quinoa-Chickpea Casserole; or a baked good!! :0)
That dish sounds tasty. I always like to share my Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup with friends, its comforting & everyone loves it.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!
ReplyDeleteWith friends I love sharing cracked crab...it's fun to sit arouns and eat.
Fried chicken and Mac and cheese. Can't get any better than that. With biscuits and green beans.
ReplyDeletea pan of ooey, gooey brownies is my favorite treat at a get together with my girls :)
ReplyDeleteLooks great...love to share buttered popcorn, m&m's, a coke and a movie!
ReplyDeleteThis looks delicious! I just bought some asparagus today.
ReplyDeleteI like to make a big pot of spaghetti and meatballs however in the summer, it's probably BBQ.
My family and friends like it when i make a big ole batch of lasagna! There's never any left after dinner. This chicken dish looks wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI love taco night with friends. Cook the meat, chop up all the veggies, fry the tortillas, and let everyone assembly how they may.
ReplyDeleteThat looks so good! I need to try it! Yum!!
ReplyDeleteI keep hearing about this book!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share with friends has got to be lasagna and garlic bread...I don't make it very often but go all out when I do!
This dish looks yummy!
Aaah, the 7 layers my mom and grandma always made... everyone always LOVES them (how can you not with all that goodness)!!!
ReplyDeleteThis looks good!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share is maple pork tenderloins with mashed potatoes, veggies & a big salad.
Of course I like to share dessert also like brownies.
I love sharing Hawaiian cuisine with people, especially my kalua pork.
ReplyDeleteI love sharing Chicken Divan with my friends. It was always my favorite dish growing up and I always make it for company!
ReplyDeleteOoh, that sounds simply marvelous. My favorite dish to share. Hmm, probably chili this time of year.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share is my Chicken Marsala... I've made it so many times, that I've been able to experiment with the flavors and have it mastered! It always leaves people impressed... and full!
ReplyDeleteThat looks delicious! My favorite thing to share is Ina Garten's Lemon Fusilli. It's easy and delicious and everyone loves it.
ReplyDeletea big layer cake during a celebration w/ friends!
ReplyDeleteI love baking cookies for friends! They always make people happy!! Thanks for the giveaway!!
ReplyDeleteI think our most favorite things to share with our friends are our homegrown heirloom tomatoes. We always get a big kick out of seeing their eyes widen upon tasting how good they are compared to store-bought.
ReplyDeleteOh I love to share CHICKEN WINGS with my friends any style or flavor! They're so YUMMY! Then when you look around you see what you look like digging into your wings from your friends.lol!
ReplyDeleteI also love to share with them my Better Than Sex Cake! It's always requested every time we're invited somewhere. =)
i'm probably going to sound all mushy on you but i really do love hanging out with my family on thanksgiving. we all eat, laugh really hard (so hard you have a headache) and play dominoes and scrabble and there is no place i'd rather be.
ReplyDeleteThat's my kind of meal! I think I belong in California.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite kind of meal to share with friends would be, enchiladas. My mom's recipe is really good.
Served with black beans and guacamole and salsa.
Definately my buffalo chicken dip. Yum!
ReplyDeletei think my favorite food to share with friends has to be freshly baked, warm bread of any kind. It's such delicacy for most people, yet it's so simple to prepare.
ReplyDeleteall too often i end up dining with people with dreadful manners. it's rough, but so far, it hasn't ruined my appetite. :)
ReplyDeletemy favorite dish to share would probably be lasagna. we make bets to see who'll be the one who gets sauce on the tablecloth. :)
Wow, simple recipe!
ReplyDeleteMy fave dish to share w/ friends? Probably anything Italian... a really great lasagna or manicotti. Or baked ziti. Those always go over well.
That cookbook looks lovely! My favorite dish to bring to potlucks is my baked ziti with a slow roasted homemade tomato sauce. Yum.
ReplyDeletemy favorite dish to share with friends is my version of fish & chips: broiled miso glazed chilean sea bass and parmesan truffle shoe string fries!!!
ReplyDeleteEpicurious is right! Sharing a meal wih special people makes it even more delicious! I specially enjoy sharing desserts with my loved ones!
ReplyDeletePeanut Butter Bars!
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite food to share with friends is cookies!!! So easy to share! (and one of my FAVORITE foods period!)
Your pasta dish looks amazing. I always gravitate towards anything sesame/ginger, etc.
My friends always request my chocolate chip cookies so it my favorite food to share with friends. I know they will always be a big hit! Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteI love cooking for my friends, and the one staple I usually make is homemade pizza--thin crust, tomato basil sauce, topped with proscuitto, crimini mushroom, Fontina, Mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese. And I send them home with some cupcakes :]
ReplyDeleteLooks delicious Sharon. Any pasta dish with asparagus is always a treat.
ReplyDeleteOMG! I can still make it for the fun giveaway! I just love contests!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share with friends are, of course, egg rolls. That might be too exciting, but that's a staple that we always bring over to friends. It's in my blood!
aww sharon! i do love dining with others too, it makes the whole meal so special and more homey :) just last week we all sat down for nachos, fajitas and a damn spicy chili. but i gotta say, our favourite sitdown meal would be ENCHILADAS (if ben's cooking) and LASAGNE (if anna's cooking)! xxx
ReplyDeleteI love to share my homemade lasagna, salad and garlic bread. I make enough to feed an army, so what better, right? (Oh and they all love my Sundried Tomato Spread as well!
ReplyDeleteI love making a big pot of my dad's chicken brunswick stew. It just gets better the longer it cooks!
ReplyDeletemy favourit dish is lasagna or cannelloni. Yummy
ReplyDeletefavorite dish with friends is a black bean salsa dip. it is awesome and so easy to make.
ReplyDeleteFun giveaway! My favorite dish to share is a nice pasta bake. It's easy and everyone loves it. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite recipe to share with friends is my cheesy kugel. It's always requested when we get together and Hubby just asked for it last night.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share with friends is would be moroccan roasted veggies. They're always a hit!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish to share is pasta with tom sauce. I use my Granny's sauce recipe and it's always yummy!
ReplyDeleteThis looks SO good! And the dressing sounds fantastic! I'm going to have to look for this book!
ReplyDeleteOur pasta looks great! My favorite food to share with friends is a taco bar. You can have everything pre-made and just enjoy being with your friends.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite dish is "White Girl Enchiladas" (chicken enchiladas with a cream sauce). Delish!!!
ReplyDeleteI stumbled upon your blog and wanted to tell you how much I enjoy it ~ even if I don't win ;) I will definately be back!
I love sharing seafood pasta when my friends come over.
ReplyDeleteYum! I love pasta, that looks so good. Isn't it so versatile? My favorite dish to share with friends would probably be Chicken Pot Pie, who doesn't love comfort food?
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you posted a reminder! I totally forgot to post!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite thing to share is homemade mozzerella and fresh baked french bread with a couple bottles of wine!