Bourbon BBQ Beef Brisket Sliders, Brussels Sprout Salad & Baked Mac 'n Cheese - Remixed with some Broccoli Cauliflower Basted with Cheese:  Kim & AJ

Kim and AJ brought back a beloved one, built before by Katie & Denis.  Based on the a-bundance of cheese, dairy-free baked mac 'n cheese was believed to be an un-bearable burden beyond reach.  But, low and behold Kim & AJ won the battle!

The table was built beautifully, bearing resemble to a certain body part balanced at the base by two big b****s...

Recipes:

Chicken Alfredo on Black Squid-Ink Noodles with Mozzarella Balsamic Salad:  Ryan & MJ

Ryan & MJ took the black and white challenge to a whole new level by finding black squid-ink noodles at Roma Imports.  I mean seriously - black noodles??!







They paired these with an amazing white alfredo sauce and barbecue chicken complete with black grill marks.  On the side they served white mozzarella with black balsamic drizzle with a few hidden red tomatoes :)  The table was set all in black and white with alternating black and white plates.

Shown here in color to get the full effect of the black noodles, white alfredo and grilled chicken.

Recipe:

Black and White Truffles:  Heather & Eric

Heather & Eric spoiled us with an incredible assortment of black and white truffles.  I am pretty sure I tried one of each :)

They included ______, Oreo truffles, and vegan truffles for Kim (and the rest of us enjoyed them too!).


Recipes:

Oreo Truffles:
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/easy-oreo-truffles-95085.aspx

Makes 48

36 Oreo cookies, finely crushed, divided
1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese, softened
4 pkg (4 oz each) semi-sweet chocolate, broken into pieces and melted

Reserve 1/4 cup cookie crumbs.  Mix cream cheese and remaining cookie crumbs until blended; shape into 48 (1-inch) balls.  Freeze 10 minutes.

Cover rimmed baking sheet with waxed paper.  Dip cream cheese balls into melted chocolate.  Place on prepared baking sheet.  Sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs.

Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.

Vegan Truffles:
http://www.food.com/recipe/vegan-truffles-33995

Makes 50

3/4 cup raw cashews
3/4 cup cold water
1 lb bittersweet chocolate
cocoa powder

Put cashews and cold water in a blender and blend at high speed for 1-2 minutes.  Scrape the sides down and blend again until the mixture is the consistency of heavy cream.

Meanwhile, in a double boiler heat the chocolate until it's all melted.  Cool the chocolate until it's comfortable to work with and fold in the cashew cream (making sure not to stir too fast or you'll create bubbles).

Cool in the fridge for 2 hours to set.

Take out a small ball, roll in cocoa powder and store in fridge/freezer.  Repeat until done.

S'mores Cocktails:  Ryan & MJ

What better way to start a night of camping than with a mixture of s'mores and alcohol!  Ryan and MJ made a beautifully crafted s'mores cocktail complete with Nutella and a graham cracker rim and marshmallow garnish!

The marshmallow vodka was also great straight from the bottle!

Ryan & MJ also brought a cooler full of camping beers for us to choose from!  Just like the real deal :)

Recipe:

Chili with Cornbread:  Heather & Eric

After our pizza nachos and s'mores cocktails, the rain had stopped and we headed down with our camping chairs to sit by the campfire for a bit.  It was a beautiful winter evening in Arizona!

As it started getting dark we headed back up to the house to fill our bellies with Heather and Eric's amazing chili and cornbread.

While preparing our meals, Jason discovered something never seen before - sour cream in a squeeze tube!  Mind blown!

Recipe:

Apple Cobbler:  Ryan & MJ

For dessert, Ryan & MJ made a delicious apple cobbler with an added touch of creativity - they placed a blueberry layer on top of the cobbler to serve as a layer of water over the apples through which you must bob :)  Served with vanilla ice cream and a caramel sauce this dessert did not disappoint!

