{"id":60994,"date":"2022-03-12T15:23:11","date_gmt":"2022-03-12T22:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/?p=60994"},"modified":"2022-03-15T07:18:30","modified_gmt":"2022-03-15T14:18:30","slug":"i-hears-the-dinner-bell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/?p=60994","title":{"rendered":"I Hears The Dinner Bell!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fact: The\u00a0largest silver-service dinner party\u00a0took place on\u00a017 July 2008, when\u00a016,206 people\u00a0were guests at the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Centennial Celebration Dinner hosted by the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (USA) in Washington DC, USA.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We are planning dinner tonight, but it’s for a small group of six. We got up early and began preparations. When we work in the kitchen for a long period of time, we roll out the television from the exercise room and catch an old movie from TCM.<\/p>\n

The three unwritten rules of life:
\n1.
\n2.
\n3.<\/p>\n

We put everything we will need on the island, so it is just a reach away. Martha Stewart would be proud.<\/p>\n

We always work in the kitchen together. We are taste buds!<\/p>\n

The funny thing about a mute Thai chef is that he can wok the wok, but he can never talk the talk!<\/p>\n

\"\"

We really do make a mess when we cook, but it’s still fun.<\/p><\/div>\n

First things first; dessert!\u00a0 I used our new mandoline for the first time and made slicing the apples a snap! While slicing and trying not to cut my fingernails simultaneously,\u00a0 a thought came to my head, usually not a good sign. I wondered if Noah liked apples, then I realized he preferred pears.<\/p>\n

We needed brown sugar, but ours was hard as a rock.\u00a0 After using a screwdriver and a hammer to break it apart, we could finally use it. I almost went for the substitute.<\/p>\n

To make your own light brown sugar, mix 1 cup (200 grams) of granulated white sugar with one tablespoon (15 ml) of molasses. If you need dark brown sugar, increase the molasses to 2 tablespoons (30 ml).<\/p>\n

\"\"

Oh, the apple tart is ready to go into the oven.<\/p><\/div>\n

I love it when a recipe comes together!<\/p>\n

\"\"

A big AMEN to that!<\/p><\/div>\n

Robin came in around 3:30 PM, if you’re fighting the traffic on the 91 freeway. She was ready for a drink. We had some strawberry tequila in the fridge, so I did some ice in the blender, and, voila, a drink was ready.\u00a0 Robin is always fun to have visit us; she pitches right in and livens up the conversation!<\/p>\n

\"\"

Robin joined us about 3:30 PM, so it was time someplace to have a drink.<\/p><\/div>\n

Nothing like drinking with your daughter. That way, when I drool, she will not notice!\u00a0 As soon as Robin arrived, we called Colleen to set up plans for Colleen’s visit this next week.\u00a0 We are excited to have her stay with us.<\/p>\n

\"\"

I was in my cooking costume.<\/p><\/div>\n

Mary made deviled eggs, always a favorite. As Mary made her creations, she kept mumbling to herself; I caught a few of the random mumbles:<\/p>\n

Who tells the best eggs puns?\u00a0 The\u00a0comedy-hens<\/strong>!<\/h3>\n

Where do Eskimos keep their eggs?\u00a0Inside an\u00a0egg-loo<\/strong>!<\/h3>\n

Why did the egg cross the road?\u00a0 To get to the\u00a0Shell station<\/strong>!<\/h3>\n

What do you call a scared egg?\u00a0Terri-fried<\/strong>!<\/h3>\n

Why was the egg late for school?\u00a0He didn’t study for the\u00a0eggs-am<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I made her promise NOT to repeat those at the dinner table!<\/p>\n

Irene popped in at 5:30 PM after fighting the freeway traffic, and she was ready for her steak.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Irene came around 530 after fighting traffic on the 22 freeway.<\/p><\/div>\n

When I got the fillet mignons, they were probably 1 1\/2 inches thick, so I was worried about how to cook them.\u00a0 Duh, Chuck has a black belt in BBQ’ing, so I asked him to do the honors.\u00a0 We got the steaks marinated in BBQ sauce, soy sauce, blue cheese?, and Worcestershire sauce with no effort.\u00a0 The steaks and ingredients went into a one-gallon bag and then left to sit next to the BBQ until they reached room temperature.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Chuck did the honors with the fillet mignons.<\/p><\/div>\n

He was ready to cook the steaks in minutes.\u00a0 My worries disappeared; we are in good hands with Chuck at the helm!<\/p>\n

Chuck did say, “The wooky steaks for a surprise dinner are quite chewy!”<\/p>\n

Chuck did ask how we wanted our steaks, we all told him, “On a plate.”<\/p>\n

\"\"

This will be his last day to cook in California because they leave on Monday for the adventure.<\/p><\/div>\n

The ladies awaited the arrival of the guest of honor.<\/p>\n

\"\"

While the steaks were cooking, we sat around and talked.<\/p><\/div>\n

Presenting [drum roll in the background] Mr. Steak, cooked to perfection. Considered the most tender cut of all, a\u00a0filet mignon<\/b> is taken from the center of the beef tenderloin. It is lean yet delivers a melt-in-your-mouth, buttery succulence. Perfect for grilling, pan-searing, and broiling in the oven.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Did I say steaks?<\/p><\/div>\n

Everything was just perfect; the potatoes were excellent, and the salad was out of this world. As I always say, “life is good”\u00a0 \u00a0I did mention that if Cinderella were given the task of cooking and not cleaning, she would have been named Mozzarella!<\/p>\n

\"\"

Dinner was just marvelous; good food, good company wonderful friends.<\/p><\/div>\n

We are excited for Lisa and Chuck; what an adventure moving 3,000 miles away and starting fresh!<\/p>\n

\"\"

And Irene got her steak just like she likes it, still moving.<\/p><\/div>\n

Chuck and Lisa departed, heading for some additional packing for their trip that starts Monday morning.\u00a0 Irene, Robin, and us sat and talked for another half-hour.\u00a0 The kitchen clean-up was fast, everything went into the dishwasher, and by 9:00 PM, the place was spotless!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fact: The\u00a0largest silver-service dinner party\u00a0took place on\u00a017 July 2008, when\u00a016,206 people\u00a0were guests at the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Centennial Celebration Dinner hosted by the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (USA) in Washington DC, USA. We are planning dinner tonight, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,24,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-family","category-food-and-wine","category-friends"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=60994"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61065,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60994\/revisions\/61065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=60994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=60994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=60994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}