Having a party, the catalog way

By Kathy Saunders, Special to the Times
Published December 26, 2007

They come every year - those glossy catalogs of party food that make your eyes hungry and your mouth water. Taster's Choice went through stacks of mailings and selected enough items for a dinner party of 14. We placed the orders online, 10 days before the party and requested delivery the day before the event. All but one item arrived in time for the dinner.

Our evening began with hot appetizers. We ordered Bistro Bites from Omaha Steaks $24.99 plus shipping for 24 pieces. Half of the puff pastry, bite-sized hors d'oeuvres were topped with sweet, carmelized onions on a blend of cream and feta cheeses. The other half were topped with basil pesto, sun-dried tomato pesto and gorgonzola cheese. They arrived frozen, as ordered, the day before the dinner. The pesto blend was bold and flavorful. The onions were both sweet and savory. All 24 bites were eaten.

Judges also wanted to try chicken tamales ($52 plus shipping for six dozen) from Neiman Marcus. Judges described them as "party worthy" and loved the presentation. But the tamales were a bit dry for some of judges, who craved a dipping sauce. A couple suggested sour cream and chives on the side or a bowl of chili as an accompaniment.

What the tasters didn't know was how difficult the tamales were to prepare. Each one had to be individually wrapped in paper towels and steamed.

Finally, we sampled cheese gougeres from Artisanal in New York City. Sold through Williams-Sonoma ($55 plus shipping for 60 cheese puffs), the puffs were frozen in tiny ice-tray like containers and warmed quickly in the oven. They did not puff quite as much as we had hoped and, in fact, seemed a bit droopy. Still, they were cheesy, salty and, quite simply, yummy.

We didn't have as much success with the main courses - although there was one standout.

We loved an Applewood-Smoked Nitrate Free Ham ($91 plus shipping for a 9-pound, bone-in ham from Neiman Marcus). The ham was spiral cut and included a glaze of brown sugar, mustard, cinnamon, cloves and orange peel. The glaze was a big hit; it had a sweet crust and a slightly smoky flavor that reminded one judge of Virginia and another of the Porky's Smokehouse Hams he grew up with in Pennsylvania.

Luckily for us, the ham was big enough to feed 14, because the second main course was a disappointment, and the third never showed up.

Since we had a ham, we ordered a Beef Wellington from Honeybaked Ham ($89.95 plus shipping for a 4-pound entree). In the past, I have had great success with this mail-order tenderloin, which comes frozen, wrapped in puff pastry. But this time, the Wellington arrived partially thawed and didn't hold up well overnight in the refrigerator. Too much liquid leaked from the puff pastry before the meat went into the oven. The package was pretty, but the end result was dry meat and soggy pastry. A couple of judges said they will order the product, nevertheless, for its elegant presentation.

A third entree, turkey roulade with cranberries ($72 plus shipping from Dean & Deluca), never arrived.

All three side dishes came from Neiman Marcus. They were frozen and required baking. We tried fennel and apple bread pudding ($65 plus shipping for a box of eight 3-ounce ramekins), pumpkin-sage risotto ($60 plus shipping for a casserole that served 10 to 12) and a roasted veggie and Gruyere cheese tart ($48 for a tart that serves 6 to 8). The tart was our favorite. Judges liked the presentation of the tart and remarked that it would be perfect for brunch.

The bread pudding cups were a combination of apples, sourdough bread cubes and sage-singed custard. The autumn flavors were easily detectable, particularly the fennel. The top roasted to a crisp coating that pleased the panelists.

The pumpkin and sage were very prominent in the risotto, which also seemed to go the farthest. The risotto grew a bit dry while it was cooking, so we added heavy cream, as the instructions suggested. Doing so made a difference in the texture and taste.

"This would be great with cranberry sauce," said one judge. "It reminds me of my grandmother's cooking."

Some judges said it resembled stuffing more than risotto, but didn't complain.

The desserts, however, were disappointing.

A pricey, seven-inch red velvet cake covered in white fondant ($135 from Dean & Deluca) arrived minutes before the dinner party began. And it was beautiful. It arrived cold but not frozen and in perfect condition. The packaging was impeccable. Unfortunately, that was the best part. The cake was dry and the fondant too sweet for most of the judges.

A key lime silk pie from Neiman Marcus ($50 plus shipping for a 6-inch cake) also failed. The graham cracker crust crumbled when we cut it, and the white chocolate shavings could not compensate for the pie's fake lime flavor. Judges described its texture as waxy.

Panelists were Nan Jensen, registered dietitian with Pinellas County Cooperative Extension; Phil Hanna, managing partner of Pinnacle Group, LLC; Bob Devin Jones, artistic director of Studio@620; Jim Yockey, aesthetician at Anu You Institute; Alan Burk, research analyst for Franklin Templeton Investments; John Hehn, foodie and owner of All Brite Lighting & Power Design Inc. and his wife, Karen; personal chefs Kay Studer and Julie Overton; Times food and travel editor Janet K. Keeler and Times food critic Laura Reiley. All foods were tasted blind.

To read past columns, visit food.tampabay.com.

[Last modified December 21, 2007, 17:03:35]