The Thousand Dollar Dinner Revisited

On a mild April evening in 1851, thirty lucky gentlemen experienced the meal of a lifetime. A twelve-hour, seventeen-course feast, this extravagant dinner was famously coined the “Thousand Dollar Dinner” by Philadelphia newspapers as it reputedly cost $1,000, which is about $32,000 in today’s money.

Almost 165 years later, another group of thirty diners got the chance to experience and taste dishes from this glorious meal. On March 13, 2016, the Historic Foodways Society of the Delaware Valley (HFSDV) hosted an amazing 13-course rendition of James Parkinson’s 1851 Thousand Dollar Dinner. The Chadds Ford Historical Society graciously provided their wonderful space for the occasion. It was incredible to be part of this event and see all the foods I researched and wrote about for three years "come to life."

HFSDV members made most of the food for this remarkable meal, basing the dishes on nineteenth century recipes gleaned from a number of period cookbooks, including The Complete Confectioner by Eleanor Parkinson (James’ mother). Every single dish was outstanding - as delicious as it was visually stunning. Jill Newirth Horn, Editor and Photographer for the Philadelphia Women's Culinary Guild PWCG Newsletter, kindly chronicled the event by taking several masterful photographs of the amazing dishes, as you can see throughout this post.

I helped kick off the meal by telling the story of the original dinner, and then gave some background behind the history of each featured dish before each course. Vicki Miller of Vinocity Events did the same with the wine pairings, which she had chosen to match Parkinson’s original choices as closely as possible. Then the chef who prepared the dish explained how they made it, putting it in context with modern tastes, techniques and challenges. It all flowed beautifully and the guests really seemed to enjoying learning and tasting at the same time.

Oysters on Shell with Kirschwasser Glacee, prepared by Executive Chef Adam Diltz

As was typical of a 19th century dinner party, the first course was oysters. Oysters on Shell with Kirschwasser Glacee to be exact – prepared by Executive Chef Adam Diltz of Johnny Brenda’s restaurant in Philadelphia. This dish was beautifully presented –a single raw oyster on shell perched atop a bed of coarse salt. The brininess of the oysters paired wonderfully with the luscious Chateau Cantegril Sauternes 2010 skillfully chosen by Vicki. An unusual pairing, but just as was featured at Parkinson’s original dinner, and everyone loved it.

Kensington Turtle Soup prepared by Dan Macey

The second course was Kensington Turtle Soup made by Dan Macey with farmed terrapin from Maryland. This thick, rich, and slightly spicy soup was hearty, stew-like and delicious, and Dan’s commentary on making the soup was informative and entertaining. What a treat to try this historic, beloved dish – a true Philadelphia favorite.

The next course was fresh salmon in lobster sauce made by Dee Ann Smith. This was one of my favorites – succulent and so tender – like butter! And the sauce was as equally rich, matching perfectly with the wine, a Mosel Riesling Feinherb Weingut Freiherr von Heddesdorff 2013.

Turkey in Celery Sauce made by Mercy Ingraham

Turkey in celery sauce made by Mercy Ingraham was the next item, part of the boiled dishes course. Mercy admitted she had never boiled a turkey (not many folks have – our modern palates prefer roasting), but you wouldn’t have known, as it turned out beautifully! A lighter red, Domaine de Robert Beaujolais Cru Morgon 2014, was the wine paired with it – as Vicki said, a perfect match for turkey and a wine often featured on many Thanksgiving tables.

The fifth course (cold dishes) was perhaps the most remarkable – two stunning aspics (one fish and one vegetable) made by Dan Macey. I was very curious to try these since I had spent a great deal of time researching and writing about these elegantly garnished cold cooked foods set in aspic, so popular in the 19th century. Dan’s versions were exquisite – the vegetable aspic was a colorful rainbow of vegetables formed into a tall molded tower. The fish aspic was a variety of different fish arranged in a circular mold and set into a mango-flavored aspic prettily decorated with parsley. Now I can see why these were so beloved by Victorians – not only were they gorgeous works of art, but the aspic also helped keep the food inside perfectly fresh. The wine pairing for this course was Savory & James Amontillado Sherry, which accented the aspics nicely.

