Part III and final installment of "I can't stop cooking and eating Italian"!!!

About a week after we got back from Florida, Steve and I invited Tara and Eli over as a "thank you very much" for watching Kempton while we were gone. Of course, I was ass deep in my Italian obsession, so the entire meal was Italian themed. It was a month ago, so my memory is a little foggy and I might leave something out...As far as I can remember, we had:

• Roasted tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, kalmata olives, peppers and fresh mozzarella cheese drizzled with a balsamic reduction on baguette for our appetizer.
• A salad with most of the above accouterments (minus the baguette and balsamic) all chopped up and a homemade zesty Italian dressing (I will post the recipe below)
• Risotto
• Pork tenderloin marinaded in Italian herbs, white wine, garlic and lemon juice

YUM!

See below for some pics and the recipe for the salad dressing...

The food: 

The company:

Please note: this is Eli starting a full blown wet-willy war than is still being fought today. Please pray for the insides of my ears. Also - thanks for doing the dishes guys!

The hosts:

*Disclaimer* This was after we ate and I promise that I washed the counter off before I used it for food again.
Kempton seems to be the only one paying attention to the camera!

Thanks so much for watching Kempton Tara and Eli! I appreciate being able to leave him with someone who will love him, exercise him, and let him snuggle in the bed!

Here is the recipe for the delicious zesty Italian vinaigrette, taken from www.cooklikeyourgrandmother.com:

Zesty Italian Vinaigrette Dressing:
1½-2 cups extra virgin olive oil
½ cup white wine vinegar
4-6 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon each:
* black peppercorns
* kosher salt
* dry basil
* dry oregano
* dry parsley
* mustard powder
* 1-2 teaspoons sugar
Combine garlic, salt, peppercorns and a half-cup olive oil in a food processor. Process until
the garlic and peppercorns are well crushed.
Add the remaining herbs and sugar, the vinegar, and another half-cup of olive oil and blend
again. The dressing should start to thicken up.
Add olive oil and continue blending until it reaches the consistency you want. Taste
frequently to make sure you don't add too much oil and dilute the flavor.
Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks. It will still
be good after that, but will start to separate.

Printable Recipe