Last night I went out for dinner and all our dishes looked beautiful with a specific plate for each entree.  It felt like a real celebration.

While cooking tonight I thought to myself why don’t we put this same care into our home cooked meals.  We forget that eating involves more than just our sense of taste.  All five senses participate.

Each Friday we celebrate Shabbat with a festive meal but why not other meals with ceremony?  Let’s make meal times an occasion not just a time to scarf down our food without noticing it.  I had all the elements, my family, some friends and the meal which didn’t take much time to cook.

With little effort I was able to dress up the meal.  It is just a matter of how you arrange the food on the plate and some garnishing. You can clip some parsley or cilantro, or use a condiment and swirl a design on the plate.  And then you get the response of your diners going “Ooh, this looks so pretty, why so fancy?” Even if the dinner turns out to only last 15 minutes it really does feel more special.  Aren’t we worth it?