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| Black combined modern elements with Santa Fe-inspired colors to create his themed tabletop. |
A dinner party at the swank Turtle Creek town house of Stephen Dunn and Beau Black is like opening night at the theater. No wonder—Black, a longtime sales associate at David Sutherland, is also an actor. And Dunn is an interior decorator with a flair for the dramatic. They’ve spent days coordinating their wardrobes and creating the perfect stage set—er, table—decorated with cherished objects brought back from Santa Fe, N.M., where Black and Dunn often vacation. The theme? A flamboyant Easter in Santa Fe.
The dining room glows with translucent, light-drenched colors straight out of a Georgia O’Keefe landscape. There are clear turquoise glass candlesticks, opalescent eggs to commemorate the holiday, and lots of white and clear crystal that sparkles on the glass tabletop. The napkin rings are actually silver and turquoise cuffs from Black’s extensive collection, and the centerpiece is made from mannequins originally used to make religious garments. Tonight, Dunn has chosen music with a Spanish influence, including classical guitar and flute music.
The menu has a Santa Fe spirit: chilled shrimp and cilantro bisque, tequila sunrise salad, pork tenderloin stuffed with green chilies, and tomato salsa with a side of zucchini and roasted red pepper couscous with zucchini and roasted red peppers. For dessert, there is bread pudding with peaches, cinnamon, and chocolate. Just a few notes of caution: Enjoy, but don’t move things on the table; don’t rearrange objects; and please don’t change the music. As Black says, “Our dinner parties are not about the guests, they are about us sharing with our friends, a gift to our guests. The stage has been set for our idea of a perfect dining experience—don’t touch a thing, just enjoy.”
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| LEFT: Stephen Dunn (at left) and Black on one of their many trips to Santa Fe. RIGHT: Beau Black used his collection of silver and turquoise cuffs to add a personal element to the table. | |
THE RECIPES
Pork Tender stuffed with Green Chilies served with Tomato Salsa
Pork:
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 whole pork tender, sliced almost
through, flattened with mallet
2 cans whole green chilies
2 teaspoons sea salt
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| Pork Tender stuffed with Green Chilies served with Tomato Salsa |
1 can chopped ripe olives
Sauté onion and cumin in butter until almost brown. Place grated cheese on flattened pork tender followed by green chilies, opened out flat. Sprinkle with sea salt, add onion and chopped olives. Roll and tie about every 4 inches with kitchen twine. Place in roaster pan and cook at 375 for 40 minutes.
Salsa:
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 box grape tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped chive
Sauté garlic in olive oil. Place in food processor with tomatoes and chives, and pulse until tomatoes are coarsely chopped. Serve sliced pork on pool of salsa.
Couscous with Zucchini, Roasted Red Pepper, Celery, and Baby Bella Mushrooms
2 cups Mediterranean couscous,
cooked according to directions
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 small zucchini, finely
chopped
1/2 roasted red pepper, diced
1 box baby bella mushrooms,
sliced
2 stalks celery, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
Sauté ingredients until soft, season with salt and pepper. Toss with couscous and reheat until warm.
Refried Black Beans
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cans black beans, drained
1 cup beef broth
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 teaspoon Santa Fe hatch
chili powder
1 chicken bouillon cube
3 tablespoons goat cheese
Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add beans, broth, rum, chili powder, and bouillon cube, and cook until liquid is reduced. Mash beans with potato masher, re-heat on low, and add goat cheese just before serving.
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| Chilled Shrimp and Cilantro Bisque |
Chilled Shrimp and Cilantro Bisque
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 can chicken stock seasoned
with roasted garlic
1 pint half and half cream
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound cooked shrimp
1 tablespoon chopped
cilantro
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Melt butter in saucepan, add flour, and stir until bubbly. Add chicken stock and stir until thickened. Add half and half, tomato paste, pepper, and salt, and stir until blended. Remove from heat, cool, and add shrimp. Process in blender until creamy, add cilantro and lemon zest. Process 2 minutes and then chill before serving.
Tequila Sunrise Salad
3 tablespoons red wine
vinegar
1 tablespoon tequila
2 teaspoons coarse ground
mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon coarse ground
pepper
4 tablespoons extra-virgin
olive oil
Zest of one orange
Mixed spring greens, purple
leaf lettuce, chopped
Toasted pine nuts
1 avocado
Blend first five ingredients in food processor for 1 minute. Slowly drizzle olive oil and orange zest, process 3 minutes. Toss with chopped greens, and top with pine nuts and sliced avocado.
Cinnamon, Peach, and Chocolate Bread Pudding
3 cups stale packaged cinnamon rolls,
cubed
1 small can peaches, drained and
chopped (Reserve 1 cup juice.)
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons cinnamon
5 eggs
3 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 small bags chocolate chips
Toss cinnamon rolls and peaches and place in buttered casserole dish. Dot with butter and cinnamon and mix thoroughly. Whip eggs until frothy, add milk, peach juice, sugar, and vanilla, and mix thoroughly. Pour over bread mixture, sprinkle with chocolate chips, and bake at 325 for 30 minutes or until firm.
Beau Black’s Party Tips |  |
| Beau Black loves throwing dinner parties. But they are as much for him as they are for his guests, which is why he doesn’t follow any rules when setting the table. “There are no rules; don’t adhere to the traditions,” he says. “You don’t always have to have a big bowl and candlesticks.” Rules, no, but Black does have a few tips if you’re planning a get-together: | |
| Keep the guest list short. (Black usually invites six to eight guests). “If you invite too many, you become a waiter all night, and that’s no fun,” he says. | |
| Dress the table, don’t set it. Bring in treasures from all over the house and add them to the table. For their Easter in Santa Fe party, Black and Stephen Dunn included turquoise cuffs as napkin rings and white art glass eggs as decoration. Black says, “if you like looking at it, it will work” grouped together as a centerpiece. | |
| Juxtaposition adds interest. Amuse yourself. Black combined fun elements such as the opalescent teal china and art glass with bright Santa Fe-inspired colors in the napkins and the flowers. He threw in horn-handled cutlery that he and Dunn picked up in Pagosa Springs, Colo., not because it was modern or Santa Fe, but just because he liked the way it looked on the table. — Roger Brooks | |
