Date Night

On May 13th, Mike and I joined our good friends Ryan and Tanya and Adam and Shannon for a Date Night Cooking class at Tspoons in Ladera Ranch. I was a little skeptical at first, since I generally consider cooking my own meal on a date a no-no and knowing these three firemen, there wasn't much they could be taught about cooking since they seem to know it all, so I was sure there wasn't going to be any learning going on. But we ended up having a wonderful night, cooking our own meal and all, and had lots of fun with our friends! (and I think the boys might have even taken away a tip or two!)

This section of Ladera Ranch is pretty neat, it's called the Front Street Business district and all the homes have a small business space which line the street, hence Front Street.

On the menu for the evening was:

Corn Chowder with homemade Crusty Herb Bread

Fresh Spring Salad Rolls with Peanut Sauce

Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops with Creamy Pea Puree

Warm Baked Apple Caramel Tart

Here's Ryan with his finished Spring Rolls.

We prepared everything then it was cooked for us and brought back for us to plate. When our main course arrived for plating, Chef T, our head chef, told us to loving plate our partner's meal. Here is what Michael created for me. Personally I think it looks like a smashed cockroach, but love takes all forms, and it tasted delicious, so I was ok with it.

Michael had his own ideas for his plate, so I let him go for it, plus the pregnant lady had to eat!

Chef T told us about several plating techniques which make a plated meal attractive and height was one of the key factors. So here's Michael making the tallest plate in the room.

And this is dessert, which was probably my favorite :) Everything was delicious, and we really enjoyed doing something a little different for date night! Bon Appetit!