My friend Donna gives new meaning to the word ‘foodie’, and she has more energy than a litter of puppies. She’s out almost every night during the week overseeing the local community college’s ‘Taste of Westchester‘ food program and it’s her job to recruit the dozens of restaurants who participate. Basically a restaurant agrees to demonstrate how to prepare some of their signature dishes and then serve up what they’ve made. Sometimes students get to prepare the food themselves which is always lots of fun, but at the very least you walk away with a full tummy and maybe even learn a bit about how to prepare a new dish.
Tuesday night my friend Debbie and I joined in on the ‘class du jour’ which was held at a restaurant that specializes in Puerto Rican cuisine. We started off with some delicious empanadas, then the chef, who is all of 20 years old, showed everyone how to prepare mojitos, and that’s Debbie waiting patiently in the wings to indulge.
She made guava and mango mojitos and another one that I can’t remember…guess I had one too many ;).
The main course was pernil, which is a traditional Puerto Rican dish that has as many ways to be prepared as lasagna.
But the one thing every good pernil will have is crispy skin.
Aside from the typical rice, a potato salad was made without the added use of an acid such as vinegar and I have to say it was pretty good. Hard boiled eggs were added which I love, and instead of using utensils to break them up, students used their hands.
Have you ever made flan? I did many years ago using a recipe from Laura Groveman’s cookbook that I talked about in this post. While it was unbelievably good, I didn’t use a liner and it took about a decade to get the pan clean. When I sat down to eat this, I said I was only going to take one or two bites. Hah! It was soooooooo good I pretty much ate the whole thing.
I will share the recipes for the flan and the pernil in a few days. You will NOT want to miss them!
Julie says
Hi and wow Doreen it looks like you had a wonderful night out with your friend! I can’t wait to see the recipes. Have a nice weekend.
Julie
Nana Diana says
What fun, Doreen- I don’t think I have ever had that kind of food. Well, except I have made flan several times. THAT is always a treat!!!! xo Diana
Angela says
Sounds like a fun evening and good food! Looking forward to the recipes! Have a great weekend!!~~Ang
Carol says
What a fun class to take. I am not a cook, but I love doing things I don’t usually do. I did a beer making workshop. After reading this, I think I need to look for a fun cooking experience.
Shirley@Housepitality Designs says
Nothing can be better than enjoying good friends and great food..I love Puerto Rican food!
Andi says
I have never had a mojito. What is wrong with me??
-andi
Amy @ StowandTellU says
I’ve heard that Puerto Rican food is amazing, though I haven’t really tried many dishes. Mojitos on the other hand, mmm, yum. It looks like you girls had a great time. Trying new traditional foods and flavors is ALWAYS an adventure.
Lavender Dreams says
I would love to try it, too….looks delicious! Hugs, Diane