“I always love being in the company of women. It’s all about good conversation and great wine.” ~ Naomi Watts

“God may be in the details, but the goddess is in the questions. Once we begin to ask them, there’s no turning back.” ~ Gloria Steinem

Sometimes we call ourselves “The Goddesses.” Other times we’re “The Divas.” Either way, it’s clear what we think of of ourselves. We are women who met 10 years ago at work. We are all teachers or principals and while we have all moved on to different schools, we continue to get together a few times a year.

 Whatever we have gone through individually, The Goddesses have been there to support. We are all passionate about living life vibrantly with integrity. We all love travel and adventure. We are intellectuals and insist on delving into issues rigorously, especially when it comes to education, and most important of all we laugh loud and we laugh long.

We have seen each other through the inevitable ups and downs of life. Some of us are married, some of us are divorced, some of us are single. We raised a glass of bubbly when when one of us got married, we poured lots of red wine when one of us faced a break-up and we championed the virtues of being single when one of us struggled with the idea. We anguished together when one of us faced daunting parenting challenges and we were consoling when one of us faced a hysterectomy that came too early in life.

Among The Goddesses, I have been the most prodigal, so I invited everyone to my house for a “Sin Supper” and the jokes ensued. “Can we get tipsy on pork tenderloin?” “I’m bringing a dish called ‘Potted Cheese’ with Riesling, not pot.” “We may need to make it a sleep-over.”

The dinner was pot-luck and we had an absolutely wonderful time tasting each other’s dishes and ranting about the need for more Arts in education. There was Pat’s Potted Cheese, Laurie’s Chicken au Champagne and Trish’s Pork Tenderloin with Brandied Mushrooms & Shallot Sauce. Gillian brought Pasta Amatriciana and a bottle of Passion-Fruit Jamaican rum. I made George’s Sherry Potatoes and Melissa made Sex In The Pan (What a great idea!) for dessert.

Here are all the recipes from our “Goddess Supper” one course at a time. Enjoy!

Entree #3

Gillian brought Pasta de la Coeur. Gillian – I call her “Gigi la Coeur” became a principal a few years ago and she is one of the few black administrators with our board. One day a mom came in to talk about her child and walked right by her. When Gillian got her attention, the mother said, “Oh! You don’t sound black over the phone.” Sometimes you just have to shake your head. Gillian is one of the people I go to when I’m looking for perspective. I love how she leans back, crosses her arms and let’s you know what she thinks. I have really learned to trust her.

 

Pasta de la Coeur

This is a truly delicious pasta dish that serves well with salad and fresh crusty bread.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

4 slices bacon, chopped (not maple-flavoured bacon)

¾ cup white wine

1 can (28 ounces) tomato purée

red pepper flakes

Note: Adjust the amounts of garlic, wine and red pepper to suit your taste

1. Place enough olive oil in a large sauce pan to cover the bottom and heat over medium heat.

2. Place onions, garlic and bacon in pan and sauté for about 5 minutes or until the bacon is cooked through.

3. Add wine and bring to a boil for 3-4 minutes.

4. Add tomato purée, then use the can & fill it half way with water and add the water to the pan.

5. Add as much or as little red pepper flakes as you like

6. Simmer on low heat for about ½ hour.

7. Serve with penne or any pasta of your choice.

Gillian’s plate here has the Chicken au Champagne, the Sherry Potatoes & the Pasta Amatriciana.

 

Gillian brought Jamaican Passion Fruit Rum. It was delicious & sweet!

 

The dinner is not over yet. What’s a Goddess dinner without dessert? See the next post for Melissa’s “Sex In The Pan.”

All the “Sin Supper with the Goddesses” recipes were tested and photographed especially for the print version of Cooking With Sin. Check it out! http://cookingwithsin.com/2010/09/27/take-a-sneak-peek-at-the-book/ 

Tags: bacon, Goddess Supper, Meat, Pasta