Redemption (Year Seven: Volume 1; April, 2016)

"Redemption is not perfection. The redeemed must realize their imperfections." ~John Piper

Redemption was perfectly scrumptious! I hosted April's club; and our chefs were: me, Jen B., Julie, Jen G., and. Our past flops officially redeemed, we all enjoyed our meal- maybe more than most!

Redemption Menu:

Gnocchi in Lemon Sage Butter (Hannah)

Chicken Wontons (Jen B.)

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers Soup (Julie)

Strawberry AND Blackberry Sangrias (Jen G.)

Rice Pudding (Liz)*

We enjoyed our dessert with Salted Caramel Lattés.


*Waiting for recipe

Menu Madness (Year Six: Volume 12; March, 2016)

"I don't want to hear the specials. If they're so special, put 'em on the menu." ~Jerry Seinfeld

Menu Madness was maddeningly delicious! Julie hosted March's dinner; and our chefs were: me, Jen G., Aurora, Jen B., Michele, Julie, Karen (and Abby!), and Liz. The meal was so good we were simply mad with excite-menu-ent!

Menu Madness Menu:

Chili's Queso Dip (Karen)

Jack in the Box's Tacos (Jen G.)

Moosewood's Vegetarian Chili (moi)

Pazzo's Rigatoni with Broccoli and Sausage (Julie)

Town's Sesame Seared Tuna with Lime Ginger Vinaigrette (Liz)

Outback Steakhouse's Wedge Salad (Jen B.)

Alana's Café's All Fools Chocolate Cake (Michele)

Creampuff Cake (Aurora)*

We enjoyed our dinner with wine.


*Waiting for recipe

Perfect Pair (Year Six: Volume 11; February, 2016)

"Wine pairing is easy. Me + a bottle of wine = the perfect pair" ~ glammawine.com via Pinterest

Our Perfect Pair dinner was ins-pair-ational! Jen B. hosted February's club; and our chefs were: Michele - joined, yay!; Liz; Jen G.; me; Aurora - joined, hurray!; Julie; Jen B.; Dina, Karen (and Abby!), Sheri, and Anne. We enjoyed each dish with a perfectly paired taste of wine!

Perfect Pair Menu:

Bloody Mary Shrimp Dip, with a rosé (Aurora)

Prosciutto Wrapped Cantaloupe, with a Riesling (Sheri)

Brussels Sprouts Pizza with Balsamic Red Onions, with a rosé (Jen B.)

Bacon Wrapped Blue Cheese Stuffed Dates (Dina)

Caramelized Onion Tart with Gorgonzola and Brie (Dina)

Burrata with White Wine and Garlic Sautéed Tomatoes, with a Pinot grigio (Jen G.)

Chicken Piperade with Pilau Rice... aka: "A Pot of Loveliness", with a Bordeaux (moi)

Sautéed Broccoli with Mint, Basil & Pine Nuts (Karen)

Cucumber Avocado Caprese Salad (Michele)

Irish Cream-Topped Brownies, with Baileys spiked latte (Anne)

Mini Lemon Curd Cheesecakes, with a moscato (Julie)

Coffee Pots de Créme, with Kahlua spiked latte (Liz)*

*Waiting for recipe

A Time to Shred (Year Six: Volume 10; January, 2015)

"It's never about the screwup - it's always about the recovery. That's the thing about it... if it comes out a little rare, you call it carpaccio. If it comes out a little overcooked, you shred it up and put it on a sandwich." ~Tyler Florence

A Time to Shred was a mostly healthy, and fully delicious feast! Liz hosted January's dinner; and our hosts were: me, Julie, Jen B., Jen G., Anne, and Liz. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal, with barely a shred of overindulgence guilt. ;)

A Time to Shred Menu:

Cauliflower-crust Pizzas (Jen G.)

Blackened Fish Tacos with Avocado-Cilantro Sauce (Liz)

Shredded Brussels Sprouts Salad with Fried Goat Cheese (Jen B.)

Sautéed Cabbage with a Kick (me)

Grandmother's Oatmeal Coconut Cookies (Anne)

Coconut Cream Pie Dip (Julie)

We enjoyed our dinner with wine.

Thanksgiving Leftovers (Year Six: Volume 9; December, 2015)

"Leftovers in their less visible form are called memories. Stored in the refrigerator of the mind and the cupboard of the heart." ~Thomas Fuller

Thanksgiving Leftovers was truly a feast! Liz and Jen B. co-hosted December's club; and our chefs were: Julie, Liz, Karen (and Abby!), Jeannie (and Kitsy!) joined- yay!!, Jen G., and I., and Sheri and Jen B. also joined. The meal made us all quite thankful.

Thanksgiving Leftovers Menu:

Roasted Balsamic Cranberry and Brie Crostini (Karen)

Roasted Veggie Soup with Cornbread Croutons (Julie)

Turkey Cranchiladas (Liz)

Marshmallow Yams (Jeannie)*

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Squash with Dried Cranberries and Dijon Vinaigrette (Jen G.)

