Moroccan on Minnetonka

Hosts David and Lucy Thatcher Penfield.

Lucy and Rob

The Table.

Brenda and an apparition.

The melon and mint "starter".

Andrew. Happy as usual.

Lee.

Okay....well....a little love, a little talk, a little cry, a little wine and I want to write!

Hosts Lucy and David Penfield could not have been more generous - in spirit and in the kitchen - on Thursday night. Lee and I were invited to a dinner party at their home in Deephaven which included Andrew Flesher and his partner, Rob and Brenda Scherping and Fritz Westphal (Sherping-Westphal at IMS.) It was soooooo unbelievably romantic and elegant that I will have to undergo thousands of hours of therapy to ever give a party again - I will feel so inadequate!

We are talking rose petals on the table cloth, a surprise appearance by Lucy's charming, entertaining, and well-traveled father, R. Paul Thatcher and an interactive closing (hostess gift!) that involved the making of "preserved lemons."

Oh, yes... we each received the recipe for the Moroccan chicken and couscous that we had for dinner. Here's the back story: Lucy and David went to Morocco on a Culinary Adventure last year to celebrate Lucy's birthday. How good is that! People who travel and learn are my heroes because it is just so darn thrilling to be at this stage of life, still learning new things and traveling with your beloved. It just rocks!

Here are photos. It really should have been featured in Elle Decor or W. It was exquisite. Unfortunately, I was way too busy drinking wine, eating olives and apricots, partaking of the mint tea and talking to the interesting guests - these are the best photos I got. Sorry! A little fuzzy - too much vino!