Chili Week...it is cold outside, after all! 01/25/10 -- 1/29/10

Chili con carne
Black bean chili
White bean & chicken chili

A different style of chili was served each day this week. Sadly, I lost my first set of pictures for Cincinatti style chili when I dropped my memory card in the parking lot of a Best Buy. Don't ask! I was told that the smoky chipotle chili on Thursday didn't turn out well. So, I didn't take any pictures of it. Why would I want to give everyone heartburn at the mere sight of bad chili?

Remembering Last Christmas... 12/10/09

With all the stagnant lethargy of Christmas vacation that probably came down with all the snow so far this season, I completely forgot about these set of pictures. I took them the last day of classes last semester. I was so eager to get home that I failed in my anticipation to bother making the proper adjustments to my camera. The majority of pictures for this dinner came out blurry, shady, or grainy. Only a few came out well, still requiring photo adjustments.

This was one of those dinners where some genius decided to mix two completely different generic, stereotypical cultures together- Hawaii and North Pole. The "Hula-Days" (it's painful to even type it) was the result. This was the Christmas dinner-the last supper- before Christmas vacation.

The style is pretty obvious. Hawaiian! Hence, the roast pork in apricot coconut sauce, the pineapple salsa chicken, the Pacific Rim rice, the flame roasted corn on the cob, the spice & espresso encrusted beef & horseradish sauce Dijon, the Hawaiian baked sweet potato, the Kilauea herbed cheese & spinach in filo, the chocolate macadamia decadence and coconut nutmeg round layer cake, and French vanilla ice cream. Something tells me they don't celebrate Christmas like this in Honolulu!

(One of My Own) Beef Stroganoff

An entire family with little children allowed themselves to be the subjects of a meal I had been anxious to try long for a long time. Fortunately, they're still with us. A close friend gave me this recipe, which I don't think I am permitted to share. That may sound silly, but trust me when I say it's for good reason. It involved sour cream, 4.5 onions, and 2 large packages of sliced mushrooms. It was easier to make than I thought it would be, and tasted just as I remembered it. It was a beautiful success with the family I made it for.
Sadly, I didn't get a picture of the individual deserts I made. That I can share. I crumbled Pepperidge Farm's white chocolate macadamia nut cookies into small dishes, placed a few banana slices on top, poured about a teaspoon of honey on them, and splashed that with a half shot of Cointreau. I topped it with whipped cream I mixed a cap full of almond extract and powdered sugar into. It was something I picked up from the same buddy who shared the stroganoff recipe with me. It's a light desert to go with a hearty and filling meal!