A Scary Posting

Here is a picture that just says Oh My Godness! We were having a lot of laughs on Saturday at Jodie and Rob's place. Here I am just a little too close to the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. I look like I am going to like scarf them or something. It is just not right. But the next photo is WAY too scary.
A few weeks ago I went on Amazon and ordered a few things for the Valentine's Day Party. I thought I was ordering a banner for the party. Well, that was put to bed when the below item arrived at my building on Saturday. It is beyond scary. It is something that would show up in Kansas or Nebraska. But no, it is in our neck of the woods until today, when my staff had a great idea, let's send it to Lane in the Houston office. And we did. We are free of this item and to think, it was "made in China" and that is just wrong!

The Dobash Cake

So last night we enjoyed Dobash Cake and I have had a few people ask what it is. Well, here is a picture of the cake that Jodie made for the dinner. It is very clean and delightful.

And here is the recipe:

Ingredients
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Cake:
3 eggs, separated
1-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk

Frosting:
1-1/2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water

How to make the cake:
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour 2 8-inch pans.
******
Beat egg whites until frothy and gradually beat in 1/2 cup sugar until stiff.
Sift together remaining 1 cup sugar, flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa.
Make a well in center; add oil and half of milk.
Beat until well-blended at medium speed.
Add remaining milk and egg yolks and beat until smooth.
Fold mixture into egg whites.
Pour batter into pans and bake 30 to 35 minutes.
Cool, then slice each layer in half to make 4 layers.
******
To prepare frosting:
Combine water, sugar, salt and butter in saucepan and bring to boil. Combine cocoa, cornstarch and water; add to boiling mixture and return to boil.
Cool completely.
Frost between cooled layers, sides and top.
Enjoy!

The cake is fabulous but even more so is Jodie, who loves to cook and...
Don't forget Rob, he is superman!

The Comfort Food Vintner's Dinner

This was our third dinner and we had 9 people around the table. We kept it to 7 courses and even at that everyone was in food coma phase by the end of the meal. But oh what a good food coma it was!
Presenting the first course. Fried Mac & Cheese matched with champagne. Yes, champagne as it's bubbly nature will assist in cutting the richness of the two types of fried macaroni and cheese. Jodie's first choice was Patti LaBelle's "Over the Rainbow" Mac & Cheese that uses Velvetta and a full stick of butter. Oh my, is it good! The second was an adult version using Gorgonzola and bacon plus blue cheese. To think Jodie actually liked the latter version due to her aversion to "stinky" cheese.

The salad course was next and it was a classic wedge salad. Complete with grape tomatoes, bacon and blue cheese crumbles. Homemade dressing was the topper this course. Jodie went the extra step in providing a Feta version for those that did not like blue cheese. Fina score was 6 for blue and 3 for feta. Now here is where it got interesting. For the salad and soup courses we decided on white wines and Jodie kept me in the dark as she said over and over, "Yes, they are blends." And in the end they were - with Chardonnay. Please know, I am not a wine snob, but just not a fan of Chardonnays. Well, in the end I was the one eating crow, but both were quite good. I so need to get in touch with Rob and find out what they were. I feel bad. Oh wait, the first was from Tsillan Cellars. Boy, bet that is helpful!

So now we moved on to the soup course and it was a classic chicken noodle and I deboned the chicken. Of course at least two people found small bones. No, there were no prizes for finding them. I am only human and boy the chicken was hot. The final add in was the garlic noodles that Jodie freely shared was not home made, but was fresh pasta to keep final cooking time down while still being firm for the soup. It was good, but not my favorite course.

So what the heck are you looking at? It was the intermezzo beverage. I went completely sideways and picked a Lemoncello. Yes, it is not technically a wine, it is like a long lost Italian cousin. Oh leave me alone, I thought it would be fun and oh my Heather did like it and it was matched up with pomegranate sorbet. Fun and good transition as we head into the heavier part of the evening.

Of course you know what this is. You were thinking that must be the remainder of the homemade meatloaf that was based upon Mother's Beef Meatloaf that you can find in "Mother's Best" by Lisa Schroeder. Why yes, it is! Good guess. Jodie took the classic recipe and changed out the beef with 1/3 ground pork, 1/3 ground turkey and 1/3 ground veal. Then the peppers were converted to carrots and the beef gravy was switched to a mushroom gravy. Oh yes that is a strip of bacon as she put strips of bacon on top for flavor. See below for what a whole one looks like. Served with mashed potatoes and a delightful Barbaresco and well, it is amazing. Mind you the wine was not the first choice as the first choice had gone bad, but that is for another posting.

