Spaghetti Night

It was Spaghetti Night last night. Wow, was it ever Spaghetti Night! We had four kinds of sauce; a clam sauce, an Alfredo sauce, meatballs in tomato sauce, and a meat sauce loaded with lots of good stuff. We had spaghetti and fettucine, with rotini and penne on standby. There was garlic bread and a batch of coleslaw which didn't even make it out of the fridge. There was wine; of course there was wine. We had a few bottles of a delicious Pinot Grigio, and I capped the night with a glass of a fabulous merlot.

This was not all my doing. In fact the only part I really did was take some previously made meat sauce, put it in the slow cooker, add some tomatoes and mushrooms, then set it aside to bubble and get warm. Brad stepped in just about then and put together the coleslaw. I had run out of onions, so Brad made a quick run to Safeway too. He did the meatballs in sauce, cooking the meatballs then putting them in the warming tray and covering them with a simple tomato sauce.

Next up was Tonny. He continues to surprise me with his cooking knowledge and ability. I think he keeps quiet about it to avoid spending the whole evening in the kitchen. He failed last night. First up, he made a terrific clam sauce, generally using a recipe I found on line, while at the same time improvising as he went alone, like all great cooks do. Tonny also got trapped into making the pasta while the Alfredo Sauce was on the go.

It was Todd doing the Alfredo Sauce. I have two seperate recipes for Alfredo Sauce. One is a simple sauce, quick and easy to make, with only Parmesan Cheese. The other uses Cream Cheese, Parmesan Cheese, and Mozzarella Cheese. Needless to say, we made the richest, creamiest, most fattening choice. When I say "we", I really mean Todd. I was coaching from the sidelines.

It's interesting to notice that all the people making food last night were men. The women got to sit, talk, drink wine, and generally relax. We of the stronger sex hefted out bulk into the kitchen and made a wonderful dinner. I am compelled to ask, when does a cook become a chef? I must say there were some pretty inspiring dishes prepared last night, chef style cooking.

I've wanted to do a Spaghetti Night for a long time. I've wanted to have the luxury of multiple sauces, multiple types of pasta, and multiple things on the side. this obvious bounty of conspicuous consumption. It would be true to say I am a "foodie". The only thing is that these days I need help to create this kind of meal. I am so thankful there are friends who will do just that; help me feel like a good host, with wonderful food and wine.