Our foodie friends Dan and Lisa, who are part of the Secret-Secret Geography Club with us, were brainstorming with us one night about a super fun themed dinner party. We came up with an idea for a meal based on the 7 Deadly Sins. To our surprise, Foodbuzz thought it was a great idea too and sponsored our meal as part of the event 24 Meals, 24 Hours, 24 Blogs. We were so thrilled to be a part of this awesome event.

Menu planning was so fun for this meal, as each course was based on a deadly sin. The actual shopping and cooking on the other hand was STRESSFUL to say the least. I've learned over the years to use the advice I posted here, yet my week threw at me subbing for some Grade 8 hooligans for two days, and then catching a virus from my sick baby. I DID NOT shop for my ingredients the day before like I had planned, I DID NOT prepare my recipes ahead of time, and I DID NOT choose all recipes that I had made before.

Note to self: Don't do that again.

Even though I started off stressed, my worries quickly melted away when we got to Dan and Lisa's place. They are such a fun couple to eat and prepare food with and there is no expectation or stuffiness for everything to be done exactly at a certain time. We just cook and enjoy each other's company.

To begin our Sinful meal, we started with Wrath. We played up on the idea of the grapes of wrath and drank very delicious wine all evening, appropriately named "7 Deadly Zins"

I could probably also attribute my stress melting away to a glass of this bad boy ;)


For our first course, Dan prepared large prawns by frying them in butter. This course was based on the sin of Pride, so Dan and I very artfully and skillfully arranged the prawns on top of a mirror.
Among the sauteed prawns were raspberries, mini key lime wedges, cubes of cantaloupe, chives and ribbon roses of Westphalian ham (like prosciutto, but smokey).


Dan had also prepared a mango-chili reduction and a raspberry-lime coulis to drizzle and paint amongst the creation.



I can't even describe to you how wonderful the combination of shrimp, smokey ham and mango-chili reduction was. Click here for a simplified version of this amazing appetizer.

We all had fun raising our noses in the air and pretending to be quite pretentious and prideful in the spirit of our over-the-top pompous appetizer.



After devouring the incredible prawns, we began preparations for the salad course. This focused on Envy (green with envy) and was one of the courses with the most work involved.


Before the dinner party, I asked each of the guests what their favorite salads were:

Lisa's favorite was Spinach Strawberry salad.


Mine was Blackened Chicken Salad with Creamy Honey-Dijon Dressing.


My husband Steve is in love with Steak & Lemon Salad.


And Dan requested Cobb Salad.

I really wanted to play up the theme of envy, so even though I prepared everyone's favorite salad....I served the salad to someone else!

Not to say that all the salads weren't delicious, but we really were envious not being able to eat our favorite.


After all the work of preparing four separate salads, it was quite nice moving onto the next course of the meal and the next sin: Sloth. And what better way to be lazy?

Prepackaged macaroni and cheese!

There she is in all her unadorned and lethargic glory....even too lazy to take it out of the pot it was cooked in ;)

In quite a severe contrast to an .89 cent box of KD, was the next sin of Greed. We bought THE MOST EXPENSIVE cut of meat, beef tenderloin. Dan seared it in a frying pan with butter and then placed it in the oven to finish cooking, until it came to an internal temperature of 130 degrees. Beautifully medium rare. He then deglazed the pan with a glass of red wine, and let it simmer and reduce, then added a silky texture by dropping in a pad of butter at the end. We served the beef medallions with the red wine reduction drizzled over the top.

It went surprisingly well with white cheddar macaroni.


Between each course, we took a break from eating to rest, relax and visit with each other. There was no waiting for the next course Lust. My husband was breaking out my homemade truffles so fast I'm not sure I had finished swallowing my last bite of steak.


Some women say that chocolate is better than sex. And while I'm not so sure about that one, we were all lusting after these truffles made of milk chocolate and dark chocolate. I coated some in cocoa powder, some in crushed pecans and another I flavored with peppermint and drizzled white chocolate over the top.

