Monday, May 25, 2009

Introducing the TT Supper Club



Summer is a tough time of year for chocolate making, so Tammy's Tastings (the business) always takes a summer hiatus from regular sales. But while I love making chocolates and confectionery, I also love to cook. So this summer, I've decided to use my hiatus a little differently.

I'm pleased to introduce the TT Supper Club. Once a month, from June through September, I'll be hosting a fundraising dinner in my home to benefit different local food organizations. My inaugural dinner will be June 6 and will benefit Preserving Traditions:

Preserving Traditions is a non-profit club based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We aspire to keep old-time foodways alive and well, to build and support our local foodshed, and to make really good food for our families and neighbors!
If you're not familiar with the group, I think they're really exciting. It's a grass roots, bottom-up effort, with people getting together to learn skills from each other that encourage eating well and seasonally and locally. They host their events at the Pittsfield Grange and are planning to use the funds raised to better outfit the kitchen there so that they can offer a wider range of classes and to more people. Local foodblogger Emily from Eat Close to Home is the founder of the group and will be helping me cook the dinner. She'll talk a little about the organization at the meal, so it's a great opportunity to learn more or get involved.

Each dinner is limited to eight people, and will feature a tasting menu designed to highlight seasonal and local foodstuffs. In order to be as flexible and market-driven as possible, I won't be posting a menu in advance; you'll just have to trust me. (Edited to add: here's what I'm thinking about for the June dinner.) The menu will take into account food restrictions (vegetarian/gluten-free, etc) and preferences/dislikes. Here's a sample menu, so you'll have some idea of what you can expect:

Wild Mushroom Tartlette
Seared Scallop with Tarragon Leek Sauce
Salad of Baby Greens with Hazelnut Vinaigrette
Lake Perch with Beurre Blanc and Roasted Asparagus
Roasted Quail with Yellow Oyster Mushrooms, Pea Shoots and White Grits
Cheese Plate with Garnishes
Rhubarb Galette and Vanilla Ice Cream
Petit Fours

Dinners are designed to be wine-friendly, but are BYOB (or better yet, bring some to share). A minimum donation of $50 is requested per person.

Sound good? If you'd like to reserve one of the 8 spaces at the June 6 dinner, please email me with your food restrictions and preferences. Early requests will receive priority, but I reserve the right to adjust the guest list in order to manage conflicting food restrictions.

If you'd like to be notified about future dinners, please subscribe to the TT Supper Club Mailing list by filling out the form below, and you'll be the first to know when I'm accepting requests for July and beyond. Your privacy is important to me, and I'll never share your email address or information.









I'm really excited to have a chance to use my culinary creativity to help our local food community, and I'm looking forward to cooking for you!



Photos courtesy of Kitchen Chick, who I've been lucky enough to cook for many times.

2 comments:

ilex said...

Tammy, my husband and I may be coming from Detroit. I have celiac disease, though. Would that be a terrible burden on your glorious menu? I completely understand if it's too much trouble- it's why I do all our cooking...

I found you via Eat Close to Home. So glad she posted about your club.

Tammy Coxen said...

No problem at all! I've done a couple different meals like this lately that were gluten free. I would just need to exchange some email with you to understand more fully your diet restrictions (like some people are concerned about cross-contamination with other grains, and for some that's not an issue). But I'm very comfortable cooking for a gluten-free audience.

Email address is tammylc@tammystastings.com, if you'd like to discuss further.