Stuffin' Muffins (moi)

We enjoyed our dinner with salad and wine.


After eating, we also had our annual kitchen gadget gift exchange, which was as fun as ever!

*Waiting for recipe

Indian (Year Six: Volume 8; November, 2015)

"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems." ~Mahatma Gandhi

Indian was an Indiancredible feast! Julie hosted November's dinner; and our chefs were: me, Jen G., Dina, Jen B., Karen (and Abby!), and Julie. We all enjoyed our meal so much that we left Indianspired to recreate all the dishes!

Indian Menu:

Slow Cooker Chicken Makhani, aka: Butter Chicken (Julie)

Aloo Gobi, aka: Cauliflower and Potatoes (Jen G.)

Dal Nirvana / Dal Makhani, aka: Lentils (Karen)

Veggie Curry with Raita (Dina)

Garlic Naan (me)

Mango Lassi (Jen B.)

We enjoyed our dinner with wine.

Pin Perfect (Year Six: Volume 7; October, 2015)

"Someday, we'll all find out Pinterest is a conspiracy created by a group of men who are tricking women everywhere into cooking, cleaning, and workingout." ~ Anonymous meme... found on Pinterest

Pin Perfect was Pin-sational! Jen B. hosted October's club; and our chefs were: Anne, Karen (and Abby!), Jen B., Liz (and Charlize!), Jen G., Lisa, Julie, and I- and Laura (and Will- for his very first time!) joined. ;) We all enjoyed our sPlINded meal, along with all the Pintrigue over whose boards each recipe, outfit, and or decoration came from!

Pin Perfect Menu:

Cabbage and Chorizo Soup
(moi via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

Cilantro Thai Grilled Chicken
(Jen B. via Dina's "food" Pinterest board)

Lemon Herb Roasted Potatoes
(Julie via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

Caprese Mac and Cheese
(Karen via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

Strawberry Vodka Sparklers
(Liz via Jen G.'s "Drink Recipes" Pinterest board)

Pumpkin Nutella Cookie Bars
(Anne via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix Cookies
(Lisa via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

Pumpkin Spice M&M Sugar Cookies
(Lisa via Jen B.'s "Yummy in My Tummy" Pinterest board)

We enjoyed our dinner with Kale Brussels Sprouts Salad (which has become a Recipe Club classic! as this was its third appearance ;) and a bottle of PINot grigio Laura brought, and our dessert with lattes.

Jen B. found decorating ideas from each of our Pinterest boards - and laid a beautiful table, as always!

Tailgating (Year Six: Volume 6; September, 2015)

"If you look at tailgating, everyone does it. It's for everyone who likes to cook outdoors. It could be a 4th of July picnic." ~ John Madden

Tailgating was turf-riffic! Dina hosted September's dinner; and our chefs were Dina, me, JenB. Liz (and Charlize!), Karen (and Abby!), and Julie. We all enjoyed our sportacular meal!

Tailgating Menu:

Fried Sage Appetizer (Julie)

Sausage Hors d'Ouevres (Jen B.)

Charleston Cheese Dip (Anne)

BBQ Ribs (Dina)

Veggie Coleslaw (Jen G.)

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites (Liz)

Veggie Loaded Baked Potato Skins (Karen)

Spaghetti Mini-Muffins (me)

We enjoyed our dinner with beer, wine, soda, and alcoholic root beer- which is apparently all the rage now.

Mini (Year Six: Volume 5; August, 2015)

"Don't be a time manager, be a priority manager. Cut your major goals into bite-sized pieces. Each small priority or requirement on the way to ultimate goal become a mini goal in itself." ~Denis Waitley

Mini was an enormous hit! Karen (and Abby!) hosted August's Club; and our chefs were: Dina, me, Jen B., Liz and Charlize, Karen and Abby, and Julie. We hugely enjoyed our bite-sized meal!

Mini Menu:

Mini Chicken and Waffles with Pepper Jelly Syrup (Jen B.)
Mini Beef Wellingtons (Karen)
Lasagna Cups (Julie)
Quinoa Jalapeño Poppers (Dina)
Pea Soup Shooters (moi)
Strawberry Rhubarb Tartlets (Liz)

We enjoyed our dinner with wine (in glasses decorated by Johnny ;), and our dessert with coffee.

Oldies (Year Six: Volume 4; July, 2015)

"Say goodbye to the oldies but goodies

Because the good ole days weren't always good

and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems"

~Billy Joel

Our Oldies dinner sure was goodie! Karen (and Abby!) hosted July's dinner; and our chefs were: me, Julie, Liz and Charlize, Jen B. Karen and Abby, and Jen G. The meal was golden. ;)

Oldies Menu:

Moscow Mules (Liz)

Date & Blue Cheese Ball (Jen G.)
Chex Mix (Jen B.)
City Chicken (Karen)
Refrigerator Pickles (yours truly)
Apple Sauce Cake (Julie)*

We enjoyed our dinner with couscous and wine, and our dessert with coffee and apertifs; and we celebrated Karen's birthday!


*Waiting for recipe