There was some definite lusting going on at the table.


For the last course of the evening, after consuming 6 other amazing courses, what was left to focus on except for Gluttony.

We created a ridiculously over-the-top and rich dessert of Deep-Fried Cheesecake. Steve and Dan worked together to slice a store-bought cheesecake into small chunks and wrap them in spring roll wrappers. Dan deep fried them for 30 seconds and then immediately after coming out of the hot oil, placed them in a bowl of cinnamon sugar.

The end result was a rich and creamy cheesecake with a crispy sweet coating on the outside, topped with vanilla ice cream, melted chocolate, whipped cream and strawberries.One word: In-freakin'-credible.

Devouring this I really did feel like a glutton. There was no two ways around it; we had taken an already rich dessert and sent it into the realm of Excessive Indulgence. But....I wouldn't hesitate to make it again. It was soooooo good.


Our night of clever references and scruptious food was a complete success. 7 courses and 5 hours later we had finished our meal and were so satisfyingly stuffed.


Lisa loved our totally decadent experience. Our food was delicious and spending the night with friends and a great theme was lots of fun.


I felt the same way. Yes I was stressed at the beginning of the night, but it all melted away when I realized that the process of cooking with friends, eating, cooking some more, eating, chatting and cooking some more is so wonderfully enjoyable. It definitely helps having such great friends to cook and eat with :)

Dan thought that it was neat to push the limits of our theme in certain areas and be completely over the top. It was obviously lots of work to prepare a meal with so many courses, but was nice to have the opportunity to do it.


My husband Steve loved the meal so much he said it was the best meal experience he'd ever had. The meal may have been a lot of work, but it was WELL WORTH IT.


The night was such a fun way to have a double date. I definitely encourage you to plan your own couples dinner party....you may want to alleviate some stress and take this advice though. I already can't wait for the next dinner idea to pop into one of our heads.

I'm sorry this post comes so late this week...I'm not gonna lie to you, I planned to post this on either Monday or Tuesday, but instead I got called in to sub Monday and Tuesday in a middle school. Those kids took the life right out of me! So much yelling and office sending and "go sit in the hall" it made my head spin. Each night I came home so lifeless and drained I could barely move.

Now that I've caught my breath and things are back to normal around here, I thought I'd share with you how I've been preparing for my dinner party on Saturday. This is called "How to plan a dinner party" but I think I'd rather just throw out ideas for what I'm doing. Here goes:

• Plan your menu at least a week in advance

You want a clear idea of what you will be doing, how you need to prepare and which groceries you need to buy. Planning your menu at least a week in advance will alleviate stress. I'm very much a procrastinator and most of the time I push things off to the last minute, but I like to enjoy myself in the kitchen so if I can do things ahead of time I do. Picking your menu last minute is a sure-fire way to stress yourself out.

• Choose recipes where the majority of the cooking can done ahead of time

When planning your menu, this is a good tip for choosing your recipes. If you can get lots of prep work out of the way beforehand things will go more smoothly.

• Choose recipes that come together fast

My other suggestion when planning your menu, is to choose items that cook quickly. Choosing something such a seared steak with some kind of sauce, means you can prepare the sauce ahead of time, and when your guests arrive take a few minutes to cook the steak. Although, I wholeheartedly suggest that ALL your dishes are not ones that require last minute cooking. The stress of doing five different things for 4 different dishes is not appealing. Stagger your cooking methods: one dish in the oven that was premade and is just being warmed, a salad that you prepared ahead of time and just need to add dressing to, and something quick cooking on the stove top will ensure you aren't running around with your head cut off when your guests arrive.

• Choose recipes you have made before

In my opinion, this is really not the time to try new things. Not only will you have no idea if the dish will actually be edible, but you won't have worked out the kinks for prep time, etc. Pick dishes that you love and that your guests will love.

