Thanks for those of you who voted. It gives me a better idea of which direction I should be heading. I truly appreciate your comments. Have a wonderful fall weekend.
There’s a saying that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. I never question this saying. I was raised on that same motto, minus the man bit, you all know I’m not a man, right? Does anyone care for seconds, is asked so many times during my family’s meal we could easily go months without saying I love you. It’s not that we don’t love one another. You see, where I come from, food is love. And the more we make, eat and share, the more we love. This past Sunday was Jevan’s birthday. And what better way to show my love than to cook for him and our friends some of his favorite food. I know his name comes up regularly and I rarely talk specifics. Mainly because we are both such private people. That, and I seriously doubt you would find our day to day lives very interesting. But birthdays are worthy. At least the food is.
This year we had a casual celebration at the house, full of friends, kids and pups. And the weather couldn’t have been more cooperative. Normally when we have such a large group of people over, I usually fret and end up in the kitchen cooking and prepping and being completely anti-social. That or I’m trying to work around 20 people standing in the kitchen. Which is fine because our house isn’t that big and standing near the food and drink is never a bad place. Plus I get to hang out with everyone. The thing is, I happen to be horrible at talking/listening and doing anything else kitchen related at the same time. I wish I could be one of those people, I envy them. Instead I burn something or completely glaze over when someone is talking to me because I’m thinking about the cheese that needs to be grated. Horrible I know, I’m really, really trying to be better about this.
So this year, I was determined to have good, easy, make-it-yourself type food and cocktails and be able to enjoy the festivities as much as everyone else. The trick, I’ve found, is to find food that’s just as good if you make it the day before. This time, I made most everything on Saturday, which made for a very easy Sunday. And only involved me walking away mid conversation a couple of times to tend to something.
Here’s what we made.
Knock your socks off Margaritas, boy do these do the trick.
Micheladas
And a street food inspired taco bar full of:
Roasted Tomatillo Salsa – compliments of the birthday man.
Carne Asada – I used flap steak instead of skirt. It was much less expensive and just as good. Jevan grilled this just before eating.
Shredded Pork with Roasted Tomatoes and Chipotle Chiles
Pinto Beans with Chiles
Guatemalan Red-Cabbage Relish – the recipe says it’s enough for 12. Um, more like 30. It wasn’t a big hit at our house but definitely looks pretty and I enjoyed it. Also know that I have a thing for anything that is remotely pickled. I omitted the beet juice, orange zest, allspice and used ground cumin instead of cumin seeds. The recipe has a ton of ingredients and the goal was simplicity.
And of course all the extras: corn and flour tortillas, grilled veggies, queso crema, avocado, cilantro and hot sauce. Please don’t forget the hot sauce.
Last but not least, I thought I would share a poem Jevan’s Pops wrote for his birthday. Jevan’s from Portland and I’m from East Tennessee. We both have quite a fondness for rain. I think it’s perfect for his birthday.
Sunday, Early
(for Jevan on his day)
mist coats the streets of our town
sweetens and softens this easy
slow morning
pleases like a sweater of finest
cashmere or cane of Cuban
sugar.
[Photos: Carne Asada - Tom Schierlitz, Michelada - Romulo Yanes]
Mom whipping up a few dozen pfeffernüsse
