Our friend Sylvia was over this evening and Scott and I decided to share the cooking. He came up with a pork stew and I came up with the side. It’s early October and the summer fruits are still around so we made a hearty meal with a light fruit finish. The color of the main dish with the sides were stunning to see on the bowl. That’s right! We set the table with wide, shallow pasta bowls and everything went into the bowl!

When Sylvia arrived, we were still simmering the main dish so we started the meal with an appetizer of bleu cheese wrapped in grape leaves and poppy seed crackers.

Bleu Cheese Wrapped in grape leaves with Poppy seed crackers

Portuguese Pork with Cumin, Lemon and Cilantro

Potatoes in a Saffron Butter Sherry Sauce

Sautéed Swiss Chard

Fresh Nectarines