• Choose a fun theme for added interest

Of course this isn't a must, but it helps. If you are feeling lost as to what to make for dinner, or how to decorate or what entertainment you will have, choosing a theme for the night to center around will help you narrow down those choices. This includes regions or countries such as a night of Spanish Tapas or Swiss Fondue, seasonal themes like an Autumn feast or a Summery Beach cookout, or fun random themes like Retro 80's Night.

• Shop for ingredients at least a day ahead NOT the day of

Anytime I go grocery shopping, come home and put the ingredients away and then later start cooking I feel exhausted! I don't even want to start cooking. Even better than shopping the day before, is to get the groceries you need with your weekly grocery shop. If you've planned your menu out ahead of time, this would be totally doable.

• Write yourself a schedule for the day of game plan

If I have a lot of things to cook and need to go in the oven early and some I need to prep and some will be cooked last minute, I write out a game plan with times. This ensures that everything is staggered out and nothing gets forgotten. I did this for Thanksgiving:
11am - preheat oven

11:30am - prep turkey and make sure it goes in the oven.

12 pm - cook and mash potatoes, place in casserole dish.

You get the gist.

• Don’t be afraid to involve guests in the kitchen

Don't feel like everything has to be prepared exactly for when your guests arrive. You may not be able to time everything perfectly and allowing your guests to be involved in the preparation adds interest and takes some of the pressure off your shoulders. Going to our friends place, chatting in the kitchen while they cook, chopping a green pepper for them if they ask...it's all part of our rapport as friends.

• And last, but possibly most important: Don't get in a fight with your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend in front of your guests. It's true that hilarity will ensue, but mostly everyone will just feel awkward.

Ha! There were so many great moments from this episode, but this was one of the only clips I could find. Other contenders were:

• Don't serve a slow-roasted dish that takes 4 hours to cook if you don't plan on putting it in the oven 4 hours before your guests arrive.
• Don't describe the wine as having an "oaky afterbirth"
• Don't tell your host their meat is dry and then dip it in your glass of wine.

I definitely don't pretend to KNOW ALL about planning a dinner party, but just take these as some suggestions I have picked up along the way. It really doesn't have to be a big pretentious production; it should be about friends enjoying good food, good conversation and good company.

It's gonna be a busy week! I have a really fun dinner party coming up on Saturday so I'm devoting this upcoming week to "How to Meal Plan for a Dinner Party" as well as sharing with you the recipes I will be using on Saturday. In the meantime, hopefully these family favorites will get you through the week :)


Day 1: Sweet & Smokey Turkey Chili with Cornbread Muffins
This is a delicious change from chili....and we can never seem to have chili without cornbread in our house.


Day 2: Tortellini Soup with Garlic Bread
Super easy, throw in the crock pot kinda meal that my fam just gobbles up.

Day 3: Vietnamese Crispy Chow Mein with Beef Stir-Fry
Just as good as in the Vietnamese restaurant ;)

Day 4: Sweet BBQ Tater Tot Casserole with Garden Salad
This one brings me back to my childhood.

Day 5: Blackened Chicken Salad with Creamy Honey Mustard Dressing
Love, love, LOVE this salad!

Day 6: Super Special Fun Dinner Party
All details to come later this week!

Do you think it's possible to be addicted to Buffalo Chicken Wings? My husband and I can't get enough of the sweet, sweet burn of Frank's Red Hot, so when I turned our favorite appetizer into a dinner-worthy burger neither of us could contain our excitement. This rather fatty snack becomes much healthier with a leaner cut of meat as well as being devoured on a whole wheat bun.
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Serves 4

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, or 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I think thighs are more flavorful and they are always cheaper)
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Chili powder

Sauce:
1/2 cup Hot Sauce (We like "Frank's"....you can also find "Buffalo Wing Sauce" and skip the butter)
2 tbsp butter

Ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing
4 whole wheat buns
Lettuce

Season chicken with salt, pepper, chili powder, and paprika. Drizzle with oil. In a pan over medium-high heat put the chicken in and cook for about 5 minutes. The chicken will get nice and brown. Flip over and cook about 5 minutes on the other side, or until chicken is cooked through.

