One of the highlights of a magical Easter holiday at the Watermill with family and friends was a ‘Dining Experience’ created for us all by our daughter Lydia and her friend Tam Shepherd. Meticulous planning went into the creation of an Italian evening with a Mexican flavour, beginning with Milanese Margaritas (tequila and an Italian vermouth), through a series of dishes fusing fresh Italian flavours with piquant Mexican ones, like the lime and chilli sorbet and the Mexican hot chocolate pictured below.
Note the fearsome Easter chicken guarding the teaspoon.
As well as producing a dinner which would not have ashamed a fancy restaurant, they also distributed a series of groan-worthy jokes to amuse their guests. For instance, the evening was called Cliff Wife. (Q: Why did you push your wife off a cliff? A: Tequila!)
Another high spot was when Mattia, Bill’s young Italian physiotherapist and friend, was introduced to Charades. Miming a film title, he merely shrugged and raised his arms to mimic an explosion. Everyone was totally puzzled until Bill had a surreal revelation: ‘Oppenheimer!’
It was another magical evening of creative conviviality. Our thanks to Lydia and Tam for conceiving the project and seeing it right through to the end. (They even did the washing up!)
Note how Mattia gets himself in the picture, van Eyck-style in the mirror.
My thanks, too, to Lois and to our other daughter Lara, and to friends Gabriele, Gail, Vivienne and Ulrika, Mac, Mattia and Nick, for helping to create an unforgettable weekend of laughter and love.