🍁🍂 Travel Memories Gathering🍁🍂

We drove past many fields of Sunflowers and grapevines. We also were introduced to Crémant a pleasant, sparkling, refreshing wine from Alsace, France.

🍁I think we would all agree that the year 2020 has really thrown us off course. Whatever our routines may have been in the past, nearly everything has been forced to change. The routine that gives me the most pleasure and provides the content for this blog, is planning “social interactions and parties” for my family and friends. Social distancing obviously put a serious halt to all of those gatherings for several months, but as the “phases” allow us to slowly move forward and restrictions begin to slightly relax, I finally sent my first invite for a small gathering.

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On the left – the toast we made our first night together in a little 300 year old timber cottage in Southern Germany. On the right toasting to our friendship and shared memories with Crémant.

🍁Just one year ago (in early September 2019) when life was clearly different than it is has been this year, I met two of my friends in Europe for an unexpected adventure. We spent one week visiting a castle in Southern Germany; medieval towns in Alsace,France and the Swiss Alps of Mürren, Switzerland. What better way to shake off our 2020 blues, than to recreate some of the food and wine experiences from our trip and gather to talk and recall special moments of this memorable time we spent together. Our best memories pictured below:

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  The Red Roosters in Alsace.

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  Having dinner together in the garden (at the house)

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  The charm of Eguisheim, France

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  The view from the dining room while enjoying breakfast.

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  Day hike.

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  The Snow Capped Alps.

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  Mürren- such a lovely town.

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A German Salad starts with a variety of diced raw or pickled colorful vegetables hidden beneath a lightly dressed pile of small mixed miniature greens.
Mine is dressed with a drizzle of white balsamic vinegar and fruity extra virgin olive oil.

German Salad with edible marigolds.

Cornichons, capers and pearl cocktail onions;
French Pear Liqueur brought back from Eguisheim, France,
that tastes like sweet caramelized pears to sip with dessert.

Store bought truffle mousse, charcuterie meats, garlic toasts.

I found this truffle mousse (pate’) in the cheese section at Whole Foods. It didn’t have much of a truffle flavor, but was still very good and filled two ramekins.

A traditional Swiss fondue made with Emmethal and Gruyere cheeses, garlic, white wine & kirsch, served with roasted (rather than boiled multi-colored potatoes and toasted baguette cubes (see link at the end for the recipe ).

Napkins reminiscent of a French country kitchen and colorful rooster place mats.

🍁I needed this gathering to be relaxing for myself as well as my gal pals. So while I prepared the salads and the fondue, I took shortcuts here and there and bought items prepared, like the pate’ and this Black Forest cake, that while not like the original version we enjoyed in the Black Forest of Germany, was light after all of the cheese, bread and potatoes and still recalled the memory of that day.

After removing the fondue pot, I placed two large pieces of cake on a platter in the middle of the table and we grabbed forkfuls with a cup of coffee and an occasional sip of our Pear Liqueur cordial.

🍁”Where should we go when we can safely travel again?” asked on of my friends. Spain was suggested…. they’ve both been there – I haven’t. Once again, I’d be thrilled to just go along for the adventure!

Recipes and planning can be found on my 2019 Friendsgiving post https://socialinteractionsandparties.wordpress.com/category/friendsgiving/

Images from our European Adventure can be found on my Travel Journal category posts https://socialinteractionsandparties.wordpress.com/2019/09/30/the-spontaneous-traveler-bonus-edition/