This month’s review, indeed, was a treat for our entire staff. Shelly Maddocks, personal chef and owner of Savoring Thyme exhibited her artistry and culinary skills to the staff of The Magazine by catering lunch in our office earlier this month. With her goal of “impressing” us, Shelly and Mona Sheppard (a party planner who works with Shelly to stage events) accomplished what they set out to do.
Shelly and Mona arrived just after noon and by 12:20 had the table set, complete with holiday décor – all sparkly green and gold. Large tree-shaped cones helped to set the stage for the tiered presentation which Mona did simply by placing boxes of different heights underneath the green velvet tablecloth – I certainly took that little trick away and plan to use it the next time I host a buffet dinner.
Following a short flurry of trips back and forth to the truck, Shelly was plating.
Recently relocated to Santa Clarita Valley, Shelly is quickly establishing herself as a personal chef and caterer. Spending as much time as she possibly could as a child at the apron strings of her Uncle who was the owner and executive chef at Brownstones in Houston, considered by many to be the finest dining establishment in central Houston.
Shelly also attributes her interest and expertise in food and food preparation and presentation to her role as an Air Force Major’s wife. In that role, Shelly staged many parties for the top brass.
“I love, love it, love it,” enthused Shelly as she plated an array of spectacular dishes. She chose a high priced menu ($17.50/person) for us to enjoy and explained that it was on the high side, price-wise, because of its heavy emphasis on the seafood. She added that prices can start much lower, but suggested checking out her website for more detail and contacting her directly for a quote.
The scrumptious seafood dishes included grilled monkfish and pancetta on individual rosemary skewers, saffron-seasoned shrimp salad served in phyllo dough cups and a shrimp cocktail accompanied by a crabmeat and shrimp salad on chopped avocado and red pepper aioli…a very nice twist on the traditional shrimp with cocktail sauce.
Mini caprese salads “on a stick”, made with sweet grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese and basil, were interestingly presented in a round glass fishbowl and were fun to eat.
My co-workers looked on curiously as I picked up a skewer containing two “squares” and some greenery. At first glance, you might think – tofu and beef aspic? Well, it turned out to be machego cheese and a quince based aspic with ginger, both cut into half inch squares and separated on the stick by a piece of watercress. It was fabulous. You have to eat it all at one time to truly enjoy the punch of the aspic with the mellow flavor of the cheese – it didn’t take long for the rest of the crew to finish off the platter.
A beautiful gold tray contained duck carnitas with ancho chile and tomatillo sauce. The duck was braised in orange juice for more than three hours and was served on a triangle shaped chip with a tangy crispy slaw. Also on the tray were delightfully little wrapped “presents”. Rectangles measuring about 1 x 3 inches, one slice of white bread on the bottom, wheat on the top, stuffed with lean rare roast beef and a tasty mustard, all tied up like a gift and trimmed with cilantro and red pimento. Also on the tray was my favorite – a small puff pastry filled with caramelized red onion with egg and blue cheese. It’s hard not to taste good when you combine caramelized onions and blue cheese, but this was pretty special.
In an unusual presentation, a delicious chicken salad was served atop a dinner roll with a slice of tomato and topped with crisp bacon.
Mini cheesecakes on chocolate crusts topped with strawberry puree and a mint garnish were the perfect “sweet” to complete the presentation.
If you’re thinking that it might be nice to come home to a home-cooked meal once in a while or maybe planning a holiday open house, give Shelly a call. You won’t be sorry!
For more information call 661-259-MEAL (6325) or visit www.savoringthymechef.com
photos by Kathy Cleversley