I gotta talk about it! I had another scrumptious dining experience, here at Bailey Boushay House! And if you're one of my regular readers, you may get the impression that I only blog about Italian dinners. However, I will tell you now, I'm a foodie. French, Indian, Thai, Japanese, Vietnamese, Columbian, Mexican, Tex-Mex, African, Irish, American. By God, if it's a foodstuff, I'll probably try it and, quite possibly, like it! It's coincidental that I'm, once again, going to rave about the awesome Italian dinner we enjoyed.
To mix it up for you, I'm going to start at the end. That's right, if I had the option, I would've had dessert, first. Of course, I may well have cheated myself. Dessert was not particularly Italian, but it was my personal favorite...Creme Brulee´. Imagine this...Chef, clad in his classic chef whites, rolls his silver cart of magic into the roomful of satisfied, yet expectant, diners. Atop his cart, whipped cream, lady fingers, creme brulee´s, each in their own white, scalloped ovals, sugar, and a butane torch. Table to table, he rolls, transforming custard into tasty works of art, giving everyone a front row seat and personal attention.
The main courses, and they were many, stuffed shell pasta in a marinara sauce; shrimp fettucini, chicken Milano, with a side of pan-fried white asparagus. What can I say besides, "mmmmm" and "mmmmm" and "You shoulda been there." Okay, I usually worry that the chicken will be too dry, or the noodles, too soggy, or the asparagus too firm or worse, woody. All was wonderful, chicken moist, noodles al dente, and asparagus tender and flavor. How grateful, I was to taste delicious asparagus for the first time in three years! I almost wept.
The zuppa Toscana was delicately flavored, creamy and rich with delectible chunks of mildly spiced sausage. And finally, our dinner began with tender and aromatic cheesy onion foccacia, and one of the best caprese salads, I've ever savored! The mozzarella melted in my mouth, the tomatoes so fresh and delicious as to spark a childhood memory in my husband. He remembered that fresh tomatoes in January were unheard of in his youth. (Wow! What we take for granted.) And the balsamic vinagrette strueseled artfully over the red and white slices with touches of green ribbons of basil, was a sight to behold and pure pleasure to taste! I thought, "I could stop with this first course and not feel deprived." That's really saying something as I tend to be a glutton for great food!
I would be remiss not to mention the incredible people that make these events possible. They are "all in" to make these events special and memorable for people whose lives have been stripped of dignity through injury or illness. Tenderness and love is shown to those who attempt to dine and become emotionally overwrought. Engaged attendants feed those who can no longer feed themselves. Great care is taken to make certain each diner is given food in the form that they can safely eat, be it, liquid, pureed, chopped, or regular. And positive, loving attention is lavished on each attendee, patient, family member, or friend. What is even more precious, is the comfort and ease of the staff, paid and volunteer, as they circulate, assuring the comfort of each person.
Humor, comraderie, and love abound, it's times like these that make me so grateful to have landed here, at Bailey Boushay House, (my final home, my forever home, if you will.)
To mix it up for you, I'm going to start at the end. That's right, if I had the option, I would've had dessert, first. Of course, I may well have cheated myself. Dessert was not particularly Italian, but it was my personal favorite...Creme Brulee´. Imagine this...Chef, clad in his classic chef whites, rolls his silver cart of magic into the roomful of satisfied, yet expectant, diners. Atop his cart, whipped cream, lady fingers, creme brulee´s, each in their own white, scalloped ovals, sugar, and a butane torch. Table to table, he rolls, transforming custard into tasty works of art, giving everyone a front row seat and personal attention.
The main courses, and they were many, stuffed shell pasta in a marinara sauce; shrimp fettucini, chicken Milano, with a side of pan-fried white asparagus. What can I say besides, "mmmmm" and "mmmmm" and "You shoulda been there." Okay, I usually worry that the chicken will be too dry, or the noodles, too soggy, or the asparagus too firm or worse, woody. All was wonderful, chicken moist, noodles al dente, and asparagus tender and flavor. How grateful, I was to taste delicious asparagus for the first time in three years! I almost wept.
The zuppa Toscana was delicately flavored, creamy and rich with delectible chunks of mildly spiced sausage. And finally, our dinner began with tender and aromatic cheesy onion foccacia, and one of the best caprese salads, I've ever savored! The mozzarella melted in my mouth, the tomatoes so fresh and delicious as to spark a childhood memory in my husband. He remembered that fresh tomatoes in January were unheard of in his youth. (Wow! What we take for granted.) And the balsamic vinagrette strueseled artfully over the red and white slices with touches of green ribbons of basil, was a sight to behold and pure pleasure to taste! I thought, "I could stop with this first course and not feel deprived." That's really saying something as I tend to be a glutton for great food!
I would be remiss not to mention the incredible people that make these events possible. They are "all in" to make these events special and memorable for people whose lives have been stripped of dignity through injury or illness. Tenderness and love is shown to those who attempt to dine and become emotionally overwrought. Engaged attendants feed those who can no longer feed themselves. Great care is taken to make certain each diner is given food in the form that they can safely eat, be it, liquid, pureed, chopped, or regular. And positive, loving attention is lavished on each attendee, patient, family member, or friend. What is even more precious, is the comfort and ease of the staff, paid and volunteer, as they circulate, assuring the comfort of each person.
Humor, comraderie, and love abound, it's times like these that make me so grateful to have landed here, at Bailey Boushay House, (my final home, my forever home, if you will.)
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