As a bit of background, Les Dames d’Escoffier International (“LDEI”) is a philanthropic organization of women leaders in the fields of food, fine beverage and hospitality. The by-invitation membership, composed of over 2,300 members in 40 chapters in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Mexico, is highly diversified and reflects the multifaceted fields of contemporary gastronomy and hospitality.

LDEI’s vision is to create a supportive culture in their communities to achieve excellence in the food, fine beverage and hospitality fields. Hopefully, our menu tonight can help make that vision a reality.

For this evening we plan on serving several appetizers, but the one we’d like to highlight on today’s blog is our exquisite Albóndigas (or “meatballs”). This popular item always seems dazzle taste buds at weddings, special events and corporate functions. So, it made sense to introduce these hand-held delights to a conference of leaders with a refined taste for good food.

Let’s cover a bit about how we prepare this wonderful appetizer, but first some meatball facts:

FACT: In Spain and Hispanic America, meatballs are called albóndigas, derived from the Arabic al-bunduq (meaning hazelnut, or, by extension, a small round object). Albóndigas are thought to have originated as a Berber or Arab dish imported to Spain during the period of Muslim rule. Spanish albóndigas can be served as an appetizer or main course, often in a tomato sauce. Mexican albóndigas are commonly served in a soup with a light broth and vegetables.

SOURCE: Wikipedia

From there we take the globes of protein and roast them in the oven to not only cook out the rawness but to also give it a nice little char on the outside.

Once they’re ready, we toss them into a pot of fresh made Salsa de Chipotle to blanket the cooked globes with an added layer of flavor. Our expert chefs then transport them to the event site ready where the special event is taking place.

When our crew is ready to assemble the dish, they take out the hotbox containing the meatballs and scoop them out into little plastic trays. As a finishing touch, a skewer is added to for easier handling and then we top each one off with a little bit of peppery microgreens.

Once you bite into a meatball your palate is instantly greeted with warm, deep savory beef flavors and then you encounter the slight sweetness of the date inside. The combination is a wonderful flavor spectrum that makes kicking off any festivity absolutely mouth-watering.

This is easily one of our more popular appetizers and we can’t wait to start serving them this evening. Thanks for having us LDEI and see you soon!

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