We went to Hawaii and all I took was three lousy photos of a lunch. The lunch was actually pretty YUMMY, mostly because we had just come from a perfect day at Hanauma Bay, a great beach on the island's east coast. At the Kona Brewing Co., a local microbrewery and restaurant, we sat on the patio and gazed across a marina toward a bunch of mountains. Ahhh! The kids shared a pizza, The Husband ordered the French dip, and I got the hamburger, which came on a purple bun! From top to bottom: my burger, the house pale ale, and a slice of Lilikoi cheesecake. Lilikoi is tart; it's similar to passion fruit. 
Proof that The Husband is a certified cooking loon, he made these lovely and delicious oven-baked pork chops, the recipe for which he encountered in Cook's Illustrated magazine while perusing our stack of post-vacation mail. They were as YUMMY as they look and not exactly a snap to make. The chops are brined (Me: "Are the pork chops brined?" Him: "Of course.") and crumb coated (Me: "Are the crumbs panko or did you make them yourself?" Him: "I made them myself."). All this effort just two days before our annual holiday extravaganza, featuring the best and original cookie contest! 
THE WINNER: There's only half of one left not surprising since "H" was the winning cookie. This cookie, a Polish kolachy, not only earned the most points but also attracted the most votes. Here's how the scoring works: Guests at the party may sample as many or as few cookies as they like. Then, via secret ballot, they vote for their top three cookies. A first place vote earns a cookie three points; second place gets you two points; and third place just one point. Then, we add up the points and, voila, an award-winning cookie is born. No lobbying is allowed and the entries are anonymous, identified only by letter. The Husband is the keeper of the master list of entries and also tallies the votes. The H cookies were made by Alyssa, the mom of a girl who went to Isabella's preschool. Amazing results for a first timer! They also contained no eggs or sugar. 
SECOND PLACE: Cassie's cookie, "B," missed tying for first by just one point! Just one point! It looks like a nut cookie, sort of like a Mexican wedding cookie without the powdered sugar on the outside. THIRD PLACE: "C" took third and were submitted by Jane, a coworker of The Husband's. They were green-sugar sprinkled sugar-cookie wreaths with big red bows drawn on the top in icing. A treat for the eyes and the palate!
HONORABLE MENTION FOR MOST OVER-THE-TOP: This is not an official award and, basically, I'm making it up as I type. But I wanted to post this photo of my friend Carol's cookie, a late entry that failed to place but represented a lot of forethought and effort. Not only are there hand colored marshmallows affixed in a pinwheel pattern, but the cookies themselves have a nugget of chocolate embedded within. This cookie is crazy! And, it must be said, YUMMY. Happy New Year everyone! Yummy or Yucky will roar back to life in 2008.
1 comment:
Finally!! I was hopeful The Husband's declarations of death would roust you to action. Good work, T.H. And happy b'day, Vanessa. See you at the pool.
Post a Comment