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When is a caterer more than a caterer? When she's Julia Shanks, chef and owner of Interactive Cuisine. Shanks will come to your house and prepare a multi-course gourmet dinner for up to 25 people, while conducting a hands-on cooking class in your own kitchen. Shanks purchases ingredients based on the host's specifications, and then the fun begins. She cooks, directs participants in the how-tos, serves, and then cleans up -- it doesn't get much easier than this. You can help make dishes like avocado filled with lobster salad, hazelnut- and coriander-crusted lamb loin, and herb-roasted beef tenderloin with potato and butternut squash gnocchi. Or you can just sip your cocktail and watch. Shanks will also guide you through desserts like Tahitian vanilla crème brûlée, balsamic-roasted strawberry shortcake, and chocolate marquis with port-soaked fruit. Not only do you acquire new skills, you go home with detailed recipes. But if you'd rather forego the lesson, Shanks will simply cater; she also does team-building events for businesses.
eLUXURY
recommends: Seared sea scallops with caramelized balsamic sauce, crispy capers
and arugula salad; rack of lamb quartet with exotic mushrooms, risotto, broccoli
rabe, and roasted red peppers; apple tarte tatin wit