Tuesday......

Disguised as a Monday :) Naaahh....it's not too bad, really. How was everyone's holiday weekend? We had a wonderful three day vacation. Gary, Courtney and I hit Central Market on Saturday. They now carry Brachetto D'Aqui....the delicious sparkling cherry wine we drink at Pappas. I started jumping up and down and screaming when I saw it. I think the wine guy is deaf now :) Gary went back over there and got the rest of the bottles on the shelf. We also bought cheese, these delicious little rosemary crackers, baby back ribs, more wine, fruits and veggies...oh and this cheese that you GRILL! Yes, grilling cheese. It's sooo good! We bought the jalapeno cheese and had some Saturday with our Stilton, Bucheron, rosemary crackers, and wine. Speaking of wine, we tried two new and very good wines this weekend. The first one was David Bruce Pinot Noir. We had it Friday night at Sambuca and Gary and I really, really liked it. We drink Zinfandel so much; it's nice to have a Pinot or Syrah from time to time. The other new wine we tried is Dacu. It's a Spanish wine that we tried at Central Market Saturday. It's a very jammy, rich wine a lot like a Shiraz or a Cabernet. I liked it immediately; Gary grew to like it. We bought a bottle and drank it Saturday evening with our grown up cheese and cracker dinner!

Sunday was our big day on Newton Circle. Gary rode his bike that morning and then I went over to my parents - where my child has been since Friday evening. She's so graciously decided to come home today :) Anyways....the FOOD!!! So much yumminess to choose from! We had guacamole, queso, shrimp cocktail, burgers, hot dogs, brats, corn and asparagus salad, potato salad, baked beans, pasta, crab rolls, cobbler, chocolate cake, and these little pastries that had goat cheese, tomatoes and basil in them. Soooo much good food and fun! The girls had their "fireworks party" with pop rocks and sparklers. The puppies came with Gary and they got to run around and play outside with Brewster. My mom and dad's new patio and patio cover helped keep the sun off of everyone and we also had adult beverages to keep us cool!

Gary and I had two racks of baby back ribs that we smoked yesterday. We used a dry rub on them and then drizzled BBQ sauce over them. They turned out really good. The spice rub had a little bit of a kick and the sweet/spicy bbq sauce went really well with them. We smoked them for about hours and we were really happy with them. I also made Shoepeg Corn Casserole and Mac and Cheese and we had leftover baked beans and potato salad. Dinner was FANTASTIC! I'll share my mac and cheese and crab roll recipes today.

Not too much to report in the chili world that I'm aware of. I'm still surprised that only two chili heads have announced that they are running for the Board of Directors. I wonder if the Old 320 issue is being discussed behind the scenes or if it's just a dead issue at this point. I'm not an Old 320 member, so I can't really make a case for either side. I can say that I believe the Board was absolutely out of bounds for not accepting the results of those who voted and I would say that about any issue if it was handled the same way. If any of you have an opinion, get it out there. Let the Board know what you think. If you don't think that your voice is being heard, then maybe you aren't being loud enough...or persistent enough. It's easy to place blame and say that people don't care. But do you care enough to keep pushing even when you've been knocked down a few times or ignored? That's the one thing I can't encourage enough. Don't give anyone the opportunity to ignore you. If you have an issue, present it in a way that makes people listen. Recruit others to help you draft a response to any decision or action you don't agree with. I've kept my responses to the Board meeting somewhat generic and vanilla until all of the minutes are made public. I've also decided to keep my rants to a minimum until after the GP meeting...we'll see how that goes. I do hope that more people will run for a Director's position. At some point people are going to have to close their eyes, hold their breath and dive off the deep end if they want to see things (that they don't care for) change in CASI....and it's going to have to start with who you're voting for and charging with making decisions "in the best interest of CASI."

Okay, enough Chili banter. Let's get into some food!!!

Cadillac Cowgirl Mac and Cheese

2 Cups uncooked macaroni
2 Cups whole milk
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
2 Cups Velveeta (buy it already shredded)
2 Cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese, divided
1/2 tsp salt (more to taste, if needed and extra to salt pasta water)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 Cup Panko bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to boil; add salt and the macaroni. Cook it until it's almost done. It's okay if it's still firm; you're going to finish baking it in the oven and you don't want it to get mushy. Drain the macaroni and then pour it into a greased 2 quart baking dish. In the same pot you used to boil the macaroni, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium low heat. Once melted, add the flour and whisk it until it's smooth like a paste; don't let it get brown, though. Slowly add the milk (I do it a cup at a time) and increase the heat to medium. The milk will start to thicken, but don't let it get too thick. Add your salt and pepper at this time, also. Cook for a few minutes and then remove the pan from the heat. Add your 2 cups of Velveeta and 1 cup of sharp Cheddar cheese and stir until smooth. Be sure and do this off of the heat or the cheese mixture will become grainy instead of smooth. Double check your seasonings and adjust if necessary. Remember that you salted your pasta water, so the pasta will be salted as well. Pour the cheese mixture over the macaroni and mix well. Top with the additional cup of sharp cheddar cheese and the Panko bread crumbs. Cover and bake for 20 minutes; then uncovered for another 5-10 minutes until the top is bubbly.

Cadillac Cowgirl Crab Rolls

16 oz lump crab meat (make sure you pick through it and remove all of the shell)
1/4 cup chopped shallot
1/4 cup chopped celery (mine was pretty small)
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup mayo
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt (more to taste if needed)
1 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp chopped chives
Juice of one lemon
Butter for toasting inside of bread, if you choose
Hoagie rolls, hot dog buns, etc to put crab mixture in (I used Au Bon Pain hot dog rolls from Central Market. They were a little more "gourmet" than regular ones)

Mix everything together in a large bowl; cover and chill for an hour or two. Fill your bread of choice with the crab mixture and serve. You can also brush melted butter on the insides of the buns and grill them before putting the crab mix in them. I also thought about toasting small french bread slices and putting the crab mix on top of each slice, or providing crackers and eating it like a dip. It's versatile, so enjoy as you wish.

Have a great day everyone. It's raining here in Irving and I'm sure it's raining in the big town of Crisp, Texas as well. I'll be back tomorrow!!

Kelly