Next up was Vol-au-Vent a la Financiere. Few dishes present as pretty a picture as vol-au-vent - a round puff pastry with a savory filling topped with a petite pastry lid. Dan’s version was very similar to Parkinson’s - a mix of sautéed mushrooms and chicken, simmered in a rich brown sauce flavored with sherry. It was a striking, delectable dish, another I had wanted to try! Vol-au-Vent a la Financiere prepared by Dan Macey

Then we had Spring Chicken on Toast – tender young chicken set on buttered toast garnished with rich creamy gravy, prepared by Cheryl Trozzi. It was flavorful and beautifully presented. Vicki chose a sparkling Riesling as the wine pairing – the delicious and festive Dr. Heidemann-Bergweiler Riesling Brut Sekt, a perfect partner.

Sweet potato balls, Cauilflower and Asparagus prepared by Cheryl Trozzi

We then moved on to a course of vegetables, also prepared by Cheryl Trozzi. She chose three vegetables from the original menu – sweet potatoes, asparagus and cauliflower. Since the way the vegetables were prepared for the original dinner is unknown, Cheryl combed through various historic cookbooks to find an interesting recipe for sweet potato balls from The Kentucky Housewife (1839) cookbook. These were absolutely delicious – like mini sweet potato dumplings, sweet and luscious with hints of nutmeg and cinnamon. The asparagus was tender and flavorful - prepared boiled as per a recipe from The Virginia Housewife (1824) by Mary Randolph. This cookbook also provided the inspiration for the cauliflower recipe, which also specified boiling as the cooking method. Cheryl nicely dressed up the dish by adding a tasty white sauce, courtesy of The Carolina Housewife (1847).

After the vegetables, we sipped a delightful Hungarian Tokaji wine. This served as our Coup de Milieu (the meal’s mid-way pause), which was traditionally a refreshing sorbet or slushy punch. Parkinson had created Sorbets au vin de Tokia, a rejuvenating sorbet made from a rare Tokaji, specifically for The Thousand Dollar Dinner. The Chateau Megyer Tokaji Aszu 3 Puttonyos 2010 selected by Vicki was a perfect choice that whetted our appetites for the remaining courses.

Gateaux a la Napolitaine made by Chef Joel Vitart of C’est La Vie Bakery in New Hope, PA

It was now time for dessert! Parkinson’s menu had featured four dessert courses, and the HFSDV group stuck with this original theme, beginning with a pastry course of Gateaux a la Napolitaine and Meringues a la Crème. The Gateaux was made by Chef Joel Vitart of C’est La Vie Bakery in New Hope, PA and it was gorgeous – three colorful layers of chocolate cake, creamy vanilla custard and raspberry mousse, draped in rich raspberry sauce. Simply divine, it tasted every bit as good as it looked. It was served alongside meringue cookies topped with whipped cream – scrumptious! As on Parkinson’s original menu, these treats were served with Madeira, a traditional “dessert wine.” The vintage chosen by Vicki was Blandy’s Medium Dry Madeira Rainwater - a delicious pairing for these two sweets.

Lemon ice cream prepared by Cheryl Trozzi

For the next sweet course, Confectionery, we enjoyed some colorful, candied fennel seeds provided by Mercy Ingraham. Then it was on to the ices and ice cream course. This was a generous molded scoop of delightfully sweet-tart lemon ice cream prepared by Cheryl Trozzi, accompanied by strawberries and Wafers a la Francaise made from Eleanor Parkinson’s (James’ mother) original recipe. We finished up the dessert courses (Fruits and Nuts) with a colorful plate of apples, figs, oranges and almonds provided by Carol Pollock.

Now fully satiated, it was easy to imagine how the original Thousand Dollar Dinner guests must have felt! As our final homage to the meal, we ended with Café Noir - a simple cup of strong, black coffee – a perfect finish to an incredible day.

To remember the amazing experience, guests were treated to a stunning handout assembled by Dan Macey. This listed the exact menu from this event, as well as the original menu, some background about James Parkinson and the recipes the members used to recreate these delicious dishes. An incredible resource I will refer to often, and I can image the others will too. I feel like all of us shared a unique and special experience. I truly appreciate the hard work and care everyone contributed to make this event happen, and the interest everyone exhibited regarding the topic. It really is a dream to finally see (and taste!) some of the dishes I spent so much time researching and writing about. Hugs and best wishes to all involved!

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