While the chicken is cooking, place the hot sauce and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once the chicken is done cooking, place in sauce and stir to completely cover chicken in sauce.

Serve chicken on a bun with lettuce and drizzle with ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Click here for a printable version of Buffalo Chicken Burgers
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THE RESULTS?
Love it. Love it. Love it.

'Nuff said.


This recipe is being entered into this weeks Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap hosted by Gayle. Every Friday bloggers upload links to their favorite recipes that week.

I don't actually have cable and thus do not watch The Food Network, although I'm sure if I did there wouldn't be enough hours in the day to accommodate my cooking show obsession. Sometimes when I get the chance I will watch episodes online to feed my need. A couple months ago I was watching an episode of 30 Minute Meals and in the middle of this episode, I was salivating so much I had to wipe the puddle of drool off my chin. Stuffing Italian sausage meatballs with mozzarella and drenching them in pesto tomato sauce?! Are you freakin' kidding me? Why didn't I think of this??!

While I didn't have the pleasure of coming up with this recipe, I did have the pleasure of devouring it. And it was just as good as I had imagined. It's incredibly easy too...very few ingredients, very little prep, with a BIG pay off.

*Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray
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Serves 4


1 lb bulk Italian sausage, or sausages with casing removed
1/2 cup mozzarella, cut in 1/2 inch cubes (or 1 tub bocconcini)
1 jar pasta sauce
2 tbsp prepared pesto


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place sausage in a bowl. Cut mozzarella into cubes (or use bocconcini). Using mozzarella instead of the bocconcini means you can save some money. Pick up about a tablespoon amount of sausage, press a cube of mozzarella into the center, and roll the sausage around it making a ball about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Place on a baking sheet. Continue to roll all of the sausage and cheese into meatballs placing on the baking sheet when done. You should end up with about 14 meatballs. If your family likes more meatballs you might want to use more sausage, but using just 1 pound means you can get all the flavor and taste with less of a strain on your budget. Place baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. The cheese will leak out of some of the meatballs but don't worry.

While the meatballs are baking, place the jar of pasta sauce in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the pesto, stir and simmer until the meatballs are finished baking. When the meatballs are done stir into the basil tomato sauce.

Serve over spaghetti..


Click here for printable version for Italian Sausage Meatballs Stuffed with Mozzarella in Tomato Pesto Sauce
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THE RESULTS?
Wow, our family loved these. This spin on a classic dish is lovely, fast and delicious. The way the original recipe is written it would be quite an expensive meal, but with the few changes I made it easily comes in under $10. I bought the most inexpensive jar of pasta sauce since doctored it up with pesto anyways, regular mozzarella works just as well as bocconcini, and pasta instead of cheesey mashed potatoes brings the overal price way down.



This recipe is being entered into the blog event Bookmarked Recipes. Each week bloggers from all over the blogosphere try a recipe they have bookmarked either from a website, magazine, cookbook, or food blog and they are gathered and posted every Monday.


And for more great Rachael Ray recipes, check out Taste and Tell's Saturday's with Rachael Ray.

Southern Alberta is a ridiculously windy area, and today was no exception. I went out for my weekly grocery shop, BY MYSELF no less which is a luxury in itself, and after I picked up a few items at the first store a HUUUUUUUUUUGE wind gust picked up my notebook and sent it flying. Up flew all my coupons, papers and my GROCERY LIST. I had only gotten about three items at this store, so needless to say my grocery shopping was over.

So while I sit here and come up with a new list, at least I can rest easy knowing I have a delicious week ahead of me.

Day 1: Italian Sausage Meatballs Stuffed with Mozzarella in a Tomato Pesto Sauce over Spaghetti with a Garden Salad
Longest name EVERRRRR!

Day 2: Buffalo Chicken Burgers with Stuffed Potatoes and Carrots/Celery with dip
We totally love all things with Frank's hot sauce.

Day 3: Grilled Asian Beef Kebabs and Fried Rice 
We've had gorgeous weather so it will be nice to bust out the BBQ.