You think we were done? Not quite yet. Tsillan returned with a Syrah blend to go with the beef stroganoff. It was just delicious. Tell me we are done, please tell me it is so! But no. One more and it is dessert.

Here we see Rob, Jodie, Matt and Karen. They were all enjoying the dinner, but you can see they are slowing down. Comfort food was making us all think one thing, is it nap time?

The final course of the evening is a chocolate cake, but not just any cake. It is a Dobash Chocolate cake that is one that uses egg whites in the cake while the frosting uses granulated sugar along with corn starch and is cooked. Very Hawaiian and lighter than you would expect. Jodie made a great pairing with a Zinfandel. Totally yum and oh what a meal it was. This was the first time we had a "type" of theme. Our first two used foods to tie through. Bacon and apple were the first two dinner themes. Interesting on how we weave things together.

And so goes our third vintner's dinner. Next up it appears we are going to have an Asian theme. Should be interesting. But now I get to look forward to a couple of getaway days per doctor's orders both involving water. Stay tuned.

Mick & Glo's

Glo (yes she was a real person) is no longer with us, but her name lives on in this funky diner on Capitol Hill. I love breakfast, so this is a place on my top 10 list. Their eggs Benedict is my favorite breakfast in the city. It's like they have a magician who poaches their eggs... They always come out perfect. Don't believe me, look below.Today is Mick's 47th birthday and so he got to pick where we went. I have to tell you the place seats like 38 people and we are always there before 8AM. If you do score one of the few small tables, the menu has great breakfasts for reasonable prices. I LOVE their various Egg Benedict variations, including the salmon one and the bacon one. Yum. Oh and the hash browns are the best in the city!

Yes, the place is small, noisy and not much room to move. But seriously, how many places do you know that has a grown man driving up from Long Beach, WA just for their Eggs Florentine? My sister loves the place, heck, I don't know anyone I have taken that does not love it. The only thing I don't like is having to wait for a long time for a table. Thankfully, I am an early riser!

New Obsession

So I have to admit something to all of you. I have been sucked into a show on TLC that is just too funny. I started out just catching an episode on a Sunday. Now, I am hooked and have been known to sit and watch 4 episodes in a row. Say Yes to the Dress reveals the inner workings of the world's premier bridal salon, Kleinfeld Bridal. Part fashion show, part bridal story, part family therapy, the series uncovers the hurdles the staff faces to make each bride completely satisfied. .Of course it is set in New York City and there is a cast of characters who you just get to know and love. Randi is like the fab fag who just waltzes in and does his stuff. Catch it sometime if you want a good laugh. Who knew a wedding dress could be such a huge deal? Gotta love the older Russian woman who runs the alterations department and all the ladies who help the customers. I think the thing that gets me laughing most is when they always ask - "So is this the dress?" When the bride to be says yes there is this slap clapping that happens which is just so back to childhood. Too funny!

State of the Union

Ah democracy! Each year the President goes to the Capital and addresses both houses of congress plus the Supreme Court and lots of Department Heads and invited guests. This year it was a speech that was different and yet rose above the fray. My sister was mentioned ala teachers. I watched and then took in "Glee" and "Big Bang Theory" so off to bed I go. Glutton for politics and humor. Or are they one in the same?

I've Been "Gleed"

This show has just totally hooked the nation and is becoming a water cooler topic on a weekly basis. I know it is happening at my office more and more. Yes, I have caught myself watching an episode here and there. Who would not. Then the Golden Globes gave three statues to the show and actors. And well, I was shopping on Amazon Fresh yesterday and went and bought the First Season. Funny, it had showed up in my shopping cart a month or so ago in error, but I deleted it. This time I went out of my way to include it.

I really enjoy the quirky shows. Does anyone remember "Book of Daniel" which was short lived on NBC but boy did it make me laugh. Another show that I loved and miss is "Wonderfalls." This was a show set at Niagara Falls in a gift shop where a shop girl solves interesting twists via souvenirs that come alive only to her. No, I am not on drugs or drinking, it really was a series. Oh and if you would like to watch either of these short lived series or the 1st full season of "Glee" just ask, I would be happy to loan them to you.