Fall Father's Day Dinner

In the previous post, I told you about how my sisters and I host a Father's day dinner every year for my Dad, Bonus Mom as well as 3 other couples that they decide to invite for dinner. This year, we wanted to go with a Fall theme. Dad & Phyllis have such a wonderful house, along with a great outdoor fireplace that we sure do get a lot of usage out of, especially in the Fall, Winter and Spring! Of course, I didn't think of getting out my camera, but my older sister, Lauren did, so these are some of her pictures:

The "Guest" of Honor- Pops

About 15 minutes before people were to arrive, Blair decided to put a biscuit in the microwave to warm it up. Well, she punched the express button, (which sets it to minutes) and forgot about it. We couldn't figure out why a small drift of smoke was looming in the house, until someone opened the microwave and a huge cloud of smoke came out....- Way to go Blair!

She said,
"Not only can I not cook, but now I can't even microwave something without ruining it!"
ha Ha Ha

We set up some of my fall centerpieces along with lots of candles to give it some light after the sun went down.


Blair & I setting up the table




My older sister Lauren- A Great cook!!

Me, working on something!



Our little sister, Blair. Blair isn't a very good cook. (She will tell you that herself), so about 2-3 days before the dinner, she proclaimed that she would just be Lauren and I's "Shoe chef". I told her unless she planned on cooking up some Jimmy Choo's, I didn't think those belonged in the kitchen.. Which I then explained that it was a Soux chef. Ha Ha

Table at night

Everyone gathered around inside by the other fire for more wine and dessert!

We did a Pumpkin Pecan Caramel Cheesecake along with

Brandied Apricot Beignets with a Chocolate Dipping Sauce

Yumm!!!




The Dinner Group! and I'll tell ya, what a fun group!!

It was fun to be in the kitchen and here all the conversations going on, over on the other side of the couch. Most of the group have been people that we (my sisters and I) have known for as long as I can remember. They all host fabulous parties of their own (as well as many parties for Blair & I when we were both getting married), so we were all pretty nervous to serve food that we made ourselves, but we got great reviews! :) (Or they were just being really nice!)

On the Menu that night was:

Appetizers:

Whiskey Shrimp

Spinach and Feta Cups

Soup:
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Main Course:

Roasted Pork Tenderloin served on Creamed Corn with a Apple Raisin Chutney

alongside of Sauteed Green Beans with Toasted Almonds

Dessert:

Pumpkin Pecan Caramel Cheesecake

Brandied Apricot Beignets with Chocolate Dipping Sauce

It's SO much fun to do this every year, and my sisters and I have so much fun preparing all the food in the kitchen together in the hours leading up to it, alongside lots of wine ourselves! :)

Looking forward to next year with more yummy food, honoring such a wonderful and magnificent man/ dad that we have!!

We love you Dad!

or "Main"- as he likes to be called, since he says he's the "Main" man!

Recipe Monday

Every year, for the past 2 years or so, my sister's and I give my dad a very special Father's Day present. We host a special dinner for him, in which him and Phyllis get to invite 3 couples over for dinner one night, as Lauren, Blair & I are the chefs for the evening. This year we wanted to do a Fall themed dinner, so we held off the dinner until thiss cooler weather and fall foliage arrived. So, yesterday, we hosted his Father's Day dinner. The weather was a little cool for an actual evening dinner, so we asked the other couples to come over at 4 p.m. for appetizers then an early dinner at 5 p.m. We served a soup to start off with, of Butternut Squash Soup served in mini hollowed out pumpkins. It was my first time making Butternut Squash Soup, but it was OH SO GOOD!!
So, I felt the immediate need to share this recipe with everyone. It has a little kick but not too much.

Butternut Squash Soup
2 large Butternut Squash
3 garlic cloves
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
3 cups Chicken Broth (1 1/2 cans)
4 Tbsp Margarine
6 Tbsp chopped onion
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper (ground red pepper)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel Squash, and cut into large chunks (about the size of small limes) Put on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle salt & pepper on top. Add garlic cloves onto baking sheet in the middle of squash. Bake for about 45 minutes until tender. Saute onions and butter in large pot. Add squash, chicken broth, and seasonings to pot. Let simmer for 20 minutes. Add to blender or food processor in batches to puree until smooth. Transfer back to stock pot and keep warm. Do not allow to boil.
Enjoy!!

I'll wait until I get pictures from the rest of the dinner to post more details!

Recipe Monday

Happy Labor Day to all! (well, belated, but oh well!)

As many of you know I just love to cook! Of course John loves my cooking as well. (I think I have added about 15-20 of pure cooking love lbs. to his muscular body since we started dating and have been married.)- And of course, I have to taste all my cooking, so I have definitely gained some of my "pure happiness" lbs too!

I come from a family that is always entertaining or going to parties. So, it's in my blood, people! I will come up with any excuse to entertain / cook for lots of people. Examples include: "It's Steeplechase, so let's have a brunch before we head to the race track!"; "John, it's your birthday, so let me cook dinner for 25 of our closest friends!"; "Oh, it's Christmas, so I must make some goodies for our friends",...... and this list could go on & on! I think before all is said & done, our friends may find themselves not wanting to come over for dinners because they might be seeing some of the "pure cooking love lbs" to their waistlines too!

