Last night we had our first dinner party–my first, actually, as co-host after four years in New York. One realizes how tough, but rewarding it can be to bring 15 people together for dinner on a Wednesday night, from the logistical dealings of finding enough chairs and settings of silverware to gauging how much chicken 15 people are really going to eat. Timing is key and plating requires an exquisite choreography. In addition to our menu of fig, fresh ricotta, and prosciutto crostini, fennel & grapefruit salad, and Moroccan spiced chicken with pine nut cous cous, I made my first batch of ice cream of the season for the party: Brown butter chocolate toffee chunk. I was pleased with the result (even though I’ve got alterations in mind for the next time), which was decadent enough to fatten by the spoonful.

And so: we’re off to Nicaragua tonight — forecast: 95 degrees, isolated thunderstorms. Hopefully the Central American cooling gods will come in and sweep the region with dry, temperate, surf-perfect weather and wipe out all the mosquitoes while he (or she) is at it. Regardless, I am ready to vacate and believe it or not, there won’t be a digital camera involved. Just bringing the Nikon and a few rolls of film. Beach towels out, sunscreen in the pack, new bathing suits and sandals in the duffel bag. See you in a week (or so).

N.B.
1. Check out Brooklyn Designs at four spots around the borough on May 9-11
2. 2 movies to see (anybody? anybody?): Glass, A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts and The Flight of the Red Balloon
3. Good books by good thinkers abound: the Hermeneutic Circle Store