Recipe:

Mascarpone & Dark Chocolate Cream in White Chocolate Cups Plus a Surprise Visit!:  Heather & Eric

We finished off our evening with a beautifully crafted Italian dessert masterpiece - Mascarpone and Dark Chocolate Cream in White Chocolate Cups - made by Heather and Eric.  In the words of the Mafia, "these were f***ing beautiful!"

We also got a surprise visit from Tony who had some bad luck and was found "swimming with the fishies".

The night finished with some awesome Mafia impersonations done by the gang :)

Recipes:

Quidditch Pie & Butterbeer Biscuits:  Ryan & MJ

After our first day of classes, we decided to get outside and have some fun playing our favorite game - Quidditch!  Ryan & MJ made us Quidditch Pie which was a magical version of Sheppard's Pie and was great fuel for riding our brooms around the field!

Recipe:
Ask Ryan & MJ :)

Butterbeer Ice Cream:  Jesse & Rachel

After our Quidditch match we headed straight to the Leaky Cauldron to indulge in some delicious Butterbeer ice cream!  We were a bit frightened by the dark mark tattoo we saw on the witch serving us, but decided the ice cream was worth the risk.  Luckily, there was no sightings of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and we were able to enjoy our Butterbeer ice cream to the last bite!

We closed the night in by enjoying our magial beers and playing several rounds of Exploding Kittens!







Recipe
Ask Jesse & Rachel :)

Waffle Quesadillas and Salsa:  Katie & Denis

Katie & Denis got creative with what they could put into a waffle maker - I never knew that waffle makers could crate a perfect quesadilla!  Paired with a delicious salsa and sour cream, these were a definite crowd pleaser, so much so that we forgot to take a picture until we had all been munching on them for a while!

Recipe:
Ask Denis :)

Shrimp Cocktail:  Ryan & MJ

Who's the fanciest appetizer of them all?  Shrimp cocktail!  Served chilled with sliced lemon and cocktail sauce, this is a true display of elegance!

Plus, we finally got to sneak some seafood into our Culinary Couples dinners - sorry Denis! 

Recipe:
Ask Ryan & MJ :)

Christmas Tree Meatloaf, Snowy Mashed Potatoes, and Asparagus Wreaths:  Ryan & MJ

The main dish was quite a winter wonderland.... Meatloaf Christmas Trees atop a pile of fresh snow. This was served with asparagus wrapped in a scallion bow - quite the presentation! 

Recipe:
Ask Ryan & MJ

Deluxe Bacon Burgers & Macaroni Salad:  Ryan & MJ

What's a better summer meal than a barbequed burger loaded with all your favorite toppings?  A bacon barbequed burger of course!!!  These beauties were grilled to perfection and topped with tomatoe, avocado, lettuce, and onion, plus ketchup and your choice of regular mustard, spicy jalapeno mustard, or insane habenero mustard.

To go with them, Ryan & MJ made a delicious macaroni salad - good thing we had plenty of this to cool our mouths off from the fiery mustard! 

Recipe:
Ask Ryan & MJ :)

Mango Margaritas:  Ryan & MJ

Ryan and MJ brought an aMazing mix for mango margaritas!  According to Jason, these were "Mmmmmmmmm"!



After several rounds of margaritas we moved on to the melange of Mercenary, Monkshine, Mission and more!

The main mishap was that you had to place your mano in the minus-zero water to grab your selection.... thankfully Heather was alive and that was the only reason for her mindblowing scream :)

Sauerbraten, Creamed Spinach, and German Potatoes:  MJ & Ryan

The Germans definitely have their food figured out - this dinner was well worth the three day marinating wait that resulted in Saurbraten melting in your mouth! 

If only Eric wouldn't have stolen all the vegetables out of the gravy....  Oh wait, I had 5 carrots too ;)

 

 The cooks in the kitchen!

Recipes:

Sauerbraten:
Ask MJ & Ryan :)

Creamed Spinach: 
http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/german-style-creamed-spinach.html

German Potatoes: 
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/german-style-fried-potatoes