Life's a Party

I love parties--- big and elaborate or small and intimate. To tell you truth, I love the preparation part more than the actual party itself. As a host, attending to the tiniest details gets my blood pumping. As an invited guest, prepping for that right look – I specially love,love, love themed parties—- makes me giddy with excitement.

Growing up, I remember so many parties—of the dress-up type-- thrown by my grandmother. The women in beaded dresses



and the men in coat and tie—must have been so hot! I remember the cocktail and dinner parties hosted by my parents at home. The kitchen was like a battle ground and my mother the general. My father made sure that his bar was well stocked with very strong spirits taken straight or on the rocks (ala Mad Men) —so unlike the chi-chi drinks offered today.

How could I forget the high school dance parties with creative invitations—in the shape of voluptuous lips or a invite with burnt edges done expertly with the use of “katol” or cigarette. There were also parties that later graduated to ones involving a lot of beer & barbeque and being cool.

Married life brought in the children’s parties complete with clowns and magicians and the parties with guests happily discussing current events and the latest rumor over many glasses of wine and good food. Let me not forget the themed imposed parties at the office. I look back with fond memories of the masks, leis, hats, dramatic make-up and dancing shoes I’ve worn.

I like to think that life’s a big party. In order to enjoy every minute of it, one must pour all his/her energy into making each moment a celebration.

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Quite recently, my daughter requested my help in preparing a dinner party she was throwing for two former high school friends. Naturally, inspite of the short notice, I immediately agreed and got busy. While she worked at the office, I was pulling out plates and wine glasses; cutting up bits of ham and sausages for appetizers; and setting up the dinner table at the terrace. To add some pizzazz, I placed tea candles on the dining table and in strategic nooks around the garden. I had some sparkling wine chilled and prepared a very simple pasta dish—recipe follows below. At 9PM, three very happy ladies were ready to get their party started.



Spaghetti with Tomato, Cream and Pesto

400 grams of spaghetti
¾ - 1 cup tomato sauce (depending on how sour you want your pasta to taste)
½ cup store bought pesto
½- ¾ cup cream (depending on how creamy you want your pasta to be)
Grated parmesan cheese

Mix together in a bowl the pesto, cream and tomato sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. Set aside.
Prepare the spaghetti (boil al dente with some salt and oil in the water). Drain but save some of the boiled water (pasta water).
Add the sauce to the still hot pasta and fold making sure that all the noodles are coated with the sauce. You might want to add some “pasta water” to make it easy to toss the pasta. Adjust seasoning. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with grated parmesan cheese and basil leaves.

Serve hot immediately with some garlic toast.



Ps: You know you’ve got a successful party when happy guests stay on late into the night.