Of friends and spices...

You know that murky wasteland of the twenty-somethings, where you are no longer talking around the boxed wine and cheetos of the state of drunkenness of the previous weekend and who's relationship is in turmoil but around the dinner table discussing the state of the economy and who's job is in jeopardy? Well, I'm wading it it...up too my neck in it, to be precise.

Last week we had a dinner party with three other couples. [..and actually, the setting was not-too-different than a junior high dance - boys on one side of the table and girls on the other.]

So dinner's going along just fine [T made some delish chicken parm] when all of a sudden, C called the conversation to a screeching halt. She couldn't believe the context.

Since you, of course, weren't there, here's a snippet of it:

T: I haven't really bought much baking supplies, like spices. I was thinking I could just get one of those rotating 30-in-one things, like in Bed Bath and Beyond, right?

S: Yeah, those would be ok...but sometimes I like to buy as I go along, because some of those spices I would never use.

M: But then how are you going to organize them?

S: Nah, I'm alright for now, if I get a surplus, they have those little in-cabinet shelves you can put in, too.

M: Actually, I like the shelves that you have to hammer into the door. Great space savers.

.....SCREEEECCCHHHH

So that was just a precusor to this totally fantastic website I found today, helping women enjoy dinner parties and cooking together everywhere: http://www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com/

The site is so creative, so well-organized! It celebrates camaraderie and cooking and...I just love it! I'm thinking about taking their "soup swap" idea and modifying it for the Holidays as a "cookie swap". How fun!

One appy down, ??? to go...

Last night, while watching "THS: Hulk Hogan and the Hogan Family" [p.s. - Hulk Hogan and I share a birthday and a middle name, weird, huh?] I began to make our pre-Thanksgiving party menu. I cuddled up on the couch with the Joy of Cooking and Come On Inn...the St. Ignatius Loyola Church cook books and started researching.

As learned in grad school, the first step of any project is RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH! I have a list of about 15 items I would like to make for our party [not including store bought dip/chips/etc.]. That list will dwindle down to about five [maybe six or seven]. My mind will change on a daily basis, as I obsess.

So far there are two definitive menu items: crab quarters (a cheesy-crabby spread on English muffins) and cocomoka (an alcoholic latte-esque hot cocktail).

I decided to make the crab quarters this morning. It's a beautiful fall morning and the local Acme is an exact straight-shot 2.0 miles down the road - so I grabbed a reusable shopping bag, tied my sneaks and went on my way. A quick stop at D&D [you MUST try the pumpkin coffee - SOO good] and an iTunes mix including Coldplay, the Killers, Frankie Sinatra and Kings of Leon made the trip go fast.

I have to tell you - these community cook books are second to none. After my mom gave me this one from our family parish for Christmas a few years ago, I don't think I have ever made a recipe that didn't get raving reviews. Plus, the fact that you know there is probably a good family story or two is behind it - makes whatever you're making taste that much more yummy.

Well, appy #1 is in the freezer setting into place before I can cut it into quarters and save until party day.

Here's the recipe for the Crab quarters (compliments of Nancy Plummer and Clare Flechsig/St. Ignatius Loyola Church Cookbook)

1/4 lb. butter
1 jar Old English cheese spread
1 1/2 tsp. mayonnaise
garlic salt (to taste)
7 oz. can crab meat
seasoned salt(optional)
6 English muffins, split

Blend first 6 ingredients. Spread on muffin halves. Place in freezer for one hour. Cut into quarters and freeze until ready to use. Bake frozen 15-20 minutes at 350. Serve hot.

Our first party...

3M and I moved into our humble abode mid-June and just now are having our first bash. We live in a small, one-bedroom apartment and I never wanted to have an open ended party with fear that it would get stuffy and uncomfortable. [Ok, maybe it was selfish thinking because I get so worked up when company is over and am running here and filling a dish there and picking up trash and dropping off more hor'dourves and I needed room to breathe.]

So...knowing that one of the biggest party days of the year was just around the corner, we decided to have our apartment christening party the eve of Thanksgiving. We live in a fun, hip town with lots of bars that we actually can walk to from our house. The idea is that our friends will come over, park their cars here, have a few drinks [save a couple bucks that would have been otherwise spent at the Walt Street] and we can go out and paint the town its namesake color before calling cabs for the ride home. It's a win-win situation.

...and so, we embark on the planning phase.