Inspirational Hospitality

In the last few years I've enjoyed traveling either with my colleagues to different cities and countries or to their own homes to visit them. In turn, I've hosted many friends in my own home and home town.

Sometimes the trips are short, just overnight, but regardless of the length of time spent, it is the time that I share with my chef friends, designers and planners that I have found to be an occasion in itself. I have been overwhelmed by such wonderful hospitality and of course, the time filled with food, fun and LOVE! These moments together fill me with the inspiration I bring back to my own work.

Just recently my daughter Joanne Purnell (who is also chef de cuisine of Good Gracious) and I traveled to North Carolina where Janet Woodson, chef/owner of La-Tea-Da's Catering, and Mark Baldwin, chef/owner of Blue Ridge Catering, were our hosts.

David Klingel with a bottle of blood orange juice infused with vanilla bean
that he would use in our second course.

At their home, we were joined by our friend David Klingel. David trained and worked as a chef and although he is now the event director of the Mint Museum in Charlotte he wanted to cook dinner for us all.

The evening began with champagne (Mark chose all the wonderful wines for the evening), and began with appetizers from Marla Thurman, La-Tea-Da's chef. The theme was southern in sentiment and cosmopolitan in execution and taste. I loved that David's menu was themed around emotions!

We began with appetizers by Marla Thurman

MENU WARM [wawrm] - verb: To fill with pleasant emotions1
LOVE
Chinese eggplant crostini with parmesan lattice, micro green salad and roasted garlic lemonaise


2
INDULGE
Butternut brulee with blood orange and vanilla sugar in the raw

3
ESCAPE
Coconut and ginger marinated cod with a vanilla rum zabaglione on butter lettuce finished tableside with French press tea

4
FAMILY
Slow-roasted pot roast with blueberry, pomegranate and marinara caviar, white sweet potato cream with roasted beet, goat cheese bechamel and oven-dried ratatouille finished with applewood smoked salt

5
PLAY
Amuse bouche of bacon profiterole with jalapeno cream

6 SHARE
Poached apple creme brulee quenelle with a caramel spoon and apple confit plated tableside

There is nothing more fabulous in life than sharing conversation, food, wine and laughter with friends -- just LOVE that!! This was one of those occasions that brought all the elements together.

A family portrait of sorts!
From left to right: Jessica (La-Tea-Da's event planner), David, Janet, Joanne, Pauline, Mark

THANK YOU dear Janet, Mark, David and Marla for making us feel so at home and
so special.

Two chefs! Joanne and David

In this business we create celebration after celebration for our clients to give them memories of life that will be remembers always. And then there are those times, like this one, in which we do that for one another. LOVE that!

Photos by Tommy McCart, Tommy McCart Photography