September 22, 2024

Tonya was our host, and it was good to be back together again, sharing our love of cooking and talking about babies!  NO!  There's no talking about babies at cooking group!

Ahem.

We were welcomed with a sweet cocktail with malibu rum. It was a perfect late summer drink. Tonya mixed orange juice, fresh lime juice, a splash of grenadine and a few glugs of dark rum and Malibu rum in a pitcher. Mix and when serving top each glass with ginger ale.

Carol had appetizer course and she shared two "healthy" dips, one featuring cottage cheese and the other Greek Yogurt.  I thought the cottage cheese one had a unique flavor (I never eat cottage cheese because of its texture and in this dip it's blended and smooth) and the yogurt ranch dip was my favorite.  Using cottage cheese and yogurt add protein and a better alternative than sour cream.

Our salad was prepared by Angelica table side and was a bean salad. Another protein and vegetable packed dish! I make this salad alot in the summertime and it can also be eaten as a dip with tortilla chips.

Tonya requested coleslaw to top her pulled pork and I delivered.  I grated carrots (whole, not baby carrots) and used a mandolin for the cabbage.  In the past I also added red cabbage and that adds sweetness that is not complimentary to the pulled pork. This recipe, which only has green cabbage, even says it's "best for pulled pork". Be careful to not make too wet with the dressing as the vegetables will produce liquid as it sits. 

The main dish was instapot pulled pork with cornbread waffles.  YUM!!  The pulled pork was fork tender and flavorful.  We removed the liquid after cooking and then added BBQ sauce. The waffles were hearty and perfect for the base of the pork and coleslaw.  Note you add the spices to the pork and let it sit so plan ahead!

For the finale was Mary's Elvis Presley cake.  SO GOOD.  It reminded me of a hummingbird cake. It was very moist and decadent.  Great ending to our feast. 

June 30, 2024

We were hosted by (new member) Carol and had a wonderful evening with a theme of summer's bounty.  Guest Sarah, Angie's niece, also was present.  

Appetizers were prepared by Angelica and were two different skewers. Prosciutto wrapped melon balls and mozzarella skewers were delicious and shared the skewer theme of the main dish. Both are a perfect, light summer appetizer. The sweet melon and salty prosciutto are a tasty combination.  

Carol had a frozen cocktail for us and she said it was from her parents and they would keep it in the freezer for when guests arrived.  It has a heavenly texture like granita, a semi frozen dessert. This drink goes down very easily so beware.  The hand written recipe is included below.  Mix all, freeze, and scrap every few hours to get the slushy texture. Start off with half the sugar and add more as desired.

For the side, Tonya brought a rice dish. This Mediterranean Rice Salad recipe was her inspiration and the add ins she used were shredded carrots, diced seedless cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, roasted corn, flat leaf parsley and red onion. Who knew you could mix all these vegetables with white rice and end up with the perfect summer side?!

The main dish was chicken and vegetable skewers with a sweet sauce. The vegetables were crispy, the pineapple sweet and lightly caramelized and the chicken juicy.  Carol did a great job manning the grill for the Hawaiian skewers. You can also cook this as a one sheet pan dish in the oven. 

I prepared two salads. I had a ton of tomatoes and needed to use those up after I had already picked another recipe from my Cast Iron Magazine.  This caprese salad was made with tomatoes and basil from my garden. My second salad was predominantly corn (that I grilled) with some pan-fried okra. The okra keeps some bite and while did seem like an odd choice, somehow works with the corn and red onions to add some earthiness.  Grilled corn is my favorite summer vegetable and I eat it weekly when on sale.

Dessert was a delightful trifle in old fashion sundae glasses. Mary made these with fresh berries, cake and pastry cream.  I loved the glasses and these large portions are always welcome when the dish is so decadent. 

May 19, 2024

 Mary hosted and we were joined by neighbors Carol and Dena.  The more the merrier!

The theme was church picnic.  Or, Mississippi church picnic if we want to get specific.

No church picnic is complete without a cocktail.  Mary mixed up these bourbon and fig jam cocktails.  YOWZA.  These are strong.  We topped with some sparking soda. 

I brought two appetizers:  stuffed peppers and DEVILED EGGS.  Again, a church classic.   

The deviled eggs were mostly pickle juice and less vinegar.  

I sprinkled the top of the peppers with some Tony's which adds both salt and heat. 

Carol prepared a very delicious and unique pasta salad.  I will definitely make this again! I love the shape of pasta used and there is a sweet though not overly mayo heavy dressing.

This layered salad recipe was modified by Tonya to have spring mix for the greens, chickpeas instead of green peas, gorgonzola as the cheese and no sugar in the dressing.  We also think half of the dressing could have been put on the top and the remainder served on the side. 

Mary picked chicken cakes as our main dish.  These are much like crab cakes with canned chicken. The panko on the outside makes such a crispy cake and very little oil was used to pan fry. The cakes were finished with a remoulade sauce.

The most beautiful cupcakes were served by Angelia for dessert.  These hummingbird cakes are banana bread meets carrot cake. Very moist and with a sweet cream cheese frosting.