Day 4: Madras Vegetable Curry over Basmati Rice with Naan Bread
A healthy, inexpensive and DELICIOUS curry.

Day 5: Candied Gingerale Glazed Ham with Baked Potatoes and Salad
The ham is a recipe I'm trying that a friend emailed to me....I'm pretty sure it's going to put us in a sugar coma ;)






For more meal plan ideas check out my Complete List of Meal Plans or the Menu Plan Monday Links hosted at Orgjunkie.

Look at these babies...they're a thing of beauty! They're colorful! They look appetizing! They're.....A DUD.

I'm really sorry I have to do this to you. It's been over six months since I posted my one and only flop, but they're what was on my meal plan people. And don't get me wrong, they aren't a flop in the sense of being inedible. All the pieces of this culinary puzzle just don't mesh well. For all the flavor that you inject into these babies there should really be a party in your mouth, and you know...they were just bland. I kid you not. BLAND.

It's sad that one of the best food photo's I've taken all year is for a dud.


*Recipe from Rachael Ray's Big Orange Book
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Serves 4

Fish:
4 tilapia fillets
1 lime, juice and zest
Salt and pepper
Flour
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups bread crumbs
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp seafood seasoning (like Old Bay)
Vegetable oil

Spicy Sauce:
1 cup sour cream
1 chipotle in abodo, seeded and finely chopped
1 tsp abodo sauce

Sandwiches:
4 whole wheat buns
Lettuce
Tomato

Citrus Honey Slaw:
1 bag of coleslaw
2 tsp hot sauce
3 tbsp honey
2 limes


Sprinkle fish with salt, pepper and lime zest. Set up 3 bowls: one with flour, one with beaten eggs, and one with bread crumbs, smoked paprika and seafood seasoning. Dip each piece of fish in flour, then egg, then bread crumbs and set aside.

In a large pan over medium high heat add a couple tablespoons of oil. Once the oil is hot add the fish. Let them cook until golden brown and then flip and cook on the other side, about 4 minutes per side. Remove the fish and place on a plate and squeeze fresh lime juice on them.

To make the slaw, combine the hot sauce, lime juice and honey in the bottom of a bowl. Add the coleslaw and toss together.

Place split rolls under the broiler and toast for a couple minutes. Combine the sour cream, chipotle and adobo in a small bowl. Place a big dollop of spicy sour cream on one side of the bun, place a piece of fish on top along with lettuce and tomato. Serve slaw along side.

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THE RESULTS?
Yeah no....won't be making this one again. My problem was with the texture of the fish. It isn't crispy enough to be on a sandwich so the whole thing is a big mushy mess. We topped our fish with the citrus honey slaw to give it some crunch (as per the pics) but it really didn't help. It didn't have a pop of flavor like we expected it to either. Pan-fried fish has a delicate crispness to it, that was completely lost by putting it in a bun. Both my husband and I were disappointed with the meal.

Possible redeeming qualities was that my toddler loved the fish. She ate an entire piece to herself. Another thing was my husband took the leftovers to work the next day and forgot to bring a bun...he ate the fish by itself dipped in the spicy sour cream with the slaw on the side and he said it was MUCH better. I think it's the whole "sandwich" thing that just doesn't work well with the fish.

Them's my two cents. Sorry Ray Ray.

Burgers are a family favorite around this house. Oh who am I kidding, they are probably a family favorite around most people's homes. Or the favorite of a tired wife/mother who can plop a plate of burger patties into her husband's hand and tell him to "run along" as he grills up the little puppies on the BBQ...leaving you nothing to do but slice a few buns and wash a couple pieces of lettuce. ALL the taste, and NONE of the hassle.

We mom's definitely have this meal time song and dance figured out.

