October 19, 2025

Carol hosted a spooky Halloween gathering! Angelica was unable to join us. 

We were served this welcome cocktail.

Witches Brew Cocktail

1 shot of simple syrup

1 shot of Drillaud Pomegranate liqueur

2 shots of vodka

1 shot of lemon juice

Shake 

Pour in glass and top with club soda

Tonya brought two appetizers: these cute pizza pumpkins and some candy corn and peanuts.  I LOVE CANDY CORN.  How can you not?!

Serve the pumpkins with marinara sauce for dipping.

Carol put together a green salad and I roasted two vegetables to look scary.  Cauliflower were "brains" and beets were "liver" or "hearts".  Fortunately, they were delicious. 

The group cooked together chicken spaghetti and it was delicious and decadent.  I love this casserole!

How cute are these Mississippi Moon pies decorated by Mary!  And chocolate and marshmallows are my love language foods.  Yum!

September 21, 2025

 Tonya hosted and started us off with a cocktail. It was refreshing and beautiful.

Angie's appetizer was a Caramelized Onion Dip from the Home for the Holidays by Baker by Nature book.

Sauté 3 pounds of onions in butter and olive oil with 1 tbs brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp thyme leaves and cook until onions brown, about 15 minutes. Stir in 3 tbs water. Reduce heat and cook 45 minutes until onions are very brown and soft. 

Remove 1/4 cup onions and set aside.

Stir 1 tbs apple cider vinegar and 1/2 tsp coarse mustard into remaining onions. 

In a bowl of stand mixer, combine 8 oz cream cheese, 8 oz sour cream, 1/2 cup mayo and dashes of Worcestershire sauce, tabasco, garlic and onion powders, salt and pepper. Beat until well combined. Add caramelized onions and mix again. Chill 30 minutes to 4 hours.  Top with remaining 1/4 cup onions and serve with mixed vegetables and toasts.

Mary prepared an herb potato salad. I make this version when I do not want to cut up a bunch a vegetables since this is potatoes, herbs and onion or shallots.

Tonya picked a fast version of an all day recipe in this cassolette. Make sure you follow the directions about the topping or it will not crisp up.  It was so good and hearty and makes great left overs.

For dessert Angelica brought classic creme brulee and torched the sugars table side.  The crispy topping, creamy custard and berries were a fabulous ending.

June 22, 2025

As she always does, Mary greeted us with a delicious cocktail in a sugar rimmed glass.  This margarita tasted like a dreamsicle.  Delicious.  Went down very smoothly.  It was like a boozy milkshake.

 Orange Sherbet Italian Margarita

Servings:  4

2 cups sherbet

6 oz. evaporated milk 

½ cup crushed ice 

tequila...set your own octane level! 

1-2 shots of Amaretto 

1-2 shots of orange liqueur 

colored sugar to rim glasses (optional)

Combine all ingredients in blender.  Blend until very smooth and creamy.

Perfect summertime boozy treat! 

For appetizers I made a variety of cucumber and tomato offerings.  There was also hummus with bell peppers from my garden.  There was herb cream cheese (4 OZ cream cheese with chopped rosemary, chives and parsley) stuffed cucumbers and tomatoes, salmon canapes and caprese cucumbers. I knew Mary would make a decadent cocktail and that the main dish was rich so let us go low carb, heavy vegetable appetizers.

Tonya made a burrata salad with a balsalmic vinegar salad dressing.  The burrata cheese is creamy and mild. There was fresh basil in the salad and this adds a distinct, licorice like flavor.  I love basil and it's a classic combination pairing with tomato and cheese.

As if Angelica read Tonya's mind, she brought a similar dish, caprese salad, as our side.  This is a great dish as an appetizer, salad or side, in the summertime. Also, it is another great choice to balance the main dish of Marry Me Chicken.

Our main dish, Marry Me Chicken, was so good.  Mary marinated the chicken with the spices and cooked it up in an iron skillet.  We added mushrooms to the creamy sauce and next time would use less pasta.  The dish reheated beautifully the next day even though we were worried the sauce might "seize" up.  It did not.

These cherry pie bars were amazing.  The crust was soft like cake and over time became even more soft and melding into the cherry pie filling.  The recipe made a ton which we were all grateful for! Do not skip on the icing, it was essential to the deliciousness.

May 18, 2025

I hosted and had a Mediterranean theme.  This is my favorite cuisine as of late. Michelle joined us and it was a wonderful treat.

We started off with a very, very, very strong cocktail.  Ooops.  This Mediterranean Mule has limoncello, vodka and gin.  Ooops. You can cut the alcohol with the ginger beer. Bubbly and refreshing!

Angelica changed up this recipe to be a layered dip and served with pita chips.  It had a great flavor and creamy texture with the hummus and tzatziki. Mix all ingredients together and serve.

For the main dish we baked Greek chicken tenders. The secret is the marinade and instead of grilling we baked and they came out moist and perfect.

The side was saffron rice. The bright red strands of saffron give the color and mild flavor.  There is alot of onion in the rice too!

The salad was a beautiful couscous by Mary. 

Couscous Salad

Ingredients: 

1 box of couscous

Orange bell pepper, diced small

1/2 red bell pepper, diced small

1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced small

1 small/medium red onion, diced small

I large can black olives, chopped

6 oz feta cheese crumbles 

½ container of grape or similar style small tomatoes, cut in half.

Flat leaf parsley

1 seedless cucumber, chopped small

Salt and pepper to taste

Prepare couscous according to box instructions and let cool completely.  For added flavor, I substitute chicken broth for the water.

Once couscous is cooled, mix in as little or as much of the chopped vegetables as you like.

*Adding chopped boiled eggs, grilled chicken or other protein turns the salad into a one dish meal. Great option for a light meal during the summertime heat!

Dressing:

1 minced garlic 

juice from 1/2 lemon

1/2 tsp dried oregeno

2 tsp dijon mustard

salt, pepper

1/4 cup olive oill

2 tbs red wine vinegar

Mix all ingredients and add to salad.

Our side of roasted vegetables by Tonya also had a tahini sauce.  Look how colorful these vegetables are as they cook! The onions caramelize and sweeten, the tomatoes plump and pop and the zucchini has a nice crunch.

To finish our meal, Carol had the dessert course and made a delicious blueberry galette.  It was heavenly. The sweetness was the right amount and the homemade crust was rustic and tasty.

April 6, 2025

Tonya hosted Angelica, Mary and Angie. 

Angelica started us off with a summery shrimp ceviche. The shrimp are both poached and "cooked" in the citrus juice. It was a beautiful presentation in martini glasses and served along side tortilla chips.

We sipped on these pretty cocktails featuring prickly pear juice.  The Prickly Paloma was as delicious as beautiful. 

For our main dish we had stuffed poblano peppers. These were so good!  All the components of a meal - beef, rice, beans, vegetables - in one place. We added the extra poblano parts into the filling so nothing went to waste.  The filling is started on the stove and the peppers are finished in the oven.

Southwest Salad is what I made to accompany the stuffed peppers.  The dressing is very thick and I tossed it with the greens like you would a Cesar salad. I love a salad with corn and beans plus creamy avocado.  If making ahead, add the avocado and dressing at the last minute.

Mary brought a beautiful Berry Chantilly Cake from Whole Foods (due to a baking fail). It was wonderful and a great substitute to homemade.

I wanted to try out boozy pudding shots, as I had one recently at a friend's house, so I whipped up these banana split pudding shots.  NEXT TIME I will use half the amount of banana liqueur and taste test before adding anymore. I purchased the cute cups and spoons off of Amazon.

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.