April 28, 2024

 Angelica hosted and started us off with a delicious peach cocktail. This bourbon peach smash was perfect for a summer night. A "smash" is "a cocktail that typically contains a seasonal fruit and/or herb, muddled with sugar or simple syrup, shaken with a spirit like bourbon or whiskey (often, but not necessarily one of those two), strained, and served over plenty of ice. Oftentimes, the smash is mixed or finished with water or a splash of something fizzy, like seltzer or ginger beer."

Our appetizer was prepared by Tonya and featured goat cheese and fresh herbs. This best ever party appetizer had roasted garlic, basil and balsamic vinegar on top. Tonya left out the rosemary and I do think the rosemary would have been too strong of a flavor. We enjoyed as a spread with homemade crostini. 

Angelica picked a main dish out of her favorite Chrissy Teigen cookbook. This chicken starts with a herb heavy marinade and is coated in seasoned bread crumbs and flour and baked in the oven.  Having spices in both the marinade and breading made for a very flavorful chicken!  It was also super juicy and little mess since "fried" in the oven.

Mary also baked her dish, a squash casserole with ritz crackers.  It was delicious and I would not have guessed had crackers.  It was like squash dressing and the perfect compliment to the chicken.

Squash Dressing II

2 cups cooked yellow squash, soft, not mushy

3/4 stick butter

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup chopped yellow onion

1 cup shredded cheese

1 cup evaporated milk

2 cups cracker crumbs

parsley flakes

Drain squash well and mash. Add all ingredients and mix well. Pour into greased casserole dish and bake at 375 degrees about 40 minutes.

We ended our meal with banana pudding lasagna. This dessert that I made is a rich banana pudding with a vanilla wafer "crust" and layered with bananas and more, whole vanilla wafers.  The pudding can be made the day before and it stands up very good for days in the refrigerator.

March 31, 2024

We gathered at my house for a SPRING THEME.

Angelica brought a beautiful platter with Spicy Strawberry dip with goat cheese to make crostini. 

On the side we had pineapple sangria which I made two versions of:  one with basil and one with mint. I also used diet ginger beer and did not miss the sugar.

Mary plated a wedge salad family style. The dressing was fantastic and the blue cheese flavor was mild in the creamy dressing.  Not only was the salad a show stopper it was very delicious and filling.

While our main dish was written as vegetarian and gluten free we prepared it with "normal" pasta and added shrimp and scallops.  Shout out to Tonya and her seafood cooking skills. 

The pesto is the star and made with PEAS.  The peas add protein.  Who knew?!  The pesto also has parsley which is not typical.  This dish can be eaten warm or cold I found when eating my leftovers.

For dessert Tonya made a lemon blueberry tart with shortbread crust.  SO GOOD. Lemon and blueberry are a classic combination and the tart lemon and sweet blueberries go so well together. The shortbread crust adds a richness. 

July 16, 2023

Angie hosted and started us off with a sangria recipe from the Whistling Duck.  

Red Sangria

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice or juice from 3 lemons

1 cup orange juice

1 bottle Whistling Duck Cattle Guard Sweet Red Wine

2 cans Sprite

Lemon, oranges, blueberries

Pour sugar, lemon juice and orange juice into pitcher and stir well to dissolve sugar.  Add wine and Sprite and stir again. Garnish with fruit.

 

Talia started us out with a triple appetizer tray!  All were delicious and the goat cheese bites so pretty with the pomegranate seeds. The sausage balls are always a hit at parties!

Cream cheese sausage balls

Potatoes

Goat cheese bites

Next was Tonya's beautiful tomato salad. Tonya did NOT put almonds in the dressing and substituted white wine vinegar for the sherry vinegar.

Our main dish was weeknight paella. It reminded us of jambalaya.  I think most cultures have a seafood rice dish. This one is Spanish. I even splurged on the saffron threads.

Mary brought a mushroom side dish. It had some kick!

Angelica finished with dessert. These precious little cakes have almonds which seem to be a common theme in Spanish cooking. According to the google, "Almond trees flourished in areas such as Spain, Morocco, Greece, and Israel, and their harvests fed explorers traveling along the Silk Road to China. Spain is the only country that maintained a significant almond industry, and they are still a producer of almonds."

May 7, 2023

Tonya was our hostess!

Mary mixed up a Pear Cocktail

Pear Cocktail 

Pear Nectar

Vodka 

Splash of elderflower tonic 

Mix equal parts nectar and vodka in shaker over ice.  Shake vigorously to chill.  Pour into martini glasses and top with very cold elderflower tonic.  Enjoy! 

For appetizer I made a peach salsa because I had an abundance of both peaches and peppers. It is a great, summery appetizer.  Not so much Indian like our main dish.

Our salad was a hearty lentil salad that tasted even better the next day!

The main dish was butter chicken prepared in the instapot.  It was a super flavorful dish full of butter AND garlic!  The chicken was fall apart tender.

Angelica cooked this side dish that made quinoa taste delicious!  I do think the mushrooms were the star of the show.  This was so good and I am going to sneak it into a meal soon since I've been told before that quinoa is terrible and akin to cat litter.

Talia finished our meal with a creamy dessert topped with roasted pistachios.