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Serves 4

Patties:
1 lb ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 heaping tsp grill seasoning
1 tsp oregano
1/4 cup bread crumbs (I just throw in whatever I have, which sometimes includes crushed up crackers or oatmeal)
1 egg

4 whole-grain buns
8 slices of bacon
1 tomato, sliced
Lettuce
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tbsp Dijon mustard or grainy mustard (even regular mustard works fine)
1 tbsp honey

In a medium mixing bowl, combine all burger patty ingredients except ground beef. Once they are well mixed, add the ground beef and mix until just combined. Mixing the other ingredients first will prevent you from over-working and over-mixing your beef...which would make your burgers tough. Divide your beef mixture into 4 and shape into patties. At this point you could begin to cook patties, or freeze them. To freeze, lay out a small piece of wax paper and add the first patty on top. Put another piece of wax paper and then another patty. Continue until all patties are stacked and then wrap well in aluminum foil and place in freezer.

Cook burgers over medium-heat, either on the grill or in a frying pan. Cook about 5 minutes on each side or until burgers are cooked all the way through. Whatever you do, don't DON'T SQUISH YOUR BURGERS WITH THE SPATULA. All that juicy goodness should end up in your mouth and not on the inside of your BBQ. While cooking the burgers, also fry bacon. Slice buns open and grill until toasty or place under the broiler.

To assemble, smear a healthy dollop of honey-dijon sauce on both sides of the bun, topping with the burger patty, bacon, lettuce and tomato. I also like a bit of salt and pepper on the tomato slice.

Click here for printable version of Bistro Burgers with Bacon & Creamy Honey-Dijon Sauce
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THE RESULTS?

The sweetness of the honey mustard works well to compliment the richness of the beef and saltiness of the bacon. A seriously good burger to make at home. You will feel like you ordered it from a restaurant. And if you made your hubs cook the burgers, it will almost be like you are at a restaurant...hopefully service comes with a smile.



This recipe is being submitted to this month's BISTRO edition of "Waiter, there's something in my..." created by Cook Sister! and hosted this month by The Passionate Cook.

Apparently I've got meatballs on the brain lately since we've been eating them in subs and dill sour cream sauces and such. The craving is still going strong and I've got plans for Vietnamese Meatballs with Vermicelli and Thai Meatballs dipped in sweet chili dipping sauce, but for today, we are going Mediterranean. These meatballs are delicious and HEALTHY and LOW FAT! ANDDDDDDD my toddler shocked me and wolfed them down and kept saying "more...peeeeese" AAAANNNNNNDDDDDD you get to dip them and smother them in tzaziki sauce and it's a perfect match.

Anything that is healthy, low-fat, my toddler loves and can be eaten with buckets of tzaziki is like the best meal EVER in my books.

Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray 
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Serves 2-4

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, grated
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 box frozen chopped spinach, defrosted (I used 1/2 of a 750 g bag of Europe's Best)
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
1 lb ground chicken
1 tbsp grill seasoning

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Defrost the spinach in the microwave, then place in a kitchen towel and squeeze to remove all the excess water. Place in a large mixing bowl with the rest of the ingredients and mix really well. I didn't use feta because it made the recipe more expensive and I knew my husband and I wouldn't miss it. I've tried it with and without and both are delicious. If you too want to cut costs, don't worry...it's totally amazing without.

Roll into about 18 (1 1/2 inch) meatballs and place on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with a little bit more olive oil and place in oven and bake for about 12 minutes, turn over and bake for another 10-14 minutes or until the meatballs are golden brown and cooked all the way through.

Serve with lots of tzaziki sauce.


Click here for printable version of Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs
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THE RESULTS?
I'm pretty sure the cat's out of the bag with an introduction like that, but yes indeed, I LOVED THEM. I didn't miss the feta at all and just savored all the delicious flavors, lean meat and healthy spinach. And of course the copious amounts of tzaziki ;)

I did have to cook them for more than double the amount of time that Ray Ray says to...I don't know about you, but I don't want to serve undercooked chicken to my fam. Other than that, they are tender and delicious and like I said....my toddler lapped them up. That's good enough for me.


Meal Ideas:

• Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs + Tzaziki + Pepper, Cucumber and Tomato Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

• Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs + White Bean Dip with Rosemary and Roasted Garlic + Salad