Here are the images that I took of the various dishes that I cooked for this evening's dinner party. The food was much better to eat than it looks in the photos! It is hard to be the hostess with the "mostess", get the food on the table in a timely manner and remember to take proper photos before digging in.
I personally thought that the soup and the dessert - both easy and which involved no cooking - were the stars of the show and will post those recipes later. I was rushing and forgot to add the garlic scapes to the asparagus, so they will make an appearance in a lentil salad for a potluck this evening. I was personally not so happy with the pork: flavor was good but I bought pork loin chops rather than bone-in chops as I thought that some of my guests might prefer that and I missed the char you get from a piece of meat with a bit of fat on it. L. pronounced his loin chop the best piece of pork he ever ate so we may be alternating between the two cuts from now on.
Miso Eggplant Dip (an homage to Nasu No Dengaku) with Bagel Chips
Chilled Thai Green Curry Avocado Soup with Shrimp and Mint Oil
Pan-Seared Brined Pork Loin Chops with Bourbon Cream Gravy
Baked and Buttered Fingerling Yams
Steamed Pencil Asparagus with(out) Grilled Garlic Scapes
Summer Orange Cheesecake with Blueberry-Thyme Compote