I am always trying out new recipes & love to share the good ones with everyone!

So, I've decided that on Mondays, I will try to post a new recipe that I've tried that has passed The King taste test inspection. I hope that this might give you an idea on something to cook that week to help you out one night for dinner that week.....
Since yesterday was Labor Day, I am posting this today, on Tuesday.

Last Wednesday was my precious husband, John's, 28th birthday. I think that celebrating your birthday on your actual birthday is something that people don't do anymore. I get it, because people work, & everyone has such busy lives, including us. BUT.... I love to entertain, so of course, I would do a dinner for his birthday. Last year we did ribs and BBQ chicken. It was fun and very laid back. When I asked John what kind of dinner he wanted this year, he said Italian. Now, this came as no big surprise to me, because I feel like he requests Italian 2-3 nights/week when it comes to dinner. I love Italian too, but I think John has spaghetti sauce running through his veins instead of blood. Geesh!

So, of course, I ask him, "Well, what do you want me to make?"
He looked at me & said, "Do I get to pick anything?"
Me: "Yes, of course, it's your birthday dinner"
Him: "Well, there is something that I really really want."
Me: (thinking, Ok, he's going to say Chicken Parmesan (his favorite) or Spaghetti & Meatballs (his 2nd favorite)... "Lay it out there Birthday Boy...."
Him: "I want little plates of that olive oil with the dipping stuff and loaves of bread"
Me: "Huh?"
Him: "You know that stuff at the Italian restaurant tha.......
Me: "Yeah, yeah.... I know. You eat the entire plate within like 5 minutes....
Him: (very excited because I am on the same page as him)- "Yep! That's what I want for my birthday dinner!"

So fast forward to the dinner- we invited 25 of our closest friends in Nashville to dinner on Wednesday night. I made his favorite Chicken Parmesan as well as my homemade Spaghetti & Meatballs. Appetizers included my famous Sausage & cheese stuffed Mushrooms & Bruschetta.
Desserts were yellow cupcakes & chocolate icing (a John King favorite) and a variety cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory (featuring 4 different flavors of cheesecake)-

I decided to go all out for his birthday this year. Since our house is on the market in Nashville, I thought this might be the last birthday dinner that we have at this house, so I wanted to take advantage of it.

I set out chaffing dishes to keep all the food warm. In the past, I am a bad hostess because I am always in the kitchen keeping the food warm, but this time I rented these chaffing dishes to help eliminate the time in the kitchen so I could entertain & socialize while not worrying about the food. I will DEFINITELY do this again. I still was in the kitchen a lot, but that was due to poor time management on my part before the party. :( I highly recommend using them!

I utilized the bottom of our driveway off our our deck. Since John & I park our cars down there, I thought, "What an eye soar for 1/2 the people eating" - So I purchased some cheap muslin fabric and strung it on a rope that I hung to hide all the cars in the driveway. Thought it did the job pretty well! I didn't want people to feel as if they were at the bottom of a driveway. The opposite side of the table looks over our backyard, so it was a nice view.

And heaven forbid, if I had forgotten this!

All of us at dinner, minus a face or two that had to leave early.

So, for this "Recipe Monday", I will leave you with none other than my recipe for a very popular dish at the dinner. (Now, don't get disappointed, because it is not the recipe for the dipping oil (Although, I'm sure John would have wanted it to be....)

Neelley's Homemade Spaghetti & Meatballs Recipe

Sauce:
3/4 cup chopped onion
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp salt
1 tsp white sugar
1 large Bayleaf
1 (15 oz) can Tomato Sauce
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning (generous Tbsp)
1 (6 oz) can Tomato Paste
3/4 tsp dried Basil
1/2 tsp Black Pepper

Directions: Saute onion & olive oil in large pot until onion is translucent. Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar, & Bay leaf. Cover & reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 2 hours. Stir in paste, sauce, & rest of seasonings. Simmer for another hour or so. Serve.
*Note: I make my sauce the day before. I let it simmer all day on the stove and on extremely low overnight. I feel as if the ingredients blend more this way.

Meatballs
1 lb 80/20 ground beef
1 lb ground sausage (hot, if you like it like that)
1/2 cup of Breadcrumbs (seasoned)
1 egg, beaten
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
salt & pepper to taste
1 (6 oz) can of Tomato Paste
I squirt in ketchup, spicy mustard, Worchestershire sauce- about 1- 2 Tbsp each- just use your discretion.
1 container of Mozzarella balls - (I use the kind that are soaked in Olive Oil & seasonings.)

Directions- Take all of your ingredients except your Mozzarella cheese balls & combine in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly with your hands. Take your mozzarella cheese balls wrap the meat around each cheese ball. I make them about the size of golf balls. Place on jelly roll pan. Bake cheeseballs at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, you will start to see the cheese start to ooze out. Lower oven to 250 degrees until time to serve. Serve meatballs immediately or cheese will harden up.

Enjoy!!