SWEET POTATO BITES WITH ANCHO CHILI GOAT CHEESE AND BACON

- 4 oz cream cheese
- 4 oz goat cheese (we use local Rollingstone Chevre)
- 2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
- 4 sweet potatoes, rinsed and sliced into half-inch disks
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 slices of bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled
- Fresh rosemary (1-2 sprigs with leaves finely chopped)
- Salt and pepper to taste

Place sweet potatoes in a bowl with oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper; toss to coat. Bake sweet potato disks in a single layer on a baking sheet at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until tender.

In a food processor, combine cream cheese, goat cheese and chili powder. Place mixture in a piping bag (or Ziploc with corner cut off).

Assemble: Squeeze some of the goat cheese mixture onto each sweet potato disk; top with crumbled bacon and fresh rosemary. This appetizer can be made up to two hours ahead of time and set out at room temperature.

Enjoy!

This invite-only event features a gourmet meal in a beautiful Boise location. Because of your continued support, we are offering you the special opportunity to purchase tickets to this exclusive dining experience!

Dinner is $80 per person and includes a 12-course menu and wine. A limited amount of seats are available (26 total) and only 12 remain as of today. Reservations must be made no later than 5 p.m. Friday, April 20, in order to secure your seat. Contact The Wandering Table at thewanderingtable@gmail.com to reserve before it’s too late. Simply email Chef and indicate you’d like to reserve a seat or two and he’ll respond with instructions for purchasing tickets or inform you that it has sold out.

ABOUT THE WANDERING TABLE

This is about passion. We have an insatiable appetite for cooking and creating food. We love what we do and is something we enjoy sharing with other people. This is our anti-restaurant. This is our way of cooking what we want to cook. This is how we share the food we love to eat.

This is a chance to taste a meal prepared from the seasons. There is a reason that all great chefs of the world use seasonal, local ingredients. Where can you gather more inspiration, when you get a tomato, still warm from the sun, or from the farmer you work with, or from a day of foraging for mushrooms. There is in inherent appreciation of great products that makes my job so much better. I go out of my way to seek the best products, and to honor those who grew them by doing my best at serving them to people in way that makes food memorable. This is how we create great experiences, traditions, and communities.

This wandering table is making stops in various locations from airport hangers to barns to vineyards, and everywhere in between. Our menus are created and meant to reflect the best  of the season. We’ve created one of the most interesting and unique dining experiences in the Northwest and you’re invited.

META-MicroEnterprise Training & Assistance is hosting “How to Create a Green Job for Yourself and Others through Microenterprise” from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, March 14, at U.S. Bank, 101 S. Capitol Blvd. Suite 200, Boise.

Want to make a difference while making a living? Learn from Cheryl Foster, Senior Research Analyst with the Idaho Department of Labor, about the green jobs movement and the four core areas of Idaho’s green economy. Meet and hear from green business owners whose passion for their work goes well beyond collecting a paycheck to a positive triple bottom line.

Bring a friend or colleague! Lunch will be provided by Open Table Catering.

The cost is $20 per person. For more information or to register, e-mail gbessire@metaidaho.org, call (208) 336-5533, ext. 237 or visit metaidaho.org.

ABOUT META—MICROENTERPRISE TRAINING & ASSISTANCE

META—MicroEnterprise Training & Assistance (metaidaho.org) is a program of the nonprofit corporation Mountain States Group, Inc. META offers individual technical assistance, microloans, and periodic business plan training to eligible women, minorities, immigrants, and other underserved populations for the purposes of starting, strengthening, or expanding their businesses in Idaho.

Boise Office: 1607 W. Jefferson St.; (208) 336-5533, ext. 230

Caldwell Office: Trolley Square, 117 S. 9th Ave., Suite 5; (208) 454-2680

Open Table Owner/Executive Chef April Hale was interviewed late last year for the article. It features an overview of Open Table Catering and April’s signature cupcakes, plus several recipes from the Open Table kitchen!

The magazine is available for purchase locally at the Boise Co-op. Be sure to visit maryjanesfarm.org, which has a wealth of information for anyone currently living the organic lifestyle or interested in learning more about it.

PROSCIUTTO, PEAR AND GOAT CHEESE APPETIZER

- 10 slices prosciutto
- 2 pears
- 4 oz fresh goat cheese
- Honey
- Cracked pepper

Assemble prosciutto on baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees for about 8 minutes until lightly crisp. Transfer to a paper towel and cool.

Core pears and slice horizontally into rings. Soak for a couple of minutes in a bowl of water with a splash of lemon juice to keep from browning.

To assemble: Arrange sliced pears on a platter. Top with a slice of prosciutto and crumbled goat cheese. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with cracked black pepper.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Open Table Catering

This prestigious award is determined by reviews from past clients and recognizes the top 5 percent of local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire Network. Thanks to all of you who took the time to give us a positive review on the site!

The WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes the top local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness and professionalism.

Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the organization, the WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards are awarded solely based on the reviews from over 1.2 million newlyweds. Awards are determined by a combination of four factors: Overall rating (quality), total number of reviews (quantity), review performace from 2011 (recency) and consistency of reviews from year to year (consistency).

This year’s recipients represent the top 5 percent of WeddingWire’s vendor community across all service categories and all regions throughout the United States and Canada.

Open Table Catering

Keeping with its commitment to the community, Open Table provided partial or full donations of food and services to Kickstand, Trey McIntyre Project and U.S. Green Building Council – Idaho Chapter.

“I’ve worked with April and Open Table Catering several times for various events,” said Tristan Van Slyke, USGBC-Idaho Chapter board member and Emerging Professionals Committee chair. “We appreciate her generous support of local food sourcing and local organizations like us, the USGBC-Idaho Chapter. She does a great job with a unique variety of dishes and flavors that are appropriate for the event and venue.”

- 1 package polenta
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/2 cup flour
- 2 tablespoons parmesan
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- Olive oil
- 2 medium avocados
- 1 lime
- Garlic salt
- 1/2 pound wild shrimp (approx. 8 jumbo shrimp)
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon butter

Wrap polenta in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour until firm. Cut into rounds, dip in egg then mixture of flour and parmesan. Fry in olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Mash avocados with the juice of the lime and a dash of garlic salt. Set aside.

Peel and devein shrimp. Crush garlic cloves and saute for about 1 minute in the butter. Add shrimp and cook for about 3-4 minutes.

Assemble: Place a dollop of guacamole on the polenta cake, then top with a shrimp.

Enjoy!

Open Table Catering

Keeping with its commitment to the community, Open Table provided partial or full donations of food and services to Boise Weekly, Kickstand, Trey McIntyre Project and Idaho Community Foundation.

“Kickstand has had Open Table cater our Start-up Speed Dating event for two years now,” said Becky Gates, Kickstand Board of Directors member. “The food presentation was wonderful and the combination of ingredients was unique and tasteful. I can’t say enough good things about our experience. They are true professionals in all they do.”

FALL VEGETABLE BISQUE

- 2 lbs peeled and cut butternut squash
- 2 cups coarse, chopped carrots
- 2 cups coarse, chopped celery
- 2 bunches of coarse, chopped leeks (white and light-green parts only)
- 4 Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and chopped
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 2 cups apple cider
- 8 cups vegetable or chicken stock
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Salt and pepper

In a large stock pot, melt butter and saute squash, carrots, celery and leeks over medium heat until tender (about 15 minutes).

Add in apples, sage, thyme and apple cider; cook another 5 minutes.

Add chicken stock; simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Puree mixture in batches in a blender or food processor and return to the stock pot (turn off heat, though).

Add in cream and salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!