The Royal Chef At Home: Easy Seasonal Entertaining

A SPRING SHOWER

B irths, weddings and funerals. The three events in a person’s life where cultural traditions speak loudest. I’ve seen Hindu weddings where the groom came in on an elephant, Polish weddings where at the last moment, the bride’s veil was replaced with a babushka and everyone cried, Greek weddings where 150 guests means it is an intimate affair, Arab weddings where the cake is cut with a fancy sword, and nonconformist hipster weddings where everyone wears their favorite color of Converse! Our wedding traditions are as varied as we are. That variety also holds true for bridal showers. Generally, a bridal shower is for family and friends to celebrate the upcoming nuptials and get the bride-to-be kitted out for her future home. And home is really at the heart of things. Though some are held in restaurants or social venues, the vast majority of bridal showers are homemade affairs and because you are celebrating a young couple’s new marriage, everything is meant to be as pretty as possible, the food included. But there are no hard rules. Bridal showers can be full sit down meals, sociable teas, cocktails and nibbles or a late morning brunch. They are flexible. The menu I’ve crafted here keeps the food light and especially healthy. There is a blueberry, kale and quinoa salad hearty enough for vegetarians and colorful enough to look gorgeous on a large platter. The grilled chicken is high in protein and more importantly, low in calories. The veloute packs two nutritional powerhouses together, cauliflower and turmeric, to deliver a colorful dose of health benefits to overscheduled brides. And just to make everyone leave with a little special something, I’ve included directions to make edible chocolate photo picture frames. Unique and fun, they are a wonderful way for the host to make the bride-to-be feel extra special.

SPRING · A SPRING SHOWER

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