coastal cocktails
perfecting the "done before they arrive" party- a work in progressMy buddy Rick came in from San Francisco to call on his Midwest clients. I jumped at the chance for him to visit our new home in Dayton. It’s not often we get coastal company, or for that matter many houseguests at all. Southwestern Ohio doesn’t have much destination appeal. Ironically everyone who has ventured to our place has fallen in love with it.
To greet my friend I wanted something fresh and healthy and also something a little splashy. Asparagus spears with a wasabi mayo and homemade fingerling chips with caviar would certainly fit the bill. The only problem left was choosing where to have cocktails in our renovated farmhouse.
Here’s the asparagus with wasabi mayonnaise. First trim off the bottom third of the asparagus. Personally I prefer thin stalks to thick ones.
Place in a microwave-safe dish with a lid. Steam covered with three tablespoons water until crisp-tender about 1 ½ to 2 minutes on high (take care not to overcook).
Immediately refresh in an ice bath. Drain well. Wrap in paper towel, place in a Ziploc bag and refrigerate. This can be done earlier in the day.
Place the mayonnaise, soy sauce, sugar, lemon juice and wasabi paste in a bowl.
Whisk until sugar is dissolved. Place in a ramekin, cover and refrigerate. Can be made a day ahead of time.
Serve on a square platter with the asparagus surrounding the wasabi dip.
Caviar with fingerling chips looks impressive but is actually easy to execute. Start with small fingerling potatoes.
Slice the length side ends off then slice into ¼ inch chips.
Place on a heavy rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Toss to coat. Make sure the chips do not overlap.
Roast in a preheated 400-degree oven until they just begin to brown and crisp up, about five to ten minutes. Be careful not to overcook, but also make sure they are cooked long enough so they are not soggy. You might need to rotate the pan in the oven to ensure even cooking.
Remove from the pan and place on paper towel to cool and crisp up. The chips can be made a few hours in advance, allow to cool completely then place in airtight container lined with paper towel. Leave at room temp, do not refrigerate.
There are all types of caviar, and certainly a range in price. Please don’t be tempted to use that Romanoff caviar that sits next to the canned tuna in the grocery store. Always purchase refrigerated caviar, usually in the fish department. I found this herring caviar at Curds and Whey at North Market in Columbus. Trader Joe’s sells a reasonably delicious caviar seasonally.
Simply spoon the caviar into a small dish or ramekin.
Place on a plate and surround with fingerling chips, along with a small spoon. Take care that it’s not silver. It’s pretty much a wives’ tale that a metal spool will ruin the taste of the caviar (caviar does arrive in metal tins and is sold in glass jars with metal lids) but as I have found out the hard way the caviar will pit your silver.