Going Private

I've decided to make the blog private.  It's something I've been thinking about for a while now.  I might just make a new blog and separate family from food.  Anyways, if you want an invite, leave me your email either here or on FB or email it to me.

Dumpling Dinner Party

Some friends and I got together for a Dumpling Dinner Party.  I got the idea because I saw something like it on Food Network where a group of friends got together and made all kinds of different dumplings.  It looked like so much fun and I had a few friends who were willing to try out the idea with me.  It was a success and we all had a good time and got try new foods.  This is what we made....

I made Banh Bao, it's a Vietnamese steamed bun with a pork filling, Chinese Sausage, and a slice of hard boiled egg.

 My friend Kelli made a Dumpling Soup with carmelized onions and bacon and potatoes and dumplings.

I also made Wonton Soup, my mothers recipe.  It was a tasty treat that everyone seemed to enjoy.

Angela made Gnocchi from scratch.  It was so yummy, it tasted like a thick noodle which I love.  She served it with Spaghetti Sauce.

I made some Ebelskivers with my fancy Ebelskiver pan.  It's a Danish dish, basically just a filled pancake ball. I filled mine with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

Katie made the most AMAZING Apple Dumplings.  They were sinfully delicious.

It's good to have good friends.  I'm glad they were willing to try out my silly idea of a Dumpling Dinner Party.

Valentine

For Valentine's Day Bret and I went on a date.  ALONE.  Which we don't do very often at all.  We dropped our kids off at my friends house who lives in St. George.  It was sweet of her to be willing to spend her Valentine's day watching my kids along with her own.  Then Bret and I headed to Red Lobster because my very generous brother gave us a $100 gift card for Christmas and we've been saving it for a special occasion. Also, Bret had never eaten there before.  I remember my mom taking me once when I was in Hawaii and then having an awesome family take me and my companion there on my mission.  Because of our huge gift card we decided we would order whatever we wanted, which is different for us because we are usually very price-conscious.  We started with an appetizer, fried calamari rings with fried vegetables.  Who knew fried broccoli could taste so delicious?  We also had mozzarella sticks.

(I didn't think to bring a camera so these are all pictures I found on the internet that resembled what we ate.)

Then we had their house salad...

 With the most amazing Cheddar Bay Biscuits.  They literally melt in your mouth because they are so buttery.

Bret and I were laughing because we already started to feel full.  But then it was time for the main course.  I ordered the Steak Lobster-and-Shrimp Oscar.  We thought that one of us might as well order something with lobster in it since Bret has never had it before.  He tried a bite and thought it was good.  I thought it was a pretty tasty meal.  

Bret ordered the Wood-Grilled Peppercorn Sirloin and Shrimp.  I tasted his shrimp and his was really good too.  It had a nice spicy flavor to it.  I was impressed that Bret was able to polish off his meal.  The waiter was about to take his plate but stopped when he saw that Bret was still scraping up the last of his mashed potatoes.  

Then it was time for dessert.  YES.  DESSERT.  Bret ordered the Warm Chocolate Chip Lava Cookie.  I told him I would just have a bite but it was so tasty I ended up having several bites.  We also got another one to go to give to my friend for watching our kids.

Bret and I sure tried our darnedest to rack up a bill but when it came back the total was only $67.  Bret and I had a good laugh because this was the most expensive meal the two of us have ever had together.  It was fun to be able to splurge.  Our waiter was awesome so we left him a good tip too.  He wrapped up the rest of my dinner to go since I couldn't finish it and when I asked for another biscuit to bring to my kids he brought me a full bag of them.  

Bret and I left and while we were in the parking lot walking to our car he took my hand.  He doesn't do that very often so I enjoyed every second of it.  Then he opened my car door for me.  Must just be something in the air on Valentine's day to make him be a little extra sweet.  I appreciated it.

My husband is a practical man, and I honestly love that about him.  He is not mushy, he does not write me love ballads or spend loads of money on flowers and gifts to show his love for me.  He is kind, and affectionate, and washes the dishes to show me that he loves me.  He is my perfect Valentine.